[Trade] Dangerous Jungle

It was nearly midday, and the gardens of Atlantis were teeming with all manner of dinosaurs. This time, however, the Atlanteans were not working at all – the oviraptors, even those standing beside the numerous flowerbeds, did not deign to cast even a cursory glance at the growing plants, and the many euoplocephalus in the area, some still in full armour, paid little attention to those passing by. Only a few royal guards were still standing guard, their stern faces flanking the crowd as they kept it in check with short, sharp commands. Despite their efforts, the gardens were in a state of considerable chaos and noise.

That was precisely why Slug, Gaol and Marble were watching the spectacle from a safe distance – they were juveniles now, but still could not match the size of Atlantis’s other inhabitants. Staying right in the middle of the gardens would risk them being trampled by some inattentive adult, too preoccupied with the day’s events.

All this chaos stemmed from a single, simple announcement that had reached the curious ears of the local inhabitants the day before – today, at high noon, the Queen, accompanied by her highest officials, would come out to her people to make an announcement. As usual, Queen Rhys was also to listen to the requests and ideas of her subjects. Such meetings did not happen often, so it was no wonder that Atlanteans of every species were so excited by the prospect.

The juveniles couldn’t care less about meeting the queen for the first time. To them, Rhys seemed more like a mythical, not entirely tangible figure, a heroine from the fairy tales their parents used to tell them before it was time to say ‘goodnight’. It was hard to tell whether any of the youngsters were even aware that the queen actually existed and truly ruled the entire community of this vast, artificial ecosystem – none of them were particularly interested in her.

All the commotion surrounding this event, however, played right into their hands. None of the three, despite their advancing age, had lost the thirst for adventure that drove them. Nor had any of them grown much wiser in the meantime, so they sought out every opportunity, however small, to slip away from their parents’ tedious supervision. And what better opportunity could there be than this?

Slug, who had been sitting on a rather large boulder marking the boundary of the gardens, stood up. Seeing this, Gaol moved a little closer to the rock formation, allowing the small female to jump from the boulder onto his back, and only then, from a safer distance, down to the ground. This time, probably for the first time in their short lives, they didn’t have to try to keep quiet – the three juveniles, wandering somewhere on the edge of the gardens, didn’t catch anyone’s eye at all that day. As long as they were moving away from the heart of Atlantis, and not towards it, they could do practically anything.

Anyone who knew the three of them even a little knew where they would go. Naturally, their choice fell on the jungle – they didn’t even need to consult one another to agree on this spot. In their view, it was one of the very few locations in Atlantis that deserved any attention at all. The other was the vast royal palace, full of intriguing nooks and enigmatic secrets – a building which, though its days of glory were long past, still effectively caught the eye of all those thirsty for adventure. The juveniles knew, however, that they had no chance of getting past the royal walls. The palace was guarded by royal guards at all hours of the day and night, and the penalties for attempting to sneak inside were exceptionally severe. So they had to settle for their original idea.

Little Slug led the way, guiding the group. Gaol and Marble followed her, shoulder to shoulder, like trained, skillful bodyguards – they were serious about wanting to become guards in the future.

The path to the proper jungle (and not just the few small, wooded areas on its outskirts) was by no means short. The three determined, cheerful juveniles had quite a distance to cover, but that didn’t bother them in the slightest. Firstly, each of them really enjoyed walks in that direction (they always managed to discover something interesting on them!), and secondly – today’s expedition had been exceptionally pleasant. This was, of course, due to the fact that for the first time in their lives, they didn’t have to hide their intentions. Instead of moving slowly and laboriously from one concealed spot to another, in desperate efforts not to be spotted by someone patrolling the area or working nearby, this time they could move about completely freely – their midday meeting with Queen Rhys had done them a huge favour. What was usually a tedious and exhausting journey was covered in a refreshingly short time this time.

As soon as they were surrounded by towering trees with trunks so thick they could serve as the walls of a house, the three adventure-seeking juveniles felt much better. Despite their young age and lack of experience, they were mentally connected to the jungle, and its proximity always gave them comfort. This was because none of them knew much about the dangers that awaited them there.

Once they found themselves in this wild, green area, they had no real idea which direction exactly they should head in. This was, in fact, nothing new. They never planned their excursions in detail, so they chose the path that seemed most appealing to them at the time, for reasons known only to themselves. This time, they settled on a barely visible path, hidden in a dense tangle of vegetation – its enigmatic appearance seemed to promise the discovery of something interesting.

The path was so narrow that the juveniles, despite their small size, were forced to walk in single file. Slug, of course, led the way (had she taken a place somewhere at the back or between the two iguanodons, she would surely have been accidentally trampled or would have got lost, unable to keep up with the group’s pace); right behind her, as usual with a protective zeal, walked Gaol, and bringing up the rear, slightly larger and taller than his predecessor, was Marble.

The young herbivores scanned their surroundings carefully, though they found it hard to concentrate – the multitude of strange shapes, colours and smells that assaulted their overstimulated senses like a persistent swarm of bees effectively prevented them from focusing on any one thing. This distraction did not work in their favour. Despite having been in this place for a good half an hour, none of them had noticed that this part of the jungle looked different from the stretches of forest they were familiar with.


Of course, the entire area, regardless of the specific section under consideration, was densely overgrown with diverse vegetation comprising countless species. Here, however, though it seemed impossible, the plants grew even more densely, almost completely blocking the light from reaching the lowest layers of the forest. The longer the juveniles wandered, the narrower the path they had chosen became – the leaves sprouting from the stems on either side no longer merely formed a solid wall restricting their movements, but even constantly lashed at their sides, leaving an unpleasant sensation on the juveniles’ bodies. Had any of them known anything about botany, they would also have realised that the range of species growing there had changed as well. The vegetation typical of tropical rainforests, covering most of any jungle (not just the one planted beneath Atlantis’s glass ceiling), had slowly given way to far stranger, unnatural species, artificially created in Morpheus’s laboratory.

They only realised this when some long, flexible object fell with a thud onto Marble’s back. The male jumped up with a loud squeal, terrified by this sudden attack. Gaol, initially alarmed, burst out laughing the moment he turned towards his friend – on the ground, beneath the iguanodon’s feet, lay a dark green vine. Marble, who in the meantime had also managed to work out what had actually happened, laughed too.

Their moods changed when the vine moved again.

Before any of the three unfortunate creatures could react, the devilish plant attacked once more, this time wrapping itself around Marble’s front leg. The male let out a blood-curdling roar as he tried to break free from this dangerous grip. Gaol wanted to rush to his aid, but he was too late – the vine had caught him too. The brown-and-white male was brutally grabbed by the tail and dragged backwards.

Slug was also in danger, but she managed to dodge the first blow. The petite female darted away, deftly slipping between the legs of her companions, who were fighting chaotically against their opponent.

“Quick, this way!”

The iguanodons instinctively wanted to follow the female, but this proved far more difficult than they had anticipated. The vines, though they didn’t look particularly sturdy, held them in their dangerous grip with exceptional strength. The disoriented, terrified males writhed like fish pulled from the water, practically praying that another plant wouldn’t seize them – if that happened, it would be the end of them.

Slug wasn’t so lucky with the next attack. Although she managed to dodge the blow just enough to avoid being wrapped by the vine, the green tendril cut her legs, knocking her over. The oviraptor sprang to her feet, fuelled by adrenaline. A quick glance behind her told her that her companions were in a far worse situation than she was. Unfortunately, the small female was in no position to help them.

Marble, struggling with the plant, also collapsed to the ground at one point, catching Gaol in the process. The iguanodons fell like dominoes, landing with a thud on the green foliage. Fortunately, this sudden, unexpected movement confused the dangerous plant. The males wasted no time – despite the pain stinging their battered bodies, Marble and Gaol sprang violently to their feet, and then, following Slug, began to flee.

They heard strange sounds and rustling coming from behind them, but they had no intention of looking back – any delay could cost them their lives. Despite their exhaustion, they ran tirelessly, right to the very edge of the jungle. They only slowed down when the dark greenery surrounding them had completely vanished, giving way to a vast, bright clearing. All three of them collapsed onto the grass almost immediately, utterly exhausted by this frantic escape.

Perhaps, however, they should have listened to those who told them that the jungle was a dangerous place…

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