THE BARREN ADVENTURES OF WIMBLE LORD and PIECES OF HUMANITY

The point had come to my existence when 365 seeds followed one after the other around Shelter’s door. 365 times that I had submerged to an endless night and emerged again to an endless day. By this time, the seeds, being one-quarter foot long, had left little space within the sphere of my home. I broke open the 365 seeds with Knife, ate the luscious green meat inside, and tossed the useless pits into the bare dark spots of Fruit Jungle. Within the year, Fruit Jungle had grown. At one time the fruits, stems, and vines towered ten feet above me. In two months, the forest grew fifteen more feet. During the duration of a year, the jungle had twisted, lengthened, fattened, slimmed, and rose to over a hundred feet above my head. The pitiful sight of the Open Mouth Dwelling and me at the bottom of this complicated, colorful Empire would have been astounding to any observer. The fruits themselves were six feet high, three feet around. There was the constant dread of one breaking off its stem and squashing poor Dwelling and I out of existence. How many hours had I spent staring at the juice dripping monsters? Purple plums, red apples, oranges, peaches, and blue triangular fruits shone like polished furniture apparently existing for no one but me, vegetation patiently waiting to take the one and only final plunge to Desert floor. To walk through Fruit Jungle remained impossible. It stretched around and outward for miles. Vines coiled upward from the ground, fruits blocked the only passageway, and views were obscured past the stretch of an arm. In fact, the patterns and intricate network of vines that composed the interior of Jungle were like an elaborate mathematical equation. For me to climb a mere yard inward would have meant instant confusion. Regardless, I had no ambition to penetrate it. It seemed more logical to climb upward along the inner-facing wall of Fruit Jungle. Stems and vines like tree trunks, slanting in fifty-degree angles, could easily lead me up to the top, where I could command a tremendous view of my world. And so, I began my ascent, carefully considering my footing upon the bottom stems, growing more confident as I proceeded. Periodically, I was required to climb upon one of the broad leaves. This required painfully stretching my arms out as far as possible, gripping the sides of the leaf, and then hand-jumping my way to its top. The substance of each leaf was so durable that there was little fear of tearing them. I did have trouble scaling one particular leaf, however (a diet of strictly fruits and seeds lacks the vital nutrients for strong muscles), and in the midst of my struggle, I knocked down a gigantic plum. It landed directly on Shelter like a bomb and exploded purple acid everywhere (which incidentally took me hours to clean up upon my descent). It seemed like I had to climb forever to reach the top of Fruit Jungle. But once I arrived at my destination, the view proved more breathtaking than any that I had seen before on earth. I managed to perch myself upon the loftiest point by mounting a pear that was lying on one of the higher vines. I simply walked upon it as if it were a rising escalator. I touched the sky! The yellow clouds drifted apart, fascinated at the height that this new lord had reached. “How did he grow to be so large?” I heard them ask the sky. And the sky gave the only answer it knew — mayonnaise! I wanted to fly — whoop in the light air like a feather. The valley retreated from the powerful vines, and below me, the wall was as great and high as the light was bright and endless. If only there was someone to signal to, a sign of some kind. I was standing on the perfect watchtower, but there was nothing to watch out for, not even a sunset. The climb down was easier. I slid most of the way.