Hank_o_Holic Presents:

PALEO TIME

Chapter 1 - A Mission for the Ages

It was a rather subpar day in the Candy Kingdom when Finn, Jake, & BMO decided to drop by and visit Princess Bubblegum. Of course they knew that at it was during these times that she would be doing science experiments and projects. Finn normally wasn't very interested in any of "that science stuff," but he figured he could at least be polite.

When they entered the castle, they saw Princess Bubblegum working with a tiny device that looked like a smart-phone.

"Why hello Finn & Jake..." PB smiled, before BMO cleared his throat, "...and hello to you too BMO."

BMO grinned.

"Hey PB, whatcha got there?" Finn asked, scratching his head.

"This is a time machine! I haven't figured out a name yet."

The three were clearly interested now.

"WHOA" exclaimed Jake, "I didn't know time travel was even possible! But then again... I guess anything is possible."

"Precisely! It took several weeks, but I've finally perfected it! Think about all the places I could visit... of course one of the major reasons I build this was to deal with the Earl of Lemongrab." PB rolled her eyes at the mention of his name.

"What? Is he bugging you again?" Finn asked.

"No, not really. He put in a request for the Candy Kingdom to provide him with the sweet nectar of the cycadeoid for his annual banquet this month." PB replied, "as a princess' honor, I had to agree to help."

"Doesn't sound so hard to me to find some silly old flower-stuff." Finn stated, crossing his arms with a smug expression. "Where are these... cycad-e-oids?" Pronouncing such an odd name was hard for Finn.

"That's just it. Cycadeoids have been extinct for 66 million years! I'd rather not question his food choices, that's why I'll be going back in time to extract some. It shouldn't take long." PB put the finishing touches on her machine, which finally turned on and glowed.

"OH! OH! Can we go with you?!" Finn jumped in place, clearly excited.

"No way Finn. Not to be rude, but this is a mission for scientists only. I don't want any trouble." PB began putting in the coordinates and dates.

"What?! But what if a garbage monster attacks you?!" Finn protested, "you'll need someone to protect you!"

"Yeah! And what if a pack of zombies surrounds you? You'll need the super-stretchy-Jake to help out!" Jake added.

"Time travel seem fun... I can think 4th dimensionally!" BMO threw in its two-cents.

"I won't have to worry about garbage monsters or zombies... as long I don't bother any of the local fauna, they won't bother me. My personal tranquilizer should handle even the biggest dinosaurs."

"Huh? Dinosaur? I'm not following you." Finn cocked an eyebrow.

"I've never heard of such a critter." Jake said, "have you BMO?"

"Of course... I am computer! I have all the knowledge in the world!" BMO cheered.

"I guess they're a little bit... no, a LONG while before your time. They're a race of reptilian creatures that were the dominant species many millions of years ago. In fact, they're still around today in the form of birds." PB explained, as BMO added appropriate images.

Finn & Jake were still not convinced that PB was 100% safe. From what they saw, these animals didn't look to friendly. And they've fought off some pretty nasty birds during their adventures.

"I don't know PB... I'm not really comfortable with you going back in time alone. Please let us go... I want to keep you safe." Finn blushed, but still very serious.

Princess Bubblegum sighed, defeated at her attempts to ease their worries. "Okay... since I care about you guys too... just promise me you won't get into trouble!"

Finn bowed before her, "Princess, I give you the Hero's Oath, that no harm shall come to you or anyone else on this mission."

"That's more like it." PB crossed her arms in approval.

With the final specifications in place, Princess Bubblegum pressed go. The timer was set, and spoke: "10 seconds to time jump."

"Everyone stay close to me!" PB ordered as everyone huddled.

"I sure bet Finn enjoys being close to you." Jake joked.

"Knock it off dude!" Finn blushed bright red as PB rolled her eyes.

As the countdown ended, the four were teleported through an massive portal. Colors and patterns flew past them with remarkable speed, until at last they landed in a patch of ferns.

Picking themselves up, they took in their surroundings. It was very warm, and the skies were partly cloudy. There was an abundance of ferns and horsetails, with great forests of redwoods, ginkgos, magnolias, and hazels could be seen for miles. A small stream rolled alongside the group. All around them the sounds of various insects and other creatures made their calls, some were so unique that no modern ear had ever heard them. Clearly this was a unique world.

PB checked her device, "here we are guys... the Cretaceous. We've gone back millions of years!"

"Come on Jake, let's fight some dinosaurs!" Finn suggested, preparing his sword as Jake giddily changed shape. As the two were about to run off, Princess Bubblegum yelled.

"HEY! Remember why we're here?" PB gave a very stern look at the boys.

"You're right." Finn put away his sword, "sorry. We should look for those plants."

"You're darn right about that." PB grinned at the boy's excitement. "Who knows... if we have some left over time, we can find some dinosaurs or something. Okay?"

"Okay." Jake answered.

"So where should we look? What do these plants look like?" Finn asked as PB picked up BMO and searched a database.

"According to what we know... cycadeoids looked like tree ferns with strange flower-like structures. Judging from the local plant life, I'll need to be able to differentiate cycadeoids from true flowering plants." PB found the correct image of the plant and printed out three copies.

Putting down BMO, PB took out a small kit. "I'm going to have to take samples from a bunch of different plants just to be safe. Stay close and keep a look out if you see any plants that look like this." She handed the two printouts to Finn & Jake, who put them in their pockets.

The group walked along, gazing at the landscape. It was certainly different from anything they knew, but Finn saw this trip as an opportunity for real adventure. Based upon what Princess Bubblegum said, they were millions of years before the great Mushroom War, so this was probably their only chance to see what life was like in the old days... or at least... the very, very old days.

There was no way he was going to blow this chance for adventure!

...

To be continued!

Hello! This is just a little return to fanfiction with what little Summer I have left before college starts. I've only recently gotten into this show, and I love it to death! So I figured I could combine it with the other thing I love a lot... prehistory! The slow, calm atmosphere will get much more insane as Finn, Jake, BMO, & PB explore the Cretaceous world and come across obstacles. As cliché as this sounds... this will be the greatest adventure 100 million years in the making!

Hank_o_Holic