This little story is base heavily on a dream I had last night, in which I had the pleasure of traveling through a time/dimensional portal and meeting the surviving characters from the movie "King Kong." I am embellishing it a bit to make it smoother and more interesting, and also incorporating events and characters from other dreams. Some events in the story may seem really off the wall, but that's because they are based on dream events, and you know how dreams are. And to those of you who have read my two King Kong stories, I am not leaving Leviathan. I just had to at least start writing this down before I forgot it. And you may recognize some character quirks from the stories that popped up in my dream.

So… here begins the story.

Being the True Account of the Adventures of One Marina Richardson as Babysitter and Personal Assistant to an Expedition into Previously Unexplored Territory

Miss Lucy's house was huge. I paused for a moment on the steps, unsure of whether or not to proceed. After a moments thought, I chose to go on with my mission. Slowly, holding my head high and hoping to look confident, I walked up the steps to the front door. Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves, I pressed the rather elaborate-looking doorbell button. I could hear the lilting, slightly off-tune chime of it echoing through the glorious mansion.

Then I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

I sighed and turned away from the door, a bit relieved and a bit disappointed at the same time.

Then, with a creak, the door swung open. "Why, hello there, dearie. Are you selling something?"

I turned around and swallowed. I was face to face with a tall, slim elderly lady with coiffed white hair and massive "ear bobs." "Actually, no ma'am. I'm just raising money for a youth group trip to New Zealand." I hated begging people for money. But how else would our poor little church group ever get to go to New Zealand? As assistant director, I had to do something. And I had been directed to the house of Miss Lucy, a renowned philanthropist.

Miss Lucy gave me a sideways sort of smile (that somehow made me nervous) and said, "Come in, come in. Do you have time for tea and a chat?"

"Yes," I replied. Why was I so apprehensive to go in that house with that harmless old lady? Banishing the nervous thoughts and feelings, I followed Miss Lucy into her foyer (which had a dark, cherry wood floor, two brass-framed mirrors, and a miniature chandelier).

"What may I call you, dear?" the lady asked me, looking at me in a way that can only be described as nosy.

"Marina. Marina Richardson," I said.

"Well, Marina Richardson, take a seat in the parlor, and I'll be right along with some tea." She motioned to the "parlor" door, then started off toward another one. But she hesitated in the doorway and turned back to me. "Try not to wander around, Marina," she said gravely. "You seem to be the kind of girl who likes adventure, likes to wander."

I'm sure my eyes were huge. What was she? A psychic? And was she rebuking me?

"I'm not trying to be rude, dear," she said in that pleasant soprano voice that was quite strong and clear for an older lady's. "I just want you to be safe." She brightened suddenly. "And tell you what--How would you like to see the Jungle Room after tea?"

Jungle Room… That sounded interesting. "I'd love to," I said, warming to the strange lady. Maybe she had the spiritual gift of "discerning the spirits," as the apostle Paul put it. I headed into the parlor (which was, naturally, stuffed with Victorian furniture and beautiful paintings and lamps and such) and took a seat on the burgundy chaise lounge. It was nice. I had always wanted one…

And I was immediately tempted to wander. "Must… sit… still," I muttered to myself, fighting down my curiosity. I really, really wanted to see the rest of this gorgeous house. Then I remembered Miss Lucy's words: "I just want you to be safe." That sent an odd, not entirely pleasant thrill up my backbone.

It wasn't long at all before Miss Lucy came into the parlor, carrying a lovely silver tea tray and set with perfect balance and Victorian grace. Could one lady have fixed that tea in so short a time? Had she been expecting someone to drop in and had it all ready? Or maybe she just had a bunch of servants to help her…

We chatted pleasantly for a few minutes, mostly talking about our interests. It surprised me how much I had in common with the eccentric, and perhaps magical, old lady. We both loved books and movies. And to my surprise, her favorite movie was the same as mine--Peter Jackson's King Kong.

"If you liked that movie, you will love my Jungle Room," Miss Lucy said cheerfully, sipping her tea. "If you're finished with your tea, I'll take you there now."

I was finished, and I told her so.

She stood, setting down her cup. "Come on, dear."

I stood. "Where do you want me to put this?" I asked, holding up my teacup.

"Just set it on the tray. It will get cleaned up." She motioned for me to follow. "Come on."

I set down my teacup and followed Miss Lucy out into the foyer. From there, she led me through a huge ballroom (with a black and white marble floor, a crystal chandelier, and a huge mirror on the ceiling) and up a curving staircase with a thick wooden balustrade. From there, we passed through a gallery full of portraits, a narrow hallway with thick, dark green carpet, and yet another Victorian-style parlor.

Finally, we came to another hallway. This one had a polished wood floor and was lined with doors. Over each door hung an elaborate plaque, bearing the title of the room within, such as "The Jousting Room," "The Beach Room," and "The Gold Rush Room." My hostess led me to a door somewhere in the middle. The brass plaque overhead read "The Jungle Room."

Miss Lucy smiled at me and drew a large ring of keys from a pocket in her dress. "Are you ready, my dear?" she asked.

I felt suddenly, inexplicably nervous. "Y-yes."

The elderly lady inserted a skeleton key into the lock under the crystal doorknob. "Don't worry, Miss Richardson. Just to the left of the door you will find a small backpack. It contains everything you will need until you reach the tree house."

"Tree house?" I eyed the door with curiosity. Was the room that big?

"Yes. Usually, it's a bit to the northeast of the door, but sometimes that changes."

The lock clicked, and Miss Lucy withdrew the key with ease.

She pocketed the keys and said, "You never know who you will meet there."

I raised a suspicious eyebrow. Maybe the woman was mad, after all! Did she really mean to suggest that the location of landmarks in the room actually changed? And that there were people in there?

"Go ahead. Go inside." She stepped back from the door, smiling benignly at me.

I stepped up to the door and touched the knob. It was cool and hard against my fingers. I turned hesitantly to the old lady. "Aren't you coming with me?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I think I'll let you go by yourself. You seem like the kind of person who could do well on your own." She cocked her head to the side and studied me. "But you don't like to be alone, do you? Even though you do well that way…" She shook herself. "Listen to me! Rambling on and on! Don't worry, dearie, there will be plenty of others to keep you company once you reach the tree house. Make sure you use your compass!"

"You're sure you don't want to come?" I asked, not quite sure why I was doing this, only that I had to.

"I'm sure." She looked down the long hallway. "I think I'm going to go in the Cold War Room. I just love a little espionage now and then."

"Will you come get me in an hour or so?" I asked. "I need to get home before dark."

"Don't worry about time, my dear. It will take care of itself," she said cryptically.

"All right." I turned back to the door, taking a deep breath, then turned the knob. Immediately, I was assailed by sound--the cawing of birds, the buzzing of insects, the whisper of wind in the trees. There was a fresh smell, like the scent of the earth just before rain. I opened the door farther and stepped inside. And I was really and truly in a jungle.

I closed the door gently behind me, then glanced back at it to make sure it was still there. It was. And to my surprise, it seemed to be carved into the trunk of an enormous tree. Cautiously, I circled the tree. The other side of the trunk was completely normal.

"This is nuts!" I muttered to myself. "Either Miss Lucy is a pixie and lives in a tree (making me a pixie myself), or there is a massive jungle in her house and a magical door that leads to it!" Somehow, I knew that there was truth in the latter idea.

Then I remembered what she had said about a backpack. I circled back around the tree and looked to the left of it. And there it was--a little, tan-colored backpack sitting on a rock. And leaning on the rock were two machetes!

"I suppose those are for me, too." I picked up the pack, which was heavier than I had imagined it would be, and opened it up. Nestled inside were a flashlight, a compass, a box of matches, a poncho, a bag of granola bars, a canteen, a pocket knife, a belt with chest straps, and (to my excitement) two pistols, with extra cartridges.

I put on the pack and belt first thing, noticing that there were holsters for the pistols, pouches for the cartridges, compass, and pocketknife, and sheaths on the back for the machetes on the belt. I slipped on all my weapons and struck a pose.

"Nice! Now I feel like a hero!"

I was enjoying this jungle so far.

Suddenly, there was a pounding sound from behind me, and the ground shuddered beneath my feet.

I froze, suddenly feeling very worried. What on earth was in this jungle?

Then there was a roar, and I knew.

I turned around to make sure I wasn't imagining things. I wasn't. There was a Tyrannosaurus Rex storming through the trees behind me. I didn't think it had noticed me yet, but I wasn't taking any chances. Checking my compass, I headed northeast, my body tense and ready to run. I glanced back a few times, making sure I wasn't being pursued. So far, so good…

Suddenly, a massive wasp rose up in front of me. I have a disproportionate fear of stinging insects. So, drawing a machete, I screamed. Really loudly. And stupidly, because both the wasp and the T-rex noticed me at that moment. And they both came at me.

Still screaming, I ducked under the giant wasp's attack and ran like the devil. I hoped that I had my bearings right and was running northeast, because I wasn't going to stop and get out my compass now! I eventually lost the wasp, but the dinosaur continued to pursue--and it was gaining ground.

"Miss Lucy!" I screamed hoarsely. "Miss Lucy! Get me out of here!" I didn't even think about going back through the door, now that the T-rex blocked my way back to it. "God help! God help! God help!"

Pretty soon, I had a stitch in my side. I'm not the world's best runner. Having very womanly breasts is never very helpful when you're running. And the reptile behind me did not have any such problems running.

Then, I saw my salvation ahead. The trees narrowed, forming a tight lane that looked oddly straight and well-planned. Feeling a burst of adrenaline, I picked up the pace, slashing away any vines or limbs that got in my way. The closer I got to the double line of trees ahead, the more I believed that it was humanly planned. There were even bamboo spikes protruding out of the first two trees, obviously placed there by some human being for protection from such as the beast behind me.

With the last bit of adrenaline in my body, I flung myself into the shaded lane. For a moment, I just laid there, panting and sweating, waiting to see if I would be eaten or not.

Not.

I sat up and turned around. The T-rex was roaring in frustration, too large to squeeze between the closely planted trees and the sharp bamboo.

"Ha!" I yelled hysterically. "Take that!" I jumped to my feet and started dancing around, twirling my machete over my head.

The dinosaur gave a loud snort and turned away, crashing back through the jungle.

I sheathed my machete and stood there watching its retreat, hands on my hips, chin lifted in defiance.

That was when the wasp caught up with me. It burst out from behind a bush and swooped toward me angrily. I chopped at it with my machete, but by now, my arms were shaking from my mad run, and my swings were weak and ineffective. Then I remembered my pistols. I was reaching to draw one. The wasp was coming nearer…

"Get down!" someone shouted.

I threw myself to the ground.

BANG!

The wasp exploded in a shower of blood and guts. One drop of blood splattered on my hand. I was fortunate to get away with only that.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?"

I froze, my eyes wide. I definitely recognized that voice. Miss Lucy's words came back to me. "If you liked that movie, you will love my Jungle Room..."

I stood up slowly, brushing the dirt from my knees, wiping the wasp blood from my hand, and turned around, hoping that I didn't look half as mussed up as I felt. "Captain Englehorn, my name is Marina Richardson. Nice to meet you."