Chapter 1: The Journey Begins
The sun rose over the eastern hills, painting the sky in shades of gold and orange. Colt stood at the edge of his small hometown, a wide grin on his face and his bag of gadgets slung over his shoulder. "Alright, west, here I come!" he said, tightening the straps of his bag.
The path ahead looked quiet, but Colt was ready for anything. As he walked, he fiddled with one of his favorite gadgets—a grappling hook disguised as a flashlight. "This baby's gonna get me out of all kinds of trouble," he muttered, though the device immediately sparked and fizzled in his hand. He waved the smoke away with a sheepish laugh. "Okay, maybe just some trouble."
The dirt road soon turned into a thick jungle, with towering trees and vines stretching as far as Colt could see. "Wow, the west is full of surprises already," he said, stepping onto a mossy trail. But as he wandered deeper, the jungle grew darker and louder. Birds squawked, leaves rustled, and the sound of distant roars echoed through the trees.
Suddenly, Colt froze. Up ahead, a group of massive gorillas was blocking the path. They were eating fruit and laughing in a way that felt oddly… menacing. Colt crouched behind a bush and whispered to himself, "Alright, Colt, think. You're brave, you're clever, and you've got gadgets! This should be easy."
He rummaged through his bag and pulled out a tiny device—a smoke bomb. "One quick distraction, and I'll slip right past them," he said with confidence. Colt pressed the button and tossed the device onto the path.
Pfft.
The smoke bomb released nothing but a faint puff of glitter. The gorillas all turned, their eyes narrowing at the strange sparkle on the ground. Colt's jaw dropped. "Oh, come on! Who packed glitter bombs?!"
Before he could react, the biggest gorilla stood up, towering over the rest. It thumped its chest and let out a deafening roar. Colt gulped. "Uh-oh. Time to run!"
He darted into the trees, dodging low branches and vines as the gorillas chased after him. One of them hurled a coconut, which narrowly missed Colt's head and smashed against a tree. "You guys have great aim!" Colt shouted, laughing nervously.
As he ran, Colt spotted a vine hanging from a tall tree. With no time to think, he grabbed his grappling hook and aimed it at the vine. "Please work, please work!" he said, firing. The hook caught the vine, and Colt swung high into the air, narrowly escaping the angry gorillas below.
Landing clumsily on the other side of the jungle trail, Colt dusted himself off and looked back. The gorillas had given up the chase, retreating into the jungle with annoyed grunts. Colt leaned against a tree, catching his breath. "Well, that was close. Note to self: check the gadgets before using them."
As the jungle grew quiet again, Colt stood up and smiled. The first challenge of his adventure was behind him, and the west still called. With a laugh and a determined step forward, Colt marched deeper into the jungle, ready for whatever came next.