by Monica Lim
Praise for Danger Dan
“I like Danger Dan as it makes learning the history of Singapore so much fun!”
—Natalie, 11, Rosyth School
“Danger Dan is adventurous yet mischievous! Together with Melody, he uncovers many secrets of Singapore’s history. I couldn’t put the books down!”
—AJ, 8, Kong Hwa School
“The books are so creative! I like the idea of travelling through time and all the weird, awesome inventions, like the air-con jacket.”
—Chine, 11, Nanyang Primary School
“I like Danger Dan because he often imagines an amazing adventure when he is doing something boring.”
—Linus, 9, Anglo-Chinese School (Primary)
“Very addictive books that draw readers in like an action-packed movie! Engaging mix of imagery, humour, plot twists, all laced with a distinctive local flavour.”
—Chow Yian Ping, journalist, Lianhe Zaobao
“Expect the unexpected with Danger Dan as you join him on his adventures.”
—Susan Liang, History and Social Studies teacher, Pioneer Secondary School
“If Doctor Who were 11 years old and born in Singapore, he’d be a lot like Danger Dan. This time-travelling boy wonder romps through Temasek with a feisty female partner, offering a fun alternative to boring textbook versions of local history.”
—Clara Chow, journalist and parenting columnist
“Danger Dan cleverly weaves moments of history into an entertaining read. A page-turner!”
—Yao Lingyun, educator, Nanyang Girls’ High School
Also in the series Danger Dan Confronts the Merlion Mastermind Danger Dan Tackles the Majulah Mayhem Danger Dan Spooks the Peculiar Peranakan Pirate
Also by Monica Lim
The Good, the Bad and the PSLE
Copyright © 2014 by Monica Lim and Lesley-Anne Tan
lllustrations copyright © 2014 Epigram Books
All rights reserved.
Published in Singapore by Epigram Books.
www.epigrambooks.sg
Illustrations by James Tan
Cover design and book layout by Lydia Wong
Published with the support of
National Library Board, Singapore
Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
Lim, Monica
DANGER DAN TRACES THE PERILOUS POISON / written by Lesley-Anne and Monica Lim ; illustrated by James Tan
Singapore : Epigram Books, 2014. pages cm
ISBN: 978-981-4615-23-5 (paperback)
ISBN : 978-981-4615-22-8 (epub)
1. Time travel – Juvenile fiction. 2. Poisoning – Juvenile fiction. 3. Superheroes – Juvenile fiction. 4. Singapore – Juvenile fiction. I. Tan, Lesley-Anne. II. Tan, James. III. Title.
PZ7
S823 -- dc23 OCN888948558
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
First Edition:
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To Mona and Hein Moh, the Dynamic Duo, and Mrs Zahira, the coolest Social Studies teacher we know
Danger Dan has triggered the alarm! While sneaking into the Sinister Spyder’s lair, he has accidentally activated a booby trap.
The walls are slowly closing in. Soon he will be squashed between the walls, trapped like a helpless fly. The walls are drawing closer...and closer...
“DANNY! Did you miss your alarm again? You’re going to be late! Wake up!” His mother’s voice jerked him out of his dream. Danny opened one eye drowsily and glanced at his alarm clock…
6.55am! Only five minutes to get ready for school!
Danny tumbled out of bed. His blanket was wrapped so tightly around him that he looked like an Egyptian mummy. He struggled out from the tenacious clutches of that menace of a blanket. Why was it that he never felt sleepy at bedtime, but did when it was time to get up?
Danny stumbled into the bathroom and tried to multi-task. He brushed his teeth with his right hand and combed his hair with his left. (That meant he only brushed the teeth on the right side of his mouth and combed the hair on the left side of his head.) In his hurry, he washed the comb instead of his toothbrush. But there was no time to worry about that.
He struggled into his school uniform while making his way to the dining table. His three sisters were already finishing their breakfasts. Amy, Big Sister Number One, was rattling on and on to nobody in particular. “What’s the point of breakfasts anyway? You eat and you get hungry all over again. Why can’t we just eat a bigger dinner the night before and store up enough for the next day?”
Amy was 18 years old and her special feature was her Big Mouth. She could out-talk anyone simply by wearing them down. Her favourite smartphone app was the voice recorder. She could listen to her own voice all day long.
“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” said Betty, Big Sister Number Two. “You need it to increase your metabolic rate and avoid spikes in your blood sugar levels later on. This prevents arterial plaque buildup, keeps atherosclerosis at bay and decreases the risk of a myocardial infarction.”
Betty was 16 years old and had a Big Brain. Her mind was like an encyclopedia that stored facts she had read years ago. Her favourite hobby was ploughing through textbooks for errors and writing to the publishers to suggest improvements.
Danny was so late that he barely had enough time for breakfast. One minute left! He snatched the last slice of cold toast and reached for the jar of chocolate spread. EMPTY!
“Oi!” said Danny indignantly, his Big Ears turning red. “Who finished the chocolate spread?” He glared accusingly at Candy, Big Sister Number Three, who was licking her chocolate-smeared fingers. Candy was 12 years old and didn’t have a Big Mouth or a Big Brain. She was just…BIG. Her breakfast usually consisted of crispy bacon, a mountain of fluffy scrambled eggs, a pile of pancakes covered in glistening maple syrup, a tower of toast, half a papaya and a jug of milk. She could easily have left some chocolate spread for Danny but she just felt like being mean.
The three sisters sniggered unsympathetically at Danny’s predicament.
“You should have woken up on time!” goaded Amy.
“The early bird catches the worm!” gloated Betty.
“Chocolate spread! Nom nom nom...” grunted Candy.
That was just the start of a very bad day for Danny. Together with Candy, he took the MRT from Toa Payoh MRT station to school. He was in Primary 5 and she was in Primary 6. With only one slice of plain toast in his tummy, Danny could barely pay attention in class. He was glad when it was finally recess time.
Danny rushed to the canteen. Every stall had already prepared an array of dishes for the hungry students. Should he have chicken rice? But the prata stall beckoned with its crispy Indian pancakes, doused in smooth, aromatic curry. Or maybe he should have nasi lemak. The coconut rice served with a sunny-side up egg, fried chicken and a dollop of sweet chilli sauce looked tempting.
In the end, Danny bought a chicken cutlet and mashed potatoes smothered in delicious brown gravy. Placing his plate on an empty table, he ran off to buy a drink. When he returned with a packet of cold Milo, he found Candy in his seat, shovelling HIS mashed potatoes into HER mouth.
Danger Dan is infuriated! The Colossal Candy-saurus has stolen his breakfast and is now stealing his snack! He must put an end to this injustice.
Danger Dan rushes forward and tackles the Colossal Candy-saurus. But the Colossal Candy-saurus is like a concrete slab and doesn’t budge. She grips the plate tightly and continues to munch awa
y on his snack. In a last-ditch attempt to save his meal, Danger Dan gives the plate a hard yank. The Colossal Candy-saurus loses her hold on the plate, which slides off the table.
The plate rattled against the floor, snapping Danny out of his fantasy. The half-eaten chicken cutlet went flying and the mashed potatoes splattered everywhere. The other students in the canteen turned to stare at the commotion.
Nooooo! Recess was over. There was no time to buy another plate of food. Danny would have to endure the rest of the school day in hunger. He could have wept in frustration.
The lesson right after recess was Social Studies. Mrs Yip was Danny’s Social Studies teacher and the teacher he disliked the most. She was boring, unreasonable and had a bad temper—a triple threat.
“Pirates in the Straits Settlements were a great menace to traders coming to Singapore,” droned Mrs Yip. “They were vicious and cruel…”
Danny perked up. For once, the topic was something that he was familiar with. He remembered his last time-travelling adventure back to 1819 where he had met Poh, the friendly Peranakan pirate. Danny waved his hand and interrupted Mrs Yip. “Not all of them were bad. There were some good pirates.”
Mrs Yip frowned. She disliked being interrupted. “Those pirates were blood-thirsty scoundrels from China!” she retorted. “They hijacked ships and killed—”
“Not all of them were Chinese! At least one of them was Peranakan.”
“How dare you!” Mrs Yip was Peranakan and she took the remark personally. “What are you trying to say, Danny?”
“I’m just saying not all of them were bad!” protested Danny.
“And what makes you such an expert?” challenged Mrs Yip. “Were you there?”
“Er...yes?”
“YES??” Mrs Yip gaped at Danny incredulously. “Danny Chew! You jolly well stop this nonsense right now!”
“But...but...it’s true! I know a pirate—” stammered Danny.
“ENOUGH! I’ve had it with you and your bad attitude!” screeched Mrs Yip. “I want you to write me an essay on the Straits Settlement pirates by tomorrow. Five hundred words with all the proper research!”
“But that’s not fair—”
“Do you still want to argue? Seven hundred words!”
“No! But…”
“One thousand words!”
Danny threw his head against his desk in despair. He stayed that way until the bell rang. He was afraid that if he said any more, he would end up having to write a 10,000-word research paper. Life was so unfair.
The rest of the morning passed in a hungry blur for Danny. Everything reminded him of food.
“In the mouth, chewing breaks food down into smaller pieces, which travel through the gullet to the stomach...blah blah blah...” yakked the Science teacher. “Digestive juices break down food...blah blah...digested food...blah blah blah... food…food...”
Food...food...mashed potatoes...chicken cutlet...sooooo hungry...
The following Maths lesson was no better. “To find the area of the circle, square the radius and multiply by pi...blah blah blah...times pi... blah blah blah...pi...pi...”
Pi...pie...apple pie...chicken pie...dying of hunger…
Finally! School was over! Danny dashed out of the classroom and headed towards the MRT station. He managed to board the train that had just arrived. Danny had it all planned: the minute he alighted at Toa Payoh MRT station, he would head to his favourite hawker centre and buy himself a big steaming bowl of noodles for lunch.
Danny’s school was just two MRT stops from his home so in no time at all, he heard the automated train voice announce: “Toa Payoh”. He hurried out of the train and his peripheral vision caught a familiar flash of wavy blue streaks.
Oh no! He had time-travelled again!
“NOOOOOO!” yelled Danny. Melody, the 14-year-old girl from the future was standing in front of him, having just brought him back in time. He took her by the shoulders and shook her hard. “Send me back! Send me back!” He grabbed her hand and waved it around wildly, hoping to redraw the time portal archway. It didn’t work.
“I’m not in the mood for an adventure! I want to go home! Send me back NOW! Send me BAAAACKK!” Danny howled hysterically as he ran around in circles. He flung his red sling bag to the ground. He stamped his feet. He punched the air. In a final moment of rage, he kicked the kerb. Hard.
His big toe exploded with pain. This triggered a whole new outburst. “AARRGGHH!” hollered Danny, collapsing onto the pavement. “Ow-ow-ow-ow!” He clutched his foot and rolled around. Lying on his back, he shook his legs and pawed the air maniacally. Finally, he sprawled on the ground, out of breath.
Melody stared at Danny, her arms folded. She was both astonished and exasperated. “Qwigglepuff! You’re in a good mood!”
Danny sat up and glared at Melody. “I’m tired and I’m hungry! Bring me back another time! I’m so tired!”
“YOU’RE tired!” Melody flared up. “Do you know that it’s been three weeks for you since you last time-travelled but for me, it’s only been two days? I’m the one who should be complaining!”
Danny pouted but stopped his temper tantrum to consider what Melody had said. Two days? Gosh, how exhausting! Danny scrutinised Melody. She looked as fresh as ever, as if she had just returned from a holiday. He guessed it must be that pink air-con jacket she was wearing. It had cooling, auto-drying and goodness knows what other magical properties. Maybe it gave her instant energy too.
“Well, your timing isn’t very good. I was having a really bad day.” Danny continued sulking but a little less petulantly. He got to his feet and picked up his sling bag.
“I didn’t have a choice, alright?” said Melody. “Things are getting from bad to worse. I could use some help. Or would you prefer I get someone else to help me?”
“Okay! Fine! I’ll do it!”
Danger Dan just has to put aside his personal burdens. Being a superhero comes with heavy responsibilities. Singapore needs him and he will answer the call. Again.
Danny looked around and found himself standing at a bus terminal of some sort. It was a lot smaller than the bus interchanges he was used to. The buses looked old-fashioned, with all the windows down.
“So what year is this? It doesn’t look like we went as far back as the last time.”
“This is 1972. 18 February 1972, to be exact.”
Danny was a little thoughtful. He had lived in Toa Payoh all his life. What did the estate look like 30...hang on...40 years ago? It was probably worth checking out.
Melody was explaining the situation, unaware that Danny wasn’t paying attention. “I’m worried because the Sinister Spyder seems to have gained confidence since we last saw him in 1819. In just two days, he has changed yet another event in history. At this rate, we won’t be able to correct all the mistakes in time. The situation is becoming more urgent... Hey! Where are you going?”
Danny had spotted an ice cream cart by the side of the bus terminal and dashed off towards it. Ice cream! Just what he needed! The boxy metal cart was attractively decorated with various pictures of ice cream, as well as a red, blue and white logo.
“Why do you always run off?” complained Melody, catching up with Danny. Danny ignored her and beamed at the man behind the cart. “Uncle, chocolate ice cream, please!”
“Bread or cup?”
Bread? Danny was puzzled but bread sounded like something his rumbling tummy needed. “Okay, bread!”
The man fished out a slice of multi-coloured bread from a tall loaf. It was a pretty pastel green with a light pink swirl. Danny thought it looked as if it had strawberry ice cream mixed into it. “All bread should look like that!” he said to himself.
Next, the man opened a metal lid on the cart and took out a huge rectangular block of chocolate ice cream. Peeling back the cardboard lining, he used a knife to cut a generous wedge of the smooth, frosty ice cream and placed it on the bread.
Danny happily received the ice cream sandwich, lea
ving Melody to pay the man. He sank his teeth into the treat. Mmm! The bread was wonderfully soft and sweet. Then he got to the cold, creamy centre. The hunk of ice cream was so thick that every bite was a rich and chocolatey mouthful. Candy can keep her chocolate spread sandwiches, thought Danny. This was infinitely better.
“So what did the Sinister Spyder do this time?” asked Danny, taking a large chomp of his ice cream sandwich. It was a hot afternoon and the ice cream had started to melt. Drip
“The Queen of England is in Singapore for a three-day visit,” explained Melody, as they walked away from the bus terminal. “Many Singaporeans were looking forward—”
“The Queen?” interrupted Danny. “Wow! Did she drip wear her crown? Did it have many drip jewels?”
“Ggggnnnhh! Can you please listen?” said Melody. “The crown is not important! As I was saying, it was supposed to be a great celebration. Unfortunately, the Sinister Spyder interfered and it turned into an absolute nightmare.”
“What did he do?”
Melody looked gloomy. “He poisoned her.”
Danny paused in mid-bite. Drip “Whaaat?”
“I know, right? Such a horrible thing to do!” said Melody indignantly. The two children crossed the road and walked towards a cluster of HDB flats in the distance. “I was shocked when I heard it too.”
“Man, the Sinister Spyder is a real drip pain!” Danny muttered to himself. “When I see drip him, I’ll tell him drip drip drip a thing or two! Hey, where’s my home?”
“What?” asked Melody. Trying to follow Danny’s train of thought always made her head hurt.
“My flat!” Danny stopped walking and looked around him, bewildered. “It’s supposed to be around here! And the library!”
“They’ve probably not been built yet, qwirklehead!”
“Oh.” What a letdown. He had wanted to see what his flat looked like 40 years into the past. Apparently, it looked like nothing. Disappointed, Danny finished up the last of his ice cream sandwich and wiped his hands on his shirt.