I must try and get a new knife from somewhere. Today it was sunny.
Another Sunny Day
Was made to march up and down for a few hours this morning, then Silverback went out again. Some of the other gorillas have been coming up to my cage, bringing me titbits and trying to talk to me. Of course, I can’t understand a word. I think Silverback is on his way back because they’ve all just scattered. I’d better hide my diary again.
Many (Sunny) Days Later
Every time Silverback goes out, the other gorillas come and visit me. By repeating their grunts over and over again, they have managed to teach me a few of their words, and I can now ask for a piece of sugar cane or a juicy slice of pawpaw as often as I wish!
The pack gorillas are much friendlier than Silverback. He’s nothing but a big bully who terrorizes the others to keep his position as leader. I’ve started to realize that they have just about had enough of him. I wonder if they would ever back me in a showdown with the great silverback dictator?
My daily routine has become so uneventful that I won’t bother to add any more to my journal until something EXCITING happens …
I found this ugly-looking
bug crawling over my
notebook. It is highly
dangerous. One sting from its
tail can make you spontaneously
combust. I slammed the book
shut on it-sorry about the mess!
SOMETHING EXCITING HAS HAPPENED!
A Challenge
One day Silverback returned to camp from foraging in the jungle, only to find the others had opened my cage and were sat around me, trying to talk with grunts and hand signs. The silverback was not impressed. Screaming maniacally, he charged into the gorilla pack, sending them scurrying out of the way. Then he picked me up and turned to roar at the others. The message was clear: I was his property, so watch it.
But I had had enough. Now was the time to act. Days had gone by and I was bored and missing home. I couldn’t stand being the silverback’s toy any longer. So when the gorilla put me down and poked me in the back to set me marching once again, I slapped his hand away.
‘No!’ I yelled, pointing at him. ‘I’ve had enough, do you hear, Mr Big-shot?’ I spoke in English, but the meaning was pretty clear. ‘I won’t be your pet any more. No way, no how!’
The other gorillas screamed in delight, but Silverback let out a roar of indignation and brought his arm crashing down like a sledgehammer. I leaped out of the way as his fist whizzed past my head. It would have cracked like a boiled egg! Again the pack laughed. I thumped my chest and yelled in fear and relief.
Thrak challenges me to an arm-wrestling contest.
With a low growl, the silverback turned to stare at me from under a beetling brow, his angry eyes glowing red. Very quietly he raised his massive arm, bending it at the elbow and opening his leathery hand. I understood immediately. The great ape was challenging me to an arm-wrestling contest! I gulped. How on earth was I going to get out of this one? And what was going to happen to me WHEN I LOST?
Arm-Wrestling A Gorilla
The silverback and I sat in the middle of the main platform of the gorilla city. This, I discovered later, was where all their important celebrations and ceremonies took place. The rest of the group sat around us in a circle, jostling to try and get the best view. An ancient gorilla, his fur a dirty white, shuffled into the centre of the circle dragging a large branch behind him. This he placed between the glowering silverback and myself.
The branch had been carefully chosen, for it curved up at one end, enabling both the gorilla and me to rest our elbows on it, and for our hands to come to the same level. A must if the competition was going to be fair.
Fair? Who was I kidding! I looked at my tormentor. His shoulders and arms were thick with knotted muscle; his fist was the size of my head. I had no chance. No chance at all! Unless I could come up with a cunning plan.
My mind raced as the ceremony commenced. But I couldn’t think of a single thing to do.
The ancient white gorilla addressed the crowd with a series of grunts and hand gestures, laying down the rules of the competition. And at that moment I realized something incredible! I could understand him! Well, I could understand some of what he was saying. I had managed to learn more of the gorillas’ language in my little conversations than I had thought.
This was one neat trick, and something I knew I would be able to impress my friends with back home. But before I could even think of home, I had to get through my ordeal with the silverback.
Concentrate, Charlie, I thought.
Concentrate.
This is what I managed to follow of the old gorilla’s announcement: ‘Friends, welcome. This is very important occasion. Thrak is leader. His authority challenged by hairless, pink gorilla. Thrak has decided: quarrel to be settled by arm-wrestling competition.’
Of course he has, I thought, my mind still groping for some sort of plan. He’s hardly likely to challenge me to a game of chess!
The gorilla continued. ‘Winner of competition will be leader of gorillas. Loser will be banished into darkness of jungle for ever. Let the contest begin!’
I swallowed hard when I heard that bit about banishment. I knew that if I were banished into the jungle straight away, I might end up wandering through the trees for the rest of my life. (Which probably wouldn’t be very long!)
I really needed to get to know the maze of paths that wormed their way through the jungle before I set out alone, and that meant befriending some of the gorillas who’d been coming to my cage. I had to think of a way of winning this one-sided wrestling match.
The excited crowd slapped the platform with their palms in a menacing rhythm, and Thrak the silverback processed around the stage like a heavyweight boxer. I thought and thought and, as the drumming built to an earsplitting crescendo, I had the tiniest of ideas. But it would all rely on the greed of my opponent…
We approached the log and nervously I rested my arm on a branch as Thrak closed his giant hand around mine. His hot red eyes bored into me as I waited for the signal to start. If my plan was to work, then I had to get the timing exactly right.
Just as the ancient gorilla was about to slap the trunk as a signal to start, I cried, ‘Oh! Just a minute,’ and reaching down into my rucksack, I pulled out my bag of humbugs. The gorilla looked on suspiciously as I popped one into my mouth.
‘Mmmm,’ I said. ‘Lovely! OK, let’s carry on,’ and I reached to put the sweets back.
The gorilla grunted and held out his free hand.
‘No way,’ I protested, putting the mints in my pocket. But the gorilla growled louder and started to squeeze my hand.
‘OK, OK,’ I said, holding out the bag. ‘Help yourself.’ Silverback helped himself to two!
As the gorilla sucked his mints, I waited for the delayed reaction. I knew he wouldn’t be used to the strength of Paterchak’s mint humbugs. And as the tears sprang to his eyes, I said, ‘OK, I’m ready’
The ancient one gave the signal to start; Thrak let out a gasp of surprise as the heat of the mints hit the back of his throat; and I pushed the gorilla’s arm over as easily as a rather weedy flower!
The silverback fanned his mouth, whooping and hollering and stamping his feet. The pack of gorillas cheered and laughed and raised me high in the air in triumph. I had won! I was the new leader of Gorilla City. But as Thrak retreated in embarrassment, he stared at me with such animosity that I knew we would meet again one day. Then, with a crashing of leaves, the silverback was gone.
The Crowning of A King
The gorillas were delighted to be free from the bullying rule of Thrak. They organized a celebration that went on for many days, often climbing to the highest branches and screaming across the jungle to wherever the big silverback was nursing his pride. They were warning him never to return.
Part of the noisy celebration was my crowning as the new leader of the gorilla clan! We danced while a band of g
orillas slapped out rhythms on hollow tree trunks. We feasted on a selection of fresh and sun-dried fruits, especially chosen for their juicy sweetness. Speeches followed the feasting, and then more speeches. They went on and on, and the more I drank of the gorillas’ fermented fruit juice, the less I could understand.
Eventually, after the dancing and the banquet and the speeches, a roughly carved wooden chair was lowered onto the ceremonial platform. It was my throne!
The ancient white gorilla led me to the throne as the rest of the pack hummed a strange incantation. The chanting grew louder, and as it reached an earsplitting crescendo, a cape of leaves bordered with golden flowers was placed around my shoulders. As the old gorilla raised a crown of intricately woven leaves into the air, the chanting stopped. Then, to complete silence, he placed the crown upon my head. As one, the gorillas cheered: ‘All hail King Charlie!’
Now, from my high platform in the trees, I can still hear the gorillas whooping with delight. The partying has started all over again, but I’ve crept away to write down these fantastic events.
Such a lot has happened!
I’ve become the leader of a city of apes, but have no idea what it means. What does a gorilla chief do? How am I ever going to make a decent ape? I may be OK at climbing trees for an eight-year-old, but when it comes to swinging from branch to branch hundreds of metres above the ground, I’m going to be rubbish!
Back to School
Yes, I’ve been back to school! But it’s been a lot more fun than anything we ever did at St Beckham’s!
I don’t want to be king of the apes for ever, but I’ve decided that if I want to find my way through the jungle, I have to get to know and understand it. And the best way to do that is to become more like a gorilla!
So every morning I’ve been learning how to talk in the language of the apes. I had a bit of trouble working out that there are over fifty different words for banana, but apart from that, it’s really not been so hard to learn.
Here are some important gorilla phrases, in case you ever find yourself in a sticky situation:
Mmwa (with right palm towards chest): Friend.
Mmwa (with right palm away from chest): Deadly enemy.
Cha: Banana.
Woomwawoomwa (with both palms raised and facing away from chest): Calm down, calm down!
Neeeeaaaaghcha! (whilst jumping up and down and banging the ground with your fists): No, I do not want another banana, thank you. I don’t care if I never see another banana again!
In the afternoons I join the younger gorillas for lessons on how to swing from branch to branch in the trees. The gorillas call it sky-walking and it’s by far the quickest (and coolest!) way to get around.
I’ve made two close friends while I’ve been sky-walking: Grip and Grapple. The three of us spend hours swinging through the trees, racing each other and competing to see who can make the biggest leaps. When we first started I did as much falling as swinging, but after weeks of aching arms and bumped heads, I can now travel through the canopy at incredible speeds.
It’s not all fun stuff, though. As king of the gorillas I have a lot of responsibilities, too.
One of my duties is to settle any arguments in the camp. I try to do this by avoiding Thrak’s old method of resolving everything with a fight to the death! Over time, by using tips picked up from my books about expedition leaders (be fair but firm!), I have become a popular and respected leader.
But soon I’m going to have to break the news to the tribe that I have to leave. I think I’m just about ready to survive on my own. And I’m really starting to miss Mum’s cooking. So I’ve decided to go exploring again tomorrow to see if I can find a route out of the jungle at last.
A Terrifying Encounter!
How I wish that I’d stayed in the safety of the city and not ventured out into the dense and tangled jungle on my own! For today I had a truly TERRIFYING EXPERIENCE. This is what happened …
Humming a simple gorilla tune, I was swinging happily through the lower branches of the trees. I had travelled way beyond the outposts of the burly gorillas who keep guard over the city, and was enjoying being out on my own. The sun was filtering down through the leaves and birds were chirruping up above. I was just thinking what a beautiful and peaceful place the jungle could be when—POW!
Something exploded against my shoulder, knocking me from my branch and sending me spiralling to the forest floor.
You’d think after Thrak had pounced on me I’d have learnt my lesson by now!
I sat up slowly, rubbing my head and looking up into the branches. What had hit me? I looked at my shoulder and saw pawpaw juice running down my coat. The damaged fruit lay on the carpet of leaves close by. Perhaps it had just fallen from one of the trees, I thought, and stood up to brush myself down.
A hail of fruit and nuts cascaded from above, stinging my back, rapping against my skull and grazing my face! I leaped into the bushes, heart pounding in surprise and panic. What was going on?!
The jungle grew quiet again and I carefully parted the fronds of a giant fern and peered up into the trees.
Again a deluge of nuts, stones and fruit rained down and I threw myself to the ground, gritting my teeth as the projectiles bounced off me. They were really hard! Luckily I was wearing my coat, and I managed to pull the hood over my head to protect my face. Then I curled up in a ball and waited for the attack to stop. Eventually everything fell quiet again. I peeked out from under my hood and saw a slight movement. A shadowy form was stirring above me, its features hidden behind the curtain of leaves. What was it?
I waited for a long time, hoping that my hidden enemy had moved on. Hours passed in complete silence, and I finally decided that all was safe. I was just about to creep back onto the path, when—
‘OOWAAA!’
A screaming face—a horrible face, all purple and blue—thrust through the foliage, centimetres from my nose! I panicked and, running as fast as I could, crashed through the undergrowth as a million missiles ricocheted from the trees and thumped into my back.
Whatever these vicious creatures were, I could hear them clattering through the jungle behind me, whooping and screaming and barking like savage dogs.
‘Clear off!’ I yelled as I swung up through the branches, climbing at top speed. ‘Leave me alone!’
The animals screamed in delight, hot on my heels.
Then, as I scrambled into the top branches of the trees, one lunged and sank sharp teeth into my bottom.
‘Yeagh!’ I screamed, striking out blindly and catching the animal across the snout, making it release its hold.
I swung away faster than ever, racing through the trees and praying that I could shake off these fearsome attackers. I was sure that if they caught me, I would never see home again. But as I neared Gorilla City, the creatures fell behind and then melted back into the jungle.
I’ve never been so grateful to see my gorilla friends swinging in the trees up ahead, but feeling shaken and slightly ashamed at how I’d fled from that weird painted face, I avoided everyone and climbed quickly up to my platform. Scared and exhausted, I flopped onto my bed.
Later
It’s been a really horrible day. I’m going to try to get some sleep now. I just hope I won’t have nightmares!
The Next Day
I’ve had horrible dreams full of painted faces that grinned at me like sneering tribal masks.
I don’t think I’m ready to brave the jungle again on my own after all. I’m going to have to ask for help!
Bad News
I asked Grip and Grapple to help me find a way out of the jungle. They were really sad that I wanted to leave, but like the good friends they are, they understood why I wanted to try. They suggested we ask the elders if they had ever heard of a way to leave. But the news wasn’t good …
‘Leave the jungle?’ said Safner, a big male who leads the guards patrolling the perimeter of the city. ‘No one leaves the jungle. It fills the whole of the world!’
<
br /> ‘But it must finish somewhere,’ I said, suddenly worried.
‘Our city sits in the black heart of the impenetrable jungle, and the jungle stretches for hundreds of miles, until it reaches the walls at the end of the Earth,’ explained Nanog, a really old female. ‘You cannot climb these walls, for they rise, sheer and featureless, for a thousand metres. No one leaves the jungle.’
‘But what’s beyond the walls at the end of the earth?’ I asked.
‘The sky,’ replied all the gorillas at once.
‘But hasn’t anyone ever tried to climb them?’
‘Once, during the great flood,’ said Nanog, ‘a group of gorillas tried to climb to safety. But the climb was so dangerous that they fell to their deaths before they had reached halfway!’
Safner nodded. ‘No one ever leaves the jungle,’ he repeated emphatically.
‘But if no one has climbed the cliffs, how do you know what lies beyond?’ I protested.
‘We don’t need to climb them,’ said Nanog, starting to get
‘We can see the sky perfectly well from the base of the cliffs!’
I sighed. So much for getting help! I was pretty sure that the gorillas were describing the sides to a steep gorge, like the one the waterfall had carried me over. And if the jungle is in a sunken valley, it might take me a hundred lifetimes to find a way out! But I’m not going to let my adventure end here. It’s fun living with the gorillas, but I don’t want to spend my whole life eating bananas and playing vine-tag! No matter how long it takes, I will find a way out. I MUST FIND A WAY OUT! I’ll write more when I come up with a plan …
Gorilla City Page 4