by Brian Smith
People in the jungle
The wolves told Mowgli that people had come into the jungle again. Who were they? Mowgli followed his wolf brothers and recognized his three friends immediately.
He stepped out from the undergrowth where he had observed them in hiding.
“Edward, Anthony, Geetu, my friends, what brings you here?”
“Hello, Mowgli,” Edward said. “We need your help.”
Mowgli laughed cheerfully.
“Don’t say you’ve come to live in the jungle.”
Anthony smiled.
“No, we just need to ride a tiger.”
“Ride a tiger?” Mowgli said in surprise. “Whatever for? It’s the most dangerous thing in the jungle.”
“We know,” Edward said. “That’s why we need your help. You’re the only person in the whole world who can help us or we’re lost for ever.”
“Yes,” Anthony said. “We must ride a tiger or we can never return home.”
“Never return home?” Mowgli muttered. He remembered how he was forced to leave the jungle and how bitter it had been. Losing his home for ever was unimaginable. He knew he had to help his friends.
“The only tiger here is Shere Khan, but he’s my enemy.”
“Yet you defeated him once,” Geetu said.
“That I did,” Mowgli said. “But riding on him is a very different matter.”
“Call Shere Khan,” Geetu said. “Call him and let’s meet in the assembly of the wolves. Let all the animals of the jungle be witness. Call Ballo the bear and Bagheera and the elephant patrol and all the others. Let them come and witness what we have to say to Shere Khan.”
Mowgli didn’t understand what Geetu had in mind but he did as she bade him.
Shere Khan stood in midst of the jungle assembly and growled. He did not know why he had been called and he felt very uneasy.
“Shere Khan,” Mowgli called out. “I have called you here today to hear my friends who are the friends of all the jungle.”
All the animals knew that the children had played a vital part in ridding the jungle of the terrible men who had terrorized it.
Shere Khan lowered his head unwillingly and growled.
“Well then, man cub. What is it?”
Geetu stepped forth into the middle of the assembly and faced Shere Khan, the great tiger, without fear. She gazed deep into his eyes until he could bear her gaze no longer and averted his eyes.
“Shere Khan,” she said in a voice that rang loud and clear across the entire assembly. “My friends and I are here today to demand that you pay a debt.”
“Pay a debt?” Shere Khan laughed. “I owe you nothing. I’m the king of the jungle. Who are you to talk to me thus?”
The other animals frowned at his arrogance. Many of them had had trouble with him and he was deeply unpopular.
“Owe us nothing!” Geetu shouted. “Then who rid the jungle of that pestilence, of those men who killed and shot any creature they saw? Who brought peace back to the jungle? Who gave you your home back when you were fleeing in terror from those evil men? I will tell you who. My friends and I did this deed and we’re here today to demand that you repay the debt of gratitude that you owe us.”
Shere Khan growled and looked around. The other animals applauded Geetu and called “She’s right. Whatever they ask for, it must be done or we cast you out of this jungle never to return.”
This was too much for Shere Khan. He knew when he was beaten. He couldn’t stand against the united might of the animals of the jungle.
“So what is it you want?” he growled unwillingly.
“We need to ride on you,” Anthony said.
“Ride on me?” the tiger growled furiously. The thought of being treated like a horse or mule was almost unbearable.
“Let them ride!” the assembly shouted again and again.
Left with little choice Shere Khan permitted Edward, Anthony and Geetu to climb on his back. Mowgli watched them in disbelief. He had never thought anything like it possible.
“Now let’s go,” Geetu said and Shere Khan set off. They were riding a tiger, and not just any tiger! He was Shere Khan, the mightiest tiger of all jungles.
Edward and Anthony were happy. Finally they were going home after another exciting adventure. Then Geetu said “I dare Anthony and Edward to take me on Queen Cleopatra's ship on a journey with her and Julius Caesar.”
“Oh no!” the boys shouted.
Whirling stars appeared all around them and the three children vanished from the jungle.
Here’s a sneak preview of Edward and Anthony’s
next exciting adventure!
Travel through time
And meet
Queen Cleopatra
When they cause the death of a Roman girl the brothers and Geetu flee for their lives. Can they enter the land of death and save everyone…
…The three children rushed forward. When they came around the bend they saw a horse cart. Around it several men were fighting. Two men were protecting the cart while three were attacking them. Another five men lay dead on the road. From inside the cart a girl’s voice was calling out “Help! Bandits are attacking us! Help!”
By the time our three heroes reached the scene two more bandits and a defender were dead and the last of the men defending the cart was badly wounded. Only a few more moments and the bandit would kill him too. The children ran forward, grabbed weapons that were lying on the road and attacked the bandit. Now the tables were turned!
“Here, take this you dirty villain!” Anthony shouted as he struck the bandit.
“And this and this!” Edward and Geetu cried out.
The bandit was unable to fight against so many and in no time at all they had defeated him. Sadly the last man defending the cart also sank to the ground. He was mortally wounded.
“Save her,” he said and died.
A dead girl,
the God of Death,
a hound from Hell
Follow this quest to the end in
Queen Cleopatra
ISBN-10: 1503170837
www.briansmith.de