“Yes, I’m thirsty too,” said Porcupine. Jackal was also thirsty but he didn’t want to waste any energy by complaining. They plodded on through the thick sand.
“Can’t we rest a bit?” asked Monkey.
“Let’s just get around that bend that’s up ahead,” suggested Jackal. “Maybe there’s a water-hole there.” They wearily made their way further and around the curvy trail of the river.
“What’s that?” asked Monkey.
“Where?” asked Porcupine.
“Looks like a pool of mud,” said Jackal.
“Yes, of course I can see it’s a pool of mud,” said Monkey impatiently. “But what’s that thing sticking out of it?”
“Careful, it could be Crocodile,” said Porcupine.
“Listen, Porcupine!” shouted Monkey, annoyed. “Crocodile is not black and red, no matter from which angle you look at him.”
“Crocodile doesn’t have feathers either,” added Steenbok mildly. “Not last time I checked, anyway.”
“Crocodile doesn’t have such a large bill,” said Jackal. He couldn’t resist teasing Porcupine. “Especially not one that curves like that,” he added. “But come to think of it, Crocodile doesn’t have a bill at all, not even a small one.” Jackal giggled.
“OK!” shouted Porcupine, bristling in quick anger. “It’s not Crocodile, I can see that. But what is black and red and has feathers and a big curving bill?” The others stopped and stared at Porcupine.
“Porcupine!” Monkey exclaimed. He had a frown between his eyes. “Do you have a touch of the sun? Are you sick?” Porcupine stared blankly at Monkey and then it dawned on him.
“Of course,” he mumbled. “A bird has feathers and a bill. How silly of me…” The others roared with laughter. Monkey was laughing so loud he had to hold his tummy with both hands.
“Don’t stand there laughing!” shouted a loud, booming voice suddenly. “Come and help me!”
“It’s the bird,” whispered Steenbok.
“Boy, this bird is loud!” exclaimed Monkey. “Let’s go have a look.” Monkey in front, they ran to where they could see the bird sticking out of the mud.
“It’s Ground Hornbill!” Monkey shouted. “What are you doing in the mud, Ground Hornbill?”
“Help me to get out, Monkey,” Ground Hornbill grunted.
“You’re stuck?”
“Yes of course I’m stuck! Why else would I ask for help?”
“Ooh, but you’re grumpy!” said Porcupine.
“So would you be if you had been stuck for two days!” Ground Hornbill’s voice boomed. Monkey shovelled the mud away around Ground Hornbill. The mud was thick and oozy. Monkey had to dig really deep before he could rescue Ground Hornbill. The mud made a loud sucking noise when he pulled him out at last.
“Thank you Monkey,” grunted Ground Hornbill. The skin around his eyes and throat that normally was very red was now a mottled dirty brown. He shook his body, trying to get rid of the mud. Then he sat down, closed his eyes and spread his enormous wings out to dry in the sun. The little group sat down in a tight circle around Ground Hornbill. Monkey was feeling very proud that he had managed to get Ground Hornbill unstuck and he was chattering non stop.
Then Steenbok suddenly exclaimed: “But you’re like me, Ground Hornbill!”
“Steenbok, we have nothing in common.” Ground Hornbill grumbled. He didn’t even open his eyes. “You’re an antelope. I’m a bird. We have nothing in common!”
“Yes, we have,” insisted Steenbok. “You don’t need to drink water either.”
“You don’t need to drink water, Ground Hornbill?” Monkey asked “You’re lucky! We’ve been so thirsty on this journey!”
But Steenbok was not done with her questions. “Why were you at the water-hole if you don’t drink water?” she asked. “Why?
“Ahem…,” Ground Hornbill cleared his throat. “I was digging out the frogs that got stuck in the mud.”
“Why?” asked Monkey. “Were you saving the frogs?”
“Ahem…no, not really”
“Then why were you digging them out?”
“What a silly question. To eat them, of course!”
“Frogs? You eat frogs?” Monkey was gobsmacked but before he could say more, Ground Hornbill jumped in with his own question.
“But what are you doing here so far away from your home?”
“We are going to the Dragon Mountain,” Steenbok said.
“That is very far to go,” Ground Hornbill grunted. “Why are you going there?”
“Well, you see,” said Monkey, “the mountain is actually a dragon that’s pretending to be a mountain.”
“Really,” Ground Hornbill said, “A dragon?”
“Yes, and the dragon had fallen asleep again. We’re going to wake him up,” Porcupine said.
“Why?” asked Ground Hornbill. “Why do you want to wake up the dragon?”
“He’s lying on the place where the clouds must come out of the earth!” answered Monkey.
“Yes, and that’s why the rain is staying away,” Steenbok continued. “We have to get him to move, so that the clouds can come out of the earth so that it can rain again. It is very dry.”
“Yes,” said Jackal, “it is very dry. It must rain very soon, or all the Animals will die of thirst.”
“Hmm…” was all that Hornbill said, while he considered this. “How will you wake the dragon?” he asked after a while.
“I’ll stomp on his toes,” said Steenbok. Ground Hornbill looked at Steenbok’s little hooves and tried not to laugh.
“You’ll just tickle him, Steenbok,” he said. “He won’t even feel it!”
“I’ll pull his ears,” Monkey said. Ground Hornbill looked at Monkey’s little hands and giggled. It was a very funny sound for Ground Hornbill to make. Then he looked serious and thought for a while.
“You’ll need some help,” Ground Hornbill said. “No offence, but I will be better at waking up the dragon.”
“But I’ll poke him and fight him and scare him away,” Porcupine boasted. “He’ll be sorry that he fell asleep on the spot where the clouds must come out!” Ground Hornbill managed not to laugh out loud, but another little giggle escaped. He shook his head.
“I have a very big and strong bill,” he said. “I’ll come along with you. I’ll wake up the dragon.”
~~**~~
The next morning Monkey, Jackal and Porcupine drank as much water as their tummies could hold and the team set off along the dry river-bed to find the dragon.
Porcupine couldn’t wait to see the dragon. He strutted and bristled and boasted.
“I’m brave! I’m going to fight the dragon! I’m going to win!” The others laughed.
Then he practiced his scary look, advancing on the others with his quills standing out in all directions, a heavy frown between his eyes.
“Don’t I look scary, Jackal?”
Jackal shook his head while Ground Hornbill just grunted and kept on walking. But Monkey and Steenbok were really scared when Porcupine’s quills were standing out in all directions.
“I’ve always wanted to fight a dragon!”
“Be careful with those quills, Porcupine,” Steenbok warned. “You don’t want to hurt anyone now, do you?”
It was a long day of walking and there were no water-holes left in the dry river-bed. It was very hot and dusty and they were very thirsty by the end of the day.
“We have to find water,” Monkey gasped. Sun was very low in the sky.
“We have to find water before it is dark,” Jackal said.
“But where?” cried Porcupine.
“Look!” cried Steenbok. “Look!”
“Where? Did you see water?” Monkey asked expectantly.
“Not water, no. But look over there, at the horizon.” Steenbok was staring off into the distance. “The dragon!”
Now the others could see it too. There, in the hazy distance was the dragon! They could see his backbone sticking out. And
his huge neck!
“He must be lying down, I can’t see his face!” shouted Porcupine excitedly.
“He’s still asleep then,” said Jackal.
“Yes, I’ll wake him up and then I’ll fight him!” Porcupine danced around, his quills bristling.
“Careful, Porcupine,” warned Steenbok.
“I’ve always wanted to fight a dragon!” there was no stopping Porcupine. “I’ll show him who’s the bravest of them all!”
“Careful!!” shouted Monkey, but it was too late.
“Ouch!” cried Jackal. “Ouch!!” Two large quills had gotten stuck in one of Jackal’s front legs. One quill was lodged deep inside, close to his shoulder. The other one had gone right through Jackal’s lower leg, the sharp end sticking out on the other side. He gave another cry of pain and sat down. Porcupine looked on in horror.
“Now see what you’ve done!” Steenbok shouted.
“Help me!” Jackal cried. “Help me.” Then he fainted.
~~**~~
Monkey had to use all his strength to get the quills out from Jackal’s leg. The one that had lodged in the top of his leg, close to the shoulder, required an extra hard yank before it came out. Fortunately Jackal was still passed out. Porcupine was standing sheepishly to the side. He hung his head in shame.
“We’ll have to get water,” Monkey said. “When he wakes up he’ll have a high fever. He’ll need some water.”
“I’ll find some, I’ll find some,” said Porcupine eagerly, scurrying off down the track in the river-bed.
“Don’t be silly, Porcupine,” shouted Ground Hornbill after him. “Come back.” Porcupine stopped.
“Why’s it silly?”
“I’ll be much faster,” said Ground Hornbill.
“You? Faster!?” Porcupine was indignant. “You walk as slow as an old bird!”
But Ground Hornbill ignored him, spread his large wings and flew off into the sunset.
“Ground Hornbill can actually fly?” muttered Porcupine, feeling like a fool.
The little team sat down next to Jackal and waited for Ground Hornbill’s return.
“Do you think he’ll come back?” asked Steenbok softly. “He doesn’t need us anymore, does he?” Monkey was thinking the same thing, but he didn’t want to say it out loud.
“I think I’m going to die of thirst,” was all he said, lying down in the sand. The last of Sun’s rays disappeared below the horizon and it was getting dark very fast.
~~**~~
It was pitch black by the time Ground Hornbill came back. He tumbled out of the sky and sat down with a plonk, right next to Monkey.
“Sorry it took me so long,” he grumbled. “It was so dark that I missed it the first time I flew over!”
“You’ve returned!” Steenbok whispered. “You’ve actually returned!”
“Yes, of course I’ve returned!” Ground Hornbill grumbled. Then it dawned on him what Steenbok meant. “You thought I’d leave you here…?” he said in disbelief, shaking his head sadly.
Steenbok hung her head in shame.
“No time to waste,” Ground Hornbill said gruffly. “We have to get Jackal to the water.”
It took them a long time to wake Jackal and to get him to stand up.
“There’s water just around the next bend, Jackal” Ground Hornbill explained. “It’s not very far.” Together they coaxed Jackal along. He was limping very badly.
It was a terrible night. Jackal whimpered and cried out all night. He had a high fever and had to get up to drink water all the time. Nobody slept much at all.
~~**~~
The next morning it was clear that Jackal was in no state to travel any further. He could scarcely walk and his leg and shoulder were badly swollen.
Jackal had to stay behind at the water-hole. There would be just enough water left in the hole to give the others time to wake the dragon so that it could rain and the river could flow again.
“Jackal cannot stay behind alone,” Steenbok said. “Someone will have to stay with him.” The others looked at each other, they hadn’t thought of that. Of course they couldn’t leave Jackal by himself. But who would stay?
“I can’t protect Jackal by myself,” said Steenbok. “I would be of no use to him.”
“Neither would I,” said Monkey. They all looked at Porcupine. Nobody spoke. There was a long silence.
“OK, I’ll stay,” said Porcupine eventually. He looked longingly at the dragon in the distance. “I’ll watch over Jackal.”
The rest of the team set off quickly, they were in a big hurry. There was very little water left in the hole. There was a dragon to wake.
Porcupine stifled a sob, his heart was broken. “I’ve always wanted to fight a dragon,” he whispered miserably.
~~**~~
Towards midday the sky darkened and Steenbok looked up to see a large cloud hanging above them. Did the dragon move? Was it going to rain? But no, the cloud looked strange, not like a rain cloud. What could it be?
“Watch out!” Monkey cried out suddenly. But it was too late.
A giant swarm of grasshoppers descended from the sky. Hundreds and millions of them invaded every tree, bush and stalk of grass. They were all over and they were eating everything in their path, their fat bodies crawling and writhing all over the place. Steenbok gave a yelp of fear and Monkey shuddered in disgust.
“Quick, we’ve got to get out of this!” shouted Monkey, running as fast as he could. Steenbok flashed past him.
“There!” shouted Monkey, pointing ahead. “There’s Aardvark’s burrow!” He dived into the hole in the ground. Steenbok stood for a moment before she dived in after Monkey.
“Ugh! That’s creepy.” They could hear the crunch-crunch of the grasshoppers outside, chomping everything in their way.
“Where’s Ground Hornbill?” asked Monkey after a moment. “Didn’t he see us running?” Carefully Monkey peered out of the burrow. He poked only a little bit of his head out of the burrow, just enough so that he could see what was going on outside. But a second later he dived down again, as deep as he could go. His head was swarming with grasshoppers.
“Yikes!” he yelled, swatting at the squirming insects.
“Did you see Ground Hornbill?”
“Ugh…”
“Yes, but did you see him?”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“His feeding his face!” Monkey said disgustedly.
“He’s eating with all the insects crawling all over everything outside?”
“Yes!” said Monkey. “He’s feasting! He’s feasting on grasshoppers!” Monkey gave another shudder of disgust.
“He really has terrible taste in food,” was all that Steenbok had to say. They lay down low, waiting for the grasshoppers to go away. They had to wait all night and only in the morning could they come out of the burrow. Ground Hornbill was sitting high up in a tree. He gave a big yawn and flew down to meet them, looking very full and satisfied.
~~**~~
It was very hot. They’d been travelling all day. There wasn’t a single water-hole in the dry river-bed.
“I’m very thirsty,” said Monkey. “I haven’t had any water to drink since yesterday morning.” Steenbok looked at him concernedly.
“Let’s go a little further,” she coaxed. “Maybe there’s something around the corner.” They trundled on. Monkey was walking slower and slower.
“I’m going to die of thirst,” he croaked, sitting down.
“I’ll go check for water,” said Steenbok, running ahead. She returned after a while, shaking her head. Between them, Steenbok and Ground Hornbill nudged Monkey along. They walked until sunset, when Monkey just shook his head and sat down. He couldn’t go any further.
Steenbok ran ahead again and when she returned this time, she had good news.
“There’s a small water-hole ahead, Monkey!” Monkey got up slowly and trundled along. But then he stumbled and fell down.
“Come on,” grunted Ground
Hornbill. “You can make it!” With great effort Monkey got to his hands and knees and crawled further. There! He could smell the water. He was almost there! Only a little further. He could almost taste the water in his mouth. Almost there, almost…
“It’s mine! All mine!” shouted an angry voice suddenly. Steenbok and Ground Hornbill jumped with fright. Monkey collapsed next to the water-hole. Crocodile scurried out of the water-hole, snapping his big jaws at Monkey, barely missing him. His large, yellow teeth clattered loudly.
“It’s mine! Mine alone!” He snapped his jaws again and one of his large, ugly, yellow teeth caught onto Monkey’s ear. Monkey screamed and tried to jerk away. Crocodile held on tight but with his last strength Monkey pulled away. He was free, but there was a large tear in his ear.
“Run, Monkey!” cried Steenbok.
“You have to get away, Monkey!” shouted Ground Hornbill hoarsely. But Monkey had no more strength left in his little body. He could not run away. Crocodile scurried closer. “Mine! Mine!” he shouted. “It’s all mine!” He opened his jaws to snap again at Monkey.
Then Ground Hornbill flapped his large wings. Flap, flap, flap and he slowly lifted up into the air. Flap, flap, flap and he hovered right above Crocodile, just above his head. He flapped his wings so that Crocodile could not see where to snap. Slowly, slowly Monkey crawled away to hide behind a bush.
He lay down behind the bush and whispered hoarsely: “I … need… water…” then he closed his eyes and he was silent.
~~**~~
They rested behind the bush for the night. At dawn they could see the dragon clearly. They were so close that they could count the spikes on its back! Monkey woke up, moaning.
“Water, I …need…water…”
“We are very close to the dragon, Monkey,” Steenbok said. “You have to walk with us.”
“No…can’t…walk,” Monkey whispered.
“We have to wake the dragon, Monkey,” Ground Hornbill said urgently. “There’s no time to waste!”
“Will…try...” Monkey slowly got onto his hands and knees, but then he slumped down again.
An African Fable: Will Steenbok find the Rain? (Book #7, African Fable Series) Page 2
