The King's Key (23 page)

The Jungle Express

The chameleon thrashed its head from side to side as it charged through the undergrowth. Whisker, still clutching the key, struggled to hold on as he was scraped through the mud. Ruby, battered by branches, flattened herself against the chameleon's back and clung on for dear life.

The chameleon leapt over a log and the chain swung upwards, pulling Whisker's body into the air. The chameleon descended, landing on a pile of stones, and Whisker plummeted down.

Ruby released one of her paws and made a frantic grab for Whisker's arm. She caught the back of his shirt and dragged him onto the chameleon's back. Together, the master swords-rat and the apprentice looped their fingers through the ring and held on tight. If they were going down, the key was coming with them.

The wild reptile continued to barge and crash its way through the dense vegetation of the jungle. Leaves and sticks smacked Whisker's face. Water sprayed in his eyes. Trees sped past him in a green blur. He wondered if the chameleon would ever run out of energy.

Ruby slid to one side as the chameleon ploughed through a patch of ferns. Whisker twisted his tail around her leg to stop her falling. Seconds later, the chameleon veered to its right to avoid a lichen-covered rock and Ruby bounced into the air, crashing down on top of Whisker.

He let out a pained howl as the sharp tip of her sword pierced his leg.

‘You'll live!' she shouted. ‘Now hold on, cowboy, we're headed for the ravine.'

The chameleon increased its pace, scrambling down a steep bank of the mountain. Through gaps in the foliage, Whisker could see the sunlit cliffs of the ravine ahead.

‘T-t-tell me it's not going to …' he stammered in panic.

Ruby didn't answer. She grabbed the ring with her second paw and began to twist.

‘Help me!' she shouted,

Following Ruby's lead, Whisker twisted the ring in the opposite direction. With their efforts combined, the metal began to bend.

‘We're nearly there,' Ruby exclaimed.

Whisker looked up. They were nearly there – the green canopy of the jungle had vanished and the rocky plateau of the cliff top stretched in front of them. The tight rope of the Pie Rats hung to their right, spanning the ravine from cliff to cliff.

Eight metres to the edge
, he calculated.

To Whisker's horror, he realised the chameleon wasn't headed for the rope: it was headed for the bridge – the bridge that wasn't there.

Six metres.

‘We've got time,' Ruby shouted. ‘Keep trying.'

Whisker strained harder, his muscles cramping, his fingers turning white. The metal bent further; but not enough.

Four metres.

‘Come on,' Ruby cried, refusing to give in.

Whisker twisted, heaved and tugged with every ounce of his strength, but it still wasn't enough.

Two metres.

‘JUMP!' he screamed.

The chameleon skidded to a halt. Whisker and Ruby kept moving. There was a sharp
SNAP
as their bodies hurtled over the head of the chameleon.

Whisker saw three terrifying things at once: the edge of the cliff rising towards him, Ruby somersaulting downwards and the key spinning out of control through the air.

For a split second, time slowed down, and in that moment, a strange thought flashed through Whisker's mind:
Never touch a crooked fool's scalp.

Time sped up. Whisker twisted his hips, flicked his tail in a wide arc over his shoulder and curved it down in front of him. Simultaneously, he extended his left paw downwards and thrust his right paw upwards. He felt a sharp tug on his left paw followed by a sharper tug on his right paw. Gritting his teeth, he hoped his aching fingers were strong enough to do their job.

His body stopped moving. Cautiously, he looked around. He was lying next to Ruby on the very edge of the ravine. His right paw gripped a large rock and his left paw clutched Ruby's arm. He could feel his tail dangling over the cliff, wrapped tightly around the key.

His prize was secure but there was still one problem. The furious chameleon towered over him. It narrowed its eyes, lowered its head and aimed its horns directly at his chest.

Whisker waited for the painful stab. There was a loud shout from the plateau and the chameleon whipped around to face the new threat.

Seizing his opportunity, Whisker staggered to his feet, pulling Ruby up with him, and his tail dragged the key onto the ledge. Horace stood several metres away, brandishing a flaming torch in one paw and a stick of unlit dynamite in his hook.

‘Burn you brutish beast!' he cried, waving the torch at the chameleon. ‘And if you touch my friends again, you'll be sucking on a sizzling stick of dynamite.'

The chameleon moved to its left, its eyes darting between Horace and the dense jungle. Horace stepped in its path, denying it an easy escape.

‘Let it pass,' Whisker shouted. ‘We have the key.'

Obediently, Horace lowered the torch and moved out of the reptile's way. The chameleon eyed him cautiously but refused to budge.

‘W-what's it doing?' Horace stammered, raising the torch again.

As Whisker and Ruby watched, the Captain and the mice burst from the undergrowth, puffing hard. Smudge scrambled into the Captain's backpack when he saw the chameleon. The Captain pointed his sword at the creature and panted, ‘Chameleon – here – but how? – behind us – a minute ago –'

Whisker saw the danger before the others, but it was Ruby who found the lungs to scream, ‘BEHIND YOU! LOOK OUT!'

A green shape hurtled out of the jungle, knocking Eaton and Mr Tribble off their feet. The Captain dived out of the way, as a hornless chameleon charged across the plateau.

‘Argh me pastries,' Horace gasped. ‘The chameleon has a mate.'

The second chameleon fixed its yellow eyes on Whisker's tail and made a beeline for the key. Before Whisker could untangle the key from his tail, the chameleon's tongue shot out and caught hold of it – tail and all. Whisker jerked forward as the chameleon reeled him in.

Ruby ran to Whisker's aid but the horned chameleon battered her backwards with a flick of its tail. She crashed into Horace, sending the dynamite flying. There was a shower of sparks as the fuse spun through the flames of the torch, igniting on impact.

The hissing stick of dynamite hit the ground, only inches from the second chameleon. Oblivious to the danger, it continued to drag Whisker closer.

Whisker grabbed his tail with his paws to stop himself sliding. It was a tail versus tongue tug-of-war. And he was losing.

He heard thundering footsteps to his left and turned to see the first chameleon charging at him. There was only one direction he could go. He leapt towards the second chameleon and the end of his tail disappeared into its mouth. Three brown horns brushed past him, narrowly missing his head.

He watched helplessly as the chameleon's jaws closed shut. He held his breath and waited for the bite.

With an agonising
CRUNCH,
the chameleon's jaws stopped. Whisker exhaled with relief – the key lay wedged between its teeth.

‘Catch,' Horace shouted, hurling Whisker the torch.

Whisker plucked the flaming torch from the air and thrust it into the chameleon's mouth. There was a hiss of steaming saliva. The chameleon rolled its eyes and spat out Whisker's tail.

Whisker stumbled backwards, narrowly avoiding a second collision with the horned chameleon. Hastily, he unravelled the gooey key from his tail and shoved it deep into his pocket.

‘Get going,' he yelled. ‘I'll hold them off.'

He waved the torch in wide sweeps through the air as the rest of the Pie Rats scrambled for the rope. The stick of dynamite continued to sizzle behind the chameleons, its extra-long fuse already three-quarters burnt.

‘Hurry!' Whisker shouted. ‘We've got a deadline to meet.'

Mr Tribble fumbled with a safety harness.

‘Survival before safety,' Ruby snapped, throwing the harness over the cliff. ‘There's no time to climb.'

‘So how do we get across?' Mr Tribble gasped.

Ruby thrust a sticky candy cane into his paws.

‘Essential survival item,' she hissed.

Mr Tribble stared at the sugary object.

‘W-what am I supposed to do with this?' he stammered.

The Captain grabbed Eaton under one arm and hooked Ruby's second candy cane over the rope.

‘You hold on tight!' he cried, leaping off the cliff.

Eaton squealed in terror as they raced down the rope. In seconds they had reached the opposite side of the ravine and crash-landed into the catapult.

Whisker's torch began to smoulder. The chameleons crept closer, their fear dwindling.

‘We have a problem,' Whisker coughed through the smoke.

Mr Tribble froze on the edge of the cliff.

‘You've got three seconds before I throw you off, Tribble,' Ruby shouted, hooking the candy cane over the rope. ‘One … two …'

Mr Tribble clasped the stick.

‘… three!' Ruby gave him a hard shove and he was gone. ‘You're up next, Horace,' she yelled.

Horace looped his hook over the rope.

‘No assistance necessary,' he panted. Ruby gave him a firm kick all the same, and he sped down the rope like a bullet.

Horace was almost at the opposite side when Whisker's torch went out completely. He hurled the smoking stump at the closest chameleon and ran for his life.

He could hear the clatter of chameleons behind him and the crackle of the fuse burning to its end, but his eyes were fixed on one thing: Ruby – she wasn't leaving without him. She stood on the edge of the cliff holding the last remaining candy cane in her paws with a look that said
get here at once, apprentice.

Whisker wasn't one to disappoint. He scrambled over the rocks faster than a rat trying to outrun two killer chameleons and a ticking time bomb. In moments he'd reached the rope.

Whisker was muddy, smoky, soggy and dripping with chameleon spit. As he wrapped his filthy arm around Ruby's waist and leapt off the cliff, he hoped she'd forgive him for ruining her outfit.

The two rats rocketed down the rope. Whisker's heart pounded like a drum. The wind buffeted his cheeks, the crisp air stung his eyes. He was on a flying-fox ride on overdrive. Halfway down, he glanced over his shoulder to see the defeated chameleons disappear into the jungle. He turned back. The opposite cliff was right in front of him.

KABOOM …
KABOOM …
KABOOM …

The stick of deadly dynamite exploded with volcanic intensity. Whisker and Ruby were thrown from the rope, somersaulting through the air onto the cliff top. Their bodies tumbled over slippery stones and came to rest in a leafy bush. No sooner had they landed, than a hailstorm of rubble peppered the cliff top.

‘RUN!' Horace shouted.

Ruby was on her feet in an instant and sprinted after the escaping crew. Whisker untangled his foot from a branch and stumbled blindly into the jungle. Rocks slammed into tree trunks around him, sending shards of stone crashing through the dense layers of leaves. He ducked for cover behind a log and waited.

When the last flying projectile had come to a stop, he cautiously raised his head and looked around. He was alone. The distant drone of Horace counting backwards told him where to find his companions: the mountain stairs.

He rose to his feet, took a step through the undergrowth – and stopped. Something felt terribly wrong.

In rising dread, he stuck his paw in his pocket and double checked its contents. His fingers touched the jagged tooth of a key. He reached his arm over his shoulder and felt the map canister bulging from his backpack. The key and map were safe, but his feeling of unease remained.

What is it?
he thought.
What did I see?

Searching for clarity, he tried to recall the day he first crossed the ravine. He closed his eyes and pictured the cliff tops.

Ruby left the rope dangling into the ravine. Today we found it stretched tightly across …

Whisker's chest grew tight. He began to run. He didn't know
who
and he didn't know
why
, but he knew he wasn't alone.

I have to warn the others,
he thought with dire urgency.

He heard a
SNAP
to his right, glimpsed a bright flash of silver and, with a hard blow to the back of his head, everything went black.

Old Enemies

'Whisker! Whisker! Wake up!'

Whisker felt rough paws shaking his body. His mind slowly registered the sounds. He struggled to comprehend where he was or what had happened.

‘They've taken it,' a voice cried.

Whisker forced his eyes open. The sunlight stung his eyes. His head pounded. Dazedly, he looked up. He was lying in the middle of the jungle. Ruby, Horace and Mr Tribble stood over him. Smudge circled overhead.