Hey guys, welcome to read my own version of Mowgli 2018. Now, I'm not saying that Andy Serkis's version on the dark version of the Jungle Book, I actually really enjoyed it. I loved the story within it. I just thought there wasn't much details from the original book version. So, I thought of writing my own version of what 'Mowgli' could have been. Please comment on what you think.
Enjoy!
Chapter 1
The enteral jungle living day by day as the seasons come in and out each few mouths. The leaves change from green to brown then brown to green. The changing shape of the white moon above in the dark sky. But, every day as time passes through, all the green plants keep on growing.
I am the eyesss of the jungle
I have ssseen the past life through the jungle
There were old temples crumbled and cracked of old age, the ancient walls were covered with dust but mostly green veins and flowers. Never have there any temple created in the heart of the jungle, until a new species arrived.
I sssaw darknesss and chosss ssspread acrosss our landsss
Along, I witnessssed the coming of… man
There one day, where the silent jungle was still at its peace there was instead screaming of terror and death. Man ran fast through bushes and branches of the jungle, panicking away from their close deaths, though some already meet their death sentence. Mainly the older ones who cannot run as fast as the others. One woman fell on her hands and knees, she had no screams to echo through eth jungle but tears for her blessed baby she held tight to her chest. There wasn't just screams that echoed, but loud roars of hunger racing closer. She rushed over to the side of a tree where a fallen, huge, old branch lays next to the tree. As the roars were coming closer, the women carefully placed her baby inside the hole of the branch praying for her child to silent, so death will not come to him yet.
The woman run off away through the bushes, until something jumped out and shocked the poor woman as she fell backwards into the bushes. A bright creature with a dark heart growled with blood dripping from its sharp, white teeth and sliding down on its white, fury chin. Its eyes were yellow as a pale sun seeing through the soul of darkness and vengeance. The tiger eyed at the fallen woman as its next target. Crawling towards her, teasing her, torturing her as she feels her life slowly slipping away. Until at the last second, the tiger leaped out and roared at the woman as she screamed her last breathe.
I have ssseen many deathsss of man
Killed at the clawsssof a man-eating tiger
Breaking one of our ancient lawsss
After, a white-greyish wolf was nearby on her hunt for her cubs and has heard the screams of man. Knowing man are dangerous by their weapons, but the mother wolf curiously wondered down to know what caused the screams. Arriving, she first found parts of what man uses upon themselves, and along dead man laying to rot in the bushes with the dirty fly savaging around the huge wounds on their bodies. She sniffed and scan around until her eyes caught a footprint bigger than her own and one of them looks like it was dragging.
Suddenly, a cry echoed to her ears, her claws were out and her ears to prick up the sounding again. The small cry continued so the mother wolf followed, she crawled slowly and quietly towards where the crying was coming from. Until she reached to the side of a tree and walked along the side of the fallen branch. There, the baby crawled out of the hole and the eyes of the mother wolf were widen with shock. The mother wolf jumped with its two front paws on the side of the branch and looked and sniffed around the little baby as it was covered with red blood around the front side of its body.
"A man-cub?" the mother wolf gently whispered as she bends her head to look at the baby in different view.
The mother wolf growled at when the little man-cub began to reach out to torch the edge of the mother wolf's noise, only knowing of man could be dangerous than a cobra's poisonous attack. However, the mother wolf stopped moving away from the little man-cub and slowly lean in closer for its tiny fingers to her. The mother wolf smiled and laughed at this small, unusual creature. The man-cub even poke the pointy edge of a leave in one of her paws, while he began eating the end part.
Suddenly, a crumbly roar echoed through the jungle showing with hunger and horror. Mother wolf turned to face where the roaring was coming from and recognised who it belonged to. "Shere Khan" she whispered to herself, knowing the tiger will come to this part of the jungle for a new hunting ground and to have a taste a man's blood. She turned back to face the little man cub only seeing the innocence in the cub's eyes knowing the man-cub will alone without any protection. The mother wolf didn't want to leave it, she just couldn't. Carefully pacing her teeth to claw on the small clothing hanging around its tiny waist, mother wolf carried along the little man cub while walking fast to Council Rock, where the wolf pack lives.
Quiet and peaceful, a small but deep cave on the edge of a tall, rocky cliff, mother wolf arrived and carefully placed the little man cub on the outside near the small entrance of the cave. The little man cub giggled when mother wolf dropped him down and mother wolf smiled.
"Raksha?" another wolf appeared walking outside form the cave, Rama the father walked out of his cave.
Rama looked suspicious at Raksha wondering where his mate has gone and what happened, until he spotted the little man-cub sitting besides her paws. His eyes were widened as Rama crawled closer to the small creature. Then, one of the wolf cubs jumped out of the cave as he noticed the man cub and he noticed the wolf cub.
"Is that a man-cub?" Rama asked, "I have never seen one before."
Vihaan watched as the little cub was just looking cluelessly, "It looks so…"
"Furless" Raksha finished to what she thought in her mind.
"I was going to say small, but that could do" Rama replied.
The small man-cub turned around and began reaching out for Raksha's paws to hug around, Raksha laughed, "Look at him, he shows no fear of us."
"How did it get here?" Vihaan asked.
"I brought him here" Raksha paused shortly before answering, knowing how shot Vihaan will react when he heard her. Her voice was brave, "It was alone, and Shere Khan…"
Shocked but understood, Vihaan sniffed around the cub closely and caught the scent of the most darkest creature they know. He moved away and showed compassion in his eyes. "Is it hurt?" he asked.
Either of them knew the answer. Raksha lowed her head and licked off the dark red blood covering the front side of eth man-cub. Ignoring the taste of man's blood sliming on her tongue. After, they both saw no wound, no cuts, no scars marked on the skin of the cub.
"What shall we do?" Rama asked, and either of them know nothing to answer, Raksha however knew a solution to risk a life for a life.
Suddenly, a trembling step rushing down through the green bushes of the jungle. Claws strike out from their paws in case of an unexpected attack. But all jumped out was Tabaqui, a golden fury jacket with tiny, scavenging flies flying around his blood, as the marks of blood on its shiny, gold fur intoxicated their senses. Tabaqui unknowingly laughs with his white and red saliva slimming down on his chin and on his teeth.
"Evening Raksha" Tabaqui giggly said, "Rama"
Raksha and Rama however had no pleasure for seeing the jacket coming to their cave. The little wolf cubs hidden themselves in their caves away from the jacket, however one who spotted and stayed by the man-cub. Raksha tried to hide the sight of the man-cub behind her.
"What is it you want, Tabaqi?" Rama asked with a powerful tone of his voice.
"I caught a scent" Tabaqui licked his lips, "What is it? A flesh of a dull?"
"If it is bones or scraps, you are after?" Raksha said angrily, "Go and look around somewhere else."
Tabaqui was about to leave until he remembered something to warn the wolf family, "Oh and, Shere Khan has shifted his hunting grounds to this part of the jungle."
"What!" Raksha's and Ruma's voice raised in anger, Ruma shouted, "He will scare away our hunt, and will bring more man to the jungle!"
"I mean no harm" Tabaqui lowed his head down while gazing up at the angry, adult wolves.
Abruptly, a small giggling sound appeared behind Raksha were Tabaqui's eyes got the sight of a man-cub. The jacket started slowly jumping thrillingly until the same loud roar filled with hunger and power echoed eerily through the jungle.
"You best be off then. Your master calls" Raksha steps forward towards the shaky jacket with a brave voice and her vicious, brown eyes, "And he sounds ill-tempered."
"I bet he is. I bet he is" Tabaqui answered back, then his eyes wondered over to the small man-cub, "For a good reason."
Rama notice Tabaqui's gazes deviously at the little man-cub. His rage and compassion moved his paws over the man-cub and growled spitefully at the jacket. The thrilling feeling in the jacket's skinny body made his jumpy legs rush off while yelling repeatedly, "I have found the man-cub!"
Unaware to Raksha and Rama as they both stare anxiously at each other, the little man-cub followed the wolf cub until he fully crawled his way in the cave. The other three wolf cubs who hide themselves form the usual creature bravely crawled out from the shadowy corners. Sniffing and scanning around the man-cub as he tried to take small steps forward by his tiny feet, until the man-cub fallen slowly to his knees and began crawling on all fours. Raksha and Rama walked back inside the cave and watched as their cubs began playing with the man-cub; jumping and rolling. Raksha smiled gladly of taking the man-cub to her home, seeing how they are both happy.
Until, the sun sets' light which brightens the cave with was suddenly drawn away slowly by the dark shadows. Even without eyes at the back of her head, she felt a dark present. Shere Khan crawled closer towards the mouth of the cave. As this dark creature eyed carefully at the small man-cub as it's prey. Raksha leaped in and pushed the man-cub back away before the tiger's huge paw lunged out through the entrance and its claws swing out and landed exactly where the man-cub should have been. Shere Khan roar furiously with the same paw swing out as the mouth of eth cave was too narrow for the tiger to slide inside the cave fully, only seeing his raging face and his paw. Raksha stood over her cubs and the man-cub with Rama by her side growling while showing their sharp fangs and teeth.
"The man-cub! It's mine!" Shere Khan roared.
"What law states that the cub belongs to you!" Rama replied, "Not to you who break the laws of the jungle!"
"Its mother died. He has no one to will care for it. It is my right" Shere Khan creepily smiled, "Unless, you would want I, Shere Khan to taste the one of your own cubs."
The tiger laughed for the cubs moved back away hiding deeper underneath it's mother. Raksha growled in boiling rage and lunged out with red eyes like the red flower.
"Or I, Raksha, the Demon, who could taste your blood from a scar across your eyes" Shere Khan growled from her threat, even to Rama and Tabaqui were shocked to her bravery response, "The man-cub is mine, Lungri-mine to me! You shall not taste his blood. For he shall live to run with the Pack and to hunt with the Pack!"
"No creature like you, Lungri!" Raksha pointed at his crimple paw Shere Khan swing out to try to grab the man-cub, "With a week paw who kills cattle for sports and hut man for the fn of it!"
Raksha crawled up slowly towards the face of the tiger, "Leave! Or the pack will chase you back to your mother!"
Raksha gave a vicious growl to the tiger as he moved back away. He gazed through the entrance and growled, "The pack will not accept a man-cub. For you will poison the jungle." Shere Khan slowly walked away with Tabaqui laughing behind him as he could image eating the freshly bones off from the small man-cub.
After, the sun sets down on the skin of the jungle. The wolves of the pack arrived at Council Rock where it stands in a big area with the rocky cliffs behind. Their leader, Akela stands on the pointy, sharp edge with a small tree grew on the side of eth edge. It was just strongly hanging above where you could fall right down to the jungle. Raksha and Rama assembled a meeting to all the wolves. Even Baloo, the huge sloth bear sat near the side of the rocky cliff. His face was tough and strict as the cliffs were when being climbed on. All the wolves of the pack were there, sitting and waiting, and so was Akela at the top.
Raksha walked up in front of everyone, staring up to Akela and started, "To the free people of the pack. We found a man-cub."
Rama carried the man-cub in her mouth and dropped him carefully at the bottom of the edge where Akela stands. Quickly, the wolves gasped and with their loud, howling voices they commented horridly about the cub, like darkness quickly passes over the light of day in the season of winter. "That's not a wolf! It does not belong here! A man-cub! Outrageous!" they all howled.
Akela listen then commented himself, "Well, this is most unusual indeed.
"Akela" Raksha spoke only to her leader, "I wish to raise it as my own."
Akela paused feeling shocked, he replied but only to Rama, "And you? Rama?"
Rama stood by his mates' side, "I do."
The wolves raised their voice trying to convince Akela that Raksha and Rama are making a bad mistake. However, Akela had none of his ears out listening to a word they were howling at for he gazes down curiously at the man-cub. Akela crawled slowly towards the small cub as he stares curiously at the wolf leader. Their small and big eyes met, and the little man-cub had no sense of turning around out of fear. Akela has never seen the eyes of a cub of man, nor seen any creature brave enough to face him.
That moment, Akela straighten up and fairly decided, "According to the law of the jungle!" he started to get everyone's eyes staring up to him as he continued, "Two guardians must speak for the cub to live among us. This shall not be the parents themselves. So, who will speak for the man-cub!" There was deep silent which only terribly worried Raksha and Rama. However, the wolves behind shut their mouths tightly.
"I will speak for the cub!" a loud voice appeared from behind among the other wolves. Baloo walked over through the crowd of the wolves and stood behind Raksha and Rama. Baloo stare up to Akela, "I will be the cub's guardian!"
"How?! He is not a wolf himself!" many of the wolves howled angrily.
"Baloo taught your cubs!" Akela replied back loudly to his pack, "He has every right to speak as a true member of the pack!"
"So, who else will speak to the man-cub?!" Akela asked to the pack.
No voice appeared after Akela's question, but one did complain, "Akela, his parents will come looking for him!"
Suddenly, a loud, scary roar was called from the side. All heads quickly turned to the side. Shere Khan was walking along the flat, narrow path with three of his paws stepped peflectly like low banging drums along with his front, right paw crimpled down with his claws out scratching the surface of the floor. "His parents are dead. I killed them" He stopped when he reached closer enough to the wolves as they all growled and moved backwards away from the cruel tiger. "There is no one will come looking for him" Shere Khan eyed at the little man-cub.
Raksha stood above the man-cub and growled crossly. Akela shouted, "This is not of your concern, Shere Khan!"
"I have already tasted his mother's blood. It is my right" Shere Khan eerily replied, "Give me the cub!"
"Your right according to who's law?!" Raksha growled.
The wolves all growled together along with Baloo, then Shere Khan eerily smiled, "Of course, you do need one more to become the cub's guardian. If not, he is mine."
Everyone felt a cold chill down their spine and through their bone from the tiger's smile along with his laughter. However, Akela looked down sadly knowing that Shere Khan was right. There was a deeper silence which covered each mouth of the wolves, as they shivered in fear of the tiger. The moment was hopeless and dark for the little man-cub to have the chance to live. Raksha could cry out a howl in a tearful fear for the cub. For the tiger however, Shere Khan crawled slowly towards where the man-cub sits with Raksha standing above him. Shere Khan could nearly taste the blood of man deliciously swallowed down through his throat.
Unexpectly, a soft voice appeared, "I will speak for the man-cub!" the tiger stopped angrily, while the wolves all scan around to find who spoke out. However, this voice was not spoken out on their floor level, but just above them.
"Up there!" one wolf shouted. All eyes gazed up but could only see the blue sky and the shadowy sides of the rocky cliffs. No sight of a creature was spotted. Until, a large shape quickly moved from the left side of the rocky cliffs. It jumped from one dark shadow to another, still the wolves had no idea who or what the creature was. Until, it finally landed on the same floor level. It paused silently in the dark shadows till it steeped out slowly and began walking through the crowd.
The creature with the fur in the colour of the dark night, Bagheera the black panther. He was strong and fearful like Shere Khan. However, his voice was calm and soft like honey slowly dripping down from a high tree. The wolves all gasped and quietly whispered their comments to each other. Bagheera reached up in front of the crowd and looked up to the pack's leader, "Evening Akela" he turned his head around and faced the wolves, "Evening to the free people." Bagheera turned to face the big sloth bear, "Evening Baloo" but the bear eyed anxiously at the black panther. Finally, Bagheera turned to face the tiger, "Khan" but the tiger furiously growled and Bagheera showed a small grin.
"What are your concerns for being her, Bagheera?" Akela asked.
"Well, I heard of a man-cub been found around this area, so I curiously wondered around to know what happened and what will happened" Bagheera smiled with a cheerful voice. "So, I was just eavesdropping from above. Then you mentioned about guardians."
That give everyone the same idea about where Bagheera was heading to. Bagheera started, "The laws of the jungle say…"
"Why does the panther speak?!" Tabaqui shouted, "He is not a member of the free people! He has no right to speak for the man-cub!"
However, the jackal stated a good point, the wolves commented that Tabaqui is right. Bagheera silently paused without a look behind at Tabaqui, then continued, "True. But I have that you cannot, jackal. Is that I could kill a cowardly creature like you by a swing of my paw. So, if anyone who has no right to speak over me…" surprisingly Bagheera jumped tuning around to face Tabaqui and roar, "…it is you!"
Tabaqui jumped back in terror and hidden his master, Shere Khan. Bagheera growled showing his sharp, white teeth as his eyes burn in the bright colour of yellow. After, Bagheera turned back around to face Akela and continued, "The law of the jungle say that a life for a cub may be bought for a prince."
Akela paused in surprise, "That is true."
"So, if you accept my kill for the life of the man-cub, I shall be his guardian" Bagheera explained. He turned his head to look back eyeing at his kill, an adult deer behind the wolves, proving the prince he is paying.
However, Bagheera was not done talking for he heard the dislikes comments and the thoughts from the free people about the man-cub. Bagheera walked over in front of eth pack and said, "Why worry for a young, helpless cub?! Soon as the seasons come by, he could freeze to death in winter, burn alive in the summer."
Surprisingly, Bagheera's words shock the heads of the free people. Then, he turns to face Shere Khan as the tiger gave a deep death stare at the black panther. Bagheera started, "Why kill him now? When he grows, you could taste more of his blood, eat more of flesh, savaged around his bones."
Bagheera turn to face Akela again, "So, would you accept my kill?"
Akela paused staring down at Bagheera, till he nodded shortly with a small smile. Raksha and Rama could breathe calmly now for the man-cub's life is now in safe paws. Then, Akela turned to face the tiger, "Shere Khan! It's best that you leave now."
"Careful, Akela" Shere Khan replied with his voice began more deeper and darker, "You do not wish to challenge me!"
The wolves quickly came together and growled facing the drak tiger. Their eyes grew angrily red. They slowly all crawled together towards Shere Khan making the tiger to walk backwards away form eth wolves. Akela shouted, "This man-cub is now under the protection of the pack! Should you decide to take me, you take on the pack! All of us!"
The wolves snarl and bark loud as they continued crawling towards the tiger. Akela continued, "As long as I am leader, this part of the jungle is closed to you!"
Shere Khan roared, "But you cannot be leader forever. The day you miss your kill, the man-cub's blood will run down my chin" Shere Khan lifted his crimpled paw and his claw pointed from the top of his chin where he will taste the man-cub's blood and it will slide down to the bottom of his chin.
Finally, Shere Khan run off away from the pack's threating growls, along with Tabaqui racing up behind his cruel master. The wolves smiled, including Baloo and Bagheera. Akela said, "The cub is spoken for. He is one of us." Akela looks down directly at Baloo and Bagheera, "You will teach him as you would your own." The huge bear and the black panther nodded as their answer. Akela ended, "As long as I am alive, the pack will stand by the man-cub" Akela finished with his achieving howl and so other wolves howled with him. While, Raksha licked happily on her new cub, Mowgli.
Hey, so I hoped you enjoyed the first chapter because this is where I thought of some changes. Firstly, in the film it was Bagheera who found Mowgli and I thought that was a bit close to the Disney version. And how Bagheera should have speak to be one of Mowgli's guardian to the end.
So, hopefully you enjoyed it. Please again to leave comments if you want me to continue. Thank you!