Chapter 5: Dangerous Obstacles
Jack woke with the sun the next morning. He found a nearby brook to drink from and wash his face with. The Lion woke up an hour or two later, and he immediately proposed a hunt.
"I'll get ye a deer for breakfast if ye'd like, Jack."
"No, please don't!" Nick cried. "I'll cry for the poor thing, and I'd be rusted again!"
"Let's go into the forest and get our breakfast," Jack suggested. "You two can gather fruit and nuts while we're gone for us to eat later."
"OK," the Scarecrow and Nick said together.
Like the Lion promised, he killed a deer for them to eat. Jack watched, and it didn't look like the Lion needed any help. "It would we best if we did not discuss this with the others."
"Of course, laddie."
Jack took his portion and started to cook it. "If you claim to be such a coward, how is it you were not afraid of a huge deer?"
"Well, that's different. Tha' was m' food. Besides, deer hardly pu' up much of a fight 'gainst a lion. Now, if I came across a Kalidah, it would be different."
"A Kalidah? What is that?"
"Kalidahs are fierce beasts that live in the darkest parts of this forests. They have the bodies of bears and faces of tigers. And they got sharp claws, sharper than steel I'd bet, and they could eat any living thing in two bites. They're terribly frightening."
"But they do not eat lions, do they?"
"Oh yes they do. Here they are the top of the food chain."
"We will be on our guard for this ferocious beast."
After they were done with breakfast, they headed back to the road and resumed their journey. It wasn't long, though, before they stopped dead in their tracks. A huge chasm had broken the Yellow Brick Road in two. There was no way around it and no way to climb the walls inside. There were many jagged rocks in the bottom. Jack inspected the ditch very closely as the others looked at it hopelessly.
"It looks like our journey ends here," Nick said with a sigh.
"Not quite," Jack said. He backed up, broke into a run, and jumped over the ditch. The others watched him with amazement. He landed safely on the other side. "Come, friend Scarecrow. Jump!"
"No way!"
"I know you, and you are an excellent jumper! You can make it!"
"If he can jump, I can jump," the Lion boldly stated. "Ge' on m' back, Scarecrow." The Scarecrow did so, and the Lion sprang up into the air and landed on the other side.
"Why you not start running, like Jack did?" the Scarecrow asked.
"'Cause that's no' the way lions do things!" the Lion replied, almost offended. "Now, I must go back an' ge' Nick." He did so, and then all our heroes were safely across.
"See, my friend," Jack said patting the Lion's mane, "that was a very brave thing."
"Nah, it wasn'."
The forest kept getting thicker. Jack was on his guard for any wild beasts they might encounter. After about an hour, they found an even larger chasm.
"It is not possible for us to jump across that," Jack said thoughtfully.
"No," said Nick, "but that tree looks tall enough to stretch across it. We can make a make-shift bridge."
At that moment, they heard snarls. "Oh no!" the Lion cried out. "It's the Kalidahs!"
Two of the fearful animals charged for our heroes. Jack recognized them. One looked like a formidable bounty hunter he had faced named Leiko. The other looked like a servant of Aku's who called herself Aku Chaos Rune. Jack glared. "You make the bridge," he told the others. "I'll deal with the beasts."
The one who looked like Leiko stared Jack down as he drew his sword. "Mmmm, Japanese steak!" she growled.
Jack screamed a war cry and charged. The monsters brandished their claws, which did look dreadfully sharp. Jack tried to stab them, but their hides were too tough, like elephant skins. Besides, these monsters were quite agile, and Jack kept missing them. Their claws and their fangs often hurt Jack.
"Jack, come on!" Nick cried. The bridge was ready. Jack could see this wasn't much of a fight, so he retreated. He stood in the middle of the bridge and pointed his sword toward the two beasts.
The one that looked like Aku Chaos Rune glared at him. "You really think we're stupid?" They started climbing onto the bridge after him. Jack ran off the bridge, and Nick quickly chopped the bridge down. The Kalidahs fell into the chasm, but as Jack looked down, he could see them climbing up the side with their claws.
"Let's ge' out of here!" the Lion cried.
All the heroes ran for their lives out of the forest. By the time they reached a beautiful meadow, they felt they were out of harm's way.
The road was on the other side of a rushing river before them. Jack looked closely at the river. "The current is too swift. We cannot swim across. We need to make a raft."
"No problem!" Nick assured him. "Making rafts is my specialty!" He and Jack worked on making one together. It took hours, but they made one big enough for everybody. Jack sat in the middle. The Lion almost made the raft topple over, but Nick and the Scarecrow helped balance the weight out. They had two long poles for paddles. Jack made one for him too, just in case they needed some extra help.
At first, it was smooth sailing, but as they reached the middle of the river, the current started to take them away from the road.
"This isn't good!" Nick said. "This rive goes past the Emerald City into Winkie Country in the West, where we will all be made slaves!"
"Paddle harder!" Jack advised. "Fight the current!"
Scarecrow tried to do that, but his paddle got stuck in the mud. He hung on to it, so that he was stuck in the river. That was one thing Jack just could not take. He stood and put his paddle out, so that it stopped the raft. Then he held out his arms and cried out, "Jump!"
"No!" the Scarecrow cried. "I get swept away!"
"You must jump! I will not leave you out here! You will be worse off than when I first met you!"
"All right," the Scarecrow replied nervously. He jumped off the pole and nearly made it to the raft, but then he fell. Luckily, Jack pulled him out just in time.
"Never mind. Perhaps the straw made you clumsier than I thought. You did well, though."
"Thanks."
They made it to the other side of the river, but the Yellow Brick Road was far away. They resolved to find there way back the next day.
Jack woke with the sun the next morning. He found a nearby brook to drink from and wash his face with. The Lion woke up an hour or two later, and he immediately proposed a hunt.
"I'll get ye a deer for breakfast if ye'd like, Jack."
"No, please don't!" Nick cried. "I'll cry for the poor thing, and I'd be rusted again!"
"Let's go into the forest and get our breakfast," Jack suggested. "You two can gather fruit and nuts while we're gone for us to eat later."
"OK," the Scarecrow and Nick said together.
Like the Lion promised, he killed a deer for them to eat. Jack watched, and it didn't look like the Lion needed any help. "It would we best if we did not discuss this with the others."
"Of course, laddie."
Jack took his portion and started to cook it. "If you claim to be such a coward, how is it you were not afraid of a huge deer?"
"Well, that's different. Tha' was m' food. Besides, deer hardly pu' up much of a fight 'gainst a lion. Now, if I came across a Kalidah, it would be different."
"A Kalidah? What is that?"
"Kalidahs are fierce beasts that live in the darkest parts of this forests. They have the bodies of bears and faces of tigers. And they got sharp claws, sharper than steel I'd bet, and they could eat any living thing in two bites. They're terribly frightening."
"But they do not eat lions, do they?"
"Oh yes they do. Here they are the top of the food chain."
"We will be on our guard for this ferocious beast."
After they were done with breakfast, they headed back to the road and resumed their journey. It wasn't long, though, before they stopped dead in their tracks. A huge chasm had broken the Yellow Brick Road in two. There was no way around it and no way to climb the walls inside. There were many jagged rocks in the bottom. Jack inspected the ditch very closely as the others looked at it hopelessly.
"It looks like our journey ends here," Nick said with a sigh.
"Not quite," Jack said. He backed up, broke into a run, and jumped over the ditch. The others watched him with amazement. He landed safely on the other side. "Come, friend Scarecrow. Jump!"
"No way!"
"I know you, and you are an excellent jumper! You can make it!"
"If he can jump, I can jump," the Lion boldly stated. "Ge' on m' back, Scarecrow." The Scarecrow did so, and the Lion sprang up into the air and landed on the other side.
"Why you not start running, like Jack did?" the Scarecrow asked.
"'Cause that's no' the way lions do things!" the Lion replied, almost offended. "Now, I must go back an' ge' Nick." He did so, and then all our heroes were safely across.
"See, my friend," Jack said patting the Lion's mane, "that was a very brave thing."
"Nah, it wasn'."
The forest kept getting thicker. Jack was on his guard for any wild beasts they might encounter. After about an hour, they found an even larger chasm.
"It is not possible for us to jump across that," Jack said thoughtfully.
"No," said Nick, "but that tree looks tall enough to stretch across it. We can make a make-shift bridge."
At that moment, they heard snarls. "Oh no!" the Lion cried out. "It's the Kalidahs!"
Two of the fearful animals charged for our heroes. Jack recognized them. One looked like a formidable bounty hunter he had faced named Leiko. The other looked like a servant of Aku's who called herself Aku Chaos Rune. Jack glared. "You make the bridge," he told the others. "I'll deal with the beasts."
The one who looked like Leiko stared Jack down as he drew his sword. "Mmmm, Japanese steak!" she growled.
Jack screamed a war cry and charged. The monsters brandished their claws, which did look dreadfully sharp. Jack tried to stab them, but their hides were too tough, like elephant skins. Besides, these monsters were quite agile, and Jack kept missing them. Their claws and their fangs often hurt Jack.
"Jack, come on!" Nick cried. The bridge was ready. Jack could see this wasn't much of a fight, so he retreated. He stood in the middle of the bridge and pointed his sword toward the two beasts.
The one that looked like Aku Chaos Rune glared at him. "You really think we're stupid?" They started climbing onto the bridge after him. Jack ran off the bridge, and Nick quickly chopped the bridge down. The Kalidahs fell into the chasm, but as Jack looked down, he could see them climbing up the side with their claws.
"Let's ge' out of here!" the Lion cried.
All the heroes ran for their lives out of the forest. By the time they reached a beautiful meadow, they felt they were out of harm's way.
The road was on the other side of a rushing river before them. Jack looked closely at the river. "The current is too swift. We cannot swim across. We need to make a raft."
"No problem!" Nick assured him. "Making rafts is my specialty!" He and Jack worked on making one together. It took hours, but they made one big enough for everybody. Jack sat in the middle. The Lion almost made the raft topple over, but Nick and the Scarecrow helped balance the weight out. They had two long poles for paddles. Jack made one for him too, just in case they needed some extra help.
At first, it was smooth sailing, but as they reached the middle of the river, the current started to take them away from the road.
"This isn't good!" Nick said. "This rive goes past the Emerald City into Winkie Country in the West, where we will all be made slaves!"
"Paddle harder!" Jack advised. "Fight the current!"
Scarecrow tried to do that, but his paddle got stuck in the mud. He hung on to it, so that he was stuck in the river. That was one thing Jack just could not take. He stood and put his paddle out, so that it stopped the raft. Then he held out his arms and cried out, "Jump!"
"No!" the Scarecrow cried. "I get swept away!"
"You must jump! I will not leave you out here! You will be worse off than when I first met you!"
"All right," the Scarecrow replied nervously. He jumped off the pole and nearly made it to the raft, but then he fell. Luckily, Jack pulled him out just in time.
"Never mind. Perhaps the straw made you clumsier than I thought. You did well, though."
"Thanks."
They made it to the other side of the river, but the Yellow Brick Road was far away. They resolved to find there way back the next day.
