Éléphant Rex
By muuphish
The King heard the patter of feet and knew the news was good. For weeks he has sat in darkness, waiting for one of his agents to return to him. Finally, one has come through. This was a good day.
The monkey ran down the red velvet carpet that lead to the King's golden throne. On each side of him, the King's Royal Guard stood, stoic, their gleaming silver armor reflecting light emanating from the braziers on the wall, and from the magnificent crystal chandelier above his head. The King liked things larger-than-life, much like His Royal Majesty himself.
The monkey approached the foot of the dais that held the royal seat, taking off his red beret and bending at the knee in the process. He looked down at His Majesty's feet, waiting for him to speak. One does not speak to the King unless he is spoken to first. The King did not speak, however. He merely stared down the length of his trunk at the monkey, his arms steeped beneath his tusks. Finally the King spoke:
"What news do you bring, young Zephir?" The King's eyes were hard on Zephir, almost as if they were trying to infer his news before the monkey spoke it. The King's thick French accent resonates throughout the audience chamber; the only other competing sound is that of the songbirds in the solar in the room behind his throne.
"I have just returned from a conference with Lord Rataxes, the sovereign King of the Rhinoceroses…"
"Lord Rataxes is no more king of the Rhinoceroses than you are king of the mongooses. No, I allow Rataxes to believe he is the king of the Rhinoceroses to keep him from getting too boisterous. Anyways, enough of my political squabbling, please continue with your news."
"I have spoken to…Lord Rataxes…and he has agreed to your terms. He will go to war with you." Zephir wrung his beret in his hands. He knew what Lord Rataxes decision to join the war meant. For years the Rhinoceroses and the Elephants have been at war, the other jungle animals choosing sides when it was beneficial, staying neutral when no winner was clear. Now, however, the King had gotten another notion in his head. No longer happy with his reign over Celesteville, he was planning a great war that would extend his hold over all of France. Clearly, King Babar had become mad. Of course, one does not tell a five-ton King that he has become senile in his old age; one simply complies with the King until the day comes when he passes away. On that day, Alexander, King Babar's eldest son, will take the throne and sanity will reign over Celesteville once more. Until that day, however, the subjects of the elephant king steeled themselves, preparing for the upcoming war.
"This is joyous news, Zephir! With the Rhinoceroses' support, we shall have no trouble wading through the human's meager defenses and into Grand Paris herself!" At this point Babar became worked up and started bellowing through his mighty trunk, held high aloft in the air. The audience chamber shook with his triumphant call. Zehphir knew that he was excused; it was pointless to try to talk to the King when he was excited.
Zephir rose to his feet and donned his beret and scurried out of the room. He ran down the hall and to his room, which overlooked the courtyard of King Babar's massive estate. Zephir closed his door and opened the one on his liquor cabinet. He'd been off the stuff for five years now, but this was a special occasion. In one month, King Babar will have called the power of the jungle to him, and begun his war against the humans.
His plan was all but impossible. A fleet of ships, both of the sea- and air-fairing kind, were being constructed. The landing boats would begin the attack on Marseille on the beachside, while the second wave would land their giant balloons and attack from the rear. By the time the humans knew what was going on, the southern French coast would be in the hands of the Elephants. After that, France would either surrender and accept King Babar as their new ruler, or be crushed by the force of thousands of stampeding Elephants and Rhinoceroses.
Zephir was not happy with this future. He believed, as many did, that the humans and jungle animals could coexist peacefully, as they have been for hundreds of years. King Babar saw differently. His time with the humans opened his eyes, he said. He saw what they were capable of, and decided he could have none of it. He saw that the only way to ensure the safety of the Elephants was to strike first, show the humans that they were a threat far greater than any they could overcome by mere weapons. With fear in their hearts, the humans would not think about attacking the Elephants. Peace would reign.
Maybe King Babar's plan would work, but Zephir was skeptical. He knew, as many likeminded souls did, that there was only answer to the question of how to stop King Babar from waging his war.
That answer was on his patio.
Zephir's room overlooked the courtyard, with a small patio directly above the rose bushes. The screen door to the patio was opened, a slow breeze blowing the curtains ever so gently. The smell of cigarette smoke wafted on the air as a small, completely snow-white fox terrier came up to Zephir and began to lick his hand. Zephir stepped forward and saw a murky silhouette on the patio, the embers of the cigarette the only light, playing dark shadows over the smoker's face.
"That is far enough, monkey." The man's French accent followed the smoke into the room. "I do not want you to know…too much. I have come here at great expense to my own life, not to mention yours, I think. Now, let us get to the business, oui?"
Zephir took one look at him, filled his glass, quickly downed it, and began to discuss plans with the Frenchman.
That night the King hosted a dinner, and ate with all his advisors and other jungle aristocrats. Zephir, being one of King Babar's oldest friends, sat to the right of the dais, where King Babar's ornate dining chair sat, with Queen Celeste on the King's left. Other noblemen and women were seated around the great rectangular oak table, with servants whizzing in and out, setting down food and refilling drink glasses. Zephir downed his first two wine glasses quickly, but decided to take the rest slower, to make sure his tongue did not loosen too much. The deals made in his room not an hour ago shook him to his core; he told the man he would think about his offer. The man in return said that his snow-white dog would stay on Zephir's patio for twenty-four hours, and that is how he would make contact, if Zephir decided to take the man's offer. It was a big decision; too big for one monkey, thought Zephir, but he could not tell anyone else about it. When it was done they would realize the wisdom that made the decision. Until then, all he could do was have another drink.
After the main course, King Babar stood up, an action that instantly silenced the dinner party. "Friends," he began, "tonight I share with you a great surprise! My loyal friend, and ambassador of the city of Celesteville, Zephir, has returned from the kingdom of the Rhinoceroses with triumphant news. He reports that Lord Rataxes will be joining us in our conquest of the human land known as France." There was a brief standing ovation for this news, while Zephir shrank back in his seat, all the while only hearing the words "loyal friend" play through his head. King Babar continued: "But that is not all the news I have to share with you. Our landing fleets of both sea and air have been completed ahead of schedule. I have sent word via tucan to the Lord Rataxes, and he agrees with me. In three days, our landing parties will arrive on French soil. Tomorrow, I shall officially declare war on France!" This revelation shocked the throng, as it was believed the landing fleet would take another month at least to finish. All the same, they rose from their chairs and cheered at this news. Zephir slammed back the rest of his drink and knew what he needed to do.
When dinner was over, Zephir excused himself and returned to his room, and crossed to the patio door. On the patio was the snow-white dog, just as the French man promised. He took one look at the dog, closed his eyes, and uttered only one word: "tomorrow." The dog leapt off the patio, landing safely on the ground and ran quickly into the shadows.
The next day, King Babar held a public assembly in the courtyard. There he would announce to the general subjects his intentions for war, and sign the war order that would officially put them at odds with France. Zephir was sitting on a small wooden stage that was hastily built for this occasion, alongside other aristocrats and members of King Babar's house, including Queen Celeste and his eldest son, Alexander. Zephir looked around nervously, wishing that he had a drink with him. It wasn't long after seating that King Babar took the stage. The crowd changed from being noisy to having a hushed awe for the elephant King. Even though he was mad, Zephir couldn't deny that King Babar held himself with such dignity that it was impossible to not take notice of him.
"My most loyal subjects, a difficult time lies ahead for us all. When it is time to declare war, a King's burden becomes almost too heavy to bare. This is what separates a good king from a weak one. I can tell you with utmost confidence, that I can bear that burden, and bear us to victory!
"Some of you may wonder why we must go to war with the humans. They have yet to attack us, so why bother? I shall tell you why, my faithful. It is true that the humans have not attacked us yet, but remember that I lived among them for a long time. I saw what they were capable of. Constantly do they quibble between each other, killing millions as if it were nothing. What is to stop them from deciding that we will be their next target? Their weapons are devastating, and could destroy Celesteville with ease, if they wish. This is why we must attack. This is why we must show them that the Jungle is not weak. This is why—" King Babar's speech was cut short by a blast that was almost unheard over the King's boisterous speech. King Babar stopped talking, staggering backwards, he fell to the ground, blood running down into his eyes from an open wound that appeared in his forehead. With not a sound, King Babar passed from his world into the next.
The crowd began to run franticly back and forth. Celeste dove onto her husband, holding his head to her bosom, crying, her trunk caressing his limp form. Alexander stood, observing the scene. King Babar's chief advisor ran to the side of the fallen King. He bent over him for a short time, then stood up, and emitted a devastatingly loud cry from his trunk. The other elephants around followed suit, calling out to their dead king, wishing him luck in the next world, an elephant custom that left Zephir's ears ringing.
The chief advisor stood up and looked at the crowd, with great sorrow in his eyes. "King Babar, the First of His Name, has died! Long live King Alexander, the First of His Name! The King is dead! Long live the King!" the crowd that remained after the shot took up the chant. King Alexander was young, but his mind was fresh, untouched by the senility that took his father. He would make a good king, thought Zephir.
Guards scoured the courtyard and the royal palace. It wasn't long until the chief of the guards returned the stage, the metallic spear-point caps on the ends of his tusks gleaming red with blood. Over his shoulder was a limp form, which he threw to the ground. It was that of a red-headed man wearing a long black trench coat. Over his shoulder on a strap was a long-range hunting rifle. In his stomach was a gaping wound made by one of the guard captain's tusks.
King Alexander stood over this fallen form for a long while, in dignified concentration. Finally he rose his head and addressed the crowd: "I have thought hard about this, and it seems like there is only one answer. The humans have received word that we were planning on attacking them. One can no doubt place the blame on Lord Rataxes. Nevertheless, they have assassinated my father, King Babar I, in attempts to stop our invasion. Now more than ever, I think, my father's warning is more true than ever. The humans have just committed an act of war against the Jungle. We will not remain quiet, I assure you. Tomorrow our forces will land on the beach of France as planned, and our assault will show them to not anger the Jungle!"
King Alexander's speech moved the crowd; believing that their king was killed by a human spy trying to stop the invasion, the people quickly moved to help the war effort in any way they could. Zephir sat on his bed, cradling his head in his arms. He got off his bed and moved to his liquor cabinet. The next month would be thick with the clouds of war. The elephants would fight harder now, that they had a cause to rally behind. Many would die, and the small kingdom of Celesteville would not be the same. Zephir finished what was left of the bottle he started the night before, thinking to himself that the next month would be a long, long month.