The Team arrives in Rio.
Bethany Walker opened her eyes, awoken by the rays of sunlight streaming through the unshaded aircraft windows. For a brief moment, she wondered where she was, but then the events of the previous day came flooding back to her and she remembered.
Shaking her head, she sat up in her flatbed seat and tried to reorient herself. She'd had a most peculiar dream – in it, she was a gun-toting bad*ss taking down bad guys left and right. But now, she realised she was still in the body of Professor Sheldon Oberon, curvy genius.
Removing her blanket and leaving her seat, she strode down the aeroplane's aisles to see that most of her friends were still asleep. She checked Professor Oberon's pocket watch and realised that they were near the end of their flight to Rio de Janeiro.
Hearing Bethany's movements, Fridge began to stir from slumber as well. As his sleepy eyes fell on her, a grin spread across his face.
"G'morning, B," he greeted her. "You're up early."
"You too, Fridge," she replied. "Did you sleep well?"
"Like a baby," he said. "I'm not sure how much longer we'll be able to do that."
"Nonsense!" said Bethany indignantly. "We're The Team; we're gonna be just fine."
"Do you think we should wake the others?" asked Fridge.
Bethany checked her watch again. If her reckoning was correct, they should be landing in about half-an-hour. They might as well have everyone awake and alert by then.
Moving through the plane's cabin, Bethany roused the sleeping passengers. Spencer and Martha were the first to fully wake up, and the former requested a cup of coffee.
Five minutes later, the whole crew was awake and having breakfast from the refreshments cart. Everyone was discussing the mission and what lay ahead of them.
"Never thought I'd be visiting the capital of Brazil today," remarked Fridge.
"Oh, the capital of Brazil isn't Rio," Martha corrected him, "it's Brasília. I learned that back in Mr Burns' Geography class."
"Oh, man, please don't remind me of Mr Burns," said Fridge, shaking his head. "I was scared to death of that dude."
"I think we all were, Fridge," said Spencer. "I wonder what happened to him."
"Dunno," shrugged Fridge. "I think he left town."
"Good riddance, if you ask me," said Bethany. She turned to look out of one of the cabin windows and saw that the sun had fully risen. "Say, I wonder how close to Rio we are?"
As if in answer, Seaplane McDonough's voice sounded over the intercom. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen; this is your Captain speaking. We are about to begin our descent into Rio de Janeiro; please remain seated and fasten your seat belts."
"I guess that's our answer!" laughed Spencer, as he took the last few bites of his breakfast and sat back in his seat. The others followed suit and prepared for the landing.
In the cockpit, Alex smiled to himself. The flight had proceeded much more smoothly than he thought, and for once, he dared to hope that the game would allow them to land before trying any funny business.
Suddenly, the dreaded Jumanji drums sounded again, sending chills down the spines of pilot and passengers. Dark storm clouds crackling with lightning started gathering around the plane, and a feminine voice was heard cackling with evil glee.
"Now I've found you," laughed Manjeet with delight, "the team of adventurers who've dared to hinder my plans. Dr Bravestone, did you really think you could stop my conquest of your world? As soon as I'm able to teleport, I will personally visit you to say hello. But for now, some friends of mine are here to crash your party!"
A large flock of birds suddenly appeared from nowhere, flying headfirst into the aeroplane. A moment later, Alex heard an explosion around the port wing, and knew instinctively that an engine had been lost. His suspicions were confirmed by a quick glance at the instrument panel.
Wresting control from the autopilot, Alex turned the plane hard to starboard, trying to outrun the birds. He knew they could not afford to lose another engine, and that they had to find a way to get rid of the avian pests somehow.
Urgently, Alex activated the intercom. "Fridge, get in the cockpit and give us intel about these birds!" he cried.
Moments later, the zoologist burst through the cockpit door and sat down in the copilot's seat. He took out a pair of binoculars and tried to identify the birds from the cockpit's view. After a few seconds, he put down the binoculars and turned to Alex with concern.
"Bad news, man," he told him grimly. "Those are Jumanji seagulls, capable of flying higher and faster than ordinary ones. I count at least two hundred of them out there. They have extraordinarily strong claws and beaks, and have been known to tear through sheet metal."
"Sheet metal?!" cried Alex in horror. "They'll destroy the airplane!"
"Sadly, yes," replied Fridge sombrely. "If enough of them land on the fuselage, they'll peck their way in here in no time."
"And we've only got one working engine," scowled Alex. Desperately, he searched their surroundings for something he could do. His eyes fell on the storm clouds Manjeet had created around them and he suddenly had an idea.
"Lightning – bingo!" Alex exclaimed. Increasing the throttle, he flew the jet directly into the heart of the maelstrom, followed closely by the seagulls. As they approached the most violent part of the storm, he lowered the plane's airspeed and the gulls began to land on the wings and fuselage.
"Come on, come on," muttered Alex as the fowls slowly covered the aeroplane's surface.
Moments later, a huge bolt of lightning struck the aeroplane, sending a powerful electrical charge which fried all the birds that were perched on it. Unfortunately, some of the falling carcasses were sucked into the remaining engine, causing it to blow out as well.
"Okay, party's over," said Alex ruefully, as he reactivated the intercom. "EVERYBODY HANG ON!"
Deftly, he guided the powerless plane through the storm clouds and back into clear skies. They were a few hundred feet over the ocean now, several miles from the shore. Making some swift calculations, Alex realised it was impossible to reach the airport, so he focused all his effort on ditching the plane safely in the sea.
To everyone's relief, they landed relatively softly on the waves, within sight of the coastline. Spencer was the first one at the emergency exit, quickly shepherding his companions onto the nearest life raft. Carefully, the Team evacuated the downed plane and boarded the inflatable vessel, clad in their life jackets.
Once everyone was on board, the adults grabbed an oar each and began paddling towards the shore. Before they had travelled a few hundred metres, a massive tidal wave suddenly began growing behind them.
"WAVE!" shouted Jake, trying to alert the others to their danger.
It was too late. The wave crashed into the raft at full force, hurling all of its passengers into the freezing cold water. In the panic, some of the players tried desperately to swim back to the capsized raft. But Alex had only one thing on his mind: somehow, he had to reach his daughter Bethany!
With a father's ear, he was able to make out his daughter's cries from the cacophony of noise around him. Swimming with all his might, he finally caught up with his little angel and raised her head and shoulders clear of the water.
"It's alright, sweetie!" he reassured her. "It's okay now – Daddy's got you."
Sobbing, little B2 clung tightly to her father's neck, unwilling to let him go. This day was already so dark and scary, and it was only just beginning.
Meanwhile, Martha's sharp eyes spotted an ominous shape travelling fast across the surface of the water. "Guys?" she called out anxiously, pointing towards it. "What's that?"
Fridge let out a yell of terror. He knew at first glance exactly what it was. "SWIM!" he shouted to his teammates. "SWIM! It's a freaking TIGER SHARK!"
Hearing these words, everyone began swimming frantically in the direction of the shore. With each passing moment, the fearsome marine predator was closing the gap between it and its prey.
Alex made a decision. He knew he couldn't keep up with the others while carrying his baby girl through the water. At their current rate, the shark would quickly overtake and devour them both.
"SPENCER!" he called out. "Take my daughter and swim to the shore! I'll distract the shark!"
"What?!" cried B1 in horror. "No way, Alex!"
"Just go!" Alex shouted, as he broke off and started swimming in the opposite direction. "I'll be fine!"
"Daddy!" screamed B2 as she watched her father swim towards his doom. "DADDY!"
"There's no time, B2!" said Spencer, who had swum over to collect her from Alex. "Your daddy's trying to save your life, but we've really gotta go! Hang on tight and don't open your eyes!"
With tears streaming down her face, B2 shut her eyes tight as Spencer began dragging her through the water. With all of his might, the hulk swam furiously towards land, putting as much distance as possible between them and the shark.
Before long, the seven players landed safely on the beach, exhausted and coughing up water. Alex's ploy had worked – the shark had broken off pursuit once it'd found an easy meal for itself. But where was he?
A familiar chime sounded overhead, and Alex dropped genuflecting out of the sky, landing softly upon the sand. Little B2 ran to embrace her dad, still shaken by what she'd seen.
"Oh my God, Alex!" cried B1 worriedly. "Are you okay?"
Alex seemed pretty rattled himself. "Yeah, I'm alright, Bethany," he got out. "Just… let's not talk about this again."
Spencer, Fridge, Martha and Bethany nodded silently. They all knew what it was like to be killed by a Jumanji animal; none of them wanted to talk about their experiences either.
Once everyone had collected themselves, Spencer suggested that they move to higher ground and set out in search of their next clue. Over the next few hours, Bethany's map led them through the jungle-infested streets of Rio and up the hills to the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer.
"Are you sure this is where we're supposed to be going, Bethany?" asked Fridge curiously.
"No doubt about it, Fridge," B1 replied. "There's a new poem that's appeared on the map. It says:
You've made it thus far, congratulations,
A hundred points for good behaviour;
To lead you to the next few nations,
Lift up your eyes, and behold your saviour."
In confusion, the Team looked up at the imposing figure before them. They were at the feet of the Redeemer now, and wondered how He was going to help them reach their next stop. Suddenly, they heard a male voice call out from the other side of the statue.
"Jayne?" it called out. "Jayne? Where are you?"
The four teenagers exchanged funny looks. That voice seemed oddly familiar, though each of them struggled to recall exactly where they'd heard it before.
Moments later, the owner of the voice finished climbing the steps leading up to the image and emerged in full view of the group.
"Jurgen the Brutal?!" they cried in disbelief.
Please leave a review and tell me what you think happens next!