Cheetah sniffed the tracking device stuck in Kaphi's arm, then sat down and looked at Tarzan.
"Your poachers have been stealing from the savannah while you've been playing with their leader," Cheetah said after hearing the story of how Kaphi had been shot with the tracker. "I've come this way to warn you, but I see you are now aware of the situation. You disappoint me, man-cub."
"I've disappointed myself," Tarzan said, lowering his head. "But there are a few good humans who are in danger now. I have to save them. But my sister comes first. We need to get her free of this tracker."
Cheetah looked down at the tracker once more, then licked it with his rough tongue, startling Kaphi, who nearly backed up into Tarzan.
"It does not feel very deep," Cheetah remarked, studying the object sticking out of Kaphi's arm. "The rest of it lies just under the skin. I should be able to remove it, but it will hurt."
"Maybe I'll just hold on to it," Kaphi said.
"No," Tarzan told her. "We have to get that off—the poachers could be following it to us as we speak. We need you free of it. Here, don't look, and you can hold my hand if you need to."
Tarzan nearly regretted his words as Kaphi crushed his hand in her ape grip, but he endured the pain as he waited for Cheetah to do whatever he needed, and he rested his head against Kaphi's as she buried it into his shoulder, bracing herself.
Cheetah sniffed the tracker once more, then lunged forward and bit down on Kaphi's arms, keeping his bite shallow as his sharp feline teeth closed around the tracker and ripped it out, cutting Kaphi's flesh as he pulled a small chunk off with the device.
Kaphi yelped loudly before fighting back tears while her brother rubbed her back supportively. Tarzan had to bite back a groan of pain himself as Kaphi's hand had tightened around his own, but he said nothing until she relaxed and pulled away slightly, glancing at her bleeding arm.
Cheetah set the tracker down on the forest floor.
"Thank you, Cheetah," Tarzan said as he studied Kaphi's wound.
"My pleasure to foil a poacher's plot," Cheetah responded.
"Come with me," Tarzan said, leading Kaphi toward the river down the hill they were sitting on.
Kaphi sat close to Tarzan as he scooped up water and poured it over Kaphi's wound.
"I learned this from Jane," Tarzan said. "You want to clean the wound, then cover it to keep it clean for a little bit."
"Why?" Kaphi asked as she watched her brother work on her arm.
"I don't know," Tarzan said. "Something about keeping 'infection' away. If you don't do this, the wound can get worse, especially bite wounds."
"Weird," Kaphi said, though she didn't stop Tarzan from finishing. Tarzan looked around for a makeshift bandage, and he pulled some plantains up and tied several leaves together before wrapping it around Kaphi's arm and tying it off.
"There," Tarzan said. "That should take care of the wound."
"Thanks," Kaphi said. She gave Tarzan a hopeful look. "I can go back to the family now, right?"
"Not yet," Tarzan said. "I'm sure the poachers are already searching for this tracker, so we need to avoid travel for a bit. Dad should have the family somewhere safe by now, too. We can't risk leading the poachers to them. You'll have to stay up here on the hill."
"With the tracker?" Kaphi frowned at her brother.
"Of course not." Tarzan led his sister back up the hill where Cheetah was patiently lying on a large rock in sphinx pose. "I would never put you in harm's way."
"I take it you have a plan?" Cheetah asked as he sat up and stared down at Tarzan.
Tarzan picked up the tracker and sniffed it, his mind trying to come up with a few scenarios in his head. He needed to keep the poachers busy while he rescued Jane and Professor Porter while also keeping the poachers far away from his family. He glanced at his sister, taking in her nervous expression. He glanced at Cheetah's ambitious expression, and his long, spindly legs, and he smirked at the big cat.
"Tell me, Cheetah," Tarzan began, "how fast can you run?"
"Is that a challenge?" Cheetah remarked.
Clayton stalked through the trees with his crew behind him, following a large, thick tablet screen, his shotgun slung over his shoulder. The rudimentary technology revealed a flashing red dot straight ahead, flashing quicker as they neared their target. Clayton smiled viciously at his team as he pointed ahead of them.
"She is close, gentleman. Soon, we will find the gorilla and its family, and we will be rich."
The men cheered, then adjusted the nets, bags, rifles, and tranquilizer guns they were carrying, along with rope and hauling sleds to drag their catches and kill back to the ship where cages awaited. The men began peering through the trees expectantly, using their binoculars now and then to check for any glimpse of fur.
The red dot on the screen flashed faster, and Clayton looked up expectantly as the red dot drew near, but instead of seeing a gorilla, the forest remained still, and the red dot flew by and darted off deeper into the jungle, veering downhill.
Clayton snarled and ran after it, the crew following with disappointed groans.
They ran down a hill, running directly into thicker jungle that required them to use their machetes and knives to cut away at the vines and plants to keep moving after the target.
Suddenly, the red dot on the screen took a sharp u-turn, forcing the men to turn around and stumble over each other as they tried to get out of the thick jungle they found themselves tangled in.
Meanwhile, Cheetah ran up a hill and paused under some bushes, panting while he waited for the poachers to free themselves. He heard the slightest footfall behind him, and he snapped his head around with a snarl.
Three cheetahs stepped into the clearing as agile as ever, and they softly purred in greeting.
"I told you not to follow me," Cheetah snapped at the younger cats. "Why are you so far from the savannah?"
"We figured you could use a paw," one of the cheetah's said.
"After all you did for us," another replied, sitting before the older cat and flicking his tail, "rescuing us from poachers all those years ago."
"We want to return the favor," the third said. "Besides, you're looking a bit tired there, old man."
Cheetah swatted at the third cheetah.
"Watch yourself." Glancing down at the thick vines the poachers were still stumbling through, Cheetah sighed and consented. "Very well. I could use some young blood. Here's the plan."
In a few minutes, the cheetah brothers were in on the game, and the poachers were free of the jungle vines and checking the radar. The red dot flew past the men, and they chased after it down a new path in the jungle. The cheetahs played pass the tracker through the trees, taking turns running circles around the poachers as they led them aimlessly through the trees, keeping the men frustrated but distracted.
Kerchak checked on his family one last time, making one last headcount, and when everything was as it should be, he sought Kala.
"Keep everyone within the confines of this clearing," Kerchak said. "It is an unknown area my father used to frequent, so I doubt we'll encounter any other families."
"Where are you going?" Kala asked.
"To get our kids," Kerchak answered, and Kala sighed heavily and nodded.
"Bring them home safe," Kala said. She nuzzled her mate. "Be careful."
"Always." Kerchak returned a brief nuzzle before pulling away and running into the trees. He would chase down any poachers that dared to threaten his family, especially his kids. He disappeared into the trees, leaving behind his family in the safe confines of the deep jungle, though Kala watched on with a worried expression.
Tarzan swung through the trees toward the shore, staying in the trees once he could see the ship in the distance, and he checked the beach shore. A few of Clayton's men were standing guard, shotguns loaded and ready, and Jane and Professor Porter were tied up, sitting on the sandy floor of the beach.
Several boats with cages were waiting, and Tarzan bared his teeth at the sight. They wanted to cage his family. Well, they would never find his family—Kerchak would have led them deep into the jungle, far beyond into the inhospitable terrain where no humans dared to venture. His family was safe. All he had to worry about was saving Jane and Professor Porter and chasing off the poachers. He was entirely sure how he planned to do the latter yet.
Tarzan slowly lowered himself to the ground, remaining within the trees of the jungle.
The three men guarding the Porters paced the shore while smoking cigars, chatting amiably while the waited for the return of their fellow poachers. A closer look at Jane and Professor Porter revealed that they were gagged, though they did seem to be struggling against the ropes binding them together.
Tarzan slowly inched closer to the Porters.
"How long do you think it'll take the boys to find the gorillas?" one of the poachers said.
"With that new nifty tracker," another with long blonde hair said, "not long. Though I'm sure the trek through the jungle is what will take the longest. We may have some time still before they even radio us that they're on their way."
One of the men with a long mustache and beard paused in front of the Porters, leaning forward and grabbing Jane's chin in his hand, sneering at her.
"Well, that gives us some time to have some fun, doesn't it?" he said.
Jane glared at the man while Professor Porter struggled more.
"I wouldn't," the blonde said. "I think Clayton already claimed her. You wouldn't want to piss him off by taking away his chance to deflower her first."
"Oh please," the man with the mustache said, tracing a finger along Jane's cheek. "What he doesn't know won't kill him."
Tarzan snarled at the sight, and he lunged out of the trees and kicked the man away, knocking him unconscious as his head struck one of the cages. Jane and Professor Porter made happy sounds behind their gags while the two remaining guards spun and aimed their guns at Tarzan.
Jumping back and leaping away from each bullet as it whizzed by him, Tarzan managed to work his way closer to the men to snatch the weapon away from one of the men, spinning and tossing him into his partner. He broke the gun and tossed it aside, but the third man lunged for him.
Tarzan grabbed his gun as well, and they ended up wrestling over it in the sand. Tarzan kicked the man off himself then struck him with the butt of the rifle twice, and the man fell limply.
Tarzan stood up and rolled his shoulder slightly with a small wince as he turned to face the Porters, who were shaking their heads at Tarzan.
Before Tarzan could turn around, the blonde struck Tarzan in the back with the hilt of his knife, and Tarzan groaned as he fell to the ground.
The blonde lifted the knife high, blade down this time.
Thundering feet shook the earth as Tantor charged out of the trees with a loud trumpet, and he used his trunk to grab the blonde and throw him aside, shooting him far out into the trees.
"That's what you get for messing with my cuz!" Terk shouted from Tantor's back.
"Terk!" Tarzan greeted with a smile as he got back up to his feet. "Tantor!"
Terk jumped down from Tantor's back and waved off her heroism.
"Don't mention it, pal," Terk said. "It's not like you dropped us like a newborn giraffe to go hang with these strangers, but you know what, you're still our best friend. You need our help right now."
"I had to convince her to follow you," Tantor added.
"Not that I needed much convincing or anything," Terk quickly amended.
Tarzan chuckled.
"Thanks, guys. Help me free Jane and Professor Porter," Tarzan said, shuffling over to the Porters while Terk picked up one of the knives, tapping the point curiously.
"Tarzan, you came back for us!" Jane said as Tarzan pulled the gag free.
"Thank you so much, laddie," Professor Porter said as his gag was removed.
"Try this thing," Terk said, handing Tarzan the knife, and Tarzan used it to cut the Porters free. Jane quickly hugged Tarzan, then planted a kiss on his lips. She blushed and pulled back, touching her fingers to her lips as she said, "Sorry."
Tarzan gave her a smile, his lips tingling from the new experience, but a loud bang from the jungle caught his attention.
The cheetah brothers continued to lead the poachers in circles, with Cheetah assisting now and then in running with the tracker.
"How are they avoiding us?" one of the men demanded, using his binoculars to scan the trees.
"We've been walking in circles!" another said. "I've marked that tree twice!"
"Can gorillas swing through trees?" another asked.
"No," Clayton said lowly, scanning the trees, "but I know someone who can. Enough games, ape man! Come out!"
The cheetahs gathered on a hill and stared down at the frustrated men, the tracker resting at their feet. The men were looking up into the trees now and aiming their weapons, ignoring the tracking device.
"We are out of time," Cheetah said. "We must warn Tarzan."
"I've got it," one of the cheetah brothers said, and he darted through the trees.
"Be careful!" Cheetah called after him.
A loud bang echoed in the jungle.
The cheetah roared in pain and tumbled down the hill, falling to the men below.
"Brother!" one of the cheetahs cried.
"What is that?" a poacher said as it walked toward the cheetah. "Leopard?"
"No, too small," another said as it walked closer, even as the cheetah shakily stood to his feet, hissing at the men. "Cheetah. I've never seen one so far into the jungle before."
Cheetah leaped down the hill, landing in front of the injured feline, hissing and swatting at the poachers. The brothers followed his lead, creating a half circle around their brother until he was able to scramble up the hill and back into the safety of the trees, disappearing from sight. The brothers followed, avoiding the gunshots aimed at them, then Cheetah followed, joining them under the brush.
"Are you alright, young one?" Cheetah asked. He sniffed the cheetah's shoulder, licking the wound. "A flesh wound. It did not pierce your skin, just grazed. You must rest and allow yourself to recover."
"I can't hunt like this," the cheetah mewled. "I won't be as fast."
"We'll take care of you, brother," the eldest cheetah sibling said. "We'll hunt for you till you recover."
"Get him back to the savannah," Cheetah said. "Stay low and out of sight. I will warn Tarzan."
"Yes, sir. Good luck, sir." The brothers assisted their injured sibling and slowly walked through the trees, leaving the jungle at a slow but steady pace. Cheetah watched them for a few minutes, then glanced down at the poachers, who were making a retreat through the jungle, and he bolted through the trees, keeping out of sight of the poachers.
He ran as fast as he could, stopping periodically to catch his breath for a few seconds before running once more, pushing himself to keep going despite his exhaustion. He sniffed the air repeatedly, following Tarzan's scent through the trees. He was nearing the beach when he nearly ran into Tantor, and he slid to a halt.
"Cheetah," Tarzan greeted from atop the elephant. He jumped down. "Are you okay?"
"I am unharmed." Cheetah looked up and spotted Terk, Jane, and Professor Porter on Tantor's back. "I see you were successful in your rescue."
"Yes. Now I have to get rid of the poachers. Where are they?"
"Coming back this way," Cheetah said. "They are very unhappy at being tricked. I had assistance from three young cheetahs. One of them is now injured."
Tarzan frowned, thinking hard about what to do next. He didn't want to put anyone else in more danger, but he still had to get his sister and then deliver everyone to safety. If the poachers were back tracking now, he would not get far with his plan, and the sun was starting to set. Night was an awful time to try chasing off poachers.
Pacing briefly in a manner reminiscent of Kerchak, Tarzan tried not to use his brain so much as what he was feeling in his gut. Something within him was screaming that he would not be able to chase off these poachers alone. He considered what Cheetah had said about help from other cheetahs, and he paused in his pacing and looked up at Tantor. Perhaps night was a great time to chase off poachers. Finally—an idea.
"Tantor," Tarzan said, "Where is your old herd?"
"Just across the river at Elephant Falls," Tantor said. "Why?"
"We're going to need them," Tarzan said. "And while you're at it, warn the hippos—warn the rhinos. Our home is in danger, and if we all fight back, we will outnumber them. It's time to wake the jungle."
Tarzan climbed up a tree and unleashed his characteristic cry, and it echoed through the jungle, stirring the wildlife within.
Kaphi huffed as she waited on top of the hill. While her arm still ached slightly, she still wanted to be a part of the action. She was always one step behind Tarzan in all of his adventures, why should this one be any different? Besides, what if things weren't going well? What if Tarzan needed help and she was just obediently sitting at the top of the hill oblivious to it all.
A loud gunshot echoed through the trees.
Kaphi sat up and stared down into the trees.
Silence followed the noise.
Settling back down, Kaphi readjusted herself, so she leaned off her injured arm and curled up. Maybe it was a one-off thing. Everything was fine. Tarzan was sure to have everything under control. Several minutes of continued silence passed before she heard Tarzan's yell, and she sat up again, her ears perking.
It was a call for help.
And the jungle below her was stirring with life as the sun slowly set behind the mountains, creating a red-tinged sky.
Tarzan needed her help. Kaphi carefully trotted down the hill, being mindful of her arm. She took her time moving through the trees toward where she heard Tarzan's voice. If she could catch up to him, she could find out what the problem was and be of assistance. If some poachers needed their heads smashed, she could help. She didn't care what Tarzan said about not wanting her involved.
Kaphi slipped under a branch, only for a snag to tighten around her neck and nearly choke her.
"Look what we have here," a poacher said.
"We found one!" another poacher called out.
Kaphi struggled against the snag around her neck, only for more rope to rope her around her neck, legs, and arms, pulling her limbs in all directions in a restrictive manner, and she fell to the ground with a grunt, but she fought the restraints, squirming on the ground.
"Call Clayton and the others to come back up here," a poacher said. "We got to be close to the other gorillas if we have this one."
"Just shoot the flare," the other poacher said, grabbing a stick from the man and firing it into the air.
The flare sparked into the sky, flying past a branch where a leopard was snarling down at them.
The poachers gasped and stepped back, adjusting the weapons they carried, but they were too slow as the leopard launched off the branch and tackled both men to the ground with a loud roar. It killed one of the men with a bite to the neck while the other managed to roll away and scramble back with wide eyes, the leopard following his moves.
Kaphi struggled under the ropes, trying to get them to loosen around her limbs and neck, not liking that a predator and poachers were inches away from her.
Footsteps came running in her direction and she saw another poacher running up the hill with a gun ready, and he pointed it at the leopard stalking his friend.
"Rawr!" another big cat snarled as it jumped on the back of the poacher and bit down on his neck, dropping him instantly. Kaphi recognized the cat as Cheetah, and she smiled as the cat approached her and bit at the ropes holding her down.
Tarzan dropped down from the trees and helped free his sister.
"What are you doing here?" Tarzan asked.
"I heard your yell," Kaphi said. "I came to help."
"With your injured arm?" Tarzan asked, frowning at his sister.
"An injury hasn't stopped me before!"
"Can we save the sibling argument for another time?" Cheetah snarled before joining the leopard in blocking off more poachers from approaching Tarzan and Kaphi.
Tarzan dragged his sister away from the big cats as they charged the men and led her through the trees, where they saw many animals attacking the poachers—elephants, baboons, rhinos, and even leopards working together to attack and chase out the poachers. They paused a bit away from the fight and took a second to catch their breath.
"You need to stay hidden," Tarzan said, "you are in no shape to fight."
"But I can help," Kaphi said.
"Not like that you can't," Tarzan shot back. "Besides, Dad would kill me if he knew that you were out here in this state. What if you get hurt more?"
"I'll be fine, there's a lot of chaos going on and—" Kaphi screamed as a net fell over her and Tarzan and tightened, tangling them up in the knots.
"Got an ape and the ape man," a dark-haired poacher smirked as he stepped out of the shadows. He raised his gun. "Might as well as get rid of the ape man for Clayton."
Before the gun could go off, Kerchak burst out of the trees with a roar, and he grabbed the poacher's arm, thrashing him against the ground before throwing him into the trees. Kerchak grunted before pulling the net off his children.
"Dad!" Tarzan and Kaphi greeted enthusiastically.
"How did you find us?" Tarzan asked.
"Between your yell and the fire in the sky," Kerchak answered, "it wasn't hard. Are you hurt?"
Kerchak turned his eyes on Kaphi specifically as he asked this question.
"Just a little," Kaphi said. "I'll be fine. I can still help."
"Yes, you can," Kerchak agreed. "By climbing up this tree and staying on look out."
"But Dad . . ."
"Or you can walk home to your mother."
"Fine. I'll stay on look out." Kaphi huffed but climbed up the tree her father indicated.
Tarzan snorted at his sister before giving his father a questioning look.
"I'm surprised you're not demanding we go home," Tarzan said.
"I think it better that I help my son do what he does best," Kerchak said, "get rid of some poachers from our home."
Tarzan smiled at his father, then jumped back into the action, swinging from a vine above the action to see where help was needed. Kerchak quickly took down another poacher that was shooting blindly into the jungle, trying hard to hit the leopards leaping out of the trees. Tarzan spotted Jane struggling to free a few baby baboons that were snaggled in a net, and he gasped as a poacher was slowly sneaking up on her with a knife.
Tarzan dropped down on the poacher, making sure to knock him out with a good kick as he grabbed the knife away from the man. He landed behind Jane, who turned and smiled.
"Ah, that will be helpful," Jane said as she took the knife and cut away at the rope until the baboons were free. They kissed her hand appreciatively and took off. Jane laughed. "I think that will put us on better terms."
"Charge!" Professor Porter said on Tantor's back as the elephant ran for a couple poachers in the act of retreating, and the elephant snatched them in his trunk and flung them away.
"I think we're getting down to the last of them," Professor Porter said.
"When do they just give up?" Terk asked as she wrestled a poacher to the ground, pinning him down and lying on top of him while he struggled to get away.
"Once we get the leader, I think," Tarzan said in ape and then in English.
"Are you sure this will work?" Jane asked.
"It will," Tarzan said with a nod. "Once I find Clayton, it will be over. Besides, we got more back up. My father is here."
Tarzan grabbed a vine and swung away once more, scanning the grounds for Clayton.
"Oh, good, good," Professor Porter said, nodding his head. "His father is here . . . he means a gorilla father, right?"
"Yes, Daddy," Jane said with a smile.
In the air, Tarzan jumped to another vine and scanned the ground below, searching for Clayton. Where was that traitor hiding? Tarzan looked back to where Kaphi was resting on a branch high in a tree, watching the battle below with slight interest.
"Kaphi," Tarzan said as he landed next to her. "Have you seen any sign of the man that shot you with the tracker?"
"No. Just a lot of people running from animals. I think they're starting to give up."
"That's good. Maybe we won't need to find Clayton and they'll all just leave."
Tarzan searched the grounds from his new advantage point, keeping an eye out for Clayton's leopard like attire. He was starting to think that the traitor was playing coward and letting all his crew do the dirty work when he heard Terk cry out, and he snapped his head in the direction of the sound.
Terk was running across the field toward the trees at the other end of the clearing, but she didn't make it to the cover of the trees before she stumbled and fell over, a tranquilizer dart sticking out of her thigh. Clayton slowly approached her with two of his men following, one with a tranquilizer gun. Clayton carried his usual shotgun.
A loud roar sounded, and Tarzan gasped as he watched Kerchak charge the men. One of them shot a tranquilizer dart, and it struck Kerchak in the arm, but he yanked it out and swiped at the man, knocking him off his feet while Clayton and the other poacher backed away.
Kerchak swung out with his fists, only for a rope to lasso his arm and pull him back slightly. Before he could yank on it to topple the man at the end of it, more rope fell on him, catching his other arm and his neck. It took five poachers and several ropes to pull Kerchak down and restrain him there.
Clayton walked forward, raising his gun.
"This one might be better stuffed," Clayton said.
Tarzan was already swinging his way over to them, fear clenching his heart as he leaped from vine to vine directly for Clayton and his aimed gun.
Bang!
I know, I know! Bad cliffhanger, but don't worry, the next chapter will be up soon. I promise!