Chapter Two
When Nikko followed Jordon outside onto a platform built across two sturdy branches high in the tree he looked around and could not believe his eyes.
On similar platforms in surrounding trees scores of children stood and sat chanting an enormous noise and waving their bows in the air. Far below ion the ground a small group of about ten boys and girls crouched behind tree trunks and bushes.
Gabrysia could not be seen anywhere but there was no mistaking Jason. As usual he was standing clearly visible in a small clearing, his legs planted astride and his thumbs thrust into his breeches.
Following the direction Jason was facing Nikko caught sight of movement, movement that was un clear for a minute or two but which then became the scattered members of a second groui0p of children.
“There they are,” shouted Jordon. At the same time the chanting from the trees died down and everything was very still as the children watched the scene on the ground.
Nikko did not know exactly what to expect, but he felt sure there was going to be a battle of some sort between Jason and a group of children who were apparently members of the Leaf family as Gabrysia had called them, and a group of other children who he imagined were not part of the family.
“Who are the others?”” he asked. “What’s going to happen?”
Very quietly, almost inaudibly, Jordon answered without taking his eyes off the scene below. “It’s a war. They are our enemies and they try to make us leave the trees, but each time we drive them back. We’ve been fighting them for as long as I can remember.”
“They are called Drongs,” continued Jordon. “They try to make us leave the trees so they can get all our toys and things.”
On the ground the two groups of children were getting closer and Nikko could now see that the Drongs were very different. Those he could make out were filthy. They had incredibly dirty breeches and torn shirts which had not been washed in a long time. The faces of the children were smeared and their hair was black and matted. Like the Leaf Children they carried bows and arrows. When they were only about thirty meters apart the two groups stood up and shouted at each other and generally acted very threateningly.
Soon the Drongs started shooting their arrows and it was only then that Nikko realised they did not have sharp dangerous points. Instead they had little plastic balls which when they landed splashed yellow dye or paint everywhere.
It wasn’t long before many of the trees and bushes, and much of the grass was covered in yellow dye. But very few of the Leaf Children were stained. For that matter very few of the Drongs were marked either. Those who were had patches of bright red on their tunics because the Leaf Children had bubbles of red solution on their arrows.
Once the shouting started the onlookers in the trees resumed their loud chanting and it became a raucous din, drowning out the shouting of the opposing sides.
Jordon must have been one of the loudest even though he was one of the smallest and do so carried away he almost fell off the platform and Nikko had to physically hold him back more than once.
It was not long before both sides had used up their arrows and there was a lull when nothing happened. Then they charged each other and there was a mighty wrestling session with children falling over each other and rolling around in the grass locked in one
another’s arms. They squirmed and huffed and puffed all trying to get on top of one another and pin their opponents to the ground…
The chanting from the trees got noisier and Nikko by this time was almost pinning Jordon to the planks of the platform to prevent him from dropping into the melee unintentionally.
Suddenly out of the bushes stepped Gabrysia. Her golden hair shone and her clear brown eyes glistened as she called out: “Stop! Stop””
Nikko thought her call would have no effect with the fierceness of the wrestling on the ground, but incredibly the two sides stopped at once with the brawling boys and girls remaining in their entwined positions like frozen statues.
A tallish boy walked from behind a tree carrying a large silver ball in his hand and wearing an elegant white beret at a jaunty angle. He was obviously the leader of the Drongs despite his comparatively clean and snappy appearance, and it was also clear that he was not afraid of anything that confronted him.
“Well Gabrysia,” he began. “This is mot like you to interfere with a bout. What are you doing down on the ground and why have you stopped the fun?” As he said this the boy narrowed his eyes and cocked his head to one side so that it looked as if his beret might well slide off.
“It is not fun Kerry,” said Gabrysia. “And it is not normal for you to show yourself either. You usually skulk around in the background giving orders but you never risk anything on your own. You always let the others take the chances.” She looked at the children who had begun to disengage themselves and form into two ranks behind their respective leaders. The children in the trees had stopped their noise and were watching the development closely. The leaves were rusting no more and it was as if the world had stopped to watch what happened next.
The boy laughed and patted two of his group on the shoulders. “We were just about to give you a good licking this time. Before you stuck your nose in.”
Jason leapt forward and was about to strike the Drong leader when Gabrysia called sharply: “Jason! Stop it. This whole business is stupid.”
“Stop it?” said the Drong leader. “Why should we stop now? We’re having a great time. Are you afraid of losing Queen Gabrysia?”
When he used the title queen the Drong was not being polite and showing respect for Gabrysia. He was, rather, being facetious and displaying his derision. The last thing he considered Gabrysia to be was a queen. To him she was a little goody goody who deserved a “good licking”.
That was something he had been trying to do for a long time but he had always been unsuccessful and had had to retreat to his hidden camp. Each time he blamed the fighters and usually took out his anger on one, often the weakest. The result was they feared him even more.
“Kerry,” said Gabrysia calmly, “your bad manners and cheekiness does not hurt me. It hurts only yourself. All you are doing when you act that way is to show everyone how nasty you really are. So why don’t you just listen and try to do something that would be good for all of us and not only you?”
The Drong leader laughed, throwing his head backwards so that his beret actually did fall off and land in a clump of red stained grass. Quickly picking it up and trying to brush off the stain, which only made it worse as his fist succeeded in spreading the offending mark, the boy glared at Gabrysia and then at the group behind her, one by one.
“You silly fool,” he spat. “I will never give up trying the beat you. I will go on and on until I win the trees and then I will take all your stupid toys and throw them on a big pile of grass and burn them. You will never see them again.”
He paused and then said: “You have a mistake Queen of the Leaves. This time you’ll see how smart I am.” And with that he tossed the silver ball that was in his hand high into the air over his head. As the sunlight struck it there was an enormous burst of white light which blinded the Leaf Children who had not had time to raise their arms to protect their eyes.
The Drong leader rushed forward and grabbed Gabrysia’s arms. Simultaneously two of his soldiers threw a bag over her head and together they lifted her off the ground and bundled her off into the trees. The other Drongs also dashed forward and pushed all the Leaf warriors to the ground before turning and following their leader. Suddenly they were all gone.
The silver ball glowed brilliantly for another few seconds and then simply exploded in an even brighter light.
When the Leaf warriors had recovered and struggled to their feet they were alone. The Drongs had vanished and with them Gabrysia. There was almost total silence.
High in the trees the Leaf Children, so rowdy a few minutes before, were now mute. They were utterly shocked and seemed not to comprehend what had taken place. On the ground the children looked left and right, noticing they were all present, but also instantly aware that Gabrysia was missing.
“Gabrysia! Gabrysia! Where are you?” called Jason. “Gabrysia!”
There was no response.
On the platform where Nikko had been watching the battle Jordon was crying with tears rolling down his face, leaving thin watery marks before dropping off his chin onto the planks where they left a damp dark brown stain.
“Where’s Gabrysia?” he asked plaintively. “What have they done wither?”
He was about to start crying again when there was a shout from below. “The necklace. I’ve found Gabrysia’s necklace.”
“Come on Jordon,” said Nikko, “Let’s go and see what we can do help the others,” and he helped the youngster to his feet and together they climbed down the rope ladder to the ground where all the warriors were gathered in a huddle.
Jason had the gold chain in his hand and was looking at it when Nikko and Jordon approached. He seemed uncertain what to do but when he saw Nikko he turned on him and said: “It’s all your fault. Before you came here we always won the battles. But now we lost and they have taken Gabrysia away with them. We will never see her again.”
Nikko wanted to protest but Jason would now allow him. He went on: “Why have you come and done this to us? Everything was alright before. You are probably a spy and planned the whole thing.”
He grabbed Nikko by the arm and pushed him backwards so that he stumbled over a branch and fell. Jason and the others advanced and were about to set on him when out of the sky swooped a huge bird and flapped its wings violently.
It was Torpah and he settled on the ground in front of Nikko facing the group with his wings spread wide.
Nikko sat up and Jordon came over to him cautiously to help. “Are you?” he asked. “Did you come here to make trouble for us?”
“No,” replied Nikko. “I didn’t even know any of you existed until Torpah brought me here. Against my will. How could I be a spy?”
“Why did Torpah bring you then?” demanded Jason. “What is so special about you?”
“I don’t know.”
“Maybe it’s because he has green eyes and we all have brown,” suggested Jordon.
“Quiet,” said Jason sharply. He then added: “Alright, maybe he’s not a spy, but we have to decide what to do. The Drongs have captured Gabrysia and we have to figure out how we are going to get her back.”
As he was saying this Torpah hopped forward on his two big feet and picked up the gold necklace which Jason had forgotten and dropped when the big bird came to Nikko’s rescue. He hobbled back to where Nikko was sitting and offered it to him in his beak.
Nikko did not know what to do. He just stared at the chain and then looked at Jason.
Torpah inched closer with a hobbling step again and once more proferred the necklace. This time Nikko very carefully took it from the bird’s beak and as soon as he held it in his hands the red marble lit up in a dazzling glow. Nikko dropped it on the ground in fright.
As the glow suddenly died Jordon picked it up and slowly hung it around Nikko’s neck. Instantly the marble radiated its bright glow again and Torpah gave a piercing shriek that made the hairs on the back of the children’s necks stand on end. He then flapped his giant wings and flew off above the trees and disappeared, his shrieks getting fainter and fainter.