Chapter Three: A Turn Deserves Another.

 

 A few seconds after the moon was eclipsed, a voice boomed into the night sky.  It had a thick accent, so it was difficult to determined where he came from.

 

 “Hello, people of Fox-Fox. It is I, the great Don Karnage, speaking to you with my voice.  I know about Frida Foxhill’s treasure trove being on this island,” (Sam flinches at the mention of Frida.) “So, I give two choices: I get the treasure or my pirates get to starting a bonfire, using your island as the wood.”

 

 A gathering of gasps came from the homes on the island.  Mai-Mai and Melissa joined the chorus, while Sam just growled in fury.

 

 The voice continued, “You have a very short time to have your answer to me.  Karnage, out.”

 

 The cat was so furious by the time the announcement was finished.  With some of that fury in her voice, she said, “If I ever get my hands on that…”

 

 She stopped speaking when she realized that her hands no longer had the rope on them. 

 

 “Me have idea, but Me need help.”  Mai-Mai said as Sam looked at her friend, who had the rope in her hand, and a confident grin on her face.

 

 Then, Sam turned to Melissa, who also had the same grin on her face.  The cat understood what to do.

 

 “Okay,” Sam finally said, “What’s the plan?”

 

From the village and to the dark jungle, the three friends ran to escape from the pirates.

 

 Then, the sound of airplanes disturbed the silence of the jungle.  The girls looked, forgetting that the moon was blocked, but they remained still until the planes could no longer be heard.

 

 “My ears…” Melissa said in pain.

 

 “You can say that again.” Sam said, also in pain.

 

 “Ow, ow.” Mai-Mai agreed with her friends.

 

 “Let’s go!” the bat commanded, “We have to stop the pirates!”

 

 “Right!” The feline said, nodding her head in agreement.

 

 The girls ran off to the deeper part of the jungle, leaving an unseen shadowy figure behind.

 

The three friends traveled deeper into the jungle until a strong odor filled into their nostrils.

 

 “Man, that reeks!” Sam exclaimed as she held her nose.

 

 “I’ve been in dumps that smelled better than this!” Melissa complained from on top the cat’s head, trying to cover her face with her wings.

 

 “That mean we close.” Mai-Mai explained without holding her nose.

 

 The cat asked, “How can withstand the stench, Mai-Mai?”

 

 “Me use to smell of gorilla birds.” The islander answered.

 

 “Gorilla birds?” the bat asked to herself out loud.

 

 “Yes, gorilla birds.  They meanest animal on island.  Even pirates have hard time with them.”

 

 “If being mean don’t work, the smell will.” Sam commented.

 

 The girls giggled at the comment as the odor became even stronger.

 

 “There they be.” Mai-Mai announced.

 

 Sam and Melissa saw the biggest and ugliest birds they have ever seen in their lives.

 

 “Okay, how capture them?” The cat asked the lioness after seeing how tall the birds were.

 

 “We use rope.” Mai-Mai said, holding the rope in her hand.

 

 “How?!” The bat asked loudly.

 

 Sam and Mai-Mai shushed at Melissa, but the warning came too late.

 

 The birds started to charge at the three friends at full speed.

 

 “Run!” The girls yelled out as they started to run away from the giant, smelly birds.

 

 The bat flew off her friend’s head, while the other two ran off.  The gorilla birds followed them in hot pursuit.

 

 Sam kept running until she heard a thud.  She turned around and saw Mai-Mai on the ground from a result of tripping over a jungle vine.

 

 “Mai-Mai!” The cat yelled as she turned around to rescue her fallen friend.  She picked up her friend by the waist and carried her as the birds caught up with them.

 

 Then, Sam heard another thud.  She turned around and saw the three giant birds, which were knocked out and hanging upside down.

 

 “What happen?” The cat asked her friend.

 

 “Me no, but Me want down.” The lioness demanded.

 

 “Sorry.” Sam said as she put her friend down.

 

 “Sam!  Mai-Mai!” Melissa yelled as she returned to her friends and landed on the cat’s head.  Then, she saw the gorilla birds hanging upside down and asked, “What happened?”

 

 “Let’s just say that one good turn deserves another.” Sam answered her friend’s question.

 

 “You can say that again.” A voice agreed.

 

 The girls froze when a gray bear wearing a yellow pilot’s jacket with the sleeves rolled up, and a red cap, walked out of the bushes.

 

 Then, Mai-Mai ran to the bear.

 

 “BALOO!”

 

 “Baloo?” the other two friends asked, looking at each other.

 

 The gray bear said, “That’s my name, don’t wear it out.”

 

 “It good to see you!” The lioness yelled out.

 

 The other three shushed the loud islander, who quickly silenced herself by covering her mouth with her hands.

 

 “Mai-Mai, I know you’re glad to see me again, but now is not the right time to be this happy.” Baloo warned the girl.

 

 “Baloo’s correct.” Sam confirmed, “With the pirates on the island, we’re a target for them.”

 

 “Yeah,” another voice intervened, “pirates are never a joke.”

 

 “Show yourself!” the cat demanded loudly.

 

 A small brown bear cub revealed himself to the group, wearing a concerned look on his face.  He wore a green sweater and a blue and red cap, which was worn backwards.

 

 “Kit!” Baloo exclaimed, almost releasing the rope, “I thought I told to stay with the Sea Duck.”

 

 “I know, but we have to stop the pirates!” The cub said.

 

 “Yeah, before them find treasure trove.” Mai-Mai added.

 

 “Treasure trove?” The gray bear said, his voice filled with interest.

 

 Sam was also interested about the treasure trove since Don Karnage’s announcement, but she knew that the Air Pirates would burn the island to the sea if they did not receive the location of the trove.

 

 “Let’s try to get rid of the pirates before we go treasure hunting.” The feline suggested to the group.

 

 “It good thing we caught gorilla birds.” The lioness said.

 

 “That’s a good idea, Mai-Mai, but bring someone stronger next time.” Baloo complimented the islander.

 

 “Hey, Mai-Mai, can I have the rope?” Sam asked.

 

 “What are you up to now?” Melissa asked as she flew onto kit’s cap.

 

 “I’m going to finish this round up.” The cat declared to the others with a grin on her face.

 

Meanwhile, the village has been taken over by the pirates.  The pirates, who were either holding a pistol or a saber, held everyone captive.  Chief Sim-Sim was facing a saber himself.

 

 “It looks like you’re in a bit of a picklo, yes?”

 

 The chief looked at a tan wolf wearing a blue sea captain’s outfit with gold buttons and red cuff, gray pants, gray-black boots, and a victorious grin on his face, showing off his sharp teeth.

 

 “You no more than bully!” Chief Sim-Sim yelled at the pirate.

 

 “Tsk, tsk, tsk.” The wolf said, unfazed by the words, “No one likes the soring loser.”

 

 “No one like sore winner, neither.” The lion snapped back. 

 

The pirate’s grin turned into a frown out of fury when a voice called him.

 

 “Captain!”

 

 A dog, who looked more like a ferret with a drooping mustache wearing a blue vest, a white leather helmet and goggles, ran to the wolf.

 

 “What is it, Mad Dog?” The captain asked angrily.

 

 “We interrogated the islanders and, they don’t know about the trove.”

 

 The news infuriated the wolf even more.

 

 “That’s impossible!” The pirate yelled in an uncontrollable fury, “I, Don Karnage, will not be made the fruit salad by a bunch of islanders!”

 

 The chief chuckled as he said, mocking the pirate, “No one like sore loser, Karnage.”

 

 “Captain,” Mad Dog continued his report, “the islanders also said that there were to girls in the village earlier before we attacked, and one of them wore a ruby necklace.”

 

 Karnage, hearing about the necklace, converted his rage into a cruel grin and turned to the trapped lion.

 

 “Remember this: If I do not find the trove, my men will found out how fast the Island of Fox-Fox can burn to the ground.”

 

Back at the jungle, Mai-Mai, Melissa, Baloo, and Kit were walking with a beaten-up Sam.

 

“Wow!” Kit, impressed, said, “You’re stronger than I thought.”

 

 “That’s my pal!” Melissa announced proudly as she rested on Mai-Mai’s shoulder.

 

 “Yeah, it’s the first time in a long time that I’ve met a girl that was crazy yet sane at the same time.” Baloo said as he dragged the gorilla birds behind him.

 

 “Huh?” Sam asked loudly, confused about the bear’s words.

 

 “Shh!  You want pirates to find us?” The lioness asked.

 

 “Sorry.” The cat said in a low tone, blushing.

 

 “I’ll go ahead and see what’s going on at the village.” The bat bravely announced.

 

 Sam gave some thought before she gave her answer.

 

 “Okay, but be careful.  The pirates are a nasty group of people.”

 

 “You can count on me.” Melissa said, and then she flew off.

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