Adventure stories; Fantasy fiction; Tarzan (Fictitious character) -- Fiction
Presently an acorn fell upon Tarzan's head, but as acorns might be
expected to fall from oak trees he paid no attention to the occurrence
until a second and third acorn in rapid succession struck him squarely
from above, and then he glanced up to see a little monkey perched upon
a low branch above him.
"So-o, Nkima!" he exclaimed. "How did you get here?"
"I saw them take you from the village of the Gomangani. I followed."
"You came through the gorge, Nkima?"
"Nkima was afraid that the rocks would come together and crush him,"
said the little monkey, "so he climbed to the top and came over the
mountains along the edge. Far, far below he could hear the Tarmangani
and the Gomangani walking along the bottom. Away up there the wind
blew and little Nkima was cold and the spoor of Sheeta the leopard was
everywhere and there were great baboons who chased little Nkima, so
that he was glad when he came to the end of the mountain and saw the
forest far below. It was a very steep mountain. Even little Nkima was
afraid, but he found the way to the bottom."
"Nkima had better run home," said Tarzan. "This forest is full of
strange monkeys."
"I am not afraid," said Nkima. "They are little monkeys and they are
all afraid of Nkima. They are homely little monkeys. They are not so
beautiful as Nkima, but Nkima has seen some of the shes looking at
him and admiring him. It is not a bad place for Nkima. What are the
strange Tarmangani going to do with Tarzan of the Apes?"
"I do not know, Nkima," said the ape-man.
"Then Nkima will go back and fetch Muviro and the Waziri."
"No," said the ape-man. "Wait until I find the Tarmangani for whom we
are searching. Then you may go back with a message for Muviro."
That night Tarzan and the other prisoners slept upon the hard ground in
the open and, after it was dark, little Nkima came down and snuggled
in his master's arms and there he lay all night, happy to be near the
great Tarmangani he loved.
As morning dawned, Ogonyo, who had been captured with the other
Bagegos, opened his eyes and looked about him. The camp of the soldiers
was just stirring. Ogonyo saw some of the legionaries emerging from the
huts that they had commandeered. He saw his fellow prisoners huddled
close together for warmth and at a little distance from them lay the
white man whom he had so recently guarded in the prison hut in the
village of Nyuto, his chief. As his eyes rested upon the white man, he
saw the head of a little monkey arise from the encircling arms of the
sleeper. He saw it cast a glance in the direction of the legionaries
emerging from the huts and then he saw it scamper quickly to a near-by
tree and swing quickly into the branches above.
Ogonyo gave a cry of alarm that awakened the prisoners near him.
"What is the matter, Ogonyo?" cried one of them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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