Tale of the Jungle Part 5

I woke up to the sound of birdsong resonating through the treetops. Slowly I sat up, stretched and rubbed my eyes. My vision blurred for a moment, but then cleared as I blinked hard a few times. I looked around my room absently as the enormity of today’s events dawned on me.

‘Well Marcus,’ I thought, ‘today’s the day. Your date with destiny, except your real love is a lot nicer, has a snake tail and is waiting for me in the jungle.'                                                                  

I swivelled my legs off the bed, stood up straight, did a full body stretch and yawned cavernously. Any lingering pangs of tiredness faded away as I became more active. After I had my stretch, I made my way to the bedside table, picked up the bottle of blood and stuffed it into my pocket. Then something caught my eye that lay on the floor near one of the legs of the bed. It was square shaped and had a white boarder around it. Slowly I picked it up and a surge of memories came over me.

It was a photograph of me in happier years. On my left was my mother with her arms around me in a hug and on the right was my father with his hand ruffling my hair. Both my parents and me were smiling and standing at the entrance of the village on a glorious sunny day.

I half sighed and half sobbed, blinking away a solitary tear which then slowly ran down my cheek. I took a few deep breaths and regained my composure. After a few seconds I quietly announced,

“Mum. Dad. Before I leave the village and begin my new life, I want to say a few things. Firstly, you know you’ve said that one day I’ll find the right girl to love and share true happiness with? Well, I’ve found her and I’m gonna be with her soon. Secondly, I’ll treasure this photo in memory of you and the great times we had together as a family. And lastly, I’ll always miss you both. Thank you for everything and I love you.”

With care and respect I pocketed the photo. I opened the door, took one last look at my bedroom and shut the door behind me.


As I exited the hut, I found my foster parents waiting for me outside, their eyes practically alight with avarice.

“Ah, Marcus! Just the person we need to see.” chimed my foster mother, “Everything is prepared for you and your bride-to-be.”

“Though there’s one thing I need to do first.” I said.

“And what’s that?” asked my foster father.

“Have a wash of course.” I said, smiling inwardly, “After all, I wouldn’t want to turn up on my wedding day all smelly and dirty after a long day yesterday.”

I managed to suppress a chuckle when I saw the look of puzzlement on my foster parents’ faces.

“It’ll only take five minutes or so by the small pond just around the corner.” I continued, “Just a bit of water under the arms and a quick dunk to wash my hair and I’ll be as right as rain.”

“How would we know if you’ll be back from your wash?” said my foster father, eyeing me suspiciously, “It could be some excuse for you to run away again and cause even more trouble.”

I flashed a disarming smile as I replied, “Oh come on! I can’t run away even if I wanted to. Think about it; our hut was guarded by an armed man. Even if managed to escape from the hut, I wouldn’t’ve got very far. The patrols and their dogs would’ve found me in a very short amount of time. Plus since today is a big day for yo-I mean us, might as well surrender to the inevitable. So what do you say?”

My foster parents stared at the ground in silence and rubbed their chins in thought. My heartbeat echoed in my ears with nerves. The tension was almost unbearable and it nearly took all my effort to maintain my patience.

Finally my foster father looked up and spoke,
“Okay Marcus, you can have your late morning wash on one condition: you only have five minutes to do what you have to do. Any more than that and we’ll drag you back here regardless. Is that understood?”

I felt an immense wave of relief wash over me.

“Duly noted.” I answered.

“Right, let’s get it over with.” my foster father said haughtily, “we have a very busy ahead of us and we can’t afford any delays.”

They walked with me to the entrance of the village. Before I can turn to my right to where the pond was, my foster father placed a rough hand on my shoulder.

“Remember Marcus,” he warned, “five minutes only. If you try any funny business like running away or taking too long to wash yourself, we WILL bring you back here for the ceremony.”

“Especially that we’ve put a lot of effort to make this happen.” said my foster mother.

I turned around and looked at them in the eye.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.” I said, “Five minutes is all I need. I mean, what could possibly happen?”

I turned and followed the path to the small pond. In a mere few moments I came across it. It was tucked away from sight from anyone at the entrance and allowed anyone to have a quick bath from prying eyes. I skirted around the edge and sat down at the end where I had my back to the whole jungle. I dipped my hand in the water and swiped at the surface, creating some splashing noises to make the plan look genuine. After splashing around a few times, I took my hand out of the water and pulled out the bottle of blood. Carefully I unscrewed the lid and applied some of the blood on each of my shoulders. I applied the rest to my knees and then I felt a hot and heavy breath on the back of my neck.
My eyes darted to my right and there just a metre away from me was a wolf. I looked to my left and there was another one. I quickly summarised that there was a wolf behind me as well. I looked to each one and noticed that all of them had a glazed-over look in their eyes.

‘Kari’s work no doubt.’ I thought.

After discarding the empty bottle into the pond, I slowly straighten up and glanced at the wolves beside me.

“Hello boys.” I said, a wry smile on my face, “You’re just in time for the main event.”

The wolf on my right gripped the bottom of my shorts on the right leg with his mouth, though careful not to pierce my flesh. The other two wolves did likewise with each of my shoulders. Then they began to tussle me around a bit. Calmly I started to count,
“One….two….three.”
I took a deep breath and screamed.

I heard the sound of footsteps running to where I was and my foster parents homed into view. I contorted my face in ‘agony’, flailed my arms about and started screaming some more, even though my foster mothers’ scream of terror was louder than mine.
My foster father backed away a bit and then ran off yelling,
“Help! Marcus is being attacked! Help! Help!”

The wolves continued to tussle me around with their jaws whilst making low grunting noises. My throat was starting to go raw from the screaming and the villagers would be here soon with guns in tow. I took a deep breath, slowly closed my eyes and fell limp.

“NO!!” cried my foster mother, “WHY?! WHY?!”

I felt myself being dragged away by the wolves into the jungle. As they pulled me deeper into my new home, I heard more footsteps and even more voices, some them I recognised and some I didn’t.

“Where are they?!” shouted my foster father.

“They’ve killed him!” shrieked my foster mother, “They’ve killed Marcus and dragged him away!”

“NO!!!” wailed a voice that I knew was Beryl, “He can’t be dead! He just can’t! We gotta go after them! We might be able to-”

“It’s too late.” came a voice that I vaguely recognised, “He’s gone. He’s now one with the jungle, the place he always loved.”

The last thing I heard before the sounds of the jungle filled my ears was Beryl’s anguished scream.


I later estimated that the wolves have been dragging me deeper into the jungle for about ten minutes before finally letting go of me and vanishing into the undergrowth. I opened my eyes and looked around carefully. I sat up and saw the top turret of the ruins in the distance. A broad grin formed on my face and pumped my fist in triumph.

“Yes!” I whooped, “It worked! Hahahahaha!”

I stood up and drew a huge breath of satisfaction. I then took in my surroundings and placed a finger under my chin in recollection.

‘If I remember rightly,’ I thought, ‘the small deep pond is in….that direction!’

I turned to my right and was about to run in that direction when I suddenly remembered something. I took off my blood stained t-shirt, ripped it in some places, deposited on the jungle floor and made my way towards the deep pond.

After about five minutes of trekking I’ve arrived at my destination. I looked around and found that I was alone. I reached out to a branch with huge leaves and snapped off two leaves. I walked to the water’s edge, placed one of the leaves over where my nether regions were and carefully took off my shorts. I placed them on the grass and covered them with the other leaf and lowered myself into the water.
After placing the leaf I held on the grass, I dunked my head under the water and started to swim.
As I swam, I felt all of my worries and stress wash away from me like the animal blood on my shoulders and knees. I kicked myself upwards and surfaced. I inhaled deeply, taking in the clean air and the warmth of the midday sun on my skin.

‘At long last,’ I thought, ‘I’m free! Free to be myself and to live in my favourite place in the whole world!’

I swam backwards, sat down on a smooth rock in the water and closed my eyes in relaxation. The tranquillity of the jungle has soothed my soul a number of times in the past, but this time the feeling was even greater than before. The sound of birdsong from near and far further added to the peace and serenity of my new home. I remained where I was for a few minutes until I decided it was time to finish my bath.
I swam to where I placed my shorts, only to find they weren’t there. All was left was the two leaves that I picked off earlier. I looked around, my brow furrowed in puzzlement.

‘Weird,’ I thought, ‘I could’ve sworn I left them here. They couldn’t’ve just get up and walked away. Where are they?’

“Yoo-hoo!” cooed a familiar voice, “Looking for thessse?”

I looked up and there in front of me was Kari. The lamia was hanging from a tree near the pond with my shorts in one hand and a mischievous smile on her face. I was delighted to see Kari again. I would’ve ran out of the pond and hugged her if it wasn’t for the fact that I was completely naked and possessing a huge sense of modesty.

“Kari!” I exclaimed, “I’m so glad to see you!”

“Ssso am I!” replied Kari, “I can sssee that our plan hasss worked. Now we can be together.”

“Uhhh Kari?” I asked, “Can I have my shorts back?”

“Come and get them.” said Kari teasingly.

“B-but I’m not exactly…” I managed, my cheeks starting to become very warm, “Besides….those are the only thing have to wear…”

“Ssso I sssee.” said Kari, “But, sssometimesss you’ll have to improvissse in order to live in the jungle. Ssso come on, ussse your brain and retrieve your clothesss.”

I was somewhat baffled by this, but then I suddenly saw the sense of what Kari said.

‘Okay Marcus,’ I thought, ‘you’re in a pond, stark naked and afraid to expose yourself in front of Kari. Plus, she has your shorts and is challenging you to fetch them. Right now, I need to cover myself, but with what?’

I looked around for any suitable item. All I could see was a thin piece of vine that lay on the grass and the two leaves that I used earlier. Then a light flashed in my brain with an idea. Grabbing the items that came to hand, I placed one leaf in front of me, the other behind me and used the vine to tie them into their respectful places.
It was a bit difficult doing it underwater but with care and perseverance I managed it. Slowly I stepped out of the water and onto dry land. The makeshift leaf ‘loincloth’ did look somewhat comical but it was serving its purpose well.
I looked up at Kari who was grinning from ear to ear.

“You look funny in that.” she giggled, “Mind you, you certainly look great without your ssshirt.”

My cheeks warmed from this compliment.

“Uhhh yeah….thanks.” I muttered.

“Ssso,” said Kari silkily, “come and get them, big boy.”

I walked up to her and reached out for my shorts, but then Kari pulled them away and held them higher.

“Whoopsss, too ssslow!” she chimed.

I reached out for them again and Kari raised her arm higher so my shorts were out of reach.

“Oh come on! Now you’re being a tease!” I protested.

“You ssshould loosssen up a bit.” Kari remarked, “Have sssome fun and a laugh now and again. It’ll do you sssome good.”

I was about to retort when her words suddenly gave me an idea.

“Okay,” I announced, “then you leave me no choice.”

I stretched both arms out to grab my shorts. Kari instinctively raised them higher, both hands clasping my shorts and waving them teasingly in front of me.

‘Bingo!’ I thought.

In one quick moment I jerked my hands from reaching the shorts and started to tickle Kari’s armpits.

“No no no!” said Kari, struggling not to laugh, “We…don’t do that…here in the…”

The lamia squirmed a bit and her arms lowered slightly. I figured out that I needed the extra push.

“Hmmm….let’s try on this area then.” I said, moving my hands from her armpits to her midriff.

“No! No! Not my belly!” squealed Kari, but her protests came too late. I’ve already started to tickle her stomach and navel. Kari wriggled like an eel and was laughing uncontrollably.

“You know what Kari?” I said, “You should loosen up a bit. Have some fun and a laugh now and again. It’ll do you some good!”

“Sss-ssstop it!” Kari gasped between laughs, “Come on! I-I can’t…ssstand…being…jussst cut it out!”

“The tickling will continue until you hand me my shorts.” I declared, “Plus you look and sound cute when you’re being tickled.”

I continued to tickle her relentlessly. Kari at one point tried to curl herself up, but a quick tickle to her armpits soon straightened her out.

“O-Okay!” said Kari, “I give in! You…can have…your ssshortsss back! Jussst…ssstop tickling me!”

As soon I heard her defeat, I relented and withdrew my hands. Kari sighed with relief and took a few deep breaths. Slowly she lowered herself onto the ground and the rest of her coils unwound from the tree. I picked up my shorts, hid behind a nearby bush and got changed.

“I must thank you for your cooperation Kari.” I commented, “It was most appreciated.”

Kari looked up at me and announced in a mock sinister tone, “Jussst you wait till I get you in my coilsss!”

‘Now that will definitely happen later.’ I thought.

I emerged from the bushes with my shorts finally on. I placed my hands in my pockets and felt the photo in my hand. I brought it out and examined it; despite everything that happened earlier, not a single crease or tear was inflicted on it.
A thin smile formed on my face as I stared at the photo. I nearly jumped with fright when Kari appeared beside me and asked, “Who are they?”

“My parents.” I answered in a small voice, “This is the only thing I have of them.”

I replaced the photo into my pocket as I felt the first pangs of sadness within me. I held back my tears, but a sad sigh managed to escape from me. I felt Kari place an arm over my shoulders and brought me closer to her. She soothed me in her soft and sibilant hiss and I relaxed somewhat. I turned to her and was greeted with a beautiful sight: her face with caring deep blue eyes and a warm smile.
Without uttering a single word, I placed on hand behind her back and pulled her into a hug. Kari followed suit and placed her head on my shoulder.

“Thanks Kari.” I whispered.

“You’re more than welcome.” replied the lamia.

Kari and I remained in our embrace, the love between us now deeply rooted. Eventually we parted and looked into each other eyes.

“Shall we make our way to your home Kari?” I asked.

“Sssoundsss good to me!” said Kari, “Although, we’ll be going passst the village along the way.”

I pursed my lips in thought. After a short moment, I shrugged my shoulders and replied, “I suppose one last glimpse wouldn’t hurt.”

I felt Kari’s hand clasp mine and together we started our journey through the jungle.


It took roughly a quarter of a day to traverse through the jungle and the tell-tale signs of the late afternoon turning into evening were becoming evident in the sky. Soon Kari and I were creeping along the side of the village outer ‘wall’. Just as we’re about to disappear into the undergrowth, I suddenly froze as I heard a loud voice from the other side.

“SILENCE!! I am sick and tired of your excuses and screw-ups!”

Kari turned to me anxiously.

“Who’sss that?” she whispered.

“That’s the village leader,” I answered, “and something tells me that he’s not in the best of moods.”

We both fell silent, cocked our eyes and listened.

“B-but sir,” came a voice that I knew was my foster father, “we tried to get help but…”

“It just happened so suddenly.” said my foster mother, “We couldn’t….if only….”

“Isn’t it YOUR responsibility to keep an eye on Marcus?!” shrilled a voice that I knew was Beryl.

“Y-yeah…b-but….” stammered my foster father.

“Yet, you took your eye off him for one moment and THIS happened!” snapped Beryl, “Now no thanks to you, I’ll have to wait a few years for one of the young men to become of age to marry me and I! CAN’T! WAIT! THAT! LONG!!”

“After all,” rumbled the village leader, “the deal was that I grant you two an elevated status in the village as long as your foster son marries my daughter and that MEANT keeping him in line! Yet, you allowed him to run off into the jungle and worst of all INSULT my daughter!”

“W-w-we’ve tried,” grovelled my foster father, “but he just wouldn’t…..it was a….matter beyond our…control…”

“Enough!” growled the village leader, “I have made up my mind. The reputation of me and my daughter has been tarnished. We’ll have to start again, WITHOUT you two.
Henceforth, come tomorrow morning, both of you are exiled from this village. You’ll take whatever supplies you have, take the Long Road to whatever civilisation you come across and NEVER return. My word is law and I have spoken!”

I briefly lost my voice with disbelief with what just transpired.

‘Whoa.’ I thought, ‘Talk about a harsh punishment.’

I was snapped out of my reverie when Kari shook my shoulder gently.

“I think we better get a move on before anything elssse happensss.” she whispered.

“No argument from me.” I replied.


After a further twenty minutes of trekking through the jungle, we arrived at Kari’s home in the tree. Kari was already making her way upwards.

“If you’re having trouble getting up,” she called, “jussst let me know and I’ll lend a hand, well a coil or ssso.”

I rubbed my hands together and started climbing. There were one or two moments where I slipped, but I soon regained my footing. After five minutes, I made it to the thick branch where Kari was waiting for me. I sat with my back against the tree trunk and Kari soon snuggled beside me.
The view we saw in front of us was beautiful; the sun was dark orange as it started to sink into the horizon, the sky was slowly turning dark blue with night and the clouds have turned from white into a mix of pinks and purples.

“It’sss ssspectacular isssn’t it?” commented Kari.

“It certainly is.” I agreed, “But there’s something even more amazing than this and right now she’s beside me.”

Kari glanced up at me and beamed with delight.

“Awww, that’sss ssso sssweet!” she said.

I shrugged my shoulders as I replied, “Well, call it a bit corny but it’s the thought that counts.”

Then a thought suddenly dawn on me and I voiced it.

“What are we gonna do now we’re together?”

Kari placed a finger to her chin in thought. Finally she spoke up, “I sssuppossse we can make one or two changesss to make it easssier for usss living here.”

“Maybe if we can get enough logs and vines,” I added, “we can build a little tree house for us. Not too big to be noticed, but enough for both of us to live in.”

Kari got up, secured herself on the branch and faced me.

“There’ll be plenty of time for that later,” she said, “right now, let’sss live the moment ssshall we?”

I looked at her in puzzlement.

“What moment is that?” I asked.

Kari placed both her arms on my shoulders and brought me closer to her face. It only took me a moment to figure out what she meant earlier. When I did, my heart soared with happiness.

“Oh, I see what you mean.” I whispered.

Slowly I closed my eyes and felt my lips connect with hers. It was a tantalising and invigorating experience. I placed both of my hands on her hips and brought her closer to me until our torsos were touched. Completely lost in the moment our kiss became more passionate, both my and Kari’s tongues met and danced with each other.
In the depths of my mind I imagined my late parents looking down on us from above and smiling.
Eventually we broke our kiss and gasped for air. Both of us were smiling with fathomless joy and staring at each other with adoration.

“That wasss quite a moment wasssn’t it?” commented the lamia.

“There’s one thing that can top it all off.” I said.

Kari raised an eyebrow at this as she asked, “And what’sss that?”

With all of my confidence and honesty I announced, “Can you put me under your spell please?”

Kari looked surprised for a brief moment and then smiled understandably.

“Anything for you Marc. Jussst sssit back and enjoy the ssshow.”

I did as what she told me to do and to my surprise Kari started to sing; her voice was so soothing and so reassuring that it was impossible to be doubtful about what she said.

~Lying here with you,
in our ssspecial place.
Sssmiling just to sssee,
the sssmile on your face.

Thessse are the momentsss,
free from every ssstrife.
Thessse are the momentsss,
that we’ll treasssure for life.

We have all we’ve waited for,
And we’ve could not asssked for more.~

Kari lent closer until our foreheads touched. Then her deep blue eyes began emitting the purple rings, pulsating slowly and gently into my eyes.
As I stared at them, I felt waves of relaxation overcome me and causing my arms and legs to go limp.

~Look into my eyesss,
Ssset your worriesss free.
They not matter now,
In your life here with me.

Thessse are the momentsss,
forever bound with love.
Thessse are the momentsss,
that light the ssstars above.

We have all we’ve waited for,
And we could not asssked for more.~

As she sang, I felt her coils wrap around me from the waist upwards. It was true I losing my free will, but I didn’t want to resist anyway. All I wanted was to be with the one I loved and to see the beautiful purple rings that she was emitting. Those were all that mattered to me.
My eyes started to get heavier and the coils around me were getting thicker and more comfortable.

~Give in to my ssspell,
There you will find.
Real happinesss,
and true peace of mind.

Thessse are the momentsss,
That you and I will ssspend.
Thessse are the momentsss,
That’ll never truly end.

We’ve found all we’ve waited for
And we could not asssked for more.~

When she finished her song, I was completely under her spell and snug in her coils. My vision was full of the purple rings that danced and rippled in front of me, providing me complete bliss and euphoria. Then I heard Kari voice coming from somewhere.

“Good night Marc. Sssleep well.”

I closed my eyes and just as I sank into a pleasure inducing dreamless sleep I heard Kari add,

“I love you.”


Here ends my story.