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chimachapterbooks · 11 days ago

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Small Packages

There are many things in this world that can be measured the length of a day, the number of lions in a pride, the distance from one end of a valley to the other. And then there are those things that cannot be measured, no matter how hard one tries... the courage in an animal's heart, the cleverness of his brain, or the daring of his spirit. Only through experience can one learn the true amount of each of these in any living creature.

- King LaGravis

"Muskrats?" exclaimed Laval, the Lion Prince, in disbelief. "Moles? Hedgehogs?"

"Yes," said LaGravis, king of the Lions, to his son. "And beavers and rabbits and mice, as well."

Laval shook his head. "You want me to go talk to all the small creatures in Chima and ask for their help in fighting the Crocodiles? You have to be joking, Dad!"

"I'm the king," LaGravis reminded him. "Kings do not joke. Very rarely, we may laugh at something, but only very rarely."

"The Crocodiles and their allies attacked us!" Laval said angrily. "They want control of the CHI that it is our duty to guard and distribute. We need powerful friends among the tribes to help us in this fight, and you're suggesting moles and mice?"

"All of the tribes have their role to play," LaGravis replied. "They may not all be as strong as the Gorillas or soar as high as the Eagles, but that does not mean they have no worth. Laval, as the future leader of the Lion Tribe, am trusting you to talk with them. Ask if they will be our allies in this fight. Explain that we need their help to defend Chima."

Laval sighed. "Fine, Dad. I'll go talk to them. For Chima."

But later, as Laval went to get his Speedor, he was still frustrated.

"What matters now is strength and speed and power," he muttered to himself. "That's all the Crocs understand, and that's what we need in allies."

Laval respected his father more than anyone. But. sometimes his dad's thinking was a little ... old-fashioned It was great to say that everyone had the same value, big or small. But in a fight, Laval would vote for "big" friends every time.

He climbed aboard his Speedor and raced off into the jungle. There were a lot of mice and moles to find.

Speaking to all of them would take all day. Laval grumbled.

He had made plans to practice fighting with Eris and Rogon that afternoon. Now he wouldn't be back in time.

As Laval sped deeper into the jungle, he began to calm down. Driving fast always made it easier for him to think. Soon he was zipping through trees and bushes far from the Lion Compound. It's very quiet out here, Laval thought to himself.

Too quiet...

Suddenly, four Crocodiles on Speedorz roared out at him from both sides!

"Well, well, what do we have here?" one of the Crocs snarled. "A Lion Prince deep in the jungle with no allies." Another Croc laughed. "How much CHI do you think a Lion Prince is worth?" he asked.

The first one revved his engine. "Let's take him to King Cragger and find out!"

Laval looked back and forth between the Crocodiles.

Escaping was going to be tricky, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. It looked like he would get some practice-fighting in today after all!

"Sorry, mud-lovers," he said as he shot forward. "I've already got plans!"

The Crocs snarled and gunned their engines. "You can't get away from us, Lion!"

Soon they were hot on Laval's trail.

Laval raced his Speedor under a low branch, kicking up a cloud of dust as he flew.

"Take that, Swamp Boys!" he cried, shooting around a corner and out of sight.

But the Crocs weren't giving up that easily. The lead Croc motioned to his partners, and they split up to the left and right. When Laval looked back, all he could see was the cloud of dust he had made.

"Now, where did those mud-lovers go?" he said. Just then, one of the Crocs tore out of the bushes and charged at him from the right. Laval whipped his Speedor around.

But another Croc was already blocking that path, too. The two other Crocs closed in from the front and back. Laval was boxed in!

"Looks like we've made a Lion-sized trap," the lead Croc laughed.

Laval quickly looked all around him. The Crocs had him cornered . .. but not captured just yet.

"Here's a lesson for you," Laval said with a grin. "When you make a trap, always check it for escape routes first." Gunning his engine, Laval sped toward a flat, angled rock just in front of the lead Croc... and zoomed up it like a ramp, right over the Croc's head!

"Woo-hoo!" he cried, zooming off.

The Crocs growled. Now they were really angry. "Get him!" their leader shouted.

They chased Laval farther and farther into the jungle.

Soon, the trees and plants began to thin out, and the ground grew dusty. Laval realized he had never taken his Speedor out this far before. And a moment later, he remembered why. Up ahead, stretching as far as they eye could see, was the border of the desert. It was nothing but sand and dust and rocks.

Uh-oh, thought Laval, screeching his Speedor to a halt.

This is very bad.

If he turned back, he would have to fight the four Crocs. But if he went forward into the desert, his vehicle would stop working. Like all Speedorz, the wheel was made from an ancient stone powered by nature. In the barren desert, where no green plants grew, the machine wouldn't last long.

Laval would be stranded.

Laval looked behind him. The Crocs were gaining. He knew he was a good fighter, but four-to-one odds were enough to make him think twice. So he revved his engine and headed into the desert.

The vehicle managed to make it only a short distance before it sputtered and died. "I'm a sitting duck out here,' Laval said to himself. "I have to hide."

The Lion Prince quickly pushed his Speedor over a large sand dune and out of sight. Luckily, the wind behind him blew fresh sand over his tracks, covering them. Laval peeked over the mound to the edge of the desert.

The Crocodiles had just stopped at the border. They couldn't see Laval hidden behind the sand dune, and their leader was angry.

"Ga! Where did that Lion go?" he asked.

The others shook their heads. "Must have headed into the desert, boss."

All four Crocs gulped. They didn't want their Speedorz to die out as well. But they also didn't want the Lion Prince to slip from their claws.

"Maybe we should wait him out," one suggested. "In this heat, he won't last long."

"Or maybe he went back into the jungle?" another said. "I don't see any tracks."

Laval didn't wait to hear any more. He quietly slipped away, still out of view of the Crocs. His best bet was to try and sneak past his enemies in a little while, when they started to get bored. If they got hungry, they might even head back to the swamp. "I need to find shade," Laval said to himself. "If I'm going to save my strength, I can't let the hot sun get to me."

Laval started walking south. After a while, he became tired and thirsty. He was about to sit down and take a rest when heard a very small voice from below say, "Hey, watch where you're sitting!"

Laval stopped and looked down. There was a little desert mouse waving a tiny fist at him.

"You big guys think you can do whatever you want!" said the mouse. "Well, this is my property, right here, not yours."

"This is your property?" Laval asked, surprised.

"Where?" Laval looked left and right, but all he could see was sand.

"From that pebble over there," the mouse said pointing to the north. Then he pointed south. "Then all the way to that sand dune down there."

"I'm sorry. I didn't know," Laval apologized.

"It's okay," said the mouse. "Hey, you're a long way from home, aren't you? There aren't any Lions in the desert."

Laval explained why he was there. "I won't be staying any longer than I have to, but I had better find water pretty soon."

"Stick with me," the mouse said with a smile. "I know all the best places. My name is Alonz, by the way."

Alonz scampered off, with Laval following. After a few minutes, they came to an outcropping of rocks that provided cool shade from the desert sun.

"Thanks," said Laval. "I'll need to stay here a while: and wait out the Crocs."

"That might be hard," said Alonz, pointing past Laval.

The Lion turned to see that the four Crocs had advanced into the desert and were heading in his direction, though they hadn't spotted him yet.

"Show yourself, Lion!" one of them called. "You can't hide out here forever!"

Laval looked back down at the little mouse. "You'd better find a place to hide," he said to Alonz. "There's going to be a fight, and I don't want you to get hurt. You're too small to stand up to Crocs."

"Ha!" said Alonz. "You don't have to be big to win a fight... and sometimes you don't even need to fight to win. Those Crocodiles are in my territory now. I'll show you how to handle them!"

Before Laval could stop him, the mouse darted off toward the Crocodiles. "Wait!" cried Laval. "I'm coming with you!"

"You'll just get in the way," the mouse yelled backe cheerfully.

"Stop!" Laval said, using a hand to block the mouse's; path. "You can't take on four Crocs by yourself! You're just a mouse!"

"This is my home." Alonz puffed out his chest. "I'm going to defend it. Besides, did you ever stop to think that maybe around here, you're 'just' a Lion?"

While Laval was thinking about that, the mouse raced away. When Alonz was about ten feet from the Crocodiles, he started jumping up and down and waving his arms.

"Hey, Crocs!" he yelled. "What's big and dumb and smells of swamp? You guys!"

One of the Crocodiles glanced at another. "It's a mouse," he said.

"No kidding," said the other Croc.

"Should I step on him?"

"Nah, just let him squeak. It's good for a laugh."

But the Crocs weren't laughing for long. Alonz ran around them, insulting their looks, their intelligence, and their body odor. After a while, the Crocs started to get annoyed. They chased after him, and Alonz took off as fast as his little legs could carry him.

Alonz was fast, but the Crocs' big legs covered more ground. They were about to catch him! Laval sprang out to help his new friend when, suddenly, the four Crocs sank into the sand up to their waists!

Alonz stopped running. He turned around and laughed.

"See, Laval? I told you. They might be bigger and stronger but they don't know the desert. I do, especially where the patches of soft sand are."

Laval walked up to the four Crocs, chuckling. "Looks like you've been beaten ... by a mouse."

The Crocs squirmed and glared at Laval. "We'll get you!" they snarled. "As soon as we get out of here."

Laval laughed. "I'd say the only thing you'll get is waist-deep in trouble when Cragger finds out about this."

All four Crocs gulped. They had wanted to please Cragger by capturing Laval. But the king wouldn't be happy to hear they'd been defeated by a mouse!

"So, this is what's going to happen," Laval continued,

"I'll help you out of that sand before you sink up to your snouts, and you'll go back to the swamp. In return, I won't tell your king about what happened here today. Deal?"

The Crocs grumbled a lot, but agreed.

With Alonz's help, Laval returned to the edge of the jungle and grabbed a long vine. He brought it back to where the Crocs were still stuck in the sand.

Then he tied the vine to one of the rocks and left it within reach of the Crocs. They would be able to use it to pull themselves out of the sand and make their way back to the swamp. But not before Laval and Alonz were long gone from the desert.

As the Crocs slowly pulled themselves free from the sand, Laval dragged his Speedor back to the edge of the jungle. Alonz went with him, perched on the seat. As soon as they were near the trees and plants, the engine roared to life. Startled, Alonz jumped onto Laval's shoulder.

"Why don't you come home with me?" Laval asked

“We could sure use your help defending the CHI against the Crocs. And I have to say I'm sorry to my dad—he was right about something, and I didn't see it until just now. I think he'd like to meet you."

"Will there be cheese?" asked Alonz.

"Probably," said Laval.

After a minute, Alonz said, "So, what do you have to apologize for?"

"Oh, I had this idea that only small things come in small packages," answered Laval. He smiled.

"Turns out I was wrong."