In Search of Goliathus Hercules (31 page)

“Cease fire! Remain alert!” Henri commanded, and suddenly the forest was still in a way it had never been before. Henri realized they had all been distracted by the huge bats, the newest recruits in Mrs. Black’s army. In that moment of inattention, she had vanished.

Robin and Henri moved so that they stood back to back. Henri’s piercing eyes searched. His antennae felt the air. There was a slight scent of sulfur upon the breeze. He tried to pinpoint the location.

“She’s here,” said Henri. “It wouldn’t be her style to just leave. She’ll want to prolong and enjoy the moment. She’ll want to make me suffer!”

“Sir!”

Henri jumped. Art and the squadron of moths had returned. “Sorry, sir!” said Art. “Tried to distract the bat, but we just couldn’t fool him! The leader…he’s dead. Drowned, sir. The bat dropped him in low over the river. Didn’t have a chance to get his wings open before he hit the water…current carried him away.” In the silence of the clearing, Art’s words carried to all the insects hidden in the trees and brush. A short distance from Henri and Robin, a wail mixed with anger and sorrow arose from the assembled swarm of
Goliathus hercules
. In a moment, though, there was a frightening clicking sound as if a thousand pairs of scissors snipped at the air. It was the warrior insects gnashing their sharp pincers. Defiant whoops and war cries filled the air.

“He shall be avenged! We fight in his name! Forward!”

But above all the noise, one voice arose louder and clearer than the others.

“Brothers! Brothers! Stop! Just for one moment!”

Goliathus hercules
became quieter, although there was still some muttering. Henri spotted the speaker, a large and shiny specimen.

“We will avenge our leader and show our might, but it is clear we are dealing with a new enemy. I know that I am new to your ranks, but consider for a moment. This creature, the tall black two-leg, is in league with the bats. We cannot win against such deviousness.”

Cries of “coward” and “go home” greeted this pronouncement.

Again the New One spoke out.

“I am no coward and I am no fool! I fight for victory! The only way we will win here tonight is to ally ourselves with Serangga-orang and the rest of the insect kingdom. It is the only way, brothers!”

There was much muttering as
Goliathus hercules
considered the notion. Henri took the opportunity to say, “He is right. Join us and we will double our strength to defeat our mutual enemy. We will win!”

At that moment Henri knew that the one thing that mattered to him more than anything else was defeating and capturing Agatha Black.

He could not succeed in finding his father because he must be dead—after all, he had not returned to the village to reclaim his photographs. As to
Goliathus hercules
, if he could actually convince one of them to return to England with him, that would be a consolation at least. But right now, Henri was consumed with a hatred so great it coursed through his entire being. His stomach was on fire. The nausea had disappeared, replaced by burning, fiery anger. His body tingled with nerves, excitement, and a kind of abandon that was a combination of courage, rage, and wildness.

Henri’s thoughts were interrupted by shrill cries from above. He and Robin looked up. Bats! They filled the sky again and circled like vultures high over the clearing.

And then—
whack!
In that moment, as they looked to the sky, Henri felt the air forced out of him. Something tightened around his waist. With a jerk, Henri and Robin fell to the ground, bound by a rope. They were captured, and towering over them stood Mrs. Black!

D
azed for a moment, Henri felt a bit giddy. He had not expected that a woman dressed so ridiculously for the jungle in a long gown and veil could throw a lasso. It struck him as exceptionally funny. But before he could let out more than a guffaw, Mrs. Black stuffed something, perhaps a lace handkerchief, into his mouth.

“Find this funny, do you, Mr. Bell? I think it is I that should be laughing.” And Henri saw her stiff, toothy smile behind the veil.

Mrs. Black turned to Robin. “Well, Mr. Bell won’t be able to share his little joke with us. Perhaps
you
have the sense to see the seriousness of the situation. I know you speak insect. Call off your forces!” And she held her machete under Robin’s throat in a threatening gesture. “Don’t try any tricks!”

Robin looked helplessly at Henri. He nodded his assent. With a gulp she said, “My insect language isn’t very good. I’m not sure I can.”

“Don’t try my patience! I’m not a fool. I wouldn’t hesitate to slit your throat,” Mrs. Black chortled. “I’m sure that the Geographical Society will be saddened when I announce your death, due of course to a savage attack by the natives, but they’ll forget all about it when I show them
Goliathus hercules
captured and alive!”

“Commence Phase Two!” called Robin in insect. It was a short utterance that did not draw Mrs. Black’s suspicion. The forest seemed to fall quiet. Luckily when Robin had fallen to the ground, the hearing-aid machine had turned off so that the device no longer picked up insect chatter.

Mrs. Black called out, “Antonio! And boy—lion tamer’s boy, whatever your name is—do not contemplate a daring rescue! Any heroics and the girl is dead! Show yourselves!”

Still holding the knife to Robin’s throat, Mrs. Black scanned the edges of the clearing. Nothing happened.

“I said to show yourselves or the girl is dead!”

There was a rustling of leaves, and Maestro Antonio and Billy came out into the clearing.

“Move toward the center where I can keep my eyes on you!” commanded Mrs. Black. Above the clearing, the bats continued to circle.

Billy and Maestro Antonio moved slowly. They stepped with caution, for, unbeknownst to Mrs. Black, millions of insects were moving into position. The time was approaching for the army ants to attack. They would have little difficulty moving from the ground, under her skirts, over her laced boots, and upward to more delicate areas!

“Hurry up! Whatever is the matter with you?”

Maestro Antonio and Billy stopped in the center of the clearing.

“Fine,” said Mrs. Black. “Now, boy, come…”

“It’s Billy.”

“Oh! Please pardon my manners,” said Mrs. Black sarcastically. “
Billy
, would you mind taking this cage and choosing two nice specimens of
Goliathus hercules
? How about a male and a female? That’s a good boy.”

“No, I won’t,” responded Billy. “Get them yourself, you old hag!”

“Children these days! It’s Mrs. Black to you.” She moved the machete’s blade closer to Robin’s throat, nicking the skin. A drop of blood—visible even in the dark—rolled down her neck.

“There’s no need for violence, Mrs. Black,” said Maestro Antonio calmly. “That won’t be necessary.”

“Shut up! No one is talking to you! Now, Billy, come slowly toward me and take the cage.”

Billy walked toward Mrs. Black. In the darkness she could not see him step over a stream of army ants. They were not the only ones mobilizing. Only Henri with his keen hearing could hear the considerable preparations being made. He knew what his own troops were planning, but
Goliathus hercules
? Well, who knew how they would react?

Billy looked down at his two friends tied up on the ground. Robin lay still, but Henri continued to struggle, coughing violently as he attempted to spit out the lace hankie protruding from his mouth. Billy studied their faces hoping for a signal, something that would tell him what to do. Mrs. Black glanced down and laughed.

“The more he struggles, the tighter the rope gets,” she said. She stretched out the hand holding the cage. Billy snatched the cage from her as quickly as he could.

“All right. Off you go!”

With a look as if he were walking to his own execution, Billy approached the beetle just a few yards away. As he got closer, the snapping of razor-sharp pinchers filled the air. Mrs. Black cackled. Despite the noise, Henri was now so attuned to
Goliathus hercules
that he heard the New One say:

“It is just as Serranga-orang said. The evil black two-leg has ordered that two of us be captured.”

“No! We will not allow it!” came a chorus of voices and the threatening, slashing motion of pinchers.

“Serranga-orang has spoken truthfully. She is our enemy and we must help him. I have an idea,” said the New One. “I will allow myself to be captured.”

Cries of protest came from the other beetles.

“No!”

“We owe this Serranga-orang nothing!”

“You must trust me. I have a little experience with the two-leg kind,” said the New One, who moved closer as Billy approached.

Billy was just a few feet away from the ranks of the
Goliathus hercules
when he stumbled and fell to the ground. He whispered quickly in insect, “I’m sorry. I mean you no harm.”

“Don’t just lie there, you clumsy oaf!” screamed Mrs. Black. “Grab one!”

Billy reached out to the nearest beetle, but the insect used its strong pinchers to attack, snipping at his hand and face. “Aahh! No!” he screamed. The giant insects scrambled forward as Billy quickly raised himself from the ground, trying desperately to get away.

Only Henri could hear the New One say, “Just enough to frighten him! That’s all! Let him get away!”

Henri was relieved that
Goliathus hercules
wasn’t going to kill Billy. What were the beetles up to, though? Billy, bleeding ,but on his feet now, hurled the cage away and ran back toward Maestro Antonio.

“You stupid fool! Idiot boy! Retrieve that cage and get back over there now!” Agatha Black shrieked.

“No!” said Billy, wiping blood from his face.

“Are you a coward? Why, I used my own hands on my first encounter with them. If not for Mr. Bell’s interference, I would have my specimens already and be the toast of the nation.”

Just then, Maestro Antonio spoke up. “I would say that the beetles of
Goliathus hercules
are agitated right now, and I think that Billy has just proved that capturing them by hand is not a wise course of action.”

Mrs. Black stomped her foot in exasperation. “Just how were
you
planning to capture them?”

“We were planning to use diplomacy, of course. Henri was going to speak with them and invite a few to make the journey to England.”

“Oh, really! Freak that Mr. Bell is, I don’t for a moment believe that he has real conversation with insects, particularly these ones! I’ll admit that he has some kind of intriguing, hypnotic power over them. But, really, insects are stupid, dirty, mindless creatures! They are incapable of thinking beyond their stomachs!”

As she ranted, Maestro Antonio glanced furtively around the clearing. The army ants continued to move forward, while up above, Art and his family of moths daringly fluttered among the bats to distract them.

“I beg to disagree with you,” the maestro said. He would try to keep Mrs. Black talking until everyone was in place. “My own experience suggests that they have complex thoughts, the same as you and me. Henri told me that he encountered a fly that could read, and I found my own fleas to be quite skilled negotiators when it came to compensation for their services. Why, I—”

“Enough! We’re not here to debate the intelligence of insects!” Agatha Black hissed. “We are all here to capture
Goliathus hercules
, but I am afraid only one of us can claim the glory. That, of course, will be me! Since you are so convinced of the insects’ intelligence, Antonio, step forward and negotiate with them. Now!”

“I would like to do that, Mrs. Black, but I am afraid that my language skills are rudimentary at best. We all know that Henri is the only one fluent enough to discuss this delicate matter with them.”

Mrs. Black stamped her foot again in frustration. She looked at
Goliathus hercules
inching forward.

“Tell them to stop. Don’t come any closer.”

“I could ask them, but they are unlikely to listen to me.” By now Maestro Antonio was certain that Mrs. Black didn’t understand insect. So he walked toward the mass of beetles and said in insect, “Friends! Prepare to attack the enemy!”

The beetles continued to move forward. With her own life at risk now, Mrs. Black raised the machete and sliced the rope that bound Henri and Robin together. She put her foot on Robin’s chest as she leaned over and pulled Henri up. “Get me a beetle or the girl is dead!” She pulled the cloth out of his mouth. “No tricks or I will kill her!”

Henri nodded, and stepped toward
Goliathus hercules
.

“My friends, are you ready?” he said to them. “I need one volunteer.”

He saw the New One move forward. Then the shiny beetle opened his wing, flew up, and landed on Henri’s shoulder.

As Henri slowly turned back to Mrs. Black, he whispered to the New One, “Wait for my signal.” It seemed to him that the beetle nodded.

“Here you are,” Henri called out to Agatha Black. “Now let Robin go!”

“Where is the cage? Put it in the cage!” she screeched.

Suddenly there was a deafening, high-pitched shriek and an explosion of brilliant light like an explosion in a fireworks factory. Mrs. Black screamed. Her bats, blinded by the light, broke their formation and flapped about in confusion. Millions of synchronized fireflies and cicadas had together created a stunning blast of light and sound.