Mowgli listened, and was sorry. But all that time the Bandar-log wear above them in the trees, listening and watching. They followed Mowgli and his friends through the jungle until it was time for the midday rest. Mowgli lay between his friends and went to sleep, saying, ‘I will never talk to or play with the Monkey-people again.’
When he woke up, he was high in a tree and there were hands holding his legs and arms –hard, strong, little hands. Down below Baloo was shouting angrily, and Bagheera was trying to climb up the tree, but he was too heavy for the thin branches. The monkeys, shouting and laughing, carried Mowgli between them and began their journey along the monkey roads, which are high in the trees.
It was a wild, exciting journey. The monkeys jumped from tree-top to tree-top, crashing through the leaves and branches. At first Mowgli was afraid of falling, but then he began to thing. He must tell Baloo and Bagheera where he was. High up in the blue sky he saw Chil the kite. The big bird saw that the monkeys were carrying a man-cub. He flew down to look, and was surprised to hear the bird-call of the kites: ‘We are of the blood, you and I!’
‘Who are you?’ called Chil.
‘Mowgli, the man-cub!’ came the reply. ‘Watch where they take me, and tell Baloo and Bagheera.’
Monkeys can travel fast when they want to, and by now Baloo and Bagheera were a long way behind.
‘We cannot follow the Bandar –log through the trees,’ said Baloo, ‘and we will never catch them. But they are afraid of kaa, the big python. He can climb as easily as the monkeys, and he eats them. Perhaps he will help us.’ And so Baloo and Bagheera went to look for kaa the python.
They found him, lying in the sun-ten of brown-and –yellow snake, beautiful and dangerous.
‘What news?’ called kaa when he saw them.
‘We are looking for food,’ said Baloo. He knew that you must not hurry kaa. He is too big.
‘Let me come with you,’ said Kaa hungrily. ‘I have not eaten for day.’
‘We are following the Bandar-log,’ said Baloo. ‘Those noisy, dirty thieves have stolen our man-cub. And we love our man-cub very much, Kaa!’
‘The Bandar-log,’ said Bagheear cle verly, ‘are very much afraid of you, Kaa. But they say bad things about you, and call you “old yellow fist”, I hear.’
‘Tss! Tss! Said Kaa. ‘I will teach them not to call me bad names. Where did they take your man-cub? They will be tired of him quickly, and that is bad for him.’
‘Up! Up! Lookup Baloo!’
Baloo looked up and saw Chil the kite, high in the sky.
‘What is it?’ called Baloo.
‘I have seen Mowgli the man-cub with the Bandar-log. He knew the Master-Word. The have taken him to the monkey-city, the Lost City.’
Baloo and Bagheera knew of the monkey- city. Men lived there once, but they left hundred of years ago. Nobody went there now, only the Bandar-log.
‘We must leave at once,’ said Bagheera. ‘It is a long way.’
‘I will come as fast as I can,’ said Baloo, ‘but you and kaa can go faster. I will follow you.’