The Mysterious Message (Geronimo Stilton Micekings #5) Page 4
He led us to a small hut nearby.
“Welcome to my laboratory!” he
exclaimed as he opened the door for us. “It is
here that I create my genius inventions.
If the answer to our dragon problem is
anywhere, it will be here.”
Inside the hut was what looked like a great
big pile of junk.
Fen dove into the mountain of
junk and started rummaging around.
“Tell me what you’re LOOKING
for, old friend, and I’ll help you find it,”
89
Essence of Sea Jasmine
Trap offered.
“It’s obvious!” Fen replied. “I am looking
for my fabumouse invention designed
to defend Oofadale from dragons: The
Wind Cycle!”
Trap and I shared a confused look. We
had no idea what he was talking about!
Then Fen extracted a strange -looking
contraption from the pile. It had a wheel
with two pedals.
“EUREKA!” he cried. “Found it!
The Wind Cycle
This invention can be used to
create wind or to blow good or
bad smells across the village.
The faster you pedal, the faster
the fans turn, which is why only
a very athletic mouseking should
operate it.
Essence of Sea Jasmine
And in this little bottle is essence of
sea jasmine!”
I sniffed it. “It smells very clean! What’s
it for?”
“We will use the Wind Cycle to spread the
scent of sea jasmine over the
whole village,” Fen replied.
“I get it!” Trap
exclaimed. “Dragons
hate clean smells. It will
drive them away.”
“Exactly!” Fen said.
“So where is the highest
point in Oofadale?” I asked.
Fen went to the window and pointed. “The
top of Mount Mattress!”
I looked out the window and saw only a
small hill.
“But that’s just a tiny hill,” I said.
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Essence of Sea Jasmine
“But that’s the highest
mountain in all of Oofadale!”
Fen said, sounding offended. “The
Wind Cycle must be taken to the very
top of the pine tree that grows
on the mountain’s peak.”
I started to get a bad
feeling. “And who,
There’s Mount Mattress!
Essence of Sea Jasmine
exactly, will take it there?” I asked.
“It’s obvious!” Fen said. “You need
to get a miceking helmet, don’t you?
Well, here is the perfect chance to
earn one. Good luck dodging
those dragons on your way!”
Clammering clams, I had a true
miceking mission ahead of me!
Pedal, Geronimo!
Trap and I walked along the path that led to
the PEAK of Mount Mattress, the tallest . . .
hill in Oofadale!
We carried Fen’s very heavy invention
with us. Or rather, I carried it. Trap carried
the tiny bottle of sea jasmine essence
and a roll of parchment with instructions
for using the Wind Cycle.
“Couldn’t we . . . puff . . . trade . . .
pant?” I asked.
“What kind of mouseking
are you?” Trap asked. “Use your
miceking muscles, Cousin!”
Pedal, Geronimo!
Finally, we arrived at the base of the pine
tree. I started to climb up the ladder to
get to the top, but . . .
Puff . . . pant . . .
Faster!
I’m falling!
Ouch!
1
First I stepped on
some mountain eagle
poo. BLECH!
2
Then I lost my
footing, slipped, and
fell on some sharp pine
needles. Ouch!
3
I slipped again
and smacked my
snout on a branch.
Squeak!
Oh no!
Pedal, Geronimo!
Finally, I reached the observation
platform at the top of the tree. From there,
I could see the whole village of
Oofadale!
“Get on the Wind Cycle and pedal,
Geronimo!” Trap called up to me.
I had to act fast. I hopped on the seat and
started to pedal fast . . . faster . . . even
faster!
What a workout!
Pedal, Geronimo!
Aim . . .
My tired legs were starting to feel like
string cheese!
Trap emptied the essence of
sea jasmine in front of the
fan, and the wind spread the
scent all over Oofadale.
Down below, we could
Attack!
Take that, lizard face!
Pedal, Geronimo!
see the brave micekings battling the
dragons. The Oofa Oofa had finally woken
up from their naps and joined the warriors
from Mouseborg.
“Where is that smarty-mouseking?”
Sven shouted, hurling a hammer at a
green dragon. “He was supposed to bring
more help!”
Just missed!
Pedal, Geronimo!
“Watch out, chief!” Olaf shrieked.
The hammer missed the green dragon. The
ANGRY dragon grabbed Sven by the tail.
“Now to gobble you up!” the
dragon said. Then he suddenly sneezed.
“ACHOO!”
The dragon dropped Sven.
What happened?
Pedal, Geronimo!
In less time than it takes to eat a cheese
cracker, all of the dragons were in tears.
“Hammering herrings,
what’s happening?” Olaf asked. “Why are
the dragons crying?”
The green dragon began to wail. “What
isss that terrible sssmell?” he asked. “I can’t
keep my eyesss open!”
“It’s too clean!” whined a red dragon. “I
sssmell soap! And flowersss! And I can’t
ssstop sssneezing! Achoo!”
“Fen was right!” I told Trap. “The dragons
can’t stand the super-clean smell
of the sea jasmine.”
The dragons beat a quick retreat, flying off
into the clouds one after another.
From the top of the pine tree, Trap and I
watched as they fled, crying, sneezing, and
swerving back and forth.
101
“It worked! We did it!” Trap and I cheered.
Then we happily ran toward the village. We
still had to figure where that letter came from.
102
The Secret of the
Letter
The miceking warriors hugged one
another and cheered when the
dragons flew away.
“Micekings work better
when they fight together!
Hip, hip, hooray!
Hooray! Hooray!”
Yan the Yawner
hugged Sven. “Thank
you for bringing that
smarty-mouseking!”
he said. “He really
&n
bsp; saved the day.”
We did it!
103
The Secret of the Letter
Then he turned to the rest of us. “Brave
friends from Mouseborg, we thank
you for your invaluable help today!
We couldn’t have done it without you. To
celebrate, we will have a grand miceking
feast!”
“So says Yan the Yawner!”
chanted the Oofa Oofa.
Then Sven approached me. “Geronimo,
this time you acted bravely, like a
true mouseking,” he said. “I have decided
to award you with a miceking helmet.”
What, what, what? I
couldn’t believe my ears. At last I would
receive my first miceking helmet!
My whiskers were
Shaking with
excitement!
104
Well done, Geronimo!
Thank you!
“First, however,” Sven continued, “I would
like to find out at least what was written in
that mysterious letter from Yan the Yawner!”
Yan looked confused. “I didn’t send a
letter.”
At that moment, Bronk Snorborg from the
tourist office stepped forward.
“I think I can solve this mystery,” he said.
105
The Secret of the Letter
Sven and Yan both shouted at once. “Speak!
We order you!”
“So says
Sven
the
Shouter!”
chanted
the Mouseborg warriors.
“So
says Yan the Yawner!”
chanted
the Oofa Oofa.
Bronk cleared his throat. “Well, you see,
I think it might be a love letter that I
wrote for the lovely Snorina.”
“Whaaaaaat?” shouted Sven.
“A love letter?” yelled Yan.
Trap handed the letter to Bronk. “Is this
it?”
“Yes!” Bronk cried happily.
“But why is the official seal of
Oofadale on your letter?” Trap asked
Bronk.
“Because I used one of the pieces of
parchment that we use at the tourist
106
You, too, can read this miceking love letter!
*
The original letter was written in runes, the miceking
alphabet. This is a translation for you readers!
Dear Snorina,
you have stolen my heart,
and to you I declare all my love,
when i look at you,
my whiskers begin to skake.
with you by my side,
I could be a strong mouseking!
I could sail the stormy seas,
or slay the fiercest dragon.
For you I would climb the highest hill,
or eat the stinkiest cheese.
one smile from you is all I need,
but it would be nice if I had your love, too
Bronk
The Secret of the Letter
office to draw maps,” Bronk admitted.
“They all have the official coat of arms!”
I had a question, too. “Then why
did you hide it in an
amphora
and throw it into the sea?”
“That’s not how it happened,”
Bronk answered. “You see,
Snorina is the daughter of the
Oofadale milkman, and every
evening she comes to collect the empty milk
BOTTLES. I hoped that she would find
my letter.”
“So how did the amphora end up in the
sea?” Trap wanted to know.
“That night there was a
terrible
storm!”
Bronk replied. “A blast of wind
must have carried the amphora to the dock,
and then it rolled into the water.”
Trap’s eyes lit up. “Aha! Then the
108
THE SECRET OF THE LETTER
current brought it to Mouseborg, where
Stocker found it!”
Bronk nodded. “That must be what
happened,” he said, and then he turned to
look at a lovely rodent who was smiling
at him. “And all this time I thought that
Snorina
didn’t return my feelings!”
Snorina stepped forward.
“Oh, Bronk! If I had received
the letter, I would have told
you that
I feel the same
way
about you.”
“You mean the letter wasn’t
a call for help?” Sven
fumed. “And you didn’t want
to attack our village? We
arranged an official expedition
in grand miceking style just for
a love letter?”
Oh,
Bronk!
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THE SECRET OF THE LETTER
“It looks that way,” Bronk said.
“Why didn’t you tell us this as soon
as we arrived?” Sven shouted.
Bronk pointed at me. “I did try to tell
someone—that shrimpy mouseking over
there.”
Uh-oh. This was not going to be good.
“Is this true, Geronimo?” Sven asked
me.
“W-w-well, yes,” I stammered. “B-b-but the
dragons were attacking, and . . .”
“You cheesehead!” Sven shouted.
“First, you
failed
to figure out the letter.
Then, you could have found out it was just
a love letter, but you didn’t listen.
No miceking
helmet
for
you!”
110
THE SECRET OF THE LETTER
“B-b-but the dragons . . .” I tried to explain.
“Enough of this. It’s time for the feast!”
Yan yelled.
“So says Yan the Yawner!”
cheered all the micekings.
You cheesehead!
I
tried
to
tell
him
. . .
Who,
me?
The Secret of the Letter
Everyone ate and talked and laughed. I
sat outside all alone, thinking about
the miceking helmet that I had won and
lost
in a matter of minutes. Would I ever
be able to show Thora that I was a truly
brave mouseking?
Then Bronk and Snorina approached me.
“Thank you
for bringing the letter
back to us, Geronimo,” Bronk said. “It
brought Snorina and me together.”
“Even without a helmet, you are very
brave,”
she said. “One day you will win
over your own miceking love, I’m sure.”
I smiled. “Thank you,” I said. “I know
one day I will finally get my miceking
helmet!”
But that’s another miceking story,
for another miceking time!
112
Sweet!
Miceking
Island
Beastgard
Gullet Valley
Feargard
Forest of a
Thousand
Scales
Oofadale
Yawning
Cove
Helpful Hills
Mouseborg
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Dear mouse friends,
thanks for reading,
and good-bye until
the next book!