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We'll Bite Your Tail, Geronimo! (Geronimo Stilton Spacemice #11) Page 5


  We followed their work

  from the surface

  using Thea’s

  wristwatch. I

  took off the

  heavy

  backpack

  and

  used it as a seat to

  rest on.

  My sister pushed a button on her

  wristwatch.

  “Your Majesty, can you hear me?” she

  asked. “How’s it going down there?”

  “

  I can hear you loud and clear!

  ” came the

  king’s reply. “We’re just getting to the hole

  where the

  water

  is coming from. We

  can’t see anything yet, but we know we are

  close because the ground is

  damp

  under

  our paws.”

  Here you

  go!

  “Good luck, Chief!” we all shouted.

  “

  Thank you!

  ” came the reply of the

  chief and the other nibblix around him.

  Good

  luck!

  Thank

  you!

  “We’ve rolled the sandbags in position to

  make the dam. And Crunch and Scrunch,

  two of the strongest nibblix, have begun to

  dig

  the lateral tunnel . . .”

  “

  GREAT!

  ” we all shouted. “You’re

  almost there. Keep up the

  good work

  !”

  “Oh no!” Chief Nibbler said suddenly.

  “What’s wrong?” asked Thea.

  “The water is leaking through the dam.

  We need more sandbags!” Chief Nibbler

  replied.

  “Don’t worry!” Benjamin squeaked as he

  leaped into

  action

  . “We’ll help. Bugsy and

  I can gather a few more for you.”

  The two mice

  scampered

  off and

  returned a few minutes later with a bunch of

  sandbags. They delivered them to the mouth

  of the tunnel.

  Less than an hour later, Chief Nibbler and

  the other nibblix emerged from the tunnel,

  smiling

  and

  happy

  .

  “Is everything okay now?” Benjamin

  asked.

  “Never been better!” the chief replied. “The

  dam and the lateral tunnel are complete. We

  can return to our homes

  immediately

  !”

  Photosyntheson’s

  Trees

  Benjamin, Bugsy Wugsy, and the nibblix

  cheered

  joyfully

  . Thea, Greenfur, and

  I were ecstatic, too.

  Photosyntheson’s

  homes were safe, and the nibblix could go

  back to living underground, where they

  were

  HAPPIEST

  .

  Hooray!

  Chief Nibbler shook Professor Greenfur’s

  paw and thanked us.

  “It’s always a pleasure to help those in

  need

  !” Greenfur replied.

  The chief hung his head.

  “I feel badly for the way we treated

  our fellow Photosynthesons and their

  precious

  trees!” he said sadly.

  Thank you,

  friend!

  It was a pleasure!

  “We truly didn’t mean to

  destroy

  anyone’s homes. But we’ve always

  lived

  alone

  underground, and we’ve never

  had to think about anyone else. We didn’t

  realize gnawing on all those trees would

  affect

  others the way it did. What

  can we do to make it up to you and your

  friends

  , Professor?”

  “You could help the Photosynthesons

  replant the trees you gnawed!” Greenfur

  suggested.

  “That’s a

  great

  idea!” squeaked

  Benjamin. “Nature helps improve the

  universe for everyone. We need to

  love,

  respect,

  and

  protect

  it!”

  “You’re right!” Chief Nibbler replied.

  “First we’ll ask the Photosynthesons for

  their

  forgiveness

  , and then

  we will help them plant

  new

  trees!”

  But I noticed that the chief still looked

  like he had

  something

  on his mind.

  “What is it, Your Majesty?” I asked.

  “Well . . .” he hesitated. “We’re

  very

  happy

  to return to our tunnels and our

  cozy homes, but I’d like to come back to

  the surface every so often. It’s so

  dark

  and

  gloomy

  underground. And now that

  we’ve seen how beautiful it is above ground,

  we would like to visit sometimes. But we

  can’t go for long without

  gnawing

  on something, so I guess that won’t be

  possible

  .”

  The other nibblix nodded in agreement,

  and the chief hung his head

  sadly

  .

  Hmmm . . . what a

  TOUGH

  situation!

  There had to be a solution, but what was it?

  Greenfur, Thea, Benjamin, Bugsy Wugsy,

  and I looked at one another. We spacemice

  needed another

  mouserific

  idea!

  We

  thought

  and

  thought

  and

  thought

  and

  thought

  and

  thought

  .

  “We have to find something above ground

  that the nibblix can

  chew

  without harming

  anything,” Thea mused.

  Martian

  mozzarella!

  That was easier

  said than done! What could the nibblix gnaw

  safely?

  I didn’t have a

  clue

  !

  A Giaantic Surprise

  After a lot of thinking, we were still

  stuck

  .

  “Sometimes my best ideas come when I

  stop concentrating on the

  problem

  and

  think of something different!” Benjamin

  exclaimed.

  “That’s true!” Thea agreed. “It helps me

  brainstorm when I move around, take a

  walk, or

  play a game

  .”

  I tripped over my

  own paws

  .

  .

  .

  1

  So we all began to walk around. I went in

  circles, but I was so absorbed in my thoughts

  that I tripped on my own paws and fell on

  top of Trap’s

  heavy backpack

  !

  Swisssh!

  The backpack flew up in the air and its

  contents scattered all over the ground.

  Galactic mozzarella!

  What a

  mess

  !

  S

  W

  I


  S

  S

  S

  H

  !

  .

  .

  . and fell on top

  of Trap’s backpack!

  2

  I was scrambling to collect everything

  when one object caught my

  attention

  .

  It was a gigantic machine that dispensed

  Supergnaws, also known as chunks of

  Vega

  carrots

  . They’re one of Trap’s favorite

  snacks! My cousin had miniaturized the

  device before putting it in the backpack, and

  my fall had triggered the

  expansion

  mechanism.

  “Trap never changes!” Benjamin chuckled.

  “Anytime we travel, he always manages to

  pack something

  crunchy

  . . .”

  “Did you say ‘something crunchy’?” asked

  Greenfur. “Why didn’t we think of that

  before?”

  Huh? Thought of what? I didn’t have a

  clue what the professor was

  squeaking

  about.

  But Thea understood.

  “Of course!” she exclaimed. “You’re a

  genius, Professor Greenfur!”

  The scientist turned to Chief Nibbler.

  “

  Your

  Majesty

  , we have the solution!”

  he announced happily. “We are proud to

  present you and the nibblix with this

  Supergnaw

  distributor

  ! Supergnaws are

  yummy pieces of Vega carrots. Munching on

  them will be

  great

  for keeping your teeth

  busy

  while you’re above ground!”

  I finally understood.

  “That’s right!” I

  exclaimed.

  “And Vega

  carrots aren’t

  just great for

  the teeth,

  they’re also

  rich in

  Here’s the

  solution!

  galactic vitamins

  . Eating them will

  keep your whole body

  healthy

  !”

  “And best of all, this machine will dispense

  an

  endless

  supply

  !” Benjamin chimed

  in, smiling

  brightly

  .

  “So we won’t have to gnaw on trees

  anymore?” Chief Nibbler asked, astounded.

  “Crunchy underground dirt! What a

  great

  idea

  !”

  The other nibblix agreed.

  “Thank you, spacemice!” they shouted

  happily. “What a

  generous

  gift!

  “Now we’ll be able to come above ground

  whenever we like!” Chief Nibbler exclaimed.

  Thank you!

  Vega carrots are

  good for you!

  Hooray!

  Crunch!

  Yum!

  To Pant a Tree . . .

  Now that the nibblix were no longer a

  threat

  to Photosyntheson’s trees, we

  were anxious to tell all the Photosynthesons

  the good news. We used our wristwatches

  to contact

  Leafyfur

  , and we arranged a

  meeting in Evergreen Grove. When we got

  to the park, we found Leafyfur and a huge

  crowd

  of Photosynthesons waiting for us.

  Greenfur told everyone what had

  happened. Then he introduced

  Chief

  Nibbler

  and the nibblix to the

  Photosynthesons.

  The chief apologized many times for what

  the nibblix had done to the planet’s

  precious

  trees. He sounded nothing like the alien who

  had taken me PRISONER

  earlier!

  “We didn’t realize how

  important

  the

  trees are to you,” Chief Nibbler explained.

  “But we are grateful to the spacemice for

  teaching us. And we now understand that

  we have to respect and love nature.”

  “We accept your

  apologies

  ,

  friends!” said Leafyfur.

  Everyone was happy. Leafyfur and Chief

  Nibbler

  shook

  paws as a sign of

  friendship and collaboration.

  “We’d like to make things up to you by

  replanting the trees we

  DESTROYED

  ,”

  the chief of the nibblix

  explained.

  The Photosynthesons

  accepted happily.

  “From now on,

  Photosynthesons and

  nibblix will live in

  Thank you!

  From now on,

  we’ll be friends!

  harmony,

  respecting nature

  !”

  Everyone cheered. Then Leafyfur turned

  on a giant

  seed-spreader

  and gave

  handfuls of seeds to all of us.

  We headed for the section of the park

  where the nibblix had

  gnawed

  the trees.

  Together we began to spread the seeds.

  Seeds for

  everyone!

  Eventually, we came to the place where

  Greenfur’s

  old tree

  once stood.

  “You spread here,” I told my friend. “Soon

  a new tree will grow, and it will be

  stronger

  than the one before it!”

  Professor Greenfur

  threw

  a handful

  of seeds on the ground. Lush little plants

  began to sprout

  instantly

  . At the same

  time, the scientist’s fur turned from orange

  to green again, from the top of his head to

  the tips of his toes!

  Out-of-orbit planets! Our mission was

  complete!

  Hooray!

  I’m green again!

  Let’s play

  together!

  Here’s a tree!

  We’ll help you!

  Friends

  forever!r!

  The Key to

  Happiness

  In addition to spreading seeds, the nibblix

  also helped plant some tiny trees. When the

  work was complete, Leafyfur organized a

  big

  celebration

  in Evergreen Grove.

  It was a superstellar event because the

  Photosynthesons and the nibblix

  worked

  Hooray!

  Yummy!

  together

  to plan the entire thing.

  There were huge

  tables

  with

  Photosyntheson specialties and crunchy

  foods that were perfect for the nibblix. We

  played

  games and gathered in a clearing

  to celebrate the friendship between the

  Photosynthesons and the nibblix with a

  toe-

  tapping dance

  !

  Starry skies!

  It was a truly spectacular

  event!

  Do you want to

  dance?

  Here are some

  carrots!

  As
the festivities came to an end, we

  spacemice got ready to

  leave

  .

  Violix

  and

  Gentiana

  hugged Greenfur.

  “Come back soon!” they squeaked.

  “

  I will

  —

  I promise!

  ” the professor

  replied, tears in his eyes. “I understand

  now that my bond with my home planet

  is a

  strong

  one that can never be

  broken

  !”

  “Well said!” Chief Nibbler bellowed. “We

  would love to see you again soon, especially

  since our subterranean dam will need to be

  inspected

  from time to time to be sure

  it’s holding up okay!”

  “Yes, the spacemice are always welcome

  here!” Leafyfur agreed. “We shall always be

  GRATEFUL to you for saving our planet!”

  “No, no,” I replied. “We should be thanking

  all of you! This mission taught us that living

  in

  harmony

  with nature is truly the

  key

  to

  happiness

  !”

  Then we said good-bye and boarded

  the

  space shuttle

  that would take us back

  to

  MouseStar 1, and toward another

  incredible new adventure

  !

  Good-bye, friends!

  Don’t miss any adventures

  of the Spacemice!

  Meet

  Geronimo Stiltonord

  He is a mouseking—the Geronimo Stilton

  of the ancient far north! He lives with his

  brawny and brave clan in the village of

  Mouseborg. From sailing frozen waters

  to facing fiery dragons, every day is an

  adventure for the micekings!

  Be sure to

  read all my

  fabumouse

  adventures!

  Don’t miss

  any of my

  adventures in

  the Kingdom of

  Fantasy!

  Don't miss any of

  these exciting Thea

  Sisters adventures!

  And check out my fabumouse special editions!

  MouseStar 1

  The spaceship, home, and refuge of the spacemice!

  MouseStar 1

  (exterior view)

  1.

  Control room

  2.

  Gigantic telescope

  3.

  Greenhouse to grow plants and flowers