莫格利盡量站著不動，他透過鏤空的窗格子往外看，聽著外面黑豹激烈的打鬥聲——有猴子的吼叫聲、吱吱聲、扭打聲，還有貝格西拉深沉、粗啞的咳聲。他在一堆敵人的推擠下往後退，彎背躍起，接著一個扭身，猛然地往前衝。這是他有生以來第一次為了生存而戰。

「巴盧一定在附近，貝格西拉不會單獨前來的。」莫格利心想。於是他大喊：「貝格西拉，到水池去。滾到水池邊。滾過去，然後跳下去！到水裡去！」

貝格西拉聽見了，那喊叫聲不但告訴他莫格利安然無恙，同時也給了他勇氣。他靜靜地奮戰，一吋一吋筆直地朝水池逼近。接著，最靠近叢林的廢棄城牆那邊突然傳來巴盧隆隆的大吼聲。那頭老熊已經用盡全力了，實在沒法更快。「貝格西拉，」他喊道，「我來了。我爬上來了！我快速趕來了！啊嗚！這石頭居然在我的腳下滑動了啊！等著瞧吧！惡名昭彰的班達洛格！」他氣喘吁吁地爬上露台，不料立刻淹沒在波濤般的猴群中，於是他乾脆一屁股坐下，伸出前掌一把抱滿猴子，然後開始「啪—啪—啪」，規律地拍打起來，就像槳輪打水一樣。莫格利突然聽見「撲通」一聲，這告訴他貝格西拉已經衝到水池裡了，猴子們是不可能下水的。接著黑豹把頭露出水面，大口喘氣，猴群則在紅色的台階上站成三排，氣得跳上跳下，一旦他離開水池去幫助巴盧，他們就會從四面八方撲到他身上。貝格西拉抬起濕淋淋的下巴，絕望地發出蛇類的暗語尋求保護——「你和我， 我們血脈相連。」——因為他以為卡亞在緊要關頭逃跑了。儘管巴盧在露台邊緣被猴子壓得快要窒息了，但他聽到黑豹的呼救時還是忍不住笑了出來。

※※※※※※※※

Mowgli stood as quietly as he could, peering through the open work and listening to the furious din of the fight round the Black Panther—the yells and chatterings and scufflings, and Bagheera’s deep, hoarse cough as he backed and bucked and twisted and plunged under the heaps of his enemies. For the first time since he was born, Bagheera was fighting for his life.

“Baloo must be at hand; Bagheera would not have come alone,” Mowgli thought. And then he called aloud: “To the tank, Bagheera. Roll to the water tanks. Roll and plunge! Get to the water!”

Bagheera heard, and the cry that told him Mowgli was safe gave him new courage. He worked his way desperately, inch by inch, straight for the reservoirs, halting in silence. Then from the ruined wall nearest the jungle rose up the rumbling war-shout of Baloo. The old Bear had done his best, but he could not come before. “Bagheera,” he shouted, “I am here. I climb! I haste! Ahuwora! The stones slip under my feet! Wait my coming, O most infamous Bandar-log!” He panted up the terrace only to disappear to the head in a wave of monkeys, but he threw himself squarely on his haunches, and, spreading out his forepaws, hugged as many as he could hold, and then began to hit with a regular bat-bat-bat, like the flipping strokes of a paddle wheel. A crash and a splash told Mowgli that Bagheera had fought his way to the tank where the monkeys could not follow. The Panther lay gasping for breath, his head just out of the water, while the monkeys stood three deep on the red steps, dancing up and down with rage, ready to spring upon him from all sides if he came out to help Baloo. It was then that Bagheera lifted up his dripping chin, and in despair gave the Snake’s Call for protection—“We be of one blood, ye and I”—for he believed that Kaa had turned tail at the last minute. Even Baloo, half smothered under the monkeys on the edge of the terrace, could not help chuckling as he heard the Black Panther asking for help.

莫格利盡量站著不動，他透過鏤空的窗格子往外看，聽著外面黑豹激烈的打鬥聲——有猴子的吼叫聲、吱吱聲、扭打聲，還有貝格西拉深沉、粗啞的咳聲。他在一堆敵人的推擠下往後退，彎背躍起，接著一個扭身，猛然地往前衝。這是他有生以來第一次為了生存而戰。

「巴盧一定在附近，貝格西拉不會單獨前來的。」莫格利心想。於是他大喊：「貝格西拉，到水池去。滾到水池邊。滾過去，然後跳下去！到水裡去！」

貝格西拉聽見了，那喊叫聲不但告訴他莫格利安然無恙，同時也給了他勇氣。他靜靜地奮戰，一吋一吋筆直地朝水池逼近。接著，最靠近叢林的...

第一章 莫格利的兄弟
第二章 卡亞的狩獵
第三章 老虎希克翰
第四章 白海豹科迪克
第五章 貓鼬里奇

Chapter1. Mowgli’s Brothers
Chapter2. Kaa’s Hunting
Chapter3. “Tiger! Tiger!”
Chapter4. The White Seal
Chapter5. “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi”

第一章 莫格利的兄弟
第二章 卡亞的狩獵
第三章 老虎希克翰
第四章 白海豹科迪克
第五章 貓鼬里奇

Chapter1. Mowgli’s Brothers
Chapter2. Kaa’s Hunting
Chapter3. “Tiger! Tiger!”
Chapter4. The White Seal
Chapter5. “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi”