The Adventures of Indiana Jones and Short Round

14

The archeologist awoke to jungle noises and a lightened sky. Glancing around, Indy realized he was the only one awake, but only at the moment as Short Round and their guides began to stir. Ms. Scott, on the other hand, continued to sleep like a log, her breaths released in soft puffs.

Indy rose to his feet and stretched, grunting with satisfaction as he felt his joints pop. Just before the dawn, the jungle was pleasantly cool, not cold or sweltering hot. A fog had settled over the trees and was just beginning to lift as the sun kissed the horizon.

Indiana stared at the pool of water beside them. It might be a good idea to follow Willie's lead and take a dip before journeying the rest of the way to Pankot Palace. Glancing back and forth between the pool and Short Round, who was rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Indy was struck with an idea.

  "Hey, kid."

  "Yeah, Dr. Jones?"

  "Did you ever learn how to swim?"

  Short Round blinked at him and tilted his head like a baby bird. "No."

  Indy jerked his head toward the water. "Come on, then. I'll teach you."

Eagerly, the two boys removed their shoes, socks, hats and jackets till they were stripped down to just their pants and undershirts. Indiana stepped in first and turned back to find Short Round standing at the edge, suddenly nervous.

  "Don't worry, kid. It's shallow enough for you to stand." He extended a hand out for the kid to take and gently helped him into the pool. Indeed, the water reached up to Shorty's armpits.

First, Indy taught him how to float, spreading out flat like a seastar. Once this was mastered, they moved on to kicking and paddling. At first, Short Round was visibly nervous, but also determined to master the water rather than let the water master him. When on an adventure with the Indiana Jones, there is a high chance of facing deep waters, in which Short Round knew he would drown should that ever happen. If their raft had popped in the river, they would have had to swim against the rapids. Luckily, they avoided it, but it could have been disastrous. 

When he felt ready, Short Round also practiced holding his breath by dunking his head below the surface. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly and he pinched his nose as he felt the water envelop him. He felt his hair swirling around his face in the liquid. When he couldn't hold it any longer, Short Round burst through the surface, gasping and brushing the wet hair away from his eyes.

All too soon for both of them, one of their guides called them out for breakfast. As Indy was climbing out, Short Round mischievously splashed his friend.

  "Ha ha! Very funny!"

  "Oh, you asked for it, kid," Indy warned with a smirk. With a sweep of his arm, he sent a massive wave right into Short Round's face. The boy coughed then laughed before fighting back. The two friends splashed and wrestled, just for a minute forgetting the series of tragic events that led them to this moment. The world ceased its worries for these two friends at play. Their war quickly ended when a splash hit Willie Scott, who was still asleep in range of the splash zone.

Shorty and Indy sat in the now risen sun to dry as they devoured their breakfast of native jungle fruits. Even Willie had no reason to complain about the sweet and juicy morning meal. The guides feasted more heartily than they had in a long time. Happy and humorous conversation flowed with the archeologist to translate

It was when they neared Pankot Palace did the fear and stillness return. Each step closer made the guides more jittery. Even the elephants noticed the change in mood. 

  "Indy, look!" Short Round pointed to their grand location looming above the jungle. 

  "I see it, Shorty. That's it: Pankot Palace." 

The jungle was eerily silent aside from the screeching of the giant Vampire bats overhead. Following the path deeper into the trees and vines, Indiana suddenly stopped the man leading his ride with a hand and a word in Hindi. He climbed down his elephant and approached Sajnu, who was fearfully repeating something in his native language, his thin frame trembling in terror. Indy placed a hand on the younger man's shoulder in an attempt to reassure him as he walked up to what instilled fear into their guides. 

Brushing aside some dry branches and vines, Indy found himself face-to-face with a stone skull attached to a stone skeletal body. Around its neck hung two necklaces, one of dark and bloody severed fingers and the other of bone. Not far from the skeleton statue was another statue of a creature with the same gruesome finger necklace around its neck. It was slick to the touch and Indy's hand came away red with blood. 

Short Round and Willie dismounted as they watched the archeologist examine the statues with confusion. 

  Short Round adjusted his cap before shouting to his friend, "Dr. Jones, what you look at?"

  "Don't come up here," Indy warned, stopping the boy in his tracks. The seriousness in the man's voice sent a chill down Short Round's spine and he unconsciously backed away and reached for his knife.

At Willie's cries of protest, both males turned to find their guides retreating with the elephants. 

  "Indy! They're stealing our rides!" Willie whined, pointing back at them. Short Round waved sadly at the shrinking figure of Big Short Round.

  "We walk from here."

It wasn't far from where they were. It was a climb that made Short Round's legs ache and Willie, with much grumbling, resorted to walking barefoot over her heels. 

For all its history of evil and destruction, Pankot Palace was a beautiful piece of architecture. Despite what he knew about this place, Indy found himself admiring it. As they walked through the courtyard, they found guards stationed at an entrance into the palace itself. They wore red turbans and white robes and carried a sword and spear, but they did not appear hostile to the visitors. They didn't move a muscle. 

  "Hello!" Indy greeted as a man smartly dressed in a gray suit and spectacles emerged to welcome them.

  "I should say you look rather lost," the man began in perfect, educated English, "but then I cannot imagine where in the world the three of you would look at home."

  "We're not lost, we're on our way to Delhi," Indiana responded, bending the truth slightly. Then he initiated the introductions. "This is Ms. Scott. This is Mr... Round." 

It was odd referring to the kid as a mister, and Shorty seemed to think so, too.

  "Short Round," he introduced himself, pointing to his chest with his thumb.

  "My name is Indiana Jones."

  The Indian tilted his head. "Doctor Jones? The eminent archeologist?"

Willie, who had been putting her heels back on, straightened and remarked, "Hard to believe, isn't it?" This was the first time she ever showed pride of being with Indiana, probably hoping his fame would earn them favor. 

  Recognition dawned on his face as the man smiled and extended a hand for Indy to shake. "Ahh. I remember first hearing your name when I was up at Oxford. I'm Chatter Lal, prime minister to his highness the Maharaja of Pankot." When the two men were done shaking hands, Lal then extended his hand courteously to Willie. "I'm enchanted."

  Willie smiled and shook his hand. "Enchanted. Thank you very much. Thank you very much."

  Finally, Chatter Lal extended his greeting to Short Round with a pat on the cheek and ushering the boy inside with the adults in tow. "Welcome to Pankot Palace!"