Molly Moon & the Morphing Mystery

Thirty-one

Rain slapped down on the outside of the termite mound as though hundreds of tiny hands were patting it over and over and over. Molly moved closer to the squelchy queen termite. Behind her, Miss Hunroe and Miss Oakkton toyed with the weather stones. Molly tried to work out what to do, but it was difficult to concentrate, as to the left of her a large red termite with enormous mandibles was clicking its pincers together and tutting.

“You no invitey to feeeeeeed queen,” it niggled nastily. Molly tried to ignore the criticism, but again the termite complained, “You no feeder. You no foooood.”

“I bringeeee queen fooodee later,” Molly said, hoping this would shut the insect up.

“Later laaaater?” it screeched, alerting another termite.

“Out out. No later foodee YOU NO FEEDER!” it insisted. The queen said nothing, though bubbly noises squelched out from under her. Molly stood up on her back legs, hoping it would intimidate the nosy termites. Now more turned upon her.

“You should knowee rulesees,” the first nagged.

“OUT OUTEE NOWEEE!” With a push Molly was shoved backward so that she toppled close to Miss Hunroe and the stones. Miss Hunroe and Miss Oakkton looked down at the fallen termite near them, and their antennas twitched. They were at once suspicious.

Miss Oakkton stepped toward the stray termite and trapped one of Molly’s legs in her pincers. Miss Hunroe peered down at her.

“Who are you?” she asked, her big eyes bulging. Molly didn’t answer. It was terrifying to have her leg trapped in Miss Oakkton’s pincers. Desperately, she tried to think. She could morph into one of them, but then again, both Miss Hunroe and Miss Oakkton were suspicious now, and she might get stuck inside one of them. Or perhaps they’d preempt her move and prevent her from entering their bodies at all. That would be even worse. She’d be floating about in the air with no body to go into. She struggled to get out of Miss Oakkton’s grip.

“Get off me!” Molly growled in pain.

“So it is you. What shall we do with you now, little Moon termite?” Miss Oakkton muttered darkly. “What a strange place to die—in a termite cathedral!”

“You’re so much larger than her, Miss Oakkton,” declared Miss Hunroe. “Crush her!”

“Oh! Ya!” laughed Miss Oakkton. “And then zeese uzer termites would eat you. Perhaps they’d even feed you to zair queen!”

The queen! Molly turned. So many termites were now attending to the queen that Molly could barely see her. Miss Oakkton had given her a brilliant idea. Molly desperately looked for a pattern in the cracked mud floor and thought hard. She sank her mind deep into the idea of slimy sluggishness. And miraculously, seconds later, she had left her termite shell and morphed into the pulsating termite queen.

At once Molly saw how totally in control the queen was, and how all the termites served her completely. Molly looked at Miss Oakkton, who was still under the impression that the insect she was holding was Molly. Miss Oakkton was about to kill that termite, to squeeze the life out of it, and Molly felt entirely responsible for this. And so Molly the queen whispered to her feeders.

“The large termite there is an imposter!”

In unison, the termites turned to look at Miss Oakkton. They stopped what they were doing. And, as though their brains were synchronized, they moved toward her. Before Miss Oakkton knew what was happening, the termites had walled her in.

The smaller termite that had once been Molly escaped from the termite scrum, scurrying out of the chamber in terror, while Miss Oakkton…she was destroyed.

Molly the queen termite shuddered, her multi-abdomined body wobbling like Jell-O. It was then that she noticed that the termite that was Miss Hunroe had slipped away. And the stones were gone.

“You all rightee my queenee?” came a loyal termite’s concerned question.

“Yessee,” Molly the queen replied. “Thank you. I want messageeee sent out to all the colony. Messageeee is this. The termite that took the colored stones must be caught.” As she spoke, the termites listened.

“Yeeesssee Your Highnesssss,” they said in unison, and immediately they left the chamber to spread the word.

With no time to lose, Molly morphed into a big black termite. And, back inside its armored body, she darted down the tunnel after Miss Hunroe.

She hoped that once the queen’s wishes were known, every one of her subjects would surround the termite that was Miss Hunroe. Miss Hunroe was likely to be heading for the exit—unless she’d hidden the colored weather stones somewhere in the termite mound, and hidden herself, too. Molly was going to have to take a guess. As she scurried along, a wave of termite whispers flowed beside her.

“Find the termite with the stones,” the whisper went. “The queen wants that termite caught.”

And then Molly heard barking outside. It was muffled because of the denseness of the mud walls, but Molly would recognize that bark anywhere. Petula! She was barking incessantly—a bark that meant there was trouble. Breaking into a run, Molly followed the sound of Petula’s bark and pushed through the crowds of soldier termites that were entering the mound. She burst out into the open.

Above her, a massive Petula barked at Miss Hunroe, who was so big that Molly could hardly see her face. Micky was there, too, as well as Lily and Bas and Canis. Cappuccino the capuchin monkey sat on a low rock surveying the scene. It was pouring rain, and the ground was so muddy and waterlogged that small rivulets flowed next to the termite mound and beside the Logan Stones. To Molly the termite, these streams were like torrential rivers. She looked up at Miss Hunroe and wondered desperately whether it would be possible to morph into her.

All the while Petula and Canis barked and snapped at Miss Hunroe, who was brandishing a stick and trying to hit anyone who came to close to her. The commotion of barking and shouting, along with the thunder, was deafening.

Then Molly saw Petula drop something onto the ground. It was the blue stone. Miss Hunroe saw it, too. All at once, Molly understood that it had been her dear friend Petula who had been changing the nearby weather. She’d been causing all this rain.

Miss Hunroe dived for and snatched the blue stone and then, like some insane person, began to scale the tall termite mound. Slipping as she gripped its wet surface, she made her way up to its top turret.

In a flash, Molly meegoed into her own body and surveyed the scene.

Miss Hunroe was sitting on the top of the colossal termite mound, holding the stones aloft.

“Molly!” Micky shouted through the rain. In the next moment, Miss Hunroe disappeared. All that was left of her was a pile of safari clothes, and balanced on top were the four colored weather-changing stones.

“Get the stones!” Molly yelled. Wasting no time, Molly dived onto the termite mound and began climbing toward them.

But in the time it takes to turn a page, Miss Hunroe was back. This time she was wearing a long red dress with flames embroidered up the side. A pattern of green leaves twisted around the side, and its hem was blue like the sea. A scarf of gray chiffon framed her beautiful face.

“It’s heaven!” she exclaimed, holding the four colored stones up to the sky. “Heaven! I have complete control!” She saw her audience’s amazement. “Yes, I look wonderful, don’t I? This is called style. You didn’t think I would wear an ordinary safari suit to become the queen of the weather, did you?” She began to laugh.

Molly raised her head and stared straight up at Miss Hunroe. “Look me in the eyes, Miss Hunroe, if you dare.”

Miss Hunroe began to giggle like a crazy schoolgirl. “I shall have to decline your offer, my dear,” she tittered. “Instead, why don’t you look down the barrel of my—” The instant the word barrel left her lips Molly knew what Miss Hunroe was about to pull from the silk of her dress. Micky realized, too, and thinking as one, the twins both morphed into Miss Hunroe.

As Molly arrived, she saw how twisted and cruel Miss Hunroe was. But she didn’t have the time to dive into Miss Hunroe’s memories and see why she was such a vindictive sociopath. Like a great friendly presence, Micky arrived and joined Molly. The battle was on.

Molly and Micky worked together. Using all their mental might, they wrestled with Miss Hunroe. They edged and shouldered her into a smaller and smaller place, taking the fury that they felt for the woman and turning it into strength. With two determined minds against one, Miss Hunroe didn’t stand a chance. Though she pushed and wriggled, she couldn’t expand herself past the twins. In fact, she was shrinking. Shrinking and shriveling like a poisonous flower in the hot sun. Like a car in a metal crusher she was being squashed. The button-sized thing that was her was flattened to the size of a sunflower seed, and then was squeezed to the size of a poppy seed.

“NOOOOO!” she screamed, her voice now a squeak.

And then, using the tiny amount of energy that she had left, Miss Hunroe did what might have been a clever thing. She somersaulted out of her own body and into the form of the white-faced capuchin monkey that sat on a branch eating a piece of fruit.

With a pop, Miss Hunroe’s body disappeared.

Molly and Micky were prepared. Simultaneously they meegoed into themselves, and calmly watched Cappuccino. He was doing exactly what Molly had told him to. He pushed his shoulders up and down as he positively refused to let Miss Hunroe take over his body and mind.

“Did you hypnotize the monkey?” Micky guessed.

“Yes,” Molly replied, and grinned. “Hello, Micky.”

Bas and Lily ventured out from their hiding places.

“Look,” Molly said. “Miss Hunroe morphed into Cappuccino. He’s got her completely under his thumb.”

“How long can he keep her in check?” Bas asked, watching as Cappuccino nibbled at the core of his forest fruit.

“I told him to keep her quiet until he’s convinced that she’s turning good.”

“Really? Do you trust Cappuccino to do that?”

“Yes,” Molly replied. “You said he was a very good judge of character, so I decided to let him decide.”

“Wow.” Bas sighed, rubbing his head. “This is just all too amazing.”

The rain had stopped, and the sun was now out. Rays of light lit up Miss Hunroe’s gold coin, lying abandoned in the mud. Molly bent down, scooped it up, and put it in her pocket.

Lily put her arm around Molly.

“I’m so glad you’re all right,” Lily said. “I was worried about you.”

“I was worried about you, too.” Molly gave Lily a hug back, then picked up Petula. Micky picked up the four stones.

A termite on the ground caught Molly’s eye. It was carrying a piece of rotten bark. Molly watched it. It had no idea what drama had just unfolded.

“Hey!” Molly said to the termite. “Tellleee all your friendseees thank you!” But of course the termite had no idea what Molly had just said. It simply felt a wind from the giant moving thing above, and it moved on.