Temple Run Book One Run for Your Life: Jungle Trek Page 2

  “We should cross together for safety,” you suggest.

  With Guy in front and you right behind, you step out onto the bridge. You grip the hand ropes to steady yourself. One step at a time, you move away from the edge and across the terrifying drop. Every gust of wind makes the whole bridge sway—and your stomach lurch.

  “Easy,” Guy says. “Relax, you’re doing fine!”

  These ancient, weathered planks don’t look safe at all. You put your weight on one and it snaps right in two, like a dry twig. You manage to steady yourself, but the sight of the wooden pieces tumbling into the river far, far below makes you break into a cold sweat.

  “I’m OK!” you tell Guy, who is looking at you, worried.

  The next moment, a slow creaking noise catches your attention. A rope snaps, then another. The bridge sags alarmingly.

  It’s giving way! This old bridge isn’t strong enough to take two people at once, you think, panicked.

  “Run!” yells Guy.

  You can feel the bridge breaking free of its moorings as you desperately sprint for the far end. The planks beneath your feet lurch like a ship in a storm, threatening to pitch you into empty space.

  Guy runs ahead, jumps off the collapsing bridge, and grabs hold of one of the branches hanging from the dead-looking tree. He turns and holds his hand out to you. “Trust me, I won’t let you fall!” he yells.

  The bridge starts to buckle as its last few moorings break. You have only seconds to decide what to do.

  To jump off the bridge and try to grab Guy’s outstretched hand, go to this page.

  Or you could grab the hand rope, hold on tight, and hope for the best. Turn to this page.

  You grab Guy’s hand in yours. For a terrifying second, you dangle over a treacherous drop, watching the remains of the bridge tumble down and smash into the foam. The tree branch groans under your weight. You hear rocks rattle as the tree roots start to pull free.

  “Hurry, kid!” says Guy. “You’re going to have to climb up me and onto the tree. It won’t be dignified, but it’s our only chance.”

  He’s right, you realize. There’s no other choice. You pull yourself up Guy, using his body like a rope ladder. Soon you’re hanging onto the tree with your feet on Guy’s shoulders. Guy takes it well, and doesn’t even complain when you accidentally tread on his face.

  “Sorry!” you gasp.

  “Eh, I’ve had worse.” Then, to your surprise, he giggles. “Hurry up! There’s a centipede or something crawling up my arm. It’s tickling! I can’t hold on …”

  You put on a burst of speed. Grab an upper branch, heave, swing—and you’re sprawling on firm ground at the cliff top, safe and sound. No time to celebrate, though. You straddle the tree trunk and reach down to help Guy up.

  Guy pulls his shirt open. You stare. A spider the size of a saucer is climbing across Guy’s chest.

  Guy just shrugs, cups it in his hands, and lets it go on the ground. “Cute little fellow.”

  You gasp. “Isn’t that species deadly?”

  “No,” Guy says. “They’re good eating, though. Especially the legs. Crunchy.”

  You wonder if Guy’s enjoying this situation more than he’s letting on. Together, you head away from the ruined bridge and into the jungle, toward the shapes that look like tents or huts.

  Run on to this page.

  You and Guy run down the jungle path to a clearing. There are five or six crude huts here, each one hung with colorful tie-dyed cloth. So there are people living here after all! You can smell something cooking nearby, spicy and rich. There are no vehicles around, but you can see tire marks in the middle of the clearing.

  “Hey!” yells Guy. “Anyone home?” You roll your eyes. So much for the advantage of surprise.

  A tie-dyed door hanging opens, and an old man with a round belly strolls out. With his gray beard and glasses he looks kind of like Santa, except for the headband and the beach shorts he’s got on.

  “Duuuude,” he says in a slow drawl. “No need to, like, shout. You’re disturbing the peace of the forest, you know?”

  “Our plane crashed,” you explain. “We’re trying to get back to civilization.”

  The old guy chuckles. “Ain’t that funny. Me and the other guys, we moved out here twenty years ago to get away from civilization.”

  He seems friendly, so you get to talking. Franklin (that’s his name) doesn’t have a phone, a radio, or any other way to contact the outside world. These people really aren’t big on technology. About the only modern thing they own is a truck, which makes the hundred-mile trip to the nearest town once a week for supplies. That’s where all the other dudes have gone.

  “So can we get a lift out of here in your truck?” you ask him.

  “Sure, dude. It’ll be back in, oh, three days.”

  Three days? Your birthday party will be long over by then!

  “Kick back and have some lizard stew while you wait,” Franklin says. “It’s, like, organic.”

  Guy isn’t impressed with this place at all. “They’re doing it all wrong!” he tells you angrily, once Franklin has wandered off to take a nap. “If they rigged a proper water collector, maybe tied some snares to catch fresh meat, they wouldn’t need to go back for supplies!”

  “Sounds like you want to stick around and tell them how it ought to be done,” you say.

  “I might just do that,” says Guy, scratching his chin. “Don’t see why we need to go any farther.”

  Guy might be in his element here, but this isn’t how you planned to spend your birthday—eating lizard stew and teaching hippies how to live in the wild. At least you have the promise of a lift out of here in three days’ time. Three long, smelly days …

  Do you want to hang around with Guy and Franklin and wait for the truck to come? Maybe even take a nap? Go to this page.

  If you’re impatient, you can always slip off on your own. Go to this page.

  Scarlett sighs. “Hate to say it, but I wish Guy was here. He’s better at choppers. Oh well, let’s see how much I remember from basic training.”

  Nervously, you climb in next to her. Scarlett engages the rotors and manages a slightly wobbly takeoff. You clutch the seat as she mutters to herself.

  “Watch the torque, Scarlett, watch the torque …”

  The engine sings. The rotors roar. Gracefully, like a mighty condor taking flight, the helicopter slowly tips over, flies sideways for three seconds, and slams into a tree. It looks like flying a helicopter isn’t as easy as Scarlett hoped. The fireball is visible for miles around. Mmmm, crispy explorer!

  RUN AGAIN?

  OR JUST GO BACK?

  “Come on, Guy. Let’s keep moving. Leave the snakes alone!”

  Guy looks sad, but he does as you ask. You set off at a jog once again.

  This stone path seems to go on forever. After a while, you pass a tree that looks kind of familiar. You wonder, suddenly, if the path is in a huge circle, and you are just going to keep on running and running without ever reaching safety. That’s a frightening thought.

  After a couple of hours of running, stopping for water, and running again, you’re exhausted.

  Guy’s flagging, too. “We’re going to have to make camp for the night,” he says. “What’s the first thing we need to do?”

  He’s testing your survival skills, you realize. “Build a fire?”

  “Got it! You go see if you can find some firewood. I’ll clear a place for us to sleep.”

  This is the perfect chance for you to escape! You head off the path, pretending to look for firewood, until Guy’s out of sight.

  Finally, you’re on your own. You’re in a dark jungle surrounded by unfamiliar noises, but at least you don’t have a thrill-seeking lunatic getting you into trouble anymore. You look up to the stars to get your bearings …

  … and that’s when you hear Guy calling your name.

  “Hey! Where’d you go? Don’t move, OK? It’s going to be all right! I’m coming to find you!”


  Great. Big-hearted Guy Dangerous thinks you’re lost, and he’s coming to the rescue. You feel a little bad about running out on him now. Maybe you should pretend you were lost, and rejoin him.

  If you want to let Guy find you, go to this page.

  If you’ve made up your mind and you’d rather explore on your own, go to this page.

  You ignore Guy’s shouts and grip the rope tight, hoping you don’t fall.

  The broken bridge swings down and slams against the cliff with the force of a wrecking ball. Shards of wood and stone fly everywhere. The impact knocks the wind out of you, but you still manage to hang on.

  Unfortunately, though you keep hold of the rope, the rope doesn’t keep hold of the cliff. You look up in horror as the end of the rope comes loose.

  The last thing you hear is Guy Dangerous yelling “Noooo!” as you plunge away from his hand—still outstretched—and down toward the waiting rocks. At least your death is quick!

  RUN AGAIN?

  OR JUST GO BACK?

  “Hey!” says Guy, poking away with his stick. “It’s a nest of snakes! Wish I had something to feed them.”

  That does it, you decide. Snakes? You hate snakes! You need to get away from Guy Dangerous before he gets you both killed. The only question is whether you wait until nightfall to make your exit, so he’ll have less of a chance of stopping you, or whether you just run off the path without looking back, hoping he’s distracted by his nest of snakes.

  If you slip away now while Guy’s poking things with sticks, go to this page.

  If you’d rather wait till night, go to this page.

  You wake up suddenly. Guy is nudging you in the ribs. “Kid, we’ve got to get out of here, now.”

  You’re in one of the hippie huts. It’s dark and smells like rotten old socks. Guy beckons you over to the window.

  Outside, Franklin is building something out of wood, singing as he works. You see two poles with rope restraints tied to them. With a lurch of horror, you realize they’re meant for you and Guy!

  “Listen!” Guy says.

  You strain to hear what Franklin’s saying: “Dark spirit of the jungle, we’re going to feed you well tonight … Great prowler, going to give you fresh meat soon …”

  “He’s going to sacrifice us?” you say. “He’s crazy!”

  “He’s been living out here so long, he’s lost his mind,” Guy says. “I doubt that truck’s coming back. Maybe the others bailed on him. Or maybe …”

  Guy doesn’t have to finish that sentence. Maybe they ended up as sacrifices, too!

  You wonder what the “dark spirit of the jungle” could be. For a while now, you’ve been feeling like there’s something out there, lurking among the trees.

  You try the door. It’s barred from the outside.

  “Stand back!” Guy tells you. He jumps at the door, crashes right into it, and falls back, wincing in pain. It doesn’t break. Outside, Franklin notices the noise, shakes his head, and chuckles.

  You look around for a better way out of here. Fortunately, since you’re smaller than Guy, you’re able to squeeze out the window. You quickly open the front door and let Guy free.

  Franklin pounds on a drum. “Dark spirit, come!”

  You and Guy turn tail and run, just as something huge comes barging through the trees, bellowing …

  Keep running all the way to this page.

  You run alongside the river, hoping to see signs of civilization, leaping over boulders and ducking overhanging branches. Nothing you can’t handle. You wonder how Scarlett and Guy are doing, wherever they are. To think they were worried about you surviving on your own!

  The river empties over a broad waterfall into a lake surrounded by trees. You carefully clamber down the slippery, moss-covered rocks. Sunlight makes rainbows in the mist of the waterfall.

  In the middle of the lake is an island bearing a frog-like statue. Mosquitoes buzz in the air. You mentally name this place Frog Falls and wonder if anyone has done so before you.

  You sit down beside the lake. It’s peaceful here, and for the first time today you stop being annoyed about the birthday party.

  Maybe you should stop and rest before moving on? To do this, turn to this page.

  You can see a cavern behind the waterfall, though. To investigate, turn to this page.

  The next day dawns. You wake up to find Guy has already made you breakfast. Somehow he’s managed to find eggs.

  “I climbed up a tree and there they were,” he says, as if it was nothing. “You want some, Smith?”

  “Already ate,” Montana says and pats his stomach. “Speared me a fish before you got up.”

  “Fish?”

  “From the river up yonder. How’s that water bottle of yours holding out?”

  You have to grin at these two, carrying on like a pair of squabbling brothers. As the day wears on and you all trek through the jungle together, you feel almost like a family.

  You don’t reach civilization on the second day. Nor the third, nor the fourth. But you learn more about wilderness life than you ever dreamed. You feel healthier and stronger than you used to.

  By the end of your first week in the jungle, it dawns on you that you’re not in any hurry to leave after all. You’re living like people lived years ago, back in the days of the Wild West—which Montana seems to know a lot about.

  You send your parents a postcard to let them know you won’t be coming home. They’ll probably send a search party sooner or later, but for now you’re happy with Guy and Montana. Adios!

  RUN AGAIN?

  OR JUST GO BACK?

  You quickly reach the colorful object and skid to a stop. It’s a packing crate, lying in the underbrush. You recognize the logo: ZingyDing Hi-Energy Munchy Bars. The top’s fallen off and you can see hundreds of shiny chocolate bars inside.

  “What is that doing here?” Scarlett sounds angry. “It’s … it’s not possible!”

  Maybe it fell out of a plane, you think. No—it would have smashed. A truck, then? But who would drive out here to the jungle? “One thing’s for sure,” you tell her. “There are other people here.”

  “You’re not wrong,” Scarlett says, pointing at a sticker on the crate. It reads: STARVING WOLF CATERING. “I think they work with production companies. Someone’s making a film here.”

  You feel dizzy with relief. “We’ve got to find them! Let’s keep running.”

  Scarlett nods. “And stock up on Munchy Bars while we’re at it. Finders keepers.”

  Turn to this page.

  You and Guy run down the stone path, under a canopy of overhanging branches. The path has crumbled away in places, but you find you can leap over them easily and just keep going.

  “Isn’t it great to be out in the fresh air, getting plenty of exercise?” Guy says, gasping with the effort of running. “Better than being stuck indoors in front of a computer, huh?” He seems really calm, after what you’ve just been through. Maybe he actually does have nerves of steel, like he used to say on TV.

  “What was this place?” you wonder out loud. “I’ve never heard of ruins like this before.”

  Guy shrugs. “I guess whoever built this place liked long straight roads. Maybe it was a ritual thing.”

  From deep in the jungle, far behind you, comes a growl. It’s a deep, rattling, hungry sound, like nothing you’ve ever heard before. “What is that?”

  “Oh, probably just a bobcat,” Guy says, sounding very unsure. “You can’t go jumping at shadows if you’re going to survive in the wild, you know.”

  “I think something’s following us,” you tell him.

  Back down the path, there’s a heavy crash. Whatever’s following you just smashed its way through a whole tree. Guy doesn’t seem to be taking it seriously.

  You speed up a little, leap a lump of masonry, and suddenly see a hideous form up ahead. It’s a statue of something like a gorilla, with bulging, muscular arms, one clawed hand held up, and a head like a deformed skul
l. There’s a gaping crack in the stone block it squats on.

  Guy comes to a stop in front of it. “That,” he says, “is so cool.”

  You glance back down the path. A flock of birds flies up, squawking in alarm, as something crashes through the trees. “Guy, we need to move!”

  “I wonder what this statue is? Looks like Krong, the Bamu-Baku chaos god, but uglier.”

  Ancient mythology is not your main concern right now. You need to get out of this jungle, and fast. Guy’s sightseeing tour is slowing you down. Besides, the statue’s giving you the creeps. This whole place just feels weird … haunted, somehow. Maybe your crash landing wasn’t a coincidence?

  Now Guy’s found a stick and is poking at the crack. “I think there’s something alive in here.” From inside the stone block comes an angry hiss.

  You’re feeling impatient now. Guy Dangerous is nice enough, but you’re beginning to see why he was fired from his reality TV show.

  If you’ve had enough of Guy’s company and want to go it alone, turn to this page.

  But if you choose to stick with Guy, turn to this page.

  “We’ve got to save Zack!” you yell.

  But Scarlett’s there already. She charges out of the undergrowth at the monster before you can blink. You already know how this is going to end, but it’s like a nightmare—you can’t look away.

  “Get away from him!” Scarlett lets out the kind of screech that attacking battle warriors make in fantasy films. She launches herself at the monster, aiming a perfect kick right at the center of the thing’s back.

  It connects. The monster goes flying through the air, flailing its arms, lands hard in the middle of the path, rolls over, and looks up at Scarlett.

  Angry voices are yelling behind you. “Cut! CUT!”

  Farther up the path, Zack Wonder comes to a halt. “What’s the problem this time? Boom mike in the shot again?”

  A plump little man comes running up. He’s furious with Scarlett. “This maniac attacked Jimmy!”