Numa, the lion, was hungry, he was very hungry, and so he was quite silent now. On his way to the drinking place he had moaned often and roared not a little; but as he neared the spot where he would lie in wait for Bara, the deer, or Horta, the boar, or some other of the many luscious-fleshed creatures who came hither to drink, he was silent. It was a grim, a terrible silence, shot through with yellow-green light of ferocious8 eyes, punctuated9 with undulating tremors10 of sinuous11 tail.
It was Pacco, the zebra, who came first, and Numa, the lion, could scarce restrain a roar of anger, for of all the plains people, none are more wary12 than Pacco, the zebra. Behind the black-striped stallion came a herd13 of thirty or forty of the plump and vicious little horselike beasts. As he neared the river, the leader paused often, cocking his ears and raising his muzzle14 to sniff15 the gentle breeze for the tell-tale scent16 spoor of the dread17 flesh-eaters.
Numa shifted uneasily, drawing his hind2 quarters far beneath his tawny18 body, gathering19 himself for the sudden charge and the savage20 assault. His eyes shot hungry fire. His great muscles quivered to the excitement of the moment.
Pacco came a little nearer, halted, snorted, and wheeled. There was a pattering of scurrying21 hoofs22 and the herd was gone; but Numa, the lion, moved not. He was familiar with the ways of Pacco, the zebra. He knew that he would return, though many times he might wheel and fly before he summoned the courage to lead his harem and his offspring to the water. There was the chance that Pacco might be frightened off entirely23. Numa had seen this happen before, and so he became almost rigid24 lest he be the one to send them galloping25, waterless, back to the plain.
Again and again came Pacco and his family, and again and again did they turn and flee; but each time they came closer to the river, until at last the plump stallion dipped his velvet26 muzzle daintily into the water. The others, stepping warily27, approached their leader. Numa selected a sleek28, fat filly and his flaming eyes burned greedily as they feasted upon her, for Numa, the lion, loves scarce anything better than the meat of Pacco, perhaps because Pacco is, of all the grass-eaters, the most difficult to catch.
Slowly the lion rose, and as he rose, a twig29 snapped beneath one of his great, padded paws. Like a shot from a rifle he charged upon the filly; but the snapped twig had been enough to startle the timorous quarry30, so that they were in instant flight simultaneously31 with Numa's charge.
The stallion was last, and with a prodigious32 leap, the lion catapulted through the air to seize him; but the snapping twig had robbed Numa of his dinner, though his mighty33 talons34 raked the zebra's glossy35 rump, leaving four crimson36 bars across the beautiful coat.
It was an angry Numa that quitted the river and prowled, fierce, dangerous, and hungry, into the jungle. Far from particular now was his appetite. Even Dango, the hyena37, would have seemed a tidbit to that ravenous38 maw. And in this temper it was that the lion came upon the tribe of Kerchak, the great ape.
One does not look for Numa, the lion, this late in the morning. He should be lying up asleep beside his last night's kill by now; but Numa had made no kill last night. He was still hunting, hungrier than ever.
The anthropoids were idling about the clearing, the first keen desire of the morning's hunger having been satisfied. Numa scented40 them long before he saw them. Ordinarily he would have turned away in search of other game, for even Numa respected the mighty muscles and the sharp fangs41 of the great bulls of the tribe of Kerchak, but today he kept on steadily42 toward them, his bristled43 snout wrinkled into a savage snarl44.
Without an instant's hesitation45, Numa charged the moment he reached a point from where the apes were visible to him. There were a dozen or more of the hairy, manlike creatures upon the ground in a little glade46. In a tree at one side sat a brown-skinned youth. He saw Numa's swift charge; he saw the apes turn and flee, huge bulls trampling47 upon little balus; only a single she held her ground to meet the charge, a young she inspired by new motherhood to the great sacrifice that her balu might escape.
Tarzan leaped from his perch48, screaming at the flying bulls beneath and at those who squatted49 in the safety of surrounding trees. Had the bulls stood their ground, Numa would not have carried through that charge unless goaded50 by great rage or the gnawing51 pangs52 of starvation. Even then he would not have come off unscathed.
If the bulls heard, they were too slow in responding, for Numa had seized the mother ape and dragged her into the jungle before the males had sufficiently53 collected their wits and their courage to rally in defense54 of their fellow. Tarzan's angry voice aroused similar anger in the breasts of the apes. Snarling55 and barking they followed Numa into the dense56 labyrinth57 of foliage58 wherein he sought to hide himself from them. The ape-man was in the lead, moving rapidly and yet with caution, depending even more upon his ears and nose than upon his eyes for information of the lion's whereabouts.
The spoor was easy to follow, for the dragged body of the victim left a plain trail, blood-spattered and scentful. Even such dull creatures as you or I might easily have followed it. To Tarzan and the apes of Kerchak it was as obvious as a cement sidewalk.
Tarzan knew that they were nearing the great cat even before he heard an angry growl59 of warning just ahead. Calling to the apes to follow his example, he swung into a tree and a moment later Numa was surrounded by a ring of growling60 beasts, well out of reach of his fangs and talons but within plain sight of him. The carnivore crouched with his fore-quarters upon the she-ape. Tarzan could see that the latter was already dead; but something within him made it seem quite necessary to rescue the useless body from the clutches of the enemy and to punish him.
He shrieked61 taunts62 and insults at Numa, and tearing dead branches from the tree in which he danced, hurled64 them at the lion. The apes followed his example. Numa roared out in rage and vexation. He was hungry, but under such conditions he could not feed.
The apes, if they had been left to themselves, would doubtless soon have left the lion to peaceful enjoyment65 of his feast, for was not the she dead? They could not restore her to life by throwing sticks at Numa, and they might even now be feeding in quiet themselves; but Tarzan was of a different mind. Numa must be punished and driven away. He must be taught that even though he killed a Mangani, he would not be permitted to feed upon his kill. The man-mind looked into the future, while the apes perceived only the immediate66 present. They would be content to escape today the menace of Numa, while Tarzan saw the necessity, and the means as well, of safeguarding the days to come.
So he urged the great anthropoids on until Numa was showered with missiles that kept his head dodging67 and his voice pealing68 forth69 its savage protest; but still he clung desperately70 to his kill.
The twigs71 and branches hurled at Numa, Tarzan soon realized, did not hurt him greatly even when they struck him, and did not injure him at all, so the ape-man looked about for more effective missiles, nor did he have to look long. An out-cropping of decomposed72 granite73 not far from Numa suggested ammunition74 of a much more painful nature. Calling to the apes to watch him, Tarzan slipped to the ground and gathered a handful of small fragments. He knew that when once they had seen him carry out his idea they would be much quicker to follow his lead than to obey his instructions, were he to command them to procure75 pieces of rock and hurl63 them at Numa, for Tarzan was not then king of the apes of the tribe of Kerchak. That came in later years. Now he was but a youth, though one who already had wrested76 for himself a place in the councils of the savage beasts among whom a strange fate had cast him. The sullen78 bulls of the older generation still hated him as beasts hate those of whom they are suspicious, whose scent characteristic is the scent characteristic of an alien order and, therefore, of an enemy order. The younger bulls, those who had grown up through childhood as his playmates, were as accustomed to Tarzan's scent as to that of any other member of the tribe. They felt no greater suspicion of him than of any other bull of their acquaintance; yet they did not love him, for they loved none outside the mating season, and the animosities aroused by other bulls during that season lasted well over until the next. They were a morose79 and peevish80 band at best, though here and there were those among them in whom germinated81 the primal82 seeds of humanity—reversions to type, these, doubtless; reversions to the ancient progenitor83 who took the first step out of ape-hood toward humanness, when he walked more often upon his hind feet and discovered other things for idle hands to do.
So now Tarzan led where he could not yet command. He had long since discovered the apish propensity84 for mimicry85 and learned to make use of it. Having filled his arms with fragments of rotted granite, he clambered again into a tree, and it pleased him to see that the apes had followed his example.
During the brief respite86 while they were gathering their ammunition, Numa had settled himself to feed; but scarce had he arranged himself and his kill when a sharp piece of rock hurled by the practiced hand of the ape-man struck him upon the cheek. His sudden roar of pain and rage was smothered87 by a volley from the apes, who had seen Tarzan's act. Numa shook his massive head and glared upward at his tormentors. For a half hour they pursued him with rocks and broken branches, and though he dragged his kill into densest89 thickets90, yet they always found a way to reach him with their missiles, giving him no opportunity to feed, and driving him on and on.
The hairless ape-thing with the man scent was worst of all, for he had even the temerity91 to advance upon the ground to within a few yards of the Lord of the Jungle, that he might with greater accuracy and force hurl the sharp bits of granite and the heavy sticks at him. Time and again did Numa charge—sudden, vicious charges—but the lithe92, active tormentor88 always managed to elude93 him and with such insolent94 ease that the lion forgot even his great hunger in the consuming passion of his rage, leaving his meat for considerable spaces of time in vain efforts to catch his enemy.
The apes and Tarzan pursued the great beast to a natural clearing, where Numa evidently determined95 to make a last stand, taking up his position in the center of the open space, which was far enough from any tree to render him practically immune from the rather erratic96 throwing of the apes, though Tarzan still found him with most persistent97 and aggravating98 frequency.
This, however, did not suit the ape-man, since Numa now suffered an occasional missile with no more than a snarl, while he settled himself to partake of his delayed feast. Tarzan scratched his head, pondering some more effective method of offense99, for he had determined to prevent Numa from profiting in any way through his attack upon the tribe. The man-mind reasoned against the future, while the shaggy apes thought only of their present hatred100 of this ancestral enemy. Tarzan guessed that should Numa find it an easy thing to snatch a meal from the tribe of Kerchak, it would be but a short time before their existence would be one living nightmare of hideous101 watchfulness102 and dread. Numa must be taught that the killing103 of an ape brought immediate punishment and no rewards. It would take but a few lessons to insure the former safety of the tribe. This must be some old lion whose failing strength and agility104 had forced him to any prey105 that he could catch; but even a single lion, undisputed, could exterminate106 the tribe, or at least make its existence so precarious107 and so terrifying that life would no longer be a pleasant condition.
"Let him hunt among the Gomangani," thought Tarzan. "He will find them easier prey. I will teach ferocious Numa that he may not hunt the Mangani."
But how to wrest77 the body of his victim from the feeding lion was the first question to be solved. At last Tarzan hit upon a plan. To anyone but Tarzan of the Apes it might have seemed rather a risky108 plan, and perhaps it did even to him; but Tarzan rather liked things that contained a considerable element of danger. At any rate, I rather doubt that you or I would have chosen a similar plan for foiling an angry and a hungry lion.
Tarzan required assistance in the scheme he had hit upon and his assistant must be equally as brave and almost as active as he. The ape-man's eyes fell upon Taug, the playmate of his childhood, the rival in his first love and now, of all the bulls of the tribe, the only one that might be thought to hold in his savage brain any such feeling toward Tarzan as we describe among ourselves as friendship. At least, Tarzan knew, Taug was courageous109, and he was young and agile110 and wonderfully muscled.
"Taug!" cried the ape-man. The great ape looked up from a dead limb he was attempting to tear from a lightning-blasted tree. "Go close to Numa and worry him," said Tarzan. "Worry him until he charges. Lead him away from the body of Mamka. Keep him away as long as you can."
Taug nodded. He was across the clearing from Tarzan. Wresting112 the limb at last from the tree he dropped to the ground and advanced toward Numa, growling and barking out his insults. The worried lion looked up and rose to his feet. His tail went stiffly erect113 and Taug turned in flight, for he knew that warming signal of the charge.
From behind the lion, Tarzan ran quickly toward the center of the clearing and the body of Mamka. Numa, all his eyes for Taug, did not see the ape-man. Instead he shot forward after the fleeing bull, who had turned in flight not an instant too soon, since he reached the nearest tree but a yard or two ahead of the pursuing demon114. Like a cat the heavy anthropoid39 scampered115 up the bole of his sanctuary116. Numa's talons missed him by little more than inches.
For a moment the lion paused beneath the tree, glaring up at the ape and roaring until the earth trembled, then he turned back again toward his kill, and as he did so, his tail shot once more to rigid erectness117 and he charged back even more ferociously118 than he had come, for what he saw was the naked man-thing running toward the farther trees with the bloody119 carcass of his prey across a giant shoulder.
The apes, watching the grim race from the safety of the trees, screamed taunts at Numa and warnings to Tarzan. The high sun, hot and brilliant, fell like a spotlight120 upon the actors in the little clearing, portraying121 them in glaring relief to the audience in the leafy shadows of the surrounding trees. The light-brown body of the naked youth, all but hidden by the shaggy carcass of the killed ape, the red blood streaking122 his smooth hide, his muscles rolling, velvety124, beneath. Behind him the black-maned lion, head flattened125, tail extended, racing126, a jungle thoroughbred, across the sunlit clearing.
Ah, but this was life! With death at his heels, Tarzan thrilled with the joy of such living as this; but would he reach the trees ahead of the rampant127 death so close behind?
Gunto swung from a limb in a tree before him. Gunto was screaming warnings and advice.
"Catch me!" cried Tarzan, and with his heavy burden leaped straight for the big bull hanging there by his hind feet and one forepaw. And Gunto caught them—the big ape-man and the dead weight of the slain128 she-ape—caught them with one great, hairy paw and whirled them upward until Tarzan's fingers closed upon a near-by branch.
Beneath, Numa leaped; but Gunto, heavy and awkward as he may have appeared, was as quick as Manu, the monkey, so that the lion's talons but barely grazed him, scratching a bloody streak123 beneath one hairy arm.
Tarzan carried Mamka's corpse129 to a high crotch, where even Sheeta, the panther, could not get it. Numa paced angrily back and forth beneath the tree, roaring frightfully. He had been robbed of his kill and his revenge also. He was very savage indeed; but his despoilers were well out of his reach, and after hurling130 a few taunts and missiles at him they swung away through the trees, fiercely reviling131 him.
Tarzan thought much upon the little adventure of that day. He foresaw what might happen should the great carnivora of the jungle turn their serious attention upon the tribe of Kerchak, the great ape, but equally he thought upon the wild scramble132 of the apes for safety when Numa first charged among them. There is little humor in the jungle that is not grim and awful. The beasts have little or no conception of humor; but the young Englishman saw humor in many things which presented no humorous angle to his associates.
Since earliest childhood he had been a searcher after fun, much to the sorrow of his fellow-apes, and now he saw the humor of the frightened panic of the apes and the baffled rage of Numa even in this grim jungle adventure which had robbed Mamka of life, and jeopardized133 that of many members of the tribe.
It was but a few weeks later that Sheeta, the panther, made a sudden rush among the tribe and snatched a little balu from a tree where it had been hidden while its mother sought food. Sheeta got away with his small prize unmolested. Tarzan was very wroth. He spoke134 to the bulls of the ease with which Numa and Sheeta, in a single moon, had slain two members of the tribe.
"They will take us all for food," he cried. "We hunt as we will through the jungle, paying no heed135 to approaching enemies. Even Manu, the monkey, does not so. He keeps two or three always watching for enemies. Pacco, the zebra, and Wappi, the antelope136, have those about the herd who keep watch while the others feed, while we, the great Mangani, let Numa, and Sabor, and Sheeta come when they will and carry us off to feed their balus.
"Gr-r-rmph," said Numgo.
"What are we to do?" asked Taug.
"We, too, should have two or three always watching for the approach of Numa, and Sabor, and Sheeta," replied Tarzan. "No others need we fear, except Histah, the snake, and if we watch for the others we will see Histah if he comes, though gliding137 ever so silently."
And so it was that the great apes of the tribe of Kerchak posted sentries138 thereafter, who watched upon three sides while the tribe hunted, scattered139 less than had been their wont140.
But Tarzan went abroad alone, for Tarzan was a man-thing and sought amusement and adventure and such humor as the grim and terrible jungle offers to those who know it and do not fear it—a weird141 humor shot with blazing eyes and dappled with the crimson of lifeblood. While others sought only food and love, Tarzan of the Apes sought food and joy.
One day he hovered142 above the palisaded village of Mbonga, the chief, the jet cannibal of the jungle primeval. He saw, as he had seen many times before, the witch-doctor, Rabba Kega, decked out in the head and hide of Gorgo, the buffalo143. It amused Tarzan to see a Gomangani parading as Gorgo; but it suggested nothing in particular to him until he chanced to see stretched against the side of Mbonga's hut the skin of a lion with the head still on. Then a broad grin widened the handsome face of the savage beast-youth.
Back into the jungle he went until chance, agility, strength, and cunning backed by his marvelous powers of perception, gave him an easy meal. If Tarzan felt that the world owed him a living he also realized that it was for him to collect it, nor was there ever a better collector than this son of an English lord, who knew even less of the ways of his forbears than he did of the forbears themselves, which was nothing.
It was quite dark when Tarzan returned to the village of Mbonga and took his now polished perch in the tree which overhangs the palisade upon one side of the walled enclosure. As there was nothing in particular to feast upon in the village there was little life in the single street, for only an orgy of flesh and native beer could draw out the people of Mbonga. Tonight they sat gossiping about their cooking fires, the older members of the tribe; or, if they were young, paired off in the shadows cast by the palm-thatched huts.
Tarzan dropped lightly into the village, and sneaking144 stealthily in the concealment145 of the denser146 shadows, approached the hut of the chief, Mbonga. Here he found that which he sought. There were warriors147 all about him; but they did not know that the feared devil-god slunk noiselessly so near them, nor did they see him possess himself of that which he coveted148 and depart from their village as noiselessly as he had come.
Later that night, as Tarzan curled himself for sleep, he lay for a long time looking up at the burning planets and the twinkling stars and at Goro the moon, and he smiled. He recalled how ludicrous the great bulls had appeared in their mad scramble for safety that day when Numa had charged among them and seized Mamka, and yet he knew them to be fierce and courageous. It was the sudden shock of surprise that always sent them into a panic; but of this Tarzan was not as yet fully111 aware. That was something he was to learn in the near future.
He fell asleep with a broad grin upon his face.
Manu, the monkey, awoke him in the morning by dropping discarded bean pods upon his upturned face from a branch a short distance above him. Tarzan looked up and smiled. He had been awakened150 thus before many times. He and Manu were fairly good friends, their friendship operating upon a reciprocal basis. Sometimes Manu would come running early in the morning to awaken149 Tarzan and tell him that Bara, the deer, was feeding close at hand, or that Horta, the boar, was asleep in a mudhole hard by, and in return Tarzan broke open the shells of the harder nuts and fruits for Manu, or frightened away Histah, the snake, and Sheeta, the panther.
The sun had been up for some time, and the tribe had already wandered off in search of food. Manu indicated the direction they had taken with a wave of his hand and a few piping notes of his squeaky little voice.
"Come, Manu," said Tarzan, "and you will see that which shall make you dance for joy and squeal151 your wrinkled little head off. Come, follow Tarzan of the Apes."
With that he set off in the direction Manu had indicated and above him, chattering152, scolding and squealing153, skipped Manu, the monkey. Across Tarzan's shoulders was the thing he had stolen from the village of Mbonga, the chief, the evening before.
The tribe was feeding in the forest beside the clearing where Gunto, and Taug, and Tarzan had so harassed154 Numa and finally taken away from him the fruit of his kill. Some of them were in the clearing itself. In peace and content they fed, for were there not three sentries, each watching upon a different side of the herd? Tarzan had taught them this, and though he had been away for several days hunting alone, as he often did, or visiting at the cabin by the sea, they had not as yet forgotten his admonitions, and if they continued for a short time longer to post sentries, it would become a habit of their tribal155 life and thus be perpetuated156 indefinitely.
But Tarzan, who knew them better than they knew themselves, was confident that they had ceased to place the watchers about them the moment that he had left them, and now he planned not only to have a little fun at their expense but to teach them a lesson in preparedness, which, by the way, is even a more vital issue in the jungle than in civilized157 places. That you and I exist today must be due to the preparedness of some shaggy anthropoid of the Oligocene. Of course the apes of Kerchak were always prepared, after their own way—Tarzan had merely suggested a new and additional safeguard.
Gunto was posted today to the north of the clearing. He squatted in the fork of a tree from where he might view the jungle for quite a distance about him. It was he who first discovered the enemy. A rustling158 in the undergrowth attracted his attention, and a moment later he had a partial view of a shaggy mane and tawny yellow back. Just a glimpse it was through the matted foliage beneath him; but it brought from Gunto's leathern lungs a shrill159 "Kreeg-ah!" which is the ape for beware, or danger.
Instantly the tribe took up the cry until "Kreeg-ahs!" rang through the jungle about the clearing as apes swung quickly to places of safety among the lower branches of the trees and the great bulls hastened in the direction of Gunto.
And then into the clearing strode Numa, the lion—majestic and mighty, and from a deep chest issued the moan and the cough and the rumbling160 roar that set stiff hairs to bristling161 from shaggy craniums down the length of mighty spines162.
Inside the clearing, Numa paused and on the instant there fell upon him from the trees near by a shower of broken rock and dead limbs torn from age-old trees. A dozen times he was hit, and then the apes ran down and gathered other rocks, pelting163 him unmercifully.
Numa turned to flee, but his way was barred by a fusilade of sharp-cornered missiles, and then, upon the edge of the clearing, great Taug met him with a huge fragment of rock as large as a man's head, and down went the Lord of the Jungle beneath the stunning164 blow.
With shrieks165 and roars and loud barkings the great apes of the tribe of Kerchak rushed upon the fallen lion. Sticks and stones and yellow fangs menaced the still form. In another moment, before he could regain166 consciousness, Numa would be battered167 and torn until only a bloody mass of broken bones and matted hair remained of what had once been the most dreaded168 of jungle creatures.
But even as the sticks and stones were raised above him and the great fangs bared to tear him, there descended169 like a plummet170 from the trees above a diminutive171 figure with long, white whiskers and a wrinkled face. Square upon the body of Numa it alighted and there it danced and screamed and shrieked out its challenge against the bulls of Kerchak.
For an instant they paused, paralyzed by the wonder of the thing. It was Manu, the monkey, Manu, the little coward, and here he was daring the ferocity of the great Mangani, hopping172 about upon the carcass of Numa, the lion, and crying out that they must not strike it again.
And when the bulls paused, Manu reached down and seized a tawny ear. With all his little might he tugged173 upon the heavy head until slowly it turned back, revealing the tousled, black head and clean-cut profile of Tarzan of the Apes.
Some of the older apes were for finishing what they had commenced; but Taug, sullen, mighty Taug, sprang quickly to the ape-man's side and straddling the unconscious form warned back those who would have struck his childhood playmate. And Teeka, his mate, came too, taking her place with bared fangs at Taug's side. Others followed their example, until at last Tarzan was surrounded by a ring of hairy champions who would permit no enemy to approach him.
It was a surprised and chastened Tarzan who opened his eyes to consciousness a few minutes later. He looked about him at the surrounding apes and slowly there returned to him a realization174 of what had occurred.
Gradually a broad grin illuminated175 his features. His bruises176 were many and they hurt; but the good that had come from his adventure was worth all that it had cost. He had learned, for instance, that the apes of Kerchak had heeded177 his teaching, and he had learned that he had good friends among the sullen beasts whom he had thought without sentiment. He had discovered that Manu, the monkey—even little, cowardly Manu—had risked his life in his defense.
It made Tarzan very glad to know these things; but at the other lesson he had been taught he reddened. He had always been a joker, the only joker in the grim and terrible company; but now as he lay there half dead from his hurts, he almost swore a solemn oath forever to forego practical joking—almost; but not quite.
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1
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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eddied
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| 起漩涡，旋转( eddy的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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Ford
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| n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过 | |
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countless
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| adj.无数的，多得不计其数的 | |
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6
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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7
timorous
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| adj.胆怯的，胆小的 | |
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ferocious
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| adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的 | |
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punctuated
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| v.（在文字中）加标点符号，加标点( punctuate的过去式和过去分词 )；不时打断某事物 | |
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tremors
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| 震颤( tremor的名词复数 )； 战栗； 震颤声； 大地的轻微震动 | |
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sinuous
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| adj.蜿蜒的，迂回的 | |
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wary
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| adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的 | |
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herd
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| n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起 | |
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muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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15
sniff
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| vi.嗅…味道；抽鼻涕；对嗤之以鼻，蔑视 | |
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16
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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tawny
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| adj.茶色的，黄褐色的；n.黄褐色 | |
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gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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21
scurrying
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| v.急匆匆地走( scurry的现在分词 ) | |
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22
hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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23
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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24
rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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25
galloping
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| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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26
velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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27
warily
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| adv.留心地 | |
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28
sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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29
twig
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| n.小树枝，嫩枝；v.理解 | |
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30
quarry
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| n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找 | |
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31
simultaneously
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| adv.同时发生地，同时进行地 | |
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32
prodigious
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| adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的 | |
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33
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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34
talons
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| n.（尤指猛禽的）爪( talon的名词复数 )；（如爪般的）手指；爪状物；锁簧尖状突出部 | |
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35
glossy
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| adj.平滑的；有光泽的 | |
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36
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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37
hyena
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| n.土狼，鬣狗 | |
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38
ravenous
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| adj.极饿的，贪婪的 | |
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39
anthropoid
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| adj.像人类的，类人猿的；n.类人猿；像猿的人 | |
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40
scented
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| adj.有香味的；洒香水的；有气味的v.嗅到(scent的过去分词) | |
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41
fangs
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| n.（尤指狗和狼的）长而尖的牙( fang的名词复数 )；（蛇的）毒牙；罐座 | |
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42
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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43
bristled
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| adj. 直立的，多刺毛的 动词bristle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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44
snarl
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| v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮 | |
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45
hesitation
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| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
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46
glade
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| n.林间空地，一片表面有草的沼泽低地 | |
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47
trampling
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| 踩( trample的现在分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯 | |
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48
perch
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| n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于 | |
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49
squatted
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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50
goaded
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| v.刺激( goad的过去式和过去分词 )；激励；（用尖棒）驱赶；驱使（或怂恿、刺激）某人 | |
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51
gnawing
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| a.痛苦的，折磨人的 | |
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52
pangs
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| 突然的剧痛( pang的名词复数 )； 悲痛 | |
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53
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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54
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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55
snarling
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的现在分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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56
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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57
labyrinth
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| n.迷宫；难解的事物；迷路 | |
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58
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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59
growl
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| v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣 | |
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60
growling
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| n.吠声, 咆哮声 v.怒吠, 咆哮, 吼 | |
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61
shrieked
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| v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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62
taunts
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| 嘲弄的言语，嘲笑，奚落( taunt的名词复数 ) | |
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63
hurl
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| vt.猛投，力掷，声叫骂 | |
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64
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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65
enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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66
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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67
dodging
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| n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避 | |
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68
pealing
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| v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的现在分词 ) | |
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69
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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70
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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71
twigs
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| 细枝，嫩枝( twig的名词复数 ) | |
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72
decomposed
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| 已分解的，已腐烂的 | |
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73
granite
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| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
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74
ammunition
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| n.军火，弹药 | |
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75
procure
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| vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条 | |
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76
wrested
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| （用力）拧( wrest的过去式和过去分词 )； 费力取得； （从…）攫取； （ 从… ） 强行取去… | |
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77
wrest
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| n.扭，拧，猛夺；v.夺取，猛扭，歪曲 | |
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78
sullen
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| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
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79
morose
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| adj.脾气坏的，不高兴的 | |
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80
peevish
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| adj.易怒的，坏脾气的 | |
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81
germinated
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| v.（使）发芽( germinate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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82
primal
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| adj.原始的；最重要的 | |
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83
progenitor
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| n.祖先，先驱 | |
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84
propensity
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| n.倾向；习性 | |
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85
mimicry
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| n.（生物）拟态，模仿 | |
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86
respite
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| n.休息，中止，暂缓 | |
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87
smothered
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| （使）窒息， （使）透不过气( smother的过去式和过去分词 )； 覆盖； 忍住； 抑制 | |
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88
tormentor
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| n. 使苦痛之人, 使苦恼之物, 侧幕 =tormenter | |
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89
densest
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| 密集的( dense的最高级 )； 密度大的； 愚笨的； （信息量大得）难理解的 | |
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90
thickets
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| n.灌木丛( thicket的名词复数 )；丛状物 | |
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91
temerity
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| n.鲁莽，冒失 | |
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92
lithe
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| adj.(指人、身体)柔软的，易弯的 | |
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93
elude
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| v.躲避，困惑 | |
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94
insolent
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| adj.傲慢的，无理的 | |
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95
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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96
erratic
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| adj.古怪的，反复无常的，不稳定的 | |
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97
persistent
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| adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的 | |
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98
aggravating
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| adj.恼人的，讨厌的 | |
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99
offense
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| n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪 | |
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100
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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101
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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102
watchfulness
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| 警惕，留心； 警觉（性） | |
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103
killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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104
agility
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| n.敏捷，活泼 | |
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105
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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106
exterminate
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| v.扑灭，消灭，根绝 | |
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107
precarious
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| adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的 | |
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108
risky
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| adj.有风险的，冒险的 | |
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109
courageous
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| adj.勇敢的，有胆量的 | |
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110
agile
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| adj.敏捷的，灵活的 | |
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111
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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112
wresting
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| 动词wrest的现在进行式 | |
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113
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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114
demon
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| n.魔鬼，恶魔 | |
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115
scampered
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| v.蹦蹦跳跳地跑，惊惶奔跑( scamper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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116
sanctuary
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| n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区 | |
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117
erectness
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| n.直立 | |
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118
ferociously
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| 野蛮地，残忍地 | |
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119
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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120
spotlight
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| n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目 | |
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121
portraying
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| v.画像( portray的现在分词 )；描述；描绘；描画 | |
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122
streaking
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| n.裸奔（指在公共场所裸体飞跑）v.快速移动( streak的现在分词 )；使布满条纹 | |
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123
streak
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| n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动 | |
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124
velvety
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| adj. 像天鹅绒的, 轻软光滑的, 柔软的 | |
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125
flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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126
racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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127
rampant
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| adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的 | |
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128
slain
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| 杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词) | |
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129
corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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130
hurling
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| n.爱尔兰式曲棍球v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的现在分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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131
reviling
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| v.辱骂，痛斥( revile的现在分词 ) | |
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132
scramble
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| v.爬行，攀爬，杂乱蔓延，碎片，片段，废料 | |
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133
jeopardized
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| 危及，损害( jeopardize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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134
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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135
heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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136
antelope
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| n.羚羊；羚羊皮 | |
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137
gliding
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| v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的 | |
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138
sentries
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| 哨兵，步兵( sentry的名词复数 ) | |
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139
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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140
wont
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| adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯 | |
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141
weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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142
hovered
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| 鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫 | |
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143
buffalo
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| n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛 | |
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144
sneaking
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| a.秘密的，不公开的 | |
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145
concealment
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| n.隐藏, 掩盖，隐瞒 | |
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146
denser
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| adj. 不易看透的, 密集的, 浓厚的, 愚钝的 | |
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147
warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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148
coveted
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| adj.令人垂涎的；垂涎的，梦寐以求的v.贪求，觊觎(covet的过去分词)；垂涎；贪图 | |
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149
awaken
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| vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起 | |
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150
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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151
squeal
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| v.发出长而尖的声音；n.长而尖的声音 | |
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152
chattering
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| n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式 | |
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153
squealing
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| v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的现在分词 ) | |
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154
harassed
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| adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词 | |
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155
tribal
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| adj.部族的，种族的 | |
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156
perpetuated
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| vt.使永存（perpetuate的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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157
civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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158
rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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159
shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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160
rumbling
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| n. 隆隆声, 辘辘声 adj. 隆隆响的 动词rumble的现在分词 | |
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161
bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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162
spines
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| n.脊柱( spine的名词复数 )；脊椎；（动植物的）刺；书脊 | |
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163
pelting
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| 微不足道的，无价值的，盛怒的 | |
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164
stunning
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| adj.极好的；使人晕倒的 | |
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165
shrieks
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| n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) | |
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166
regain
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| vt.重新获得，收复，恢复 | |
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167
battered
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| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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168
dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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169
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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170
plummet
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| vi.(价格、水平等)骤然下跌；n.铅坠；重压物 | |
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171
diminutive
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| adj.小巧可爱的，小的 | |
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172
hopping
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| n. 跳跃 动词hop的现在分词形式 | |
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173
tugged
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| v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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174
realization
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| n.实现；认识到，深刻了解 | |
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175
illuminated
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| adj.被照明的；受启迪的 | |
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176
bruises
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| n.瘀伤，伤痕，擦伤( bruise的名词复数 ) | |
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177
heeded
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| v.听某人的劝告，听从( heed的过去式和过去分词 )；变平，使（某物）变平( flatten的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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