The Magic Volcano E-Book

V.K. May

• Herausgeber: Opal Tree Press
• Kategorie: Für Kinder und Jugendliche
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

On a plane from Australia to Papua New Guinea, Molly Marsh starts to explore the most unexplored country on Earth. By reading articles on her tablet, she learns PNG is one of the most biodiverse countries on the planet with over 200,000 species of plants and animals. The massive mountains and thick jungle isolate most of the villages from each other, resulting in over 800 languages and 1,000 cultures across the country.

But Molly soon learns real life is even more exciting than what she reads in science journals. Shortly after she lands in PNG, she befriends a blue butterfly as big as her face. A few moments later, she meets Yosia, a being even more magical than herself and a new chapter of her life opens with a bang!

Join her as she teams up with Michael, the boy from next door, as they put their super smart science minds together to discover mysteries even the adults don't know about. Accompanied by a three-meter-long lizard named Ted, they discover something in the belly of a volcano. Intrigued, they climb down and find a bright turquoise lake amidst a remarkable collection of plants and animals that should not exist. They struggle to understand the connections between these, and many other strange things before they tackle the most difficult question of all - what to do with this knowledge.
Kids who are interested in science and nature have really enjoyed these books. They are open-minded youngsters who like an imaginative story with a cracking pace and inquisitive characters. Adults who like a fun, clean adventure story have also enjoyed the books in this series.

Leseprobe

THE MAGIC VOLCANO

MOLLY’S MAGICAL ADVENTURES: BOOK ONE

V.K. MAY

Copyright © 2021 by V.K. May

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This book has been published by Opal Tree Press.

Books in this series include:

The Magic Volcano: Book One

Jungle Magic: Book Two

Adaline’s Magic: Book Three

Magic of the Guardians: Book Four

CONTENTS

Who is Molly Marsh?

A note to readers

1. Molly on a plane

2. You will like it here

3. Everything looks different

4. Molly's new home

5. Yosia's home

6. The butterflies need help

7. Yosia's magic

8. The Marsh family dinner

9. The boy with the moon face

10. Two fathers and Yosia

11. A struggle through the jungle

12. The lake inside the cave

13. Into the belly of the mine

14. A haul truck to the rescue

15. The Ring of Fire

16. Houses on stilts

17. Under the Milky Way

18. House helpers

19. Crossing the plantation

20. One small step

21. On top of the volcano

22. Deep inside the volcano

23. A really big flying thing

24. Walking home

25. Yosia knows Gideon

26. Yosia wants answers

27. Molly has a theory

28. Two fluorescent eyes

29. Everyone is okay

30. Planning the new day

31. A scenic drive in a posh car

32. A big man in pajamas

33. Things get complicated

34. Molly tells Michael everything

35. Mrs. Calthorpe throws her phone

36. Adding things up

37. Yosia has had enough

WHO IS MOLLY MARSH?

Molly Marsh was born and raised in Calga, New South Wales, about 75 kilometers north of Sydney, Australia. She has never lived in the center of the town, but out a bit, in a quiet place surrounded by hills and bushlands. What she loves most about living there is the local wildlife park which she has been visiting almost every weekend, for as long as she can recall.

She is fascinated by plants and animals and believes she can speak with them. Her parents do not believe that is possible, but they are always amazed by the way animals respond to Molly.

'It's as though they recognize and trust her,' her mother once said to a friend while drinking coffee on their balcony which overlooked their rainforest garden.

Molly is a straight-A student, with science being her favorite subject. She is kind and sensitive to the feelings of other people, except when her curiosity takes over. In those situations, she can be quite annoying, but she does get to the bottom of things.

Her parents are professional people who love to travel during vacation time. Molly has always enjoyed their overseas holidays, even the time spent on planes. She loves flying, especially the moment when the plane lifts off the tarmac.

1

MOLLY ON A PLANE

Molly Marsh loved to travel. But this journey was different from all the others. This time, she had said goodbye to her friends for a whole year. Then she had cried herself to sleep, clinging to her beloved cat, Kiki, who she would miss most of all.

The plane was headed for Papua New Guinea, the most unexplored country on Earth. Her father sat to her right, beside the window. His fingers fluttered over his laptop keyboard, reminding Molly of a flutter of butterflies. She imagined a dark shape outside the window. The body of a butterfly, perhaps. Another butterfly would appear, and then a third and maybe a fourth.

Soon, they would all be fluttering outside the window. This would be their way of saying 'hello', but the vibrations caused by their fluttering wings would crack the glass. It would start with one small crack and progress to an entire network of cracks that would branch out like the roots of a great tree. Then the window would turn to water and slosh all over her father's keyboard.

'Argh!' he would cry.

Then he would wipe his hands on his jeans, push his glasses up his shiny nose and continue typing. Even when the plane dipped and everyone screamed.

'Dad, the plane must have banged into a cloud,' said Molly, clutching her stomach.

Her father shoved his laptop under his seat and took hold of her hand.

'Are you okay, muppet?' he asked.

'I'm fine, thanks, Dad,' she replied. 'I know the plane won't crash.'

Her father smiled and winked at her.

'No, it won't,' he said.

Molly looked at her father's spiky red hair and the freckles on his nose, imagining him as a little boy. Which was strange, considering he was a very grown-up and serious father.

'Dad, are you looking forward to living in Papua New Guinea?' she asked.

Her father nodded.

'Yes, but I'll have a lot of work to do when we get there,' he replied.

'Do you like being a mining engineer?' Molly asked.

'Yep,' he said, nodding again.

Molly imagined her father staring at strange drawings of mines. She had seen him do it many times before, in their home in Australia. He would spread the big pieces of white paper across his workbench on the balcony and stare at them for ages. Sometimes Molly would look over his shoulder and see the silly squiggles, then wonder why he did not stare at their lovely garden instead.

'Will the drawings be the same as before?' she asked.

'Do you mean the mine schematics?' her father asked.

Molly nodded.

'Not really,' he replied. 'Every mine is different.'

'How?' Molly asked.

'Mostly, it depends on the type of mine - underground or open cut,' he replied. 'The ones you've seen in Australia were open cut.'

'Which type are we going to?' Molly asked.

'Underground,' her father replied.

'But you won't have to go under the ground, will you, Dad?' Molly asked.

'Sometimes,' he replied.

Molly saw her father's serious blue eyes brighten as the sun burst through a thin cloud. She tried to imagine him under the ground, then worried he might get lost, or that the ground might decide to keep him.

'I don't want you to go under the ground, Dad,' she said.

Her father kissed her hand.

'I'll be fine, muppet,' he said.

Molly hoped she could keep an eye on her father, but the thought of going under the ground did not make her feel good. She much preferred the fresh air and sunshine.

Her father smiled at her.

'Have you read the National Geographic articles we downloaded to your tablet?' he asked.

'Not yet,' Molly replied, reaching for her device.

She tapped the screen, then selected the black square with the yellow border. An article about PNG opened, and she started reading. She soon learned that most of the people in PNG live in small tribes, isolated from each other because of the vast mountains and thick jungle between them. This is why PNG is one of the least explored countries in the world, it said. Molly knew that was true because her mother had said the same thing, and she was a professor of anthropology at the University of Sydney. But she was asleep now, and unavailable for chatting, so Molly turned to her father again.

'Dad, did you know they have over eight hundred languages in PNG?' she asked.

'Hm?' her father replied, his eyes and hands finally reunited with his laptop. 'No problem, muppet. We only have to speak English.'

Molly swiped the screen of her device. A video appeared, showing five round huts made from mud, sticks, and leaves. They were arranged in a circle, which made her think the people who lived inside them must have been the best of friends. At the center of the circle was a pile of black ash and upon it were some logs, burning red. Perched upon the logs was a big round pot, with steam wafting out of it. Some tall, thin people wandered around. Their skin, almost as dark as the ash, was glistening with sweat. A pig, two dogs and five chickens lazed on the grass under the shade of a tree, showing no interest in anything the people were doing.

Next, Molly scrolled down to a photograph. It was a close-up of a man's face. She imagined him staring into her eyes, counting the blue and green flecks in her irises. But no matter how hard she stared at him, she could only see one color in his eyes, and it was dark brown. The long scars across his cheeks were wide and raised. Molly remembered her mother had told her that the mountain men of PNG had a tradition of deliberately cutting their faces. 'The scars are for decoration', her mother had explained, 'and badges of honor'.

Molly sat up, as high as she could, and gazed out of the window. She could see the mountains. They were covered in the soft green fur of the jungle and framed by the golden light of the rising sun. She stretched, but could not see much more.

'Come here, muppet,' her father said, lifting her out of her seat.

With her face pressed against the window, Molly could see some mountains that looked different from the others. They had no green fur, but were completely bare, revealing the red-brown rock from which they were made.

'It's a volcano!' she said.

'That's right,' her father replied. 'It's not active, though.'

'I wonder what's living down there,' said Molly.

'Maybe a few trees,' her father replied.

'You just never know, Dad,' Molly said, leaning into him. 'There could be more.'

Her father smiled.

'Molly Marsh, you really are the most imaginative person I have ever met,' he said.

Imaginative.

Molly pictured the word wriggling up and down like a caterpillar.

'Attention, passengers!' said the speaker above her head. 'We are commencing our descent. Please remain seated, fasten your seatbelts and ensure your tray tables are secured to the seat in front of you.'

2

YOU WILL LIKE IT HERE

As soon as Molly stepped off the plane, the hot air enveloped her like a steamy wet blanket. Her sandals filled with pools of sweat, making it difficult for her to walk across the tarmac. Her frizzy hair fell flat against her head and she had to squint under the bright sunlight.

Inside the airport, it was completely different. The air was close to freezing. Molly wondered if it was like that to help everyone cope with the fact that it was very crowded. There were so many people, and they were all walking in different directions, like a flock of seabirds that had just landed on a cliff.

One waddled over to Molly's father.

'G'day, Mr. Marsh,' he said, offering his hand.

'Jimbo!' said Molly's father, shaking the man's hand. 'This is my wife and daughter.'

'Ladies,' said Jimbo, nodding at Molly and her mother.

Too tired to respond, Molly just clung to her mother's hand, hoping they would soon escape the crowd. When the front door of the airport building slid open, she was once again enveloped by hot, damp air. For a moment it felt nice, like a hot water bottle on a chilly night. But the heat soon pressed down upon her, making her wish she could turn to water and trickle down a drain all the way to the sea.

When Molly stepped into the open carpark under the sun, a bright blue butterfly, just like those she had seen through the window of the plane, landed on her nose. It opened its wings, completely covering her face, and its long black antennae tapped her forehead.

'You will like it here,' it whispered.

Then it flew away.

Molly had always liked it when things like this happened. But this time she was not so sure because the butterfly was wrong. She was not going to like it here. Of that, she was certain.

On the outer edge of the car park, she saw a white van parked between two tall trees. It had a front seat and a back seat, like any family car. But there was also a long, open section at the back. She wondered if it might be for carrying long things, like trees or people who are too lazy to sit up straight.

'This is your van,' said Jimbo.

Leaning against the van was a tall, thin man who looked exactly like the man Molly had seen in the National Geographic article. Even from a distance, she could see the scars on his cheeks. He was wearing a white shirt with pale yellow flowers on it, and a pair of faded red shorts. He was not wearing any shoes, which made Molly wonder why the soles of his feet did not get burned by the hot ground. Between his fingers, he twirled a blade of grass.

'Hey!' Jimbo shouted.

The tall man threw the grass away and reached toward the suitcases.

'This is Yosia,' said Jimbo, pointing at the man. 'He comes with the van and the house.'

Molly's father offered his hand.

'G'day, mate,' he said.

The tall man put down the suitcases and shook Molly's father's hand.

'Good to meet you, Mr. Marsh,' he said.

Molly's mother stepped forward to offer her hand, but Yosia had already picked up the suitcases again. He piled them into the back of the van, then sat between them. Molly was about to ask him what he was doing, but her mother nudged her into the back seat. Molly fastened her seatbelt, then looked at Yosia, then at her mother.

'He doesn't have a seatbelt, Mum!' she whispered.

Her father glanced at Yosia, then at Jimbo.

'There's room in here for Yosia,' he said. 'Can we ask him to join us?'

Molly saw Jimbo's face turn red and press his lips together, forming a thin white line.

'Sorry, Mr. Marsh,' he replied. 'There are only four seatbelts in this vehicle.'

He started the van, and black smoke coughed out from the under the bonnet.

'Um,' said Molly's father, pointing to the thick cloud.

'No worries, Mr. Marsh,' Jimbo replied. 'It sometimes does that. You'll get used to it.'

3

EVERYTHING LOOKS DIFFERENT

As soon as they entered the highway, Molly could see the PNG sky was almost as bright as the Australian sky. But unlike the highways in Australia, this one was jumping with life. There were people wandering along the side of the road. Pigs and dogs trailed along behind them and chickens darted in between them. The road was crammed with cars, buses and trucks, all blowing black smoke out of their rears and honking their horns.

The van lifted off the road for a moment, then returned with a thud! Which made Molly and her mother scream. It felt even worse than the turbulence on the plane.

Jimbo turned his head ever so slightly.

'Sorry, ladies!' he shouted. 'The roads are full of potholes and bumps. You'll get used to it.'

Molly did not care what Jimbo had to say, because she had decided she did not like him. And she was still worried about Yosia. But when she looked again, she saw him lounging between the bags, looking as comfortable as someone in their favorite armchair watching TV.