Chapter Four

THE NOME'S PLANS

Next morning the old man said to Kiki: "If you want to help me to conquer the Oz people, we must start for the Land of Oz. That is a very long way."

"Oh, that's all right," answered Kiki. "I shall change form into a bird, and I shall be there in an hour."

"Then change me into a bird too," said the Nome, "and I shall fly with you to the Land of Oz."

"He is right," thought Kiki. "We can fly to the Land of Oz. I think I shall really be King of the Land of Oz."

And this is what the Nome thought: "The boy has a wonderful secret. But he doesn't want to tell me his secret. Of course, he is silly. He thinks he can become King of the Land of Oz. So I hope he will help me to conquer my enemies."

Then the old man said aloud: "Listen to me, boy! I shall tell you my plan. Let us fly to Oz in the form of birds. We shall fly to the big forests there. These forests are full of beasts. We shall promise them to change all the beasts into men and women. And we shall ask them to help us to conquer the people of Oz. After that we shall give them the houses and all the good things of the Oz people."

"And what will happen then?" asked Kiki.

"Then," went on the Nome King, "we shall change all the people of Oz back into beasts and send them to live in the forests. That is a very good and easy plan, isn't it? I think that all the beasts in the Land of Oz will like my plan."

Kiki Aru did not know much about the Land of Oz. He did not know much about the beasts that lived in the forests of that country. He liked the old Nome's plan. But he was not going to tell him the magic word.

"He doesn't know my secret," he thought, "so he can do me no harm now. I shall become the ruler of Oz. Then I shall change him into a stone, and he will do me no harm then," thought the bad boy.

"I shall know Kiki's secret," the wicked Nome thought, "I shall change the boy into paper and burn him up."

Wicked people are always like this. 1 They try to harm one another. The Nome wanted to do harm to Kiki, and Kiki wanted to do harm to the Nome.

"It is a long way 2 to the Land of Oz," said the boy. "And it is very hot now. Let us wait. In the evening it will not be so hot and we shall fly then."

"All right," said the Nome. "Let us wait."

"When evening came they went out into the yard and stopped under a big tree.

"Stay here for a few minutes," said Kiki. "I shall soon be back." He walked quickly away.

"Where is he going?" thought the Nome King, but he stood in his place.

Suddenly his form began to change. In a moment he became a great eagle. He was frightened. But then he saw another eagle, who was large and strong too.

"Now we are ready to start," said the other eagle in Kiki's voice.

"I see now that the boy is not so silly," thought the Nome. "He is clever. He doesn't want me to hear his magic word." And the two eagles flew high up in the air.

 

 

1 Wicked people are always like this. — Злые люди всегда так поступают.

2 It is a long way — Далеко