Openg and the elephant

Narrative teks - Openg and the elephant

Years ago many elephants lived on the slopes of Mount Murud. In a new village nearby, there lived a young man called Openg. Openg was tall and handsome, and he was the strongest man in the village. Openg and the other villagers built their longhouse near the river before they knew that the elephants lived nearby.

One day when the women were washing in the river, a heard of wild elephants attacked them. Hearing the screams, Openg and the other men rushed out of the longhouses. When they saw the wild elephants running towards them, they turned and ran into the jungle. Openg and his friends hid in the jungle until evening. Then they returned to the village.

The village had almost been destroyed by the elephants.

Some of the women had been killed. That night, Openg met with the  other men.

“Why did the elephants do this?” one man asked. “We have done^. nothing to hurt them.”

“We have built our village in the wrong place,” said Openg. “This is where the elephants drink from the river.”

"Then we must move our village,” said another man.

“Yes,” said Openg, “but first we must hunt for the leader of the elephant herd. Otherwise the elephants will attack us.”

And so, the men decided to hunt for the elephant leader the next day. In the morning they set off with their spears and their parangs. Openg and his men walked quietly through the jungle. They kept their eyes and ears open, but for a long time they neither saw nor heard the elephants. In thick forest, even an elephant can hide very easily if he doesn't move. But it is difficult to stand still for a long time, and suddenly the elephant leader moved from its hiding place.

Openg saw a few leaves tremble. Then there was a loud roar, and the lead elephant rushed out of the bushes to attack the men.

“Quick,” cried Openg as he threw his spear at the elephant. The other men threw their spears, but it was Openg's spear which pierced the elephant's heart.

The elephant swayed from side to side. It killed two of the hunters with its powerful trunk, and then, with a loud groan, it fell. Some of the hunters rushed to cut the elephant with their parangs.

“Enough!” cried Openg. “It's dead.”

The hunters laid down their parangs and looked at the dead elephant. “He was a brave leader,” said Openg. “Come, let us go back to the village.”

Openg and the hunters returned to the village. They re­built the longhouses, and lived there for many years. The elephant herd never again returned to the village.