King Komodo Dragon was in a fix. He had to visit all the islands of Indonesia, his country. Indonesia is made up of more than 17,000 islands. Visiting such a huge number of islands would take the King a very long while. He was worried about who would look after the animals on his island while he was away.

“Shall I ask Prince Ora, the blue Komodo dragon?” King Komodo Dragon wondered. “Or Prince Aro, the green Komodo dragon? Which one of them would make a good king? Which one of them would make the animals happy?”

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Luckily for King Komodo Dragon, Lucy and Wiz were visiting Indonesia. They had come to take pictures of the Rafflesia, the world’s biggest flower. This gigantic flower grows in Java, one of Indonesia’s islands and it only lives for a few days.

King Komodo Dragon sent Lucy and Wiz a message. After Lucy and Wiz had read it, they hurried to King Komodo Dragon’s island. They didn’t want to keep the King waiting. After all, he was the world’s largest lizard.

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“Lucy and Wiz,” King Komodo Dragon said worriedly. “I have to leave my island to travel. Who shall I make King in the meantime? Who will look after the animals well and make everyone happy? Should I choose Prince Ora? Or should I choose Prince Aro?”

“Don’t worry, Your Majesty,” Lucy and Wiz said. “We will help you decide.” Lucy and Wiz then came up with a plan.

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Lucy decided to follow Prince Ora around the island. It was lunchtime and Prince Ora sat down to eat his lunch. Just then, an old Sumatran tiger came by. Prince Ora thought he looked very hungry.

“Please join me,” Prince Ora told the old tiger cheerfully. “I have some delicious satay. This delicious dish is served with a sweet and spicy peanut sauce. I am sure you’ll like it.”Click, click, click! Lucy took some pictures with her camera.

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Wiz followed Prince Aro around the island. Prince Aro walked to the beach. It was hot and sunny there. Prince Aro was carrying many coconuts. He opened some and drank their cool water. But when a thirsty Javan rhinoceros asked Prince Aro for a sip, he made fun of him.

“You want to quench your thirst, old animal?” Prince Aro teased. “I’ll give you as many coconuts as you like. But first, you must do a cartwheel.” Tears welled up in the old rhinoceros’ eyes. He knew he was too old to do a cartwheel and walked away, looking very sad.Click, click, click! Wiz took some pictures with his camera.

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Plop! Plop! Plop! It started to rain on the island. Big raindrops fell from the sky. Prince Ora had an umbrella with him. He opened it quickly. But he didn’t use the umbrella for himself. He ran to shelter a tree hollow.

An old cockatoo had made its nest in the tree hollow. “I won’t let your feathers get wet,” Prince Ora told the old yellow-crested bird. “Or let the rain enter your home.”Click, click, click! Lucy took some more pictures with her camera.

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There were some old tarsiers visiting the beach and the rain was making them catch a cold. “Atishoo! Atishoo!” the little animals sneezed, as they struggled to find shelter.

Prince Aro had an umbrella too and it was much bigger than Prince Ora’s. But Prince Aro didn’t help the tarsiers. “Don’t you wish you had brought your raincoats with you,” he told them, laughing. “Or that you were young enough to run home!”Click, click, click! Wiz took some more pictures with his camera.

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Later in the afternoon, Prince Ora spotted an old orang-utan taking a nap in the forest. Prince Ora tiptoed, so as not to wake it up and put a fluffy pillow under the orang-utan’s furry redhead. He hoped the pillow would help the old ape sleep more comfortably.

Little did Prince Ora know that Lucy was watching.Click, click, click! She was still taking pictures of him with her camera.

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Prince Aro saw the old orang-utan sleeping too. But he didn’t care about it. Boom! Boom! He began playing his drum. “Please be quiet, son,” the old orang-utan said, waking up.

But Prince Aro didn’t stop. “Put some cotton in your ears, Grandpa,” he giggled rudely. “I won’t stop. I am having too much fun.”Click, click, click! Wiz quietly took some more pictures.

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When Lucy and Wiz had taken enough pictures, they showed them to King Komodo Dragon. King Komodo Dragon looked at the pictures carefully. He then scratched his scaly head.“The animals look happy with Prince Ora,” he said. “But they look very unhappy with Prince Aro.”

“Your Majesty,” Lucy said. “That’s because Prince Ora shares with everyone. He also cares for and respects the old animals on the island. That makes everyone like him.”“Prince Aro doesn’t share with anyone,” Wiz said. “Nor does he care for or respect the elderly.”

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Later that evening, King Komodo Dragon called all the animals to the beach. “My dear animals,” he said. “I am going away for a long time. While I am away, one of the princes will be your king. Now let me tell you this prince’s name.”

All the animals were eager to know who King Komodo Dragon would make their new king.

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To everyone’s delight, King Komodo Dragon announced, “Prince Ora is the new king!” King Komodo Dragon then took off his crown and put it on Prince Ora’s head.

“Hooray!” all the animals cheered. “We like Prince Ora very much. We welcome him as our king.”

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King Komodo Dragon thanked Lucy and Wiz for their help. “Thank you, Lucy and Wiz,” he said. “Prince Ora will make everyone happy. I can now leave without worrying.”

King Komodo Dragon then said goodbye to all the animals on the island. Splash! He dived into the sea and swam away to visit the rest of Indonesia’s islands.

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Prince Ora made a very good king. All the animals on the island felt very lucky that King Komodo Dragon had left them in his care.

Prince Ora, who was now King Ora, kept very busy. But he never forgot to share his food and things with everyone. He also took good care of the old animals and respected them. And everyone likes such folks, right?

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Activities

2. Which path must Lucy take to get to the Rafflesia flower?

1. Which of the animals shown below looks exactly like King Komodo Dragon?

a)

a)

b)

b)

c)

3. Here are two delicious fruits that grow in Indonesia. Copy the red letters onto the blank spaces to find out their names.

4. There are three hunters hiding in the forest. They want to harm the animals you just met. There are very few of these animals left in our world. Find the hunters so Lucy and Wiz can stop them and save the animals.

C R A Z M L B X U T YA Q N

P D B U O R G I J A Z N L

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1

2

3

4

C

a) RAMBUTANb) DURIAN

Solutions

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