Each boy made excuses to their parents to beg off from daily chores. In doing so, they bragged about the “sidewalk” they carved through the “dense jungle” and over “mountains.” They bragged of bridging “deep gorges,” only to find that the mysterious light they saw from over a mile away was just a bunch of fireflies. They invited their families to come see the millions of fireflies, but the invitations were declined. Only Penny showed any interest at all, but only if the boys carried her to the firefly field and back again. The following day, after a long wait for the field to dry, Clayton finally got to the tree house mid-afternoon. It wasn't too long before the twins and Karl showed up, then Ron and Brian arrived. For awhile the boys compared cuts, bruises, and blisters, and complained of sore muscles. Finally, Clayton approached the subject of the strange lights glowing beyond the firefly field. He anticipated hearty enthusiasm for their next adventure to solve the mystery, but he was met with dismissal and reluctance instead.
