High Time for Heroes

High Time for Heroes is an installment in the Magic Tree House Merlin Missions series. Siblings Jack and Annie travel to 1850s Egypt to find the third secret of greatness from Florence Nightingale.

Merlin the magician has tasked Jack and Annie with traveling through time to learn four secrets of greatness from historically renowned figures. A magic tree house, belonging to Morgan le Fay, a magical librarian from Camelot, periodically appears in the woods near the children's home in Frog Creek, Pennsylvania, and transports them to different times and places. On prior missions, they collected two secrets: humility and hard work.

Jack is on the front porch studying magic tricks when Annie insists she heard the whooshing sound that signals the tree house's arrival. Annie has had hunches for two weeks, and they have checked the woods five times since Tuesday without success, but this time they find the tree house in the tallest oak. Inside, a scroll from Merlin instructs them to find the third secret of greatness from Florence Nightingale. Annie knows Florence well from a school report: She lived in the 1800s, served as a nurse during the Crimean War, earned the nickname "the Lady with the Lamp," and later transformed the nursing profession. The children collect their magical items: the Ring of Truth, a gold ring that glows when a secret of greatness is spoken; a tiny bottle of magic mist from Avalon, a magical realm, which grants one hour of a great talent; and a list of their two previous secrets. They also find a book titled Travelers' Handbook to Egypt, which surprises them since they expected to travel to England or the Crimea. Jack wishes to go to Egypt, and the tree house transports them.

They land in a sycamore tree on the bank of the River Nile, dressed in period clothing. A young boy named Ali, who works with his grandfather Mustafa as a guide for travelers, identifies their location as Thebes, across from the Temple of Luxor. Two English travelers, Selina and Charles Bracebridge, greet them warmly and are astonished to learn the children are looking for Florence Nightingale, their best friend who has been sailing the Nile with them for weeks. However, they clarify that Florence is not a famous nurse; she has only cared for sick relatives and villagers and has never worked in a hospital. Selina invites them aboard the sailboat to wait for Florence.

Aboard the boat, Jack and Annie encounter Lord and Lady Bickerson, aristocrats from London and friends of Florence's family, who complain bitterly about Egypt's dangers, trying to frighten everyone. Annie calmly responds that she is neither miserable nor frightened. Countess von Kensky, a fellow European traveler from Budapest visiting the boat, then enters with Koku, a baby baboon from Sudan, and Annie bonds with Koku immediately. Florence Nightingale arrives carrying a notebook, breathless and sunburned from studying paintings of Anubis, the ancient Egyptian jackal god, at the temple. She appears dismayed to find so many visitors. Lord Bickerson criticizes her for prowling among ruins and having too high an opinion of herself; Florence quietly admits she does not have an excellent opinion of herself. Visibly upset, she excuses herself and slips out. Annie defends Florence, arguing there is nothing wrong with wanting to follow one's dreams or having independent thoughts. Lord Bickerson calls the children rude and orders them off the boat. Jack and Annie leave politely.

On the riverbank, Koku escapes the boat after the Bickersons order her off as well. The countess asks Jack and Annie to watch Koku for the afternoon while she visits a sick friend downriver. Annie agrees despite Jack's concern that babysitting will distract from their mission. Florence emerges and tells Mustafa she wants to explore the Valley of the Queens. She politely declines the children's company but relents enough to offer them a ride across the Nile, sitting with her back to them and writing in her notebook.

On the western shore, Ali provides two donkeys and canteens of water, warning them to return by sundown because of jackals and tomb raiders. They ride through a barren plain, stopping at the Colossi of Memnon, two enormous pharaoh statues over 3,000 years old. Near the Valley of the Queens, Annie insists on peeking into a tomb entrance carved into the limestone cliffs despite Jack's unease. Both donkeys bolt, and two jackals emerge and lope toward Annie. Koku leaps from Annie's arms and draws the jackals away, escaping by squeezing through a narrow crack between cliffs and scaling to the top, where she is stranded and crying.

The cliff is too steep for anyone but expert rock climbers. Annie suggests using their one-use magic mist, and Jack agrees that saving Koku is more important than saving the mist for the mission. Both inhale the mist and wish to be great rock climbers. Filled with strength and energy, they scale the cliff expertly. Near the top, Koku grabs Jack's ear, causing him to lose his grip, but Annie catches his wrist and holds him until he recovers and pulls himself to safety. After resting at the summit, they begin their descent as the sun sets. Halfway down, Jack's climbing ability vanishes as the mist wears off. He falls and dislocates his right shoulder. Annie falls as well and sprains her ankle. With jackals howling in the distance, Jack helps Annie stand, and they begin a slow, painful walk toward the Nile.

Florence appears in the darkness on her donkey, carrying a lantern, with Mustafa behind her. Ali had reported that the children's donkeys returned without riders. Florence takes charge calmly, examining Jack's injuries and arranging for the children to ride while she and Mustafa walk alongside. Back on the Bracebridges' boat, Florence tucks both children into her own bed, fashions a cotton sling for Jack's shoulder, and wraps Annie's ankle in a bandage.

Annie tells Florence she truly is a great nurse and asks what her secret is. Florence deflects, naming discipline, quickness, and kindness, but the Ring of Truth does not glow. She explains that her family forbids her from working, though nursing is her greatest dream. Jack asks her to put her passion into simple words. Florence grows emotional, declaring she must do something useful for the world and lift the load of suffering from the poor and sick. She states that she believes one's life must have meaning and purpose. The Ring of Truth glows brightly like a burning ember, confirming this as the third secret of greatness. Florence, unaware of the ring's significance, seems embarrassed, but Jack and Annie assure her that what she said sounds true and that they know she will achieve her dreams.

At dawn, Jack and Annie say farewell to their companions. Florence gives Annie a wooden crutch and walks them to the water's edge. Jack tells Florence to hold on to her dreams. Mustafa rows them across the Nile. When Jack offers the guide all their Egyptian coins, Mustafa refuses, saying he helped them because they needed help, and accepting payment for a simple good deed would be wrong. Jack reflects that Mustafa and Ali help people daily with gentleness and dignity, and that their lives, too, have meaning and purpose.

Jack and Annie return to the tree house and wish themselves home. Upon arrival in Frog Creek, their injuries have vanished entirely. Jack adds "meaning and purpose" to the list of secrets beneath "humility" and "hard work." Annie shares that Florence will go on to attend nursing school in Germany, serve in the Crimean War, and become the founder of modern nursing. Jack observes that Mustafa's life also embodied meaning and purpose. They leave the ring and mist bottle in the tree house and walk home through the Frog Creek woods.