Surviving The Jungle

Part Four: The Hunters and the Game

"Hungry Like the Wolf" Belongs to Duran Duran.

My eyes slowly slid open. The bright sunlight flooded them, causing me to squint. After they adjusted, I was able to observe my surroundings. Rays of golden sun shone through the trees and illuminated the ground. Birds trilled and sang amongst the branches.

I craned my neck to look at Nahkt. His arms were still wrapped around me, but his eyes were closed. Which hopefully meant he was still asleep. With great care, I lifted up his arm and wriggled free. He didn't even flinch. I turned over onto my stomach.

Now that I was free, next came the tricky part of shimmying down to the ground. There were several limbs I could use to navigate my way, but they looked frail--as if they could easily snap. I carefully placed a foot on the nearest branch to see if it would hold me. It creaked and groaned, but it seemed okay. I stepped down on it. I repeated the process with every limb.

As I made my way, I kept a watchful eye on Nahkt to make sure he was still asleep. However, I made a mistake and forgot to see if a branch would hold me. It snapped under my weight, and I crashed to the ground. A gasp managed to escape my throat as I fell to the earth. With a faint thud, I landed on the moist, mossy soil, which was only two feet below me. I stood up and brushed the dirt off of my suit. My heart stopped when I heard a soft grunt echo from the tree above me.

Oh, shoot!

From the ground, I watched Nahkt tense up and slightly shift his position. His eyes opened partly. I swear it felt like the world stood still, because I was so terrified he had possibly awoken. If he was truly awake, I was dead already. Who knew what he would do to me if I was caught trying to slink away. After several tense moments, his eyes slowly slid closed, and his body relaxed. I breathed out a sigh of relief.

I quietly grabbed my armor and suited up. I secured my wrist blades and mask. After that, I started to sneak away... I wasn't going to go far. All I was going to do was take a short walk, nothing too dangerous. I just wanted some time to myself, to help clear my mind. For some reason, I knew that Nahkt wouldn't let me go anywhere without him, even though I had a stupid tracker around my neck.

As I walked around, I couldn't help but notice that everything in the jungle seemed so natural, so pristine, untouched by man. Well, it did seem that way, until I noticed a strange mark on one of the tree trunks. I walked closer to get a better look. The strange symbol was a red "X". I rubbed the sign with my fingers, and it left behind a stain. Another X caught my eye, and then another, and another... All the trees in front of me were tattooed with the mysterious symbol.

The marked plants followed a certain pattern, maybe even more so a specific trail. I began to follow it. In almost no time, I reached a huge clearing. The intense sunlight flooded the eyeholes of my mask. I stared into the opening and gazed upon what was before me.

The trees in the area had been cut down. Construction vehicles littered the ground, and tents were scattered throughout. Humans ran about doing their business: hauling logs and operating machinery. Piles of trees marked with the mysterious red "X" were stacked all over the deforested area. This must've been a sawmill operation.

I continued to observe for several minutes... After all, it had been so long since I'd seen someone of my kind.

Suddenly, I felt someone grab my shoulder. How could I have been stupid enough to forget to activate my invisibility?! I jumped and quickly turned my head around. I expected it to be Nahkt, but this time, that wasn't the case. It was a tall, African man. He was heavily muscled, and his eyes were dark, lightless pools.

He demanded, "Who are you! What is your business here?!"

The man spoke aggressively with a heavy Swahili accent. I pleaded, "Please sir, I didn't mean to trespass."