by Chris Fox
“Excellent work,” Irakesh called, surveying the bodies littering the clearing. A few still moaned, but none were any threat. “Now it is time to feed. We will need our strength for what is to come.”
Chapter 23- Pursuit
“Which direction?” Liz asked, turning to face Blair. He wore a set of camouflage fatigues complete with a matching cap. They were a little too baggy, but choices had been limited. His eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, just like her own. They cut the sun to a manageable glare, though she still found herself squinting. Part of that was dealing with the cacophony of jungle sounds, so overpowering to her new senses despite being nearly a hundred yards away.
“That way,” he said, nodding in the direction of the jungle stretching down the hill behind the village. It was the same one where Irakesh had left the horde of zombies to slow them. “The feeling is faint. I’m guessing he’s at least a day or two ahead of us. Maybe more. I was hoping we’d be able to pick up a trail too, but there are just too many competing scents.”
“Yeah, all I can make out is monkey pee and flowers. Jordan, you’re a soldier. Any suggestions on how we can catch this guy?” she asked, turning her attention to the blonde giant. He wore a very similar uniform, but it was tailored to fit his well defined frame. Where Blair was merely muscular, Jordan was a wall in clothes.
“I’ve never been a jungle guerrilla, but I know warfare. You want to catch this guy? We need to figure out where he’s going and get there first. Following him allows him to set all sorts of fun traps and to lead us wherever he wants us to go,” Jordan explained, resting the barrel of his automatic rifle against his shoulder. Liz still had no idea what kind of gun it was, but she knew from her brother that it was a high caliber just based on the size.
“So how do we catch him, then?” Bridget asked, peering around the village nervously. It was littered with the carnage from their battle. Liz didn’t blame the petite woman for being nervous. She was nervous herself.
“We need a vehicle, but that will come later,” Blair interjected, already starting towards the jungle. “If he’s in there, then he’ll have to move at the same pace we do. Once we’re on the other side, somewhere in Columbia, we can find a jeep or a boat or something. We know this world better than he does, so that gives us a small advantage.”
“Agreed,” Jordan said, striding after Blair. Liz trotted after, and Bridget brought up the rear. “There’s an airport in Panama where Mohn keeps some of its aircraft. There’s no way they had time to change security, so if we can get there I can probably find us a helicopter. Maybe even a jet. Assuming any of it survived the CME.”
“That might work. If the Mother’s memory is correct, we’re looking at San Francisco, so if Irakesh goes by land he’ll have to pass through Panama. We can follow him that far, then fly north if we haven’t caught up to him by then,” Blair said as Jordan fell into step beside him. It surprised Liz how friendly the two had grown since Jordan had risen as a werewolf. He’d dogged their steps for months, even destroying Trevor’s house back in San Diego.
Liz fell back a few paces to allow Bridget to catch up. She eyed the other woman sidelong, part of her irked by the woman’s perfect hair and creamy skin despite the humidity. It made her feel so, well, ginger. “Walk the shadows. Try to stay a little ways behind us. Paranoid maybe, but Irakesh might have left some surprises and if he did I want to be ready.”
“All right,” Bridget agreed, giving a tight nod. The shadows enveloped the tiny brunette, covering not only the sight of her but also her scent. Liz jogged along the road, taking a sharp right into the jungle after Jordan and Blair. They were a good forty or fifty feet ahead, moving swiftly as they passed beneath the thick canopy. None of them knew the jungle well, but she hoped their new senses would alert them to danger.
They moved north for several hours, marking the sun’s passage as it occasionally broke through the jungle to illuminate a patch of dim undergrowth. Blair moved unerringly forward, clearly focused on some distant goal none of the rest of them could see. Sometimes they travelled along a path; at others they wound through the thick undergrowth.
Blair finally paused in a clearing, kneeling next to something. Jordan dropped back next to a tree, rifle cradled in both massive arms as he scanned the area. Ever the perpetual soldier. Liz glided into the clearing, crouching next to Blair.
“What did you find?” she asked, pitching her voice low. It was swallowed by the cacophony of the jungle, monkeys chattering, water dripping and a hundred other sounds.
“There’s blood on these leaves,” Blair replied, holding up a scarlet-stained leaf for her perusal. “Someone was killed here. Maybe several someones. I think it happened as recently as yesterday, but I’m not a forensic scientist or anything. Just my gut call based on how it smells.”
“What do you think- ,” Liz began, but the jungle exploded around them. Bullets ripped through the clearing, catching Blair in the chest. He was blasted backwards, rolling through undergrowth as the barrage continued. Liz dove for cover, huddling behind a tree. A bullet punched through the bark near her head, setting her ears ringing.
“Liz, see if you can get behind them,” Jordan bellowed, popping out from behind the tree where he’d taken cover. He sighted down the barrel of his rifle, squeezing off a noisy trio of shots. Then he dropped back into cover. A woman screamed in the distance and a shape plummeted from a tree. The next time Jordan fired it came from the opposite side of the tree.
Liz closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She summoned the shadows, feeling their cool embrace wrap around her. She glided silently through the jungle towards the gunfire. It came from at least four different places she could identify. There were probably more that she couldn’t. What the hell had they stumbled into?
She leapt into the air, seizing a thick branch. She used it to swing herself atop a perch in a neighboring tree. It afforded her a great vantage. There were five opponents, each carrying an old carbine rifle. Those she recognized. They were .308s, the kind her brother used for hunting. Although they were incredibly accurate they didn’t hold many rounds and sucked at close range. They were also slow to reload.
Their opponents were spread out along the jungle floor, which meant she now had the high ground. They seemed unaware of her. Perfect.
Don’t kill them. A voice rang through her mind, powerful and clear. She recognized it as Blair, though the voice was much stronger than it had been even a few weeks ago. I will handle this.
He must have sent the message to all of them. Bridget hadn’t attacked despite having time to get into position, and Jordan huddled behind his tree waiting. Liz relaxed, deciding to wait and see what Blair would do.
He rose to his feet striding towards his assailants. His wounds had already healed. Another burst of gunfire lit the clearing, but Blair blurred to the right as the bullets ripped apart the foliage where he’d been standing. He blurred again, landing next to the root of a tree so thick that it blocked his body below the neck. What was he doing?
Blair extended a palm as he gazed up into the trees, then closed it into a fist. Tendrils of blue light shot from his hands, very similar to the ability Ahiga had used on her back in Acapulco. All five assailants went limp, weapons tumbling to the jungle floor as their bodies followed. Blair walked forward, stopping in their midst. None rose, though she could still hear their frantic heartbeats. Bridget appeared near Blair a moment later, already having shifted into a terrifying silver beast. Great, she’d be naked later. Again.
Liz leapt into the air, keeping her human form as she landed nimbly near Blair. It was getting easier to perform super human feats without needing to shift. That was advantageous. If nothing else it saved her from losing yet another set of clothing.
“They’re Peruvian national police,” Blair said, staring fixedly at one of the men they’d captured. The man’s bearded face had landed in the mud, coating it in sticky brown goop. “This one is their leader. They were patrolling this area because s
omeone wiped out one of their hunting parties here.”
The man’s eyes widened and he began to quiver. The scent of terror was overpowering. Blair turned to face her as Jordan moved cautiously to their position. “The bodies were eaten. All they found were bones, and they looked like they’d been gnawed. They assume we’re deathless like Irakesh. Better to shoot first and I can’t say I blame them. It’s been bad from what little I glimpsed.”
“You pulled all that from his mind?” Bridget asked. Liz didn’t think the awe was feigned.
“I’m used to having to deal with you ladies when using my powers,” Blair explained, offering a genuine smile. Why did it bother Liz so much that it was directed at Bridget? “These guys have no defenses. None. I can just sort of take what I want. Speaking of which, they have jeeps. Six of them. Back at their camp. There are about thirty-five of them and they’re terrified. They don’t know what to do other than hide in the jungle.”
“This one is the leader?” Jordan asked, slinging his rifle strap over his shoulder as he knelt next to the terrified man. “Can he understand English?”
“He doesn’t speak it well, but that shouldn’t matter to you. You can learn Spanish just by pulling it from his mind,” Blair explained. His tone was dispassionate, as if he were talking about reading data from a computer.
“You can’t do that,” Liz said, recoiling from Blair. “That’s rape, just in a different way. They’re not your playthings. Let them go.”
“Liz, if I let them go, they’ll try to kill us and we’ll end up killing them,” Blair protested, turning his full attention on her. “If you ask me to I will, but I think it’s a bad idea.”
“They aren’t going to kill us,” Jordan said, squatting next to the leader and withdrawing the hand cannon holstered on his thigh. “Just tell them we want to borrow a ride. They saw Blair do that Jedi magic shit. Bridget is a nine foot werewolf. They’re going to quietly do whatever we ask and hope we go away without killing anyone.”
“We’ll cooperate. Just do not kill us,” the man protested in ragged English. It sounded as if he could barely move his face. He looked pathetic in the mud there. Liz felt horrible for inflicting this on the man, even indirectly. “You can take one of our jeeps. We’ll even give you a little food. Just go away and do not hurt us. That’s all we ask.”
“All right,” Blair said. He gave a shrug and opened his fist. Their captives relaxed as one, suddenly in control of their bodies again. They scrambled away from Bridget as fast as they could, huddling near the giant gnarled roots of a capirona tree. “I do think Bridget should remain as she is for now. It might ‘incentivize’ them to follow through, and maybe it will mean I don’t need to poke around in anyone else’s head.”
I’m letting this go because you’re the leader and I don’t want to undermine you. Blair’s voice echoed through Liz's mind. But you cannot allow this sort of moral quandary to keep you from making hard decisions. Remember when we ran from what we’d become? What if we’d stuck around and woken the Mother immediately? How many more champions could we have created?
This is different. She thought back, struggling to suppress her anger. These are people, Blair. The people we’re supposed to protect. I know we’re fighting a war, but that doesn’t mean we use the same methods the enemy does. If we make that choice, what do we become? There are some lines I’m not willing to cross. You need to accept that.
All right. He agreed, though she could sense his reluctance. We’ll play this your way, but there’s a reason the good guy usually loses, Liz. It’s because the bad guy fights smart and isn’t hindered by arbitrary rules.
Chapter 24- Hidden Rebel Base
Blair stifled his frustration as he followed the Peruvian police into their hidden rebel base, a series of crude tree houses built at the top of the mighty capirona trees common in this part of the jungle. Each had a trunk wider than his dining room table, some rising more than a hundred feet into the jungle’s thick canopy.
Ropes had been strung over some of the wider branches, allowing people to flit safely between houses. It was ingenious, really. Staying off the jungle floor meant avoiding deathless, just as mankind's ancestors had once avoided predators back when they’d roamed the plains of the Serengeti. It also provided a vantage over the surrounding jungle, allowing them to spot intruders before they arrived.
That’s exactly what had happened when their group had approached. The camp had erupted into activity, every member taking to the trees and arming themselves with a rifle. Each and every soldier glared down at them, ready to rain death if Blair and his friends proved a threat. More than a few shot terrified looks at Bridget’s lupine form.
The center of the camp was a fire pit surrounded by logs set far enough back to serve as comfortable seating. It was ringed by the six jeeps he'd seen in the leader's mind, each battered vehicle painted with the same olive so many militaries seemed to favor. He wasn’t sure how they’d even gotten them into the jungle, but the jeeps must be nimble if they’d made it this far. That would prove useful, though he wondered if fuel would be an issue.
“They are scared,” Rodrigo said, glancing up at his compatriots before turning back to Liz. His face was still covered in mud but still noble somehow. Blair noticed that his hand never strayed too close to the pistol at his side. The rifle was slung over his shoulder, as non-threatening as he could make it. Having just been inside of the man’s mind, none of this surprised him. “I will not ask them to come down unless you insist. If all you wish is a vehicle, the sooner you take it the better for all.”
“We’ll be away shortly,” Liz said, pointedly ignoring Blair as she walked next to the dark-haired leader. That irked him, though he understood her reasoning. Maybe she was even right about him being too callous. It was a fine line to walk, one he knew he struggled with. “We don’t have time to waste. We’re chasing the thing that killed your people.”
“What did this?” Rodrigo asked, flinching when Liz reached up to comb her fingers through her hair. “We have run afoul of zombies, but there has been nothing else like the strangers who devoured our people. We heard the gunshots, but when we arrived they were all dead. They should have been able to reach the trees. Or at least run away, yet all of them were killed within just a few feet of each other. Their bodies were just…gone. It makes no sense.”
“Blair?” Liz asked, pausing at the circle of jeeps to face him.
“This was done by one of the deathless,” Blair explained, stepping forward to join them. He pointed up at the trees. “These defenses will work for now, because the deathless are still stupid and slow. That will change as they feed. They’ll get stronger and smarter. The thing that killed and ate your people was more advanced than the zombies you’ve seen. Much more. If we don’t stop him he’ll help his kind take over everything. Even if he doesn't you’re still going to face things you can’t deal with here.”
Bridget’s silver form joined their little group, but Rodrigo refused to look at her. He’d gone even more pale.
“How do we defend ourselves then? If we cannot hide here, we have nowhere else to go,” he explained, shoulders slumping. “Our people haven’t given up, but many are beginning to despair.”
“You’re not going go be able to do it here,” Jordan rumbled as he joined their little group. He gave an expansive gesture toward the southern wall of foliage. “You can escape quickly, but since it’s so open your enemies can come at you from all directions. You need somewhere with choke points so you can manage the flow of enemies. I don’t know that you’re going to find it in a jungle.”
“Even if we can, food is an issue,” Rodrigo admitted with a sigh. He leaned against one of the jeeps. “The jungle has enough of a bounty to sustain us, but many of our hunting parties do not return. Most went by themselves or as a pair. Yesterday we sent a larger party for the first time. As you know, they were killed by this, what did you call it? Deathless.”
“There is an option, but it’s dangerous,�
�� Blair offered. It was crazy, but it was the only option he could think of. “There is a mine up in the mountains, about two days from here. Yanacocha. If you go there you will find a pyramid. Inside is a woman of incredible power, one we call the Mother. If you approach her and ask for aid, she can protect you from the deathless and see that you have food.”
“He’s right,” Liz agreed with a quick nod. Blair was genuinely surprised after their disagreement. “Getting there will be challenging, but if you treat her with respect, she’ll probably help you.”
“I’m guessing she’ll take you to Cajamarca,” he added. Blair removed his hat, squeezing it like a rag to ring out the sweat. “We’ve started gathering refugees there and they could use the protection you can offer. If some of you are willing to take a chance, you may even accept the gift from her. You could become like Bridget over there, strong enough to protect your people.”
“Whatever you choose is your decision,” Liz said, walking over to the jeep. “We won’t interfere, so long as you give us one of these. You offered food, but since it sounds like you’re struggling we don’t want to burden you further. We can fend for ourselves as long as you give us enough gas to get out of Columbia.”
“You can take this one. It has a full tank, which will get you as far as Columbia,” Rodrigo explained, opening the door and gesturing to Liz.
“How do we get out of the Jungle?” Liz asked, moving past Rodrigo and sliding into the driver’s seat.
“Follow that trail to the north. It winds down a steep road, but if you are careful you will be fine until it levels out. You will emerge along the bank of the Amazon, just across the border into Columbia. It’s not an easy journey, perhaps five or six days if you drive all day,” he explained, visibly relieved when Liz slammed the door behind her.