RETURN

by S. C. Deutsch

  Approaching the edge, she squatted next to Jax, ruffling her companion’s fur as she did so. Jax looked at Ana, eyes soft, then faced forward again and pointed towards the beach. Ana scanned the area and saw that part of the glade was visible. Snick was still in the center, playing with the little creature, rolling around as the pair wrestled. Ana smiled and hugged Jax, grateful once again for the knowledge the little creature had and the willingness to use it whenever Ana asked. While it might take a little while to get down if there was a problem, the two of them were safe up here and Ana could watch Snick for as long as daylight held.

  Making herself comfortable as the stones allowed, Ana placed both packs at her side, then looked directly into Jax’s eyes.

  “Thank you, furball,” Ana said “You’ve come through again. I have one more favor. Is there any food around?”

  Jax nodded but made no move to leave just yet. Ana assumed her companion had some reason for waiting and didn’t push the issue. When it came to surviving the island, Ana had learned to trust her friend completely.

  Forcing herself to ignore both the thirst and hunger, Ana instead concentrated on figuring out how to ask Snick to for help without violating the directives. She desperately wanted to write everything down but was terrified that even here, the government was watching and would be able to see whatever was written. Trusting Jax to keep an eye on the pair in the glade, Ana closed her eyes and pictured herself making the list instead. It helped. Not as much as actually writing one, but better than letting her thoughts run wild.

  Ana sat this way for hours, working through everything as the sun set. She only opened her eyes when Jax lightly tugged her arm. Her companion pointed down, then at her open mouth. Ana nodded, telling the little creature to be careful and to hurry back. She took up the watch, noting that it appeared Snick had fallen asleep. Ana hoped the boy stayed where he was and slept through the night. She wouldn’t be able to see if he rose and started moving about once the sun had set.

  Jax climbed down in front of Ana, descending as easily as she had ascended. Ana watched with slight bewilderment, wondering why her friend had led them through the little canyon instead of coming directly to this boulder first. She watched Jax trot into the trees, then returned her gaze to the glade, concluding her companion must have had a good reason for coming the back way. Ana returned to the thoughts that had been occupying her since the conversation with Snick, still working on a way around the directives. She had come up with a rudimentary plan earlier and was now working on refining it, running through possible scenarios as she firmed up the details. Ana did not expect to get much, if any, sleep tonight, so she didn’t rush the thought process, letting it play out until either the idea was discarded as unworkable or marked as a possibility.

  Jax returned, lugging a branch up the face of the boulder with difficulty. Ana saw her friend’s approach and leaned to the side before rolling onto her stomach and flattening out. Reaching one hand over the edge, Ana grabbed the branch as soon as she could reach it. Jax scrambled up, looking pleased with her success, and Ana gave her companion a quick hug. Diving the fruit evenly between them, the pair demolished it in no time, grateful for even a small amount of nourishment. It wasn’t enough to satisfy either one, but Ana didn’t want Jax leaving again. When her companion appeared ready to again descend the face of the bolder, Ana motioned for her to stay.

  “No need, furball,” she said. “I’d rather you stay here fort the rest of the night. We can get food in the morning.”

  Tossing the branch and husks behind her, Ana turned her attention back to the glade, watching with Jax until the shadows had lengthened and the coming dusk softened the jungle’s outlines, making the trees indistinct.

  Once darkness had descended and completely hid the glade from sight, Ana moved away from the edge and lay on her back, once again staring at the stars. Placing both hands behind her head, she continued working on the plans as Jax curled up alongside and went to sleep. Ana remained deep in thought long into the night, sleep refusing to come, as idea after idea was considered and discarded. It wasn’t until well after the moon had disappeared that Ana thought she might have finally found a way to make the plan work. Rolling onto her side, she closed her eyes and tried to get some rest.

  15

  Chapter 15

  Week 4

  Day 4

  A bloodcurdling scream rent the morning air. Ana snapped awake, jolted out of a pleasant dream involving Jan, a cozy dinner, and a massive steak. Her mouth still watering, Ana leapt to her feet and hurried to the edge of the rock. Jax was already scrambling down, which worried her almost as much as the scream did. Her gaze moving to the glade, Ana caught sight of Snick. He was standing in the center, staring at something she couldn’t see. Another huge scream pierced the air as Snick backed up a step. Ana wasted no more time and yanked out the knife. Hastily grabbing the two packs, she dropped to the ground and swung out over the front of the rock. Stabbing the knife into the boulder’s surface, she let herself drop, hanging onto the knife to slow the descent. The knife, however, didn’t hold. The stone was too soft, and the knife sliced through it as if it were butter, causing Ana to rapidly slide down its face. The drop wasn’t steep, but Ana still managed to skin her elbows while descending. Planting the soles of her feet against the rock face, she managed to slow the fall enough to avoid wrenching an ankle when she hit the ground.

  Pulling the knife out of the boulder, Ana turned around. Scanning the ground, she discovered the reason why Jax had gone through the rocks instead of coming straight here. The entire area in front of the boulders was riddled with odd-colored patches like the one she had fallen into several months ago. Not wanting to repeat the experience with the leeches, Ana stepped lightly and carefully around the patches, holding her arms out for balance. A third scream sounded across the jungle, causing her to stumble slightly, and Ana narrowly missed stepping in one of the patches. Catching herself at the last second, Ana ended up with just the tip of her shoe entering the mud. When she pulled it back, the head of a leech erupted, razor sharp teeth bared. She danced away, using the skills honed in gymnastic class to balance on her toes and avoid the remaining mudholes. When Ana saw the area in front was completely solid, she took off at top speed, heading straight for the glade.

  Ana knew the camp would not send help unless Snick’s companion went and got them. That would only happen if Snick’s life were at stake. But what one could consider as being in life-threatening was relative. She suspected that the government considered a child’s life was in jeopardy only if the child could not protect themselves or was in danger of dying from being wounded or ingesting poison. Unless Snick was hurt, he was still on his own as a full day had not yet passed. Ana had no idea what the danger was but knew the island well enough to surmise it was probably pretty bad. A part of her wondered why she had been left alone for the last few days, but that was something she could think about later. Right now, the main priority was to get to Snick as fast as possible.

  Reaching the glade, Ana first looked at Snick, then gazed past where he was standing. She still didn’t see anything other than the boy, his companion, and Jax. Jax had a firm grip on the other creature’s arm, holding tight as the animal squirmed and tried to escape. Her friend was sitting as still as a stone, only the arm moving as she fought to control Snick’s companion. Jax was staring in the same direction as Snick and didn’t acknowledge Ana’s soft call. Ana still couldn’t see what the danger was and took a step forward, hoping to discover what had caused the boy to scream. She could hear Snick’s breath hitching in his chest along with periodic soft moans. Whatever the danger was, he was terrified.

  Ana softly took another step forward, finally seeing what was scaring the young boy so. She had entered the glade slightly to the right of Snick and now had an unobstructed view of the area in front of him. After taking the second step, Ana saw a forked tongue appear inches from his knee. She knew immediately what it was and yelled at Snick to stay st
ill. He started to turn his head and Ana screamed at him again, telling the boy not to move a muscle, not even breathe if possible. Snick stopped moving and she heard him take a deep breath.

  Ana recognized the dragon from her previous visit and knew she had to get it out of the glade as quickly as possible. She highly doubted she would be lucky enough to have another fight between more pack members this time, even if there were more of the loathsome reptiles around. Ana suspected this dragon was alone due to the details she picked up when she searched the meadow. While she might not be able to see any others due to their ability to blend in, there didn’t seem to be any other movement nor areas where the grass had been flattened. The only place Ana could see where the ground had been disturbed was a single path out of the jungle where the dragon had walked and the area where the group now stood. In addition, she suspected that if a pack had entered the glade, Snick would most likely have been surrounded and attacked by now.

  When Ana screamed, the dragon turned its head and she briefly saw the outline of the body as well as the eyes before it turned its attention back to Snick. Screaming again, she was gratified to see the dragon drop its camouflage as it looked at her once more.

  “Yo, over here,” she called to the dragon, slowly backing up and motioning with her hands. “That’s right, you ugly brute. Follow me. I’m way more interesting than the boy. Snick, do not move a muscle. Yeah, that’s right, you piece of garbage. Step this way. Snick, stay put. Don’t move, don’t speak, and wait on my companion’s instructions. Yeah, keep going, dragon. Time’s a wasting. Let’s move.”

  Ana had no way of knowing if Snick heard her as her entire focus was on the dragon but trusted that he had heeded the warnings and was obeying her commands. Continuing to back up, Ana edged her way out of the glade, still attempting to force the dragons to follow.

  Watching the repulsive creature, Ana suddenly realized there was a second, smaller one alongside. Its body must have been blocked by the larger one, but fortunately, it too had dropped its camouflage and was now stalking her as well.

  Reaching the tree line, Ana continued calling the dragons, keeping her movements slow and steady. While inching away from the glade, she prepped herself to run, dropping the packs behind a large tree. Ana could see the dragons bunching their leg muscles and starting to rise from the stealthy posture they normally used, indicating their intention to attack. She gave a piercing scream, turned, and fled back the way she had come.

  Flying through the jungle, Ana could hear the dragons heavy tread as they followed her. She continued screaming, wanting the dragons to focus on her and her alone. When she reached the area with the mudholes, Ana lightly but quickly danced her way in. Reaching the boulder, she turned and called to the dragons once more.

  The smaller one made straight for Ana without hesitation. It managed to skip over the first few patches without sinking but when it had covered about half the distance, one hind leg suddenly landed in the center of one of the mudholes, causing the reptile to slip backwards. Hissing and flailing as its body became stuck, the dragon tried desperately to pull itself out. Ana watched, fascinated, as the monster slowly became immobilized, its colors changing from those of the surrounding jungle to brilliant shades of blue and red.

  Ana didn’t remember what had happened after she had been bitten and infected by the leeches, only that it had started off with vivid colors that eventually turned ugly and black. She concluded the dragon now paralyzed in front of her was undergoing something similar and therefore no longer considered it a threat. Tearing her gaze from the whirling colors now rapidly flashing across its skin, Ana turned her attention to the second dragon.

  Dragon number two had skidded to a halt before hitting the mudholes. It stared at Ana, hissing constantly as its tongue flicked in and out. She tried to get it to move by yelling at it, but the creature obviously wasn’t going to make the same mistake its companion had. It started to move away, causing Ana to scream louder, terrified the reptile would head back to the glade. The creature looked at her once more, then took a step to the left as it started to turn around.

  Angling slightly without tearing her gaze from the dragon, Ana started digging clumps from the rock and throwing them, managing to get the monster’s attention again. Sidling along the huge boulder, Ana continued to pull clods of stone, ripping skin from her fingers once again. The creature’s gaze followed, but it still made no move to enter the area with the mudholes.

  Reaching the corner, Ana threw one last clod and stepped onto the dusty trail. Waving both arms and yelling some more, she finally convinced the dragon to come after her. Galloping along the edge of the mudhole field, it reached the same path Ana was standing on in less than a minute. Skidding to a stop, it raised itself up and glared, its color now a hideous gray-black. Ana saw it was getting ready to attack, muscles bunching as it hissed and slashed its tail furiously. Turning, she fled into the mini canyon.

  Fleeing deep between the rocks, Ana put an arm over her mouth in an effort to lessen the dust she inhaled. She could hear the dragon’s heavy tread and hoped to locate what she required before it was able to overtake her. Twisting and turning, Ana tried to ignore both the cramping in her legs and the difficulty she was having taking deep breaths.

  Ana had been in great shape upon arriving on the island. Between the two visits, she had spent the intervening months exercising and working on her endurance. She had supplemented her diet with extra protein and took vitamins daily but had been on the island for over three weeks now, subsisting mostly on fruit. Her body had started feeding on its own stores, causing Ana to become progressively weaker as she began to lose muscle mass. Her ribs and hips stuck out, the bones in her face had become more prominent, and her clothing now hung loosely. In addition, Ana was exhausted from lack of sleep and her energy levels were almost non-existent. She felt herself flagging and knew she wouldn’t be able to go much further.

  Chancing a quick look over her shoulder, Ana saw the dragon had gained ground, now less than five feet away. Terror gave her a spurt of adrenaline, allowing her to speed up slightly and thereby gain a few extra feet. Spying a small side path on the right, Ana ducked into it, intentionally brushing the corner as she passed. This caused small pebbles to drop and scatter, alerting the dragon to the sudden change in direction. The boulders here were very close together and even with her emaciated form, Ana had to turn sideways to fit. But this was exactly what she had been looking for and was integral to what she planned next. Pushing through the rocks, Ana called to the dragon again.

  The dragon never hesitated. It flew onto the small path, the sharpness of its turn causing its back end to skid out from under it. Righting itself, it bunched its back legs and leapt straight at Ana. And promptly got stuck, its shoulders too wide to fit between the stones.

  Ana turned her head and squeezed back the way she had come. She would dearly have loved to just leave the dragon where it was, but the stone was soft, and Ana knew eventually the dragon would be able to work its way out. She had to kill it before that happened.

  Ana squeezed sideways, taking another step, and forced one hand down to remove the knife. She didn’t have enough room to turn forward and throw it, so she had no choice but to get as close to the reptile as possible. Edging ever nearer, Ana hoped the dragon wouldn’t spit, remembering the venom drooling out of their mouths when they had fought the last time she had encountered them, and terrified of what the saliva might contain.

  The dragon watched Ana warily, still struggling to escape. Its claws scraping at the rock surrounding it, the dragon had already managed to move forward a few inches. Ana stepped closer still, struggling to control her body’s trembling. When she was within striking distance of its tongue, she took a deep breath. Reaching forward as far as she could while still avoiding the tongue, Ana slashed the knife upwards, catching the dragon under the chin. She yanked the knife up and forward, slicing the dragon’s throat and lower jaw. The dragon screamed, drool flying from its fan
gs. Most of the venom struck the rock to Ana’s right, but it splattered when it hit. Several small drops landed on Ana’s temple and hair, causing her to emit a high-pitched scream of pain. The venom was caustic, and she could feel the skin burning away. Struggling backwards, Ana tried in vain to move one arm above her waist, intent on trying to rub the venom off. But the gap was too narrow, and she only managed to get more firmly wedged.

  Ana’s screams subsided to sobs as the venom’s caustic burning lessened. She had no idea how bad the damage was, but she could smell the seared flesh, indicating the burns were severe. Ana needed to get out of her present location as fast as possible, find Jax, and have the little creature get the fruit used after she had been burned by the blood trees. Ana forced herself to relax, pushing the panic and terror away as she maneuvered the knife back into its holder. Centering herself by way of the Tai Chi training, she removed her emotions from the equation and did her best to look at the situation with a practical eye. Panic would only make the situation worse and despite the pain, Ana needed to think rationally about how to escape.

  Ana now had two choices. She could either try to climb the rocks, scrambling across the tops until finding a safe place to descend. Or she could make her way over the dragon.

  Sucking in her stomach and expelling all her breath, Ana turned sideways and managed to lift her right arm, then her left, up past her body and above her head. Grabbing the side of the boulder, Ana tried to dig her fingers in and haul herself upwards. Unfortunately, the fingers were a mess and she had very little strength left, leaving her unable to get more than a few inches off the ground before losing her grip and sliding back. Crying in frustration, Ana knew she had no choice but to climb over the dragon.