by James Somers
Retribution
Sunlight glinted from the metal fuselage of an aircraft passing high above the thick green canopy where howler monkeys carried on with their cacophonous choruses. Given the huge expanse of the Amazon Jungle, it was not so unusual to have planes occasionally fly over. It was, however, extremely rare for them to leave anyone, or anything, behind.
The aircraft was unremarkable. A common twin engine variety that normally carried freight. There were no particular markings either, no obvious affiliation with any of the warring super powers.
Inside the cargo hold, a single occupant sat on the metal floor, feeling every jarring jolt through the fuselage. The man was of medium height and average build. He wore a pair of tan cargo pants and a black tee shirt that fit well enough to show off his lithe muscular build.
A parachute adorned his back as he stood. A red light with a buzzer came on in the cabin, signaling him to be ready. The jump coordinates were coming up now. The man barely regarded the indicator. He already knew when to jump.
He was a highly trained operative. An elite soldier. A man without pity or remorse. However, none of these characteristics would make the difference today.
It just so happened that this man was carrying something within in him that made him special. He was human, but he was an enhanced human. That was how his Fuhrer had put it. A superman, made in the image of a superman.
The pilot hollered back to him from his chair at the plane’s controls. He was the only other person on the aircraft. A green light next to the red came on as the other went off. It was time.
Without any hint of hesitation, the man ran forward, passing through the open cargo hold door. Gravity and wind fought for possession of his body in a tug of war that dragged him down toward the green expanse of jungle below. He was spread eagle for a moment, plummeting toward the trees.
The soldier pulled the ripcord on his parachute. The flap came open. The wind snatched the silk cloth, threatening to rip it away from him. However, the lines held true, and the soldier was pulled back momentarily from Gravity’s monstrous grip. His plummet toward death had been reduced to a steady descent.
Monkeys screamed warning cries as he approached from on high. They leaped away from the tree where he was clearly going to crash. Most likely, he would be tangled and trapped high in the canopy, unable to get down to the jungle floor.
However, this man wasn’t concerned. Just before his chute would have dropped with him into the high branches of the jungle canopy, he released the buckle, sliding out of his parachute harness. Gravity yanked him down fast as the wind wrenched the chute away, sending it gliding off like a ghost in flight.
The soldier passed through a maze of branches before reaching out to take hold of one sturdy enough to support his weight. He caught hold, his fingers and forearms straining with the effort. Normally such a maneuver would have torn muscle and snapped bone. But his enhancements prevented such damage now, and he was grateful for it.
The branch gave way, bending with his one hundred and eighty-four pounds. The trunk of the tree, however, exerted its own rigidity, resisting the pull of gravity on its branch. The soldier swayed in the air, gripping the branch while looking for another nearby.
Hand over hand, he moved laterally on this limb, and then dropped to grab another. Closer to the trunk of the tree, he maneuvered through limbs where they jutted out from the main body of the tree closer together. Quick progress was made, and he soon found himself on the leaf-strewn jungle floor amid thick foliage.
The soldier sniffed the air, inhaling deeply. He had been given a scent to seek after. Again, only his enhancements made it possible for him to actually recognize the smells of the jungle and differentiate them from one another. Without them he might have noticed only two or three very strong odors in such an environment. He was like a hound now, and his master was expecting results.
Eyes closed, sifting through the information his nose brought to him, he found what he was looking for. The soldier’s eyes snapped open reflexively, finding his direction. Instantly he shot away through the jungle after his prey.