at the side of the monkey’s head, and
squeezed off a shot. The top of the head disappeared in slow
motion. The body fell lifeless to the ground in front of him,
taking a portion of his arm in jaws which had locked up tight in
death.
As time returned to its normal speed, Manon
arrived. He was digging around through the destroyed pack and
finally located a first aid kit. Manon pulled out a spray bottle
containing disinfectant and large gauze pad before approaching
Armando.
“Let me see your arm,” Manon demanded.
Logically, he knew there was no hope of stopping what was going to
happen next, but years of experience in dangerous situations had
taught him to instinctively care for his team.
Armando held out the arm. Shock still
counteracted his pain. Manon liberally applied the disinfectant
spray to the gaping wound.
“Hold this,” he instructed Armando, and
pushed the large square of gauze into the wound in an attempt to
stop the bleeding. Armando put his hand on the white fabric and
held it there while Manon started wrapping it tightly with more
gauze from a roll he had found.
Armando asked “Why am I not changed? The
others all fell quickly when they were bitten.”
“I think you are immune,” Manon suggested. “I
believe you would have turned into a Jombi when Rock attacked you
if you were susceptible to the infection.”
Armando stared into the distance. He was
getting weak from blood loss. The adrenalin had quickly worn off
and left him tired. “Immune?”
A shot caused him to come back to the
present. Peering around Manon, Armando saw Pauley holding a pistol.
He had taken a shot from behind the soldier without the backpack
who had regained his feet and was lumbering, with arms extended,
towards Manon. Pauley took a second shot which hit between the
shoulder blades, causing a gout of blood and tissue to explode from
a hole in its chest, but the creature continued approaching.
Manon watched as Pauley moved the gun towards
him. At first, Manon was sure Pauley was aiming directly at him,
but then he noticed the gun was pointing directly over his
shoulder. It was then Manon realized he had forgotten about the
threat behind him; the soldier still wearing the backpack
Manon saw the pistol leap in Pauley’s hands,
and heard the bullet pass near his head, just before a heavy weight
collapsed on top of him, tearing with hands and teeth at his neck
and shoulders. Next to him, Armando was struggling to fend off an
attack from the Jombi Pauley had shot from behind.
The last thing Manon saw before succumbing to
the darkness was Pauley running wildly away into the jungle.
~ Epilogue 1 ~
Tanis knew he did not have long to live. It
had been two moons since the white men had changed into Jombi. The
three of them stood as silent sentinels, guarding the clearing,
since that day. The fourth man had not turned, and Tanis had
watched from a safe distance as the others tore the screaming
survivor to pieces.
For the last two days, Tanis had been propped
up against a large tree trunk at the edge of the clearing. His
shirt, necklaces and other bangles had been set beside him on the
ground. A swollen red lump larger than his fist protruded from his
scrawny right leg. He was sweating, and the pain in his legs kept
him from being able to walk. Sensing weakness, the spiders were
growing bolder with each passing hour, and now waited just out of
his reach.
Tanis had not had anything to drink in days.
His tongue was swollen and his head throbbed dreadfully.
Occasionally, he would return to reality and have a few minutes of
lucid thought, before again becoming confused, forgetting where and
who he was.
In one of these moments of clarity Tanis made
his last conscious decision. Falling sideways, he grasped a nearby
spider with desiccated, stick-like, fingers. The fangs sank deep
into his wrist and soon the pain and thirst were forgotten.
~ Afterward ~
I watched the end of the tape many times on
our way back to
squeezed off a shot. The top of the head disappeared in slow
motion. The body fell lifeless to the ground in front of him,
taking a portion of his arm in jaws which had locked up tight in
death.
As time returned to its normal speed, Manon
arrived. He was digging around through the destroyed pack and
finally located a first aid kit. Manon pulled out a spray bottle
containing disinfectant and large gauze pad before approaching
Armando.
“Let me see your arm,” Manon demanded.
Logically, he knew there was no hope of stopping what was going to
happen next, but years of experience in dangerous situations had
taught him to instinctively care for his team.
Armando held out the arm. Shock still
counteracted his pain. Manon liberally applied the disinfectant
spray to the gaping wound.
“Hold this,” he instructed Armando, and
pushed the large square of gauze into the wound in an attempt to
stop the bleeding. Armando put his hand on the white fabric and
held it there while Manon started wrapping it tightly with more
gauze from a roll he had found.
Armando asked “Why am I not changed? The
others all fell quickly when they were bitten.”
“I think you are immune,” Manon suggested. “I
believe you would have turned into a Jombi when Rock attacked you
if you were susceptible to the infection.”
Armando stared into the distance. He was
getting weak from blood loss. The adrenalin had quickly worn off
and left him tired. “Immune?”
A shot caused him to come back to the
present. Peering around Manon, Armando saw Pauley holding a pistol.
He had taken a shot from behind the soldier without the backpack
who had regained his feet and was lumbering, with arms extended,
towards Manon. Pauley took a second shot which hit between the
shoulder blades, causing a gout of blood and tissue to explode from
a hole in its chest, but the creature continued approaching.
Manon watched as Pauley moved the gun towards
him. At first, Manon was sure Pauley was aiming directly at him,
but then he noticed the gun was pointing directly over his
shoulder. It was then Manon realized he had forgotten about the
threat behind him; the soldier still wearing the backpack
Manon saw the pistol leap in Pauley’s hands,
and heard the bullet pass near his head, just before a heavy weight
collapsed on top of him, tearing with hands and teeth at his neck
and shoulders. Next to him, Armando was struggling to fend off an
attack from the Jombi Pauley had shot from behind.
The last thing Manon saw before succumbing to
the darkness was Pauley running wildly away into the jungle.
~ Epilogue 1 ~
Tanis knew he did not have long to live. It
had been two moons since the white men had changed into Jombi. The
three of them stood as silent sentinels, guarding the clearing,
since that day. The fourth man had not turned, and Tanis had
watched from a safe distance as the others tore the screaming
survivor to pieces.
For the last two days, Tanis had been propped
up against a large tree trunk at the edge of the clearing. His
shirt, necklaces and other bangles had been set beside him on the
ground. A swollen red lump larger than his fist protruded from his
scrawny right leg. He was sweating, and the pain in his legs kept
him from being able to walk. Sensing weakness, the spiders were
growing bolder with each passing hour, and now waited just out of
his reach.
Tanis had not had anything to drink in days.
His tongue was swollen and his head throbbed dreadfully.
Occasionally, he would return to reality and have a few minutes of
lucid thought, before again becoming confused, forgetting where and
who he was.
In one of these moments of clarity Tanis made
his last conscious decision. Falling sideways, he grasped a nearby
spider with desiccated, stick-like, fingers. The fangs sank deep
into his wrist and soon the pain and thirst were forgotten.
~ Afterward ~
I watched the end of the tape many times on
our way back to
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