The scenery changed and I was suddenly in a jungle. It was humid and I could hear insects buzzing and far-off and not-far-off animal cries. I started to perspire. The vegetation started to get dense. I only had a stick to help me move thru the brush. I expected at any moment a snake to fall out of the canopy at me, or some trap to be loosed like a spike trap of some kind would go off and three or four sharpened stakes mounted together on some armature would go thru my torso and head. I proceeded forward with care and tried to slow my breathing down so that I could remain calm but alert.
A few times during my walk thru this terrain I was spooked by birds or other small critters flying off or running near me. I had the vague sense I was being followed, or flanked, or both. I didn’t know how much of this feeling was fear or reality. The scent of things changed and I followed my nose to a small, slow-moving stream with a small pool, shallow pool of water. ‘An alligator or crocodile is going to chomp off my head the moment I kneel down to get a drink of water.’ I cautiously approached, waiting a minute or so at each few steps towards the water to gauge how the scenery changed, listening for any sign of movement or rustling, splashing, anything. All that I could hear was the normal sounds of the jungle. I made my way to the little pool area of the stream – it was only several inches deep, I could see the bottom. No crocodiles hiding waiting to spring forth. I put the stick in the water first to probe and see what would happen. Nothing. I crept forward warily and put my hands in the water to wash the dirt off then to scoop up water to drink. I smelled the water first. Smelled fine, nothing putrid or chemical in nature. I put my tongue to the water in my hand to get a little taste – nothing out of the ordinary. I drank a small sip and waited a minute or so with the stick back in my other hand and I scanned the area around me. Nothing. I took a larger handful and drank and waited. Nothing. I took a second handful of water and heard a female voice, “It’s not the water that can kill you.”
‘Fuck.’ Only turning around enough so that I could use my peripheral vision to see where the voice came from, I grabbed the stick harder, getting ready to strike. “No. The water can kill you, if you’re drowned in it.” Another voice, female voice, from the other side of the stream a bit ahead of me. I froze. “Maybe that would be better,” another female voice from some ways ahead of me, my side of the stream. I stood up slowly and walked towards the last voice, “Whatever you’re going to do, maybe you should just do it and be done with it.”
“Oh, no, where would the fun be in that?”
“He’s a mage, we have to be careful,” in a mocking tone.
“He doesn’t look like a mage, just a poor, lost boy.”
“Then let us show him the way.”
“No, that would be too easy, let’s see what he does first. Maybe the poor, lost boy can figure it out.”
“Poor, little, lost mage.”
“Scared, little, lost mage.”
“Where will you go now?”
I magically lit the end of my stick on fire.
“Braaavvve. Braavvve, lost mage.”
“That little fire isn’t going to stop us.”
“That little fire isn’t going to last long.”
“You can’t set the whole jungle on fire, can you?” I replied, “I don’t have to. Just you.” Some laughter. “Then come here, little mage, let us see what you can do.”
“Why don’t you come here, unless you’re scared of a little, lost mage,” and I threw some fire into the brush a few yards to my left. “Braavve, little mage.”
“Why don’t we oblige him?”
“No, not yet, that would be too easy.” I sent another bolt of fire in the same direction as the first to help the blaze along. And another. I continued to set fire first to my left hoping to separate at least one of my potential attackers from the other two. My options were to go back, forward towards one of the voices, or to my right across the stream towards one of the voices. Since I began the firing in earnest I had not heard the voices. They could be anything from fairies to some fell creature or creatures. I hoped that whatever they were they were territorial and that I had come into their domain, their watering hole, and if I left that might be the end of this. ‘How did they now I was a mage?’ Could they sense the magic? Had they seen me elsewhere? A fairly good blaze was going on my left so I decided to retreat from whence I came.
Some few, painfully long minutes went by and I heard no more from the voices, but I did begin to sense being followed or flanked again. I had put out the fire on my walking stick and was ready to defend myself and cast. Part of me wanted to bolt, but to where. I headed back and to my right, having lost most sense of cardinal directions under the canopy. I had the feeling it would be night soon and I would be stuck in this precarious place. I found a tree and climbed up in as high as I safely could. I feared falling out of the tree but I thought at least whatever is out there will have to work slightly harder to get me. “Slightly” being the operative word. I had not eaten in a day or more, but at least I had gotten some water.
The sounds of the jungle at night gave me no relief as this is when the place really comes to life. There were more sounds, more terrible sounds of killing and being killed. Of rustling and crying out. I sat awake most of the night in the tree, hoping to get a few hours of sleep during the next day. Some time after what I took to be dawn, mostly because the jungle had quieted and was somewhat lighter, I allowed myself some amount of sleep. When next I awoke I was on the ground, staring up at the canopy. Either I had climbed down the tree, or I had fallen out of the tree and somehow not broken my neck, back, or cracked my head open. I was famished, hangry, light-headed and anxious, and wanting to bolt madly thru the trees and brush,‘To what?’ I got up, checked myself for injuries, none that I could tell, and slowly made my way thru again. I found no animal trails or other way. My feet began to become wet and soggy. The heat was oppressive. I was quickly drenched in sweat. Again, I had the feeling of being flanked and followed. Was it a force? Was it a force that followed me? A force to confound and torment me? That was the nature of this place – not just to physically harm, but to drive one mad. How much of what I was experiencing was in my own mind and how much was the magic of this place enchanting me? I hoped I would not get my answer soon. I hoped I would come across Akumbabla again, ‘. . . no, not really.’ I had to steel my nerves.
I strode carefully thru the jungle for probably hours as quietly as I could, always feeling as though I was being followed. I once again heard the sound of water and slowly made my way towards it. As I approached I could see that it was the same stream and same pool as the day before. I turned around and left. I heard, “What’s the matter, little mage?” A second voice, “Looking for something else?” And laughter. I departed and spent another night in another tree. The next day was the same as the first two – back at that little pool. Under my breath, “Uh, fuck.”
“Uh fuck is right, little mage,” A jaguar to the right of me, right next to my face, almost snout to cheek with me. “So, do you want it quick, or do you want it to take a while?” she whispered in my ear. I got ready to repel her and her possible companions. “I’m stubborn. I’d rather it take a while.”
Again, gently in my ear, almost purring, “Whatever you like, lost, little mage.” Two more jaguars came out – one from the front on the opposite side of the pool, the other from my left. They stayed a few feet away. From my study of mythology I had a rough idea who they may be. May be. I was waiting for the instant the jaguar at my right would chomp on my neck. The one from my left moved behind me and the one on the opposite side of the pool took her position at my left. I could hear them purring or some such noise, all in unison. I felt the warm breath of the jaguar to my right on my face and neck. This was their game, but I thought I’d try a line, and I might as well make it a funny one as I might be dead in a few seconds, “By any chance, any of you ladies know where there’s a good place to fish? I met Akumbala the other day and it couldn’t stop going on about fish, so I thought I might get it one.” The one to my left started laughing. I heard the tail of the one to my right start twitching and flicking on the ground. I turned to the jaguar on my right, “If you don’t mind, I think I’ll have a drink of water.” She raised her right paw as if to give me leave to go towards the water. I walked into the water, into the pool, I knelt and took a handful of water. Then another. Then I sat in the middle of the pool, mostly facing the three. I figured if I was in the water and they came in I could electrocute all three at the same time maybe, or at least take one of them with me. “Well ladies, I suppose if I were to leave I would probably end up here again.”
“You may.”
“And I suppose you would be waiting for me.”
“We may.”
“So what are we to do?”
“What? You don’t want to be here and visit with us little, mage?”
“I think we are excellent company.”
“Maybe he doesn’t like cats. Is that it little, mage, you don’t like cats?”
“I like cats just fine.”
“Then why don’t you want to visit with us?”
“I have business elsewhere.”
“More important that visiting with us?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“More important than playing with us?”
“‘fraid so.”
“More important than making us happy?”
“‘fraid so.”
“Tell us, what is this business?”
“I have a family to take care of.”
“Ahh, family. We’re a family.”
“Maybe you can take care of us.” So, sarcastically I said, as I was thinking about what spells and order, “I don’t think there’s enough meat on my bones for all three of you, one of you is going to be very hungry when you’re done with me.”
“That’s not the type of hunger we have,” and then the jaguar that had been next to my face turned into a beautiful, athletically-muscled, naked, black woman of about twenty-five years old. The other two big cats slowly strode closer and turned into similarly built women, one of brown skin, one light bronze to tawny. All three had eyes like that of the big cats. ‘The Queens of the Jungle.’
“Do you like us better now, little, lost mage?”
“That depends on what you want from me.”
“Maybe you can take care of us.”
“You do like women, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do like women.”
“Then you can take care of us.”
“I don’t take care of women I don’t know.”
“Take care of us and then you’ll know us.” They strode closer to me, just a few feet away.
“Don’t be shy, little mage.”
“I’m not shy, I’m cautious.”
“Then don’t be cautious.” They were next to me now, two of them gently plucked me up from the pool and onto my feet. Still being as calm and confident as I could, “I just want to find a way out of this plane.”
“We could help you find a way out of this jungle.”
“What would you do for it?”
“What would you give us for it?”
“My gratitude.”
“We’re going to need more than that, little mage.”
“What do you want?”
“What do you think,” and they were touching me, caressing me now with their bodies.
“I think I’m mad.”
“Maybe you are.”
“Surrender to us, give us your seed, and we’ll show you a way out of this jungle.”
“Why do you want my seed?”
“Because we want our family to grow.” ‘Of course, your family of monsters.’ “If I say that I find your offer . . . enticing, but not something I am willing to give, then what?”
“Then you are mad.”
“You should probably drink more water.”
“Then you are free to go if you really want to.”
“Just like that?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll just end up back here again, though.”
“You can’t last forever out there, little mage.”
“No offense, ladies, but I’ll take my chances out there.”
“Your decision, we’ll be waiting if you change your mind.” Laughing, “Or end up back here again.”
I strode away and instead of finding shelter in the jungle as nightfall approached I began to make piles of any vegetation and kindling I thought might burn. If the jungle would not let me leave then I would not let the jungle live. I blasted fire at the piles and fanned the flames. I began to set the jungle on fire to my rear and sides. Whatever was ahead of me I would go right thru it and I took a torch and headed into the darkness ahead casting things on fire to my right and left – out to about twenty or thirty feet away, and turning back to fire things behind me. It wasn’t long before a different kind of screaming went thru the jungle. There were no roars of predators killing prey. There was no cacophony of birds and monkeys. There was the sound of a roaring blaze behind me and to my sides, slowly spreading out in all directions. I would force this place to give me pass. I did not feel as though I was being followed or flanked. I did not sense anything up ahead. Or maybe I did not care. As I carried on I could hear the crashing of trees behind me and to my sides. I would burn this motherfucker to the ground and not stop until it relented and let me out, or I would burn to the ground with it. I continued this to daybreak. No signs of the ladies or any other life before me. Nothing opposed me. I tried to stay low to the ground, bent over a bit as I set things on fire. There was no wind so the fire and smoke stayed away from me, or I out paced it. I finally saw the edge of the canopy but did not bolt for it, no, that might be a trick, the last trick of this place. No, I continued my pace and burning of things, methodically. As I reached the edge of the canopy I finished with my firing, turning back to see that the jungle was gone.
