Chapter One: Brazil
Shannon slogged through the brown mud sluggishly. The mosquitoes buzzed around her head, screaming incessantly in her ear. She turned and glanced at her companion, Ash, who was faring no better. A half-smile tugged on the corner of her lips as she remarked offhandedly, "Humid, eh?"
Ash stared at Shannon, trying to decide whether or not her friend was joking or not, "You could say that. This constant raining is getting on my nerves though." The forest canopy drooped with the added weight of the pouring rain, ever so often allowing a flood to pour down upon those unlucky people who happened to be underneath it. Unfortunately, this happened more than what seemed usual to this pair of buddies.
Shannon slipped on a root rising up out of the ground and was caught by her bodyguard, Mary. Mary frowned at her disapprovingly, "You should walk more careful, my lady." Her European accent was more pronounced when worried or upset, as she was now. Even a trained bodyguard's nerves have their limits.
Shannon gave her protector, and life-long friend a brilliant smile, "Thank you, Mary. I'll watch my step." Mary returned a loving smile to her charge and continued walking while Shannon kept complaining about the unnecessary distance to the hotel, "It's not even worth the $50 we spent to stay there! The least they could have done was give us the name of a respectable limo service!"
Ash gave her a look, "This is Brazil, and we are in the rainforest. No respectable limo could run here. Besides, we could use the exercise." When Shannon opened her mouth to shoot a reply back, Ash smiled one of her rare smiles, "I was only joking."
Shannon watched as her friend pressed ahead, smiling. She moved forward, ready to shout 'race you!', when Ash stepped onto a muddy patch and fell from view. Nothing more than a surprised squeak escaped Ash's mouth, but it was enough for Shannon to realize that her friend had just fallen into a tunnel under the main level of the rainforest. "Ash!" she shouted, "Are you okay?"
Ash would have replied, had it not been for the very large gun pointed at her head that very moment. A seven-foot tall man held it unwaveringly, until his mind processed the fact that she was not an immediate threat. When he reholstered the rifle, Ash attempted to speak, swallowing hard. Actually, all that emerged was a hoarse whisper, but hey, it was a start.
The man turned to someone who was standing behind him, "Master Fowl, it is safe. I think the young man has just fallen through a gap in the trees. Although why he was walking up there with no climbing gear is beyond me."
Ash found her voice and scrambled to her feet, glaring at the giant, "Did you just call me a boy? Well, excuse me mister 'I've-got-a-very-big-gun-so- I-can-do-what-I-want.' I happen to be a girl, and a very feminine one at that!"
He glanced at her in surprise and replied gravely, "Forgive me, madam. My mistake. However, you'll forgive me if I point out that with that gigantic helmet on, one can scarcely tell that you are human."
Ash was shocked by his eloquent reply, so nodded numbly, "It's no big deal. Um, just one thing though, can you help me get back up there? Or get my friend down here? Because quite frankly, we are to stick together."
The man smiled and was going to reply, when a cool, cultured voice interrupted, "Butler, we really must be going. If we have determined that this person is all right, we have places to be. You understand."
Ash craned her neck around Butler to discover the owner of the careless voice, "Excuse me, but, I could really use some help! Because, maybe I've got places to be too! Did you ever think about that?"
The pale young man shrugged, "I fail to see where that's my problem. I wish you luck, I really do, but as for Butler and myself, we cannot afford to waste anymore time on your problems."
Ash's eyes narrowed, but she became distracted by Shannon's constant calls, "Ash? Ash, are you okay? Answer me!"
Ash yelled back, "I'm fine, except this creep down here won't give me a hand!" When she turned around again, the man and teenager were already 50 feet down the trail, and rapidly receding from view. She sighed, annoyed, then sat down to wait for Mary and Shannon to climb their way down to her.
Shannon slogged through the brown mud sluggishly. The mosquitoes buzzed around her head, screaming incessantly in her ear. She turned and glanced at her companion, Ash, who was faring no better. A half-smile tugged on the corner of her lips as she remarked offhandedly, "Humid, eh?"
Ash stared at Shannon, trying to decide whether or not her friend was joking or not, "You could say that. This constant raining is getting on my nerves though." The forest canopy drooped with the added weight of the pouring rain, ever so often allowing a flood to pour down upon those unlucky people who happened to be underneath it. Unfortunately, this happened more than what seemed usual to this pair of buddies.
Shannon slipped on a root rising up out of the ground and was caught by her bodyguard, Mary. Mary frowned at her disapprovingly, "You should walk more careful, my lady." Her European accent was more pronounced when worried or upset, as she was now. Even a trained bodyguard's nerves have their limits.
Shannon gave her protector, and life-long friend a brilliant smile, "Thank you, Mary. I'll watch my step." Mary returned a loving smile to her charge and continued walking while Shannon kept complaining about the unnecessary distance to the hotel, "It's not even worth the $50 we spent to stay there! The least they could have done was give us the name of a respectable limo service!"
Ash gave her a look, "This is Brazil, and we are in the rainforest. No respectable limo could run here. Besides, we could use the exercise." When Shannon opened her mouth to shoot a reply back, Ash smiled one of her rare smiles, "I was only joking."
Shannon watched as her friend pressed ahead, smiling. She moved forward, ready to shout 'race you!', when Ash stepped onto a muddy patch and fell from view. Nothing more than a surprised squeak escaped Ash's mouth, but it was enough for Shannon to realize that her friend had just fallen into a tunnel under the main level of the rainforest. "Ash!" she shouted, "Are you okay?"
Ash would have replied, had it not been for the very large gun pointed at her head that very moment. A seven-foot tall man held it unwaveringly, until his mind processed the fact that she was not an immediate threat. When he reholstered the rifle, Ash attempted to speak, swallowing hard. Actually, all that emerged was a hoarse whisper, but hey, it was a start.
The man turned to someone who was standing behind him, "Master Fowl, it is safe. I think the young man has just fallen through a gap in the trees. Although why he was walking up there with no climbing gear is beyond me."
Ash found her voice and scrambled to her feet, glaring at the giant, "Did you just call me a boy? Well, excuse me mister 'I've-got-a-very-big-gun-so- I-can-do-what-I-want.' I happen to be a girl, and a very feminine one at that!"
He glanced at her in surprise and replied gravely, "Forgive me, madam. My mistake. However, you'll forgive me if I point out that with that gigantic helmet on, one can scarcely tell that you are human."
Ash was shocked by his eloquent reply, so nodded numbly, "It's no big deal. Um, just one thing though, can you help me get back up there? Or get my friend down here? Because quite frankly, we are to stick together."
The man smiled and was going to reply, when a cool, cultured voice interrupted, "Butler, we really must be going. If we have determined that this person is all right, we have places to be. You understand."
Ash craned her neck around Butler to discover the owner of the careless voice, "Excuse me, but, I could really use some help! Because, maybe I've got places to be too! Did you ever think about that?"
The pale young man shrugged, "I fail to see where that's my problem. I wish you luck, I really do, but as for Butler and myself, we cannot afford to waste anymore time on your problems."
Ash's eyes narrowed, but she became distracted by Shannon's constant calls, "Ash? Ash, are you okay? Answer me!"
Ash yelled back, "I'm fine, except this creep down here won't give me a hand!" When she turned around again, the man and teenager were already 50 feet down the trail, and rapidly receding from view. She sighed, annoyed, then sat down to wait for Mary and Shannon to climb their way down to her.