The sun was beginning to set and they both knew they needed to find some shelter...Illya could feel the rains coming. The old wives tale of aching joints rang true for him at predicting the weather and depending upon where the slight twinge of pain would occur; he could fairly well predict the arrival of a storm, and sometimes it's intensity.
Napoleon just accepted it as one his partner's uncanny abilites but Illya knew it was only the atmospheric pressure affecting old injuries. It amused him to let his partner think he possessed some sort of psychic power...although Elliott often insisted he did have some sort of gift.
He remembered that his Uncle Vanya had the "gift" and wondered what he put off to coincidence, that which could be explained away by science might actually be some sort of special ability that he possessed.
The noise from the jungle animals was rising to a crescendo as they were settling in, readying to nest for the evening; the calls of monkeys, parrots, tucans, frogs and a myriad of other creatures echoing as the light faded. It was the beasts of the night that now concerned the Russian; jaguars, pumas, wild boars would be roaming around them in search of a tasty meal.
He left Napoleon leaning against a tree having dozed off, exhausted from fighting back his pain, He tried not to travel too far off as he gathered what wood he could find to build a fire. Once that was done and the fire burning brightly against the darkness; he set about gathering large plant leaves fronds and brush, piling them over a pair of trees that had fallen toghether on the ground, forming a natural support for a lean-to.
He finished putting the last of the coverings in place, just as there was a flash of lightning, followed by the long, resonant rumble of thunder. He quickly dug a small hole just under the edge of their shelter; picking up the burning logs from the fire, balancing them on a pair of sticks; moving them into the hole.
His partner never opened his eyes the entire time Illya worked silently around him.
"Napoleon?" he whispered, trying not to startle him.
"Mmmm?"
"Come on, it is going to rain my friend?"
Solo yelped as his partner helped him to his feet. "Pain is getting worse," he groaned as Illya got him under the lean-to, just in time as the plop, plop of raindrops began to hit the leaves around reached out, cupping his hands catching some rainwater, drinking it then splashing some on his face and hair to wash away the muck. He took the bandana from around his neck, soaking it in the rain then handed it to his partner to wipe his own face clean.
He settled Napoleon down after giving him another drink of water, urging his partner to take a long draught. Illya sat with Solo resting his head on his lap; planning to remain on watch for the night, with his special in his hand, propped against his chest. He pulled his communicator, trying it again but there was still no signal; chalking it up to the mysterious dampening field.
Illya tried to fend off sleep, but his own pain and exhaustion forced him to succumb to it unwillingly; his eyes began to droop he stared into the dancing of the mezmerizing flames, until his lids finally drifted closed.
It was nearly dawn when the resounding snarl of an animal, perhaps a jaguar startled the Russian from his sleep with a gasp. "Der'mo, YA osel_shit!" he swore, calling himself a jackass for having fallen asleep.
The fire had dwindled away and he threw a few more pieces of wood on it, reigniting it; thankful that he had the forethought to bring extra sticks and branches under the lean-to before the rains came.
Illya was unfamiliar with the plant life enough so that he deemed it unsafe to risk trying to eat any of if for fear of being poisoned, fauna... animal life would be the only source of food.
He looked down at Napoleon's face, looking very pale and drawn as he slept; when Illya's stomach suddenly called out to him, protesting it's emptiness. He lifted Solo's head from his lap, placing it gently to the ground; concerned that moving had not woken him, then crawled out of the shelter, letting out a little moan, acknowledging his own pain in his side.
He checked the clip in his special. loading a round into the chamber, the began his trek off into the forest, taking Napoleon's compass in hand as he began his search for prey. Illya found his breathing was becoming difficult as he held his hand to his ribs, as if cradling them would help.
He stopped, drinking deeply from water that had pooled inside a large banana leaf; the tree sadly devoid of fruit, when he heard a rustling in front of him. He froze where he stood as the sound moved closer, until he saw a pig-like animal poke it's long prehinsile snout through the brush as it was foraging along the ground.
It stopped, suddenly raising it's probiscus as if sniffing the air for danger, then let out two long almost bird-like cries. Illya recognized it by it's features and striped camouflage as a young tapir, perhaps two feet in length and knew they were a prized food source in these parts.
He raised his hand slowly, trying not to frighten the creature as he knew they had the potential to move quickly. He aimed his gun carefully then fired, hitting it directly in the head; killing it instantly. There was a sudden flutter of birds, parrot squalking and monkeys screeching as the shot from the repeat from the weapon echoed among the trees.
He grabbed the tapir by the hind legs with a grunt, as the pain in his side sharpened; dragging the carcass behind him as he returned to camp.
Napoleon was awake as he approached the shelter; Illya soaked in sweat from the effort of pulling the tapir along the ground. The pain in his side was sharper now from having hunched over whille moving the animal along.
"I thought you'd left me?" Napoleon said like a wounded child.
"Not a chance, remember I told you I would not? I just went to find us a little breakfast," he smiled.
"And what in God's name is that?" Solo asked, watching his partner gut and clean the striped beast.
"It is a tapir, the closest relatives to it are I believe, horses and rhinoceroses."
"Yeah, right..." Solo said eyeing it with disdain," you sure it's edible? he asked knowing his partner would eat just about anything.
"Yes very much so...it is considered a delicacy in this part of the world."
"Yeah, so are grubs and scorpions, but you won't be catching me eathing them."
"Grubs are a very good source of protein, though fried scorpions do taste a bit fishy." the Russian grinned.
"Thank you so much for sharing those little tid bits of knowledge." Napoleon said with disgust.
Illya skewered the skinned beast on a large branch anchoring it in the ground next to the fire, starting to roast it in the flames. When the Russian deemed it cooked enough, he sliced off a piece of the meat, tasting it; then he smiled in satisfaction," Mmm, good. A little gamey, but it will do."He grabbed a large leaf and using it as a sort of plate; he then cut off smaller pieces; doling them out between Napoleon and himself.
"I think that we are not far from San Lorenzo," he said, chewing mouthful of meat," but it remains to be seen if you are able to travel?"
"Look, you don't worry about me. We'll get there alright so and the sooner the better, then we can get the hell out of this place." he said slapping a mosquito away from his arm.
The sat eating their fill of the meat when they both froze, hearing a noise in the brush behind the shelter. The two agents instantly went on alert, drawing their specials from their shoulder holsters.
A lone figure stepped out in front of them, dressed in a crude home-spun loin cloth, his face and chest were tatttooed, he had a brightly feathered collar around his neck and wore a nose ring of dark jade.
"Buenos días," Illya tried greeting him in Spanish but received no reaction. "A kua'un_hello," he then said in the one word of Mixtec that he knew, it was but one of many variants of the dialect used by a number of the indigineous tribes in southern Mexico.
That got a reaction from the man, his eyes opening just a little wider. Unfortunately that being the sum-total of Illya's vocabualry' the beginnings of a conversation were just not going to happen. But then he noticed the man looking down at the tapir, still roasting on the fire.
"Hambre_hungry?" he said in Spanish as he sliced a piece of meat offering it to the stranger on the tip of his knife.
The man hesitated, looking at it cautiously then took it; squatting down in front of the campfire chewing away on his morsel.
"Más_more?" he said offering another piece, which the man accepted now without hesitation.
"Me nombre es Illya_my name is Illya," he said placing his hand to his chest. "Illya," he repeated." Su nombe_ your name?" he said gesturing towards the he repeated his name again pointing to his chest, then pointed to his partner."Napoleon." He repeated their names again pointing each time.
"Do you think the 'me Tarzan you Jane' thing is going to work here?" Napoleon whispered, smiling at the man.
"EEl-ya" the man repeated, pointing to Kuryakin," NAH-ruh-yon" he said gesturing to Solo.
"Si..that is right." Illya smiled, mumbling that the man pronounced his name better than his partner did.
"Su nombre?" Illya repeated again.
"Teysi Ñaña_jaguar claw." The man pointed to himself.
"A kua'un Tesyi Ñana," Illya repeated his greeting to him trying to be polite.
"Kobaadín EEl-ya," he responded in kind, then proceeded to speak rapidly, assuming the Kuryakin understood him.
"No no, my friend, no entiendo_I do not understand?"Illya indicated with hand gestures.
"I wonder if he knows the way to San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán? Napoleon whispered.
Teysi Ñaña reacted to that name."Tenochtitlán?" he repeated.
"Si, Tenochtitlán" Illya said, gesturing as if they were lost and needed to find it.
"Ñuu...Tenochtitlán cua kuku" Teysi Ñaña gestured with his fingers like someone walking, then pointed.
"I think we just found out which way to go," Napoleon said, suddenly breaking into a fit of coughing.
Teysi reached into a pouch at his side offering a small leaf to Solo, who refused it with a wave of his hand. The man seemed to understand, putting the leaf in his own mouth, beginning to chew it; then offered another to the agent.
Napoleon accepted it tentatively this time, giving it a sniff before he put it into his mouth. Once tasting it he smiled as it had a pleasant taste and instantly soothed his breathing.
"Vexi," Teysi gestured to them to come with him, then made a movement to his mouth indicating to eat, saying "kaxi...Tenochtitlán". Apparently he was inviting them to come eat with him...perhaps at San Lorenzo.
Illya kicked dirt on the fire, extinguishing it; then helped his partner up to his feet. This time Solo found it almost impossible to stand with the pain in his back that was now shooting down into one of his legs; relying on Illya and now Teysi Ñaña to help him as they disappeared slowly into the jungle again.