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THE CREATURE WITHIN 22: CELINA RETURNSCHAPTER 22: CELINA RETURNS?Annie isn?t going. Celina is. It has to be Celina and her a****ls. Their culture has to be their champion ? otherwise, they lose their culture.?Those were the words that came out of my mouth, but it sounded like it was coming from someone else, that someone else had caused the words to flow decisively, emphatically, and passionately from me. You hear about out-of-body experiences and this was one for me.Those words didn?t only speak fervently about the Guarani, but about me. Those words, in conjunction with the ardent commendation given me in the debriefings of the Seal team after the mission against the d**g lord, exemplified the evolution still occurring with me. I received only superficial arguments about the idea. I expected deeper resistance from Sylvia, but her reaction was thoughtful and considerate, as though she had been waiting for such an eventuality at some point. The ease with which I took on and completed the assignment with the Seals drove a stake in the ground marking a point in time when my evolving self toon on acceptance from myself and others.It was how, by the next morning, I found myself surrounded by most of my closest confidants in the cargo bay of an Agency plane preparing for takeoff from the commercial airport in Caracas. Only Sylvia wasn?t there. There was only so much I could expect from her and we had our goodbye in the house before Adrian drove the boys and me to the airport in the SUV. She made me promise to say ?Hola? to the lead women and ask if we could both come back to the villages sometime after this was over. I smiled and gave her a kiss and promised. It was her way of ignoring the threat and focusing on the part that was a reunion. I love her. She has become my rock and home base.We had spent almost two hours going over all the data, satellite images, and maps of the region. The only real trail of any use was from the border region to the first village in the jungle, which is where the rebels appeared to have massed. A rough estimate of their numbers from both the Venezuelan army and satellite was somewhere north of two dozen in the village, but they knew some had been sent further south in search of supplies in case they needed to stay for a longer period of time. The number on that search were unknown but estimated to be anywhere from 6 to 12. Numbers seemed to be a guess.Sam, with Adrian standing next to him, turned my attention from the computers and maps to him, ?Annie, this is as close to crazy as anyone could imagine. That team of Seal you were with was going up against a much smaller force. And you want to go into this alone? I have to be honest with you, a five man Seal team would be risky; a single person, the risk is really high, too high if I was calling the operation.?I looked down at all the information I had been digesting for the past two hours, the maps and satellite images before looking up, my eyes moving from Sam to Adrian and back. ?I?m not going to argue about this. Besides, the d**g lord had sophisticated defenses and these guys are barely more than backcountry guys with guns. You said it yourself. They will only have their eyes and ears for defenses and jerky trigger fingers. They will be unsophisticated and superstitious; and it is that superstition that I will play against them.? I looked around the cargo bay, taking in all the people who had come to brief me and support me: Sam, Jenna, Mary and Steve, Adrian, and the technical analysts. ?This is something I have to do; something I need to do ? for them and for me. I?m not sure I can explain it properly,? I chuckled and shook my head, ?I?m not sure I can fully understand it myself. But, I do know that if I don?t do this nobody else will. It isn?t just the Guarani, is it? It is indicative of all the indigenous people s**ttered over the world. The 21st century world has little time for those happily living in the 18th and 19th centuries. And, what a shame that is.? I looked around at them, then moved to the opening and looked out to the slums in the eastern distance on the mountainside. ?I know ? so one indigenous tribe is saved from civilization for a while longer, who will really care? What difference will it make in the scheme of things?? I turned and looked at them, ?Maybe no difference at all. Maybe even they won?t be saved. But, if somebody, sometime, somewhere doesn?t make a stand, what kind of people are we? I don?t know if I can make a difference there or not. I only know I have to try. Maybe, this is what I am destined to do with these changes.?Jenna broke from the group and came to me, hugging me. ?Tactically, it seems like a disaster. Emotionally, I hate it. But, psychologically, I understand.?That got everybody moving again. We secured ourselves into seats for takeoff, then resumed reviews. The information download was complete. It was sketchy at best. The jungle canopy made it difficult for satellite images to ascertain definitively what the situation was. The latest they knew was that some rebels appeared to have reached the villages, but the exact status was unknown. It was going to have to be self-discovery and spur-of-the-moment decisions.The plan was for the Agency plane to drop Wolf, Preta, and me a few hours from the end village, the one where I first met Preta. From there I would make my way through the villages determining the situation as I progressed.I was comparing the images with the maps, again. Without turning, ?What about my extraction??Sam chuckled, ?I like your optimism.? He pointed to a quiver of arrows lying on a crate, Steve handed it to him. He pulled the arrows out and reached inside, pulling out a small disc. ?Each quiver has one of these at the bottom. Press the little button and it sends a GPS signal. If the signal comes from the villages, we will come to the same location we drop you off. If the signal comes from some other location, we will get as close to you as possible. Now ? we can?t be waiting somewhere close by. Don?t think this can be an emergency support, get-out-of-jail card. It will probably take us 3 to 5 hours to get to you. Any questions about that??I shook my head, but asked, ?Quivers? How many quivers??Mary and Steve moved to the crate, ?We?ve got you covered, Annie.? Sam opened the crate and looked inside, ?Wow, I said cover her, but did you clean out the armory?? He was joking, of course.I looked inside and reacted, ?No. I said this had to be the jungle defeating them. No firearms. They have to believe the culture defeated them.?Sam reacted, ?You?re making your odds worse, Annie.?Adrian stepped in, ?This is her call. We?re not going in there, she is. How can we assist her??Mary went to the crate, dug through, pulling out assault weapons, packs of magazines, handguns, land mines, grenades ? jeez, this was enough firepower to assault a small ? oh, yeah ? a small army. Finally, she seemed to find what she was looking for.She pulled out a flat black, matt finished bow that looked every bit like mine, but was clearly not. ?We retooled your bow. We upgraded the metal to be even tougher and stronger. It will hold up if you use it as a handheld weapon. We all know how you are fond of using batons and staffs. Otherwise, it will perform in every way as your Hoyt Game Master Recurve. We took the liberty of making this one permanently assembled, we didn?t think you?d have the need to take it apart for traveling.?Mary picked up the arrows Sam had taken out and the quiver. ?The bottom and the sides near the bottom of the quivers are magnetized to hole the arrows inside. Our tests show you can run, jump, even roll without the arrows coming out. The arrows are also the same new metal.? I noticed they were also the same flat black matt finish for the fletching, shaft, and broadhead point, except for the very sharp edges.Steve grabbed what I remembered as the exploding arrows, but I could see the two he was holding were different: red and blue at the bulges. ?The blue are the same as the last time. You said they worked well when you had to use them.??They did. Twist to prime and press the button to trigger. So, what is the range for this to work??He chuckled, ?If you can shoot it there, the signal will reach it.?I raised my eyebrows, ?Wow, impressive.??Yeah, pretty cool, huh?? Mary poked him, ?Right ? okay, the red ones are different but they work the same. The difference is ? and this is really cool ? the metal shaft of the arrow is filled with a compressed propellant. This functions the same way, twist, shoot, and press. When you press the button on this one, the propellant is released and a second later the explosion occurs. The effect is, besides an explosion, it creates a bubble of fire.??When would I use that??He shrugged, ?Don?t know. I trust you will when and if you need it.?They had 2 quivers of arrows, 24 arrows to a quiver. Sam picked up an assault knife from the items discarded on the floor. He held it against the side of my right calf, I nodded. Next, he pulled out a suit that looked like it would be form fitting. I shook my head, Celina was naked.* * * * *I was on the ground, kneeling with Preta and Wolf as the Agency plane took off vertically from the small clearing in the jungle. The cargo bay door was still open as it ascended and I waved to my friends waving back at me. Adrian stopped his wave to give me a ?thumbs up? sign. I returned it to him. I sincerely hoped it wasn?t the last time I saw them and I understood more than ever why Sylvia couldn?t bear to come down here with the rest of them. My heart did a somersault as I watched the plane move from vertical takeoff to horizontal flight.I took a deep breath and assessed myself, again. The assault knife was strapped to my right leg on the outside of my calf. I adjusted its fit after a few steps so it was secure and stable. The second quiver had a snap-on hood over the top. My primary quiver was over my shoulder and back with the arrows sticking out over my right shoulder. It was secured with a diagonal strap across my chest and between my breasts. It was cinched tight and barely moved. The spare quiver was loosely slung below the other. I intended to store it someplace where I could easily retrieve it when necessary. Otherwise ? I was Celina, a naked white woman with her tattoos over her left breast. The b**st changes also allowed me to be barefoot, which I knew would be an advantage in stealth. At least, I hoped.In the moments it took me to assess myself, the Agency plane was long out of sight and hearing. It had stayed low, barely over the canopy and following valleys to remain out of sight, as well as the pilot could. The world around me was jungle and quiet. But, as my senses readjusted to this new environment, the jungle was, truthfully, not quiet at all. My recognition of sounds from my previous stay in the jungle came rushing back to me. The jungle is always teaming with life, on the ground, in the trees above, and in the air, both large and small. Each segment of these environments held its own dangers. The ground was a hotbed of activity with a****ls from panthers to wild boars that could cause quick and deadly damage. It was also the place for snakes, some large enough to squeeze the life out of you or to render you immobile with paralysis or quick death from a single bite. The canopy above held monkeys of several varieties. The Howler Monkey is one of the largest and live in group of about ten. They can become aggressive when their territory is threatened. Snakes, again. Always there are snakes.The air has large and small issues, also. There are several species of bats, some with wingspans averaging 2 feet. Although, not normally dangerous, they are disquieting when they swoop around you. Insects and mosquitos can be the bigger danger, but my experience from my last time in the jungle ataşehir escort has led me to believe that I have some immunity to random bites and stings. I rushed us out of the meadow and into the trees. It was mid-morning and we were still several hours on foot from the village at the extreme edge of the string of villages. I wanted the sun high in the sky when I approached the first village. The jungle would be the most active at that time and our approach might be less noticed than at night. I wanted an impression of the general situation much sooner than later in order to still have time in the daylight to develop a plan for proceeding. It was an eerily welcoming feeling to be in the jungle, again. The memories of Wolf and I running from village to village came rushing back to me. The quiver had a side pocket for a map that I marked with overhead visuals for reference and compass references from those landmarks. The overhead image identified a particularly tall and distinctive tree. I loosened the quiver and rotated it around me to remove the map contained in a plastic Ziploc bag. I replaced it and cinched it tight. The strap over my front contained a compact compass fastened with a snap. I referenced my location and found the direction we needed to proceed, which was ENE, just slightly north of east. I slipped the map underneath the strap high on my chest, hoping the bag would protect the map from sweat.The oppressive heat of the jungle was all too familiar to me, now. I remembered thinking the jungle under the canopy could feel like a wet sauna. The heat wasn?t as overpowering as the humidity. I understood why the people of the jungle were naked to provide more skin surface for possible evaporation, but it really didn?t seem to help much, except for not having wet clothes sticking to you. I had previously become acclimated to the jungle environment and it didn?t take long before I was again.I felt one step better about all this when we approached a small clearing ahead. The map, overhead images, and compass directions had led us to the exact location I wanted ? the entrance to the furthest west village of the Guarani string of villages. I knelt on one knee at the edge of the undergrowth and studied the quiet, deserted feeling village ahead. As I scanned to left, I saw the tree under which Preta had been found and where I had comforted and cared for him on our first encounter. Preta was standing at my left side and I was looking over his shoulder as I remembered that first day and the days that followed when I thought I had left him behind. My eyes dropped to see that he too was looking at the scene, then his head turned to me. Our eyes connected and he licked my shoulder. I put my head down to him and our mouths touched, then our tongues, each of us signifying our remembrance and connection. I put my right hand out to stroke Wolf?s head and neck at the same time. The three of us were a unit and isolated memories didn?t interfere with that.I brought my attention back to the deserted appearance of the village as I felt Wolf?s body tense. I followed his gaze into the village and spotted a young girl, maybe 10 or 11 years, darting from one piece of cover to the next before disappearing into a hut. I was about to move from our position of hiding when I spotted a larger form peeking around in the same way, then moving just as rapidly from place to place, and entering the same hut. The village had the appearance of having been deserted, but that apparently was not the case. I waited a few moments longer, carefully listening as well as watching, but no further movement or activity was evident.I stood into a crouch and notched an arrow onto the bow as we entered the village, keeping to the left side, checking each hut as I passed. Wolf was moving along the right side with Preta moving down the space separating them. I stopped after checking the first hut to find that Wolf was poking his snout into the one opposite, easing the door open, before backing out and looking at me. When things like this happened, one of the a****ls duplicating my actions by visual reference only, even I began to wonder if there was something more happening between us.We were quietly approaching the hut the woman and girl disappeared into on the right side. I moved along the left side to better view the hut on approach. Between Wolf and me, we had cleared all the other huts along the way, Preta watching intently further into the village. At the hut, Wolf looked at me and I motioned with the bow for him to continue. Preta moved to the opposite side and I took up position directly opposite the door with the bow at the ready. Wolf nudged the door open with his snout, his head down close to the ground as he peered around the edge of the thatch door. From inside came a girl?s screamed as Wolf?s head rounded the door?s edge. Wolf turned his head to me and gave a soft bark. Preta and I both moved to the door. I used my foot to edge the door open as I entered with notched arrow pulled back and ready to release.I pushed the door fully open and quickly scanned the single room, my bow stopping at a woman hugging a c***d in her arms in the far corner. I loosened the tension on the bow string and lowered it in my hand to the side. I turned to look around the outside before reentering the room to stand in the center before them, Preta and Wolf coming to my sides.The girl struggled in her mother?s arms to peer at me, then struggled harder to turn around for a better look. ?See-leen-a??Her mother looked down at the girl, then to me, her brows furrowing in concentration. I pulled my long hair over my shoulder to expose my front. ?See-leen-a ?? She focused on my tattoos on my left breast. ?See-leen-a!?They both jumped up and rushed to engulf me, the a****ls moving to the side quickly. The girl hugged me at the waist and mumbled, ?I knew you would come.?I looked at the mother, then knelt to one knee in front of the girl, ?What do you mean, you knew I would come??She looked surprised, ?Many of us have called to you in our hearts and minds. And, here you are.?I smiled at her, putting my free hand on her shoulder. ?Of course! That is how I ended up here.? I winked at her mom.I had her pet the a****ls while I talked to her mother. When the rebels came to the village, they had been in the jungle picking fruit, nuts, and roots. They heard a commotion so stayed just inside the undergrowth and watched as the rebels gathered the entire village and moved them out towards the next village. The men carried things that were strange, not sharp like a blade, or long like a spear. One held it up in the air and it made a terrible noise, which frightened and cowered the people into doing what was demanded. The mother and c***d followed the group at a safe distance. The next village was grouped the same way and both groups were moved to the next village. At the next village, the combined group was divided by adult men and everybody else. Then, the younger women were separated from the women and c***dren and put with the men. That group was moved to the next village and the group of women and c***dren were moved into huts where they were.?So, women and c***dren are at the village with the horses? Where I learned to ???The woman nodded and looked at the c***d with the dogs. ?Yes, where you learned to RIDE.? We shared a knowing smile.?The next village after that would be the center village with the compound.? The woman nodded. ?Why did they separate you? And, what about the villages further down the string??She overheard two of the rebels talking about taking the men and young women to the center village. The men would be used for putting supplies together and taking those to the main camp in a few days. The young women ? she shook her head and I understood. She assumed the villages beyond would be segregated in the same way they were on this side. I hugged the woman and tried to reassure her. Her husband was with the men taken.I took off the spare quiver and knelt down next to the girl, holding it out to her. She looked at it, then me. ?Will you keep this safe for me until I return?? She looked up into my eyes, her hands leaving the a****ls, and grasped the quiver to her little body.As I stood up, her eyes followed me as she moved next to her mother. ?What are you going to do, See-leen-a??I looked at the mother, ?Whatever I have to ?? She gave me a smile that read ?thank you?. At the door, I peered out, then turned back, ?Stay out of sight for a while longer. Don?t leave this hut.? They nodded.We approached the next village with the same precaution. After watching from hiding for many minutes, the village seemed as deserted as the first one, which no longer was comforting. We inspected each hut the same way, carefully, soundlessly, and ever ready for something to be wrong. Neither Preta or Wolf or my own senses were alerted by sound, sight, or smell. This one truly was deserted.The next village was the one we anticipated to be active, at least according to the report of the woman. It was approaching mid-afternoon as I knelt behind cover with the a****ls and surveyed the village in front of us. The large barn structure was to our left and the open field with the horses were to the right, but the horses were not visible. Perhaps they had also been taken to be used for hauling supplies to the main camp. I doubted that feasibility, however, as the going is hard enough by foot, much less something the size of a horse laden with cargo.I could see only three armed men standing between the huts. Three of the huts showed a fire at each, which was the custom of the people for preparing their meals and hard-tack breads. Suddenly, there was movement and a woman exited a hut to check on what was cooking over the fire. Soon, each fire had a woman tending it. Each disappeared back into the huts with baskets and bowls, then gave some to the men guarding them. It became clear, then. The women and c***dren were confined to the three huts, except for preparation of food. The guards were quite relaxed, obviously not expecting any danger or concern from outside the huts; they were merely concerned and attentive to the hut doors and the occupants inside.I remained contemplating the situation. An arrow shot while they were tightly clustered might get one of them, but the other two would then be warned of the danger. Their automatic weapons could release many more shots than I could accurately expect to counter with in a few seconds of surprise.I motioned for Preta to go around the huts to the far side and Wolf to move to the right side by the huts with women and c***dren. Remaining in crouching posture, they silently moved through the underbrush and, shocking even me, seemed to be doing what I had intended. I waited to see what would happen while pulling an arrow out and notching it. I shifted into a crouch, ready to spring up and shoot whenever the opportunity was right. And, even if it was accidental to the extent of what should be reasonably expected from any communication with a****ls, what happened, happened perfectly. At least, perfectly enough.Wolf seemed to become visible first, as the men turned their attention to that area. Then, Preta jumped out into the open and split their attention between the two, but more importantly, away from me. I stood immediately and fired my first shot at the guard standing at the back of the group. Since they all had their backs to me, the other two never saw the third drop behind them. The a****ls were at this point growling with bared teeth as they slowly approached the men. This could go very badly very quickly if they started shooting. I targeted the one facing Preta as the other was now fully facing Wolf to the side. As soon as I released the arrow, I started sprinting toward the remaining guard. The sound üsküdar escort of my approach caused him to turn his head my way, but he had more to worry about than my approach from 20 yards. Preta was already moving and his fierce growl combined with snarling from Wolf caused him to freeze as he couldn?t decide which was the more desperate danger at the moment. On the run, I notched another arrow, turned my body at the waist as if my upper body was in shooting position while I continued to move forward.I shouted at the man and his body spun around to me. He was too late, however. Preta was already in the air and his full weight drove into the man?s shoulder, driving him to the ground and at the mercy of the two a****ls now biting down on legs and arms, which he was using defensively but to no avail. I whistled loudly and the a****ls backed away as I put the full weight of my body onto the weapon with my left foot, the drawn bow pointed directly at his face. He released the weapon, his eyes flitting from a****l to a****l and the bow. He finally relaxed, his arms falling limply at his sides.I had him roll over onto his face, knelt my knee into his upper back between his shoulder blades, eliciting a grunt and moan as the air was driven from his chest. I warned him that if you wanted to live, he wasn?t to move a muscle, because the a****ls hadn?t eaten for days and were quite hungry, especially with the smell of blood in the air. I was sure he couldn?t detect any smell of blood, but I knew that Preta, Wolf and I were.I moved to the other men, each in turn, put my foot on the body and pulled the arrow out the way it went in. The first one didn?t react. I put a finger on this neck and found nothing pulsing. The next one reacted to pulling the arrow out. I looked at him, check for a pulse and found a slight one. I looked quickly at the huts and finding them blank of watching eyes, I pressed the arrow into his back, sliding it through ribs and into the heart. He was dead the next moment. I looked at the two a****ls guarding the other man and considered what I had just done and how it was affecting me. I stood up easily and moved toward the other man lying on the ground, I felt nothing and knew at that moment that I had indeed changed much more than I could have ever believed while living in comfort in Caracas, Arizona, or the resort.He watched me approach him and I could see the terror in his eyes. I could use that.I called to the huts and heads peeked out through the doors before eventually accepting safety and filing out into the open area, milling around the man and glancing nervously at the dead men. I requested rope ? well, what they would consider as rope made from stripped vine and fibrous plants ? then tied the man?s hands and feet together before turning him onto his back.With him secured, I moved to the gathering of women and c***dren. There were more greetings of me as See-leen-a, the women touching the tattoos on my left breast. The c***dren were fascinated by the a****ls and both of them transitioned immediately from aggressive support against danger to the aggressive touch and contact of c***dren. I told the women about the woman and c***d back at the far village and told them to move to that village and wait there.As they were starting down the trail, I turned to the man, then called back to the women. I had a long-range idea and it included having a rebel to use as bait and unwitting pawn. I asked that four women stay at the edge of the trail. They would take this man with them, keeping him securely tied and separated in the open without food or water. Once I was satisfied that the remaining women could not see the man from their vantage point, I knelt down next to the man.?I want you to tell me all about what is happening at these villages and what is going to happen.?He shook his head vigorously. I took one arrow and showed him the point. I happened to remove one I took from one of the other bodies. They were very sharp. I pressed the point into his cheek. It barely drew blood, but he didn?t give up.?You will tell me what I need to know.? He shook his head.?No, they will kill me if I talk.?I laughed loudly. ?Kill you? Hell, we can do worse than kill you!? I put a hand on the head of Preta. ?Much worse.?He looked at me, then Preta and Wolf surrounding him. Apparently, he was very much afraid of those other men, either in the next village or at the main camp. I smiled at him, patting his cheek as I replaced the arrow. He seemed to relax and took in a deep breath of air. I put the fingertips of my right hand on his forehead, pulled them down over his eyes and nose, over his cheeks, lips and chin. I ripped open his shirt and did the same down his chest and stomach. His head lifted to watch. He seemed to be confused by that action.I smiled at his confusion. ?You?re wondering ? what is she doing? I think I should do it, again. This time a little different, okay?? He had no idea and didn?t react. I moved my hand back to his forehead before extending my claws, letting them push into the skin of his forehead as they came out. I could see the confusion add an element of fright at the strange feeling of piercing pain where my fingertips should be. I dragged my fingers down the same way as before, but this time, a ragged, raw, red streak appeared behind my fingers. As my fingers pulled over his eyes, they went wide in horror. I continued, though. The impression had been made, but not enough for the information I needed.As my fingers pulled over his chest and stomach, he raised his head, again. This time his eyes were wider than I thought possible. His mouth opened but nothing came out.His eyes flashed from my fingers pressing into his stomach to my face and back. ?What are you?!?I smiled at him. Was I enjoying this? Was this the extreme element of what Jenna referred to about my lust? ?Me? Mmmmm ? well, I?m a little of each of them ? and some human mixed in. But, right now ? I?m your nightmare. You can die right here very slowly; do you believe that now?? He nodded vigorously. ?Okay, now tell me everything you know.? He knew quite a bit for a lowly rebel; they must talk very freely.Based on the man?s information, there should be another village with women and c***dren two villages further. It would be made up of the accumulation of the women and c***dren of the villages further down the string. The next village would be where the men and young women would be held. Of significant interest to me was that the rebels had only arrived the previous day. I was hopeful that nothing too damaging had occurred to the people in that time.I elected to go into the jungle and move around the central village, wanting to approached the less guarded village, first. This village was very quiet. In the center of the village I found the three guards sitting on the ground in a tight circle, their weapons slung over their backs as they did something in the space between them, perhaps some sort of game by the appearance of their movements. Regardless, they were very much at ease and not showing any indication of being worried or concerned about their situation. I sent the a****ls down each side on the outside of the huts. I waited several moments to allow them to gain position on the sides, then took one of the newly designed arrows. They were so closely grouped, the surprise could be overwhelming.I stood and moved quietly at a walk, the arrow primed and notched, the string pulled three-quarters as I moved at a diagonal to gain the angle I wanted. Despite one man partially angled toward me, his attention was fixed on the ground between them. I stopped, checked each side of the village, finished aiming for the space now visible between them, breathed in and out, and released the arrow. As it flew, I took out another as I watched the first strike the ground. As I pressed the button on the bow grip, I notched the next arrow, moving forward at the same time. For an instant after pressing the button, I could distinguish nothing but the surprise of the arrow appearing between them. They all looked my way in surprise, only one managing to struggle with pulling his weapon around from his back, but the next instant stopped that action as well.When the explosive charge detonated, a sphere of flame pushed out into the three men, the flame, concussion, and debris stunning the men, pushing them onto the ground. I sprinted the 10 yards and observed as Preta and Wolf leapt from the sides into the tangle of bodies. I arrived only a moment later, using my bow as a hand-to-hand weapon that Mary and Steve assured me it would withstand. I swung the bow into the side of a man?s head, sending him sprawling onto his front on the ground. I stepped to him, dropping the full weight of my body onto the back of his neck with my knee. I turned to Wolf, pulled an arrow and stabbed it into the base of the man?s skull who was under Wolf, his struggling and screams ending immediately. I pulled it out, turned to the final man, and stepped between him and Preta, driving it into his heart as his eyes focused on me with dread. I went back to the man I started with. I had apparently broken his neck.The women started coming out of the huts, having been satisfied that the fight was so quickly resolved. Once, again, there was a moment of stunned disbelief before a middle-age woman approached from the group and laid her palm over my left breast in recognition and deference. She was one of the women who had been responsible for my challenges and training during my original visit.My eyes welled up as the full weight of what I was trying to do came over me with the recognition of this woman. I had experienced and shared so much under her guidance and finding her safe and now free, overwhelmed me with gratification for what I had been able to accomplish so far. But, they were still not safe unless I was able to free the remainder of the people at the central village. As I pulled the women into my arms, my tears released as woman after woman joined our hug, then taking turns to grasp me with the soft whisper of ?See-leen-a? in my ear.I instructed the women to drag the bodies into the jungle, then to move the group to the far village and wait for the men to come to retrieve them. I told them it would be dark or in the morning because I was waiting for darkness before approaching the central village. By now, all the lead women had grouped before me.?See-leen-a.? She didn?t speak it as a question, she just spoke the name. The woman took my free hand and held it. ?You speak well now.? She smiled.?Si, I have changed and learned much.?She looked at the group before adding with a wry smile, ?We didn?t know See-leen-a was a warrior.? I only smiled. She looked down at Wolf and Preta, clearly recognizing both. ?You were separated from them ? how ???I put a hand on the head of each. ?They found me in the jungle and have been with me ever since.? There was a lot that wasn?t said or explained in those words. It may have left the impression that I had stayed in the jungle. Was it dishonest to leave such an impression? ?Warrior ? well ? I have changed greatly because of them.? That part was definitely true!I received a little more information from them, then had them moved to a village further down the trail for their safety. I watched them move to the trail, seeing several turn to look at me a final time before disappearing. I crouched to pet both a****ls and asked them if they were ready for what I assumed to be the more challenging of our efforts. They, of course, gave me the only response I expected with my face close to theirs ? licks on both sides of my face.I moved in close to the edge of the center village and quietly watched the movements within the village. The Guarani and rebels here were busy moving things into piles. I left my watching çekmeköy escort point to return after dark. When I did returned, the village was quieter, but still with some movement. There was light still shown from several of the larger huts but I was able to identify the large huts where the men and women were separately located. I wondered to myself just how long I should wait and ultimately decided on the same logic as applied when the Seal attacked the d**g lord in Columbia. I would not wait for first light, but for deep dark of the night when the village would have been quiet for some time and the guards might have lowered their attention.It was hard to know what time it was, but it had been dark for a long time and as I knelt undercover in view of the village, the entire area was quiet. The main huts where I had identified the people being contained were dark and quiet. I knew from others and my own observation that there were 6 rebels in control of his village. I could identify one standing outside the hut with the women and one sitting opposite the door of the hut holding the men. I had seen rebels using a hut opposite the one holding the men, and it was also quiet. It seemed odd that only two men would be guarding all the people, especially only one for the men, even if they were a peaceful people. But, it was all I could determine. It would have been nice to know more about the location of the rebels, but I knew I needed to act sooner than that.I watched the rebels who were visible and it stayed constant. Then, I saw my opening. Someone inside the women?s hut started crying loudly and unconsolably. Even though most of the women being held in this village were young, some seemed to me to be too young for the intention I assumed the women were meant for. The rebels weren?t only in the business of moving d**gs, they were also heavily involved in the movement of sex slaves through the South American region and into Central America. I was sure that some of these were simply older girls, if for no other reason, by the size and development of their breasts.I watched as the guard over the women reluctantly moved to the door. I notched my arrow and prepared. He spoke through the door, then yelled for someone to quiet her. When she didn?t, he lifted his left arm, which was holding his weapon, to push the door open. I released the arrow as his arm rose, hitting him below the arm pit, piercing his side. As he fell into the hut, I ran in a crouch to the hut, jumping over the body and pulling it into the hut as the a****ls jumped over the body as I slid it in.I closed the door and the sudden appearance of a wolf-like a****l and panther jumping into the close space generated shrieks from several more of the women. I reopened the door so the light of the torch outside would shine into part of the space. I put my finger to my lips, turned to the side so the light shone on my left breast and pointed out the tattoos.?It?s See-leen-a ? we thought you left long, ago. You still have your a****ls.?I didn?t want to have this conversation, again, not just now. ?Is everyone okay??Someone said, ?One of us was taken just a while ago.??Where? Where was she taken?? They didn?t know. ?How many guards are out there?? Three. I only saw two, so that is what happened. One of the guards got bored and came for a woman to pass the time. But, where was she taken? To that other hut by the men?I went to the open door and peered out. The women became animated and I had to strongly warn them to be quiet. I watched and listened, Preta and Wolf at my side. I heard a muffled cry, the ground being sc****d, and a scuffle nearby. I could hear it, but the women were distracting my ability to hone in on the direction. I pointed outside to Wolf. He slunk out, moving from hut to hut in the general area. Suddenly, he dropped to the ground and inched to the door, then turned to look at me. Good, boy! I told the women to stay still and quiet.I looked to the other guard and he was occupied with something in the dirt in front of him. I moved quickly to the door of the hut and slowly moved it open to peek inside. Sure enough, the bastard was on top of one of the women and she was struggling, but his hand was over her mouth. He seemed to be enjoying the struggle. The combination really got under my skin. I pushed the door open with my bow held in my left hand. I walked up to them without him even noticing until the woman?s eyes got bigger. He turned his head and I swung hard with the bow, catching him across the side of his face. She screamed, but he called out just as loud. I froze for an instant when I heard the other guard urgently call out, ?Quiet! You?ll wake up the others.?I had stunned the guy but my hesitation gave him time to recover just enough to swing his leg, knocking mine out from under me. I landed on my back with a breath shaking thud. I saw him move for the door, but I sprang to all fours and drove my shoulder into his back, sending us both past the door and rolling into the corner. I got my legs under me, continuing to press my body into him, shifting our position until I had him on my shoulder. I pressed my hands into his chest while I drove my knee into his crotch. I stepped to the side as he bent over and I leapt into the air and came down with my elbow to his neck. When he collapsed to the ground, I drove my knee between his shoulder blades, grasped his head and twisted sharply.I was wondering why my back hurt until I realized I had landed on the quiver. I stretched my back muscles, found my bow, and took the hand of the woman who seemed to be inclined to resist until we got to the door and she saw my tattoos. I looked across the way to the hut with the women and found them peering out at us. I held the woman firmly by the shoulders and told her that the women needed to go down the trail until they found the other women and c***dren. I then sent her across and watched as the women ran for the trail.I peered around the corner of the hut. The other guard was just getting up. He looked at the hut with the other rebels, then at the hut with the men, but he was concerned about the guard. I suspected he believed he was taking too long, but was torn about leaving his post, too. This was going to break apart right now. If the information I had was right, there were three rebels still inside the other hut sleeping, I hoped sleeping. I quickly took stock of my next moves. The guard was looking frequently at the hut holding the men and I could now here voices coming from it. The screams from the young woman I just released had them agitated and the missing guard was becoming a problem for the remaining one.The huts had an open space serving as a window and a doorway. The entire structure was thatch and wood. I chose a fire/explosive arrow, primed it, and moved out into line of sight for the rebel hut, putting the arrow in the door frame of the hut. Exposed, now, I hoped the guard remained distracted by the men as I notched my next arrow and aimed for his body mass. Wolf moved near the hut and drew the attention of the guard, turning his body slightly to me and giving a larger target. After releasing that arrow, I triggered the explosive arrow and the hut exterior burst into flame.I sprinted to release the men where some had already appeared at the window at the sound of the explosion. The first out hesitated at seeing Preta, but I told them to move in either direction down the trail where they would find the women. They streamed out of the confines of the hut and divided their direction, probably based on the direction of their original village. I was focused on the burning hut and the cries and shouts coming from it as the last of the men made their escape. The flaming door to the hut was sharply pulled inward and the automatic fire of a weapon sprayed across the clearing. I used an explosive arrow targeted for the door opening at the ground for diversion, if nothing else. I could see nothing from inside that hut and standing at the corner of the hut where the men had been provided little real protection from the bullets smashing through wood, thatch, and dirt at my feet.I moved around the hut to the other side, trying to buy a little confusion of my own. There was no feeling of relief from freeing the men. The rebels needed to be eliminated here and now or the situation would merely repeat itself.One rebel dove out of the burning hut and I crouched as small as I could, minimizing myself as a target as he regained his feet and sprayed his weapon in a wide arc until the distinctive sound of an empty magazine. I quickly recovered and put an arrow into mid body mass, minimizing my risk of missing while not able to take proper time for deliberate aiming. There were still two rebels I hadn?t yet seen, but the firing coming from inside the hut was devastating and my moving from location to location was having less success at hiding me as they changed their tactic to widely spraying across the open space. The shattering wood and thatch was everywhere. It felt like a hundred bees stinging at me constantly, the temptation being to cover my face and head but that would leave me blind. Something needed to change soon, so I selected two more fuel/explosive arrows, primed them both, and firing them at the same time. One stuck in the thatch next to the window, the other going through the window. The detonation cause an explosion of flame. The two remaining men ran out of the hut, both of them firing widely on full automatic.I covered myself behind the thatch wall, but screamed as a wild shot tore through my right thigh. Despite the pain, I stood immediately after the firing ended. While they were busy digging for replacement magazines, I put another one down with a carefully placed arrow. The other looked at me in shock as his companion was felled by a naked woman with a bow and arrow. I randomly took an arrow from the quiver and saw it was an explosive. Rather than taking the time to replace it, I primed it and fired it into his stomach. He stood looking at me as I walked out into the open. He started raising his weapon and I smiled, not otherwise moving my bow, which now hung at my side as I carefully put weight on my injured leg. I pressed the button. The arrow?s explosive charge isn?t massive, but inside his stomach ? it was.I took a deep breath at the sudden quiet, but knew I needed to verify the condition of the other rebels. I slowly bent to take the knife from my right calf and approached the closest downed rebel. I had already made the decision that I wouldn?t take chances with them. Each would receive a stab into the heart. As I moved from one to the next, I heard a fierce growl, turned just in time to see two things happening simultaneously: Preta in the air attacking a struggling rebel and his weapon aimed awkwardly at me with one hand. I felt the searing pain in my left shoulder, saw Preta followed by Wolf cover the screaming man, and looked down at my shoulder to find a darkish red hole in my skin, but little blood coming from it.I felt woozy, but my wounds didn?t seem that bad. It hadn?t felt like bone had been hit or joints damaged as I could still put weight on my right leg and I had instinctively raised the bow toward the man before my brain registered that Preta and Wolf were sufficiently taking care of the problem. But, I also felt like a pin cushion with stings covering parts of my body.It was weird how the mind tries to handle conflicting stimulation. I was experiencing major pain in two locations, but my body seemed to be most irritated by ?stings?. I investigated absently and found slivers of wood and thatch penetrated into my right arm, side, and leg, the side of my body next to the hut when the heaviest suppression fire had been directed at me.The woozy feeling, though, persisted. I wanted to believe it was the adrenalin seeping from my body, but the darkness forming around the periphery of my vision was suggesting something else. As the darkness closed in over my vision, I had the distinct feeling of falling ? * * * CHAPTER 23: RECOVERY will follow * * * Thanks for reading