"Did you notice anything from the tracks?" Rob asked a stern-looking bronze-chested man in his 40s. The man was squatting down to observe the barely noticeable tracks left by Arash under the harsh rain. At the moment, Rob and a group of experienced trackers were gathering at the spot where he left his client before rushing off to the village. It was quite near to the village's west-side, perhaps just 30 minutes away with a light jog. All of them were drenched wet with a sudden rainstorm. However, nobody proposed to stop the search. Rob felt so thankful for that. The earlier they set out to find Mr. Arash's trace, the chances were higher for him to be found safe and sound.

 

The man squatted down to touch the surface of the forest floor and the leaves of the nearby tree.

 

"This way. We need to be faster. The rain will wash off all tracks in a few minutes."

 

They immediately moved at a fast pace in the darkness.

 

...

"He stopped here and move that way. However, I'm not too sure how far. The rain is too strong." A group of drenched aborigines with powerful builds and the fully-clad Rob congregated around the lead tracker in the darkened forest. Night had fully descended upon them as they braved the harsh rain towards the second location. A few of them were holding a torch made from wood tied with rubber to light the way. The hissing sounds of water were heard as droplets of rain tried to extinguish the roaring fire from the torches. Rob held his own water-resistant torchlight and tried his best to observe the marks left by Mr. Arash. However, low visibility due to the rain had prevented him. If the tracker was not with him, he would've totally overlooked it. 

 

Rob scrunched his brow with contemplation. He didn't understand why did Mr. Arash ignored his advice and changed direction. Mr. Arash must have a good reason. During the short interaction between him and his client, he had ascertained that Mr. Arash was a person who was very easy to work with and listened to advise well. He didn't act tough as he understood that he lacked knowledge and willing to learn earnestly. Mr. Arash had given him an excellent impression before. He tried to question the tracker's judgment, just to be sure, but his words were stuck in his mouth as his eyes immediately went wide!

 

His torchlight had inadvertently shone towards a large reticulated python jumping from a big tree behind the tracker with its fishy maw opened wide! The aggressive python was as thick as his thigh!

 

"Shoot!! Behind you! Move!!!" Rob shouted and dashed to the side with the tracker in tow.

 

A group of Bateq men immediately retreated and moved into a formation. They expertly flung their blowpipes to their mouth and aimed at the attacking python.

 

As if there was a tacit agreement between them, six darts simultaneously flew by to hit directly at the python's head as it landed on the ground. It immediately shuddered for a few seconds before collapsing. It was a well-known fact that the darts used by the aborigines contained strong tranquilizers, although no one knew the specific details. It was the Bateq people's trade secret.

 

"Thank you for saving my life, Mr. Robbie. Now we knew why your friend changed his direction. Most probably, he inadvertently saw the large snake when he was on his way to our village." The head tracker explained while heaving a relieved sigh.

 

Rob shivered slightly, not knowing whether it was from the biting cold of the harsh rain, or from the fear of brushing with death. He had passed through this particular shrubbery in haste to help Mat a few hours before.

 

"Let's continue." The way the tracker was looking at Rob was a lot friendlier after the incident. Rob saw three young aborigines carried the large python back towards the village as they separated from the main search and rescue team. In his heart, he was thinking while sweating.

 

They could really eat anything..

 

...

Two hours had passed by, and the rain had lightened significantly as the group of search and rescue team covered a few kilometers. Rob was getting more and more desperate behind the leading tracker. However, the tracker was very calm and composed; he didn't let any distractions disturbed his concentration to follow the minute details left behind by the outsider. From the looks of it, the outsider might have been severely injured but still pushed forward, although in the wrong direction. He felt a slight admiration towards the missing outsider.

 

"Did anyone of you covered this area from the first search?" He suddenly stopped and turned towards the other aborigines behind him while asking a question in Bateq language. Since Rob didn't understand the traditional language of the aborigines, he quietly stood at the side while observing his helpers conversing with each other. Most probably, they were discussing important things about the search party.

 

"Nyatuh and I had come to this area." A young man stood out to explain.

 

"Where is Nyatuh?" The lead tracker had found some suspicious-looking trail and wished to confirm a few details with the first wave of trackers. Since the first wave was a broad search, they had to use a lot of personnel. A lot of young men had volunteered willingly to help, though their tracking ability wasn't that great. However, Pak Jaya still let them since it was still quite early and the signs should be clear enough for them to detect any anomaly in the forest.

 

"Nyatuh had gone back with the rest to help carry the snake meat. I can talk on his behalf since I am with him at that moment." Tembusu explained seriously.

 

"How far did this track go? And did you check towards the end what was it that left this track behind?"

 

"Only a few paces ahead. Nyatuh climbed the little hill ahead to check, but I didn't. He didn't see anything particular to human tracks. He just said that it was a track from a wild animal dragging their prey. We have reported it to Pak Jaya, but since finding the outsider was a priority, the issue had been put aside for the time being."

 

The lead tracker sighed. These young ones were really something. They have mistakenly assumed the trail to be of a wild animal dragging the corpse of its prey? That's too far-fetched! They should've checked it properly!

 

The lead tracker turned and looked at Rob with an apologetic look while speaking in a heavy-accented Malay language. "There might be a sign here, Mr. Rob. The trail we're following led to the top of that small hill, but after that, it just stopped there. This had been confirmed by one of our young ones. The trail might be of Mr. Arash, although we're not that sure. If it is, he might be in an accident. Brace yourself alright. We'll try our best to find him, dead or alive." He placed his hand on Rob's shoulder to appease him.

 

The lead tracker's words poured cold water over Rob's head as his face turned paler than it already was.

 

In his career, he had never caused the death of a client, and it will stain him for good.

 

A pang of deep guilt colored his mind and shattered his hope.

 

...

An ancient old man with messy white grayish hair and cloudy eyes stood behind the black jaguar while holding it by its neck with one hand. He was even slightly stooped. His other hand was holding a long cane made from gnarly old wood. 

 

The fully grown, almost two-meter starving jaguar struggled to turn around and attack the offending human. It splayed its claws in full and burst with a full swipe towards the old man.

 

A sigh resounded. "Stop seeking death."

 

The old man evaded with a single step and slapped the attacking jaguar's face lightly. The action immediately sent the pitiful jaguar flying before hitting the ground a few meters away.

 

"Little cat, if you value your life, get lost immediately. I'm feeling particularly generous today."

 

The golden-eyed jaguar whimpered with an aggrieved look. It had lost two of its precious teeth while half of its face was already swollen. Starring at the unconscious Arash longingly for the last time, it decided that its life was more important. It immediately retreated and disappeared without a trace.

 

The old man strolled slowly towards the unconscious Arash and prodded him with his walking stick for a few seconds. He then squatted down and tried to listen to Arash's breathing. The old man sighed again.

 

"What do we have here... Where did this young one come from? His condition is too severe."

 

He just came out of seclusion from the depth of the forest and was planning to head to his village. Meeting the young outsider was a coincidence. Although feeling extremely annoyed, he still saved the little outsider from becoming the meal of the jaguar. After all, their encounter was considered as fate. If he was a few seconds slower and the jaguar had already attacked the unconscious fellow, he would've just ignored it. He was contemplating just to take this young one to the village and conveniently tossed him at the villagers to be tended and sent off to town. However, this young one's condition was too severe. His assistance was needed to help the boy to ensure the boy could survive even the short journey to the village.

 

Recently, the number of city dwellers visiting was increasing. Almost all of them were noobs; they knew shit about the dangers of the forest. As such, these city dwellers had troubled his tribe time and time again with an incessant amount of problems and requests. He had voiced out that he wished for these outsiders to scram, but the younger generation in the village had begged to let them come. If they didn't, it would be tough to get anything from town! A small amount of trade had made them immensely satisfied already. Hence, the old man let it go begrudgingly. It was better this way rather than them barging to town by themselves and causing trouble for the city dwellers. 

 

Why am I seeking trouble for myself...

 

He shook his head and lamented. He grabbed Arash by his backpack and tossed him violently over his stooped back. The old man held Arash's thigh with one hand and walked towards a nearby boulder formation not too far from the location. Arash's sorry state looked like a wild game carelessly being 'taken care of'.

 

...

The old man was busily treating the unconscious Arash under the shade of a rock formation when his sensitive hearing could detect a faint sound not too far from his current location. He stopped his action and concentrated for a few seconds.

 

"I see. The kids are finally here."

 

The old man could connect the dots almost immediately. Most probably, the young ones were searching for this pitiful fellow over here. Why did all these people love to brave danger when they already had a cozy home with a roof on their heads and lots of money to spend? He really couldn't understand the minds of the newer generations of the city dwellers.

 

Sigh... I'm too old already...

 

He stood up and looked around the stony formation. At the side, Arash's bag had been taken off and placed neatly. He took his walking stick and flung it high! The walking stick finally landed around a meter away from Arash's body vertically and stuck on the ground like a flagpole.

 

"Not bad, if I say so myself."

 

The old man nodded approvingly after admiring his handiwork and walked languidly towards the direction of the sound.

 

...