Survivors

4. Facing Mothernature

The jungle swallowed them like the gaping mouth of a huge green monster. They had hardly penetrated several yards into the vegetation and could no longer hear the town activity behind them. Their ears were filled with the hollow sound of silence, as if the wilderness saw them coming observing them attentively like strangers entering a forbidden land. Animals weren't present at the edge of the forest, near the towns.

"Another ten miles east and we reach the peak of wildlife activity", Dr.Nelson announced.

"How long do you reckon?" Gills asked.

"In the dense jungle, you may be surprised to how slow we travel, each mile will take us approximately forty five minutes, walking at a regular pace" Jake explained, "the entire trek will take us eight hours with a few short breathers and pauses to eat". Steve the shy cameraman sighed, he looked already exhausted, even though the expedition was only at its beginning.

"You're ok?" Jake inquired, "What's your name already? Steve?" He felt guilty almost forgetting the man's name. Steve hadn't peeped a word since their departure; the guy was almost invisible to Jake's eyes.

"Yeah I'm fine, it's the first time I go out here" he replied a little anxious.

"A man needs challenges, I would've hoped your father had told you that, you've got to toughen up son" Jake went on, giving the guy a friendly tap on the shoulder.

"Why?" Steve then demanded. "Nowadays, being tough has no point"

Jake laughed.

"Oh yes it does Steve, well for me it does. The way I find joy in life is in proudness, I look back at my achievements and I feel remarkable to myself, not to others but to my ego only, not in a selfish way. Had I lived a normal childhood with a mom and dad I would've maybe not made this tight decision, but destiny pulled me in this direction, and in my self-consciousness I feel like it is the right one for me. In my opinion a life that is not worthy of an interesting story isn't a life lived to its full potential. You have to give yourself challenges, pushing yourself harder every time, surpassing your boundaries throughout your living days is the true and only way of understanding life, and learning new things about the world and your own passion. A life with no goal is a life with no meaning. Living is not about being above others, but being above your past self. Think of that path and you'll see the beauty of the world with a whole other perspective. Nothing is more enlightening in life to deserve your rewards and to look back at the path you drew, as a hero." Jake was quite proud of his speech, he hoped he had motivated the man to undertake a greater adventure and move on towards a better future in life.

Jake and Steve caught up with the others, who had almost disappeared behind the bushes and vines. They walked and walked, hauling their heavy backpacks, the plants occasionally slithered between their legs, almost making Alexandra tumble. Jake had his knife sheathed alongside his hip, attached to his belt, for quick and easy access. As he moved in hostile environments, he tended to look around him all the time, and mostly at the ground, gathering local resources when he had the opportunity. He would sporadically flip over dead tree trunks for insects, scrape off bark for tinder or even collect plants.

As they made their way deeper into the jungle, their surroundings became darker, the canopy was high and thick, blocking out a fair portion of the sunlight, and nonetheless they could still see around them. Even though Jake wanted to be the last in line to make sure no one got lost, Steve insisted to be the one at the back, to catch the entire team's trek through the rainforest.

"The camcorder's rolling," he said, one eye fixed on the screen, when Jake turned round to check on him. Every one was doing fine so far, Gills was at the front, followed by Enrico Silvio, all the crew members were maintaining a good pace except for one person. Dr.Nelson was starting to show a few signs of fatigue, stopping periodically his walk to take a breath.