Chapter 2: It's a Jungle Out There

Al lands on the ground hard, his vision swimming as he sees Dalton and Novac take on the crocodile. He touches his fingers to his wound, and when he inspects them they are covered in deep green blood. Through the chaos, he manages to catch the eye of the crocodile. Almost instinctively, in his pain and anger Al snarls and swings at the crocodile with his hand, dropping his club.

With the wonder of sound sleep, AJ remained in her tent for significantly longer the following morning. After at least a couple hours of extra sleep, she rose with an exaggerated stretch and yawn. The illness finally seemed to have passed. Although they still struggled through this miserable jungle, it was hard not to have a strong sense of gratitude for not just feeling like death. She wasn't much use at all for building the raft outside of menial tasks, but she tried her best to contribute. The crocodile's ambush put a damper on any gratitude she was feeling for her condition that day, bringing back the adrenaline of desperate survival.

"Al!"

Flames bursting from her hand, AJ charged forth with a roar at the side of the beast that was opposite her allies.

Instinctively, AJ stepped over to Al and channeled her healing fires into his wounds. She stared at the dark green fluid that had seeped out of him for a moment. That's so weird. Her eyes darted over to the beast and the "raft".

"That's a lot of blood. I didn't realize how brutal you could get, man. Looks like we're uhh, gonna need more time to get that together. Can't wait for something else in this damn jungle to try killing us tomorrow."

Bitter sarcasm gave voice to the frustration she had already experienced throughout much of this journey. The high of power didn't last nearly long enough to distract her from her aching body and the overbearing climate.

Dalton watched AJ heal Al's wounds. He still was not used to the fact that she could do that. "It does seem that there is no shortage of things trying to eat us. We seem to be getting pretty good at dealing with them, but I wouldn't mind a break from one of us getting bitten."

He looked a the croc, "What do we do with him now? Last time we moved on. I guess we could head down stream a bit or maybe we push him into the river and let him float away? Or we bury him? Never thought I'd wish to be able to google 'what to do with a dead crocodile in the jungle'"

"We could just push it back in. But hey, at least we learned something today. That raft had better be pretty damn sturdy." Novac chuckled nervously, his mind racing with Dalton's words. Were they truly improving at handling those threats? Or was it merely wishful thinking, and the next attack would shatter them? Those thoughts wouldn't help in building the raft. He'd better get back to drafting the next one.Novac finally started to remember. All it took was a little distraction by an animal attack to get things right.

Al would’ve used the time to tend to his wound by covering it with the surrounding soil. Wincing with pain, he looked to AJ and noticed the raft at the same time.

Thanks, AJ. It’s definitely weird to have green blood, which is probably why I’m not freaking out. Hurts the same though.

I gotta say Novac, I’m no boat expert but that’s a damn good job considering our situation.

"I would suggest we eat the crocodile if it weren't for the fact that none of us know how to butcher or cook the thing. That'd prolly be a lot of food. Ah well, into the river he goes."

All done helping move the carcass, AJ returned to camp with the others for another night of sweaty sleep. She vaguely recalled someone mentioning a shower during her sickened haze. I'd be tempted to go for a dip in the river if I didn't think it would get me eaten by something.

Novac's great success with the raft the following day was met with applause.

"Yeah, gotta agree with Al here. That looks great. And I'd have taken just about anything over walking through this jungle at this point."

Novac couldn't help but be proud of his little arts and crafts project. "I have to say, this thing looks good. It only took us like two days. The dudes from National Geographic didn't take as long," Novac laughed. "Anyway, this should make our journey a little faster. Unfortunately, the raft doesn't come with life jackets or safety instructions. Well, let's pack up and get that thing in the water." Novac started breaking camp and getting ready to leave.

Having done little more than chop wood and gather things for the master crafter, "Excellent work."

As they were getting ready to leave, "My only advice from some boy scout canoe trips is make sure all of your gear is securely bundled and plan to get flipped. Might not be as common with a raft as a canoe, but making sure packs are secured and cannot just fall off and disappear into the river is a good idea."

"Does everyone know how to swim?"

Looking at Dalton with a smile, Novac said, "Sorry, my knowledge about flotation devices ends where the TV show did, so I trust your judgment. I guess we should get our stuff in the middle of the raft." At Dalton's question about swimming, he added, "Well, my old self could swim, at least in a pool. I guess that knowledge would carry over to my new self... hopefully."