◉◉◉◉◉
Jimmy moved too fast.
So fast that by the time the jungle settled, the python was already reduced to nothing but a torn lower jaw and a short section of neck, still writhing weakly on the ground.
The severed tail thrashed wildly.
Trees as thick as a man's waist snapped under its blows.
Jimmy approached carefully and split the remaining body open with the blade.
A dark, slippery shape slid into view.
A human body.
Jimmy did not waste time.
He had dealt with this kind of rescue before.
He dragged the man out, rushed to a nearby water container carved with the symbol of the Blood Orchid, and began washing away the corrosive stomach acid.
"Ben! Over here."
He shouted loudly into the jungle.
"Come look, do you recognize this guy. Something's wrong with him."
Gordon had not been swallowed for long.
And because he had not struggled, he couldn't, his body had avoided serious damage.
He was unconscious from lack of air.
The moment fresh air hit his lungs and cold water splashed over him, he gasped sharply.
A deep, violent breath.
And he came back.
But something was wrong.
His eyes moved.
His chest rose and fell.
Yet his body remained completely motionless.
---
"Jimmy. I'm coming."
Ben's voice echoed from behind.
"You have no idea how brilliant I am. I figured out a way not to get eaten by snakes, Look at this."
Jimmy turned.
And froze.
"Snakes worship God now."
"What, what does that have to do with God?"
Ben looked completely lost.
"Then why are you carrying a cross on your back?"
"A cross, this is not a cross. This is anti-snake equipment."
Ben proudly showed the wooden frame strapped behind him.
"If a python tries to swallow someone my size, how wide do you think its mouth has to open?"
"It will wrap around you," Jimmy said calmly. "Crush you until you are thin enough, snap the wood. Then eat you."
"Huh?"
Ben went pale.
He stared at the wooden frame.
Silent.
Then very softly, "I did not think about that."
One second later.
"Damn it!!"
He yanked the pack off his shoulders and hurled the two wooden poles as far as he could.
As if the snakes were already lining up.
"Alright," Jimmy said, shaking his head. "With me here, you're safe."
He gestured to the ground. "Now tell me, do you know this man?"
"This man."
Ben blinked.
He looked down.
"…Gordon."
His eyes widened. "Gordon, what happened to you?"
"I pulled him out of a python," Jimmy said. "After that, he turned like this. Eyes move, Breathing is fine; Body will not respond."
Ben waved a hand in front of Gordon's face.
"Hey! Hey! Mitch! Can you hear me?"
Nothing.
He scratched his head. "He's the CFO of Byron Mitchell Biotech."
Then he brightened. "Well, at least I'm not the only one who got swallowed. I was first, but not unique. That makes me feel better."
He paused. "But what's wrong with him. Should I give him antibiotics?"
"No," Jimmy said immediately. "Not before we know what caused this."
He lifted Gordon carefully. "We're moving him closer to the fire. You watch him. I'll search nearby for supplies and check if anyone else is around."
Ben hesitated. "No more giant snakes, right?"
"Not while the fire is burning," Jimmy replied. "Pythons hunt using heat pits and scent, This fire scrambles their senses. They will stay away."
He placed Gordon near the flames.
"Stay as close to the fire as you can, Just do not cook yourselves."
Ben nodded quickly.
Then added nervously, "Jimmy. It's dark now, Maybe you should not leave the safe zone."
He pointed at himself. "One broken arm. One paralyzed guy, that's not exactly a strong defense team."
Jimmy looked at the jungle.
Quiet.
Burning light behind him.
And nodded once.
"Then stay alert."
Jimmy glanced at Ben.
"I'm guessing your friends are nearby too. Let's hope they haven't been eaten yet Or at least, if they were, I get there in time to cut them back out."
With that, he tightened his grip on the Cloud Cutter and vanished into the trees.
"Oh... Great," Ben muttered. "I will… protect Mitch, probably."
---
Jimmy moved fast.
He could feel it.
They were close.
Very close.
"Horus," Jimmy said quietly. "Get airborne, full recon, find them, and keep an eye on Ben. I'm not rescuing two people just to feed them back to snakes."
"On it," Horus replied.
Moments later.
"Eleven o'clock direction They're not lucky. I've already spotted two pythons nearby."
Then, sharply, "Bad news. They fell into a cave system. I can't see what's happening inside. You need to hurry."
"Understood, Stay on perimeter, Eliminate any snakes outside."
"Roger."
Jimmy sprinted forward.
He did not even need guidance now.
Panicked shouting echoed through the jungle ahead.
---
He reached a wide sinkhole.
Thick slime coated the edges.
The stench was unmistakable.
"A python nest," Jimmy muttered.
The smell alone made him grimace.
"I hate caves."
And without hesitation, he ducked inside.
---
"Where are you?"
"Cole, over here."
"Where exactly?"
"Here."
The voices bounced wildly off the stone walls.
Echoes twisted directions.
Left.
Right.
Forward.
Back.
Jimmy ran anyway.
The tunnel bent and twisted like a maze.
Light flickered ahead.
Flashlights.
He rushed forward.
Then.
His foot slipped.
"Damn!"
The ground vanished beneath him.
And he plunged straight into an underground river.
Cold.
Violent.
The current seized him instantly and dragged him downstream.
Pitch black.
Roaring water.
No foothold.
No leverage.
He tried to slam upward through the rock.
Once.
Twice.
No traction.
The current kept tearing him away.
And then.
Something moved in front of him.
A massive mouth opened wide.
A python lunged.
Jimmy's patience snapped.
The Cloud Cutter was useless in this confined space.
He sheathed it.
Clenched his fist.
And struck.
Straight through the skull.
The impact turned the head into pulp.
Blood exploded into the water, staining the current red.
The enormous body went limp and drifted away with the flow.
---
Splash!
Another figure fell into the river ahead of him.
The man was holding a waterproof flashlight and swimming hard.
Judging by posture alone, his technique was actually better than Jimmy's.
Jimmy started toward him.
Too late.
The dead python's body drifted into the man.
Muscle spasms triggered reflexively.
The coils tightened.
Wrapping around him.
Locking his arms.
"Glub."
The flashlight slipped from his fingers and floated upward.
The man thrashed desperately.
But the corpse only tightened further.
Even dead.
The snake was still killing.
Jimmy cursed under his breath and surged forward through the current.
Closing in fast.
Because if he did not reach him soon.
The jungle would claim another life.
◉◉◉◉◉
~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
◉◉◉◉◉
For early access to advanced chapters on P-atreon:
P-atreon/iamxeno
(Just remove the - hyphen to access Patreon normally)
Thank you so much for your support and for reading! Cr