The light revealed more of the forest as Santiago and Joao advanced. The landscape was irregular. Grasses grew on top of small boulders. The tree trunks were coated with moss. The air around them was cool. It felt like the forest had tiny teeth and sunk them into their skins. There were irritating buzzes in the air. Joao palmed his neck and shoulders regularly to stop the painful bites. "What the hell are these?" Joao asked. "Just keep moving. There are creepy insects here", Santiago said. "How much further do we have to go?" Joao asked. "Let's just chop off the trunk of one of these trees and head back", he said to Santiago.
"They ain't dry wood, you nitwit. We can't make fire out of these", Santiago said.
There was no light but the torches they wielded. The leaves of the tall trees formed a canopy that hid the sky. Something snapped. "What was that?" Joao said as he grabbed Santiago's waist jacket. He was trembling. Santiago smacked his head. "It's a twig you broke, you idiot", he said to Joao. There was another sound which rode the silence in the forest. "Bu-but-but what was that?" Joao asked in fear. He looked like he was crying but without tears. "It's probably some animal. We are in the forest, after all", Santiago said. Different creepy sounds followed one after the other. Santiago held his wheel lock pistol.
"There is no dry wood here. Let's just go back", Joao said. Santiago held his torch and gun in one hand and grabbed Joao's shirt tightly around his neck. "Do you really want to tell the Captain that?" he said to Joao, who became dumbfounded. He saw the horror in his eyes. "Get a hold of yourself, you cunt", Santiago said, but Joao was more focused on what was behind his comrade. He froze in fear. Santiago was too slow to grasp the situation.
Joao summoned the courage to yell. Santiago turned around swiftly. His eyes widened at the sight of the beast behind him. Its large mouth and fangs were closing up on him. Joao thrust his torch into the giant snake's mouth before it snapped at his comrade. The snake wiggled in pain. Its movement shook the large tree from which it hung. It was a testament to its size and strength. Leaves dropped around the two sailors.
Santiago leaned his back into Joao to evade an impact with the wiggling snake. He threw his torch into the air to free his hand and prepare for an attack. He aimed his wheel lock pistol at the beast while they fell to the ground. The snake had just recovered from the fire attack and focused its head on the falling sailors. Santiago pulled the trigger. The smoke from the ignition puffed out of the pistol, and the bullet ripped through the snake's head before Santiago and Joao hit the ground. Joao kept yelling. "Quiet you, idiot. You'll wake the whole forest", Santiago said to him.
"What was that?" Duarte said back at the camp. All the men rose at the sound of gunfire and reached for their weapons. "Let's be calm, men. They could have fired a shot to scare some wild animals", Afonso said to his sailors. "I think I heard screams as well", Frederick said. "Did you? Now" Celso said mockingly. "I'm not lying", Frederick insisted. "Quiet boy", Captain Tomas said.
Santiago loaded his weapon quickly. He poured gunpowder into the pan of his wheel lock pistol from one of the tiny barrels around his leather bracelet. He picked a bullet from his waist belt and stuck it down the barrel before pulling his wheel lock. He did it in a flash. He was one of the best gunmen in the crew. Slowly, he approached the beast with his torches raised toward its lifeless body. He had to be sure it was dead. He kicked the body and stepped back with pace. It was definitely over.
Joao sprung up, picked up the torch he had thrown earlier and tried to run for the beach. Santiago grabbed his shirt before he took off. "Where the hell do you think you are going?" Santiago said to him. "As far away from here as possible", Joao said while trying to free himself from his comrade's grip. "It's dead. Relax", Santiago said. "Relax, you say. Look at the size of that fucking thing", he screamed. "What if there are more? This could be their mating area or something like that. I'm no snake food, Santi. Not today and never?" Joao said while fidgeting.
"That thing must be the boss of this forest. Nothing gets bigger than that, for sure. They are territorial. We won't see another one for miles, so we can relax", Santiago said. He let go of his shirt. Joao looked calmer, but his legs were still shaky. Santiago's heart was beating fast. He placed his hand on a tree trunk and took deep breaths. He realised the tree trunk was softer than he had imagined. It was covered in moss. He looked closer, and the trunk opened its eyes.
"Wait, I hear the screams now. They might be in trouble, Captain", Afonso said. "Gear up, men. We are going for a hunt", Captain Tomas said. "You two, man, the camp", he said to two of his sailors. The red grabbed their weapons and torches and headed towards the forest. "Stay here and man the camp boy", Afonso said to Frederick. "Aiye aye, sir", Frederick responded.
Joao screamed uncontrollably at the sight of Santiago's head on the ground. His body fell to the ground as well, spilling blood everywhere. Joao sat on the floor trembling. He couldn't believe his eyes. A figure peeled off the tree trunk. It was covered in moss and held a machete stained with Santiago's blood. He dropped the torched and pulled his pistol from his belt, but his hands were shaky. He dropped the gun. The figure stood still a few steps in front of him. Before he could pick up his pistol, his throat was stabbed behind him.
The Captain led his men through the palm trees and into the forest. It was quiet, and the number of torches they had made the woods much more visible. "Stay alert, men", Afonso said. The Captain bent down to track the footsteps of the sailors he sent into the forest. His men followed his lead. "They went that way", the Captain said. They followed him towards the direction he walked to. His men cleared the path with their rapiers. "Stay together, men and stay alert", the Captain said.
The Captain followed their tracks till he paused abruptly. "Over there!" Afonso yelled behind the Captain. The sailors rushed to the scene ahead of them. Duarte had taken the lead. He pushed his hills into the ground at the sight of the giant snake. He slipped and slid to its front. "Oh my God!" he yelled while pulling out his pistol. He shot at the snake. The other men followed suit with their muskets. They riddled the snake with holes. "Wait a minute, you fools", Captain Tomas yelled. "It's dead. It died before we got here", the Captain said. "Reload your weapons quickly", he added, and they followed the Captain's order.
"Over here, Captain", Celso said. The men gathered around Santiago and Joao's dead bodies. "The snake must have gotten them", one of the men said. "This isn't the work of a snake", Afonso said. "His head was decapitated. It was sliced clean off his neck. No animal could do that", he added. "Natives", the Captain said. Afonso examined the tree trunk. There was a mark of a human figure on it. Mark was not covered with moss. "A native must have surprised them with camouflage", Afonso said. The Captain examined Joao's body. "He was stabbed from behind while facing the tree trunk. They were more than one", the Captain said.
"Joe, where is Joe?" one of them said. "He was right behind me", he added. "Shit, stay alert, men. They could be hidden anywhere in the forest", Afonso said. "Marko is missing too", another sailor said. Fear began to creep into their minds. "Band together, men", the Captain yelled. They stock together with their backs against each other. They aimed their muskets and pistols at the darkness with their torches held up. The forest was silent. "We are sitting ducks here". Duarte said. "We can't see what we are aiming at and whatever is in the darkness can see us. The torches give us away. We are easy targets out here", he added. He was right, the Captain thought. They were in a pinch. "We put off the torches and even the odds", Celso said. "No, you idiot. Whatever is out there is accustomed to the darkness. We will be slaughtered", Afonso said. There was no advantage for them in the forest.