Fred woke, as another soldier covered up the smoldering ash by dragging his metal boots across the ground where the campfire had previously burned. The jungle birds sang loudly in mating songs,and the monkeys howled as the had nonstop all along echoing off the valleys bouncing to them from far away. Fred wiped his face with the arm of his long sleeve, the early morning humidity and the smaller bugs had started the ramp up their daily damage reaching the worst point midday.

“15 minutes to we are back on track, let's go soldiers pack it up!” Jed yelled.

“Shouldn’t we wait for our wizard to return?” Uhla asked, a machete gripped in his massive tribal tattooed arms, a bandana of runes instead of armor.

“We can not afford that sort of thing with our limited supply of remaining water, a return rescue will have to be made when our squad has been resupplied, as there is one of them alive and 19 of us” Jed said.

Isn't it funny the person who was supposed to be ranked lowest in the hierarchy, had risen to become an unlikely interim leader. Fred fully trusted Jed, but knew that as soon as they returned to the barracks things would be forcefully returned to the previous order. No matter how good one was at something humans were a very rigid, and stubborn creature compared to any other. He rose and walked to the edge of the clearing on a hill where he slid his pants around his ankles and started pissing down the ravine. Fred’s mind briefly considered all the unspoken toxic traditions, gossip, ass kissing, and bloodlines among all the other defects holding everyone back from living in a utopia. All this thinking that accomplished nothing in the real world ended at the last dribble droplet. He strode back into camp ready to journey.

“EHH AWWW” the donkey bayed as it studied him over real good on the approach with an outstretched hand.

“There girl your wizard will come home he’s got a magic about him” Fred rubbed the creatures soft ears before giving it a kiss on the neck.

A few standing in the background chuckled in amusement. Uhla had already begun to cut the path, chopping through the forest limbs and leaves; some followed him early as the rest finished by loading the mule with much of the packed camping supplies. Fred held onto the animal's lead line in front of him, taking the rear as the rest entered into the jungle first on their path back to following the train tracks back to the nearest civilization.

“When I get to town a round of shlock for each and everyone one of you” said a soldier to another.

“I'll be buying a company of three for the night with my crystal coins, a woman, a man, and a leprechaun” said another laughing.

Fred walked behind silently observing the world with the animal that diligently followed him with the rope tied around its neck. The voices that must be coming from his head, sounded as if the trees were whispering something.

“MOOORAAAKAAA” the dwarves yelled charging from somewhere unseen.

“What the scuttletuck! Who let the mule loose” yelled the soldier who was no longer laughing after almost getting himself run over from behind on the cramped path.

The donkey surged forward more causing disruption and confusion everywhere it ran. A soldier finally grabbed onto the short lead successfully, as Jed and Uhla ran back from the front they spearheaded.

“Got it” the soldier triumphantly yelled showing them the reigns.

“Where's Fred? This was supposed to be his responsibility” said Uhla.

“I will take this 2ndhand beast on as my burden from now on” said Jed approaching.

“The soldier at the rear is sick with some sort of illness or just gone mad” said another bursting onto the path particularly disheveled with vines and leaves stuck all over his armor.

“Fred is in trouble, his mind has surely begun to fall away again” said Jed, his face becoming as pale as it could be while so burned from the sun.

“Step aside and clear the path for the man's friend!” yelled Uhla taking the reigns.

Branches hanging down ripped at his face as Jed began to sprint. He saw the three standing in a circle around something, one of them held a lowered canteen on offer that went went untouched. Fred sat in the middle of them unresponsive staring off 100 yards into the jungle.

"What is wrong with you wake up and drink something?" the largest among them screamed, spitting at his head before slapping the same part of Fred in frustration.

"No be easy with him clear away at once!" screamed Jed running into the big soldier and pushing him onto the ground.

Jed found himself on top of the other man on the ground who immediately slugged him with a punch to the face.

"Smack, crack, snap" Jed punched back three times in rapid succession sending a tooth flying into the bushes.

“MAARAAKA” screamed Fred as he began beating up the other two soldiers, blindly flailing around madly, and then going back for another round.

A sword was loudly pulled out of its holder, and then another. The soldier on the ground lay still knocked unconscious, his mouth involuntarily hung open revealing the new gap and some others. Jed dusted himself off and took out his sword as the other two closed in with theirs pointed on Fred who had remained unarmed. One of the two turned facing Jed with his blade as another continued to move closer to the kill on the other.

“He’s mad. We are doing him a favor by taking him out and keeping ourselves safe who knows what he is capable of doing to us while we sleep and he has a freakout” said the soldier facing Jed, his sword beginning to tremble.

"I will slay you both if that happens punishment be damned, hes my responsibility now and at worst he will be restrained until we make it back to a castle " said Jed staring him in the eye.

"MOOOORAAAAKAA they are coming" said Fred his body twitching, pupils wide open with eyes wild.

"I won't serve with no freak!" the man lunged his sword directly at Fred, just missing the torso.

“MAARAAKA” screamed Fred as he began beating up the other two soldiers, blindly flailing around madly, and then going back for another round.

A sword was loudly pulled out of its holder, and then another. The soldier on the ground lay still knocked unconscious, his mouth involuntarily hung open revealing the new gap and some others. Jed dusted himself off and took out his sword as the other two other soldiers closed in on Fred who remained unarmed with theirs. One of the two turned facing Jed with his blade as another continued to move closer to the kill on the other.

“He’s mad. We are doing him a favor by putting him” said the soldier facing Jed, his sword beginning to tremble.

With that Jed lunged at the man blocking him, and their swords connected bouncing off each other from the inertia, the only thing damaged wrists. The one who advanced unopposed behind them slashed again, nicking into Fred’s leg immediately wetting his pant leg with blood that seeped from the wound.

“AAAAA!” screamed Fred again looking all around him in confusion.

The man charged again from a distance, this time for the final blow. Jed saw it coming and dove past the first sword, stabbing the second right through the back and extending out the other side. The dead man gurgled and toppled over face first into the dirt as Jed drew back out his sword. The other soldiers' still standings eyes now resembled Fred, as he barely held up his sword as he shook, eventually dropping as he ran the path to reinforcements. He looked back over to where Fred had been now empty as he had run off leaving him with an unconscious body, and another imperial soldier he had just murdered.

The jungle branches hit Jed's sprinting body, and the thorns tore into his pants. A parrot watched him struggling forward to keep his run, before it flew off flapping it's wings in front of him. He did not have time while being pursued to fully take in his surroundings, but he had too.. Where had Fred run off to, and was he dying? Imagery of Fred dead in a ditch spurred him on as he removed his sword again, before he angrily swung attacking any vines, branches, or cocoons that stood in the way. The only trail he had to follow was tiny drops of blood scattered among the blowing leaves. Jed bent down at a spot scanning the ground like a watch-light at prison. No blood!