a_matter_of_principle dafremen I left a man alone in the forest with 2 corpses and I can't stop thinking about it. He hasn't had anything substantial to eat in about a month and he's watched two people die. He's low on strength and his shoulder's busted up. He's about an hour or two from leaving the place he's been stuck in, and only about 8 hours from civilization. He just doesn't know it, yet. And to make matters worse, I'm the one who put him in that situation in the first place. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Go on a little trip, tell an interesting story along the way..maybe meet a few people I'd never met before. But before I knew it, days had passed and I was only digging this guy's hole deeper. Now? After all he's been through at my behest, so close to relief from his miserable circumstance, I'M the one who chickened out and left him there. I'm not sure why it's so hard to get him out of there. I'm not sure why I put him there in the first place. What I do know, is that what I'm about to have this guy do is horrific and will complete the slow, miserable transformation from protagonist to villain protagonist. What's so awful about that? Well it's bad enough to get into the headspace required to imagine another's most horrific moment..but to then lead the miserable shlub to what I've got in store for him afterward? Oh this poor kid. Not sure he deserves what he's got coming. Again, I'm not sure why I brought him here in the first place. There was a story there, that's all. I never imagined that it would end up like this. Two? Three months gone by and there he sits, pissed off and staring at a dead man's boots. My apologies Jeremy. I'll get you out of there soon. 210926 ... ^^ BRING ON THE BEANS "Beans? Again?!" "Yea, beans again. What'd you expect?" "Man! I'm starting to know what a burrito feels like." "Don't complain! At least we're not eating plain rice yet." "True. Any coffee left?" "I saved you the last spoonful, slim. Enjoy." "Very righteous of you. Don't suppose it comes with a smoke by any chance?" "Why sure. You'll find a carton of them right behind that case of air scotch", Earl gestured behind him, swinging his arm in an exaggerated arc. "And the invisible plane we're going to fly out of this shithole. Any other requests, your majesty?" The younger man laughed. "Alright! Alright! So, coffee and beans it is. I feel like a king." Carefully shielding the coffee from the wind, he dumped it into the water bottle held between his knees, then reached for the pot of boiling water perched over the fire between two logs. "Careful. The handle got pretty hot." Jeremy pulled his shirt sleeve over his hand. Even so, the pot handle was perceptibly hotter than expected. "Damn! Sure did." He set the bottle on the ground between his feet, and filled it halfway. "Not sure whether to take this last one strong, or water it down and savor it." "Do both. Take a sip or two then add more water." "I can't stand watery coffee, though." "So shoot it up your ass for all I care..geezus just drink the coffee already!" "That escalated quickly." Jeremy grinned. Earl was alright. He was a cranky old coot, but his heart seemed to be in the right place most of the time. "Man! I could use a smoke right about now!" "Go give Wheezy over there, some mouth-to-mouth. Probably get a contact buzz, from his cigar-huffing ass." Earl's laugh made his camp mate visibly uncomfortable. "C'mon man! I mean, he's dead, bro. A little respect?" Earl's grin disappeared; replaced by a furrowed brow and gruff tone. "Does it look like it's bugging him?" Jeremy looked over at Gustav's bloated body. Flies crawled in and out of his mouth; fighting and frolicking across his teeth and around his lips. No, it definitely wasn't bothering ol' Wheezy anymore. Still.. "Still, man. He's a human being. He had a family and a life, you know? It's a matter of principle!" For the first time since the crash, Earl's mood went completely south, like an abused dog reliving a bad memory. "That human BEING, was the first one to start talking about who'd eat who, when supplies ran out. Draw straws my ass. He's lucky I'm not partial to shit biscuits, or HE'd be on the menu. Pass me them beans, would you?" Earl took the beans, served another spoonful into his mug, then handed the bowl back to Jeremy and continued. "He's just lucky he died of his injuries, because otherwise he would've died of a severe case of my foot up his ass. I have no idea how my brother finds these turds. 'It's ok', he said. 'He's a good pilot', he said. Bullshit. That fat, wheezy fucker couldn't fly a paper airplane in outer space." Earl glared in the direction of the pallid, blue corpse and spat. "Good riddance to bad rubbish. That's all I've got to say about it." Earl's glowering expression made it clear that, the conversation about Gustav was over. Staring at the fire, Jeremy lost himself, for a moment, in the flickering glow of the embers there, and thought: "Damn, a cigarette sure would be nice.." 211029 ... ^^ RICE IS NICE Pine trees, pine trees and more pine trees. Wrong place, at the wrong time of year, from what Earl could tell. The last of Mother Nature's bounty had either been: in aid of fat squirrels, buried under pine needles and turned to dirt, or so far up, that climbing was out of the question. (At least that was his early assessment of the situation.) They were somewhere South of where they were supposed to be, but still so far from the nearest anything to walk out. At least not in their condition. Looking down the steep slope, through the rugged terrain, he couldn't make out anything of use to them. Not valley, river or road. Hopefully his brother would miss them, and come looking for the locator beacon. Hopefully. "How's that rice, kid? Filling you up?" "It's not prime rib, but it'll do. Using those pine needles to flavor things up was a good idea. Thanks." "Yea. Not too bad, huh?" Earl sipped the last of his rice water. Meanwhile, this kid was alright. No dummy, that's for sure. The slick way he cooled things down, when that hothead started talking smack, now THAT was impressive. Dino had just made a big speech last month, about how the operation could use a fresh infusion of "gusto". And now that they were both getting on in years, it made sense to start looking around for talent. But how long was the kid going to want to stick around, after this mess? "That's getting ahead of the story", he thought, looking over at Jeremy's slinged left arm. What he really needed to know right now, was that he wasn't carrying dead weight. "How's that collar bone, kid? You gonna make it?" "Yea, just don't make me do any push ups there, chief." Earl's face relaxed into a grin. He pointed at the ground. "Just for that, drop and give me 50." Jeremy almost spit out the mouthful of rice he'd been working on as he burst into laughter. "Hahaha! Since you're the leader of this outfit, you should probably go first, and show me how it's done." "Yea? You wait until we get back home, and this hip heals up. I'll do 300. Then you can pay me $10 a pushup for my troubles, and shut your piehole about it. It's so hard to find good help these days." Earl rolled his eyes and shook his head in mock despair. With that, Jeremy snort-laughed, sending a brief, confetti-like cascade of rice into the fire. "Can't find good help?! What about a good job? This isn't an island vacation we're on, boss. I deserve a bonus or something", he mumbled through a mouth half full. Earl was about to say something about the wasted rice, but thought better of it, and grinned instead. "How about a car wash discount card and a half-smoked box of Patel's on your birthday? Maybe a gym membership too, since you can't do pushups worth a damn." "Anymore rice left?" "Yea. About a cup full. Want to flip for it?" "Do I have a choice?" Jeremy really didn't want to risk losing his half..or upset the boss by taking it all, either. They were both so hungry and moody by now, that it was a daily struggle just to keep their heads and morale up. He didn't need more drama, and besides, he DEFINITELY wanted his paycheck for this crazy side trip. "Yea. You've got a choice." Earl handed him the remainder of the rice. "Here, take it. Sorry about that, slim. Just getting more hungry than I'd like, and starting to slip. Take it." "You sure?" For all Jeremy knew, he was being tested. "Yea take it. I'm good..and we'll make it." Earl smiled weakly. "We sure will. Besides I'm almost full. Here." Spoon in hand, he scooped a mouthful of rice from the pot. "Take the rest. I'm stuffed." "Yea?" Without hesitation, Earl grabbed the offering. "Bullshit, you're stuffed. But you're alright, man. Thanks." He scarfed the rice down, hungrily. "One of these days, I won't forget you in my will." An overly-apologetic look overtook his face. "Sorry about the shortage of lawyers around here, or we could write it up right now..on pine bark." Eyes looking frantic, he scanned the woods in a staged, mock reconaissance. "Isn't it funny?. They're usually thick as fleas when the shit hits the fan. Meanwhile, us in deep, and not a lawyer in sight. Guess we'll just have to wait for them to sense our misery, kid." "I guess so." Jeremy laid back in the pine needles and looked up through the forest canopy, to the jagged bits of sky peeking through the branches. It looked so blue up there. Things seemed so bleak, down where they were. He just MIGHT'VE been happy to see a lawyer, in a suit, come trudging up through the woods with a briefcase and a business card. The quiet was stifling; hardly interrupted except for the occasional sound of some far off mystery bird. They should've gotten moving a long time ago in his opinion, but Earl said to stay put and someone would find them, so they'd stayed put. Now they were both too weak to go anywhere. "How much longer do you figure that last bag of rice will last us?" "Maybe two days? Maybe 3 if we really stretch it out. The rice isn't the problem. Water's the problem." They both looked over at the mostly-empty water container. "I'm not sure we're going to want to give any up to steam, you know? Without water, we're done." Earl tipped his bottle up and took a sip; a reminder to both that they weren't done yet. "Good point. Sure hope they find us soon. I don't think I've got enough in me to get out of here, anymore." "I feel you, kid. Sure wish we had some protein, right about now." "There's always ol' Gustav over there." Jeremy gestured toward Gustav's rapidly decomposing remains, some 20 meters behind them. Visibly sunken, and with signs of decompoaition evident; definitely past his useful prime in a survival situation. "Me personally? I'd rather have a stiff drink and a pack of smokes. You think pine needles smoke like menthols?" "If you want to cough your ass off trying, be my guest." Earl looked over toward Gustav. "Yea, ol' Wheezy might've had a point, though. Kind of sorry I didn't take him up on it, before he passed his expiration date. Probably didn't taste too good before then, either." Jeremy grimaced. "I dunno. Lot of meat on them bones. Bet he'd have made one hell of a rump roast." They both laughed briefly, then wound it down, like toys running out of batteries. "Yep. Good 'ol Gustav." "Here's to Wheezy and his perfect plan to end world hunger!" Earl raised his bottle again. This time Jeremy joined him in the toast. "To Wheezy!" "Say Earl?" His tone grew more subdued. "How'd you get into this business in the first place?" "What? Starving to death in the middle of nowhere with you?" Earl rolled over to face his camp mate, a grin on his face. "Or transporting things?" "Yea, that. How'd you end up in this line of work anyway?" Earl propped himself up on one elbow. "I'd like to tell you that it's a long, interesting story, but it's isn't really. My brother asked me to help him, and I did. That pretty much sums it up." "Well how'd he get into it?" "I'm going to catch some more shut eye, kid. Talk to you later. Time to dream about a seafood enchilada I met a few times." Jeremy smiled. "You do that chief, I'm going to go hunt for firewood. Dream up an enchilada for me." With that, Earl closed his eyes and rolled over. If he'd stayed awake another few minutes, he would've seen the younger man lay down and do the same. Firewood wood have to wait. Jeremy was too tired to move, and besides, there was a steak dinner he wanted to visit first. 211029 ... ^^ BY THE SLICE "Excuse me, sir. Did you order the meat lover's pizza?" "Damn food hallucinations!" Jeremy rolled over and pretended not to hear. The voice pretended not to care. "Sir. I'm supposed to deliver a meat lover's pizza to this address?" Wait. This address? Was he back home? Did he dream the whole 'Earl and the plane crash thing'? He rolled back over, opened his eyes, and looked up. A ball-capped head cocked its upside-down face to one side. "You ordered this pizza, sir? It's already paid for." The young man's voice got quieter as he mumbled, "I mean, except for the tip." "Yea. I guess so." Jeremy was really hungry and didn't know why. How long had he been sleeping there? What a crazy dream. He sat up and looked around. They were still in the woods. Except..something was off. "Here you go." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a $5 bill. "Keep it." "Thank YOU!" Carefully setting the pizza box on Jeremy's lap, the delivery driver then grabbed the money and shoved it into his pocket. Stomach growling, he stared at the treasure on his lap. "Fresh Pizza - Just For You" was printed across the box, with an Italian chef tossing a pizza crust into the air. He grinned. The resemblance between Earl and the cartoon on the box was uncanny. "Hey man, where's this pizza from any way?" He looked up, but the delivery guy had vanished without so much as the crunch of a twig. "That's really freaky", he thought, then turned toward Earl and the campfire. "Hey Earl, this pizza box guy looks a lot like you. Earl?" But Earl was gone. So was the fire. What was happening? Why would anyone deliver a pizza out here? "Earl?!" Jeremy got up, cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled. "Eeeeaarrrl!! Where are yooooouu?" "Where am I?!" he thought, growing less sure of his situation by the second. He was so hungry. And his leg was suddenly hurting. He turned to look at the pizza box lying on the ground. Maybe it held a clue. Maybe he had gotten delirious, walked in his sleep, and gotten close enough to civilization to order food? Maybe. He was just sooo hungry. Just one piece and he'd go look for Earl and the camp. Just one slice. Opening the box, he looked at the pizza. It was the severed ear that caught his eye first. Then the eye with a bright green iris. Then the tongue. It was about then, that the screams caught his ears. They were his own..and he couldn't stop them. "Wake the hell up and knock it off!" Jeremy sat up abruptly. It was Earl standing over him, wincing, feebly kicking him in the leg. He looked like a skeleton, wearing an Earl suit. "How am I supposed to get any sleep with you yelling 'Earl! Earl!' all night? Do you know how close I was to a happy hour margarita, and some company for the evening? Instead I wake up to you screaming like you're on fire! Now get some sleep! Geezus!" Jeremy laid back down, cold sweat clinging to his shirt. The stars seemed especially cold and distant. "Sorry about that, Earl. Not sure what happened. There was a pizza with body parts on it and the guy on the box looked like you. It was crazy." "Yea? Well, we're trying to stay alive, not lose our marbles. So, keep your nightmares on the inside, from now on! There's your matter of principle! I'm barely holding on, too. So don't be an asshole. Stick a sock in it." "Yea. Like I said, sorry. I was asleep. I'll try to keep it in the can from now on." "Good enough. Good night, kid." "Good night, Earl." Not exactly. Every pop of the embers made Jeremy jump, and it didn't help that he was still craving pizza. 211029 ... ^^ A SQUIRREL FOR EARL He woke shivering. While they slept, the fire had gone out, and now someone would have to get some wood. He knew who that someone would be. It wouldn't be Earl. His hip hadn't gotten any better in the past 3 weeks, and so Jeremy had been tasked with most of the firewood collection. That's why Earl kept calling himself 'camp chef'. It was something he could do, without moving around too much. Thing was, there wasn't that much left to cook anyhow. "I'm going to go get some fuel for the fire now, chief. See if you can find us some good coals, yea?" Jeremy didn't wait for the old man's answer. He wanted to get this over with, as quickly as possible. Throwing the wool blanket aside and rising to his feet, he yawned, then began stumbling in the direction of the crash site. "Haven't gathered much on that side of the plane", he thought as he approached, then passed Gustav's body. Gases from putrification had bloated the dead man's abdomen unnaturally. It reminded Jeremy of a balloon, and he had to resist the sudden, perverse urge, to poke him with a stick. "Least someone's got a full belly, huh Wheezy?" He wanted to laugh, but wasn't really feeling it. Besides, it hurt his empty stomach to laugh anymore. Instead, he managed a half chuckle and moved on. In the days before the pilot had finally succumbed to his injuries, they'd watched him drift in and out of consciousness, muttering about downdrafts and Dino's wrath. It was tedious and annoying. "How mad do you think Dino's going to be, Earl?", he'd asked, when they first climbed out of the wreckage. Earl'd managed to keep his cool and simply said, "Well, he's not going to be too happy, that's for sure." By the time Gustav passed, it was a miracle that Earl hadn't killed him instead. "Trying to blame the crash on us? Can you believe that piece of shit?", he'd said, "He's lucky he kicked off when he did or I would've helped him." A few sticks in hand, Jeremy approached the wreckage of the small, single-engine plane. What had once barely passed as a Cessna, was now a wadded mess of metal, sitting on a bed of trees that had been snapped clean at the base, by the force of the crash. Both wings were missing; sheared off, gawd-only-knows how many yards away from where they finally came to a stop. The front portion of the cabin floor had been torn open on impact, but just as quickly, the hole had filled with branches and pine needles. Never mind what Earl thought, and never mind how badly Gustav had screwed things up in the air, he couldn't be as bad a pilot as all that. The fact that the three of them walked away from this aluminum hell, was a bonafide aviation miracle, as far as Jeremy was concerned. "Good ol' Wheezy", he whispered, looking back at the pilot's body again, "You sure saved the day. Not sure what for, but you did it, you fat bastage." Carefully clambering over the fallen trees, Jeremy'd almost passed the wreckage when he stopped in his tracks. A faint rustling came from behind the plane; back where a clearing had been left behind by the fallen trees. Were they in bear country? Deer country? Had they been found? He crouched down, engaging his "stealth mode": a sort of awkward, tip-toeing, duck walk; made even more awkward by the fact that he was delirious with hunger. Whatever it was, he was in no condition to fight OR flee, so instead he stayed low and crept forward; assessing the situation. Maybe it was his imagination. Was he dreaming again? No there it was: rustling..followed by what sounded to him, like a subdued squealing. He inched forward..edging his way toward the sound. That's when a twig snapped underfoot. Jeremy caught a flash of brown, feathered wings. "Holy!" Whatever they were attached to, was big. Trying to make himself less visible, he hunkered down, holding his breath. A minute or two passed, and the squealing died off. He crept forward more carefully, brushing any sticks aside with a sneakered foot, before stepping down. After only a few meters, he stopped again. There, in the early stages of eating a fat, gray squirrel, was the largest bird Jeremy had ever seen. It goes without saying, that growing up on army bases as a kid, doesn't exactly groom a person for wildlife identification. It wasn't that his life was sheltered. It's just that it had never been very close to nature, or even pet-filled, thanks to the demands of apartment living. Whatever this thing was, it definitely was NOT in his comfort zone. The bird hadn't noticed him yet. Its huge talons held the squirrel as though it were a rag doll, while the powerful curve of its black beak, dipped in again for another bite. Either of the two could've brought a whole load of unnecessary misery into Jeremy's world, but he wasn't concerned with any of that. "That squirrel's mine", he thought, hungrily, "and if I can get your big hawk, eagle, or whatever ass too.." His body tensed up with excitement, like a cat on a hunt. He crept a little closer. This time the bird spotted him. Looking up, the raptor raised its wings above its head and puffed its feathers. It then let out a cry, that sounded a bit like a pissed off seagull. Where it had stood maybe waist-high before, it's wings now reached just above Jeremy's shoulders. "Holy..calm down big guy. This won't hurt a bit." He dropped all but one of the sticks he'd been carrying, and slowly raised it overhead. "That's right. No worries. You just sit right there for ol' Jeremy, my little eagle-hawk-snack." The bird blinked at Jeremy. "And stop eating my squirrel!" Letting out another screech, the animal flapped it's wings in defiance. That's when the stick flew. Anticipating Jeremy's move, the bird deftly dodged the wooden missle; taking off the moment it was released. Left behind, laying on a large, blood-stained log, was the squirrel's limp body. He ran forward to grab it. Food! Finally! Foood! Suddenly, a sharp pain pierced the back of his head and soon he could feel blood trickling down his neck. The bird had returned to give him a taste of what it was like to be the furry treat he was holding. Two talons raked his shoulder, leaving deep marks and causing him to cry out. "You're not getting it! It's mine!" Jeremy tightened his death grip on the squirrel carcass, as he sprinted to find shelter from the angry creature. Swatting behind him with his good arm, he again felt the sharp sting of talons piercing his skin. The bird let out a surprised squawk as a tattooed forearm made solid contact, sending it to the ground. Before Jeremy could react and seize the opportunity, the eagle had regained its footing and taken off, this time for good. "Yea? Come back here! I'm not done with you yet!" Blood streamed down his arm, as he shook a fist after the eagle and yelled, "My squirrel! Mine!!" In his mind, it WAS his. Why should he share? It was HIS food. Sure, for some, the easiest place in the world to make excuses for being selfish, is when your life depends on it. Jeremy was pretty sure he wasn't that kind of person. But why shouldn't he keep this food all for himself? He was the one using his energy up. "Fer chrissake, I'm the one who gathers the firewood! He just lies around, pretending to cook.", he thought, working himself into a meltdown. "Yea! And I'm the one who fought for this! I'm the one who's bleeding! Sorry Earl..mine!" But then he looked down at the lifeless squirrel again. It's flesh and inner workings had been partly exposed, and the prospect of eating squirrel raw, made his empty stomach heave. Maybe he could share a bit with Earl. "Kind of a surprise celebration, right?" He imagined the look on the old geezer's face when he returned with meat..real meat. But why share, if he didn't have to? Hunger's a thing that he was currently very familiar with. He nibbled a piece of raw flesh, just to see if he could psyche himself into it. But the smell overpowered his desperation. "It won't be so bad once it's cooked. And Earl's going to flip when he sees this!" He looked at the squirrel again. "Mine", he whispered to himself, then started gathering wood. Twenty minutes later, he marched into camp, triumphantly. "Hey Earl! Guess what I got!" Jeremy was pretty excited to get things cooking. Unfortunately, Earl hadn't done anything with the fire. He was still curled up under his blanket, sleeping. "Hey, old timer! Wake up! I've got a surprise, and I'm pretty sure you're going to like it!" Anticipation and confidence had him throwing caution to the wind, so he shook the old man's shoulder with his foot. "C'mon chief! Rise and shine! Time for breakfast!" Earl didn't move. His body felt stiff and unyielding, like trying to roll a log with a flat spot. "Earl? You OK, man?" He asked out loud, but the dead feeling underfoot had already told him what he'd rather not know. As the new camp cook, it was up to him to get the fire going, cook the squirrel AND gather more firewood. Earl had passed on to richer food and better company. 211029 ... ^^ AN INCREASE IN RATIONS There was something about Earl's passing that made the squirrel meal a wash, so he saved half for later. His strength was returning, but his morale was at an all time low. What was he supposed to do now? Wait for another lucky meal? Or.. He turned his attention back to Earl's lifeless body. There was something pristine about the way he'd died, a welcome, but unnerving contrast to the grisliness of Gustav's semi-public dessication and his own miserable situation; what with being the last one capable of realizing how fucked he was. Getting up and walking over, Jeremy hesitated, then lifted the gray blanket covering his ex-boss. "Thank gawd you died with your eyes closed." he sighed, then hastily jammed his hand into Earl's coat pocket, holding his breath like a free diver. Out came a medium-sized liquor bottle, shaped like a hip flask, with a small swig of booze inside. "Yes!" He'd hoped there was still some left. He needed anything that would make this first night alone among the dead, more bearable. Tequila has a way of warming, that eventually leaves one cold. His buzz didn't last long, but the afternoon did. By evening, he'd been napping on and off all day, and was growing restless. The moon, half there, accentuated the occasional, woeful howl of some coyote-wolf-dog. They all sounded the same to him. "Why the hell did we stay here, Earl?!" He stared hard at the dark, blanket-covered lump across the fire from him, as if half-expecting an answer. "I've got a handful of rice I can't cook and a gallon of water! How are we supposed to get out of..I mean.." His voice trailed off as it occurred to him, that he was the "we" that would have to get him out of there; and with one arm practically tied behind his back. "How am I supposed to get out of here now, Earl?! How am I supposed to do that?!" Jeremy began to sob uncontrollably as his mood, hunger and the vanishing haze of tequila finally broke him. "How am I supposed to do THAT, Earl?!" He picked up a piece of firewood and yeeted it in Earl's direction, leaving a dent in the dirt nearby. "I'm stuck! I'm going to die out here! You hear that?! Now I'm going to die, asshole!" He looked up at the moon again. The tilt of his head made it look less like a half circle and more like a large, menacing eye glowering in his direction, waiting for him to close his eyes. He let out a primal scream, causing the valley below to mockingly multiply it, as if teeming with torture. "Not today you don't!", he yelled, eyes narrowing to shining slivers, "I'm not going to give you the satisfaction! You get it? You're not taking me today!" Drying his cheeks, he lay back down and watched the stars move across the sky, occasionally staring into the fire after throwing a few sticks in. He was tired and the night passed slowly. But he didn't close his eyes. 211029 what's it to you? who go blather from