"The Jungle" From In the Pit of Vipers
May 20, 2742
“Oh, would you look at that?” Sergeant Hines said as he looked at the now dead recruit’s body as they flew over what used to be called Brazil. He had taken a bullet in the head. Corporal Jameson shrugged as the small assault ship began to ascend.
“What do we do?” Corporal Jameson asked, looking at the massive blood puddle on the transport’s floor. The recruit’s weapons and gear were already removed as well as any other gear that he may have had on him. The body lay there on the ramp, blood slowly puddling as the fluids left the now lifeless body. He kicked the body, expecting it to come back to life, but not now, not ever.
“Feed the forest is what we do.” Sergeant Hines said as he switched to the pilot’s frequency. “He was an orphan, anyway right?” It was a grim task, but it had to be done.
“Pilot, we have a dead body and need to get rid of it before we go up.”
“Affirmative, will get low enough.” As he readjusted the flightpath of the ship he slowed just about twenty-five meters above the rain forest. Time and genetic engineering had done its job over the centuries to revitalize what the damage Man had done to the Amazon Rain Forest. Now after such period that same genetic engineering had evolved the whole forest becoming alive in its own sadistic way. A botanist, Fredrich Von Staff had introduced what could be loosely called as “carnivorous genes”, the trees literally ate most compounds, his ‘vengeance’ against the ‘human defilement’ of Man cutting trees down and poisoning the forest. Originally, he had been called in to engineer the trees to be able to ‘eat’ the poisons from the toxic waste dumps. That had worked out quite well, with the Amazon Rain Forest effectively returning to its original size when Earth itself wasn’t inhabited by so many of its human beings. He hated human consumption and vowed to ‘payback’ humans for what they did. By introducing various genes by splicing from various animals, he created a more omnivore, more aggressive strain of trees. After his natural death the plants were known as ‘Van Staff’s Curse’. The only trick was however, due to his belief in Christianity, was to paint crosses, which for the most part was the only deterrent against the trees and vines eating people, plastics, and weapons, and combat armor. Over the centuries regardless if you liked religion or not, if you had any reason to be in the jungle, painting a cross over where your heart was (on armor mainly) ensured that you survived. If not, then you would be eaten by the plants and trees.
Lowering the craft so the vines wouldn’t reach them (they were powerful enough to bring in any kind of aircraft, ten meters was the maximum reach from the trees and its carnivorous vines), Sergeant Hines slowly prepared the body to be tossed over the ramp into the rain forest. He saw the indicator for the rear ramp light up, looks like the squad in the back had some dead weight to unload. Once at a generally safe altitude he waited.
“Ready?” Sergeant Hines lifted the dead recruit’s body and with Corporal Jameson’s help, tossed the body, with his combat uniform off the ramp. In morbid fascination he watched as the vines caught the offering and immediately before hitting the ground, devoured the body whole. Feeling sick to his stomach, he could handle dead bodies, but not this. He walked back inside and closed the ramp, looking at Corporal Jameson, who also looked sick. He’d been through some hellish combat but that always made him queasy as the ramp closed. But he mused, if you needed to get rid of a body, give it to the Amazon… He’d mop up the blood later, once they hit space…
“Oh, would you look at that?” Sergeant Hines said as he looked at the now dead recruit’s body as they flew over what used to be called Brazil. He had taken a bullet in the head. Corporal Jameson shrugged as the small assault ship began to ascend.
“What do we do?” Corporal Jameson asked, looking at the massive blood puddle on the transport’s floor. The recruit’s weapons and gear were already removed as well as any other gear that he may have had on him. The body lay there on the ramp, blood slowly puddling as the fluids left the now lifeless body. He kicked the body, expecting it to come back to life, but not now, not ever.
“Feed the forest is what we do.” Sergeant Hines said as he switched to the pilot’s frequency. “He was an orphan, anyway right?” It was a grim task, but it had to be done.
“Pilot, we have a dead body and need to get rid of it before we go up.”
“Affirmative, will get low enough.” As he readjusted the flightpath of the ship he slowed just about twenty-five meters above the rain forest. Time and genetic engineering had done its job over the centuries to revitalize what the damage Man had done to the Amazon Rain Forest. Now after such period that same genetic engineering had evolved the whole forest becoming alive in its own sadistic way. A botanist, Fredrich Von Staff had introduced what could be loosely called as “carnivorous genes”, the trees literally ate most compounds, his ‘vengeance’ against the ‘human defilement’ of Man cutting trees down and poisoning the forest. Originally, he had been called in to engineer the trees to be able to ‘eat’ the poisons from the toxic waste dumps. That had worked out quite well, with the Amazon Rain Forest effectively returning to its original size when Earth itself wasn’t inhabited by so many of its human beings. He hated human consumption and vowed to ‘payback’ humans for what they did. By introducing various genes by splicing from various animals, he created a more omnivore, more aggressive strain of trees. After his natural death the plants were known as ‘Van Staff’s Curse’. The only trick was however, due to his belief in Christianity, was to paint crosses, which for the most part was the only deterrent against the trees and vines eating people, plastics, and weapons, and combat armor. Over the centuries regardless if you liked religion or not, if you had any reason to be in the jungle, painting a cross over where your heart was (on armor mainly) ensured that you survived. If not, then you would be eaten by the plants and trees.
Lowering the craft so the vines wouldn’t reach them (they were powerful enough to bring in any kind of aircraft, ten meters was the maximum reach from the trees and its carnivorous vines), Sergeant Hines slowly prepared the body to be tossed over the ramp into the rain forest. He saw the indicator for the rear ramp light up, looks like the squad in the back had some dead weight to unload. Once at a generally safe altitude he waited.
“Ready?” Sergeant Hines lifted the dead recruit’s body and with Corporal Jameson’s help, tossed the body, with his combat uniform off the ramp. In morbid fascination he watched as the vines caught the offering and immediately before hitting the ground, devoured the body whole. Feeling sick to his stomach, he could handle dead bodies, but not this. He walked back inside and closed the ramp, looking at Corporal Jameson, who also looked sick. He’d been through some hellish combat but that always made him queasy as the ramp closed. But he mused, if you needed to get rid of a body, give it to the Amazon… He’d mop up the blood later, once they hit space…
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