~Volume 1: The Spider~
Issue #1: X, The Stranded.
(Kane's P.O.V)
We live in a noisy world.
And I hate it.
Which is why I like the Silence. Silence is nice.
~
The waves clashing on the beach were especially loud as I came to, sprawled out on the sand staring up at a quickly dimming sky.
My teeth clattered uncontrollably in a dry and parched mouth, body shivering with the cold breeze that swept in from the ocean.
Wait, ocean?
I sniffed, the scent of saltwater hang heavy in the air.
Where the heck am I?
Licking my dry and cracked lips, I managed to get to my feet, a wave of dizziness suddenly hitting me.
But even that couldn't stop my gasp of surprise as I spun around, slowly taking in the foreign environment around me.
I was on a beach.
To my front was a body of water that stretched as far out as they eye could see.
And behind me was a thick jungle.
Okay. What the fuck.
The last thing I remember was being in a plane on a flight headed from New York to Tokyo.
Clearly, I didn't make it there.
Did the airplane crash? Why else would I wash up on a beach somewhere?
And even if it had, I had no way of knowing. The sky was clear, devoid of clouds or smoke trails.
And if that was the case, was I the only person to survive? At this point I might as well be. The beach was decidedly empty.
That flight had been carrying over 200 people. And yet I was alone. That didn't bode well for them or me.
The chances of one person surviving when everyone else died was close to zero.
Not to mention, I don't remember any flight complications before waking up on the beach.
A mystery. One that I had no way of currently solving. So I resolved to not think about it. I had more pressing issues.
Okay. Let's take stock.
I patted myself down, inspecting my body for injuries and anything I might have had on my person.
Other than some mild discomfort from the damp clothes clinging to me,(my white shirt was torn up and I was missing my belt) everything else appeared fine. No missing limbs or anything like that.
My skin was slightly baked and red, but that was from sleeping on the beach for too long.
I also had to remove my boots to clear out the water and sand in them, only to find a crab had holed up inside the left boot.
"Go on, get outta here."
I nudged the little guy with a finger, watching it skitter off while snapping it's claws my way. How rude.
With the inspection done, I turned up my findings and sighed.
My wallet was missing, probably lost in the ocean, so was my Swiss Army knife and my noise dampening ear plugs. I felt the loss of the final items especially.
Since I was little, I've always had very sensitive hearing. Which is why I hated noisy places and why the ear plugs were sometimes necessary.
The only thing I had on me was my glasses which had somehow remained on my face for the unintended trip, although a part of the frame was slightly bent.
I straightened them out, wiping away the sand and secured them back on my face.
At that moment, my stomach begun to grumble.
I hadn't eaten anything in about 10 hours. Maybe longer as the sun was already dipping on the horizon, heralding the night.
No food and no water but at least I can still see. Haha.
Nothing really funny about my situation though. I could die here if I wasn't careful.
"I need a plan of action."
I decided.
The logical thing was to wait close to the beach in case help arrived. Maybe a ship or a plane passing by would rescue me.
But I couldn't count on that.
"Who knows how long that will take."
I muttered to myself.
The chances of things lining up that perfectly were zero to none. It wasn't realistic.
The most urgent issues I needed to address was food and shelter.
With the night setting in, staying out in the open was a bad idea. Getting sick was the last thing I wanted.
Especially stranded in a foreign place.
That brought my options down to one.
I gazed at the dark jungle behind me. The trees swayed in the evening wind, casting long shadows under the setting sun.
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The jungle seemed ominous. And it wasn't even night yet.
Oh well, the worst that could happen was dying.
I would much rather bank on trying to survive this in every way I could, rather than wait for someone else to save me.
Throwing one final look towards the all encompassing ocean, I turned around, cold boots on my feet and with little hesitation, I took a step towards the jungle steeling my heart for what was to come.
******
I wish I still had my equipment, it would have made things much easier for me.
However, my luggage must have sank to the bottom of the ocean along with the plane.
I'd been walking for over 10 minutes.
Weeds and vines from the jungle floor ensnared my feet, further impeding my already painfully sluggish progress.
Getting through the thick foliage had proved annoying, only adding to my frustration at losing my gear.
The irony wasn't lost to me. Here I was, stranded and all I could think about was that.
Then again, most of that stuff was expensive and high end. It would be difficult to replace.
My clothes also bore the persistent presence of hooks from a plant resembling sticky willies.
The leaves, adorned with clinging hooks, attached themselves to the fabric of my torn shirt, causing both discomfort and an irritating itch on my skin.
I slapped my cheek, smashing another mosquito that tried to suck on my blood.
That was the other thing about this place, the jungle was full of activity.
It was unabashedly wild. Most of the vegetation and flora I saw here was alien to me.
The Fauna was no less astounding.
It was a jungle and although I did my best to stay quiet, my presence was noticed by the animals that made it their home.
Critters like squirrels scurried away upon seeing me, birds chipped in the evening air and there was a weird species of Monkeys that swung above the trees, fleeing while making strange sounds the second they spotted me.
That was fortunate. It meant salvaging for food wasn't going to be as difficult as I thought.
My only contention with the jungle was the bugs. Just like the vegetation and weird animals, the insects here were strange. Bigger and meaner.
Mosquitoes the size of a finger nail buzzed around my body incessantly, trying to make me their next meal. Little shits.
I kept on swatting them away but it was a tough fight. One in which, I had incurred losses.
Overdramatization aside, I had a particularly large red bump on my wrist. It was a bite from a peculiar spider.
Never had I seen a purple, red and blue dotted spider. It had also seemed to glow, something visually apparent in the waning light of dusk.
Before I could bring my palm down on the little sucker, it had curled up and died right on my skin, fangs still sunk into my flesh.
"How strange."
I couldn't help but state, tearing off a strip from my shirt that I used to wrap the peculiar spider in, before keeping it in my pocket.
The reason was twofold: firstly, if the spider's bite was venomous, having it with me would make treatment easier.
Fortunately, the bite was yet to affect me, making me suspect that the venom wasn't toxic to people. There were a few spiders like that.
And secondly, I'd never seen this kind of species before so I was curious. What else was this place hiding?
All that took a backseat to something more immediate. Surviving.
And after walking for what felt like 10 more minutes, hope appeared in the form of the sound of rushing water.
There had to be a river or a stream close by.
Nice.
I could set up camp near the river for the night, maybe try to catch a few fish for dinner.
I reached into the pocket of my pants, grabbing and popping another wild grape in my mouth.
I'd come across a few monkeys munching on them before they ran away.
The taste was bitter sweet and served to leave my mouth even drier than before, but they had kept my hunger at bay.
Besides, I could quench my thirst once I arrived at the river.
Emboldened, I added more strength to my steps, careful to make as less noise as I could.
Fortunately, I excelled at being silent and could move undetected if I wanted.
That's my talent, going unnoticed.
The sound of the water increased and after what felt like a couple of minutes, the jungle opened up to a majestic waterfall.
It was in a word, magnificent.
Water cascaded from a lofty cliff, colliding into a wide pool below.
The mist surrounding the waterfall created a beautiful rainbow when bathed in the glow of the setting sun.
One more thing.
I wasn't alone anymore.
In a scene that made me think I had actually died and gone to Paradise, beautiful naked women were swimming in the river under the waterfall.
I blinked, lips slightly parted at the unexpected scene.
There were about a dozen of them, mostly bathing in the pool while some frolicked around the banks of the river.
To reiterate, all of them were unexpectedly otherworldly beautiful.
Coming in with Long lustrous hair in all colors from blondes to redheads to blueheads.
And bodies crafted with just the right amount of muscles and the softness of womanhood.
It was a visual delight. Never before had I seen women as exotic. And trust me, my job takes me all over the world.
Their voices must have been drowned out by the Waterfall, which is why I hadn't heard them on my approach.
Shit.
If they caught me watching them...
I stepped back, aiming for a silent retreat.
Only to step on a stick and snap it.
The sound was not that loud, yet every head snapped my way.
An array of different emotions passed over their faces. First there was confusion, then came the shock and fear, finally culminating in hostility and vengeful glares.
Before things escalated, I raised my hands in a placating gesture.
"Would you believe me if I said I didn't see anything?"
I facepalmed. What an obvious lie.
It took about a second for shit to hit the fan.
"A man!"
One of the women on the banks yelled out, reaching for her clothes.
Instead, she grabbed a spear that was next to her and in the blink of an eye, I had a sharp weapon flying at me.
Warning bells went off in my head.
I scrambled backwards, ironically tripping on the same stick that had outed my presence.
The spear whistled as it flew above me, the tip stabbing into a tree behind with a dull thunk!
What the heck! That was fast!
"Seize him!" came the cry from the approaching women, now charging toward me, unclothed yet wielding sharp weapons in their grasp.
Some had bows and arrows that they were already notching, the tips aimed my way. Others had Battleaxes and swords while almost all wielded the same spear that had been flung at me.
Fuck this, it doesn't seem like they'll listen to reason, one of them just tried to kill me!
I jumped to my feet, heart thundering within my chest and promptly started running away.
Adrenaline fueled my actions, sending a burst of unexpected energy through my body. I felt powerful despite my hungered state.
Passing next to the tree with the spear that had been launched at me, I grabbed the shaft, wrenching the weapon out.
I needed something to protect myself with and this was the only weapon available.
That lady tried to kill me with the thing. It was only fitting I steal it. No guilt on my end.
A snapping sound rang out as part of the tree the spear was stabbed into, shattered into a spray of wooden chips and bark.
I kept going, glancing back in surprise as the tree trunk split in two, the top half clashing onto the ground, conveniently blocking the path for those chasing me.
The environment blurred around me as I ran as fast as I could. There was no need for subtlety anymore.
Creating distance between me and the furious women was good for my continued existence, so I ducked, weaved and jumped over fallen trees and thatchet, all the while my mind was occupied by the strange occurrences.
I know my own strength...and I'm not that strong. No amount of training can make you that strong. Human biology had limits.
so what the hell was that? How was I able to snap a tree in half by merely pulling the spear out?
Suddenly, my mind buzzed with danger. And immediately, I ducked around another tree, this one with a trunk much wider than the one from before.
Moments later, the air whistled with the passage of several arrows, narrowly missing my previous position.
I had keen senses but that sensation warning me of danger was something else. It was an intuition that bordered on foresight. I had sensed the arrows before seeing them.
I'm seeing a trend here.
The tree I was hiding behind was compromised when another spear was thrown at it, hard enough that it pierced through the trunk.
This time, the sensation that felt like a tingle at the back of my skull failed to activate and I felt the tip just barely graze the side of my ribs.
Swallowing a groan, I rolled forward, hiding within a thick bush.
Steps sounded out as my Pursuers passed by my position without stopping, intent on hunting me down.
"Where did he go!?"
I heard them discuss from a few feet away.
I slunk away deeper into my hiding spot, doing my best to keep my breath calm and even, the shaft of the spear held tight in my grip.
"He was right by the tree sisters. He couldn't have gone far."
"Fan out!"
An authoritative voice commanded.
"We cannot have a man running around in Themyscira. We also need to inform the Queen."
Wait, did she say Themyscira?