Operation Phoenix: The Hunt for Samhain!

Part 1



	Samhain walked at a brisk pace back towards where he'd left the 
bulk of his equipment, minus his katana and Jihadlinker.  Things hadn't seemed 
quite right ever since he'd gotten that odd feeling the other night... just 
kind  of... an odd uneasiness, like something was not right... like someone 
was after him, he decided.  He'd just been out meditating in one of his 
favorite wooded spots, when he felt it again.  Stronger this time, closer, 
more of a threat.  He'd pulled out the Jihadlinker and looked at it 
queerly, half expecting to see it sound an alert, only to sit there and 
stare at it for a long time.  He almost swore he saw it blink red alert 
once, just once, and the TRES signature to the signal, but wrote it off as 
his eyes playing tricks on him.  Either that or just some random 
noise--he'd played with his personal linker lately trying to increase its 
sensitivity.  He had no idea if he'd really accomplished anything or not.  
Oh well... better go grab the rest of my stuff and check in, just in case...
 
	It was a brisk, calm, day, and the sun shone warmly on Samhain's 
back as he strode back to where he'd left his things.  Suddenly, he stopped 
in his tracks.  The hackles on his neck stood at rigid attention, and 
goosebumps ran down his spine.  Something was definitely not right.
 
	Samhain had no idea what he was doing; he just did it.  Instinct 
drove him to duck and roll as several volleys of shots rang out around him, 
and a crossfire buzzed through the spot where Samhain had been standing.  A 
slug caught him in his left shoulder as he dropped, ruining it for all 
practical purposes.  "FUCK!" he screamed as he rolled towards the cover of 
a nearby log, "AMBUSH!  but how the HELL did they find me...?  Not even 
those in the JIHAD know where I'm at..."

 	But he didn't have time to ponder that, not now.  There were noises 
now, coming from several places around him, and fire was diminishing 
without a visible target.  These were smarter than your average sponge 
minion... they were not... couldn't be... normal...

 	Samhain did a belly crawl into a small gully washed out by flowing 
water.  There was no water there now, but it was just barely deep enough 
for Samhain to fit in and shimmy away below his attackers' visible level.  
He got out of visible range, stood, and took off running into the woods... 
if they were going to take him, they were going to have to fight to do it.  
And in the mean time, he wanted to know who they were...
 
	A plan.  He needed a plan.  And he needed a chance to sit and heal 
some.  He wanted to go back and get his other gear, but that was 
undoubtedly a stupid and dangerous move--they'd have sentries posted there 
for sure... anyone who could set up that kind of an ambush and still not be 
seen were definitely smart enough to do that...
 
	And they were pursuing him.  Nobody'd been able to do that 
before... and he had no idea how they were doing it now.  He quickly 
checked himself for tracking devices, but knew there were none... they were 
tracking him somehow... different... than just a tracking device.  He 
was unsure how he knew that, but nonetheless he knew it.
 
	He paused by a brook, splashed some water over his quickly closing 
wound, and hid himself in a hole along the path, hoping for a quick look at 
one of his pursuers... most of them were quite a ways behind, but one had 
managed to gain some distance during his pause, and Samhain could now hear 
their approach... it was quiet--unearthly quiet.  No, this was NOT 
something human.  He waited, his foe running down the trail... and, 
although he slowed down as he approached Samhain's hiding place, he didn't 
slow enough to spot Samhain in his near-invisible form and hiding place.
 
	Samhain quickly reached out a hand and grabbed a scaly ankle and 
yanked it backwards, sending the creature reeling headlong towards a 
boulder.  Its muscular forelimbs came up to try and catch it, but Samhain 
was up before he hit the ground and planted a heel in the back of its head, 
driving it even harder into the rock.  Its skull collapsed with a dull 
crunch, and left a pale green sheen on the rock where it had hit.  The 
beast shuddered, then was still.
 
	Samhain looked at the beast... reptilian.  Very strong.  Agile.  
Clearly intelligent.  Very dangerous.  He picked up the weapon it had been 
carrying and took a few other items from its corpse, then continued on... 
this chase was nowhere near over.  And though he had no idea if he'd make 
it out of this one alive, he knew that he was going to take a great many of 
them with him.  Oh, a great many indeed...
 
	The hunt will continue!
 

"The Hunt for Samhain"
Copyright 1995, David R. Hibbs
All Rights Reserved.