Antonio pushed the hanging jungle vines away from his face. Wiping the dripping sweat from his face, he gazed up into the sky. The meadow that he had stumbled upon a few days ago was quite peaceful. It was a blazing day though, humid as well, and bugs were out in force, commanding the scenery for themselves. Luckily, Antonio had put on plenty of bug repellent earlier.
Antonio Barcelos was the current president of the Republic of Brasil. It was August 17 in the year 2222, a year of interest to numerologists, doomsayers, soothsayers, and people in general. The world had shifted and changed much in the past 200 years. Antonio was here to see to it that Brasil was going to remain on top for as long as he could sustain it.
But the first part of that would be establishing good relations with the surrounding countries. That was why he had signed off on a Non-Aggression Pact and a Trade Pact with New Britain, Brasil's southern neighbors, and had it sent off with all speed. His Public Relations Department, and the people who had drawn up the plan (with his supervision of course) were calling it the South American Trade and Peace Pact, SATPP for short. He had no qualms as to its name, if New Britain wanted to change it. The most important thing was that it was agreed upon. Peace was the only viable option. War was not in his mind, nor in the hearts of any of the Brasilian people.
"Antonio?" called a voice. He knew that voice. It was his wife, Ana. He smiled and turned towards the sound of her voice.
"How did you find me?" he called.
Silence.
"Ana?" Moving towards where he knew he had heard her, he watched the surrounding foliage closely.
A scream. Shrill, then cut off.
He broke into a run, crashing through jungle growth as he frantically looked for the issue that was besetting his wife. He wildly looked around as he broke into a short clearing, then another scream sent him hurtling into another direction. As he ran, he pressed a small button that was concealed by his belt buckle.
And then there she was. Struggling against a man twice her size, she was kicking and clawing at him as he attempted to carry her away. A gag was hanging loosely from her mouth. It was obvious that the kidnapper no longer cared about secrecy.
Antonio shouted. It was wordless. Guttural. It drew the attention of the man, and Antonio was able to study the man as he turned.
He was dressed in camouflage, as befit the jungle terrain that he was operating in. He also had a camouflage ski mask on his head, and what appeared to be--
The man droppedew a large machete from the sheath he had slung across his back. It was clear that both Antonio and the attacker knew that one of them would die today. Neither planned for that person to be them.
Antonio adopted a basic jiu-jitsu stance. The attacker charged. Antonio spun away as the machete came crashing down where Antonio had been. Whirling away, Antonio analyzed his attacker. He had lead with his right foot, and was holding the machete in a two-handed grip that suggested the right side of his body was the dominant one. He also ran with the slightest of limps, suggesting that he had tripped or injured himself during his jungle trek. The machete was also an impractical weapon that would not work against a speedy opponent. Antonio smiled. This could work to his advantage.
The burly man charged again. At the last possible second, Antonio spun again. This time, he did not spin away from his attacks, but instead behind him, where he began applying a choke hold. The man struggled against it, but after a few moments his struggles began to cease. Curiously though, Antonio released him while he was still conscious. The attacker had dropped the machete in the process, and Antonio picked it up.
Antonio spoke to the man. "Sit up." He did so. Antonio then whipped off the mask and stared into dark eyes.
"Venezuelan," he said.
The man's eyes contorted and he spat in Antonio's face.
Antonio smiled and wiped it off. He replaced the mask.
"At least you have the honor to die in silence."
*****
The help Antonio had summoned through his button had finally arrived. Antonio had calmed Ana at this point. She was a tough woman, yet gentle. Only one of the reasons Antonio had pursued her.
"Are you ready to leave, sir?"
This was from his security captain. Antonio nodded.
"What would you like us to do with the body, sir?"
"Just leave it. I won't be coming back ever again. This place is defiled. Let that be known to all. Actually, don't. I will make that known."
"Yes sir."
They left that place.
In a small clearing, the body of the Venezuelan attacker lay, the machete driven straight through his chest. He had died instantly.
