Rick nodded. His breath was coming in great gasps. A heavily leafed tree surrounded by brush was a few hundred yards ahead of them. Johnny pointed to it and Rick nodded. Johnny prayed that there were no arrow-birds feeding there. This close to the hunters' lodge there shouldn't be many animals—but arrow-birds were always on the watch.
As they worked through the brush to get under the meat tree Johnny really missed Baba. The first branches were too high for either Johnny or Rick to reach. If Baba had been there they could have easily climbed up into the protection of the tree's leaves and branches. Luckily the brush was high and thick around it, screening them from view from the side. The tree itself screened off the sky.
Once they had reached the trunk of the tree, they stood wordlessly for a while, breathing hard.
"Any idea where we are, Rick?" Johnny asked in a whisper.
Rick's big, bony face broke into a smile. He reached into a pocket. Out came a small map of the Venus continent.
"Not for sure," he said. "But we can't be far from the lodge." He pointed to a mark on the map. "Once we see the lay of the land, we should be able to tell." Suddenly Rick froze stone still. Johnny looked up.
An arrow-bird had flown into the tree. Since its head was not in position to strike, it was probably looking for a meat fruit. Just as Johnny saw it, its head turned toward them.
Johnny clicked out a sharp command for it to leave them alone.
As the little purple eyes sought them out, its head snapped into striking position. But as Johnny clicked on, it moved its head back to a friendlier position. Its little purple eyes stared directly at them.
Rick regarded Johnny with wonder.