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There is a monkey following him.
It's been tracking his movements for a few hours now, keeping far enough away that Mathias knows he can't close the distance between them without scaring it off. Relatively small and much more brave than he expects most monkeys are, it sits on a rock and watches him as he swims, then follows him up toward the Compound when he's dry and dressed once more.
"What are you following me for, little guy?" he asks softly in German, walking slowly up the boardwalk, his sandals slapping gently against the wood. The monkey doesn't respond, but it swings a little closer and sits on an overhead branch, cocking its head and staring down at him.
It's a little painful to remember his conversation with Jeff about the monkeys, his desire to see them in the jungle that surrounded the ruins. It seems so long ago that he's spoken with Jeff at all and it's a bit of a surprise to realize just how long it has been. More than ten months ago, Eric tried to stab him and Mathias ended up here.
Now there is a monkey following him and Mathias smiles up at it, stopped in the middle of the boardwalk. When he'd mentioned the monkeys to Jeff, it had been with a finality he doesn't want to remember. In those moments, he had been prepared to die, he had accepted it, but now it seems much too far away.
"I have no food for you," he tells the monkey. "Are you sure you want to follow me?"
Either the monkey doesn't understand German or he really does want to follow Mathias, as he simply sits on the branch and stares back.
It's been tracking his movements for a few hours now, keeping far enough away that Mathias knows he can't close the distance between them without scaring it off. Relatively small and much more brave than he expects most monkeys are, it sits on a rock and watches him as he swims, then follows him up toward the Compound when he's dry and dressed once more.
"What are you following me for, little guy?" he asks softly in German, walking slowly up the boardwalk, his sandals slapping gently against the wood. The monkey doesn't respond, but it swings a little closer and sits on an overhead branch, cocking its head and staring down at him.
It's a little painful to remember his conversation with Jeff about the monkeys, his desire to see them in the jungle that surrounded the ruins. It seems so long ago that he's spoken with Jeff at all and it's a bit of a surprise to realize just how long it has been. More than ten months ago, Eric tried to stab him and Mathias ended up here.
Now there is a monkey following him and Mathias smiles up at it, stopped in the middle of the boardwalk. When he'd mentioned the monkeys to Jeff, it had been with a finality he doesn't want to remember. In those moments, he had been prepared to die, he had accepted it, but now it seems much too far away.
"I have no food for you," he tells the monkey. "Are you sure you want to follow me?"
Either the monkey doesn't understand German or he really does want to follow Mathias, as he simply sits on the branch and stares back.