The troop's commander grabbed one of his soldiers by the shoulder. "Don't go any further," he warned.
The soldier looked back at him irritably. "But we have him, cahpo. I heard the snare-"
"Just wait a little longer." The Commander kept his hand on the man's shoulder as his eyes searched the dense jungle growth before them. He would not allow them to move from where they crouched, quietly waiting, until he was absolutely sure.
Another soldier spoke from behind."Cahpo, I heard it spring also. We need wait no longer."
"He is there for the taking," another added.
The Commander spun on his heels and glared at his men behind him. "Your impatience will be our doom!" He tried to keep his voice down, despite his anger. "I do not think you trully realize how dangerous this assisgnment is!"
"But he is one man, cahpo."
"He is a Zregman!" the Commander snapped in reply. "And one zregman is equal to all six of you!" He shook his head in annoyance at their ignorance. "Not only that, but he is now like a scydrion in a trap. Twice as dangerous because he is backed into a corner! The Zregii value freedom and independence more highly than you can imagine. They do not go quietly when threatened!"
The first soldier grinned at his brothers-in-arms. "He will go quietly enough when he is surrounded by our spears. And if that doesn't work, he will break under the sting of our whips."
The Commander backhanded the soldier and sent him sprawling. With all their attention now fixed, he said, "You have all seen Zregii warriors with their famous tattoos, but have you ever learned the process of that tattooing? Well, let me just say, the pain is more than any of you have had to bear, and the process is not over quickly. And many of them do their own." He glowered down at the fallen soldier. "Pain, sirrah, is not a threat to one such as him."
The Commander then stepped over the soldier and quietly moved a branch with large, wide leaves aside. He strained to peer through the foliage and catch sight of their snared target. As his mind evaluated possible approaches he muttered, more to himself, "How ironic that it is Zregii jewels that fund this assignment..."
