The hum of life was everywhere – the humus on the ground, the leaves up above, and the thriving chain of ecosystems around the tree trunks that linked the two. Life was engaged in a constant, to-the-death battle with itself and yet was involved in an intricate balance, every organism depending minutely on every other. It was also sauna-bath hot and the group of humans who materialized out of the shadows began to sweat buckets the moment they appeared. But that was OK, Rico Garron thought, because they were probably taking the same water back in with every breath of the humid air. A monkey swung through the branches overhead and Rico was sure it had noticed them, but it wasn't concerned. He and the rest of the party were doused in neutral pheromones and they had been inserted into the timestream with minimal disturbance, so the monkey might have had a brief disorientation but was otherwise undisturbed. As it should be. He returned his attention to the group and listened to Su ending her Senior Field Op's spiel.
