A Snake's Life

by Kenneth Arant

  "Alright men!" John hissed as they reached the docks.

  "We'll set up an ambush for them on the ship. If we're lucky, Mr. Bones will buy them for a grand sum."

  One of the younger men spoke up. "Uh, sir... what about the dog?"

  John rolled his eyes at him. "We kill it, of course!"

  The men nodded at John’s order and the gang boarded the ship.

  John took a quick look around before turning back to the men, but someone was missing.

  "Where's Ri'shaan?" John quietly asked.

  The men looked at each other. "I don't know, sir. Maybe he chickened out?" One of them shrugged.

  John noticed something move out of the corner of his eye, but when he looked, it was gone. "Did anyone else see that?" He asked, panic beginning to seep into his voice. He looked at the men and noticed another one was gone. Another vanished a few seconds later.

  "Form up, we have an attacker!" John ordered the two remaining men. They stood back to back with John so they could watch every direction. John turned around in time to see one of remaining men get yanked overboard by... something.

  "What the fuck, was that!?" John yelled, just as the ship was knocked to the side, causing the last of his men to stumble over to the edge of the ship. There, he too was pulled overboard.

  John pulled out his sword and picked up another that had been dropped by one of his gang members, Chritar, he thought. John ran over to the mast and pressed his back against it. "Okay... It can't sneak up on me now." A hissing sound coming from above John drew his attention upwards. So, he very slowly looked up and saw the largest serpent he’d ever seen. And it was staring back at him.

  "Oh... Fuck me..."John muttered. He couldn't dodge its mouth in time and was quickly swallowed whole.

  Fenris

  FENRIS WOKE UP THE next morning after hearing someone knocking on the door. Lena had rented a double room at an inn near the harbor, as they wanted to set out early. Also, Fenris didn't want to give the snake a reason to come looking for them since there was no way that would turn out well. After all, the only reason Fenris trusted the snake was that Lena assured him that Torga meant his family no harm. Though now that he’d thought about it, that protection probably only extended to herself and the kids. Fenris had seen Torga look at him like he was a tasty snack, but he only looked at Lena and the kids with a fondness that Fenris honestly hadn’t seen since they left his home world of Urilia.

  And that's not even counting his reaction to the Leviathan. The snake lifted up the ship and carried them away so quickly that Fenris didn’t even detect the damn thing until they were out of danger. In fact, for a while, Fenris had assumed Torga was only saying it to mess with him. But Lena told him later on that night that the fear and anger Torga had towards the creature definitely weren’t fake. He was serious about trying to kill the Leviathan should it pose a threat to them. Fenris believed that was the moment he’d decided to place his trust in the snake. Not to protect them in the face of danger, no. He still wasn't going to trust their lives to someone he’d only known for a couple of months. But he would trust Torga to not abandon them at the first sign of trouble. If he cares enough to willingly attack the Leviathan, the least Fenris could do is trust him a little bit.

  Fenris snapped back to reality as he heard the knock again. He crawled over to Lena and nudged her awake. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she did was try to talk but Fenris covered her mouth with his paw and motioned to the door.

  "We have a visitor," He whispered. Fenris nodded when the fog left her eyes. She glanced over to the door and threw off the blanket on their tiny double bed. She climbed to her feet and pulled on her tight green pants and white shirt.

  Though Fenris tried to keep it in, he honestly couldn't help himself and whined in appreciation of the sight before him. And she obviously heard it, as she glanced in Fenris’ direction with a smile on her face.

  "I'm still mad at you," she whispered.

  Fenris covered his eyes with his paws. He heard her chuckle as she walked over to the door. After looking through the metal peephole, she slowly opened the door. She made sure to keep the chain lock on the door, and only pulled the door open enough for her to peek through.

  "Hello?" She asked in a friendly tone.

  Fenris walked over and stood beside her in case whoever this was wasn't friendly.

  "Hello, ma'am. You asked for a six a.m. wake-up call?" The man on the other side of the door replied.

  Lena sighed and pulled the door open a little further. "I did. Thank you, we'll be down in a few minutes."

  The man must have nodded because Fenris didn't hear anything other than his breathing for a few seconds, then his footsteps walking away from the room.

  "You asked for a wake-up call?" Fenris asked, tilting his head to one side.

  She nodded and began to explain. "Yes, I didn't want to leave Torga alone at the ship any longer than necessary."

  Fenris rolled his eyes, then padded back over to the bed and jumped on to it. "You act like he's a child that needs to be protected."

  She shot Fenris a glare as she finished getting dressed, slipping on her boots, then her robe. "Don't act like you aren't thinking the same thing, Fenris. You've been glancing back towards the ship since we entered this city." She walked over to the children and began shaking them awake. Hali, as per usual, woke up almost immediately. But Solon needed several shakes before he woke up. Then she set about getting them ready for the day. She brushed through Hali's hair while Solon pulled on his gray shirt and stuffed his feet into his boots. Hali did the same with her dark red blouse and boots.

  The family left the room after gathering their discarded stuff and headed to the checkout desk. There was nobody there. They looked for the young woman that checked them in the previous night, but she was nowhere to be found.

  "I don't like this..." Fenris muttered. he stood at Lena's back to ensure no one got the drop on them, and Lena twisted her fingers in an intricate pattern. A burst of energy immediately followed, and she went glassy eyed.

  That was something Fenris had never understood about druidic magic. Druids didn't need spells like other magic classes, but their magic required complete focus. Unlike other spellcasters, who could simply say the spell and forget about it, if a druid tried that, the magic would either fizzle out and become inert or would backfire. However, a backfired spell rarely, if ever, happened. Most druids wouldn’t use attack spells because they saw everything as a part of nature and refused to harm any of it. Lena wasn't one of those druids, though she did refuse to attack animals. She was quite happy to put another elf, human, or other humanoid creature on their ass if they threatened her.

  This was about to come in handy because as soon as she regained focus, the door was kicked open and a group of ten well-armed, masked men stormed in. Though most of them were brandishing swords, a few were carrying auto-casters—small devices with a barrel and a rotating cylinder that, when loaded with an enchanted stone, were capable of firing out whatever spell the stone was enchanted with. However, these devices were exceedingly rare outside of the dark elf kingdoms. Those elves are the only ones who know how to make them, and they don't like sharing their technology with anyone. Either these men stole those auto-casters—which was unlikely, as they're usually enchanted to prevent theft—or there was a dark elf supplying them.

  The man at the front of the group took a step forward and raised his auto-caster, then pointed it at Lena.

  "What did you do with my men!?" he yelled. His race became apparent, as his voice had an undertone of hissing. And only one known race had that feature.

  "A Snake demi-human."

  The man asked his question again, and this time, Lena answered.

  "I don't know what you're talking about!"

  The man pulled the caster's trigger, which caused a blue light to shoot into the floor between Lena's legs. "You lying bitch! A group of my men went to your ship last night and haven't been seen since. Now, tel
l me where they are!" He pointed the gun at Solon. "Tell me!"

  Fenris could tell the moment Lena decided to drop her “innocent” druid act... and it was the moment he dared to threaten one of her "babies.”

  "I. Said. I don't know!" Lena hissed between clenched teeth. The wooden floor glowed green and a spike of wood shot into the hand holding the auto-caster. Then another stabbed into his face, piercing his eye, and puncturing his brain. The other men stood in silence as the snake-man fell onto his back.

  "Kids, get behind the desk." Lena commanded in a tone that brokered no argument.

  They nodded and jumped over the top, then huddled together.

  "Fenris... if you wouldn't mind?" Lena asked.

  Fenris nodded. His body glowed a bright green as he revealed his demi-elvan form. Though He’d prefer turning back to normal, inside this cramped space, this form would have to do. When the glowing died down. The men could see a half-Warg demi-elf standing in front of them... naked.

  "Please, do make this interesting. I haven't had a good brawl in a while as I've been cramped up on that ship." Two more wooden spikes shot out of the floor and pierced through the casters before they could even be raised. Then, a large wooden spike pierced through a man's gut... and the fight began.

  A man to Fenris’ left charged at him and swung a broadsword in a horizontal arc at his neck. Fenris ducked under it and punched him in the groin, then grabbed his sword arm and flipped him onto the desk with his head hanging off the edge. Fenris slammed his elbow into the man’s forehead hard enough to snap his neck and leave it dangling uselessly.

  Fenris picked up the man’s broadsword and charged into the other swordsmen, while Lena handled the casters. He blocked one sword slash, then kicked the offender in the knee, causing the bone to snap in the other direction and pierce through his flesh. A wooden spike finished him off. Fenris punched another man in the face, then ran yet another through with the "borrowed” blade.

  Fenris had to quickly let go of said blade, as another blade almost cleaved through his hand. Fenris jumped over a second blade, wrapped his arm around the attacker’s head, then kicked off a third attacker. The sudden movement allowed him to snap the man's neck, as he simultaneously threw him into a fourth man, which sent the two of them falling back. A wooden spike grew from the ground and impaled both the falling man and the thrown man.

  Fenris had to roll out of the way as one of the remaining men bull-rushed him. A wooden spike was awaiting him as he passed. It pierced through his stomach, as another was shoved directly into his eye, courtesy of a pissed off Lena. The last man attempted to run away, but Fenris quickly caught up to him and swept him off his feet, then pinned him to the ground. A spike grew out of the ground next to Fenris, which was quickly snapped off and pressed it against his throat.

  "Now... are you going to be a good boy and answer my questions? Blink once for no, twice for yes."

  The man blinked twice very quickly.

  "Good boy," Fenris answered with a smile on his face. Fenris lifted him off the ground and threw him into the wall, then pressed the spike against his throat again. "First question. Who sent you and why?" The man glanced down at the spike, then back into Fenris’ eyes. Fenris pulled it away slightly and the man breathed a sigh of relief.

  "Mr. Bones sent us to kidnap the two elves. That's what the men at your boat were for as well."

  Fenris nodded. "Who's Mr. Bones?" He asked.

  The man glanced around before he answered. "I don't know who he actually is. I've never met him personally. But he's a slave trader who specializes in... uh..."

  Lena spoke up. "Sex slaves?"

  The man slightly nodded.

  "You're doing great. Only one question to go... How many more men are waiting for us outside, and what are their locations?" Fenris asked.

  The man's eyes widened. "Tw... twelve,” He stammered. “And they're stationed around the front and back entrances."

  "Thank you, for being so cooperative." Fenris smiled at him... before slamming the spike into his forehead, pinning him to the wall. As he stepped away from the body, Fenris shifted back into his miniature Warg form. "We need another way out of here."

  Lena nodded and went to retrieve the kids, while Fenris searched the ground floor for another way out. And, though he did manage to find one, it wasn't a particularly nice one.

  "Is... is it really necessary for us to go into the sewer?" Hali asked, her voice trembling.

  Fenris nodded and Lena patted her on the head.

  "Sorry, sweetie. It's the only way out that doesn't involve a big fight." The children sighed but complied anyway. Fenris led them into the sewer by jumping down the twenty-foot-deep circular hole and awaited his family. Solon, following his father’s example, quickly jumped down as well, with Hali and Lena following shortly after. Once they were all inside, Lena waved her fingers and the hole was closed.

  "Alright, that should buy us some time." Lena sighed.

  Fenris nodded before allowing his family to climb onto his back and sprinting away.

  Chapter 19

  WHEN I OPENED MY EYES the next morning, the first thing I saw was a pop-up floating before me.

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  You have eaten the following race for the first time.

  Cobra beastman: Tier 3

  You have eaten the following race for the first time.

  Wolf beastman: Tier 3

  You have eaten the following race for the first time.

  Dwarf: Tier 3

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  "Hmm... so that's why they tasted slightly different." It wasn't a bad taste, by any means. But, I could definitely tell the difference between them and the humans. They were also slightly harder to sneak up on, and I assumed it was the wolf beastman that managed to spot me, then alerted the others by screaming as I dragged him off the ship. Admittedly, I should have just bitten his head off. But I was trying to prevent the ship from being covered in blood. I didn't want to scare the children, after all.

  "Hmm?" An extremely loud siren was echoing across the city and was causing the populace near the harbor to panic.

  "What's happening!?" One man yelled as he tried to keep his wife and children behind him. Several other people began to scream and yell following the firsts outburst. Captains of the surrounding ships started their departure preparations early. And, the only person to stay calm, was the owner of the harbor.

  "Please, please, everyone, calm down!" Some of the people calmed enough to listen to him, but most just ignored him.

  "I'm sure the guards have everything under control, and the alarm will stop shortly!" Shortly after, Jordan was proven correct. The alarm ceased and the city returned to a state of normalcy.

  Deciding that it probably had nothing to do with me, I submerged myself and waited beneath the ship for the family’s return. But hours later, I was still waiting. The sun had already passed its apex and was beginning to decline and yet, I'd not seen the family. So, I continued to wait until after the sun had set...

  The sound of water being disturbed cause me to looked to my left, where I saw a dirty and bloody Solon rinsing his hands in the water while hanging his upper body off the dock. Raising my head out of the water to meet him, I saw the extent of his injuries. His left arm was missing a bit of flesh and blood was sliding off and into the water. I gave him a once over as he stared at me.

  "What happened?" I quietly asked.

  “... Ambush.” He muttered. He went on to explain that they had been running through the sewer and were closing in on the exit when they were ambushed. Fenris and Lena managed to force their way past the first group, but then Lena fell and the second group took her.. Fenris fought until he was able to get Solon and Hali through, then he was captured as well.

  Solon and Hali were separated from each other when a group of guards saw them. Hali tried to ask them for help, but one of them knocked her out and tried to do the same to Solon. In order to defend his sister, Solon pulled out
his dagger and attempted to stab the man. He got backhanded for his efforts, then had to dodge a sword swing that took a chunk out of his arm before he could escape and make his way here... to ask for my help.

  "Please, Torga. Help me get my family back!" Solon bowed his head to me and begged.

  I stared down at him, then looked towards the city. "Stand up, boy."

  He raised his head to look at me. "Sir?"

  "I said, Stand. Up."

  He quickly obeyed. "So... You'll help me?"

  I licked my lips as I stared at the towers that made up the city’s center, then I nodded my head. "You kept me waiting for so long... I'm starving. And, all those people look... delicious."

  He seemed confused for a moment, then the realization hit him. "Dad always said I should embrace the Warg part of me." A grin formed on his face.

  "If you come... don't touch my food." I ordered.

  He nodded, then scrambled onto my back.

  I climbed out of the water and a patrol of guards quickly spotted me.

  "M... Monster! Sound the alarm!" One of the guards gasped.

  I opened my “eyes” and glared at them. The three guards looking at me were almost instantly turned to stone. The other two had been looking at each other, so they weren't affected. I quickly bit down on one of them, my long fangs and sharp teeth puncturing the leather armor and into the flesh beneath. I could actually see my acidic venom as it flowed into his veins, taking on a bright green glow and dissolving the surrounding flesh. The man died a few seconds later.

  Meanwhile, Solon had leapt off my head, landed on the other guard's shoulders and held his dagger to the man's throat.

  "Where's my family!?" he yelled, temporarily confusing the man.

  "What?" The blade pressed into his neck until it drew blood.

  "Where. Is. My. Family!?" The guard snapped out of his confusion and told Solon that those captured were taken to the prison on the other side of the island... the building with the large tower that was used to hang criminals.