The serpent slid silently through the marsh, tongue flickering as he smelled his way through the Heart. Since joining Dragon, his mind had been reeling with questions to as Aquarian. Hated to admit it, but it was helpful banding together with other Gembounds. However, Septiezal preferred distance, he was not accustom to mingling with others yet. He liked to break away and be alone with his own thoughts as before.

The mysterious plague had grown worse since he met Dragon. Like the alligator, Septiezal had taken up the mantle of hunting down and exterminating the diseased rats. So far, he had uprooted an ailing colony, but Septiezal speculated that it hardly put a dent in the spread of the illness.
This is no good, in a few cycles, the cave deer will be sickened. Then, I'll forced to eat... more dangerous prey. He never admitted it, but he wasn't to fond on devouring his kin. It was dangerous, a gamble, and he usually came out worse for wear. The scars on his hide told that story. Now that he was apart of the Children, he struggled with the morality of it. Unfortunately, with the way things were looking, he may be forced too.

The rats' sickly stench lead him deeper into the marshland. An ominous mist veiled his path, as the gnarled branches of decrypted trees loomed over him like claws. Septiezal stopped and lifted his head, staring into the gloom.

Something terrible was about to happen, he felt it in his gut.

"speak"

Septiezal periscoped higher, tasting the scent in the air. The scent first that caught his tongue was unmistakably cervine, only muskier and earthly. He tucked his head back, flicking his tongue once more, there was another. It was vaguely avian, but smelled... wrong. It made his stomach tie in knots.

I should leave.

His eyes cut to rustling in the trees. The faint stir of magicka caught his attention. Someone had attempted use a spell. Was that meant for me? Septiezal hissed, irritated, but also on edge. He turned to confront the would-be magick user, ember eyes glaring.


"Who--?" Suddenly, weight slammed down in his neck. Septiezal cried out in surprise. He felt the sting of talon's pierce is flesh, sending a chill down his spine. The serpent's reflects kicked in almost immediately. His thick, writhing coils attempted to flop over his unseen attacker, to crush the life from them like a scrawny rat. Septiezal let out an angry hiss as he struggled under the mutated bird's weight.

Why was this happening to him? Why was he being hunted?

"speak"

With each beat of his attacker's heart, Septiezal tightened his grip. A sharp pain pricked his sides as he horribely, discovered that the vicious Gembound was covered in a quill-like coat. Then, He felt teeth tear into his flesh, and hot blood oozed over his scales. The serpent gasped in pain. "What--what are you doing?!"He rasped, fear choking his voice. "Let me go!!"

A deep, hoarse voice off to the side caught his attention. A moose stepped into view, bearing the same musky stench he smelled earlier. Septiezal's hearted dropped. He was undoubtly with his attacker. He barely had time to register the moose's threat before the giant creature was up on him. The beast brought his hooves down on Septiezal's body. There was a sickening crack as the serpent's ribs snapped like twigs. The serpent gaped in agony. Despite the torture, Septiezal managed rolled his head towards the moose and let out a defiant hiss.

Bile rose in his throat, but this time, when he needed his magick most, it failed him. He found nothing to tap into, nothing to kindle the fire. Septiezal began to choke and sputter as his body opted for a more nature defense, it ejected the slimy, black, putrid remains of his last meal, devoured cycles ago.

"speak"

The serpent scowled at the imposing moose. He was clearly not in his right mind. Septiezal did not know if he was frightened or angered by this. Perhaps it was a bit of both. "Then tell her to release me, you idiot!" He spat. What did this moose expect him to do, lay down and be slaughter? Perhaps he did, Septiezal hardly expected his words to seep through that beast's thick skull, but the venting fueled him.

The moose pressed his hoof down on his lower back and Septiezal felt his spine crush under its weight and his insides squish like mud. If Septiezal could produce tears, he would have fought them back, but the snake let a whimper slip through his vexed demeanor. The cracks were beginning to show.

He felt mutated gembound began to pry herself from his tightening coils. Septiezal gaped in horror. No one has ever escaped his coils before, not with out his cooperation. He had to escape, or this would end badly for him. There was no way he could take on these two monsters.

Digging down deep into his reserves, the serpent thrashed and flailed his mighty coils, eventually ripping free from the goose's hold ripping his flesh in the process. Blood spilled from the deep would behind his neck, staining the green ferns underneath. Septiezal blindly bolted towards the thickest treeline, as fast as his broken ribs allowed which wasn't as fast as he would have liked. He noticed that he could no longer feel anything past his lower spine. The moose had paralyzed him, and his lower half acted as dead weight.

"speak"