Archive of Our Own

It was a late evening deep within the marshes of Delano, with the low sun casting much of the swamp in shadow thanks to all the gnarled and strange trees sprouting from the bog. The frogs were also out in full force, preventing any silence from being felt as they sung their song. It was both soothing, and unsettling at the same time.

Scarlett Morrell, a human woman in her early adulthood ran a hand across her forehead. It wasn’t as hot here as it was in the scorching deserts of Nevaeh, but there was a sticky, humid warmth that clung to her in a way that made her feel unsettled and gross. She hated this place in truth, easily the worst area in all of Miroslav in her opinion. Who knows how many types of bugs had gotten on her at this point, even as she kept swatting them off with as much vigor as she could muster.

Her other hand, the one that wasn’t swatting bugs away and the like, gripped her bow so firmly that her knuckles were white, and the palm of her hand began to ache. Not that she dared to consider releasing her grip, not while the night drew ever so closer.

The woman inwardly cursed the villagers who sent her out this way, assuring her that there was some shaman or something out here that knew about poultices and the like, who could aid her horse, Klen, with his injured hip. He remained back in that village, resting, while Scarlett trudged her way out here on foot.

She was pretty sure they sent her out on a wild goose chase though, perhaps hoping she’d never come back so they could keep Klen for themselves, bastards... Her emerald green eyes narrowed at the thought, and she had half a mind to turn around.

It was a bit too late for that though. It was far too long into the day to make it back to that village before nightfall, so she really just had to hope she’d find this so-called shaman. Or she’d be stuck out here in the swamps alone in the dark, which... it wouldn’t be the first time, minus the swamp part, but she still didn’t like it. Who knows what dangerous creatures lurked in the murk.

Try as she might to travel on dry, solid ground, it never failed that at some points, something that looked solid gave out and made her sink down into grimy water. And that’s a lot like what happened for her next step, which was onto what she thought was a piece of wood. Turns out, it was not.

The thing moved out from under her foot, dashing into the water with a splash, and causing her to step right into muck! Splashing it upon her, much to her dismay.

“Gah! Curse you! Curse all of you and this blasted swamp!” Scarlett exclaimed with fury, and glared out towards wherever that small thing slipped off to.

Except she soon realized it wasn’t small after all. It was just the tail of something much bigger, something covered in smooth brown scales, which she mistook for bark earlier.

Predatory yellow eyes peered back at her, followed by a hiss, and the flicker of a greyish pink, forked tongue as she gazed up at one of the largest snakes she had ever seen. It was not happy about having almost been used as a stepping stone either.

Scarlett took a few slow steps back, all the while reaching over her shoulder to grab an arrow from her quiver. She made sure not to make any sudden movements, knowing it often set off most beasts to attack.

This wasn’t her first encounter with a dangerous animal, but it certainly wasn’t something she made a habit of, and her rapidly beating heart made sure to remind her of how inexperienced she really was in the situation, despite her efforts of staying calm. There was the lingering urge to turn tail and run, but where? And how far? No doubt this creature would have no trouble slithering after her, so her best bet was to drive it away or hope it calmed down and moved on.

Sadly, the latter didn’t seem to be happening, given how it’s whole body puffed up in agitation, and out came another hiss, this time louder.

“I’m warning you, back off...” She said in a low, quiet tone, half an actual warning, and half a frightened request.

It didn’t listen, of course, and instead began to turn its whole body to face her, and she got a better idea of just how big this snake was. Too big, really, but her one saving grace was that it didn’t look particularly armored or thick-skinned, which meant a well placed arrow should certainly send it reeling.

Scarlett slowly knocked her arrow, while still moving back from the serpent. It eyed her with critical focus, as if it was stalling, waiting for an opening or something... She didn’t like it, it showed a bit more intelligence than she was used to seeing in such animals. This told her that she was dealing with an apex predator.

Despite this realization, she didn’t change her strategy, given her lack of options anyway. It probably would have worked out in her favor, but the terrain was uneven, even she knew that, and despite her best efforts to be careful, her heel ultimately slipped out from under her.

The woman tried to regain her balance, but it only got worse as her feet fumbled and slid about under her, and she ended up falling backwards, landing right in the swamp water with a splash! Thankfully, the water wasn’t too deep, she could stand up again, but she was soaked to the bone, and her arrow fell from her hand, lost in the dark murky waters.

With the opportunity now wide open, the snake struck, throwing itself into the water with Scarlett, and wasting no time in attempting to coil itself around her. She tried to scramble away on her hands and knees, but winced in pain as her leg pressed right onto something sharp. The head of her arrow! Blood seeped from the wound, and she felt smooth, wet scales glide over her back. The snake was trying to get a grip on her, but the water was doing neither of them any favors.

She managed to slip from its loose coils, throwing herself face-first into the water again. Which part of her regretted, for afterwards, she sputtered and coughed, not even wanting to think about what disgusting nastiness was in her mouth, and her new wound. Instead, her focus was purely on survival within the moment, and if this beast of a serpent got a hold of her, she’d have much more to worry about than just a cut on her leg and a bad taste.

Scarlett had no choice but to leave the arrow behind, she had more in her quiver, she just needed some distance. Luckily for her, it wasn’t all too easy for something without legs or hands to get a grip on anything when it was so wet. Unluckily for her however was the fact this creature lived in these swamps, and had no doubt adapted to that shortcoming. Thus, it was hardly fumbling, she just got lucky.

The woman scrambled on her hands and knees a bit further, but this time, it was while picking herself up to stand. In a less than smooth motion, she was on her feet again, and she didn’t hesitate to retreat... somewhere, didn’t really matter where, as long as it was away from the snake.

It gave chase too, she could hear the muck and mire part under its body as it slithered through, and the sheer weight of the beast as it crushed anything that could not move for it. The serpent was heavy, made of pure muscle, if she was caught by it, she would be no match for its strength.

In an effort to confuse it, she tried to weave herself around as many trees as she could, maybe even get it tangled up somehow. But it was a fool’s errand, for no matter how many trees it slithered around, it remained merely a few feet behind her, giving no time at all to do anything but keep running.

Except Scarlett knew she wouldn’t be able to do that for much longer. The swamp bogged down each step she took, requiring more effort than the last, and tiring her out. The serpent was likely counting on this, and she could have sworn it was gaining on her and closing the distance between them. Worse still, with her running like this, she really had no idea where she was going, and could very well stumble into more danger.

It wasn’t long before the woman found herself cursing under her breath, feeling at a loss of what to do, except knowing that her body was giving out on her. She needed a break, though just as the thought crossed her mind, she’d end up getting her wish, just... not in the way she’d hope.

She tried to dart behind yet another tree, but it seemed the serpent was wising up to her motions, having been watching her the whole time with its ravenous eyes. Instead of following her on the left, it darted to the right, and she was left face to face with the beast.

“Gah!” Scarlett exclaimed, and skidded to a stop to avoid crashing right into its snout. Unfortunately, stopping was the worst thing she could do, and she knew it.

With a deep breath and a surge of desperation, she dropped her bow and grabbed two arrows from her quiver. Just in time to feel that massive scaled body coil itself around her, and this time it was steadfast enough that she wasn’t slipping away.

The grip was crushingly tight, but she expected it, and just made sure to raise her arms above her head to keep them from being pinned to her sides. At this point, she had little choice but keep her arms up, given how the coils engulfed her entire lower body. She wasn’t even sure if her feet were on the ground anymore as her arms now rested on wet, cold scales.

Still stubbornly holding her breath, she felt the coils squeeze tighter as the head of the snake neared, flickering its tongue with predatory inquisitiveness.

In truth, Scarlett actually liked animals, and sometimes found herself understanding and respecting them more than people. After all, they lived and hunted for survival, and this snake was no different. But part of liking animals was also respecting their power, and sadly for the snake, Scarlett didn’t like them above her own life.

Thus with furious grit, the woman raised her left hand, and with a cry, jabbed the arrow straight down into the top-most coil in front of her as hard as she could.

The serpent reeled, but instead of loosening its hold on her, she only felt it grow tighter around her, so much so that she was forced to exhale or risk her lungs bursting. She took a breath as quickly as she could afterwards, but only managed just a bit of air before those coils took what space she had.

The arrow sunk up to its shaft and blood seeped from the serpent’s scales. but it wasn’t ready to let go of its catch. Instead, the beast retaliated, and Scarlett could do nothing but close her eyes, and wince.

With a furious hiss that rattled her bones, the creature opened its jaws, with fangs unfurled before it then lunged.

She felt the sharp, piercing pain of its fangs sinking into the flesh of her left shoulder. Why it didn’t go for her head, she didn’t understand, but she wasn’t going to look a gift snake in the mouth. However, she did have more concerns now, even beyond the searing pain of the punctures, and that was whether the snake was venomous or not.

Scarlett had no way of knowing, the bite hurt far too much, and her rapidly beating heart only caused both wounds to rapidly seep blood. The woman wasn’t done fighting though, she never will be as long as she could still raise an arm.

Clutched in her right hand was the second arrow she grabbed, and she aimed to make use of it. The only thing she wasn’t sure about was where she wanted to jab this one. Ultimately, she had two choices, one being the reptilian eye peering at her, mere inches from her face while crimson seeped from its scaly jaws. Or... she could aim for something even more vital.

Gritting her teeth, Scarlett chose quickly, since she began to feel light-headed, and she had no clue what the cause may be. It was a toss up between blood loss, hindered ability to breathe, or potential venom. Thus, she had no time to think long about where vital organs would be on something so differently built than herself.

With a tight grip on the shaft of her arrow, she jabbed it low into the underbelly of the snake, as low down its front as she could reach, for she assumed most of this part was its throat.

More fresh blood came pouring out as a result, coating her hand in the sticky crimson. In response, the snake released its fangs from her shoulder and darted back from her with a pained hiss.

She had no idea what was going to happen now, even as she held the bloodied arrow so tightly, it tore free from the reptile when it moved away, leaving a sizable hole in its body.

Scarlett peered up at the face of her attacker, and put all of her focus on breathing, forcing her eyes to remain open despite how dizzy she felt. The beast had a look of shock on its features, with its jaw loosely ajar, eyes unfocused and pupils wide. She had no idea how much time passed by, but it felt like ages, frozen in time, waiting for what came next.

That is, until the woman felt the coils relent at last. Powerful muscles went limp, finally releasing her from its harsh grip. Afterwards, the animal’s head fell to the muck, causing a splash of water and blood everywhere. Suddenly she was thankful that most of her attire was already red, but the white certainly wasn’t spared.

She took a deep gasp of air, which felt like heaven to her lungs now, despite how she felt earlier about this place. Not that her opinion exactly improved after this attack.

Her wounds still ached and stung like crazy, and she had to do her best to hold back tears. Instead of focusing on that pain, she looked down to see a part of her bow sticking out from under the snake.

With a wince, she bent to pick it up, internally praying that it wasn’t broken under all that weight. At least the swamp floor was soft around these parts, which just might save the poor thing.

As if she hadn’t been through enough though, life decided that Scarlett wasn’t done fighting for her life, for as she grasped the bow and began pulling it free, she heard footsteps.... Big ones. Something was moving in her direction, sounding massive in size and unafraid of the environment they were in.

The bow wasn’t broken at least, but it didn’t come free right away, which caused a fresh surge of panic. Just as she was finally allowing herself to breathe again too, the gods must be angry with her… Not that she was used to anything different.

Thankfully, with a final cry, she managed to retrieve it, and in one piece to boot! She all but fell backwards from doing so, but she managed to gain her balance back. As a result, she found herself heaving for breath, yet with a smile that graced her lips for just a moment, before reality came crashing back down upon her. Namely from the sound of a sizable branch snapping in two from behind her.

Even in her state, Scarlett still managed to reach into her quiver to pull another arrow, before she turned around to face this new threat with a scowl on her face, and one eye squeezed shut to aim.

She tried to put on a brave face, standing tall, legs spread in the proper stance and the like, but in truth, her entire body ached. If she survived this, there was no doubt that she’d have bruises all over her from being so tightly squeezed. Her only saving grace was she didn’t feel as light-headed anymore, yet she wasn’t sure if it was newfound adrenaline aiding her temporarily or not.

Then there was whatever dwelled in the weeds beyond. It was still approaching closer, but as it did so, she began to get a better look at it with each passing moment, and she felt her heart sink to her heels.

It was another reptile, this one had limbs, and for a split second, she half-wondered if she happened upon a dragon! If that was the case, then she’d surely not survive this venture. Thankfully though, that wasn’t the case, because this beast had no wings nor horns.

Not that it mattered all that much, because the red-eyed creature still eyed her with dangerously critical focus, showing a level of intelligence that even the serpent she slayed did not have. This was further proven when she realized that the reptile carried a spear upon its back, and wore scraps of vines, bark, and other plant matter as some kind of mockery of being civilized, despite how it traversed on all fours.

At this point, Scarlett pulled her bowstring back as far as she could, hoping the act might make it stop advancing. But alas, it did not. It kept approaching, albeit slowly, but she had no idea what it was thinking or what it wanted. Its crocodile-like head betrayed no emotion, nor did the massive spiny tail that trailed behind it.

It really did look a lot like a crocodile, at least from the drawings she saw back in the village, with its brownish green coloring blending unsettlingly well with the swamp’s environment. It was the main beast she was warned about, though no one bothered to tell her about the giant snakes...

Its longer limbs, and possession of its own weapon and attire suggested that it may have been an evuna, an animal that possessed a level of intelligence to rival a human and some were even capable of speech. Only issue is, while some could be just as civilized as anybody else, there were plenty who were simply much more dangerous predators of the wilderness. Thus, no matter how intelligent it was, she could not assume it wouldn’t simply make a meal of her just as quickly as any other beast out here.

It was because of this notion that caused her to let her arrow loose towards it, doing her best to aim for somewhere ‘soft’ on the creature. That felt like a fool’s errand though, considering the thing looked as if it was covered in natural armored plates and scales from head to tail. If it had been approaching her while upright, perhaps she’d have something to work with, but with it on all fours, there was no chance. All she could hope was that the scales looked tougher than they were.

She quickly got her answer to that hope as she watched her arrow soar through the sky, spinning right towards the crocodilian... Only to impact right on its shoulder, and shatter into a handful of splinters. It did not even come close to piercing the hide, and yet, the beast paused.

Scarlett swallowed, taking a slow step back, before slowly reaching to grab another arrow. At the same time, she watched as it turned to the bent arrowhead in the muck, and even... picked it up with one of its strange ‘hands’, for a lack of a better term.

It had functioning fingers, even though they were a little stubby, and while there were claws at the ends of them, they were short and dull. She couldn’t tell if the beast trimmed them, or they were just naturally that way.

She did not pull her bow back again, both because it didn’t do a whole lot of good the first time, and because she was beginning to feel the weight of the last handful of moments weigh upon her... She just hoped that weight wasn’t in the form of venom circulating her bloodstream.

“Don’t do that again.” The reptile warned as he looked at the arrowhead, ‘he’ because the voice very much sounded masculine, and very, very gravelly.

Scarlett was taken aback, having not expected him to speak. Sure, some evuna could, and this confirmed that’s what he was, but now she wasn’t sure if she should feel bad for firing at him or not.

She didn’t reply, and just watched him flick the scrap of flint away, before his focus turned back to the woman herself. She didn’t trust him, she had no reason to, and remained on guard.

“Why are you out here, human?” He asked, his tone softening ever so slightly, but it still sounded like the voice equivalent of bricks.

Scarlett narrowed her eyes, despite the fact she could feel her legs begin to shake, both from fear, and utter weariness. She really should be resting, and tending to her wounds, but she couldn’t do that right now, so she’d have to remain as strong as she could. If she showed how weak she was to this beast, she had no idea what he might do, but the assumptions in her mind weren’t good. A fate similar to what the snake almost granted her was the most likely.

Part of showing her strength though was answering him, so she couldn’t remain silent forever.

“I... I’m looking for someone. A shaman, someone who knows something about... plants and stuff.” She replied with, doing her best to keep her voice steady and calm.

A growl came from the beast, and she tensed up again, raising her bow a small bit, and pulling the string back a few inches.

“Don’t waste your arrows.” The evuna stated, not as much of a warning this time as it was a statement.

Afterwards, he decided to stand up on his hind legs, revealing his underbelly to her. She wasn’t sure if it was deliberate, but in truth, looking at the light brown smooth hide... It still looked thicker and tougher than the snake’s skin. She had no clue if the arrow would pierce deep enough to do any good, or simply serve to enrage him.

To say she was intimidated though was an understatement, considering how this creature towered well around nine feet in height when standing like this, and that was with his hunched stature. It made her five foot stature feel rather puny, more-so than usual.

Thus, with a deep breath, she reluctantly relaxed her bowstring, but she still held the arrow at the ready, and took another slow, unsteady step back. In truth, her condition was getting worse, she could feel it, and she began to feel more and more worried. Keeping her eyes open became a struggle, and blood still trickled from her shoulder and her knee. Blood loss was becoming a very real concern at this point.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, she was also possibly losing her senses. Because she could have sworn that she saw the beasts’ eyes soften towards her when she slipped up, having accidentally let the severity of her condition show a bit more clearly.

“You are fortunate, human. I am the shaman you seek, and you needn’t be frightened of me. If I wanted to consume you, I simply would do so, and I do not speak to my food.” He said to her, which left her with mixed feelings on how assured she truly felt about that.

She guessed she could appreciate the honesty at least...

“You-You’re the shaman? But... But the villagers didn’t mention that you were a...” Scarlett began, but trailed off, realizing she should choose her words carefully, and all the words for him that came to mind were not exactly polite.

Normally she didn’t really care all that much about being polite, but in this delicate situation, she decided some manners were more than worth it. In hindsight, she could have simply called him an evuna, but her mind wasn’t exactly in tip top shape right now.

He snorted in response, and approached closer. Scarlett did her best to stand her ground as a result, focusing on taking slow, steady breaths and keeping herself conscious.

“Didn’t think about it I suppose. Or they wanted you to find out the hard way.” He said, and yet she could tell his focus was now on her wounds, namely the punctures on her shoulder.

“Made me find out about the giant friggen snakes that way too, assholes...” She grumbled, allowing her more usual mannerisms to seep through when it came to the villagers.

The evuna didn’t seem to oppose her words, but he didn’t really respond at all to it really. Instead, he just loomed over her, and she wasn’t sure if she should allow herself to feel frightened, or annoyed. Ultimately, she felt both, especially when she realized her grip became so loose on her bow and arrow, that the both of them fell from her hands before she could stop it.

“Hey-ugh, something’s wrong with me, I... I don’t feel so good.” She admitted in a less than steady voice, raising her bloodied hands to her forehead now, and finding herself taking a stumble just to remain standing when her legs tried to give out from under her.

“Come with me. I must tend to your injuries, you will not survive your victory on your own.” The reptile shaman said, and a part of her knew he was right, even if she really didn’t want to put her trust in him.

She still wasn’t sure if she wouldn’t end up as his dinner after all.

Instinctively, she held out a weak hand out towards him, as if to keep him back while she shook her head, both to tell him ‘no’, and in hopes of getting her senses back. But the edges of her vision were becoming black, and she could feel her consciousness seriously slipping.

“Nnn-no no, I am... I am going back to the vill--village, since all there that’s out here iiis... is some big... lizzzard.... crocoooo....dile...” She replied, her voice becoming significantly worse now, to the point where she could barely find her words, much less her manners.

Despite this, her stubbornness remained, and she bent down to pick her bow and arrow back up. After that... Well, Scarlett actually wasn’t sure, because everything went dark, even her mind. The last thing she could even register was the feeling of landing on something hard, cool, and slightly jagged. Not so unlike the evuna’s scaly plating.

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Scarlett awoke feeling like she had gotten run over by a wagon... No, make that two wagons actually, back to back. Her entire body ached, and even so much as moving one of her arms sent pain all the way up to her shoulder.

Her head also felt terrible, and she just felt incredibly weak, which she hated. Even opening her eyes took considerable effort, and what she saw greatly confused her.

She was in some kind of makeshift tent or shelter of sorts, illuminated by torches stabbed into the ground, driving the darkness away now that the sun had properly set. The shelter itself appeared to be made of varying branches, leaves, vines and the like found all across the swamp. Ugh the swamp... She was still here, unfortunately. Part of her wondered if she had died, but it appeared that the woman still clung to life, which she was thankful for, even if she would rather be anywhere but here.

“Good, you’re awake.” A barely familiar and rugged voice said with an edge of warmth, and she instinctively looked in the sound’s direction, only to be met with a set of piercing red reptilian eyes.

Scarlett jolted at the sight, sitting up on whatever she was on, and shuffling a few paces back. Which she instantly regretted, because every muscle in her body protested at the motions, and this.. table, for a lack of a better term, that she was on wasn’t exactly comfortable on her skin.

“Take it easy, you’re far from healed.” The evuna scolded, though his voice took on a softer tone in spite of that.

Scarlett took a moment to allow herself a few heavy breaths, before she looked down at herself, and realized her outer clothes were heavily damaged.

Her eyes widened, gazing down at her chest first, which was still decently covered thankfully, but her shoulders were bare, save for her injured side, which was now wrapped in... Well, snake skin. Her leg was tended to in a similar manner, covering the cut she had on her knee, with her clothes torn off a few inches above her kneecaps. Even her midsection was bare, and much of her back, revealing the rings of bruises all around her torso.

“What’s the big idea?!” She protested, gesturing to her leg first, since it was the easiest.

The evuna looked... well, taken aback, giving her a few blinks, before he leaned back, standing more upright.

“What do you mean?” He asked, and for a split second, she was about to completely snap on him.

Thankfully, after taking a moment to think about the situation, she realized that the beast likely didn’t understand what she was even upset about. He sounded and looked completely ignorant, but not malicious.

Thus, Scarlett forced herself to calm down enough to not be completely outraged. Then, she slowly gestured to her whole self, before speaking.

“Did you... Did you have to completely destroy my clothes?” She asked with forced patience.

The reptile glanced over her from head to toe, with nothing more than factual assessment. Like someone checking the condition of a wagon in need of repair.

“Yes. I could not access your wounds to clean and tend to them otherwise, and I had to inspect your ribs to make sure they were not broken or cracked.” He explained, still looking bewildered.

She blinked back at him, but he spoke again before she could really think about it.

“They were damaged beyond repair already.” He added in a slightly more coaxing tone, as if hoping that would make her feel better.

Scarlett let out a sigh after that, still feeling uneasy as she ran a hand over her face. At least he cleaned the blood off of her, but now her wounds itched, and she didn’t like the idea of having that serpent’s skin on her, even cut up in small strips like it was. Angry, unsettled, and tired, she found herself just sitting there in silence for a time, and the reptile seemed to decide not to bother her further as he went back to tending to... Something on another table nearby, leaving his back turned to her.

“So... are they?” She eventually asked, now drawing her knees up to her chest, albeit slowly.

The evuna paused, glancing over his hunched shoulder with his long snout.

“Your ribs? No. By the three gods’ grace, your bones held out under the pressure.” He assured, then instantly went back to his work again.

That didn’t stop her from following her line of questioning further though.

“How do you know what happened to me? Were you watching?” She asked with a hint of accusation in her voice.

A low, thoughtful growl rumbled through the air in response, and he did not bother to even stop whatever he was doing as he answered.

“No. I smelled your blood and followed the scent, but you already bested your foe by the moment of my arrival.” He replied in a factual manner.

It was Scarlett’s turn to snort now, adjusting a bit more on this hard wooden table she was on.

“Why follow random blood trails? Hoping to have whatever scraps were left?” She asked him with a hint of venomous sarcasm.

The evuna’s tail flicked in agitation, causing a heavy ‘thud’ as it slammed back down on the floor again. She couldn’t help but jolt a bit from it, and silently regret her words. Not that she could take them back now.

“I do not consume flesh of the common races, it is forbidden by the gods.” He grumbled, and she got the feeling that she was finally picking a bit at his patience.

Not that she felt all that deterred. Especially since she now knew that him eating her was strictly off the table, thankfully. Plus he actually helped her, which showed he wasn’t really a monster, just a bit strange.

“Why does a big ol swamp lizard care about what the gods think anyway?” She retorted with a sense of carelessness, now that she was on a sort of ‘high’.

Rationality tried to tell her to back off with the attitude, but she didn’t listen. The pain she felt likely wasn’t helping matters either.

The big reptile did not respond, blatantly ignoring her for a time, before he finally turned around. She quirked an eyebrow as she noticed him holding a cup of steaming hot fluid of some kind in one hand, and roasted meat in the other, wrapped neatly in some cloth.

“Have this, it will help restore your strength.” He stated simply.

Scarlett hesitated, the cup smelled like that of tea, and she wasn’t a big fan of that. However, she knew that she had to drink and eat something, so she accepted the cup first, and carefully took a sip.

It was bitter and the taste caused her to frown, before forcefully swallowing it down. The warmth was soothing however, making her torso feel a bit better, strangely enough.

“Huh...” She mused and looked at the cup, taking note that it was made of reddish clay, and a bit too big for a normal human. Perhaps he made this himself?

With a shrug, she set it aside, before taking the offered meat.

“What’s this anyway?” She asked, but didn’t wait for an answer before she bit into it.

“Roasted flesh of the serpent.”

Scarlett paused in her chewing, and a part of her wanted to spit it out... But it actually didn’t taste that bad, in fact she was pretty sure he even seasoned it with something. Thus she did swallow, even if she didn’t really like the idea of eating something that almost ate her instead.

“You... harvested that thing?” She asked, and then remembered the patches of snake skin currently being used as bandages.

“Yes. I do not typically do such a thing with someone else’s kill, but you were in no condition to do it yourself.” He stated, before he turned back to the table, and she realized much of the snake’s remains were still being processed as they spoke.

Blood, skin, meat, organs and such remained strewn about, and Scarlett was surprised she didn’t notice earlier. She supposed at this point, she was used to it, because that was apparently one thing they agreed upon. Making use of everything you kill, even though Scarlett never killed a snake before.

“Thanks for that, I guess...” She said a bit sheepishly, before nibbling more of her meal.

“You are welcome. The skin and meat is yours, I am merely assuring it does not spoil before you can take it with you.” He assured, back still turned, but it seemed earnest enough.

She was thankful for that, she could probably sell the skin for a hefty sum, especially if she carried it outside of Delano.

“How did it die? I mean… what did I hit?” She asked, finding herself morbidly curious, and possibly wanting to take mental notes if she encountered another one.

“It’s heart. Your arrow struck true, and it is from that heart that your wounds are tended to with poultices. So do not remove those skins until tomorrow, the snake only had the one.” He explained, and Scarlett couldn’t help but make a face from the thought, but otherwise didn’t reply.

She let silence linger for just a short bit, hearing his knife cut, scrape and slice on the table. That is, before she got impatient.

“So are you gonna answer my question... Whatever your name is, about this devotion you have to the three gods?” She asked between chewing.

She saw his shoulders tense a little bit, and took a brief moment to wonder if she should perhaps choose her words a little more carefully when it came to the gods, even if he himself seemed to be friendly enough.

“Call me Khizar.” He stated first, before she heard a particularly loud ‘chop’ from his blade. “And I adhere to the gods because it is what separates me from the wild beasts of my home.” He finished with a surprising amount of patience, despite the fact she could tell he was annoyed with how she spoke of them.

“Right... I guess that makes sense.” She mused back casually, then blinked, before speaking again. “Oh and my name’s Scarlett. It’s... well, it’s nice to meet you Khizar. I should probably thank you for saving my life and all that too.”

The knife slid a slab of meat off to the side, towards the already processed pile, before he went back to slicing and chopping.

“If you wish to. It makes no difference to me.” He remarked back, but she was surprised when he had a question of his own!

“Why do you speak of the gods with disrespect, Scarlett?” Khizar inquired, and she spotted a glimpse of his eyes peeking back at her before turning away again.

The woman sighed, a small frown appearing on her brow, and she ripped a chunk of meat off her slab with a bit more vigor than needed. She didn’t reply immediately, and in fact, she probably waited so long that the evuna gave up waiting. And yet, she answered anyway, once she was ready.

“Because.... It’s because they took something from me, and ruined it beyond repair. Something that meant everything... And left me with nothing.” Scarlett said in a heavy tone, one with sadness prominently, but with a bitter edge too.

Scarlett knew it was vague, but she didn’t care, she didn’t owe anyone a detailed explanation after all.

“I see...” Khizar said in a surprisingly sympathetic tone though, but the woman still huffed.

“No you don’t, no one could. But don’t worry, because that’s all I’m sharing about it.” She retorted with enough of a venomous tone that even she felt a pang of guilt after the words left her lips.

She felt it, but didn’t let it show, the bitterness she also felt was too strong. Thus, she just left it be, and hoped he would too.

Khizar let out a low growl, not aggressively, but thoughtful. She avoided looking at him, and listened to the frogs croaking outside this little shelter instead. Though the table she was on was starting to become rather uncomfortable, encouraging her to look around for signs of any kind of bed or the like.

“Before you lost consciousness, you said that you were looking for me. What is it that you seek, Scarlett?” The shaman asked while she eyed hanging herbs, mushrooms and the like scattered all around the shelter.

She blinked from the question, and realized that between her repeated near-death experiences, she never got a chance to tell him why she even came out here. Heck, she forgot that he was actually the shaman she needed.

“Right, yeah, there was a... purpose behind all this.” She said and ran a hand through her hair, at least until reaching her braid.

With a heavy exhale, she began to explain.

“I came out here because my horse is injured. I need something to treat his wound, and the villagers told me to come out here. They said you would know what to do, or... what to make.” She said, though she felt a slightly uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.

In truth, Scarlett hated that she came all this way just to ask for some help, especially from someone who already saved her life. Then again, she wouldn’t have been out here otherwise, and Klen needed her.

“Perhaps. I have treated many horses, jumarts, donkeys and more. What is his condition?” Khizar asked, now facing her once again, but not coming any closer.

Scarlett slowly straightened out her legs, shifting again on the table uncomfortably. She did not spot any signs of a bed or anything even half comfortable here either, which didn’t improve her mood.

“He’s stable, the villagers agreed to help keep his wound clean. It’s a gash on his hip, he got it when we were fleeing from some ruffians.”

The reptile nodded, glancing around what herbs and such he had hanging about, all drying, assumingly on purpose.

“I will make something up for him, and you may take it back with you in the morning.” He said, and proceeded to get to work with that.

Scarlett blinked, that was.... easier than she expected. She didn’t like the idea of making Klen wait until tomorrow, but she was in no condition to travel back now, and if it was dangerous during the day, she couldn’t imagine what it was like at night. So she really didn’t have much of a choice in that regard.

“What do you want in return for it? I have coin but I can’t imagine you have much use for them out here...” She trailed off, and shifted yet again, glancing at her bow and quiver resting beside her, surprisingly within reach too.

Not that she had any desire to use it right now, she was pretty sure her arms couldn’t even pull the string back currently, and she certainly wasn’t going to offer it to him. But it made her feel a little more at ease to have it close by.

“Nothing. Take it with my blessings. You’ve been through much already, and should rest.” He dismissed with a wave of his scaly hand, thick stubby fingers and all.

Despite his generosity, she couldn’t help the short, sharp laugh that escaped her.

“That’s kind of you and all, but if I learned anything, it’s that nothing is free in this world.” Scarlett retorted with, not wanting to have any debts unpaid if she could help it. Plus, it gave her an opening to ask about something else.

“Also, yeah I’d be glad to sleep if I actually could, but I don’t see any beds anywhere. Where do you even sleep?” She asked, making half an effort not to sound entirely ungrateful and treat it more as an observation, but she did find the request rather outlandish if she was just supposed to sleep on this hard slab of wood.

Khizar was taking down some mushrooms on a string and bringing them to his worktable when she spoke her mind, and he only spared her a glance before he dropped the fungus in a little stone bowl, poured in some kind of fluid from a cup nearby and started mashing it together.

“I sleep on the ground.” He said simply, and failed to offer any alternative to that, or any response at all to the discussion of payment.

Scarlett let out a sigh, and waited for some time to see if he would say something else... But he didn’t. So she grew a bit impatient, especially as a strange bug came fluttering in the shelter with her, and she found herself watching it with a sharp eye to make sure it didn’t come too close.

“Okay, but I can’t. I’ll be soaking wet and probably catch some kind of disease. Don’t you have any kind of... Like, guest arrangements? Even a suggested tree I could sleep in? I’ve done that before.” Scarlett inquired a bit more pitifully.

Granted, she wasn’t sure if she could climb a tree in her current condition, but she was willing to give it a try, she’d take nearly anything over this table or the ground.

“I do not typically have guests, so... no. And I do not recommend you sleep in a tree, you could fall out and injure yourself further in your condition.” He stated in a firmer tone.

The woman narrowed her eyes at the evuna’s back, before she crossed her arms. It hurt to do so, but out of spite, she held the pose anyway.

“I’ve climbed and slept in a lot of trees back in Vipin, and I never fell out of any of them....” She declared with pride at first, and yet her gaze wandered to eye some trees outside, and suddenly her bravado faltered.

What she said was true, but Vipin had rather big, uniform trees, at least compared to these gnarled, scraggly things. Many of the branches looked too thin and brittle to hold her weight, and good luck finding a decent angle to even lay on.

Khizar actually let out his own laugh then. It was brief and quiet, but she heard it, causing her frown to become a scowl.

“There is one solution I could offer you, but I know that you will not like it.” He declared in a slightly more sympathetic tone, contrary to his laugh merely a moment ago.

Nearly as fast as it appeared, her scowl turned to wary intrigue, and she finally lowered her arms.

“What is it?” She asked with a hint of suspicion.

Khizar finally turned around again to face her, tools set aside, and his full attention put fully on Scarlett. She wasn’t sure how it made her feel, except now she realized just how serious what he was about to say was.

“I do not have many guests, this is true. But if they choose to, they can rest within my stomach, and I can extend the same offer to you.” He said, speaking plainly and without beating around the bush, though she could tell he mentioned this so-called ‘solution’ with mild reluctance.

Didn’t matter, because the second the words sunk in, her eyebrows raised up, and her heart skipped more than a few beats. She stared for a few moments, jaw slightly parted, before she blinked, shook her head, and got her senses back enough to respond to that.

“W-wait wait wait, you said you didn’t eat people! Did you lie about tha-” She began, expressing a bit of outrage to this, but Khizar cut her off.

“No. I did not lie. To swallow another with the intent of sheltering them is not the same as hunting them for nourishment.” He replied seriously, not harshly, but she could tell he meant every word of it.

Scarlett sputtered a bit though, having no clue how he could even say that with a straight face. Sure, in hindsight, he was right, it was different, but that didn’t address how it was even possible! She wanted to retort with some sarcastic remark about his ‘trick’ failing, but it died in her throat before she could say it. Perhaps it was the fact that Khizar had spent a lot of effort to help her survive this far, and he spoke with such sincerity, she knew he wasn’t spinning any tales.

Her nerves didn’t like any of this though, and she drew her legs up to her chest again, this time as something of a self-comforting motion.

“H-how.... How does that even work? How do we... survive that?” She asked, her voice unsteady, despite her efforts to be a bit more brave about this.

Khizar’s whole body language softened to the question, even those cold red eyes of his suddenly didn’t look quite so intimidating.

“It takes a lot of energy for me to digest my food, so it only happens when I want it to. Guests may stay within me as long as they need to, or until I must eat again. Due to the nature of what I am-” He took a moment to gesture to his crocodile-like self, before continuing. “-This can theoretically be for months, though none have any reason to stay longer than through the night.” He explained, speaking factually, but with a stronger edge of warmth in his graveled tone.

Right, she remembered how scholars were learning about how reptiles often only ate once a month or something like that, depending on the type it was. It was strange to think about, but maybe it explained why Khizar often moved and even spoke so slowly most of the time. It was a bit of a miracle that he could actually hunt for his own food at all, but the slow, steady nature of him made it a bit easier to relax around him.

“You’re right... I don’t like it.” She replied back after some thought.

Not that she expected him to be able to ‘pitch’ it to her in a way that she would like, but the whole thing sounded incredibly outlandish. She fought this hard to avoid being eaten, and now her rescuer was offering to do just that. Just... supposedly in a safe manner.

“Then I am afraid that I have no other accommodations to offer.” He stated simply, sounding like he expected her response already, and wasn’t even disappointed.

What she was surprised about was the fact he didn’t insist or even try to convince her. He just moved to return to his work, as if it meant no difference to him. Perhaps it didn’t, or at least not enough of one for him to express.

She was a bit stunned by this, and the two of them remained in silence after that, beyond the sounds of the mortar and pestle, the wildlife around them, and her own pain keeping her company. With a sigh, she supposed she should try to get some rest, regardless of how uncomfortable she was. Maybe she was tired enough to just pass out anyway, that’d be nice.

Thus she adjusted on the table to lay down on her good side, quietly hissing in pain as she maneuvered herself, working to find a position even halfway comfortable. This went on for a good while and with no success, up to the point where she gave up and just tried to sleep anyway, which also wasn’t successful.

She didn’t like thinking about it, but she imagined it was likely rather cushioned in Khizar’s stomach. And considering his large, broad size, it probably wasn’t even that cramped in there. Scarlett frowned at the thought, eyes stubbornly shut, even though she clearly wasn’t sleeping.

Everything hurt, it never stopped hurting really, but as she tried to sleep and had nothing else to focus on but that, suddenly it felt a lot more prominent. A sense of desperation and defeat seeped into her, along with the slightly increasing urge to slip into a pit of despair over her situation.

It’d be easy for her to fault Khizar for it, to curse him for not having accommodations for someone not covered in armored scales. But she knew that was selfish, even for her standards. It wasn’t his fault, she knew that, and she couldn’t help but find herself softening towards the big fella. Ever since they met, he’d been non-stop at work aiding her in some way, without asking for anything in return, and she knew that she hadn’t been the most polite guest he had.

She felt a tear seep past her eyelid, and she let out a heavy breath, before opening her eyes. Thanks to the glassy look of them now, her vision was rather blurry, but that was okay enough... She didn’t really need to see clearly for what she was working herself up to do.

“Khizar?” She asked, her voice uncharacteristically quiet, perhaps even a little bit frail.

“What is it, Scarlett?” The evuna asked, his tone holding a sense of neutral warmth again, not so unlike when she first awoke.

The woman took a deep breath, which she half regretted from how it hurt her bruised torso to do so, but the gesture itself brought her some relief.

“That... offer you made earlier.... Is it still available?” She asked, her nerves spiking a small bit as soon as she asked, but she did her best to ignore it.

“It is. Are you in need of it?” He asked, and even though she wasn’t looking at him, she could tell he was looking at her, likely in that same gentle manner as before.

Scarlett took a few moments to reply, bouncing the idea back and forth in her mind. She still didn’t actually like the concept, but she was desperate for something soft to lay on, and for a place to just... be away from this swamp. Even if she’d still technically be in it, she felt less... exposed at the thought. She couldn’t imagine that there was all that much out there that could actually rival Khizar in size, but she wasn’t going to ask either, because she rather just stick to thinking that, regardless of the truth.

“Y-yeah... Yeah I am.” She breathed out, and then winced, as if she expected him to snap at her the second the words left her.

Obviously he didn’t, in fact he barely moved. And yet she remained tense, mostly out of instinct, but also fear that it would hurt to... well, be swallowed whole.

Eventually, she heard his footsteps approach, his tail dragging across the ground and displacing the mud and murk that made up the floor.

“Do try to relax then. You will not be harmed, you have my word.” Khizar assured gently, his voice closer now than she was used to, for she imagined his snout was merely a few inches away at this point.

Scarlett tried to listen to him, willing herself to relax her muscles, which they were grateful for. After that, she finally shifted her head to look towards him, which had her face to face with rows of sharp white teeth and scaly lips, accompanied by a pair of warm reptilian eyes peering down at her.

Any other day, she’d be shrieking and going for her bow, but after what she’s been through, the sight actually put her at ease. She was starting to accept that he was not to be feared, and probably had a softer, kinder heart than she did. Thus, it was in that moment did Scarlett finally allow herself to crack a smile to him.

“I know.... Thank you.” She said in a soft, genuine tone, finally lowering that harsh shell that she often wore.

With her blurry vision, she couldn’t be entirely sure what she saw when it came to smaller details, but she could have sworn that she saw Khizar smile too. Could he even do that? Unlike a crocodile, his lips did look a little more lizard-like, as if they could move.

She couldn’t think about it for long though, because shortly after that, Khizar’s long, massive jaws parted, revealing a strange yellowish hue to the interior of his mouth. At first, his throat was closed off by a flap of this odd tissue, but as her whole upper half was delicately scooped up by his bottom jaw, the weight of her easing down into this strange jaw-pouch pulled that flap down, and revealed a more reddish pink tunnel.

Scarlett let out a small surprised noise as she was lifted up off the table, and her arms moved to steady herself, placing her hands between his teeth. It was strange, being supported by nothing more than his lower jaw and this layer of softer hide. Thankfully this didn’t last too long, because his hands came up to help support her legs at least, while his mouth closed a small bit.

A small spike of worry shot through her as teeth neared her legs and hands, but she managed to remain calm, trusting that he knew what he was doing, and that didn’t involve chomping limbs off. In fact, it probably more-so involved how she was raised up to be closer to his throat.

Khizar waited a moment, before he flicked his whole head up. Not too harshly, but just enough to raise her up, and cause her to slide neatly into his gullet. At the same time, he eased her legs in his mouth next, and then tipped his head back entirely. With one large gulp, Scarlett found herself rapidly vanishing from the outside world, and sliding down a slick, soft tunnel of lukewarm flesh.

She wasn’t sure what to expect from within him, but so far, it wasn’t all that different from the swamp. Lukewarm, humid, yet weirdly not as disgusting as the swamp itself, especially since there were no stupid bugs.

As expected, he was so big that his throat didn’t need to use much effort to pull her down, and thankfully that meant the muscles worked rather gently with her, and managed not to squeeze her too much. She was grateful for that, because she had more than enough for a while... Preferably forever.

Attempting to move was pointless though, considering it was a tunnel just wide enough for her to fit down comfortably, and with everything being so goopy and soft, she had better luck moving in the swamp muck. So she just attempted to relax for the trip downward, which in truth, didn’t last all too long before she was sliding down into a more open chamber.

Scarlett was a little worried about arriving upside down in his stomach, and while she technically did, the motion of her body spilling down inside caused her to slide upwards again by the time her ankles joined the rest of her. And before she knew it, she was sheltered within soft darkness, unable to see anything, and yet... comfortably cradled.

To say it was surreal was an understatement, between the surprising amounts of sheer comfort and ease she felt the moment she arrived, to the sound of his rather slow breathing and heartbeat. No wonder he didn’t have to eat much, his entire inner workings all functioned like he was in some kind of light hibernation all the time.

She was thankful that it wasn’t too hot in here, she wasn’t overly fond of the heat in truth, and while it was a little bit warmer in here than it was in the swamp, this warmth was... different. More soothing, inviting even, and it left her without the strength to even bother moving from her initial landing.

Thankfully she didn’t really have to. Her wounds weren’t bothering her that much, and everything was just so soft and supportive around her, she wasn’t sure if there even was such a thing as an ‘uncomfortable angle’ or whatever in here. All she knew was that sleepiness was rapidly catching up to her, and for the first time since stepping foot in Delano, she felt like she could truly let go of her distress and relax.

“I will take you back to the village myself, just try to rest up.” Khizar told her, his gravelly voice surrounding her like a wool blanket. A little scratchy, but still warm and inviting.

Scarlett didn’t reply verbally, for she didn’t have the strength, but she leaned back in the evuna’s stomach, and she hoped that he understood that she was grateful for this, despite the strange nature of it all. She looked forward to sketching her discovery of him, and this whole ordeal, when she got back to the rest of her things left with Klen.

For now, it was time to sleep properly, and work on healing from this journey.