Glass
and Roses, Chapter 12
Berit
woke up to the sound of hissing and chanting. She groaned and tried
to move, but her hands were tied to a pole. She was hanging from her
hands and legs, being carried by two figures. One turned when he
heard her awaken. He had the body of a man, but the head of a snake.
He hissed and bared his fangs, then turned back to the path. Berit
craned her neck to see Valdimer, Dror, and Laurence also captured.
They
reached a large clearing in the jungle. Berit wondered how long it
had been since they were ambushed. She barely recalled something
jumping out of the bushes at her back on the road. How would they
figure out how to get back? Berit shook her head, reminding herself
that they needed to escape before they could worry about being lost.
The snake people had stopped walking when they reached the center of
the clearing, in which there was a circular pool of water about
twenty-five feet across.
Great,
Berit thought. We're being fed to the crocodiles. How typical. She
looked over to see that Valdimer and Laurence were also awake and
trying to analyze their situation. Dror was still dangling limply.
He did always like to sleep in.
The
snake people began a ritualistic song, and placed the poles so that
the four victims were dangling fifteen feet above the surface of the
water. "Okay, now would be a good time for a plan," she
said, now that there were no spears being held to her throat. "Got
any spells prepared, Val?"
"Yes,
but I can't cast anything with my hands tied," he said.
"I've
been praying since I woke up," Laurence said, "but Luck is
a fickle goddess. I believe she will come through for us in the end,
but it may not be as soon as we'd like."
The
water stirred as the chanting grew more fevered. "We'd better
come up with something soon," Valdimer said. "Before they
serve the main course."
Berit
wiggled her hand until it was straining against the binds, but
pointed in the right direction. She then flicked her wrist in a way
that unsheathed the dagger that was hidden there, and starting using
it to cut through the ropes. "I'll be free soon, if they don't
notice. Stall the crocs while I work."
"And
then what?" Laurence asked.
"We'll
figure that out when we get there."
She
heard the surface of the water part below her. She started sawing
faster, not looking down. It would only make her lose her focus.
"Um," Valdimer said. "That's not a crocodile."
"I
don't care about the difference between crocs and alligators,"
Berit said.
"That's
not what I meant."
Berit
sighed and looked down. Rising out of the water were four heads of
an enormous hydra. It had glistening green scales and webbed spines,
and four sets of long, pointy teeth. "I knew I shouldn't have
looked!" Berit shouted, turning back to her binding.
"This
is a good thing!" Laurence said.
"Are
you mad?!" Valdimer shouted.
"No,
listen, hydras like to play with their food! We have extra time!"
"THIS
IS NOT A GOOD THING!" Valdimer said as one of the heads starting
nudging him, drool dripping back into the water.
Berit
freed her hand and her head fell backwards, as she was only suspended
at her knees now. The snake people started hissing with displeasure,
but they could not reach the victims now, and they did not want to
throw spears for risk of hitting the hydra. Or maybe it was some
part of the ritual that they couldn't interfere with the feeding,
Berit didn't know. She tucked her body up, barely missing being
chomped by the hydra, and fully unsheathed her dagger. She cut her
final bonds with one slice, and stood atop the pole.
Three
of the hydra's heads were focused on her now. She jumped from her
pole as one shot up and bit down on it, splintering it in half. She
balanced on Laurence's pole, and he shook his head. "Don't cut
me, I'm still wearing my armor! I can't swim!"
"And
I can't balance like that, I'd fall right into its mouth! Er,
mouths," Valdimer said.
"What
am I supposed to do alone?!" Berit shouted. She looked over at
Dror, still somehow unconscious. She saw that his sword was still
strapped to his back. She also heard an ululation from the side and
quickly dodged a spear that was thrown at her.
Berit
jumped onto Valdimer's pole, then Dror's, and swung down to dangle
next to him. The hydra's eight eyes were all focused on her, ready
to lash out. She grabbed the pommel of Dror's sword and yanked it
out of its sheath. The hydra stretched up to gobble her down. She
let go of the pole and dropped into the midst of its necks. She
splashed to the water, and all four heads recoiled down to follow
her.
There
was a moment of thrashing in the water, and then silence. Then,
Berit resurfaced, and three severed hydra heads bobbed up around her.
"That
was very impressive!" Valdimer shouted. "Now what are we
going to do about them!" The snake people were getting ready to
slay the sacrifices themselves.
Berit
grinned and rose from the water, her feet pushing open the last
hydra's mouth as it tried to consume her. It moved higher, allowing
her to jump off and land in the crowd of snake people. She
brandished Dror's sword.
Dror
eventually moaned and opened his eyes. He was sitting on the ground
under the shade of a tree. He looked around to see that the clearing
was covered with the bodies of snake people. Valdimer and Laurence
were nearby, rubbing their wrists. “I knew Luck would come through
for us,” Laurence said with a grin. Valdimer rolled his eyes.
"What
happened?" Dror asked.
Berit
smiled and handed him his sword. "Let's figure out where we
are, and then I'll tell you."
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