Grass tickled around my legs. A warm breeze fluttered by, running along my scales soaking in the sun.
I blinked, trying to focus on the long grass ahead. This was familiar, yet I knew something wasn't right about it all.
That's where it used to grow tallest at home. The wheat brushed against itself, beckoning to be explored.
Looking behind me, I saw the crushed field of where I lived. There was laughter and squealing, distant voices becoming clearer.
I was taller than I had been then. Looking down, I still had my human form I did now. Instead of the wild scraps I used to wear, I was in my Paragon outfit.
Chains. Cold metal brushed my hips and chest. I turned, seeing more looping around the back.
Why was I dressed like this?
Panic started to mount. Panting, I tugged at the right outfit that stretched in my hands instead.
"Sar!" a voice giggled behind me, halting me "are you ready?"
I stopped, recognizing it instantly.
"You are going to try and win this time, aren't you?"
My eyes met those of my sister grinning back. Maria.
Her black scales glistened in the light. Across her front was a light silver that disappeared down her long tail coiled up behind her. She always had this cream patch on her chin that we used to tease her for.
"You know he can't run well on those two tree stumps!" another chided to my right "you know he's deformed."
My brother. Seerali.
He looked up to me when I faced him now. In my memories, he always looked down. I was smaller than him, and he always let me know.
He was all black scales; face, belly, and tail. Being a Naga like Maria, he stood tall and proud. He was always so cocky when it came to races because he knew he was faster than me. He took losing badly and always acted sour. It was amusing.
"I'll stick with you" a soft voice and hand pressed to my side, rather than my shoulder as it should have "two legs are better than none."
Oh, little Pir. He was slower than me, which always used to make me feel better about lagging so far behind Maria and See battling it out for the top position. We'd walk together, knowing there was no point trying to content with those two.
Pir's head was atop a elongated neck that bent downwards so he could scan the curtain of wheat ahead. Sporting the same belly as Maria, he could have been confused for her if he didn't have the same legs as me. He even had the little cream patch, more towards his jaw than his chin.
I used to have the same neck. We were more alike than I liked to admit back then.
"Mama! Mama!" Maria called happily "will you watch us?"
"You've got to make sure she doesn't cheat" See pointed, grinning as his head pulled upwards.
"Oh, my darling, you know your sister only plays fair" a soft voice chuckled from above me "isn't that right, Tsawilaun?"
Her hooded head was upside down when I looked upwards at her. Black scales smothered every inch of her, as deep as the beautiful nights sky we watched together. She always had these pretty black eyes that I thought were the most georgeous in the world. Mama knew I idolised Maria, and would cover for her if she did happen to cut the course short.
My heart swelled at the sight of my mother. A hand planted on my head like it used to, running along the scales there.
"Yes, Mama."
"He'll always say yes" See pouted "suck up."
"Do not" I bit back like a child "Savahnhe."
Dick legs. Seerali always got so angry when I used to call him that. Being compared to a floppy appendage hanging off a few of us was incredibly insulting; insinuating his Naga tail was just an elongated dick and just as useless. Combine it with calling his tail 'legs' and he was sure to boil over.
Penises belonged on the inside. Having it hang out was seen as incredibly weird, yet some of us bared that embarrassment, including me. And legs.... those were seen as a deformity of a tail, not an actual inheritance from some human blood somewhere in our extensive lineage.
Seerali flared, hissing. I returned the bitterness, knowing he wouldn't be fazed by my empty threat.
"Now, now" Mama left my head to turn Seerali's forward "are you ready, my warrior?"
"I'll run laps around you, Sar" Seerali hissed over to me.
I glared back, facing forward.
Mama left his side to stand behind me. She could see over the long wheat to the gravel road that laid beyond. That was our finish line we often raced to.
I turned to see Papa watching from afar. With the others rough housing and exploring elsewhere, he had to keep his eyes on them. But, for a moment, he looked at me and smiled.
He was the one that passed down the silver stomachs to my siblings. Baring one himself, the rest of him was black, dappled with cream spots. He had the same one on his chin Maria did, which migrated elsewhere on others born with that trademark.
Papa was always so serious. He was what I wanted to be when I grew to his height.
"Ready?" Mama grinned, making sure we were all focused on the wheat.
Maria and Seerali hardened their stances, prepared to shoot forth.
"Set...."
Pir glanced to me and shrugged, knowing it was no use.
"Go!"
In a flash, Maria and Seerali were gone. I felt my legs be lifted from under me as Mama scooped me up in one arm and Pir in the other.
She scooped me up, as if I was still young. There was no struggle with the extra weight or height. Mama held me with ease, even when my legs hung further over her arm wrapped around my backside.
"Shall we give them a head start?" she grinned down at us, jostling me.
"Isn't this cheating?" Pir asked.
"Baby, it's not cheating if I'm racing too. If I decide I want to carry my two beautiful boys across the field, then that is my decision. You should work together, not against each other."
That part stuck with me. I remember reciting it to the others when we got into troublesome situations.
Work together. Snakes stick together....
"Think they've had enough time?" Mama grinned.
"Yeah!" Pir cheered "let's go beat their buts!"
Mama tightened around us both. Pir squealed in laughter when she shot forth into the wheat.
Cutting through it before it could hit us, Mama was speeding through the wheat like it was nothing. She cut her own path, pulling me from my frightened hunch to start giggling.
I forgot how this felt. The part in my stomach that fell away into a sort of laugh scream, the way the wheat best my legs rather than my face, how Mama giggled as she moved, holding us close to her warm scales.
They were warmer than I remember. I pressed my head against them to seep in her touch and scent.
Even though I was grown, I felt like a child again being carried in her arm. There was nothing scary out there except for the possibility we might lose to my siblings.
"Let's go, Stone Bones!" Mama called as she passed Seerali with ease, coming up on Maria moments later "see you at the road, giant toad!"
Giant Toad? Shouldn't it have been "see you later, Bruminator?" I'm sure that's what she said. We used to say it to Maria all the time after that when she lagged behind on our trips across the river stones.
I laughed with Mama when she smashed out of the other side of the field to whip herself around before the gravel road. I saw the tiny house on the hill in the distance where the woman lived that owned this field. I didn't know it back then, but she owned most of the land here I could see. The tops of the fenceline were shrouded in the overgrown grass in the distance. I wouldn't discover what that was, and fully understand it, for a few more weeks.
Plumes of dirt kicked up along the gravel to my right. They were still so far away but that was the woman's car as she came to check on her wheat after hearing we were making a home in it. Mama didn't see it. She was too busy celebrating her victory for us.
"We won!" Mama cheered, jostling us in her arms "my boys won their first race! Go Pir! Go Tsawilaun!"
She giggled, laughing as she twirled around and hugged us against her. Her head pressed to mine, warm and comforting.
I wrapped my arms around her. Her scales burned again like the sun itself, but I didn't want to let go.
She smelled like dried chicken shit and dust. I frowned at it, knowing it was grass and wildflowers I should have been inhaling.
"Mama! Not fair!" Maria huffed as she broke through the wheat, panting "they were supposed to run!"
"And we are working together" she quipped back, lowering us both so she could approach her daughter to run a hand along her disappointed face "you were spectacular, Marinha."
"Mama" she smiled through her groan at her proper name.
She preferred her human-sounding one. Mama respected that and called her it. Papa had no choice to follow if he wanted to keep his daughter happy. Girls were worth as much as twenty boys since they could continue our bloodline. They were few and far between out here and treasured highly, especially strong and undeformed Naga like Maria.
Seerali broke through the wheat, scowling at us. He huffed at losing, folding his arms and turning his back on Mama who went to reassure him everything was still alright.
I turned my head to see the plume growing. It was like a tornado cutting through the land concealing the vehicle.
This was the first time we met the woman. Pir and I were already in the field when she came, seeing Maria and Seerali. The woman wasn't dangerous in any way, but Mama was understandably frightened of a human being so close and interested in her babies.
Papa intervened when he saw we hadn't returned. He had found me in the field first and looked over me with a hand on my back, searching for the others. He was the reason the woman didn't leave the food she had bought with her that day. She was too frightened.
After this encounter, it would be a few days until we would gather two more of our braver siblings and follow the road for ourselves to sneak up to the house she lived in. She called herself Anne and tried to coax us closer over a few attempts. When she did, she fed us butternut pumpkin soup in strange bowls. It was the best meal I had ever had when I was young. None of our kills were hot like that creamy soup had been. I remember wishing the entrails I ate were that delicious pumpkin.
She told us about the food she was going to leave us at this encounter and gave it to us then to take back. Rather than be in trouble with Mama and Papa for going to the human house, we split the human snacks between the five of us under the cover of the long wheat.
Humans were horribly wonderful tempting things when I still didn't understand the weight of what they could do to a thing like me.
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Papa was at the edge of the broken wheat, ushering Pir and Seerali towards him. Maria turned her head to the dust, looking at me.
This was different. I was supposed to already be in the field. I didn't see the car pull up, only the woman when she was already being intimidated by Papa.
"Sar" Papa spoke sternly "come."
Maria pushed ahead to his side, he pressed her into the field after the others.
"Come" Mama pressed a hand to my back "it's time to go."
But she had to meet Anne. That woman would deliver us food and cheerfully greet my future siblings. My parents learned that she wasn't a threat. She would be out first interaction with a human, making us believe all of them were that kind. If this meeting didn't happen, then what would change?
"Sar" Papa barked now.
I rushed over to him and was pressed back into the safety of the field swallowing me up. Papa made sure Mama was ahead of him as he nervously followed behind her.
"What is it Mama?" See asked her when she pressed ahead to slither at their sides.
"Something strange" she replied, making sure they kept moving "but we will be safe at home."
"The others are already by the nest" Papa spoke up "nothing moves until the dirt is settled again."
Maria moaned. Pir sighed in disappointment.
"Papa" I looked up to him "do you think all humans are bad?"
"Only the ones who hurt you" he replied, staring straight ahead "you're chained. Look at you, Tsawilaun."
My feet caught in the dirt. Lifting my heavy hands up, they clutched the chains now winding around them and across my throat.
What was going on?
"Papa" I whimpered.
"You're pitiful" he turned to look down on me "why didn't you wait?"
My gut clenched and I felt the pain strangle my throat. The chains burned. My head throbbed up near my temple. The smell of dirt and shit crept up when my father did, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"What are you doing here?" he spoke.
"W-what?"
"It's a snake" Maria turned, gasping at me and pointing "fuck, it's huge!"
She was too. What was going on? Why was my sister suddenly so afraid of me?
"M-Maria?"
"Grab it" Pir growled "make sure it doesn't escape."
"Dirty bastards" Seerali added with a spit on the ground.
"Smash the egg."
The egg? What egg?
I looked around for it, only finding wheat and blank stares from my family. Papa's hand moved so that it clutched my throat, cold and smooth.
It felt more like metal than scales. Glancing down, his fingers had fused together so that they resembled some sort of robotic clamp.
"Papa?"
His face pressed close to mine, breathing in. The stench choked me, making me cough.
"Take it out and kill it."
"No!"
Panting and blinking through the tears, I felt the cold metal pressed to my throat belonged to that of a pole a woman shoved into me to press me to the black wall.
The egg was resting on its side between my legs, pointing towards the cages of chickens watching on blankly.
They didn't panic. They just kept eating and shitting, struggling to bleed out more eggs like they were born to do.
There were four humans here dressed in white jumpsuits and masks covering their noses and mouths. One on the pole, one by its side; ducking down to reach a hand towards my egg, another at the back keeping watch, and the last behind the first with a shining metal rod that had a spike resting inside the tube.
To hell with pretending to be wild. I wanted to be understood by them all.
"Let me go!" I struggled against the pole that shoved back, reaching up to try and push it unsuccessfully "I did nothing!"
"It speaks English" the gun one spoke "fancy that. Not as wild as it seems."
"I'm pretty sure that's the performer one" the one keeping watch spoke up "unless they all look the same?"
"They do" the one creeping it's disgusting hand up the side of my egg scoffed back, moving it towards itself.
My legs clamped around it tightly, keeping it in position.
"GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM THAT!" I bucked and writhed, snapping a leg out to try and smash my heel into the humans hand "FUCK OFF!"
I flashed my hood and hissed at the humans, even spitting when the closest one kept their head down and moved the egg over my leg and from me.
The one keeping watch helped push the one on the pole so I could be contained. They wouldn't even let me stand, pinning me in place on the ground.
"I'LL KILL YOU!" I screamed at the human stealing my baby "FUCK YOU! I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!"
She scooped one arm around it now that it was out of my reach, pulling it close to her crouched form. Manoeuvering it so it was sitting back upright again, she let out a huff as it was lifted from the ground.
No! NO!
"PLEASE!" I sobbed, kicking and trying to yank myself down now "d-don't! LEAVE IT ALONE!"
"I've got work to do" the one at the back of the pole sighed "let's get this over with, ok? It's too fucking loud."
"Even the chickens don't make this much noise when they are dying" the gun one replied, pressing the button on the gun to have the spike shoot upwards suddenly "let's get this done."
Fuck! No, no, no, no, no!
"Let me....go!"
Curling up, I bent my knees and smashed a leg over the end of the pole, pushing down.
With my hands, I gripped the metal to force my weight down through it as well.
The human gasped when the pole was forced from my throat to slip down to my collarbone, stabbing in there.
Screaming at the harsh curved edge drilling into my skin and bone, I shoved against it to have it scrape up my scales from the bone down across my left arm.
I could feel the cold blood washing down me. My skin was torn open, curved like the clamp itself.
My foot kicked out at the clamp when it hit the ground. The human staggered, desperately lifting it again to try and contain me.
I threw myself back into the cages, ducking down to avoid the metal that slammed into the cage where the chicken was eating obliviously, having it's beak broken and eye ruptured from the force of it.
The chicken collapsed in spilling warm red blood that burned my sights. It smeared onto my arm when I pushed along the cages frantically, desperate to get back to my egg.
The human holding it started to run. The one on the pole lunged when I tripped over my own legs in my rush to try and chase after them, stabbing into a place beside my spine and along my ribs, cutting deep.
The one with the spike gun tried to bring it down into the back of my head. Moving it when I sensed them behind me, the spike was shot through my hood, piercing it through.
My garbled screams sounded feral when I shot a hand up towards the gun that launched again, narrowly missing my arm as I wrapped my fingers around the smooth barrel.
Now facing my attacker and crying through the clamp now burying into my stomach, I kicked my foot into the gunman's kneecap, their screams ricocheting from my own as I shoved the gun against their cheek and pressed the trigger.
They collapsed, rolling and clawing at themselves. Blood smeared onto the floor and coated the spike that peeled from the gun.
The one on the pole immediately released it so they could hurry away. Ripping the metal from my skin and scales, I felt more coldness wash down me as throbbing pain seared heat down into my shredded muscle.
Turning my attention to the walls, I frantically searched for my baby, finding it bobbing along the air as it was carried down the long hall.
There were no more humans here. Groaning and sobbing through the tearing agony threatening to buckle my legs, I knew I had to force myself to keep going. Even if I was dribbling blood down my own body and leaving behind a clear trail, I had to get my baby back.
Letting out a yell when I straightened, I flicked the blood from the spike gun and hobbled down the aisle of chickens to follow it back to the hall awash with burning, panicked heat signatures and hammering hearts.
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My legs pumped lead through my veins when I raced along the hall.
Humans sprinted in panic too, avoiding me completely when I crossed paths with them. Others hid in plain sight behind walls or down amongst the cages, as if I couldn't track them.
The one with my baby was doing the same thing. Peeling from the hall, it bobbed along a length of cages before deciding to huddle down.
At least it stopped moving for now.
I slowed at the alphabetical row marked with a gigantic K. Fixing my eyes on the wall, I prowled along and down towards the huddled figure looking around desperately.
Stopping outside 'J', I saw I was now in the right position. Slowly stalking through the entrance, I passed the chickens watching me pass them by.
My eyes were only fixed on one thing. The human must have sensed I was approaching, their heart beat thundering and skin growing hotter.
They were panicked; understandably so. When I rounded the first aisle and stood before the second, I could see the white jumpsuit clearly at the end.
The metal of the gun hit the cages noisily when I let it run over the bars slowly. Approaching them with shaking breath and blood still painting a burning path, I could feel my own pain gurgling up into a low snarl.
"Let. It. Go" I dragged out each breath that hissed out venomously at the sight of their arms wrapped around what was mine.
It dripped from my fangs and down my bloody chin. Each heavy step slapped along the ground, echoing.
They whimpered, sobbing. Pushing the egg away, it laid at their feet that curled up as they tried to protect their head with their trembling arms.
The egg was growing cold again. With the combination of being flipped around from its proper upright position, I was worried the extra movements would shake the embryo loose and kill it.
I'd have to carefully observe the light still burning inside to make sure it didn't start to fade. If it did....
I lifted the gun from the cages and pressed the trigger, making the human squeal.
How dare they decide to destroy the life of my baby! How could they think that was the right thing to do?!
Crouching down to plant a hand on the eggshell, I smiled in shaking relief at the unmarked surface. My heart hammered when I shifted it to check underneath as well.
Uncracked. Not even a smudge of blood soaked into the surface.
Thank you. Luck really was on my side today.
"Baba's here" I ran my hand along it carefully "it's ok now."
Placing down the gun so I could pull across the netting, I saw the human peek from under their arms at me.
Locking my eyes onto them as I untied the netting, everything was screaming through me to remain on high alert. Adrenaline was still pumping through me to make sure I could walk, let alone breathe without feeling how much blood I was gushing onto the ground.
Their eyes flickered to the gun. Mine followed and I dropped the netting to dive for it when they did.
The human grasped the gun and shoved it against the shell. I kicked their arm to buckle it just as the spike went off, stabbing the air instead of it.
Lunging for them when they tried to recover, I felt the cold metal press to my arm and slice straight into it.
Screaming as everything sizzled from being ripped open to more rivers of blood, I twisted myself around the human and stabbed my fangs right into their shoulder.
They flailed as I sank deeper, determined on pumping all I had into her bloodstream. I closed my eyes when they hit their fist along my face, wailing from the pain and realization of their sealed fate.
I wasn't going to let go. One hand squeezed her wrist to keep the gun from my egg, the other clutched the suit to yank her back down if she tried to run again.
"I'm only doing what I was told" the human blabbered "oh God, I'm going to die. I'm going to die."
So be it. It was either them or my own baby, and I wasn't going to gamble it's life on a chance this fool wouldn't try to end it again.
Tears shook through the human. They cried, whining when I pulled my fangs from their skin.
"Whose going to take care of my kids?" they whispered up to me, blinded by tears.
"I'm sorry" I mumbled back, releasing the hand that flopped down "I'm really sorry."
"My babies" they whined "m-my sweet d...."
Words were choked in their throat. I lifted from the human, kicking aside the gun on my way back to the net that I spread out.
"I was only being a good worker" they droned "I...I can't afford to lose this job."
"I'm sorry."
My hands lifted my egg into the netting to wrap it securely again, pulling and gathering the knots so I could carefully lift it against my back.
My eyes didn't leave their wide ones.
"My kids...." the human gasped "I have to tell them I love them."
Grimacing through the guilt gurgling my stomach, I secured the egg and tied the netting across my front once more, making sure it cut across the gash stabbed into me so that the egg wouldn't be torn away so easily again.
The human remained slumped, trying to swallow now. Their lips were already sticky from the tears they were drinking.
I turned before they could form any more words. Glancing back at them, their face was distorted with anguish as they tried to speak.
Fuck. That could have been me a few minutes earlier.
I had to do it. I had to....
"I'm sorry" I just muttered again, hurrying away from the pitiful sight before me before my mind made me do something stupid.
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They would have died.
I don't think I've actually killed anyone before. I've bitten a few people, sure, but they've either gotten medical attention or have been the same species.
Even when I used to fight with my siblings, we struck each other. It made us sick, but never actually killed any one of us.
Shit.....
Tightening my grip on the netting cutting across my chest, I kept trudging through the long grass on the path away from the chicken farm still haunting me each time I glanced back at it.
I killed them.
Wiping my eyes, I kept moving. I couldn't lose strength and cry about what I had done. It was either them or Saah. I had to do it. They tried to kill my baby.
The way they looked so helpless when they realised; that could have been me. It almost was. I was way too damn lucky just to escape with a few new c shaped gouges across my aching body.
I had to find water to wash them clean and to patch myself up.
Papa taught us all that if we were ever injured, we could use river mud to pack the wounds. It was cleaner compared to the dirt on the ground, and wet enough to dribble into the deepest wound.
Grass could be used to pack particularly deep ones. Washing it in river water was preferred.
Bending to rip at the blades, I balled them up and ripped wads off so I could use a thumb to wedge the massive into the torn skin at my chest.
It burned like it had been set on fire. Hissing through gritted teeth at the pain, cold blood dribbled around my fingers forcing more grass into the opening.
It wasn't a clean cut. Every wound I had was from some sort of blunt object so far.
Fists, feet, claws, and now some sort of tong pole. The amount of scales I was going to lose to scarring was going to be insane.
Maybe chewing the grass would help? I could soften it and make the venomous saliva work in my favour.
Would it kill anything threatening to infect my open wounds? It was worth a shot.
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Chewing on the bitter grass as I kept my steady pace, I saw the field ahead was boxed by another fence, lined with warning signs, that turned into a long road pulling from the main one I followed beside. Businesses lined only the right of this separate road that stretched ahead. There was a pathway that cut off at the fence, cracked and uneven from neglect.
Spitting out the wads of grass to shove into my chest over the dried ones, I stood there so I could quickly chew and pack the other bleeding holes left in me, ignoring the one in my hood.
That wasn't important. It would heal around the edges and leave the hole as a reminder of how cruel humans could be. I had to focus on the ones stabbed through my torso.
After a few minutes of drying my mouth out with chewing and spitting grass, I checked that all the wounds were packed the best they could be within reach.
Blood no longer flowed like water. Dribbling from the sides, it was staunched to a satisfactory level.
I had done it. Papa's lesson had actually worked.
Now, to find water. Filtered mud and something fresh to wash the horrid grass taste from my mouth would be preferable. If I found water, I could see if anyone had set up their homes near the source so I could have somewhere to hide away for the night.
Under a verandah or away in a garage would work well. Somewhere to keep Saah warm and protected from whatever prowled through the dropping temperatures.
I didn't need to interact with the owners of the home. They wouldn't even know i'd be dwelling beneath it. The less human interaction I had, the better. I was trying to encourage my natural mutations so I could return home as I was, not stunt them into something worse than I currently was.
Right. Water and shelter. I'll follow this path and let my phone guide me to wherever civilisation it harboured around. Maybe there I could slip onto a bus and save my poor legs for a few minutes.
It'd be risky. People would know me. My face wasn't exactly as forgettable as Nisha's. I didn't want anything near my egg after the shit I had just been through.
Maybe a ride share then? How much would that set me back? Did I even know where I was going?
Climbing up onto the road so I could walk past the flimsy excuse of a fence, I hobbled back down so I was now following the cracked concrete path past the shops.
This was a bus route. A hanging sign up ahead was labelled for it, pinned above a graffiti-smothered metal seat that served as some sort of crude stop.
I saw another up in the distance. It rested below a tagged bridge that pulled from the highway splitting off an exit, winding down behind the businesses that blocked it.
Pulling out my phone to check the maps, it confirmed there was a shopping center nearby, marked with a yellow shape spanning kilometres. With that came busses and taxi services lining a road pushing past the collosal center of this town; Waterholme.
Dragging the maps to show the wider area of veined roads, I hunted for a water source listed anywhere nearby.
Grey blocks littered the landscape. Names of fast food were the first to pop up from the hundreds of other names listing their services and how well they were rated.
Green strips boasted small parks or memorial centers. Split through by the thick grey highway I had been following, I saw it branched off further ahead, pulling into another river of tangled veins.
A mass of green sat beside the centre and surrounding area; a few kilometres to the right, past all the smaller roads and homes. It was labelled as a bushland national park, with a few circles of water spotted amongst it.
I had to zoom out completely to see how vast the area was. Waterholme became Nesham. Roads cracked through the parklands, and a wildlife centre edged one side of it, but there was nothing significant until I locked eyes with the branching patch of blue growing from the little specks leading towards it.
It resembled a tree on the map. One branch stretched from the parklands to be squashed under a road streaking through the connection to the main body of water listed as a reservoir.
Not what I wanted. I wouldn't be able to to find the proper mud I needed out of a place like that.
An equestrian center was planted at another branch at the bottom of the reservoir, and a college lay near the rounded head at the top, spilling out more roads and neighborhoods.
Definitely not. There was too much risk there.
But, right out of the bulge at the top, another tiny vein of water squirmed it's way beneath the thick grey roads and along the edge of more parks.
I followed it with my thumb, passing a factory outlet, several taverns, and another major shopping center belonging to the next town, Wingport.
Past all that, and just up from the winding blue ribbon, was a thicker stream it joined to the middle of.
It was listed as a creek; Brillance Creek. Curving up to the right, it swerved through an industrial area before being blocked out with the green of a conservation park listed as Broken Nest. Another green mess of dark green strips and smaller broken water holes rested within the park, listed as a sprawling golf course; Par One.
After that, it curved through another neighbouring town called Shalemore, under another highway, and, finally, out to the ocean.
A smile lifted onto my face when I set my sights on that creek snaking though the Broken Nest Conservation Park. With nature preserved in that massive patch of land, the water would have the mud and minerals I needed to help heal. There'd be trees to shelter beneath, animals to prey on, and enough land to escape the humans that would team the boardwalks passing through.
For now, it was a great solution. A boardwalk could also offer shelter if the weather turned nasty. And with those manmade structures came buildings. Past those would be carparks. I could get a ride right to the doorstep.
The map had a grey road that forked off below the Broken Nest text. That's where the information center and retail harbour for the park would be, I was sure of it. No other roads were cutting through like that one.
It was far. The maps said that from my current location near the Waterholme Shopping Center, it would be about thirty two minutes drive to cover twenty nine kilometres. I knew time meant money, which i wasn't concerned with. It was wether the roaming drivers would accept such an absurd request.
Money could tempt them. People were greedy and fuelled by the plastic notes like they were life itself. A lucrative tip could sway anyone's mind to put in the distance.
Plus, I was famous around the cities. I could use that to my advantage, finally. Maybe that would make them overlook they would be trapped in the car with a venomous snake hybrid? Did being faced with fame cloud others rationality that much?
I kept walking. The chicken farm was too close for comfort, and I didn't want to be pulled up by any plucky employees who might come down the road to join at the exit beside me.
What would they do with that person's body? Call in the police? Pretend it didn't happen? Say it was a working accident, rather than admit they tried to face someone like me?
Was I a wanted man now, or was it too early to call myself that?
There were too many possibilities, and I was far too paranoid to mill over them, in case they came true.
The last thing I needed was to be hauled to jail when I was so close. Saah would be separated from me and I wouldn't be able to twist my way out of those bars to reach it.
Frowning, I kept my head low and focused on the rickety pathway as I downloaded the ride share app and set up a generic email for it.
Snorting at how stupid it was, and the fact my own name in both forms were already taken, I clicked through the start up messages and spam already flooding the bare inbox.
I'd have to send Luke and Levi this. They'd like to keep in touch after they got out of hospital. Maybe send more of those stupid memes they laughed over together so often?
I wonder how the poor kids were doing? Did Levi's jaw suffer any damage being bound like that? Was Luke going to recover his broken arm to its former glory?
No news was good news I guess. I did tell them to ring me when they were better. I wasn't going to bother them while they were still so fragile.
10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ69lUpKKx1N
Slipping into the shade of the bridge, I focused on the app and the requirements it wanted me to fill out.
For one, I had to state what kind of creature I was, 'for the safety of the drivers'. Pressing the bubbles and tapping in my type when it wasn't listed, I grumbled at my chances slipping further through my fingers.
Thankfully, paying the driver personally was an option beneath the layers of cards and payment plans available; none of which I had. Another thing to pin against me. People liked quick money in their accounts, not the physical stuff they'd have to carry with them so nervously to exchange at the bank.
Ah, well. Maybe that generous tip would still excite someone?
Typing in the name of the center until the address popped up, I selected it as my destination for as soon as possible.
Checking the road, there was a bus stop just at the corner past this bridge. There was also a sloping driveway leading to some daycare hidden behind a massive fence. A giant inflatable bear sat on the roof that said they were enrolling now.
Turning back to the phone, I had to fill out my profile.
Ok. This would be easy.
Name?
Tawn or Tsawilaun? I guess most people knew me by the shortened version. It might have better chances of a driver too if they recognised the name.
Favorite colour?
Did that have importance here? Scrunching up my nose, I searched the area as if the answer would magically appear.
Humming, I typed in grey; like the ash that was part of my performance.
Favourite food?
"Come on!" I gasped out in exasperation.
I couldn't type rats. And even though I loved hunting them, toads were also not an option.
What was a common human food? Something normal?
My gut lurched when I remembered one. Huffing as I typed it, I stared down at the Bread and Butter Pudding now under this new identity.
So fucking stupid.
Favourite movie?
Urgh. Looking again for advertising, I turned to the Internet for a new release.
Green Tar. Looked like some sort of action flick....
Birthday?
I drew a blank. That wasn't celebrated in the wild. We were just born and that was it. Humans were the ones with a fascination with celebrating when their parents had sex, like it was some big event.
Well, I knew I was twenty-three. That took me back to.... Two thousand and two.
Flipping across the calendar that appeared, I pressed the first numbers I saw.
May sixth. Today.
Good enough. Happy birthday to me.
Now, to write about myself.
Well, I was a cage performer. A star, actually. At Paragon. I was born in the wild and have lived in the city for the past few years. Now, I'm a father, and returning home with my Saah. I speak Heshier and English and enjoy.....
Eating rats. There wasn't much else to my life. Eat, perform, sleep, sex, repeat.
....getting my hands dirty.
Looking at the description that was still allowing for hundreds of more letters, I realised how vague my life was.
I couldn't describe myself or what I liked. For years, it was whatever the show liked. I didn't need favourite things when I was just a performer. I didn't get basic luxuries others did. Now that I was away from it, all I had been doing was fighting for my life and trying to keep my family safe. There was no time for little things like personal preferences.
It was vague, but it would have to do. I didn't know more about myself that I could share.
Now, for the last thing; a photo.
I knew I would look rough. Turning my head to keep the healing gouge Bruce had bashed into my face mostly out of view, I grinned and took the shot.
Urgh. I could see the blood leaking from my hood and part of the hole pierced through it. My eyes were drooping from exhaustion, and loose scales peeled upwards down my neck like a disease.
I couldn't use that. There was no way I'd get anything better. I was held together with tape, grass, and fading adrenaline.
Turning to the internet again, I searched my own name and was met with piles of old advertisement shots, amongst news articles. Switching to just the images, there were photos here I hadn't seen before of a younger me laughing at the camera and waving. A behind the scenes shot before I was about to pose for one of my first adverts.
There was another of me sitting with Luke and Levi. We were awkward, since it was our first meeting. Perched on the alcove they would live out of for the future shows, we were forced together to show unity amongst the snakes.
I looked so young here too. All smiles were forced, and there was plenty of room between us all.
I saved that one to send them later.
There was even one of me with Avery and Nisha. Again, we stood awkwardly in our uniforms on the stage; our first meeting. I remember we were doing some sort of jungle theme, hence the green and black splashed across our bodies rather than the more glitzy reds and golds now. We had been pulled together after being split into our groups we never left since then. This was as we were figuring out what to practice; a few days before our first real show. Avery still had wings here. Nisha smiled so cheerfully beside me.
Was this just after we signed our contracts? How stupid we had all been....
I saved that one as well.
Newer photos were mixed amongst the unseen ones. Mostly originals of the ones usually buried under fancy text. The most common one was the three of us against the dark background with those dumb thorns around our heads.
What show was that for again? Retribution? Or Savagery? Maybe Bloodlust? All them themes were so similar it was hard to keep up. Was it even the newest one?
Either way, this was a recognisable photo. I saved it to add to my profile instead of the hurried shot.
And... done! All I had to do was wait for one of the twirling cars hovering around the center and spinning further out of town to accept my request.
Surprisingly, one accepted, with the price of eighty five dollars and ninety two cents accompanying it that I accepted. A white box slipped up from the bottom of the screen listing the car and registration number. My driver was also a snake, a male called Russet.
He was listed as a Blue Green tree python. His photo showed a snakes head that was bright blue with a green ombre from the snout towards the back. His eyes were completely silver and had the usual black slit for the pupils.
His favourite pastime was attending shows. The favourite food was Jackaroo Pie, whatever the hell that was, and music genre was Pop. I frowned over how any of this was relevant to the trip.
He had an average score of four point eight. People gushed over how lively and quick Russet was in their reviews. Mentions of a snack bar also interested me.
Sounded like the type of guy I needed. Someone laid-back and not trying to kill or exploit me.
10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo9l58kllik
I watched the car icon weave it's way towards my street, with updated information on the time of arrival. Funny things also popped up, saying that Russet was listening to a particular song along the way, or that he found Sudoku hard to complete.
Lifting my head as the icon approached the corner, I saw the listed white car round it, the blue head grinning at me.
He pulled up across the driveway, and I approached the lowered passengers window.
"Russet?" I asked, trying to match the small icon to the face.
A bent head smiled, grinning a fanged smile.
"Like the potato" he joked.
The guy was unlike anything I had seen. White spots clustered down his scaled arms gripping the wheel, also patching towards the lower portion of his long neck. His blue shirt was darker than he was, sporting some comical picture I couldn't make out across the front.
His scales were well managed and oiled. Unlike my mangy appearance, Russet only had one old pink scar running from his chin down the side of his throat.
"Tawn?" he peered at the phone planted in the vents between the seats "Tawn from Paragon?"
I smiled meekly.
"That's me."
"Oh my God!" he grinned "you probably get this all the time, but could I take a quick photo? My kids will never believe me otherwise."
Smirking at the request, I shrugged and pose with a small smile as he yanked off the phone to steady at me, gasping when the photo was captured.
"Oh, you've made my day" he beamed "get in! Get in! You've got places to go and I've got places to take you!"
What an enthusiastic guy. A little odd, but he made me smile again already.
I opened the back door to pull down Saah and press it into the middle seat. The seatbelt wouldn't stretch around it, so I made the decision to lift the headrest to line up with the stacked loops of the net so it was secured.
Climbing in beside it, the back of the seat before me was packed with information pamphlets on local attractions. Sure enough, Paragon was amongst the stacks; Broken Nest Conservation Park too.
Between the back and front seats on the center console was a tray of snacks. Two bottles of water were nestled closest to me, with a sign below stating to take whatever I needed.
A charging cable spread from the same console, with a spray of different adaptors for almost every type of phone. I plugged mine in and rested it on the floor.
"I feel for the female who pushed that out" Russet chuckled when he turned to see the egg through the mirror "only one?"
"Eleven, but I can only carry one" I replied "the mother wanted to keep them all nested. I couldn't stay with her."
"I get it" Russet replied as he made sure I was buckled in, replacing his phone with directions leading to my destination "if you are trying to get to Broken Nest for the hybrid feedings, they might be closed by the time you get there."
Hybrid feedings. I scoffed at how insane that sounded.
Like actual animals. So demeaning.
"I don't get it either" Russet laughed "but they're quite popular. Got a whole heap of famous ones there too, like your shows. There's a pamphlet in the back."
I pulled one out and decided to read it later, slipping it into my pocket. I took one for Paragon too to laugh about later.
Something already occupied my pants pocket. Tugging it free, I found the bag of mango tea bags the old man had insisted I take. Smirking, I pushed them back down and zipped it up again.
"I hope you don't mind the heat" Russet spoke up as he indicated and pulled us onto the road to head back towards the chicken farm "most humans are fussy about it being hot when it's already warm out."
"The warmer the better" I smiled back, feeling my breath catch as the building slowly dragged by as Russet tried to merge onto the highway, honking at the other car not allowing him in.
"See, you get it" his voice was cheerful as I kept my eyes fixed on the building "and don't worry about the shed either, I won't charge you a cleaning fee. You can't help it."
"Hmm?" I glanced over to the rear view mirror he looked through "oh, thanks."
It was still there. It seemed that the building moved with us, even when Russet wedged in with the other cars keeping speed down the highway.
"Hungry?" he noticed me locked on to the building "I've got jerky here if you want something?"
"I've eaten" I only replied, tearing my gaze from the building and focusing on the road out the other window with a grateful sigh. I reached for the water to crack it open and give my painful throat some relief.
All this didn't feel real. Any moment now, something would go wrong. Maybe Russet was too chipper because he was plotting on hurting me too while I was locked in his car?
"You've seen better days, i take it."
"Much better" I agreed "I can pay extra if I get blood on your seats."
"It's all good" he waved that aside "they must pay you performers quite well if you are just wanting to throw money at me. Usually people aren't so keen to part with it like you are."
Was it that obvious? That was a little embarrassing I was being taken at face value as some rich arsehole.
"I know a thing or two about high rollers, and you aren't one of them" Russet reassured me "there's nothing to be ashamed of."
"You know rich people?" I snickered "I kind of doubt they catch ride shares to their next Michelin star restaurant."
"You are looking at a twelve million dollar specimen" Russet ran a hand along his side so I could see his gesture "would be eighteen, but the scar and spots in the wrong spots knock a few bucks off."
A few bucks? I laughed at how casual he was speaking about it all. And him being worth that much? Give me a break.
"Yeah, right."
"I'm serious" he insisted "my profile even says so. I like shows. Reptile shows."
"I thought it was tv shows" I admitted.
"Well, I have to keep it vague" he peered back at me "most people get a bit iffy when you mention you are into places that offer money to buy hybrids."
I frowned back, interested.
"Those exist?"
"Oh, all over the place!" he waved a hand "but it's a little on the eeehh side. People are saying they shouldn't because a hybrid still has human in them and that isn't ethical spending money on something partly human."
There were places worse than Paragon? How could that be possible?
"They have a point" I agreed.
"Yeah, but it's the dream" Russet tried to change my mind "you just turn up and stand up on a stage for judging. Rich people turn up from all over and pay big bucks for a good hybrid they can flaunt to show their wealth. If I get bought by someone rich, my family will be set. I'll get amazing meals, go incredible places, and never have to drive again. Oh, it'll be fantastic. The only downside is that I won't be able to see my sixteen kids; little terrors."
"You'll have to lower your price a little then if you want to support them all" I pointed out, smirking "twelve million is absurd."
"It's not what I decided" he replied "it's my value. You get judged on your mutations and markings. Mine may be a little flawed, but they are rare. You'd fetch a good price too, I bet. You aren't some common Red Belly by the looks of you."
"I doubt it" I pushed that aside immediately "i'm too torn up to be someone's pet. Years of getting beaten up by your boss does that to you."
Russet cast a glance, sighing sadly.
"You'd think a place like that would be amazing to work at. For what it's worth, I think you'd be a few thousand at least, even with the blood and rough shed."
I smiled back, shaking my head. At least he thought I was worth something in the eyes of another. He was just being nice to save my feelings.
"Thanks."
Smiling back, he continued onwards while I felt my eyes drooping again as they turned to the rolling buildings and multitude of signs signalling for the exits ahead.
It was warm and comfortable, the company was far from threatening, and I was finally leaving the city without destroying my feet for freedom. For the first time, it was calm.
Even with the death of the woman still niggling in my mind, I was too tired to acknowledge it further. Now that I wasn't being chased, my body started to slump.
"Can you wake me when we are there?" I yawned as I leant against the door so I could face Saah, wrapping a hand through the lower netting so I would feel any disturbances to it "it's been a long day."
"Hey, I've got you" Russet nodded back "I've got five stars in safety. You've got nothing to worry about here."
Five stars. He got rated on something like that?
"Mmmh" I just grunted back behind closed eyes "sounds.....good."
"I was in the top fifty safest drivers" he gushed as I faded out "which is saying something because most people ju...."
I offered little grunts to make it sound like I was listening. Soon enough, it was too much effort to do just that. My head fell against the warm window and my family began to laugh their way back into existence.
10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLRFE76b3tX
True to his word, Russet woke me when he had parked the car outside the Conservative Park building. Letting me sleep for almost the whole trip, I didn't realize how exhausted I had been until I had to take a few moments just to force my eyes back open and to adjust to the new surroundings.
"It's still open" he spoke when I dug out money to pay him, then add in an extra hundred on top as a generous tip; mainly a disguised apology for the copious amount of scales I knew he'd had to pick out of his seats later.
He tried to refuse so much, but I insisted as I tied Saah back to my tired body.
At least my feet had stopped aching and neither of us were freezing like we had been earlier this morning. I actually got some undisturbed sleep too.
"Any time you want a lift, I'll accept your request" Russet beamed as I stood outside his window "thanks for the money. It's going to help heaps."
"Got to keep those kids fed" I smiled back "the meat market does raw cuts of you want something bulk."
At least something useful came out of that visit to Levi's family home. I could help other hybrids with the information I learned there.
"Thanks for the tip" he folded away the notes "I'll keep that in mind."
Lifting my phone up, I promptly gave Russet five stars. He grinned as his phone lit up with the rating, waving and bidding farewell on his circle around for the exit beside us.
Turning for the black spotted brick building marked with a simple black and gold plaque above the opened glass door, I crunched my way over the loose rocks in the small carpark for the entrance.
Immediately, the air conditioner was starting to drain what warmth I had accumulated. To the left was a desk with a wall of information behind it. At the curve of that L shaped desk was a multitude of white paper cups filled with muesli and berry bits to feed the animals.
Three dollars for a while cup. I mainly wanted the cup so I could steep some mango tea out of the creek later. The rest was just a bonus.
Looking across to the right, the entrance stretched into a makeshift gift shop. Plush animals of all kinds were wedges into a turning carousel. Fridge magnets and pins were stuck to another further back. The back wall was for clothing hung from the sloped racks protruding outwards.
I approached them, eyeing the dotted artwork embellished into a pair of reddish pink shorts. There were blue squiggles across the leg that led up to a circle surrounded by semi circles on the other leg. Between both sides were arrows and curved marks made to represent animal tracks.
All the sizes were here. I could see why they were untouched when I saw the hefty sixty eight dollar price for one pair.
I would need new shorts. Change up my looks and find something I could literally grow through the years with. If it was going to be the most expensive shorts with strange artwork stamped into it, then so be it.
I pulled down a size eighteen and took it to the counter, adding in two cups of feed; on extra in case the first couldn't hold the water as well as I had hoped.
The attendant was tired but slowly accepted my money, trying to piece together where they had seen my face before or why someone was wearing a gigantic egg on their back.
With my new loot secured, I exited out the other open door on the other side of the building, stepping onto the stained green and black boardwalk hanging amongst the towering trees.
The air smelled like the mould growing along the wood and the stench of rancid drippings staining the railings, but I filled my lungs with the disgusting smell I smiled at.
The leaves blew in the breeze being stifled in the canopy. Trees here sprouted green growths spraying outwards from large, layered masses. Down below, the ground was a blanket of dead leaves and curling fresh litter nestled over black tree roots and overgrown branches.
Somewhere along the boardwalk ahead, I could hear the babbling of the creek I had been hunting. Leaves rustled to try and disguise the sound I was compelled to follow with my soaring heart.
I had made it.
After I was healed here, home would be the last landscape I'd rest my weary body. Soon, my family would be more than a tantalizing vision, growing further when my baby would crack open its shell and lay eyes in a comforting place I wanted desperately to share with it.
Soon.
ns3.148.107.92da2
