Hope Rising

Chapter Seven

[NOTE: Now from Quilla's P.O.V.]

I turned back to the Ichomitirus and moved all the water away from its gills so that it couldn't breathe. I handed the ends of the rope to the closest person, which turned out to be the guard I had soaked before, and dived in again. As I landed on top of the serpent, I covered its gills with my hands and wrapped a tentacle around its mouth. Then, I drew a knife that was in a hidden pocket in my sleeve and stabbed the Ichomitirus in the back of its head, skewering the brain. I then leaped back on to the boat, snatched the rope ends back, let go of one end and pulled it back, letting the Ichomitirus float on the water. I pulled the water out of my hair and clothes and shifted back into my normal form. Throwing the ball of water back into the water, coiled the rope back up and hung it up on it's hook.

"Are you just going to leave it there?" Ella asked me, wrinkling her nose in distaste.

"No, of course not!!! It'll clog up the river and make the water undrinkable!!!" I exclaimed, horrified.

Then, a few minutes later, seven more Ichomitirus swam up to the body and started pushing it towards the bank on the far side of the river.

"What are they doing?" Ella asked softly.

"Burying their friend." Hillament answered as three or four of the serpents started to move the sand with their tails, digging out a hole big enough for the dead Ichomitirus. When they had finished, the others pushed the body into the hole and started to refill it.

Hillament gestured to the guard at the front of the boat to keep sailing, and we continued quickly downstream towards the sunset so that the other Ichomitirus wouldn't try to sink our ship.

As it continued to darken, I went below deck with the others and made sure to place my pet rattlesnakes underneath each of the guards pillows.

There was going to be a lot of screaming tonight.

[two hours later]

I was woken up by a scream, followed by a snake, Mimila, slithering over my chest to curl up in the crook of my arm. I grinned, and sat up, finding myself face-to-face with the guard who had pointed out the Ichomitirus. She was younger than I expected, maybe fourteen or fifteen? Anyway, she had Tilwas curled up on her head, asleep. It would be cute if the guard wasn't so mad at me.

"WHAT IS THIS- THIS THING ON MY HEAD?!?!?" she yelled, pointing angrily at my pet.

"Oh, that's Tilwas. He doesn't bite, don't worry." I replied calmly, stroking Mimila's back.

The guard looked stunned.

"Do you seriously expect me to be okay WITH A SNAKE SLEEPING ON MY HEAD?!?" she shouted back.

I gently lifted Tilwas off her head and settled him next to his mate, Mimila, where they curled up together.

Sorry about the wait. I don't have an excuse for this one, so I'm just going to say this: Please be patient as I am trying my hardest to update. 

If you have been wondering why I decided to base my entire Wattpad collection off hope, I'll tell you.  (if you don't want to know, skip it)

The reason is because Hope is what keeps me going. It stops the knife before I stab. It restores my life, and drags me away from the edge of the cliff. It is what I need and what I long for. It is the most important thing in the world, other than faith. That is why I wrote these stories. That is why I'm still alive.

Sorry if that felt a little too deep, but it's honestly how I feel.

See ya!!!

~SCK