Crimson Coils (The Snake Men Book 2)

Chapter 7

The corridor stretched far beyond the statue of the great warrior, and to another room covered by a curtain. As Mari approached, she could smell the acrid scent of dried leaves and roots that reminded her of her father. The scent made her eyes water, smoke rising to her nostrils around and almost making her cough. Her father and some of the other men would smoke this around fires at night while they told stories or went over plans of where they wanted to gather Ash Crystals next. Mari couldn't hold back a cough as Rezran lifted the curtain and more smoke billowed out. The smoke tickled her eyes, causing her to blink rapidly, and she stumbled inside as she struggled to see.

Her vision cleared after fanning her eyes, and she found herself before three Naga's; all men, and each one had a large ornate object next to them that reminded her of a very tall vase. Each Naga had a tail wrapped around theirs, holding a piece like a pipe that was connected to the vase-like object by a hose. They had seemed to be in the middle of some sort of conversation before the two had walked in.

One, to Mari's right, took a long inhale of his pipe, before releasing  a large cloud of smoke through his nostrils. His eyes were a deep brown, with some amber flecks that seemed to shine when he exhaled the smoke. His hair was a charcoal gray with white streaks, and his skin was wrinkled with age. His tail was a dull, matte red with missing scales and some scars. He looked towards the pair.

"What did you bring to us, Rezran?" he asked, his voice old with age and raspy with the smoke. Mari quickly turned her head away as some more smoke wafted in her direction.

" Irescued a woman out in the wastes. A human woman. She has no home to go back to." Rezran replied, and even he seemed a little wary of the smoke. Mari figured he didn't find it pleasant either. "I figured she could find a home among our people."

A choked laugh followed by coughing sounded to Mari's left, and Mari noticed a slightly smaller figure covered in smoke. A hand waved rapidly through it, dispersing it to reveal yet another elderly Naga. Much like the other, his tail was also a dull red, though his whole body was mottled with scars. He was bald, save for very long and very white eyebrows that nearly covered his eyes. Matching his eyebrows, was a long and wispy beard that almost went to the floor.

Once his coughing subsided, he licked his lips and spoke: "You just found her in the wastes? Odd for a human, much less a human woman, to be alone in the wastes." He accused, his voice scratchy and high-pitched. He pointed his pipe accusingly at her. "Tell me girl, where are your people?" he asked, one brow raised in question.

Mari didn't blame him for being so wary, she would be too if her father had found a stranger in the wastes and brought them back to camp out of the blue. She cleared her throat. "I left my people. I had a...conflict with them. I wanted to leave the wastes through Gray Watch," she explained. "But I was attacked by Drakes, and Rezran saved me. I would've died without him." she swore she saw Rezran straighten up at that statement. The snake was so proud of himself, she had to keep herself from rolling her eyes.

"Hmm," the grouchy one hummed. He relaxed against some pillows behind him, his tail loosening and tightening as he adjusted himself. Each elder had their tails coiled around them, almost acting as their own chairs or pillows. "Must've been some conflict to try and leave the wastes altogether." he chuckled. "Mm, what say you, Kavares?"

The elder had turned his attention to the one in the middle. He uncoiled himself and moved slowly towards Mari and Rezran. His body had been covered in shadow, making it difficult for Mari to see his features, but now she almost wished he stayed where he was. He was bigger than Rezran, though younger than the other two elders, his hair was black and white, and his scales still retained their sheen, though were dull in some areas. If his size wasn't enough to make his enemies flee in terror, then it was his appearance. The entire left side of his head and torso was covered in a terrible scar, like a spiders web reaching towards his middle. His left eye was gone, covered by a patch, and so was his left arm, with nothing but a stub there.