Page 18 of Serpents of the Night

“There,” Slengral interrupted, his head tipping toward a long, dark lane illuminated with just a few far-spaced lanterns. In the distance she thought she saw a formation of tiny lights that looked something like a whirling pool. Was that a sign? “It occurs to me that Uralial are not winged. Her shop must be there.”

Mysterious provider with a shop at the end of a long, dark alley? It looked like the perfect setup for a serial killer or to be jumped by an assassin. “Of course it is,” Lori murmured as she followed her mate’s lead, instantly regretting her overindulgence in mystery thrillers in her youth.

She wondered if Seshanamitesh had ghosts. It looked like a place occupied by ghosts.

Chapter 14

“Do you have ghosts?” Lori asked, drawing Slengral’s attention from the narrow lane to his mate.

“Ghosts?” Kehtal asked curiously, echoing his own thoughts.

Their mate nodded. “Yeah, you know spirits of the dead who haunt things or places.”

“Oh, gorshiga. They are terrible.” Kehtal shuddered like a hatchling, drawing an amused smile from Slengral.

“Gorshiga!” Hashal gasped.

There was a quick flutter of movement as the hatchling suddenly pushed out from beneath Daskh’s wings and drove beneath Slengral’s, his small claws digging painfully into his wingbed. He winced as the tiny clawtips found their way unerringly between his scales. By Daskh’s knowing chuff of amusement, he wondered just how often he was subjected to similar unintentional abuse.

“Kehtal,” he hissed as he slapped a wing at his nest brother, making the younger male flap his wings in mock protest as he rolled back out of the way on his coiled tail with a laugh.

Kehtal grimaced guiltily and made a soft crooning sound, and he ducked lower toward Slengral’s wings. “No, all is well, Hashal. There are no gorshigas. There is no such thing. I should not have said that.” He glanced guiltily over at their mate. “Such things are made out to be terrible, but they are only stories to frighten hatchlings. When you live in the caverns long enough, you realize that there are worse things that can eat you than the dead wanting to consume your life essence. Most males in the upper caverns enjoy sharing stories of them simply to lighten the weight of their daily lives... for amusement.”

“Worse things?” Lori whispered as she peered down the alley nervously. “That isn’t exactly reassuring.”

“Nothing of consequence within the shinara,” Slengral quickly assured her as he fanned a wing behind her and gently urged her forward even as he reached back behind him to stroke the hatchling’s soft gavo. Although the market would be open for a while yet, he was eager to get what they needed and be on their way. The backways of the Daliska Market were not places he wished to have his family. He was grateful that, however reluctant, Lori continued forward without further resistance as he spoke. “There are many predators in the Aglatha, but only the smallest prove to be an issue when the suns drive them deeper into the caverns. The hunters of the upper caverns usually kill anything that comes too close, but certain rules are observed to keep the females and hatchlings safe.”

His mate’s lips pinched together with an intriguing if somewhat disturbing expression of thought, her face contorting oddly as she considered his words. “I suppose I can understand why the spirits of the dead would make less of an impact in that case,” she said at length. She shivered and rubbed her arms uncomfortably. “Doesn’t mean that I quite feel the same. It still feels pretty foreboding, plus now I’m going to be having nightmares of things lurking in the pitch-black darkness of the caverns waiting to eat me. The shinara is feeling less welcoming and a bit more dangerous by the minute.”

Slengral curled his wing around her at a loss. What could he do? He understood her fear. His mate was not only vulnerable but possessed weak senses that he was certain made the poorly lit parts of the shinara appear frightening. With the way her footsteps echoed so loudly he could almost understand such fears coming to life further within the darkness of the market’s backways. Unlike the soft glide of their tails against the stones, there was an almost desolate sound to the sound of her steps as they made their way closer to the shop.

“Let us get what we need and be on our way then,” he murmured. “It is just a little farther. I am certain it will not take long to procure the berries.”

Daskh grunted in agreement as he edged a little closer. “Agreed. It is clear that the Uralial either distrusts her clients, or the Seshanamitesh are very cautious around her, if she carries out her work so far from the main market ways. If I had known this, Hashal and Lori would have remained back at the nest.”

Kehtal hummed quietly, his gavo flicking. He peered around them, his head cocking slightly before suddenly snapping his gavo fully open, brightening the space immediately around them.

“We can make a little extra light for our mate then. Perhaps it will even alert this Nashee of our presence so that she can be ready for us.”

Slengral smiled at his nest brother appreciatively. Although the far-spaced lamps and the bunches of wild growing galthie provided just enough light that they were able to see easily enough to make their way to the shop without incident, it was a good idea with their mate feeling so uncomfortable. It felt odd to have his gavo fully extended for any length of time when he wasn’t in mid-flight or trying to disorientate prey or an enemy, but their mate’s welcome sighs as he and Daskh likewise snapped open their own gavos told him that it was appreciated. And, as Kehtal predicted, the Uralial was waiting for them expectantly at the small and crudely carved out entrance of her shop that marked the outer wall of the market and the shinara.

They were close enough to the water drop, in fact, that he could hear that soft roar of it. The sound teased his ears with a promise of freedom. He had made a decision many revolutions ago before capturing his mate that he would never return to the shinara, and yet, there he was—imprisoned with his mate. He had never wished to be a mated male within the shinara, and the echoing reminder of freedom made his wings vibrate faintly with the urge to fly over the boundary walls and out of the shinara, leaving the plots devised by Vekatha, his mother, and the entire council of mobile matriarchs far behind him.

“Slengral, why have we stopped? Is something wrong?” Lori whispered.

He blinked and looked around, a weight of embarrassment settling into his chest. The shop entrance was just in front of them, and Nashee was watching them curiously, her blue eyes luminous in her pale-yellow face. Many Uralial were smaller than Seshanamitesh, and Nashee was no exception. She was barely bigger than Kehtal, and no doubt found his size, and especially Daskh’s, to be intimidating. The way her gaze cut between him and his larger nest mate was telling. His muscles tightened with the tension rising through his body. He wanted more than anything to lash out in frustration. If he was not being scorned by Seshanamitesh for his size unless they wished to gain his pedigree for their hatchling’s line, then he was being feared by the Uralial. How was it that a human smaller than both was so accepting of him?

His mate’s soft hand smoothed over the scales of his arm, sending a surge of warmth through his skin and straight to his hearts. Tipping his head toward his mate, he hummed a soft love song in thanks, and his hand unclenched as Lori hugged his arm to her. From the corner of his eye, he noticed the Uralial note the action with a curious expression as the long, webbed fins she had in place of gavo fluttered apprehensively. He tipped his head to the right respectfully in response.

“You are Nashee? You have waga berries?” he called out, hoping that the female would be reassured that they were customers rather than a threat.

Her fins slowly lifted before snapping in affirmation, but he did not mistake the release of tension in her body. “I am Nashee,” she affirmed, moving away from the entrance. “Please, come inside.”

Though she did not sing, there was an unmistakable musical quality to her voice as she answered. Her gaze shifted nervously over to Lori as if in afterthought and Slengral felt a stab of sympathy for the female. Although all Seshanamitesh were capable of enticing unmated males with their songs, there was a ridiculous belief within the shinara that the voices of Uralials could lure even mated males. Even some of the males of the upper caves believed the rumors and, in their rare moments of socializing, shared stories of the supposed erotic delights to be found. Having met Ehsash’s mother, Ahanial, he knew from experience that if there was some quality to their voices that made it irresistible, then it was either something they possessed considerable control over, or it simply did not work on mated males the way rumor told. Even now, with Nashee in front of him scenting of an unmated female as he glided past her, he felt no reaction. He wondered absently how many males were forced to attend the shop with their ears blocked with the hard paste that filled the nests of double-stinging barlisks. The thought nearly made him chuff with his amusement.

Lori certainly did not appear to feel any sort of threat from the female. She followed with a relaxed smile, her arm wrapped comfortingly around his as she took in her surroundings with open curiosity. Noting her comfort with pleasure, Slengral likewise took the opportunity to indulge his curiosity. Everywhere he looked there were various baskets and clay jars set up in orderly stacks. Some of the baskets were open to the air, revealing copious amounts of dried plant material. It seemed that the Uralials’ watery abodes were plentiful.

“Just this way.” Nashee gestured for them to follow to the rear of the shop, her demeanor relaxing further in response to Lori signals. “How much do you wish? Your... mate... is very small,” she added, her nostrils flaring slightly to take in their combined smells. She blinked and her fins suddenly snapped up in a gesture of surprise. “I do not mean to be rude,” she hastily added. “I have heard of males in the upper caverns mating with humans. Words on the water have it that even a curious Uralial male mated with a human in a place far from here. I have just never seen a human before. I did not realize that you are such a small species.”

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