Page 115 of Of Serpents and Ruins
The descent wasn’t too steep at least. The mirror-tail foxes could run in at this angle, and I didn’t have to watch my head. Brandt might have if he were here.
Dull light filtered through the entrance. My eyes swiftly adjusted. This den was only a little wider than the basilisk herself. The mirror-tail foxes might have been able to flank her and provide additional protection, but there would be very little room left.
The passage into the burrow flattened and then sloped downward. The light lessened, and, while I stopped seeing quite as many colors, my eyes still took it in.
The basilisk hoard was not entirely what I had expected. Unlike dragons that put their hoard in the center, the basilisk had woven a sort of nest that was more akin to a bird's. Bones and plant matter as well as sparkling items had been thrust all around the sides in a winding pattern. It smelled of rot, filth, blood, metal, and soggy incense. My eyes and mouth burned.
Horrible place.
I crept deeper into the basilisk's den, the stench overwhelming my senses. My eyes watered as I scanned the piles of bones, shed skins, and glittering treasure.
We had to search for a fair bit until Elias spotted the blue glow of something magical. He pulled out a heavy, furry chunk of something none of us wanted to analyze. The glow intensified, resembling the eyes of the Gola Resh more and more.
There lay the spear, embedded in the other treasures and materials. It had an otherworldly green shade to it, bright even in the darkness. My fingers closed around the shaft. Kine and Elias helped move away the rotted debris and bones to make it easier for me to remove.
The intricate carvings along the wooden handle told a story I could not discern. It was easily over twenty feet in length, the dark wood light but sturdy and enchanted. The blade affixed to the tip was longer than my hand, shining like liquid silver despite the filth, and a gem had been fastened at the base of the spearhead.
The Babadon’s heart. It was the source of the blue glow. It startled me to see how small the gem was, barely larger than my thumb. A rune had been carved into its center.
The first of three talismans. I gripped it closer, my heart hammering. When I closed my eyes, I saw Brandt.
I’ve got it, my love.
We had a chance. Now all we had to do was risk the Keening Pass. If we could get lucky again, we would make it.
My stomach knotted. Luck wasn’t something we should be counting on, but did we have any other choice?
STELLA
We clambered out of the burrow as Arjax and Lorna approached. They dragged Mischief between them with all six of the mirror-tails trotting along beside them. A couple of them still appeared more tentative than the others, but, just as Arjax had explained, they were now calm and friendly, especially compared to what they had been.
"We’re gonna get the old gal down to her nest. She’ll sleep until morning. Venom expulsion is a tiring thing, and she’s probably had pretty poor sleep with that itch in her gums and glands. We were a little later getting to her than usual." Arjax put the ropes around her massive form and gave her a solid tug.
Lorna assisted him. I set the spear against the lightning-struck tree and then tugged at the ropes as well, but it made me feel like a child "helping" her parents in a way that was, at best, just not getting in the way too much.
The rays of sunlight slanted long in the sky, suggesting that it was nearing late afternoon. My insides tightened. It wasn’t too late, though. The Keening Pass didn’t simply cease to exist because the hours were late. It was just trickier, but we could do it. We’d been so fortunate this far. Our luck would hold out a little longer.
Except…death.
It was going to end in death.
A chill passed through me. I closed my eyes, shuddering.
No. Not from the Keening Pass.
I hadn’t dreamed about it at all. Really, I could scarcely remember anything about it aside from the darkness and rush of water and speed we would travel at. It was a dark place. A frightening place.
Kine, Elias, and I waited above the massive burrow. Arjax and Lorna fussed over Mischief some more. They even took down two boar carcasses, presumably so she would have something to eat when she woke even if the mirror-tail foxes decided to feast beforehand.
"They didn’t become anything smaller?" I asked Kine as they slipped down for the second time.
Both Lorna and Arjax were so large and muscular. I couldn’t imagine that the basilisk’s den was a pleasant place for either. As true shifters who could become practically anything they wanted, shouldn’t they have shrunk down to something more…appropriate?
Kine shook his head. "Apparently it’s easier to become something bigger for most Vawtrians. They like being bigger." A bit of a smile curled at his mouth.
"What?" It looked like he had another story, and I had to admit I could use something to make me smile. The angsty nervous energy in the pit of my stomach roiled stronger.
"The rumor is Vawtrians like them make themselves taller than any sentient they meet if they think it’ll intimidate them or something. They can change their state of rest—what they call their normal form—a fair bit. Height is easy for them."
