Lyra's POVI was stirring from slumber when I felt an unusual cold sensation circling my leg. My eyes lazily opened with hardly a sight of the dim light seeping through the curtains. The very first thing my eyes settled upon in the room was Orion, still sleeping beside me, breathing slowly and steadily. I turned away again; I just could not bear the rising chill feeling as it climbed up my leg. With my eyes shifting towards my legs, I almost felt my heart stop. There upon the ground was an enormous serpent coiled around my leg, the likes of which I had never even seen in my life. The three-headed eyes opened wide and glowed an unearthly golden hue! I froze in terror, unwilling to even move or utter a sound, as the voices clamoring inside my head erupted in an ugly chorus from the worm. "First, you. Then, him." And it hissed under its breath. I shuddered to see one of the heads open its gaping mouth, ready to swallow me whole. My body tightened up, my heart picking speed with f
Kate's POV I swallowed. “It said it was going to kill them. I don't know, but it seems they have been able to find out that Orion and Ravenna are around." Keto's fists were clenched at his waist. His eyes burned with some passion I could not identify, anger and fear combined. "Damn it," he muttered beneath his breath. "We have to track them down. Now." Captain Zack stepped forward, his face pale but still carrying that rough crevice of his. "What the devil is going on here? I believe it is time someone told me the truth." Kira folded her arms, her voice firm but icy. "The less you know, the better it will be for you." "The hell it is," Zack growled. "My men were frozen and nearly killed by some creature out of a horror novel. We're putting our lives at risk here, so don't tell me I don't need to know.". Keto turned to him, his voice deadly calm and low. "You need to understand one thing: remain alive and follow my instructions. That is not your fight." Zack snorted. "Not my f
Kate's POVThe giant serpent coiled away from us, its massive form sliding back through the forest the same way it had come. I could hear the crunch of its scales over the dead leaves and damp earth, and I didn’t dare move until the last flick of its tail disappeared between the trees.Only then did I exhale.A shaky breath escaped me, and I realized I’d been holding it this whole time. My lungs burned.“Are they dead?” I asked, turning to Kira, my voice a whisper like I was afraid the serpent would return if I spoke too loudly.Kira didn’t answer immediately. She stared down at the nearest soldier, her brow furrowed. Then she slowly knelt and placed two fingers on his neck. “No,” she said finally. “I don’t think so. His pulse is strong.”Relief flooded through me.We moved quickly, checking each man, one by one. Some had shallow breathing, others just lay still like they were under some kind of deep sleep spell. But soon enough, I saw movement. Eyelids fluttered. Fingers twitched.
Kate's POV“That’s not an ordinary snake,” Kira muttered, her voice low but firm. “It’s a witch.”A witch?I didn’t wait to process that.I grabbed the shotgun leaning against the tent post, cocked it, and aimed straight at one of the serpent’s heads.Boom!The blast echoed through the camp. One of the heads shattered in a burst of blackened scales and wet, gooey flesh.The other soldiers, startled at first, immediately joined in, opening fire from every direction. Chaos exploded in the night. The camp came alive with the sound of gunfire and shouting. Sleeping men jerked awake, grabbing their weapons. Even Captain Zack emerged from his slumber, eyes bloodshot, fury blazing on his face.“Back off!” he roared over the gunfire.At once, the soldiers stopped shooting, stepping back and reloading quickly. That’s when we all saw another wonder.The serpent’s broken head was regrowing.“What the fuck,” someone muttered behind me.I froze, shotgun still in hand. The entire squad stared, st
Kate's POVI was almost amused by some of the snoring soldiers. I was half-willing to take my phone out to snap a few pictures, but Kira's voice pulled me from that thought."Let's go back to the tent; we have to eat. I don't think we have eaten since we embarked on this journey," she said, looking at me."Yes, you are correct," I agreed with what she had said.I trailed her to one of the tents, and both of us sat on temporary chairs she had taken out.She unpacked the food she had prepared. I wished I could help, but could not, so I merely commented on how good it smelled. I was glad for the food after we had gon
Lyra's POVI reached up with trembling fingers and wiped it away, but more followed, thick and slow.My chest constricted. Panic surged like a tidal wave. No. Not now. Not here.The curse. It had to be the curse.I held onto the sink, struggling to remain upright. My face was ashen. Not the tough Ravenna everyone had witnessed."Ravenna?" I heard Orion's voice from the bed.I chopped my nose quickly with the back of my hand and switched on the faucet, letting water splash loudly into the sink."Yea?" I yelled out, trying to put calm into my voice."You all right?" he inquired."Sure," I said to him, trying to sound as normal as possible. "Just waiting for a minute. Hot water's taking forever.""Okay," he replied, not entirely trusting me but courteous.I settled in closer toward the mirror and studied my own eyes. The whites of my eyes had a very slight bloodshot appearance.There was a calming throb behind my temples now, the beat of a warning drum.Whatever spell that witch laid upo