บท 6: Am I Strong Enough?
Recognizing them from the memories he'd acquired , Vael knew these serpents were responsible for the former Vael's death. With a mocking laugh, he retorted, "I'm not familiar with any of you." The Sable Serpents shot him livid stares. The most imposing among them snapped, "You dare doubt our intelligence?" revealing a dagger with a green-tipped blade.
Vael's mind raced as he assessed his situation. The four serpents stood menacingly before him, and the cold memory of the ice tiger lurked in the shadows of the forest behind. But there was little time for contemplation. The leader of the serpent group, with a malevolent glint in his eyes, gestured to two of his companions. "Ilex, Sylas, show him our power."
Ilex and Sylas, their scaly bodies gleaming in the faint sunlight, advanced on Vael. With a hiss, they both spewed a vibrant green substance from their mouths. Vael, trusting his reflexes, dodged narrowly, watching in horror as the green liquid landed on a nearby tree, eating through its bark and leaving a smoky trail. Acid.
"You can't escape us!" Sylas sneered.
"We'll make sure of it," Ilex added with a malicious grin.
Despite the dire situation, Vael's training kicked in. He grabbed Moxy and bolted for the forest. The darkness might be his only ally now. "You think the trees will protect you?" the leader taunted, but Vael wasn't listening.
He knew that if he could just blend into the shadows, use the silent steps and maneuvers he'd practiced for years, he could evade the serpents. The forest wasn't just a sanctuary from the sun's rays; it was now a battlefield where Vael would put his assassin skills to the ultimate test.
As Vael dashed deeper into the forest, the enraged roar of the serpent leader echoed behind him. "After him! Don't let him escape!" he ordered.
Vael's heart raced as he searched for a secure spot to hide Moxy. The dense undergrowth provided some cover, and he finally settled on a hollow beneath an ancient tree's roots. "Stay here," he whispered to the still unconscious Moxy, "I'll come back for you."
While Vael began to strategize his next move, the serpents regrouped, their frustration palpable. "We need to split up. He's using the darkness to his advantage," the leader said, his face twisted in fury.
"I agree," said another serpent, his scales a darker hue than the rest, "He can't have gotten far."
"You, Draken, come with me. Ilex, Sylas, you two scout the eastern side. We'll flush him out," the leader directed.
Ilex sneered, "He can't hide for long."
Draken nodded, his yellow eyes narrowing, "We'll corner him, and then he'll have nowhere to run."
As the serpents dispersed, back at his hiding spot, Vael had made his decision. Drawing on his years of training, he melted into the shadows of the forest
The forest, with its suffocating darkness, was the perfect canvas for Vael's schemes. As he retreated into its depths, he recalled his years of assassin training, which included exploiting an enemy's psychology and terrain to his advantage.
Drawing a deep breath, Vael whispered to himself, "This forest is my ally. Use it, shape it, control it."
He eyed the clearing with the shimmering pool. It was a natural pit, a hollowed section of ground. With effort, he camouflaged it, draping leaves and soil atop a thin tarp he had in his pack, making sure it looked like solid ground. From the nearby trees, he snapped off branches, sharpening them into lethal spikes. With practiced precision, he lined the pit's bottom, ensuring that whoever fell in wouldn't emerge unscathed.
But the pit was not enough.
He needed a lure, a bait that would be irresistible. That's when he thought of his pendant. "Perfect," he murmured, taking it off. He hung it above the pool, its familiar design reflecting off the moonlit water, sure to attract the serpent's attention.
Yet, Vael knew he needed a failsafe, a final touch. His hand went to his waist, where a small leather pouch hung — a remnant of his previous life. Inside it, he found a blow dart set, the very one the old Vael had always kept for emergencies. Dipping the dart into a vial of potent neurotoxin, Vael nodded with satisfaction.
"It's always good to be prepared," Vael mused aloud, reaffirming his commitment to his plan. "Two traps, two chances. If they're smart, they might escape one, but not both."
With everything in place, Vael retreated into the shadows, setting his plan in motion, while preparing himself mentally for the impending confrontation.
As Ilex and Sylas prowled through the eastern side of the forest, their scaled feet rustling the underbrush, they exchanged wary glances.
"Do you think he's still nearby?" Sylas hissed, his eyes darting across the shadowy expanse.
Ilex responded with a growl, "He's here. I can feel it. We just need to be smart about this."
The forest around them felt alive, every creak of a branch or rustle of leaves magnifying their paranoia. "Remember," Ilex whispered, "He's trained. We should be cautious."
Sylas scoffed, "Cautious? Against a single man? We've got the numbers."
As they continued, they stumbled upon a clearing where moonlight streamed in, illuminating a shimmering pool of water. Near its edge, they noticed footprints - Vael's, perhaps. But it was what hung above the pool that caught their attention: a simple pendant, swinging gently. Recognizing it as one Vael wore, Ilex reached out to grab it.
Just then, a voice echoed, soft but deadly. "Looking for me?"
Both serpents whipped around to see Vael, emerging from the shadows, a smug grin on his face.
Before they could react, the ground beneath Ilex gave way. Vael had camouflaged a pit, its bottom lined with sharpened stakes. Ilex plummeted with a surprised scream, impaling himself fatally.
Sylas, horrified, barely had time to register this when a dart pierced his neck. Numbness spread rapidly, his vision blurred. Looking down, he saw a tiny blow dart, and as darkness consumed him, he heard Vael's voice one last time.
"You underestimated the shadows," Vael murmured, retrieving his pendant. He spoke softly to himself, reaffirming his resolve, "One step at a time. Use their overconfidence against them."
With two serpents down, Vael vanished back into the forest's embrace.
Draken and the serpent leader, whose name was Azural, stalked through the darkness of the forest, scanning for any sign of their prey. Azural's eyes, sharp and accustomed to the darkness, flickered with impatience.
"There's nothing, Azural," Draken whispered, the eerie quiet of the forest pressing in on them.
Azural's face contorted into a grimace. "This Vael," he hissed, "he's more cunning than I imagined." He took a deep breath, then let out a unique whistle, sharp and piercing, the call that all serpents knew meant to regroup.
Moments ticked by, the weight of silence pressing down.
Draken glanced at Azural, uncertainty evident in his eyes. "They should've responded by now."
Azural's frustration grew. "It's a trap. They've walked into it," he muttered.
Just as they prepared to move, Draken's head snapped up, nostrils flaring. "There's a scent," he murmured, almost to himself. "Blood... and something else."
Draken darted forward, tracing the scent, with Azural following close behind. As they reached a clearing, a chilling sight awaited them. Ilex lay lifeless, a pool of blood spreading beneath him. Not far from him, Sylas convulsed, foam frothing at the corners of his mouth, his eyes rolling back in terror.
Poison.
Azural's hands balled into fists, his nails digging into his palms with such force that blood began to seep, staining the forest floor. His breathing became ragged. "This wretch will pay," Azural growled, voice dripping with venom.
Draken, though horrified by the fate of his companions, nodded, his loyalty unwavering. "We'll make him pay, Azural," he affirmed.
From his perch high in the trees, Vael silently observed Azural and Draken, his heartbeat steady despite the dangers below. His face and body were smeared with mud in and animal feces, an unsavory but effective method to mask his scent from Draken's keen nose.
Thoughts raced through his mind, strategies forming and dissolving, until a plan took shape, inspired by the environment around him. The area was densely populated with thick trees, and Vael noticed a particularly large, aged one which had a myriad of intertwined roots exposed, and a significant hollow space underneath.
Vael began working swiftly. Using his dagger, he delicately carved the tree bark and roots, weakening them without completely cutting through. He then found large, heavy stones and, using a sturdy vine as a makeshift pulley, he hoisted them up, arranging them on various branches directly above the clearing.
From his bag, he took out a small vial containing a luminescent liquid and doused one of his arrows with it. He shot this arrow into a nearby tree, attracting the serpents' attention to the light. Curious and hoping it might be another clue to Vael's location, Azural and Draken moved to inspect it, positioning themselves right beneath the precariously balanced stones.
With a deep breath, Vael launched another arrow, this time striking the weakened part of the tree. The vibrations caused the stones to tumble down. As the serpents realized the trap, it was too late. The falling stones pinned them down, not lethal, but causing enough injury to incapacitate them for a while.
Vael didn't waste any time. He descended from his tree and approached the trapped serpents. Their eyes radiated pain, anger, and a hint of respect.
"You've underestimated me," Vael whispered,
Azural's dark laughter echoed, creating a chilling effect in the already tense atmosphere.
"For an Elysian, you're impressive," Azural remarked, eyes gleaming. "But you too underestimated us Sable Serpents, blessed as we are by the God of Acid." With that, he spat the green acid that Vael had come to recognize, dissolving the stones that entrapped them. But the acid did not discriminate, and Draken's body was caught in its corrosive path. The anguished cries of Draken pierced the night as the acid began to erode his scales, and his eyes filled with horror as he realized what was coming.
It was a brutal betrayal, Azural's claws sinking deep into his subordinate. "Why, leader?! Why are you doing this to me?!" Draken wailed, but Azural remained cold and impassive, his eyes locked onto the luminous green sphere he was retrieving from Draken's chest.
As Azural held the glowing essence aloft, Vael felt a chill that had nothing to do with the cold. The wicked delight in Azural's eyes was unmistakable. "Every creature is linked to an elemental affinity," Azural explained, his voice dripping with malice. "By consuming the essence of those with the same affinity, one can amplify their own power."
Vael's gut twisted as he watched Azural heartlessly consume the essences of not only Draken but also Sylas and Ilex. As the third essence slid down Azural's throat, a transformation overtook him. His scales took on an iridescent hue, shifting colors like a menacing kaleidoscope. Growing in size, Azural's form became even more sinister. The forest seemed to darken, casting elongated shadows as a roar, mightier than any Vael had ever heard, reverberated throughout the woods.
"Now," Azural's voice rumbled, filled with newfound power and arrogance, "let's see how long you last."
Vael, hidden in the shadows, clenched his fists. The weight of the situation pressing down on him, he silently questioned himself, "Can I really defeat him?"
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