Chapter Text
War ravaged this world. The King of Demons was in a great battle against the human lands to do his all to dominate every corner of the kingdom and overthrow the reigning rulers. The armies of the beast grew stronger every day, leading fewer places in which humans could hide or even find shelter. You thought for certain your town would never be struck as it was so far from the Castle of Myrid, but you thought wrong.
The horde of demons took no time at all ransacking your once peaceful village, near burning it to the ground. While some structures were spared from the onslaught, not everybody or everything was so lucky. So much was left in ruin that the remaining villagers felt it was for the better everybody pack up and relocate elsewhere to begin anew.
You had not much to your name with what few items managed to make it from your home. Some articles of clothing could be packed up as well as a blanket or two, but that was it. The fires of hell devoured your house just like it did most of the town.
Though, to be fair, should you even call it a house? It was more like a place for the poor. It was a building that housed a few people that only made a few silver pieces a week, providing shelter, articles of clothing now and again, and food if rations were scarce. You were poor and ill and upon finding your way to this town, you were ushered to its doors and kept in a locked up space that was far lonelier than you cared to admit.
But it was a home, a place of peace and quiet that allowed you to think away from the insanity beyond that door. Seeing it in shambles nearly had you in a fit of tears.
There was no time to dwell on it as those that could manage were stuffing their belongings into what carriages could be overturned and used for transportation. The frail, young, and pregnant were offered places in what wagons were salvageable, but given how many that were accounted for, you were still asked with a few others to walk at a respectable pace with the caravan.
Seeing the back loading area latch and shut in your face, you pulled away and felt as your legs already threatened to give out. Your illness had always gone undiagnosed. No healer could find a cure or an idea of what was wrong with you. The excuse was it was a chronic cough followed by fatigue and minor aches, but seeing as the winter months had come and gone, nobody could say for sure what weakened you.
A guard that would escort the caravan came by, ushering you back with the length of his spear. He had no doubt been told of your illness, and like many others, didn’t trust it. “Stay at a distance.” The order wasn’t vile or meant to be aggressive, but the stern tone still made you bow your head and back away at his command. Seeing you comply, he shouted out to the others in a demand to move on.
With what energy could be mustered, you walked behind the caravan through wind, rain, or shine as the days turned to agonizingly long weeks. Some of the weaker ones such as yourself fell trying to keep up, and saddened to say, the only thing that could be made for them was a shallow grave. Others were mauled by creatures that this world had hiding in the wilds, leaving only pieces that could be given as a clue to their true whereabouts when a body couldn’t be produced.
You held on with all your might but after each rest stop you found yourself not having the energy to get up. With how ill you were, it felt like the townsfolk were waiting for you to just fall over next as they hardly even provided you with proper food through your stay with them. During one of the rest stops, you found reprieve against a rather ancient tree that had a thick trunk, which twirled and curved in a rather unnatural fashion with long, tassel like leaves. It gave you some comfort from the bitter wind that bit at your skin.
“Can you get up?” You don’t know who the young woman was, but she was someone you’d see now and again about the group. Honestly, with how often she was at the elderly and the sicks’ side, you wouldn’t be surprised if she was a healer deep down.
While you heard her speak, you couldn’t say you had it in you to even try to move. She grabbed your hand and tried to pull you upright but a awful fire of pain shot through your core, making you whimper and fight her desire to be helpful.
“What’s going on?” It was another of the guards that were protecting the townsfolk as you all traveled to a safer location.
“She’s not doing so well, but she’s not gone yet,” the woman explained. Her hand on your forehead was probably the most cooling thing you’d felt pressed to your skin.
A sigh quelled with empathy parted from the soldier as he turned and looked back down at those that were ready to move out. “A storm approaches, and we cannot remain here till she dies. The snake beasts live in droves around these woods, and the rain will only encourage them out of their homes to hunt. We need to leave her now.”
The words were processing but you were too tired to respond or beg for your life. Maybe if you just rolled over and closed your eyes, it would be done with anyway.
“But—!”
Even if she was willing to fight for your case, the guard raised his hand to silence the woman you knew not the name of. “I’ll get a few small pieces of food to leave for her with her belongings if she had any. But for now, we cannot risk the lives of the many for merely one.”
It was a hard truth that you yourself had to respect. “I’ll be fine,” you managed to speak though your throat burned horribly with every word you uttered. The coughing had made it raw. Not even the small chill in the air was pleasant to taste. “Do what you wish if you want to try and prolong my life, but you can leave me here.”
Having your say in the matter, the young maiden was fine with that even if reluctant to depart from your side.
The guard did find and fetch your things, sprawling the wool blanket out over you to try and allow some form of protection from the oncoming rain. The only food he could manage to get away with in gifting you was a few small pieces of bread and some carrots. Just the sight of both hardly was appetizing in the moment. You whispered a thanks all the same and watched as the townsfolk continued onward till the small hill just overhead buried them from your view.
The thunder bellowed another warning, getting louder and louder each time. You heard and even saw bits of the rain just beyond the comforting canopy of the tree you were under until the storm began to rage with such aggression that even the tree could scarcely do its best to keep you protected. A shaky breath quaked painfully from your throat, a cough shortly following to where you swear you could feel it threatening to suffocate you.
“So, this is it, hu? Not dead by war or demons… just dead by whatever this illness is,” you muttered. Even if it hurt to talk, your own voice was the only thing to bring you comfort in such a frightening moment. Eyes closed, you tried to think of other more charming places you could be besides death’s door. “Dying is far easier than living I guess.” It was a morbid thought, but you were trying to relax your form into a state of eternal rest.
Bushes moving about meant little to nothing to you. It could be anything—a deer, a hare, a canine. Yes, it could also mean demi-humans and monsters, but what would be the worst way to go? Not like you had the energy to get to your feet and run. Trying to scream would do little good as your throat was on fire.
But the sound of bushes rustling came again…
….and again…
It was followed by a few weak twigs being crushed on something’s weight and the moment you heard the ever frightening sound of a snake demon’s hiss, you knew that the snake beast was nearby and no doubt aware of your scent.
Your back tensed as you did your best to bury your presence there in the comforting trunk of the tree. It bent inward just a little, making you think you could get away with not being seen as this giant creature came out to hunt. While Nagas were usually quiet, the closer it came the more you could hear its scaly form rubbing against the ground, crushing any small leaves or branches in its path. From the sound of its speed, you could only guess it was on the hunt for something.
When the unsettling noises ceased, you found yourself closing your eyes and pleading to the gods for your life. If it found you, it could crush you in one easy step. Death by a Naga wouldn’t be pleasant… it would be slow and agonizing.
Oh, please…oh, gods, please…! you mentally begged, rolling your head back against the sculpt of the tree behind you, closing your eyes. Thinking about death was far easier than knowing you might endure it.
“Why did they leave you?”
It was a deep, growl of a voice that terrified you. Opening your eyes slowly, it was there you saw the giant creature looming just from beside the tree where you thought you’d be safe. He was large—far larger than any Naga you’d heard stories of. Even with how thick the serpent half was, you heard the old tree’s root quake in submission as he had started to slide over it.
He had dark skin with wild, black hair. His scales were equally dark in color with black and lighter brown designs etched about. Two horns were upon his head, sloping backward and making a slight curve in their design, resting just under his ears. With how thick they were about the base, it were as though he could easily use them to strike anybody with, making you think of how a ram would attack. A few scars marked his upper torso but the one thing that was haunting that stood out from the rest of his appearance was his eyes.
They were pure white. Was he blind? Couldn’t have been… he was staring right at you.
“I…I…” A cough swelled in your throat, making you gag and heave. It burned like the demon’s fire to where even swallowing was painful.
“Mm,” the Naga hummed as he shifted himself more into your view, practically locking you in. “So humans just abandon their sick?”
Before you knew it, he was inches from your face. You could feel the breath of him on your skin. Your lower lip quivered in submission as you saw his forked tongue flick forward from his mouth.
“Gods, don’t eat me, please…!”
“Your kind still hasn’t forgotten those buried moments from history, have they?” the Naga scoffed, moving closer still till his tongue touched upon your balmy cheek. It was a swift flick of the wet muscle that continued again and again as he did his best to cool the fever that had stricken you down.
You were still shaking, unable to tell the difference between what was considered fear or illness. “Ya-You’re carnivores, aren’t you?” The words still burned like hot embers in your throat, but you did your best to ignore it.
The Naga ceased, the air from his nostrils expelled almost like a horse snorting in agitation. “We are, but we devour other things, human. We’ve not resulted to human meat in centuries.”
His hand opened and the palm went right for your already restricting throat. You heaved again, coughing all the more to where you could hardly even cover your mouth. The snake creature’s palm began to grow warm as he activated a spell of sorts. His head tilted to the side, the wild black hair nearly covering his white vision.
“Interesting,” he mused aloud, removing his hold. “My spell can only do so much. An herbal means to cure it will have to do the rest. You must have been ill for some time for a healing spell not to be effective.”
Your hands instinctively went to your throat, feeling that it was far warmer and a bit better than before. If anything, you could now move your body without it feeling as though you were shackled in place. “Wh-Why would you do that for me?” He didn’t know you. What purpose did he have beyond being nice. It just didn’t fit in line with what you were told about Nagas.
He noted that the rain was probably soaking you through and in what knowledge he had retained of your kind, he was aware this wasn’t for the best in regards to your health. “Humans don’t fair well in cold and rainy climates. It is best I take you elsewhere.” He slithered away, motioning towards his serpent length. “Get on.”
Did you have the strength? Pushing against your palms, you hardly made strides towards him as the spongy earth resisted you and made it all the more a challenge as the hard ground turned to mud. You hadn’t eaten well in days if not months given what food you were allowed even back at the poor house. No magic could cure that.
The creature moved his head, seeming to gaze in your direction. “What is wrong? Are you truly that weak, or are you that frightened?”
It was embarrassing to say. “I-I can’t…” Your words trailed off, still burning in your throat to which prompted you to swallow as you pulled your blanket tightly about your body. “It hurts to move…”
The creature’s lengthy tail was soon burying itself just slightly under the ground where you sat to maneuver you up and into its grasp. You panicked, wanting to scream as you never expected a Naga would be trying to slide its body all over you. From all those horror stories you read or were told, you expected he was going to restrict you in his grasp, but no, he lifted you up and onto his back without having to bother with his arms.
He was so wide around that it was impossible for your arms to even reach his sides. The rain had coated him, making him far slimier to the touch than you expected. He shifted his head ever slightly to where it appeared as though he were trying to get his voice to carry more than gaze in your direction.
“Do you have everything you want?”
The food was unusable now as the rain ruined its use. Even if you could manage with the carrots, a Naga wouldn’t have use for that, and you had to confess you hardly had the strength to bite into something so tough. The bread had become soggy. It would be pointless to take it. However, your clothing and blankets—you needed those.
“M-My clothing, please. I cannot be without those.” You pointed at where they were lying, hoping he’d know where you were gesturing.
The creature moved ever sluggishly, his tail drifting about as if to act as his extra hand. Upon it coming to the food basket, he knocked it away with a quick swipe, finding out what was in it before he uncovered the bag that had your belongings in it and the blanket you were previously wrapped within. “The blanket is a bit muddy and wet. It would be wise to leave that here unless you wish to dry it and clean it later.”
“I can wait for when I am better to do that,” you promised as you wanted whatever comforting items you could have. They weren’t special in any way, you just weren’t truly sure where this creature was going to take you.
While nervousness still entangled in your gut, you would take the snake monster over a lonely death.
The rain was exhausting you and wearing you down. There was not a single thing that could keep you shaded from the downpour beyond the canopy of the upcoming forest. The Naga had slithered forward, allowing an uncomfortable rocking motion that your empty stomach could hardly agree on. Closing your eyes, you tried to forget about it as thick jungle canopy did its best to keep you shaded from the onslaught of the rain.
“Where are you taking me…?” you managed to ask, keeping your eyes closed.
“To my clan,” he answered. “It is vast enough for you to enjoy in a few freedoms when you’re well, and you need not worry about your human kind abandoning you again.”
The way he stressed the word abandoning made it seem as though he hissed it out of spite. He was being spiteful about it on your behalf. It felt… odd. A creature that was built up in lore to be in good with the demons of this world was willing to see you alive and well? How strange…
The rain, while aiding in your own illness, was a sweet lullaby to listen to as you were carried onward. If you had the strength, you would have offered more questions, but your illness had you soon asleep on his serpent half.
———————
There was a wet warmth that touched your face hours later. You assumed it merely a vivid dream toying with your senses till you ever slowly came back to yourself to note that forked tongue teasing your skin. It was akin to a dog trying to give its owner kisses, or at least, that’s how you chose to view it. It wasn’t unpleasant, it was merely new as the length of this man’s tongue was unnatural and the width was about at par with the dimension of your palm.
The moment you roused, his hand opened to take your own within it. Without even thinking, you accepted the offer. For as large as his grip was, you felt it curl around your small grasp in a rather supportive and loving manner you least expected. Your bare skin was touching on his scaly form as he had undressed you to remove the wet clothing. Had you the strength perhaps you’d reach for the reaction to be embarrassed, but you could hardly even understand where you were at current. Your mind was a clouded mess, labored down by illness.
“You’re awake finally. I was worried you had passed.” His serpent body moved, the mountain of coiled length was mindful of your presence but at the same time, did its best to keep you protected within it. “I could feel your heart weakening through the night. I had to wake you, so my apologies, human.”
It was curious how he could feel that, but a great part of his serpent side was acting as a pillow to your chest. “My… My name is...” You released your name to him, hoping to make it easier for you both to communicate on a more personal level. The words were starting to burn again, making you grip at your throat with a hiss of agony.
Again, his palm went to your throat and lightly squeezed it to focus his magic on attempting to heal you. The warmth of the spell radiated but only could do so much as the malady felt like it was slowly overpowering even the strongest of healing abilities. The Naga could sense that, and a hum of concern rumbled in his throat.
His touch was removed, allowing you to rest on his length again as he turned to something that was there in your surroundings. You hadn’t gotten a good look at where you were dragged, but it was reminiscent of a cave from what you could make out in the dim lighting. There was the ever faint crackling sound of a fire in the background. The firelight was the only thing that was giving a decent exposure to the rocky formations that was around you as well as something shimmering above and even to the sides of your eyesight.
But you were so tired. Your body felt as though it were giving out as that thunderstorm was your undoing.
“Here,” he uttered, bringing a large bowl of a soup of some kind to you.
Eyes opening, you got a better look at what was inside. It appeared to be a chicken soup of sorts as you could easily see the chicken pieces torn into it after it had been roasted over the fire no doubt. Potatoes, carrots, and bits of rice… it was confusing. This dish felt too dignified for a mere snake beast to have known how to make. Didn’t they swallow their food raw? Why was he going out of his way to cook this?
“You need to eat it.” He urged it closer, the rim of the bowl touching your lips. It was still very warm having been pulled off of the nearby fire seemingly sometime ago. “It should steadily heal you.”
It was hard just to lift your head. Doing much more than that was beyond you. “I can’t… I’m so tired…”
His hand went for just under your chin, steadying your face to where his thumb fondled about your features as if to hunt for exactly where your mouth was. It hooked the corner, forcing you to open it and with what ease he could manage, he encouraged a small bit of the soup into your mouth.
It was still quite warm, making you jerk back on instinct and get a part of it on the Naga’s dark colored scales. “Is it still hot? I am afraid my tolerance of such things is higher than the normal human’s.”
“It needs to cool a little,” you coughed, heaving and quivering so poorly that you felt the Naga’s serpent length move to try and keep you warm perhaps.
He brought the bowl to his lips where he blew on the soup to try and cool the temperature. “You need to eat now. This broth should heal you as well as revitalize you if the clan healer is correct in his assumptions.”
There was more of them? Were they in that cave with you somewhere? You couldn’t hear hissing beyond the few normal sounds that passed this Naga’s throat and the crackling of the fire. Before you could even think to dwell on it, the creature’s finger maneuvered back into your mouth to urge it open once more as he poured a bit slower that time to make sure it didn’t cause you further discomfort.
“The temperature alone should soothe your throat.” He allowed a good portion to be devoured by you before he pulled the bowl away slowly, moving his thumb across your lips to wipe the mess that could have been made. “Whatever illness has you, it was ravaging your body for so long that it was growing in strength, destroying your lungs and tightening your throat.”
Hearing that, you gasped but the pain had subsided thanks to the warmth of the food you had just been urged to have. “I had… this cough for some time. I forget how long, but I had no healer in my village who could find a solution.”
“Humans give up so easily on their kind?” The Naga seemed to scoff at the thought. “I suppose it’s because there are so many of you that they don’t fight to keep your numbers up.”
Your brow furrowed as energy was returning to you second by second. “I wouldn’t say that’s the truth,” you argued gently in your race’s defense. “Sometimes our knowledge is just limited by how to heal others. We do our best to watch out for one another; especially during these dark times.”
“They needed to only look harder,” the Naga continued, his brow seeming to wrinkle to express his disappointment all the same. “If my clan was so lucky to have that privilege of not worrying of numbers, I am sure taking care of our ill may be the same.”
“Your numbers aren’t that great? I thought your kind roamed these woods.”
“Naga clans are separated,” he explained, the white eyes seeming to stare in your direction as his serpent length moved about to keep you concealed. “While I am certain you’ve seen some, mine hasn’t been at its peak in years now. Not since the deforestation and fires that ravaged through here because of your wars.”
He sounded a bit bitter and resentful for that, making you recoil in a fit of guilt.
“We have no qualms with the demons or you humans—not until you mess with our breeding grounds or go out of your way to attack us, that is.”
Again, you flinched, looking away from his gaze that was illuminated by the fire’s light. “Wh-Why did you want me here…?” You were scared to be offered the answer, but you wanted to know why he was going out of his way to chastise your race yet save you.
“Our women have mostly left or died because of this war you humans are continuously locked within. Without any females, my clan will die out,” the Naga explained. His index finger graced under your chin again, urging you to look up at him. “There are so few of us remaining, and because of this, we’ve resulted in trying to take other races’ females. Out of all of them, humans appeared to have the highest chance in bearing our children.”
Bearing this creature’s children was hardly appealing in the moment. As kind and helpful as he had been, motherhood was never at the forefront of your mind with a human man let alone a snake beast. “Y-You would truly go out of your way to ask me for help? I am sick! Doesn’t your race focus on strength over anything?”
“An illness can be cured if it wasn’t brought upon one by birth.” His hand moved to your heart, the entirety of his palm covering the organ that was now painfully and loudly thumping in your chest and deafening you. “Even now, your heart quickens in a fit of fear. It would have not done the act so feverishly had the broth not healed you in some way.” It was there he motioned to his eyes. “It’s as though you’d say my children would be born blind. They will not be. This merely is what happens when you’re alive for hundreds of years. Your body ages and you lose your sight, smell, and sometimes your hearing depending how cruel the goddess can be.”
Your strength was returning though you cared to not notice as you were in this conversation with the nameless Naga. “B-But I never agreed to this! Couldn’t you have at least asked me first?”
He tilted his head, removing his hand from your chest. “I am not going to force you into something you do not wish to do, but I ask that you at least stay here for a time to see for yourself that we mean no harm.”
“It’s not a matter of meaning harm or not.” The words rushed out of your mouth in a fit of panic. “I know you don’t mean to do anything vile to me, but, I never really thought that far ahead about marriage or even being a mother. You’re just forcing this on me!”
The Naga brought his hand to just under his chin to ponder your words. “Your race seems to not be rooted in one way of thinking when it comes to the survival of your kind. Some we have abducted didn’t mind the offer but were scared to call us their mates. Others were horrified of what the child would turn out like. You’re the first I’ve ever encountered to say ‘no’ to the thoughts of bearing offspring at all.”
“We’re two different races,” you reminded the Naga as the serpent half began to move again. The rough scales rubbed against your bare skin making you flinch a bit as you weren’t anticipating they’d be that tough when dry. For whatever reason, he seemed awfully intent to keep you bound in his snake half. “You’re running on a more primitive way of thinking while we’ve evolved past that.”
The Naga stifled a rather bitter laugh at your words. “Humans can pretend they have evolved, but deep down, you still act like frightened animals that know procreation is the necessity to your race’s growth. Furthermore,” he began, jabbing his finger in your direction as to where he heard your voice, “your men hunt for you and provide for you like I’ve done for my own countless mates. Also, while your kind cannot sense it or smell it, you female humans do go into a state of heat.”
Hearing that last comment, you felt your cheeks warm and you glanced away. “I.. I owe you my life, Naga, but I do not know how I feel about any of this.”
“Zul'te.”
The word was random, leaving you confused. “Eh?”
“My name is Zul'te.”
So he had a name. That was good to know in the future at least. You weren’t even aware they had a naming system as the lot of them rarely spoke from what you were told, and if they did, it was in a language nobody could understand.
“Stay for at least thirty moons,” Zul'te offered, his palms opening to mutely ask for your hands once more. “If I am unable to win your affection and sway your way of thinking by then, I am unworthy of you and will let you go.”
Thirty days? It was such a long time to be with someone you were once told devoured humans only to find in a short span of time they were anything but prey to their kind. What did you have to lose? It wasn’t like you could catch up to the townsfolk now. Besides, he did save you, so you felt you owed him something in return.
“Alright,” you muttered, accepting his open invitation as you slipped your palms onto his own. “I will stay.”
The coiled length about you tightened gently, feeling akin to that of a human hug. Zul'te turned his attention back to the soup and offered you a bit more. “You need to continue to eat. I can tell that you’re very thin for a human female, and that illness hasn’t departed from you yet.”
You hadn’t eaten well in some time. Now that your strength was slowly returning, you were able to assist Zul'te in getting the meal to you. The bowl was far larger than you were used to but after drinking a good half of it—equivalent to a decent serving for a meal—you found yourself exhausted and able to find rest there in the Naga’s cautious grasp.
———————
As the days went onward, you were taught a bit more about Zul'te’s tribe and their beliefs.
Apparently, most Nagas believed in the serpent goddess known as Fa'sisia. She was a Naga female with black skin, white, wild hair and a long tail, which glittered like the stars. In most idle art pieces of her, she seemed to coil about a crescent moon. She had four arms, each open hand holding the four phases of the moon’s cycle that you were never told of: new moon, first quarter, full moon, and last quarter. The creatures in this tribe were dedicated to her to the point a large statue was crafted of her just outside of the remains of a fallen temple. Even as far as human structures, you had never seen anything so big as even its shadow swallowed you.
“A reason we hunt at night is because we believe she is always watching over us and blessing us with her strength,” Zul'te explained to you as he drew what images he could of her from memory in the ground not far away from where you were resting in his serpent tail.
You had felt the cough lessening as time went on but you were still building your strength back up. Zul'te had made it his own personal mission to keep you inside of the ruins of an old temple that was his home till you felt better. Apparently, the rocky formation you vaguely recalled from a week or so back was merely old stone columns that had overgrown with moss and vines. The glittering you witnessed was actually crystals that had found their resting place in the area. Seeing as gems like these mattered little to the Nagas, they were left to grow as they pleased.
“She stretches across the sky when night falls upon this world, blanketing it in the glistening scales that cover her body, and her silver hair becomes the moon that evening,” he went onward to explain. “She made us in her image, and we give thanks to her when the new moon rises.”
It was interesting. Never would you have imagined the Nagas had a very in-depth religious view of something. “You only worship the one goddess?”
“Indeed,” Zul'te dropped the stick he was using, fixing his coiled length about you to keep you comfortable and safe. “I am aware from past human mates your kind tend to worship different gods depending who you are. We do the same. There are some tribes that worship Mulsius, the god of the sun. In their view, Mulsius and Fa'sisia are lovers and each cycle of the day and night are the two trying to reunite with one another. When the moon gave eclipse to the sun, it was said their union bore them two children—a son and a daughter. Their son became the earth, and he created the many beasts in this world, while the daughter became the waters and gave order to the creatures living in it. Another tribe that I am aware of never saw the earth and water as their offspring, but the waters of this world to be the tears of loneliness without Fa'sisia’s mate, and the earth would tremble and shake with rage at her loneliness and create new heights as if Mulsius was trying to reach the woman he loved. My tribe never bothered to adopt either view as we believe this world was born from darkness, so only She should be worshiped.”
You looked down at the drawing of the goddess of the moon, twisting your mouth to the side. “I think the other story sounds a bit more romantic.”
Zul'te didn’t mock you for your words. If anything, he sounded intrigued by your insight. “You believe so?”
“Maybe it’s just the romantic in me, but it sounds far nicer when you’re not in this world alone,” you explained. Overlapping your arms on his dark colored scales, you rested your chin with a visible sigh. “I mean.. the story says they’re eternally apart, but even having something to strive for—or someone—sounds kind of nice.”
“Mm,” Zul'te hummed, gazing at nothing in particular as he collected his thoughts. “Looking at the story from that perspective of never seeing your loved one but knowing they’re there, I guess I can respect it from that view.” His hand moved to just under his white eyes. “I can always hear the ones I love, feel the warmth of their skin, and taste of their flesh when I am allowed to kiss them, but I will never see them. I will never know what they look like.”
He was so big that it was impossible for you to reach anywhere but his abdomen. Your hands spread about the muscles to feel as he flexed ever slightly against your touch. “Why did you go blind? Did something strike you in battle?”
Zul'te’s vision-less sight took to you, still having no difficulty in pinpointing your voice. “It was age, as far as I am aware. The many moons that took weight upon me, the goddess saw fit to have this be my burden.” He buried a sarcastic laugh as if to hide the pain behind it. “Or perhaps she is displeased with me and how badly I let things get when I took over my clan. I am not certain.”
You had seen a few males about with other humans, and while there were several, you never once saw a single female Naga. Not even the human females were able to give birth to a female hybrid Naga in many years, leading to some of the snake creatures to worry. While humans would suffice, the birthing and breeding process was still dangerous. Hybrids grew inside of the mothers at such a rapid rate that some of the women would die as their organs would overwork themselves trying to prepare for a pregnancy that would only last eight weeks. The baby growing so quickly inside of the woman caused others to struggle with even moving as they were so worn down by how much they themselves and the baby had to eat. The males were attentive and did their all to keep their mates alive, but it was horrifying to think about when you were told.
Human birth wasn’t guaranteed to not kill you either, but it seemed the likelihood of this one doing so was far higher. It was frightening to consider.
The silence was uncomfortable for Zul'te, urging him to move his finger forward to brush against your cheek. “How are you feeling? Is the coughing lessening any?”
Your hands grabbed onto his, encouraging his warmth to your body all the more. “My strength is returning.” A smile pricked at your lips. “Not having to cough every moment is rather new and refreshing. My throat doesn’t feel like a toxic flower is blooming inside of me.”
The Naga’s scaly half rolled up behind you, urging you closer to his abdomen where he breathed in content. “Out of anything, I’ll take the goddess’ blessing that you managed to make it through the last few moons. With how long you were ill, I wasn’t certain you would.”
A laugh resonated from your chest that you finally didn’t feel pain within anymore. “So little faith in humans, huh?” It was a joke, but perhaps there was a small ring of truth behind it too.
The Naga shook his head. “Mm, I am no healer, my dear. I am a warrior and a leader, and I do my all to protect those that need protecting and provide for those I take as mine. My healing spell is more to heal the wounded and sick if they’re not too far gone. You humans have always been quite susceptible to my magic, however. And this is not to shame you, but I think it is because your kind is weak to our strength of magic, so it is far easier to heal or harm humans with it.” His fingertips gracefully caressed your face, being mindful of every detail as he took it into his mental vision. “When your body didn’t respond as intended, I was worried.”
You let his hand wander, closing your eyes as you didn’t want the blind Naga to accidentally scratch your face with his claws. While he had gifted you far better clothing that he himself had made from the hides of creatures he killed, your could feel as he was twirling about the design of it as if musing with the idea of removing it.
But he didn’t, and you knew he wouldn’t. Not without your say.
Inwardly, you struggled. He had been kind and did everything in his power to protect and feed you. He saved you from an illness that no other knew the origin of. “Do you… do you want to touch me?”
Zul'te stifled a brief laugh. “I am touching you. I am trying to see you with my hands.”
You couldn’t help but chuckle a bit in turn as your palms brushed against his coiled length that bound you in a protective yet intimate grasp. “I-I meant… all of me.” You brought your fingers together as if to pray, but you were nervous. You had never been sexual with someone before and this was someone not of your race. Would it be painful, pleasurable or both?
His hands ceased their wandering as your name uttered past his lips. “Your heart quickens more of that like my prey than that of a lover.” Zul'te frowned in concern, shifting his head to the side. “Are you offering me your heart willingly or in a fit of guilt?”
Knowing your emotions were betraying you, and he could sense it, you moved your grasp to your chest and tried to still the anxious beats. “I don’t mean for it to!” You sighed, just to try and steady yourself. “I just.. I’ve never been with anybody like this before.”
The scales of the serpent beast moved yet again, rubbing against you as if to comfort you. “So you have no mating experience with your male kind?”
You shook your head, allowing the Naga to sense the vibration through his body.
Zul'te rubbed the length of his index finger across his lips in thought. “That would make things a bit better in some regard. However, what we find to be arousing may not be up to your standards. I warn you of that now.” His tail slithered about, curving between your legs and coiling up the length of the left side of your leg till it rested on your hip. “However, you are free to speak. I will stop if you tell me to. Just because I desire children doesn’t mean I will go out of my way to make you birth mine. But… in agreeing to do this, you’re agreeing to stay with me and let me sire your children. Is this what you want?”
The thought rushed at you, making your breathing quake. “I can back out at any time during this?” What if you did change your mind? You didn’t want to arouse a Naga to the point it wouldn’t listen to you if you started to say 'no’. When in a state of such, it was hard to get them to listen.
He nodded. “You can tell me to stop, and I will stop. However, the moment I make that intimate connection inside of you, you are mine, and I will not see you leave here.” He inched closer to where he could taste your words whenever you were to speak them. “Do we have an understanding?”
You hesitated but, again, there was nowhere else to go. In the past few weeks, he had been there for you unlike the townsfolk back at the poor house. Who would you truly be returning to beyond a cold embrace of loneliness and sorrow? “Yes. I promise,” you whispered. “I’ll be yours, Zul'te.”
“Then let me taste your flesh in ways you’ve never felt before, my love,” Zul'te spoke, the tail hooking then about the metal, intricate design that kept the leather clothing in place to conceal most of your flesh from your knees to your hips. With great ease, the clothing was discarded, and using the serpent length of himself, he urged you to lie back against the scales of his snake half.
You tensed when the hot breath expelled from his nostrils when he took in the scent of you. A growl, one that you never recognized before used in your direction, rumbled from his throat, becoming far more audible when he parted his mouth and exposed his sharp fangs. They dripped with saliva that showed his hunger but not to devour his meal but to taste of something far better. Even if nervousness still bound you, you watched closely as his mouth closed upon the exposed petals of your entrance.
Biting at your lower lip, a cry felt strangled from your throat as the thick, forked tongue of the beast began to tease the entrance to excite you onward. Your moans reached his pointed ears to where you witnessed as they moved ever slightly to the encouraging sound, a moan rumbling upon the sensitive flesh as the wet muscle flicked against your sex to continue to let you feel what the blanket of euphoria was like.
It was a sickness, but a far better sickness than what you had encountered before. Your body warmed but with such a balmy sensation that it was hard to describe. You trembled but not out of the chill shackled to your body but out of a rousing delight that bloomed in your stomach and not in your throat. Every time the tongue pressed and played with your clit, an excited moan turned into a rousing cry as you arched into the act.
Zul'te’s hands grabbed your thighs, keeping you in place as he then used the strength of his tongue to part your womanhood and dive in deeper. Given his size, he was about at part with a normal human male’s cock with his tongue alone. His nostrils flared and with the added balmy moisture to your clit and the sensation of his fangs gently raking on your skin as he sensually caressed your inner body, you started to scream in pleasure more than merely mewl in quiet.
The growl in his throat rumbled again, his hands migrated forward and it was there you felt them find their placement on your breasts that were still covered. Given how the fabric lay across your chest, it was easy for his hands to maneuver about it and find your skin underneath. You felt as his thumbs pressed against your raised nipples that greeted his touch with ease, making you breathless and your legs quake.
Zul'te continued to flick and dig his tongue eagerly inside of you until he slowly retracted the muscle with a satisfied hiss, licking his lips. “You’re all ready so easy to excite. I suppose being in season for such makes some of this trivial at best.” He shifted in place, unclipping the large, metal ring in the center of the fabric that bound your breasts to free them. While he couldn’t see them, he could feel them. His hands spread carefully over the sensitive mounds to take in their size and form. His thumbs pushed and nudged against the sensitive nipples to urge you onward all the more.
It was becoming unbearable but in a joyful way.
“Oh, gods…!” you panted, your toes curling as your body bent to obey his every touch. You’d do anything to have him continue to urge this fire in your stomach all the more. “I feel like.. I’m going to faint…!”
It was new, this euphoria. It was like being given a drug that could make you only experience the best that life could give you. You wanted it to keep going as you could feel it would easily reach a breaking point that you wanted to be cognizant to.
His hands continued their journey to enkindle you only to have one of his hands go onward to your throat, and it was there he grabbed you to squeeze your esophagus. It felt like he wanted to strangle you, but he resisted, merely rubbing his thumb against the skin. “Mm, it would be wise you know what you’re dealing with. At least before I continue, that is.”
You weren’t sure what he meant until you saw him rise up all the more, nearly hunching over you to let you bear witness to the slit on the front of him that was usually closed… only to find it had opened and two cocks were exposed. The one on top was far longer and larger than the one below, but regardless, you found yourself tensing at the sight. Just because you hadn’t been with a man didn’t mean you were oblivious to what was staring you down at current.
“H-How is this going to work?” you stuttered, finding the warm bloom to dull a bit as your senses unclouded and cleared. “I’m afraid you’re too big for me, Zul'te.”
“I cannot sheathe inside of you completely, my dear, but I can put some of me inside of you. The lower one, I will not bother with till you’re a bit more ready for it, but I can insert it into your other entrance just below where you birth your children.”
Your anal entrance? Was that what he was referencing? The very thought of even that going up inside of something so small made your legs recoil near your body. “I-I think it would be wise not to. Maybe taking it a bit slower would be better.”
His snake half moved ever slightly, rubbing against the back of your head as he inched himself closer. “You need to arouse yourself again. Without that to numb your thoughts, it will hurt a bit more than you want it to.” He motioned to his erection. “You may touch it. It’s not going to harm you. It is better to ease yourself into the very thing that scares you then continue to be fearful of it forever.”
You reached forward only to recoil your fingers in precariousness. He had pleasured you, so wouldn’t it be fair to do the same? Your entire hand could hardly fit on the Naga’s girth, making you use both hands to hold him. Just the feel of your palms against the sensitive organ made a quivering moan exit the Naga’s mouth.
He had to have been at least six inches in diameter when it came to the upper one and the lower, half that size. It was rubbery and wet to the touch with a rather fleshy semi-hook like design at the end. Your lips cautiously moved to the side where you could see the ridges on the organ, kissing the sides as you could hardly even fit the monster’s manhood within your mouth let alone your throat. However, you could worship it at least and encourage him to get excited as you eased your concerns on this thing hurting you.
Pressing your lips against the throbbing erection, you felt it quiver and flinch in your grasp as you rolled your tongue across the flesh. Another labored, growl of a moan escaped Zul'te as he closed his eyes and focused on the pleasure his smaller mate was able to give him. You even witnessed as the muscles that lined his abdomen flexed and seemed to flinch in delight, his body shaking and a bit of pre-cum dribbling as a warning from the heads of each of his cocks.
You pulled away as he had been resting on his own coiled length to try and focus on your touch, letting his mind wander seeing as he lacked vision. “Are you enjoying it, Zul'te?” you asked, rubbing the length of it still and squeezing part of it.
The squeeze seemed to nearly send him over as he mighty hiss elongated from his mouth, his jaw even unhinging for the first time to let you see the many rows of teeth he had and how wide his maw truly was. Your words reaching him, the mighty creature moved about once more as he put his mouth back in place to what your kind deemed as normal. His hands found yours, holding them in an ever loving way but there was something within his touch that showed he was eager to tell you something.
“You cannot go back if I step forward after this, my star,” he warned you. “So, I ask you: have you changed your mind?”
Just get him excited and then stop? You felt a bit bad doing that. “Well, I—.”
“—Do not say anything out of pity or as a means to repay a favor,” the Naga insisted as if to read your mind. “What I did and have done is in hopes to lure in a mate, but I know that is not how your kind works. You’re far more emotional than other creatures, and that leads you into situations that are never in your best interest but others’. Do know this, I will still continue to do my all to protect and provide for you if you say 'yes’. That will never change, but listen to your heart and not your mind.”
Your fingers were gripping onto the space between his thumb and index fingers, allowing you to squeeze him there with reassurance and understanding. “Yes,” you spoke without a single stutter. “I do want to continue with you, Zul'te.”
His nose gently touched your cheek as he nuzzled against you with his tongue slipping out excitedly to hook under your jaw line and steal a kiss from your human flesh. “Then continue to trust me that I will not go out of my way to hurt you, even as we join together.” He urged you down upon his coiled serpent half, looming over your small form once more as he parted your legs. “You will now belong to me: Zul'te of the Bone Spear and nothing—nobody—will lay harm to you or our children as long as I draw breath.”
The hooked head of his cock kissed upon your entrance, making you arch into the act yet again as you prepared for such an intimate connection. Your fingers curled on his scales, trying not to dig into them as the head whispered its need for you to open for him and it was there a scream of pleasure mixed with pain erupted.
“F-Fuck… oh gods…!” you panted, finding your throat to not go raw but merely dry the more you breathed in excitement to try and drown the pain out with pleasure.
Zul'te kept a firm grip on your thighs, keeping you still. “Don’t move about so much,” he encouraged, huffing through his nostrils. “I need to find out how much you can handle without harming you.” His teeth bared as he focused long and hard on how your body reacted. He could feel the wet tightness of your body restrict him and while it was pleasurable for him, he knew that it could damage you if he went full on feral.
Feeling him push forward, your body ached for a time but eventually, it adjusted. Your breathing slowed to a normal pace as the fires of pain were doused away by the desire for pleasure. Ever slowly, he pulled back and then pushed in again and then repeated the process to excite you into a series of cries and begging for more as your body jerked under his actions. Eyes closed, you focused on the budding euphoria within your core only to be taken away from the very thought when his tail began to wrap about your throat.
You awakened from your thoughts, wondering what he was up to as the length was coiling about your esophagus till it stopped. He squeezed ever slightly, leaving you breathless and making you gasp for air. “Wha-What are you doing…!” you choked out, thinking he had lied and turned on you as your body was still (oddly) enjoying the sensations enticing it onward.
“I am not going to kill you or strangle you to death, my star. We find restricting the humans in our grasp to be pleasurable and even your kind sometimes enjoys it as well.” He relaxed, letting you collect your thoughts on the matter. “It’ll heighten your release if you obey and trust in me.”
Feeling him try it again when you were more aware of his choice, you found the lack of air for a moment exciting your heart and nourishing your ecstasy to an all new peak just as he warned. Your body lubricated and sweetened the probing cock with your excitement as you grabbed onto his nearby wrist to try and keep yourself steady as the thrusting and restricting joined together was making you lose your thoughts.
“I-I’m going to cum…!” you warned, biting at your lower lip as you felt the grip about your throat tighten even more.
You could hardly warn Zul'te a second time as his grasp on your throat tightened to where you could hardly draw breath. Your eyes widened as you battled to even scream when the joyful flower blossomed and you felt your body quake and shrink down upon the large erection buried inside of you.
Zul'te growled and hissed with delight at sensing the beckoning call of his mate. His teeth exposed once more in a fit of ecstasy that rocked his monstrous form. The Naga braced himself as he came harshly within you.
It was a rush of warm, thick liquid that made you gasp to the best of your ability. The hold about your throat loosened and it was there you sounded as though you just came up for air from being underwater for far too long. Sweat beaded your body as you felt most of the Naga’s release dribble from your union as your human form was not able to contain all of it. Even after the first two, he quickly pulled out, letting you find relief at not being too filled on his seed.
He breathed as heavily as you, moving in closer to nudge against your balmy cheek stained in your sweat to see if you were all right. “How do you feel? Are you hurt?” His nostrils flared to contain his rapid breaths, the forked tongue snaking out from time to time as if to give passing kisses.
It made quite the mess all over your thighs and even lower down your legs too, but you could manage to get over that small obstacle. “I’m fine,” you answered, still trying to steady your racing heart. Your fingers reached forward, gracing his brown skin to gently caress him against his cheek.
The Naga leaned into your touch, closing his silver eyes to enjoy in a human’s way of showing affection—something he had grown accustomed to. “I love you." He hissed your name shortly after in a form of loving content. "As I said before, I will protect you no matter the cost.”
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Other Current fics I'm Doing:
♥Within The Dream Temptation
♥ The Demon King of the Desert
♥ The Tome of Ashurbanipal
♥Amnesia: A Dreamer’s Requiem
♥In Another Life, We Could Have Been Lovers
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