The corpse of a monk that should not have moved from its original resting place by the stele had made all thoughts of exploding upon her american employers seem insignificant. She had stepped into a nightmare because she had been hasty. Not greedy, it was not greed to seek to get yourself out of misery. To dream of a safe, peaceful life was not greed. At least not in Alex's books.
Trying to process her situation and how she might escape it, she followed their newly rescued second-in-finance quietly, while still taking care to not spill any of the water Lung El had previously blessed.
The waters were rising as if the temple was sinking into the sea of stars they had been transported to and Alex found herself frozen on the spot. Fear gripped her mind as she slipped. She would not drown in such a closed space! She would not!
"...a mere bouncer. Is such true?" Her head swiveled around to see who Henry was addressing in such casual and dismissive manner only to be greeted with the sight of a Great Snake. Lung El had already fallen on his knees, his fear and reverence evident. Alex, on the other hand, lowered herself slowly, placing the holy water next to her before paying respects to a creature she had heard of. A creature she respected greatly as someone who relied on the rivers to make a living, even if it was not the honest kind. She was not afraid. The great serpent could kill her if it so wanted but she would rather die by his fangs than to be slowly drowned, trapped like a rat.
Her mind sent daggers to the American researcher's dismissive approach, but she dared not speak, until Nagk was finished talking. She took its words to memory and sucked air through her teeth as the sense of the invisible blade cutting the bodhi leaf on the top part of her hand had been unexpected.
"Oh Great Nagk, may I speak with you?" Alex had allowed herself to speak up while the others were busy with the gate being opened to whatever next plane of existence this Soma obsession was going to take them. She had no interest in it, not unless it meant it would take her back to her own part of reality. To things she knew, things she could understand and live with. Money be damned!
The serpent languidly twisted through the air to face its eyeless head toward her. The others were busy at the threshold ignoring the beast that had allowed them passage now that the toll was paid.
"Have thy not already?" the creature pointed out with what could have been a trace of amusement. "Dying Little Thing, this is thine own chance. Speak thy piece."
Somehow, even through all of this, the serpent's response managed to make her chuckle briefly. She had walked into that one, didn't she? Still she quickly re-arranged her thoughts. "I understand that we cannot go back the way we came. If I may be bold enough to seek your wisdom in two questions?" She hesitated briefly as to the importance she wanted to place in the order the questions were to be asked.
"I received a warning from a pret wearing american clothes, to not hear a name. What does the name refer to, so I can guard against it?"
The serpent shivered, the entire body undulating against walls, ceiling, floor, in a roil like water in a glass. Its fanged mouth opened in a hiss, the selfsame sound as a rushing river beneath a boat. The creature reared back, as if to gather itself, before at last slithering to loom.
"So a bird sings in the World of the Living, and sing sweet it does. Mine tongue is bound, these jailers chain it so."
The serpent turned its head to the plinths carrying the other monks that yet survived, silent and unmoving. It hissed again, a cacophonous noise.
"Even as they rot to hold the door, and I alongside. Ye may know the name in its cloying. Before it is spoken, the air is sweeter — the ear bends to it — the tongue salivates— beware such sensation. Ye may find the poison dripped upon thine ear," the serpent stated. "It matters not to me. Poisoned, hale, still I am bound."
As Nagk hissed and shook, Alex took a small step back out of instinct but stood her ground otherwise. Her eyes trailed to the monks. Five of them were now back on their pedestals. Yet their group had only killed 3. What had happened to the fourth one? Her hand hovered over her pistol, her mind briefly entertaining the idea of attempting to kill the rest of the monks. A way to show her appreciation to the serpent for its wisdom.
Then the hairs at the back of her neck stood up and her hand retreated back to her side as the piece of her mind that was always preoccupied with her survival reminded her how easily the monks could overwhelm her and how likely it was that she would unleash something even worse into the world whose safety she wished to return to.
"Is there a way to return to my plane of existence if I follow the path forward?"
"Ahhhh! The little sparrow wills to roosteth home? Thou hast found this portal, no? Where thou sojourn, the fabric is… thin. Gossamer. Others are sure to have fled and not just through this door. A master of ritual may assist thee, mayhaps? Cut thine own way out, per se. Or find the path another hast cut."
The great serpent seemed pleased with the prescience of this member of the crew, swaying to some unheard music, humming a low and disorienting noise that could be mistaken for a song. The Nagk lowered before Alex abruptly, it's cold, cold breath washing over her.
"Anything else? Little Dying Flame?"
Alex shivered as the breath of the serpent engulfed her. She bowed in respect. "No, Great Nagk. I am most appreciative of your wisdom even if I can't show it in actions." She picked up the bowl of holy water again. "I shall endeavor to make good use of your advice. Fare well."
When she crossed the gate, the Americans had already engaged in combat and were in the process of burning some kind of sentient tree. She watched in horror and fascination as the flames, a scene so familiar to Alex, appeared more otherworldly than the rest of their surroundings. She saw the Khuman Tong mourn the creature and she wanted to reach out to console the young spirit when she felt a sense of confidence surge from her shoulder.
"Good job, Fin, least we know fire kills them. Let's start making more torches." She heard Andrew congratulate the botanist after he was done fussing over the lad. "I am guessing you were not listening to the great Nagk then. Those taken by soma will yield to flame for a time. They are not dead. At least not for long." She said as she approached the creature and stood next to Khuman Tong, briefly glancing at the boy with concern.
"Get your flasks out and take some of the holy water. It will guard against ghosts. But we should not waste time unless we actually get attacked. We should leave this place. Whatever this fruit, this soma, it is you are looking for, … it is not worth it. " She set the bowl down and took her jin flask out, emptied it and filled it with holy water instead.
"I have received the same warning twice. There is a name, Nagk was forbidden from explaining who or what the name belongs to and it seems one of your crew from the previous expedition was doomed to be a pret in death for hearing it." She sounded confident. More confident than any person thrust into supernatural nightmares had any right to be. "There are telltale signs. Anticipation, the air will turn sweeter or your mouth will start salivating. Your hearing will turn sharper….. Make sure to plug your ears if you feel anything like that."
