ECHO [Rewritten - NaNoWriMo '16]

Chapter 26: Viper

26 March 2016

Between New Forest and Canterbury, England

Wren

Echo grabbed me and flung me backwards, screaming, "Don't look into her eyes!"

There was a screech and I saw Aurora rearing the air, snakes latched onto her legs. I ran over to her, Howl next to me. We grabbed the snakes and ripped them off the legs of the mare. Howl snarled and ripped the heads from the bodies of the snakes. Paiute launched into the throng of snakes, hissing and spitting. The snakes collapsed under his fury. He emerged, his fur matted with blood but he seemed unharmed. He looked at me before shaking his shoulders and bolting. But it was only the snakes that had surrounded us. Only the familiars, Howl, and I were the only ones in the center with them. Echo and Viper had yet to move.

"Stop!" I shouted. Howl froze and looked at me, his brows furrowing together. I walked over to him and grabbed his arm, "This is all a distraction. A waste of energy."

Laughter filled through and caused the snakes to freeze in their advances. I started when I saw that it was Viper who was laughing. She kept her face angled slightly away from Wren as she said, "You have her brains."
Anger flashed through my veins. Howl gripped my arm to restrain me. I could see the smile on her lips and I simply wanted to rip her head off. But Howl was too strong to shake off, and there was a tiny part of me that knew I had to stay back. Despite how much it frustrated me. I instead decided to focus on glaring my hatred onto the side of her face.

"Oh, how you must hate me." Viper said softly. "You know, you look quite a bit like Pria. Not as pretty, but more than likely because you are simply a man."

"Shocking," I muttered. "Since Pria was my sister."

"Oh, you're quite funny Patel. Your sister didn't get the funny side, which is unfortunate. If she had, I might have kept her around."

"Enough," Echo spat.

"Oh, the monster has found a pet. I'm so proud. Too bad you still have no idea how to disconnect yourself emotionally from your playthings. Else you wouldn't have been so hurt over R's betrayal." Viper said smoothly.

"I said enough." Echo repeated. "Do the snakes pollute your brain as well? I didn't even realize how ALDAR was crumbling from the inside under your failed leadership. How does it feel to have those closest to you, turn against you?"

Viper snapped her teeth together, "Do you really think I care? Do you really think that a god cares if all these weaklings decide they can't handle it?"

"A god?" I frowned. "What makes you think you are a god?"

She turned her head towards me. I lowered my head before her eyes could meet mine. Viper chuckled softly, "Isn't it obvious? No one can do what I do, and I know you can feel the power in the air. You can feel it in your very bones. Can you, darling Wren? Can you feel the energy in your bones? Your thoughts are shaky, as though you cannot keep ahold of them. You can barely stand in one place; the world feels as though it is off tilt. And though you can see me, my distinct features are a blur. Though if you look into my eyes...you will see every single detail. How many lashes that I have; the color of my eyes; the way my eyes are shaped. The world will right itself once you look into my eyes."

"Don't do it," Echo said. "She is just someone who has tricked herself into believing she is a higher deity. But she could never actually be a god, because she is just too pathetic."