Drake's Quest

The Snake

Drake awoke, yawning. He was alone, curled up under a big oak tree. Drake felt... cold. He shivered, glancing up at the sky. It was cloudy. He was definitely close to that snow he saw yesterday. Drake shivered, but it had nothing to do with the cold. Not this time. He-no, Caine's visit yesterday shone fresh in Drake's mind, and he was unsure what to think. Caine was the enemy. Right? Drake shook his head, baffled.

Caine had said a lot of things, and Drake knew some of the things he'd said were important. Such how, he planned to kill everyone and destroy the world Drake lived in. Drake shivered, hearing screaming in the back of his mind. The constant reminder of what was happening in the real world. Proof he was definitely evil, right?

But then... unbidden, the memory of Caine embracing him came back, and Drake couldn't help but feel a longing for another embrace. And he was so warm. Drake shivered, rubbing his arms. He'd said that he hadn't realized that Drake was unaware of who he was, and he'd claimed that Drake had never had any choice, that he had to protect Armen. As much as Drake tried to push it away, there was truth to what Caine had said.

Collin had forced Drake into a life he never asked for, manipulating his emotions until he cared more for Armen's safety than his own. Caine had seemed genuinely upset that Drake had been manipulated like that, and even seemed to care about Drake's well being. He'd said that he wouldn't need Drake as his host for long. It was as if Caine were trying to comfort him.

Drake blinked hard, feeling absolutely confused and miserable. Why was everything so complicated? Drake stood, clutching Collin's journal. He opened it, touching the familiar, cramped handwriting. He felt comforted, holding one of Collin's journals, though he couldn't even explain to himself why.

Was it because Collin was Armen's brother? Or was it something engrained in Drake's very being? Drake shook his head. Either way, his goal was the same. Find Collin. Set him free. Escape. Drake shook his head and kept walking, still headed towards the sunset.

Drake lost track of time, walking endlessly. Though was it his imagination, or were the trees thinning? Snow crunches under Drake's talons, but, chillingly, he couldn't feel it. He could feel the cold, sure, but not the snow itself. Little flurries brushed past Drake's head, and he blinked at the flakes. He held out his hand, and caught a flake on his finger. Usually, if water of any kind touched him, he would get an overwhelming sense of disgust, and that's all he would feel until he was dry, or it was off him.

Now, however, Drake felt nothing. He studied the little flakes. Without the disgust he usually felt, he could take the time to study the little flakes. They really were pretty. His eyesight was sharp again, which was something Drake hadn't really noticed before now. He could see each individual flake inside the snow.

Drake put his hand down and kept walking. Before long, he had left the trees behind and was climbing snowy slopes, and ice glaciers. The wind wiped around Drake, and he wished he had a jacket. He was deep into the snow now, and though he couldn't feel it, it was definitely much colder. But Drake kept going, head bent against the wind. Before long, Drake was shaking violently. Can I freeze out here? Drake wondered. But there was no point turning around. He had to follow Collin's trail.

He stumbled, and fell. He yelped, suddenly finding himself sliding down an icy slope that Drake was sure wasn't there a moment ago. Drake tried to use his clawed feet to slow himself down, but he was going too fast. Snow and ice ranges flashed in and out of view. Then he landed, rolling in a heap in what appeared to be a cave. Icicles hung from the ceiling, and a thin layer of snow covered the icy floor. Drake shivered, curling into a ball. At least he was out of the wind.

Drake thought, with longing, of his home bathed in sunlight, or standing in a tree, soaking up the warmth. He definitely was not thinking about Caine's warm arms wrapped around him. Drake rubbed his hands together, blowing on them to warm them up. Drake thought about what Caine said, about how Endermen were cold blooded and would use heat from the sun. Maybe Drake was more like that than he thought.

Suddenly a thought struck him, so suddenly he wondered how he hadn't asked it before. Caine had acted like... like he knew exactly what Drake was thinking. Drakes scales tingled. He'd flat out answered questions in Drake's head as if Drake had spoken them aloud! Can he... can he read my mind?

Drake felt shock run through his limbs. He couldn't move. Why... Why hadn't he seen it before? Drake curled up in a ball. It was too much. Did he know about Drake's plan to find Collin? Drake felt his blood run cold. Did he let Drake keep the journal because he knew it was hopeless? A... Oh, what do they call it.... A fools quest to keep Drake busy while he destroyed Drake's home?

Drake started to cry. Again. He couldn't help it. He missed his friends. He missed his home. He missed his freedom. Suddenly warm arms wrapped around Drake, both familiar and foreign, comforting and terrifying.

"Shh." Caine pulled Drake closer. "Calm down. Why are you all the way over here? Relax, try to calm yourself." Caine took Drake's head in his hands and looked into Drake's eyes. "What are you thinking? Coming here in nothing but a T-shirt and jeans?! You'll freeze!" His silver eyes were baffled. He stepped away from Drake, and Drake shivered, suddenly much colder now that his warmth was gone. Longing was mixed with wariness, and Drake felt scared.

Caine waved his hands, and suddenly a winter jacket sprang into existence, which he quietly handed to Drake. Drake took it with shaking hands and put it on. It was a nice one, and the second Drake put it on he immediately felt as if Caine was still holding him.

Magic. Drake realized this immediately and froze, fear clouding his thoughts. Caine sighed. "Oh, will you calm down? It's only to keep you warm." He broke into a smile. "Besides, I know how much you like it." His smile was suddenly much more predatory, like a snake.

Drake backed away, fear making his hands shake. Caine took a step towards him, and Drake turned and ran. Caine's voice called out from behind him. "You can't run from me, Drake!" Drake choked down a sob and kept running, headed deeper into the snowstorm. Fear kept his limbs moving. Drake's feet suddenly broke through snow and he shrieked, sinking down into the drift. He floundered for a moment, then felt something curling around his ankle.

Drake screamed, kicking against whatever it was, but it had coiled around both Drake's feet now and was climbing up his body. A snake? Drake shook his head. That was impossible! Snakes couldn't survive in weather this cold! But Drake couldn't deny that this thing curling around his waist definitely was a snake. He could see it now, crawling up his body. It was pure white, and sparked, like the snow.

Drake tried to grab at it, to pull it off him, but the snake wrapped itself around his arms. In a matter of seconds, his arms were pinned to his sides. The snake climbed its way up his torso, tightening its coils as it went. Then it curled around his neck.

It was lose enough to where Drake could still breathe, but that didn't comfort Drake much. The snake could tighten the coils around his neck in an instant. Drake tried to scream, but the snake wrapped itself around his mouth, silencing him. He was sinking into the snowdrift, with the snake tightening around him. Snow was covering him.

Burying him. Drake blinked as snow got into his eyes. But no matter how many times he blinked, more snow piled up. His body began to feel heavy, as more snow piled on top of him. Then the snake covered Drake's eyes, and he saw no more. But he could feel.

The snake began to methodically tighten its coils, starting at Drake's feet and working its way up. Drake let out a muffled cry. His chest felt like it was being crushed. Then the snake began to slowly tighten around his neck. Drake shrieked, thrashing as the snake cut off Drake's windpipe. He couldn't breathe. The snake tightened its coils around his mouth, while still crushing Drake's throat.

Then he felt it. The tongue was feeling around the top of his head. It was gonna eat him. And it didn't really care he was still alive. Drake struggled, weakly, as saliva pooled around him and it began pulling Drake into its mouth. It's coils unwinded around Drake's head, and for a moment, through his black-spotted vision, Drake saw white and the fanged mouth gaping over him.

Then it closed on him, and Drake squeezed his eyes shut as he felt himself slipping, falling. He was being squeezed, sliding down a slimy tube as it burned against his skin. He couldn't breath. He couldn't see. He felt nothing but pain. Screams echoed in his head.

Then he felt nothing at all.