God of Snakes (Part 3)

Pal, his mental fortitude bolstered by a sliver of hope, noticed the female elf carelessly sprinting ahead of him. He was about to caution her about the dangers of haste when an arrow's ominous whistle split the air just before it impaled her slender leg. Or rather, it would have struck Xian, had not the gallant half-elf Quanas flung himself in harm's way, sacrificing his own safety.

As Quanas began to slip away, his vision blurring and his life draining, he sensed the insidious venom coursing through his veins, devouring him from within. Xian wasted no time and cast a spell to ease his suffering.

"I cannot arrest the poison's malevolent course, but I can ease your agony. It may buy you some fleeting moments," offered Xian, his voice laced with concern.

Pal, still reeling from his injuries, struggled to his feet, swaying as he surveyed his surroundings, searching for the elusive elf lurking in the shadows. He pondered why the archer hadn't loosed a second arrow yet.

Unleashing his xistera, Pal loaded it with a clay sphere and tensed its cord for the shot. He knew he had but one chance to turn the tide. His acute ears picked up the faint creak of the crossbow being reloaded, the bowstring pulled taut. Without hesitation, he hurled the ball, releasing a guttural cry. A deadly projectile arced upwards, only to plummet back to earth as the elf doubled over in excruciating agony from the impact.

The priest gingerly navigated the narrow, serpent-shaped passageway, formed by a winding statue of the snake. Upon reaching the altar, he commenced chanting a prayer. Originally, he had intended to traverse the snaky pathway with Baz's aid, but ever since he entered the cavern, his mind had been a befuddled haze. He could barely recollect when he had separated from his companion. Bishop surmised that his confusion was due to the venomous toxin he had been exposed to during their entry into the temple.

The blackened priest was clasping Allendra firmly, while simultaneously keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings. Bishop unsheathed his knife and sliced deep into the girl's right arm, allowing her blood to gush onto the altar.

Meanwhile, Xian, who had pinpointed the priest's location, cast a spell upon him. This incantation was the same one he had used previously to distract the ogre. However, this time it was ineffective against the priest's resolute willpower.

"Shah Maran, the divine Lord of Snakes, who once reigned over the Pharrah realm during the era of antiquity! Hear my supplication. This is the summons of the nefarious Lord Therion. Awake from your prolonged slumber, O God of Snakes, awake!"

Pal succumbed to the venom's effect once again and collapsed onto the ground. His leg had stiffened, and he felt an overwhelming nausea. Breathing had become arduous as the toxin crept towards his heart.

The earth quaked, and the pointed stalactites began plummeting from the ceiling. Xian stood by Pal, invoking a barrier spell to safeguard them. Baaz attempted to dodge the falling formations.

The serpent's eyes sparkled brighter, illuminating a larger space. The priest continued his incantations, calling upon the dreaded deity in an archaic tongue. Ebon shadows arose from the darkness, one after another, surrounding the cleric.

As the priest finished the invocation, a mystical gateway in various shades of emerald manifested beside the serpent's head. Allendra broke free from the priest's grasp and dashed towards Pal. Tenderly touching his cheek, she smiled with assurance.

"Fret not, Pal. I shall rescue you and become stronger," she proclaimed.

Hearing Allendra's voice, Pal reopened his fading eyes and returned a grin.

"Let's depart, Eli. Lend me a hand," he struggled to say.

"I must complete one final task, Pal, and then we shall leave," the little girl replied like an adult, taking Pal's dagger and hurrying back to the altar.

As she scurried away, the blinded girl nearly avoided the stalactites' descent. However, the stalactites didn't drop near the altar, presumably due to the priest's protective enchantment.

"Eli, desist, don't do it!" Pal yelled.

At that precise moment, Arvedas strode into the grand hall, bearing Dylan's grievously wounded form. Galanadel, the elven warrior, had outsmarted the ogres that had breached the west wing, thwarting their advance by unleashing a trap at the entrance with his trusty bow. Then, just as Raaz was poised to deal the finishing blow to Dylan, he appeared in the nick of time and dispatched the mist elf.

Arvedas tenderly laid the blood-drenched knight to one side before drawing his immense and exceedingly long bow. Without hesitation, he pinpointed his target. His arrow, imbued with deadly intent, was aimed straight at the priest, whose fervent incantations persisted. But the mystical shield intercepted the arrow, causing it to clatter to the ground.

"Curse it, he's warded himself," Arvedas muttered.

He shifted his focus to a fresh target. The elf marksman murmured an enchantment as he plucked two arrows from his quiver slung across his back. Two shafts were soon loosed, their flight slicing through the air like a shrill whistle, and striking the giant snake statue's emerald eyes with pinpoint precision, causing the precious gems to fissure. At that same moment, Allendra let loose a piercing scream, unleashing all of her pent-up rage, and plunged a sharp dagger deep into the priest's back.

Xian could have sworn that the serpent had sprung to life in that fleeting moment and let out a blood-curdling screech.

Pal, however, was uncertain if the ear-splitting shriek had emanated from the little girl or the serpent itself.

The serpent's eyes burst with blinding radiance and deafening thunder, and the passage of time seemed to decelerate.

Pal, who had timely covered his ears and shut his eyes, endeavored to crawl towards Allendra with ponderous movements. Xian was partially blinded and deafened, flung backwards a few meters.

Rising to his feet was a slow process. The priest, notwithstanding the blade impaled in his back, remained standing. Dragging his feet, he ambled towards the luminescent, emerald-green magical portal with a zombie-like gait. Blood trickled from his eyes, ears, and mouth.

"I am coming for you, my liege," the man muttered in an indistinct voice.

As he attempted to traverse the magical threshold, he was torn to shreds by its power and flung back violently. Flesh and bone fragments were sent hurtling in slow motion in every direction. The remnants of his remains collapsed onto the ground, and his visage was utterly unrecognizable.

The mystical gateway still remained agape, its magical aura illuminating the space. The quaking earth rumbled with increasing ferocity, and the sharp, dagger-like stalactites ripped from their moorings overhead, hurtling down in slow-motion as if they were feathered arrows as their descent prolonged by time's retarding effect.

Allendra was drenched in blood and viscera, yet she gazed at Pal with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

"My apologies, Pal. Elia beckons me. This may be our only hope to stop her," she said, taking determined steps toward the flickering emerald-green portal.

"Hold on, Allendra!" Pal shouted.

Arvedas approached Pal, avoiding the falling stalactites, and cast a spell. The sensation had returned to Pal's leg.

"Why didn't you reveal your healing powers to me?" Pal inquired.

"I am but a humble ranger, Pal. I only forestalled the spread of the poison in your veins. Go and rescue your friend now. Farewell until we meet again," the elf said with composure.

The halfling suppressed the inquiries burning in his mind, and halted his steps just in time. "Till we cross paths again," Pal replied, and bolted after Allendra, poised to step into the mystical threshold. Without a second thought, he darted after her, through the gateway. To his surprise, Baaz trailed closely behind.

Xian caught sight of the mist elf emerging from the shadows and alerted Arvedas, but the elusive elf was too fleet-footed. He had already vanished into the gate. Suddenly, the gateway slammed shut, vanishing without a trace, and time resumed its usual pace.

Arvedas scooped up Dylan's lifeless body, which lay abandoned by the gate, and signaled to Xian. "We must depart this temple before it crumbles."

"What of them?" Xian asked.

"They shall find their own path. Their course has always diverged from ours. We merely intersected for a fleeting moment."

"What became of the God of Snakes? Is he deceased?"

"No, he slumbers still. Let him be. When the hour calls for him to rouse, he shall."

As they sprinted towards the exit, scrambling up the slope, the duo beheld the crack between the pillars filling up with sand. Upon emerging from the secret sanctuary, they found themselves drenched in a downpour of sand.

Xian gazed upward in shock, "An implausible occurrence is transpiring. Sand is pouring from the sky."

Arvedas, unfazed by the peculiar happening, remarked, "The gods are obliterating any evidence of our visit. As though it never came to pass."

For a while, they observed as the pit and the valley where the temple resided vanished beneath the sea of sand. Afterward, guided by the Xhar Rax tribe, they journeyed towards the east, towards the city of Pharrahville. No tales were shared, and the tribe chief refrained from inquiries. All were aware that something best left forgotten had taken place.