There wasn’t much time left before the suns’ light would disappear completely, so I quickly began to lead the pack after the steady line of crushed branches and overturned dirt. It wound through the underbrush, swiftly leaving the relative safety of the marshes where the Toothy Bullfrogs continued to spawn and fill the area with hundreds of thousands of eggs. Now under the thick covering of brush, I was once again forced to change my perception once again in order to maintain a certain level of awareness of my surroundings.

The jungle around me settled into a pattern of blues and greens, indicating the relatively cool plants and ground surrounding us. Flicking through the branches above were occasional birds, evidently preying on the midges and other insects buzzing and filling the air. The sound of the jungle was a constant drone, punctuated by the quiet chitters of the keelish and the occasional far-off call of a hawk. The ever-shrinking human part of me felt the instinctive nervousness that accompanied approaching night, but my keelish blood sang in anticipation of this hunt. I knew that this prey would give a good bonus in addition to the intrinsic reward from the [Quest].

Slowly, following further, I felt the first tremors of worry. If this sign was too old, we would never find the prey, and we could potentially get lost out here, since none of us were familiar with the surrounding jungle. I knew inside that my ability to orienteer myself had improved markedly, but I didn’t know exactly how much that was, and I wasn’t willing to wander off into the jungle to let it devour me due to my hubris.

The brush continued to grow thicker, and the ten of us had to continuously hunch under branches, crawl over and through roots, and brush aside branches to maintain our path and some semblance of visibility. The trees here, burlraizes, had extensive root systems that began several feet above the ground, something that allowed them to better survive and prevent root rot in these lands that frequently flooded. There may be prey to be found under these roots, but I instead wanted to focus on a specimen that I knew would provide better benefits to me.

Looking around, there were any number of locations where my prey could be hiding. Going off the sign, it was large for its species, somewhere from eight to ten feet long, and half a foot wide. I wouldn’t have dared to try to hunt it if there were fewer in my pack, but with ten of us, we would be able to subjugate it, I was sure. Especially since it would glow so obviously in the cooling jungle. I just needed to keep my “eyes” peeled, and I would find it soon, I was sure.

With a glance up, following the sign into a mass of roots that obscured obvious passage, I noted a couple of spots that could house our prey, and one that even had something that looked a little like it, but it was the same temperature as the rest of the vines in the area so it couldn’t be–

I was blindsided by the sudden strike from the massive Martanimis Python, and then again by my own stupidity. I knew that keelish were different from most reptiles, in that we weren’t fully cold-blooded, so we would appear easily under my “new” method of perception. Unfortunately for me, my prey was fully cold-blooded, and thus didn’t glow warm reds and oranges. I should have thought of that, since the Toothy Bullfrogs were mostly cold-blooded as well, and had been more difficult to distinguish that way. Regardless, I didn’t have the time to muse on the mechanics and questions associated with my own ignorance.

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The python bit deep into my back and, having struck, pulled me vigorously back up into its nest as I witnessed my pack scatter in surprise… and abandon me. Panicking, I elbowed at its face with both arms, trying to get it to release me, and though several blows landed on its eyes, it didn’t give in. Instead, I could feel the thick coils of the serpent begin to wind around me with crushing force as I reached down and chomped repeatedly into the hard muscle trying to squash every bone in my body to pieces. I could only barely draw blood with all my force as the snake continued to move its body.

As I was slowly enveloped in coils, I realized I’d been wrong about the size of this monster. It was at least fifteen feet long, but not as thick and hefty as the Martanimis frequently were. Regardless… I was going to die. There wasn’t anything I could do against something so much larger and stronger than me. I felt my ribs creak and begin to crack as I desperately thrust my hands at everything I could reach. My right thumb, not joined with the other fingers in the “blade” form, caught on something and with a crack that cut through the agony my crushing ribs, was broken and hung unresponsive. The breath was crushed from my lungs as I mourned my foolishness and arrogance. I couldn’t breathe, and I could feel my strikes enfeeble before I heard Took shriek in challenge.

My vision swimming, I saw that Took had scaled the tree with Brutus and both were latched onto the python’s tail and hauling it as hard as they could, trying to unwrap it from me, I supposed. Invigorated, I continued to thrash as strongly as I could, shifting the large body minutely, but enough for its slick scales to slide along the bark of the burlraiz. With shrieks of victory, Took and Brutus, then the snake and myself slid off of the narrow perch I was dying on.

With a thud, all four of us crashed to the ground, and for the first time, the python’s mouth released me. It hissed at Took, who stepped back in caution while snarling in answer. Brutus, thick as he was, didn’t respond and charged forward with jaws agape. The Martanimis Python whipped its tail, and with a crack, Brutus was sent sprawling as I felt the coils adjust around my body enough for my left arm to be freed.

Around the python, the pack began to swarm, snapping at it, trying to find purchase on its body, but to no avail. It lashed its tail and snapped its jaws enough to keep any of the intelligent members of the pack from approaching, while the less intelligent were tossed away by the sheer strength of our foe.

Finally, I roused myself and began to try to extricate myself from the beast. I would not allow this to be the end of me. There were still things to do, and, in this moment of near death, I acknowledged that I truly enjoyed my new life as a keelish, and I looked forward to all the evolutions that laid before me.

Unfortunately, as I was resolving myself to survive and enjoy my new life, the Martanimis had another idea, and, with a quick snap of its jaws, I was put fully into its mouth as it began to escape from the pack.