'You know? You are being way too calm for what is happening.' Acacia said in her head.
'Why would I be bothered by a couple of weaklings? You brought this on yourself by sneaking out without a single thought and I truly want to see how you get out of this mess.' Daemonis snickered.
Acacia felt a bit embarrassed since she actually left without thinking things thoroughly and now her insides were being squeezed by a dual headed green snake.
The snake suddenly released its hold on her and she fell to the ground. The elderly woman reached her side while the little girl with short white hair with a long fluffy tail stayed behind the woman and clung to her skirt.
"Are you alright, child?" The elderly woman asked. Her brown eyes were filled with worry, her eyebrows furrowed, making the wrinkles more defined. She also had white hair like the little girl.
"I'm fine." Acacia groaned at the pain in her arms, her gaze flickered to the three men at front and the snake at the back. She sat up and noticed the pain in her arms were gone, she rubbed her arms in confusion when one of the men spoke.
"Listen up! Today we want to play a game, our pet will throw acidic venom and you must dodge! Or else.." The first guy with short dark green hair smiled and dragged his thumb across his neck in a slow manner. There were two others behind him with similar hair color but different styles. One of them had a big gun strapped on his shoulder and the other with a sword strapped by his waist.
"Why are you doing this?" The young boy with dark blue hair asked with a hint of anger.
"Our kill count isn't high enough, we need our kin group to respect us!" The third guy spoke with a hint of frustration.
"Idiot! Why would you tell them that? Now we look desperate instead of menacing." The first guy barked at him while the second guy smacked the back of the third guy's head.
"Hah, no wonder you guys were not respected." The young boy scoffed, a flicker of defiance in his amber eyes, earning a glare from the first man. He snapped his fingers, and the snake, coiled at his side, unraveled, rising to an intimidating height.
"Let's see how you survive." The first man grinned and the other two snickered behind him.
"Please! They're innocent! These children have done nothing wrong. At least... at least let my granddaughter go..." The elderly woman quickly went down on her knees and bowed her head down. The young girl looked confused but didn't release her hold on her grandmother's skirt.
"Why should I care? Now who should get hit first?" The first guy rolled his eyes and shrugged, he stared at them until he pointed at the elderly woman. "We have a lucky winner!"
'Oh no.' Acacia looked at the elderly woman who slowly lifted her head and her eyes widened as she stared at the snake.
The dual-headed snake’s jaws unhinged, revealing fangs like glistening daggers. The elderly woman quickly shoved her granddaughter away with force. The girl crashed to the ground, her elbows taking the brunt of the fall. She winced, a grimace twisting her face, as she felt the skin tear against the rough, uneven road surface.The twin streams of venom shot forth and hit the woman's face. She screamed out in agony and fell to the ground, the flesh on her face melting from the acid.
Acacia's stomach lurched at the sight, a familiar wave of nausea washing over her as the memory of those insects that swarmed her school and ate people's heads filled her mind. 'These bastards.'
"Granny!" The girl rushed towards her grandmother's body and watched as she gasped for air on the ground. The young boy quickly took the girl's wrists and prevented her from touching her grandmother.
"Let me go! Granny!" The girl writhed and squirmed as tears streamed down her face.
"Her body is poisoned! If you touch her you will die." The boy ignored her protests and tightened his grip on her wrist.
"Po...Poppy, please take care of...m..my Poppy." The elderly woman wheezed out and her body went limp on the ground.
"One down!" The third guy cheered.
"Hah! I'm saving you for last, boy." The first guy stared at the boy with a smug smile. The boy glared at him and kept his hold on the crying girl. The first guy then turned his gaze at Acacia and pointed at her. "Another winner!"
"Wait—" Acacia tried to speak but was caught off by the venom hitting her face and chest. The pain was indescribable, her face felt like it was burning, like a fire on her skin. She slowly laid down on the ground, the neckline of her hoodie melting off from the acidic venom.
'Such a baby.' Daemonis said in a disappointed tone but got no response from Acacia.
"Another one down!" The third guy cheered again.
"Now for you." The first guy grinned with excitement. The boy slowly backed away but the girl stood in front of him.
"Stop hurting people! You are all bad! Bad!" Poppy cried out and spread her arms out to shield him. Her arms and legs trembled.
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"How annoying." The first guy's face twisted at the sight of the crying girl when one of the guys tapped his shoulder.
"Uh brother," The second guy pointed to Acacia's body that was already in a seated position. The melted skin of her face slowly healed up until she looked whole again.
"Ah shit! I wasn't expecting someone with regeneration but still the poison should have stopped that." The first guy frowned at the sight.
Acacia blinked and touched her face, the feel of her skin and cheek made her sigh in relief. She looked down at her ruined hoodie with torn holes from the acid.
'I am hungry.' She thought to herself and licked her lips, tasting the venom on her lips. 'It tastes good.'
'The poison tastes good?' Daemonis questioned.
'Yeah.' Acacia replied in her head
"Kill her." The first guy pointed at her and the second guy brought out his gun. He shot her and a beam of white light blew a hole in her stomach.
"That hurts!" Acacia hissed in pain and looked down at the hole in her stomach, her blood slowly connecting with itself like a web and her flesh reforming itself until the hole was closed up.
She raised her head and saw the second guy pulling the trigger again, she dodged the second beam and scrambled up to her feet, running away from the scene.
"Don't let her get away!" The first guy pointed at the snake and it immediately went to chase her.
Acacia ran as fast as her feet could carry her and saw a couple of abandoned cars on the road. She ran behind one of the abandoned cars and peeked, she saw the dual headed snake flicking their tongues out.
She looked down at her torn hoodie that was definitely struggling to cover parts of her body but surprisingly, her concern was more on the grumbling sounds her stomach keeps making.
'Are you going to keep running and hiding? They will find you eventually.' Daemonis asked with disinterest.
'Obviously,' She replied and rubbed her stomach as she peeked from the car again and noticed that the dual headed snakes were getting closer. She looked away and tried to think of a plan when her eyes widened. 'The kids!'
'Do you want to save them?' The tone of his voice changed immediately but the disinterest was still present.
'Yes, they will die.' Acacia replied, a little annoyed by his lack of care.
'Then are you ready to kill? You are not getting out of this situation without getting your hands bloodied.' Daemonis questioned.
Acacia stiffened at his words, her heartbeat started to pick up its pace. 'Is there another—'
'No, I don't think they are interested in listening to compromise. They will only listen when a stronger force is present, when fear is etched to their bones.' Daemonis spoke and his slowly turned menacing.
Acacia was conflicted, the car was suddenly flung to the side and the snake wrapped its tail around her body again and tightened it's hold. She gritted her teeth and felt her bones cracking again.
'Don't tell me your morals are more important than saving those kids? The more time you waste, the higher the chance that those kids are already dead.' Daemonis asked in a mocking voice.
Acacia couldn't move, her gaze fell in the scales of the snake. Her body twitched at the sight when the scent of the venom hit her nose and then the image of the crying little girl flashed in her mind with the screams of agony of the elderly woman before she died.
'Do something!' Daemonis yelled in her head and it made her head spin. She opened her mouth and bit down on the scales, the dual headed snakes hissed in protest and tightened their grip. A loud crack from her lower back could be heard but she didn't let go despite the pain. She dug her teeth on the scales until it cracked and tore the flesh of the snake with her mouth.
The snakes hissed and slammed their body against the wall, breaking it in the process while holding onto her. Acacia felt blood dripping from her forehead from the collision, she would've cared if the snake venom didn't taste so good.
She opened her mouth again and bit down on the same place, tearing the flesh with her teeth while it bled. The dual headed snake released their hold on her and smacked her face with their tail. Acacia's head snapped sideways and she panted, the venom and blood of the snake stained her mouth and jaw.
The dual headed snake hissed and lunged at her. The right head of the snake grabbed her by the waist with its mouth, the fangs pierced through her stomach.
She coughed out blood and groaned, she stretched her hand inside the snake's mouth. She moved her hands until she felt the tongue, grabbed and pulled at the tongue with all her strength. The snake squirmed and slammed itself against the cars and floor but she didn't stop even when the grip loosened around her. She bit down on the tongue to cause more pain until the tongue snapped in half and she fell out of the snake's mouth to the ground.
She panted heavily and got up to her feet. The right headed snake has blood pouring from its mouth to the ground and the dual headed snake backed away. Acacia tilted her head at the sight and ran towards the snake, practically threw her body on the snake. She wrapped her body around the snake, tightened her grip and bit down on the flesh.
'Take a deep breath and suck out all the venom.' Daemonis instructed.
Acacia was a bit confused but didn't question him. The minute the first drop of venom touched her mouth, she sucked immediately, ignoring the hiss of protest and took large gulps. Her nails started to crack and bleed from her tight grip but she didn't stop until the hissing of the snake slowly stopped and the snake fell limp.
She removed her mouth and body, her hunger satiated as she stared down at the snake's weak body.
'Their heart is at the upper part of their body.'
Acacia's gaze flickered to the upper part of the limp snake. She walked towards the place and ran her hands against the scales until she felt a heartbeat. She looked around until she spotted a big brick and walked over to the pavement to grab it. She lifted it in her hands, the weight pulled her shoulders down as she carried it towards the snake.Rage burned in her eyes as she stared at the pulsing spot. The brick in her hands felt heavy, but she lifted it without hesitation. Each slam was fueled by fury, until finally, the skin tore, and the sickening spray of blood coated her face. Once the skin was ripped enough, she set the brick aside and dug her hand inside, forcing her way through until she felt the heartbeat. She closed her eyes and squeezed the heart until it burst in her hands.
'Good job.' Daemonis said in a proud voice.
'That was hard, my teeth felt like they would fall off.' Acacia thought and removed her hands from the snake while her chest rose and fell at a fast pace. She looked down at her hoodie and noticed a black cloth underneath.
'A little gift to help you fight better without worrying about tears.' Daemonis said in a smug manner.
She raised a brow and removed the torn hoodie, She looked at the black hug top with long sleeves, she turned her head to look at her back and noticed that it was backless to accommodate her wings.
'You can create clothes?'
'Special clothes for battle.' Daemonis corrected.
Acacia ignored his correction and threw her hoodie away, she ran back towards where the kids were, silently hoping they were still alright.