Emily Marshall's Story

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The traveler of Sisao, Azi, slithered her way quickly toward the dungeon. Nearing gasping for hair, she twisted her way through the darkness as quickly as she could; holding her torch aloft in her left hand. Rounding the corner, she suddenly stopped. It was true! She looked to her ring in disbelief. Sure enough, the gem had lit up and was glowing brighter and brighter with every foot closer she came to the portal.

Azi came around the corner and slammed her ring against the rock- causing the wall to ripple away; revealing the portal's cave. As she did so, not one but several bodies came spilling out. Azi stood in shock, eyes wide at the scene before her. The group of humans fumbled all over themselves; some crying out, others quickly rolling to their feet. Azi blinked at them curiously, appearing just as shocked as them. "Travelers? In Sisao?"

The question seemed more to herself than to them. After a beat, Azi seemed to remember her training and straightened herself out, blushing deeply. "Sorry, I- um.. Oh, jeeze, we've.. we've never had other travelers here.." Laughing to herself, she waved away her surprise and offered them a smile. "Sorry, I'm just.. Wow, this is amazing.." Shaking her head again she slithered in a tight circle, before settling onto her coils and looking at them. "Right, introductions. I am Azi, Traveler of Sisao.. and you are..." Azi trailed off, as if looking for the right words, completely unaware that the 100 degree Fahrenheit weather would be smoldering for the humans on her doorstep. "Humans!" She exclaimed the word as if she would win a prize, appearing very pleased with herself.

"Humans in Sisao... How wonderful... How-- right! Travelers.. I suppose I should catch you up on why you're needed. She said that you would be confused. Are you all from Earth?" She was slithering about their ranks now, peering at each of them curiously. "You will have to change... The first rule of traveling is that you can not bring things across realms...You..." Azi stopped, placing her hand to her forehead. How was she going to hide a group of humans in Sisao? She would never get away with it, and judging by the sweat pouring off of them- they would never live through it. Then she remembered her training; something that had taken place some odd hundred years ago. They would have to change. Yes. [i]The cuffs![i]

"I'm so happy you're here... but, we have Sisao under control," Azi went on, twisting so that she sat on her coils; her back to the group. "The treaty is tomorrow, so I guess I know why you're here but... Oh, yes, that's right.. you're new and I'm just blabbering on. I promise I will explain everything once I get you settled... but first!" As she turned back around, she held out to them a hand full of golden snake bands. "You'll need these to navigate the world."

Upon placing the bracelets on their wrists, each person would look down to see a golden brown snake tail grow , and matching scales manifest on their chests. "Don't panic! They are just illusions, my friends! They only work while you are wearing the bracelet. There are no humans here on Sisao; in order to get you into the palace, you will have to look like one of us... a Serpine. Please, try to remain calm and follow me. I promise, I will explain everything." Nodding, Azi motioned for them to follow her. The travelers would find that walking felt as it always had. True to her words, the tails were nothing but illusions, and the travelers would even be able to feel their legs moving.

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Emily let out a scream as the whirl of color and wind finally stopped around her. The blinding light of the tunnel of color and gusts had came to such an abrupt stop that she hadn't prepared herself. With an Unf Emily landed onto a pile of bodies and sand. Gasping, Emily scrambled off the chest she had landed on and got to her feet. The first thing she noticed was that it was scalding hot in the room. The air nearly took her breath away and beads of sweat instantly began beading on her lower back. As she came to her full height she began to look around. What she found, did not make her feel any better about her situation. Standing in front of her was a seven foot tall...You have got to be shitting me...

"Travelers? In Sisao?" Emily blinked, grabbing the sand brick wall for the support. It talks... "Sorry, I- um.. Oh, jeeze, we've.. we've never had other travelers here.." So it was a traveler, like her. Emily found herself breathing a little heavy, feeling more than just a little freaked out. The half snake, half woman who revealed herself to be named Azi continued talking and then handed her a bracelet. By now Emily had decided that if shit was going to keep getting weirder, then she might as well roll with it. At any rate, the portal had closed behind them so going back to a world that had no recollection of her existing wasn't even an option.

Feeling insecure, Emily walked behind one of the sand pillars in the room and stripped down to her white lace underwear. They couldn't take anything with them, Azi had said, but she drew the line at her underwear. Surely a few pieces of undergarments wouldn't upset the balance of the realm. Emily looked skeptically down at the bracelet. With a sigh, she slipped it on. At once, a long sand colored tail seemed to grow out of her thighs. Something seemed to lift her up, and if she wasn't busy nearly hyperventilating she might have thought that it was wonderfully beautiful and exciting. Ever little girl dreams of being different, of being chosen; special. Emily looked down at the tail under her, gingerly feeling the smoothness of her scales. This can't be happening..

Azi seemed to be moving on, gesturing for them to follow. Still in mild shock, Emily took a step to follow after her- surprised and delighted to find that the woman was right; walking felt just as it always had. It was strange. She was so much taller, but it simply felt like she was walking on a platform. It would take some getting used to, but the heat of the place had already started to ease. Something about the bracelet had given her an adaption mechanism. Looking around, she was relieved to see that everyone else had tails now, too. "Don't panic! They are just illusions, my friends! They only work while you are wearing the bracelet. There are no humans here on Sisao; in order to get you into the palace, you will have to look like one of us... a Serpine. Please, try to remain calm and follow me. I promise, I will explain everything."

Remain calm... right.." Feeling numb, Emily cast a glance at everyone else and then nodded slowly. She began to follow after Azi, twisting her hands together nervously in front of her. "Please let this all just be a dream," she muttered quietly to herself. Feeling incredibly uncomfortable, she cleared her throat and said loudly, to everyone, "M-my name is Emily.."

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As the end of the tunnel came upon her, Avery grabbed the nearest person to her and squeezed onto them; letting out a shrill scream of panic as they began to free-fall. When she landed with the person she was still attached to, she immediately gasped for air. The room was like a sauna without the steam and her lungs felt like they were on fire. A voice was talking to them, but her ears were ringing and her eyes were still adjusting to the torchlight that lit the room. [color=plum]What the hell just happened? Avery refused to let go of the arm she had latched on to; until she looked up into the man's face. He looked as though he could snap her in half. Eyes wide, she released him.

"Humans in Sisao... How wonderful... How-- right! Travelers.. I suppose I should catch you up on why you're needed. She said that you would be confused. Are you all from Earth?" Avery slowly looked up- and up, and up, and up. Terror rooted her to the spot, and though she could see the lips moving; the words were lost to her. Snake. The one creature that she was completely terrified of. Her chest began to rise and fall rapidly as she backed against the wall, looking very much like a scared animal. The giant creature came over to her and placed a golden band in her hand; but she was too terrified to move or run from it.

The room began to blur around her central vision and her body threatened to collapse with shaking knees. "I-I-I.. I can't. I can't." The words were whispered as big tears swelled into her eyes. She was too terrified to move, completely paralyzed. One of the other members of the group were talking too, something about asking if everything was real or not. Avery, shaking like a leaf now and pale white, turned her eyes to the dark haired woman... and then she blacked out. Everyone around her was shifting into nightmarish snakes. She was only blacked out for a second, because when she came back too she was leaning against the wall, and the woman was talking again."Seriously though. This is really happening? I'm not going crazy?" Bless this woman. Bless her for being able to function and speak exactly what was on Avery's mind. In the next moment, they were giving introductions.

Not Avery. She had dropped her bracelet as if it were on fire the second she saw it's effects, and silent tears were streaming down her face as she shook her head and curled up against the wall that had once been the portal. Maybe if I.. if I just sit here, they'll all go with it and.. and I can just... just... go back home or something.. Her heart was thundering in her ears. Everyone was turning into snakes all around her, and it was as if she was caught up in a nightmare she couldn't escape from. "I want to go home," she hiccuped, breathing so quickly that her body was threatening to pass her out again. To her terror, everyone around her had changed into the 'Serpine' race; but worse, they were leaving. The heat was unbearable.

Gingerly, and sobbing quietly, Avery walked over to her bracelet and picked it up. "I can't, I can't.. Snakes, I... P-please, is there another way?" Azi had turned the corner up ahead, seeming to not hear her. Avery glanced to everyone else helplessly, and then back down to her bracelet. Hiccuping, she walked behind a pillar like one of the other girls had done and took off her jacket and shirt, leaving her in her boyshorts and a black tanktop. Shaking, she slipped the bracelet on. She managed to take a few steps out from behind the pillar, slightly shorter than everyone else but a snake like them nonetheless. She took a few deep breaths, feeling like she might be okay... and then she looked down. It was too much. Panic licked up her spine, and Avery passed out; crumpling to the ground. She landed with a soft thud, her new coils catching her fall and cushioning her landing.

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Jackson, as most would probably expect, did not appreciate flying through a colourful tunnel while listening to those around him scream. He was screaming too, of course, but the mixed voices were giving him a headache and as if thinking he was going to die wasn't bad enough, having his last thoughts be Huh, I could really use an Advil right now. was admittedly depressing.
In short, Jack's first impression on flying through weird colourful tunnels was not a good one.
Then, just when he began to suspect the hellish trip would last forever, he began falling.
It was like the Rainbow Tunnel had had enough of the seven terrified people screaming their heads off and had been like, You know what? Forget them. I didn't want lunch anyway. and spat them out with as little respect as possible.
So that was fun.
Jack had always wanted to be thrown up by something he had no knowledge of.

"Get off me!" He snapped, pushing whoever landed on his leg off to the side. It was then that the boy realized he was also sitting on someone, and he quickly stood up and stepped away. The next thing he realized? Holy Mars Bars it was hot. Oh, and there was some snake lady staring at them, that was kind of important too.
Jack did a double-take and stared at the women in complete shock as she began speaking to them. She must be some weird version of Medusa, right? With a snake tail instead of hair? The boy didn't even know what he was seeing as she suddenly clasped something around his wrist. A snake band? What was that for? His skin. . . scales? He was getting taller. Some explanations were on the top of Jackson's This Really Would Be Helpful list, but so far the woman who had introduced herself as Azi had just been rambling on about things he didn't understand.
Travelers, Sisao, yeah... yeah sure.
"Don't panic! They are just illusions, my friends! They only work while you are wearing the bracelet. There are no humans here on Sisao; in order to get you into the palace, you will have to look like one of us... a Serpine. Please, try to remain calm and follow me. I promise, I will explain everything." Finally, something useful!
Although the way Azi looked reminded him of something from a horror story and sent chills down his spine, Jack's heart-rate managed to dial down and his thoughts became clearer again.
Now, where was he? Sisao, apparently. How did he get there? The Rainbow Tunnel ate him and then spat him out.
Who were these six people around him? He didn't know.
Who was he? That was easy, he was Jackson Smith.
Good, good. . . Jack thought. He had an idea of where he was, he knew his own name. No problems, no worries. Now, down to business.
He was half snake, thanks to his new accessory. Staring down at his weird lower body, Jack wasn't so sure he was was comfortable with that. Why couldn't dogs or fuzzy animals inhabit Sisao? Why did it have to be snake people?
It only took a few seconds for him to see that he wasn't the only person creeped out by the situation. A brunette woman was pretty much talking to herself, and another girl was. . .
Someone should probably catch her. Jack thought as he watched the other girl crumple to the ground. Too late.
The boy frowned. The snake woman, Azi, was already walking -slithering?- away, and a few others had begun following her. Passing out was bad enough, and fainting in the temperature it was at the moment. . . well, that was probably bad too. Hopefully there was water somewhere around here.

"Hey, uh, you okay there?" Jackson asked, rather dumbly, as he went up to the girl laying on the ground.

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Judas's stomach churned, his panic heightened by his lack of awareness, intensified by the feeling of timid hands wrapped around his forearm. All of the anxiety was quelled as he was spat out through a portal, tossed into fine sand face first. He grunted as a person with a small frame landed on top of him, his efforts to pick himself up off the ground doing nothing to deter the person's hold. He snapped his head to the side, his eyes narrowing in on a girl that couldn't be much younger than sixteen who was hopelessly clinging to him. His glare caught her attention eventually and she backed away, leaving Judas to emit a tsk of annoyance before pushing himself up on his feet.

"Humans in Sisao... How wonderful... How-- right! Travelers.. I suppose I should catch you up on why you're needed. She said that you would be confused. Are you all from Earth?" He raised his gaze and was immediately petrified, stunned as his eyes grew almost comically wide. What he saw before him was a spectacle he thought could only be seen in movies—a half woman half snake creature who seemed to be pleasantly surprised by their arrival.

Judas gathered his bearings, looking behind him as others began to shuffle to stand. They all seemed familiar but he couldn't begin to place their faces, even the pointy faced boy with the white hair. He turned back to the snake woman and his upper lip curled into a scowl, "So-...what? Are you the welcoming community?"

"I'm so happy you're here... but, we have Sisao under control," The she-snake practically squealed, turning away from the group. "The treaty is tomorrow, so I guess I know why you're here but... Oh, yes, that's right.. you're new and I'm just blabbering on. I promise I will explain everything once I get you settled... but first!" Judas cocked his brow as she rambled on, doing a double take as the white-haired boy fell into step beside him, his eyes wide—not in fright—but in curiosity. The kid met Judas's gaze before they were brought out of their brief eye contact by the she-snake turned to hand them each a golden serpent band. "You'll need these to navigate the world."

Judas and the white-haired boy eyed theirs suspiciously as panic ensued behind them, "What're we supposed to do with these?" he demanded.

The white-haired boy seemed in a daze as he mused, "I assume we put them on." His voice was thick with an Irish drawl, but it didn't take away from his precise annunciation and how utterly stuck up this guy sounded.

Judas smirked, "You first." With a curt nod, as if to convince himself into it, the white-haired boy handed his band to him. Judas took it wordlesslesly, watching with a put-off look in his eye as he tugged off his tie and began unbuttoning his shirt. Judas cocked a brow, seeing the expanse of alabaster skin under the white button-up and ogling the sight in disbelief, "Jeez kid, do you even go outside?"

"That's a rather ignorant question," The kid responded, "Of course I go outside." Once the guy was down to his boxer briefs, Judas wordlessly handed the boy his band, watching as he slid it over his left wrist. Judas watched the transformation take place in shock and awe. The boy watched as well, amazed as he grew an additional two inches as a result to his new sandy brown serpent's tail. When it was complete, he looked Judas directly in the eye with a sort of cocky smirk and said, "Your turn."

With a shake of his head and a smirk of his own, Judas began to disrobe, discarding the clothes on his back down to his boxers. Normally he would've been self-conscious about being this nude around others, but with a giant snake lady in front of him that was really the last thing on his mind. Though his toned abdomen was nothing if not something to be desired, the scars that littered his chest and back were not and he liked to keep them hidden. But still. Who would pass up being a fucking snake?! He slipped the band over his left wrist and was surprised that the transformation didn't hurt at all. He nearly smiled as he once again surpassed the white-haired boy in height, nearly boasting as he waggled his brows. Before his new—well, he wouldn't say friend—could retort, a soft thump drew their attention away from each other and onto the crumpled heap of the little girl who'd clung to him early. Judas barely withheld his sigh.

"Some one should help her." The white-haired kid stated, and Judas inwardly groaned. He'd hoped that wouldn't come up. But whatever.

"I've got her," Judas grumbled, walking up to the girl and carefully nudging the young boy out of the way before carrying her bridal style. He was surpised at how light weight she was in spite of her tail, and as two of the girls announced their names, he decided to introduce himself as well, "I'm Judas," before directing his attention to the shock of white-blonde hair, "What do you call yourself kid?"

"Dracen. Dracen Mallory,"

"Dracen," Judas affirmed before shrugging, "Well Drace, I think it'd be best if we follow the snake lady. What do you think?"

Dracen smirked, "You're probably right," Without waiting for the others to follow, Judas carried the unconscious adolescent with the walking albino at his side.

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Everyone had ran down the tunnel after something began to chase them. Never looking back they made it to the end then BAM! before anyone really knew it they were in a smoldering hot desert. Daniel grumbled, rubbing his eyes, and sighing softly as he tried to adjust to his surroundings. After opening his eyes he looked around before see this snake lady. No, nope, no way. Snakes, nope, horrible reptiles... Was all he could really process at the moment. Several people were talking, and would stop as soon as they heard the snake woman speak. Daniel obviously stayed quite, staring at the snake woman for a long period time until he received the bracelet that the other's got as well. Moving it around in his hands he began to inspect it, unsure if he really wanted to put it on. This bracelet could do anything, no one was exactly sure what this bracelet could do even though the snake woman made it clear on what it could do. He hesitating, waiting until he saw others put it on along with taking off their close. Daniel's already wide eyes grew into an extraordinary size as he watch people strip down then slide on the bracelet which turned them into snakes as well. Great, just great... He thought to himself and turned his gaze down at the bracelet. Closing his eyes momentarily he let out a long sigh before stripping down until he only had his undergarments on then he slipped the bracelet on. He opened a single eye to watch as his legs turned into a tail and he rose an inch or two up because of the tail. Finally opening his other eye he looked over his tail, shaking his head several times as a hand went to gently rub over the scales.

"Don't panic! They are just illusions, my friends! They only work while you are wearing the bracelet. There are no humans here on Sisao; in order to get you into the palace, you will have to look like one of us... a Serpine. Please, try to remain calm and follow me. I promise, I will explain everything." Daniel heard Azi say. He looked at her momentarily, giving her a single nod he hesitated and then began to follow after Azi. "Some one should help her." Upon hearing a male say this he turned, looking around to see a girl who had crumpled to the ground. It couldn't have been the heat, could it, or maybe she was scared? She did look young that much was true, unsure of what to do he just stood there. "I've got her," He heard an older male say before he went to go help her. Daniel would have helped her, but he wasn't sure how to help her, plus the older male already seem to be a few steps ahead of Daniel anyways. While all of this was going on he heard a girl say her name, "M-my name is Emily.." then another girl said her name and soon enough a couple of other people in this group began to say their names. "My name is Daniel, but you can call me Danny if you want. Was something he mentioned after everyone else said their name. He began to chew his cheek then after everyone was together he followed a few steps behind the group. Daniel was keeping to himself for the moment, he knew no one in this group, and he didn't trust anyone so he just decided to stay a step or two behind the group. While he was a step or two behind the group he made sure that he always had his eyes on them so that he didn't get lost in this mysterious place.

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Azi slithered ahead as she listened to the new travelers talk amongst themselves. Apparently one of the younger ones had fainted, but someone had been nice enough to pick her up and carry her. Azi had to smile to herself- after all, this was her first experience with humans in person and it was extremely exciting for her. "This way." The Serpine led the formation through the maze like corridors of the palace dungeon. "You are currently under ground, in the dungeon of Pantheon- our current capital. If all goes well with the treaty tomorrow, the capital will be moved to Nuro; the largest oasis in our realm." As she spoke, Azi lifted one of her spider like arms to point to the sandstone walls. Across the surface were paintings of the castle and the surrounding pools of water. One larger then the rest, labeled Nuro, marked the invisible line between golden swirls to represent Serpine and the red splotches of paint that represented the Scondrells.

As Azi continued down the hall, a battle scene between half-snake men and half-scorpion men came into view, illuminated by her torch light. "Centuries ago there was a great battle between the races, between the Serpine," she indicated the warriors decorated in gold with snake tails, "And the Scondrell," her hand passed over the red army of scorpion men. "Many lives were lost, and in the end a truce was made. We would keep to ourselves, if they would keep to theirs... but the waters have begun to dry up. The smaller pools have turned to mud. Our people need water, and Nuro is the largest source. Naturally, this is where the royal family sought to make their new home... but likewise, the Scondrells had sought the same."

The walls faded back into sandy brick, and she paused briefly before a set of double doors. "Just follow my lead, and say nothing. You are travelers, so the Serpine will understand you and you will understand them." She smiled a bit, giving them a wink, "A nice perk, if you ask me." Nodding, she pushed open the doors and led the group into a massive chamber of marble pillars. From the room they could see outside, where two suns hung high in the atmosphere. Sand. Sand for miles and miles, whisked across the horizon just beyond the marble floor.

Azi cleared her throat, after allowing them a moment to sink in the view and then nodded for them to follow her again. It was a short trip across the marble and through two more sets of doors before she stopped again. "This will be your chamber. I am sorry that it is not more... I was not prepared for so many travelers. I will fetch more comforts for you. Please, wait make yourself at home here and relax." With that, Azi opened the door to the chambers and let the group file in.

Inside the group would find a room with one large square high up on the far wall that looked as though it would work as a window, letting light into the room. In the center of the room the floor dipped into a bowl, a bowl filled with blankets and extremely large pillows. On the left wall a water basin sat built into the stone, and on the right wall a table of fruit and a jug of liquid(red wine) awaited them. Azi bowed gently to them and left them to fetch another tray of fruit.

She was only gone for a minute or two, and when she returned she used her tail to slide the door behind her closed. I know you have a lot of questions. So. Let me start off with the ones I think you're going to ask. Why are you here? Yes. Right. You are here because you have been chosen by Her to be a traveler. What's a traveler? A traveler is a special being selected from their planet to protect not only their planet, but all the planets... and there are nine of them. Every so hundred years, the planets come at risk to fall into darkness. It is our jobs, as travelers, to make sure that they do not." She paused, realizing that she had been pacing slightly backwards and forwards, reciting this as it had been told to her. She softened and turned to face the other travelers.

"Your rings are unique to each of us, and we all have one." She held hers up for them to see, and then continued on. "Our rings are our... how do you humans call it... Passports? Yes, passports. They allow us to understand all languages, send messages back and forth from traveler to traveler, and they help guide us to where we need to be in times of darkness." She paused to let all of the information sink in. "I'll stop here, and let you ask any questions you have so far, because... well.. some of you look as though you're going to bust if I don't let you speak." She smiled, ever patient, and sat onto her coils to wait for the bombardment of questions she just knew was bound to come her way.

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Emily followed behind the snake in a bit of a daze. Information washed over her and knocked her brain into the sides of her skull repeatedly. When they were finally brought to a room to stay in Emily felt dizzy.
"Are you serious?" The outburst from someone with an Irish accent caught her attention. "You don't seem to grasp the gravity of this situation." Emily's eyes narrowed on the two men, remembering that the taller and older one had carried the young girl in since she had fainted. She stood a few feet away and so when the pale blonde lowered his voice she lost what he was saying. Gathering up her nerve, she walked closer to the two in time to hear: "Who the hell are you? Sherlock Holmes?" The blonde seemed amused, and replied simply
"That's a nice compliment but-...no." Emily cleared her throat. "Hey, it was nice of you to carry that girl," she managed to say. She wanted to ask what the boy, who she could vaguely remember calling himself Dracen, what he had said earlier. Alas, it was not to be. Their guide, Azi, had returned with a lot more to say.

Avery woke up at some point during the speech, her head throbbing from hitting the ground. The snake was talking again and she felt faint all over again. I'm going to die, she thought to herself as she looked down on her tail. Her hands visibly shook as she slowly crawled out of the pillow pit. When she was able to steady herself she walked directly over to the man who had scooped her up. Judas. She could sort of remember him saying his name at some point while she was half passed out and half present.

Avery glanced between the red head and the two men, knowing that she must look pale as snow. Standing was difficult as her legs shook under her. "Is this real?" Her eyes looked up to Judas for answers as the snake lady finally stopped talking. She had asked for questions, but Avery couldn't bring herself to even look in the snake's general direction. She couldn't look down, either, so she settled for staring at her hands- as if they were the only things holding her to this world.

Emily glanced to the shaken looking girl as Dracen turned his attention to Azi and asked, "Who's Her?" It was a fair question, and Emily wanted to know, too. Emily nodded, glancing from Dracen to their guide.

"A fair question," Azi sighed, looking to the group of confused travelers. "She is many things, represented in many cultures from your planet. Here she is Sona, goddess of the suns. In your realm she is God, Ala, Ra, Zeus, and many other names. She is what keeps the realms in balance. We work for Her."

"Will we ever return home or are we stuck doing this forever?" Azi turned to face the other traveler. "It is your destiny to do this until you are no longer able to. At such time, you will train a new traveler in your place once she has chosen them. Once the new traveler has been trained, you will be sent to Her to be reunited with your families." "Also what happens if we don't protect the planet like we are supposed to or if we do something wrong?" Azi looked to the man with something akin to sympathy. These were questions she had had when she first started, too. "If you are unsuccessful in protecting the realm then it will fall into chaos and be lost forever. The realm will eventually crumple and the inhabitants will become nothing more than a memory or a chapter in a traveler's journal. If enough realms fall the scale will be tipped and the others will follow into darkness until there is nothing but evil and corruption left. She will die and you will never be reunited with your families."

Emily stood shell-shocked as she listened to Azi. "So, you're saying that the fate of not only our world, but all of the realms, rest on our shoulders? And our families- they aren't gone? Where is 'She' at? How do we get back to them? Why are they being kept from us?" Emily's eyes looked like overfilled teacups, threatening to spill over if she tipped too far one way. "Yes. No, they are not gone. No one but passed on travelers know where She is. I have already told you, you can only return to your families once your task is complete. They are removed from the realms for their safety. There are forces of great power that work against us as travelers. Families would only weigh you down and hold you back."

"I want to go home. I don't want to be here, or save the realms, or be a fucking snake." Avery had once again attached herself to the muscular arm of Judas, as if he could protect her from the snake and her destiny. "I'm afraid you do not have a choice, young one. This is how the realms have maintained balance for generations. It is simply how it is done." "So we're on permanent jury duty?" "I'm not familiar with what 'jury duty' is, Emily Marshall. I am not entirely versed in the ways of Third Earth. It is late. The treaty is tomorrow. Please, get some rest. I will come to get you in the morning and I will answer more questions then." With that, the mysterious figure left as quickly as she had come.

Emily put a hand to her head, feeling more confused than she had been before she started asking questions. Left in a room with a group of total strangers, Emily only had one question fluttering around her mind: Third Earth? Did that mean there was a First and Second Earth too?

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Though Dracen seemed unaware of the ginger-haired girl intruding on their conversation, Judas wasn't unaware—eyeing her in suspicion without deterring blissfully ignorant companion. After the blonde took his compliment, she'd tried to address him but he ignored her, turning his eyes instead to the snake lady re-entering the room. As she prattled on, the older of the two men rolled his eyes when the words spilling from her rapid mouth resembled that of what Dracen had tried to explain. He averted his oceanic eyes just to catch the younger man's gaze, shaking his head in amusement at that 'I told you so' look adorning his sharp features. Then Dracen asked the question that had, admittedly, been on Judas's mind as well. He almost rolled his eyes from sheer apathy at the reptilian woman's response. "Hear that Drace? We serve God now."

"I take it that you are not a religious man then."

"Ironic, don't you think?" This thought was projected bitterly, causing Dracen to look over at him in curiosity. Though he could feel those cold, grey eyes reading him like a book he didn't think to tell him to stop. He allowed the scrutinizing, for reasons unbeknownst to him, shifting his attention instead to another male who'd offered up a question or two.

"Will we ever return home or are we stuck doing this forever? Also what happens if we don't protect the planet like we are supposed to or if we do something wrong?" The answer they got was less than ideal. From what Judas could gather they were pretty much stuck doing some intergalactic deity's dirty work. Keeping the balance of the universe in check my ass, Judas thought begrudgingly. It's not like these people didn't have lives. Everyone here, including himself, seemed to have been taken hostage with little to no regard for what they had going on in their lives. This fact alone angered Judas to no end. If this 'She' is so powerful why isn't she doing it herself?

"The serpent's reasoning would probably stem from the 'she is otherwise involved' persuasion, if I could take a guess." Dracen's Irish drawl within his head derailed him for a moment. He cut his eyes to the blonde, cocking a brow in question. Dracen narrowed his eyes, "You think too loudly."

"Why are you taking this sitting down? Don't you care at all that this so-called God put not only your life, but your family's life in jeopardy? Doesn't it piss you off that this 'She' doesn't give a shit about you or your loved ones? We're her gophers, Drace. That's all we are. We didn't sign up for this shit!" At this point two very timid hands wrapped themselves around his bicep, causing him to look down. The girl who had passed out earlier was now clinging to him in fear, as if he was going to protect her just because he'd helped her out. Wordlessly he shoved her away, pulling back his arm and dishing out a scowl that could freeze over the hottest flames of Hell. The snake lady was taking her leave now, walking out the door with promises of answering more questions tomorrow. Judas stepped forward with every intention of stopping her but the doors slammed shut in her wake, causing him to let out a curse in frustration. "Fuck!" He snapped his head to the side, looking to Dracen in utter annoyance, "Next time I see that bitch I'm skinning her and making her into boots. Who the hell does she think she is?"

"Judas calm down!"

"Don't tell me to calm down Dracen!" the older man snapped, pointing at him before turning his finger towards the door, "You heard her. I don't give a damn about this nation's treaty. I need to get back to my family."

"As do I," Dracen replied, his voice the epitome of calm, "As do we all. Look, yelling and losing our heads isn't going to get us anywhere. We don't want to draw unnecessary attention to ourselves with the natives. Despite what you may believe, Judas, I am just as outraged as you are. I don't like the idea of the fate of the world resting on my shoulders any more than you do. The simple fact of the matter is—whether any of us like it or not—we can either sit here and comply or retaliate and run the risk of destroying the lives of our family as well as multiple worlds."

Judas scowled at the blonde youth, "I hate it when you use logic to thwart me." He thought simply, his anger waning as Dracen smirked.

"Well someone's got to be the brains in this relationship."

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It was safe to say that ever since the business with his life turning upside down, things had become weird. His family disappearing? That was a bit crazy. His friends not recognizing him? That kind of hurt. Rainbow tunnels and snake tails? Yes, yes that was definitely out of the ordinary. Yet all of those things weren't the big reason behind Jack's confusion.
The real oddity in the entire situation was, why wasn't he waking up?
Obviously this was a dream. A weird, crazy, insane dream that the boy was bound to wake up from at any moment. Snake people didn't exist. His legs hadn't just transformed into a tail. Any second now, he would wake up.
Jackson waited. The group was getting ahead of him now, but surely they as well as everything else were just part of his imagination... getting lost and dying out in the heat didn't mean a thing if all of this was as simple as fake.
As the boy stood there in the sand with the heat beating down on him and feeling every bead of sweat that dripped down from his face, Jack decided that going along with his silly little dream couldn't be nearly as bad as suffering from the harsh rays of the sun.

He rushed to catch up with the rest of the group. When he settled in with the crowd, the Traveler woman, Azi, was halfway through her speech.
Jackson listened for the first little bit, but quickly the boy was distracted by the other more interesting things around him. There really wasn't much to look at, much less catch anyone's attention unless they were interested in sand, but standing in the middle of a desert was... somewhat fascinating.
It was like he was living in some sort of fantasy novel. Like he and, how many others? Seven? Like he and seven other people were stranded in some unforgiving place, forced to rely on only their instincts to survive, and trying to cope with having their feet and legs transformed into snake tails because of their bracelets.
All of that was true, but imagining it as a book was far more interesting.

"I'm not familiar with what 'jury duty' is, Emily Marshall. I am not entirely versed in the ways of Third Earth. It is late. The treaty is tomorrow. Please, get some rest. I will come to get you in the morning and I will answer more questions then." Azi was saying when Jackson drifted back in to the more important things going on.
They were in and underground place now, Pantheon, if he had heard that correctly from earlier. He had to admit, while it not only was a lot cooler away from the heat, the building ability was a lot more advanced than Jackson had expected snake people to be able to do. For a few short seconds he marveled in how they were able to build such a place, but the thoughts were quickly erased when they wandered off to wondering if Sisao had air conditioning or any type of fans.

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Emily glanced between the men as they snapped back and forth with each other. To her surprise, the shorter paler version of the male figure seemed to be holding his ground perfectly against the taller brute. For everything Judas had to cuss about, Dracen seem to have an eloquent answer to douse his verbal flames. "I agree with you," she spoke up at last, forcing herself into their conversation. "I want to see my family again, and if the only want to do that is to help God, then.. I'm alright with it.. not like we get a choice, anyway..." "Well, I'm not. I want out of here," came the timid voice of Avery from behind Judas where he had shoved her. Her eyes were swollen from crying as she stepped away from the group, going to the door. With a frown she attempted to shove open the door, only to find that it was locked from the outside. "We're locked in?" "Or the natives are locked out?"

Avery snapped around to glare at Emily. "I want out," she nearly whimpered, shaking just slightly. Emily rolled her eyes, resisting a snarky remark. The girl was young, and she should have more patience with her. "I don't think that's a smart idea. You don't know anything about what's out there, or this world.. It's safer in here." Avery looked back to the door and then walked to the far side of the room, clearly upset. On her way she passed by a spacey looking blonde boy and paused. He seemed to be staring off into space. "Uh... you okay?" Avery tipped her head to the side, looking Jack up and down as she wondered if he had started to lose his mind already. She couldn't blame him if he had- she had felt a panic attack coming on since the moment she landed on the other side of the portal.

Emily turned back to the two guys she had attempted to make acquaintance with. "Maybe we should have someone stand watch? I don't know about you, but... How do we know we can trust Azi? We were just sort of... abducted.. Or do you think I'm just being paranoid?"

---

Daniel was shocked at the responses he got to his questions. He couldn't believe this. He was stuck with a bunch of people he didn't know, people that could mental problems, and he was stuck in a different planet or dimension- what ever you wanted to call it- with these people. He kept quite though only glancing over momentarily to look at the one boy who was talking about some stuff that confused him. The same boy got a more likely rude response from... if he remembered correctly, Judas. Turning away he ignored almost everything else and moved away from the crowd, plopping down onto the ground. He wanted to cross his legs but he didn't think that this tail would do too well with him crossing his legs. Was he able to take off the jewelry that formed this tail type thing on him? He thought a lot about taking it off, mostly because he didn't want a snake tail on him any more, but also because it was a little uncomfortable. Part of him felt sick about all of this. All of this was so much to take in.

"Maybe we should have someone stand watch? I don't know about you, but... How do we know we can trust Azi? We were just sort of... abducted.. Or do you think I'm just being paranoid?" After Emily said this he finally looked up. He had been listening the entire time even though he tried to block their voices out. He looked at her, part of him wondering why she would ask this kind of question, the other part of him wondering if she made a good point. "Yeah but how can we trust people in this group? We did just meet each other for the first time. I'm not as worried about the giant snake woman on the outside of this room as the people in this room with me." He told her honestly, shrugging once. It was the truth, people often tell him not to lie because its a bad thing so might as well just put this out there. He felt like he just said something dumb but he was sure it was a good point and hoped it wouldn't back fire on him. He kept his eyes on her for only a couple seconds more before looking at the gold band on his arm. He examined it, moving it around ever so slightly. Once again he was quite, thinking about his family and how he wouldn't be able to see them for quite a while. He wondered what his family was doing now, how his siblings were, and if his family even realized him being gone. Did they even know? Would they be worried? Several questions ran through his head. Soon enough he started dazing off.

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"I agree with you," Both men cut their eyes to the ginger at their side, having forgotten there were others in the room during their dispute. Judas quirked his brows at the blonde before Dracen averted his attention to the girl, though he couldn't be bothered to remember her name. "I want to see my family again, and if the only want to do that is to help God, then.. I'm alright with it.. not like we get a choice, anyway..."

"Well, I'm not. I want out of here,"

"...-the hell?" Judas jumped back, putting some space between him and the young teen, glaring her down to convey how little he wanted her around him at the moment. Clearly he was not amused by her frantic behavior, this must've been obvious even to her. He didn't humor the 'damsel in distress' act, nor would he. The older man fell back beside Dracen, keeping his distance from the little girl as she spoke with the young ginger-haired woman. Though he was less than interest, the blonde listened intently, running through the options, acting as an immovable tether so Judas wouldn't fly off the handle. It was exasperating to say the least.

"Yeah but how can we trust people in this group? We did just meet each other for the first time. I'm not as worried about the giant snake woman on the outside of this room as the people in this room with me."

"Well that's your dumb ass pretty boy-..." Judas's voice snapped bitterly within Dracen's conscious, causing a smirk to grace his lips, "...may not be able to count on you to save my ass but I can sure as hell kick yours if you step out of line."

"Behave-..." He warned, cutting his eyes to Judas who simply held up his arms in faux retreat. He then turned to address the rest of the people, "Whether we just met one another or not, it would be more logical to trust someone of your own species than what's outside those doors. No matter how you look at it, we are the interlopers. There is a higher probably that they will turn on us rather than each other if anything goes wrong. If any of you feel you need to get some rest then feel free, Judas and I will keep watch."

Judas cocked his brow, "We will?" only to have Dracen nod curtly. "Fine," He replied with a roll of his eyes, "We'll sit by the door."

Dracen nodded, watching as Judas made his way to said door, sitting beside it. Before going to his side, he turned to the ginger, whatever her name was, and smiled with a friendly disposition, "Seeing as we're all in the same boat, I assure you that Judas and I will protect you-...as well as everyone else. We'll figure a way out of this but until then, you should get some rest." With that he took his leave, plopping down beside Judas by the door. "We've got to figure this out, Judas. We need answers."

The brunette chuckled aloud, "I don't think I'll ever get used to hearing an Irish guy in my head." He paused, his tone losing its facetiousness, "But you're right. I don't know what the hell we've gotten ourselves into but where ever we end up-..."

"I know." Dracen said simply, "I've got your back too."