Fantasy Cursed Island

[Darkling0096]

"What is it?", Jalin asked.

"It's a... big snake, I think?", Siege squinted as she climbed back up onto the dome of the shell, "Snake person?" That was weird, and her father was a chimera person!

"I will go around, Turac said, pushing over a tree with his tail as he turned and extended his neck to get his bearings.

 

[Fangs9090]

Roy nodded. "Probably for the best..."

The woman called out to them. "You can come closer, if you're only passing through. I'll not fight unless I need to defend myself."

 

[Darkling0096]

Sinach took that as a cue to say "Yeah, that's not happening!" Turac paused, looking back over his shell at Roy. A snake as large as she was wasn't exactly a threat to Turac, she'd have more trouble getting around his neck or piercing his scales than he would retreating into his shell and freezing the surrounding area, but his passengers were less invulnerable to the workings of a purple python in the swamp

 

[Fangs9090]

"If I were hungry, I'd hunt something less dangerous. I don't need to see you to know you outsize and outnumber me."

Roy considered it for a moment. "Hm... If she is peaceable, she likely knows more about this swamp than we do."

 

[Darkling0096]

Turac didn't seem willing, but he was quickly outvoted, so he cautiously approached the serpent woman. "Who are you?"

 

[Fangs9090]

"My name is Tanis. This is my territory, but I'm not territorial. I hunt the smaller creatures around here and let travelers pass through, so long as they don't attack me." As they approached, they could see that her eyes were clouded and gray, and she never actually looked at them.

 

[Darkling0096]

Sinach found the lack of eye contact with any members of the group interesting, fluttering up to the tip of Turac's nose as the dragon turtle leaned forward to sniff the snake. "What manner of lamia are you?", Turac asked.

 

[Fangs9090]

"A mostly average one, I believe. Though have been called a naga before as well. It doesn't matter much to me." She turned her head as Turac leaned in, but her eyes remained unfocused.

 

[Darkling0096]

She sure smelled like a normal snake, anyway.

Sinach fluttered back to Roy, "She's blind," he whispered to the goat boy. "Her iris is clouded and capped over."

 

[Fangs9090]

Roy glanced at Sinach. "Then she might not know as much as we'd hoped..."

Tanis continued. "So, what brings you through the swamp? Most visitors have some reason for coming here."

 

[Darkling0096]

"We are investigating the sudden migration of local plant monsters," Jalin spoke up. He could hear a heartbeat, at least. He was really considering finding some way to graft working eyes into himself, not being able to see in situations like this was crippling! Even ten years later he didn't have any kind of workaround wtihout a crimson summons!

"A plant lizard woman said they were from around here," Siege added, "You know anything?" She doubted Tanis was responsible, if a party of eight with magic and bladed weapons couldn't damage them, what could a big snake do?

 

[Fangs9090]

“Mm, I don’t think so. I have trouble tracking things without body heat, so I likely pass them without knowing. Hm... But since you mention it...” Tanis lifted herself up on her branch, turning her head and flicking her tongue to orientate herself before she pointed. I have recently noticed some strange occurrences in that direction. Things moving through the water that I can’t identify, and many creatures seem to be avoiding the area.”

 

[Darkling0096]

Many creatures avoiding an area and strange things appearing seemed as good an explanation of why the shambling mounds would be vacating the premises as any. "Thank you," Turac dipped his head before his big feet splashed to turn his bulk around, bending a mangrove out of the ground with his tail as he moved.

"Can you guide us?", Jalin spoke up, "These are unfamiliar lands to us."

 

[Fangs9090]

Tanis paused for a moment. "I suppose I could. I've rested here long enough for the time being. Perhaps I can find a wider path to avoid loosing too many trees." She smiled and stretched her arms and back before simply rolling off the branch, dropping into the water with a splash.

 

[Darkling0096]

That was odd, then again the blind person in their group found his way by hitting things with a stick and blowing his other four senses to the point of a sharp whistle being too close to him sending him reeling, so Turac reasoned that the blind must have strange coping mechanisms in general.

If not for both Turac and Shuffle being aquatic creatures, they'd have had some trouble keeping up with the snake woman in the water, it was hard for the party on Turac's back to predict where she was going since it was hard to see her in the water. The two aquatic fellows of the group didn't have that issue.

 

[Fangs9090]

Tanis hadn't quite set off yet, but rather she soon surfaced once more, with Shuffle holding on to her hips. "Is this one with you?"

Roy sighed. "Yes... Shuffle let go of her."

"Oh, it's fine. I enjoy the feel of a warm body against my own."

Shuffle looked up at Tanis. "She won't look at me."

"Well, I would, but I'm blind."

Shuffle blinked before she smiled. "You're like Jalin!"

"Am I?"

 

[Darkling0096]

"Ah, erm," Jalin tapped his cane on Turac's back before he stood and carefully made his way up to the front of the shell, towards the voices, "I suspend we are blind by differing mechanisms..."

"He lost his eyes, you still have them," Siege called out. Tanis' eyes were just not working, Jalin's didn't exist.

 

[Fangs9090]

"Ah, yes. I was born without my sight, so my perception of things is entirely based on my other senses."

 

[Darkling0096]

"Shame," Jalin nodded, "Life without sight has proven difficult." Of course, having lost his sight, he had that frame of reference. Someone born blind likely didn't.

 

[Fangs9090]

"It has it's challenges. Having grown up here, I'm quite familiar with this area. I'd likely be rather lost if I strayed away."

Shuffle spoke up. "So, you have to hunt by sound and smell alone?"

"Almost. I can also detect body heat, which makes finding prey much easier."

 

[Darkling0096]

Jalin frowned, "That is interesting." Snakes were almost universally deaf, and even snake people seemed to have deficits to their auditory abilities. So a snake person who largely relied on sound was rather interesting to him. "How did you train your hearing?"

 

[Fangs9090]

"Hm... I suppose I didn't. Not intentionally, at least. Though when I was a hatchling my mother taught me to always be aware of what I can hear."

 

[Darkling0096]

"Hmm..." Jalin paused, "Have you ever considered magic to give you sight?" He and Niudisa had sure tried to restore his with magic, though past a certain point suddenly restoring his sight would be a hindrance to him, a new sense to overload his adjusted brain.

 

[Fangs9090]

"Magic? No. I've never dealt in magic. I've lived this long as I am. What do I need sight for?"

 

[Darkling0096]

Jalin shrugged, "It has proven to be a resource whose absence causes struggle." At least, in his case. Situations like this exact one, where for all intents and purposes he was blind beyond the reach of his arms. He could hear the general direction of Tanis, but asking him to pinpoint her location when the shell moved so much was like asking a bat to echolocate in a room that reflected no sound. Sure, he might get something, but no sooner did he get a reading he could work with than did the whole thing collapse as the turtle's stride exceeded anything he'd trained to deal with.