Hello again. The last time we were here Pythor had less than subtly revealed his feelings for Skales. Something our dear Hypnobrai has yet to process completely. But besides that, it seems Pythor has decided it's finally time to reveal his grand plan to the Serpentine. Enjoy.
"I expect that everything is in order?" Pythor asked as he looked at himself in the dusty mirror, with Skales standing behind him, waiting patiently for his king to be ready. Though he wouldn't mind if he hurried a bit.
"Of course, Pythor." He replied with a formal bow, as he could see the Anacondrai observing him through the mirror.
"Great! Then everything else should fall right into place." Pythor stated cheerfully, before dusting off some sand that had gotten stuck to his chest.
"With the escape of the ninja, I suspect morale might be a bit low. But trust me, once I reveal my latest, and perhaps grandest plan as of yet, then morale won't be an issue any longer."
"You never ssseem to run out of plansss, do you?" Skales tried to jokingly ask, but his voice seemed unwilling to comply, leaving him to sound awkward as the words came out. Like he wasn't completely sure with which tone he wanted to speak with. Still, the Anaocndrai paid no heed to his failed delivery, instead letting out a friendly chuckle. It was then he finally turned away from the mirror and moved towards the building's exit.
"No, I really don't." He answered with pride in his voice, as if praising himself for his unending genius. As he passed the Hypnobrai, he didn't even give him a single glance and simply continued. Skales of course followed after him, though he made the unconscious decision to stay a meter or so behind him.
While he cursed himself for his embarrassing attempt at making a small joke, he couldn't help but think that his awkwardness hadn't solely been present when making jokes. In all, his interactions with Pythor after their night kissing had seemed somehow tense and uncomfortable. He wasn't sure if it might just have been him, but he had noticed that the Anacondrai had acted more coldly towards him than usual. Which Skales found rather conflicting since it was Pythor that had come on to him, and had been the one who had kissed him. Though he couldn't deny that he had joined in.
Whenever he thought about that night he couldn't help but feel warm, and at the same time embarrassed. It was as if his body and mind had yet to properly accept what had happened between them. Moreover, he had still to decide whether the whole thing had been a mistake or not. He had of course enjoyed the experience. In fact, a little more than he had expected he would. Not that he was unfamiliar with his own interest in males, though on that field he was rather inexperienced. Perhaps that was why he found it so hard to grasp how he was supposed to respond to Pythor's advances. Especially when it seemed the Anacondrai had completely forgotten all about it. Or at least acted like it hadn't happened.
He couldn't help but think it would make everything else easier if he just laid the whole thing to rest, and accepted that it was nothing else than a lapse of judgment on Pythor's part. Besides, with the Anacondrai being king, how could he possibly find the time to be in a relationship? Which also applied to Skales. He was after all still the General of the Hypnobrai, and also now the second-in-command for Pythor. There were responsibilities he had to focus on, which couldn't so easily be tossed aside because of a lover. It was common sense for Generals to not pursue a romantic relationship.
But still, he felt something turn in him by the thought of forgetting about Pythor. It was as if he longed to feel the Anacondrai close to him once again. To know what it was like to be held by someone like him.
His dilemma had to be put to rest at the moment, as his duties called for his attention. He and Pyhtor had made their way through the sand-filled streets of Ouroboros and were soon reaching the Slither Pit. The streets were practically empty, as all the Serpentine had been called for the meeting. The promise of a 'special' announcement had done most of the work in convincing the snakes to attend. They made their way through the statue of the Devourer and out into the main arena. All of the Serpentine sat at the podiums, and as always noise filled the place, making it hard to hear. Skales couldn't fully hear what was being said, but guessing from their tone, they were starting to get impatient. The other Generals already stood ready, looking on as he and Pythor arrived. As Pythor stopped right in front of the statue, the Generals and Skales positioned themselves by his side. While Skales' position as Pythors advisor hadn't been made official, it didn't take a genius to guess that he had the right ear of the Anacondrai. So of course he stood by Pythors side, with Fangtom by his.
"I hope we-finally get something to do around here." The Fangpyre asked Skales, his weariness from being stuck in the city without anything proper to do clearly painted on his face. Skales too had started to feel the boredom that came with nothing to do. Keeping his tribe in check took most of his time, but even that had started to become less of an issue. A good thing of course, but it was the only thing keeping his attention.
"I assure you, Pythor hasss sssomething big planned," Skales replied reassuringly.
I hope. He thought to himself, though he reminded himself to not underestimate the Anacondrai.
"My dear Serpentine!" Pythor opened with, immediately making the bickering and chit-chattering snakes go quiet. It was as if all held their breath, as Pythor took a moment to revel in the power he held.
"I know my latest attempt at getting our revenge against those who dare defy us ended with…less than favorable results." He continued, with whispering breaking out between the crowd.
"But I assure you, that it was only a single setback, on a road that shall be paved with victory!" The Anacondrai stated, earning a few cheers.
"For what I will bring to you will not only grant us our revenge, but it shall also give us the power we need, to take back our rightful place as rulers of the surface!"
At first, confusion held the crowd's tongue, but soon enough the cheer came back, but much stronger than before.
"Because as your ruler, it is my mission to make sure that all of Ninjago fears and cowers before the might of the Serpentine! No longer shall we ever fear being forced underground, or fear falling victim to the humans' treachery!" Pythor continued, with the Serpentine hanging on to his every word, cheering him on as if he was a prophet. Even the other Generals seemed infatuated with Pythor's words and diligently waited for him to continue.
"I will bring you the tool that shall make it possible for us to take what we deserve! To get our revenge on the deplorable surface dwellers who pushed us underground! All that shall be ours and so much more!"
Skales had to remind himself to breathe, as he found himself lost in Pythor's words. He had always adored the Anacondrai's speeches. It was as if any bad will anyone held towards him was washed away in a flood of flowery and powerful words. Though he doubted that the words alone were what made Pythor's speeches great.
"For together, we shall achieve the impossible! We shall…" The pause felt like an eternity for the eager Serpentine, who all waited with a nearly blank stare as if nothing else mattered in the world. Skales and the Generals stared too at Pythor, just as anxious as the others.
"...awaken, THE GREAT DEVOURER!"
With a flair for the dramatic, Pythor shifted to the side, pointing towards the giant statue of the Devourer behind him. All gazes were turned to the statue, as mumbling overtook the crowds. Besides that, it seemed almost silent in the arena. Pythor still stood pointing at the statue, his once confident smile slowly giving away his nervousness, as he waited for a reply from the crowd that wouldn't make him look like a fool. Skales too waited to see how the others reacted, as he himself felt somewhat at a loss on how to feel.
It was then out of nowhere, a Serpetine's cheerful yelling burst through the mumbling. And soon enough, others followed his example, and it wasn't long before the entire arena was shouting Pythor's name in cheer.
"PYTHOR! PYTHOR! PYTHOR!"
The Anacondrai allowed himself to let out a relieved sigh, before wiping off a few drops of sweat on his forehead.
"Whew. I was worried there for a minute." He commented to himself, though his gaze quickly turned over to Skales. He looked at the Hypnobrai with a fairly innocent smile, who could only awkwardly stare back, as he had no idea how to respond.
Once the whole announcement was over and everyone returned to their posts, Skales resumed his duties. But he kept finding himself thinking about the smile that Pythor had given him. Was it some kind of signal? Or just a random coincidence? Whatever it was, the Hypnobrai didn't exactly appreciate that it was enough to keep him from focusing on his work.
While slithering through the streets of Ouroboros, on his way to make sure that the Hypnobrai tribe had all their weapons in top condition, a familiar friend came towards him.
"Nice to see you-again, Skales," Fangtom said, though there was a strange eccentric tone in his voice, that made Skales wonder if he was being truthful.
"It's alwaysss a pleasure Fangtom," Skales replied, but then they both turned quiet, and just stood in front of each other without moving.
"...Well, if there isss nothing else, I have sssome businesss I have to attend to-"
"You have spent some-time together with Pyhtor, right?" Fangtom out of the blue asked, and Skales was starting to wonder if their conversation was about to turn ugly.
"Yesss, indeed I have. You sssee, I have more or lesss become Pythor's sssecond-in-command, ssso it's only natural that I ssspend time with him." Skales explained though it was only after he realized how much it sounded like he tried to cover for himself. Luckily, Fangtom didn't seem to care too much about that.
"Great! Then you might be able to explain to-me how he proposes we awaken the Devourer?"
"Um…"
"Besides, isn't-awakening the Devourer just an old children's story?" The Fangpyre asked, with clear skepticism in his voice. It was then Skales realized what the whole conversation was about.
"Maybe, but Pythor ssseems to believe that the legend holdsss sssome truth," Skales stated, trying to sound like he wasn't lying. In truth, Pythor had never mentioned awakening the Great Devourer to him. But that was something Skales could guess wouldn't be very reassuring to hear, so he decided to keep it to himself.
"And if the legend isss true, then thisss will be the opportunity we have been looking for! With the Great Devourer by our ssside, we could conquer all of Ninjago."
"IF, the legend is-true."
Fangtom took a good look at his friend, with a certain worried look on his face.
"What happened-to you Skales?" He asked, with a nearly somber expression. Skales couldn't help being taken aback, though it didn't stop him from responding.
"What'sss that sssupposed to mean?!" He nearly yelled, sounding more aggravated than he had expected to.
"You had just become the General of your tribe,-a truly remarkable feat by itself. By here comes Pythor-and suddenly you go back to being just another-lacky in someone else's schemes!" Fangtom explained, with disapproval in his voice. It was clear he held great respect for Skales, but the Hypnobrai was too infuriated to remember that.
"I assure you Fangtom, I'm no one'sss lackey! If anything, I have moved up in the world once again! With me being Pythor's sssecond-in-command, I hold much more influence over the Ssserpentine than I ever could asss just a General!"
"Yes, you-went from being General back-to once again being someone else's number two,-just as you were with Slithraa." The Fangpyre answered back, but Skales simply started chuckling, as if finding the whole situation amusing. It wasn't long before Skales continued with a mocking tone.
"You can't possibly compare the two! Slithraa was old, with no vision for the future. But Pythor has plans, great plans that will lead us to success."
"Plans like awakening the Devourer? Those are children's stories, not something-Pythor should use our resources on."
"And what else are we sssupposed to do? How else can we conquer Ninjago?! Without the Anacondrai we aren't nearly asss powerful asss we once were! Not to ssspeak of the ninja, who keep disrupting our plansss! And what if the Elemental mastersss reassemble!?"
Once Skales was done with his tangent, he let out a tired sigh, before looking back at his best friend.
"No, the Great Devourer isss our best chance at retaking our rightful place as rulersss of Ninjago."
Fangtom stared at him for a long moment, leaving no expression on his face that could reveal what he was thinking.
"...We will see." He replied, before slowly slithering away, Skales losing sight of him between the streets of Ouroboros. The Hypnobrai tried his best to shake off their argument, but he couldn't help but feel worried something had happened to their friendship. If there was one thing he didn't need, it was losing his best friend. Not that he could be of too much help when it came to his situation with Pythor. Skales would never humiliate himself like that, and definitely not in front of a snake he respects. But that left him with little help to rely on.
The night slowly came into view, as the Serpentine went into their barracks, preparing for the next day. But no such rest awaited Skales, as a Venomari messenger came to him just as he was about to reach the district where the Hypnobrai had settled in.
"Skales! Pythor wants to see you-"
"Let me guess, immediately?" Skales apathetically asked, having hoped he could have avoided Pythor the whole day, but as an advisor, that's easier said than done.
"...Umm…yes." The snake nervously replied, not sure how angry the General was about to be. Luckily for him, Skales only grumbled something under his breath and pushed the messenger aside as he made his way over to Pythor's abode.
As he reached the entrance, he took a moment to prepare himself. While he couldn't be sure what Pythor had in store for him, for whatever reason Skales could tell that he probably wasn't going to enjoy the outcome. Skales expected that Pythor was most likely going to tell him to forget all about that night and never speak of it again. Something the Hypnobrai was more than prepared to do, to ensure both of their reputations stayed clean. With a single inhale, he finally opened the door and slithered inside.
It didn't take him long before he reached Pythor's 'plan room', where he kept all sorts of ancient papers and documents hanging on the walls. Most of them concerned old Serpentine legends like the Devourer, the Fangblades, and a bunch of other stories Skales recognized from his childhood. He was sure Acidicus would barely be able to contain himself if he saw any of it. Skales had always heard of him as someone who greatly valued old stories and the history of the Serpentine.
Square in the room stood Pythor, standing over a table covered with dusty papers. He kept mumbling something incoherent as he fumbled with papers as if trying to look for a clue to a puzzle. The Hypnobrai was just about to announce his presence, when Pythor seemingly sensed him, stopped what he was doing, and turned to face him.
"Ah, Skales! There you are!" He said, with much more enthusiasm than Skales had expected.
"Yesss, asss you requested," Skales answered back while doing a short bow. When no immediate reply came from the Anacondrai, he took the chance to move along the conversation to where he thought it was headed.
"Pythor, I know why you have asked me to come here. And don't worry, I'm more than willing to forget all about that embarrassing encounter we-"
The Hypnobrai was suddenly cut off as Pythor moved over to him, and with a swift action grabbed Skales' shoulders and pressed his lips against his. With a surprised yelp, Skales pulled this head back before staring shocked at Pythor.
"Could you ssstop doing that?!" He asked out of sheer surprise, as the kiss had left him completely disoriented.
"Oh, was I too quick?" Pythor sincerely asked, making Skales even more confused about what was happening.
"Maybe you would like it better if I went a bit more…slowly." He continued with a sensual tone, before slowly moving in for another kiss. Skales, still very much confused at the situation, held the Anacondrai back, who to the Hypnobrai's surprise made no attempt at forcing himself closer. Instead, he just stared blankly at Skales, looking nearly as confused as he was.
"What? You seemed to enjoy it this the last time we kissed…quite a lot if I remember correctly." Pythor asked with a sly grin, waiting for the flustered Hypnobrai to reply.
"W-well I just thought that…that…"
Pythor continued to look at the embarrassed Skales with a curious glint in his eyes, as he tried his best to collect himself before finally answering.
"I just believed that…you were going to tell me to forget that night." He finally managed to squeeze out of himself, cursing himself for having so much trouble saying such a simple sentence.
"Forget? Oh, that would be ever so hard to do." Pythor replied jokingly, but quickly a worried and serious expression took over his face.
"But, do tell me what made you think that was the case? After all-" The Anacondrai lifted his hand up and gently stroked Skales' cheek. "-it would be a shame to forget such an enjoyable experience."
Skales' breath steadied slowly, and when Pythor removed his hand, the Hypnobrai had regained his composure.
"Well, it's just because you have seemed very…distant, of late. I thought it was a sign that you…regretted what had happened between us."
"Do you?" Pythor asked gently, staring directly into Skales' eyes. The Hypnobrai found himself cornered with no way out. He wasn't exactly thrilled that his question had been answered with another. But it was a fair question, no doubt about that. But the answer was something that seemed impossible to admit face-to-face with Pythor. But there wasn't any point in keeping it hidden, so with a nervous gulp, Skales opened his mouth.
"I-I…yes." He replied nervously, not sure what reply to expect from Pythor. To his relief, the Anacondrai didn't linger long on the subject.
"Hm. Good. Now, I can see that I have to explain the situation to you."
Pythor then started slithering behind Skales.
"While I have no problem with being with you, the other Serpentine might not be, as understanding, you see." The Anacondrai kept slithering around Skales, his tail slowly wrapping around the listening snake.
"Not to speak of the indecency of a King being together with his second-in-command! Oh, it would be humiliating. And then the rumors would start that I simply appointed you my advisor because of our relationship. Then we would both lose the respect of the Serpentine, and that would do no one any good. So I've tried to play as…uninterested in you as possible. To keep away any rumors, or at least make sure no one starts asking any questions."
The Anacondrai had at that point nearly managed to wrap his tail all around Skales' body, keeping him firmly in place. Pythor then placed himself right in front of the contemplating Skales, while looking at the snake with a sincere expression.
"So, in actuality, I've been trying to save both of our reputations, by keeping our little encounter a secret. I'm sorry if you've felt ignored, but that has to be the price we both pay to make this work." Pythor ever so softly explained, before taking hold of Skales' chin and lifting his head up, so they once again looked each other in the eyes.
"Now, the most important question of all…do you wanna contuine this little…thing…that's between us?"
A lot of thoughts were running around Skales' mind, as usual when it came to Pythor. Something about that Anacondrai drove him crazy, in a not entirely unpleasant manner. He could turn down Pythor's offer and leave it at that. Then they both could go back to normal. But that night Skales had gotten a taste of something, he couldn't let go off. That warm, and pleasant feeling he felt as he kissed Pythor. It felt like he had been missing that feeling for so long. He wasn't exactly seeing a future with the Aancondrai in the long run. And it wasn't like they could keep it hidden forever, even if Pythor's plan sounded sensible. But that didn't matter. What mattered was that a longing for companionship had been answered, and he wasn't about to let go of it.
"I do." The Hypnobrai answered confidently, as he let go of himself, leaving himself in Pythor's hands.
"Good. I was starting to worry a bit there." Pythor answered with a short chuckle, before going in for a passionate kiss.
So…I know that I've been gone for a while. But let's just say that life got a hold of me. With a loss in the family and having to focus more on my education, my time and motivation to write had been less than favorable. It still somewhat is, but I've started writing again, so I'm not giving up so easily! I won't be able to write chapters as quickly as before, but I'm planning on finishing this story no matter what. I'm so happy that you've enjoyed this story and have stuck with it. Hope you have a great day, and see you next chapter.
