This is another snippet from Sorrel in Silver. Sorrel is in the city of the lloruk, following Juustehr, one of the reptilian lloruk mages. She opens a door and stops dead...
The
chamber beyond was full of snakes. At least a dozen. Two gigantic
ones, six feet long or more, with diamond patterns of orange and blue
scales, were sprawled across the outcroppings of stones that dotted
the room. Five smaller green serpents lay under the illumination of a
bright lamp shining down onto a wide, smooth stone slab. More writhed
away across the striated stone floor; those were small ones, only a
foot long, in a variety of patterns. Juustehr walked through the
chamber with a total lack of concern for the snakes. I stared at
them. One of the big ones, its head only a couple of feet from the
lift doors, turned its eyes to me and held my gaze. I didn't dare
move.
Juustehr
turned and looked back at me. He was almost at the far door out of
the room. 'Sorrel? Don't waste time admiring that python; she's lazy,
always delighted to be ogled.'
As always, comments appreciated.
Snakes are fun. You don't see them often.
ReplyDeleteActually, I quite like snakes, but it was quite fun writing from the point of view of an ophidiophobe.
DeleteSnakes. Why did it have to be snakes.
ReplyDeleteI suspect Sorrel would quite like to see herself as Indiana, if she knew who he was.
DeleteLazy? That sneaky, little...I would be so miffed at her.
ReplyDeleteYup - nothing worse than a vain, lazy python.
Delete