Starglow Basin secret tunnel

The viperess had just been attending to the poor whelp. She enjoyed his fear, drank it like the last droplets of euphoria from the spring, and let her claws rake over the healing lacerations on his side. Fresh blood pooled from his skin, and before she could take a deadly bite—

Saya hissed through her teeth, feeling a grip like searing iron dragging her backward. She clawed at the floor, desperate to reach Nokht, her plaything, her satisfaction—her tribute to Soto. But she was just out of reach, her nails skittering uselessly over the stone.

With a shriek that pierced the shadows, Saya tried to wrench herself free. Her eyes, wild with fury and disbelief, flicked back to Medusa, the woman’s silhouette emerging like a nightmare from the dark. Too late, Saya realized the boy was not alone. She twisted against the woman's hold, teeth bared in defiance. You have no idea who you’re dealing with, she snarled, straining forward, feeling the sting of failure seep into her veins.

In a moment of raw desperation, Saya stretched her gaze to Nokht, her face twisting with something almost close to regret. The boy was looking at her, fear etched in his eyes, a silent apology hovering between them. Useless! And yet… for that flicker of a second, the venom of failure pooled heavily in her chest. She spat, trying to mask her shame. Pathetic, she seethed, voice like ice, though the words now stung only herself.

But even as Medusa pulled her further away, Saya's mind flashed to Soto. She couldn't meet his gaze if he saw her like this—thwarted by a mother and her pitiful whelp.

Feel free for Medusa to claw at Saya's thighs, dragging her backward from the pup, while she gets unconcscious from her blow!