WEEDKILLER! [ bb vs snakeroot, day 2 ]

I hate snakes.

Copperheads weren't rare on the outskirts of district twelve. Where the town turns into mountains and forests, void of humanity on the edges of the fence, they like to roam alone and sink their teeth into unsuspecting victims. I've had to treat more than my fair share of bites when idiots venture to the edge of civilization.

I've also had to deliver my fair share of bad news because of those snakes. Antivenom is hard to come by, and sometimes the bitten don't make it to my family's door fast enough.

I blame Luna. She was the one who wanted to force our way through the woods as fast as possible. At least the dead trees didn't provide much cover for the mutts hiding among their branches. It was easy to avoid the creatures in the trees as we stomped through the black mud bleeding from the plants.

We barely saw where we were going, and by the time the disgusting lake came into view, we were upon the writhing mass. I barely had time to see the polluted water before the hissing grew to a chorus and the first snake came lunging out of the reeds at my chest. My hastily-made armor shattered on impact and the teeth scratched my chest.

The pain is instantaneous. Now I know what my patients back home were feeling.

"Shit," I force out through gritted teeth, "Go hiss at someone your own size." Stomping down I try to get at the one which bit me. Just missing it's head with my foot, I grab my sickle and take a swing at it.

[attacks snakeroot with moon sickle]
Qe7iraSLMvaxe
[11157 -- Shallow Cut on Left Shoulder -- 3.5 damage
(Axe)]

They spent the night on the edge of the woods. The safety of the leaves above her head made Will feel far more secure than she had felt deeper in. She could still see the dark shapes moving behind her eyes as she closed them, sighing into Xaa’s back with her arms crossed over her body. They weren't cuddling, obviously, but they weren't NOT cuddling, ya know?

No one says too much as they forego a fire and Luna takes the first watch. Will sees the fire reflect in her eyes. When morning dawns and Will slings her pack over her shoulder, the damn corset digging into her chest yet again, she seems that the bandage wrapped around her arm has soaked up all the blood and her gash has thankfully scabbed over.

She’s about to joke to Thomas that maybe she should take up being a healer when something massive and green with giant dripping jaws lunges at her from the forest floor.

The pain tears through her calf as the giant snake moves away, wrapping and unwrapping in on itself like an ouroboros.

“Stop yelling at it and stab it or something!” Will shrieks at her allies, palming a throwing knife from where she had one slung on her hip, which like, probably not the best reaction, but neither was getting bit by a giant serpent. Oh well, time to bite back.

Yessssss how long we have craved the tassssste of flesssssssh and blood. We twisssssst and turn, ssssssshape forever changing. A massssss of sssssscales and grassssss. Feed usssssss, feed usssss -

Wait. Why doessss thisssss one look like ussss ssssso? The one at the helm, ssssssshe hasssss our faccccce. Ssssssort of. How unussssssssual. We bare our teeth but ssssssomething familiar sssstops ussssss mid-bite, sssssnapping our jawsssss sssssshut. Sssssstrange child. Sssstrange sssssnakeroot, human, sssssomewhere in-between. Perhapsssss ssssshe will sssssspare usssss. Perhapsssss we sssssssshall sssssspare her. Sssssssshall we make a deal, sssssssssnake girl? Eyessssss of gold and sssssslitted irissssssesssss?

No? You choossssssse to be human? To ssssstrike ussss? How dissssssapointing. Her blade issss assss ssssssssharp as our teeth. Teach her, sssssssnakeroot. Teach her how a ssssssnake bitesssssss back.

snakeroot attacks thomas, teeth (knife)
XTlT7jaWbqknife

8

snakeroot attacks luna, teeth (knife)
knife

3.5

snakeroot attacks will, teeth (knife)
knife

3.5

snakeroot attacks xaahira, teeth (knife)
knife

3.5

[ coding by griffin ]

you watch as plant chunks go everywhere. will and xaa both take their chances, and it works. you arent thinking about anything else right now, except for maybe how you wish this was actually your father.

that was a thought that could be saved for another time.

you listen to the others, all of them focused on things each other are saying. you realized you have been ignored, and honestly, you dont care enough to actually say something to them. instead you stand back as tommy hacks away at the snakes and you try to block the sound of hissing out of your ears.

it doesnt work, and to be quite frank, the sound is annoying, just as annoying as the boy from five was... or even worse, olivia.

you arm your spear and look at tommy before turning the sharp point towards the mutt. "ripred, hiss hiss bitch."

you might be losing your mind.

"im going to hear this sound in my nightmares."

and you strike.

Tommy and Will complain at my overall lack of enthusiasm regarding the murder of the snake mutts. They were being so melodramatic…OW! The damn thing bit me. I was about to stand up for the creatures! I looked the thing in the eye, how fucking dare it. Stupid teeth were sharp and pierced through my skin to easily. I stared at my arm for a moment as I watched the blood start to come out of the new wound. Why couldn’t the capitol have given me fangs to go with my tongue. At least that way I could give them a taste of their own medicine.

Fine. I guess claws were going to have to suffice for now. I wondered who I would have to bring it up with in order to get a new pair of teeth. This was all a later problem, as I kicked away one of the snakes that got a little to close us. ”Oh Will, the only thing I want to play with in this arena is you.” I called out laughing. After her after her less than enthusiastic reaction to my affection for the mutts, guess she was getting a little bit jealous.

I watched as Luna attacked the snakes with grace, she definitely was deadly. Probably the only one out the group that would be willing to kill me without hesitation. She could never know, but if there was anyone here I was even slightly scared of, it would be the career I chose to make my ally. ”Well what snakes do you have at home? Mine are kept in my room and are so much more well behaved than these ones. “ I asked the girl from two as I once more slice at the creature that lunges at my face. I have absolutly no clue what I am doing, but the nail knives seem to be doing the job.




Table by Ryan

airport filler!

Shakes a snake off him and tells Will and Xaa:

"Less flirting, more stabbing."

[thomas attacks the snakes with moon sickle]
M27dgrCAfMaxe
[sc - 3.5]

Her allies strike and strike again at the writhing snake that seemed to have no beginning and no end, red blood erupting from the animal’s side like rubies glittering in the morning sun. If she had more time to stop and look around, she would have noticed that the snake and the vines look eerily similar. That the water that was once probably a pristine shade of aqua was now festering like a wound on the surface of the planet. The animal was ugly. The scene was ugly.

Luna seems to come to life the more blood is shed. Will stores that in the back of her mind for later as she flicks a black bang out of her eyes. The braid that the stylist had thought would keep her vision clear is nearly out of its wrap. She would have to ask Xaa to rebraid it for her later. The girl from One would love that.

The snake strikes in quick succession, somehow lashing out at all of them at once and Will feels the fangs in her thigh even after the animal’s jaws rip free.

"Less flirting, more stabbing."

“Jealous, Tommy Boy?” Will teases, a snarl in her voice at the feeling of the poison coursing through her veins once more. Was it hot in here or was it just her? Damn, it’s like the Gamemakers turned the humidity up to a billion. Fuck, that’s the poison. “See? Luna is pro-Willhira, or whatever the fuck our ship name is.” The snake shrieks, actually shrieks, as Luna stabs and slices once again and Will knows that they must be close, it’s gotta be dead soon.

“Luna, you beast!” Will follows right behind her, aiming at the same spot.