The hissing was getting louder.
Xin Yi ran through the Black Water village in nothing but her hastily-thrown-on deer-hide tunic, her wet hair slapping against her back, her bare feet splashing through puddles that were getting warr by the second.
This is fine. Everything is FINE. I’m just running through a village of overheating snake-n who are about to lose their minds. TOTALLY NORMAL DAY.
[DING! (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻]
[SYSTEM ERGENCY BULLETIN!]
[Temperature: Rising at 3 degrees per minute now!]
[Molting Status: 47% of Black Water tribe entering Frenzied Shed!]
[Aggression Levels: YIKES!]
[Host’s Survival Chances: LET’S NOT TALK ABOUT THAT!]
"SYSTEM!" Xin Yi hissed, ducking behind a stone pillar as a massive warrior stumbled past, his scales looking dull and cracked, his eyes completely unfocused. "What do I DO?! How do I fix this?!"
[Accessing Beast World Environntal Database...]
[SOLUTION FOUND!]
[The Frenzied Shed is caused by rapid temperature increase! Snakes can’t regulate their body heat like warm-blooded creatures!]
[Recomnded Action: COOL THEM DOWN!]
[Available Resources in Dinsional Storage:]
- Peppermint Shampoo (cooling properties!)
- Lavender Soap (also cooling!)
- Your BRAIN (most important!)]
[Suggested Redy: Create a cooling mud paste using local clay crushed mint leaves water! Apply to overheating snake-n! Save the day! Be a hero! ☆]
Xin Yi’s mind raced. Mud. Mint. Water. She could do this. She had made soap from scratch....how hard could ergency reptile dicine be?
Very hard, probably. But I don’t have a choice.
She spotted what she needed near the edge of the village: a patch of clay-rich earth near the river bank, and growing right next to it, a cluster of wild mint plants that slled so strong she could detect them from twenty feet away.
"Okay. Okay okay okay." She grabbed handfuls of clay, shoving them into a large wooden bowl soone had left outside their dwelling. Then she started yanking up mint plants, roots and all, crushing the leaves between her palms.
The scent exploded.
A shadow fell over her.
Xin Yi looked up slowly.
Mo Yan stood there, and he looked terrible. His bronzed skin had taken on a greyish tint. His yellow eyes were unfocused, pupils blown wide. His breathing was labored, and when he opened his mouth, his tongue, usually a healthy pink, looked dry and cracked.
"Little... female..." His voice was a rasp. "You... sll... good..."
He took a step toward her.
[DING! (⊙_⊙)]
[WARNING! SERPENT KING #2 IS ENTERING FERAL STATE!]
[He’s not thinking clearly! He might try to—]
"NOPE!" Xin Yi grabbed a handful of the mint-mud mixture and threw it directly at Mo Yan’s face.
SPLAT!
It hit him square in the forehead, green paste dripping down his nose.
He froze.
Blinked.
Then let out a long, shuddering breath as the cooling sensation hit him.
"Cold..." he whispered, his eyes clearing slightly. "That’s... good..."
He swayed on his feet, then crashed to his knees, his massive hands coming up to sar more of the paste across his overheated skin.
"Stay!" Xin Yi commanded, pointing at him like he was an oversized puppy. "STAY RIGHT THERE! I’ll be back!"
She didn’t wait for an answer. She grabbed the bowl of cooling paste and ran.
The village was chaos.
Snake warriors were stumbling around, so trying to shed their skin too quickly and getting stuck halfway, others scratching at their scales until they drew blood. A few had shifted to their python forms and were coiled in tight, miserable balls, hissing in distress.
"EVERYONE!" Xin Yi shouted at the top of her lungs, her voice cracking. "LISTEN TO ! I CAN HELP! BUT YOU NEED TO STOP MOVING AND LET —OW!"
A female snake beastwoman had grabbed her arm, her grip desperate. "Goddess! It hurts! My skin—it’s too tight—I can’t—"
"I know, I know!" Xin Yi scooped up a handful of the cooling mud. "This will help! Hold still!"
She started slathering it across the woman’s shoulders and neck. The effect was imdiate, the woman’s hissing stopped, replaced by a sigh of relief.
"It’s... it’s working..." The woman’s eyes filled with tears. "Thank you, Goddess. Thank you."
"NOT A GODDESS!" Xin Yi shouted, already moving to the next person. "JUST A VERY STRESSED HUMAN WITH MUD!"
But the word had spread. Within minutes, she was surrounded by desperate snake-n, all reaching for her, all begging for relief.
[DING! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧]
[NEW QUEST: THE GREAT SNAKE RESCUE!]
[Snakes Treated: 3/50]
[Mud Supplies: Running Low!]
[Xin Yi’s Sanity: Also Running Low!]
"XIAO LONG!" Xin Yi spotted the small boy curled in a corner, his scales looking patchy and dull. "Xiao Long, baby, I need you to help !"
The child looked up with watery black eyes. "Pink Skin? I don’t feel good..."
"I know, sweetie." She quickly applied the cooling paste to his small fra, and he imdiately perked up. "But I need you to do sothing very important. Can you find more mint plants? The ones that sll strong? And more clay? Can you bring them to ?"
Xiao Long nodded, shifting into his small python form and slithering off with renewed energy.
The next hour was a blur.
Xin Yi mixed batch after batch of cooling mud, her hands cramping, her back aching from bending over patient after patient. The snake-n who recovered first started helping, fetching water, crushing mint, spreading the paste on those too weak to move.
A woman called Chao Yue appeared, looking terrible but functional. "Goddess—I an, Xin Yi—there are more in the eastern dwellings. They’re the worst affected."
"Show ."
They worked together, moving through the village like a tiny dical team. Xin Yi’s tunic was covered in mud. Her hair had co loose from its tie and was hanging in her face. She had mint paste under her fingernails and clay sared across her cheek.
She had never felt more useful in her entire life.
[DING! (•̀ᴗ•́)و]
[Snakes Treated: 47/50]
[Only 3 more to go, Host!]
[Current Status: Disaster dic Extraordinaire!]
Xin Yi wiped sweat from her forehead, leaving another streak of mud. "Who’s left? Who haven’t I treated yet?"
Chao Yue’s expression turned worried. "The King’s guest.....Qing Lin... he went to his chamber when the heat started. He locked the door. He told everyone to stay away..."
Xin Yi’s heart dropped into her stomach.
Qing Lin.
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