WARNING!!!
This chapter contains an intense scene of fear and psychological torment. Snakes, screams, and sinister laughter await… If you're easily disturbed by creepy or scary imagery, please read with caution.
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Li Yan's throat was raw, yet her screams tore through the chamber like jagged glass.
"AHHHHHH! PLEASE—NOOOO!"
It tore through the dark room, raw and ragged, bouncing against the stone walls.
The writhing sea of snakes shifted, scales rasping against each other like dry leaves in a storm.
ssshhh… ssshhh…
shhh-klack… shhh-klack…
The sound alone was maddening—hiss, slither, coil, strike.
hissss…
It filled every inch of space, until she could no longer tell if the noise was outside her body… or inside her mind.
Her arms, still bound, trembled violently as her body convulsed with panic; shaking violently against the coarse ropes that cut into her wrists.
She was tied to the chair so tightly that her skin had turned raw, but she didn't care or feel any pain.
Shadows writhed on the floor as the snakes slithered across the cold tiles, their scales scraping like sandpaper.
Her wide eyes darted to the man standing in front of her.
His mask hid half his face, but his dark skin and darker eyes glimmered sinisterly in the flickering light, watching her struggle against the ropes that bit into her wrists.
"Let me go! Please! Please!!" she screamed, kicking at the air.
Under the glow of the bulb, his presence seemed carved from the night itself.
To her terrified eyes, he wasn't human.
He was a demon.
"Aaaaahhhhhh! Somebody help! Let me go!" Li Yan screamed again, her chest heaving as her gaze darted down at the floor again.
Suddenly , a snake lifted its head, tongue flickering, before coiling closer to her chair.
She kicked her legs frantically, the chair screeching across the concrete.
The man tilted his head slightly, then let out a low, sinister laugh, the kind that crawled under her skin—low, cruel—sending a shiver through her.
—
Just then, the door creaked open.
The other masked man walked in, his voice low and rough:
"Oluvannyuma ki? Omukazi oyo ayogerera nnyo."
("What's up? That woman is so loud.")
The masked man smirked. "Omukazi ono atidde nnyo ate kye tubadde tumuwadde keki kitono."
("This woman is so scared, yet it's only a small gift.")
As if on cue, another snake slithered up Li Yan's trembling leg.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!! GET IT OFF! PLEASE, PLEASE! I'll give you anything! Just take it away! Please!! Take me out of here!!!"
The men laughed cruelly, amused.
—
The second man then leaned against the wall, pulling out a cigarette.
He struck a match, the flame briefly lighting his scarred face before he inhaled deeply, filling the small room with acrid smoke. "Eh… ayogerera nnyo, naye alabika bulungi ng'atya,"he muttered in his language, smirking as he blew out a thick cloud.
(Eh… she's loud, but she looks good when she's scared)
"Stop! Please! Take it away!" Li Yan shrieked, her voice breaking as the snake's cold scales brushed higher against her trembling thigh.
The other man stepped forward slowly, his boots crunching against the grit on the floor.
He crouched low in front of her, his eyes gleaming beneath the mask as he whispered, then spoke louder in his tongue to his friend: "Kino kijja kuba kya ssanyu nnyo singa yeekuba. Tulabe obugumu bwe ddala."
(This will be more fun if she moves. Let's see how brave she really is.)
With deliberate slowness, he reached behind her and loosened the knots.
The ropes slackened. "Kati kinaaba ky'enjoyo nnyo…"
("Now this will be more fun…")
He then untied her wrists with a snap of the rope.
Li Yan sprang to her feet with every ounce of desperate strength she had—staggering, eyes blazing, and hurled herself at him—
—but her foot caught the edge of the chair.
She tripped, crashing to the ground.
"Ssshhhhhhhhh!"
Her scream ripped the air as her body landed among the writhing snakes.
"No! Nooooo!"
It was raw, ripping from her throat as one snake slithered swiftly onto her back, its body coiling tight. Another wrapped around her calf, squeezing, while more slithered toward her arms.
She thrashed wildly, rolling, slapping at the floor, begging incoherently. "Get them off! Please! I'm begging you! Take them away! I'll do anything!"
One coiled tight around her leg, another slithered up her back.
"NOOOO! GET IT OFF ME! PLEASE!! AAAAAHHHHH!!"
The man only laughed, flicking the ash from his cigarette as he stepped on a snake with his boot, flipping it casually across the room before straightening.
His voice was cold, almost bored, as he muttered:
"Tugende tubulire Young Miss."
("Let's go report to Young Miss.")
"NOOO! STOP! YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME LIKE THIS! AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"
Snakes surrounded her, their hisses drowning her cries as one wound tightly around her arm.
"Aaaaaahhhhhh!!! Stop!!! Somebody help!! You're not allowed to leave!!! Stoopp!!!"
—
The men's laughter echoed as the door slammed shut, leaving Li Yan trapped in a pit of writhing scales.
"No! Don't go! You can't leave me here! Stop! Stop! Please!" she screamed, her voice breaking into hysterical sobs.
She tried to crawl, but the snakes tangled tighter, one coiling up her wrist, another curling against her neck, tongue flicking near her ear.
Her body convulsed as she thrashed on the floor, the sound of hissing growing louder, louder, until it drowned her own voice.
Still, her scream split the air again—raw, hopeless, and agonizing:
"Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
The door slammed shut, and the bulb flickered once more, casting her shadow writhing against the walls as the snakes surrounded her.
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