"O snakes, who is your lord?"
"Do you understand snake's language?"
________
Taja gasped.
His vision to catch a glimpse of a creature flashing before his eyes. Amidst the darkness enveloping the cave passages, the large creeping creature chased after Raojhin's trail and fled first, leaving Taja hiding in the narrow crevices of the cavity.
Until the situation seemed to be safe, Taja moved slowly with caution. Footsteps followed the movement of insects flying in that direction.
'Where has Raojhin run to?'
thought Taj. Before he could think about Raojhin's fate, suddenly a soft wind blew from the darkness behind him and distracted Taja.
Taja ...!
Instantly time and space in flashback for a moment. Taja's breath caught. His memory returned to the dream that had been haunting him for so long. The dream of a dark shadow figure, heard a whisper calling his name. But this time it felt more real.
Taja ...!
Whispering voices as warm air penetrates the cave passage. Taja felt that he was being followed by something more real than a dream.
Taja ...!
The soft whisper grew sharper, heard again. Flowing with the wind gently tore her hair.
Taja swiftly took a step, half running in the dark, trying to get away from the sound. Occasionally he groped the walls of the cave passages that looked darker and darker.
'Am I lost?'
'This is the wrong alley?'
'Why is it so dark in here?'
Taja thought in his own confusion. Only eerie silence was the answer. Meanwhile, his steps felt heavier. He heard a hissing whisper again, louder and louder, calling his name over and over again. Taja feels hypnotized.
'Shaa-zaakh ...!'
'Shaa-khaaa ...!'
Suddenly Taja felt himself being sucked in by the darkness behind him.
"Who's that ...?!" Taja heard very clearly. Like I've known that whisper before.
'Shaa-zaakh ... Shaa-khaaa ...!'
That whisper that always appears in dreams. All might, Taja turned away to move from this place. But the whispering voices were increasingly pervading the entire cave hall from all directions.
Taja's breath hitched.
"Taja!" a voice faintly getting clearer called Taja's name.
"Taja!" once again heard more clearly, the sound came from the ceiling of the cave.
Taja searched for the origin of the sound, saw Raojhin's figure hanging on the rocks of the ceiling of the cave passage. It turns out that the voice that called him just now, was from Raojhin.
Taja woke up. The sound of Raojhin calling his name, had distracted Taja's mind under the influence of a magical whisper.
What a strange skill. Raojhin's hands tightly gripped the rocks above, supporting his own weight. I don't know how long he was in that position.
Situation looking safer, Raojhin finally jumps down.
"Did you see that pass just now?" Raojhin whispers and approaches Taja standing blankly. Meanwhile Raojhin stays alert in all directions.
"Taja?!" Raojhin pats on Taja's shoulder.
"You see that snake? It's huge!" Raojhin shrieked. But Taja's gaze was still straight back there as if not paying attention to what Raojhin was talking about.
"Taja!" Raojhin exclaimed seeing Taja's strange behavior, as if stunned by something.
"What's the matter?!" Raojhin tugged at Taja's arm who was walking a bit unsteadily with eyes half dazed and sober.
"Umm ... yes! It's huge ...," Taja stammered.
"The snake surprised you like this?" Raojhin surmised that a snake had passed by, throwing Taja into a daze. But Taja was silent, his eyes still watching the darkness from the belly of the cave.
'The snake just passed, opposite direction. Why does Taja keep looking at the darkness of the belly of the cave leading to the abyss?' thought Raojhin in astonishment.
"What is it?" Raojhin asked while patting Taja's shoulder again to distract him.
"I ... heard something ...," answered Taja after completely waking up from the influence of the strange whispers.
Raojhin looks in the same direction. There was nothing there but darkness, "Before the snakes show up again, let's get out of here!" Raojhin reminds Taja.
"Through this way!" Raojhin pulled Taja's arm, as well as giving a signal to find way back to the mouth of the cave.
The only clue at that time, only insects flying where. Depends on their light. Aisle after aisle was traversed, but something was strange.
"This ...," Raojhin gasped. He suddenly stopped at the end of the hall. Taja right behind him, stopped to walking. Realized, turns out they were just circling along the hall to meet other halls. In the end, they returned to the belly of the cave.
The atmosphere in the bowels of the cave changed, similar to a rain of insects scattered in no particular direction. It was as if something had disturbed the insects in the silence of the cave which was shrouded in an eerie atmosphere.
"The cave passages are like forming a maze …," said Taja, seeming to notice something strange around the cave.
"Don't follow the bugs. They brought us here!" continued Taja.
Raojhin came to senses after looking around, "That's right! We're trapped!" he shrieked lightly.
The two of them slowly walked side by side. Be wary of each other. Countless snakes emerged from behind the cracks in the rocks in various directions around the ceiling of the cave. Their numbers are getting bigger and bigger.
Taja restrains Raojhin from moving further. The two of them were right in the middle of the belly of the cave, already surrounded by many snakes circling from all directions.
"I will try to talk to snakes," said Taja.
"Do you understand snake's language?" Raojhin can not believe that Taja has the ability to talk to snakes.
"Gunggali also has snakes," said Taja confidently.
But before Taja acts. There was the sound of gravel and rocks being dragged by a crawling creature with a heavy body weight. The figure moves, emerging from the darkness at the end of the cave passage where Taja and Raojhin pass by that passage too.
Ssssshhh ...!
Accompanied by a loud hissing sound. A huge snake, its size barely covering the width of the passage, appeared suddenly, not far behind Taja and Raojhin. Both of them flinched at the unexpected presence of the huge snake. Not just one, several large snakes, the size of which, followed from other passages. Meet at the point of the abdominal cavity of the cave.
"The snakes closed all the cavities!" Raojhin alertly glanced here and there.
"Taja, forget that you are going to talk to the snakes," whispered Raojhin as his eyes glanced at the narrowest passage at the end. Remember that the hall is the original path to return to the mouth of the cave.
Taja too looks in the same direction as Raojhin. The narrowest passage there, the exit to the mouth of the cave. But the distance to the passage was quite far, they had to pass through a stretch of snakes blocking their way.
Ssshhh ... shaa ...!!!
A huge snake prevented Raojhin from running towards the narrow passage there. Swiftly, he took out a dagger from under his belt, then pointed it at the huge snake in front of him.
For a moment Taja and Raojhin turned their backs on each other, having no idea what to do with the countless snakes surrounding them now. Slowly Taja's fingers directed the code for Raojhin to block the dagger attack.
"Don't challenge them, Rao," said Taja quietly, glancing slightly at Raojhin with his back to him.
"O troop of snakes, who is your lord?!" Taja said loudly, standing straight with full alert.
Taja's right hand grip, once again throwing Alhirri, was enough to light up the surroundings. A dome of light formed for a few moments.
"Talk or fight?!" Taja shouted. Not at Raojhin, but at the biggest snake that was slithering in front of Taja.
Khaaa ...! Khaaa ...!!!
The huge snake's voice sounded challenging. Half of its body snaked up high, the other half came up to the coiled tail quickly. A jet black snake, its scales glistening in Alhirri's light. The snake showed a ready attitude to attack.
'Shaa-zaakh ... Shaa-khaaa ...!'
Suddenly Taja's mouth unconsciously said that sentence. Between intentionally and unintentionally, he imitated a sentence that at first glance appeared in the form of whispers in head. That sentence was also what he often hears through dreams. Even Taja himself does not understand its meaning. He just felt familiar and compelled to say that sentence.
'Shaa-zaakh ... Shaa-khaaa ...!'
Taja said once again loudly while stretching both hands towards the snakes circling Taja and Raojhin caught in the middle.
'Shaa-zaakh ... Shaa-khaaa ...!'
Increasingly louder, the sentence was uttered by Taja ordering the snakes to retreat. While Taja stamped his feet.
The biggest snake, seemed to understand Taja's words. The snake's body dodged back in an instant, followed by almost all the other snakes. Unexpectedly, Taja's words shifted the crowd of snakes so that the circle of snakes' encirclement towards Taja and Raojhin was more tenuous than before.
'Shaa-zaakh ...!'
'Shaa-khaaa ...!'
Say it out loud Taja, again and again.
* * *