Ways a Snake Should Not Be Milked [training/solo]

The small-statured woman slowly crept through the underbrush of the oasis, her eyes never leaving the dangling snake. The large creature hung from a palm frond as it waited for a fish to make its way along the stream, patient in its stalking of its meal. She had been watching this type of snake on and off since her survey for the local university, trying to get more information about the venom it produced. She hoped to develop of hybrid of her current poisons and the venom to produce new effects.

She waited until the snake snapped out to violently pull a fish from the stream before moving, swiftly moving forward to snag the snake just behind its head while its mouth was occupied with the fish to avoid the sharp fangs. The plan worked for a moment, allowing her to get a decent grip just behind the head but she had forgotten to account for the rest of the snake’s lengthy body. In a reactionary motion, the fish fell from its mouth and it used its heavy body to fall against her body and try to wrap around her. She almost lost her grip when the added weight slammed down on her and the snake’s body wrapped around her torso.

She instinctively wanted to simply kill the snake to avoid possible harm, but she did not wish to harm it, only “milk” the venom from its fangs. Once she had secured her grip on the snakes head, she used her other hand to slowly pry the tail away from her, one loop at a time. It had managed an impressive three wraps around her and it took quite a while to free herself, the strong muscles of the snake fighting with her as she unwound it. Once it was free of her torso, it promptly entangled the arm holding its head, making her wince but leave it be for the moment. She could handle her arm being asleep for a moment to get some of the venom. Her free hand fumbled to reach the cup she had set to the side, her fingertips brushing against the wood and knocking it from the rock. She gave a grunt of frustration as the snake’s grip tightened on her arm, her other hand finally managing to snag the cup from where it had fallen.


[392/1000]

The next part was the most nerve-wracking, trying to position the cup under the fangs while avoiding being bitten or brushing her fingers against the fangs. She cautiously pressed the cup behind the curve of the snake’s fangs before pressing down to activate the venom gland. Milky droplets ran down the side of the cup as the venom was released, her arm aching from the pressure the snake was still applying to it. Her fingers were beginning to tingle and she mentally rushed the flow of venom, urging it to finish, preferably before she lost her grip and got herself bit. The droplets stopped, a fairly small amount pooling in the bottom of the cup, which she carefully set to the side. She moved a few feet away from the cup, not wanting to risk knocking it over as she went about trying to untangle the snake to release it.

She knelt to the ground, the hand that held the snakes head setting down in the grass as she switched her grip to the other hand. She worked quickly to unwrap a couple of loops of the snakes body and the used her booted foot to press down just behind the snakes head, allowing her the use of both hands to finish untangling the lengthy, thick body of the snake. She fumbled around, finding a stick from one of the shrubs and using it to hold down the snake’s body to keep it from re-constricting her, the body opting to wrap around the branch instead.

Trusting that she had done all she could to restrain the snake, she took a leap backwards, releasing her hold on its head and the branch she had been using. The snake lashed out angrily as she released it, its fangs finding a spot just above her ankle, most of the impact absorbed by the boot, but the fangs barely piercing the surface of her leg. The snake recoil and gave her a wary look, expecting retaliation from the creature that had held it prisoner. When it saw that she made no move towards it, it quickly slithered back and away from her, wrapping its way up the nearest palm tree.


[758/1000]

The bite caused instant pain, the area throbbing as the poison spread. She wasted no time in ripping a piece of her skirt off and tying it around her leg to reduce blood flow to the extremity. –Well, at least now I can see the effect of the venom- she thought to herself, the unintended bite at least serving as an opportunity to see first-hand what the venom did. She prayed it would not be a fatal injury. Once making sure the snake had fled the area, she turned her attention to the bite, peeling her boot from her foot and examining where the fangs had punctured her flesh. The bite was very shallow, barely making it into her skin, but the venom still burned. She was thankful she had just removed a large portion of the venom, reducing the amount making it into her blood.

Lexi scooted over to the stream where she had left her bag, dipping her foot into the cold water as she dug in her bag for something sharp. She used one of her arrow heads to make a cut along the marks, trying to drain any remaining venom. She had seen her father do this before when she was younger, after Onyx had gotten bit by a snake in the forest. The cut hurt, but the throbbing along her calf slowly subsided as the water rinsed away the blood and venom. She made another mental note of the effects, finding she had difficulty wiggling her toes. The symptoms seemed relatively short lived, whether due to the reduced exposure or the cold water she was not sure.

Her worry subsided and she returned her attention to the task at hand. She stretched out to reach the cup and then rifled through her bag, drawing out the pouch of poison she kept for her arrows. The blend was a potent one, brewed from a variety of common plants and intended to take down larger beasts with fewer arrows. With a careful hand, she poured a few droplets of the poison into the cup with the venom, arching a brow as it bubbled briefly and then began to thicken slightly. The result was a slightly thicker poison than she usually used and she hummed happily. The thicker concoction would stick to the arrow better than the liquid she had been using and hopefully produce a more potent effect. She very carefully coated an arrow head with the concoction and held the arrow as she moved away into a more open area, her eyes darting about to search for some small game. When her eyes fell upon a lone desert hare, she whispered an apology and notched the arrow. She aimed for the rump, not wanting to kill the animal instantly. It went against her instincts to intentionally cause pain to an innocent animal, but she needed to know if the poison was effective.

The arrow flew, hitting the hare squarely in the rump and she watched as it jumped high in the air at the impact. It tried to dash off but within seconds the animal was twitching on the ground in what looked like extreme pain. Her conscious got the best of her and she hurried to launch another arrow deep into the heart of the creature, ending its suffering. She went over and examined the deceased creature, noting the bloody foam around the animal’s mouth. She hummed in satisfaction and gingerly picked up the hare, taking it back to the small camp she had made. She made a small fire and put the corpse over the flames. She had no intention of eating the creature, but she did not want some scavenger devouring it and possibly poisoning it in return. As the body charred, she went about mixing the concoction with the rest of her poison and securing it in her pack.

Once the body was sufficiently charred, she finished gathering all of her belongings, making sure to rinse the cup that had contained the venom thoroughly in the stream before storing it as well. Though the day had been productive, she would have to find a more efficient and less dangerous ways to milk the snakes. Her leg felt almost normal again, so she untied the strip of cloth and tried standing on it, smiling when she noticed the incision she had made was still tender but otherwise the symptoms had vanished. Still slightly wary, she set a slow pace for her usual camp area outside of the metropolis.

Poison Arrow (B-tier):

[1513/1000]
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