..."𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑺𝒐 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆, 𝒀/𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒈𝒂𝒛𝒆."...

~ 𐌻𐌴𐍈𐍂 𐍂𐍃𐌰𐍁𐍃 ~

"Do you ever think about regret?"

The small cargo plane shuddered. Zayrn scrambled for purchase, sinking his fingernails into the armrests. His bottom was sore thanks to the lackluster cushion on his seat, there was turbulence every five seconds, and a cold sweat was clamming his skin up. Worst of all, his boss wanted to have a philosophical discussion with him.

"Erm, yeah sure. I think about regret. Like a lot. Especially right now," muttered the frazzled brown haired man(Zayrn).

Zayrn regretted getting on this plane. He regretted the new island (temporarily named "Nemo") being discovered. He regretted taking this job as Dr. Nilsson's assistant, and even more so, Zayrn regretted trying to get his foot through the door in a scientific field.

Not so much because he hated science (maybe he did, maybe he didn't) but mostly because he hated the situation he was in right now. On a metal deathtrap, thousands of feet above ground, and hurtling his way toward a potentially deadly island.

Not exactly the island resort vacation one hoped for.

"I'm thinking about regret currently as well," Dr. Nilsson nodded, her sea green eyes gleaming in the low light. It flickered out at every other bump. "I caught myself ruminating this morning on the curious subject of opportunity. Of chance. And then, of course, the natural route is to think of regret.

"Can you comprehend it, Zayrn?How lucky we are? What chance we had of being right here, on this plane, on our way to make one of the most potentially groundbreaking discoveries in the last millennium? So little chance, astronomical really... Yet, here we are. Doing just that Imagine the regret we would feel if we had not seized this opportunity at once."

Zayrn agreed distractedly, trying desperately to hold his lunch in when the plane gave another teeth-clattering shudder.

"Think about it, Zayrn," Nilsson continued. "What has no man ever discovered? What is the one thing that defines us as a species?"

"Our genes?"

"Exactly, our intelligence; our sentience," Nilsson snapped her fingers, clearly not listening to her assistant at all. "From the skeletons recovered from Nemo especially of the cranial bones we can deduce that they belong to a creature of equal if not more intelligence than even us Homo sapiens possess. It's not certain of course but very, very likely. Can you imagine us no longer being the only beings on this planet capable of conscious, subjective thoughts? Of self-awareness? Of feelings? Possibly even of new or foreign technology?"

Nilsson gave a deep, longing sigh. "Ah, now if only I could get my hands on one. Just one. I would love to study it; dissect it - of course, with the creature's consent."

"Er, yeah," Zayrn threw his boss a doubtful look, "and you think that they'll just be like 'yup go ahead Kill and dissect me please'?"

"For the good of discovery, I'm sure they would be honored," Nilsson smiled, completely and utterly delusional in Zayrn's humble opinion.

"Yeah, for the 'good of discovery' sure." Zayrn did not roll his eyes. "Besides, if they're supposedly so smart, then why haven't they built like - I don't know - a boat or plane or something? Why didn't they ever build technology that would enable them to leave their island and discover the world beyond?"

"Perhaps they have a fundamentally different way of thinking," Nilsson considered his query. "Humans are a naturally curious, competitive, and territorial species. However, the Ophidian narus, or the 'naga' as it is generally termed, could be more reptilian in nature - not only physically but behaviorally as well.

"Reptiles - snakes really, are not territorial unless it is during the mating season. They are simple creatures with no drive for exploration or conquering beyond what is required for survival. They possess a homing instinct, content to settle down where there is abundant prey and suitable shelter.

"As for them never leaving their island or discovering us before we could discover them, truth is: we won't know their motivations until we have an opportunity to study one. In depth. For all we know, they are content with simplistic perhaps even primitive - lifestyles despite their high intelligence. Thus, there wouldn't be a need to see other parts of the world."

Zayrn squinted, "You got all that from a few bones? Wow."

"The skeleton of a creature can tell us a lot but not everything."

Zayrn jumped as a hand clamped over his own. He looked up to meet his boss's eyes. She was smiling one of those rare smiles a genuine one.

"I am truly looking forward to this, Zayrn. More than anything else in my life thus far. I am glad, too, to have you join me on this journey of discovery."

"Uh, sure," Zayrn covertly slipped his hand out from under hers. "I'm glad too, I guess..."

Zayrn was not glad thank you very much, but he was receiving a hefty paycheck.

.......

.......

.......

.......

.......

End of chapter 1.

Hello readers, well this is not my own story so all credit goes to it's rightful author.

I make many grammatical errors so , sorry for that. Its Male naga x male --novel soo enjoyy it.😌

The small plane landed on a makeshift strip at the island's east coast. The island itself sat near the equator, its climate warm and hot - perfect, Dr. Nilsson said, for snakelike creatures. Surrounding the strip was an ugly, overturned plot of land full of temporary tents and buildings. Surrounding the encampment was a palm tree forest, thick and wild, with bamboo shoots springing up in between fat tree trunks.

Upon arrival, Zayrn and Dr. Nilsson were quickly ushered from the plane as beefy, young men unloaded all of their cargo. An older man, with white hair and gleaming bronze skin met them by the plane.

"You must be Dr. Nilsson and Mr. Nicholson," he put his hand out for both of them to shake, "I'm Einar Yorivowsky, here to help you facilitate research on this island."

Einar Yorivowsky was an intimidating character: a tower of hard-corded muscles built one on top of the other and a nasty, deeply-lined face that could easily frighten children.

Zayrn leaned over to catch sight of the long rifle on the man's back. The brown haired man hummed nervously, rocking back and forth on his heels.

Einar's sharp eyes caught him and he gave the young brown haired man a tight smile, "The island's inhabitants aren't very friendly."

inland)))!!

Dr. Nilsson perked up at that comment, "But you still haven't run across an Ophidian narus? From our last correspondence -"

Einar raised a halting hand, "No, ma'am. I have not, nor has any of my men, even caught a whiff of a naga. However, there is a large, aggressive species of wild bore present on the island as well as many venomous snakes. Robarts here," he gestured to a man carrying down one of Dr. Nilsson's many metal cases from the plane, "almost got eaten by an anaconda the length of a goddamn bus. Whatever the hell is on this island, it's tough and we've gotta be prepared," he tapped a finger against the butt of his rifle.

If Zayrn was iffy about this before, he wasn't anymore. He was tempted to walk right back up into the plane and wait for it to take him straight back home.

Dr. Nilsson didn't give him the chance, however. She grabbed his arm and guided him through the camp as Einar showed them their private tents and the sterile, portable building allotted to them in order to conduct their research. The tents were small, but livable. The portable was empty save for a few metal countertops, a sink, and various cupboards.

Still, Dr. Nilsson looked like a little kid on Christmas. She was elated, running a hand across a stainless steel countertop and grinning at Zayrn like an absolute loon.

"Can you believe it, Zayrn?" she nearly sang. "That we are here? That this is where we will be performing the most exciting work ever known to mankind?"

Zayrn set his carry-on bag down on the table, shoulder aching, "I think that's a bit of an exaggeration. Besides, it'll take a while for all of the equipment to be set up."

"I know, I know," she waved him off. "But hopefully we'll be ready to begin tomorrow morning."

Zayrn's eyes narrowed, "Isn't tomorrow a Saturday?"

"Yes indeed," Dr. Nilsson said remorselessly.

"Slave driver," the brown haired man accused.

"Enjoy your free time while you have it, my ever so hardworking assistant."

"Thanks, I'll try," Zayrn muttered before waltzing over to one of the windows.

As the building sat at the edge of the encampment, his view was of the forest beyond. Something about the land out there being wholly untouched by human hands unsettled Zayrn, somewhere deep in his core. It was as if the longer he looked, the less familiar the trees became.

Logically, he knew the trees were just trees and nature would be nature regardless of mankind's influence, but still. The uneasiness remained, gnawing at Zayrn's gut.

After taking note of their storage After taking note of their storage space and other amenities the portable gave them, Dr. Nilsson joined him by the window.

"Isn't it enticing?" she murmured. "I'm barely holding myself back from going out there right now and exploring this place."

Zayrn didn't exactly understand or share her enthusiasm so leaning a shoulder against the wall, he changed the subject.

"Hey, remember what Einar said about one of his men nearly being eaten by an anaconda the size of a bus? You think that's true or exaggerated?"

"The largest anaconda ever reliably recorded grew to a length about twenty-seven feet. The length of an average bus is forty. Under usual circumstances I would say he was exaggerating by at least a margin of ten feet, but on this island? I'm convinced anything is possible. We only need to discover it."

"You know, I was kind of hoping for a reassurance."

Dr. Nilsson blinked, "I was not aware you harbored fear of anacondas. Furthermore, anacondas on our known continents, even at the length of twenty, twenty-five feet can easily consume a human whole. In this instance, the size of the anaconda being enlarged would not affect the fact humans can be seen as a food The only difference would be the amount of its consumption. A snake that large would need to feed much more often or in bigger quantities."

"Truly. Amazing. Very reassuring. Anacondas apparently eat people and a forty-foot one will eat about what? Let's say ten of them at a time instead of one? Great. Can't wait to be dinner."

Dr. Nilsson placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "I assure you, Zayrn, we will be well-protected behind a wall of Einar's men. It's why I hired them, remember? Neither you or me are equipped to handle the physical threats this island will bring us, but we don't need to be. We have Einar and his troop. We won't go anywhere without them. I promise."

"Alright," Zayrn conceded, light brown eyes still reflecting the wilds beyond the window.

"Good," she dropped her hand from his shoulder. "Work will begin tomorrow at sunrise."

Zayrn stared out the window for a long time.

---------------------

End of chater 2.

Well this story is lil bit slow so have patience. ;)

Zayrn's first task bright and early the next morning was to catalogue all of their equipment. It was a task worthy of an assistant, sure, but the brown haired man wished he hadn't been ordered to do it at the crack of dawn. He was yawning on every third word he said, tired beyond belief.

"Er, yeah, can you -" yawn, "- tell me how many vials are in that case?"

"Forty-eight," one of the men responsible for setting up all their things into the portable answered him.

Zayrn languidly inputted it into his tablet.

"Thank you. Now, for that - yeah, just set it over there."

The brown haired man directed one man on where to put the large microscope. As he continued taking inventory and slowly getting their station set up, Zayrn found himself falling into a familiar rhythm.

He was abruptly shocked out of said rhythm when four men carried in a very large device. Y/n was instantly on them, asking, "What is that?"

Only to see Dr. Nilsson come in behind them. "Morning, Y/n, I see you are making sufficient progress. Don't mind this," she patted a hand on the large metal contraption. It appeared to be reminiscent of a cage. "It's a containment device for any potential Ophidian narus specimen."

Zayrn eyed the giant metal cage (it looked to be well equipped with electronic locks) with a dubious expression, "Are you going to ask the naga's consent to put itself in there as well?"

"Of course," Nilsson gave him a sharp smile. "Consent is key."

"Uh-huh," Zayrn looked around. "And this is why you've hired so many guns... because you're going to ask consent."

Dr. Nilsson gave her assistant a friendly pat on the shoulder. "The less you know, the better you'll feel."

"I already feel like shit."

"Then I truly did pick my assistant out well," the woman remarked before instructing the men to put the cage down in the room's emptiest corner.

Once all the equipment was in place and the men ushered out, it left Dr. Nilsson and Zayrn in a room ready for operation.

Unafraid, Zayrn rested his forearms on a bit of empty counter-space and leveled his boss with a look. "I looked up Einar Yorivowsky last night before bed. Apparently, he poaches elephants. Sells their ivory. Tigers too. Loves to stuff them."

Dr. Nilsson smirked, "A man like Einar is, what you would call, an expert in tracking and hunting... exotic animals."

"I put that together, yeah," Zayrn muttered. "But what I'm asking is: did you just hire him or did you promise him free poaching once you've got your data and 'discovery of the millennium'?"

"Once we have what we need and a live specimen, we have no more business on this island, Zayrn. We're free to let nature take its course."

"Oh yeah, poaching sounds very natural."

"I meant nature as in human nature," Nilsson smiled before heading over to her microscope. She checked its function - searching for any damage before she leaned back, satisfied to see it remained unharmed.

"For a scientist, you don't really give a shit about the animals you study at all, do you?"

"What can I say?" she laughed. "I'm as coldblooded as the animals I study."

Zayrn just shook his head. He'd been harboring these concerns ever since Dr. Nilsson had announced the impromptu trip they were taking to the island. While his boss had never been overtly unkind nor cruel, she had always been coldblooded. Zayrn would give her that.

The fact that they had hired a man like Einar and subverted the government in the effort to be the first to make the discovery of the naga had not sat well with Zayrn. In fact, the brown haired man had been worried since the beginning. About the unethical nature of this project, about the fate of the naga if they turned out to be real, and all the dangers this unknown, relatively unmanned island possessed.

Zayrn wouldn't say he was a coward, but he also wasn't interested in sacrificing his life for a paycheck.

Too late. He was already here. Already in the midst of this. He couldn't say whether he had been initially motivated by the money or by curiosity. Both probably.

It didn't matter. Zayrn would just do the job, get it done, and put this all behind him.

---------------------------

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were all dehydrated rations. The rations were bland, borderline inedible, and entirely unenjoyable just like every other facet of this excursion.

Zayrn didn't mind them. He sat with some of Einar's men around a campfire, chewing on rehydrated meats and vegetable crisps. Most of the men were quiet, liked to keep to themselves - unless, of course, they were telling some ridiculous story about hunting some poor nearly-extinct animal in some jungle out east. One man, who went by the name of Rat (charming really), had excitedly told Zayrn the story of how he had gotten all but maimed by a tiger and lived to actually tell the tale. There was evidence enough in the way the man's flesh had been deformed on one side of his head and neck. Large scars and warped skin creeping down his bulging biceps.

Zayrn simply nodded along while privately, he vowed to become an animal activist.

It was halfway into his meal some of the men came back from scouting the surrounding forest, hooting and hollering. They were dragging the body of an incredibly large wild boar behind them.

In the lead was Einar himself. He smirked upon seeing Zayrn.

"Fancy something other than those godawful rations?" the man gave a rough, barking laugh before he helped gut and skin the boar right there.

Zayrn coughed, inhaled the scent of copper and fresh meat, and promptly choked on it.

While the boar was set to roast over the fire, Einar found a seat beside Zayrn. The man was holding a knife in one hand and a

"Is that a pit viper?" Zayrn asked, incredulous, as he recognized the long, limp body swinging in the man's other hand.

The snake was clearly dead, its emerald green scales reflecting the campfire light beautifully. It was a venomous snake - but more importantly it was six feet long. Bamboo pit vipers didn't typically grow beyond three.

"Recognize it?" Einar said, gesturing the snake at the Brown haired man.

"Yeah," Zayrn said slowly. "Benefits of working with a herpetologist.

An anaconda supposedly the size of a bus and now a bamboo pit viper six feet long instead of three? Nearly twice its size?...Are all snakes on this island incredibly enlarged?. Zayrn kept his thoughts to himself as he watched the man skin and cook the snake.

Though venomous, a pit viper was still edible. No accounting for taste though.

When it was finished roasting, Einar offered it over. "You ever eat a snake like this before?"

Zayrn made a face at that, "No."

The man raised a brow, "Do you want to?"

Zayrn glanced down at his own bland, tasteless dinner before he shook his head, "No, not really."

"Your loss," Einar muttered before taking his first bite.

Zayrn didn't consider it much of a loss.

"I..." the brown haired man paused. For some reason the back of his neck was tingling. The small hairs were rising, too, as if sensing some horrible threat.

Nervously, Zayrn looked behind - and around, but there was nothing but the forest at his back and Einar's men hooting and hollering about the boar they caught at his front.

"What were you saying?" Einar asked, drawing Zayrn out from his thoughts.

"Er, nothing I guess. Wait - did you find anything in the forest today?"

"Not really," Einar muttered between bites. "We'll be taking you and Dr.Nilsson out tomorrow. You're the snake experts here, after all. You would be better at figuring out where they're all holed up. The naga, that is. We know where the other snakes are."

The man dangled the viper's corpse in front of Zayrn's face as evidence.

Zayrn watched the snake's scales dance and glimmer, feeling a pit form in the core of his gut.

The next morning found Zayrn dressed up in long, thick cargo pants, boots, and a long-sleeved shirt. Dr. Nilsson met him right after breakfast, dressed too, for their first outing into the forest.

"Morning, Zayrn," she smiled. "I'll want you to take a few things with you today. I want to take some soil samples, as well as general information about the climate. Of course, I'll be taking rigorous notes today. If you would please go into the portable and collect some vials as well as the tubing core, that would be great."

With a nod, Zayrn headed over to the portable and packed his bag full of the aforementioned items. When he emerged, Dr. Nilsson was surrounded by Einar and his men.

Einar waved him over, "All set?"

"Have all the items we need?" Dr. Nilsson looked her assistant over with a critical eye.

__________________________

1550 words.

Next chapter will be updated the next day