Chapter 22: Vegan in the Abyss - 9
The garden darkened, its vibrant glow dimming as if the Abyss itself inhaled.
Vines tensed, coiled like springs, their crimson leaves quivering with intent.
The air grew thick with the scent of sap and heat, petals curling inward along the mossy ground, trees moaning softly, their branches bending like an audience leaning into a whispered secret.
Sylvara stood at the glade’s heart, her glowing skin framed by blooming crimson, a goddess sculpted from hunger and sorrow, her amber eyes fixed on Azareel with a longing that bordered on pain.
"Give him to me," she said again, her voice silked with sorrow and want, each word heavy with the weight of centuries alone.
Nyxsha’s claws unsheathed with a sound like stone splitting, her massive feline-lupine form shifting to shield Azareel.
Her black fur bristled, her golden eyes blazing with fury, her tail lashing like a whip.
"Try taking him," she growled, her voice a low, vibrating snarl that shook the moss beneath her paws, "and I’ll fertilize your roots with your own petals."
Sylvara’s smile faltered, her amber eyes flickering with something unspoken.
She didn’t move, but her vines did—uncoiling like striking serpents, slow and deliberate.