The Naga and the Human: Part 2

The Naga and the Human
Chapter 2
By: KHvorefan
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“W-w-what are you?” the young lad named Alex cried when his companion Axel changed right before his eyes. He slowly grew bigger and bigger until he stood about ten feet tall. His legs changed into a long, red and black striped, serpentine tail.  

“I, my little friend, am a naga!” he replied matter-of-factly.

“N-naga?” the little boy whined.

“Yes, that’s right.  What, did your parents never tell you what a naga is?” Axel asked with a questioning look. Axel thought all human parents told their kids about nagas. At the mention of his parents, the little boy broke into tears.

“N-n-n-no. Waa! I m-miss my m-m-m-mom and d-d-dad!”

“Come here, little one. Its okay,” Axel crooned. He couldn’t believe it, but he was starting to like the little boy. Alex just stood there, crying his eyes out. Axel slithered over and took the little boy in his arms.

“H-how is i-it okay? My parents are d-dead. My h-home is g-gone. Nothing is okay,”

“Yes, it is. You’re with me. I’ll protect you. Come on, let’s go home,”

“H-home, the v-v-village?” little Alex managed to say between sobs.

“No, not the village, your new home.” Axel picked up the little boy, out him on his shouders, and headed for Naga Castle.

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Several hours later, the duo arrived at the giant castle. Alex stared at the giant castle, dumbstruck. It looked just like the castles in fairy tales. Axel kept on going, until he noticed that Alex wasn’t with him. He turned around, expecting to see the young kid running away. Instead he saw a little boy staring up in awe at the castle.

“Nice, huh. It’s called Naga Castle, got it memorized?” Axel explained with a chuckle.

“Yeah. It looks like the castles in fairy tales,” Alex replied, still just staring.

“Well, come on. Let’s go inside,”

“Wait, you live here!” Alex exclaimed with shock.

“Yeah, me and a few others. And you I guess.”

“Me, are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m positive. Come on.”
“Kay,” When they walked or slithered inside, depending on whom you’re talking about, Alex saw that the castle was gorgeous. A beautiful fresco was used as the baseboard. The walls were of the finest white marble. A large Persian rug covered the floor. Stained glass windows were on either wall of the entry hall. Axel and Alex kept on going through the castle, Alex looking at everything he could, and in awe of it all. He saw giant tapestries, gorgeous masterpiece paintings, elegant sculptures, and so much more. As they walked, nagas stared at Axel and, more importantly, Alex. As they drew near to Xemnas’s office, a naga with bright pink hair, although he is a boy, slithered up behind Alex and wrapped his coils around him. Alex started struggling and thrashing, trying to escape.

“Axel! Help me!” Alex screamed out at the top of his lungs. Axel quickly spun around to see the naga about to put the little boy into his mouth.

“Let him go Marluxia. Xemnas wants him, alive,” Axel said in a calm but stern voice.

“I don’t think I believe you. I think you want him for yourself,” Marluxia replied angrily.

“Let … him … go” Axel slowly demanded, trying to keep himself calm.

“No, I don’t think I will,” Marluxia laughed before licking the little boy, “Mmm, tasty.”

“Marluxia, let the boy go,” a loud voice yelled from behind Axel. It was Xemnas.

“Fine, fine. I’ll let the little brat go,” Marluxia angrily yelled before throwing Alex across the room. He landed in a heap in the corner. Axel raced to the little boy, worried. Xemnas walked over and inspected the Alex, thinking, ‘So, this is him. This is the little boy who sent out the burst of power.’ Xemnas was stirred by his thoughts by Axel.

“He’s alive, just knocked out,” Axel exclaimed, happy that his little friend was safe. He picked him up, and carried him to the infirmary.

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When Alex finally awoke, he saw Axel sitting next to him, asleep in a chair. He pushed the sleeping redhead to wake him up.

“Huh, what time is it?” Axel said groggily.

“Axel, it’s me, Alex,” Alex whispered in his ear.

“Alex, you’re awake! Thank God, I was starting to get worried,” Axel exclaimed.

“How long have I been asleep?”

“Three days,”

“Three days!” Alex yelled, “What happened? The last thing I remember is some strange guy telling the naga to put me down, then, nothing.”

“That ‘strange man’ was Xemnas, my boss. You were thrown across the room and hit the wall, hard.” Axel explained, “You broke your arm,”

“That explains why my arm hurts so bad,” Alex said with a chuckle, “What was that guy who picked me up trying to do to me?”

“He wanted to eat you,” Axel replied casually, like it was no big deal. But to Alex, it was a huge deal. That thing had tried to eat him! He looked at Axel, suddenly realizing that the much larger naga could probably eat him in a second. When he wasn’t looking, Alex got up and tried to run away, to escape, but fell flat on his face. Axel looked over and saw the little boy on lying on the floor, crying. He came over to him and picked him up, hugging him. The boy just cried into Axels’ shoulder. While he cried, Axel came to a realization. This boy was his responsibility. He had to care for him. He would be his family. He laid the kid back on the bed.

“What’s wrong, little one?” he asked in a soft voice.

“You’re g-g-gonna e-eat m-m-m-me,” Alex replied, staring up at the naga’s face with tear-filled eyes.

“I would never do that.”

“You promise?” Alex asked while wiping the tears from his eyes.

“I promise.” He answered. Then the two hugged.

After three weeks in the infirmary, Alex was allowed to leave. His arm had fully healed, but his emotions were in turmoil. He felt scared and happy at the same time. He missed his family, but he tried to not show it.

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“Alex, come with me,” Axel said one morning after he poured himself a decaffeinated cup of coffee. (Note: Axel + caffeine = bad, Bad, BAD!!!)

“Yay. I finally get to leave the apartment. But, where are we going?” He yelled while jumping up and putting his shoes. He and Axel lived in a small apartment in the West Tower. Axel wouldn’t allow Alex to leave the apartment, for obvious reasons. But, today, Alex was finally getting to see more of the Castle. Axel picked him up and put him up on his shoulders, safely out of danger. Then they left for the highest room in the tallest tower, which was Xemnas’ office. Alex, still awestruck at the elegance of the castle, asked questions about everything conceivable. After what seemed like an eternity of answering questions to Axel, they reached the large circular office, Alex was set on the floor and they walked inside…  

To Be Continued…