Searching for a while, Shango still could not find any sign of the ice serpent. After searching every nook and cranny with no hint of it being anywhere for a while more, he was getting frustrated.

“Where the fuck did that ice serpent go, is its last name Houdini or something?” he said as he scratched his head.

Just as he was about to give up and try to tackle one of the other creatures, he heard a loud rattling sound. It was a sound that he had heard only once before, but he knew exactly what it was.

“There she is, my little white whale.” he said as a smile slowly formed on his face.

Turning towards the direction he heard the sound from, he sprinted towards it at full speed, hoping to get there before the ice serpent pulled another vanishing act.

As he got closer, he realized that the direction he was heading was the location of where the snowmen tribe had been. As soon as he realized that, an unknown sense of worry sprouted within him. Even though he had no real attachment to the group of snowmen, he still did not want to see them suffer another loss so soon.

As he got closer, he could hear the sounds of battle. It seemed like a full-fledged war was going on. As he got closer, the rattling sound became more dominant. As soon as he reached the area, instead of jumping right into the mix, Shango decided it was best to observe the situation first. Even if he was worried about the snowmen, his well-being and safety came first. After looking for a bit, he found a nice little spot that was looking over the field. It was a spot where he could see the full battle and was the right distance away that if he needed to, he could intervene or run if things got nasty.

Looking at the situation, it seemed like the ice serpent took advantage of the wounded group of snowmen and attacked when they were at their weakest. The group of wounded snowmen must have looked like a supreme delicacy to the ice serpent because it took no time in devouring most of them.

Only two of them remained after the onslaught of the ice serpent. One of them was the snowwoman who took control of the group and one other a severely wound snowman, who was trying his best to keep the snowwoman from charging in and throwing her life away.

Rage and sorrow could be seen on the snowwoman’s face, her white fur now dyed red with the blood of her people. The group she promised her father that she would lead and protect was practically wiped out in less than a few hours under her leadership.

As the snowwoman struggled to break free from the other snowman, the ice serpent took the chance to attack once more. Sensing the upcoming attack, the other snowman used whatever strength he had left to toss the snowwoman out the way before the jaws of the ice serpent engulfed his entire body. Witnessing this, the snowwoman was struck with a paralyzing sense of grief. Dropping to the ground, it seemed like it was all but destiny for her to end up in the belly of the Ice Serpent.

After finishing chomping down the last snowmen, the ice serpent did not immediately attack the Snowwomen but circled her teasingly. It seemed like it was relishing in the snowwoman’s sorrow.

Looking at the situation, Shango knew that it was all but hopeless at this point. Intervening would be meaningless, the group of snowmen was already annihilated and the snowwoman had all but given up.

At first, Shango felt very excited about taking on the ice serpent. He felt that he held the overall advantage. This creature was just meant to be the experience he needed to grow stronger, but after seeing the Ice serpent in battle, a feeling of fear emerged in his heart.

From the battle he had just witnessed, this ice serpent was an apex predator, a creature that stood at the top of the food chain. Its speed was amazing for its size, it seemed to have some intelligence, and for some odd reason, Shango could not help but think the creature had yet to show its full hand.

“Shit, shit, shit.” What should I do now, he thought to himself. Despite everything he just saw, thoughts of launching a sneak attack were still in his head, overwhelming the fear that reared its ugly head.

As Shango was struggling with what to do, the ice serpent made its move, drawing his attention back to it.

Cautiously, the Ice serpent approached the snowwoman, not too fast or not to slow. It seemed to know that the snowwoman had given up but still had a bit of its guard up. Its cautious nature was one of the many reasons it had become a top predator in its domain. It surrounded the snowwoman with its large body. Different from how it dealt with the other snowmen, it seemed it wanted to take its time with the snowwoman. Its final meal of today it wanted to slowly savor. Slowly opening its mouth, the Ice Serpent bit down on the snowwoman.

Not being able to stomach it, Shango closed his eyes and turned his head right before the ice serpent bit down. He could already imagine the sound of the ice serpent wolfing down the snowwoman.

“ROAR!”

As soon as he turned his head, he heard a loud, ear-shattering roar.

When Shango turned his head back around, he saw the Ice serpent rolling around on the ground with ice spike filling its mouth. It seemed like the Snowwomen did not lose hope but was just waiting for the right opportunity to strike back. The old playing possum trick, as someone would say back in his world.

The ice domain was now filled with the terrifying sound of the ice serpent howling. In its rage, the ice serpent tossed the snowwomen to the side near the ledge that Shango was hiding by. Looking at the snowwoman, Shango could almost see a mocking smile on its face as it looked at the Ice serpent.

Shango could only admire the snowwoman for her actions.

After a few seconds, the howling of the ice serpent stopped. The spike that once filled its mouth had all but broken off, leaving very nasty wounds behind. Looking at the ice serpent, Shango could tell it was beyond furious. Rage, humiliation, and shame were emotions that Shango could see in the eyes of the Ice Serpent. It no longer wanted to play with its prey, but to finish it quickly to rid itself of its shame.

Slithering over toward the Snowwoman, it raised its tail. It seemed it no longer wanted to devour the Snowwomen but rather beat her to death. Raising its tall, it let out one more hiss before bringing it down.

. “ROAR!” The ice serpent once again let out another eardrum breaking roar, feeling a sharp pain in its eye.

From out of nowhere, a small creature had leached on to its face and drove its fist in its eye.

“How do you like that you, you frozen sausage link.”