CHAPTER 488: CHAPTER 488: SPEAK LOUDER

The entire lagoon held its breath.

Every Lunareen eye glowed.

Every serpent-tail hovered.

Every scale shimmered with dangerous expectation.

Isabella, meanwhile, was experiencing a full spiritual crisis.

Her mouth opened. Closed.

Opened again.

Closed again.

Her brain was a broken drum.

Father of the child.

Child must survive.

Human mother.

Does your baby require the father?

Her eyes twitched.

Glimora patted her chest again, as if saying: mother, please don’t die on us.

Isabella took one long, trembling inhale.

"No," she said.

All the Lunareen leaned forward.

"...No?" the Macho Sister repeated, tail swishing.

"I mean—NO—listen—YES—I MEAN—NO—WAIT—HOLD ON."

She waved her hands wildly like she was trying to land an airplane with body language.

The High Seraph’s eyes narrowed. "Is the man the father of your child?"

"No!" Isabella shouted.

Every serpent hissed.

She immediately backpedaled. "YES—I MEAN—NO—NOT EXACTLY—UM—LISTEN—LET ME EXPLAIN—"

Isabella rubbed her forehead so hard she nearly scrubbed her eyebrows off.

She was NOT built to lie under life-threatening pressure.

Her mouth was running on instinct, her brain filing for bankruptcy.

She pointed at Osiris, who was still hanging mid-air, being softly strangled by invisible magic.

"That—man—" she started.

Then lost her words completely.

Her hands dropped uselessly to her sides.

"...ugh."

The High Seraph tilted her head. "Speak."

"I AM SPEAKING," Isabella snapped. "I’m just... buffering."

The Lunareen continued staring calmly.

Patiently.

Like a judging circle of glowing snake-women waiting for her soul to confess itself.

Isabella turned away from them, muttering to herself.

"Why am I even doing this? I should let them eat him. Let them swallow him whole. Let them use him as a toothpick. But noooo, here I am, about to lie myself into a lifetime of consequences because this stupid firebird can’t follow simple instructions."

She shot a glare upward.

Osiris dangled helplessly, eyes barely open, face pale, looking one bad decision away from passing out completely.

Isabella groaned loudly.

"Ughhhh fine, FINE, let me try again."

She turned back to the Lunareen.

"So anyway," she began, lifting her chin, "you see, the thing is... he’s... we’re... you know... it’s complicated."

The High Seraph blinked. "What is complicated?"

Isabella waved dismissively. "Everything."

The Macho Sister folded her arms. "This is not an answer."

"I KNOW IT’S NOT AN ANSWER, BUT COULD YOU AT LEAST PRETEND?" Isabella snapped.

Silence.

Dozens of glowing eyes stared at her.

Isabella inhaled sharply. "Okay, listen, just LISTEN, okay? Men are... men."

Every Lunareen hissed at the word.

"No no no—WAIT—don’t hiss—MEN are STUPID, YES, but they can also be... um... occasionally..."

Her voice trailed off.

She realized she had no compliment prepared.

"...existing," she finished helplessly.

The Lunareen looked unimpressed.

"And this one," Isabella continued, pointing upward at Osiris with a shaky hand, "this one is... extra existing. Too existing. Excessively existing."

Osiris let out a strangled sound of offense—he couldn’t form words, but his eyes were screaming "WHAT DO YOU MEAN EXTRA EXISTING?!"

Isabella cleared her throat loudly. "ANYWAY—my point is, he’s not... bad."

The eldest Lunareen squinted. "But is he the father?"

"NO!" Isabella said quickly.

Then immediately regretted it.

Because all the Lunareen began to coil tighter, tails slicing through the water in warning.

She backtracked. "WAIT, WAIT—LISTEN—I DIDN’T FINISH—STOP MOVING LIKE THAT—YOU’RE MAKING ME SWEAT—"

"Then speak truth," the High Seraph demanded.

"I AM TRYING!" Isabella clutched her skull. "You’re all so... glowy and scary and SAFE-FOR-NOBODY energy—how am I supposed to focus?!"

"Focus," the Lunareen repeated in unison.

It sounded like a cult ritual.

Isabella gulped audibly.

"Okay," she whispered to herself. "Long way around didn’t work. Short way it is."

She turned slowly, painfully, reluctantly toward Osiris.

He blinked.

She blinked.

He blinked harder.

She blinked harder back.

Her lips pressed into a thin line.

She turned to the Lunareen again.

"...so," she said slowly, "when you ask if he is the father of the child..."

"Yes," the High Seraph said.

"...what you mean is..." Isabella wheezed.

"Yes."

"...like... father father...?"

"Yes."

"...like responsible father...?"

"Yes."

"...like ’please protect this man so the baby survives’ father...?"

"Yes."

Isabella inhaled.

Her soul screamed.

Her pride died.

Her forehead wrinkled.

And then, finally—

"...yes," she whispered.

Every Lunareen’s head snapped toward her.

Their eyes brightened.

Their tails flicked sharply.

The water churned.

"Speak louder."

Isabella swallowed once.

Twice.

Her palms were sweaty.

"...yes," she forced out. "He is the father."

Osiris’ body twitched violently in shock.

If he wasn’t being strangled by magic, he would’ve screamed "WHAT?!" loud enough to shake the mountain.

The lagoon erupted into murmurs.

"The father..."

"The father of the child..."

"So he must not die..."

"The child must survive..."

"The mother speaks truth..."

Isabella grabbed Glimora tighter to her chest like emotional support.

"Yup," she said, trying not to collapse. "He is the father. The father father. The father of the children. The child needs him to survive."

Her voice cracked through the last sentence, but she refused to repeat it.

The Lunareen all shared a unified expression of deep, ancient consideration.

They floated closer, circling her slowly.

Their eyes scanned her face, her aura, her breathing.

Finally, the High Seraph narrowed her gaze sharply.

"You told truth."

Isabella nodded weakly. "Apparently."

"We accept."

Isabella exhaled so hard she nearly deflated.

"But," the High Seraph continued, voice dropping dangerously low, "if he harms our habitat..."

The Macho Sister bared her fangs. "If he disturbs our peace..."

A younger Lunareen flicked her glowing tail. "If he dares to disrespect the covenant—"

"We will eat him," the High Seraph finished.

"Without hesitation," another hissed.

"Without seasoning," added a younger one.

Isabella nodded rapidly. "GOOD. YES. FINE. HE WON’T DO ANYTHING. PLEASE PUT HIM DOWN."

The Lunareen exchanged glances.

The Macho Sister flicked her wrist.

Osiris dropped.

Hard.

He hit the ground with a violent THUD—GASP—CHOKE that made Isabella wince purely out of secondhand embarrassment.

He coughed.

Then coughed again.

Then spat out a streak of red.

Isabella’s eyes widened slightly.

"You spat blood? Really?" she muttered. "Drama queen."

Osiris groaned, voice hoarse. "What... what just happened...?"

He tried to push himself up on trembling arms.

The Lunareen dipped their heads once toward Isabella—their version of respect.

"Human mother," the High Seraph said, "your mate has been spared."

"He’s—NOT—my—" Isabella started.

But they were already sliding smoothly back into the glowing waters, disappearing beneath the illuminated lagoon like they had never been there.

Tails shimmered.

Water rippled.

Mist swirled.

And then—

Silence.

Total, complete silence.

The entire lagoon stilled.

The creatures were gone.

Leaving Isabella standing there in shock...

And Osiris lying on the ground like a half-dead rug.

Isabella slowly turned toward him.

He lifted his head weakly.

"Isabella..." he whispered, eyes wide and confused.

Isabella stared.

Her eye twitched.

Her jaw clenched.

Her aura radiated pure homicide.

She glared so fiercely the mist around her vibrated.