The wind howled like a lone wolf through the mountains, stirred the surface of the lake. It lay like a serene black mirror, gleaming like a polished rock in the sunlight. But no light of the sun permeated its depths. Beneath its serenity, beneath the calm of the mirror lay an ancient turmoil, an evil, a malice that would not lie quietly in the mountains.
He stood at the edge of the water, gazing into it with the eyes of a man who cannot know that he is gazing at the cold, serene beauty of death. Something moved within the lake, uncoiled. The water lapped at his feet, his ankles, and was suddenly scorching hot. The man leapt back in fright, a pathetic, strangled scream lodged in his throat, his eyes now wide with terror.
The lake exploded upwards, outwards, showering searing water upon the ground. Green scales glinted, two eyes blazed with hellfire. As the water fell back into the lake, a creature stood amongst it, coils heaving, pulsating. Its maw parted from rows of white needles, and a barbed tongue darted over its lips. A serpentine hiss rasped its throat.
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