FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Day 6, 3:02am, downtown Elms...

Desmond steadied his breathing as he pressed himself against the stone wall of an apartment complex, listening to a cacophonous mess that could only be described as the world's worst musical mashup. Every genre imaginable played at max volume over random radios sitting on windowsills or outside on the street. Many residents had come outside to yell at their neighbors, hushing them in panicked shouts. Those responsible for the noise continued to shuffle outside, dazed and mesmerized and heedless of the shouts, flare guns and flashlights and other ridiculously obvious light sources in their hands.

The zebra had been lucky to avoid looking at any screens; he'd sure heard the audio from a nearby window, however, and watching how people had reacted to it told him all he needed to know. The snakes had hijacked the cable networks, and television was no longer safe. Just how long it'd be before the cell phone towers were infected with hypno viruses or something equally ridiculous was impossible to say, but he'd used his phone sparingly in the short time since he'd discovered the treacherous televised trap.

Now, however, he was in real danger. Those who hadn't yet succumbed to the message were making just as much noise with their yelling, and they'd gathered in the street to try and shake their hypnotized neighbors awake. It wouldn't be long before one of the scout ships noticed the activity. He could have fled and left these people to their fate--they'd be stupid not to run, after all. But he'd already left a friend and countless coworkers and strangers behind.

Aiden... Just thinking about the poor skunk tore at his heart. Had he somehow managed to escape again, or was he now up there, in one of those ships, enduring god only knew what? He could count the number of real friends he had on one hand, and Aiden was always the first who came to mind. He hoped beyond hope that the skunk was alright, then set his focus to the present. There could still be time to save these people, after all.

"Damn my good nature." the zebra groaned and quickly made his way over to the gathering crowd. Thankfully he didn't have to make this appeal in the nude; running through the subway naked hadn't been fun in the slightest, but he'd managed to find a clothing store upon emerging. Dark colors were definitely in now--he'd put on as much black as he could manage, from a long-sleeve shirt to sweat pants to a black cap and black gloves. Much as he loved his stripes, they provided little natural camouflage outside of the savanna. He'd even nabbed a balaclava fit for equines, just in case. Probably best not to use that when negotiating with scared people, though. It'd stay in his pocket for now.

"Keep your damn voices down." he shout-whispered to some of the irate and terrified onlookers. "Either try and shake them out of it, or start running. Like it or not, they've probably brought the snakes down on you, and this block is gonna be swarming soon."

The crowd's murmur only grew louder, much to his frustration. Did these people just lack basic survival instincts? There was a hum--not of the crowd, but something in the air. The sound of a scout ship's gravity-defying engine as one approached overhead. Well, he'd tried! The equine turned to leave, but someone grabbed his shoulder, almost prompting him to turn around and swing. He even might have when he first took in the reptilian visage of whoever had stopped him--until, that is, he saw genuine concern reflected back at him in the eyes of this bright green lizard man.

"Do you know anywhere safe?" the thankfully Earthling reptile asked quickly. "I haven't exactly trained for this."

"Shit, neither have I." Desmond admitted. "Safe" was a rather subjective concept right now. He breathed in deep as he scrambled for a thought. Well, there was always... "The subways are dark, but I lost them easily enough down there. If we're lucky, they'll have stayed above ground for the moment."

The lizard wrung his hands together and looked back over his shoulder. "I dunno."

"Well, decide now, because I'm going." Desmond turned on his hooves and started for the next block. He made it all of ten steps before the lizard fell in beside him and handed over a flashlight.

"Won't do us any good if we can't see down there, right?"

"Guess not." Dezzy kept one eye on the sky. The familiar hum grew louder. They definitely knew their trap had been sprung here. "What's your name?"

"Splint. Yours?"

"Desmond. Nice to meet you, Splint."

The sudden flash of spotlights against the surrounding buildings made the zebra's heart jump up to his throat. He grabbed his new companion and quickly ducked behind a small corner store, peering out as far as he dared. To his horror, what greeted them was the imposing profile of one of the huge metal snakes, sliding around the corner with unsettling grace, just barely missing them with its own smaller spotlights. Screams erupted from the crowd outside the apartments as it slithered closer, its metallic scales scraping the pavement, carrying it closer to the now fleeing onlookers. Those idiots had actually stayed outside! The mechanical snake's back opened, and several gliders emerged from the compartments inside. They leapt out and into the crowd, eyes flaring with mind-melting colors.

"Hell." Splint groaned. "Let's get out of here."

Desmond hardly needed to be told, but another, wider beam of light appearing from above meant only one thing: Sneaking away was no longer an option. "Go. Go..!"

"Where?!"

"Just--follow me!" the zebra bolted through the alley between stores, and he heard the metal serpent's joints groan--oh god, was it looking at them? They scrambled between buildings and cut into the next block, only to meet a glider head-on, which immediately coiled itself around Desmond's waist and brought its hooded head before his eyes. The zebra caught only the quickest glimpse of those horribly beautiful colored rings before two green hands grabbed at the snake's head and wrenched it backward.

"Off of him..!" Splint growled, using his own bright blue tail to try and pry the serpent loose from Desmond's chest. Their struggle, however, started to attract further attention. Another spotlight tracked them, and the lizard groaned in exertion as the snake started to lose its grip. "Oh come on, there's a literal crowd of brainlets for you to chase and you choose US?!"

With another good yank, the snake came free, and Splint hurled it at a nearby telephone pole. Unconcerned with whether or not it could give chase, the pair broke into a sprint toward the next alley, Desmond taking the lead toward the subway entrance. He held his arms up in front of him, bonking lunging serpents away as they swooped in from above. Splint, too, proved himself competent at batting them away, but the damn things just kept coming, leaping from rooftops and diving for the pair.

The next block revealed the familiar subway entrance... and the host of serpentfolk waiting at the top. Large, muscular humanoids with long tails where legs ought to be, clad in armor straight out of some sci-fi flick. Desmond swore as they were forced to divert before they were spotted, and the pair barreled their way into an abandoned storefront. This proved to be a horrible idea, as they quickly ran out of room to dodge, and Splint was tackled by one of the gliders. The violet serpent wrapped itself around the lizard and brought its enamoring eyes to bear upon him, a rainbow glow illuminating his face in the darkness. Try as he might, Desmond could not dislodge the slippery attacker, and his attempt to do so left him open for a green one to pounce and tangle itself around him.

"F-Fuck..!" the zebra almost managed to close his eyes. Almost. The colored bands flashed into the depths of his being, and an immediate wave of ecstatic relaxation warmed him to his very core. His eyes opened, and he could hear Splint moaning in rapt bewilderment as he, too, was drawn into the prismatic prison.

The snakes didn't budge for anything, their heads following the pair's frantic attempts to look away, ensuring those eyes remained right in the center of their vision.

"Don't resisssst." came the violet one's soft, sibilant hisses.

"Yesss, give in. It already feels sssso nice, doesn't it?" mirrored the second, little giggles flitting from their forked tongues.

"Nuuh... n-no... wait..." Splint whined softly, managing somehow to close one eye. He apparently had some fight in him, and his strained denial of their commands helped Dezzy to focus on his own resistance.

Those tantalizing hisses did not cease. Smooth coils wound around their bodies, so cool and pleasant to the touch. Forked tongues tickled the boys' cheeks and necks, poking around for weaknesses, for distractions. "Why wait? You're going to sssurrender eventually."

"Yesss, there's no need to fight."

"Give in."

"Sssubmit."

"Focus on the pretty colorssss."

Not again. Desmond wasn't going to let these damn things humiliate him again! He somehow managed to bring his hands up to his ears so that he could at least drown out the stupid snakes' gloating. Just muffling their suggestive tones did wonders to clear his mind, but it was that irresistible stare that really kept him held in place.

Splint shuffled in the zebra's peripheral vision. The lizard groped around him as he struggled to maintain control over his thoughts, and his hand eventually found purchase on a piece of rocky debris. In a quick motion, the chunk of concrete was shattered on the snake's head, sending it reeling to the floor! It twitched and squirmed in pain, making such pitiful noises that it almost gave Desmond cause to pity it. Almost.

With another firm bonk, the snake around the zebra was knocked to the ground, and Dezzy scrambled to his feet. His search for protection brought him upon a broken metal pipe, which he brought to bear as soon as a bright yellow-orange serpent dove at him from the left! The impact sent it flying against a countertop with a muted thud, and Dezzy followed it as his vision turned red. He'd never been a violent guy, but these damn snakes were beyond the point of scaring him. Now he was just pissed off.

"Hey, come on!" Splint called for him as he ducked under another pouncing serpent. "We can't stay here!"

Desmond barely heard him. He raised the pipe with murderous intent, only for the dazzled serpent to look up at him... notably, without those enthralling colors in its eyes. What he saw looking back at him was pain and fear... and dammit, even after all he'd been through with these stupid serpents, the dumb thing managed to look just cute enough not to clobber.

"You better remember this." he murmured as he turned his back to the counter and took off out of the building with Splint, a trio of gliders hot on their heels. "Ok, subway's out! I am officially out of ideas!"

Splint narrowly avoided a surprise pounce from a snake as they came to an intersection. A quick swing of a wooden bat he'd found behind a counter at the last shop didn't quite connect, but clued the thing in that he meant business and wasn't going to simply lay down and surrender. They came to a stop to fend off the pursuers they'd picked up. "Ah--Elmwood Park! We can go there!"

"Somehow a place filled with trees seems like a bad idea!" Dezzy swung wide as a glider came at him, coils looping around his waist. Splint quickly chased the serpent off with his weapon, but was grabbed from behind for his troubles, twin pools of hypnotic bliss bearing down upon him. Before Desmond could intervene, another snake collided with him, knocking him prone, one set of powerful eyes beaming into his mind.

Such ecstasy could be found in that gaze. The boys squirmed and struggled, every movement labored, every thought impossibly muddled. Splint's protests fell silent, the lizard's pants beginning to tent out as the serpent entwined around him fondled his crotch.

"Don't you fucking give in!" Dezzy hollered, squinting his eyes, trying so hard to step off that rainbow path to oblivion. A tail slithered into his pants and coiled around his hardening cock, bringing a hot moan to his lips and a redness to his cheeks. His vision swam with those dazzling colors, and he was forced to watch Splint endure a spirited tail-job in his peripheral vision, the lizard's own pleasured sounds only making it harder to resist.

A familiar tone began to rise in the zebra's head. Just like the last time he'd been in such a predicament, it grew louder in pitch, melting away thoughts and worries. He fought it with everything he had, gritting his teeth, filling his head with random thoughts as best as he could..!

A moment of clarity was all it took. His hand shot out and grabbed the snake by its stupidly cute face, wrenched back, and drove its head into the concrete. The damn things were tough as nails--that kind of hit would give a grown man a concussion, but all it did was daze the serpent. That was all Desmond needed. He wrestled himself free of his captor's coils and gave a clumsy kick to the one entwined around Splint.

"Up, up! Come on!" he shook the lizard firmly and practically yanked him to his feet. Splint hobbled along drunkenly for several minutes before he had enough clarity to run on his own, but they were definitely slower than before. "Why the park?" Desmond demanded as they made their way in that direction. "What's there that'll be so safe?"

"The uh... fffuck..." Splint slapped himself in the head a few times. Desmond knew just how hard it was to clear away that delicious fog. "There's a tunnel network... for all the electrical systems. Lamp posts, cameras, and the like."

"How do you know that?"

"I was hired to update their security software last year, and they had me check the tunnel cameras."

"Good enough!"

The park came into view. Dezzy's legs burned, his muscles begging for rest. With the snakes still in pursuit, the pair would have no respite until they found the tunnel. People still ran in the streets, gliders leaping at them from all directions and blasting their minds with prismatic bliss. The park would surely be swarming, but Desmond and Splint were already committed. Changing course now would only make them like all the other panicked idiots in the road.

Much to the zebra's relief, however, the trees provided them with one advantage: The gliders, as fast and maneuverable as they were, slowed significantly while trying to zip between the trunks and branches. And with the pair generally faster on foot than the serpents could slither, it seemed they might actually make their escape!

They came upon a raised stone structure, and Splint directed Desmond toward it. On the other side was a simple metal door marked with various "keep out" signs, and a keypad on the wall beside it. Splint frantically tapped at the keys, swearing under his breath as each combination he entered elicited a disapproving buzz. "Come on, which one..."

"Hurry it up, man!" Dezzy fended off the few gliders that had managed to keep up with them with wide swings of his pipe, making sure to keep his gaze away from theirs. Glowing, pulsing colored rings shone in his peripheral vision, but he kept his fear and rage at the front of his mind. Not again. No more pervy snakes on his dick.

"There's like eight different passwords, hang on!"

"I thought you updated their security!"

"Yeah, SYSTEM security!" Finally, the keypad chimed, and the door unlocked with a muted clunk. Splint swung the door wide, pulled Dezzy inside, and kicked a pursuing snake out before slamming it shut again.

Flashlights blazed to life, adding bright white to the dim yellow bulbs that lit the tunnel. A stairway leading down was their only path forward. Seeing as the snakes continued to bang on the door behind them, it'd be their single option aside from submission. Down they went, leaving the question of the tunnel's safety unvoiced, lest they tempt fate.

"So there are cameras down here?" Desmond asked as they reached the bottom of the stairs and proceeded into the tunnel proper.

"A few. Just to make sure vagrants don't come down here to camp out."

"You think the snakes have hacked that network too?"

Splint shrugged. "I mean, maybe? They already know we're down here, though. Wouldn't matter much if they did."

They continued on in silence. The tunnel branched and turned in places, and Splint led the way, taking turns on occasion, the pair's flashlights sweeping the walls and ceilings in case of any lurking serpents. Every distant clunk made them jump, but no rainbow-swirl eyes flashed in the darkness.

"So where are we going, exactly?" Desmond finally asked as they came to a stop. He rested his weary legs and groaned, exhausted by the day's ordeals.

Splint sat across from him, back against the tunnel wall. He sheepishly murmured, "I... don't exactly know."

"Wait, what? I thought you knew this place!"

"I've been down here literally once." the lizard defended. "And I figured it'd be better than staying topside."

A chilling realization struck Desmond. "Then this was just... buying time?"

"Pessimistically, I'd say that's nearly every plan at this point." Splint said with a humorless chuckle.

"And optimistically?"

"Maybe we'll find a security office to barricade, and emerge as the last two Earthlings left."

The zebra scoffed. "You really think joking around is a good idea at this moment?"

"If I don't laugh I'll cry."

That... wasn't inaccurate. In spite of it all, they did laugh a little. Suddenly given a moment to process it all, the weight of the events since the invasion's beginning started to all crash down upon Desmond. Who would have thought perverted alien snakes would be humanity's undoing? The absurdity of it was impossible not to laugh at.

"So," Splint spoke up again after a few heavy minutes of silence. "What'd you do before the snakepocalypse?"

"Data analyst. Funny, I always said I was wasting my time sitting behind a desk for forty hours a week." the zebra snorted humorlessly. "The money was good. And now it's all worthless. I love life's little jokes at my expense."

"Ah, I didn't do much better. Doesn't make it meaningless." Splint gave him a half-smile. "Maybe I'm waxing poetic because holy shit we're literally being invaded by aliens. But being successful mattered in the moment, right?"

Desmond shrugged. "I guess so."

The mood lightened somewhat as they swapped little snippets of their lives. They had a lot in common; nerdy guys who preferred the glow of computer monitors over harsh sunlight, but not so shut-in that they hissed at even the suggestion of UV rays. No particular love for beer pong, football, or other typical dudebro fascinations. They'd have probably been friends had they met before this whole thing. Hell, they still could.

A distant crashing sound echoed through the tunnel. At first they'd assumed it had come from above--another unfortunate tank crew attempting to fight back. However, the sound of metal scraping on stone told them all they needed to know.

"Time to go!" Desmond hopped to his feet and dragged Splint along, fleeing down the tunnel.

"That didn't take long!"

"Which way?!"

"Uh--um--" Splint stammered. They passed another hallway, and the lizard tried to read the signs nailed to the walls as they ran. "This... SHOULD lead to the electrical station a few blocks away?"

"You don't sound very sure!"

"Yeah well I'm not!"

Dezzy groaned and dropped the subject. There wasn't a choice in the matter. Another crash rang out, disturbingly close, and from around a corner slithered a metal serpent. The mechanical beast nearly took up the entire hallway with its girth, and its luminous eyes burst into prismatic beams of color. Desmond managed to shield his eyes in time, but he saw Splint's arms drop to his sides in what little peripheral vision he allowed himself. The lizard groaned and whimpered as he tried to resist.

"C'mon!" Desmond grabbed Splint by the hand and dragged him back the way they came. The lizard sluggishly stepped along, and the metal serpent followed with a disturbing patience, its colorful headlights illuminating the tunnel with an almost blinding kaleidoscope of mind-melting bliss.

They came upon a four-way intersection just in time for another metal snake to round a corner down the hall. It, too, activated its hypnotic assault, and Desmond turned the corner just in time to avoid its gaze. Splint, unfortunately, was not so lucky, and had to be pulled--twice as hard--to follow, his eyes wide, mouth agape.

"Fucking stop looking!" Desmond swore, pausing for a split second to smack the lizard upside the head.

"Sooo... pretty..." Splint slurred, shaking his head in an attempt to clear the overwhelming fog that had settled within it. Desmond knew all too well how hard it was, but he didn't have time for empathy right now!

Perhaps the only advantage they had was the tight quarters the tunnel provided, which limited the robotic snakes' mobility. They hadn't deployed any gliders either, perhaps out of fear of crushing their own troops in their pursuit. Desmond thought to simply keep running forward; if the snakes were behind them, they'd be easy to outpace. However, the twisting nature of the tunnels made this plan impossible. More than once, he had to turn corners, make decisions at intersections, and merely guess as to where he was going. Who the hell had designed this labyrinth?!

They rounded another corner, only to be met face-to-face with one of the metal snakes, whose eyes blazed with their mind-melting power. This time Dezzy failed to react, and the intensity of that gaze crashed against his mind. This wasn't the same gentle lull into sweet submission of the glider snakes. This was firm, concentrated authority: He would stare. He would submit. And he would like it. It hardly needed to be said, but Splint continued to fare poorly against the metallic serpent. The lizard's pants tented out hard, and he'd dropped to his knees, eyes wide and staring helplessly.

Try as he might, Desmond couldn't summon the mental defenses he'd tried against the gliders. No amount of brick-walling, distracting thoughts, or unpleasant memories could block this torrent of colors. The metallic snakes didn't hiss any honeyed words, nor did their tails slither forward to tease his loins. Their only method was pure, weaponized mind-shattering, and it wouldn't be long before he broke.

But he couldn't. He wouldn't! Somehow he managed to close one eye. And when he realized how easy it was to just keep that eye squeezed shut, he closed the other! Freedom. All he had to do was focus on freedom! The sound of metallic scales slithering closer reminded him to be afraid, and he dragged Splint to his feet. The zebra turned on his hooves and sprinted in the other direction, dragging Splint along with him and shaking the lizard furiously.

"We're not done yet, come on!"

"Wuh--uh!" It took a second, but Splint gradually managed to fall into pace with Dezzy. "Oh... Oh god..."

"Focus! Let's get out of here!"

A stairway came into view, and they went for it. There was no telling whether or not it led to freedom, but it was their only shot now. They climbed the stairs at lightning speed, and Desmond crashed through the door first... only to be met by yet another metal snake.

"FUCK!" By some miracle, they managed to shield their eyes in time, but the chase was on. Three mechanical serpents and a host of gliders chased the pair around the electrical station. Out in the open, the hypno-bots were far too fast to simply outrun, their huge mouths making lunges for the fleeing Earthlings.

Wordlessly, the two separated. Desmond sprinted for the parking lot, while Splint barged through a door leading into the power station proper. Truthfully, Dezzy had no idea what he planned to do aside from dodge between trucks, but it seemed to work out in the short-term. The metal serpents slithered around and atop the vehicles between which he hid, but refrained from crushing them in their powerful coils. Their refusal to harm their prey managed to play against them, at least for the moment. The gliders, on the other hand, easily fit between the trucks, and began to slither down from the tops of the trailers...

Meanwhile, inside, Splint rushed through the halls, glancing at signs posted on the walls. He had a really, really stupid idea, and he was almost certain he had no idea how to make it happen, but it was either this or an exhaustive run followed by inevitable capture. At least this way he might come close to saving the day like some action hero.

The lizard evaded the gliders slithering along behind him and made his way toward the electrical control room. It wasn't a particularly large facility, and he figured it was only a few doors away. Now all he had to do was bank on the snakes having no reason to post guards in this building, and pray that there was a simple method to overload the system.

Oh, and also not trip. That was a concern, too, apparently. The leg of an office chair caught his ankle as he crashed through the door to the control room, and he stumbled onto the desk with a large, important-looking computer. His momentary daze gave a glider enough time to pounce, coiling around his waist and locking its gaze with his. The lizard crooned and swayed as those pleasant colors invaded his mind. How easy would it be to simply give in and embrace the pleasures they offered? It'd felt so good before, after all...

"Give in to us." crooned those seductive serpents' soft, soothing voices. Oh, there were more of them now. All hissing and murmuring thoughts of sweet submission to the dazed lizard.

Could he? Should he? What had he even come in here for? Something important. The controls were right there. Even in his mesmerized state, he could tell it was a simple interface. Just a few keystrokes, and the whole system would overload, doing... something...

"Relax..." the gliders hissed as they beamed those beautiful colors into his eyes. "Forget all about running..."

Something... unimportant. This felt way better. It was so nice to...

"Surrender."

"Give in."

"Ssssubmit..."

PING!

Splint's mind went quiet, and a wide smile spread over his lips. The snake coiled around him hissed gentle praises into his ears, its tail slithering into the lizard's shirt, tugging firmly and tearing the fabric apart. Another coiling tail looped around his body, then another, and another! The enrapturing serpents coaxed Splint away from the control panel and down into one of the nearby chairs, but not before their coils tore his pants and underwear to shreds.

"Good boy." the serpents hissed. "You've had enough of a run, haven't you?"

"Yessss, it's time to rest now. Rest and accept our love."

A tangle of tails enveloped Splint's body, and so many tongues tickled and teased him all over. The swirled-up lizard could only moan and huff and giggle under the snakes' ministrations, his cock throbbing powerfully as they sensually overwhelmed him. A half-dozen pairs of eyes bore down upon him, ensuring there would be no escape for one of the two pesky Earthlings who'd led them on such a lengthy chase.

"Spread nice and wide now." one of them hissed as a tail invaded his backside, bringing another wanton moan from the lizard's lips. Stroking and slithering tails caressed him from head to toe, one coiled around his cock and pumping swiftly. Forked tongues flicked over the tip to lap up the ample precum dribbling down his length. It was all too much.

"Aww, looks like he needs to cum!"

"Hmm, should we let him?"

"I dunno... He made us chase him an awful long time!"

"P... Please..." Splint whimpered, mustering up the tiniest sliver of willpower in order to beg for release. There was no shame, no inhibition; all that drove him now was need.

His serpentine tormentors hummed and murmured among themselves, playfully contemplating his request for far, far too long. Seconds dragged on for hours as they slowly built up to the consensus they'd long since reached, culminating in a simultaneous utterance of that single magic word that'd seal his fate: "Cum!"

And he did. Splint's world dissolved into a colored haze as his tormented dick gave everything to his captors, spurting load after load of hot seed in rapturous release! On and on his climax went, unable to stop, the stroking coils looped around his length pumping him over and over again. It could have gone on forever, yet not nearly long enough, as his climax began to taper off. All that remained at the end of his surrender were tiny little dribbles of seed and breathy, helpless whimpers.

"Good boy." the snakes purred as they slithered around his naked body, scales rubbing on scales, tongues flicking across his neck and cheeks. "Time to go now!"

It took his legs a minute to find their strength again, but Splint was up before long, marching forward at his captors' insistence. A swirling pair of eyes kept his focus, the gliders not taking another chance with this particularly flighty lizard. Somewhere in Splint's mind, he wondered how Desmond was doing. Had the zebra finally come to his senses and surrendered to the wonderful serpents?

The answer, it turned out, would not take long to reveal itself. Splint marched outside, naked and still quite hard in spite of having came so hard just minutes ago, and stood before one of the massive metal serpents. No longer did he fear the noble machine bearing down upon him, mouth open wide and slowly approaching his head. The gliders slithered up onto the mechanical serpent's head and into several open scales, leaving the lizard to be slowly lifted up and gulped down into the robot's false stomach.

The inside was pleasantly warm, and not wet or gooey like one would imagine while sliding down something's gullet. Rather, the snake's throat was soft like velvet, and he slid along rather easily, aided downward by the contractions of pseudo-muscles. Splint's face came into contact with something soft, and he felt a body shift and squirm to make room for him. Curled up inside the serpent, with his back to the lizard, was a zebra. He turned, and Splint beheld the blissed-out face of Desmond, his eyes still glowing with the serpents' hypnotic rings, just as Splint's surely did. He'd seen the light after all.

A sensation of motion helped to lull the pair into a hypnotic slumber. The mechanical snake slithered along, headed toward the nearest collection vessel hanging in the air over the city. It had two troublesome captives to deliver, after all.