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The Voice of a Viper
by Jenn Belew
For many moons before you came, I roamed this land, untouched and free.
Those who knew me revered me.
I was like a God in this land, limbless and unblinking I traversed the plains, mountains, streams, forests and trees.
All was my domain, save for the air. I renewed myself seasonally, keeping an appearance of eternal youth.
My scales were called beautiful, my colors, too.
And then....you came.
With you came fear and misunderstanding.
With you came guns and religion that was against the natural order.
You called me "hideous" and "the devil itself".
You called me "disgusting" and "slimy".
You took the ones from me who knew and understood me.
You took me and the rest like me and broke our backs under your bootheels.
You threw us in pits with no food or water, making us wallow in filth and hunger for months.
You smashed our heads to the ground, cut them off, but we could still see and feel.
You ate our flesh and wore our skin.
And yet, you called me the devil?
I never set out to hurt you.
Your kind is not my prey; I never hunted you.
You stole my land and my people from me, then called me "pest".
You have tried your best to wipe me out....
But off in the distance, there is one voice, then three, then ten...
Of those like you, but with the heart of the ones you took from me.
They say, "You must stop. These creatures are important. We need them".
They keep my kind safe from you, sometimes in their own homes.
They take us far away from your kind to places where we can roam free once more.
They understand.
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