The Runaway's Hope (Part 5)

Vola landed on the soft flesh in Suviklarg’s mouth as the serpent’s head tipped up. She scrambled to grab anything with her free hand. The forked tongue whipped frantically to swallow the her and the core.
Vola grabbed one of the short fangs lining the sides of the closed mouth. She wedged her feet between other pairs of longer fangs to brace herself in the middle of this more deadly cavern. Her grip tightened on the core’s scoured surface.
The head of the serpent continued to lash around; his mouth opening and closing. Retching sounds came from above her head. The smell of acidic bile billowed upon her from the depth of the serpent with every convulsion. Dim shards of light made their way in as the serpent thrashed. Vola’s feet stayed in place. The mucus covering the white flesh of the mouth shimmered as light came in. Vola hoped she could hang on long enough to find what she was looking for.
“I. Will. KILL. YOU!” Suviklarg’s voice boomed in her head. The anger behind the telepathic message pierced her mind like swords. Vola managed to stay firmly in place despite the mental onslaught.
Suviklarg struggled to eject Vola. Light came in through his moving lips and fell upon the small circular tube Vola was searching for. It snapped closed after a quick intake of air.
Vola centered the core where the tube would open to take in another breath. If she missed, both of them would slide into the awaiting acid.
Suviklarg let out another hiss of anger. The windpipe opened and Vola shoved the core in. The hissing stopped but the thrashing of the head intensified as the serpent suffocated. She hung on as best she could. One hand slipped off the core but with her feet between the teeth, she kept herself and the core in place.
The serpent’s head slowed to spasms as he struggled for air. A new, acrid scent filled her nostrils. What felt like liquid fire attacked her feet and legs as the serpent’s acid worked its way through her clothing and onto her skin.
Vola’s scream filled the fleshy tomb and drowned out her thoughts. More acid secreted into the serpent’s mouth covering more of her body with the burning pain. Moments stretched into eternity.
Suviklarg’s head shuddered. The periodic spasms of the serpent’s muscles slowed to twitches. With a crash, all movement stopped. Vola was on her side still holding the core in place, trapped in darkness and silence. The tongue had stopped moving. As the acid continued to eat away at her clothes, she knew she’d killed the last dragon.