The sacred pool lay deep beneath the temple, a natural cavern carved by an underground river that had flowed since before the mountains rose. The water was black and still, so clear that she could see the stone floor far below, and it was infused, Lord Vikram had told her, with the essence of the first serpents. The naga who had shed their skins in these waters at the dawn of creation, leaving behind their power, their wisdom, their ancient, coiling magic. Tonight, the third seeding would take place here, in the weightless dark, and she would become the serpent bride.

Anaya stood at the edge of the pool, naked, her body still tingling from the oils the priestesses had massaged into her skin. These oils were different from the floral scents of the previous nights. They smelled of musk and minerals and something reptilian, something cold-blooded and eternal. Her hair was unbound and floated around her shoulders like a dark cloud. She had been instructed to drink a cup of bitter herbal tea that made her limbs feel loose and her mind feel open, receptive to the spirits that dwelled in these waters.