Chapter 14: 14 - Selfdestructive (1.6k words)
"HOW DO YOU EXPECT ME TO BE LOCKED INSIDE A ROOM, WHEN THESE THINGS CAN ROAM FREE OUTSIDE?!?? You call me sick but it's him who is sick for allowing this all to happen! Do you think I care about my life and safety?! Go ahead! Torture me! Or better, just kill me! At least I will die with the thought that I did as much as possible!" I yelled at the jerk who tried to restrain my movements again, pinning my arms with his knees against the ground.
"These were specially made for Yaya by her father," the jerk tried to explain the small weights around my wrist and ankles to Curtis in a calm voice, "Every time she goes out of control like this, he will increase the weight load, and lock her up inside her room, where she will undergo treatment until she calms down. Even though she looks old like Nivi, she is much older and went through more battles than me. The emerald you gave her nullified the effect of the drug that I shot into her. It's very difficult to make, but my people are already on their way to gather the ingredients in order to make a new one."
"Hey! Aren't you supposed to be my mate?!" I yelled at the silent snake man who allowed all this to happen, his arm holding my legs, "Why are you doing nothing?! Why are you trusting his words over mine?!" I kicked away at my legs, hitting Curtis's chest, causing him to stumble back, "I specifically told you not to listen to him, yet you do exactly that! Does the spousal imprint mean nothing to you?!"
"Are you crazy?! Your untrained upper body is still too weak compared to your tail!" The jerk used both his hands and legs to pin me down, waiting for Curtis to wrap his tail around me tightly.
Both Dickhead and Curtis had received small injuries to both their bodies and faces when I tried to kill them off after they tried to change my mind.
"Precious, your behavior gives me no choice but to call your father!"
I stopped abruptly, the hair on my skin standing on its ends.
"I might change my mind if you give me a little kiss," the jerk tried to apologize to me with little rubs of his cheek against my cheek when he saw my reaction. But all I heard was a threat as he made me choose between his lips or my father.
"Go kiss his old ass, Dickhead."
Momentarily speechless, Dickhead was forced to do just that. He took out an item that looked like a gastropod shell. He placed it on the ground next to my head. Activating it, it began to emit a soft, alluring glow.
"What is that, Vick?" an authoritative voice emerged from the shell immediately.
"It's regarding the young miss, sir," Dickhead replied, his voice calm and respectful despite the circumstances. "She's... found herself in a bit of trouble again. There was a horde of scorpions attacking another village and she decided to be reckless and went out of control again instead of holding back like in the previous village. There is a high chance it alerted some high-ranking ferals from the Flame City to come and investigate."
In a tone laden with disapproval and authority, the voice squarely addressed Dickhead's shortcomings. "You had one job, Vick, to ensure she stayed on the right path. Yet, here we are, dealing with her rebellions once more. You've clearly not grasped the severity of your oversight. Now, let me speak to her directly."
"Hey, old fossil," I cheekily responded, despite my body shaking from the cold grip of fear.
A soft laughter escaped my father, a sound that seemed out of place against the backdrop of nerves around me, Dickhead, and Curtis.
"Old fossil, huh?" my father retorted with a feigned offense, "I'll have you know, this 'fossil' has a few tricks up his sleeve yet to show to you. Noticed you've developed a fondness for scorpions, have you? Maybe Daddy can boost them up a bit, and make your encounters with them a tad more thrilling. How's that sound, my dear daughter?"
The mention of a 'little boost' sent a shiver down my spine. I bit down on my lips, hard. The physical pain a welcome distraction from the swirling maelstrom of emotions.
"Daddy," I finally said, forcing softness into my voice even though it made my skin crawl, "I don't know how I ended up here, but I've really grown to like this place. Can I please stay here a little longer?"
"Vick, how is her face, is she treating herself with care?" my father asked, as if thinking about whether he would go with my whims depending on Dickhead's answer, "Don't forget that she is my one and only blood-related daughter. If I discover you've lied to me, I'll take her from you and place her under the watch of someone else."
I gritted my teeth, holding back not to tear up, afraid everything would go to naught if Vick spoke out the truth.
Vick paused, touching the little scratches and bruises on my forehead, before answering, "She is beautiful as always, Sir."
"Good. Yang Yali, start referring to your fiancé as Vick instead of Dickhead, and make him the head male of the little herd of mates he is building for you, and you can stay in that place as long as Vick deems fit."
The connection suddenly cut, leaving no room for negotiation.
I slouched to the ground, feeling all my energy drain away as I sighed in relief. My father's terms weren't particularly difficult this time.
Vick glanced back at Curtis, signaling him to gently wrap his long tail around my entire body now that he saw my mood had stabilized. "As you could have observed, one male might be enough to protect her from external threats, but it's clearly not enough to hold her back when she decides to go on a rampage. Even with three squads of people from where we originated, it was still a challenge."
Curtis lifted my heavy body with his strong tail, which now weighed like half a ton, placing me in his arms as he hugged me tightly, "Who are you, Yaya?" his forked tongue licked away at the scratches on my forehead, its healing properties preventing them from leaving lasting scars.
I feigned deafness as I looked at the sky absentmindedly.
"But will the two of us be enough to restrain and take care of Precious?" Vick stood up and ruffled his hand through his hair, "You said that the triple-marked eagle tried to court her? Despite her scars?"
Curtis confirmed, "He said Yaya is the gentlest and kindest female he has ever seen after she led some villagers to safety. Yaya just laughed it off, saying she couldn't take another mate because of me. He then insisted he'd be happy just being by her side, looking after her. When we were alone, I asked her if she was interested. She dismissed the eagle as a 'flying rat that could rot in the ocean's pit for all I cared.'"
Vick stifled a laugh as he slung my backpack over his shoulders, showing Curtis how to lift me up in the most efficient way, "The females in this world must be a hard nut to crack if someone considers our Yaya the gentlest and kindest."
"A beast man who has set his sights on a female won't give up that easily. The flying rat will return," Curtis stated as he began to train his upper torso, using me as his makeshift barbell. He would occasionally lean over to lick at my scratches while Vick would lean over to suck on my neck, licking it with his tongue just so slightly before retreating.
"Do you have a list of terms from your world? I sometimes don't understand what you or Yaya are saying," asked Curtis, watching how another man sucked on my neck while I was still in his arms, trying to get used to it.
"Yaya should have a vocabulary in her laptop," Vick opened my backpack, "Where is your laptop, Precious?"
"Nivi," an answer escaped my lips.
Vick roamed around it a bit more, "You also gave her the portable solar panel? And the gun? Shouldn't you be keeping these things around?"
"Nivi needed these things more than me," I said, "I want to see Nivi."
╔═══ Author's note ════╗
Even though YY is quite OP, the thing she wants to accomplish is impossible. No matter how many she kills, there are too many, and there will always be new ones. Many are even hiding under a facade, unlike the scorpions which are easy to identificate.
Yaya knows it's impossible, but it became her only reason to live. She was frantic to do it without a rest until her mind and body fall apart.
The scene in the second village struck a chord with both Curtis and Vick when they went to pick her up, making them realize that if they didn't find a way to stir her away from her obvious path to self-destruction, they risked losing her forever.
Usually, it's the MC who heals the side characters and makes them fall in love with her character. Here, the side characters will try to save Yaya from her inner monsters, despite her bad treatment towards them.
Some fluff next, yay!
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