Capítulo 18: Stranger Among the Beasts
Khalil's stomach let out a loud, demanding growl as he rubbed it absentmindedly. The faint ache of hunger pulled him from his spiraling thoughts, forcing him to focus on something more immediate than the monumental events of earlier.
"Well," he muttered, looking down at himself, "if I'm hungry, at least I'm alive."
Sliding off the large bed, Khalil stretched, groaning softly as his body protested. His muscles still ached from the strain he'd put on them, but the luxurious room he had awakened in reassured him he was somewhere safe—relatively.
He walked to the door with a mixture of curiosity and caution. Placing a hand on the ornate handle, he hesitated.
'What's outside?' The room felt too pristine and expensive to belong to anyone he knew. Steeling himself, he turned the handle and pulled the door open.
The hallway beyond was grand, lined with polished stone walls, soft glowing orbs mounted on sconces, and intricately patterned rugs. But it wasn't the decor that caught his attention.
It was the beasts.
At least five of them wandered the corridor. Each was unique—one resembled a lion with curling horns; another had the lithe body of a panther but the shimmering scales of a reptile. A third was smaller, a fox-like creature with tails crackling faintly with embers.
Their collective presence was both majestic and utterly terrifying. At least to him who was living in a modern tech world not long ago, where one would meet beasts only in zoos or protected places.
Khalil froze in place, his awkward smile betraying his panic.
The beasts stopped as well, their eyes immediately locking onto him. Their movements ceased, and an eerie silence enveloped the hallway.
"Grr..."
A low growl echoed from the horned lion, and the others joined in, their postures shifting subtly. Khalil could easily feel their wariness, their suspicion.
He raised his hands awkwardly, palms out in a gesture of peace. "Uh, hi? Don't mind me. Just a very lost human here… definitely not a threat!"
'Or a snack...'
The beasts weren't convinced. They continued to growl, their gazes sharp and unyielding. Khalil's awkward smile faltered.
'Why can't I understand them like before?' he thought, his mind flashing back to the bonding hall where the beasts' voices had been clear and comprehensible. Here, though, their guttural sounds were foreign, incomprehensible. Yet their body language and emotions left no doubt—they didn't trust him.
As Khalil stood rooted in place, unsure whether to retreat or brave a step forward, a sudden movement above caught his eye. Something small and bright descended gracefully, like a piece of lightning come to life.
It was a bird-like creature, its feathers crackling faintly with streaks of electricity. Despite its size, it radiated an aura of authority that made even the larger beasts pause.
The creature landed softly in front of Khalil, its sharp yellow eyes scanning the room. It spread its wings slightly, electricity arcing around it as it released a piercing screech.
To Khalil's surprise, he understood it—partially.
"Do not attack. He is… master's guest," the bird seemed to say, its tone sharp and commanding.
The other beasts hesitated, their growls quieting into reluctant huffs as they exchanged wary glances. Finally, they backed away, their tension easing just enough to signal that Khalil wasn't about to become a snack—at least not yet.
"Uh… thanks for that," Khalil said, exhaling a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. He glanced at the bird, its feathers still crackling faintly with energy. "So… Mr. Bird, right? Um, could you tell me where I am?"
The bird's head tilted, its sharp eyes narrowing as it studied him. Khalil felt a bit self-conscious under its gaze. Finally, the creature let out another screech, though it sounded more like a questioning tone.
Khalil scratched the back of his head. "Right… you don't have a name, do you? Or, more specifically I don't know it. Well, anyway, I'd really appreciate some directions."
The bird continued to stare at him, almost suspiciously. Then, as if deciding something, it screeched again—a sound that translated roughly in Khalil's mind.
"This is… master's nest."
Khalil blinked. "Nest? Oh… you mean his house? His place? Got it. Is your master… uh… the principal? You know, the middle-aged human with the nicely trimmer black beard?"
At this, the bird stiffened, its crackling feathers flaring slightly. It stared at him more intently, a hint of surprise flashing in its gaze.
Khalil raised his hands defensively. "Hey, I'm just guessing here! No need to get all zappy on me."
The bird let out a shorter screech, and while Khalil couldn't fully understand it, he got the gist.
"Wait. Master will… return."
"Oh, uh, sure," Khalil said, nodding awkwardly. "I'll just… wait here then. No problem. Totally fine."
The bird's suspicious gaze lingered for another moment before it turned away, hopping to a nearby perch where it kept a watchful eye on both Khalil and the other beasts.
As Khalil leaned back against the doorway, he let out a shaky laugh. "Master's guest, huh?" he muttered to himself. His stomach growled again, and he groaned. "I just hope being a guest means I get fed…"
'And not fed to...'
He glanced at the bird, its feathers still faintly glowing. "Or at least pointed to a kitchen."
The bird's crackling feathers twitched, almost as if it had heard him. But it made no move to reply, leaving Khalil alone with his thoughts—and his hunger.
"Well, let's think of this as fasting," He muttered, memories of both his first life and the life as Kalem resurfacing in his mind.
Compared to his Khalil self, Kalem lived a more ordinary, poorer life, often being left hungry for days when they were young. Even after he grew up, his situation didn't improve that much.
Well, he was taught how to hunt by his father who appeared rarely at the house, but... He couldn't bear to hurt animals, seeing they were no different from him - trying to survive in this difficult world.
His stomach growled again, more insistently this time, and Khalil found himself smiling despite his situation. The irony wasn't lost on him—here he was, surrounded by beasts that could easily make him their meal, while his own hunger gnawed at him from within.
"Funny how some things don't change across lives," he mused quietly, watching as the electric bird's feathers pulsed with each word. "Kalem couldn't hunt because he saw himself in those animals, and now here I am, seeing something more in these beasts too."
The horned lion had settled at the far end of the corridor, its tail sweeping lazy arcs across the ornate carpet. The fox-like creature's ember-tails had dimmed to a gentle glow, like banked coals in a hearth. Even the scaled panther had relaxed its vigilant pose, though its eyes still tracked his every movement.
They were magnificent, dangerous, and yet... somehow familiar. Like pages from a story he'd read long ago but couldn't quite remember. His hand drifted to his chest, where beneath his clothes lay the mark that had started all of this—the proof that he, too, now, belonged in this world of wonders and mysteries.
"Maybe," he whispered, more to himself than his wary audience, "that's why I'm here. Not just because of what happened in the bonding hall, or in my world, or... for other unknown reasons but because both Khalil and Kalem knew there was more to life than just survival."
The electric bird tilted its head, a curious chirp escaping its beak. For a moment, Khalil could have sworn he saw understanding in those sharp yellow eyes.
His stomach rumbled once more, but this time, he embraced it. After all, a little hunger was a small price to pay for being exactly where he needed to be—even if he didn't quite know where that was yet.
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