บท 45: 45 - A Change in Viewpoint (1) - (1.73k words)
╔═══ Author's note ════╗
I think this is the right time to show you a snippet of the first meeting between Muir and Yaya, but not from Yaya's viewpoint but from Muir's.
I left it out intentionally. 🤭
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Somewhere in the past...
Muir's POV - Part 1/2
"Something seems wrong," I said to myself as I flew above the Racoon's village, looking around for survivors.
There were dead raccoon beastmen everywhere. But it wasn't this that shook me to the core ─ it was the scorpions, dozens of them, dead all around the place.
Did someone from the rescue team arrive ahead of me? How could that be possible? Did the villagers defeat them?
"It's someone from the eagle clan!" A villager from the ground pointed in my direction, "Please. Help us! We've been attacked!"
The screams of villagers pleading for help filled the air, yet I ignored them all. As an eagle beastman, I've had to learn to shut out such harrowing cries to preserve my own sanity. These dark experiences have hardened me, chilling my emotions.
Our clan had no females, and we were undesirable partners in the eyes of many. Females seldom sought us out, deterred by our lack of warmth and affection or... because they knew we demanded mutual respect and wouldn't tolerate disrespectful behavior from anyone ─ females included.
From a young age, we are taught that emotions are a distraction. Our partnerships are strategically formed to strengthen our ranks and secure our future.
We are the most respected clan among the beastmen, and this respect grants us easy access to their females. We rescue females, and in return, they bear us eaglets. There's no need to fight their males to win over their females because our status negates the necessity. This approach is the most efficient method for us to continue our lineage. This is our way ─ a path laid down by generations, dictated by necessity rather than desire.
My initial task was to assess the entire situation from above, aiming to minimize our own casualties. After circling the village, I rescued as many females as possible from the scorpions, swiftly transporting them to safety and coordinating with the rescue team.
I thought my mission was complete, but then I spotted another figure. Her scent was faint, nearly undetectable, but my keen vision caught sight of her.
She was busy treating two raccoon beastmen, muttering assuring words while doing so, "It will be alright. There is no need to fear. They are all safe now."
From my angle, her face remained hidden, yet her distinctly feminine stature and the timbre of her voice left no doubt of her gender.
Without waiting for a response, she quickly covered the bodies of the raccoon beastmen, poisoned by scorpion venom, with anything she could find nearby, like furs and clothes, and darted off in a different direction while shouting in the air, "The rescue team is already here! Our females are safe inside the nearby lake. The snake feral who had kidnapped them has been dealt with! Pass on the message!"
She didn't seem affected by the death or gore around her, yet her voice carried fear and desperation, almost as if she was trying to lure the scorpions and rootless in her direction.
She did all that while luring the raccoon beastmen in the lake's direction with false hope. The beastmen continued to shout her message even as they fell victim to the scorpions' venomous attacks and the relentless rootless.
Her efficiency was brisk, almost cold, mirroring my own.
"Scorpions!" the female on my back shrieked, her voice thick with terror as more creatures began to swarm from below the ground. Her fear set off a chorus of screams from three other females clutching their cubs tightly. "Please, take us to safety!" they cried, desperation coloring their pleas.
My claws flexed, and my heart raced. Above the chaos, I had to make a decision. I couldn't move efficiently with four females and their cubs on my back. Should I save the four and fly to safety, or attempt a dangerous aerial rescue for the lone female and risk a fatal scorpion strike?
"Don't be stupid, Muir," I told myself as I turned sharply in the air, leading us away from the peril below. As we gained altitude, I cast one last look behind. Below, the lone female fleeing from a scorpion struck a chord in my conscience. The reality of what we had to leave behind ─ to save what we could ─ was a burden I would carry with every beat of my wings.
· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·
After dropping off the last group of females, I returned to the Racoon's village to look for her with the little hope I had left.
The rescue group hasn't reached the village yet. So why was she lying? Why was she giving them false hope?
After reaching the lake she had mentioned, I spotted the raccoon females. They were floating and holding onto wooden logs, their eyes wide open and their mouths frozen in horror, their hands holding their cubs close to their chests.
The water around them had crocodile bodies floating around, and some were rootless. They were dead, all of them.
"What happened here?" I muttered to myself, but my voice was lost in the wind. A loud hiss snapped me out of my thoughts. I turned my head and saw a giant red snake charging at me from the shore. His fangs were wide open, and he was ready to bite. I quickly turned to my right, avoiding his attack.
I was too late to realize my mistake. As I was turning, the snake's tail whipped out and hit me with enough force to send me tumbling to the ground.
"Curtis, stop playing around. We are leaving," A familiar voice came from the shore. The snake froze and looked over his shoulder, but he didn't let go of me.
"You told me to kill any danger that gets close," The snake, or rather the Curtis, tried to argue, but the female cut him off.
"I told you to eliminate threats to the females, not the only rescue that showed up. Anyway, let's go," The female ordered, "Hurry before the whole horde of his kind appears."
The snake quickly let go of me. "You called them flying rats. I thought you hated them and wanted them dead too," the four-striped snake hissed one last time at me and slithered back to her, but his eyes didn't leave me until they were both out of sight.
My heart was beating so fast. I almost died. The thought of dying didn't scare me, but the thought of not seeing her again did. I had to know what she was, why she was, and who she was. It was driving me insane. I needed answers.
I quickly took flight and started my search again, "Where are you?" I mumbled, circling the area again. It was then that I saw her.
She sat on a broad tree branch next to the snake feral, her eyes fixed on the sky above. The rescue team soared overhead, mounted on majestic eagles. They were busy transporting the females from the lake to safety.
I finally had a clear view of her face. Upon closer look, I noticed a few scratches and purplish bruises across her face, making my blood boil.
Who hurt her?!
Why is she hurt?!
Why is she covered in bruises and cuts?!
Her clothes were dirty, and her hair was a mess. It was obvious that she had been through hell, yet she still seemed to care about some random beast men's life instead of worrying about herself?!
"Come with me, now! You are hurt and need medical attention. You can't stay here," I pleaded, my anger rising.
I wanted to reach out to her, but she suddenly jumped off the branch. I knew she could hear me and see me, but she ignored me as a snake's tail came into my view and whipped in my direction. I had no choice but to fly into the air, dodging its attack.
"You are not welcome here, flying rat. Leave or die," The feral snake warned me, "She is my female."
"I can't do that," I replied, looking down at him.
"Then, die." The snake opened its mouth wide, hissing and getting ready to charge.
I avoided his attack and flew directly at her.
"I will find you again, and when I do, I'll ask you to be my female. No matter who stands in my way, I will fight for you. And, once you become my female, no one will ever harm you again," I said as I flew away, my heart pounding loudly.
I was never like this. I was never so aggressive. I had always been a calm and collected male.
But, I couldn't help it.
My body was hot.
My heart was racing.
My breathing was erratic.
My mind was spinning.
My soul was screaming.
She didn't look like she was afraid of anything. She looked confident, calm, and deadly. Yet, I couldn't help but want to hold her in my arms, protect her, and keep her safe. But protect her from what? She was mated to the snake feral, one of the strongest ferals I've ever met, and she treated him casually as if he were any other sheep beastmen out there.
"Damn it!" I cursed and flew faster, determined to get her some healing herbs as soon as possible. "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" I repeated to myself. My anger was rising again, and this time, it wasn't just because of her wounds. It was because of the fact that she was a massive swindler!
What rescue team? This whole time, the raccoon village's so-called aid was nothing but a feral snake and a cunningly disguised female!
It took me a few hours to collect the necessary herbs. But when I returned, she was nowhere to be found. The snake was gone, and so was she. It was nothing unexpected.
It was a good thing I knew how to track a beastman. So, I did just that. It didn't take long for me to find the snake's trail.
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