Chapter 12. Adjustment (3)
We shared a simple lunch together after that. I sat chatting with Donna and Mara, picking up more useful information about life in this tribe.
The chief usually gives out soft cotton cloth to all the females to use during their monthly cycles. Every beast person has a different cycle length.
Some only go through it once a year. Others experience it once every three or four months. Their symptoms feel similar to regular human cycles when the time comes.
A small number of beast people have a monthly cycle just like me. Those mostly belong to primate clans such as gorillas and orangutans.
I listened closely to every word they said, storing all these details in my mind.
Knowing more about their bodies and daily customs would help me survive longer in this strange new world.
A sharp pain throbbed at the back of my head, like a laser beam drilling straight into my skull. I turned to look behind me.
A short distance away, the chief's daughter stood staring at me with fierce, unkind eyes.
Lola, was that her name? I could not recall clearly. Her quiet husband lingered just behind her, doing his best to soothe her foul mood.
"You should watch your back," Mara whispered.
"You only have Tigris as your partner. Lola has been acting strange lately. I heard she takes all her frustration out on her own husband."
I looked closer and noticed dark purple and blue bruises scattered across the man's skin.
"Can she really do that? Would no one step in if we reported this to the chief?" I asked.
"This is how things work here," Mara explained.
"It is common for females to lash out at their weakest husbands when their tempers flare. No one likes to see it, but everyone has grown used to the practice." I stared back in utter confusion.
This world truly had its rules turned completely upside down.
Mara went on to warn me further.
She said a female could strike her mate without causing real harm, so long as she did not break their life bond.
Once a bond is formed, a male devotes his entire existence to his partner.
That is why they choose their females so carefully.
In return, each female builds a stable and peaceful home to care for her family.
The sun dipped below the treetops soon after, and everyone headed back to their own dwellings.
Tigris left to hunt for our evening meal, chasing after deer or other wild animal.
I wandered around gathering herbs and spices, sorting through each one carefully.
I hoped to recognize familiar flavors and cook a simple dish from my hometown.
"Lily, are you home?" A voice called from outside the cave.
I thought it might be Donna or Mara coming to visit.
"It is you. Lola, right? What can I do for you?"
"I saw you playing the flute earlier," she said softly.
"I was wondering if you could teach me too. I was too nervous to walk over in front of the crowd. You looked busy talking to the other females."
"You want to learn how to play the flute? I can help you tomorrow." I still suspected she had hidden intentions, but perhaps everyone was just being overly cautious.
Maybe she was just a lonely girl who wanted to join in the fun.
"I already have a flute. My husband is finishing it up right now. Would you come with me now? I want to learn early so I can surprise everyone tomorrow." The sharp look she held earlier vanished in an instant.
Her ears perked up and her tail wagged gently behind her, making her seem like a sweet younger sister.
After spending so much time with Tigris, I had grown soft toward this kind of demeanor.
"Right now? I do not have my flute yet. Tigris is out gathering materials to make one for me."
"That is all right. My husbands crafted two flutes right now. The other one went out hunting a while ago, so I came to invite you alone. Hehe."
A flicker of worry crossed my mind.
Donna had warned me about her, but I had never been good at turning away someone who looked so innocent.
That was part of how I had ended up trapped in this beast world in the first place.
I glanced toward the neighboring cave where Donna's family lived, then looked back at Lola.
"We can go for a little while only. Let me change my clothes first."
There was no real harm in going for a simple teaching.
We were still inside the tribe grounds, and she was alone. She could not cause me too much trouble here.
I pulled on a thick hoodie and slipped a small folding knife into my pocket.
I thought the blade might come in handy for carving and adjusting the shape of the flute later on.
"We could head over to the elder's hut on the way," I suggested as we stepped outside together.
"They know more about playing music. Learning beside an experienced elder would help us improve faster. They might also have better quality flutes we can look at."
Lola nodded eagerly and fell into step beside me.
There was no electric light in this world, but the bright glow of the full moon lit up the path clearly enough for us to see where we walked.
We had traveled nearly halfway to our destination when two massive beast figures suddenly burst out from the thick bushes.
They lunged forward and clamped rough hands over my mouth, then pinned my arms tight against my body.
Muffled gasps and whimpers escaped my throat.
Panic surged through me.
Who were these two beasts? Why were they attacking me? It did not take long for the truth to sink in.
"HMMMFHHH." I struggle to make any noise.
Lola had set this whole trap.
"Hurry up, we need to leave before anyone realize."
She gave a quiet command, and the two men, who were none other than her own husbands, worked quickly to silence me.
They tied thick rope around my wrists and ankles, then lifted me off the ground and carried me away.
We walked for a very long time, climbing steadily upward along the winding path toward the mountain peak.
One of the beastmen carried Lola gently in his arms like a precious treasure.
The other slung me over his shoulder as carelessly as a sack of potatoes.
After we reached the summit, Lola spoke up, her voice sharp and full of venom.
She called me cruel names, hurling insults as she glared down at me.
She told her husband to remove the cloth stuffed in my mouth so I could hear every bitter word she had to say.
I glared right back at her, anger boiling in my chest. "What is your problem? What have I ever done to you?"
"You stole Tigris from me," Lola snarled.
"He was always meant to be mine. I know the bond mark is already on your body. Everyone knows if you die, Tigris will turn into a rampaging insane beast. I would rather see him destroyed than let him stay by your side."
I dragged out our conversation, firing off questions and sharp retorts to buy myself time.
"Are you not scared? If tigris find out, he will never forgive you!"
"Huh, what can single beast on the verge of rampage be able to do? Im the daughter of this tribe chief, and i have the strongest family pack, in this life time, what i can't have i will ruin it myself!"
While she ranted on, I quietly moved my hands behind my back.
I slowly pulled out the small folding knife I had hidden in my pocket, and carefully cut away at the rope binding my wrists.
None of them noticed my quiet movements in the dark.
Lola stepped forward and pressed her foot hard against my torso.
A sharp wave of pain crashed over me, and I let out a loud scream.
Her two husbands stood behind her with sorrowful looks in their eyes.
It was the natural way of their kind to protect all females.
Females were few in number and physically far weaker than males, so every male was raised to shield them from harm.
Still, obeying their mate's orders came above all else.
They feared being separated from Lola.
They knew losing their life bond would drive them mad eventually.
Even if it meant hurting another female, they could not bring themselves to defy her.
Lola laughed coldly as she continued to kick and strike my body.
I waited for the perfect opening.
In one swift move, I reached up and grabbed her ankle, pulling hard.
She lost her balance and crashed heavily onto the rocky ground.
Before she could recover, I drove the tip of my knife into her foot.
"ARGGGHHHH... IT HURT! STOP IT STOP IT."
Lola shrieked in agony and shouted more curses at me.
One husband rushed over at once to cradle her and check her injury. The other lunged forward to grab my arms and stop me from running.
I scrambled to my feet and tried to flee, but my body was too weak and slow. Bruises and fresh wounds from Lola's beating slowed me down drastically.
"Throw her into the crater!" Lola screamed through tears of pain and rage.
A huge wolf beast, standing over two meters tall, stepped forward.
He grabbed the collar of my hoodie between his powerful jaws and lifted me up into the air.
The tight fabric pressed against my throat, cutting off my breath and leaving me gasping.
"no.... please, i dont... die, no." I mumbled quiet pleas of refusal, my voice barely audible through the constriction around my neck.
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ROAR