Hei Yan sat on his stone throne, his tail twitching with a mixture of boredom and a very un-Alpha-like sense of anticipation. Usually, he would be out hunting something with large tusks, but today, he was preoccupied.
Specifically, he was watching a small, fluffy panther cub named Mao-Mao struggle with a piece of skewered meat over a fire.
"Higher, Mao-Mao," Hei Yan commanded, his voice a deep rumble. "If you touch the embers, it will taste like ash. Xin Yi says the 'char' must be deliberate, not a tragedy."
The cub grunted, his tiny paws trembling as he held the wooden spit. "Alpha.….meat heavy. Why we not just eat raw? Raw is fast. Raw is.….raw."
"Because, small one," Hei Yan said, his eyes softening as he thought of a certain stubborn, pale-skinned female, "Xin Yi says raw meat is for 'barbarians' and 'people who want parasites.' Also, the salt makes it zing."
He looked around the bustling clearing. His tribe was.….different. Ever since Xin Yi had arrived and started 'civilizing' them, the Shadow Claw tribe looked less like a band of lethal predators and more like a very intense outdoor lifestyle convention. Beastmen were walking around in loincloths made of softened deer hide, and some were even experimenting with the 'leaf-hats' she had insisted would prevent sunstroke.
But his gaze eventually landed on the empty spot by the fire where she usually sat, humming strange songs about 'shaking it off.'
"Where is she?" he muttered.
"She went to the forest," Mao-Mao chirped, licking a stray drop of fat off his paw. "Then I saw Feng Huang follow her."
Hei Yan's eyes narrowed. His claws extended, digging into the stone of his armrest. A Tiger. In the quiet woods. Alone with his female. The growl that started in his chest made Mao-Mao drop the meat into the fire.
"Oops," the cub squeaked.
Before Hei Yan could roar about the wasted protein, the atmosphere in the clearing shifted.
The scent of rain and rotting leaves hit his nose, a scent he knew all too well. A low snarl ripped from his throat as a sleek black panther emerged from the shadows of the treeline.
The tribe went silent. Every warrior stood, their muscles coiled.
"Mei Hu," Hei Yan hissed, standing up.
The panther shifted. In a blur of popping joints and receding fur, she stood before him, completely naked and wearing a smirk that made Hei Yan want to aim a heavy rock at her head. She bowed, though there was no respect in the gesture.
"I told you never to return," Hei Yan growled. "You were banished for your treachery against Xin Yi. Be gone before I let the tribe use you for target practice."
Mei Hu laughed, tossing her hair. "Oh, Alpha. You've become so grumpy. Is it because your little pet isn't here to scratch behind your ears?"
One of the female beastmen, Lu-Lu, hurried forward, clutching a large, woven fabric, one of the new 'blankets' Xin Yi had taught them to make using dried fibers and wool-grass. She threw it over Mei Hu's shoulders with a look of pure disdain.
Mei Hu stumbled, looking down at the soft, patterned fabric in horror. "What is this?! What is this.….garbage?!"
"It's a blanket, you idiot," Lu-Lu snapped. "Xin Yi says modesty is a virtue, and frankly, nobody wants to see your business while we are trying to eat lunch."
Mei Hu looked around the camp, her eyes widening. "What have you done to our culture?! Why are the warriors wearing hides? Why are there baskets everywhere? This female has spoiled you! You've all become soft! Weak!"
"She has made us better," Hei Yan countered, stepping down from his throne. "We eat better, we sleep warmer, and we don't die of infected scratches because she knows the 'magic' of clean water. Now, speak your peace and leave."
Mei Hu's smirk returned, sharper this time. "I have news, Hei Yan. News about your 'Goddess.'"
"Speak."
"She isn't a blessing," Mei Hu purred, stepping closer. "She's a curse. I met a traveler.….someone who knows of her kind. That sweet scent she carries? It's not just for attraction. It's a beacon. A 'dinner bell' for the Great White Dragon and the ancient predators of the deep mountains!"
Hei Yan's brow furrowed. "A beacon?"
"Yes," Mei Hu lied, her voice dripping with fake concern. "She will bring destruction to the Shadow Claw tribe. Every day she stays here, she draws the monsters closer. She's not a mate; she's bait. Very pretty, very loud bait."
"Who told you this?" Hei Yan demanded.
Mei Hu hesitated, her eyes flickering. "That.…that is not important! What matters is that you must cast her out before the Great Dragon smells her and wipes us all from the map!"
"Where is she now?" Hei Yan asked, his voice dangerously low.
"Probably bringing doom upon us all as we speak," Mei Hu sneered.
Just then, a commotion broke out at the edge of the clearing. A streak of orange and gold blurred through the trees. Feng Huang burst into the camp, but he wasn't strolling. He was sprinting, his face pale and his golden eyes wide with panic.
In his arms, he cradled a limp, broken figure.
"Xin Yi!" Hei Yan roared, his heart dropping into his stomach.
Feng Huang skidded to a halt in front of the Alpha, his chest heaving. "She's hurt. The Panther.…..she attacked her."
Hei Yan's gaze snapped to Mei Hu, who was already backing away, her smirk wavering. The two Alphas, Tiger and Panther, both turned on her with a synchronized snarl that shook the leaves off the trees.
"I... I was protecting the tribe!" Mei Hu shrieked. "And besides! I saw them! I saw them mating in the forest! She's a whore, Hei Yan! She was rolling in the moss with this striped beast!"
The silence that followed was deafening.
Hei Yan looked at Feng Huang. Feng Huang looked at Hei Yan.
Both looked down at the unconscious Xin Yi, whose leaf-top was torn and whose breathing was shallow.
"Mating?" Hei Yan's voice was a whisper of pure, unadulterated fury.
"We weren't!" Feng Huang snapped, though a faint flush crept up his neck. "We were.….courting! And this crazy female attacked her from behind! She threw her into a tree!"
"Courting," Hei Yan repeated, his eyes glowing red. "While I was watching a cub cook meat, you were 'courting' my female in the woods?"
"YOUR female? I don't see your mark on her!"
"Enough!" Hei Yan growled, reaching out and snatching Xin Yi from Feng Huang's arms. The Tiger growled back but let go, knowing that the Panther's palace was closer and better equipped with the 'medicine' Xin Yi kept there.
They rushed her into the stone palace, laying her gently on her bed of soft furs and silks. Hei Yan hovered over her, his large hands trembling as he checked the bruising on her ribs.
"She's broken," Hei Yan whispered, his voice cracking.
"She'll heal," Feng Huang said, pacing the room like a caged animal. "She's strong. But that Panther.…..she needs to die."
"On that, we agree," Hei Yan said. He turned to Feng Huang, his eyes narrowing. "But don't think I've forgotten what she said. You took her to the quiet woods?"
"She wanted herbs!"
"You wanted her lips!"
"You have kissed her too!" Feng Huang barked, pointing a finger. "I saw you that day by the river! Don't act like you're a saint!"
"I found her first!" Hei Yan roared, slamming a fist into the wall. "She fell from the sky and landed in MY territory!"
"She's not a coconut, Hei Yan! She's a person!"
"A person who belongs to ME!"
Suddenly, a tiny tug pulled at Hei Yan's loincloth. He looked down to see a small female cub named Lili, her eyes wide and watery.
"Alpha? Big Striped Man?" she whispered, her voice trembling. "Please stop shouting. Mama says loud noises make the soul stay away when someone is sleeping. You might wake her up with a headache."
Both Alphas froze. They looked at the tiny cub, then back at the pale, still woman on the bed.
The silence returned, heavy and awkward.
"Fine," Hei Yan exhaled, rubbing his temples. He glared at Feng Huang. "We will come back to this. When she is awake. When she can tell me exactly how many times your mouth touched her skin."
"It was a lot," Feng Huang muttered under his breath, earning him another death glare.
Outside, hidden in the shadows of the palace wall, Mei Hu adjusted her stolen blanket and smirked.