"No! No need," Nivi managed to say between coughs. "There don’t seem to be any mate marks on Kurus, so...I guess it’s not a real mate bond. He probably mistook the ear bite as a type of marking cold-blooded beastmen do."
"Okay, you can shift back now," I said, dismissing him. So it was a misunderstanding on his part. I nodded, filing away that bit of information.
"We are not mated." Kurus remained in his human form, his back to us. "I don’t have to listen to you anymore."
I had to bite back a laugh at his sudden declaration of independence. I put aside my skewer and grabbed my machetes. "Then let’s end this farce once and for all."
Kurus turned his head to look at me over his shoulder. When he found my indifference staring back, his spine straightened, fingers curling slightly at his sides; the subtle shift in his body language screamed frustration at my lack of care about the made bond.
"We are not mated." He repeated the sentence with more conviction, and even tried to smile. It looked awkward, a bit forced. "It means I can finally kill you, and you can’t use our mate bond as a shield."
At this point, he was trying to convince himself, not me. I concluded.
"Wa-wait," Nivi said, standing between us, raising her hands. "What killing? We don’t want to kill anyone."
Kurus shifted back to his half-human, half-snake form. "You should not protect her, Sea Queen. She is dangerous."
"She is my best friend," Nivi replied firmly. "I will not let you hurt her."
He hissed, "She hurt me first."
"Only because you tried to kidnap Nivi," I pointed out, taking a step towards him, my machetes at the ready.
"I just wanted to breed her," he admitted, not even bothering to deny it. "That’s what females are for."
Nivi’s mouth opened in shock. "Breed me?!"
"Well, that’s one way to kill the mood," I laughed, enjoying the chaos that unfolded before me. "You heard the noodle, Nivi. He just wants to use you as a broodmare. Shall I make him squeal?"
Kurus stared at me, realizing he was lured into a trap I had set for him. "You knew I would say that," he accused, his eyes narrowing into slits. "You wanted her to reject me...herself."
I gave him a sarcastic salute with one of the machetes. "I had to make sure she saw your true colors before she got any weird ideas."
I lunged forward, machete aimed at his neck. He dodged at the last moment, slithering away from my attack. His tail whipped towards me, but I blocked it with the other machete, the impact vibrating up my arm.
"STOP! Both of you! STOP!"
Nivi’s voice cut through the tension, her hands raised in a desperate plea.
My machete was just a hair’s breadth away from Kurus’ throat when I paused. His tail hit me hard, sending me sprawling onto the sand.
"Yaya!" Nivi’s scream echoed in my ears as she ran to my side.
I coughed, blood spattering onto the sand. I pushed myself up, ignoring the pain, my machetes still firmly in my grip.
Kurus hissed, his red eyes blazing with fury. "She is mine to kill, Sea Queen. Stay out of this."
"Like hell she is!" Nivi shot back, her usual timid demeanor gone. "You want to kill her, you’ll have to go through me first!"
She stood up, her green eyes blazing with determination. For a moment, I almost thought she would take one of my machetes and fight alongside me. But then she did something that shocked both of us.
She hugged Kurus, her arms wrapping around his waist.
He froze, his body rigid with surprise. "What are you doing?"
"I’m stopping you," she said, her voice muffled against his chest. "I know you’re not a bad person, Kurus. You’re just misunderstood. You need someone to show you there’s a different way to live, a better way."
When I saw him relax in her embrace, I lay back down on the sand and closed my eyes, letting the pain wash over me. I could hear the soft whispers of Nivi’s voice, trying to reason with the beastman, trying to reach the part of him that wasn’t just instinct and violence.
And I couldn’t help but feel a little proud of her. She had always been the gentle one, the one who saw the good in everyone, even in a world where it was scarce. Maybe she was the hero this world needed, not a bloodthirsty warrior.
I drifted in and out of consciousness, the sounds of their conversation becoming distant, like a dream.
"I’ll be your friend, Kurus. And I’ll show you that there’s more to life than just surviving."
’And if he tries to betray you,’ I thought, ’I’ll cut off his twin dicks and roast them over the fire. With hot sauce.’
I was so done for the day, and this was only the morning.
This was supposed to be my new start, not my new war.
"Friends? I don’t need friends. I need a mate, someone to breed my offspring with," Kurus argued, but his voice lacked the venom it held before. "And you’re the one I’ve chosen. You will bear my young, and they will be strong, like me. That’s all that matters."
I guess some things never change.