Chapter 43 - Like A Cat In A Bag

Chapter 43: 43 - Like A Cat In A Bag

I studied the night beasts’ bodies as I waited for Noodle to return. Their genes were a mix of reptilian and mammalian, with a few unique traits of their own.

It made me wonder how evolution worked here, and what rules applied to the different species. It must have been a chaotic mess, with all the different combinations and mutations. A geneticist’s wet dream.

The cores were the key to the mystery, as they contained the beast’s essence. They had the power to alter the genetic makeup of whoever consumed them.

Some gave strength, others speed, and some even changed the appearance to increase the chances of survival, or, more like, to appeal to potential mates.

Even the hollow male’s looks could be considered attractive if it wasn’t for the lack of soul in his eyes.

"Mate, I’m back." Noodle came with a gourd filled with water. A large, hard-shelled fruit, about twice the size of a human head. "I also found a thread plant."

He held a long, thin, brown root in his hand. The fibers were already visible on the surface, and with a little bit of work, they could be separated and used for sewing.

I washed the cores in the water he brought, then put them into a leather pouch and tightened the string. "Are night beasts edible? Should we cook one and take it with us?"

"Their meat tastes like dirt." Noodle looked at the carcasses with disgust, unable to believe that I even considered eating them. "Only primals. They will eat anything."

"Shall we use them as a lure then? To attract the primals?" I asked, looking at the pile of dead bodies. It was a shame to leave them here, when they could be used for something.

"Night beasts don’t attract them. But they will eat them if they come across them. They don’t like dead meat." Noodle began to separate the fibers from the thread plant.

I continued to observe the creatures, trying to piece together their place in the ecosystem, their role, and their relationships with other species.

How did they affect other beasts? Or were they the ones keeping the population of other species in check?

The night beasts had rotting wounds on their side.s I compared it to the hollow male’s body. His fangs and claws bore traces of the night beasts’ blood.

He managed to fight them off, which meant he could advance in rank by consuming their cores, but he didn’t seem to care. As if he was beyond the need for power, or the hunger for it.

The two waited, and again Dickhead released the strange aura that repelled every living thing around us.

I wasn’t affected by it, but I could feel it tingling on my skin, like a gentle breeze that carried the scent of rain.

Noodle’s was a bit more subtle, like a ’do not disturb’ sign. I figured they were using this beastman skill to talk to animals without uttering a word, to command them.

"You..." Nugget rushed in as he shifted from his eagle form to his humanoid one. His feet barely touched the ground, and he was already opening his mouth to speak. "You suddenly disappeared. Are you─"

His voice died in his throat as he saw the aftermath. The broken bodies. He looked at me, then at the males who were casually hanging around, as if this was a picnic spot. "─alright?"

His eyes lingered on the knife I had stolen from him, his hand twitching to take it back, but he restrained himself.

"Did you get the thread?" Noodle asked, ignoring the eagle’s concern.

"Yes." Nugget lifted the thread roots he had collected, his face still showing the confusion of what he was witnessing here.

Or so I thought, until he flashed before my eyes. My elbow shot up, striking his arm. I pivoted, my other arm arcing toward his head, but he dropped beneath it like water.

A weight clamped around my ankles, dragging me down as if gravity had folded in on itself. The black weights. Dickhead had slipped them on while I was distracted.

As I threw a punch his way, Noodle’s fingers closed around my jaw. He lifted the cloth covering my face; his fangs sliced through my lower lip, biting it. Venom flooded my senses. Bitter, then numbing, then paralyzing...

"Rest, mate," Noodle said. "You played enough. It’s time to sleep."

They must have decided to have a little chit-chat without me, in their beastmen language. I didn’t understand what they were saying, but it didn’t take a genius to figure out that they were plotting against me.

The weights, the sedative, the way they were ganging up on me. It was all too familiar. A sense of betrayal washed over me, as I remembered the times I was drugged, tied up, and locked away.

The feeling of being at someone’s mercy was suffocating, maddening, and it brought out the worst in me.

My body was fighting against the venom, my mind racing to find a way out. I couldn’t move, but I could curse and hiss like a cat in a bag.

I called them every name in the book, and a few more I invented on the spot.

"Go shove your heads up each other’s asses and spin like a fucking merry-go-round! Because that’s the only way you can get a fucking ride─"

The world blurred, and I felt myself being lifted off the ground. A sedative, stronger than the one Noodle had used, was pumped into my veins.

I was thrown over Dickhead’s shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and carried away.

Noodle and Nugget followed as they went back to the cave, leaving the night beasts’ bodies to rot... and my heart to fester with anger. It was a cold, hard knot in my chest that grew with each step, each beat, and each breath.

I slept that night.

They slept.

A peaceful night for all.

The next day, I had no intention of making it peaceful for anyone. I woke up first, and I was ready to make their lives a living hell.