Mira's POV
"What do you mean she doesn't tolerate rivals?" My voice came out higher than I wanted. "I'm not trying to rival anyone! I just got here!"
Kael's amber eyes darkened. "Lyssa controls the central territories. She has power, influence, and an army of males who'd die for her. When she hears about another human female with healing abilities..."
"She'll see you as a threat," Soren finished grimly.
"But I'm not!" I threw my hands up. "I don't want power! I don't want territories! I just want to go HOME!"
The words echoed in the cave. Both men stared at me with something like pity.
"There is no going home," a new voice said.
An old man shuffled forward, leaning on a wooden staff. He had wolf ears, gray with age, and kind eyes that had seen too much. The crowd parted respectfully.
"Elder Thorne," Kael said with a nod.
The old wolf-man studied me carefully. "You're the second sky-fallen female in three years. That's never happened before. Two humans in such a short time? The spirits are trying to tell us something."
"The spirits can tell me how to get back to New York," I muttered.
Elder Thorne's lips twitched. "Angry and frightened. Good. Lyssa was neither when she arrived. She was... calculating."
Something about the way he said it made my skin crawl.
"Sit, child." He gestured to a stone bench. "You deserve to know the truth about this world. And about the woman who came before you."
I sat, my legs still shaky from the delivery. Kael stood behind me like a guard. Soren perched nearby, his wings folded.
"The Beastworld," Elder Thorne began, "is governed by nature's cruelest law. Males are born strong, but females are born rare. One female for every hundred males. Most males die without ever finding a mate."
My stomach twisted. One in a hundred?
"Females are protected, treasured, fought over," he continued. "A village with many females is powerful. A village with none... dies out within a generation."
"That's horrible," I whispered.
"It's survival." The elder's eyes were sad. "Then three years ago, during the star-rain, Lyssa fell from the sky. A human woman with golden hair and knowledge we'd never seen. She taught us things—better weapons, stronger shelters, new medicines."
"That sounds... good?"
"At first." Elder Thorne's expression hardened. "But Lyssa didn't share freely like you just did. She traded her knowledge for power. She demanded loyalty, obedience, tribute. Males who refused her were denied medicine when they got sick. Females who questioned her were exiled."
My blood ran cold. "She weaponized healing?"
"Yes." Kael's voice was tight with anger. "She created medicines that work miracles—then made everyone dependent on them. Cross her, and your family suffers. My territory refuses to bow to her, which is why we have nothing. Why my females die without proper care."
Oh God. This Lyssa woman was a monster.
"She calls herself the Blessed One," Soren added. "Claims the spirits chose her to rule. Most tribes believe it because her medicines are too valuable to refuse."
"But you just saved my sister without demanding anything," Kael said quietly. "You didn't ask for payment or loyalty. You just... helped."
"Because that's what healers DO!" I stood up, frustrated. "Medicine isn't supposed to be a weapon! It's supposed to help people!"
Elder Thorne smiled sadly. "And that, child, is why Lyssa will want you dead. You're everything she pretends to be. If males see that humans can be kind instead of cruel, her power crumbles."
The weight of it hit me like a truck. I wasn't just in danger. I was a threat to a tyrant's empire simply by existing.
"Can't I just... hide?" I asked desperately. "Stay here and avoid her?"
"She already knows about you." Soren's face was grim. "My scouts saw her messengers leaving an hour ago. By tomorrow, every tribe will know a new healer arrived. One who saved a dying mother and baby with her bare hands."
"Her invitation isn't really an invitation," Kael added. "It's a summons. If you don't go, she'll send warriors to bring you by force. Probably kill everyone who tried to protect you in the process."
My hands were shaking. "So I have to meet with a woman who wants me dead?"
"We'll go with you," Kael said immediately. "I won't let her hurt you."
"Neither will I," Soren agreed.
I looked between them—the brutal tiger and the noble eagle, both ready to fight for me. It should have felt good, being protected. Instead, it felt suffocating.
"Why?" I asked. "Why do you care? You just met me!"
Kael's jaw tightened. He looked like he was struggling with words. Finally: "Because you saved my sister without knowing if I'd kill you after. Because you're brave and foolish and... different. Good different."
Something warm bloomed in my chest. Then died immediately because I was probably going to die tomorrow.
"What do I do?" I whispered to Elder Thorne. "How do I survive meeting her?"
The old wolf studied me for a long moment. "Don't try to be like her. Don't try to compete with her power. Just be yourself—the healer who saves lives because it's right, not because it's profitable."
"And if that's not enough?"
He touched my shoulder gently. "Then we fight. All of us. Because a world ruled by Lyssa's cruelty isn't a world worth living in."
The crowd that had gathered murmured agreement. These beastmen—strangers an hour ago—were willing to die for me?
I felt tears burning my eyes. In my old life, I was invisible. Lonely. Nobody special.
Here, I mattered. Maybe too much.
"Rest tonight," Kael said softly. "Tomorrow, we travel to the central territories. Stay close to me. Don't eat or drink anything Lyssa offers. And whatever you do..." His amber eyes burned into mine. "Don't let her separate you from us. She'll try. She's good at isolating her victims."
"Victims," I repeated numbly.
Soren's wings rustled. "The last female who defied Lyssa disappeared. They found her body three days later. Poisoned."
Oh God. Oh God, oh God, oh God.
I was going to die. Again. For real this time.
Elder Thorne stood, leaning on his staff. "Get some rest, child. You'll need your strength."
As the crowd dispersed, I stood frozen, trying to process everything. I died saving a kid. I woke up in a nightmare world. I saved a dying woman. And now I had to face a tyrant who'd probably kill me.
My life was insane.
Kael stepped in front of me. "You're safe here tonight. I'll guard your cave personally."
"What if I run?" I asked quietly. "What if I just... disappear into the woods?"
"You'd die within a day. The Beastworld is full of predators that make me look friendly." His expression softened. "I know you're scared. But I promise—I won't let her hurt you."
"You can't promise that."
"I can." He reached out slowly and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. The gesture was so gentle from such a dangerous man. "You saved my family. That makes you MY family now. Tigers protect their own. Always."
Before I could respond, a commotion erupted outside.
Someone was shouting. Running.
A young wolf-man burst into the cave, panting and terrified.
"Elder Thorne! Nightfang! There's news from the central territories!"
We all turned.
"What news?" Kael demanded.
The messenger swallowed hard. "Lyssa isn't waiting for tomorrow. She's coming HERE. Tonight. With fifty warriors."
My heart stopped.
"How long?" Soren asked sharply.
"Two hours. Maybe less."
The cave exploded into chaos. Beastmen shouting, women screaming, children crying.
Kael's hand gripped my arm. "We need to leave. Now."
"Leave?" I stared at him. "Where?"
"My territory. It's three days away. If we move fast—"
"She'll chase us," Soren interrupted. "You know she will."
Kael's eyes flashed dangerously. "Then I'll kill anyone who tries to take her."
"There's fifty warriors, Nightfang! Even you can't—"
"I don't care!" Kael roared. "I won't let Lyssa have her!"
The elder's voice cut through the chaos. "Enough! Fighting here will get innocents killed."
He turned to me, his expression grave.
"You have a choice, child. Run with Nightfang and spend your life fleeing. Go with Windclaw and hide in the mountains. Or..." He paused. "Face Lyssa tonight. Meet her as an equal, not a fugitive."
"That's suicide," Kael snarled.
"Maybe." The elder's eyes locked on mine. "Or maybe it's the only way to survive. Lyssa expects you to run. Expects you to cower. Show her you're not afraid, and you might just live through this."
My mind raced. Every option was terrible.
Run and be hunted forever.
Hide and live in fear.
Or face the monster head-on.
I thought about Tommy—the little boy I died saving. I didn't run then. I didn't hide.
Maybe I was tired of being scared.
"When she gets here," I said slowly, surprised by how steady my voice sounded, "I'll meet her."
"Mira, no—" Kael started.
"I'll meet her," I repeated firmly. "And I'll show her exactly what kind of healer I am."
The messenger's voice cracked from the cave entrance: "She's here! The Blessed One is here!"
My breath caught.
Two hours? He'd said two hours!
Through the cave opening, I saw torches approaching. Dozens of them. And at the front, carried on a golden litter by massive beastmen, was a woman.
Even from a distance, she was beautiful. Golden hair, perfect face, wearing furs and jewels like a queen.
Lyssa.
Our eyes met across the darkness.
And she smiled.
It was the cruelest smile I'd ever seen.