Page 66 of Royal Lies

"Well, what a nice little boy. Tie ‘im up," the first man gruffed out. At least I wouldn't die. Besides, mother might save me. I think—no, she—will she?

I was tossed into a wagon, my head thumping the wooden planks first, with other cubs of my tribe, who seemed to still hate me. I mean I was a bastard after all, and a male cub at that. Once the doors closed I was glad I was tossed so roughly onto the wooden planks it helped prepare me for the onslaught of pain pressing into my back, front, skull, and spinal cord.

"You call yourself a fucking lion?!" A woman cried to my right.

"What a disgrace, did you see how he willingly let them capture him? He didn't even try to fight back." Another raged to my left.

How did they even see? Looking up through eyes already swelling up I noticed the bars near the roof. There was a wide enough gap between each bar, so maybe that was how they saw.

I figured, I just wanted to live- no I was wrong I'm sorry- I'm so sorry. Mother told me I shouldn't cry but I can't help it. It hurts, it hurts, why do they hate me so much, what did I do wrong? I couldn't help the tears that stained my cheeks and before I could give into the obsidian hovering near my vision I could hear the scorn in another of the tribe's cubs. "Ew, he's crying, what a wimp." Her words were an accurate description of me. She was right I should have fought, I shouldn't have given in, I should have surrendered my life.

Even in my abyss I couldn't help but hope that my mother was ok. I wonder if she beat the hunters and helped regain my pride's stability.

But then the door opened again, the hunters, the human hunters, was it them, why were they rejoicing? Sobs? Who was that? I moaned as my consciousness returned. I turned as the woman behind me also twisted to get a glimpse of the human by the doors.

Everyone was now sporting eyes dripping with sand-encrusted salt water as they tried to hold in their own whimpers, biting their lips till blood dripped down. It was only then I noticed what those hunters were holding. Hair as golden as the sun dropped down like that of our great willow tree. No longer were they dancing with joy and hope it hung in damp crimson lumps. Utter horror swept through the wagon at the sight. It was then and only then I allowed myself to feel the sensation of wet stains trail down my face as I watched the men, the humans rejoice.

Mother-no-no I-no. It-it's my fault if-if only I'd just been a little stronger if only I'd escaped, maybe my mother wouldn't-maybe I could have helped prevent this, I-I-I should have been the one to fall instead. Visions blurred and filled with grief I watched as those humans celebrated for what? My mother's death? "Hahaha! No more bitches trying to stop our hunt! Ya!" A male rejoiced, stabbing a cup into the air as a symbol of his excitement. I was only able to understand why my tribe hated males as I got older. It was because these hunters were always those males that had been cast out. The ones with no magic, that they passed off as human.

A paper flew through the open door, landing neatly on the blood-soaked sandy ground. Me, mother, and father- What the hell was I thinking, Ican'thave that life. I wasn't like them, Iwasn'treally a cub. I was nothing more than a useless bastard, just like those hunters. No, they were ruthless, I won't be like them. I won't hunt other lions just because of jealousy. I'll protect them.

Gripping my little hand into small balls of anger I looked back up at the haze of red before me. I realized something that day. I was going to be a hunter, but I wasn't going to track down shifters, no, I was going to hunt those humans.I'll track down and kill each and every one of them. I'll show them who was in control.I will watchtheirblood drip down my own spear as I pierce it throughtheirhearts.

But then again what can I do, I was a useless male human cub with no magic and no mother. All I had was an estranged father I didn’t even know. I've only ever heard of him. A father who no doubt hates me too. That’s ok, that's alright. I am accustomed to this love, to this pain.

A useless cub with a dead mother with no way to avenge her, how pitiful am I? So I didn’t curl up in hopes of protecting myself from the beatings of my fellow pride members. I deserved it,even if we were all just slaves now. I will learn and gain strength through this pain and I will avenge my mother. For she did love me. I know she did, she was just scared of loving me. She had to be after what everyone had called her. They wouldn't have seen her as a leader if she showered me with kindness. If she’d truly hated me then why would she keep the drawings I gave her? She always kept them in those little bins.

A bright light shined down on my face, waking me from the pain and bruises covering my body. The women in my tribe didn't hesitate to show me my mistakes throughout our five-day trip. Beating me with whatever they had, legs, arms, nails, loose planks.

Were we finally at our designation?

The sun rotations through the tiny window in this moving contraption helped me count down my days as my mother had taught me. But I knew I wasn’t going to get any food, it was for the women, for the female cubs, not for a male like me. They told me so as they scrambled for the tossed-in food leaving nothing in their wake.

The footsteps around me were quiet. I looked up, unable to see much from the swelling of both my eyes. I might not get sold now, with all these scars on my skin, not to mention my face is damaged as well. For I am but a malebastardof a once prideful pack, now all dead I presume, or sold like those I was with. Not that I'll be worth much.

"Hey, come on, why are you just lying there? Don't you know how to move? Oh, wait, you're hurt. Man, they treated you poorly huh? Well, they're all asleep now, so if you wanna, you know kill 'em all now, ya can... now would be a great time. I can cut your ropes if that makes it easier. You know I think it's really smelly here." A girl, I think with hair and eyes as golden, no more golden than my mother's, raddled on. I could see her bright hair even through my black and purple eyes. She lookedso much like my mother, I thought she might also have been a lioness, but from her manner of speech, it was apparent she wasn't and her attire was not very typical of the cubs from our tribe. Hell, what was she wearing, was that a shirt and pants? Why is she talking so much, ugh my ears? Still, I think she was here to save me.

"Who are you?" I asked and she smiled, beaming at me. I felt that the sky around her glowed as bright as her, too bright for my bruised and bloated eyes. Maybe that was it, just a trick of my mind since I was hurt so much. "Names Everetta, though I‘m kind of not sure what my last name is right now, we'll figure it out together later. Come on I'll help ya kill 'em all, the hunters I mean, not the women unless you want to? No judgment here, I mean maybe a little judgment, they do seem innocent. Then again what would I know, come on let's go." She offered me her hand, her words catching me off guard. Kill? The hunters? What did she have against them? I mean I know whyIwant them dead, they slaughtered my pride and my mother, but why did she? I turned around to the girls in the cart with me. She sighed but followed my silent question.

In another few minutes she had set me and the others all free, shooing them away, and promising vengeance for them. Even going as far as to tell them about a nearby tribe where they could stay and seek comfort. Though I highly doubt my pride would ever consider that, then again they do seem a bit closer with a stranger than they ever had with me, maybe she was a lioness despite her odd choice of attire. Perhaps from another tribe?

I lowered my gaze hoping not to show the jealous green monster in my eyes. How did she know so much about this area, and why was she even here? No more importantly, why does my head suddenly hurt? Grimacing, I closed my eyes only to be peeling them open as a warm light enveloped my whole body.

"Right, totally forgot, can't do shit with your body all banged up and stuff."

How? Why? Did she just heal me? The girl, Everetta, was offering something to me, a dagger, a little different from the wheat-covered rope daggers we held. This dagger the girl offered had a soft but rough texture. The end was still sharp and pointy, this was all I needed. But- did- Did I really want to do this?

Yes, they killed my mother, and proper tribal rules clearly state that I must avenge my people.So why did my people just leave? I frowned but as I looked around I realized they hadn't, they were all hovering by the edge of the forest, watching me, waiting for my next move. No, they weren't just watching me, they were also watching the girl, Everetta.

Gripping the dagger I had to cast aside my personal feelings, what mattered most was my tribe, our honor, and my mother's honor. I needed to avenge my mother. "You should really fix your speech manners," I said before hopping off the carriage with a smiling girl behind my back as a coppery scent filled the early morning air.

It wasn't long after the slaughter of those men that my memories had returned to me, for a boy of only seven sun cycles it was no doubt horrifying and startling. I thought it might have been some kind of trick by Everetta, but as time passed more and more memories began to flow in and I slowly assimilated to my past life. That was when I knew what I had to do, what I had to stop, because if my memories had fully come back then Everetta's must be coming back soon too. I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't let the past repeat itself, I couldn't lose her again. So- I did what I had to do.

In my past life, I had been thrust into slavery only to escape and find my father. In this life Everetta rescued me and in turn, I got my memories back. As to why she must have rescued me it didn't take much for me to figure out, she must have left herselfsome kind of message from the past to save me, or to find me. Which meant she was further along in remembering our past, so I had performed the spell just in time, Everetta wasn't the only one to leave herself a message.

Ididtoo.

I knew she was going to find me, and that finding me was going to be her message to her new self if she left any. I understood it was very underhanded, but I had to do what I needed to do, to prevent the past from repeating itself, so I erased her memories after I had gotten her to age us forwards a bit, eighteen to be exact. I left her in a small village cot. I have to admit I was a little worried when she didn't wake up for a couple of days but I could sense when she would wake, her magic would tell me. It would flare up as bright as the two suns of this realm. So when she did, of course, it was tedious to recall everything over again but it was necessary- yes, everything I did was for her. She'll understand one day, shehasto.

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