66 - Left Behind (3,2 k words)

Curtis's POV"Who is this four-stripped rootless, female?" the scorpion asked, pointing at Bart curiously."My male," Yaya answered casually, causing Bart to choke on his saliva, "I removed his spousal imprint out of boredom, but as you can see, he still decided to stick with me," she said, causing Bart to choke again."You really have no shame, female," the scorpion shook his head in disapproval, "I pity that fool, not for real but for the sake of being polite, you know. Are you going to tell me what you plan on doing with me now that you have captured me?""Since you won't be leaving your spousal imprint on me? Nothing much. Maybe a new punching bag? I can't see any other use for you," she sat on a clean stone, crossing her legs."How rude. I can be useful in many things, female," the scorpion harrumphed, circling around us with his arms behind his back, "But I have no interest in assisting foul of a female such as yourself. You have nothing that can persuade me."Bart coughed again and continued his job. He gave me a small knowing look before focusing back on his work. I've been in contact with Muir through the snakes I controlled, so when he told me she took in Bart, it wasn't difficult to guess who Bartroll was.· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·I think Yaya lost interest in conversing with the scorpion because she kept glancing at me."Is something the matter, Sweetheart?" I asked.She shook her head, but kept staring at me, "Do you still want to kiss me after what I've done?"Was she talking about the pill?"Of course," I nodded, leaning forward to place a kiss on her lips through the veil. I felt something hard separating me from her lips, and remembered the mask she wore to protect herself from the scorpion gas."That was disgusting," the scorpion's voice snapped me out of the spell.I hissed against her lips. I would have lunged at the scorpion and strangled him to death already, but it's her gift, and I promised only to attack if he attacked me first, so I can only hold myself back."What? It is. You are kissing a blood soaked, maniacal, insane, filthy, crazy, violent, evil female. How can anyone not find that disgusting?" the scorpion shrugged, "Just stating facts, don't take it personally.""Did we take in a scorpion or a parrot?" Muir mumbled, rubbing his temple."I can hear you, fool," the scorpion said, turning his tail on Muir. A hint of surprise appeared on his face as he noticed the four stripes on the bird's face."Sorry? Did I sound like I was speaking about you?" Muir looked around, watching Bart clean up the remains of the bloodbath, "That's strange, I can't recall ever saying your name.""It was implied," the scorpion's voice dripped with disdain, "Do you think I am stupid?""I never thought of you as anything," Muir responded coldly, his gaze turning gentle as soon as it landed on Yaya.Skaris yawned as he stretched his limbs, "Did you have fun without us, Dear?"She didn't reply, but the scorpion did."Of course, she did. Your female was flirting with me while stepping on a severed head of her ex male. How can one not have fun in such a situation? I can tell that she's very fond of me," he laughed, his golden irises shining brightly, "Who knows, if she removed all of your spousal imprints, I might consider taking her as my Queen. She's a foul of a female, yes, but maybe I'll take her in and teach her how to properly act like a female. I won't mate with her though."The scorpion likely assumed that we would react negatively and stir up chaos within our group, but in reality, we didn't."Anyone craving roasted scorpions today?" Yaya asked out of nowhere, "I know a good way to make them crunchy.""Yes!" Skaris replied with a cheerful howl."Yes, please," Muir said with a small nod, covering his chuckle."Yes," I smiled."But..." Bart was about to say that we still had a lot of meat left, but when his eyes fell on our glares, he changed his mind, "I w-want some too."When Bart finished cleaning and left the cave, she followed him, leaving us behind with the scorpion.We didn't speak, only watched him closely, each sitting on a dry rock."W-what?" The scorpion cleared his throat. He seemed to have a hard time keeping his calm facade."She didn't kill him, which means," Muir mumbled, "He hasn't mated with anyone yet, right?" He looked up at the scorpion, "Why is that? Shouldn't a Scorpion King have easy access to other females? Did you not have an urge to mate yet?""It's not that I don't want to. I'm just picky. I'm not going to let any random female touch me. I deserve only the best," the scorpion answered proudly."What's your idea of the best female then?" Skaris asked."Well, my first choice is obviously a mermaid, but you can't find those easily," the scorpion said, "Besides being beautiful, she also has to be patient and gentle, not the type to throw a tantrum and start destroying things. She has to be loyal and should never threaten to remove my spousal imprint or anything related. If she does, I'll break her into a million pieces. I'll make sure she'll beg for mercy before she dies," he said and laughed loudly, his tone was dark and threatening, "I don't see any of those qualities in your female, which means I'll never consider her as a potential mate.""You'll eat those words one day," Skaris sighed and leaned his head against the wall, "Just saying.""Haha, are you threatening me, fool?" the scorpion scoffed, "Are you telling me she'll somehow manage to convince me to mate with her, or she'll do something to force me to imprint her? I really want to see her try. I really do. I'll have fun watching her try, and fail miserably."We all looked at him with a hint of pity as if seeing our past selves. Then, we glanced at each other, sharing the same thoughts.I admit that I tried to fall for Nivi at first. My common sense and logic told me she was the right choice. She was beautiful, gentle, and patient─everything a male could ever ask for. Unfortunately, my heart was set on Yaya.No matter how often I tried to push her out of my mind, it didn't change. I couldn't stop thinking about her. No matter how much I compared her to Nivi, I couldn't bring myself to choose the more comfortable path.Nivi was able to bring out my protective instincts, but Yaya brought out every fiber of my being. It was like a silent plea tugging at my soul, telling me that she needed me and that I had to stay by her side.Nivi didn't need me. She could easily find a new male and live without me. But the same could not be said about Yaya. She didn't care about her life. If I left her side, I had no doubts that she would crumble. She was just a step away from falling, and Nivi's safety was the one pulling her back, stopping her from jumping into a pit of her own madness.She was strong. Nobody doubted that. She was holding on, but not for herself. She was doing it for us, the world, and the future.The scorpion couldn't see it yet, but he would learn. It was just a matter of time. Even if he had no desires, he could never control the thoughts that would fill his head.The scorpion started laughing when silence took over the cave, "Did you lose your tongues all of a sudden? Seeing your indifference and calmness, I can assume you all don't really care about your female. Being a rootless is not that bad, actually. The female's threats and words mean nothing, so basically, you are free to do as you wish. If you help me escape, I'll take you along with me. You won't have to serve under her.""Oh, that sounds tempting, but we are quite comfortable here," Skaris lifted the blindfold to get a better view of the scorpion. His gray iris, surrounded by the black eye sclera, scanned him up and down, "Does your place have any colossalls?""You are also a rootless?!" the scorpion looked dumbfounded, "Why do you stay with her then? Is it out of fear?" Then, as if realizing something, he rubbed his palms together in amusement, "Could it be revenge? Revenge on the one who made you this way? Oh, that's even more intriguing. How can you resist the idea? Tell me, do you want to kill her? Do you want her head on a platter? If yes, then say it. We'll find a way out of this shithole and take our revenge together."No wonder my sweetheart left the cave the moment Muir and Skaris woke up. The scorpion's constant voice had to get on her nerves, too.I rubbed my temples as I walked outside after discovering that Skaris didn't need protection. The wolf with three stripes found a way to deal with the Scorpion King, even though the Scorpion was much stronger and could easily crush Skaris if he wished to.I followed her track and found her roasting scorpions. She had three skewers on each hand, and the flames were licking the air."Want some?" she offered.I nodded. "You're not planning to use him as your punching bag yet?" I asked, half-expecting her to pick a fight with the scorpion from the start."I'd have too much explaining to do if he started spouting even bigger nonsense in front of Bart later. Also, didn't you notice how he barely blinked at his injuries? With his lack of feelings, he might actually develop a crush on my fists. It's a mistake I would rather not repeat," she joked and handed me a scorpion skewer. "It's cooked properly," she assured me.I took a bite, chewing the meat slowly. The outer shell was crispy, and the inner meat was tender. "It's delicious," I said, offering her the last bite. She took it.My eyes softened as she lifted her veil, showing a snippet of my spousal imprint on her tongue, and then bit the scorpion. I leaned closer and stole a kiss, sucking on her tongue before letting her go.She sacrificed her image to uplift ours in the eyes of the scorpion, presenting us in a favorable light while she bore the brunt of his judgment.We were supposed to be her protectors, but it ended up feeling like she was the one looking out for us.I felt lost, unsure how to step up and protect her like I was supposed to.Every idea I came up with seemed to only worsen the situation and threaten the delicate balance she had managed to establish.· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·Yaya's POVTwo days later...Crunch. Crunch.The cubs were devouring the roasted scorpions. Playing with the crunchy shells before tossing them back into their mouths.Skaris had two, Muir had two, Bart had none because the cubs snatched them all."I'll make more later. It's good to have a snack for the road," I said."..." The scorpion's face was sour. His arms were crossed, and he was frowning.Just like Curtis could control low-ranked snakes, he could control low-ranked scorpions. He had probably summoned them to him, yet they never showed up. And now he found out the culprit was none other than me."Dear," Skaris called out."Yeah?""Are you going to feed Mickey some food?""I won't, why?""It's not good to starve people. If you don't want to do it yourself, then give me a skewer, and I'll feed him," Skaris offered, "What do you think, Mickey?""It's not Mickey. It's Mitchell," the scorpion grumbled, "I don't want her rotten food. She probably spit on it.""How long can you go without food and water?" I asked him."Up to twelve moons, why? Are you planning to starve me to death?" The scorpion laughed mockingly.I didn't respond, looking deep in thought."Do you want me to tell you my secrets, female? Is that it?" The scorpion pressed on, crossing his legs and supporting his chin with his palm, "Because you will not be getting any. I don't feel like sharing unless you show me what you are hiding behind that veil of yours."Shrugging off his words, I started packing my belongings and then gestured to the rest, "We're leaving. Vick is on his way back," I announced."What?" Bart exclaimed, "Now?""Are you deaf, fool?" the scorpion's voice dripped with venom as he began to gather his meager belongings─a cup he used to sip blood from, a few accessories, and a single pair of pants. "Your female said we are leaving, so let's go. By the way. Who is Vick?""You are staying behind," I said, causing the scorpion's smirk to drop."What are you talking about?" The scorpion looked confused. "Do you want me to believe you'll leave me behind after the effort you went through to capture me? Why? Don't you want me anymore? Did you grow bored of me? Is it because I didn't compliment you enough? Is it because you hate that I don't worship you the way you want? Is that it?"I walked toward Skaris and removed the blindfold from his eyes, "Look at me."Skaris blinked rapidly and squinted his eye, letting it adjust to the light. "Dear," he chuckled, "You're not going to leave me behind, are you?""I am," I said, finally showing my face to him. He looked like he had to summon all his self-control not to react at that moment. His pupil dilated, and his breath hitched. I could see the struggle in his gaze. He quickly look away, avoiding my eyes.The scorpion tried to steal a peek, but Muir kicked him outside the cave, "Could you keep him outside for a while?" he asked Curtis.Curtis crossed his arms and walked outside leisurely without a word.Skaris stroked my cheeks, "Is there any point in arguing with you, Dear?" he asked, slipping the blindfold back over his view."Don't rush," I said. He kept asking me whether I wanted him to hunt more colossal crystals and would run off whenever possible. He would sometimes come back with bruises and injuries, but he would still smile and shrug it off, saying how he stumbled on a few beastmen and got into a fight with them."That's what I thought," Skaris leaned forward and placed a kiss on my lips, "I won't let you down. I promise. Don't worry about a thing. I'll be alright.""You'd better," I replied.Muir walked toward Skaris, placing his hand on his shoulder, "I'll join you once I'm done with the work on my side.""Okay," Skaris gave him a small nod.· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·We left toward the ocean without Skaris. He showed interest in staying in the Flame City to level up, so I agreed to send him there."Why don't you show me how beautiful you are, female?" the scorpion taunted me as Muir soared into the skies. Suspended from a rope, he was hanging upside down, "Don't you want to make me fall for you and imprint you? Isn't that your purpose?"I looked below us. Bart was in his wolf form, trailing behind us. Curtis was infront of me, and the cubs were sleeping inside the two baskets between us. "You want to see, huh?" I asked."Yes," the scorpion grinned, his eyes forming into crescent moons, "Show me and make me yours. Make me fall head over heels for you. Let's see if you can do that, shall we?"I pulled out my slingshot and aimed it at his mouth, shooting a scorpion snack into his mouth, causing him to choke and cough violently. "Then entertain me and earn the right to look," I said, watching his tanned features turn purple, "If not, then stay put and enjoy the view."He spat out the food, "I will make you beg for me one day. Just wait and watch." He turned around and took in the view.The vast sea, the mountains, the rivers, the forest, the plains. It was all laid before our eyes.The sun was setting on the horizon, its reflection shining like a golden mirror, its warm rays painting the skies a vibrant orange.The wind carried the scent of salt from the ocean, and the birds chirped their last tunes of the day.Mitchell didn't speak for a while, his eyes fixed on the scenery. His long, dark hair fluttered, and his expression was unreadable.It was an odd sight to behold. A peaceful looking scorpion. It didn't suit him at all.He caught me staring and turned to look at me, "Are you checking me out, female? Or are you thinking about the time when I will be yours? Or perhaps, the time when you will be mine?"I shot another piece of roasted scorpion into his mouth, but this time, he caught it in between his teeth, making sure it wouldn't reach the back of his throat."You are a horrible host, female," he said and started chewing on the scorpion, "I hope you don't serve your guest like this. It's rude."I looked down at the sleeping cubs. They could sleep through a war, a hurricane, and a flood. Nothing could wake them up. Not even a loud scorpion."Why did you leave behind that blindfolded fool? Was he not good enough for you?" The scorpion asked, "Did he lose his usefulness? Is he not strong enough?""You seem very curious for someone with no desires," I observed."Well, I guess I just can't stop myself from wondering," the scorpion shrugged, "I don't feel anything, but I'm not blind. I can tell a thing or two about the world around me. I have a functioning brain, female. Don't underestimate it. Besides, curiosity is not a desire, nor is it an emotion. It's more like a hobby, a pastime, if you will. An entertaining activity that can make life more fun."I listened to him as he went on and on about how his life was boring and that he had nothing else to do except for observing things and making conclusions based on the data he collected from the soul stone.He didn't ask for the soul stone back or demand anything, and he didn't try to attack or run away, embodying his lack of desire. He seemed to be content with being hung from the sky like a piñata, waiting for the next piece of snack to be shot at him.╔═══ Author's note ════╗I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I've been waiting to write Curtis' POV for a while now. 😊Anyone wonders what was going through Skaris's mind when YY finally revealed her beauty to him? 🤣How do you like Mitchell so far? 🤭╚═════════════════╝