Chapter 137: Ren Got Tortured (2)
The next time Kestrel returned, she found Ren by a water pool, washing his upper body. The sound of her footsteps made him quickly turn, only letting her catch a brief view of his wet back. His wide shoulders narrowed down gracefully to his waist, revealing a perfectly contoured muscle structure and the mesmerizing movement of his shoulder blades.
His back had many scars — some old, some fresh and red. It was amazing he was still intact, able to wash himself.
But in Kestrel’s eyes, these scars didn’t lessen his appeal. If anything, they made him appear even more strong and resilient. This fierce-looking alpha seemed to let his guard down only around her.
With only the faint firelight illuminating him, she saw Ren’s wet face as he looked at the flames.
"I didn’t realize you were back," he said softly. "Give me a moment."
His freshly washed hair was a deep black, his eyes were deep and icy, almost like smooth stones in a frozen stream. He had a perfect nose and lips that sparkled with moisture.
Kestrel just stood, rooted to the spot at the entrance, her tendrils restless behind her. She didn’t know why she hesitated to step in. It felt like she had seen that face before. Under all the dirt and dried blood just now, she had already expected those striking features. This sense of déjà vu intrigued her.
A mild ache started in Kestrel’s head, as if memories were trying to break through. Over time, she felt more and more comfortable with Ren being here in her den.
Ever since they met, Ren had shown himself to be kind and caring. He loved to whip up delicious sweets for Kestrel and was super responsible about keeping their living space clean. Ren was pretty self-sufficient, looking after his meals, taking care of any injuries he got, and ensuring he was clean and neat. But whenever those tendrils tried to play around with him, he’d look up at Kestrel with pleading eyes and ask her to make them stop in the gentlest tone.
Recognizing how soft-hearted and loyal Ren was, Kestrel decided he could stay in her place, her "den." The only rule was that he shouldn’t roam about.
As the days passed, Kestrel found herself getting more and more comfortable with Ren, letting her walls come down around him.
"You’re giving Ren way too much freedom," Taja pointed out to Kestrel one day. "You know, being too nice might backfire. He might take advantage, run away, and then what? You’ll just end up with a broken heart."
Kestrel simply chose to ignore Taja’s words.
Taja, never one to keep her opinions to herself, went on, "Look, Kestrel, treating someone too nicely doesn’t always end well. Sometimes, a bit of strictness keeps them loyal."
"But he gave me his word; he won’t leave," Kestrel replied, her voice filled with trust.
Taja chuckled, "There are so many tricks up your sleeve to keep him in check. You don’t always have to be the nice one. Make him dance to your tune a bit, and I bet he’ll be even more fun."
As they chatted, they were wandering through a grand underground hall, which seemed like it was used for big ceremonies in ancient times. The walls had these super detailed drawings, and smack in the middle was this impressive set of steps covered in a deep red carpet. These steps led to a platform at the top.
Though the platform itself was sparkling white, the designs on its floor were marked with dark, ominous stains. The way these stains had seeped into the stone made it seem like a lot of blood had once flowed there.
The most striking thing was this giant, dried-up body that sprawled across most of the steps leading to the platform. This figure spread out from the shadows, taking up a lot of space. It looked like a bunch of old, withered roots that had crept out from some dark corner, eventually twisting and hardening on the steps. The gigantic hands, which looked like old tree branches, reached out as if trying to touch the sky.
The sheer size and the worn-out look of the creature made it hard for Kestrel to make out its face or where its head was. All she felt was this heavy mood, like the creature had been in a fierce battle with something, or maybe someone. But in the end, it had lost, leaving behind just this dried-up, twisted form.
It was said that this was the deity worshipped by the people of the underground city in the days before Kestrel.
This place, even though it was her "birthplace," gave Kestrel the creeps.
Every time she visited and saw that dried-up body and the platform with its dark stains, she’d get this uneasy feeling. But weirdly enough, something about the place kept drawing her back, almost like a magnet, making her feel like she needed to be near that platform.
Kestrel’s head throbbed once more. It felt like a noisy crowd had set up shop in her brain. Voices seemed to yell at her, begging her to get out, to snap back to reality. Yet, something else whispered to her, trying to pull her closer to the altar. This mental tug-of-war made her headache even worse.
She had this nagging feeling that she was missing something important, like a piece to a puzzle that was just out of reach.
Wanting to escape this uneasiness, Kestrel decided she needed to get out of there.
Then, a voice floated through the enormous palace, so gentle it was almost ghostly. "Stay with us, you’re our goddess, our new guardian deity," it beckoned. The voice felt ancient and had a mysterious charm.
"Come closer. Embrace what we offer."
"With us, you’ll have everything, unlimited power, control over all."
Kestrel, a bit disoriented, looked up. She saw Taja, that gigantic, lifeless creature, and other mutants scattered around the palace.
Some of these creatures slithered on the ground, while others dangled eerily from the ceiling, their blank faces seeming to dance in front of Kestrel.
"Are they like me?" she wondered, feeling a bit spaced out.
She was overwhelmed by a deep, raw craving. It was as if some ancient part of her was awakening, reaching out from within, tempting her core. She felt an incredible thirst and hunger, like she needed to feed on something to gain more strength.
The tendrils deep below began to stretch and grow. The ground here was like a super-food for them, boosting their growth and power thanks to some strange, ancient force.
It felt like these tendrils could spread endlessly, reaching every corner of the underground city.
In the surrounding gloom, Kestrel noticed several glimmers of light, each touched by the tips of her tendrils. They represented the thoughts and minds of humans — some were faint while others shone brightly. They were all making their way into this underground world.
At the same time, a flood of images hit Kestrel. She saw people. Some were battling mutated creatures, others were collecting items. Some cried over lost friends, while others celebrated their finds.
A mix of emotions swirled around her, sadness, happiness, greed, anger — it was like a giant net had scooped up all these feelings from the city below and dumped them into her brain.
The thoughts and feelings of these people played out clearly before Kestrel, each unique and colorful, like gifts presented at a temple, ready for a deity to choose.
Kestrel suddenly felt overwhelmed by hunger, and a thought began to stir deep within her. She felt the urge to consume these shining lights, to absorb them, and by doing so, satisfy her hunger and grow even more dominant.
Amidst the whirlwind of confusion, Kestrel felt her awareness merge into the expansive dark world, reaching out endlessly in every direction.
She was everywhere, seeing and influencing everything, melding perfectly with this subterranean kingdom. The feelings and thoughts of the humans around her started to fade, becoming mere whispers. Kestrel felt distant, calm, all-knowing, and all-powerful. That was, until a bright light captured her attention.
That bright light radiated immense psychic energy, glowing brilliantly like a lone star in the darkest sky. Impossible to miss.
To her surprise, she recognized it as Ren. He hadn’t stayed put like she had asked him to. At some point, without her realizing, he had trailed behind her and ventured into the temple. Now, he was at the edge of it, carefully moving about, investigating something.
"He lied to me?" Anger, which Kestrel hadn’t felt in what seemed like forever, bubbled up within her.
Sure, it was just Ren sneaking around. But the cold detachment, the clear-mindedness, and her newfound feeling of godhood vanished in an instant.
"He played me, that seemingly obedient alpha tricked me," Kestrel fumed. Shaking off her frustration, Kestrel turned away from the altar, tuning out the voices that beckoned her, and headed for the exit.
In the massive temple, various mutants lurking in the shadows exchanged puzzled looks.
"Did we mess up again?" Taja slumped down on the steps, leaning into the giant, dried-up corpse.
"Why can’t we get it right? We were almost there this time."
