Beastmen: She Tames the Land-Chapter 83: Going back in a basket

The pack members watched as Visha jogged into the house. Xeno’s soft chuckle could be heard as she left.

Uri turned to the pack members. "Our pack is only just getting started. Now, we have found a way to close our entrance and exit. It will take a lot of work, but I know we can do it."

"Everyone should go and get some food. When we’re all full, we can talk about what to do with the pass. We need to explore it," Xeno said.

Once everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they made their way back to the square. Visha was also present. She knew what was important, and getting the binder-reed and making the gate was extremely important.

"Since we’re all here, let’s get started," Xeno stated. "The priestess has said there aren’t many binder-reeds. We know where we can get binder-reeds. It means going back to the grotto. The journey will take a while."

His eyes swept over the pack. "If one or two people go, the journey will be much faster than a group. I volunteer to go and find the reed. Since I already know the way, it should take me seven suns if I don’t stop often."

"No," came Uri and Visha’s answer simultaneously.

"The priestess will need to go." Uri was the one who made the suggestion, much to the shock of the pack.

Murmurs started as soon as the suggestion was made. Xeno, who was standing closest to him, narrowed his eyes. Visha stood quietly without saying anything.

"I know it is not the norm for the priestess to leave the tribe. But she is the only one who can do it. From the knowledge we have about the gate, we know it will take a lot of reeds to make the gate. The only person capable of bringing that much back would be the priestess." He met the eyes of every member of the pack briefly before continuing. "I do not want her to go, but logically this is the only way."

Eyes drifted to Visha, wanting to know what she had to say.

"I accept. I was also going to suggest that I go. I don’t want someone else to be going out and getting harmed, and I really am the only person who can get it. I can even bring it back with the roots intact so we can plant some in the caldera if we need it in the future."

Her voice rose, carrying a faint sense of authority. "Our pack is small, and there is a lot to learn. We can’t always be in the same place doing the same thing. Don’t you want to expand? We still need to become a tribe. We can’t always stay as small as we are. The future I have thought of for us isn’t as simple as the tribes you have seen before. The houses are only a small part."

She lengthened her arm, sweeping it to the open spaces in the pack. "If I had my way, we would have a school to teach people to read and write, hospitals for healing, and places to make pottery and utensils. I know it isn’t possible for you. You may not even recognize some ot the things I mentioned. But I want that for us. This is just the first step. If we continue to be afraid of the slightest inconvenience, when will we ever grow?"

Xeno’s worried eyes found Visha’s. "I don’t want you to go. The journey is hard and dangerous. What if something happens to you?" He walked up to her, taking her hand in his.

She smiled. "I won’t go alone; Kaelen will go with me." She turned her eyes, finding Kaelen who stood stiffly, hearing his name being called. "If he carries me, we should be able to move faster. There is less danger."

A hiss came from Uri at the suggestion. Xeno’s muscles tightened.

"He cannot carry you," Uri said, his voice tight.

"Why not?" Visha asked.

"You are not his mate. The only person allowed to travel on the beastman’s back is his mate or cub. I will not allow it."

Visha remembered when she travelled on either Uri or Xeno. She never noticed that there was such a rule. But then, everyone here is related in some way, so it never crossed her mind that there was such a restraint.

Her gaze shifted from Xeno to Uri, unsure of how to broker a deal with them.

"I am willing to carry her. She is the priestess, and this is a mission for the pack. There is nothing else," Kaelen replied straightforwardly.

But neither man would have it. They refused to allow Visha to fly on his back.

Finally, Chi shouted, "Just make a big basket and put her in it."

Visha opened her mouth at the absurdity of the statement. But the two men nodded, willing to let her travel in the basket.

"I’m not travelling in a basket. He already agreed, I can sit on his back," Visha protested.

Her protest brought another protest in its place. Both men looked at Visha. Xeno’s eyes glowed a soft golden light, but the eyes were possessive. Uri’s glowed a soft blue, with vertical slits.

"The basket or you don’t go at all," Xeno growled.

"You are not allowed to go," Uri hissed.

Both statements came at the same time. Vish could feel their possessiveness bleeding through. The strong desire of both of them to take her and lock her in the house. She knew they wouldn’t budge, so she conceded.

They would make the basket big enough for her to sit in. She didn’t need to worry about falling out, as it would be high enough.

Chi and Willa took the time to work on it for the rest of the afternoon. The two had the best skills from when Visha taught them in the grotto.

Seeing the basket being made, Visha thought to herself that she needed to check the system again. Since she had the crystal, she would find some more information on weaving and things like that. She would imprint it on the crystal and give it to Willa and Chi.

If they had a complete set of knowledge, she wouldn’t need a basket.

She could teach them to make a chair or something similar. Maybe a harness or saddle, that way she wouldn’t be directly on Kaelen’s back.

Saddened, she didn’t think about it before; she could only watch them make it and decided to give the information when she came back.

The next morning, Visha was placed in the basket. It had a handle for Kaelen to hold. Xeno checked every knot of the basket, making sure it was safe for Visha. He put furs inside to make it more comfortable.

Uri’s eyes made contact with Kaelen’s, where he stopped for a moment before nodding. His way of saying he was entrusting Visha’s safety to him.

Before she left, she reminded everyone to be careful. She told them not to save the reeds because the gate needed to be strong.

When everything was said and done, it was time to go.

Kaelen shifted, his form exploding into a magnificent golden eagle. He grasped the strap with his talons, moved his wings, and they were airborne.