The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe-Chapter 287: Lyra went MIA

"You guys, take cover." I said to the sheep tribe and they scurried farther from the fight.

An hyena wanted to reach one of the sheep, but their face was met with Fenric’s heavy fist.

"Keep going," Fenric said, squeezing his wrist tight. "I won’t let any of them pass."

In that moment, I looked at him with marvel. Truly, my husbands were awesome.

While the situation was getting heated up, I threw my gaze over to the rock where Damar had hid our cubs. And who was it that told him that hiding a basket of cubs during a hostile takeover was a good idea?

Before either of them gets caught up in what you call a hostage situation, I just might lose my mind if that happens, I rushed towards the back of the rock.

Lucky, they were safe but... Last I checked, I had three cubs. So where in the world was that troublemaker Raiden?

Oh wait, he’s in the basket. Then... I looked at them, the cub missing was Lyra.

No way. The baby I thought would give me the most trouble was sitting patiently and quietly in the basket, and the one that had run off was my responsible daughter?

"Lyra!" I yelled, hoping she would hear my voice and come out from wherever she was hiding.

My heart was racing, skipping, feeling like it could give our any moment. Why was my daughter making me worry?

Behind us was a heated war. If one of Garrow’s men came across my baby... my heart cut just with the thought of it and I shook my head.

No, I can’t weigh myself down with such thoughts. I have to find my baby.

I tried to sniff out her location but where I was had to much of her scent so there was no trail to trace. I tried to listen to her little steps on the ground but the battle was too loud for me to get any of that.

What do I do?

"Raiden," I called, and he looked me in the eye. "Do you know where your sister went?"

Raiden, as if understanding me clearly, turned his head and then yipped off the basket.

I don’t know if he was going in the direction he knew his sister went but I hope he did. I hope I wasn’t just playing around on his trail.

And so, I followed Raiden, but he was walking too slowly. The loose sand also threatened to swallow him at soem point so I scooped him off the ground and placed him back in the basket.

"Thank you, Raiden. At least now I have a lead." I just kept going in that direction, it was completely opposite of the current fight.

Just far had she gone with her little paws. She was usually so quiet and responsible, and could read the room, but to think she would pull a stunt at a time like this.

"Little lady, you’re definitely going to be hearing a scolding from me." I hugged and reached the edge where the water was met with the cliff.

My litrle one had come here? Why?

I paused past the thicket of leaves that were draping down like willows, blocking the view of whatever was by the edge of the cliff, by the water, and why my baby moved towards this spot.

And to my shock, there was someone here, passed out unconscious. Well, not a person. I thought as my eyes fell down to the tail that had its fin currently in the slowly drifting wave.

This mer folks, tanned, had quite the translucent purple hair sprawled over the sand, and a coral covering his face.

He was massive. Compared to Jael, he looked more like an adult.

"Is he alive?" I asked but didn’t even bother to wonder that when I saw my baby standing on top of his chest, staring at his coral covered face. "Lyra!" I called and her little ears perked up. "Young lady, I’m going to give you an ear full. Do you know how dangerous this is? Come here, right now."

But Lyra did not jump off and come to me. She looked at me for a while and then looked down at the fish man.

What was it that had drawn my baby here and make my ever so responsible Lyra to become troublesome?

In that moment, I recalled Damar saying the mer folks lure in prey with their voice.

As soon as that thought surfaced, I didn’t wait anymore and quickly rushed to pull my baby into my arms, stepping back a few paces in defense as I waited to see the fish man’s reaction.

But there was nothing.

I noticed how his gills looked clogged, like Jael’s when he came up shore. So that meant, he was currently unconscious. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Still, I didn’t want to let my guard down.

I was saving his people but to think there was actually a possibility they would be putting my babies into danger while I was doing such a meticulous deed.

"Alright, stay here." I said, placing the cubs down, over the wet and lush leaves. "I don’t want anyone going MIA from now on either, okay?"

The cubs yipped and I looked at Lyra, who despite was back in the basket, was still looking at the fish man.

Gosh, what was it that drew her all this way? I still wonder.

"I’ll save you, so you don’t ’drown’." I said, pushing up my invisible sleeves.

I don’t know why, but I snagged a fluffy part of wool while everyone was at work. I guess all of that led to this moment.

I approached the fish man, took a look at his tanned body once more. It had that sickly gray feeling that made me sure he had been affected by the bitter dust, that was why he was sprawled over on the shore, hidden from everyone else.

Who was he?

I used the wool to clean out the slime from the gills on his neck, and then decided to check if his face was okay too.

I mean, with a body as packed as this, it would be a shame not to have a handsome face to top it up.

And then, as I shifted the coral from his face, I stumbled back, falling on my butt.

This... This... Why was he so handsome?