Beastmen: She Tames the Land-Chapter 59: Beast Continent and The Prophecy

As Visha stared up at the words on the wall, her brows couldn’t help furrowing her brows.

She ran her hand over the symbols, now knowing what each of them means. She ran her hand over a specific word; she could see it clearly. The meaning of the word was ’beginning’.

She continued looking at the rest of the wall. Staring at the top of the wall, she began reading.

In the beginning, the Beast God shaped the world with four breaths

She continued reading, realizing this was a creation story. The words whispered to her. They flowed around the room. Quiet whispers only Visha was able to hear.

"The First Breath formed the land, she read, "It was the exhalation of stone and soil. The foundation upon which all things would rest. The Second Breath gave instinct. It flowed over the land, and life stirred from it. The fish learned to swim, the birds to fly. It was the snarl of a predator, the scurry of prey, the drive to survive, hunt, and flee. The Third Breath gave will. The spark of consciousness. They were no longer bound by instinct but had the ability to choose. They became the First Beasts."

Tracing the symbols, now words, Visha spent time reading the story of the creation of the Beast Continent.

"The Fourth Breath was meant to give harmony. It should have woven together Will, Instinct, and the Land." The change in writing made Visha realize the agitation of the person who had written. The smooth, flowing lines turned jagged, more frantic. "It was meant to be the binding force. Helping each thing to coexist. But the fourth breath was interrupted."

Visha frowned, looking at the words she intended to read next. It didn’t make sense to her. According to the text, it said, "Something reached back."

What exactly reached back? What does it mean? The fourth breath was interrupted because something stopped it. What stopped it? Why?

Her eyes slid across the text. She couldn’t help wondering about what interrupted the fourth breath and why. The four things should have been working together to make the land work in harmony.

Instead, the interruption of the fourth breath caused chaos.

Is this why the Beast Continent is the way it is? Should they have been more advanced?

She continued reading. The writing in this section was different. More intimate. Someone different had written this section; she was almost certain of it. "Before tribes. Before breasts had names. There was Vital Breath. It flowed evenly throughout the land."

Vital breath?

Visha decided that after reading, she would ask her pack members if they knew anything about this.

The more she read, the more she frowned. Confusion and a desire to keep reading caused mixed emotions for Visha. Every time she finds something she cannot understand, she is more intrigued. Yet the unknown also made her cautious to continue.

"Then came the First Beast King. Beast drew strength simply by being near him. He wasn’t a ruler. He was pure power, the embodiment of harmony. The world’s Vital Breath in the form of a Beast King. In his time, his presence was a breathing example of balance in the world."

The Golden Age of the Beast Continent. Visha thought.

"When he died, the world could not let go. Without him acting as harmony, the fourth breath, to process the passage of power, the world changed. His body sank into the land, his power following. Where his lungs fell, the Black Lung was created. Where his stomach ruptured, the Verdent Maw grew. Where his heart burned, the Ash Spiral ignited. Where his mind sank, the Deep Hollow opened."

Visha took note of these places. Reading this, she had more questions than answers. She definitely needed to know about these in more detail.

"After the First Beast King fell, the Beast God decided on another method. To keep the world from tearing itself apart, he created priests, mates, and tribes. A broken system for a flawed world. As a final act of mercy, he left a warning:

When shadows walk.

When cursed beasts breathe dark air,

The one who bears two natures must choose:

Seal the wounds...Or become the next."

By the end of her reading, Visha was breathless. She hadn’t even realized she held her breath until she started gasping.

Sitting there, before the words she saw, Visha had no idea what to make of this place.

A god willing to try time and time again to make sure his people were safe. Yet, even he could not stop the trouble that occurred. If he were truly a god, why didn’t he solve it?

What Visha knew about gods, in her world, was that they were supposed to take care of their followers. To her, she thought gods were cruel. They played games with their followers. If they were bored one day, everyone would lose their lives.

Yet, here was a god who tried finding multiple ways to help his followers, but was always intercepted.

By what? Another god? Or something else entirely?

She closed her eyes, stopping herself from thinking too much. She smoothed her breathing and stood up, ready to leave. She didn’t want to stay here anymore.

It made her feel small and insignificant.

Especially after reading what she thought was a prophecy. Seeing it made her heart stutter. She would never be conceited enough to think the prophecy was talking about her.

She would prefer to believe it was meant for someone special.

She walked out of the tower, still thinking about what she read. She was so absent-minded that she walked directly into Uri.

When she felt herself hit the hard object, she looked up, embarrassed that she had actually run into a wall. But it wasn’t a wall, it was Uri. She saw the bowl in his hand; he was bringing her food.

"Sha’mīn, is everything alright?" Uri’s eyes bore into hers.

Visha wasn’t sure what to say, so she lowered her head and gave a noncommittal hum.

"Let’s go eat," Visha said.

She could feel Uri’s eyes boring into her, but she didn’t look up. If she looked up, he would see how overwhelmed she felt. She needed some time to process this.

She also needed to figure out how she should bring up this creation story with the beast men, who seemed not to know much about their own heritage.

Another question that Visha placed at the back of her mind for the moment. They clearly had a rich written history. Why would they move from writing things down and move back to oral tradition?