I heard a loud tiger roar. I turned around anxiously—my heart was beating fast. I crouched to the ground; my eyes followed the roar. My eyes met the body of a white tiger. Its eyes were fixed on the huge beast in front of it—a big male antelope.
The antelope lowered its head and aimed at the tiger as it charged toward it. I took a step back and accidentally stepped on a branch. The tiger's eyes tore from the antelope and gazed at me. I froze and stared at the tiger. Our eyes met. The antelope took advantage of the distraction and charged at the tiger. The tiger reacted and refocused on its prey.
In the meantime, I took the opportunity and hid behind a tree. I knew it was a matter of time before the tiger overpowered its prey and came after me. Without thinking twice, I started running.
My name is Alexandria. My code name: Alexia. I am a soldier from Earth. My teammates—there were five—didn't make the leap. I was the only savior, and now all my instincts tell me to live. That's pretty hard, even for a highly trained soldier like myself.
A new world with different and more mutated creatures. The scientist who was to accompany us made the leap but was attacked as soon as he landed. I managed to get his equipment but couldn't get it working. I mean, I'm good at fighting, not dealing with high-tech gear. Luckily, I found a control manual. I was in the process of reading it when hunger drove me outside my cave to look for something to eat before nightfall.
Now, in the presence of a saber-tooth tiger with only a knife at hand—things don't look good. I ran for my life, not because I knew my chances of winning were thin, but with no weapon to defend myself, I had to run to get my gun. Otherwise, I'm doomed. I knew if it chased after me, I couldn't outrun it. I just wanted to get to my weapons. My hope was cut short when it leaped in front of me. We locked eyes.
His deep blue eyes gazed at me, then through my body and onto my hand that was holding the knife. It smacked its lips, then spoke, "Do you think that little blade can do anything to me?" I had instinctively placed it in front of me. Instead of answering, I was shocked. The language translator actually worked, and I could understand his language.
I looked at him—a five-foot white saber-tooth tiger with black stripes—intelligent enough to speak. I didn't move nor answer, just looked at him. Then it stood on its hind legs, bones cracking as if dislocating, and its fur disappearing, leaving behind smooth, hairless skin. I couldn't help it—it made my jaw drop.
In all the time I've been in the military, this was the first time I'd seen something like this. His hair was as white as snow and his skin was pale. He had a muscular body. He looked like a tall, strong human being, but I knew he wasn't. It's impossible for a human to become a tiger at will and take human form again.
Oh God, where am I, and what is this place?
"Who are you? Why are you in the forest alone?"
"I… I am Alexia. I got lost," I managed to murmur. I had mixed feelings—I was scared and anxious. I was alert, watching him, waiting to see what he would do next after noting I was alone.
He then asked where I was going. I looked at him with surprise—what was he up to? Did he want to know so he could ambush me? As if noticing my expression, he added, "It's not safe for a young female to be alone at night in the forest. Your scent will attract wild beasts."
I looked at him, debating whether to tell him or not. I reasoned with myself—if he wanted to kill me, he would've done it a long time ago, instead of chatting. I pointed at a huge rock. He followed my finger with his eyes and settled his gaze on it.
He asked, curious, "Is there a cave there?"
I nodded, then stepped forward to lead the way. He bent down, took his prey, and followed me. We reached the rock. I bent down to remove some of the twigs I had placed at the entrance. As I removed them, it revealed a big hole, like a rabbit burrow, that went underneath the rock. Inside, the hole was big enough for us to stand. It was dark inside—only a little light came through the opening.
He looked around and said, "This won't do. I know a cave not far from here. I usually stay there when I come to the forest. Let's go there and spend the night."
He said this and turned to leave. I looked around and started gathering my stuff—a big box of equipment, my bag, and another bag that belonged to the professor. As I was struggling to carry them out, he took the box from my hand and examined it.
He asked curiously, "What's this?"
"Just some of my belongings. Help me carry it."
He looked at me, obviously not satisfied with the answer, but didn't ask anything else again. We walked in silence for almost half an hour before he announced, "We are here."
I looked up at the cave. Indeed, it was way better than the hole I was in. He took his prey inside, and I followed behind.
"Be careful with that box," I said.
He gently put it down. I murmured a thank you as I pulled it to my side.
He looked at me with a curious expression, his eyes filled with unspoken questions. It seemed as though he was on the verge of asking something important, perhaps even several things, but for some reason, he chose to remain silent. Instead of speaking, he merely muttered that he was going to collect some firewood and then quietly walked out of the cave without another word.
As soon as he left, I let out a long, quiet sigh of relief. His gaze had been intense, almost probing, and I could tell he had been holding back a storm of inquiries. The truth was, even if he had asked, I wouldn't have known how to respond. The answers he might have sought were unclear even to me, and the weight of that uncertainty pressed heavily on my mind.