Time Travel to Ancient Times: Farming and Having Babies

The smell hit her first. A thick, metallic stench of rust mixed with something cloyingly sweet, like rotting fruit left in the sun. It coated the back of Karlie Holloway's throat, dragging her up from the dark void of unconsciousness.

She remembered the explosion-the sickening lurch of the plane, the screech of tearing metal, and then fire swallowing everything. She had died. Or should have. But instead of an afterlife, she woke here, on this alien ground, with Unit 9's cold voice in her skull explaining the impossible: she had transmigrated into a interstellar beastman world. A reality ripped from the trashy romance serials she used to mock. Here, the rules were inverted. Females were rare, their psychic energy capable of soothing the violent frenzies that plagued the males. A single high-ranking female could bond with multiple males, and she was now one of those precious, hunted few. The thought made her stomach turn.

Her eyes flew open. The world was a blur of shadows and jagged rock. A splitting pain hammered behind her eyeballs, pulsing in time with her frantic heartbeat. She gasped, the sound echoing too loud in the enclosed space.

She tried to push herself up. Her right palm slapped against something wet and sticky. Warmth seeped between her fingers. Karlie froze, her breath catching. She forced her head down, blinking away the haze.

Blood. Her hand was covered in it.

Half of it was hers, seeping from a gash on her forearm. The other half came from the twisted piece of metal shrapnel pinning her left leg to the dirt floor of the cave. The sharp edge had sliced through her pants, biting deep into her calf.

"Damn it." she hissed through clenched teeth. The pain was a live wire, shooting up her leg and making her stomach heave.

She grabbed the metal shard with her bloody hand, muscles tensing to pull it free, when a sound stopped her cold.

A low, guttural growl rolled out from the darkest depths of the cave. It wasn't human. It vibrated in the air, rattling the loose pebbles near her feet.

Karlie's hands dropped. She pressed her back against the cold, damp rock wall, her chest so tight she couldn't breathe. Her eyes darted into the blackness, searching.

Two points of crimson light flickered to life.

They weren't lights. They were eyes. Red, vertical slits that cut through the darkness like laser beams. Heavy, ragged breathing followed, the sound of a massive chest heaving with effort.

A shape detached itself from the shadows. It stood on two legs, but the proportions were wrong-too broad, too hunched. As it stepped into the faint light filtering through the cave entrance, Karlie's heart slammed against her ribs so hard she thought it would crack bone.

It was a man. Or at least, it had been.

Gavin Knapp. Even through the haze of terror, she recognized the broad shoulders and the dark hair matted with sweat. But his features were twisted into something animalistic. The veins on his forehead bulged like thick cords, pulsing with a feverish rhythm. His jaw hung slack, saliva dripping from the corner of his mouth. His eyes were those crimson slits, devoid of any recognition or sanity.

He took a step forward. His left leg dragged behind him, leaving a thick smear of blood on the stone floor. The wound on his thigh was a mess of torn flesh and bruised skin, but he moved as if he didn't feel it.

His gaze swept the cave, wild and unseeing. Then, it locked onto Karlie.

A whine escaped his throat. It wasn't a sound of pain. It was hunger. A desperate, starving need.

He lunged.

Karlie didn't even have time to scream. He moved faster than a man that injured should be able to. One massive hand slammed into her shoulders, pinning her back against the rock. The force rattled her teeth. His fingers dug into her flesh, hard enough to grind the bones together.

Heat. He radiated heat like a furnace. It blasted against her skin, soaking through her torn shirt. His breath was hot and ragged against her neck, carrying a scent that was wild and aggressive, nothing like a human.

"No," she gasped, her hands coming up to push against his chest. It was like pushing against a concrete wall. "Get off me!"

He didn't seem to hear her. His other hand grabbed the collar of her shirt. The fabric tore with a loud rip, exposing her shoulder and collarbone to the damp air.

It wasn't desire. There was nothing calculated or sensual in his movements. He was a drowning man, and she was the only piece of driftwood in the ocean. He was acting on pure, biological instinct.

Warning. High-energy biological frenzy detected. The voice of Unit 9, her AI assistant, echoed in her mind, sharp and urgent. Hostile intent critical. Physical resistance futile. Immediate energy symbiosis recommended to stabilize target. Failure to comply results in high probability of host fatality.

"Energy symbiosis? What the hell is that?" The thought fractured in her panic-stricken mind. "Unit 9, are you insane? He's a monster! I can't get closer to him!"

"Explanation," Unit 9 replied, its tone maddeningly calm. "You are now in a interstellar beastman world. Females possess unique psychic soothing abilities. This male is in a berserk frenzy-a common affliction due to unstable energy reserves. Energy symbiosis is the primary method of calming. In this society, females are revered as scarce resources; one female may bond with multiple males to form a stable unit. Your survival depends on accepting this reality."

"I didn't sign up for this!" she screamed internally, thrashing against his iron grip. Her breaths came in short, terrified bursts. Her heart hammered against her ribs like a trapped bird. But as his jaws snapped inches from her neck, the hot, wild scent of his frenzy suffocating her, the cold reality of her situation crashed down. She had no weapons, no strength, and no way out. If she fought him, he would crush her. If she screamed, he would silence her. The realization hit her with icy clarity, cutting through the panic. It was either try this crazy AI suggestion, or die right here in the dirt.

Karlie stopped pushing. Instead, she reached up. Her hand trembled as she grabbed the back of his neck. His skin was burning hot, slick with sweat. She forced his face down toward hers.

The touch seemed to short-circuit his brain. Gavin let out a low roar, his body shuddering. He stopped tearing at her clothes and wrapped both arms around her, lifting her off the ground and crushing her against his chest.

The moment their bodies pressed together, fully and without barrier, the world exploded.

A torrent of raw, scorching energy flooded into her. It wasn't gentle. It was a dam breaking. It slammed into her nervous system, making every nerve ending scream. Pain and a bizarre, tingling electricity detonated in her skull at the same time.

Karlie's vision went white. Her fingers curled, her nails digging deep into the muscles of Gavin's back. She felt the skin tear under her nails, felt the hot wash of his blood on her hands, but she couldn't let go. If she let go, the energy would rip her apart.

Gavin's movements changed. The frantic, violent jerking slowed. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, his breath coming in heavy, shuddering gasps. The growls turned into low, painful moans.

Inside her, something answered his call. That cold, dormant potential that had lived in her bones since the post-apocalyptic world ended-it woke up. It rose to meet his fire, not with fire of its own, but with a soothing, neutralizing chill.

She became a lightning rod. His chaotic, berserk energy poured into her, and her body filtered it, cooled it, and fed it back to him in a stable loop. It was exhausting. It felt like her veins were being scrubbed with sandpaper while her brain was submerged in ice water.

As the energy flowed, a secondary awareness bloomed in her mind-a fragment of this world's laws, forced into her by the AI or by the bond itself. Females were the cornerstone of survival. Without them, males succumbed to frenzy and died. In return, males protected and provided for their bonded female, often sharing her with others to form a polyandrous pack. The more powerful the male, the more he needed a female to ground him. And Gavin... his energy was immense. She had just tethered herself to a high-ranking beastman, and by this world's rules, that made her his anchor-and his, in ways she didn't yet understand.

Minutes stretched into an eternity. Karlie's consciousness frayed at the edges. The only things keeping her tethered to reality were the heavy thud of Gavin's heart against hers and the inferno of his skin.

Finally, the tidal wave receded. The manic energy draining from Gavin's body slowed to a trickle, then stopped.

His muscles went slack. The crushing pressure of his arms released. With a heavy sigh, he collapsed against her, his full weight pinning her to the cave floor. His breathing deepened, shifting from ragged gasps to the slow rhythm of deep sleep.

Karlie slid down the wall, her legs giving out completely. Every muscle in her body screamed in protest. She felt like she'd been taken apart and put back together wrong.

She pushed at Gavin's shoulder, her arms feeling like wet noodles. He rolled off her, landing on his side on the dirt floor. His eyes were closed, the crimson faded to a dull brown. The feverish flush was gone from his skin, leaving him pale and exhausted.

The cave was quiet again. The only sounds were their harsh breathing and the distant, alien chirping of insects outside.

Karlie lay there for a long moment, staring at the rocky ceiling. Her clothes were in tatters. Her shoulders throbbed where his fingers had dug in, the bruises already blooming dark and ugly. Her leg was still bleeding, though the flow had slowed.

Energy symbiosis complete, Unit 9 reported, its voice flat and emotionless in her head. Host vital signs stabilized. Energy reserves critically low. High-energy resource intake recommended. Note: You have initiated a proto-bond with this male. In this world, such a bond implies future cohabitation and potential additional mates. Females of your status are legally entitled to claim multiple males for protection and reproduction.

"Easy for you to say," Karlie muttered, her voice a raw scrape. "I didn't ask for any of this. I don't want a harem of monsters."

Reproduction is not mandatory, Unit 9 added. But survival is. Your psychic signature is now registered. Other males in the vicinity may sense you. Recommend securing a territory or acquiring additional bonded males for defense.

Karlie groaned and rolled her head to the side, looking at the man who had just attacked her. The man she had just saved. The man whose life was now tangled with hers, whether she liked it or not.

Her gaze traveled down his body, stopping at his left leg. The wound was still oozing, but now, in the dim light, she could see it clearly. The edges of the gash weren't red or pink. They were a deep, sickly purple-black, like ink spreading through water. It looked like rot. It looked like poison.

That wasn't a wound from a crash. That wasn't an accident.

Someone had done this to him.

A bitter laugh caught in her throat. She was stuck on an alien planet, in a cave that smelled like blood and rot, with a stranger who had almost killed her. And yet, looking at that poisoned leg, she felt a twist of something other than fear.

Sympathy.

He was a victim, too. And according to Unit 9, he was now her responsibility-her first bond in a world where females ruled through their soothing power, and males fought for the right to serve them.

The first rays of morning light crept through the entrance of the cave, piercing the canopy of the Bloodwood trees outside. The leaves were a strange, bloody red, and the light they filtered was cold and pale.

It fell across Karlie's face, drying the tears she hadn't realized she'd shed. It fell across Gavin's sleeping face, highlighting the furrow in his brow, even in unconsciousness.

She wiped her cheek with the back of her hand, smearing dirt and blood. She had to get up. She had to assess the situation. She had to survive-not just as a castaway, but as a rare female in a world that would either worship her or tear her apart to claim her power.

She reached for the corner of her vision, where the faint blue icon of the Nexus interface blinked. She had water. She had a few supplies. She had a brain that knew how to survive the end of the world-and now, a reluctant understanding of the matriarchal, polyandrous society she had fallen into.

It was time to use them.

Karlie stared at the twisted metal pinning her calf to the dirt. Her breath hitched as she gripped the cold, jagged edge. With a guttural cry, she wrenched the shrapnel free, the sound of tearing flesh echoing in the quiet cave. Blood flared, hot and sticky, but she was no longer anchored. She dragged herself across the dirt floor until her back hit the cave wall again. The movement sent a fresh wave of agony through her leg, but she bit down on her lip until she tasted copper. She couldn't afford to pass out.

She focused on the blinking blue icon in her vision. With a thought, the Nexus interface expanded, filling her sight with holographic menus and inventory lists. Most of it was grayed out-locked or empty. But in the basic supplies folder, she found what she needed.

A single vial of basic nutrient fluid materialized in her palm. It was small, barely the size of her finger, and cool to the touch.

"Better than nothing." she whispered.

She fumbled for the injector cap, her hands shaking. She pressed the tip against her inner arm and hit the release. A burst of icy liquid shot into her vein. It spread through her system like weak tea, not enough to fill the gaping hole in her energy reserves, but enough to stop the trembling in her hands and clear the fog from her head.

She let out a long breath and turned her attention to the unconscious man.

Gavin hadn't moved. His chest rose and fell steadily, but his skin was still too pale. Karlie crawled over to him, her nose wrinkling at the smell of his wound. That purple-black discoloration was spreading, albeit slowly. It looked like a venom or some kind of necrotic infection.

She didn't have anything for that. Not yet. She pulled out the small first-aid kit from her inventory-some gauze, antiseptic wipes, and a bandage. It was primitive, but it was all she had. Before turning to Gavin, she hastily pressed a thick pad of gauze against her own puncture wound, securing it with a strip of medical tape. It was a messy, temporary fix, but it would stop her from bleeding out while she worked.

She then worked quickly on Gavin, cleaning the blood and dirt from around his wound as best she could, then wrapping it tightly with gauze. It wouldn't cure him, but it might slow the bleeding.

As she tied off the knot, Gavin stirred.

A low groan rumbled in his chest. His head turned on the dirt floor, his brow furrowing. Karlie froze, her hand still resting on his leg.

His eyelashes fluttered. Then, his eyes snapped open.

They were clear. The crimson was gone, replaced by a deep, dark brown. But the clarity lasted only a second before pain flooded in. He gasped, his body jerking as if he'd been electrocuted.

He tried to sit up, but the movement wrenched his injured leg. He fell back with a grunt, his hand shooting out to grab his thigh. His eyes darter around the cave, wild and confused, until they landed on Karlie.

He stared at her. His gaze traveled from her face, down to her torn shirt, to the bruises darkening on her shoulders and arms. The color drained from his face.

"I..." His voice was a ragged whisper, like sandpaper scraping stone. "Did I..."

He couldn't finish the sentence. The horror and self-loathing in his eyes were so raw that Karlie felt her own chest tighten.

She pulled her torn shirt tighter around her, instinctively shifting back a few inches. The fear was still there, a cold knot in her stomach, but it was mixed with something else now. He looked as broken as she felt.

"You were out of your mind." she said. Her voice was steady, which surprised her. "You attacked me."

Gavin closed his eyes. He swallowed hard, his throat working. "I'm sorry," he breathed. "I didn't... I couldn't..."

"It was the drugs," Karlie said. It wasn't a question. She had seen the signs, the fever, the loss of control. This wasn't natural. "Who did this to you?"

The question hit him like a physical blow. His eyes flew open, the pain shifting into something hard and cold. "Caprice," he spat the name. "My... former fiancée. She slipped rut-grass juice into my water. And when I was injured and vulnerable, she broke our contract."

He paused, his jaw clenching. "In this world, males experience a 'rut.' A period of intense biological drive. If not... calmed... by a female's energy, it drives us mad. She knew that. She left me to die raving."

Karlie listened, her mind racing. Unit 9 chimed in, feeding her data streams about the local biology.

Update confirmed. Host has arrived on Eden Prime, a high-energy primal planet. Society is female-centric. Males require energy symbiosis to stabilize during rut.

"So, I was your anchor," Karlie said flatly. "Your life raft. How lucky for you."

Gavin flinched. "I would not blame you if you left me here to rot," he said, his voice hollow. "What I did... there is no excuse."

Karlie studied him. He was lying on the dirt, battered and poisoned, looking at her with the eyes of a man who had already condemned himself. She thought about the leg wound, the unnatural color of it. Someone had tried to kill him, not just abandon him.

"Get up." she said.

He looked at her, surprised.

"I said, get up." She forced herself to her feet, her left leg buckling for a sickening second before she locked her knee. She hissed through her teeth as her own leg protested the sudden weight. "We can't stay in this cave. What's the nearest settlement?"

Gavin struggled to sit up, his face twisting in pain. "The Eastern Flame Settlement. It's about fifteen kilometers southeast. But..." He looked down at his leg, then back at her. "I am crippled. And you are... an outsider. They will not welcome us."

"Then we'll make them," Karlie said. She held out her hand to him. "Can you walk?"

He stared at her hand for a long moment, as if it were a lifeline thrown to a drowning man. Finally, he reached up and took it. His grip was weak, trembling.

"I will try." he said.

She hauled him to his feet. He swayed, throwing an arm around her shoulders for support. He was heavy, and the heat of his body was stifling, but she held firm.

"Let's go." she said.

They moved toward the cave entrance. The morning light was brighter now, illuminating the strange, red-tinged forest outside. The air was thick with the scent of alien flora and the sounds of unseen creatures.

Karlie looked out at the vast, unknown world. Fear coiled in her gut, but beneath it was a spark of determination. She had survived the end of one world. She would survive this one, too.

Beside her, Gavin took a limping step forward, his weight heavy on her shoulder. He looked at her, his expression a mix of wonder and gratitude.

"You are not afraid." he observed quietly.

Karlie snorted. "I'm terrified," she admitted. "But fear doesn't get you anywhere. Moving does."

She adjusted her grip on him and stepped out of the cave, into the blood-red light of Eden Prime.

As Gavin drifted back to sleep from exhaustion just outside the cave's threshold, Karlie reached for the corner of her vision, opening the Nexus interface again. A new, golden tab blinked, drawing her attention. The Trading Hub. A message from Unit 9 scrolled across her mind: Trading function unlocked. Scanning local environment for tradable assets to acquire high-level medical supplies. Karlie's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. She needed better medicine to fully cure that necrotic rot in his leg, and now she had a way to get it-if she could find something valuable enough on this alien rock to trade.

They walked for half the day. The forest was dense, the ground uneven and treacherous with roots and loose stones. Every step was a struggle. Gavin's breathing was ragged, his face pale and slick with sweat, but he never complained. He just gritted his teeth and pushed forward, leaning heavily on Karlie.

Finally, they reached a small clearing. A massive tree dominated the space, its trunk wider than a house. Instead of leaves, it bore clusters of fist-sized fruit, a deep purple-red that seemed to glow in the dappled light.

"Here," Gavin said, his voice thin. He slumped against the trunk, sliding down to sit on a root. "We rest."

Karlie helped him settle, then leaned against the tree herself, her own legs shaking. She was exhausted, her energy reserves scraping the bottom again.

She looked up at the fruit. Unit 9, scan those.

A beam of invisible light swept over the tree. Data populated her vision.

Species: Blood Spirit Fruit. Energy density: 3.2 times standard post-war energy core. Edible. Mild restorative properties.

Karlie's jaw dropped. "Holy shit," she breathed. She looked at the fruit, then back at the data. A fruit that was three times more potent than the energy cores she used to kill herself to find? Just hanging here on a tree?

She reached up and plucked two of the heavy fruits. They were warm to the touch, pulsing faintly under the skin.

She tossed one to Gavin. "Eat this."

He caught it, staring at it in surprise. "This is a Blood Spirit Fruit," he said. "They are rare. Usually, only the hunting parties bring them back, and even then, we only get a taste..."

"Well, today you get a whole one." Karlie said. She bit into hers. The flesh was soft and juicy, bursting with a sweet, tangy flavor that immediately sent a wave of warmth through her body. The ache in her muscles faded slightly; the fog in her head cleared.

Gavin watched her for a moment, then took a hesitant bite. His eyes widened. Color began to return to his cheeks.

While he ate, Karlie reached out and gently probed his injured leg. He tensed but didn't pull away.

Unit 9, deep scan.

The data was grim. Compound cursed wound. Old tears, energy erosion, necrotic venom. Standard medical intervention ineffective. Requires high-level purification or specific energy neutralization.

"It's worse than I thought." she murmured.

Gavin looked down at his leg, his expression darkening. "It was meant to be," he said bitterly. "It wasn't just Caprice. It was her new lover. Konner Porter. My stepbrother."

Karlie looked up. "Your stepbrother?"

"He has always hated me," Gavin said, his voice low and angry. "Our father favored me, even though I was the stepson. When Caprice and I were contracted, it pushed him over the edge. They set a trap for me in the hunting grounds. They lured a high-level beast to attack me. I took the hit to cover the retreat of the others. The beast's claw was poisoned."

He paused, his hands clenching into fists. "And while I lay dying, Caprice broke our contract and went to him. She said I was no longer the strongest, so she had no use for me."

Karlie felt a surge of anger on his behalf. It wasn't just betrayal; it was calculated cruelty. "They set you up to die," she said.

"Or worse," Gavin said. "A crippled male in this world is worthless. They thought I would be cast out, a beggar. They didn't expect me to survive the rut, or to find..." He trailed off, looking at her.

Karlie met his gaze. The complexity of their situation hung heavy in the air between them. He had hurt her, but he had also been hurt.

"Your leg," she said slowly. "I might have a way to help it. But I need time, and some... special materials."

Gavin's eyes lit up with a desperate hope that quickly faded into skepticism. "The healers said it was impossible. The curse is too deep."

"I'm not a healer," Karlie said. "And I don't play by their rules."

She didn't elaborate. She couldn't. Not yet. But the seed of hope had been planted.

They sat in silence for a moment. Karlie finished her fruit and wiped her hands on her pants. "Caprice," she said. "Did you love her?"

Gavin laughed, a short, harsh sound. "Love? It was a family arrangement. They said our energy profiles were compatible. I never really knew her. Not until the rut. Not until I realized she had been dosing my water for months, feeding me small amounts of suppressants to make me dependent on her."

Karlie felt a chill run down her spine. Long-term mental manipulation. It was sick.

"Wait," she said, a thought striking her. "If she was dosing you, and you were dependent... then why were you in so much pain during the rut?"

Gavin's face flushed red. He looked away, his jaw working as he stared into the dark woods. "The rut is about energy overload, not lust," he murmured, his voice dropping to a shameful, pained whisper. "And I... I never actually... bonded with her. She always made excuses. She never allowed the bond to complete. So when the rut hit, without a true anchor... it was the first time I'd ever lost control like that. I had no idea how to handle the surge. It was my first time."

The words hung in the air. It changed things. It didn't erase the terror or the pain, but it added a layer of tragedy to it. He hadn't been a monster taking what he wanted; he had been a victim, drowning, and she had been his first breath of air.

"We should move," Karlie said, clearing her throat. "We need to reach the settlement before dark."

Gavin nodded, grateful for the change of subject. He struggled to his feet, using the tree for support. Karlie moved to his side, slipping her arm around his waist. This time, the contact felt less like a burden and more like a partnership.

As they walked, Karlie kept her eyes on the forest, using Unit 9 to scan the plants around her. Every few feet, another "high-value" species popped up. Her mind buzzed with possibilities. This planet was a goldmine.

Gavin watched her from the corner of his eye. She would stare off into space, her eyes moving rapidly as if reading something invisible, and then a look of excitement or deep thought would cross her face. She was a mystery, one he was becoming more and more desperate to solve.

They reached the edge of the forest as the sun began to dip. Ahead, the land had been cleared, marking the perimeter of the settlement.

Gavin stopped, taking a deep breath. He turned to her, his expression serious. "Whatever happens in there, remember you are my mate. I will protect you."

Karlie looked into his dark, earnest eyes. For the first time since she woke up in this nightmare, she felt a flicker of something warm in her chest. "I know," she said.

They stepped across the boundary line, into the Eastern Flame Settlement.