Centaur Boyfriend: Solomandry (special preview)

It isn’t like I have anywhere to be, anywhere I am wanted, so I just keep moving forward. There isn’t much I can do back home, my family needs people who are able to work during the peak hours of the day. Considering I grow weak during sunlit hours, I am no help upon the farm, I’m barely any help in the house. All I can do is study and read. No one really needs that when food has to be put on the table.

My family took me in when no one else would, and while I am grateful for all their love and support I know they can’t possibly understand me. I am not like them, I am not part of their world no matter how hard they try to pull me into it. It is best to keep them at a distance, we can love each where we stand then.

During the day when I travel, I try to find somewhere I can rest, or at least get indoors away from the sun. I travel mostly at twilight and nightfall. And yes, I know how dangerous that is. I have been told that countless times. Actually, I have been told it every fucking time I leave somewhere. It’s exhausting and belittling, I can take care of myself better than they can, I assure you. But while my sense of direction may not be the best, in fact, it is possibly the worst, I still bet I fare better than any other adventurer or knight I come across.

Currently, I have been in a small town where I discovered one of the shops had a collection of old books. Within them were histories, and a bestiary that read more like a family tree. I could not afford to buy the books at the moment, but the shop owner allowed me to work there, doing small jobs for him, so that way I could study the books on my own. There was a map within one, which I copied down, hoping it would help me find even a sliver of what I’m looking for.

After I was sure I had learned everything I possibly could from those books, I decided to set out and follow that map.

“Young lady,” the shop keeper gasped. “It isn’t-”

I sigh heavily and grit my teeth. “Let me guess? It’s not safe to travel now. There are beasts within the shadows. There are thieves who will rob you blind. There are Gnolls that will capture you. There are-”

“It’s not safe,” he insists. “But none of those things are out in our woods.”

Okay, I will admit, that is a new one. I furrow my brow and turn to look back at the old man. “What do you mean? If there are no Gnolls, beasts, or thieves, what is there?”

“There is a powerful force out there, a dark warlock.”

I can’t help but frown a bit. “A warlock?”

The old man wags his finger in protest. “I know how it sounds, young lady. But he is no man, not even a creature. He is an entity who has inhabited our woods for centuries.”

“Only dragons can live that long,” I scoff. “And there aren’t many of them anymore are there?”

He wags his finger again and I want to chop it off if he doesn’t stop. “There is more to this world than we know. Isn’t that exactly what you are seeking?”

Crap, he’s right. I frown and look away from him.

“He is out there, we know that for a fact. He goes out at night when he can’t be seen so he can hunt, and many travelers have gone missing on nights like these.” Hopefully he’s not wagging his finger again as he says this.

“This is the only time I do travel, so this warlock will just have to deal with me when he finds me.” I set out despite his protests, wandering through town until I come to the path leading into the woods. I can hear shudders and whispers coming from the trees as everything starts to turn still. It doesn’t bother me anymore, I am used to that somber sound of night. “Warlock,” I laugh to myself. “What a crock.”

I can see in darkness better than I can daylight. It was something I used to enjoy as a child when I had no idea what it meant. I thought everyone could see so well in the shadows, I never knew my eyes became frightening when it was dark.