Monster Anthology [MxM]

Life Debt

Guest appearance: Jason is a creation of sadboy24/7 and used with full permission

CONTENT WARNING: Centaur x Deertaur; kidnapping; coercion

Delicate legs folded under his fiery red haunches, Jason hummed and expertly collected herbs. The sun shone brightly upon the field near the very edge of their tribe's territory. Few came out so far, and the warrior who usually escorted the healer was on bed rest himself. No one else had been available, but Jason needed the roots of these specific plants for a poultice.

The leaves, when burned, refreshed the air and warded off sickness.

Even the petals of the flowers made a lovely tea.

So here he was, alone and trying to ignore the twisting feeling in his gut. His neck itched with the feeling of being watched. His ears twitched in the still, stale air, even as his haunches shuddered.

Swallowing his fear, Jason gathered his basket and levered to his feet. Despite his instinct to break for the trees, he squared his shoulders and walked as unhurriedly as he could manage.

A flash of dark fur was all the warning he had before an enormous, hulking wolf lunged from the trees he strode towards. Letting out a shriek, Jason bolted away from the trees, away from home, into a part of the forest he didn't know.

The crashing of a massive body through the trees and snarls of the beast spurred his pace. He ducked under the branches of trees to avoid tangling his antlers. Over the sounds of his panicked panting, more snarls joined the first.

Chancing a glance over his shoulder, Jason stumbled and nearly fell. There, not far behind him, three more hulking beasts flanked the first, harrying Jason's every step.

Fear made a home in his throat, preventing him from shouting for help. He lost his basket of herbs along the way as he leapt over logs, dodged around trees, and scrambled up the sides of creaks. The wolves crashed through the underbrush, swiping at his hocks if he slowed too much. Brambles and long thorns stuck in his hide and opened gashes along his trembling legs and sweat-drenched flesh.

From behind, a pained yelp barely registered before Jason barreled headlong into a solid chest. Mighty arms wrapped around his shoulders and steered him behind a mass of muscles in one fluid motion.

"Stay," came a gruff command.

Jason didn't know if it was the command or the sudden exhaustion, but he collapsed to the forest floor. The ferns towered over his small, trembling form as he sank further into himself and under the brush. Though he did not watch, he didn't need to; the yelps, whimpers, and howls of pain were all Jason needed.

Whoever his savior was could take care of everything.

When Jason woke, he lay by a fire, wrapped in a thick blanket. A second blanket was his only barrier between him and the chill stone of the cave floor, raised where he was by about a meter or so. Bandages and salves stuck to his hide and skin, soothing cuts and scrapes. Blinking rapidly to clear away the sleep fog, Jason glanced about, even as his haunches shivered, the fire doing little to banish the bone-deep chill.

His ears twitched as the sound of massive hooves drifted to him. Turning towards the sound, Jason's eyes widened, and he shrank back.

Coming towards him through a dark tunnel, with a torch held high in one hand, was the largest centaur Jason had ever seen. Hooves easily the size of Jason's head shook the ground as the centaur approached. The light flickered over the dark grey hide with each step, muscles rippling beneath the mottled flesh. Sun-tanned skin broke free of the grey hide and crawled over a warrior's body. Dark stubble shadowed the chiseled jaw. A braid of coarse, thick hair swayed behind his back as he strode forward.