Chapter 224: Tight-knit Community

Ann went for a walk. It had been a week or so since she’d run off to talk to Rowena, leaving her devoid of girlfriends to hang out with and bounce off. She knew Kat would be somewhere, and the general idea of where Rosalyn was, but right now, she actually wanted to avoid the two. Not because she needed the alone time, but because she needed to not draw the attention two mostly normal-looking people walking around with her caused. She was still new to the town, and that would make her stand out anyway, but her physical transformations made her fit in a bit better. Maybe once Kat grew some horns, or Rosalyn got a tail, they’d get less side-eye. That wasn’t even counting Bren and Lucia, who still looked completely normal.

She’d set out to find One of Bark, but had gotten fairly distracted. There were a lot of interesting people in this town from a physical standpoint. All sorts of animals and monsters mishmashed into the human form at obtuse angles. It was a complete mess, and she understood why the walls of the living spaces were all cloth. More than that, entry to most of them would be impossible for people of larger sizes, like Eyes. Korvas and Graven Keep had been built with large people in mind, but they had far more resources at their disposal. She didn’t think it would matter for the incredibly wide crab person that scuttled by on ten fluffy hooves.

She got to the edge of the crystal-lit cavern, just between the livestock area and the waterfall that seemed to be for both drinking and general usage. Cleaning had to be done somewhere else; it wouldn’t contaminate the clear pool, but she couldn’t see where. She’d ask later.

Walking toward the stables, she was met with a sight straight out of fantasy. An honest-to-god centaur clopped his way out of the doors, ducking low to avoid the doorframe. He was a lovely chestnut with white spots across his flanks, with cuffs of hair just above his hooves. He was fit, with pale skin, and had a mostly human torso with a grizzled face and shaggy beard. Long grey hair fell to his shoulders, where it looked like someone had tried to cut it with a dull rock. That being said, he was a Warped, and not all of him could be one thing. His tail wasn’t the flowing beauty, but the half-formed head of a horse. It looked around blindly, its features melted like a wax statue, with a placid expression. Along the man and horse backs ran a long trail of wriggling fingers of varying lengths that never seemed to rest, and clutched at his neck every now and then. Ann figured there’d be more to him, but she couldn’t see it outwardly. He was also completely naked. The transition from human to horse thankfully started before any dangly bits, so at least she could treat the back half like a normal horse.

“Oh? A new face in town! When’d you arrive, uh?”

“Annita,” Ann said casually, offering her hand with her claws extended. Better show him everything to ease any nerves. “I got here the other day with a few friends. Alruna brought us in to see everything.”

“You’re the purple wolf everyone’s talking about? Don’t look purple to me,” the centaur chuckled, looking her over.

“I can change my coat. I use it for telling people if I’m approachable or not. Seems to work. What’s your name?”

“Lorvin Carson. Eldest of All liked this complicated title with me being half a man, but I still prefer the real thing. So, heard all about your message. What can I help you with?”

“Kinda the opposite of what I’m doing. Looking to get to know everyone a bit, and figured helping out was the best way to get started. I was looking for One of Bark, but got sidetracked.”

“Well, ol’ Barky is probably helping with the wash, so they’d be back further in. Could use some help myself, if you’re good with that?”

“Sure. It’s what I’m good for,” Ann laughed. “Not the strongest person, but it won’t stop me from doing my best.”

“That’s the best way to get at something. Come on, got some grass I need to haul and feed the boars.” Lorvin trotted off in the direction of the entry, his weird horse head twitching left and right like the real tail would.

“Don’t mean to be rude, but can you see or feel anything out of… uh… him?” Ann asked as she jogged alongside Lorvin.

“Who, ol’ Bitey? Naw, he’s blind, and what I feel is more like a hand or foot than an actual head. He does breathe, though, which took some gettin’ used to. Careful, you don’t get too close. He’d take a chunk outta Eldest of All if given the chance. Ornery bastard.”

As if to punctuate the comment, Bitey clacked slate-grey teeth together with surprising force.

“Yeah, wouldn’t want to be behind a horse anyway. Good way to get kicked.”

“Eh, I’m harder to spook than some ol’ nag. Warped instinct might do it, though, so good choice.”

They came up to one of the few wooden buildings in the settlement. Four walls and a roof. A warehouse. Lorvin shouldered the tall doors open, and Ann was hit face-first by the pungent smell of loam. It was a good smell, once she adjusted a little.

“Is most of this rotting?” Ann asked, wriggling her nose to clear it of a sneeze.

“Naw, that’s just the compost. Don’t get much dirt this far down, so we do our best to make the stuff. Humidity can be a bother for storing the grasses, but separating them in a bin o’ their own helps. Over here,” he waved, trotting over to a wall with another set of doors.

True enough, it was less humid in here, with rows of hay, dried grasses, and other vegetation Ann couldn’t identify. It was all in orderly piles and bales, with ample walking space for all but the widest person.

“I know, pretty organised for a bunch of Warped, right? I got here after Alruna, and apparently she nearly strangled the last person in charge o’ this here storehouse. Worms an’ everything. From what she told me, by Nylir, I woulda done the same. Mixing everything together’s a great way to make sure you get nothing you want.”

“She’s a neat freak, huh?” Ann asked as Lorvin clopped down the first aisle.

“Shucks, kinda? Likes her stuff in its spot and can get bent outta shape when it changes. I’m organised,” the man laughed. “Alright, this is the stuff. Grab a bale and toss it up on my back. The fingers’ll take it from there. You can carry the second.”

“Wow, quite a way to treat the newbie,” Ann teased. She heaved the bale by its rough twine ties up and onto Lorvin’s back. The bundle of grass was lighter than she expected. Wriggling fingers immediately grabbed on, holding the thing secure. “You gonna be able to get that back?”

“Oh, for sure. They get bored and only keep holding on because it’s what they were doing before. Won’t resist you taking anything.”

Ann hauled a bundle of her own over her shoulder and made her way back out into the cavern proper.

“So, what ran you off?”

“What do you mean?” Ann asked. “Oh, shit, right. Nothing, actually. I’ve kinda got a Goddess telling people I’m special and not to fuck with me. I came here because she told me to, actually.”

“Whoa, really? Which one? Better not be that Bryltia. Don’t like her hunting things. Reminds me of what happened to me.”

Ann barked a laugh. “No, Lorvin, I got Orenous, thankfully. She’s a complete sweetheart, and I wouldn’t trade her for another.”

“That why you’re so gosh darned pretty? Swear, my breath left me when I saw you outside the barn.”

Ah, there it was, the stupidly pretty attracting literally anyone again. “For sure. She made sure I wasn’t going to have issues in the looks department.”

“Well, if you want to grab dinner later…” Lorvin insinuated.

Ann gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, Lorvin, I’m for the ladies, and taken. Appreciate the offer, though.”

“Hells, don’t have to be romantic. I’ll be in the area anyway, might as well say hi and meet your friends.” The barn loomed in front of them, and the centaur ducked his way into the interior. Ann could see the disappointment in his face, but he was hiding it well. “Alright, so these are our animals. Try not to spook them. Took ages to put the town back together last time someone did.”

Boars did not accurately describe what Ann was greeted with. Sure, they had the same roundish bodies, and tusks, and snout, but it was red? Like, paint red. Rose red. Blood red. It was also massive. One of the things was about as tall as she was and about as wide. Beady black eyes peered at her from under black, scaled brows, and she got the feeling it was deciding whether it wanted to kill her. Hooves made muted thumps as it shifted its bulk back and forth on the straw-covered floor. Oh, and there were twelve of the things with a scattering of piglets running around between them.

“How the fuck do you keep them?” Ann asked, agape.

“Don’t stare, that’ll set them off,” Lorvin warned.

Ann tore her eyes away immediately.

“It’s a tricky thing. We have to keep them fed enough so they don’t eat each other, and give them just enough space to breed, but not so much that they get the idea they can go everywhere. Buildin’ here’s just about the best compromise we’ve got. Took some trying, if I heard right, but those before figured it out. They make little ones like crazy, and they grow damn quick, so they’re perfect for a small place like this. Always more meat to eat.”

“What happens if they outpace what you need to eat?”

“We let ‘em go one or two at a time. Get strong people like Tarnu and Eyes to chase them up the tunnel and out the door. Once we clean up tracks, we just get back inside. Helps the local… uh, darn, can’t remember the word.”

“Ecology?” Ann suggested.

“Yeah! That’s the one,” Lorvin beamed. He pulled the bundle of grass from the fingers on his back. Sure enough, they let go without a struggle and resumed their wiggling. “Untie it and toss it all in that trough.”

Ann did as she was told, carefully untying the rough twine and placing her bundle in the indicated receptacle. “This doesn’t seem like enough to feed things that big.”

“Oh, sure isn’t. This is just part of it. We give them leftovers from meals to help fill up the rest. Cookie likes to make it down here every now and then to watch them enjoy her cooking.”

“Sounds like something she’d like,” Ann nodded.

“Oh? You able to talk to her?”

“In a way,” Ann shrugged. “More like I can sense what she wants. All of this lines up with what I got.”

“Well, shucks, that’s good to know. Always wondered what was going on in there. Damn shame she can’t talk.”

“So, not to push some bad memories, but I’m basically asking everyone. What’s your story?”

“Not much o’ one. Grew up on a farm just north of Thalten. Second son of the family, and had five younger, two older than me.”

“All sons?”

“Hells, that’d be insane. Nah, had three younger sisters. We were a big, happy family managing that farm. Grew up into my twenty-fifth year before things changed. An earth shake hit a nearby area and displaced a Seed. You know how those things can move when their spots get all messed up by nature. Well, it turns out it was a plains Seed that had found itself in a suddenly very rocky and ridged environment. That meant it had to move to another portion of the plains, and that was right next to our farm. Happened so fast.” Lorvin’s eyes grew distant as he watched the boars eat. “One day, we were working the fields surrounded by the empty grasses we’d known for all our lives, and then there was this massive wall of colour that made you want to hurl. None of us had blessings. Didn’t need ‘em where we were. Didn’t see the need to go all that way regularly to get some, neither.

“Well, we regretted that, we did. It took a couple days for the changes to start. My older brother was the first. Started growing grass instead of hair. Once that happened, the rest of us were Warping within the day. Mom and Dad merged into this awful thing that screamed like a hog covered in ants. My brother, Dale, grew more and more grass until he was a walking effigy. My lower body started growing backwards, and the hooves came in painfully. I couldn’t bear knowing what happened to the little ‘uns, and I ran. It was too late, but I ran and ran. My parents chased me, trying to eat me. My brother nearly caught me. I got away, though. Eventually, the pain stopped, and I wound up like this. I spent a few days trying to figure out if I was crazy or not, but figured that’s what a sane person would think about. The next few months were spent heading north, dodging other Warped, and stealing from farms to survive. Felt downright awful, it did, but I needed to eat. Any time someone tried to hunt me, Warped or Mercs, I just ran. With this body, I’m damn good at it, too. I was wandering around the forest up there when I ran into One of Bark, and they brought me down here. Gods above, Eldest of All scared me outta my skin the first time, but I got used to him. See him as an old grandpa now. But yeah, that’s my whole thing.”

Ann sat there for a quiet minute. She’d come here for some answers, but hadn’t really expected to get the stories of how awful becoming a Warped was. She should have, but she didn’t. An entire family just gone because a God’s domain was displaced. It sounded like a Lovecraft book. Hell, it was, just in real life.

“I’m so sorry.”

“That’s what everyone says,” Lorvin shrugged. “I appreciate it, don’t get me wrong, but it’s no one’s fault. The Warp is just what it is, right? Don’t seek out people or things to twist; it just does. Seeds don’t move because they want to. Earth shakes don’t happen on purpose. Just bad luck, really. I… hm.” Lorvin raised a hand, wiping a tear from his cheek. “It’s been a while since I’ve talked about this. Thanks for listening, Annita.”

“Yeah. Still, condolences need to be offered. I couldn’t help for that, but I’m trying now.”

“Ain’t that what you’ve gotta do? Try? Hells, even if ya fail, you did something. Hope you do figure out what makes people like this. Don’t hold much hope for fixin’ myself, but if things like my family don’t have to happen? I’d appreciate it.”

“Yeah. Well, thanks for the story. Appreciate you digging through all of that just to talk,” Ann said, patting his flank. The skin twitched under her touch, but he didn’t lash out.

“No trouble, miss. Feels good in a way. Alright, I gotta go help with moving some rocks. You go find One of Bark. They’ll be… shit, where was it?”

“Helping with the wash, you said.”

“That’s the ticket,” Lorvin laughed with a snap of his fingers. “Go on and help. Lots of clothes need cleanin’ and clothes are special for people like us.”

“Will do. Promise I’ll keep the holes minimal with these things,” Ann chuckled, clacking her claws together.

“You better. I find any in my shirts, I’m coming after you!”

“You… you’re not wearing one, though?”

Lorvin looked down at his bare chest, then back at Ann. A grin split his face wide. “Well, guess I should start if I want to make good on that threat.”

“They make one for your horse body, too?”

“Now that’s a humdinger. Would that be a shirt or pants? Is the front half a shirt, and the back half pants?”

“Gonna go with it being a pantsuit. Different meaning than I’m used to, but seems like it fits,” Ann said, looking over the man’s body. “Maybe just one piece for the horse, and one piece for your upper body. The fingers would make it hard to fit regardless.”

“Yeah, they do get in the way. They’d probably make more holes than your claws would.” Lorvin had a good laugh at that, slapping Ann’s back as he guided her out of the stables. “You have a good one. See you later!”

“Later, Lorvin!” Ann waved. He was good people. Now to find a log and help do the laundry.