The Wizard's Contract

Ed stared dumbfounded at the strange creature standing in the center of the room. "My Lord?" He glanced up at the wizard, who appeared deep in thought.

"Do not trouble yourself," said the wizard. "This is as I intended."

Ed looked back, where the young woman was standing. She was a pretty creature, yellow-haired with a round, gentle face, and big brown eyes that were looking down at herself in confusion. Or at least, that was the upper half of her. A little ways below her pert, pale breasts, her pink skin turned a little darker, and below her waist was just a shade of tan, and continued down, farther behind her, impossibly far behind her, over the equine shape of a body that no ordinary young woman would have. Four legs stretched to the stone floor to hold up the long barrel of a horse underneath her, but instead of sitting on the creature, she simply seemed to blend into it, her human hips disappearing into the horse's shoulders, its head and her human legs nowhere to be seen.

A moment ago, all that stood in the chamber was bloody bags of body parts, which Ed had dutifully unwrapped and laid out neatly at the wizard's instructions. It had never even occurred to him as they'd prepared that the body parts hadn't all been human.

"This -- was your intention?" asked Ed nervously.

"That girl died last week," said the wizard softly. "She was -- well, the men who did horrible things to her are now in my dungeon, and I have intentions for them. And the horse was a fine mare, sired by the best of stallions, but she was put down for the mere cost of a broken leg. Both had passed to the next world, my boy. The world of men had rightly given up on them both."

Ed grimaced. "Necromancy?"

"Nothing of the sort!" said the wizard. "When the body dies, the soul begins to separate. It takes time. The horse and the girl each had but half a soul this morning. And now together, I have made her whole."

"But -- why?"

"Would you let a lovely flower die if all it needed was water?" said the wizard. "This world has too much loss. I promised her father he would see his daughter alive again, and so she is."

"But -- she's a horse." Ed frowned harder, looking up at the wizard.

"She's alive," said the wizard. "And she's no horse. I dub her a 'centaur.' The ancients saw men on horseback and thought they were one and named them such, but I have made their story real. She and her steed are forever bound -- but this is no cruelty, boy. She is more now than either of her parts were before: She is a new creature wrought by my art, neither woman nor mare, but the best of both. No horse indeed."

The girl was blinking, still confused, and looked left and right as her eyes cleared, and finally noticed that she was not alone. "Um -- hello," she said nervously. "Where am I?"

"You are in my Keep," said the wizard, "and under my protection." He waved a hand toward Ed. "This is my apprentice. He will take care of you."

"My Lord?" said Ed, looking up at him.

"Show her to the westernmost chamber, and offer food if she will take it. She has been through much. A meal and a rest will aid her recovery. As for me, I have things to do, and I must write in my journal. The spell succeeded as I was certain it would, but some details of its invocation ought not to be lost."

Ed looked back at the horse-girl, who was looking at him nervously, biting her lip. "Don't worry," he said. "I'll see to it that you're well taken care of."

She nodded.

"Come with me, and I'll show you to your room."

* * *

The halls of the great Keep wound almost endlessly, and Ed was worried at first that the horse-girl would not be able to follow him, but she seemed to have little difficulty, and spent much of the walk glancing about at the vast chambers, some opulent, some bare.

Here, there was a hall of paintings, and there, dozens of suits of armor on stands; here, the room's every corner was gilded with jewels; there stood an empty room save for a single wooden bucket. Ed had learned long ago not to pry into the wizard's reasons. He was old, impossibly old, hundreds and hundreds of years, and Ed had long ago realized that the chambers represented past times in his life: The wizard was once a Knight. And here were memorabilia from the time he was a King. And this room of books was from two hundred years of scholarly study. There was a room that Ed had seen but once, and on its wall hung a single portrait of a young woman, brown-haired and gentle-looking, with a candle lit on each side: Ed was unsure if the woman had once been the wizard's wife, his fiancée, or his daughter, but he had never dared to ask.

They stopped at last at the very end of the western wing of the Keep. This wing was reserved for the wizard's guests, who visited from time to time. The last chamber was large, forty feet across, decorated in regal red and gold, and like all of the Keep, had been kept spotless and clean by the maids.

Ed shuddered. The maids. Those were strange creatures. Something like two-foot-tall squirrels or mice, pale and white, and dressed in little red uniforms, they traversed the Keep each day and cleaned every room, and then disappeared -- where, Ed had no idea. Each morning, they would appear and start cleaning, and each evening they would simply turn corners and vanish. In between, they would chatter endlessly, gossiping about the nearby village -- which they had never been to, but somehow seemed to know every detail of. Ed was nearly certain that they had never been human, that the wizard had created them himself, but they spoke so clearly he sometimes wondered if like this horse-girl they were born of human flesh.

He led the horse-girl inside the chamber, and she stood in the center, looking all about, her jaw slightly agape.

"This is where you'll sleep," said Ed.

"This -- is for me?" she asked, her eyes wide and shining.

"Yes, by the wizard's grace you will stay here until he grants you leave."

She looked down, her eyes suddenly worried. "I'm -- trapped here?" she said.

"No, no, of course not! You have been through much, and the wizard would simply have you rest, and recover. None save those in the dungeons are trapped here."

"Dungeons?"

"There are a few men down there, men who did terrible things, who are kept locked up by the wizard's power. Like the ones who -- " Ed paused. "-- who hurt you."

She blinked. "I -- I remember. A little. A big man, with a beard, and evil eyes. And we were in -- I don't know where. It was dark. And he did -- " Her eyes went wide, and she stopped for a moment before continuing. "He hurt me," she said softly.

"He -- killed you," said Ed.

She took a breath and nodded.

"The wizard brought you back to life. But you're -- a bit different now."

"I'm not -- what I was," she said, looking over her shoulder. "I remember running in the fields, too." She looked down at her hands, turning them over a few times. "I remember -- shopping in the market. And -- and being in a barn."

"You're both of the things you were made from," said Ed. "But the wizard says you're more than that now."

She nodded. "I -- all of those things -- it's like I dreamed them. But now I'm awake, and I'm here, and I feel odd, but only like I can't -- quite shake the dreams."

"A little rest will do you some good," he said. "Can I bring you some food?"

She nodded again. "I -- I do feel hungry."

"What would you like?"

She paused again, wincing. "Oats -- no, beef and bread -- no, some hay would fill me up -- I -- I don't think I know." The pretty girl bit her lip.

Ed smiled. "I'll have Cook make you a little of both, and you can see what you like best."

She nodded again, and walked over to the bed, gingerly putting a foreleg on it. "I think I'll rest first," she said. "But -- in a few hours, that would be lovely." She smiled sweetly at him, and Ed swallowed nervously.

"A -- all right," he said. "Uh -- before I go -- do you have a name?"

She pondered this, clambering onto the giant bed. "I'm -- I mean -- I'm Cassie. Or Yura? I -- I know I called myself 'Cassie,' but I used to come when people called 'Yura.' I think my name is -- both?"

He shrugged. "Maybe you're 'Ca-ra' until you figure out which one you like better?"

She smiled again. "I like that," she said. "You can call me Cara."

* * *

Ed marveled as the week went by. Cara recovered quickly, and after only two days she was regularly in the courtyard, racing from one end to the other as the wizard instructed her to test out her new body. At first she moved awkwardly, her limbs slightly tangled as her two halves conflicted over how to function. But the wizard seemed to know what he was doing, and before the week was out, she was moving as gracefully as a deer, skirting and dodging corners as if she'd always been doing it. He'd managed to create a perfect fusion of the mind and wisdom of a human and the grace and elegance of a horse, and Ed found himself at the windows for hours watching her -- to the neglect of his duties.

"You fancy her," said a voice from behind him.

Ed froze.

The wizard circled around beside him, where he was standing at an upper window, watching the pretty blond centaur girl racing and looping in the yard outside.

"I -- no, I -- "

The wizard chuckled. "You're a young man, and she's the first young woman in my Keep since before you were apprenticed to me. And she's a pretty specimen of her kind, too."

"My Lord," said Ed, bowing slightly, "she is in our care. I would never dream of anything that would -- besmirch your reputation. Her father -- "

"Her father only wishes for her to have a future," said the wizard. "He has met with her, and while glimpses of his Cassie are behind her eyes, he knows that what my spell brought back is not exactly what he lost. She is Cara, as you named her, and the only thing he wants for her is the happiness she was denied in her old life."

"What happened to her, my Lord?"

"Ruffians broke into their home. Held Cassie and her mother at a knife's edge. Robbed and stole all they could from a House of Nobility, and that is why two of those ruffians are dead, and the other three -- will suffer at my hands for their crimes. They raped and killed Cassie, boy. They committed the worst sin men can commit. For her sake, I excised that memory when I remade her, but that is part of why she is no longer who she was: You cannot uproot a tree without damaging its soil."

Ed nodded soberly.

"That is no longer her life, nor who she is, but merely a piece of how she came to be. Cara is a creature born anew, and pure in a way that her old self never was. See? She has not the shame of men. She runs bare in the yard, joyous in the sun, happy to be alive and to be free. She is more than any woman who has come before her. Any man of red blood and staunch spirit would fancy her."

The wizard stopped speaking for a bit, and they watched Cara loop from one end of the courtyard to another, smiling -- but then frowning as she skidded to a halt. Ed realized the courtyard was far too small: She wanted to run in the fields, to joyfully bound endlessly, but here within the walls of the Keep, she was safe, but she was not free.

"There will come a time," said the wizard, "when I will bid her to leave this place. She is a lovely creation, but she was not made for walls."

Ed nodded again.

They watched her in silence again for a bit.

"She will need a mate," said the wizard.

"My Lord?"

"I dare not release her alone," said the wizard. "She is the only centaur in this world. In but a week's time she would be captured, and bound, and men would ruin that which I remade. The world of Man is no place for her, but she is not a creature that could survive on her own. She is a creature of beauty, of gentleness, of sweetness, of love. I met Cherie, once, before this, and even then she was a sweet and gentle maiden. Cara is only more so. If she is to survive in this world, she will need a guard, a man who will stand by her side, who will see only her, who will protect her to his last breath."

Cara looped about the courtyard below and nearly crashed into a wall, and paused to laugh.

"She has eyes for you," said the wizard.

"My Lord?"

"You fancy her. And though she is ever too shy to say it, she fancies you as well."

"But I would never --!"

"Ed," said the wizard, and he paused. Ed had never heard him once speak his name. "You know that sorcery is not your future. You have tried mightily, and I commend your earnest effort, but you know that my arts well exceed your grasp."

Ed's face fell. "Yes."

"Perhaps -- that could be your future?" said the wizard, waving his hand toward the girl, who'd come to a stop and was stretching in the sun.

Ed looked up at him, confused. "My Lord? I am not -- of her kind. And I have a sworn duty to you to -- "

" -- to protect her, yes. But you'd protect her even without that, wouldn't you? If she came to you in the dead of night, wounded, you would bandage her, and you would not rest until you found those responsible."

Ed was silent.

"You're a good young man, Edward. Honest and forthright. You'd have made a good Knight, if such a role still existed in this land. I took you as my apprentice because I knew that I could put my trust and faith in you. But sorcery is not your future, and it never was."

Ed breathed. "My Lord, if she were human -- "

The wizard chuckled. "But she isn't, is she?"

"No."

The wizard stood up from the window and started to walk away.

He paused, glancing back, his eyes narrow but shining. "Where I have made one, boy, I can make another. Think on it."

* * *

Ed spent the next week tending to her. Each morning, he would bring her meals, and he would spend time tending to her, as was his duty. But in the afternoons, he began to join her in the courtyard as she ran. At first, he simply stood by the wall, and when she asked, he would say he was guarding the courtyard. Fiends existed in this world, he said, and though the Keep's walls were sturdy, she ought not be left alone.

But his eyes never left her.

She was sweet, and she was gentle, and she was free in a way that Ed had never been. She was joyful, not bound by duty, but merely in love with existence itself, and when a butterfly would flutter into the courtyard, she would carefully inch over to it until it would land on her finger, her eyes shining as she smiled. Birds seemed less fearful of the keep, and would perch on the walls as she ran, chirping happily as the graceful girl looped about. She seemed to exist in a world not made of the stone and wood and iron Ed had always known, but somewhere beyond, out in Nature, where Ed had so rarely been.

And then one day at the wizard's urging, they went beyond the walls.

Ed found himself riding beside her on one of the wizard's horses, through the long green fields east of the Keep, and high along the mountain ridges. The joy spread across her face the moment the great iron doors of the Keep slid open, and never left. Here there was greenery, was grass and life, and the birds looped high overhead through the brilliant sunlight. And Ed realized that this was where she belonged: She was neither nude nor naked, but simply as bare as all of Nature's creatures. Cara was home, and as she stopped at a waterfall to sip a drink, Ed knew she could not stay in the Keep much longer.

The ride back was agonizing for him. She was laughing, chattering about how lovely the world about her was, but he was somber. In a few days, he was certain, she would be gone, gone from the Keep forever, and the thought tore at him. She had been his ward, to be sure, but at once like a thunderclap, he realized the wizard was right: He did not merely fancy her. He would give anything to stay with her, wherever she would go.

But did that mean he was willing to accept -- what was surely madness?

They stopped inside the courtyard as the magic drew shut the great iron doors. Cara looked at them longingly as they slammed. Ed led his horse back to the stables, and then came back to her.

She sighed. "I miss it already," she said softly.

"You are -- nearly strong enough to leave," he said.

"I know. But -- I don't know where I would go," she said. "I know I don't belong here. But my parents don't recognize me. My old friends would think I'm a monster. And there are no other centaurs."

She smiled down at him. "But thank you for staying with me," she added. "You've been so good to me. I don't deserve someone so caring."

"Yes, you do," he said.

She smiled wider. "I like the wizard and the maids and Cook and Cardy and all, but after I leave, you'll be the one I'll really miss. And not just because you bring me breakfast and dinner."

His face felt hot. "I'll miss you too," he said, and it felt like his heart had been torn in half.

"It's a shame," she said.

"What's a shame?"

"It's really too bad you're not a centaur too," she said. "I imagined it all day today while we were riding -- and more." She blushed a little.

And then Ed knew what he had to do.

* * *

It had seemed strange to walk with the wizard through the stables, looking at each of the prized stallions, and debating which would be the best choice. The wizard hadn't seemed at all put out by the notion that he would lose one of his steeds; if anything, he seemed excited at the notion that he'd be able to cast the spell again, this time with a willing participant, and not merely a body.

And that was how Ed found himself standing naked and cold in the wizard's laboratory beside Colton, a large horse with a dark brown coat and a feisty temperament. Cara was happily out running in the fields by herself, far from what was about to happen. The horse was tied on one side of the great stone circle, and Ed stood on the other, and the wizard made his preparations, going back and forth, drawing runes, sprinkling dust, and carefully tuning the room's aura for the impossible magic that was about to be cast.

At last the wizard stood up from his efforts, and took a step back. "Last chance," he said gently. "You can back out."

"I'm ready," said Ed.

"You're certain?"

"I'll get to be with Cara," he said. "That's all that matters."

"This will hurt," said the wizard.

Ed nodded. "I know."

"Then one last time I will ask you. Ed: As men, as equals, we speak no longer as master and apprentice: This is your choice and yours alone. Do you want this?"

"I do."

The wizard nodded. "Then take a deep breath."

Ed was grateful that Cara was away, because the nightmarish, unholy screams could be heard for miles.

* * *

It was late in the day when Cara returned. She'd hoped Ed would have gone with her again. It didn't feel right to gallop in the fields alone. But the wizard had told her that Ed was busy on an important duty, and that Ed wouldn't be back until evening, leaving Cara to decide her own fate. Still, it had been a lovely day. It felt so good to run, to be out in the open, out in the sun, to forget the human world and just relax in Nature.

The gates slid open as she stood there, grinding and cranking, and then Cara looked up.

"No -- "

He stood there, flicking his tail, trying not to feel too nervous.

"-- E -- Ed?" She took a step closer.

"I -- think I'm -- Edon? Cord?" he said. "I'm not sure -- if I'm more Colton or Edward. But -- I'm both."

"Did you do this for -- me?" she stammered.

"I think I did it for both of us," he said. "I think -- I'm not sure what I think right now. I'm still -- not me yet."

"It takes a while," she said, smiling. She walked up to him and gently took his hand. "I can't believe you did this."

"Ed -- liked you a lot. Enough to want to stay with you. I do too."

"I can't believe it," she said. "I never thought I'd see another centaur. But I'm so glad you are. I imagined -- I dreamed -- and now you're right here, right in front of me, and it's so much better than all of the dreams."

He smiled at her. "I'm glad you like it. I don't know really -- what I'd have done if you hadn't."

She grinned widely. "Oh, I like it a lot. I'm not the only one anymore. And it's you. I never thought -- but I hoped, and --." She paused.

Then she scampered up to him, grabbed his hand, and looked up into his eyes. "Come on," she said, giving his hand a gentle tug.

"Uh -- where?"

"In there is nothing," she said, pointing at the Keep. "Out there is everything, and something important I want to show you."

"What is it?"

"You'll have to see," she said sweetly, tugging at him.

She turned, and waved, and started toward the fields, outside, and with a little effort, he followed not far behind.

* * *

Cara led him up into the hills, and into the forest. She'd visited this place a few days ago, but now it seemed wholly different. A thought had been nagging at her mind for days, and now that she saw him -- Cord? She'd find him a better name. Ed was nice too, and so was Colton, but none of them fit the strong, sturdy horseman who was following her.

The paths grew narrow here, and he fell in behind her. That was good. She liked knowing that he was back there.

Cara wasn't a fool, of course. Men liked women, and women liked men, and he liked her, and she liked him, and some part of her knew what she was doing. But she still liked to feign innocence. Not that it mattered. Only one thing mattered now. The world was on her terms, for the first time in her life. Horrors had brought her here, but now -- all of those belonged out there, somewhere in the beyond, back in the human world. For the very first time since she'd been reborn, thanks to this boy she could see a future, and she wasn't about to give it up.

She stopped. There was a little clearing here in the forest, with green moss on the ground that was springy under her hooves, and little tufts of grass, and a gentle thin waterfall, no wider than her arm, trickled off a rock wall nearby into a little stream that ran past. It was quiet. It seemed like not even the woodland creatures had found this idyllic little place.

Cara turned about in the clearing, waiting for him to approach behind her.

"I can't believe you turned into a centaur for me," she said.

He winced. "I -- just couldn't imagine not being with you."

She smiled. "After I was reborn like this, I didn't know what I was going to do. I was alive, but -- I was the only centaur in the world. The only one. I thought I was going to have to search, search everywhere, trying to find where I belonged. And then you were standing there, on four legs, just like I was, and I realized something." She waited.

"Hmm?"

"I realized that where I belonged was with you," she said. "My place wasn't out there somewhere. It was anywhere that you were with me. Like here."

She walked closer, took his hands, leaned up, and gently kissed his lips. He tasted savory and a little salty, and she kissed him again.

He sputtered a little. "You, um -- I -- "

"Sssh," she said. She lifted his hand and placed it on her breast, holding it close against her warmth, where he could feel her heartbeat.

"I -- "

"Sssh," she said again, putting a finger on his lips while pressing his hand into her chest. "I know you. And I know how nervous this makes you feel. But there's nothing, nothing that you have to apologize for. You gave up everything for me. You gave up your old life to be with me. I don't just want your hand on me. I want you inside me. I once mated -- a stallion -- a long time ago. I remember it. And I want you to do that. I want you to join me and claim me like he claimed me."

"But -- we're not even -- I mean -- "

"Sssh," she said again. "Don't think like a human anymore. Horses would just do it. If you nosed at my tail, and I didn't kick you away, you'd mount me and mate me. We're not horses. But we're not human either. I can see your shaft hanging out. I know you want me. And I want you. So let's do it."

He bit his lip. He knew she was right. But he hadn't been a centaur for more than a few hours, and the thoughts were all jumbled. A man ought not to -- and he hadn't been with a girl before, not for real -- but he'd once mated a mare out in the fields, so he wasn't a virgin. Or was he? But Cara was beautiful, and she was warm, and she was close, and she was the only thing he really needed.

She gently pulled free of him, walked up beside him, and lowered herself to lay on the soft green ground. She looked up at him with a smile, her eyes shining.

"What are you doing?" he said.

"Convincing you," she replied, and she reached out, and her soft fingers wrapped around his shaft.

His eyes rolled back in his head and he leaned back, savoring her touch. She gave his shaft a gentle squeeze. "That's right," she said. "Don't hold back."

Slowly, she slid her fingers along his length, and his entire huge body shuddered, a thousand pounds of horse-man shaking under her gentle touch. More and more fingers began to wrap around his shaft until both hands held him. She pressed back, applying a little pressure against his shaft, and he choked a little, his mind lighting up with fireworks. And then she did it again, and again, stroking him harder and harder, one hand on his shaft, one at the tip, until he was sure his mind would explode --

-- and then she stopped, her hands loosening, and she slid them back and gently cupped his furred, dark sack before her hands disappeared and she stood back upright. She walked around in front of him and held up one hand, which had just the tiniest hint of white fluid on her fingers. She smiled, and licked it off her hands, and he blanched, realizing what she was doing.

"It's salty," she said sweetly.

"I -- "

She put her other finger against his lips. "I told you, sssh," she said.

He nodded, nervous and hard as a rock.

She walked into the clearing a little bit, circling around in a figure-eight, looking back over her shoulder at him, her eyes never leaving his as she turned this way and that, front, back, back, front, her tail swishing. She stopped in front of him, facing him, and then slowly, deliberately turned, one step at a time, until her body was pointed away from his, but her upper torso twisted, looking back at him, and she smiled again, gently patting her back. She lifted her tail up and aside, and waited, swishing it back and forth in anticipation.

He took a step closer, mesmerized, unsure whether to look at her face or her rear. Part of him wanted her pretty eyes and her soft hair and gentle curves, but the other part of him couldn't stop staring at her hindquarters, that swishing tail, and the dark, teardrop-shaped slit nestled between her cheeks, wet and shimmering in the sunlight.

He stepped closer still, and put a hand on her hindquarters. The thoughts didn't seem to line up, but he wanted her, and this was her. Both parts of him wanted both parts of her, and did it matter which parts touched which parts? This wasn't the rear of some random horse: His hand was on the rear of the girl he desired, and it was as soft and warm as her other end. She gently tapped at her barrel with her hand again, making sure there was no doubt that was he was doing was what she wanted.

"I might get you pregnant," he said, his voice rough.

"You might," she said. "You will someday, if not today."

He grunted. "Do you -- even think -- there should be more like us?"

"There will be lots more like us," she said.

He nodded. He didn't know how, but it felt right. He ran a finger up her nether lips, savoring her soft touch, and she shuddered, and then softly giggled.

"Go on," she said, tapping her lower back again. "You know what to do. And I want it too."

He nodded again, and inched closer to her. Instinct took over where reason failed, and the centaur reared up into the air and then landed with his lower chest on her soft rear, his forelegs gripping her. She smiled, reaching up to him, and he leaned forward to take her hand. They held in that position for a moment, and then she bit her lip and squeezed his hand, tugging him gently forward.

The horseman pressed closer, intending to drive his shaft into her --

She giggled. "You missed," she said.

He grunted, pulled back, and aimed higher, and this time his tip struck her lips, and he drove deep inside her.

"Aaah! -- nnngh!" she cried, biting her lip.

He paused. "Are you -- all right?"

"It just -- hurt a little -- at first," she said, breathing hard. "It's okay. Keep going. Just -- slow."

He nodded, squeezing her hand in response, and then his powerful hind legs pushed his engorged branch into her. She moaned, her voice rough and ragged, but she squeezed his hand so there would be no doubt that she was still there, still with him, still unhurt, and still wanted what he wanted.

The centaur pushed deeper inside his female now, and the centauress leaned back into him, savoring every last inch of his warmth, on top of her, pressing her down, holding her close, filling her insides with himself. This was right, this was pure, this was needed, and as he pulled out of her and slid back in, the sparks in both their minds rapidly began to ignite the kindling that would surely soon result in a blaze.

In, and out now, and back in again. Horses had no need for it, but they were no horses: They were centaurs, thinking beings, but liminal beings, once split between ration and nature, but now increasingly consumed by passion and lust. The equine halves would learn. Cara squeezed her nether lips around his shaft and pulled harder on his hand, desperately trying to press him to do more, faster, stronger, to use every last iota of his strength to push her past her limit.

Her mate was happy to oblige. Moving faster and harder now, with the full force of the sturdy horse he was made from, he pounded at her, feeling the heat build around the fire of his mind. She wanted everything he was giving him and more, and this was right and just. Harder and harder he thrust at her, her body shaking under his force --

-- and then she startled as he suddenly began to go even faster. Her hooves skidded in the moss, and she began to lose purchase. She'd desired this, but it was nearly too much. She grasped at something to hold onto, but there was nothing there, so she leaned forward, bracing her legs against his onslaught, and held onto the dirt with her hooves as best she could. And it was building in her mind too: The powerful man-beast she'd desired was driving at her, exactly as she'd dreamt, if not more, and soon he would burst inside her, not as the horrors of her past, but as love, pure love, filling her from one end to the other, and --

The centauress came.

"Angh!" she cried out softly, biting her lip enough to draw blood.

Her body shook and shuddered as the fire ignited in her nethers and burst outward, filling her body with a burning blaze that destroyed everything it touched. Her hands, her hooves, it felt like the tips of her tail were on fire as the orgasm rushed through her body, exploding like gunpowder again and again, and she shook and shuddered, unable to even slow the blasts as they wracked her from stem to stern.

The beast-man felt her body tense under him, and suddenly her tunnel was squeezing his shaft rhythmically, over and over again, and before he could even think of how to respond, he burst into her. His powerful hindquarters smashed up against her rear as he forced his shaft as deeply as possible, the burning fire starting in his face and rushing down, down to his shaft and mercifully beyond, released deep inside her where his seed would claim every inch of her fertile grounds. Blast after blast of hot, sticky cum shot into her and filled her up and more. The centaur felt like he was pouring every last drop of fluid in his entire body into her, pulling her tightly against him --

-- and then suddenly it was done, and he collapsed onto her, the aftershocks still rushing through him as he released a few more times within her.

They stood like that for a little while, the centaur wrapped around his centauress, neither of them with the strength to move, just breathing slowly and deeply against each other.

She spoke first, but they weren't words at first, just a quiet giggle. "Mmm," she laughed.

"Nngh?"

"You did me good," she said.

"Unnh."

Carefully, she pulled her legs inward. They'd splayed outward a bit under his force, but it would be a lot easier to stand if all four legs were upright. Then she tilted her torso upright, looking back at him, where he was leaning forward, his hands braced on her lower back. She leaned back and kissed the fluff of his hair.

"That was lovely," she said.

"Uh huh," he mumbled.

"I did it once, a long time ago when I was human," she said. "But it wasn't anything like that. I'm glad I don't remember anything of -- how I died, either. That would have spoiled it."

She breathed deeply, running her fingers through her hair and shaking herself loose. "And even if you're getting soft there's still so much of you inside me --! Amazing..." She trailed off.

The centaur lay still for a bit, her hands in his hair, and then finally she grinned at him. "I love having you there, but you're getting heavy."

Grunting again, he pulled his energy together and pushed his torso upright, his hip and back muscles, stronger than he knew, helping to torque him up into place. She grinned up at him, giggling. "All right, time to get down."

He nodded, and inched backward, sliding out what seemed like a mile of his shaft, softened, but still not enough to escape on its own. He felt it flop out of her. As the plug loosened, there was a sudden rush of his cum pouring out of her and down her leg. "Oh!" she gasped.

He backed down further and then slipped off of her, his forelegs clomping hard into the soft earth as he held onto her back with his hand to brace his descent. They stood there for a moment, looking at each other, and then suddenly they both started laughing.

"That was wild," said Cara. "Wonderful."

"I -- couldn't help myself."

She chuckled. "Don't apologize. I wanted it too."

"Are you -- hurt?"

She grinned. "Maybe a little sore, but that's not going to stop me."

"Stop you? From what?"

She turned and kissed his cheek. "From making you do that again tomorrow."

* * *

The wizard waved a hand over his crystal ball. He hadn't meant to pry quite that long, but it was important to verify that nothing would -- well, that nothing would go wrong. Both of them were constructed beings, after all, and if he hadn't made them both right, an orgasm could have -- well, he didn't like to think about what might have happened. He was pleased to see it hadn't, and then silently vowed never to watch them do it again. He'd been alive for seven hundred years, and it had been a long, long time since his own vitality had permitted such things.

The wizard stood up from his stool, walked over to the painting on the wall, and gently kissed his wife goodnight. Of all the strange magic spells he'd cast over the years, he liked to think Laura would have approved most of this one. She'd always loved horses, which was why he still kept the beasts and why he paid Cardy to take care of them. If only he'd dared to delve into forbidden magic before Laura died, perhaps he could have asked her.

He ambled back toward the door of his study. Opening it, he went outside, where an elderly man and woman were sitting. They were dressed in the red fineries of the nobility, and they looked up when he approached.

"Well --?" said the Duke, standing up, the glass of wine in his hand shaking enough to belie his nerves.

"Your daughter is healthy and well," said the wizard. "Her new body is truly complete, and in time, she will surely bear you grandchildren. And my former apprentice will make a good husband for her. He loves her dearly, and she him. You could not ask for better."

The woman stood up beside him, her eyes shining, and took his arm.

"Can we -- see her?" asked the Duke.

"They'll be back within the hour," said the wizard. He chuckled softly to himself: After they'd cleaned up, of course.

"We owe you everything," said the Duke. "Mayra and I are far past our child-bearing years. If you had not saved her --. I know she is not who she was, but I still see my daughter in her soul, and that is enough for me." He reached into his vest, took out a piece of paper with a seal on it, and offered it to the wizard. "Half my lands and half my wealth, as promised. Take it in good faith."

The wizard chuckled and pushed the paper back to him. "I accept your payment, but I ask that you spend it on my behalf."

"How -- so?" said the Duchess.

"I could not bring your daughter back as a human, for too much of her soul was gone. I remade her as my creation, a new being in this world, the first of her kind. I am far past need of lands or of money: The only things I require money cannot buy. But your daughter's people will need a land to call their home. And they will need food, and shelter, and they will need to be carefully watched over until they are someday many in number and can watch over themselves. I do not require your gold; but your daughter, my creation, surely does, and I would not have my creations lost to this world. Support and protect them, and I shall consider your debt paid."

The Duke nodded deeply. "You are as gracious as the reputation that precedes you."

The Duchess squeezed her husband's arm. "But what of the horrible men who broke into our house -- who nearly killed me, and who -- who ra -- who kil -- "

"You needn't worry," said the wizard with a glint in his eye. "I assure you those monsters will never trouble you again, and their punishment fits their crimes. You see, my stables were short a fine mare thanks to your contract, and now one of my stallions too. But I'm happy to say -- and I do think you'll appreciate -- that I've 'found' three brood mares to replace them."

The Duke laughed, and raised his glass. "Well met, good sir, well met."