Afraid of the Dark

Chapter 30: A Two-Sided Story

Reela and Taanys set out, returning to Sunyu Foorst to begin their search for the Varagores spy that's supposedly been making the centaurs kill each other, for whatever reason. She gets that it's to drive the centaurs extinct, but she just doesn't understand why.

She thought Varagores wanted to eventually enslave everyone once they gained enough strength. But apparently centaurs are redundant? You'd think with how strong centaurs are, the orcs would be eager to add them to their numbers. But if Taanys and Adaste are correct, then Varagores would prefer to wipe them out completely.

Maybe it's because the centaurs would provide the most resistance. Enslaving Tus'Felnis or Adaliaens is easier because war isn't in their nature. But cross centaurs and there will be blood. Both orcs and centaurs are inherently violent, and a war like that would last longer than most would think. Perhaps driving the centaurs extinct is Varagores' way of avoiding a century-long war with them in the future. Who knows.

Anyway, the spy. Reela is still deadass tired and wants nothing more than to go back to the tavern so she can fucking sleep, but she guesses trying to save the centaur race is more important. But on the other hand, this is absolutely going to fuck her sleep schedule in the ass.

The spy should be relatively easy to find. Varagores uses Tus'Felnis and Adaliaens as spies, Tus'Felnis more than Adaliaens since they were enslaved first. Adaliaens are still rather rebellious, while the Tus'Felnis are decades accustomed to their role in this war. It's sad, really. People like Nisha were lucky to have gotten out, but not everyone was let go once Aramora was destroyed. The slaves that were in Aramora at the time it was destroyed got the easy way out.

So it's likely a Tus'Felnis they're looking for. But that doesn't mean they shouldn't keep an eye out for Adaliaens too. Reela guesses she and Taanys look pretty sketchy themselves, being two Adaliaens snooping around the streets of Sunyu Foorst at two in the fucking morning.

They make their way down the street, walking down the stone steps imbedded in the forest floor. As they come up on the town square, Reela sighs as she ultimately needs to break the silence.

"So... How do you know Adaste?" she asks and turns to look at Taanys, who glances back at her.

She shrugs and resumes looking around for anything that might look suspicious. "I told you I came to Sunyu Foorst because of the war, and how it makes for good songs. Well, when I arrived I played a song that upset some of the centaurs and they were sure to let me know when they broke both my arms and threw me into the forest to die."

"Ouch," Reela winces and also goes back to looking around to divert her attention from that image. She can take Cree taking his arm off all the time, but breaking limbs freaks her the fuck out. People shouldn't snap. "I... take it Adaste found you after that?"

Taanys nods and steps up to a building, searching around the crates stacked by the door. "She sure did. I woke up in Esh Outpost to her tending to my wounds. I told her what happened, and the way she spoke in response made me realize she wasn't like other centaurs. She had abandoned her violent nature to live a more peaceful life, which earned her being shunned by her people," she explains and steps away from the crates when she finds nothing.

Reela slowly nods and picks up a bucket by the well in the center of the square, looking inside it just so she looks like she's being productive, when really she has no fucking clue what she's looking for. "Couldn't she have taken the Warrior's Test to restore her honor?"

Taanys looks back at her again and cocks a brow. "Why would she? 'Honor' is something the centaurs make up to try giving a name to the chaos they create. She realized this early in her life and never looked back. Being a Mar certainly played a part in her realization. Magic isn't valued among centaurs as much as physical prowess is, but she thought it stupid. If you're good at something, be good at it. It's as simple as that," she states and walks away from the building to approach Reela, calmly taking the bucket from her and setting it down.