Luca's ears perked up.
'Who in the world...?'
It was not a voice he recognized. Not one of the centaurs he had already sent tumbling to the earth.
This one was different—sharp, mocking, and carrying the unmistakable weight of someone who had absolutely no respect for authority, tradition, or the feelings of others.
Meanwhile, hearing this voice, the expressions of the centaurs shifted from battle-readiness to something far more complicated.
Embarrassment. Unease. The particular kind of dread one feels when an annoying younger sibling shows up at the worst possible moment.
Curious, Luca slowly turned his head toward the source.
The formation split cleanly down the middle, revealing a figure at the very back whose silhouette made Luca's brain grind to a halt like a carriage wheel caught in mud.
'What in the world...?'
He had to rub his eyes. Actually rub them. Because what he was seeing simply could not be real.
