Contains: M / M, Feral/monster x humanoid, dubcon, masturbation, voyeurism, fisting, bound, oviposition.
"Never expected to see an ash fae here. You're kind rarely wanders away from your home isle. Yet, here you are, applying to be the gryphon aide under me. You do realize what that job entails, right?" Asked the flight master Trall as I sprouted back into the present, hearing griffins screeches outside the tall building had distracted me from the conversation.
Trall's bulky human frame made his belly look like a large sack of flour as he sat on his chair and went through my papers. The Gryphon riders' colorful attire complimented his dark skin and made him look formal.
"Yes," I answered and nodded enthusiastically to drive my point home, "I've always wanted to be a rider and someone told me this is a great way to learn the basics, before applying to the academy." Before coming here, I had memorized a long list of useful lies to make myself the perfect candidate.
"I see..." Trall muttered back to me with a curious expression on his plump face.
"Skinny boys like you can't withstand the wind," he blurted like he was trying to see my reaction.
"I don't need to withstand it, I'm delicate enough to go through the wind wall without feeling a thing," I rebutted, attempting to sound confident. My answer made the flight master snort, but he still looked unsure.
"Why not just go straight to the academy? They teach all you need to know and without. Assigning here might look good on your application, but it will only prolong your graduation if you're even worth the effort. Taking the exam is the best way to get it," Trall's tone sounded dismissive like he was talking to a young child who didn't know any better. He didn't know I had taken the exam, thrice, and had failed each time. I knew I could cheat when I took it the next time, but I had to make sure my record showed that I had been somewhere where I might have learned the ropes. This was my only chance.
I composed myself, before telling him another one of my lies, "I believe if I want to be good at something I should learn as much as I can from those who actually work in the field. Teachers at the academy might teach me theory, but the real learning happens here."
"You're not going to learn how to fly without the academy's approval," Trall declared as if I didn't already know that.
"I know, but I'm going to do other work, right? The Gryphon riders must also know how to take care of their steed." The flight master's unwillingness had surprised me. The amount of promised payment had been significant, especially considering how little experience was required, but I was sure his aides' job wasn't too hard to handle. After all, I had gotten this far, my letter must have made some sort of impression. Otherwise, he wouldn't have wanted to see me and made me go through an extensive healer's inspection."
"I see," he muttered again, giving one last glance at my papers. "You've been an adult for three summers now and your letter was very passionate, consider yourself hired." The flight master stood up and held his hand out to shake mine. Quickly, I gave him a firm handshake and looked directly into his deep brown eyes.
"Thank you, sire. I'll make sure you will not regret this!" I stated. The flight master slightly lift his right brown. My enthusiasm must have been a little bit too much. Yet, I actually was ecstatic. The second part of my plan had worked and I was on my way to becoming a Gryphon rider!
Trall waved his hand ."Follow me, better get to work now than later. The last aide's death has delayed our annual schedule and we're in a hurry."
I did not know that. The poster I saw never mentioned why they needed help, only that it was urgent.
"W-what happened to the last aid?" I asked with a concern in my voice.
"One of the griffins kicked him down from the flight pen. He had forgotten to change his clothes after tending another tiercel. They're very territorial, you can't put two males together without them getting aggressive with each other. Skilled riders must be dominant and assertive when flying in formations, we can't have fights within the group." Trall's explanation sounded reasonable to me. I made sure to remember that.
As we ascended the long flight of stairs, I took in the view. Even though we were in the mountains, the air here was hot. The warm desert wind blew right into the mountainside and the sun scorched the black rock paving it, making the air dry and sweltering. Had we stayed in the open a little bit longer, I'd surely been burned. My light grey skin was not meant to be under the sun.
"The health of these beasts is very important to me and it is your job to help me keep them healthy and happy. You could say your job is almost as important as mine." Trall glanced behind as he said it and waited for my reaction.
