The centaur was offering him a job as a stable boy! Derrick laughed and shook his head. "Sorry, I'm not here to work - this is supposed to be a vacation." Still, when the centaur picked up a brush and offered it to him, the teen decided to try using it. He was curious about the centaur, and hoped he might be able to get some questions answered. "Um, I've never done this before, OK? So if I mess up, I'm sorry."
The centaur whinnied a laugh and ruffled Derrick's hair. Hesitantly, Derrick reached out with the brush and ran it over the silky horsehide of the centaur's equine shoulder. Why wasn't the brush moving smoothly? It grabbed and pulled, and he could tell form the centaur's expression that it did not feel all that great either. A dark, three-fingered hand rose up to cover his, and her jerked his head around to see one of the curious horseboys standing close behind him. The creature guided Derrick's hand in different directions, and the boy realized there was a pattern to the hide - hair grew in different directions, and he just needed to brush with the grain.
When he brushed with the hair his strokes were smoother, and with the guidance of the horseboy increased pressure. It was a bit of a stretch to reach the middle of the broad equine back, but then the horseboy pushed a wooden box over for Derrick to stand on. As he worked the boy looked back at the odd-looking being. Up close, it was more bestial than he had first thought. A little like a humanoid horse, but the face was too flat and the arms and legs too bestial. Its skull was flattened, and the large, gentle brown eyes showed unfocused contentment, but not much intelligence.
'He is a good worker." The centaur whinnied more conversation. "Smarter than most of the others. Still little more than a smart beast, but very useful and loyal. They all are like that, to be honest. Living to serve us, happy to groom, clean, pleasure - whatever we want."
Derrick laughed. "And that's what you are offering me? Two weeks shoveling manure?" He handed the brush to the horseboy and stepped back. "No thanks!"
Shrugging, the centaur whinnied "The reward would be quite large."
"Reward?" Derrick was puzzled. "For what?"
"For the first guest to choose being a stable servant. Lots spend two weeks as a centaur, or satyr, or being pleasured by nymphs. But no one has ever given up their vacation to be a worker here."
Derrick snorted. "I can understand that. So what reward would make it worthwhile?"
"A thousand gold. Worth about two million of your dollars."
Derrick blinked. "Shit! Really? Two million dollars just to work in a stable for two weeks?"
The centaur smiled. "The reward is paid after just three days. However long you choose to stay after that is up to you. But you have to work while you are here. The stable workers will help you learn and adjust."
Frowning, Derrick looked at the horseboy as he finished up grooming the centaur's hide. The creature was perfectly suited to its task, the long, oddly jointed arms easily reaching all parts of the centaur. "I can't do as good a job, but for two million bucks I am sure willing to try!"
"There are two conditions." The centaur whickered. "You must remove all clothing, and you must remain here for the entire three days. Those are the only rule. You are not even required to work, just remain here for the period of time."
"Wow!" Derrick grinned. "I can do that. And I'll play fair and work as hard as I can." He started to strip and missed seeing the smirk on the centaur's face. "Oh! What about my family? They'll be back from the tour and look for me."
"They will be informed of your whereabouts as soon as they ask for you." The centaur smiled again. "I promise they will not be worried at all."
"Then I guess the sooner I start, the sooner I can leave!" Derrick looked at the horseboy, who was watching him curiously. "Show me what to do."
The creature did not appear to understand him, but the centaur must have explained things in a series of whinnies and snorts that meant nothing to Derrick. The horseboy came over and gave Derrick a hug, pulling him into an embrace that had the equine genitals hitting his stomach. Then one of the three-fingered hands closed around his and the creature pulled him out into the stable.
The centaur chuckled as the human was guided by one of the servant beasts. There was a reward, true enough, but it was paid to the one who tricked a human into willingly agreeing to become a slave. Contact with the workers and performing labor here would gradually transform the human into a fine and loyal servant. In one day he would already be visibly changed and finding the work pleasing. Adding to that would be intimate contact with his fellow slaves which would hasten the transformation. Long before the third day ended, the human would be indistinguishable from the bestial servants that had been created from horses, his thoughts and desires simplified and his only purpose in life to please his centaur masters. He could still leave any time he wanted, of course, but until he did so of his own accord, the boy no longer existed outside of this stable. His family would not miss him because they did not remember him.