“When it does.”
“Haven’t you been here before? You seem to know exactly where we’re going.” Her eyes darted from his shoulders to the path at her feet. It had begun to change from that of stone back to one of dirt.
“There are many paths through the labyrinth, more so than any being can memorize, but for me... I know these lands. The smell, the sounds, the way the light falls through the mists, and the direction is always ours for the taking. The shape of the land can’t easily change.”
“So you do know where we’re going?”
“Yes.”
She didn’t have it in her to pry, not when she believed him. But it did not stop her from checking her surroundings constantly, trying to get a lay of the land. It all appeared the same; a cloudy haze swirled over everything in her periphery at all times. Whether it be a row of dying trees, a stone monolith, or a hedge wall, after awhile, it was all the same. She was directionless here.
Aldora peered over the edge once more, her stomach jumping with unease.Endless brume.She reached forward and rested her hand on Vedikus’s back to steady herself. His body tensed under her fingers before they continued on.
Eventually, after what seemed like an eternity, her soles hit flat ground and the ledge path widened. Her boots sank into moist soil, and the ground became thick with long stalks of grass the farther they moved away from the stone cliff. Vedikus pulled her toward the grass and tore several of the flowery bulbs growing atop them off.
“What are those for?” she asked.
“These plants are dyes. Willow growth. They stain red.” He pocketed the flower tops and moved on, deeper into the grasses.
“How is that good for anything here?” She stepped gingerly as the weeds thickened, each rustle sending flies and other critters scurrying away.
“Here? Nothing, but for blood magic, it’s quite useful. Mist-spawned willow growth can be ground to a paste and mixed with human blood without reducing the blood’s efficacy. This has been used by warlocks for decades to extend the lifespan of human slaves, as less blood can be used for each ritual. The mixture is delicate and must be protected from the sun, otherwise, the blood-paste will harden inside the ritual warding and the spell will backfire, often catastrophically. It is highly valued.”
She licked her lips. “Magic is forbidden,” she said. “In Savadon, only witches use it, and to be caught... Most do not live long enough to be sacrificed.”
Vedikus snorted. “Not every one of your criminals become a sacrifice?’
Aldora shook her head. “No...some are too dangerous to keep around long enough for that.”
I’d been accused of witchery.And she had done nothing otherworldly or out of the ordinary except hearing a voice in the darkness. She spent her entire life walking the border path, and the sounds that came from beyond had always been garbled and animalistic, incomprehensible, and unnerving.
Her eyes drifted back to her captor, his tall outline caressed lovingly by the fog. She watched the flexing of his muscles, the horns atop his head. His tail flicked back and forth, causing eddying swirls of mist to spin lazily around his thighs.
She wanted to touch it but didn’t dare.
His hand rested on the large axe hanging off to one side as he peered forward. Aldora followed his gaze and saw nothing but the grass getting higher before it vanished. There was nothing else around them. No landmarks, no walls, nothing but the same open grass field in every direction.
“My mother was a witch.”
His words startled her.He’s here. If there’s nothing else to follow... he’s still here.“Your mother?” she asked, curious.
“She was a human, like you, sacrificed by her people for a crime she very much committed.”
Aldora looked from where his hooves were hidden then up to his horns. “Your mother was...a human?”
Our offspring will be...
“Yes. My bull father was determined to become the next chief of his tribe and sought to win through conquest and prowess. He, with several of his brothers, traversed to the wall to capture human breeders and bring them back. He returned with my mother—filled with his seed and mated—pregnant with my elder brother Thyrius, and won his claim to lead.”
Aldora placed her free hand on her stomach. She shuddered with the imagery.
“How does that work?”
Vedikus turned to look at her, wearing an expression she couldn’t read. “How does what work?”
Her mouth was suddenly dry. “A human and... and someone like you?”
“A minotaur.”
