“I would like to learn that as well.”
“And you will.” Vedikus peered at Aldora’s exposed skin when another cold draft hit them. He blocked the worst of it. “Are you cold?”
“No.”
“Your skin is frigid. Do not lie.” Her smile faltered and she ran her palms over her arms, slowly at first, then with increasing speed.
“I’m not cold at all,” she whispered hoarsely and turned away. “I’m not cold, but I don’t feel the warmth of my hands.” She grasped his and then felt his skin. “I don’t feel your heat either. Vedikus...” Her eyes widened with fear.
He pulled her into his arms and cupped the back of her head, feeling her breaths fan his chest. “We will make camp and cure you this night. I do not wish to wait another day in case you lose something else tomorrow.” Aldora sagged against him and he pressed his nose into her hair, filling his nostrils with her female scent.
“I didn’t even notice.” She shook.
“The temperature is dropping and will continue to do so as we ascend the mountain path. You will notice it soon.” The way was rife with traps and boulders to climb. Vedikus rubbed a piece of her shift between his fingers. “Come now, we’ve made back some time this day, and there are stores stashed nearby.” He kept her in the crook of his arm as he passed the marker adorned with skulls and horns sculpted of stone. The bones piled at the bottom scattered with his hooves.
They quickened their steps, the cold bite of nightfall chewing at their heels as they crossed into Bathyr lands. It would be too much to hope for one of his brothers to be guarding this location seeing as they continuously traveled the paths, but he came across fresh tracks leading away. They were unhurried so he paid them no mind, his thoughts entirely on Aldora’s well-being.
The cliffs rose up around them, blocking out the worst of the wind. Vedikus veered to a nearby secret path that overlooked the trail. He had Aldora climb up first and wait for him at the top of the narrow path up a fissure. They were shielded on all sides by rocks and shrubbery, with a look out and ambush point beneath them if anything were to pass the marker. A quick death by impalement would be too good for any trespasser.
He let Aldora catch her breath and take in the view as he headed into a crevasse in the wall, turning his head so his horns would not scrape the stone. Inside lay a small pit with enough supplies to last a day. Vedikus checked for new traps and enchantments before starting the fire.
He heard Aldora come in and sit by his side while he unearthed a clay jug of water from within which he placed atop the embers to bring to a boil.
“Will this hurt?” she asked softly.
“I don’t know.”
“How come? I thought your mother—”
“We were not told everything. I would have preferred to wait until we were farther up the mountain but I will not linger now that we’re well outside of Prayer’s boundaries.”
“Maybe it is for the best that I have lost the sensation of touch,” she admitted, pinching her arm. “Funny thing is... every time I have lost something of myself, the only memory I have left of it is of you. The way you smelled that first night, the feel of you. It’s the only thing that remains after everything else is lost. I can’t remember apples and I’ve eaten them my whole life. I just know that they are sweet and tart but all I imagine is fire and sweat.” Aldora lifted on her knees and traced one finger along his horn.
“I’m honored,” he said.
“It wasn’t by choice.”
“And yet you have allowed me to fill you in every way that matters. If you weren’t in threat of your health, your life, then I would consider leaving you to be consumed by me. It is how it should be,” he grunted, putting some of the stored herbs into the water to help freshen it and ease Aldora’s throat when she drinks. “Regardless, you will have nothing in your future but me.”
“And you? Would you consume yourself with me?”
His hands clenched. “Do not make me give voice to my weaknesses.”
She sat back and withdrew her hand. “If I am a weakness then I am pleased,” she chuckled. “Weaknesses are the sole focus of a dedicated warrior.”
Her words rang in his skull. Vedikus watched as the water bubbled up from the tapered spout of the jug and pour into the fire, sizzling and steaming the small space.
“What do you,” he took the jug off the fire and let it cool, finding it hard to voice his question, “think of me?” He had the urge to press her into the ground and force answers from her lips, to taste them with his own even if it was not what he wanted to hear. Aldora canted her head and removed her boots. Wiggling her toes, she brought her gaze back to his.
“You’re my strength, minotaur, you could never be my weakness.”
Vedikus narrowed his eyes although her words made his chest tight. His strength was his most prized attribute. He had honed it since before he could utter a word, fighting with his brothers before he knew what a weapon was. By the time he could use a blade, he no longer needed it in his arsenal to defeat an opponent; his muscles were enough to take down any beast. His horns sharpened to gore any in his way.
“You care for me, female?”
He cherished Aldora’s lighthearted nature, and when she bowed her head and hid her growing smile under her hair, his fingers ached to brush the strands aside to see it.
“I can’t rely on my own power to survive here,” she said. “It was hard for me to understand that, but since we left Prayer... you could have hurt me for speaking to Calavia alone but you didn’t. You didn’t. You listened to me, and I’m more sorry about how you would react than I was when I was seeking to save myself. Call it magic, or the darkness of this place, but I care for you.”
