the softness of her leg as I do.
“I want to remember.” Her voice tightens with anger.
“Why?” I ask, curious.
“Would you not? Someone killed me and buried me in the forest, they betrayed and hurt me. Would you not want to know if you had enemies?”
I nod, my antlers ringing in the wind. “I can help, if you wish,” the offer slips out.
“You can?” She eyes me curiously, her hand raising and petting the snake between us, stopping as it covers my hand there. I jolt from the feeling, like my very soul is clambering to get to her. I see the same truth in her eyes, she feels it too. This connection, this feeling of need.
“Close your eyes, this might hurt,” I warn, and leaning forward, I suck in some more of her addicting scent, while touching my fingertip lightly to her forehead, letting my magic curl through me to her, and pushing away the darkness shrouding her memories until she can see everything. Her eyes snap open, filled with pain, fury, and sadness. Mourning for the life and innocence she lost. I see the memories clashing in her mind as I watch her being betrayed by the human who vowed to love her.
Her mouth opens and a scream of terror and agony pours out, rolling through the forest and into the world like a plea, as she relives her own death. It seems to echo into the night, calling to the darkness in me, and begging for the monsters of the night to save her.
My chains slither across the floor as I tug, pulling taut from the steel cylinders they are wrapped around. There are six altogether. One per hand and foot. One around my neck and one around my middle. The only reason I haven’t broken free from them is because they are enchanted. Not even the strongest metal could contain an animal like me, I am the monster of the Labyrinth that the humans crafted stories about, the terrifying creature they fear above all others. No maze, no human, not even the gods could enslave me... but working together?
I can’t remember how long I have been locked down here, left to rot, forgotten like a relic of the past. My animal half takes over my mind more each day as it bellows for freedom, for a taste of blood from the people who betrayed him. The ones who chained him, imprisoned him, and left him.
I let my animalistic side take over long ago, not in body, of course, the chains won’t allow me to shift. Instead, I’ve retreated into the darkness of my beast’s mind. It is better than my human mind, which is going crazy from the unending solitude and absolute darkness. I have only my hearing to rely on down here in the catacombs, hidden beneath the city with only one way in or out. I was left in a pit, a hole in the ground with walls so high they reach the floor of the city, surrounded by steel structures erected to contain me. I tug on the chains again and they tighten with a hiss, the magic bubbling as if it fights my strength. I have been testing them for years, probably around four hundred though it is hard to count, they have started to weaken, cracks appearing in the magic and steel. Magic is not made to last forever, it needs to be reapplied. They will be back soon—they can sense when the cracks occur—to contain me once again, not wanting to risk their nightmarish creation escaping into the world.
I feel the blood running freely from my many wounds caused by the chains, which only enrages my bull further. He roars for their blood, for every drop we lose he thirsts for a pint of theirs. Soon, I remind him, begging for his patience. I sense a change in the air, something is coming and with it, so will my freedom and the ability to kill once more. I will seek revenge on those who betrayed us, who imprisoned us. I will not stop until my horns and hooves are covered in their traitorous blood and gore—a gruesome aftermath of their murders, which I will commit when I avenge my captors. They will remember.
The monster always wins.
My bull perks up, quieting down for once, his roaring stopping in my head. What do you sense? I ask, receiving no answer as he paces inside of it, nudging to be let out. What? I