Page 89 of Of Monsters and Mazes

This place wasn’t that black or white. None of us were. My motives were straight forward, sure, but my feelings were much more complicated now. I was surrounded by viciousness, brutality, and psychopaths, and yet I felt more bonded to these men than I had in any relationship I’d ever had in the past. Even Jericho, who just sent me back to the beginning of the Labyrinth—because apparently he liked both me and my cat too much to let us leave—felt more playful than truly diabolical.

I guess that spoke more to my own mentality than anything. I had a bad habit of focusing on the men who made my life a constant challenge. I’d always made my entire personality showing others they were wrong to doubt me. This was no different. The only way this varied was in the sense that Jericho constantly complimented me along the way, even encouraging me to keep going, and promising me support and greatness. He presented the challenge, and I couldn’t tell if he wanted to see me pass or fail.

Theron sabotaged me and supported me at the same time, but assured no outside force was allowed to hurt me.

Alessi oddly seemed to revel in my success, as if his greatest joy was in watching the walls of Tartarus get knocked down.

And Rai was the man who wanted to see me fall, only to unwillingly be won over by my perseverance.

I should hate them all for various reasons, but instead I loved what they brought out of me, and how they’d pushed me to be better. That perhaps wasn’t a healthy relationship, but was it okay for it to be the one that spoke to me? Maybe we were all fucked up, and maybe that was what made me feel most alive.

When I conquered this realm, took back Pumpkin, and returned home, I might even miss this place, where life was never dull, and these men—despite their own unquestionable positions of power, who could have silenced and squashed me at any time—made space for me. How silly it was to covet the approval of the demons.

“Is that why you kept by him? Despite all of the years of knowing he’d never choose you first?”

Alessi shook his head. “He’s always chosen me first. His obligations simply delayed the timing.” He ruffled my hair playfully. “Though this time around, I’m not the only one he’s choosing anymore. Let’s head back to the castle, Bijou.”

I nodded in understanding, then I turned towards the maze in the distance.

A small bite pricked my arm, and I swatted the little fairy. My hearing dulled and my vision faded, but both returned almost immediately.

Now, with Rai’s blood in my veins, I was immune to their poison. He’d made me powerful and untouchable.

I smiled on the thought.

I needed to find him. I needed to get back to the Labyrinth and save Pumpkin once and for all.

“Do you need a ride?” Alessi asked before he shifted back into fox form. The massive furry animal tipped his snout to offer me his back. With the added speed, we’d make it in no time.

I climbed atop the large, furry, red canine, and I settled on his shoulders with my fingers gripping his luscious fur. He started to run, and I held on tight.

Alessi tore through the forest, while I tucked in tightly to duck beneath branches.

A large, bulbous larvae fell on me from its vantage point overhead, and I tore it from my shoulder and threw it into a passing tree. It exploded in a spectacular burst of green. I smiled at the morbid and absurd thought that its death matched my dress.

As we ran, I heard footsteps beside us. They matched Alessi’s steps perfectly, falling into his rhythm in expert time. The scent of pine and walnuts filled my nostrils, and Rai sprinted ahead of us, clearing the path with the force of his horns. He charged forward until we were on the other side of the forest. The clock was still ticking overhead.

Five hours left. I still had time.

“How fast can you get us through the Labyrinth?” I asked Rai as we neared those violet walls.

He laughed. “How many times do I have to tell you? I am the Labyrinth.”

The stone lost its color in front of us. Gaps appeared in the walls where they once were hidden, and the magic of the Violet Sector had all but completely disappeared. Alessi followed Rai’s skillful guidance, while I remained atop his back, enjoying the rest and relief.

Rai effortlessly weaved through every turn and corridor, and he broke through every door. The Blue Sector had lost its frost. The Green Sector was absent of its plants. The Yellow Sector, its riddles. We were half way through the Orange jungle, and only two hours had ticked by.

There were two and a half hours left when we arrived in the Red Sector.

More than enough.

Rai continued to lead the way. Though the rest of the maze had lost its color under Rai’s restricted magic, this segment was still deeply stained in red. The blood never washed off of these walls.

Our navigation slowed as the scarlet cobblestone became rougher and steeper, but it was only another hour before we arrived at the spiral stairway that wrapped around the castle.

There, sitting on the bottom step, was a familiar face.

“I figured I’d be seeing you soon.” Theron said, his electric sparked eyes locked with mine.