chapter twelve

The body dragged across the stone floor with a soft scuffle. The beast dropped it next to the others, the pile a little bigger than the last disposal. He hated this part of the job.

He twisted the ring on his finger, glancing around at the dimly lit walls to see if he sensed any other trash that needed to be sent away. That seemed to be it. No more bodies were left lying around the labyrinth other than the few skeletons the beast kept around to warn the newcomers about their fate. He often tried to motivate the prisoners to let him end their lives early and cut their suffering short, but some were more stubborn than others. The skeletons scared a lot of the stubborn out, but not all of it.

He glanced down at the stack of corpses, snarling at the few who had held on to their pride until the bitter end—they were the type that he hated the most. Watching other men waste away just reminded him of his own fate in the labyrinth. With each passing day, and new prisoner, he felt more convinced that escape was nothing more than a carrot on a stick. The hope had tasted so sweet when he was younger, but now he hated carrots.

A spark of blue flame flickered against the stone wall, drawing the beast's eye as he watched it fan to life and wrap into a ring of fire.

Right on time .

The circle was about the size of a door once completed, filling up the entire wall as the center went up into a puff of smoke and revealed the magical portal. King Hayden, the divine one who ruled over Underworth's graveyard, had the power to create portals in any corner of Fairmyth to use to collect corpses. There were three places a person could go once they had passed, but they were all within Underworth's borders. Two of them were for honored citizens, divine ones, and those who deserved to be remembered, even in the smallest regard, while the third was reserved for only those who needed to be forgotten.

The pits of Tarteron.

The portal descended straight into darkness, with barely even the pit's cliff within view. The scent of smoke and fire filled the tunnels, tainted with the bitter air of Underworth. One by one, the beast hoisted the bodies through the portal, watching them tumble straight down into the mass grave where they would forever be forgotten .

He used to look forward to this time since it was the closest thing he got to a change of scenery. However, the more he performed this particular job, the more morbid it became. The grave he tossed all the corpses into would likely become his own one day...

No one wanted to remember a beast, and there was little chance of him ever being cured of the curse that kept him trapped in the shadows. He tossed in the last body, watching it fall into the dark void with a vile tug in his throat.

How many times had he thought about speeding up the process?

It was so tempting to follow the corpses... To jump into the pit and be free of the prison, the curse, and the life that tethered him to grief. It would have been so easy, too. At least, that's what he thought when he first tried it...

Underworth was a cursed land that manipulated time for all those who stepped within its borders. For divine ones and those gifted with magic, it allowed them to live longer. But for those who were mortal, the land sapped away their time in exchange, shortening their lifespan with every breath they took. Apparently, it had an odd effect on cursed beasts, too...

The one time he'd tried to step through the portal, it hadn't let him. He wasn't sure why. It could have been due to the labyrinth's magic, or even the curse in Underworth, but not even his claw could breach the portal.

It was cruel that way. Those who entered the labyrinth were the scum of Fairmyth, but they at least had a way out. As for the beast, he was forever trapped within its walls with his only escape being an unmeasured amount of time. He could always starve himself and lock away the resources that allowed him to live, but he couldn't bring himself to go that far. Tateron would have been a swift end, and anything else was just another layer to his curse.

The portal fizzled away into a puff of smoke, leaving behind the stale smell and thick air. The beast watched the image disappear until it returned to the familiar walls of the cave. For a long moment, he didn't move. He stood in the empty tunnels, the only living soul in the entire labyrinth. Sometimes he would run when he was alone, other times he would scream, but today, he just wanted to exist.

That was hard enough on its own.

His finger warmed beneath the golden ring, signaling that someone was messing with the labyrinth gates. They were preparing to open them... Looks like his peace wouldn't last much longer. He wondered how many men would be sent in this time. Maybe three? Or just one?

He picked up his axe, the shiny metal blade catching his fangs in the reflection as he tossed it over his shoulder, preparing to deal with the newcomers upon their entrance.

Whoever they are, they better not touch my roses.