The Offering
A virginal offering to The Beast of the Labyrinth.
The sun poured like molten gold over the whitewashed stones of Knossos as the drums began. A low, primal beat that rolled over the city like the heartbeat of the god beneath the earth. The people lined the streets, silent, expectant, faces painted, bodies perfumed. It was the day of offering. And Thaleia was the gift. She walked barefoot on the sun-hot stones, her steps slow, deliberate. Her skin gleamed with sacred oil,...