Page 53 of Taurus's Quest
“You brought back the beast?” Aries rarely showed such surprise.
“Dude said he’d give us the plans in exchange for his freedom from the maze. However, given his distrust of me, I had to leave Circe behind.”
“Which proved what?” Aries cocked his head.
“If Asterion dies, the spell that kept him prisoner will collapse the Labyrinth and kill her.”
Aries pursed his lips. “And what happens to this spell if the main subject of it is removed from its vicinity?”
It took Taurus a second to figure out what the boss meant. “Oh shit. Do you think the spell will assume he’s dead?”
“Depends on its construction,” Aries mused.
“Fuck me! I need to get back there asap.” He raced away from Aries and slammed into Aquarius’ office, bellowing, “Print out another copy of the coordinates.” A shout that did nothing since the room held no one.
Taurus glanced to the ceiling. “Tower, can you get Aquarius to come to his office?”
Aries replied, “Not possible, since he’s not here.”
“Where the fuck is he? I need him.”
“He’s out buying a very expensive 3D printer to recreate the Antikythera device. I assume you’re looking for the math to beam?”
Taurus bobbed his head. “He had a sheet printed for me this morning, but it’s gone.”
“Let me see if I can’t find a saved copy.” Aries sat down in the swivel chair and began typing while Taurus paced.
“I don’t suppose you know what file name he might have stored it under?” muttered his boss.
“Tripiti Gorge. My name. Quest. Minotaur. Labyrinth.” Taurus named off everything he could think of.
“Aha. Found it.” Aries slid the mouse and clicked. The printer whirred to life, and Taurus had his hand ready to snatch it soon as the sheet emerged.
“Thanks, boss. Back in a few hours.” He raced out of the office and hit the stairs, silently cursing out Tower for not making his descent quick. He wasted time. What if the maze had collapsed the moment he left?
Then he hurried for nothing.
A dire thought that he refused to entertain. Circe couldn’t be dead.
Leo and Asterion were still trudging, and despite his urgency, Taurus paused. “You said the spell would collapse if you died, but what about if you left its area of influence?”
A question that led to Asterion frowning. “I don’t know. I was under the impression it was linked to my life force.”
“But does it require proximity?”
Judging by Asterion’s face, not something he’d ever pondered.
“Fuck. I gotta go. Circe might be in danger.”
Not dead.
Not dead.
Not fucking dead because he’d been stupid and put the mission above her.
He hit the bottom step and raced for the door, exiting into a storm.
A strong wind lashed, a harsh dry force of nature that stung the eyes as it whipped loose dirt around. Worse than that discomfort, the sandbox couldn’t be used. The shapes he drew needed to be precise, and the brisk air currents had the fine grains rolling like waves.
