The Labyrinth King (The Labyrinth Series Book 1)

by L. J. Serafin

  His power engulfed me and twisted around mine, sending more pleasure through every inch of my body. A coursing river of flame and passion that felt like fire in my veins.

  I felt myself building, the tension climaxing as his thumb quickened. I pulled my lips from our kiss, unable to concentrate on anything but what he was doing to me. My face pressed against his as my core tightened and then finally released.

  Moans escaped my lips as the pleasure raked through my body. I leaned my head back, relishing in the sensations as Alder kissed the front of my neck. I closed my eyes and let every second of the pulsating heaven echo through me and then finally fade. His power slowly withdrew from mine, utterly satisfied. My power felt like a melted puddle inside of me.

  I brought my face back down to his and he pulled me in for another kiss, his lips soft and worshipping.

  “I think I could get used to that,” I said, my eyes finally opening and looking at his.

  “Mhm, I think I want to hear you moan like that every day for the rest of eternity.” His eyes looked hungry, starving, as they stared back at me. But he loosened his grip, giving me a wicked smile.

  “Don’t you want a release as well…” I said, biting my lip, trailing my hand down his chest. His hand stopped mine before it got too low.

  “Oh, I want release. But when I fuck you for the first time, I need it not to be within earshot of others…” he growled with a smirk.

  I then remembered Minka and Jubilee. My cheeks flushed as I looked around for them. Thankfully, they were a ways away, but still, they probably had known what was happening.

  I giggled at the thought as Alder shook his head at me, his eyes still swimming in want. I felt so blissfully happy, so desperately falling for this man already. The thought was both terrifying and exhilarating.

  Chapter 22

  We sailed for another day. Alder and I practiced with my fighting skills every few hours, I even showed off a bit with my dagger. Alder seemed very impressed by my dagger throwing abilities, perhaps even a little… turned on by it. The way he watched me as I handled the blade made me flush.

  I practiced more of my power, trying to see if any new skills blossomed, but so far only the seduction power and calming power.

  I had yet to mention that I had calmed him the night before or of the haven I had seen. I thought it was best to keep the knowledge of those skills to myself for the time being. Just in case.

  I pushed my power against him, harder and harder. He challenged me each time. The power inside him seemed a perfect match for mine. But he was older, stronger, and in more control from centuries of practice.

  “Try again, this time resist me when I push against it.”

  I spread it over him, he pushed back. I concentrated, using all of my will against his power. It slipped off of him and I let out a frustrated huff.

  “You’re getting better, Val. It just takes practice.”

  We tried again and again until I was sweating and needed a break.

  After that, I practiced bringing my power out and then pulling it back in, practiced dispelling the excess from within.

  I learned my thoughts were the dominant form of reins I had and the practice of pulling those reins just right, proved more difficult than expected. But the more I practiced, the easier it became.

  Alder was more than willing to let me practice on him. He seemed to relish the feeling of my power within him, the tension between us growing again as we practiced.

  Minka and Jubilee, on the other hand, were less willing. I couldn’t say I blamed them, considering their relationship, so I did not use them.

  Instead, I spent time with Minka learning how she moved the sails of the ship. I spent time with Jubilee and she taught me how to steer the boat, each minor move resulting in the slightest turn of our ship. It was all an art, and I was glad to learn from them.

  Minka, I learned, had a very pointed personality, often blunt with her actions and words, but she also had a dark sense of humor. She loved to catch you off guard with her words, saying the most unexpected things that you couldn’t help but smile at.

  Minka was from the trading town of Mare. Her parents, who were fishermen, had taught her how to sail. She told me she had grown up on a ship, a boat much bigger than this one, that served as her family’s home and work. When she spoke of those years, her voice became so delicate as she reminisced, missing those days. She told me her parents had been killed when she was fifteen. She didn’t say how, and her eyes misted as she spoke. She entered the Labyrinth shortly after. Unsure what she would find here, but unable to look at Mare anymore, at her home, without thinking of them.

  “So you’d rather risk entering the Labyrinth? Weren’t you worried you would die?” I asked.

  “It didn’t matter.”

  My heart broke for her.

  Jubilee was the opposite of Minka in almost every way. She had a bubbly personality who loved to tell stories of her life. I learned she had been born in Sericum, her parents were silk traders. Her brown eyes lit up as she talked about her childhood. How she loved the silks, the colors, the soft touch of them. She told me Sericum was built in the sands, dunes surrounding the great city that never ended. She told me about the spices and the food; speaking of the food most of all.

  But when I asked her how she came to the Labyrinth, her face shifted. She didn’t answer and her body language altered severely, like she had entered a dark place in her mind.

  Minka noticed immediately and walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder and pulling her into a hug. She lifted her face up, and I watched as the sweet, warm personality washed back over her face. Minka kissed her forehead and walked away.

  I didn’t ask again.

  Spending time with these two beautiful, powerful women filled me in a way I had never been filled. I felt a kinship towards them, toward our similarities as well as our differences. I had never had female friends in Villam, had no friends beside Leo really, and I realized I had been missing out on so much.

  I desperately wanted them to like me, to be their friend.

  It was night again. We were still sailing along.

  Minka had served us all a bit of bread and cheese, huffing at me that I should have bought food while we were at the marketplace. I reminded her she hadn’t given me much time, letting my words be as pointed as hers.

  She seemed to enjoy when I sparred with her, seemed to approve of the fire within me when I did.

  My body was sore from our several training sessions today, but I felt strong. Strong and capable. Alder and I sat overlooking the water, his hand holding mine. He had taken it as soon as he had sat down, like he felt the need to touch me as often as possible.

  The stars were dancing above us in their beautiful nightly serenade and ballet. The land on either side had narrowed in on the river, it was barely a jump to the shore now. The land was dark here, the walls of the Labyrinth that bordered and wove on the shore seemed to be made of black stone. Obsidian, as Alder called it. The black stone was shiny and sparkled in the moonlight, reflecting the violet and the multicolors of the waltzing stars.

  Alder seemed nervous, his eyes continually searching the walls.

  I watched him as he watched the shore. I opened my mouth to ask him what he was looking for when we heard it.

  A scream, a bloodcurdling scream. It was coming from within the Labyrinth. Alder shot up, standing on the edge and balancing himself, searching for the source. I stood up too, though not as gracefully as he did. I glanced back to Minka and Jubilee, their faces were somber.

  The scream came again. Alder seemed to locate the origin this time and in a second he disappeared.

  “Shit,” Minka swore, running to the side of the ship to dock the boat. She lowered the anchor quickly, and then jumped off, landing on the dark earth. I looked at Jubilee. She was staying, Jinx sitting by her side. I had a choice.

  I jumped off behind Minka, following her as she headed into the small black opening ahead of us.
The screams continued. We ran after them as fast as we could. Minka was faster than me, but I was just as agile. We turned corner after corner, coming closer to the screams which had turned into wailing. A piercing sound, the sound of a heart breaking.

  Two more turns and we entered a large area. I tried to take it all in as fast as possible, clutching my dagger so hard my knuckles ached.

  Several fire lanterns stood staked in a circle around the area, illuminating the horror. A massive tree with black and gnarled limbs sat in the center with a large stake in its trunk, blood splattered and dripping down. A woman knelt in front of the tree. She was sobbing and wailing, the source of the sound. Alder stood to the other side of the tree, facing four men. Their weapons were drawn in a defensive position, large hacking knives.

  Alder turned as we approached, his face was covered in fury, a darkness over him I had never seen, his glow a deep black purple.

  The men barely noticed that we had arrived, their faces snarling as they stared at Alder. They were slightly older, maybe in their thirties or forties, all of their faces hardened and brutal. Blood dripped down their clothes. Each wore a large, dark metal dragon sigil on their chest.

  I walked closer to Alder, with Minka flanking him on the other side. My dagger drawn and at the ready. I noticed Alder did not have any sort of weapon in his hands. Minka had an axe she had brought from the ship.

  I wasn’t sure what these men had done, but the blood drenching them and the wailing woman were enough that if Alder attacked, I would not hesitate to help butcher them like cattle.

  “You fucking monsters. I will wipe every last one of you from this world,” Alder said, his voice so cutting and dark, I felt a chill go down my spine and the hairs on my neck raise up. His power raked over me, surging mine and leaving me with deep bloodlust.

  I had never felt this way before, never felt this urge to kill. Was it my new power? Was I just feeding off of Alder’s murderous energy? It didn’t matter, it felt too good. I narrowed my eyes, relishing the euphoria of his power around me. The anticipation of death, of the kill. It was such an irresistible feeling, like my power wanted to sink its teeth into the nearest man.

  Suddenly, out of thin air, a large blade formed in Alder’s hand. It was a massive spike, silver and sharp. That was all it took. The men rushed towards us.

  Instead of feeling fear, I felt… powerful. One of them ran straight for me. I twisted my dagger in my hand and waited. When he was a few feet away, I moved, turning my body so quickly he couldn’t stop in time, running right past me as I simply extended my blade into him, splitting his stomach open. He dropped immediately, the smell of his blood and guts filling the air. It was strangely sweet and blissful.

  Alder, ahead of me, had already shoved his metal stake through the eye of one man. He pulled it out and faced the other.

  Minka had thrown the axe straight through the chest of the third man. He lay before her, dark blood seeping from the deep wound, already dead.

  The fourth man was not charging. He looked at his dead friends and dropped his weapon. He began backing up slowly, raising his hands up as if to beg for mercy.

  Alder stalked toward him. I looked over to the woman, who was still wailing. She was shrouded in the shadows. I came closer to her and knelt down, assessing her wounds.

  But it was what she held in her arms that stopped me. Nausea rolled over me as I saw what she held, saw the large open wound on its tiny chest, its skin grey, its little fingers resting in its mother’s hands.

  Anger filled me in an instant, fire pouring through my veins. My skin bursting against the heat, against the internal flames.

  I stood and turned back to the fourth man. Alder was still walking towards him as he stumbled backwards.

  Heat filled my cheeks, my eyes, my mouth. My entire body was aflame.

  In an instant I was on the man. My hand grabbed his throat and held his entire weight as I lifted him up high, my arm fully extended as he thrashed against my grip. His weight was of no consequence. My power was strong, so strong.

  Sharp teeth formed in my mouth, my vision became focused, my fingers turned to talons. Out of my mouth came my fury, my anger. It poured out of me as fear leaked from the man. A sweet, intoxicating scent.

  In the reflection of his eyes, I saw myself. A pink, deadly glow surrounded me like flames. My eyes were all black, my mouth massive and taking over the majority of my face. It was splitting apart to show a row of dagger-like teeth. I was…. something else entirely.

  I didn’t give a fuck.

  I felt my power come over the man, felt it inside of him. I let it tear through him. He screamed in agony as it slashed through him like a mace. Blood dripped from his nose, mouth, and eyes. He was crying tears of blood, his face turning purple as I clamped my shark like mouth down on his neck. And then I ripped his fucking throat out with my teeth.

  I tossed his body aside. My power filled me with ecstasy, the taste of his death delicious in my mouth. I reached down and ripped the dragon sigil brooch off of his chest, wondering what this meant. Who were these monsters? I turned around.

  Shock was written across Minka’s face, fear in her own eyes as she took me in.

  Alder, on the other hand, was glowing with the brightest golden color of pride I had ever seen. His face running over my body, he was not scared. He looked a bit… aroused.

  He walked closer to me. Just a touch.

  “Valeria, channel that power, bring it back in and force it out,” he said calmly. His beautiful face beaming at me.

  I tried, I pulled in the power, pulled it in as hard and deep as I could pull, every inch of my body feeling as if it was on fire. I pulled harder, and it obeyed.

  Slowly the fiery feeling left my toes and fingers, left my head and my legs, left my arms, until it was all in my chest. The talons shrunk, my teeth returning to normal, my vision becoming softer, the flame like glow around me receding.

  I gritted my teeth and screamed, throwing the power out of me. It didn’t leave in a ball, instead it left in a column of power coming straight from my breast. It lit up the entire sky before it dissolved.

  Relief rushed through me. I felt better than I had in my entire life. I should have been horrified of what I had just done, terrified of what my powers were capable of. Scared of the creature inside of me. I had killed two men, the Valeria from a week ago would have been devastated at herself. Hell, even the Valeria from last night would have been.

  But they didn’t know what it was like to kill and savor the death. This power, this murderess, it was me. I felt the most me I had ever felt. And it was fucking incredible.

  I looked back at Alder. He was still giving me that wicked smile. His body glowed, his eyes connecting with mine and sending a thrill through my body. I needed to have him right here and now. Needed to feel him and his power inside of mine. Needed more release.

  But the woman’s screams came back to my ears, pulling me from his gaze. Minka was tending to her now, but she did not stop crying.

  I had thousands of questions for Alder… thousands of things I wanted to do to him… but first we needed to help this poor woman who was lost in her grief.

  Chapter 23

  The woman eventually told us they had come, hidden by the black of night, and dragged her and her infant from her bed. She told us they brought them here, referring to this place as a holy land because of the dark oak that grew. She said they made her watch as they lifted her child up in prayers to their Blessed Dark Lord. Her face was completely emotionless as she told us they held her face forward, her eyes open, as they staked her infant to the tree. She said she felt she had died with her. Her voice was flat as she spoke.

  Alder asked where they had come from, and she told him. Told him of a hidden citadel a few turns from here. Then she told him this was not their first child sacrifice.

  As she told her story, I kept my powers pushed down, but the anger simmered. Alder stood up and said something to Minka in a hushed tone. I reach
ed my hand out and touched the woman. I wanted to send her comfort, like I had with Leo and Alder. But she felt of black emptiness. There was no pain, there was just nothingness. I realized there wasn’t anything I could do to make her better. So I stood up and walked away.

  “Go tell Jubilee of our plan, let her know it won’t take long,” he said to Minka. She nodded and walked away, back through the Labyrinth.

  “What plan?” I asked him, looking across his gorgeous face.

  He turned to me, his gaze deepening. “How’d that feel?” he asked me, his eyes full of curiosity.

  “The best high of my life. Nothing could have compared,” I said, not caring that I was talking about murder because the truth was, I didn’t care. These men were monsters. And it felt incredible to kill them, to let my power devour him. To let myself soak in his fear and bathe in the sensations of his death.

  I realized then how much that singular moment had already changed me. I had never killed anyone before, despite wanting to kill several of the tavern men. And now I had. I should feel regret or disgust. But I only felt the lingering sting of my power, the delicious curl of the kill inside of my memories. My power had emerged and had changed me within seconds, tossing any empathy or concern for human life out the window in exchange for the insatiable taste of blood.

  He raised an eyebrow. “I know one thing that might compare.” His lips curled slightly as he spoke, filling me with a dangerous feeling. I leaned forward in anticipation, waiting for him to continue. I felt his power radiating from him, as mine was radiating from me. They met, and that deep need filled me again. Igniting my nerves on fire.

  To see what I was capable of, what laid asleep inside of me all this time. Alder had watched it, had seen me rip through a man with my teeth like he was candy. And yet he was still looking at me like that. I felt glorious.

  “We are going to their citadel, and we are going to kill every single flea that inhabits it. Then when we are done, I’m going to fuck you while their blood is still fresh on our hands.”