Astra-chan and the Minotaur

"May the Prophet heap a thousand blessings upon your head, kindly human!" the minotaur sobbed. "My name is Hakim Hawala ibn Hafizul Halaweez al Shakira, a devout minotaur in service to Allah and his Prophet. Kidnapped from my home by the forces of Chaos and Evil and enslaved to guard this platform I have known nothing but hatred and violence from all I encountered. Because of my short, short stubby legs I was unable even to leap the platform to reach the meat and I thought it was my cruel fate to die of hunger here in this evil place. But thanks to you I have been rescued at least for a little while from this terrible demise."

"Hai, Minotaur-san, how did you end up being captured like that, and what is the world you are from like?" Astra said unthinkingly, sitting down and dangling her legs from the platform. Little did she know in a few minutes she would regret the question. Her mind was clouded by a desire for raw fish and to capture cute electronic pets to battle against each other to the death, though she couldnt understand what these desires could possibly mean. The minotaur cleared his throat and began to speak.

The Minotaur's Tale

It was a dry and dusty winter night in the month of Evenstar, as the constellations twinkled in the sky like the tiny brushstrokes of a divine inspired artist. Myself and my erstwhile companions, Abu the Butcher and Salome the Fortuneteller, had been hired by the Turkoman merchant, Sadiq, to guard his caravan of exotic rugs and spices to their destination in the ports of Arabia. As the story began, we had been traveling for an entire day, led by native scouts through the inhospitable wasteland in search of a trade city or oasis where we could allow our camels respite from the unbearable heat. But as night fell Sadiq decided to set up camp for the night and resume our search in the morning, lest exhaustion overtook us and we proved no match in our weariness for the nomadic bandits of the desert, who were said to strike like thunder out of nowhere and retreat just as fast with their stolen booty and women.

I sat far from the main camp, where the Turkoman's slaves and domestic servants were busy scurrying about like rodents to set up tents and shelter for the night. As bodyguards, we did not need to work as a common slave would, in fact I could hear Abu's raucous drunken laughter echoing across the camp as he swaggered and boasted of his many heroic deeds and battles against heathen, Moslem and Crusader alike. Suddenly I felt Salome's hand on my shoulder and started from almost falling into a deep slumber.

"What troubles you, honourable Hakim?" Salome asked, her voice slow and sensual as always, her green eyes twinkling brightly. "Why do you sit so far apart from the others, like a lonely star that shines in the sky far away from other constellations?"

"Ah, Salome you know too well the complex thoughts and troubles that assail me day by day," I sighed. "I miss my family, my honourable father and brothers, as well as my dear mother who died so long ago. I miss the stomping grounds of my youth, the fertile farmlands of the Crescent and the rivers that flow through them."

Salome laughed, dancing away lightly on sandaled feet as she circled around me. "To think that the mighty Hakim, who once laid waste to an entire bandit tribe with only his hammer would be humbled by thoughts of hearth and home and family! To the strong, are thoughts of strength, and to the weak, dreams of weakness that chain them to the earth."

"Bah!" I snorted. "Have you come to mock me? Away with you, woman!"

"Now now, there is no need to be curt, my dear Hakim," Salome smirked, suddenly dancing closer. "In truth, we all dream dreams of weakness and chains that bind us to another. Even I - yes, even I had such a dream, last night, one that made me awake in a sweat and a dizzying distress that shamed and humbled this poor fortuneteller in her weakness."

"What are you talking about? You have dreams every night, dreams of the future, of dangers that may arise in the morning. They have saved our lives more than once as I recall. What kind of a dream could put even Salome in such a distress? Hurry and tell me!"

Salome smiled a strange, mysterious smile, her face inches away from mine. "That I shall tell you, my dear Hakim, if..."

Suddenly...

1. There was an attack by one of the nomadic bandit tribes of the wasteland.
2. A shining, swirling portal of energy suddenly opened behind Salome, pulling her inside.
3. There was a fire in the camp, as one of the slaves accidentally knocked over an oil lamp while setting up the tents.
4. Abu got into an drunken argument with one of the foreign mercenaries accompanying us, as harsh words turned to curses and blades were drawn.
5. Astra's snoring echoed through the abyss...

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