Hidden
There was something different about the air in the Magical Realm.
At least, that's how it seemed to Minos, every time he visited.
It had been a long time, since he'd first stumbled across the Magical Realm, after swearing himself to Dai Shi. His Master had lost his fight, sealed away under the protection of the Order of the Claw. His sister had vowed to remain in his temple until his return, but Minos wasn't ready for such a commitment. His losses were still fresh, and he wanted as far away as possible.
He'd wandered the world, avoiding the Order of the Claw, knowing that as badly as he wanted Mao dead for what he did, he didn't have the power to stand up to him alone. And without Dai Shi's army of Rinshi, he only had his own power to rely on.
So he'd continued to watch the world grow without him, his body frozen in time by Dai Shi's magic. It was when he sailed to New Zealand, that he first felt the hum of strange energy, deep in the forests. Most whispered that it was haunted, filled with spirits and evil creatures. Minos had snorted at that. If that was the case, it was about to receive one more inhabitant.
He'd wandered for hours, feeling a strange sensation that told him to leave and not come back. The same feeling that, he summed up, was the reason why the locals were terrified of the place. So, he continued on, until he'd stepped through a tear between the dimensions, and found himself in the Magical Realm.
Minos was fascinated by the creatures he met there. For centuries, he'd wandered the world, and never imagined that there were gateways between his world, and this one. Magic was real, and simply by watching the Knights in action, Minos grew more powerful.
He rarely approached the people he met, in either world. And in this world, he knew he had to be more careful. It was obvious that they were more in tune with the world, and were much more suspicious of the man, whose heart was shadowed in darkness. Even the children were cautious of him, and would sooner taunt the goblins than even consider approaching him.
For a while, he entertained the idea of attempting to amass an army of his own, from the Magical Realm, by swaying their hearts to the darkness. Especially one boy, who was a strong fighter and had chased away the trolls raiding his village with nothing but a wooden sword as Minos watched from nearby.
After encouraging a couple of trolls to return to help with his plan, Minos entered the village, turning on the trolls in a show of saving the people there.
"You're so strong," the boy he'd been watching, only just starting to reach manhood, approached with a look of awe on his face. Minos chuckled, resting his hammer over his shoulder.
"Years of practice. Same can be said for you. You're good with that, I'd like to see what you'd do with a real blade," he commented, and the boy flushed with pride.
"I'm-"
"Ivan!" the boy looked around sharply when another boy, who seemed to be his younger brother, was watching Minos suspiciously. "Come on," he said, and Ivan nodded.
"Thank you again, for your help," Ivan bowed his head politely to Minos, who grunted, his eyes on the other boy. Ivan hurried after his brother, before disappearing into his home. The boy watched Minos for a moment longer, brow furrowed as Minos glowered at him. He was taken by surprise, when the boy's eyes turned white suddenly, and a moment later returned to their normal dark brown. He then stared at Minos in awe, before smiling and vanishing inside as well.
Utterly baffled, Minos skulked off, aware that others were starting to give him suspicious looks as they emerged from their homes. He'd no idea that the boy was an Oracle who had taken a peek into his future.
Much like he did in his own world, Minos wandered the Magical Realm, finding other gateways back home as he traveled. But his mind never really left his world, and his desire to obey Dai Shi. It was only when Dai Shi chose to inhabit a human body, weak but desperate to fight his captor, did Dai Shi's power over Minos finally slip to the point where he was able to think for himself clearly.
When Dai Shi was finally destroyed, Minos found himself, for the first time in over ten thousand years, without a purpose.
Before Dai Shi, he'd had a family. He'd been a teacher for the Order of the Claw. But now, even though he was still a Master, and had the Rangers, he still felt like he was missing something. He didn't want to return to being a teacher at Pai Zhuq, it brought up a lot of old memories, and he still felt guilty for all the trouble he'd caused.
So, he found himself back in the Magical Realm, wondering if he'd maybe find his purpose there instead.
It was only a month into his trip, when he was wandering through a kingdom that looked like it was falling apart. He had been walking through the beautiful gardens there, when he heard a beautiful voice, singing quietly.
Mia's soft lullaby never failed to soothe Minos, even when it wasn't directed at him. He stepped into the room, smiling at the sight of his wife rocking their newborn son in her arms, singing him to sleep. Slumped over her knee, their dark-haired daughter was snoring quietly, just as won over by the lullaby.
"Thank goodness," the lullaby faded as Mia glanced up, smiling warmly to Minos. "My legs are falling asleep," she whispered as he lifted Laura into his arms.
"Even they are not immune to your singing, my dear," Minos kissed her gently, before carrying their daughter to her bed, and with a roll of her eyes, Mia continued to sing.
This voice didn't have the same calming effect on Minos as his lost wife's had, but it still stirred something in him that he hadn't felt in some time. He made his way towards the singing, fascinated, only to be forced to leap back when a spear jabbed its way suddenly towards his throat. Reacting instinctively, Minos called on his hammer, spinning it and making his distance from the pretty Elf maiden who was glaring at him suspiciously.
"It's impolite to try to kill someone minding their own business," he commented quietly.
"State your business here," the young Elf demanded. Her wine-coloured hair was tied up out of her face, showing off unusual markings that Minos had usually only seen on Elves from smaller tribes, not from a kingdom.
"I just said it was my own," he told her, making her pink eyes narrow.
"Alena," another Elf stepped into view, and Minos immediately knew that she was the owner of the beautiful singing voice. She had long silver hair that seemed to shimmer in the morning light, and similar markings to the other. Her blue eyes shone with curiosity as she looked at Minos, who stared at her in shock. She then smiled. "Alena, we do not skewer passers-by simply for coming too close," she chided gently, and reluctantly Alena lowered her weapon. Minos did the same, reassured that they weren't about to fight him.
"Sorry, my lady," Alena bowed politely to her. It was then that Minos noticed the crown on her head, pretty and delicate, just like her.
"My apologies, your uh...your highness," Minos bowed awkwardly, deciding it best not to risk antagonising the Queen.
"It is quite alright. Alena," she cleared her throat, and with a reluctant expression, the guard turned to Minos and bowed again.
"I apologise for attacking you," she said, not sounding very apologetic.
"It's alright," Minos shook his head. "I guess a stranger approaching your Queen might have earned a little ire," he gave a crooked smile, and Alena looked a little surprised as the Queen laughed.
"What is your name, or should I call you stranger?" she asked, looking entertained.
"Minos. And you?" the Bull Master asked.
"You may call me Zora. You are not from around these parts, are you?" the Queen accused. Minos gave a small grin as Alena looked from one to the other.
"Not exactly," he allowed.
The Queen was beautiful, and despite having resigned himself to never finding love again after losing Mia, he found himself returning over the course of a few months, listening to Zora sing as she tended the flowers - a hobby that she had never given up even after moving to the kingdom to marry the king - and talking with her. He even befriended Alena, who was sweet and friendly, and hopelessly in love with a boy in the guard.
Even with spending all that time with Zora, Minos hadn't expected to fall in love with her. But that's exactly what happened. And, even more surprising to the guff, awkward man, she reciprocated his feelings.
"I love you," Zora told him simply one day, and he'd stared back at her.
"I...you...what?" he stumbled over the words, looking completely confused as if the words hadn't registered. Zora just smiled, entertained by his reaction.
"I love you," she repeated herself, watching the blush spread up from Minos' neck and reach the tip of his ears.
"But you...and the king..." Minos still couldn't understand, but her smile remained.
"You know that my marriage was one to benefit our people, and nothing more. He is more content to spend his days with his many mistresses who don't have to endure his complaints about the Kingdom failing," she reminded him.
"Zora..." her name came out as a gruff whisper, before her head turned, hearing footsteps. Minos heard them too, and he pushed her out of view into the shadows as a few of the guards passed by. Neither dared to even breathe. The King had caught Minos with her before, and banished him, not content to let a mere human near his wife.
When they were finally gone, Zora expected him to move, but Minos didn't let her go. He stared down at her with his deep blue eyes that fascinated her. She had seen so many emotions in them, from the deep pain of his past, to the humour of teasing Alena about Seph. Now, they were baffled, but also hopeful. "You...you mean it?" he finally asked, making her smile.
"Have I ever said something I did not mean?" she challenged, and was rewarded by a shy smile making its way onto his face.
"I haven't loved anyone, not since Mia, all those years ago," he reminded her. It still amazed her, that a human had lived so long, and not gone mad. Especially with how much he'd lost. "Until you," Zora's smile widened at his quiet confession. "I love you, my lady," he confessed.
"You know I hate when you call me that," Zora replied with the only thing she could think of, her heart ready to burst from her chest. Especially when he grinned, mischief in his eyes. Now that was a look she loved.
"Exactly why I call you that," he whispered, his hand sliding up to cup her cheek and tilt her head. His rough lips pressed to hers before she realised what was happening. In the shadows, they kissed, praying that someday they wouldn't have to hide their love.
Minos and Zora were a pairing that I never got to show off much, past a few mentions here and there, but I do love them. Mostly because Minos is still one of my favourite characters and I just want him happy. Unlike the rest, it seems, considering how much I bully them.
I also wanted to show off a bit more about Minos in the past, as well as what happened with him directly after Dai Shi was defeated.
I hope you liked it!
Let me know what you think :)
Please review!
