Page 45 of A Fable of Riddles and Redemption

As powerful a mage as Zorina undoubtedly was, if he could convince her to join her powers with darkness, they would be unstoppable.

I will have to show her, persuade her. She will not be able to resist.

The thought thrilled him as he played, his tune luring her step by step through the woods, away from the vine-covered shack she called home.

For now.

But not for long.

No, her new home would be his, with him.

At the twittering sound of the red panda that annoyingly followed her around, Caliban blew out a few short notes to get the creature to flee.

It didn’t work.

He tried again, but Zorina blinked her eyes open, the trance starting to clear from from her blue gaze instead.

Turning his tune back to the melody that had captured her in the first place, he tried not to scowl at the animal as he waited for the dazed look to overtake her features again.

I’ll just have to deal with the creature once I get Zorina home.

Slowly, methodically, he led her with his music. Much to his consternation, the red panda slowed their progress. Due to the varmint’s attempts to get Zorina’s attention, he kept having to revert back to the entrancing melody rather than stick solely to the marching one.

He would have preferred using his power on both of them, but overriding a human’s will took vastly more concentration and magic than an animal’s, and he wasn’t confident he could hold onto both Zorina and her pet for as long as he needed to.

It was aggravating, but at long last, he reached the hidden entrance to his domain.

Caliban played a series of ascending major thirds to temporarily freeze Zorina in place.

Then, after catching his breath, he released the notes that unlocked a concealed door on a hollow tree. The next notes he played opened a trap door inside the woody expanse, revealing a dark hole on the tree’s floor.

Before the obnoxious red panda could dart through the doors, Caliban froze the animal in place with a few notes. It would only last a few minutes, but it would be long enough.

Now that the path was clear, his song pulled Zorina into motion again, this time carrying her through the doorways and down, down, down to his hidden abode.

Darkness filled the passage leading them down the many stairs underground. At long last, Caliban reached another door and paused his music to trigger the latch, which uncovered the semi-permanent portal he’d placed a few feet behind it. The light gray portal crackled with zaps of black as he began playing again to lead his prey onward. On the other side of the portal stood yet another non-descript door that opened to his home.

Once Zorina was through all of his secret entrances, he closed and magically locked each door. Then, he played a handful of notes to bring her to the large soft bed that took up most of his guest bedroom.

Not that he’d had many guests before now—at least, not for very long.

He’d had several short-term guests before they met their fate.

This, however, was different. She was different.

And hopefully soon, she would be far more than a guest.

She would be his magical cohort.

And she would be his wife.

Herrick

Early the next morning, Herrick patrolled the north end of the city. At first, nothing seemed amiss. Citizens went about their business, frequenting shops and market stalls, visiting neighbors, gossiping—the usual.

But as he walked past the pottery shop, a harried Jurian came bursting out the door. He looked around wildly before spotting Herrick and spewing a torrent of words. “Where is she? She’s late! She’s never late! Something must have happened!”

Dread sank into Herrick’s stomach. Had something prevented Zorina from coming to work today? Swallowing the bile that crept up his throat at the thought, he marched straight toward the potter. “What happened?” he asked once he reached the artisan, towering over him with his increased height.