Page 78 of Made

As soon as he was near the peak and could see the edge of the immense nest, he shifted to his biped form and grabbed handholds in the cliffside, hoping to make himself too small to be detected. He hung there for a while, listening for any indication that she might be aware of his approach.

Nothing.

He wasn’t even sure she was home.

That’s when he decided to make his move. When he pulled himself up onto the promontory that served as the nestfoundation, he realized his worst nightmare was waiting for him.

A great crushing and sliding sound of stone was followed by the Sphinx sprouting a slick coat of tan fur and translucent wings as she came to life. With lightning-fast agility she swiped at Kagan and caught him under a giant paw, but pressed so gingerly she managed to immobilize him without harming a hair on his head. The size difference might be compared to that of a Rottweiler and a mouse.

Haunches on the ground, she cupped her paws on either side of Kagan, which allowed him to stand and face her. Though his heart was beating immeasurably fast, to his credit, he showed no fear. Nor did he react to the truly terrible smell of her breath, which was like a gale-force storm against his face.

“You’re not human, god, or fae,” she said, cocking her head to one side. “What are you?”

Kagan looked into the face of the sphinx, which was, as impossible as it sounds, beautiful and heart-stopping in its frightfulness. The black-as-night pupils were vertical and stark against the pale gold of her eyes. The skin on her face was hairless, smooth, and fair. She wore no makeup, of course, but had full lips that were naturally a deep, rich crimson. A fine mane of Titian hair fell in waves around her shoulders and curled slightly at the ends.

“Sephalian.”

“Sephalian,” she repeated as if trying the word on for size. That was punctuated with a sniff. The sniff was a small thing to her, but to Kagan, it caused a movement of air akin to a storm at sea. It momentarily threatened to blow Kagan from her grasp, but ended as quickly as it began. “I don’t know sephalian.”

“We’re a, ah, new species.”

“New species? Created by the gods or the Powers?”

“Neither. Fae queen.”

“Fae queen.” She seemed to be tasting the words as if she was imagining what it would be like to eat a fae queen. “You seem rather helpless. No fangs. No claws. Nor do you have size to protect you. Did you lose your way?”

“No.”

“Then you’ve intentionally climbed my mountain.”

“I wish I could say otherwise, but aye. ‘Tis true.”

“Why?”

“Could you ease your grip a bit. ‘Tis a tale that requires wind in my…” Kagan wasn’t able to finish the sentence before running out of breath. He gasped and sucked in just enough air to force out, “…lungs to tell.”

“A tale? I like tales. And solitude. Mostly. But it can get lonely here, you know. Visitors are scant.”

Kagan shook his head. “No. I did no’ know that. Perhaps travelers fear bein’ eaten?”

“Hmmm. Maybe,” she said, looking thoughtful, as if she’d never before considered that. She relaxed her paws just enough for him to breathe freely. “Go on with it then.”

“Alright. My intended has been abducted by the Sisterhood of Cardinals.” He stopped to make sure he wasn’t getting ahead of himself. “Do ye know who they are?”

“How could someonenotknow who Cardinals are? I caution you to refrain from being insulting.”

Until very recently Kagan hadn’t known a thing about them, but he was prudent enough to know it would not be in his best interest to argue the point. “Please accept my apology. That was no’ my intention.”

“What is your intention? And what is an ‘intended’?”

“An ‘intended’ is a future mate.”

“Is that a riddle? I also caution you not to riddle me. I don’t like that. One either has or has not a mate. How can a mate be a future mate?”

Since the sphinx fertilized her own eggs through parthenogenesis, meaning asexual reproduction, she was hardly an authority on mating. Kagan, who’d been made wise as well as smart, since good judgment was often required of the court enforcer, called on that innate wisdom. Choosing the quieter part of valor, he kept that tidbit to himself.

“It simply means I have no’ formally claimed her according to the fae convention of marriage.”

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