The Omega Queen
The sound bit into me worse than any scream.
When the voice came again, it was closer. “I am Grothul, Spirit of Blood. I am the keeper of the seventh gate. I am cloaked in crimson and fed by sacrifice. Do you know what I demand?”
The words coated my tongue in rust. I swallowed hard. “Blood.”
The mist pulsed, like laughter. “Yes, but it has to be yours. It must be freely given, without fear and without delay.”
The claws scraped again. “ It has to be a wound of choice, one stroke, and one offering. Else the mountain drinks you whole.”