Alancia's Dance
By H. L. Burke
()
About this ebook
A Short Story
Bull Dancer Alancia befriends the clever inventor of the Labyrinth. When their relationship catches the eye of the jealous king, a date with a Minotaur is in her future.
Read more from H. L. Burke
Absolutely True Facts About the Pacific Tree Octopus Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5To Court a Queen Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAshen Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHeart of the Curiosity Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThaddeus Whiskers and the Dragon Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSpice Bringer Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCoiled Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBeggar Magic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Alancia's Dance
Related ebooks
My Hope Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDeep Down Inside Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSome by Virtue Fall: The Seven Gods, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Undone Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSolar Sailing Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCity of Spires Collection: City of Spires, #0 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBone Garden Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Heron Kings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Picnic on Paradise Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Ocean Bleeds Salty: Odd Blood, #0.5 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5NightWalkeR: The Talmanjahr, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEmbrace The Dawn Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Silver Sun Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAstounding Stories - Volume 4, No. 3: Volume 4, Number 3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Imposter King: The Imposter King, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Bastard Heirs: Riverda Rising, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCyber Circus Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Moonrise Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Of Starlit Blades and Hallowed Flames Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScribes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsUnder the Lion's Curse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sapphire Wolf Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Secret Heart Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Highland Heart Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dragon's Teeth Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Witch & The City Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Spark of Storms: Heart of the Queendom, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDeath and the Maiden Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Point Singularity: Singularity, #6 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Earl's Unexpected Bride: Regency Historical Romance Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5
Fantasy For You
This Is How You Lose the Time War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Stories of Ray Bradbury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Silmarillion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fellowship Of The Ring: Being the First Part of The Lord of the Rings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Priory of the Orange Tree Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The City of Dreaming Books Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tress of the Emerald Sea: Secret Projects, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Picture of Dorian Gray (The Original 1890 Uncensored Edition + The Expanded and Revised 1891 Edition) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Piranesi Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Pirate Lord: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Empire: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Eyes of the Dragon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fairy Tale Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Desert: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Talisman: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Phantom Tollbooth Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Assassin and the Underworld: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wizard's First Rule Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don Quixote: [Complete & Illustrated] Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Immortal Longings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sarah J. Maas: Series Reading Order - with Summaries & Checklist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lord Of The Rings: One Volume Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Nettle & Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Alancia's Dance
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Alancia's Dance - H. L. Burke
For information about H. L. Burke's latest novels, to sign up for the author's monthly newsletter, or to contact the writer, go to
www.hlburkeauthor.com
and sign up for the author's newsletter!
Free eBook for Newsletter Subscribers!
Cover Design by Julia Busko – www.juliabusko.com
Alancia’s Dance
ALANCIA’S BARE FEET danced on the sunbaked earth of the ring. The smell of manure and sweat wafted about her. She wiped her palms on her linen loincloth.
Run, leap, grasp, flip, over and done. Watch the horns. Watch the hooves. Watch yourself.
Across the ring, the bull huffed, its iron-sharp hooves scraping the packed dirt. Its nostrils flared and sides heaved. The beast bellowed.
Alancia bounced, testing her weight. Music from drums and pipes swelled to fill the arena. The crowd murmured as one. She shut them out—nothing existed in this world besides her and the bull. Nothing mattered but the dance.
Drawing a deep breath, she ran at the bull.
The bull’s eyes glinted. It matched her charge. Hooves thundered as it rushed her. Then, when it was so close the ground shook beneath Alancia’s feet, she leapt.
Her powerful legs catapulted her into the air. She caught the horns. Before it could toss her, she somersaulted down the length of its hairy back. Hitting the ground, she threw her hands up and her chest out.
The crowd cheered.
Grinning, Alancia spun to greet another charge. Her braid flapped behind her, bouncing up and down against her neck. She knew the dance and how the bull would respond.
By the time the temple herdsmen opened the gates and drove the bull away, Alancia’s arms and legs ached. Sweat soaked the thin strip of cloth binding her breasts. She swallowed to moisten her tongue, longing for a jug of water and a plate of lamb and chickpeas. She couldn’t go yet, not until the king departed and released the performers and crowd alike.
On the platform above the arena, King Menos lounged on his marble throne, chin in hand. A gold band glinted in his dark curls. Alancia imagined he savored the crowd waiting on his signal to rise.
Alancia was glad she was too far away for him to see her expression. Her scowl of contempt would’ve easily earned her a trip to the Labyrinth. Menos had ascended to the throne only a month