“While the minotaur were off saving the fawns,” Aurora continued, “The Moirai were met by three individuals who were not happy with how things had gone. Despite knowing that the minotaur were their only means to get rid of Krampus, even though Lachesis told them that at that very moment the fawns were being saved, they could not accept that this was how things were supposed to be.”

The Antlertean stag yelled at Lachesis, letting out his rage at how the Moirai, who in his mind were supposed to lead deer down the path best suited for their kind, could have brought them to this point. While the seer of the present recoiled from his anger, the seer of the future would not. The youngest member stepped forward, between the stag and the members of her coven, and spoke to him in a manner that displayed her disdain.

“Atropos would not tolerate this behavior from the stags, who still did not understand that fate existed for a reason. Without the carefully crafted design of destiny, the evils of the world could easily run amok, and succeed in their plans effortlessly. The only thing that kept creatures like Krampus at bay was because history stood on the side of good, thwarting every attempt some would be dictator or overlord make to gain unopposable power. It’s the reason that even now, the attempts of villains inevitably end in ruin, that many such creatures that have the power to rule unopposed are rehabilitated, and that forces in this world exist to prevent darkness from dominating everything. Fate is how solely evil creatures are kept from having their way.”

This was all new to Alice, as she was not aware of how strongly fate itself was designed against the forces of evil. History had proven that those with darkness in their heart failed frequently, but she had assumed that was because the principles of good were just stronger than those of evil. This perspective on the matter implied that evil was possibly just as powerful, and was only held back because fate denied them.

“Atropos did not explain this fact of the natural order to them, as she felt that they didn’t need to understand fate to abide by it, but instead told them of what fate had in store for the deer the minotaur would select. They were to be one from each of the four different deer tribes, and would become mothers of their species, and give birth to both minotaur and doe, who would in turn continue to propagate the minotaur to numbers that matched the population of the other creatures of the Far North.”

“But minotaur are a rare species,” Alice commented, knowing that compared to other bovine creatures, minotaur were in a vast minority. It was difficult to ever meet a single minotaur, let alone a large collection of them.

“This was the change that happened,” Aurora replied, “Because when the stags continued to insist that the Moirai fix what they thought the does had caused, Atropos, in her anger at their ignorance, revealed to the Antlertean that that his own daughter would be one of the does selected. Shocked at this knowledge, he fled the cave in hopes of preventing it from happening, with the other two stags following behind him. Atropos had expected this news to get him to leave, and assumed that fate would take its course. It probably should have, but…”

The world changed back to the doe line up, with three of the minotaur now walking down the row, looking over each one to make sure they got the one they believed would be best. However, as they took their time with their selection, the stags returned, and interrupted the process.

“Somehow, against the visions of Atropos, the stags managed to halt the minotaur from making their choice. Through the sheer determination of the Antlertean to not allow this to happen, motivating his compatriots to do the same, the three discovered for the first time in history how to stray from the Path of Fate.”

“What?” Alice said, not understanding what had happened, “How?!”

Aurora gave a disheartened sigh, and explained, “It was through no form of magic, if that’s what you’re wondering. None of the stags had that kind of power. It was hard to figure out how to begin with, but it seems to need two things. The knowledge of what you are trying to defy, and the immovable will to defy it. You can be told your fate, but lack motivation to avoid it. Likewise, you can be determined to go down a path, without knowing there is another way. In this situation, the Antlertean knew what was going to happen, and refused to allow it. If history would have gone the way it was supposed to, the stags might have been too dejected to try and resist, but this combination of elements made all the difference.”

This was it. This was what Alice was looking for, and this discovery made a lot of sense when the yellow doe took into consideration that she had always been told not to stray from the Path of Fate. She wielded one of the elements that made it possible in the first place; to know the future, to see its path tracing out into its predetermined point. Someone who could do that, with unerring accuracy such as hers, had complete control over where in the Maze of Destiny she would end up.

At the very least, she would not go down a path she didn’t desire. Yet, that begged the question. If her future self had once been here, and knew what she did now, then why was it she ended up where she was. At one point she didn’t even want to consider it, but now that she knew the answer was a mere application of will on her part, and not some convoluted method she had the possibility of failing, the position of where she was supposed to end up perplexed her.

“Now you have your answer,” Aurora said, “But Alice, I beg you… Please listen to the end. There is more to this than you know.”

“I will,” Alice said, grateful towards her mentorship and for giving her the secret of defying fate, as simple as it was.

Had she not known, Alice might have assumed it impossible, and fallen into despair. At this point, the least Alice could do was humor Aurora, even if she didn’t intend to comply with the fate dealt to her.

“Thank you,” Aurora said, “Once the Antlertean brought the selection to a halt, he had to keep it from starting up again. So, in a bit of desperation, he convinced the minotaur to allow them to hold a celebration for them, so they could get to know the does better before making any final decisions. The does, all wanting to delay the inevitable, agreed, which in turn convinced the bulls to comply. The Antlertean’s defiance of fate was spreading, creating a new path that he was dragging everyone down. All… save for one.”

One of the minotaur strode up to the other three, one who had not bothered to inspect each doe in the line, as he had already chosen who he wanted. It was the minotaur Alice had noted at Krampus’ table, and at his side was his chosen doe. To Alice’s shock, was the blue furred one Krampus kept as his personal slave.

“Wait, I thought you said that minotaur followed their contracts. They were only supposed to pick from the adults!” Alice said, outraged at this turn of events.

“And he did,” Aurora answered, “This particular doe had been taken by Krampus because she was a fawn, but in the months she was captive she reached adulthood. Krampus was aware from the moment he took her how close she was to this change in her life, and thus treated her differently from the others. His intent was to wait until she was of proper age, and seduce her into serving his desires.”

Alice was repulsed that Krampus had plotted something so vile, but this did little to change her perspective on the minotaur’s own motivations. He might have met her after she had become an adult, but it felt like he was still taking advantage of a younger doe who could not resist him.

“This minotaur, having picked out the one he desired, felt no need to stay. Perhaps this was him following fate’s original design, but he told the others he was going to leave, telling them where he would go so they could eventually meet up with him there. The Antlertean tried to insist that he stayed, but in this matter this lone minotaur’s will was too powerful to persuade. At the very least, one minotaur would take his reward.”

“At… the very least?” Alice asked, trying to figure out where this was going.

“Alice…” Aurora said solemnly, “Do you think that this story still ends well for the savors of deerkind? Their good deed, if purely motivated by the want of a mate, would not go unpunished. As things got set up for the false celebration in the minotaur’s honor, the Antlertean spoke with the Whitetail that collaborated with him, and told him to create something with his alchemy to deal with the minotaur.”

“What did they have in mind?” Alice asked.

“Poison.” Aurora said plainly, getting a gasp from the younger doe.

The scene shifted to the party held later that night, and to the Thicket stag mixing a vial he had into a trio of mugs so large they could only be for the bovines. He then gave it to a doe, instructing her to take it to the minotaur, and warning her to not let anyone else sip from them.

“It was something that had been considered for Krampus, but there was no knowing if the elk would have the fawns taste test their food.” Aurora said, “But inside North Pole, those conspiring against the three remaining merchants could ensure it would only go to their intended targets.”

The doe delivered the mugs to the minotaur, who took them without question, and drunk down the contents with zero hesitation. They must have trusted that the deer would uphold their end of the agreement, and not suspected for a second that they would be betrayed, with how differently they consumed the offered drink compared to when they were in Krampus’ feasting hall.

At that point, the visions vanished, and the cloud of dust dissipated. Alice was back in the abandoned Moirai cave, with Aurora standing before her. It seemed that Aurora had shown the younger doe all she needed to see first hand, as it wasn’t hard to figure out what would happen to the minotaur merchants after that.

“The trio… were dead by the morning. It’s hard to tell if they were even aware of how they were slipping away or if they drunk themselves into a stupor. The other deer were horrified at first, this being the first murder to happen within North Pole to the recollection of those of the time. Plenty of them were appalled, but as the other three stags explained why they did it, the deer’s opinions began to change. None of them wanted the fate Atropos said to the Antlertean to happen to them or their loved one, especially when he depicted it as generational sexual slavery.”

Aurora took a seat on a rock, looking tired as she was nearing the end of the story. It was hard to tell if it was because it was already late, or if the details of this sin among the deer made her weary, but something was taking a toll on her.

“Most deer agreed in time that it was the right thing to do, but few wanted to accept the truth of the matter. As a means to hide the crime, and to demonize the minotaur, the story of Krampus’ defeat was changed to depict a group of stags saving does from a life of sexual servitude, with Krampus being represented by a minotaur. It worked, in a way, as later generations would come to believe this as fact, but the older deer knew the truth. They began to not trust one another, equal parts because they knew some were capable of murder. The deer, which were always intended to live together in harmony, split up into four tribes over time, with Blitzen managing to maintain control of North Pole for the reindeer, while the others relocated to other places.”

Alice gulped, never before aware that the four deer tribes had such a dark past. As Aurora said before, it was unlikely that any deer in the present knew this aside from her, and now Alice. The minotaur merchants might have wanted a payment for their services that few would consider reasonable, but that didn’t mean they deserved to die.

“And the last merchant?” Alice said, noticing something hadn’t been accounted for, nor did things in the present indicate anything good for the final member of the group.

“When the Moirai discovered what had happened, they were mortified. They were at a loss, as no Moirai had ever encountered a situation like this before. It took days for them to collect themselves, and after much consideration, they realized that action had to be taken while the tribes were still together.”

“What kind of action?” Alice questioned again, finding herself actually concerned for that last minotaur.

“The first thing they did was speak to Blitzen, who they knew was not complicit due to Clotho figuring out all who was involved. He agreed things had been taken too far, but at this point there was little he could do. Most other deer weren’t exactly sympathetic to the minotaur, and were already talking about not wanting anything to do with the Moirai anymore. To them our coven were comprised of traitors willing to sell them off to the ‘savage’ creatures from outside our borders, so asking them to do anything to fix the damage the head stags did was out of the question.”

“Did they try to hunt down the minotaur and his… mate?” asked Alice, seeing that as the most important detail.

“If you mean the towns folks, no. They might have if they had any idea where he had gone, but without the Moirai they were in the dark. If you mean our predecessors, then yes. They needed to find the minotaur before he tried to seek out his partners, as the likelihood his own life would be in danger if he did would have been great, Of course, the Moirai knew what direction he went, where he was, and where they would meet up with him. All they had to do was get there, and since we reindeer can travel across the winds, that was a simple task.”

“What did they do then?” Alice asked, hoping that things didn’t get any worse than they already had.

“When they finally caught up to him and the doe he had chosen, they confessed what had happened, and apologized profusely on behalf of the deer. The minotaur made no outward outbursts, but looking at him a creature could tell he was heartbroken to learn his friends were gone. The Moirai could only offer their condolences, their protection, and their service to this bull. To them, all deerkind now owed him a debt, one that would only be completed upon the deliverance of the ‘Promised Gift’. You…”

Alice could follow the line of logic the Moirai had with this decision. The actions of the deer had strayed so far from the Path of Fate that it ruined an innocent species. The minotaur had done the deer a great service, and all but one died for it in a meaningless fashion. While Alice still didn’t agree with the way they negotiated their fee, what the past deer did left a mark on their whole race that Alice could not ignore.

“Tell me,” said Alice, “What is the Promised Gift exactly?”

“Atropos told me that the Promised Gift was a doe who would one day come and serve the minotaur of her own will,” Aurora answered, “One who would bring them luck and prosperity, guiding them to a future they deserved by restoring things to how fate originally designed it, or close enough. Knowing that it’s you, and your abilities, it would add up that you’d be capable of doing that.”

“So Atropos looked into the future, down the last merchant’s lineage… and saw me.” Alice said, putting together the pieces. “Did she make that happen, or was this part of the new Path of Fate that was created by defying it?”

“I don’t know,” Aurora admitted, “But I wouldn’t doubt that your predecessor had some small part in making it happen, even if she was still following the Path of Fate.”

“So everything we’ve done until now, it was all her plan to bide our time till I was ready? What even was the point of the Gift Givers?”

“Well… with the Moirai now outcast from the deer, they had to work out a few problems. First of all how they would survive, since they could see that donations to them were about to dry up. Blitzen helped relocate them, to this cave we’re sitting in right now. He helped them with money and material to start their lives anew, away from other deer. Atropos, knowing exactly what to do, used what was given to create the Gift Givers, as a means to not only support the members of our coven, but to bring some good in the world, now that the carefully laid plans of history had been obstructed. As little as it was, delivering presents to the creatures of Equestria and the Frozen North was a means to rebrand themselves, while spreading happiness and earning an honest living. After enough time, no one even knew the name Moirai anymore, and we became the Gift Givers you know today, dedicating ourselves to the happiness of creatures everywhere.”

“Creatures everywhere, huh?” Alice said, having taken in a lot.

She juggled these two opposing goals in her head for a moment; the happiness of all creatures, and the repaying of a debt all deer owed another species. The future she had seen didn’t seem to be in the best interest of any of the creatures the Minopian minotaur had enslaved, but it certainly would make up for any perceived wrongdoing that had been done to the bovines.

“I still don’t know if I like any of this.” Alice said, being honest with the elder doe, “Yes, the ancient deer did wrong by killing those minotaur and trying to cover it up, but they are all gone, and the minotaur I’ve seen don’t seem any better than Krampus. I don’t know if I can be the Promised Gift.”

Aurora’s face went stiff, closing her eyes as she took in the sincerity of Alice’s words. “Alice, I want you to know that I do care for you, and think you’re a bright young doe. I’ve told you everything you need to know about the role you’re destined to take… including how to avoid it.”

“You mean after all this, you’re letting me decide if I want to go through with it?” Alice asked, aware that she had been given the solution she sought, but having thought that Aurora would have pressured her more into siding with the minotaur as she had.

“To be honest, I couldn’t stop you now if I wanted to.” Aurora admitted, “The ability to avoid your own fate is now in your hands, if you truly have the will to do so. As disappointing as it would be to let the Moirai’s work go to waste, and deprive the minotaur of the justice they have been waiting for centuries to receive, it’s up to you to decide your future, deerie.”

“Then I would like to try and find another way to resolve this situation,” Alice said, “Maybe there is a way we can prevent the minotaur from becoming tyrants in the first place, and help them in other ways.”

The younger doe’s optimism was not reflected by the elder deer, but she had to defer to Alice’s decision. “If that’s what you want to try, but I question if that’s possible.”

“Well the Antlertean leader was able to change the fates of all the deer and the minotaur with a single act of defiance.” Alice said, “Why would it be different for me?”

“Because it wasn’t just a single act,” Aurora replied, “It was a straying from the Path of Fate that took the combined refusal of an entire city to accomplish. In your case, the deeds of a single doe might not be enough to change the course of history again. As I had said prior, doing something like giving out warnings to those who would be affected by events in your future sight might not be enough to spare them, or may even be the reason they are doomed in the first place.”

Alice wished that what Aurora said was a lie, but this was something she had experienced many times first hand. Telling a creature their future never prevented them from enacting it regardless, as the warning would either be ignored, or would set them up for the very thing she saw to happen. In the past she even played into that quirk of future vision by pranking visitors to the Gift Giver’s cabin with a display of her power.

“You might be able to change events for yourself, but doing something that completely alters the course of history might be far more difficult.” Aurora added, giving her final thoughts on the matter, “Besides, do you think you’d be able to stop the minotaur in time to prevent them from becoming the slavers you say they become?”

“Well sure…” said Alice, though not with pure confidence, “I just have to figure out where they are and convince them not to enslave creatures, right?”

The earliest she had looked into the future was two and a half years, and by that time she was already impregnated by her future minotaur master. If she was to make a guess, that meant the minotaur had started their campaign of conquest within the next year at the latest.

“Then I’ll leave you to it,” Aurora said, getting up from her stone seat, “But I have a favor to ask of you if this is what you’re determined to do.”

“I suppose that depends on what it is.” Alice replied, wanting to respect Aurora’s wishes if she could, since she seemed to be content with Alice going her own path from this point forward.

“Would you mind keeping everything you’ve learned tonight a secret from Bori.” Aurora asked, “You might think that she deserves to know about all this, but she did know Atropos at one point, and had a great deal of respect for her. I would just hate to soil the image of her in Bori’s eyes, if she was to discover this secret and misinterpret her motivations.”

Alice wasn’t convinced that seeing Atropos as a bad person was a misinterpretation, as from how the story went, it sounded like she was knowingly leading all of deerkind into a future of servitude to the minotaur. Alice was curious if this was the end destination of the new Path of Fate, or if Atropos had somehow enacted her will upon it to change things yet again, seeing as she would have been just as much in control of her own destiny as Alice was now.

Still, there was another reason why Alice thought it might be wise to leave Bori out of the loop, and that was because she knew that Bori was a slave to the minotaur in the future as well. Perhaps this was to be the first deviation from fate’s design the yellow doe would make, as it felt far more likely for Bori to end up that way if she were involved, than if she stayed out of Alice’s plans.

“Ok, I think I can do that.” Alice said, happy to keep Bori far away from the danger these minotaur presented.

Once the two Gift Givers finished their conversation, they returned to the cabin by the same tunnel they used to get to the old Moirai lair, snuffing out torches along the way to return the chamber to darkness. Alice helped Aurora replace her bed over the trap door leading to it, and after bidding the old doe goodnight, returned to her own room. She had learned much from Aurora, if in the strangest way she could imagine, and was truly grateful that she wasn’t conspiring to make the minotaur dominated future a reality.

By the time the two had returned, it was incredibly late, perhaps mere hours till the raising of the sun, but as tired as Alice was, she had to know one thing before she could allow herself to rest for that night. That was what the minotaur from the future were doing at that moment. Not individual one, of course, but knowing the current status of the minotaur lord would give her a decent enough idea of their current status.

Sitting on her bed, Alice closed her eyes, and focused in on the minotaur in question. She wouldn’t have to look far into the future, just a few minutes to get a good idea of what he was doing in this general frame of time. It didn’t take long for her bubble of vision to form, and for ‘Master’ to appear within it.

The bull was currently, or rather in a few minutes he would be, sleeping in a rather large bed that was built for a creature of his size. His visage was exactly as Alice remembered it, with her getting a good look at it as he soundly sleeping atop the blankets and sheets, completely nude with his flaccid, though still large, penis hanging off to the side of his crotch. Alice grimaced, not pleased that this was the image she was presented with in her attempt to redeem this would-be tyrant, but she settled down when she rationalized that it wasn’t the minotaur’s fault that he just happened to sleep like this and she chose to spy on him.

Unfortunately, the reindeer really couldn’t get much more information than this at the moment, since her field of view didn’t expand out much further from his large body. Alice was just happy that he didn’t have some unfortunate doe sharing the bed with him. It let her believe that there was still hope, and maybe she could find a way through the Maze of Destiny that could allow both deer and minotaur to have a happy ending.

Knowing what she did, she brought an end to her visions, content with the prospect that she could put a stop to the despicable future she had previously witnessed, and went to sleep.

Meanwhile, in another part of the world, the minotaur Alice had been spying on rested as well, laying atop a bed that he had owned for some time now, that was not meant for his kind. Minotaur were nomadic, wandering the lands and laying their heads on whatever soil they chose to stop at in the evening. The idea of owning a bed that was more than a blanket they spread upon the ground was a luxury beyond a culture who had no kingdom to call their own.

For this minotaur, and those who followed him, it was different though. A few decades back, they had left the continent Equestria resided on, seeking out a place where they would no longer be resigned to moving from place to place while their numbers progressively dwindled. Fed up with the more passive traditions of their kind, who were so afraid to enforce their overwhelming strength and will upon others that they would rather go extinct than take a woman by force, this bull and his less moral brethren discovered a land across the seas.

A isolated island continent, that had centuries prior been inhabited by a species of deer who likewise left Equestria to escape others of their kind who had views that opposed their own. Coincidence as it was that these two civilizations be brought together, it felt to the minotaur leader that this was exactly what his newly formed clan was seeking. Thus, through a use of the physical strength his kind were known for, and a bit of subterfuge, to put his men in a strategic position to capture the leaders of the deer. Thus, he conquered this land and created the first minotaur kingdom of Minopolis.

Stirring in his sleep, the minotaur lord eventually awoke as he felt an odd sensation, as if he was being watched. Looking around, he saw nothing out of the ordinary, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that someone had been spying on him. Annoyed that his rest was disturbed, he reached for a chain attached to his head board, and gave it a firm tug.

A second later, a doe who had been sleeping on the floor of his chambers was pulled up to his mattress by the onyx collar secured around her neck. Having been interrupted from her own less than comfortable slumber, the doe flailed as she was choked by the symbol of her slavery, given no time to prepare for the abuse the minotaur was inflicting on her. This doe, her body marked with tribal tattoos that identified her as an Antlertean, could only appreciate that the strangulation was brief, only a few seconds as her body found its way onto the bed, and into her master’s arms.

“Have you been watching me as I slept again?” The minotaur asked the doe, having caught her glaring hate filled eyes at him from his bedside in the past.

“No, my lord.” the womanly doe hastily replied, fearful of how she might be punished if the minotaur suspected her of once more doing a displeasurable act.

Her captor wasn’t against acts of cruelty and torture, and her misdeeds as a servant did not affect only her, as she was the former queen of the Antlerteans, and the daughter she had sired to the previous king was also kept as a breeding slave to this bovine barbarian.

The minotaur gave a loud snort through his large nostrils, and eased up on his hold on the chain leash attached to the doe, “Whatever.” he said, dismissing any perceived wrong doing on his slave’s part. The fact that she feared the consequence of her actions was more important to him than if she had actually done what he accused her of. “Now that we are both awake, attend to your duties.”

“Yes, Master.” the doe said in capitulation, repositioning herself on the bed so her face was at his crotch.

With not a single objection, the doe took his penis in hand, and started licking the bovine sized shaft with diligence. It was the task she had been designated to do every morning, and while the former queen felt only disgust in pleasuring this tyrant, she had come to learn obedience was preferable to what would happen if she refused.

The minotaur lord, on the other hand, enjoyed the sickened expressions that would form on doe’s face, her once regal image disgraced and brought low. Still, the domination of a single species did not satisfy his desire for conquest, to build up his people to a position of power he believed they deserved.

“Fret not,” he said, mocking the doe with false consideration, “While I have disciplined your impudent daughter by sending her to the breeding yards, you will not have to perform this alone for too much longer. Soon, you’ll have others of your kind who will share this burden with you, as I invite the creatures of Equestria into our mighty empire.”

It was something he had been planning since he left Equestria, to someday return and bring it under his rule. Now, after decades of breeding these Antlerteans, he finally had the numbers of adult minotaur he would need to achieve his goal of global dominion. No longer would his brood be at the edge of dying out completely, as he felt it was his purpose in life to subject the females of every species to the privilege of conceiving, bearing, and birthing a minotaur.

In a year’s time they would begin, with the first target of their conquest being an area just outside of the borders of Equestria. A land known as The Far North.

Author's Note

Sorry for the delay. I meant to get the two new chapters out sooner, but my schedule has been more chaotic than I hoped. At the very least, I managed to get past all this exposition, which I'm never sure is interesting to the readers or not. On one half, I know this answers a lot of question people probably had from last year's entries to this story, but on the other hand I know info dumps can be dull if used excessively. At best, I hope the manner I did this was entertaining.

For those expecting more for this year's addition, don't worry. I will be adding a few more chapters that have Alice actually doing things over the course of January, so you'll all get to see some more progress than Alice now understanding why her destiny is leading her to the strange future she has seen. Don't expect an "ending" as of yet though, as that will probably come in next year's addition. And yes, I intend to make this a tri-annual story, if not more depending on how long I make the story. Not sure if you're like that because it's something to look forward to, or will hate that cause of the delay, but it is a christmas holiday story, so this is the way I wish to keep writing it.

That all aside, I hope you all have a Merry Christmas tomorrow, and get everything you wanted for the occasion.