After my post about Huma and Kaz, I thought about how Kaz actually developed. As I’ve mentioned, the prototype for the relationship began with “Definitions of Honor”, pretty much the base from which all my minotaur stories developed. We saw the lone minotaur — the “monster” — on the beach, bothering no one but still feared by the locals. As the story continued, the knight who had arrived with dreams of slaying a beast and gaining glory, found that the truth about the situation was very different. We learn how honor has more than one meaning and that the system by which the minotaurs exist is a much harsher one at times.
Those who have read THE LEGEND OF HUMA know how Huma came across Kaz. However, in the original script, Kaz was a slave servant of none other than Galen Dracos, first used to battle Huma, but eventually recognizing the knight’s true sense of honor and, thereby, rediscovering his own. In the end, Kaz would, as in the finished novel, stand with Huma against the dark forces. However, other elements in the story did not work as planned and so the story shifted. Yet, from the beginning, it was clear that Kaz had to remain. In fact, the scenes with Kaz only emphasized his necessity in the saga and so I expanded and altered some while adding more until it finally became apparent that he had to become one of the major supporting characters.
I think that worked out.
