They stepped carefully over the pieces of rock that had fallen away from the wall, picking their way through the dark opening. As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, they could see that past the opening, the tunnel became clear and completely smooth, as if bored by a modern machine. Overhead, softball-sized orbs of wispy blue flames bobbed lazily, illuminating the tunnel with their soft blue light.

Victoria looked ahead, squinting past the Queen and down the long passage to the light emanating from the other side. She couldn't be sure, but she thought she could see rippling in the air, like the heat waves off of hot asphalt. She reminded herself to breathe slowly, and stayed close at Soren's side, her fingers laced tightly with his, as they continued down into the tunnel several paces behind the Queen.

As the end of the tunnel drew nearer, Victoria and Soren felt a tangible shift in the air. The wave-like ripples she had seen began to rise around them, filling the passage like an odorless gas, distorting the blue-flamed orbs, making them quiver erratically. Their pace slowed as the air itself seemed to offer subtle resistance to their passage, like walking into the wind, only there was no wind. It didn't seem to be trying to halt their progress or force them to turn back, so they kept walking. The Queen, Victoria noticed, seemed aware of the change in the atmosphere, yet appeared oddly unaffected by it.

It went like this for several long moments before Victoria felt the resistance fall away. A tingling sensation crept up her spine, followed by a sense of calm that soothed her anxious mind, assuaging her nagging fear of a cave collapse. She took two steps before her arm was tugged back. Her fingers were still locked with Soren's, and it seemed that he was still being affected by the opposing resistance, which now appeared to be pushing back a little more than before. He tried to hide his expression as he now struggled to keep pace with her, but Victoria caught the brief twitch of fear that flickered across Soren's face. Victoria's heart beat faster, her footsteps slowed, alarm pushing away the calm.

No, no, no, Victoria thought to herself, silently pleading to whatever was trying to separate them. Please don't make him stay here. I need him with me. I really don't want to be by myself right now. Please.

As if in acquiescence to her plea, the force gave one last gentle push before pulling away, and as it did the rippling in the air dissipated, becoming still once more. Victoria wrapped her arms around Soren's middle, squeezing lightly as she breathed a sigh of relief. He returned her embrace gently, kissing the top of her head, equally grateful that they weren't being split up.

Queen Jastyra let them have a moment before softly clearing her throat. "Let us continue." She gestured to the bright, portal-like opening now only a handful of yards away. "We're nearly there." She turned and continued toward the opening.

"Hang on!" Victoria said emphatically, digging in her heels.

The Queen stopped, turning back to face her. Her expression was calm, disarming.

Victoria checked her tone before continuing. "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, but I need to know what just happened. You don't seem the slightest bit surprised, which tells me you know exactly what that was."

"I do," the Queen said matter-of-factly.

"Oh." Victoria blinked. "Ok, then, respectfully, I think you need to share a little information here. I really don't like being messed with, and that's the vibe I'm starting to get."

"I apologize," the Queen said simply. "I intended no harm or ill will. Have you never encountered magic such as this?"

"No. Until I found myself in this world, I had never seen any kind of magic. Real magic doesn't exist in the world I come from," Victoria replied.

"Hm. That is unfortunate." The Queen shook her head. "The force that resisted you was the Guardian of the Sanctuary. An ancient spirit that has inhabited these mountains and protected the sacred oasis since time immemorial." She held out her arms, gesturing to the tunnel around them. "I am familiar in this place, I am no stranger. The two of you, however, are unknown, and you Victoria, possess a powerful magical relic. It needed to be sure of your presence before allowing you any further."

Victoria thought for a moment. "Ok, so like when a dog meets a new person?"

Just then a cold blast of air blew in from the portal-opening, tousling their hair and raising goose bumps along their arms.

The Queen smirked, suppressing a chuckle. "Perhaps not in those words, but the gesture is essentially the same."

"I guess that makes sense," Soren said. "But why did it try to keep me from passing?"

Jastyra's eyes looked from Soren to Victoria, then seemed to slowly follow something neither of them could see. "I cannot say for sure. Perhaps it is just that you are a young man escorting a young woman and you were simply being given a warning to behave yourself." She shrugged and shot him a sly glance as she gestured toward the end of the tunnel. "Shall we go, then?" Without waiting for either of them to reply, she turned gracefully and kept walking.

Victoria opened her mouth to speak, choosing instead to release an exasperated sigh as she and Soren quickened their steps to catch up with the Queen.

When at last the three of them stood before the glowing portal, Jastyra turned to face them again.

"All you have to do is close your eyes and step through." She smiled as she turned back to the portal. Leading by example, she closed her eyes and walked into the bright, luminescent circle, vanishing from their sight.

"Not much for small talk, is she?" Soren said.

"Shh!" Victoria peered toward the portal. "We don't know if she can hear us."

Soren chuckled quietly. "Alright, let's do this." He tugged her next to him in front of the portal. "Remember, deep breath, close your eyes, and just walk through."

This is nothing, she said to herself. It's just walking through a really bright doorway. Deep breath. She inhaled deeply. Eyes closed. She closed her eyes tightly. And walk.

It took all of three steps for Victoria to notice the change. A sensation she could only think to describe as something like cold static swept over her like a wave as they passed through the portal, and a strange hum vibrated in the air. While her eyes were still closed, the brightness behind her eyelids dimmed from otherworldly bright, to the more natural light one would expect to experience on a clear sunny day. The cool air from inside the tunnel became warm, and a gentle breeze brushed lightly across her skin. She opened her eyes carefully, letting them adjust to the light.

She gasped softly with awe as she swept her gaze over the beautiful, unexpected view. They stood upon a wide ledge that jutted from a line of high, snowy mountains that formed a perimeter around a deep valley. She expected to see a landscape of fresh, untouched snow, what she saw instead was a secret little pocket of summer, hidden safely away in the mountains. A large pond was situated in the center of the valley, and Victoria could see something big and light-colored in the water, but couldn't make it out from their vantage point. The lush, green grass that blanketed the valley floor swayed lazily in the warm breeze, and sunlight sparkled playfully on the surface of the pond. Something familiar nagged at the back of her Victoria's mind, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was. Soren squeezed her hand lightly, and she turned her head quickly to see the Queen waiting patiently.

"Come," Jastyra said with a kind smile. She walked to the corner where the ledge met the wall of the mountain.

Soren and Victoria followed, and as they approached the edge, a long staircase of short, broad stairs carved into the mountain came into view. The Queen silently began to descend the stone stairs. Soren released Victoria's hand from his, letting her go ahead of him behind the Queen, staying close to the wall and being mindful of their steps.

As they descended into the valley, Victoria noticed something strange. She wasn't sure if she was just imagining things, or if it was magic, or if she just needed to lie down, but it seemed like the farther down they traversed, the farther away the tall, jagged peaks that surrounded the valley appeared to recede. She voiced this observation to the Queen.

"So am I seeing this right, or am I losing it?" Victoria asked.

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"Your eyes are not deceiving you," Jastyra said over her shoulder. "This valley is shrouded by a powerful barrier. The barrier's magic renders this place completely undetectable from the outside. Many have journeyed into these mountains to find this place, following rumors and stories, only to return empty-handed, if at all. But, as it is made invisible from without, from within, it is made vast." She gestured out toward the mountains, which seemed to shrink back with every step, and down to the valley, which appeared to spread out farther as it chased the mountains. "The magic also affects the flow of time here. Once you pass through the portal, whatever length of time you spend in here, only half that amount will have passed outside."

While Victoria found this information fascinating, her body began to speak louder. Her knees and hips began to ache, and she was beginning to feel fatigued. They were nearing the valley floor, but she had already walked the gardens with Soren, then walked the long length of the tunnel to the portal, and already descended more stairs than she wanted to count. She was starting to hurt, and it was starting to show, but she clenched her teeth against it and pushed on, if only a bit slower and leaning a little heavier against the wall.

The stairs curved near the base, ending on a wide round stone slab. From the view on the ground, the tiny valley now seemed to go on for miles, with the snowy mountains far in the distance. The nagging itch of familiarity tugged at Victoria as she scanned the landscape. When her eyes landed on the four-pillared, open structure of pure white stone in the middle of the pond, she realized with a start why this place felt familiar.

Tunnel vision took over, and the ache in her limbs was pushed aside as Victoria fixed her eyes on the pond and, without a work, stepped off the stone platform and took off briskly through the tall grass.

"Victoria, what are you doing?!" Soren's voice rose in concern as he and the Queen hurried after her. "Where are you going?" The last time she'd taken off alone and without a word to anyone she'd put herself face-to-face with Assyria.

This time, though, she wasn't possessed and was moving of her own free will. "I've seen this place before," she called back to him. Adrenaline couldn't mask the hitch in her hip, or hide the sound of air sucking through her teeth as she limped on.

"Victoria, wait!" Soren said as he closed the short gap between them, placing himself in her path. "You're pushing yourself," he said, giving her appearance a concerned once-over when she finally stopped. "Astrid's going to kick my ass in place of yours, you know."

"I'm sorry," sighed Victoria. She took a moment to collect her thoughts. "Call it an impulse, I guess. I know I've seen this place before, I just had to get closer to the water to be sure."

The Queen stood a few paces away, listening.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

Victoria looked over at the pond, maybe fifty yards away, analyzing what she saw, comparing it against her memory. She turned back to Soren, nodding.

"Ok," he said calmly as he held her hands in his. "Tell me how you know this place."

"The night we stayed at the Crossroads, I had a dream that I was here." She turned her gaze back to the pond. "My parents were on that pavilion."

He stoked her knuckles gently with his thumbs, understanding her impulse. He sighed ruefully. "Victoria, you know they're not there."

She looked away. "I know that," she said sadly. "I guess I needed to appease the wishful, naïve part of me that still hopes for the impossible. I had to see." She shrugged, not knowing how else to explain herself.

Soren pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her and just letting her sigh out her frustration. Neither of them saw or heard the Queen approach.

"It would seem, then, that you are exactly where your Fate intended you to be," Jastyra said.

Victoria hesitated a moment before she looked up at the Queen. "Why did you bring me here?"

"I too had a dream," the Queen said stoically. "The night before you arrived. He told me you would come, and that you would find yourself in great need of the power in this place."

"He?" Victoria and Soren spoke the question in unison.

Just then a loud, roar-like yowl resounded from the high snowy peaks behind them, echoing through the valley. Movement drew their eyes upward as something large and gray came bounding down the steep cliffs. It took on the shape of a large cat as it drew closer, and a cold wind preceded its approach. A massive snow leopard, easily five times the natural size, came into focus moments before the great beast drew up to stand proudly before them.

"The Guardian of the Sanctuary," the Queen said as she bowed her head to the great cat, who dipped his large, furry head in acknowledgement.

Victoria stared in wonder at the huge animal that stood nearly eye-level with and less than ten feet from her.

"Ok," she squeaked nervously. "I understand the reaction to the dog comparison better now."

The Guardian raised his head, making an approving chuffing sound, then looked to the Queen.

"For as long as you stay in Astheas, you may come here whenever you wish. Without need of my permission or my presence. While your body is still healing from its ordeal, you will have to rebuild your abilities slowly. Time is of the essence, you cannot afford to waste a moment of it. In here, you can progress slowly without losing as much time on the outside." She turned, gesturing all around them. "Here, you are safe to truly strengthen yourself without the fear of causing harm or destruction."

Victoria looked down at her hands, conjuring up a tiny, wispy orb of fire. "So this won't harm this place?" she implored, looking between the Queen and the Guardian.

"No, it will not," Jastyra said. "This is a sanctuary. In it you are free to practice and test yourself as you see fit."

"As long as she doesn't push herself," Soren interjected, giving Victoria a quick, concerned warning glance.

"Ah, yes," the Queen said. "Let me rephrase: for as long as your strength allows."

"I think I can handle that," Victoria said as a slow smile spread across her face. Since that first foggy morning at the Eralian border, she had been chomping at the bit to see what she could do with this magic that had been thrust upon her. She'd had to keep it confined and subdued up to this point so as not to give themselves away as they passed through the Elven lands. Now she had a place to do it where no one could tell her she couldn't and she wouldn't be putting anyone at risk, and it made her heart flutter with joy. "Thank you," she said to the Queen and Guardian. Just then she felt a trembling in her knees, and her hip began to throb. "Whether I like it or not, though, I think I need to go back and lie down for a little while."

"No need to go all the way back," the Queen said. "The pavilion on the water will provide for your needs."

The great cat approached Victoria, turning to the side and crouching on the ground. He looked up at her with bright, amber-colored eyes, silently conveying his instruction for her to climb onto his back. As with the horses, Soren helped to boost her up gently. She settled carefully onto the animal's back, gingerly grasping the warm, dense fur. The Guardian rose and they proceeded toward the pond. Victoria yawned as they neared the water, and she leaned forward, closing her eyes and burying her face in the soft fur, and the feline sighed contentedly and began to purr softly.

She must have been more tired than she wanted to admit. Between the deep, rhythmic purring and the gentle lapping of water, Victoria began to doze. She was startled awake by Soren shaking her shoulder gently, and she looked around for a moment before she realized that they were now on the pavilion at the center of the pond. With help from Soren, she swung her leg over the leopard's back and slid carefully down to the ground.

A series of interlocking stone slabs formed the narrow path that stretched from the shore to the marble steps of the pavilion. The pavilion itself was a twenty-foot slab of white marble, designated into two halves. The front half, where they stood, held low tables with a wide array of food and drinks. Temperature had no effect as trays of sliced meats and cheeses and bowls of fruit and sliced melons on ice shared space with steaming platters of whole roasted fare and baskets of fresh bread. Jugs of chilled water and wine sat alongside trays that held a variety of sweets and pastries. The back half of the pavilion was sunken into the floor, and lined with thick, inviting cushions and pillows in a seemingly random assortment of shapes, colors, and sizes.

"Rest and refresh yourselves," the Queen said. "I must return to the palace. Stay as long as you wish, and return whenever you are ready." She smiled as she nodded to Victoria and Soren, bowed to the Guardian, and turned to leave.

Victoria was struck with a thought. "Oh! Wait, Your Majesty."

Jastyra halted at the top of the steps, turning back to face her. "Yes?"

"Will I be able to visit Miss Lilly again today?" she asked timidly.

"Of course," Jastyra replied kindly. "As long as her condition does not worsen, I see no reason why you shouldn't." She nodded her head to Victoria once more, then turned and left the pavilion.

The great cat also turned to leave, then stopped to give Victoria a curious look.

Victoria ducked her head, blushing, then looked back at the cat and asked shyly, "May I?"

The Guardian gave an amused sounding chuff before approaching Victoria. She kept her excitement in check, but her eyes lit up as she extended her arm and began scratching up and down under the huge feline's chin. A contented sound rumbled in the cat's throat and he leaned into her scratches, purring like a giant house cat. He shook his massive head when she'd finished, then leaned down to give her a gentle head bump as she stroked his fluffy cheek. He backed away slowly, then turned and leapt from the steps of the pavilion to the edge of the pond. Victoria and Soren watched as the Guardian cat sprinted on the wind over the grassy plain and back into the snowy heights of the mountains above.

"I think it likes you," Soren said once the Guardian had disappeared from their sight.

"What can I say?" Victoria shrugged. "I'm a cat person. Always have been. But, my mom is deathly allergic so I could never have one of my own." She was interrupted by another yawn.

Soren gently pressed his hand to the small of her back, steering her toward the sea of cushions. "You go get comfortable, I'll make you some tea." He went to the table with the kettle. "Are you hungry?"

"No, thank you," she said as she sank down into a mound of large cushions. "Just the tea is fine." I'll just rest my eyes while I wait, she thought to herself. She jerked awake when Soren tapped her gently on the shoulder.

"Drink some of this first, then you can sleep a while," he said as he held up the wooden cup of steaming liquid.

She sat up, taking the cup of tea and sipping carefully while Soren rearranged the cushions behind them. Once he was satisfied, he propped himself against the plush stack, stretching his legs out in front of him, then reached for Victoria, pulling her in to lean against his chest. A short while passed, and when he felt her body begin to lean heavier against him, and her head began to dip slightly, he carefully took the half-empty cup from her hand, reaching back to set it on the ledge that ran along the perimeter of the cushion pit. She curled against his side, laying her hand on his chest and sighing contentedly. He wrapped his arms around her and she drifted to sleep to the steady rhythm of his heartbeats, on pillows of luxury, beneath a thin blanket of ghostly white fire.