Victoria woke to the sound of rustling, and her hand ached as it released its stiff grip on the stone she still wore, that she had unknowingly held as she slept. Little points of pain tingled in the indents left by the knuckles of the thick gold claws. A dark blob appeared to shuffle around the room. She ground the sleep from her eyes and blinked Astrid's form into focus. She had replaced the articles she removed to sleep and was now in a chair across the room lacing her boots. The pale predawn light filtered through the window, and with it the first sounds of morning.

"Good, you're awake." Astrid said. "Best be getting a move on, my father will want to be off as soon as the sun clears the hills."

Victoria did as instructed, pausing to ask, "What were those things last night?"

"Imps." Astrid replied, tugging her boot strings and standing. "Shadow devils. Nasty little beasties on a good day. They love to torment people and have a fancy for shiny things. They've lifted a purse or two from my father in the past. They wait in the shadows for night to fall, then they do as they please under the cover of darkness. Now," she took several slow steps toward Victoria, "normally they wouldn't bother four mounted travelers before full dark. Best I can think, those little buggers knew you had something. And if that's something they can sniff out, then who knows what else can." With that, she turned on her heel to retrieve her pack before disappearing from the room, leaving Victoria standing there alone with a new sense of dread now hanging over her.

There was no contempt or malice in Astrid's words, but the warning in them made Victoria's blood run cold, regardless. If imps were considered the lesser of the magical beings in this world, and they could tell she had something worth taking, what about the things they normally would worry about? She swallowed hard as she began to understand what Jasper had said about the stone not being safe out in the open when they first met. Apparently it wasn't just humans who would want to possess it.

"I'll ask Soren about it later." She muttered to herself as she thrust her feet into her boots and began lacing them, fumbling as she tried to hurry. She threw on her cloak, grabbed her pack, and headed back in the direction they came the night before.

On the ground floor, Astrid and Soren were seated at a table by the wall, quickly devouring their breakfast and talking quietly between themselves. Soren spotted her as he shoveled his last forkful of food into his mouth, and waved her over, motioning to the full plate and empty chair between him and his sister. As she strode closer, he stood to pull the chair out for her.

"M'lady." He said with a half bow and a charming smile.

"Um, thank you." Victoria replied, taking the seat and giving him a shy smile in return.

Whatever else Lenore had said of their son, he was a gentleman at least; and not unpleasant to look at either. She hadn't noticed before that his jade green eyes were streaked with tiny flecks of gold that sparkled when the light hit them just right.

"See you outside, ladies." He said, winking once at Victoria before he turned to leave the inn.

"He fancies you, you know." Astrid said around a mouthful of eggs and roasted vegetables, once the door closed behind her brother.

Victoria's head snapped to the woman beside her. She hadn't realized she had been watching Soren as he walked away, and Astrid's unexpected statement caught her off guard.

"What?! Oh! Um," She stammered as the color rose in her cheeks and her eyes darted about nervously. "I mean, he seems really nice but--I mean...well, I'm not exactly looking to get...involved with anyone right now. I probably won't even be here in a few days and who knows if I'd ever be able to come back anyway. No sense in getting attached to someone I may never see again, right?"

Astrid continued to chew her food, and as she swallowed gave Victoria a skeptical stare.

"It's no business of mine to be sticking my nose in, but I'll see that he knows it. Though don't be too surprised if he doesn't bugger off so easy, it's been a while since he's had a new lass to follow around. Either way, best get that down." She pointed to Victoria's untouched plate. "The sun will be high enough to venture into the hills safely soon."

Both women ate their meals in silence, and Astrid stood as she finished her last bite. "We'll be just out front when you've finished. I'm sure Soren will have your horse ready for you." She teased, giving Victoria a sly smile before turning to leave the way her brother had gone.

Victoria shook her head and sighed, turning back to finish the food on her plate. The room had lightened as the sun's rays cleared the horizon, turning the sky through the window a gleaming golden-pink; they would have to leave soon. A shiver crept up her spine, remembering last night, and hoped their little attackers weren't waiting for them in the lingering shadows. She shook the thought from her mind and finished her meal quickly, grabbing her pack as she stood to join the others.

Jasper, Astrid, and Soren all stood waiting outside, and the horses were all packed and ready. As Astrid foretold, her horse had been readied for her. As she emerged from the inn, Jasper came up to take her pack and toss it to Soren.

"Soren, tie this on." Jasper ordered, "Come on miss, let's get you up. The sooner we're off the less likely we'll be stuck in the hills come nightfall. I don't know about you, but I'd rather do without a repeat of last night's...excitement. There's worse things that skulk about in the foothills at night."

He stooped to boost her into the saddle, not so roughly this time. For that she was grateful; her body was rested, but it was still unaccustomed to this new abuse. Once all were mounted, Jasper led them at a trot, continuing north along the road, and the little town disappeared quickly from view as the wooded hillsides rose around them. The pace would be slower through here, she was told, depending on the terrain and whatever creatures decided to cross their path.

"You could ride for days, east or west, before you find the end of the hills." Jasper turned to inform Victoria, "Going this way, cutting up the middle, we'll reach the other side before night so long as we don't waste time idling. We'll put as much distance between us and the hills as the light will allow before we make camp, then we'll reach Coeur d'Homme before the end of the day tomorrow."

Victoria processed their itinerary for several seconds before responding, "You said there are worse things here than imps, are these things going to attack us trying to get this like they did?" She held her hand over the stone where it lay beneath her shirt.

"I really can't say for sure." Jasper replied. "The way those imps came at us last night was out of the ordinary. If we had been walking or the sun was lower I'd have at least expected it, but it's most certainly not like them to chase down four riders on horseback, let alone before the sun fully set. I think it's at least safe to say that we all need to be on guard until we're within the walls of the city. That I think I can say for sure."

Victoria felt the uneasiness rise in the pit of her stomach; she didn't like how dangerous this was starting to feel. Something had already tried to attack her, and there were other things, worse things, that could possibly do the same. She could feel the blood drain from her face and her hands began to quiver slightly.

Okay Victoria, calm down and think about this logically for a second. If there was any possibility that they would be literally risking their lives to make this trip, would there really only be four of us? The guy talks like he's done this a million times, and I doubt he'd bring his own kids along if he thought they could end up dead for it. Whether you like it or not, you have to trust these guys, otherwise you will end up dead. Just breath and find something pretty to look at.

She took several slow, deep breaths, steadying her grip on the reins, and looked around for something to distract herself with. The day was still young, and the rolling, tree-spotted hillsides were abuzz with life. Off in the distance a herd of deer grazed along a line of tall pine trees, a pair of foxes engaged in a heated game of chase darted here and there, and a red-tailed hawk soared overhead. The existence of so many familiar creatures in this place made it easier for Victoria's nerves to settle.

Before noon, they emerged from between two tall hills to stand before a fair-sized river spanned by a covered, wooden bridge made of thick, dark timber. A large area on either side of the bridge entrance had been cleared and the ground packed hard, and the remnants of several past campfires dotted the space.

Jasper looked up, judging the sun's position above them. "It's not midday yet, but we've made good time. We'll stop here to rest the horses. If we can keep this pace, we'll have these hills long behind us by sundown."

Everyone did as before, this time Victoria helped Soren with the horses so she didn't feel so useless. Water to refill the supply was set to boil, and rations were passed around. When all was finished, instead of napping like his father, Soren wandered into the trees along the hillside, disappearing for a short time. Astrid lounged against her saddle, sharpening her dagger with a whetstone. Left to her own devices, and having slightly more peace of mind, Victoria sat on the riverbank, tossing stones into the water; the little splashes and ripples sparkled like tiny diamonds.

Soren reemerged from the trees not far from where Victoria sat, giving her a low whistle. Victoria turned as he stepped from the foliage, coming toward her. She shielded her eyes from the midday sun as he came to stand nearly over her.

"Come here, I want to show you something." He said, beaming a smile down at her and extending a hand to help her up.

Victoria eyed him suspiciously.

"No funny business, I promise." Soren said, placing his right hand over his heart and holding up his left. "You haven't gotten to see much, given the circumstances. I found a spot where you can get a good look." He held his hand out to her again.

She reached up slowly, placing her hand in his, and he squeezed lightly before pulling her up to stand in front of him. His closeness caused her breath to catch and her chest to flutter. He continued to smile at her, then without releasing her hand, turned to lead her into the trees. She followed him where he led up the side of the steep hill, slowly so that he could help her navigate the tangle of brush and branches and rocks.

The top of the hill flattened to an open area of lush grass and flowers; a tiny island in an emerald ocean. Victoria could hardly do more than stare as she finally got her first real look at the world around her. Still holding her hand, Soren led her out into the tiny clearing, watching as she took in with awe what he beheld daily with indifference.

The earth dipped and rose in sharp peaks and rolling hills as far as the eye could see. A rich carpet of green accented by the various trees and flowers; a living oil painting. Fluffy, iridescent clouds raced theirs shadows as they tumbled across the brilliant blue sky.

"Soren," she nearly whispered, "it's amazing!"

Her eyes glistened in the afternoon light as tears once again threatened her vision. Never in her life had she encountered anything so beautiful it made her want to cry, and that was all she seemed to want to do any time she looked around for more than a few seconds here. She didn't think that kind of beauty actually existed, and it seemed to be this world's calling card.

"I thought you might like it." He said, giving her hand another slight squeeze.

Victoria turned to see their hands still locked together, and Soren watched her with his heavy-lidded, jade-and-gold gaze. She felt the flutter in her chest again, and her heartbeat quickened.

No! Snap out of it, Victoria!

Blinking out of the strange hypnosis, she pulled her hand from Soren's, taking a step back and crossing her arms and shuffling her feet self-consciously as the heat rose in her cheeks.

"Look, Soren, you seem like a really nice guy, and you've done a lot to help me, but in a couple days I'll be gone, and I probably won't ever be able to come back. I don't want to make any...attachments for that reason. And I'm not the kind of girl who's into flings."

The heat faded from Soren's eyes, but his smile fell only a little as he sighed. "My sister said as much. I'll not have it said that Soren de Perrin is the type of man to force himself on any woman." A mischievous twinkle danced in his eyes and his smile widened. "But I'll also not have it said that I gave up on the prettiest lass I've ever laid eyes on. Especially if I may never get another chance." He winked as he gave her another cheesy smile.

She chuckled defeatedly. Astrid warned her he wouldn't be so easily put off. "Does that line actually work on girls here?"

His smile slipped a fraction. "Uh...normally." He chuckled sheepishly and shuffled his feet, and now it was his turn to blush.

"Well, don't be too disappointed if the fruits of your labors leave you with an empty belly." She replied.

At that they both laughed as they looked out at the breathtaking landscape together. A long, black shadow passed over them, drawing their attention upward. Shielding their eyes, they spotted a large, black bird circling overhead. It made several passes before diving toward them, swooping back up fifty feet or so over them. They watched cautiously at it made several more circles at the lower altitude. Without taking his eyes off the bird, Soren slowly drew his sword and pulled Victoria to stand behind him.

Again the bird dove toward them, pulling away mere feet above their heads, and Soren and Victoria ducked low reflexively. The bird was an enormous raven, with a wingspan of at least six feet, and a single, glowing red eye in the center of its face. It shrieked as it soared back into the sky and disappeared over the horizon.

They stood slowly as they watched the bird fly away, and Soren sheathed his sword. "We should get back now."

He took Victoria's hand again to guide her back the way they came. Picking their way carefully along the untamed embankment until they emerged by the river once more, and made their way back to the campsite. He didn't try to keep ahold of her hand this time.

Jasper had woken and Astrid had begun preparing for their departure.

"And where have you two been off to?" Astrid teased, wagging her eyebrows at the previously absent pair.

"I was being a good host and showing our guest the sights, thank you very much." Soren replied with mock snobbery.

"Oh I bet you were." Astrid cast an insinuating look at her brother.

"Astrid." Jasper said with an annoyed look of warning.

"No really, there's a spot up there with an amazing view. The world isn't so...vibrant, where I'm from." Victoria said. "And there was this weird bird."

"Bird?" Jasper asked, looking to Soren to explain.

"It looked like a giant raven with one red eye. It came down at us twice before it flew off that way." He pointed to the northeast horizon.

Jasper stared in the direction of the bird's travel, keeping his thoughts to himself, before turning to Astrid. "What do you make of it?"

"Well I don't know of any giant one-eyed ravens, and I've hunted my share of large avians. My thoughts? Just like the imps, it caught a whiff of something interesting, only this one may have a master to run back to." She pointed to where the stone lay beneath Victoria's shirt. "The quicker we get that thing to Nicodemus, the sooner we're no longer a target for anything that knows what it is."

"I agree." Jasper replied. "Get the horses ready. From here until we reach the city, we only stop as long as we need to rest the horses and not a minute longer. We'll ride as far as we can before we run out of daylight. From there it's a mostly straight shot and less than a day's ride. All of you, get to it."

Jasper and Astrid quickly got the supplies repacked while Soren and Victoria jogged over to collect the horses. Jasper swung the saddle onto Victoria's horse, leaving her to secure it herself, while he and the others did the same. Soren came to check her girth strap before boosting her into the saddle, resting his hand on her leg a second or two longer than necessary with a boyish smile, before mounting his own horse. They filed across the bridge, hoof beats echoing dully on the thick beams, and continued into the hills.

After several hours, there had been no other appearance from the one-eyed raven, though they all kept an uneasy eye on the sky. To everyone's relief, there had so far been no other creature encounters of any concern. They did, however, come across one of the strangest, ugliest creatures Victoria had ever seen.

It stood maybe only two feet tall, and looked like a short, green pig-like creature that stood mostly upright, and moved with a sort of hunched waddle. It wore a loincloth covering that looked like just strips of animal hide and fur tied together about its girthy waist. Its arms looked too long for its body, with oversized hands to match, and its long, knobby fingers and toes were tipped with rough brown claws. It even grunted like a pig as it foraged through the undergrowth. The grotesque creature's ears perked up and it watched as they passed, unmoving except for its swine-like snout, and a thick string of slobber that hung from its protruding lower jaw. Once passed, the creature resumed its foraging as if it hadn't even noticed them.

Victoria turned back to Soren with a confused look, and he moved up next to her. "What was that thing? It looked like the unholy spawn of Slimer and Wilbur the pig!" She asked, a disgusted look distorting her features.

"That fluffy little snuggle monster, was a snotling. Rather fitting, don't you think?" Soren laughed. "They're like smaller, dumber goblins. They're more or less harmless unless you piss off a big group or you're intentionally antagonizing one. They prefer stuffing their gobs all day to getting into any kind of spat with anything."

"Huh. Well, I guess it's comforting to know that we won't be chased down by a herd of sentient boogers." Victoria replied. "Would boogers make a herd? Or would they be considered a wad? Eew, death by snot-wad."

That got a good laugh out of everyone, which helped to lighten the mood and ease some of the tension. The remainder of the afternoon slipped by, and as their shadows began to reach behind them, the hills around them began to shrink. The rough, jagged gash of earth morphing once more back into wide, rolling, wooded plains, and they breathed a collective sigh of relief once they were completely clear of the foothills. They were beautiful to be sure, but Victoria had no desire to whatsoever to linger.

They were able to put a fair amount of distance between them before the sun began to sink lower. Though still visible, Jasper felt they were far enough away not to draw the attention of any of its less desirable inhabitants, so he went ahead to scout a spot to quickly set up camp. Astrid and Soren moved up to flank Victoria in his absence.

"So you really don't know what that bird was?" she asked Astrid.

"No." Astrid replied, keeping an eye out for her father. "We have ravens, sure, and some of the ones that stalk the northern waste can get pretty large, but not like what you two described. I've begun to think there's something our king either hasn't told us, or doesn't know about that stone, and I think that bird may have somewhat to do with it."

This made Victoria pause for a moment. "So, what do you know about it? All I've got to go on is a conversation that I'm still not entirely convinced actually happened."

"The stone? Well, the legends say that it gives whoever possesses it the ability to wield the powers of a dragon. Its supposedly the greatest source of power known, and folk used to search high and low for it. You don't really hear about it anymore, and even most sorcerers can't tell you much more than that about it. They say its origin lies so far in the past that all true knowledge has been lost. We really only have the tales of ancient kings and magicians who supposedly found the stone and used it with ill intent."

A shadow crossed Victoria's thoughts, "You don't...you don't think your king has something evil in mind, do you?"

"I don't believe so." Astrid said. "It was his father, King Jareth, who made the Seekers. Sending them out across the land to watch and listen, and bring the stone to him should it be found. His death was a tragic accident, and happened less than a year after Nicodemus publicly accepted his duties as future King of Elyrium. His new horse spooked on a bear hunt in the mountains, it panicked and sent them both over a cliff."

"Oh my god, that's horrible!" Victoria gasped.

"There were a fair few for a while who though it was somehow Nicodemus' doing." Soren added, "Saying he didn't want to wait for his father to die before inheriting control."

"But," Astrid interjected, "those rumors were silenced after a month when the young prince still hadn't left the castle. He'd locked himself away to mourn the loss of his father alone. After a few more weeks of his absence, new rumors had begun to circulate about the possibility that Nicodemus had abdicated the throne, and that the rule of the entire kingdom might be snatched up by anyone who thought they were fit. Once that rumor reached his ear, he came out of hiding and the rest is history."

Jasper appeared from the brush about thirty yards ahead of them, giving them a whistle and waving for them to join him. He led them just inside the tree line to a small clearing just large enough for a campsite.

"I'd rather we stay off the road after dark. No need to keep ourselves exposed on the chance that raven decides to come back." Jasper explained. "We've got less than two hours of light, we need to move quickly. You two take the horses," he motioned to Soren and Victoria, "Astrid, gather some wood."

While Soren and Victoria moved to unsaddle the horses, Jasper removed three canvas rolls from his saddle packs, setting them aside and beginning to set up a circle for a fire. Astrid disappeared through the nearby scrub. The simple canvas tents were erected quickly, side-by-side, on top of another swath of canvas on the ground, and two bedrolls were tossed into each one. Astrid returned with a good armload of wood and went straight to arranging the pieces and lighting the fire.

By the time the younger two finished with the horses, a pot of oats had been set on the fire to cook and the rations of pork and biscuits had been distributed. When the last rays of sun stretched high, and the light faded around them, the four weary travelers lounged against their saddles. Victoria felt her head become heavy, and dark circles drooped beneath her eyes.

"You all need to get some sleep. I'll take the first watch." Jasper said.

Victoria followed Astrid to their tent, and Soren practically dove onto his bedroll, not even bothering to unroll it. Astrid unrolled hers, laying it on the side opposite the men's tent, and Victoria followed suit on the inner side, crawling inside and attempting to find a comfortable position on the hard ground. She could hear Soren softly snoring on the other side of the canvases that separated them.

She was just teetering on the brink of sleep when she heard a very slow, but deliberate sliding movement coming from the tent beside her. Something rustled under her side of the canvas, and she froze, not daring to open her eyes. Something warm brushed the top of her hand, and she almost jumped away, until her brain identified the sensation as a hand. A hand that carefully slid to cover hers in a light grip.

She sighed as her body relaxed, and she smiled sleepily into the darkness. Soren's hand was a welcome comfort right now, and this time she didn't pull her hand away as she drifted into exhausted, dreamless sleep.

* * *