While the comfort of Soren's arms made her feel safe in the physical world, her dreams afforded her no such solace. Giant wolves and ravens pursued her through an endless darkness where screams and howls echoed around her, and glowing red eyes followed her every step. The sound of a woman's laughter rang in the distance, at once sweet and filled with malevolence. She slept fitfully, screaming at times and waking in panic. Each time she did, Soren was there to save her from the nightmares. He moved with no hesitation to cradle her in his arms, rocking slowly and rubbing her back until she found herself again.

"You okay?" He asked, brushing her hair from her face.

Far from it, she thought to herself. "Yeah, just nightmares." She said, scooting to sit upright. "Thank you...for staying with me."

"No need to thank me. I should be thanking you for allowing me to." Soren replied with a smile.

Victoria chuckled softly. "Well then you're welcome."

She smiled back at him and leaned her head against his shoulder, and he wrapped her in a gentle embrace, setting her chest to fluttering. The warmth and comfort of his arms driving away the distress her nightmares had caused. For a while they were content to just sit there together, rocking gently and listening as the world around them began to wake and the darkness began to fade. As the sky grew lighter, they could hear the sounds of the others beginning to wake and emerge from the other tents. Sensing that their intimate moment was nearing its end, Victoria straightened slowly and withdrew from his arms.

"We should go now." She said, though she didn't want to. "Someone will probably be coming to get us soon, and I want to talk to Ozan before we get back on the road."

"Alright." He placed a quick kiss on her forehead before moving to hold the tent flap open for her.

The first rays of the sun had just begun to peek over the horizon, and everyone else had begun taking down their tents and making ready to resume the journey. Victoria was relieved to see that the bodies of the wolves were nowhere to be seen, and released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Most of the horses had made their way back to the camp, and Victor Leroux and Marc Gerin had gone to check the area for the remaining few. Several of the others sat around a small fire, conversing quietly and tending the cooking pot. Ozan was not among them, nor did he seem to be within the camp.

"Good, you're awake." Astrid said as she hopped down from the wagon that held the injured guards. "I was coming to get you once I was done here." She approached the pair, laying a hand gently on Victoria's shoulder. "How are you feeling? I know you didn't sleep well."

"No, I didn't, but I'll be okay. It uh...helped not waking up terrified and alone." Victoria ducked her head and smiled. She blushed as she cleared her throat, looking back at Astrid. "Anyway, um, do you know where Ozan is?"

"He went to find some medicinal herbs. Louis' leg was torn deep and he worries it could become infected." Astrid replied.

Victoria gasped. "Is he going to be okay?"

"So long as it doesn't fester he should be." Astrid said. "There's a good chance he'll not be able to use the leg as well as before, unfortunately. The captain says it'll be best to leave him in the care of the elves once we reach the border. Being jostled about in the wagon will slow his healing and we can't afford to slow the pace for a single man. Remy's minded to keep going, but his arm was punctured badly and he might have damage to the shoulder, so he'll likely be staying behind with Louis."

Victoria heaved an anguished sigh. "I hate that people are getting hurt because of me."

"I know." Astrid said. "But they all freely accepted their roles in this; they knew it would be dangerous. No one blames you. None of us could've known that we'd be attacked by wolves."

"That's actually something I wanted to bring up with Ozan. Did you notice anything familiar about them? The wolves?" Victoria asked. "The eyes. The wolves, the raven, even the imps, they all had the same eyes. I kept seeing them in my dreams, and I heard a woman laughing. Not like a happy laugh, it felt...evil. And then there's the fire that killed the wolf."

"Fire?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah, when the wolf charged me I went to scream and fire shot from my hand."

"So the legends are true." Astrid mused. "If you truly possess a dragon's power, then figuring out how to wield that thing could make all of this much easier. You're right, we need to consult Ozan. Soren, go pack up your tent. The wizard shouldn't be gone much longer and we'll be moving out shortly after he gets back."

Reluctantly, Soren did as he was told while Astrid led Victoria to the small fire, taking their rations of oats and wild berries and awaiting the wizard's return. Victor and Marc returned with two of the three missing horses, the third had snapped a foreleg during its panicked flight through the forest and they had no choice but to end the poor animal's suffering. The sun had risen just above the horizon when Ozan reappeared from the forest, and Victoria wasted no time in relaying her concerns regarding the creatures they'd confronted and the woman's voice in her dreams, and the inexplicable fire conjured from her hand.

"Yes, Jasper and I discussed as much last night." Ozan said. "Come, give me a hand with Louis and Remy, we can talk while we tend their wounds."

He told her what he had suspected of the events leading up to the present, she listened and assisted the wizard as best she could, and by the time they finished, all was in waiting to continue their journey. Captain Bechard, after some discussion with his men and Jasper, decided that they would lodge in the small town of Charveil that night, where Louis and Remy would be left in the care of the innkeeper until they could be returned to the city. Remy, young and eager for adventure, sulked like a scorned child at having to stay behind, but he dared not disobey his captain's orders.

And so they pressed on, closing the space between them and the bridge they were denied crossing the previous evening. Its distance from where they had camped made it look much less imposing, but upon reaching the bridge, Victoria could see the impressive structure spanned a good twenty feet wide and at least three hundred feet across the sparkling blue river. The early morning sunlight shimmered like gold on the surface of the water as birds dipped and dove, plucking fish from just below the surface. She breathed deeply of the moist morning air, the mingling scents of earth and water, listening to the splashing river, the calling birds, and the thudding hooves on the thick beams of the bridge, and was grateful for the soothing sense of calm this world evoked within her.

As much as she wanted to allow her mind to bask in the placid beauty, she knew she had to remain vigilant. Her exchange with Ozan kept her rooted in reality. They could be attacked again at any time, by anything, and until they reached the border of the elf kingdom, they were few and vulnerable. Allowing herself to drift and become complacent could be dangerous.

She was conflicted. On the one hand, she wanted to learn to use the dragon's power. She wanted to do more, be more than just something that needed to be protected. It was hard to stomach that people had already been hurt in part because of her, and that it very well could happen again. She wanted to be able to fight the evil that hunted them. At the same time, she didn't want to hasten Assyria's resolution to take matters into her own hands. Ozan had acknowledged that his power alone may not be enough to defeat her, enticing her into confrontation would likely be deadly for all of them.

The internal struggle must have been evident on her face, prompting Soren to reach over and grasp her hand, gentle concern in his jade-gold eyes.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah" She shook herself from her musings. "Just lost in my head again."

"Well you'd best stay out here with the rest of us." Astrid said. "We all need to keep our wits about us now."

She was right, and Victoria knew it. Soren squeezed her hand once more before releasing it, and they continued on, keeping their eyes and ears open for anything that might indicate trouble. Everyone was on edge, and most jumped or flinched at every snapped twig or creature darting through the trees. It was as if they had to remind themselves that all manner of birds and animals lived there, and not all of them could possibly be waiting to attack; the deer and ground fowl were running from them, not toward.

By the time they stopped to rest at midday, their vigilance had begun to take a toll. Everyone settled for the dried rations in favor of expending the energy to gather wood and build a cooking fire. They were all sore and stiff from the hours of tension, prepared to face the next attack. The horses were probably the most grateful for the reprieve from not only their riders, but the weight of their riders' nervousness, and were quite content to stretch themselves and doze in the shade.

Victoria stood leaned against one of the wagons, stretching her cramped limbs and attempting to massage the knots of tension from her neck when Soren approached her carrying a small corked jar.

"Here, I've got something that'll help. Turn around." He said.

She eyed him with a mix of suspicion and curiosity, cocking an eyebrow and regarding the jar and its unknown contents.

He smiled, uncorking the jar and dipping his fingers inside. "Valerian oil. It smells like feet but it's good for muscle stiffness. Hold this." He replaced the cork and handed the jar to her.

She took it, scrunching her nose at the not-so-pleasant odor, and hesitated for a moment before pulling her hair over her shoulder, allowing him access to her neck. He massaged the pungent oil firmly but gently into her skin, easing away the knots. Her head lolled forward beneath the exquisite pressure of his fingers, and she groaned with relief as the pain subsided and her body began to relax.

"How's that?" Soren asked, not removing his hand from her neck.

"Much better." She rolled her neck, popping the vertebrae. "Thank you."

"Thank Astrid, she's the one who told me to give it to you."

She turned to face him, his hand still resting on her neck. Her heart began to flutter as he gazed down at her.

"She thinks there's something more than simple attraction at work here." He said, keeping his voice low as his thumb slowly stroked her cheek.

"Oh does she?" Victoria replied, taking a quivering breath. "Why would she think that?"

"Because I've told her how I feel inexplicably compelled to be by your side, and how my heart burns with an unfamiliar fire whenever I'm near you, and how it aches when I cannot be." His voice became husky as he wrapped his free hand around her waist, pulling them together. "She thinks it means we're bound by fate."

Her arms had instinctively wrapped themselves around him, hands pressed to his back. She gazed into his beautiful jade-gold eyes, and all else around them seemed to fade away. She could feel the fire inside her own breast rise to match his. Maybe this is fate. Who am I to deny destiny? She thought to herself. "Do you think so?" The question was barely a breathy whisper.

He bent his head and pressed his lips to hers, igniting the fire that burned within them both. Blazing golden-white flames rose to swirl around them as their kiss deepened, as if manifesting a hidden passion. They emerged from the spectral fire, breathless and awestricken by what had just occurred. The flames had vanished, and it seemed as if no one except for the two of them had been aware of their spontaneous appearance.

"Did you see that too?" Victoria asked.

"Yes, I--the stone!" Soren exclaimed.

Beneath her shirt the stone was glowing with bright golden light. She drew the chain over her head, holding the stone in her palm between them, and the light grew brighter and a strange voice seemed to emanate from the light itself.

The heart holds the key.

With a quick flash the golden light vanished, and the stone lay as it had before; a blood-red stone in a golden-clawed grip. For the span of several seconds the two merely stared at the stone; awed, dumbstruck. Soren broke the stillness, taking the pendant from Victoria's hand and draped it carefully over her head.

"What do you suppose that means?" Victoria asked.

Soren's captivated gaze locked with hers. "Fate."

* * *

"Useless dogs. Should've taken the girl down faster, maybe they wouldn't have become fish fodder." Assyria said coldly. The distant raven's vision rippled in the scrying basin, and she observed as the stone revealed its secret to the young pair that held it. Her contemptuous scowl morphed into a sinister smile. "Perhaps instead of sending something else to hunt you down, I'll just let you walk right into your own death. I'm sure he would revel in slaughtering every last one of you. Yes, right when you think you've made it to safety. I may well enjoy this as much as he will." She laughed wickedly as she cleared the basin of the vision, concentrating on the new target of her evil intent.