Page 78 of Crossing Between
I frowned. "A sanctuary? How has nobody found it?"
"Dragons are very good at hiding things they don't want found, darling," Quilith winked. "The sanctuary exists in a pocket between dimensions. Only those with dragon blood can even perceive its entrance."
"And what happens at this sanctuary?"
Quilith's eyes seemed to glow brighter. "Young dragons would enter the soulfire when they were deemed ready. It would cleanse them, awaken their dormant powers completely." They paused, studying my reaction. "With your particular heritage, I believe it may help you gain greater control over your Soulbinder magic."
My heart skipped a beat. "Greater control? You mean I could learn to use it properly? Maybe even save Ryan if he's been corrupted?"
"Possibly," Quilith cautioned, holding up a slender hand. "At the very least it may point you in the direction you need to go. But I must warn you. The trial is not mentally easy. The soulfire forces you to confront your own worst memories, your deepest regrets. It strips away illusions until only truth remains."
A chill ran down my spine despite the warm morning sun. "That sounds intense."
"It is. Some do not survive the experience." Quilith frowned. "But those who do emerge stronger, more complete."
"And since I'm part dragon, you think I could do it?"
"Your dragon blood gives you the opportunity to try. Your strength of character will determine if you succeed."
I stood up, water dripping from my feet onto the warm tile. The thought of confronting my worst memories was terrifying. I had plenty I'd rather forget. My parents' death,the times I'd failed Ryan while trying to raise him alone, all the moments of doubt and fear I'd pushed down to appear strong.
But then I thought of Ryan, possibly corrupted by the Essencefeaster. I thought of the souls at the police station, how souls suffered. If I could learn to control my power better, maybe I could save them all.
I took a deep breath. "When do we leave?"
"We can go now, if you're ready." Quilith stood in a fluid motion, their silk garments flowing around them like water. "Or you can take time to prepare yourself mentally."
I thought about telling Varon, Elias, and Kenji where I was going, but I knew what would happen. They'd want to come, to protect me. This time, though, they couldn't follow. This was something I had to face alone.
"Now. Let's go now, before I lose my nerve." Before the guys learned our plans.
Quilith nodded approvingly. "Very well. Follow me."
They led me away from the pool to an empty space a little further away. With a graceful gesture, they called their portal. The space between us shimmered, warping like heat rising from pavement, then split open to reveal a swirling vortex of colors.
"Step through with me."
I slipped my hand into Quilith's cool grasp and together we stepped into the swirling colors. The world twisted around us, my stomach lurching as reality bent. For a dizzying moment, I felt like I was everywhere and nowhere at once.
Then my feet touched solid ground and I gasped.
We stood in the most incredible cavern I'd ever seen. Towering walls stretched up so high that the ceiling was lost in shadow. The entire space glowed with light that seemed to come from within the very rock itself. A rainbow of crystals jutted from every surface. Massive columns of crystal rose from floor to ceiling, some as thick as redwood trees, allpulsing with inner light that shifted through every color imaginable.
"Oh my god," my whisper echoed slightly in the vast space.
The floor beneath us was smooth, polished stone inlaid with intricate patterns that glowed with a soft blue light. The patterns seemed to shift when I wasn't looking directly at them, forming different symbols and shapes.
But what drew my eye was at the center of the cavern.
There, on a raised dais, stood a massive bowl carved from some black stone that seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it. The bowl was perched atop an elaborate stand of twisted metal that reminded me of intertwining dragons. And inside the bowl, dancing and twisting with hypnotic movement, was fire unlike any I'd ever seen.
Red, purple, and pink flames leapt and spun together, occasionally shooting up higher before receding. Unlike normal fire, these flames seemed liquid-like in their movement, and they made no sound at all, no crackle or hiss, just silent dancing light.
Even from a distance, I could feel power emanating from it, a pressure against my skin that made the hairs on my arms stand on end.
"The soulfire," Quilith waved at the center of the room. "Created by the first dragons to walk this earth, maintained through millennia by the magic that runs through this place."
I noticed now that the entire cavern hummed with energy. Not a sound, exactly, but a vibration I could feel in my bones, my teeth, my very core. It felt ancient and alive, as if the earth was breathing around us.
