Part of Natalia's head wrap came loose and flapped in the wind before she tucked it back in with an experienced hand while examining the landscape around her with open curiosity.

Natalia traveled further north than she knew existed. Several days ago, they had separated from the driver and merchant carriage. Once they were underway in this smaller, more efficient covered wagon, the Master revealed their destination was the Obodor Mountains. Raja had seemed relieved that they were not traveling to the Tribal Lands. Perhaps he was not yet ready to explain her presence to his people.

The population thinned as they traveled further from the center of the Kingdom, and the land became more rugged. The flat arable area transitioned to rolling hills, the fields shifted into forests, and the mountains that once seemed so far away were now looming just ahead.

All the wonders Lukas' parents described on their return from abroad now came to life before her. As a child, she dreamt of traveling through the continent. Lukas had been frustrated that his parents had left him so much, and Natalia understood. But her heart soared every time she heard they were going, so she could experience their travels when they returned.

That joy seemed even more selfish the time they didn't come back. Lukas left her to petition the foreign monarch for their release. And once he had returned, he had destroyed everything.

Natalia absently placed a hand on her belly. The movement attracted Raja's attention.

"Your thoughts grow dark," Raja concluded as he held the reins loosely in his hands. Paulo, who sat on her other side, lifted his head in interest at Raja's words.

"It is nothing, a fleeting memory. A wistful thought of what might have been." Natalia smiled at Raja's arched brow. Her poetic words had not fooled him. "I remembered my past before everything changed."

"Memories can be a dark hole," Paulo responded before Raja could.

"Yes," Natalia answered. "At first, I remembered happy things, but they always drift to the end." No one spoke, allowing Natalia to settle into the silence and decide what more to share.

"You know," she started softly to no one in particular, knowing that both were listening, "the last words Lukas and I said to each other were in anger." Raja turned to Natalia in surprise.

"He was leaving us weeks before his child was born to a place from which his parents had not returned. His parents had been the most experienced of diplomats and travelers. He was so arrogant in his powers. Lukas thought he could persuade the young Queen to release them."

"But, when he arrived, his parents were already dead," Raja told her softly. Natalia's heart fell at this unexpected news, but she remained silent. "They had been a lure, but the Queen never intended to let him or his people go free. "

"All of it, she planned it all; we were so naive," Natalia agreed.

"Many underestimated the young Queen. Her mother had been powerful but not as calculating," Paulo explained, then pointed towards a well-trampled area on the side of the road. "We will camp here tonight; we start our climb tomorrow."

Raja nodded. Natalia retreated into her thoughts. She had not thought of those last words for years, burying the memory to focus on the better moments. This repression of specific memories had helped her survive, but now, she could no longer hide from them.

=======================

They started early, just as the sky brightened with the pre-dawn light. The Oborgor Mountains could be treacherous in the dark, and Paulo was anxious to finish their journey today. One of the spies who pursued them had enough Earth magic to enter the mountain range, and he was gaining ground daily. They would catch up with them within hours if he didn't reach the portal before then.

Paulo drove the horses at a controlled but rapid pace. Both Raja and Natalia chose to sit beside him but remained silent during the arduous ride. They traveled this way for hours until the sun began to settle behind the mountain casting deep shadows on the road around them. Sunset was still some hours away, but it would become dark sooner on this side of the Obodors.

As they approached his destination, Paulo impatiently increased his speed as he felt the pull of his home strengthen. The wagon slipped unexpectedly on a patch of loose gravel. One wheel lost contact with the ground, causing the cart to lurch sideways as the horses continued forward. Raja grabbed Natalia, preventing her from falling as Paulo worked to keep them on the narrow road. The well-trained horses struggled to keep their burden behind them, but the wagon slid through the soft gravel toward the path's edge. Silently, Paulo beseeched the Mother and sensed the stone under the cart solidify. The wheel found purchase, the wagon righted, and he slowed the horses' pace.

A glance at the couple confirmed they were safe. Natalia knitted her brows with confusion as she nodded at Paulo, Raja's arms still holding her tightly in place. Paulo knew she had felt the Earth magic and smiled at her perception. He was more than a Water mage. He would reveal everything soon, but Paulo needed to be more cautious. There was no benefit to overusing his magic before necessary.

They rounded another corner, and the cave came into view. It still lay some minutes away, giving Paulo time to remove his shields. Bit by bit, Paulo shed the protections he had maintained while away from his Vale. As the Elemental powers flowed back into him, Paulo felt whole for the first time in many months.

"Master Paulo?" Natalia's entreaty drew his attention. Her widened eyes glowed slightly in response to his growing power. Raja noted the change in Natalia with concern, but his eyes remained dull. Raja's internal magic could not yet respond to Paulo's. Despite Paulo's best efforts during their journey, the barrier that protected Raja from his Elemental powers was still firmly in place.

"We approach our destination," Paulo replied instead of answering her unspoken question.

"Master Paulo," Natalia continued, ignoring his attempt at avoidance. "Who are you?"

"It will be clear to you soon enough," Paulo answered.

Raja pulled Natalia's hand and shook his head, stopping whatever questions she had next. Never question a Master. Learn his secrets through observation; this was the teaching of the Tribe. Raja would give her this and other lessons through their bond. But Natalia may give Raja more.

"Master," Raja spoke as they neared the cave, "is that cave our destination? Will we stop there for the night?"

"That cave is our destination. Take the reins. I must concentrate." Paulo handed the reins to Raja and closed his eyes. The cave still shined bright in his mind. He called the Lady most easily; she provided the strength underpinning his magic. But the Mother had the most power here in the Oborgors. He called on both, then pulled the power of Fire and Wind but did not call on the Brothers.

The Lady arrived first, as she always did for him. When the Mother appeared, Natalia gasped. He opened his eyes and saw her staring at the cave ahead, where the Mother and the Lady pooled their power and pushed it into the portal.

"What do you see?" Paulo prodded as he focused the Fire and Wind power on the same portal.

"The Mother and another being," Natalia answered with wonder.

Raja looked at where they looked with unseeing eyes. He frowned but remained silent.

"Lady Water." Paulo provided. Raja turned to Paulo with the first open surprise the guarded man had shown since they had met. Finally, Raja had guessed Paulo's identity. Who else could call two Elementals so quickly? Natalia stared at the cave, entranced by the Sisters who had completed their tasks.

Once they finished, he bid the Elementals go. Natalia and Raja were not ready to meet the Sisters yet.

The portal shimmered before them. The subtle warping of the rocks that surrounded the cave's opening that it now engulfed gave away its presence to the knowing eye. Most people without Elemental magic could not identify a portal. When Raja noticed it, his lips tightened. Raja's consternation triggered a laugh from Paulo.

"No, young man, I could not have done that at any time." Raja's expression turned quickly from annoyance to embarrassment at the transparency of his thoughts.

"What is that?" Natalia stared at the pure Elemental magic with fascination. She could see the full beauty of the portal. Natalia's Earth magic was already awake, thanks to the priestesses. Her awe prompted Paulo to appreciate the portal more than he usually would. Every time he created one, the balance of magic changed based on where the portal was anchored. This time, anchored firmly in the Earth Magic of the Oborgors, the Mother's green power infused the portal, mixing with the Lady's blue and creating a teal color that reminded Paulo of shallow water over a sandy beach.

"A portal," Raja answered before Paulo could. "A path built by the Elementals for travel quickly from one place to another."

"How?" She waited impatiently, looking at both men pointedly until Raja supplied an answer.

"He is The Elemental Master."

"The what?" She looked at Paulo in askance, who laughed at her bewildered expression before responding. Natalia's innocence surprised Paulo as much as her wisdom. Her bright mind captured things quickly, but she remained ignorant of much of the world outside her village and the Queen's prisons.

"I am The Master of the Elemental Council. You will learn more soon. But Raja is right. Because of who I am, I can make this portal." The horses entered the portal, disappearing from his view momentarily in the transition.

"Oh." Natalia's whispered tone surprised Paulo until he looked at her. She was looking ahead, through the portal, past the transition. The Vale was now visible; its beauty new again for him through her expression.

"Welcome," Paulo proclaimed with pride, "to my Vale."

==================================

The Master's Vale. The words rang with significance in Raja's mind, but Natalia could not quite capture the essence of why. She could, however, feel his profound sense of relief. Wherever they were, Raja thought it safe for them.

Instead of dwelling on the mystery, Natalia tried to take in everything surrounding them. They rode along a long narrow path toward a small structure in the middle of a vast valley. From the great mountains surrounding the valley, they cut a river that flowed right in front of their destination. The river, mountains, green grass, flowers, and all the land around her were infused with so much magic. All of it overwhelmed her senses. Natalia began to feel strained with the attempt to absorb and understand all that she saw and felt. Finally, she closed her eyes and stopped trying. It would give her a headache.

She felt Raja's comforting hand on hers and allowed him to hold it. The wagon slowed, and she opened her eyes again just as they approached the front of a quaint cottage. She was startled when a petite black man appeared from the small door.

The man took the reins from Paulo once the carriage stopped and smiled in greeting. Natalia had never seen someone with his ebony skin; it was so beautiful and different. His face was older and kind, but his smile fled as he looked back at the Master.

"You are overdue; the Counsel is concerned." The man's voice was accented lightly but easily understood.

"Yes, Diddero, I'm sure they are." The frustration in Paulo's voice surprised Natalia. "They know that I could not risk communication with them until I reached the Vale." He sighed and allowed the man to help him out of the carriage. "Tell them to assemble in one week; I should finish the testing by then." Diddero nodded and looked at the couple.

Diddero put out a hand to help Natalia down. Natalia hesitated, not wanting to invade his mind.

"Ah, I think my shields should be sufficient, but I will refrain from touching you for now," Diddero responded with a smile to Natalia's unspoken fears. She did not think he had read her mind, so perhaps he spoke with Paulo through the Mindspace. Raja jumped down and helped Natalia as he had many times during the trip, while Diddero turned back to Paulo.

"You should tend to your guests; I will -" Diddero yelped and cringed before he bent forward and took several deep breaths. The look he gave Paulo when he straightened was full of awe.

"The third has arrived. My gods, he is powerful. He punched a hole through the barrier."

"They are bonded, the men, but yes, he is mighty," The Master spoke and may have said more, but Natalia stopped listening as Raja fell to one knee holding his head with pain.

===================================

"RAJA! WHERE ARE YOU!" Lukas' voice had never caused him such pain before. Raja closed his eyes to reduce in an attempt to dampen the effect. He felt Natalia's cheek touch him as she pulled him into a tight embrace. "RAJA! ANSWER ME!"

"You have to stop shouting at him." Natalia's voice sounded in Raja's Mindspace as her projection solidified. "You are causing him pain. He is safe; he is in The Master's Vale."

Raja looked up at her words and saw her transform the space around them to resemble the valley they had just entered. Her strength was similar to Lukas', yet it felt so different.

Lukas appeared. His form was translucent again. He stretched his hand towards Raja's projection as it stood from his crouched position but did not touch him. Fear infused Raja's heart with the realization Lukas had used so much power to reach him that he couldn't even afford the small amount it would take to become solid.

"I am sorry, I couldn't feel you. The bond disappeared, I thought ..."

Lukas' voice trailed off almost meekly. Raja had never heard him sound this way, and the urgent need to reassure him burned in his chest. Raja recklessly pushed power towards his love, giving Lukas the strength to solidify, only slowing when he noticed himself pulling from Natalia.

"Be at peace, Lukas. I am sorry you were still with me. The block was only one way. I did not know." His projection now stable, Raja embraced Lukas, trying to communicate his love and apology without words.

In the physical space, Natalia released him from her embrace. Raja felt a flutter of jealousy before she abandoned his Mindspace.

Her absence led Raja to drop his arms from Lukas with shame. When they separated, Lukas looked around for Natalia. He must have forgotten her in his relief. When he noticed she was gone, he looked back at Raja. "Did I cause her pain?"

"I cannot say." Raja had felt the jealousy, but its direction confused him. "Do you want her to return?"

"If she can." Lukas looked almost sheepish before he schooled his appearance.

Raja reached his hand out and touched her hand in the physical world. She understood and reentered the space.

Lukas sat on a chair a small distance from them, his form fading as his strength waned. Natalia sat in a chair that appeared near him and smiled at him.

"Lukas, we worried," she stated. "You have been gone from us for so long."

"Yes, it was not safe; it is not safe now." His form was fading more. "You are in an elemental Master's Vale?" Neither of them made clear which Master's Vale. Natalia might not understand the importance, but Lukas would, and he would worry.

"Good, you are protected there." Lukas' form thinned, and Raja could see the chair through it now. Lukas' frowned, but his body slumped with extreme fatigue. "I am close to finding your window Nati. I have so much to tell you, but I must go."

"Lukas," Raja spoke before Lukas could fade completely, "I love you."

"I love you, too." his voice was all that was left of him. "And I love Nati as well." Then he was gone.

He opened his eyes to the physical world and noticed his other hand was on Natalia's cheek. He could feel her tears. He felt what she felt, and he wasn't sure he disagreed.

"We have betrayed him." 

WC2708

Last Edit 1/2/2023