Taylor continued walking along the path beside Ulysses, feeling a strange mixture of exhilaration, fear, and expectation. Something like the feeling she felt whenever she caught Matthew looking at her, but much, much better.

They rounded a bend and the path widened. Up ahead Taylor could hear the sounds of laughter and excited chatter. She quickened her step, tugging at Ulysses' hand to hurry him along. She was eager to see all of her friends again, now that the Obsidian ...