Vix lay awake in the dead of night. Or it felt like the dead of night, at least. Day or night, everything was always dark and dismal here, within the heart of the mountains.

She sat with her back propped against a wall, deep inside the hidden passage that Mirra had opened. Hovering near the ceiling, Mirra’s ball of light hung, dimmed significantly, bathing the portion of passageway in a dim and dusky light.

A few hours ago, they had followed it along the passageway, looking ...