I sniffed around the spot, but there was not a shred of evidence that the portal had even existed. My wolf growled at Sam, but she just nudged me, and with an annoyed huff, I moved my focus back into the hallway.

We started to run in one direction, and I wasn’t sure about Sam, but I spent many minutes thinking about the fact that a magical portal had brought us here and we had no way to get back. I had no real regrets, except for the fact that I may have condemned my new friend to whatever fate lay in wait at the end of this path. Her choice to return to Torma was gone, though, so we’d just have to hope for the best.

Sam stayed with me as I picked up my pace, the landscape around us never changing. It wasn’t until we got a little farther along that I noticed several doorways scattered along the walls. I paused at one, sniffing beneath it, but there was no scent or feel of energy. If anything, they almost seemed like illusions, designed to distract, and with that in mind, I continued forward. My need to know what was at the end of the hall drove me; I’d come back for the doors if needed.

After another ten minutes of loping along, we still hadn’t reached an ending, and I was starting to despair that we’d found ourselves trapped in another cage. One much smaller than Torma, but without Torin, so… silver lining.

Just when I was about to give up and start exploring behind the doorways, a swirl of darkness caught my eye. It was a few yards away, and finally, it seemed we had reached the end of this hallway.

As we padded closer, the energy in this area grew stronger, and by the time we were near the portal, it started to hiss and spit power, as if it was malfunctioning. Or warning us not to go any closer. A warning I would be ignoring because I’d come this far on a hope and dream, and instinct told me my truth was on the other side of this hall.

Sam, to her credit, did not even show an ounce of hesitation in following me, and it was growing clearer that the browbeaten wolf-shifter side of her was fading back under the strong shifter she used to be. Maybe we’d find more than just my truth here.

The closer we got to the sparking vortex of darkness, the heavier the air felt, until we were all but wading through energy. For the first time, Sam fell back, her wolf whining at the magic coating everything. I could taste it on my tongue, briny and rather unpleasant. Like an ocean during a storm, when all the dirt and muck was stirred up, the blue and green waters turning grey and tumultuous.