The heat increases with every breath. Cracks hidden in the walls serve as natural steam vents, and we have to step around some in the floor of the tunnel, too. I hope we don't encounter any too large to pass. A dragon might have been able to slither over large vents, but the passage was obviously not made for small human feet.

It feels like we walk for miles. The passage gets steeper, and sweat trickles down my spine. It's so warm, my hand slips out of Ren's grasp. I miss the comfort of it, but I don't think I could hold on if I tried.

"Do you think we'll be able to get back up the passage?" Ren asks nervously.

I eye the path in front us—a steep drop. "I hope so," I say, though I'm not as certain as I sound.

To our relief, we soon reach a section that levels out. "I wonder how far down we are," Ren says.

"Perhaps halfway into the mountain?" I guess.

Smoke and steam puff at us from vents in the walls as we reach a large cavern, big enough for a clan of dragons—or one with a particularly large stash of treasure.

Ren holds his torch high, revealing a massive pile of glittering stones that fills the cave. Rubies and emeralds on one side, diamonds and sapphires on another—a whole rainbow of colors winking before us.

I have never seen so many riches in one place in my life—which is saying a lot, since I grew up in a palace.

Ren's eyes are as big as saucers as he takes it all in. "Where do we even start?" he asks, then shivers. "You don't think a dragon could still be alive down here somewhere, do you?"

I notice the warren of tunnels shooting off from this room. I shiver, too. "Of course not. Dragons are extinct. The wizards made sure of that. We have nothing to fear."

I hope.

"I'll take the left side." Ren points to the rubies and emeralds. "You start on the right. If it's here, the Wizard's Bane will be in this pile somewhere."

I sigh. "Yes, but we don't even know what it looks like. Not really, just vague descriptions."

The books have described it as a stone of simple beauty. All of these stones here are simply beautiful, too. How will we know which one to choose? We can't take the entire treasure trove home with us.

Ren dives into the rubies—literally. I stifle a laugh.

Riches are good to have—useful, even—but they've never brought me true happiness. They can't buy me an escape from the wizard.

Ren holds up the rubies, glittering in the glow of the torchlight. "Would it be all right if I take some of these with me?" he says. His face bears an odd expression I can hardly make sense of. Yet I think I know why he asks, and my heart drops into my feet.

"I don't think the dragon will come back to claim them, if that's what you mean," I say.

Ren frowns. "No, if I were—"

"We must hurry," I say, cutting him off. "The guards were right on our tail. They'll find this entrance eventually. We have to locate the Wizard's Bane before they do."

His face falls, but he nods his agreement. Getting the Wizard's Bane is all that matters today. We continue our search in hurried silence, fearful that the guards will discover us any second. Before we find what we need.

I paw over diamond tiaras; rough, uncut gems; and necklaces with stones as big as my fists that would break my back to wear. But nothing that says simple beauty. I toy with the idea that it might be one of the uncut diamonds, but in truth they are not very beautiful at that stage and I toss them aside, disappointed.

Ren makes slower progress through his pile, and I pace the cavern. Could it be hidden in an alcove or somewhere easily overlooked?

Or not here at all?

I push that thought aside and keep walking. It must be here. I can't allow myself to think anything else or I'll curl up on this floor in the awful heat and cry. We've come too far to fail now.

Several small caves branch off from this cavern, and I begin to investigate each one. I don't go too far down any of them, just enough to see where they lead. Most end quickly, while one or two are full-on passages. Some have altars with what appear to be offerings from long ago. Desiccated fruit and spices, more jewels, animal bones, rock piles dot the caves—more evidence that a real dragon living here, and that the locals paid it respect.

Something stops me in my tracks.

I return to the last alcove I passed, the one with a small rock formation on the stone altar. They seemed so plain at first glance that I barely gave them a second thought. But on closer examination, they're not all chunks of granite like I assumed. They're setup in a semicircle with four forming a half moon, and one larger rock in the center. It resembles a blinking eye.

At first glance it seemed gray, but up close it has a luminescence to it. In fact, if I stare hard enough, its insides shimmer and swirl. I pick it up carefully, holding my breath and ready for the walls to cave in on us.

The walls remaining standing, but the stone tingles in my palm.

"Ren!" I shout. "Ren!"

He drops the crown he's holding and runs over. He touches the stone tentatively.

"How do you know it's the Wizard's Bane?" he asks.

"Look closer," I say. "Look how the innards move. Like there's something alive inside it. It was in the center of the altar over here." I point to the alcove where I found it. "It was treated like something special."

He eyes the stone warily. "It doesn't look special to me," he says.

I laugh, heady with a certainty I can barely explain. "Here," I say, dropping the stone into his outstretched palm. "See for yourself."

His eyes widen in surprise. He must feel the tingling sensation, a prickling of magic that lies just below the surface.

"I think you're right," he says. I smile.

I take the stone back and slip it into my pocket. "We should go, before the guards drag us from the cave."

Ren sends a longing glance at the piles of jewels before following me up the steep incline of the passage. We have to scramble over sharp rocks in the oppressive heat. It's much harder going up. My foothold slips once, sending me careening down a drop of five feet. I hit the ground hard, but only suffer bruises.

"Rosabel!" Ren cries. "Take this." He pulls a rope from his pack and tosses one end down to me. "Tie it around your waist. We'll keep each other balanced."

"Thank you," I say, grateful he has thought of everything.

Our ascent is slow, but steady now. I slip less with the rope to hold onto and Ren's stable presence ahead. When I begin to believe I'll never be cool again, daylight breaks into the passage. Just a sliver of it is enough to make joy well up in my chest.

"Almost there," Ren whispers.

We reach the bend in the passage and extinguish our torch, but do not dare exit yet. We can't see around the corner without anyone just outside seeing us. We must be mindful of the guards.

"Should we risk it?" Ren whispers.

I shrug. "We can't stay in here forever. We've been inside long enough that they may have moved on by now."

Very slowly, we creep out from behind the corner and into the blinding light of midafternoon.

"Princess," says a low voice that makes my heart sink, "thank goodness we've found you." Hands grab my arm before I can react. Ren is caught, too.

"Aron, you can let us go—we're returning to Bryre. You don't have to treat us like captives," I say to the captain of my father's guards. He's one of the few people who knows my face, which must be why he was sent to retrieve me. He's always been kind, and is by no means an unreasonable man.

He looks at me sadly. "I'm sorry, Your Highness, but I have my orders to bring you back. I must see that through. Forgive me, but we'll keep you and your friend as comfortable as possible."

We're led back over the lava field toward the forest. More guards hide in the trees than I thought at first. We won't be able to escape this time. But at least we're headed in the right direction. The weight of the Wizard's Bane in my pocket comforts me.

It doesn't matter if my parents lock me away forever. We have what we came for.