Not a word was exchanged as they walked back through the cramped passageway.
The cold stone pressed close on either side, the same silence that had swallowed their footsteps on the way, swallowing them again on the way out, until the walls finally widened and daylight returned in a pale line ahead. They emerged one by one, and none of them looked back at the opening behind them.
It was not until they reached a rocky ridge overlooking the mountain range, well clear of the valley's mouth, that Robert allowed the group to stop and rest.
The change was immediate. Robert felt it the moment his feet settled on the open rock—the ordinary current of spiritual energy moving freely around him again, without the strange weight that had pressed against his senses since the moment they had stepped through the hidden passage. Sai exhaled slowly beside him, and Ronan rolled his shoulders as if shrugging something physical off his back.
