My head felt like I was lost in an unbelievable fog; like I was wandering in a bleak and endless room, completely alone, completely empty. I blinked, light streaming into my eyes and cutting through the haze forcing me squint in order to see.

As far as I could tell I was still inside the barn, but the ropes cutting into my wrists and restraining me against a pillar assured me that I wasn't alone. I struggled, writhing under the tight grip of the ropes in order to break free, to no avail.

"Ah, so you're finally awake." I heard Kevin chuckle from the secrecy of the shadows. "You know, I had no idea I could pull such a strong reaction from you. I mean who would have guessed you would faint just from that."

"Why don't you show your face like a man?!" I yelled angrily in the direction of his voice. "And what do you want with me anyway, Ben's not here!"

"What makes you think I'm after Ben?"

"Years of experience! Now let me go!" I screeched.

That's when I remembered something. I wasn't completely powerless; I still had my spells, my magic, enough that I could free myself from these bindings. All I had to do was keep him distracted, keep him talking and I might be able to escape.

"If you're not after Ben then what is it that you want?"

"I think that's an obvious answer considering you're already here."

"Why would you want me, I haven't seen you since I was ten, and that was eight years ago. Plus, it's not like we got along back then either." Just a few more moments and I would be free; I could feel the ropes loosening their grip.

"True, but it didn't start out as this being my goal. As soon as I escaped from my prison in the null void all I wanted was my revenge on you and you're pitiful cousin. That's where you came in; if I were to capture you then Ben would come to rescue you without a second thought. It was the perfect lure."

"So this really is about Ben." I rolled my eyes at his predictability.

"Nope. I watched you for a few weeks, figuring out your schedule, what the best moment to capture you would be. I have to say, I never expected that you were so fascinating. You seemed to jump at every chance to get out of your house. You would sneak away in the middle of the night to master your power and I would follow, watching from a distance…"

"Okay…Creep" I shuddered at the thought of him peering into my house while I slept, or following me in secret.

"Now Gwendolyn, that isn't a very nice attitude, is it?" he raised his eyebrow and cocked his head to the side as he stepped forward and out of the shadows.

With every step he took towards me I struggled faster and faster to escape from the ropes. Then when he was about a step away, I felt them slide off my wrists and grant me my freedom. I smirked and got to my feet, racing for the door. I didn't get very far, however, as a large hand clamped around my wrist and pulled my back after I had taken two steps.

With a forceful tug I was sent reeling back into the arms of my captor where I was locked into his grip with no chance of escaping.

"Now Gwen…Do you really think it'll be that easy?"

With these words and a smirk his lips were pressed against mine and I could feel his warmth as he held me still against the barn wall. Tears streamed down my face but I couldn't find the will to break free, as if I was immobilized by him. I could feel the anger swelling inside me as his tongue parted my lips and traced the inside of my mouth. My anger seemed to grow stronger and stronger with every moment that passed and I could feel a great power well up inside of me.

All of a sudden we fell backwards and my head spun with confusion. Wasn't there a wall supporting me a few seconds ago? He stopped his kiss and pulled away, clearly as confused as I was yet never letting go of my wrists. We scrambled to our feet and looked around. There before us was no longer the old barn we had been standing in, but a great city unlike anything I had ever seen.

The walls were all constructed from large stone blocks and under our feet was desert sand. The sun was blaring down on us as we looked around, strange people staring back at us. It was like was had been transported into ancient Egypt or something, nothing was new or sleek and everyone had dark skin with either brown or black hair. I took a step backward, as if doing so would bring me back into the barn that had now disappeared.

"Where are we?" I heard Kevin mumble under his breath.

I took another step back while he was distracted and when he didn't notice, I took the opportunity to run. I ran about five meters and then was stopped when a man riding a horse galloped into my path. I fell backward and heard Kevin call my name as he ran towards me, who was unable to get up after falling.

It took Kevin not even a few seconds to reach me, and then he helped me to my feet. I looked up at him as I took his hand, but his gaze did not meet mine, he was glaring in another direction. I followed his gaze and only then did I realize that the man who had almost crushed me with his horse was still standing in front of us.

" " he stated in a language we didn't understand.

"Um, I think he's trying to talk to us." I thought aloud to myself.

"No… really?" Kevin stated back sarcastically. "Any ideas on what he's saying?"

I looked at the man for a minute in confusion. Millions of questions were racing through my mind. Where was I? How did I get here? Who was this guy who had almost crushed me under his horse's hooves? Then something dawned on me. In an instant I yanked my hand away from Kevin's realizing that our fingers had been intertwined the entire time. The man on the horse looked at me with large black eyes, obviously confused by my sudden gesture of malice towards Kevin. I side stepped slightly, doing everything possible to avoid brushing skin with Kevin again; the last thing I wanted was the unwelcome appearance of more shivers shooting up my spine.

"You speak English?" the man on the horse asked after another moment of staring at me, then glancing at Kevin.

"Yes," I stated, taken by surprise by the fact that he did too. "Where are we?"

"This is Phermotia, my kingdom." He replied in his thick alien accent. "Who are you?"

"Don't answer that." Kevin intersected, interrupting our conversation. "How do we know we can trust this guy?"

The man looked at him in annoyance, then back at me. "Come," he stated with a smile. "Allow me to show you to the palace." He whistled and another horse came galloping over so quickly that if he hadn't pointed it out I would have thought it had just appeared.

I looked at the horse, then at Kevin. There was only one more horse and two of us and I was leery about sharing with the person who had kidnapped me. Before I could suggest that I walk, I felt Kevin's hands wrap around my sides and a surge of shivers shot through where his hands rested. Once again, I was unable to push him away or even speak, as if his touch had a paralyzing effect on me. He hoisted me into the saddle on the horse and raised an eyebrow at me when he sat behind me so close that we could have held a piece of paper in between our bodies.

"Now Gwendolyn," He grinned deviously. "You weren't expecting anything were you?"

I elbowed him in the ribs fiercely without turning around, only to have him wrap his arms around me in response and grab the reins. I could feel his breath on the back of my neck and his warmth sinking into my back from where we were pressed together. My heart beat furiously against my chest as I struggled to keep calm, reminding myself that this was Kevin I was pressed against as the kiss from the barn flashed through my mind. I didn't notice until later that we were already moving when the palace came into view and broke off my train of thought. Kevin still had his arms around me and I was leaning into him on the horse to ensure I wouldn't fall off, yet I didn't seem to mind. We crossed the last stretch of land before reaching the palace, Kevin's warmth sending shivers up my back with every step of the horse.