Thanks for all of the reviews. Sorry for the wait on this chapter. I had it written and then my computer decided to delete it all, then I couldn't remember what I wrote so I put it off for awhile. Anyway, this is a co-author story between echonymph and myself S.S. Dailey so from now on we will be alternating chapters (hopefully).

In response to a review by Delandred, that wasn't a typo in Chapter One. Alyssa is Pagan and therefore would say "Oh my Goddess" not "Oh my goodness."

Chapter Three

"Eimania!" Aly cried, struggling against the goo that now held her captive. The stupid troll, Jek, had taken Eimania. "Seamus, we have to get out of here!"

"Don't you think I know that?" Seamus growled, looking up at her from the ball of goo that he was enveloped in. "It's not like I can just bite my way out of this."

"Try something!" She looked around but realized that there wasn't much that she could do while glued to the cave wall. "The longer we're stuck here, the smaller the chance is that we'll be able to find Eimania. I refuse to lose a friend here." She gave an exasperated sigh as she realized how crazy this all was. This had to be a really bad dream. There was no way that they had all been pulled to a world where trolls were real and people had abilities. But then again, part of her wanted to believe that it was real because it would be an affirmation of her beliefs.

"What do you expect me to do?" Seamus asked. "I can't even wag my tail in this stuff." Seamus started rocking in the ball and a few moments later the ball started rolling around the cave. "WHEEEE!...uh-oh, I can't stop…Can't you use your powers?"

"Oh, right!" she exclaimed watching him roll around the cave floor. "I can try." She dug through the information that had been placed in her head and stumbled upon a possible solution. "It's water soluble!"

"Okay," Seamus yelled then started rolling out of the cave.

"Seamus!"

When no response came Aly began to worry about both of her friends. If she didn't free herself then Seamus could drown and Eimania could be taken somewhere by Jek, somewhere they couldn't find her. Aly closed her eyes and dug furiously through the information she had and when she found something she thought would work, she concentrated solely on making the goo disappear. She felt the goo disappear and then she began to fall, landing with a heavy thud on the ground. "OW! Damn, I should have realized I would fall." She stood up slowly, one hand massaging her sore buttocks. Then she ran out of the cave to look for Seamus.

"Seamus?"

Moments later she saw the small dog jump out of the stream and shake off the water. "By the way, that water is cold."

"Come on Seamus, we have to find Eimania." She looked around and saw two different trails: one leading into the forest and the other leading off into the countryside. "Can you pick up Nia's scent?"

"Do I look like a bloodhound to you?"

"Sorry…um, let's go this way." Aly pointed in the direction of the open countryside. "I don't feel comfortable enough with my abilities to go into the forest. Who knows what lives in there."

Seamus nodded in agreement and they started walking down the trail, not knowing where they were going or if they were even going in the right direction. The rolling green hills were speckled with yellow, pink, purple, and blue flowers and the sky was a beautiful bright blue. Everything seemed so peaceful and happy that Aly had to wonder if she were just dreaming. Surely such a place didn't exist.

Seeing how peaceful this countryside was just reminded Aly of what was going on in her home life. Her parents had been arguing a lot lately, though Aly could never tell what they were arguing about. It was strange for her to witness because her parents had always been in agreement and seemed to have as close to perfect as a marriage could get. She couldn't help but worry about what was going on there; if their arguments continued it could end with a divorce.

Aly shook her head. Now was not the time to be thinking of those things; the only thing she should be thinking of was getting Eimania back. After finding Nia she could worry about getting back home. "There is a way to get home, right? I mean, there has to be. There has to be balance everywhere so if there's a way in there has to be out. What if we can't find the way out? What if we're stuck here? What will my parents think?"

She was broken out of her thoughts when she heard Seamus give a low, deep growl. "What is it?" she asked before looking and seeing an old man on the path ahead, standing between them and a village. "Seamus, don't growl at him."

"Something doesn't feel right."

"Maybe he's seen Jek. I'm going to go talk to him." She started walking towards the man, hoping that he had seen Jek and they could get out of this world soon. "Excuse me," she called. "I'm looking for a friend of mine. Have you seen anyone go past here recently?"

The old man looked up at Alyssa and she was startled to see bright green eyes staring back at her. It was as if the man was looking inside her for something. "What are you looking for, Sorceress?" the man asked.

"A troll took a friend of mine."

"Why didn't you stop the troll? One with powers such as yours should have been able to handle one measly troll."

"Hey!" Aly exclaimed, insulted by the man's comment. "How did you know that I have powers? Who are you?"

"Ah, now that is a question isn't it. My name is Alexander Vega. I am the local magician so I can sense power. It wasn't hard to sense yours my dear, as I have only felt it in one other person." He sighed and looked towards the ground. "Unfortunately she's gone now…disappeared eighteen years ago. That was a sad, sad day."

"What was a sad day?"

"What do you mean by that? You must have learned of that day. Didn't your parents teach you anything?"

"I'm sorry, I'm not from around here."

"Ah…that explains why I'm getting a lot of mixed signals from you. The massive amount of power you hold is untrained. I can train you though. Come with me." Then Alexander Vega turned and started hobbling towards the village. Aly just stood there staring at the old man, not knowing what to do. If she followed him she could learn about her abilities but it would mean putting off finding Eimania.

"Are you coming Alyssa?" Alexander Vega called back after a few minutes. "I haven't got a lot of time you know."

Aly looked down at Seamus. "What do you think?"

"Oh, so now you want to listen to my opinion! I think we should try and find Eimania so we can go home but learning how to control your powers could help us find Nia. If we go try to find her and you still don't know how to work your powers, you could end up hurting someone."

"Okay, so we follow him?"

"Yes!" Then Seamus ran after the man, his ears flying away from his face and making him look like Jek somewhat. Aly lifted up her skirt and chased after him, wondering what she would learn from Alexander Vega. As she neared the man she slowed down and gazed at the village looming just ahead of her. There were many thatched roof homes and a few larger buildings erected almost as a circle around a huge fountain in the center of the village. Alexander Vega led her through the center of the village and Aly had to stop and gaze at the fountain. Etched on the side was a dedication.

Alexander Vega stopped and turned back to look at Alyssa. "The fountain was erected in honor of the most powerful sorceress this world has ever seen."

"She sounds very important and…special."

He nodded then continued to walk through the village. Aly followed him and they stopped at one of the larger homes. "This is where I live with my wife Lillian. We also have a small magic school just down the road." Alexander Vega opened the door and allowed Alyssa to enter first. She looked around at the place Alexander Vega lived in awe. It seemed so much larger than it looked. There were many bookshelves, all covered with books of the arcane and of other magical arts. There was a large table in the middle of everything and a decent kitchen stood off to the right. There were three doors to the left and Aly assumed they led to the bedrooms.

"Thank you for agreeing to train me. I can only hope that it will help to find Eimania. I hope she's alright."

"How she is depends on which troll took her," a woman's voice responded. Aly looked over to see an older woman walking out of the kitchen. "Alexander, you did not tell me that you were bringing company."

"I did not expect to bring company myself. Lillian, this is Alyssa, a young sorceress. Alyssa, this is my wife Lillian Vega." He looked at his wife. "Alyssa will be staying with us for a while as she learns how to control her abilities."

"She can't control them? At her age? That is something the novices learn before adolescence."

Aly looked at Lillian. "I didn't even learn of my abilities until yesterday," she admitted. "I'm a fast learner though. I'm sure it won't take much time at all."

Lillian stared into Alyssa's eyes, searching for the truth. After a few moments she turned away. "What is it?" Alexander asked.

"Her powers were bound by someone very powerful indeed. There must have been a reason for the binding. It makes me wonder if she were meant to learn at all."

"There also has to be a reason for the binding to break."

"Please, I need to learn all that I can. It is imperative for me to find my friend Eimania. Please, help me," Aly interrupted.

Alexander, Aly, and Seamus all looked at Lillian for her answer. After a few minutes Lillian nodded her assent. "We'll begin your training in the morning."