A/N: A bit of a backtrack from chapter 66 for clarity:

Before Casey was taken by the Viliath, she was becoming disillusioned by an act in which Oliver took a Gread's life. She didn't confront him after it occurred, but showed signs of losing it. When he finds her in the woods near Kapyn's mountain, she reacts to seeing the Tsiprith talon. When she enters the cave, she is suddenly hit with a flashback of meeting the Viliath. Her brain is beginning to catch up with events and register reactions.

Chapter 71 – The Passage Between

"Oliver, why are you doing this?" Her voice sounded detached, ricocheting inside her head as she knew it did through his.

"Why?" His response rang hollowly. "Why do you think and do for him, then look to me to help you? You have him in your heart, but it is for us that I –," He stopped and took possession of her other hand, emptied when the tremor from his touch had raced through her. The nymph glove was no barrier now; she felt the sensations mimicked by his presence in her mind. The water hitting the pool nearby gave a crystal ring, the cascading droplets instantaneously dividing into trillions of tiny musical dissonances. The towering walls around her were nothing; her mind passed around every object, and her ears listened to a stillness created by a roaring multitude of rhythms and sounds. She clung to him without defense, like a lodestone to iron. His breath rushed across her face. Her lips, pressed against her clamped teeth in panic at the awareness of his uncontrolled emotion flowing through her, felt that soft current like a battering ram. The mountain shook as the heat rose from the lithic chamber; and, suddenly, his fingers released hers. He stepped back, inhaling sharply. Her sight was restored as his mind freed hers, the dispassionate expression replacing what had broken through only seconds before; but not before a look of guilt crossed his features.

Steadily, he informed her, "Kapyn has entered the mountain. I will bring you the nectar." Casey's determination was shaken by the bizarreness in his manner. He gave her one last instruction, as he took the pathway to the cavern above. "If the pixies return, conceal yourself."

She watched unhappily as he disappeared beneath the rocky projection, disoriented and unwilling to be left to wrestle with her thoughts. Nothing seemed to make sense to her; and, once Oliver was no longer in view, she wondered whether she had just imagined the look of guilt she'd seen. Yet, it lingered, an expression she had never thought him capable of showing. It was as though he knew he'd committed some wrong. That seemed an implausible thing. Did he consider anything he did to be wrong? Perhaps that had not been what the expression meant at all.

She could hardly organize her thoughts into any semblance of order, much less try to interpret what had occurred. It placed her mind in a puzzling limbo, each thought a piece which must fit somewhere, hovering and waiting to be placed and settled; but concentrating on any one idea caused her thoughts to shift and scatter, eluding her attempts to comprehend the picture.

She sat down in front of the stone behind the waterfall, relieved not to be holding vigil over the waning Ivan. What if the nectar made things worse? She couldn't think about it. 'I need him to live,' she repeated inwardly. Thoughts of his face, his expressions and actions, came frequently to mind. At first they were tender reflections, but soon they became bitter reminders as she recalled their last words to one another. Her brain, despondent before, began to collect the varied thoughts until they came at her so quickly she held her breath to take it all in. Why, they had fought all the time! The antagonism had been there from the moment Ivan had ridiculed her that first night. He had a rough way about him, and she had chafed under his bullying. Ivan's captivity in Dreone had fostered in him an incessant need to be in control. Perceiving the underlying powerlessness, she had preyed on it, questioning his every move and thought. This had been worse for her because she had needed his guidance. Yet, pridefully, she had resisted his help until he had reacted to her not only with distrust, but caustic scorn. The more worthless she had become in his eyes, the more she'd treated him with disdain until both were steadily fixated on disliking the other. The impetus to compete with him had grown in her with each encounter, and the mean, cyclical game took on an established object: the portal. While he had plotted to outwit the dragon to attain his end, she had plotted to outwit him. Now the truth was revealed to her: she would never have persisted in being admitted through an elusive portal without the rivalry with Ivan. Nor could she triumph over an opponent who lay dying. The real fight had been within her, perceiving her worth through the eyes of a fellow-survivor just as lost and frustrated as she.

The heaviness around her heart returned as she moved to pick up Ivan's sack. Settling cross-legged before Oliver's shelter once more, she untied the knots and looked into the bag to find the empty sheath of perfect paper. Where was Ivan's Glader? The light had begun to dwindle, and she heard a familiar thrumming. She covered her bare arm and hand with the cloak and hurried to find refuge in the upper chamber, placing herself behind the stalagmites which rested like columns along the hollowed passages of the mountain. Nursing her cut knee, which had grown stiffer, she stayed in the lumin-lit chambers, unsure when it would be safe to emerge again. She heard snatches of the pixies' flights, coming and going, but they did not enter the cavern.

The temperature was still rising, and the heat at her face made it difficult to breathe deeply. The dragonflies, congregating around her, made the close atmosphere more unbearable. Occasionally, she lifted her hand to fan them from view, though they were never persuaded to go far from her. She focused on them, irritated and wishing they weren't so loud. She was retreating into herself, her mind roused and intent on seeking out the missing pieces.

"Your heart is like a vein of finest sezo, bright and untarnished…

"Warmth alters the finest sezo…"

The thoughts exploded out of nowhere. Oliver called her 'Sezo' all the time. She liked it; it made her feel cherished. Was sezo the shiny-looking metal which he'd touched on the floor of Kapyn's pit, turning it a glowing pale purple? It was pretty. It also looked valuable. The fear of being of no value, made worse by her battles with Ivan, had wreaked havoc on her spirit. Far from belittling her, Oliver treated her like a priceless gift; and she had followed his lead, bolstered by his promises of something more, something better. And he had awakened a myriad of doubts within her, pointing to the red stone for the answers, having bound himself to its protection. She thought of the sezo person's crown in the picture, held aloft, and the raised, red jewel. What would it be like to possess a lovely gem like that, to display it on her head? Was that stone supposed to be the Gnosis? Oliver had said the Gnosis was too great for someone to control. Did the Gnosis really have the answers? Why had it closed the portal? Oliver didn't seem to know why. What else didn't he know?

The dragonflies around her began to twist and circle again. Briefly, she rejoiced when they moved away; but then she felt their excitement and closed her eyes to stay with them as they flew from her in a swarm. The flashing noises of rhythms came and went as they zoomed around the structures throughout the grotto. It was a dizzying feeling and she welcomed it; it took her mind away from its flurried ruminations. Soon she found the endless crepitations were being rehearsed, like the spiraling series of motions she had seen them performing in the forest. It was as though they were teaching one another, sharing their information through a simplistic form of telepathy. The rhythms began to fade from hearing, and she looked up to find they had gone from her, weaving in and out of distant recesses.

Casey concentrated on their connection, wondering how far they could go before she wouldn't sense them at all. If the Gnosis opened the portal again, would she be able to hear mind rhythms from home, like Oliver had heard hers? What if the portal was never opened again and her dragonflies never made their first flight home? What if she spent the rest of her days in Dreone hiding from pixies and helping Oliver watch over Kapyn and the Gnosis? She sighed unhappily, wishing he would return soon.

She was so alone suddenly. Where had the dragonflies gone? Feeling uneasy, she stood up. Listening for them, she followed the soft crackling patterns into Kapyn's lair. Holding the hood of her nymph cloak close to her face, she crept into the dragon's chamber at the stiff gait her sore knee allowed. The chamber was thick with smoke. There were small mounds of sizzling ash and flame in places now. The heat wrinkled in the chamber as she peered around the base of the high platform. She was behind the dragon as his head rested near the sealed portal, his tail toward her. She could see the soft illuminating change of the sezo tiles Oliver had uncovered, the conspicuous red jewel in the mosaic catching her eye. She thought Kapyn was sleeping until he lifted his head when the dragonflies flew around her, latching onto the sounds of her mind. He turned his long neck to cast his crimson eyes on her apathetically. She saw the figure standing before him then. The prince was in Kapyn's pit, as well. Lowering his head, the dragon snorted lethargically as he watched her. Casey didn't move, but eyed them both cautiously, a tinge of suspicion awaking.

She continued to stare after them, and Kapyn's breathing came faster. He seemed tired, but agitated. She backed away toward the shelter of the calcified columns, viewing him as he lifted himself fluidly and reared back on his haunches. She knew that routine well and sprinted for a cavity, burying her head as the heat of the flames billowed out. Choking on the fuliginous air, she stumbled along, heart pounding as she tried to put distance between her and the dragon. Was she crazy? Why had she entered when she'd known Kapyn was there? Why wasn't he sleeping? What had Oliver been doing?

"Sezo!" It came as a whisper, and she turned to see the prince coming toward her. She crawled out of the rocks. Her face held no smile of greeting.

"Did you find the nectar?" she asked, her eyes narrowed. Oliver opened his hand to reveal a wet, leafy packet and place it into her palm.

"That picture next to Kapyn," she began, even though she didn't want to ask. "That red stone is supposed to be the Gnosis, isn't it?"

He nodded. She turned away and began to walk through the cavern, considering the questions which lingered in her mind. She was filled with an apprehensive concern that she knew the answers, and they would not be what she wanted to hear. She faced him again at the side of the stream. "What happens if Kapyn dies and the portal is still sealed?"

"The portal is bound to the Gnosis, not Kapyn."

"But what happens if Kapyn dies? Will the Gnosis-,"

He halted as she stepped toward the lower level. "Go. Give the nectar to Ivan."

She drew toward him, whispering, "Oliver, am I the sezo person?" Her voice held every ounce of the anxiety she felt.

"You asked me once about Axioni, and I told you of its endlessness. It is the passage between Axioni and your home which is the realm of the Gnosis. That is why you were brought here, why every human has been brought here. The Knowing has been searching for the heart of sezo, and opened the Karshra of Dreohan to find it – to find you."

She swallowed, studying his luminous eyes. "Oliver, I told you, if you helped me get home, I wasn't coming back. Is that why the Gnosis is trying to stop me?"

He shook his head. "The Gnosis will not prevent you from returning." There was something about his expression that kept her from asking how he knew.

"What about Ivan? He needs to go home, too." She saw he meant to dismiss her question and tried again. "You were talking to the Gnosis, weren't you?"

He gave a slight smile. "No one talks to the Gnosis. The Gnosis alone speaks."

"What did it tell you?" When Oliver hesitated, she pressed, "It told you something about Ivan, didn't it? Did it tell you the nectar is going to work?"

"The Knowing does not tell the future. If you wish to know whether the nectar will work, give it to your friend." He motioned for her to go, and she thought briefly of the look of guilt that had been on his face earlier. He seemed more satisfied. He knew something. Why wouldn't he tell her?

The lumins gave light to her way as she returned to the stone behind the waterfall. It was only when she was centimeters from Oliver's dwelling she saw the rock had been pushed back. The first thought that came to her was of the pixies. Had they found a way to get to him? She slid through the opening and ran to the hollow quickly, gritting her teeth at the tenderness of her knee. What she saw took a second and third glance. Ivan was gone. Nothing was in the hammock but the container she'd used to give him Zource, and it fell to the floor with an empty thump as she shifted the pelt. Even though she knew the area was too small to hide him anywhere, she made a complete circle, searching every cranny. Her hand went to the shelf in the wall. It was empty. She bent painfully to the floor, feeling where the shadows would not allow her to see. The knife and Oliver's bag of Zource weren't there. She rose and searched the larger room, finding Gread darts in one niche along with berries and nuts. There was a large satithril cloth, and a long staff which rested in a corner with a sharp metal point; but there was no knife or Zource.

Her mind closed on the only alternative she could grasp, and she stepped from behind the waterfall, calling Oliver's name. When he didn't respond, her brows lowered in uneasiness. She flung the parcel of nectar on the ground in exasperation. Why hadn't she stayed there and kept the pixies from stealing him? How had they carried him off?

"Oliver! He's gone! Ivan's gone!" She teetered, limping across the jutting stones that would prevent her from slipping, as she made her way to the inner cavern.

"Casey." She heard the voice and halted, disbelieving.

"Ivan?" Her knee opposed the acceleration of her climb; but she didn't heed it. Under the rock divide she appeared and saw the figure concealed by dragonskin and shadows. In his hand was his knife.

A/N: I never can seem to kill him, can I?

Healed535: "It almost seems like she has been willfully ignorant of his feelings this whole time." I think you're right. And he's helped her to stay ignorant, since he has kept his passion in check. Wonder why. "I feel like she and Ivan have an abusive relationship." Hm. He does have a bad temper. After this chapter, do you think she seems to have relished the idea of conquering him? "But she needs to check her reactions and feelings for him, because I feel like they are very irrational." I agree. She's been duping herself, not even comprehending her own motivations. Come to think of it, choosing to be willfully ignorant is irrational, too. We all like to put a rosy hue to what we want to do, regardless of whether it's rational or right. I always look forward to your analyses of the Casey/Ivan & Casey/Oliver interactions!

Quiet Mindreader: Nope. Lol. No pockets in nymph cloaks. (Zource) "Did he think it might harm her?" Yes. At that point, he didn't know enough about her, nor does he trust Zource. "Ah, so the Zource comes from the Arched Mountain!" The mountain is mentioned in chapter 10, though its relevance there was unclear. It is the place Oliver met Zakree and obtained Zource. "Or are they forbidden from entering all caves?" They do not go into caves unless they are inscribed like their dwellings. This and their rules against having Zource are both pixie code. You are the best for helping me consider how things piece together in this story, you know that?

Triva: "Your characters are symbolic in themselves, but at the same time they are so painfully, gorgeously human..." Wow. I don't know what to say… It makes me feel awesome that you can relate to their humanness. Thank you.