Prince Bennett grew up listening to tales of adventures from the kings knights, and the thirteen-year-old prince longed for adventure. Learning of a military excursion led by his uncle to the Southern Mountains, Bennett convinced his father, the king, to allow him to join his uncle. Along their route, Bennett became intrigued by a young lady he met at an inn. When he saw her again in the city of Cortus, he arranged to spend time with her. He found her company refreshing and challenging because she didnt deliberately allow him to win games and she wasnt afraid to disagree with him. It was a new experience for the prince. As the kings son, Bennett was accustomed to giving orders and not following anyones rules except for those of his parents. Melissa decided to go in search of her missing cousins and to retrieve the magical talisman called the Zoldox, which kept away the Edu, cavern-dwelling creatures who emerged from their caverns at night to scour the countryside in search of food, which included humans. Bennett agreed to accompany Melissa even though he knew that such an adventure was almost certain to fail. Together they came up with a workable plan to get through the caverns to the other side of the mountains. It worked, but along the way, they have terrifying encounters with the Edu. Once through the caverns, Prince Bennett and Melissa face a new threatbandits. They both became prisoners of the outlaw leader, Thoe. His cleverness and good planning enabled Bennett to free himself and Melissa and retrieve the Zoldox.