The beast roared, his ursine throat straining as it broke into a dead sprint. A brown steed galloped down one of Kriedeberg’s abandoned passes. For every hoof that hit the snow, the bear drew closer with terrifying speed.
Aveline lowered her head, clutching the bundle of cloth. She drew her eyes tightly shut as the fabric wriggled in her arms. A tiny cry fluttered out like a candle’s flame.
Aveline jolted to a halt as the steed took its final steps toward a bottomless crevasse. The inconsolable wall of flesh and fur charged at her, stopping just beyond the tree line. The clacking of its jaw echoed in her bones. A smattering of drool dripped from a long lower lip. The bear pounced on the ground, swatting at the dirt. Deep, conscious eyes stared at Aveline. Her lips tightened as she raised a hand. The heavens above her thickened into a violent maelstrom.
Tears clouded her vision as she felt the familiar pins and needles in her arm. The bear’s claws pierced the earth, stampeding towards Aveline.
Lighting arced between her fingertips. Fur fell away from the bear’s skin, its paw taking the form of an outstretched hand. The horse began to rear as the once terrifyingly fast creature leaped at the saddle, hind legs taking the form of a man’s. A golden band shimmered as fingers barely scraped at the cloak in Aveline’s arm.
Aveline’s startled reflection stared at her through emerald eyes. The hairs on the man’s arm stood on end as the heavens opened into a column of brilliant light.
Flames erupted from his clothing. He smashed into a tree, its needles exploding into a cloud of white powder. His spine snapped against the trunk like the sinewy crack of celery.
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Aveline struggled to move. Her chest ached; her legs trembled. She raised herself off the ground, The cloak she carried sat limply by the cliff’s edge. She pulled it towards her, but it crumpled in on itself. She heard her name as boots scraped against ice.
The man reached out from the blood-soaked snow, teeth gritted. The rage and confusion turned to a muffled, half-empty scream of agony that Aveline couldn’t tune out. She raised herself from the pink snow, nursing a savage burn in her arm.
The man’s crackled sobbing turned into short gasps, melting away into silence. He slumped into the snow as blood from his wounds crept across the mud beneath him. Snowflakes danced in the air, melting once they touched his molten skin.
Torches illuminated the trees behind the broken body. The distant shouts of men were dampened by the thudding of snow as it fell from the pines. The clouds had cleared, drained by the tempest Aveline held in the palm of her hand.
Aveline stared down at her fingers, reddened by searing burns. Her cheeks raised; eyes stuck in silent shock as a stifled whimper leaped from her lips. A voice hissed, poison seeping into her skull.
Relinque eum. Mors misericordia.
A ring of light appeared behind her. The snow hung in the air around her burned body. Aveline stepped into the ring, disappearing as the sun rose against a newborn horizon.