CHAPTER 2: HEART OF ICE

Carla strutted up the cold stone stairs that lined the path to the castle’s hall. Her long black cape was stained white by the snow that poured down and in from the entrance. The many antechambers and rooms she crossed were silent but for the scraping of the steel plates that formed her suit of armour. The furnishings sat unused and dusty. It appeared to Carla as a place frozen in time. A place that had been abandoned as it was and left untouched since.

She tried to imagine what the castle may have looked like at its peak. She pictured bustling servants running back and forth carrying all manners of trinkets, foods and decorations. The bellowing laughter of warriors returning from their hunt. The sound of children’s laughter as the lord’s issue failed to pay attention to their tutors. A thought that made her smirk.

As all good things, the emotion faded quickly. An emptiness was left that could never be filled. Emptiness is all Carla knew. The rage that decided her actions for the past year had since faded, leaving an endless indifference. Perhaps even regret.

She reached the entrance to the hall and paused at the doorway. At the end of a large and finely crafted feasting table stood a man dressed in a fine turquoise tunic framed by a fur-lined deep blue cloak. His hair was dark and long. He stood in contemplation while observing the view outside the large window opening that framed his figure.

“Marcus?”

“Ah, Carla my dear. I trust the journey was without concern?” His voice was warm and full while his pronunciation was elegant and well practised.

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“There isn’t much left to give concern.”

“Thanks to us.” Marcus lifted the golden goblet he was holding as a toast. It contained a liquid that looked as wine.

Carla reluctantly approached him. As she arrived at his side she averted her gaze from him to outside the same window. Frost covered mountains spanned as far as the eye could see.

“Haganhalt survives another day,” remarked Marcus.

“Do you want me to finish it?”

“No need. A dear friend of ours will ensure their end by the fortnight. There is however a dwarfish hold that may require your hand. Just north of Haganhalt, Gotsfjall I believe it’s called. The Dwarfs' infamous stubbornness truly knows no bounds.”

Carla nodded slowly. “I’ll see it done,” she replied softly.

“Don’t look so glum! Nearly all of the Midlands is ours. After that, the world!”

Carla looked into his enthusiastic eyes. She did her best to reciprocate his smile and mustered a nod that she hoped would communicate appreciation. Marcus sighed sympathetically.

“Not to worry. Once all is said and done, there will be naught but bliss for you and I. You won’t ever forget what you lost, but your mind will be occupied with what you are to gain.”

Carla did not say anything. The thought of feeling some semblance of happiness again seemed so distant from her. Marcus had however won her confidence. She decided that she would continue to put her trust in him, not that there was an alternative. Perhaps she would regain what she lost. Perhaps she would feel as she once did. There was however a lingering voice that whispered otherwise. No matter how confident Marcus was, she somehow knew that his plans were not the solution she once believed they were.

She began to feel the return of memories that she did not wish to remember, so she felt it best to waste no time in fulfilling Marcus’ request. Without a word, she turned away from the view of the mountains and began her march out the castle. Keeping herself occupied was the only method she knew to keep away the pain that threatened to overcome her at every moment.