❆ ❆ ❆ ❆ Nine ❆ ❆ ❆ ❆

The Frost Realm

This cold was unlike anything Snow had ever felt. Frostblood are naturally resistant to the coldest temperatures, but this? This cold was biting, and she found herself shaking uncontrollably. A frostblood’s blood was incapable of freezing, or at least that’s what she was told. That fact was now under scrutiny. The worst came when a gust of wind blew, which felt like millions of tiny razors gliding across her face and hands.

This place was strange; besides the obvious issue of the temperature, there was no sun, and the sky was more white than blue. A forest was in the far distance ahead and an endless plot of ice rolled behind.

Snow began her journey towards the forest.

As Snow cautiously stepped, trying not to slip on the ice, she could feel a slight vibration with her feet.

Snow had an unending amount of questions, questions that were forcefully pushed to the back of her mind as her main goal was finding shelter against the elements.

Snow continued on until the vibrations slowly increased in intensity. The vibrations shook the ground like a slow heartbeat. Snow looked around once more and saw in the very far in the distance behind her, a figure. It was way too far to discern any features from it.

Snow shrugged it off and continued onward.

The closer the forest, the less of a barren wasteland this place was. The landscape became more natural the closer she got. However, the thudding vibrations on the ground were still growing stronger. Snow glanced back again and saw that the figure was slightly taller, but it was still a pin when put against the horizon.

After a few more minutes, the ice she was steadily walking on was now coated in a light layer of snow, allowing her footing to have more grip. The frostblade she had at her side began to vibrate too, causing her to stop.

“What is going on?” Snow turned back around and peeled her eyes at the figure behind her. She needed to know if that figure was really getting bigger. After twenty seconds of watching, Snow saw it was getting bigger.

“What is that?” Snow tried to discern what it was before a realization caused her eyes to widen. The figure was not getting bigger…

It was getting closer.

Snow turned heel and began to run towards the forest. The forest, which should have been a ten-minute walk, now had to be a one-minute sprint. Every time she glanced over her shoulder, the figure behind her doubled in size. She was still partially on the ice, and with every other step, she nearly slipped.

The ground boomed with ferocity with each step. The thing behind her was catching up fast.

Puffy piles of snow were scattered around on the border of the forest. Snow ran past them before swerving around, jumping inside one of them.

The ground boomed as the giant monstrosity exploded through one of the piles. It was thirty feet tall. It’s flesh was mostly ice with a few patches of skin. It looked horrific, It’s bones and organs could be seen through the icy flesh. Even half its face was gone revealing a part of its skull. The only describable word was: an abomination.

“EEEEEHHHHLLLLLAAAAAAAAAA!” The thing roared.

Lucky for Snow, she blended in perfectly in her white pile. The giant wandered around for a second, and just when it looked to lose interest, it turned and slapped its hand down on a pile. The pile exploded as a flower of crystalline ice erupted from it.

The giant walked up to the next pile and did the same thing.

The giant was looking for her.

With each slam, Snow flinched. It was only a matter of time before the giant would find her. She had the frostblade from her mother’s room, but that thing was a giant monster. The only option was to flee. However, Snow found that she couldn’t move.

The giant slammed down on the next pile. There were two left in between them.

(“Why can’t I move!”) Snow gritted her teeth, trying to move, and she couldn’t.

The giant slammed on the next pile. Snow could feel her bones shake from the vibration.

Only one pile was between them now.

Was it fear? The cold? The crystalline ice tore through each of the piles in what would be a painfully efficient way.

The giant stood right in front of Snow’s pile now. The giant held its hand in the air, casting a shadow over Snow.

Then, nothing happened.

The giant screamed before crying in pain. Snow could hear a tearing noise. The giant turned around, revealing bones growing from its back. The bones were engulfed in ice and were tearing through it’s flesh, leaking blue blood. The giant tried desperately to reach at its own back, spinning around repeatedly before stomping away.

After some struggle, Snow finally got up off the ground.

The forest was just in front of her.

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The trees here were more prominent than the ones back home, and there was a surprising amount of wildlife here. “How is this possible?” Snow looked up from the base of a tree. The birds that sat in its branches had blue eyes, similar to those of a frostblood.

The strange forest had now grown into a thicket. The trees were very close together, and a sea of bushes made seeing around her nearly impossible.

As Snow treaded through the sea of brush, noise rattled around her. She came to an immediate pause.

(“Great… what now.”)

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Snow lowered herself to not be seen. Multiple bushes shook all around her. Growls followed; it was a pack of wolves.

When trying to be quiet, you tend to notice the small details, the environment, where the noises are coming from, and each step you take. For Snow, she noticed that each step she took was a challenge; sticks and twigs littered the ground. If she wanted to build a fire, this place had all the wood she needed, but she couldn’t be here at a worse time. Watching her every step, she moved through the area away from the sounds of the wolves. She was nearly in the clear when one of the noises started moving fast towards her. She braced herself for what it was.

The creature popped out of the bush towards her left side. What sprang from the bushes wasn’t a wolf but a fawn, probably what the wolves were hunting. The fawn was frightened and sprinted, stepping on every single stick and bush it could possibly step on. Snow cursed to herself as the wolves started barking, and she could see lines of bushes move in her direction.

It was time to run again.

The forest started running downhill into a dark section. The only indication of daytime was the few rays of light that eluded the branches and leaves. Snow left the thicket and got behind a tree watching the area she just came from.

A dark wolf emerged from the bushes in search of her. The sniffing canine came close to picking up her trail, but it turned and went another direction.

Snow breathed a sigh of relief. Another close call. This place was no joke; there was danger around every corner. She continued her journey downhill until red eyes appeared in front of her, then to her left and right. The eyes growled and circled around her.

Snow pulled out the frostblade from its sheath. The frostblade began growing; it grew more extended, and the blade’s tip was slightly curved. The sword didn’t feel any heavier. In fact, it felt a lot more balanced. So how was it able to transform on its own? Perhaps because it was her mother’s own creation.

The wolves were almost her size, she had to be ready for the attack, or she could die here.

Snow started to freeze up again; she couldn’t move her body. Fear took over.

(“What is wrong with me?!”)

The wolf in front charged at her first.

Snow finally snapped out of it and readied herself.

The wolf jumped at her, and Snow threw herself to the right, swinging widely. The ice blade cut into the wolf’s side. Upon landing on the ground, the wolf whimpered and did not get back up.

“Yes!” Snow celebrated her hit but not a moment later, she turned her neck to see the other wolf mid-air with its fangs aimed at her face. She dropped the sword and put her arms up to protect her neck as the wolf crashed into her. Both she and the wolf tumbled down the hill together. The world spun around and around until they hit the bottom. She wrestled the wolf in her dizziness while it snapped its jaw repeatedly at her face. The sharp canine teeth snapped inches away from her face every half second. Its breath smelled like death, and its saliva was dripping all over her.

Snow’s adrenaline kicked in, and she found new strength. Finally, after some struggle, she managed to kick the wolf off her.

Snow only had a second to find her sword; it had slid down the hill with them and landed a few feet away. Snow quickly crawled towards the weapon sticking out of the ground when the third wolf sunk its teeth into her boot, pulling her back and tugging her away.

“Ah! Get off me!” she rolled on her back and pulled her leg back against the wolf. Unfortunately, the wolf was stronger, and she felt herself being dragged. Snow threw a few kicks at the wolf’s face, which resulted in the third wolf releasing her.

Snow turned to back to her weapon and crawled to it again. But unfortunately, the weapon was still too far, and the second wolf was already about to be back on her.

In one desperate stretch, snow threw her hand out to reach for the sword.

The sword vibrated in response and flew to her hand.

It surprised her at first, but Snow wasn’t going to question it. Instead, she turned to the side and held the blade up like a pike. The wolf pounced at her, and while the canine was mid-air, the blade grew into a new shape, a long spear, to which the wolf took a mouthful. Blood splattered on Snow’s face and clothes as the weapon poked out the back of its head.

The third wolf she had kicked in the face came around and bit into her arm. Snow cried out and began to punch the wolf in the nose repeatedly while it gnawed on her arm, refusing to let go.

“Let go, bastard!” The wolf yanked her arm, trying to rip it off like a hunk of meat, dragging her with each pull. As she was trying to punch it off, Snow felt a strong urge from something. The urge was so overwhelming she couldn’t ignore it.

(“The sword”)

Snow looked at the frostblade that was in the form of a spear. The other wolf was skewered through it, so the weapon appeared unusable. But when Snow’s fingers wrapped around the handle, the blade snapped off, and ice grew from it, forming a new weapon; a small dagger. She drove the dagger into the other wolf’s neck. It whimpered before going down and releasing her.

That was the last wolf.

The battle was over. She survived.

Snow laid her head down and caught her breath before pushing the wolf carcasses off her. She heard movement above her on the upper end of the hill. The first wolf with the wide slash across its side was still alive. It growled at her before running away, leaving a trail of blood.

Snow got up, limped to a nearby tree, and rested her back on its trunk. She looked at her bloody forearm. The wolf got her good.

“oww,” The wound was exposed to the cold air. Snow could see that her frost blood was trying to heal it, but it was struggling too, and it was painful. Something about this place was slowing her healing considerably. She didn’t have the knowledge or materials to stitch her arm close.

She did what she could, using a makeshift bandage with her arm sleeve, and followed the blood trail. The torn shirt was already saturated with blood. “There’s gotta be shelter somewhere,” Snow figured while trailing the wolf.

It was starting to get dark, and nightfall was approaching. Snow was feeling woozy, she needed to rest, but she needed to find a safer place. She followed the blood for what seemed like hours. The birds were no longer chirping, and the critters were nowhere in sight anymore. It seemed like she was all alone and there was a very ominous feeling. It was like the day was disappearing and taking all life with it. As the sky got darker, there was faint screaming she could hear, it was so soft enough that she didn’t know where it was coming from, but it started getting louder.

As it got darker, the land started changing. The trees were getting darker, and the soil was becoming black. Something was clearly wrong as the land was submerged in darkness that wasn’t just from the lack of sunlight. The frigid cold was turning into a blistering force that felt like it was eating away at her skin. She quickened her pace.

The darkness was all around her, and unlike the wolf’s presence, she felt she was being watched from every direction. Horrifying screaming was heard from beyond her vision as whispers fillied her ears.

Just what the hell was going on.

She finally caught up to the wolf she was following; it was dead. This was bad; it didn’t make it back to its den. Snow tried to calm herself down because this was not the time to panic. Where was it going? What is she going to do? Snow examined the carcass and saw the wolf dragging itself in a specific direction. She noticed a suspicious hole around some rocks in the distance that must have been its den. The wolf dragged itself to death, attempting to make it to shelter; that must of meant staying out here was certain death.

Snow rushed towards it. The screams were getting louder and louder. The whispers in her ear were now understandable. They were saying:

“Run…”

“Run…”

“Run…”

The cold was actually hurting her now. Tears that dripped down her eye started to freeze before they dropped off her cheek. She felt her frozen hair tapping against her back as she pushed herself to move. The leaves and the tree trunks around her started to freeze into solid ice. Snow pushed her legs as fast as they would let her. The freezing ice encroached on her from all sides. The entrance to the cave was right in front of her. Death was closing in all around her.

A few more steps and she would make it.

A few more steps, and she would be able to jump inside.

A few more steps and she would be safe.

A few more steps and she would live.

Snow dove towards the cave opening.

She hovered in the air for a moment, frozen in time.

Something grabbed her leg.

Snow hit the ground, and everything went black.