Little Water didn’t expect her meeting with her sister to go so well. It was suspicious how quickly Good Light had given into her request. Suspicious that she had given in at all. Little Water had been prepared to sacrifice half of everything she would ever own as well as her first three clutches. Receiving a treasure like the majesty’s scale was for free was beyond her comprehension but she didn’t pause long enough to question the strange turn of events.

Her next stop was to the storage rooms. Not the larger ones near the surface that contained food and water, but the smaller ones near her sisters’ caverns. They contained trinkets from the old continent, as well as what their warriors brought back from other lands.

Some of it decorated her sister’s caverns, namely the furniture and better fabrics that caught their attention, but most of it had sat in the same place for centuries, remembered only by the workers that occasionally dusted them off. Including large piles of gold bars and chests containing hundreds of uncut gems.

Little Water took a moment to remember the human’s face when she showed off the brood’s trash, amazed that he’d called them treasures. The shinier pieces were sometimes used to decorate her sisters’ rooms but the rocks and metals were entirely useless to the brood. She couldn’t believe that humans fought and killed for them. Remembering the story, she stuffed as much as she could in two sacks before carrying them to the surface.

The nameless followed her instructions well and waited on the main road of the false city alongside three sleds. Each of them wore long cloaks with hoods long enough to hide their long necks and mouths when they bowed their heads. No bulges or seams gave away the presence of weapons, which was a good thing. Hers was not a strong group. If possible, Little Water would like to avoid fighting but from the stories she was told, human society would not be so accommodating. Their one advantage was surprise.

Staring at them, the young estrazi felt the impossibility of her mission keenly. She could feel it bearing down on her shoulders like a physical weight as she tied her treasures to a sled and ordered the nameless to push.

The night was quiet as a grave as they started their journey. Nothing marked her reckless decision that could change the fate of every creature on the continent. The silence made her think the world didn’t care at all. Reminded her how insignificant she was. A dozen of her sisters were better qualified for such a mission but since none of them cared, fate had to settle for her.

The nameless were used to intensive labor. With their brisk pace, it didn’t take long before they had cleared the city and were no longer treading a smooth, if slippery, road. Pushing through the snow that seemed to become deeper with each step, Little Water felt her stamina quickly waning She could easily cross the snow and ice with her magic but it had to be preserved for when they inevitably encountered a threat.

She didn’t try to maintain her dignity for long and sat on the lightest sled, using the bags for cushioning. Not once did she care for the extra burden on the nameless pushing her forward. Females sacrificed physical strength for magical talent. It was the way of things for the males to take the burdens. Her mother, what she and all her sisters aspired to be, hadn’t gotten to her feet since her mountain was completed, letting her children be her hands and limbs. It would be more unreasonable to think she could keep up with their pace.

They hadn’t gone too far when, suddenly, the dark night was illuminated by a tall plume of fire, accompanied by a wave of warm air. “Stop!” she hissed, standing to get a better view. Her heart pumped fiercely as she watched the pillar of flames shift colors. Red, blue, white, yellow, green, purple. Unnatural colors.

She rapidly drew conclusions. There was both a Good Fire and a Great Fire amongst her sisters. Either of them could have created the magic she was witnessing but only one had the temperament. Great Fire was notoriously volatile. Her idea of fun was testing her spells against titans. She was the only one reckless enough to unleash such large spells, essentially gambling with her life each time.

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After centuries of birthing daughters, the brood only had two females with the fire affinity. They tended to die young.

Despite her fall from grace, the Defiler was still a majesty. Their dominion over magic was unparalleled. Buried under her opposing element and sealed by the magic of her siblings, she could still manipulate fire as easily as breathing. Especially large concentrations of it. Every time such a spell was launched, it was a chance for the Defiler to lash out at the ones guarding her prison.

After the first time a previous Fire had carelessly launched a spell that the Defiler detonated, destroying the original false city and killing hundreds of estrazi, including the ignorant female who’d only wanted to practice her magic, there was a deep distrust for the affinity. For a time, it was thought that any estrazi born with it were cursed.

The belief that affinity influenced personality was a myth propagated by too many stereotypes. Yet, it was undeniable fact that estrazi females born with the fire affinity tended to be hot-tempered. The type prone to launching big spells on the surface despite knowing that a malevolent dragon could take control of them. Generation after generation, none heeded the warnings of Great Mother.

The brood was not a warm place and it had nothing to do with the cold land they found themselves on. They were all related by blood but there was no familial warmth between them. The females were pragmatic before anything else. If they thought their sisters might be a problem, they wouldn’t hesitate to get rid of them.

There were several generations of the elder females suffocating and bludgeoning their newborn sisters the moment they saw red scales. When that was frowned upon, they took to throwing them into the sea, giving them directly to the Defiler.

Only an order from the Great Mother stopped the massacre. Still, those of the fire affinity weren’t treated well. Their every action was scrutinized, looking for the slightest hint of the supposed curse. As a result, most of them grew up timid. Some even refused to explore their magical potential. That was Good Fire, who’d had the same name for over a century.

Great Fire was a strange exception. Estrazi knew no fear but she took it to another level. She knew no hesitation. The eyes watching her, the brood, and the Defiler all be damned, she’d flaunted her magic nearly from the day she hatched. She threw spells around the surface as if daring the evil dragon to curse her.

Miraculously, it had never happened. Whether Great Fire was protected by fate or the Defiler had truly let go of her anger, as father claimed, her spells had never been detonated. She practiced for decades without issue. Many hoped that the curse was finally broken.

The Defiler hadn’t acted in years but they all remained cautious of her. Even Great Fire. She refused to be suffocated but she did know some restraint. The pillar of fire that turned night to day was the opposite of restraint. Little Water guessed that her elder sister had unleashed every drop of mana in her core. That wasn’t practice. It was a provocation.

In all the stories, the Defiler had an ego that could swallow the sun. It was impossible to ignore such an obvious taunt.

Little Water’s tail drooped with dread as the colorful fire became impossibly brighter and rose into the sky. “Go, go!” she ordered with a hint of panic. She didn’t know why the ball of death moving higher and higher hadn’t already exploded but she did not want to be around when she did.

The nameless quickly followed her order. Picking up on her distress, they moved at a much quicker pace, sprinting through the snow. Watching the small sun growing larger, Little Water could only think that it wasn’t fast enough. Hours later, she still didn’t feel safe. She wanted to urge the nameless to keep running but they’d already run through the night. They’d run to their deaths if she ordered but she wouldn’t kill them because she was afraid they were going to die. With great reluctance, she settled down into a restless sleep, not at all sure she would wake up.

She did, though she didn’t feel very rested. When she woke, the small sun remained in the sky. Looking at it still filled her with dread. So much so, she roused the nameless and made them eat while walking. The faster they were past the humans’ wall, the better she would feel. She would have never imagined the day would come when she would feel safer amongst another race than within the warren.

One thing was certain. Whether it was the result of her quest or the meddling of their great enemy, the north was about to change.