The wagons clattered along the mountain pass, the horses laboring against a biting wind. The frosty air carried with it a chill that seeped through my cloak and tunic, chilling me to the bone. As we continued on our journey to Airus, I tried to focus on the beauty of the snow-covered landscape instead of my discomfort, but even that did little to lift my spirits.

We had been traveling for days now, our tempers beginning to fray after numerous attacks by desperate creatures in search of food, but we continued to forge ahead, fighting off both exhaustion and beasts.

My hands were numb from gripping the reins so tightly, and my feet were beginning to freeze inside my boots. It was a relief when Victoria’s shout rang out from the front wagon, calling a halt to our progress through the snow.

I pushed my numb hands into the warmth of my sleeves and watched, shivering, as Victoria stepped down from the wagon and walked back to where I sat.

"There's a thicket of trees ahead," Victoria said, rubbing her hands together. "I suggest we camp here for a while and let the horses rest and warm up."

“A break would be good,” I agreed.

Victoria returned to the lead wagon and I followed it to a nearby copse of fir trees, where Kip and Pia set to work unhitching the horses. While they rubbed the horse down with warm blankets and fed them with grain soaked in warming oil, I set to work melting the snow between the wagons, so Victoria and Rainy could string up the shelter.

Once we’d created a makeshift shelter for our horses, I retrieved a handful of wisp cores imbued with the undying fire array to build a smokeless fire nearby to keep them warm and cozy.

As Victoria prepared a simple meal of stew and crusty bread, I climbed into my wagon to check on Leo. The little Leosaur was snuggled in a cushy basket near the furnace, where Pyr my fire wisp kept the wagon nice and toasty warm.

"How is he doing?" Rainy asked softly as she slid down the ladder from the wagon's loft bed.

“Same as before,” I mumbled, stroking a hand over the motionless Leosaur’s head.

Staring at the cub, I couldn't help but berate myself for not anticipating that Leo, as a cold-blooded creature, would be affected by the snow in the Almer Mountains.

Whilst I had been wrapped up in a warm, fur-lined cloak with Pyr warming me as I drove the wagon, I had neglected to consider that Leo, who was riding in the wagon's interior, would be freezing alone in the cold.

When I found the cub curled into a tight ball beneath the blankets of my futon, it was like being stabbed through the chest with an icy spear. The cub was frozen and near dead, and even after two days in the now heated wagon, he didn't move or show any signs of life. The only indication that he was still alive was the bond we shared.

"Dinner!" The loud bellow from outside the wagon drew our attention, and we pulled our cloaks back to keep ourselves warm in the snow-covered mountain. Pulling my hood up, I stepped outside with Rainy, our booted feet sinking into the cold snow as Victoria waved us over to the other wagon.

Together Rainy and I made our way to the other wagon where we huddled together in their cramped quarters.

My companions all laughed and talked over Victoria's delicious cooking, but I found myself unable to find any joy in the moment as my mind wandered back to Leo in my wagon. As the evening wore on and the conversation quieted, I said my goodbyes and made my way back to the wagon alone.

Once inside I found Leo in much the same state he was before; still motionless, but warm under his blankets thanks to Pyr's hard work. Reaching out with a hand, I stroked his scales before settling down next to him with my notebooks and the potion recipe I was in the process of translating.

When I first searched through the recipes I owned looking for a potion to help with keeping warm in the cold, the one titled Frost Elixir did not attract my attention. Instead, I wasted two days translating and deciphering the recipe titled Fire Elixir, only to discover it was an elixir that rendered a person immune to the effects of fire.

As the two recipes were both written by an alchemist known only as Tolzat, I suspected that the Frost Elixir would be for cold immunity despite its misleading name.

The issue I found was that Tolzat’s recipes used a mixture of the Kaledon version of old Latin known as Latinus, and what I presumed was his own personal cipher. Many historical alchemists would write their research in cipher, and I had discovered those of Kaledon were no different. Only thirty nine of the many recipes I owned were written in pure Latinus, without the use of codes. and each of those thirty nine were written by Egenor Barothlas, a former priest of Trismegistus.

The sound of wolves howling and Pia’s shout of “come get some bitches” shattered my internal musings and sent me rushing to the rear door of the wagon.

Opening the door of the wagon, I was met with the sight of three large blue wolves rushing past, heading for the horses.

I felt my fur lined cloak tighten around my shoulders as I ran towards where the rest of my team were protecting our horses from the wolves. Heeding Faux's warning just in time, I shifted into the form of a red fox, while my cloak dropped to the snow, unable to follow me in my current state.

The wolf lunging for me did not expect such a drastic change in size, and it flew past me. As it landed in the snow with a thud, I lunged at the frost wolf, my flames blazing and coating my fur.

My fierce growl reverberated out of my throat as I clamped down on the hind leg of the beast, my teeth sinking into its icy flesh. The fire around me engulfed the massive beast, spreading quickly over its body until it was no more than a pile of smoldering ash.

Kip stood just behind me, his leather gloved hands glowing with a fire strike transmutation circle that he used to swiftly dispatch six more wolves. They howled in agony as Kip sent streaks of fire towards them, while our team used Drakus orbs to take out an additional three wolves.

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The snow that littered the frozen battlefield provided an eerie backdrop to our battle with the frost wolves as it crunched underfoot and flew up into swirls around us as we moved. Being in fox form, I could navigate through the thick snow much easier than my teammates who had to trudge through knee-deep drifts.

“Fire strike, fire strike, fire strike. Tris's burning beard! Can't we come up with a silent way to activate this shit?” Kip's shouts echoed through the mountains and I yipped gleefully in response to his cursing.

As another wolf fell to the flames, the remaining frost wolves scurried away into the trees. A sense of triumph filled me as I watched them flee and I let out a victorious yowling cry that reverberated throughout the air.

With my attention fixated on serenading the wolves, I failed to notice Pia, who had been quietly creeping up behind me, until she suddenly leaped forward and body slammed me into the snow. This sent an eruption of yelps and yowls from my mouth as she proceeded to roughly stroke my fur.

"Foxy!" Pia shouted with glee. With one arm pressed firmly against my side and another ruffling my fur, the faun squeezed me tightly. "Who's a good puppy? Who's a good puppy?" she cooed. “Is it Foxy? Is Foxy a good pupper?”

"Pia, leave her be. You know Foxy doesn't like you molesting her fur." Victoria called out in reprimand.

I yipped in agreement as Pia reluctantly let me wriggle free of her grasp. Glowering at the faun, I shifted back into my human form, shaking the snow off of my long red hair as my fur cloak flung itself towards me and draped around my shoulders.

Pia grinned at me, completely unrepentant and I turned my back on her, knowing that ignoring the faun would be more effective than any words. She thrived on attention and getting a rise out of people, so it was better to be dismissive of her antics.

"Think they'll be back?" I asked Victoria as she trudged through the snow towards us.

"I doubt it," Victoria replied, looking down the mountain where the wolves had disappeared. "Only a few survived and they'll be wary about attacking again after that show of fire."

"Mmm," I nodded, looking at the snow-covered battleground, I began to walk among the fallen wolves, searching for usable bones.

Digging through my storage pouch, I pulled on a pair of thick leather gloves, making sure they covered every inch of skin. Touching a Frost wolf bone with bare skin was dangerous, something we discovered during our first encounter with the wolves, when one managed to sink its teeth into Kip’s shoulder.

The dwarf still hadn’t recovered from the bite, with the skin on his shoulder blackened and hard to the touch. Despite our best efforts to treat the wound, there was little we could do to reverse the effects of the Frost Wolf's bite. Hopefully we would find one of our guilds healers at the Airus guild hall, either that or we’d need to visit the temple of light and ask one of the priests for healing.

Cautiously, I began picking up Frost Wolf bones and placing them into a large sack. Every time I touched one of the bones with my glove-clad hands, an icy chill seeped through the leather and settled into my fingers like an unwelcome reminder of what could happen if not for the glove, but I carried on collecting the bones.

I had spent days working on the Frost Elixir recipe, and although I had not yet cracked the full code, I had uncovered some of the ingredients required to make it. These included Frost Wolf bones, Ice Pearls, Snow Blossoms, and a creature called Glacies Bufo.

The Ice Pearls and Snow Blossoms were recorded in Plants and Fungi of Salvia, with the book noting that they could be found growing on the snow-covered slopes of Almer mountains. Thankfully this should make them relatively easy to procure.

The elusive Glacies Bufo however was a different matter entirely. There were some scraps of information here and there suggesting the creature was native to a cold environment, but without knowing its exact location it seemed I had reached a dead end.

By the time I was done gathering the Frost wolf remains, everyone except for Pia had retreated back into the wagons to rest. I decided to take one last look around before I followed suit, and that's when something caught my eye. A few snowdrifts nearby were slightly melted at their edges, revealing some delicate looking plants beneath them.

I carefully uncovered the plants and added them to my sack along with the bones so that I could bring them back for study. Then, satisfied with my findings, I hoisted the bag over my shoulder and trudged back towards the wagon.

The warmth of the wagon was a welcome reprieve from the chill outside. I was tempted to return my reading, but the exhaustion of the day's travel and battle caught up with me.

Shifting back into my vulpine form, I curled up beside Leo and let the warmth of the wagon envelope us in its comforting embrace.

A few hours later, Victoria shook me awake for my turn on watch. I was still weary, but the chill night air was quick to strip the sleep from my eyes.

The stars twinkled in their constellations, like a million sparkling lights guiding our way. I could feel the distant pull of each celestial body, and sense their orbits around us. The stars above were so close, it felt almost as if I could reach out and touch them.

As I stared the pinpricks of light began to move and blur, morphing into strange images. Swirls and lines connected the stars, forming the constellations filled with magic.

I was awe-struck as I saw the dragon, who stood proud in all its fiery might, breathing galaxies and stars from its mouth. To the east, the phoenix, who rose from the ashes of stellar explosions and soared in search of a new home. In the north, the great sea dragon unfurled its coils around vast treasures and secrets beneath the waves of stars, while packs of wolves ran across the horizon, baying at the twin moons.

The constellations shimmered with untold secrets, mysteries waiting to be revealed. I could feel their power pulsing throughout my body - a connection with something larger than myself yet deeply rooted within me at the same time. For just a moment, I felt as if I belonged among the stars above me and held my breath in reverence at the scene unfolding before my eyes.

"Beautiful, is it not?" I heard a familiar voice say.

I spun around and there was Tris, dressed in his purple and gold robes, orrery staff in hand. As I watched, Zosimos fluttered down from a nearby tree to perch on the god's shoulder.

"Yes," I agreed breathlessly. "It's breathtaking."

"You've been neglecting this part of my domain," he chided softly.

"I wouldn't neglect it if my patron wasn't such a miser when it came to knowledge." I said, glancing up at the god.

Trismegistus huffed in amusement. "Is that so?"

"Yes," I said, feeling a smile tug at the corners of my lips.

Tris chuckled and pointed his staff up, tilting it in the direction of a mountain peak in the distance. "You will find what you seek in Airus."

"And what must I do to find it?" I asked cautiously. I didn't trust the god not to have some kind of trick up his sleeve.

"You will know when the time comes." Tris said, giving me a knowing look. I shivered as I felt the power in his words reverberate through my bones.

I sighed. Ominous much?

Tris smiled. "Until next time, my stubborn little priestess." He said, his voice fading away with the wind.

As he disappeared, I looked up and noticed a new constellation in the sky – a golden fox with nine tails who winked at me before fading away.