Two Lands, One World

Through the Ice Part One

The sun was rising peacefully over the shimmering river in the early morning. The children slept under the roots whilst Raylan slept on the roots, exhausted from his night watch after Caroline's. He cringed in his sleep holding his hands which were more purple than the previous night.

Suddenly the snapping of a twig made Raylan jump in his sleep. He sat up, hearing a few tweets of birds. He looked down and saw the children still asleep with Bait and Felix. He snuck off, leaping through the trees. He landed gracefully on a bed of grass surrounded by bushes. He glanced around keeping quiet as a mouse. Then he saw a stick snapped in two. He walked over and gently picked it up. Rustling echoed in his pointy ears. He turned around and saw the leaves rustling. He pulled out his swords.

But from out of the bush appeared a harmless deer. He sheathed his weapons away. "Aww, you scared me cutie," he offered a hand and the forest fawn stepped over so he could stroke it. It licked his left purple hand. "Sorry cutie. I'm afraid you can't lick this problem away,"

The deer's ears flicked up in shock and it scurried back into the bushes. "What's wrong?" Raylan asked. Just as he stood up, he saw a large shadow over him. Before he could react, he felt a net of rope falling onto him trapping him. He grunted as he tried to wriggle free. He turned his head around and saw a human high up in the trees. It leapt down and landed right behind him. He wore a hunter's uniform with metal arm and leg armour; he carried a swinging hook with a chain lasso. "Never trapped an elf before. Easier than I thought," He swung his hook to try and stab Raylan but he freed himself and flipped into a stand, pulling out his blades, and facing the human. He leapt into action.

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Unaware of the fight in the forest, the children snored in their sleep, particularly Ezran who sounded like a lazy pig.

Caroline. Caroline. The voice echoed again. You are my destiny.

Caroline's eyes flickered awake to the voice again. He raised her head and rubbed her eyes. She looked at the egg glimmering on the large rucksack. Then it called out to her again; she felt enchanted by its colours. She crawled over and lifted it out of the bag and onto her lap. "Why are you calling to me?" she wondered.

"Carol?" Willow's voice made her jump. "Are you okay?"

Carol turned her sister awake and was surprised. "You gave me a fright there,"

"Why are you holding the egg and staring at it like that?" asked Ezran who sat up too.

Carol placed the egg inside the bag again and looked at her siblings. "The egg's been calling to me. Yesterday when I woke up I heard it calling my name,"

"Why didn't you tell us?' asked Ezran.

"I thought it was just my imagination. But it just happened again. And it said something else. It said, 'You are my destiny'". The siblings blinked. "I know it sounds crazy..."

"Crazy? That's cool actually," praised Ezran ecstatically.

"'Cool'?" repeated Willow back. "Ez, this is serious. I've got a feeling something strange is about to happen. Like...something...good...and...bad," Her instinctive emotions earned her a blink from her elder siblings too; she looked like she was the crazy one now. "Wait a minute. Where's Raylan?"

They all turned their heads to the top of the roots and saw that he wasn't there.

Carol stood up. "Raylan! Raylan!" Felix sniffed around but his scent marks were very weak. "Where did he go?"

"Maybe he went to do the thing?" Ezran offered. The girls were disgusted.

"Guys, I don't think we can fully trust Raylan," Carol said.