Child of prophecy

08 | Snow

ANALIA

My heart starts to pound as my hasty steps turn to a jog. It's suddenly so cold that I start to shiver. The lush vegetation and greenery sight I once admired is now captured in a thick fog that covers the atmosphere like a blanket. With each breath I take, I can feel my lungs crying out at the intensity of the cold. If we're to stay out here any longer with how rapidly the weather is changing, we'll freeze to death.

"I've found the cave." I hear him call out from ahead of me. I'm quivering uncontrollably and my steps are becoming sluggish. Just when I thought it couldn't get worse, snowflakes start to fall off from the sky so fast, the ground is starting to be piled up with snow.

I try to walk faster but I suddenly trip over and fall. I can't find Iyan in all this fog and my body is starting to feel numb and stiff.

Is this how I'm going to die? I thought this terror was easy enough to survive in. Where did Iyan go?
Is he going to abandon me?

I feel tears start to sting my eye but it's so cold, it doesn't even get to slide down but stays frozen on my cheek. He said he found the cave so it shouldn't be any further from here right? All I have to do is get myself up and walk.

I try to get up but I'm already being covered up by a terrifying amount of snow. I want to scream in frustration but I can't even do that due to the aching of my lungs.

No!

No!

I didn't come this far to get frozen to death.

I push myself up from the snow that's heaping on top of me and suddenly a weight starts to pull me from underneath it. I'm too cold and shocked to form coherent words when I find Iyan's displeased face staring back at mine.

"Try to make it to the cave. I'll make it warm enough for you there."

I nod stiffly at his words and with his help, we find our way through the snow and into a cave that's already been lighted by a torch.

He sets me down by the sludgy wall of the cave and whispers a few words in Astur.

The room suddenly starts to get so hot, every form of ice in the cave melts away and evaporates. My shivering stops and I start to feel warm and back to normal. Almost like I didn't just freeze to death but I'm still in a state of shock and my body can't seem to stop trembling.

So Iyan controls fire. That's a very detrimental element that humans of the realm hate. Anything that spells out destruction sends a wave of fear over all humans because they all think of the prophecy of our doom.

Not many mages can control fire and those who do are shunned by society. Seeing a demigod being able to control fire would throw the entire realm into hysteria.

Still, I'm grateful he came back to get me. For a moment I thought I was all on my own.

"Thank you-" My voice is still quite shaky.

"Iyan," he tells me from across the cave where I spot our things. "My name is Iyan."

My cheeks heat up at the fact that he told me his name though I already figured that out a while back.

"Thank you Iyan," The name sounds foreign on my lips but I'd have to get used to It.

"I think you may have underestimated how extreme the situation would be. I considered leaving you out there to die but somehow I found myself going back for you. I don't think I'd have a change of heart if this happens again."

His words sting but I know he's just being honest. I can't be a liability to someone I'm meant to be protecting. A wave of shame suddenly washes over me at how naive I've been this whole time. Willpower alone can't save me.