Fire and Ice

Chapter 13: Things Heat Up

            They stopped 500 feet away from a raging inferno. Willow had never seen anything so terrifyingly beautiful in her twelve years of life. It came as a storm of a wavering and flickering spectrum of gold, yellow, and orange. It engulfed and lapped up the willow bark completely into a charred nothingness. Willow could distinctly see the shadows of her parents as if the fire was transparent.

            Willow tightened her hold on Clover’s hand and tears tumbled unceremoniously down her cheeks in a constant downpour. Clover embraced her tightly and together they cried and cried until their throats failed and their breaths came out shallow and hoarse. Hopelessness and fear held an icy grip on her chest. It was a pain and a hole that could never be filled.

            The scene changed. Willow was 17 once again. She was in her silver hunting clothes and her bow was her only solace. She was standing in the middle of a glorious city created out of white marble that was laced with silver and gold. All around her there was an inferno of both Moon and Sun Elves. Riots and pandemonium clanged all throughout the streets into a risen chorus of bloodthirsty feuds. The clangor ringed in her ears and tortured her eardrums.

            The noise had risen into a crescendo and Willow became even more afraid. She curled herself into a ball to shield herself from the horrendous noise. Suddenly a shroud of darkness overshadowed and engulfed the moon. The darkness trickled and tangled itself swiftly around them. Willow clutched her shins tighter as a chorus of wails ensued. Chaos formed dissonant and minor chords in the stifling air. Pressure formed and knotted into her chest and she could no longer breathe. Her lungs were on fire and she felt trapped in a world of darkness.

            She set herself on the ground all curled up and snug in her little ball of security. Her arms flew to her head in an attempt to block out all the noise in this blackout world. Suddenly a cold voice pierced and resounded in her head. “You are all mine now.” It said and soon his last consonant dissipated and withered away in the air.

            Willow’s head flew upwards off the book. She clutched her face and swept her gaze around the room. She exhaled in relief when she realized that she woke up in the present in her chambers in Moordom. Milky pre-dawn light sifted its way past the gaps in her curtains. She clutched at the book to provide security and comfort as she slowed her heart’s frantic pace. She no longer felt compressed and small; she began to feel strong again, just like how her father raised her for her first dozen years.

            She needed security. She needed her father’s strong arms, but since that was no longer possible, she decided to rush off to the next best person for that job. She groped for her cloak and swathed it around her slender body. She then placed herself in her slippers and fled from the room.

            She racked her mind as to where Sherwood’s chambers were. Then she remembered that he slept in the large chambers on the top of the stairs. She sprinted off to that direction. When she saw the large crimson doors with golden dragon carvings, she slowed her frantic pace. Wasted in energy, she knocked softly but surely upon Sherwood’s doors.

            “Enter,” Sherwood replied sleepily.

            In a flurry Willow pushed at the grand doors and swept into the chamber. Her hair flapped wildly behind her in a tangled tentacle of curls. Sherwood laid serenely on his king sized bed, but when he saw Willow’s bloodless face and trembling hands he immediately stood up and pushed aside his covers. He was shirtless and his tan skin was brazen even in the dark. Willow took a moment to stare at his chorded compact muscles.

            She gulped. Willow knew it was unseemly to interrupt a man in his sleep, but she needed comfort. Now that she saw his strong profile in the darkness, however, she lost her strength completely and unceremoniously tumbled into his arms. He gripped her elbows tightly and set her back on her feet. Willow was reminded of her father’s strength again and in that moment she rushed in for a trembling embrace.