There is a loud crack. The sound of cracking and shattering ice.
Ice splinters drop around me, the cold spines of ice jumping off my skin and clattering on the icy floor.
A gasp from my throat, has me coughing and waking up, suddenly opening my eyes.
It is dark with a few shadows cast by fire. The shadows of people. Fear swells in me. Panic consumes me. I cannot let myself fall victim to this trap.
I watch the shadows whilst beginning to slowly ready my ice.
I have never loved Everest. I hardly know him as any more than an acquaintance; yet his betrayal stabs me. It is a knife plunged into my back.
I know I can outmatch him in a fight, but I know he is not here. There is no way he could get down here so quickly. These must be associates, lying in wait for me. I know I am good with my abilities. The landscape being an icy cave makes it better.
I send out spikes at the shadows in warning.
A sudden burst of pain strikes me. My side burns in pain where I was struck by jagged spikes of ice when I fell in here. Well I am not sure if they were jagged spikes of ice, but in such a place, one can only assume it was that. How else would my side be dripping in blood from a fall as if a dagger were plunged into my side.
I need to escape this cavern of ice. I have no idea how though. All I can do is defend myself. Fast surprise attacks will only make my pain worse. I need to do something.
I drop to my side on the ground. It hurts too much to stay sitting. This is torture beyond anything I have experienced.
A cold hand touches my side.
I need to fight. I cannot move. As long as I can at the very least move some fingers, I can fight but I cannot even do that. My body is freezing up. It is colder than the surface I here. I can handle cold very well, but something seems wrong, either with me or my environment.
Cold water brushes against my side before freezing, covering the wounds in a thin, extremely breakable sheet of ice. This is probably a water inclined ice user, but they are definitely not a healer.
"Call the rescue unit, she is losing blood."
There is warmth radiating beside me. I can see a small flame lit on wood. They have made a fire,
Their intentions are vague, do they wish to help or mislead me. How did a simple refusal of a marriage proposal turn into this mess?
Blood dripping from my skin, cuts, and tears all over my body. These scum will be punished. I will ensure that happens. Their crimes must be punished.
I just need to move. I can collapse parts of this cavern on them. I can shift the ground to slowly freeze them until their hearts are nothing more than ice, frozen, silent. I will not allow them to gain any power over me, not now, not ever.
These people. They seem to use ice and water but are not well trained. Defectors. I have no doubts. They defected to the Earth and came back here to attack me or kidnap me. Probably kill me- no not kill. If they wanted to kill me, it would have been done.
"We are here. It is all- "One of the defectors approaches me. His guard is down.
"Get away from me!" I manage to speak, my voice hoarse with pain.
I struggle, my shaking hand moves. I slam it down on the ground. The ground cracks and prices of sharp ice shoot up in a cage, surrounding me. I am too weak to engage in battle as I am now, this barrier will give me time.
He is weak minded, low guard. An easy defeat but facing all of them could push this injury to far. Attacking one of them, it would make the rest react. This shield will protect me from anything they can try to do.
I let out a breath of mist, extinguishing the flame. Fire will melt the ice. I cannot allow any weakness in my barrier, no matter how cold it is. Being able to protect myself is my first priority. Then, I can escape.
"Don't! You will freeze to death!" A stranger yells from outside the barrier of ice.
I struggle up to my knees, my hand clutching my side. A light sheet of ice covers the wound. Pathetic. I strengthen it with my hard ice. Why would anyone create such thin ice? It is inefficient and weak.
"Bring down the wall. We want to help."
"Why? So you can give me to him or what hand me over to Earth Scum?" I ask.
A burst of pain rushes through me again. I drop to the ground, curling. It hurts so bad. Every time I use my ice, my wounds strike me. A single fall is not that bad.
I wince, the height, I can remember it. Slamming onto the ground, hard rocks jabbing into my side as my accidental blast of ice freezes my body. The memory itself is painful.
"Can you break the ice?" I hear one of them asking.
"No. It is too cold and strong. I have never seen ice like this. It is like the ice in Northias. Those buildings would not break no matter what they are exposed to."
Of course they are not supposed to break! Who would build structures out of weak ice?
"We may need to contact Ignius- "
"We do not need to bring fire in. They could wreck the cave."
"Their king is visiting. I am certain we can arrange for him to melt the ice."
Ignius! No that should not be possible. Why would that kingdom be here as well! I need to get out of here. If I could move, I would be able to get myself up with a pillar. Just the mere thought of moving makes me grunt in pain.
I glance down at my side, the ice has red at the base, the blood swelling from the wound frozen into its form. There is red everywhere. It is a stain on the beautiful sheen of the ice of the cavern. It sticks to my skin and clothes like filth.
"We have to get him here! She is horribly injured!" I hear a girl.
"I would rather die," I cough.
"If you do not let down that ice you will die! What you are doing is brash and incredibly stupid!"
I threaten them. "If you do not leave, I will collapse this cavern on all of you."
I see them hesitate. My ice should not be this foreign to them. They should know that I cannot collapse a cave with a gaping wound.
I feel my stomach groaning. I feel not only pain, but hunger, intense hunger. But I ate only a few hours ago. I should be stronger than this even with a wound. I have been wounded like this before in fights. There have always been healers nearby to soothe the wound and cover it so I can fight but I have never gotten hungry from being injured.
A strange device on one of the men's arms lights up. The light has me wincing with its brightness.
"I know you are probably nearing the city borders but please bring the Ignius king with you. The ice here needs to be melted; it is too strong."
What is that thing? It must be some Earth or maybe even Ignius nation device. Their technology is fascinating I have heard. But I will beat them regardless. They deserve all that is coming to them.
Panic sears my chest. Their king is coming. I have no back up, no one to help me. I won't bleed out with my wound frozen over. I should be fine but if I get attacked, I might not handle it. My experience against fire natives is limited.
Time passes. When I less expect it, I hear disturbance in the cave.
"Oh good, you are finally here," one of the people in the cave says.
"This is the ice you were talking about. Should be easy to melt," a cocky voice muses.
I curl my fingers, forming a fist, the ice expanding. A row expanding in his direction from the ground.
Through the clear ice I see it. A wave of fire. It takes out the ice that is about to hit him.
"I'm sorry I don't know why she keeps attacking."
I hiss in pain.
He ventures closer.
I cannot move. I cannot escape. I am stuck. My body is in agony, writhing in pain yet stiff like stone.
The flames burst against my shield of ice.
My fingers. They can no longer move. I cannot fix the barrier anymore.
The cold, it feels so cruel and harsh.
My body is unable to fight anymore. I need to though. I cannot let this Ignius king take me. These Terra loving traitors that associate with the nation of fire. When did the Ignius nation even get involved in the war? They have always just been supporters of the Terra, but other than supplying them with weapons they have been neutral. When did that change?
He touches my cheek.
"Freezing cold. Like ice."
I can hardly keep my eyes open.
I can see them getting closer.
My eyes. They are fluttering.
The cold. Blood. Pain.
A/N
Thanks for reading. I did not mean to publish this so soon so it will likely be the last chapter for a long while.
I am curious about what time this was published in your region and what time you are moat active. I published this at 8 am where I am.
Also I am stuck between two covers. I would like advice on which I should go with.
The first one is a drawing I did before starting the book but I felt it fitted well with the idea.