Frostbitten Flame

Chapter 1: Everlasting Winter

In the depths of Dragonspine, icicles glinted in the dim moonlight. There, in the deepest parts of the mountain, no living beings existed except monsters and crystalflies. It was far too frigid. Shining blue ice dotted the caves within, thick and translucent. Snow coated the ground, and stalactites and stalagmites poked through the open surfaces. There were bridges and cliffs, each dropping to sheer heights hundreds of feet tall. At the bottoms of the caverns were lakes with smooth chunks of ice floating within. There was a mysterious air about the place, as though there was a history to it beyond what met the eye.

A young boy picked his way through the frozen caves, shivering and ragged. His eyes were a bright, icy blue, with star-shaped pupils. His skin, formerly a warm golden brown, was pale due to the weakness of his body. His hair was dark mahogany red, with ruby toned strands throughout. It was tied in a ponytail, messy and dirty. He pushed aside his bangs, breathing in short, quick gasps, watching it mist in the frigid air in front of him.

The boy's name was Idris. He did not know the extent of the vastness of the mountain he was trapped in, nor did he know the way out. He was just trying to escape. He was just trying to get as far away from his old home as possible. Idris paused to catch his breath and tried not to think about the last thing his father had told him.

"Get out of my sight. You are no longer my son."

He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to ignore the flurry of images that still flooded his mind. The palace, in flames. His older twin brother, Kaeya, pulled away from him. The ceiling falling, blocking a hallway. Running, running, out of the city to the fields outside. Running until Khaenri'ah disappeared and the frozen caves came into view.

Idris reached into his pocket and pulled out an inteyvat flower. Its petals were now hard and smooth, all of them pale blue except one, which was a light violet. He knew that the flower would never wilt, so long as it was outside of Khaenri'ah. He looked up again, put the flower away, and continued trudging uphill with determination, his shoes slowly getting cold and wet by the snow.

After what seemed like days (Idris had no way to know, for there was no sunlight to be seen), he finally exited the cave and gazed out over a steep, rocky valley. The sky was a dull blue-gray color, and there was snow everywhere. Idris looked around for some sort of shelter, fire, anything. He wandered down the small hill he had been standing on and glanced to his left, then to his right.

In his peripheral vision, Idris saw a warm glow in the distance. Fire.

Almost tripping over himself, Idris scrambled across the snowdrift to a hastily-made camp, with tents and a campfire. He looked around, hoping that the owners of the camp would not come back any time soon. He prayed that they were busy. He warmed himself by the fire and thought of what he would do next.

As Idris grew warmer and warmer, the more he started to sense a sinking feeling in his stomach. He had no money, no parents, and no feasible alibi. How was he going to survive? Moreover, was the entire land he had arrived in pure white, with snow and ice everywhere? Did he even know the common tongue of this nation? Idris bit his lip.

Before he could overthink his terrible situation any longer, however, Idris heard a growl from behind him. He whipped around.

There stood a huge monster unlike anything Idris had ever seen. It was huge, with most of its body covered in shaggy white fur, the exposed skin a dark gray. It wore a crude loincloth and a necklace made of stones. Its eyes were a beady blue, and it had a pair of sharp horns on its head. There were also jagged spikes poking out of its fur before it roared.

Idris's heartbeat quickened as the beast lumbered over menacingly. He backed up, his breath misting more and more in front of him. Suddenly, the monster roared and smashed its large hands into the ground, causing icicles to form out from the ground. Idris was hurled backward into a pile of rocks, and gasped in pain. He looked up, and barely managed to roll out of the way as the monster leaped towards him, amnhilinating the ground mere inches away from him. Idris scrambled up to his feet, staggering backward in fear. His back hit the steep, rocky wall of the mountain. The monster approached. Idris raised his arms to shield his face, squeezed his eyes shut, and braced for impact.

Yet nothing happened.

Idris opened his eyes, shocked to see a sort of fiery shield around him. He knew the shield must be made of fire because he could feel its warmth, but it did not look like normal fire; instead of a warm amber color, this fire was the color of ice. Idris looked down, and saw some sort of glowing red stone at his feet.

The monster paused, and in that moment a wave of blue flames engulfed it, melting the icy spikes on its body immediately. It roared in pain, and in mere seconds it was nothing more than ashes.

For a moment, Idris stared at what remained of the beast. Then the adrenaline left his body and his knees buckled underneath him. He gulped in large amounts of air, breathing quickly and heavily. He had no idea what had just happened, nor did he know where the fire had come from. Unless...

No, it was impossible. Idris did not have the ability to create flames. He knew that as a fact. Then perhaps it had something to do with the glowing scarlet stone at his feet.

Idris picked the gem up, gazing at it. It was in some sort of golden frame, with two wings on each side. In the center was a glowing orange symbol that ressembled fire. It glowed and pulsed with a sort of divine energy, and just holding it made Idris warmer. He wondered what it was, and where it had come from. He stood up shakily and made to leave, thinking of his next steps.

"Hey! Who goes there?" Came a deep, gruff voice.

Idris turned and saw a group of men approaching him. They all wore masks to hide their faces, as well as long coats, gloves, and boots. Some were tall and muscular, holding massive hammers at their sides. Some were slim and lean, with knives, crossbows, or even bottles of suspiciously colored liquids in their hands. Most of them were glaring at him, others eyeing the stone in his hand.

"I said, who goes there?" Asked the same man as before. He had short black hair, dark eyes, and a blue coat.

"I'm just passing by," said Idris, silently cursing the accent in his voice.

"Look," said another man, with sandy hair and a green mask, "the kid's got a vision! I bet it would be worth a fortune."

Some of the men glanced at each other, murmuring their sentiments.

Another man lowered his crossbow and said, "I'd wager you're not from here. Right, kid?"

Idris nodded shakily.

"You got folks who are looking for you? Why are you all the way out here?" He asked. "This mountain is basically a death trap, even for licensed adventurers."

Wetting his lips nervously, Idris said, "I-I don't have anywhere to go. I don't know where I am." He hated how weak he sounded.

The man with blue clothing said, "I kinda feel bad for him."

"But his vision-" came another.

"If he's on our side, those pesky Knights of Favonius would never mess with us again!"

The men discussed amongst themselves while Idris stood still, clutching the gem to his chest.

When they finally reached a verdict, the man with the crossbow said, "Hey kid, why don't you stay with us?"

"What?" Idris asked stupidly.

The man with blue clothing said, "it's dangerous to be alone, especially on this mountain. And if you don't have anywhere to go, we can shelter you for a bit. Besides, you look like you haven't eaten in weeks." His gaze softened. "Are you alright with that?"

"I..." Idris did not know what to say.

"If he's joining us, he better make himself useful," grumbled the blond man from before.

"Yes," said Idris earnestly, without even realizing it. "I'll make myself useful, I promise."

Now some of the men were smiling at him.

The man with the crossbow went over and said, "Okay kid, time to get you a change of clothes and some food. What's your name?"

"Idris," said Idris, his name sounding different to him in the unfamiliar tongue.

"Come on kid," said another man, "something tells me you have a lot of potential."

And as they herded him over to the fire, Idris sensed an unfamiliar feeling wash over him - the feeling of being safe.