Iron Frost - Clan of the Rim Chronicles #1

28

IT WASN'T LONG UNTIL Calder and I reached the edge of the fjord. It was completely frozen just as Halvard had said, and stretched out for miles. Calder set me down and I took a step onto the ice before being pulled back.

"Careful Eerika," he said, gesturing to the cracking ice from where I had stood.

"How do we get across without the chance of falling through?"

"If Halvard's description is right we'll be going through the water anyway to get to Nilsine's dwelling. But we need to get out onto the ice without falling through on our own."

Calder then gently thrusted his hand forward, creating a hard walkway of ice about seven feet across the fjord.

"Of course you thought of that," I said, feeling stupid not to think of it myself.

Calder gave a cocked smirk. "Well I am more experienced, remember?"

I rolled my eyes back at him. "Let's just get this over with shall we, Hansen?"

Calder chuckled, grabbing my hand and helping me hobble onto the ice with him. "As you command, Princess. I want this finished just as much as you. The frozen queen's time will come and her blood will make up for all she has spilled upon my own skin and others. Especially your family."

Venturing out to the end of Calder's path we stopped, but I was unsure of what to do next. Calder had said that if someone declared why they needed to see the sidhe and their heart was true, the dwelling would open up. I knew in my heart why I wanted to see this woman, which was to save Calder and my people. But I didn't exactly know how Calder felt about it. I had never asked him.

Even though I assumed he saw it as protecting me and freeing the land, in my head I almost felt like it was something deeper. I knew how much he hated his mother and had no ounce of remorse in killing her. In his own words, she was dead to him. In Calder's determination. . .was there a slight vengeful aspect?

"Alright, here's hoping this works," he said, looking down at me. "Declare why you want to see Nilsine."

"Is it really that simple? Will she even hear us?"

"It's all we have to go on," Calder replied, gently squeezing my hand. "Just try."

Giving a heavy sigh I tightly held his hand back and cleared my throat.

"I want to save my people and this realm. . .by killing the frozen queen."

The next thing I knew the ice below mine and Calder's feet caved under us, and we were plunged into the freezing fjord.

The impact caused me to lose grip of Calder's hand, and though I couldn't see him from the bubbles thrashing about with our movement, I felt him try to grab my arm. My lungs were aching as I held my breath, some of the water in my mouth from screaming as we fell through.

When some of the bubbles dispersed I could make out Calder who was struggling to hold onto me and remove what was weighing us down. He grunted as he tugged on his sword holder, unlatching it from his waist and letting it sink below us. He removed his cloak and unclasped mine, and I knew the map was now long gone. Calder urged me forward to swim with him, and through the pain of my wound I kicked my legs.

Swimming down towards the water's floor where Calder's sword had went my lungs were close to giving out on me. My eyes burned and my wound began to seep blood through the wet bandage, making a red ring around us. I could only hope wherever Calder was taking me that we would get there quickly, or we were surely going to drown.

As the bottom of the fjord then came into view I noticed it wasn't sand or rock at all, but ice like a polished ballroom floor. Gravity seemed to suddenly come above us and our feet planted on top of it. Calder bent down and began beating on the ice to try breaking it, even using his sword that had landed a few feet away, but didn't succeed.