Frosted Ranger: Time's Illusion

Chapter 3: Yggdrasil Stronghold

With the sun hanging high in the sky, Dayton rides the blinding white horse up to Melina and Leith waiting outside Leith's house.

"Promise me you'll continue to make Carsin proud." Leith pulls Melina into a tight hug. "I will." She replies feeling her back being crushed by Leith's oddly strong arms for an aging man.

Leith looks to Dayton on the horse. "You keep her alive as long as possible in this world." Melina pulls out of the hug.

"My life ends before hers." Dayton helps Melina up onto the horse. Melina's weapons stashed into the netting hanging off the saddle again. Dayton carrying the longsword on his back as always.

Leith watches as the horse strolls off back through the lively village. Watching his grand daughter leave as Carsin once did. He waits until she's out of eyesight before returning inside.

Melina leans back into Dayton's chest with a loud sigh. "Back to defending the stronghold." Dayton lets go of the reigns to wrap his arms around Melina. "What about your mother?" He asks.

"It's her birthday. Let her have this day of silence." Melina closes her eyes to finally catch sleep. Dayton reaches one hand back onto the reigns as they pass through the vast snow in silence. Dayton watching carefully for prowling monsters and listening to the light breathing of Melina in her slumber.

With the sun setting once again after more long traveling on horse back, they arrive at Yggdrasil Stronghold, Home of the Frostguard. Frostguard members are Neomic's official army in a way. Neomic is made up of many clans, Rovmar being one of those clans. The Frostguard is made up of people from all clans and led by three different individuals. The Strategist, The Brute and The Negotiator.

They arrive in the dark of night once again with their travels behind them, their questions answered, but more mysteries to unfold in time.

Melina and Dayton retire to their chambers once again and as before, Melina finds its difficult to find slumber in the comfort of her own bed. Melina stares blankly at the ceiling with Dayton's arm over her body in a sleeping hug.

She closes her eyes but a vision comes to mind as if on queue. A bloody sword dripping fresh blood against a stone floor. A hand wrapped around the handle, but not gripping the handle.

The vision pans up the arm to reveal the leather armor slightly charred. The more Melina looks on in this vision built inside her mind, she looks on to see herself bleeding out in a place unknown with her mother towering above her.

A cold whisper like voice echoes into her mind as the vision concludes. "Death awaits you, my child."

Melina sits up with her eyes wide open and heart racing. Taking deep breathes to slow her heart down. After a moment of silence and calming down she looks around the room and gets out of bed, leaving Dayton alone to rest.

She goes over to a table, lights a candle and pulls out the pen and quill such as the night before. Opens it up and instead of skipping to a blank page to write, she reads over some of her past entry titles.

While some would have titles of joyous events, others titled events of hunts and bad news. She stops on "Dracus 17th, Kyladir's Request." When Kyladir came to Melina and told her what must be done.

Melina bites her tongue and flips to a blank page to begin writing once more.

The ending of Tavriel 1st draws near and my sleepless nights carry on. I seem only able to fall asleep when the sun is out. This makes for a hard time when most of my duties are to be upheld during the sun light.

The reoccurring vision of my mother towering above my lifeless corpse continues to play out in my mind. Like a curse that won't pass. A curse to keep me from sleep and leave me exhausted during the day.

I know nothing of why i'm stuck in this cycle of a self created nightmare, but all I can hope for is that it'll end in time.

What makes this vision interesting is that the armor and sword I carried were nothing i've seen before in either armory of my own or the frosrguard's. Could this vision potentially be from the future?

Melina sets the quill down and looks to Dayton resting calmly. No nightmares to trouble him. No insane parent that wants to bring death upon others. Must have been simple she thought.

Then an idea strikes her mind. She takes the lit candle with her as she leaves the room in her light robes. Crossing throughout the stronghold and passing by many armed and fellow guardsmen on patrol or watching for approachers, Melina comes up to the infirmary.

A few soldiers here and there in beds with deep gashes and wounds waiting for a cleric to arrive. Everyone sound asleep aside from Melina passing by with her lit candle in hand and the doctor sitting passed the rows of beds at his desk full of tools and papers.

Melina approaches the small doctor in size, but despite the size he was quite aged. Wrinkles on his face, a long white beard that stretched to the middle of his chest. White and gold cloak around his body.

"What appears to be your issues, Miss?" The gnome doctor doesn't look up from his papers as if he's studying notes or reading a story.

"I've had problems sleeping during the night for the last few days." Melina answers and sits down in front of the desk.

The gnome looks up to her and puts down the single sheet of paper he had.

"Do you usually patrol on nights?" The gnome starts to stroke his beard. Melina gives a weird look to it, but keeps to herself.

"No. I usually patrol during the day." Melina sets the candle down on the table. She began to get the idea she was going to be here a bit.