Lady Coldheart

Ice Breaker

"Look, up ahead. There's a cave!"

Letting out a whoop, the tiefling raced forward, only to slide to a stop as a shard of ice burst through the ground ahead of them.

"What in the nine hells?" Adrian exclaimed, falling back onto the snow with a soft whump.

Lucien laughed, stretching out a hand to help him up.

"Just because there's a cave doesn't mean we should rush into it. We may not be the only ones who decided to take shelter from the storm, after all."

Adrian rolled eyes, but allowed himself to be pulled back to his feet.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. But it's cooooold."

Behind them, Aurora spoke up.

"This is only a light Autumn shower," she chuckled. "In the Winter, these passes become impassable."

Adrian balked. "How do these people live?"

Aurora sighed. "We don't feel the cold like most other races. Our crops and livestock are the same, and continue to thrive throughout the Winter. Foreign crops and and livestock are sheltered underground, where the air from the hot springs and light from the crystals sustains them. Any trading takes place during summer, and summer only."

Ghislain raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like you don't approve of the trading at all."

"I don't. There is nothing that the traders bring that we need for survival, or could not produce a version of it ourselves. The only exception to that is books and knowledge. And the news we can receive year round through our messenger birds. All the traders do is bring diseases we have no immunity to, and if they're foolish, mouths to feed in the winter if they stay too long and the passages close."

Ahead of them, Auryon's ears flicked back to signify she heard, and let out a short bark of approval.

Lucien's shrugged. "And by feeding those mouths all winter, and trading excess supplies, you gain allies in times of crisis. What if the crops failed one year, or you were attacked?"

At this, Aurora's eyes hardened. "Magic, such as that produced by the members of the noble houses, would prevent a crop failure from ever occurring. And I pity anyone who dared to attack us."

"But didn't you say the noble houses were dying?" Lucien pressed, unrelenting.

Aurora's lips tightened, and the pupils of her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "You know nothing of my people or the Houses of Wynter, human. If even one of us still live, this valley will not fall, to anything, or anyone."

"I once thought the same of my people. I was wrong. We were all wrong."

Unnoticed, Auryon had shifted back into human form. She stalked back through the footsteps she'd already made in the snow, back to stand face to face with Aurora.

"Being self-sufficient is necessary for survival. But convincing yourself that you're invincible is a dangerous lie to believe. Even a bear can be brought down if the pack is large enough. It's much harder to bring down an entire forest. You have to burn it, destroy it completely. And even then a few animals will escape. The ashes will feed the new growth, and the descendants will return."

Aurora sniffed. "Tell me again how your people died? In a fire, correct? How many of them escaped the flames?" She gestured dramatically. "Behold, the mighty Druids! A halfbreed, sired by a wolf."

Auryon snarled, lunging, shifting midair. Before she connected, Ghislain pushed Aurora out of the way, taking the brunt of the blow, and landing with a thump in the snow. Auryon blinked, then grudgingly returned to human form.