For the first time since departing Carleon, they had a plan.
At first light they awoke and prepared their horses for travel with Melia leading the way, even though she was as new to the Torn Lands as the rest of them. She displayed an almost elven level of skill in being able to find the best path to the mountains despite not possessing any special insight that allowed her to do so. What she knew had been taught to her by her father and she had honed her craft as a member of the Watch Guard.
The snowfall had ceased sometime in the middle of the night and the white glacial plains glared at them as they approached the Frozen Mountains. As they reached the first rocky slopes leading up to the mountainside, they could see the black, igneous rock gleaming slickly under the melting snow. The elevation of the rocky foothills steepened abruptly the higher up its slopes they progressed and it became apparent that the rest of the journey would have to be made on foot. The terrain was simply too difficult to navigate with horses.
‘Are you certain of this?’ Melia asked, staring at the jagged terrain they would be required to cross. She spotted at least a dozen places where wyrms or any other menace could lie in wait to ambush them. The mountain itself seemed imposing and they knew that once across it, more dangers awaited them when they descended into Mael's Pit where the Enemy awaited.
‘It is on this mountain. We must find it before we go any further,’ Arianne stated firmly, dismounting her horse. They would release the horses and let them graze on what scant vegetation there was so. Elven magic would allow her to call them back later.
Her mother had told her that the weapon was in the Frozen Mountains, and she had to retrieve it before she and the others entered the Pit. Its importance could not be ignored since Arianne found it a tremendous coincidence that the wyrms should attack after they had been weeks in the Torn Lands. She no doubt that the Enemy had set these creatures against anyone who tried to claim the prize she sought.
Melia exchanged a glance with Celene, who merely shrugged in response. The Lady of Gislaine trusted Arianne’s instincts. Her warnings had saved their lives on more than one occasion during this journey and she was not about doubt it now. Keira had already climbed off her horse to join Arianne on the ground, appearing almost eager to forge ahead. If anything, this entire quest had proven without a doubt that Keira’s worries that she had lost her courage seem unwarranted.
If anything; it reminded everyone of how much of it she possessed.
However, while Celene was confident about Arianne's insistence on seeking out this mysterious weapon that could kill their enemy, she was less so about what might be lying in wait in the mountains to protect it. Last night they had been attacked by wyrms and survived, but those creatures were the offspring of something that was far older and infinitely powerful than any weapon they possessed to fight it. Somewhere in the heart of these mountains, more than likely where Arianne's prize was, Celene knew they would find the wyvern that had sired this nest of wyrms.
A wyvern that would no doubt be happy to greet the murderers of her children.
‘We’ve managed to get this far through,’ Keira commented. ‘I didn’t think we’d survive half the things we have but we’ve seemed to manage. We can do this,’ she said confidently to the others.
Melia had no argument to make in opposition to this, and as the newest member the group, did not feel she had standing to voice any objections. She reminded herself she was here to protect the Queen, and no matter where Arianne would go, Melia would follow her to do just that, but her heart ached at having to leave her horse Serinda behind.
‘I have told them to find shelter,’ Arianne revealed, aware that Melia's mare was a trusted companion and that the Watch Guard had difficulty leaving her to fend for herself.
‘You can talk to horses?’ Melia stared at her with surprise. She knew elves had keen senses and better agility than men, but that they could speak to animals she had not known.
‘Not in the way that we speak, but they can sense what we wish for them and the like,’ the Queen explained.
With a little smile, Melia leaned close to Serinda and whispered, ‘Tell her nothing.’
Arianne chuckled and then replied, ‘They will find some place to shelter until we have need of them. They will be safe—I promise.’
Melia sighed and ran her fingers along the ridge of Serinda’s nose. She hoped the mare understood that this abandonment was for her own good. She wrapped the bridle around the pommel of the saddle and turned the animal’s head away from her gently, hoping Serinda would understand the reason for this action. The horse trotted away to join the small herd that were moving away from them at Arianne's instruction.
‘She will find you again,’ Arianne said, her hand brushing the Watch Guard’s shoulder in sympathy when Melia returned to them. ‘I am certain of it.’
‘I have no doubt that she will find me,’ Melia whispered. ‘I just hope that she does not wait too long if I am dead. She has been my faithful companion for many years, I would not rest easy even in death to know that she was languishing in wait for my return.’
As much as Celene wanted to say words of similar kindness to Melia, they could not afford to remain in one place too long. Perhaps the wyrms preferred to move by night, explaining the lack of sighting throughout the day, or perhaps they were being lead into a trap. Whatever the explanation, Celene did not wish to find out the hard way.
The Mountain and the Enemy awaited them.
However, something in the pit of her stomach told her that the Enemy was close. Closer than they any of them imagined.
*******
By the time the afternoon was in the sky, they had spent most of the day climbing the steep mountainside, sometimes on their hands and knees and other times helping each other over shelves of rock and across narrow ledges. Their limbs ached, and their palms were cut and scratched from the craggy terrain in which they were force to find hand holds. Tempers began to shorten as their exhaustion started to set in and the only consolation they had was the cold did not allow them to swelter beneath their cloaks from physical exertions.
Meanwhile, Melia and Celene kept watch for danger whenever they reached level terrain that was wide enough for a wyrm of size to emerge. So far they had seen nothing of the creatures that had attacked the night before, but it was possible that they did not emerge in the day and would reappear when the sun went down. Keira continued to maintain her good cheer and attempted to do the same for her companions. Her unwavering belief that they could succeed in their quest gave heart to all present and once again, Arianne was grateful she had chosen to join them. While Keira was not a great warrior, her lightness of spirit, particularly after what had been done to her by the Circle, was a boon to them all.
However, while she did not speak of it, Arianne felt something tugging at her consciousness as they journey across the mountain. She could feel its reach pulling her forward and not just her but also the baby inside her. My son feels it too she thought, and that moment of communion between herself and her still forming child almost brought tears to her eyes. Arianne wanted so much to meet the babe inside her before the Enemy had a chance to steal his life away.
‘No matter what course I must take,’ she said herself while caressing her stomach, ‘I will allow nothing to harm you, little one’.
*******
There was a time when all the dead places of Avalyne teemed with life. Before the Winter Wife rolled the arctic tundra across the landscape to conceal the terrible scars left behind by Mael during the Primordial Wars, the Frozen Mountains was as green as the majestic Baffin. From peak to foothills, she hosted a lusty, green forest that was known to the elves of that time as the Palmira Woods, because of the magnificent view that forest afforded those who walked its paths.
It bore little resemblance to the place that Arianne, Celene, Keira and Melia now crossed.
Time and war had scarred the mountain and the wood was no more, lost to the ravages of Mael's Primordials. Their terrible power had scorched the mountain, killing every creature that lived in the forest, in the caves and burrowed beneath the dirt. The woods were transformed into a twisted version of itself.
No longer beautiful, the tall, majestic trees had grown wild, instead of standing like stately sentinels overlooking the forest. They became gnarled and twisted, the green leaves having fled sharp, thorny branches that snagged and scratched. Bushes and flowering plants were replaced by brambles and thickets of thorny briars that stretched across the mountain pass they had to cross to reach the other side of the mountain.
‘I suppose that is our path,’ Melia sighed as she looked at the sharp, daunting path they had to pass to keep moving forward. Her hand went to her sword, knowing the only way across was to hack away the sharp, twisted thicket before them.
‘It is,’ Arianne nodded, sensing now that what she was seeking was on the other side of this dead wood. The nature of the terrain provided the perfect deterrent for someone trying to hide something precious. ‘What I need to find is on the other side of this.’
‘Of course it is,’ Keira retorted, unable to raise any good humour in the face of this latest obstacle.
‘I’ll take the lead,’ Celene stated after taking a deep breath to strengthen her resolve. Unsheathing her sword, she stepped up to the nearest part of the thicket and swung her sword, slashing away at the thorny barbs in her way, the ice and snow on its dead branches scattering as she did so. ‘Arianne and Keira, stay behind me and close. Melia, you take the rear.’
‘I do not always need your protection, Celene,’ Arianne grumbled as she fell behind the Lady of Gislaine. It was useless of course. Dare had told her that when it came to the people she cared for, Celene would defend them to her dying breath. Because of their friendship, Arianne knew that Gislaine would do the same to protect not only her but her child. Still, the Queen hated that her condition required others to take up the burden that should have been hers to bear. ‘I can take the rear,’ she offered.
‘You can,’ Melia retorted, taking up position behind Keira, ‘but you’re not going to.’
‘I thought I was the Queen here,’ Arianne threw the Watch Guard a look.
‘You are,’ Keira smiled sweetly, ‘and in all other matters you rule, but not this one.’
‘Exactly,’ Celene replied as they began to make slow progress through the briars that lay ahead of them. ‘I have no wish to explain to your husband why I let you get cut to pieces trying to get through this place. So you will stay behind me.’
‘And before me,’ Melia added her voice in. ‘Because your husband is my King and he can behead me if he so feels inclined.’ She was joking, of course, but they had travelled together for weeks now and had become comfortable enough with each other to take such liberties. Even if Arianne was Queen of Carleon.
‘He would never do that!’ Arianne exclaimed almost laughing.
‘So you say,’ Melia teased. ‘I prefer not to take my chances.’
‘I am more than nine hundred years older than all three of you,’ the Queen snorted. ‘What makes you think I cannot protect myself?’
‘Nothing,’ Keira smiled because the tone about the conversation was one of jest, no doubt to add some brevity to the misery of their current endeavour. ‘We’re taught to honour our elders. That is why you’re travelling in between us. As the oldest, we’ve got to protect you.’
Both Melia and Celene burst out laughing and Arianne made a face at Keira. ‘I suppose you think that is very funny.’
‘Actually, yes,’ Celene replied from the front. ‘Keira’s reply was far more diplomatic than what I would have elected to say.’
‘Which is?’ Arianne raised a brow at her best friend.
‘That the future King of Carleon is already plagued by too many threats to have to endure the stubbornness of his mother.’ She glanced over her shoulder and gave Arianne a look of pure sarcasm. ‘In other words, stop being a pain, Arianne.’
Melia bit her lip in an effort not to laugh, especially when she saw the teasing smirk that stole across Celene's face as she winked at the Queen.
‘With friends like you,’ Arianne grumbled, ‘I do not need enemies.’
‘That is true,’ Celene replied casually, taking no offense at her remark since this whole conversation was being carried tongue-in-cheek. ‘You are fortunate indeed.’
‘How does Ronen put up with you?’ the Queen asked with mock sarcasm.
‘Oh, probably in the same manner as Dare does with you,’ Celene replied promptly.
Melia exchanged a knowing glance with Keira before retorting, ‘I am starting to feel very sorry for both these men.’
*******
Their progress was slow.
As they cut their way through the ancient wood, they continued to be assailed by thorns, branches and rocks that always seemed to find skin to tear ,no matter how well they thought they were covered. Celene continued to charge ahead, hacking her way through the barrier until she felt the exhaustion in her bones become almost unbearable. She forced herself to continue, refusing to surrender to the weariness she felt. Blinking away the sweat that stung her eyes and not acknowledging the multitude of cuts to her skin, she took comfort in the fact that she was not alone in her misery.
The others were suffering, and so must she.
Glancing up at the sky, she saw that night was descending and she knew they would have to think about finding camp soon. However, she saw nothing ahead of them that could serve the purpose, and they needed it to be defensible because the wyrms had come from this mountain and they would be seeking them out this night. With no idea how many of the things they might have to face, Celene was acutely aware of how vulnerable they were at this moment.
She brought down her sword again when suddenly the blade sliced through so easily that she might have been trying to cut parchment. The force of her blow disintegrated the section of her thicket as it completed its arc. It took only a second for Celene to process what she was seeing and she immediately stopped short.
‘Everyone be still!’ she ordered.
As they froze in their tracks, Celene scanned the terrain before them and could only see petrified trees, the thicket ahead of them partially covered in ice, and the jagged mountains flanking them on either side. The only way to run was back they came. The thicket itself seemed different—less alive if such a thing were possible, and Celene stepped forward again, tapping her sword against the briar and saw it crumble further.
Like brittle glass.
Almost on cue, she heard Arianne speak. ‘We are in danger, something is here.’
‘The thicket is brittle,’ Celene announced, ignoring Arianne's portent of doom because she had already reached that conclusion.
‘We’re in their nest, aren’t we?’ Melia said, recognising the characteristics of the ruined towns they had seen earlier.
‘Or very close to it. Draw your swords, if you have not done so already,’ she ordered.
She heard the slide of metal behind her as swords were unsheathed and she knew they had to escape the confinement of this thicket if they were going to survive an ambush. Moving through the briar with renewed purpose, this time she was able to shatter them easily because of their frostbitten state.
Celene worked tirelessly, aware that behind her both Arianne and Keira were grasping their weapons tight, in readiness for attack should it come before left the thicket. Melia was undoubtedly scanning the hills about them for any signs of movement so she could concentrate on what was ahead. Above the blanket of twilight had descended, and Celene knew from the tension in Arianne’s face that the creatures were coming. She simply could not bring herself to say it.
Very soon they reached the other side of the thicket, and although they were grateful to have crossed the wood, the shadows that stretched over the hills provided no relief for there were too many places for the wyrms to suddenly come upon them. Then, without warning, she heard the familiar sound that preceded the battle the night before, the loud, continuous scraping against the dirt of something dragging itself across the ground.
‘Take my shield,’ Celene said as she handed Arianne the shield she had found no use for until the appearance of the wyrms the night before. Before setting their horses free, she had taken the gift from her father Yalen for this very purpose.
‘You will need it,’ Arianne muttered as Celene thrust the object into her arms.
‘Not as much as you,’ Celene replied and turned her eyes to the direction of the sound that was closing in on them. ‘Use it, Arianne,’ she said firmly. ‘Use it to protect yourself. You carry all our futures within your body. You must protect the child, even at cost to us.’
‘Do not ask that of me!’ Arianne cried out in dismay. ‘I would do anything for my child—even give up my life—but I won’t allow any of you to die for me!’
‘That choice is not yours to make,’ Celene stated firmly, needing Arianne to understand that whatever feelings she had towards her friends, they were a necessary sacrifice if the greater good was to be accomplished. ‘This is for the good of Avalyne.’
‘Can this wait?’ Keira shouted as she looked about her apprehensively at the source of the slithering sound she could hear.
‘There!’ Melia barked, pointing to a crack in the rock concealed by shadows that was much wider than it appeared on first sight.
She had no sooner said those words than the first wyrm made its appearance, its cold breath chilling her face as it slithered quickly towards her, displaying amazing agility for a creature without limbs. She leapt out of its way and landed on the ground to avoid being frozen to death, the jagged rocks on the ground biting painfully into her elbows and her knees. Trading her sword for her crossbow, she held onto the weapon through the painful manoeuvre, and though she was certain she had lost more skin in the process, rolled onto her knee and took aim. The bolt from her crossbow struck the creature’s belly and it uttered a gurgling sound of pain.
The creature’s cry attracted the others out of their hiding places and the women soon found themselves surrounded. Melia fired another bolt at the wyrm, for it was far from dead. It sidled towards her to exact its revenge. Running forward instead of retreating, she swerved at the last minute and leapt towards a protruding rock. Using her foot to bounce off it, she carried out a minor feat of acrobatics to land behind the beast. Taking advantage of its momentary confusion, she loaded her crossbow and fired another bolt deep into his body and stopped it for good. Unfortunately, just as Melia had taken advantage of the creature’s confusion, the other wyrms took advantage of her own distraction and closed in.
‘Melia!’ Celene cried out at seeing the Watch Guard’s predicament and was already running to her defence. Narrowly avoiding being sideswiped by the tail of another wyrm of a tail, she jumped up and let it pass beneath her, meeting it head on when she touched the ground once more. The creature hissed at her, its fangs bared.
‘Celene! Drop!’ Arianne ordered.
Celene dropped to her haunches without question, and looked up just in time to see her shield flying over her head and towards the wyrm. It spun through the air until it met flesh and bone and then still kept going. The wyrm did not even have time to cry out when the shield hit the rock wall behind it with a loud, metallic clang. The wyrm’s reared head tumbled away from its body, spurting blood that Celene scrambled away to avoid. Getting to her feet, she saw Arianne giving her a brief glance of acknowledgement, before they turned their attention to Melia who was attempting to fend off the two remaining wyrms.
Arianne came up from behind the two creatures and swung her blade in a wide arch over her shoulder, bringing the sword down upon the midsection of the wyrm. She put all her strength into it and drove the blade through its flesh until it came to a halt against the ground. The wyrm writhed in agony, its frantic hissing reaching fever pitch when she split it in half. Suddenly a blast of cold enveloped her body and Arianne felt her senses overload with the biting sensation of ice.
The cold was paralysing, and for a moment she was rooted to the spot, unable to move. It penetrated the layers of clothes she wore, making her feel as if the points of a thousand knives were raking across her skin. She felt her bones turn to ice beneath her flesh and her lips began to quiver as the rest of her shook uncontrollably. Through the fog of pain Arianne heard Celene’s frantic voice calling after her. Somehow, she ended up on the ground.
‘Arianne!’
She felt Keira’s hand around her arm, dragging off the ground to her feet. The woman of the Green ushered away from the fight, leading her behind some rocks away from the view of the wyrms so she could recover from the cold. Once they were crouched out of sight, Keira started rubbing her arms rigorously to generate heat through friction.
‘I am unhurt,’ Arianne managed to say through her chattering teeth. The cold was unpleasant and her body was racked with shivers but it was not permanent. Even now, she could feel the warmth returning to her limbs as Arianne continued to rub her arm. She could feel the blood flowing through her body as the biting sting against her skin faded away thanks to Keira’s ministration.
‘Did I not tell you that you should have kept the shield?’ Celene joked when as she and Melia found them a short time later.
Around them, the remains of dead wyrms lay against the ground. Arianne knew that they had prevailed against the assault because these wyrms were young and driven by instinct and inexperience. Had any of them encountered the creatures when they were fully grown, none of the women would have been fortunate enough to escape the experience alive. Nevertheless, these wyrms had destroyed whole communities and Arianne did not take the achievement of defeating them lightly.
‘If I had not used it, you would not be here to be so smug,’ Arianne retorted with a grateful smile that her friends were unhurt. Mostly.
Celene was about to respond when suddenly the ground beneath trembled with a shudder that silenced them all. Around them, grains of dirt were shaken loose from the rocks and pebbles skittered to the ground, clacking loudly against the rocky ground as it sparked upon impact. A low rumble corresponded with each new rock fall, like the approach of thunder as a storm grew closer and closer. The sensation of imminent danger came so quickly upon Arianne that it almost choked her with, and any ill effect she had suffered from the wyrm earlier was forgotten because she knew what was coming.
‘Run!’ Arianne cried out.
But they had run out of time.
The creature that emerged from the cracks in mountain was no wyrm. In comparison to this, the wyrms were small and insignificant, this beast was not. This was a wyvern, fully grown, with powerful muscles rippling beneath the iridescent scales that would have been beautiful to watch if you were not the source of its fury, with claws and teeth. The wyvern’s red eyes swept across the terrain, taking in the sight of its dead children before turning her serpentine head towards those who was responsible for the slaughter.
For an instant none of them could do anything but stare at the massive beast with their mouths open in frozen horror. Only when it took a step towards them were they forced into motion. Melia raised her crossbow and began firing at the creature. The first bolt that flew through the air struck the creature in its side had little effect. Even a formidable piece of steel was not going to penetrate a wyvern’s scales. The cold wyvern shrugged off the bolt as if it was rainwater on its back and Melia watched with growing fear as the metal bolt clattered impotently to the ground.
‘Aim for its belly!’ Celene shouted, and wished she had a bow and arrow, which was a weapon more useful for an enemy such as this.
Melia nodded mutely and resumed her efforts. Taking careful aim with one of the few bolts she had left, she let it fly at the wyvern. The projectile flew through the air, and this time it could not be as easily discarded. The bolt struck its belly and though it was not enough to bring down the beast, it was successful in provoking the beast’s fury and it opened its mouth, preparing to vent the full torrent of its rage.
‘GET BEHIND ME!’ Celene ordered the others as she held up the shield between them and the wyvern. Celene had no idea if it would hold. The shield was made of dwarf iron mined from Iridia, the hardest known substance. Whether or not it would survive the wyvern’s cold breath was a mystery she wished she did not have to find out this way. As Keira and Arianne took refuge behind her, Melia jumped out of its path. A blast of ice scrambled behind her from the creature’s widened jaws.
The steel iced up in her hands and became so cold that it was almost impossible for Celene to maintain her grip, but it did not brittle or shatter and that gave her the determination to continue. A sudden scream from Keira made Celene peer over the shield to see that the wyvern’s enormous head looming towards them, its jaws wide open. However, the Lady of Gislaine was having none of it. Instead, she swung the shield wide, slamming the iron edge into the side of the wyvern’s head. She expected it to be disorientated enough to allow them time to escape.
The action had won them no more than seconds, which gave time for Keira to pull Arianne into a gap between the mountain and another tall boulder, providing them with a temporary hiding place.
‘We've got to run for it!’ Keira exclaimed. ‘Did you see where Melia went?’
‘No,’ Arianne said frantically. ‘We cannot run. We will never make it down the mountain. We need to spear it!’ Arianne cried out when Celene joined them in their place of safety between the rocks. The wyvern was breathing its cold breath against the large boulder with relentless determination, turning the rock cold and cracks to form in its surface. Eventually it would make it cold enough for even their brief refuge to crumble.
‘I am open to any suggestions you might have…’ she started to say when her words drifted a moment as if she had an idea. Until the wyvern smashed its tail against the boulder and forced the words out of her. ‘We need a distraction!’ Celene shouted as she felt the wyvern resume its effort to freeze them out. ‘Melia, can you hear us?’
‘I hear you!’ Melia cried back as she worked feverishly to retrieve the bolts she had used on the worms. The drake’s attention was still fixated on Celene, Arianne and Keira, allowing her to move without notice for a few seconds. Without them, she was powerless to be of any help to her friends.
‘We need you to face it head on!’ Celene called out.
‘What?’ Melia stopped short and stared in their direction past the enormous bulk of the creature, disbelief etched upon her face.
‘We need it distracted so we can strike!’ Celene returned over the wyvern’s roar.
The creature turned towards Melia upon realising that was prey out in the open.
Melia grasped what Celene intended and knew that the tactic was dangerous, to say the least. All of them could be killed in one foul swoop if they erred in its execution. Unfortunately, it was also their only chance. For it to work, Melia had to move now. Taking a deep breath, she raced forward, avoiding a deadly swipe by the wyvern’s claws when it attempted to strike her as she ran. Upon missing, it used it tail instead, attempting to swat her away like an insect. Melia managed to elude it, leaping onto the boulder that Celene and the others were hidden behind.
‘I hope you are right about this!’ Melia cried out before swallowing thickly when she saw the wyvern coming towards her.
She stood her ground, and perhaps it was her defiance, daring to face it in the open with her crossbow aimed boldly, that stayed the creature’s desire to turn her to ice. The wyvern wanted to feed upon her bones, to taste her marrow upon its tongue. It rumbled forward as Melia began shooting bolts at it, taking precise aim so as to strike its soft underbelly.
The beast roared in outrage and rose up to its full height when its skin was broken, preparing to avenge the pain by snapping its jaws around her skull. Melia’s fingers trembled as she continued to shoot, her fear threatening to override her senses. However, she forced away her fear because it was imperative that she held her ground. In a matter of seconds, she emptied all the bolts she had into the beast’s belly and heard its deafening roar in her ears. In its fury, it chose to abandon the desire to feed upon her, deciding instead the quicker path of simply freezing her.
Melia saw the wyvern’s mouth widen and knew what was coming. She jumped as the cold blast came at her, landing badly on the shoulder that popped loudly when she hit the ground. The pain was beyond belief, like white heat searing through her body. It forced a cry of pain from her lips and for a few seconds she could not move. She was almost prepared to let the wyvern have her, when suddenly Celene made a running leap onto the rock, her sword brandished high above her head as she ran towards the wyvern.
The wyvern was reared up on its back legs, its belly exposed as Celene lunged towards it. It had little time to react as her sword slid deep into the creature’s sternum. Hanging on tight, she let the weight of her body pull her downwards, the blade cutting through the wyvern’s soft underbelly and ripping open