“SHIT! HANG ON, EVERYONE!” I turned the carpet around and dove back over the mountainside. Nettle’s antennae were ringing up a storm from the shaking as she crawled over to me. “Was that-?" I nodded. “It was, no doubt about it.” Meleri grumbled. “Care to inform the rest of us?” I banked around a boulder, looking around desperately. Since I was so focused on flying, Nettle answered for me “That storm front heading straight for us is an ice storm. Think a blizzard amped up to eleven as it’s not snow that is being sent flying, but razor-sharp pieces of ice.”

  I dove into a deep valley and finally found what I was looking for, a cave. I turned towards it and stopped just beside the entryway. “More to the point it moves fast, we have maybe ten minutes before it’s on us. Now help me secure the entrance, the last thing we want is deadly ice shards flying inside.” No sooner did I say so before the sunlight that was streaming into the snow-covered valley faded. The clouds from the storm just blocked it. Not good.

  “MOVE IT!” Irane and Irenji jumped off the carpet and grew big enough that their paws were like shovels as they began to pile snow near the cave entrance, creating two large piles on either side. A good start. “Bahruun, help me transfigure a tree into a wooden barricade for the entrance. "It doesn’t need to be perfect just enough that we can plug the remains with snow.” Bahruun nodded even as Millid began to help pile the snow with her hands. We could hear the wind begin to howl up above. We were running out of time.

  I glanced over my shoulder and saw Meleri turn the snow piles into ice, making it far more secure. “Great idea, sis, keep it up!” As I spoke, I pulled a tree out of the ground, and Bahruun began to transform it into a wooden barricade in the rough shape of the cave mouth. “Meleri, if you’re finished with the ice get the carpet inside.” I pulled up another tree, and Bahruun began to transform and fuse it to the barricade.

  “That should do it. I glanced at it. “If the ice gets through that we’d need stone to stop it. Go get it fitted. I’m going to grab something to warm us with.” As I spoke, there was a whooshing sound, and something embedded itself into the ground next to my feet. “Bahruun, move! We’re out of time!” As I spoke, another piece of ice flew past and grazed my cheek. “Gah damn it.” I grabbed a third tree and yanked it loose.

  Something slammed into the trunk that covered my face with enough force to crack the trunk, causing the recoil to impact my shoulder. Damn, that hurt. I turned towards the cave and legged it while dragging the tree behind me. As I entered the small hallway of ice that they made, I finally could focus enough to cast, and the tree split into firewood that sailed past me into the cave itself.

  I entered the cave and grabbed the barricade and slammed it in place. As I did, I noticed that my left arm wasn’t cooperating as much as it should. “Morgana!” Meleri was rushing towards me and looking at something on my shoulder. Huh? I looked down at my shoulder, a large piece of bloodied ice was sticking out of my shoulder. How did I not notice that before? Then the pain that the adrenaline mitigated until that point hit with such intensity everything went black.

  My eyes opened again. There was a soft glow coming from my shoulder area along with a dull ache and a soft, soothing warmth rather than the cold burn from earlier. I was lying next to a campfire that was burning with a golden flame that didn’t give off smoke. Bahruun was sitting next to me on one side, and my head was resting in Rathina’s lap.

  Bahruun looked relieved as I noticed I was conscious. “You’re a lucky woman, Morgana. The ice hit nothing vital, must have been a ricochet from the slab that hit the tree as you uprooted it.” I tried to sit up but flinched and sank back down as the pain in the shoulder briefly intensified. Rathina bent down to support me, and I slowly got up to a sitting position. She gave me a gentle kiss on the cheek. “Easy there, love.” Man, she was beautiful.

  I gave her a weak smile. “I’ll be fine, honey. How's the entrance?” My voice was strained. Soot flew over and landed on my lap, followed by Midnight and Winter. “Secure. Meleri froze it shut.” He seemed relieved to see that I was fine. Winter hopped up next to me and nuzzled my side lovingly. “I shudder to think what would have happened if that storm hit us halfway across the plains, Meowstress.” I reached down and began to scratch them all gently.

  ”Nothing good, thankfully we were lucky enough to find shelter.” Meleri sat down next to me and pulled me into a hug. Bahruun grumbled. “Oy, the wound’s not healed yet!” Meleri stepped back. “Sorry, Bahruun, please continue.” Bahruun resumed his healing. “It’s fine. I can understand the relief, that wound was nasty.” I looked around and found Nettle near the campfire talking softly with Irenji and Irane.

  The carpet was lying on the ground next to the entrance. The glyphs that Rathina sewed into it were glowing brightly. “Using the carpet to keep the cold air from leaking in here, clever.” Rathina grinned. “Jaira was pretty proud of that one, though I doubt she will agree.” I looked around. “Speaking of, where is she?” Rathina pointed towards the back of the cave. “She went back to prepare a place for us to rest in case we needed to stay the night, we didn’t want to sleep next to the barricade in case it broke down during the night.” I could already see cracks where ice punched through here and there and signs of magical mending.

  “If we’re lucky, the storm should end before nightfall.” Meleri looked towards the entrance. “And if we’re unlucky?” “It could last a few days, though that’s the exception, not the rule. Ice Storms need time to play out, but they move about so much that they rarely affect an area for too long, thankfully, considering how destructive they are.

  Bahruun leaned back from my shoulder. “There, that’s all done, you’ll be feeling extra hungry for a few days as your body recovers, but better than the alternative.” I gave my shoulder an experimental move. No pain at all. “Thanks, Bahruun, it’s good as new.” He waved me off. “Don’t mention it. ” As I sat up, I cast a spell to fix my torn robe and coat, as well as remove the stains. I could hear the howling of the storm outside. “Hmm, I just hope it ends before sunset. As cozy as this cave might be, I would prefer a bed tonight.

  Bahruun grunted. “That’s the problem with those damn ice storms isn’t it? I don’t fancy the idea of going to bed hungry either.” I rolled my shoulder one more time. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that. Remember, both Meleri and I got stuck in a blizzard before, so I do not leave home in winter without enough provisions to last days if need be. Even if that’s just for a small hunting trip. Once was enough for me.”

  I heard Meleri clear her throat. “I also grabbed some food, as I decided to bring some dried meat and hardtack. You know, just in case.” Well now, that was convenient. “I grabbed dried fruit, meat and also plenty of water, so we won’t go hungry until that storm abates. Besides worst-case scenario I could conjure some food, tasteless though it might be, it is still sustenance, after all.

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  I could see Bahruun wrinkle his nose at the idea, and I couldn’t blame him. All magic users fell for the temptation to use magic for food at least once, after all. Well, aside from Meleri, since she already knew not to. I opened my pouch and pulled out some dried meat and fruit. “Might as well eat lunch while we wait.” Bahruun nodded. “A wise choice considering you will need the energy.”

  Meleri tilted her head as she was busy chewing on some apple pieces. Ah, right, that. “Light Sorcerers like Bahruun can, as mentioned before, use healing magic. However, in difference from a healing potion, it has some side effects when used on someone with a Dark affinity, like myself.” I took a bite of some dried meat. Soot looked up from his own assorted meats and greens. “I give you two guesses on what the side effect is, and the first guess doesn’t count.”

  As we ate, Midnight and Winter stayed in my lap, so I kept giving them pats and scratches as we ate, much to their delight. Soot was eating together with Irenji and Irane and were discussing hunting techniques. Not much of a surprise there, given how ravens and wolves could form an almost symbiotic relationship in the wild.

  It took several hours for the storm to pass. As I moved the barricade to the side, something that took more time than expected, as it was so much ice on the outside, I could see the late afternoon sun high on the valley walls. Rathina stepped beside me and gave me a hug from behind, I turned and gave her a kiss. Jaira walked past us and looked out at the sight in front of us, the previously pristine snow was pockmarked by ice shards all over the place, in fact, there were more ice shards than snow covering the valley now.

  “I am so glad we got out of that storm in time. Though I hope it runs its course before it hits Nekkal.” I looked skyward, but there was not a cloud to be seen. “Hmm, I can’t say I know if it will peter out before reaching that far south. However, if it keeps the same course as it was blowing when it hit the mountains it would miss the city.”

  I turned towards the cave and looked at the barricade. It looked like a pincushion, so that ice storm was quite intense. “Alright everyone, pack up. If we want to get to Winter Glen before midnight we need to go now.” The fire was put out, and everyone hurried outside. Meleri closed the barricade again. “In case we need shelter later.” Not a bad idea at all. I set off again, and after a bit of circling to gain height, we were once again back over the mountain. The snow-covered plains below glowed in the golden rays of the late afternoon sun. Jaira let out a whistle. “Now that’s not a sight you see every day.” Nettle landed on her shoulder. “It’s not the most impressive sight you will see today, if we’re lucky.”

  Huh, I didn’t expect Nettle to be so close with Jaira out of nowhere. Did something happen after I lost consciousness? As if to answer my question, Winter hopped up next to me. “After you lost consciousness, the wind pushed the barricade open, and Nettle was almost blown away until Jaira stepped in and blocked it for her.” Really? Well, good to see that Nettle’s anger towards her was diminishing at last. I reached down and scratched Winter under her beak.

  “It’s good that they are finally getting along.” I reached over to the side of Winter’s neck and scratched her there, and since that was a spot Winter was ticklish, I earned a playful nibble in response. “So what about you, Winter, any plans for the feast?” Winter chirped for a bit, lost in thought. “Explore the village, I haven’t been in Winter Glen before, after all.” That was true. “I am certain Soot or Midnight will be happy to show you around if you want company.” Winter looked up at me. “I take it you have obligations being a Court Member, right Mother?” I looked down at her and reached out to gently stroke her head.

  “Sorry, Winter, I really would go with you if I could. However, both Nettle and I have to meet with the local Fae Court that’s arranging the Feast first thing tomorrow as we are guests in the region. We would have done it on arrival, but since we will arrive so late because of the storm, it would be better to wait until tomorrow. It would be viewed as quite a slight not to meet with them, one that would reflect badly on the entire court not just us. More to the point, depending on who is arranging it this year, the meeting could take anywhere from five minutes to most of the day.” I leaned down and kissed her feathery head.

  Winter clicked her beak and snuggled closer. “I understand, I’ll ask them a bit later.” I reached into my pouch and pulled out some meat for her. She took it and gobbled it down then snuggled in close again.

  The flight across the plains took a while, but finally the first peaks of our destination popped up over the horizon. “Ah, there we are, not too long now, which is nice as the sun is setting.” I sped us up, earning a gleeful squeal from Millid, who was now riding on Bahruun’s shoulders to get a better view. An act that caused some of her quills to poke outside the radius of the glyphs.

  As we approached the Frost Talon Mountains, their name became more clear as they shot up from the ground like several sharp, jagged talons, so tall that trapped clouds were circling around halfway up the tallest of them. Meleri glanced up at them as we reached the foot of the nearest, and I turned us towards the east along its base. “How tall are they?” Irenji pushed his snout into her hand, and she began to pet him. “One of the tallest peaks in the midlands that one, to hear the more far-traveled Great Wolves tell it, Mistress.”

  He looked at Irane who glanced back from where she was lying. “Irenji is correct. Only two other peaks are taller, and they are far from here. “One is Mount Sereshe, a volcano far to the southwest of our home, near the border to the southlands. The other is Tarinali, which is to the east somewhere.” Meleri nodded as she kept straining her neck to look up the massive, almost sheer incline. I glanced up as well. “While I don’t know the exact height, I can tell you that trying to fly over the mountains to reach Winter Glen is a bad idea, did that last time and almost suffocated for my trouble.”

  Meleri turned back towards me. “Then how will we reach it?” I nodded towards the front. “You can see it there.” Ahead of us, a series of massive boulders was coming into view from around the mountain. Each one dwarfing us in size, making us feel like small pebbles in comparison. I navigated through the boulders and finally everyone got a good look at what I was referring to.

  A massive, tear-shaped, sloping tunnel that was carved into the mountain itself, almost thirty meters tall from top to bottom that angled upwards at an almost thirty-degree angle that disappeared around a bend. The tunnel was well lit with magical fairy lights floating mid-air. The angle allowed snow to slide down the rounded bottom of the slope while also giving plenty of space for things that could fly to pass through. This would make it a nightmare for things that were landlocked and lacked magical aid to traverse in the winter.

  “It will take us about half an hour to fly up this thing because of the angle.” Nettle looked over at me from Jaira’s shoulder. “It will be dark by the time we emerge.” I nodded. “Indeed, it will. In fact, I am hoping for it.” I flew into the tunnel and began the long and steep spiral climb towards the top. When we arrived at the exit of the tunnel, we were high up on the mountainside.

  The sun was gone, leaving the area in the gloomy twilight that arrives just after the sun finishes setting. I flew forward, away from the snow-covered path and slowly began my descent into the valley. “Everyone, your attention please, ahead of us lies Winter Glen. As I spoke, I pointed down. And there far beneath us was glowing lights from what could be a village. I couldn’t wait for them to see it, as it was a beautiful place.