Ice Burns Page 24

  “They’re dead.” Chandra rasped once her mind hit her with the conclusion of her magic. “All of them?”

  In her mind, Frostwhite showed her Deakon walking onto the charred scene where the guards had surrounded her. Chandra did not remember seeing or killing him, so it made sense. At least this meant his hunt for her was likely over and she wouldn't have to live with the guilt of his death on top of the rest.

  “Find Matta, please,” Chandra said softly, her throat raw as if the fire had come up through her instead of the contents of her stomach. She felt the flurry, like a reverse snow storm, as Frostwhite took wing.

  She crawled a few feet where she found a thick covering of decaying leaves underneath the thin whip-like branches that told her it was a weeping willow. Chandra wanted only to rest, but she fought sleep like a tiny child convinced it does not need to sleep. Like a child, though, sleep won.

  Chandra found herself in the familiar deep cavern following the shadowy shape of a woman. The light from her lantern bounced around but didn't offer clarity on their surroundings. Now and again, she would catch glimpses of the woman’s face, but not enough to conclusively identify who she was. A new perception swept over her in the vision this time, and she shook.

  Chandra heard that same disdainful voice in her mind as she had in the clearing of destruction. With its presence the foreign heat rose within her. It made her sick to remember what it was capable of. Her body warred with the arctic intensity that wrapped the rampant heat. Anger mixed with disdain; rage mixed with icy indifference. Chandra had listened to this presence in killing the guards and wanted it gone, never to be experienced or remembered.

  As she continued down the corridor, whispers began in her ears. At first they were as quiet as the rustling of Frostwhite’s wings while he slept. The sound increased in volume until it was a maelstrom that made her think she had a storm blowing through her ears. Part of her mind recognized this was not part of the dark walk. Her consciousness pushed her to the surface.

  Chandra couldn’t convince her eyes to open more than a slit because the rustling of sound overwhelmed her, making it difficult to do anything. She pressed her hand against her ear and peered through her lashes. The cascade of noises made her want to curl into a ball and cover herself, but she focused and tried to make out the confusing shapes and noises. Her brain tried to decipher the sounds to find their source, but instead found a million whispers speaking in a tongue she didn’t understand. Just as she began to pull words from the chaos, another sound silenced them.

  A gentle melody rose, and Chandra thought of a lullaby. It was the oddest sort of music. The song was whispers mixed with humming and gentle rises in pitch like the songs of many different birds. As the music rose through the forest, a low hum sounded a continuous call as if in response.

  Chandra pushed open eyes that had shut again and found the forest bright with unusual color. Where each tree had looked similar in its shades of green and brown to her before, they appeared changed and unique. The willow above her was in the same colors, but it was as if beneath the brown and green a vibrant blue, like crystal water flowed. A dogwood was colored deep brown of sickness and decay while an evergreen had its verdant bristles trimmed incandescent green.

  A breath and the air was trimmed in hues as well. Chandra thought it looked as though the different trees and shrubs exhaled colors into the air. She rubbed at her eyes as if there was something in them making the forest look odd. Her fingers came away with only ash from the fire.

  Suddenly, a white light stepped out from the forest and moved toward Chandra. She lifted a shaky hand as if to ward off a blow.

  “Easy child, easy,” a familiar voice rasped. “Calm yourself. You know I will not hurt you.”

  Chandra’s hand shook as she lowered it and watched the opaque light with Matta’s voice approach. She ran her tongue across her cracked lips, unable to moisten them and longing for a drink.

  “Where have you been, Chandra? I worried...” Matta’s voice trailed off, and the light continued to move closer.

  “Matta, where are you? I can’t see anything but light.” Chandra rasped back softly, her voice as dry as her throat. The light stopped moving toward her.

  “What light, child? I’m standing right in front of you!” Matta’s voice scolded her with an undertone of worry.

  “No,” Chandra mouthed, shaking her head back and forth. The light sent a thick, ropey tendril toward her and both women understood.

  “How am I seeing you like this?” Chandra croaked.

  “I don’t know,” Matta the light responded.

  29

  Chandra tried to speak again but no sound came out. She moved to shift her position and her hand found something hard and wet. She turned to look and saw a rock glowing and dipped down in the center like a shallow bowl. In the tiny basin was bright, clear water. Without hesitation, she leaned down to drink. The water was cold and soothed her raw mouth.

  When she had emptied it, she leaned back and saw pale blue tendrils curve up from the ground around the rock and refill the tiny basin. Water and rock glowed faintly. Despite thirst, Chandra did not immediately lean down and drink from the water and instead watched it for several moments. She waited to see if the water would continue to flow from some invisible stream and overflow the tiny basin, but it did not. Once the little bowl had filled, the water stopped coming from wherever it came.

  Chandra dipped one finger into the water was struck by the chill. It told her that this was not a natural water accumulation. Standing water in a forest would feel warm. She leaned down and drank slowly. She rolled the cold water in her mouth before swallowing. It tasted fresh and clean but mostly like ordinary water.

  After quenching her need from several more drinks, she paused with her face inches from the ground and whispered, “Thank you.” As predictably and unpredictable as she could imagine, the water did not refill the basin.

  Chandra turned her green eyes to the strange image of her wizened guide. Matta was no longer pure light but also not the Matta she remembered. Encased in the glow was a form like an old birch tree. Tendrils, like hair or mist rose from the form and drifted around her, sometimes reaching nearby shrubs or trees and other times sinking into the ground as though turning to root.

  “Something has happened. Something has changed,” Matta whispered as she lowered herself to the ground. Chandra looked away, unable to face something so pure after what she had done.

  “Nothing has changed,” Chandra rasped. “The ugliness that has always been a part of me has linked itself to my magic and poisoned all of me instead of just my attitude.”

  Matta reached out, but Chandra moved away before the glowing limb could touch her. Matta left her arm raised for a moment before dropping her hand to her lap.

  “I don’t want to poison you as well, Matta. I can feel the darkness that flows in my veins, and I don’t know how to control it.”

  Matta said nothing. Chandra bowed her head and thought about what had happened. She saw the fire and death as she gloried in the rage that had been so thrilling and energizing. It had been euphoric in the way it lifted her until she came down to the nightmare of death. At that point, the horror took root and she ran from herself as much as the smoldering scene. Her body acted instinctually as if she were prey sensing a hunter.

  “There is something wrong with me. Something taints me from the deepest part of myself,” Chandra began, her voice rising.

  Matta said, raising one hand to stop her protests. “Your magic is different somehow. You are different, but I always knew that.

  “Something horrible happened back there. I can smell it and hear it from the cries of the trees and life of the forest. I’m not sure I understand everything, but I think I know well enough, Chandra. I know the power inside you is strong and different in a way I can't put my finger on. I don’t think it's evil, though I think you have to choose how it is used.”

  “Can you help me?” Chandra's voice was sma
ll and soft like a child's.

  Matta laughed. It was a low rustling sound like a breeze trailing through dried leaves and the sound was soothing to Chandra instead of offensive.

  “Those are the words I wish you had spoken when we first met. It's ironic that you ask now when I fear that you are beyond what I can do to help.”

  Chandra closed her eyes to the tickle of moisture. Loneliness wrapped around her like an old shawl, but it was frigid instead of comforting. She remembered it though, and had hoped she would never feel so alone again.

  A shrill shriek overhead made her raise her green eyes to the white feathered angel that landed beside her and butted her arm softly with his giant head. She reached out and gently stroked Frostwhite’s feathers.

  “I think it is time for you to continue alone,” Matta said and stood. “Destiny tends to call rather urgently when you don’t expect it, and I can almost hear it shrieking.” Matta chuckled and picked up the walking stick she had leaned against a tree. Or perhaps the tree had provided her a new one, Chandra mused for a moment.

  “I think after what Edvard said, you may find some answers by heading toward the Ice Kingdom. Whether or not you are who he thinks, it's a start. That path will also take you away from the one who seeks you for a while. Don't fear the journey; your companion will lead the way, I believe.”

  Frostwhite shrieked out a reply, and Matta nodded.

  “My forest will watch over you for as far as it reaches. Remember to ask kindly at the gnarled apple grove, and you will be provided for.” Matta closed her eyes for a moment and nodded slowly as if falling asleep on her feet.

  She reached into the folds of her birch-looking gown and pulled out a pack that she handed to Chandra. Chandra took the bag from the woman and knew it would have what she needed in it. Matta never traveled anywhere in the forest without supplies; an old habit from a previous life she had told Chandra. The old dryad’s smiled at Chandra before turning away. She watched the figure as it was swallowed by the trees before turning to go the opposite direction.

  Chandra paused when she heard a whispered, “Safe journey” carried by the light breeze carried by the rustling of leaves. She lowered her head and whispered her thanks. Somehow, she knew the words reached their recipient.

  The creature before her was like nothing she had ever seen. It was the color of molten tar. Its ebony skin shone with a wet quality as if it might at any moment drip a pool of pure black ink. The sinewy body was stretched and muscular. Its neck was like an odd parody of a horse’s neck, painfully long and tight with sinew.

  The creatures head was terror exemplified. She likened it to a massive snake. It had slit pupils and a wide, fanged mouth with nostrils that were elongated and protruding with a ridged outline on its snout. Sharp protrusions peppered its body at snout, head, and spine as well as along a long, reptilian tail. That tail was punctuated with a particularly deadly looking trio of spikes that made the rest look like bumps. The wicked tail was swishing back and forth as it eyed her narrowly, though it had not moved nearer.

  Its legs would make any beast of burden seem puny. Stout, wide thighs curved into heavy calves and taloned feet. The shape and spread of the front talons were indicative of other possible uses than walking, and she thought of her own hands or the claws of a bird. The talons on the forward feet tapped much like a person of ill patience might do with fingernails. The cold, venomous quality that exuded from it was recognizable even if its visage was not.

  The tapping sound echoed around her as though an army was marching in. A shudder ran a wet trail down her spine as her body reacted to the fear and anxiety. Her scalp itched, and her skin shifted uncomfortably as though it would escape.

  The head shifted, jaw down as the eyes moved level to meet her gaze. A reddish glow outlined the dark onyx center. The eyes looked abyssal but flat like pure iron. The gaze did not seem malevolent so much as contemplative to the point of boredom. Fear dried Chandra’s mouth.

  Suddenly, her eyes were drawn to the mouth which had opened and let out a wrenching cry that caused her heart to stop in her chest. After the shriek, it seemed to eye her in speculation before giving an almost imperceptive shrug and opening its mouth again, this time to belch out a ball of flame. Instincts kicked in at the right moment, dropping her to the floor and keeping her from burning to death.

  Chandra’s eyes opened to the dark canopy of the night forest. Her breath rushed from her body, and her skin shone with perspiration in the moonlight. The dream lingered as if she had just been standing there, facing down that monster. It was like a sharp rock wedged in her mind’s eye.

  She soothed the voice in her head with reassurances that it was some scary picture show that fear made up while she slept. Chandra’s adult mind, however, couldn’t shake that there was something different about this dream. She couldn’t clearly see what changed and was afraid she would only be able to identify when it was too late.

  Part III: Meeting Destiny

  Part III: Meeting Destiny

  Days and then weeks of travel eventually brought her to the end of Matta's forest. The trees stopped and opened to a rocky land with little grass and nights of cold wind and filled with strange, distant howls. The forest did not bring Chandra to civilization in any form; there was further travel before the world gave signs of people.

  At the crest of a rocky hill, Chandra saw houses grouped together. There was just enough of them to be considered a village. It looked to be about half a league away. She felt a flutter of relief as she started down the slope. She might finally be able to purchase supplies and understand where she was. Frostwhite was excellent at showing her the face of the land, but he couldn't tell her where they were specifically. Chandra needed names of places to get her bearings and use what information she'd read about the continent.

  Downward momentum of the hill gave her no choice but to speed up. As she did, her breath came in white puffs in the air. As she watched her breath leave her body, it occurred to her that there was nothing similar coming from the chimneys ahead.

  Frostwhite?

  At the thought, she felt the familiar presence of her aerial companion in her head.

  Do you see people or smoke in the village?

  In her mind, she was shown an overhead view of the village ahead. There was no one out and about. There were no shadows, birds, or dogs in the streets. Nothing in Frostwhite’s vision indicated life.

  Chandra muttered an oath and leaned back to slow her pace. She wasn’t sure what the still silence portended. When she reached the edge of the village, she looked at the first set of houses. They were tiny with yellowed and streaked fences that had seen better days. The woodpiles looked well-stocked, but there was still no sign of life even from animals around the sheds and barns behind the houses. The windows were dark and staring; the doors like a mouth pressed shut to avoid giving her answers. Chandra looked but couldn’t see outlines of furniture within the houses and concluded that the curtains were closed.

  Though the area seemed deserted, she noted the windows had glass and the yards looked kept and clear of clutter or random debris. It was unlikely that the place had been abandoned. Frostwhite’s call from above seemed to echo and bounce off the buildings. The sound was jarring and strange and it sent a ripple across her spine despite the fact she knew the source.

  Frostwhite projected his view of the village from above into her mind. Chandra had gotten accustomed to seeing what her friend saw without losing her own vision. It had taken her a while to add to this skewed sense of sight, but she could now do it without falling on her face; an accomplishment she was very proud of.

  She saw the tiny town in a sort of split vision as she walked. It was gray due to the overcast sky. No shadows marked the outline of buildings or leafless trees. The few buildings that were more white than not looked as murky as the fences from the overhead vantage. As she watched with both sets of eyes, there was suddenly movement in the still world and sound. A single person moved onto the s
treet and slammed the door behind them.

  Chandra had a sudden urge to run to this glimpse of humanity. She released the link to her friend and looked with only her eyes. Frostwhite circled and settled on a building near where the figure, a middle-aged man, walked the uninhabited streets.

  Chandra didn't get a chance to speak before the man realized he was not alone on the street. She assumed she must have made a small sound because he paused and turned his head to look at her. His face froze as did one foot, mid-step. He seemed to shake himself and the surprise dropped away.

  “Ye shouldna be here, lad,” the man looked her up and down, noting her worn clothing patched with hides and skins. “Where did ye come from? It mae be in yer best interest to go back.”

  “I apologize, sir. I’m a traveler, and I was hoping to purchase some supplies to continue my journey,” Chandra told him. She didn’t correct him about her gender, figuring he had assumed her male from her lack of hair. She even spoke in a slightly lower tone to encourage the misunderstanding. It wasn't common for anyone to travel alone, much less a woman. At least with a young man, people would assume that it was for good reason. If the man had seen any bulletins about her, there was less of a chance of being recognized if he didn't realize that the "lad" was a she.

  “Well, ye’ll be outta luck for buyin anything hereabouts. We have ne market anymore. If ye follow me, I’ll give ye a bit to carry ye on.” He gestured at her with a gnarled hand with dirt ringing the fingernails, and Chandra nodded at him, grateful. The only thing she had left in her sack besides her water skin was one apple left from what she had found at the apple grove on the edge of Matta’s forest. Frostwhite had been bringing her food, but she was better with the skins than she was at cooking anything properly.