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**Peeps** · 03-20-2018, 10:33 PM

Aria was so determined that she would have forgotten about her company if Jack hadn't spoken. Stopping, she looked back while Seer hopped off her pack and fluttered to a branch above to get a view of something. "What is it?" She was curious what he might have found as long as it was a really quick detour.

**HyrulianBlackcat** · 03-20-2018, 11:51 PM

Jack's grin broadened and he took her hand. Carefully, he guided her through the forest, excitement growing as he let the cold pull him along. Sylvannas followed along behind, her fur prickling with unease. She couldn't shake the feeling of ill fortune. She didn't speak, but followed along silently as the small group arrived.

The trees changed abruptly. Instead of the summer surrounding them, the forest appeared a winter wonderland. Everything from the towering trees to the tiniest flowers were encased in ice so thick it didn't even drip in the warming day. Just as bizarre, it wasn't only plants that had been frozen. A young man and woman were also sealed in ice, their icy faces staring at something before them with concern. A pair of cheetahs stood beside them, just as frozen as the humans.

Jack stared at the scene in astonishment. It was so quiet and still. No birds flew overhead; no insects sang in the brush. No wonder Sylvannas had called it a cold stillness. He laid a hand on one of the icy trunks, amazed that it was so cold, even he could feel the chill.

**Peeps** · 03-21-2018, 10:33 AM

"Huh?"Aria narrowed her eyes in disbelief when they discovered the frozen patch of forest. This was certainly not the weather she had woken up to. She wondered if Jack had conjured this up, after all he had turned into the icy glacinox before. "What's going on here?"

**HyrulianBlackcat** · 03-22-2018, 01:09 PM

"I recognize this," he murmured. He knelt down and ran a hand along the icy blades of grass. They were so stiff from the cold, they could have sliced his hand like a knife. "This ice is from the glacinox. It's been here for years, but it still as solid as the day it was created." He straightened and considered the wintery scene, not yet daring to enter it properly.

"I think I know what happened here. My pa, I told you he had the glacinox power before me. He told me multiple times that he never had perfect control of it. Simple things would cause his ice to react. He told me about times that he would grow frustrated or lose his temper, and flecks of snow would float around him or shards of ice would spring from the ground. Many of the Stari tribe were wary of him because of his limited control, but he did have a few friends.

"They were hunting one day. He, my ma Hekate, Nora, and Vasu. They were joking and teasing each other as they hunted, and Pa thought for once he had total control of his ice. He even used it to bring down some game, and he was pleased with himself as he left the group to gather it. But he used the ice too much, left it too close to the surface. Something happened; he never told me what exactly. He lost control of the ice and it burst from him. Somehow my ma sensed it and was able to save herself, but Nora and Vasu weren't so lucky."

He turned to Aria again and gestured at the frost coated forest. "Pa was so terrified that he'd repeat this that he left the tribe. He traveled to the mountains to live alone, where everything was already frozen. Ma tagged along, insisting that he shouldn't have to be alone when she could keep herself safe. Escaping this was proof of that." He turned back to the icy sculptures, his story finished. Sylvannas crept to his side and rubbed against his leg. She could sense his unease at seeing proof of the dangers of his gift and offered what comfort she could, her thick fur protecting her from the chill emanating from him as his ice reacted to his own wariness of it.

**Peeps** · 03-22-2018, 09:04 PM

Aria looked from Jack to the the frozen figures, then back to Jack as he finished his story. Her mouth hung slightly open in amazement. His story broke her heart and she was confused why he seemed, to her, to be rather composed about it. "You father killed these people?" she asked before realizing how harsh it sounded.

**HyrulianBlackcat** · 03-23-2018, 12:12 AM

He winced at the abruptness of the question. He supposed he couldn't blame her; it was rather a surprise to discover just how dangerous his power could be. At least he had an idea of it, although it was still startling to see the evidence of it. "He always regretted it," he murmured in answer. "It haunted him the rest of his life. It's haunted me since the glacinox first awoke in me and he told me the tale. Ma refused to talk about it. Nora..." He trailed off and looked over at the frozen woman. His emotions finally overwhelmed him and silent tears began to drip down his face, leaving trails of frost as they encountered his frigid skin. He dropped to his knees; the icy grass shattered under his weight and cut into his skin. The wounds were shallow, but blood still welled and began to slowly leak into the remains of the shattered ice. "Nora was her twin," he whispered. By this point, not even Sylvannas could touch his bare skin without feeling the effects of his icy power.

**Peeps** · 03-23-2018, 10:26 PM

Aria stood behind Jack, regretting what she had blurted out. He'd kept his calm until she had said something. Her hand reached out to rest on his shoulder but darted back to her side upon feeling the cold that radiated from his body. "I'm sorry..." she managed as her lips began to tremble. Jack had seemed so free and careless living in isolation, she didn't imagine that his past could be painful. So far his bright attitude and innocent smile made her feel at ease, but that feeling died here. She hated seeing Jack on his knees. He was supposed to be the hardy mountain man. Here he revealed that he was as much of a child as she was. Seeing that he was indeed a person and not some ice deity made her feel less faithful in her journey. For a while, she had thought that nothing would go wrong. Now she wasn't even sure if she was safe around Jack. Could she end up in an eternal frost like the misfortunate couple before them? She didn't want to wonder. "Ready to move on?" she asked with the most motivational tone possible.

**HyrulianBlackcat** · 03-23-2018, 11:03 PM

He remained where he was for a moment, collecting himself and reburying his self-doubt. He wiped away the icy tears from his face and allowed himself a final sigh to release the remnants of his apprehension. He didn't believe in the goddess his parents had, but he offered a silent prayer to them, or whatever deity was listening, to continue safeguarding these two unfortunates. Then he stood and examined the shallow cuts on his knees. They had already stopped bleeding, so he ignored them. Instead, he gathered the broken shards. The grass inside had long since died, its very essence replaced by the ice. Carefully he touched his gift and used it to reshape the shards. The jagged pieces shifted in his hands, melting into a single smooth form, but it was still made of the frigid material that had endured so many summers. He turned to offer it to Aria. "Please don't think less of me because of what my power can do. Anything can be dangerous if it goes out of control, especially magic controlling the base elements. But even ice can beautiful, if used right."

"A bird?" Sylvannas asked with exasperation. "She has a bird, you're half bird, and now you give her a bird made of ice. Nice to see you're as creative as ever."

It was a tiny bird, a little sparrow made from the clear crystal. It sat on an imitation of a chestnut, looking up at Aria with the same hopeful expression Jake wore. He had made many, similar such sculptures while practicing with his ice, but this was perhaps the best he'd ever made. The ice was as pure as himself, lacking the frosted look he usually added for embellishment. And being made from pure ice essence, ice made from tapping in deep to the element, it would not melt, even if held close in her hands or set in the desert sun.

**Peeps** · 04-01-2018, 03:23 PM

"How pretty," Aria remarked as she took the ice bird in her hands. The cold burned her skin a little and she opened her hand so only the crystal chestnut touched her. "You possess an amazing power, Jack. I don't think any less of you." She hadn't met many folks with powers aside from Jack and her lost brother. Jack made her wonder what kind of young man Eclipse might have grown into. His shadow power must have been incredible after so many years.

**HyrulianBlackcat** · 04-07-2018, 09:37 PM

His heart lifted at her words. He had met very, very few people while living alone on the mountains, and they had typically shied away from his strange nature. Even his parents had been wary of his elemental prowess growing up, long before the glacinox awoke. Sylvannas was the first who wasn't wary of him, although he always suspected that was because of her cat-like belief in her superiority over him. But Aria... Not only was she not scared of his power, she was impressed by it. Finally meeting someone who didn't shy away meant more to him than he was able to admit.

He smiled shyly at her. "I'm not able to make the permanent freeze like this, but that should last just as long. I hope you'll keep it."

Sylvannas snorted and bumped her head against his leg, now that he'd calmed enough to reduce the chilly radiating from him. "Silly kit," she purred. He tousled her ears, much to her annoyance.

"We can keep going whenever you're ready," he told Aria.

**Peeps** · 06-30-2018, 06:25 PM

Aria took a moment to admire the ice bird before looking up at the path ahead. "Yes, let's get going."

The duo made their way through the forest, following the bottom of the mountains towards the west. She knew her old village to be in close proximity to the mountains, so this would certainly land them in the right area.

A while later Aria suddenly slowed, crouching to smell a small purple flower that grew beneath a pine. "I'd recognize that scent anywhere," she sighed. Pineshade. They were very close to her childhood home.

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