Colen took a slow, deliberate breath in. As he exhaled, a flurry of snowflakes danced from his lips, swirling gently before aligning themselves in midair, forming a shimmering wall of ice. With a lazy flick of his finger, a single flake from the wall floated forward. The moment it touched the air, the world grew colder, and in its wake emerged a sculpture of frozen beauty.
The first figure to appear was that of a young man, seemingly in his early twenties. He bore both human ears and fox ears atop his head, paired with a long, fluffy tail that curled with elegance. His outfit was unique-one-shouldered and thin, etched with intricate wave designs, revealing the left side of his chest. Baggy pants clothed his legs, and fur-lined edges hugged his collar. His right hand wore a detailed glove, while the left bore a fingerless ring glove, connected to a ring with a chain of fine design. He wore Japanese-style Geta sandals on his feet. His face was calm, his soft features framed by long hair tied into a small ponytail, while the rest cascaded freely over his shoulders. He sat cross-legged, holding a strange instrument that looked like a hybrid between a harp and a mandolin. The head of the instrument was carved into the shape of a double heart, each end curling like a devil's tail, etched with symbols in a forgotten tongue.
With another flick of Colen's finger, a tree stump formed beside the sculpture. The fox-eared young man was gently guided to sit on it.
The temperature dropped once more.
Colen exhaled again, and a new snowflake floated forward. It transformed into the figure of a young woman around eighteen. Her short, fluffy hair framed a soft and beautiful face. She wore a rugged dress and a tight waist-trainer that hinted at noble heritage turned wild. A satchel with cryptic runes hung from her hip.
With more snowflakes, Colen summoned a miniature frozen forest around them. Then, the impossible happened-the sculptures moved. They breathed, blinked, shifted positions like living people. Colen's voice echoed gently through the icy chamber.
"Some say her name was Lore, a noblewoman who ran away. No one knows exactly why, but they assume that maybe it was about an arranged marriage. Maybe she was tired of being treated like a child. What we do know... is that she fled without a word. No money, no belongings-just her bare soul running into the woods behind her estate. She ran and ran until she didn't know where she was anymore."
The Lore sculpture moved, stumbling into the frozen forest, her breath sharp, desperate.
"She didn't wander long,"
Colen said, pointing toward the fox-like man.
"Because that's when she heard him. His music drifted through the forest like wind through reeds. It carried her feet and her heart, and when she saw him she stopped. She just watched him. Then... she stepped forward and asked his name. he said Oasis "
Colen's voice softened.
"They talked. Maybe about the music. Maybe about running. But by nightfall, they made a small camp together."
With a flick of his finger, Colen created a tent and a fire-the ice melting then refreezing to simulate flickering flames. The two sculptures sat by the fire.
"She asked if she could stay. Oasis told her he was a traveler. That he wanted to see the world. He asked if she truly wanted to go with him. She said yes. She hated her home too much to go back."
A frozen carriage formed next, beautifully carved. Lore's figure looked surprised.
"She thought they'd need horses. But Oasis just played his instrument... and spirits came."
Two more flicks. Snowflakes spun, freezing into majestic creatures-a giant bear with hair like dragon scales and teeth like swords, and a massive fox with patterned around it's eyes going all the way to its flowing tail. They pulled the carriage with divine elegance.
"They traveled far,"
Colen said. "And when they reached their first village, Oasis bought her proper clothes. They kept moving. Days turned into weeks. One night, Lore woke up to hear him singing-singing about gods. Gods that didn't exist."
Colen pointed to the sculpture of Oasis. A hole formed in its instrument. He blew a gentle gust into it, and the ice resonated with a haunting melody, harmonizing with the air.
"Lore asked him why. Why sing about myths, about lies? He only smiled and said..."
'I like the possibility of them existing more than the idea that they don't.'
"Even if she didn't understand, she found it beautiful. So she sang with him. Every night. And for a while... that was enough."
Then came danger.
"One month later, in another forest, they saw them-goblins and orcs."
More snowflakes formed hulking orcs, scarred and wild, and goblins with crude knives. Behind them was a slab of wood with a baby dragon, bound in a spirit-net, writhing in agony and stress.
"The baby dragon cried out. Oasis and Lore hid. Because dragons... when their children cry, the sound travels across the world, five times over. Then it escapes into space-echoing between planets like wave."
The chamber chilled further.
"And the mother heard."
Colen lazily snapped both fingers.
All the snowflakes from the wall swirled. The air itself trembled. Then they froze... into a titanic ice sculpture of the Mother Dragon-so massive she reached the ceiling of the Grand Library.
Maxi stumbled back, heart racing. His knees shook, breath short. The sight shattered him. His will bent beneath her frozen gaze. Every scale was detailed. Every curve perfect.
Angelina stepped in, just in time to see it. Her jaw dropped. She staggered back, trembling.
"She came," Colen said softly. "She saw... and she killed them all."
The ice figures of the goblins and orcs shattered into dust. Lore and Oasis cowered behind trees.
"They thought they were going to die. Oasis began to sing-his desperate melody drifting into the wind."
Colen blew air again, and Oasis's sculpture emitted the same ethereal tone-but this time, without an instrument.
"Lore looked at him... and then joined in."
A hole formed in her sculpture. Colen exhaled gently. A pure, majestic sound came out, far beyond Oasis's tone. Their melodies met and danced-sorrowful, divine, and beautiful.
Maxi felt his dread melt away. Angelina gasped, the chill in her soul easing.
"They cried out aimlessly-calling for gods they didn't even know existed. But they did exist, and they did listen."
"The Earthly Gods listened"
"Then after what seemed like hours, they felt it the warm Sensation of being blessed by every single Earthly God all at once"
The statues of Lore and Oasis began to shake violently.
Colen clapped.
Boom.
They exploded into flurries of snowflakes. Then the flurries touched every other sculpture-and one by one, they too burst into snow.