Snow crunched beneath their boots.
Every step was loud — too loud — in the valley of white and silence.
No birds. No wind. No life.
Just the steady rhythm of four sets of footsteps and the occasional sound of snow sliding from a branch.
The air was biting cold. Each breath came out like smoke. Kael stomped his boots harder than he needed to, muttering through his scarf.
"How long are we supposed to keep walking in this frozen graveyard?"
Kairis glanced at him, her face half-hidden under her hood. Her hands trembled slightly, but she tucked them back into her coat pockets.
"Long enough to regret coming," she said.
Kael snorted. "Already there."
He turned toward Lyra. She walked ahead of them, quiet and steady, her eyes fixed on the horizon. Azel followed just behind her, his hood pulled low, gloved hands tucked under his arms.
Lyra didn't answer Kael, didn't even look back.
The valley stretched before her — endless, white, and dead. Pine trees lined both sides, dark silhouettes in the haze. A chill ran down her spine.
Something's here.
She didn't say it aloud. She only folded her arms tighter, head lowered slightly against the cold wind, and kept walking.
Minutes passed in uneasy silence.
Then—
Crunch.
A sound that didn't belong to them.
Heavier. Slower. Too deliberate.
Kairis stopped mid-step, turning sharply. "You heard that, right?"
Kael exhaled hard, fogging his scarf. "We haven't even reached halfway and something already wants to eat us. Great."
"Maybe they just like you," Kairis muttered, scanning the treeline.
Azel's head lifted slightly. He didn't speak, but his eyes flicked from one side of the valley to the other. His hand lowered toward his belt.
The air felt heavier now — pressing down like a weight. Even the wind seemed to die.
Lyra slowed. Her eyes darted to the left — movement. A faint shimmer between the trees. Then—
blue light.
Two glowing eyes stared back at her from the dark.
"Left," Azel said suddenly, his voice low but sharp.
Before anyone could react, something burst from the snow. A wolf — no, not quite a wolf. Its body was larger, fur streaked with frost, eyes glowing with a cold, unnatural blue. It moved like a blur, snow exploding behind it.
Azel's hand came up instantly.
Crack!
An ice wall formed from the ground, solid and thick. The creature slammed into it. The sound of the impact echoed across the valley — then the wall shattered like glass.
Everyone flinched back, shielding their faces from the shards.
When they looked again, the beast was gone.
Kael turned slowly. "Did… did it just vanish?"
Lyra's voice cut through the cold air, calm but firm. "They're not going to stop."
Kairis's eyes darted around. "There's more of them."
Her hands glowed faintly, a pale light forming around her fingers. "I can feel them — moving, circling."
Snow stirred again — faint shapes flickering in the mist. The sound of low growls drifted from every direction.
Azel shifted closer to Lyra, lowering his stance. Kael took out his blade, the metal glinting faintly in the pale light.
Seconds stretched.
Only the sound of the wind — then nothing.
Then — a blur from Lyra's side.
The creature lunged, faster this time. Its claws reached for her shoulder, teeth flashing.
But it froze mid-air.
White tendrils erupted from the snow around Lyra, wrapping around the creature's body like living ropes. The beast writhed, snarling, struggling to break free — but the tendrils tightened, pulsing with faint light.
Lyra didn't flinch. She stepped closer, her coat brushing against the snow, her eyes locked on the beast.
Kael's mouth parted slightly. "What the hell…"
Kairis's light faded from her hand, eyes wide. She whispered, "She's doing it again…"
Azel didn't speak. His gaze stayed fixed on Lyra — unreadable, but tense.
Lyra stopped right before the creature. Its growls were weaker now, muffled under the threads.
She raised her hand slowly, placing it against its head. Her breath came out steady.
"Rest."
The creature's body convulsed once — then dissolved, breaking into fragments of white light. The glow faded into the air like dust, leaving only silence.
No one spoke for several seconds.
The wind returned, whistling softly through the pines.
Kael exhaled first, the tension breaking in his voice. "If that's what we're calling a warm welcome, I'd rather go back."
Kairis gave him a sharp look but didn't reply. She was still staring at the spot where the creature had disappeared.
Lyra turned away, the faint glow fading from her eyes. "Let's keep moving."
Her voice was flat — almost too calm.
Azel lingered behind her for a moment, watching her back. His breath fogged in the air as he whispered, too quiet for the others to hear,
"You knew they'd come… didn't you?"
Lyra didn't answer. She just walked forward, boots sinking softly into the snow.
And the others followed — through the valley that suddenly didn't feel so lifeless anymore.
The snowstorm had passed, but silence didn't feel peaceful anymore.
They kept walking. The air grew heavier with each step. Kael kept muttering under his breath, his words fogging in the cold.
Kairis walked beside him, pulling her cloak tighter, occasionally glancing back at Lyra — but she didn't ask. No one did.
Lyra walked ahead again, her gaze distant. She wasn't trembling, but her expression was unreadable — like she was trying to remember something she couldn't.
Kael finally broke the silence. "Next time something jumps out, can someone else deal with it? I think my heart's frozen."
Azel let out a faint breath, maybe a laugh — or just cold air. "You'd die before the creature even noticed you."
Kael frowned. "You're not funny, frostspine."
Kairis smirked slightly. "He's right though. You swing slower than a frozen door hinge."
"Yeah, keep talking. One day, when I save you, I'll charge for it."
The air around them warmed just enough for their laughter to echo faintly. For a moment, it felt normal again — just a group of friends trudging through snow and exhaustion.
But the mountain disagreed.
A low rumble rolled through the valley. The snow beneath their boots trembled.
Kael stopped mid-sentence. "…Tell me that's your stomach."
Azel's head snapped toward the slope to their right. The sound grew louder — not thunder, but movement. The kind that builds and builds until it becomes too big to stop.
Kairis turned wide-eyed. "Avalanche—!"
The word hadn't even finished before the snow broke loose.
A roaring white wall came down the mountainside, devouring the trees, the path — everything.
Lyra froze. For the first time, her mind went blank. She didn't know what to do. The sound swallowed her thoughts.
"Stay behind me!" Azel shouted.
He threw out his hand — the ground cracked open with a sharp crack, ice spreading outward in jagged lines. A massive wall of frost rose up in front of them, gleaming faintly blue under the pale light.
The avalanche hit like a beast roaring.
Snow slammed against the wall, the impact echoing like thunder. The world turned white. The air disappeared — only the sound of wind, ice, and weight.
Kael gritted his teeth, shielding Kairis. Lyra stumbled back, the cold wind stinging her face. Azel stood unmoving, both hands forward, frost climbing up his arms.
Cracks spread across the wall — thin at first, then wider.
Kairis yelled over the roar, "It's breaking!"
"I know!" Azel's voice strained. Frost spread up to his shoulders, the veins in his neck tense.
For a moment, it held. The noise began to fade. The snow slowed, settling, thinning.
Then silence.
Only the sound of their breaths.
Azel exhaled hard, lowering his hands. "One… two…"
He turned slightly, voice sharp and tired. "Three. Run!"
They didn't argue.
They sprinted through the gap beside the wall — Kael grabbing Kairis's arm, Lyra following close behind. The wall groaned, then collapsed behind them in a deafening crash of ice and snow.
They didn't stop until the sound disappeared.
Kael finally dropped to his knees, panting. "Not frostspine…"
He looked back at Azel, who was still catching his breath, ice melting off his sleeves.
"…problemspine."
Kairis let out a weak laugh between gasps. "For once, I'll agree with him."
Azel just shook his head, exhaustion dulling his voice. "You'd rather I let it hit us?"
Kael leaned back in the snow. "Honestly? I'd rather it hit him."
Lyra stood silently a few feet away, watching where the avalanche had started. Her hands were still trembling, and she didn't even realize it.
That moment — that blankness — it scared her.
Azel noticed. He didn't say anything, but his gaze lingered on her a second longer before turning away.
The valley was quiet again. But this time, it didn't feel like silence — it felt like a warning.