* * *

That sharp, stinging sensation against his eyelids forced Glacier’s eyes open to the cold. But instead of wind whipping up snow at his feet, there was darkness. It was a deep, blue-tinted void wherever he looked, preventing him from telling up from down. Every movement was sluggish, like pushing through water. When he found the source of the light, he propelled himself upward, pushing his hands against that top barrier—smooth and biting cold. Ice.

A strange, disturbing sense of curiosity worked through him as he automatically pulled his hand back and slammed his palm against it. His stomach began to knot with dread. All calm replaced by the sudden, choking sensation that hadn’t been there moments prior.

Again.

It creaked, starting to give as a shadow fell over him. A blurry figure dressed in white stood at the edge of his watery grave. Glacier drew in a sharp breath to call out, his lungs filling with icy water.

Kat.

Her features were too distorted through the hazy, glassy patches to see if she reacted, but she didn’t budge. His protector wasn’t rushing to his aid like she had every time before, finally letting him drown.

The world twisted then, warping the scene into something a little more vivid—a replica in which a young woman didn’t stand over him, but a man. He donned a white winter tactical suit that matched the gloves on Glacier’s own hands now, which he swore had been black moments prior. His vision began to blur as the man began to walk away, and an inaudible scream tore from Glacier’s throat. Fists pounded against the ice over and over and over again against his will, the ice barely giving each time.

* * *

“Glacier.”

He jolted awake to Cecilia’s hand on his shoulder, her brows knitting together in concern. “Are you okay?”

Glacier nodded, trying to swallow in spite of his dry throat so he could answer. A rush of cold air followed a door being thrown open, pulling the breath from his lungs.

“I suggest everyone gets out now before it gets really warm in here,” Noa announced. “Don’t leave anything you want behind unless you expect to never see it again.” She shoved a few items into her coat pockets as the twins hopped out into the snow.

Even though Crow vanished from view, Cecilia’s door opened to Rune, who motioned for them to get out. “Come on.”

“Wait, why here?” Cecilia asked. “I didn’t think we were in Miralta yet…”

“We have to walk across the border from here,” Noa replied. “Anything with any sort of non-Miraltan tracking code will get immediately flagged and tracked.” She slipped out of the driver’s seat, her boots hitting the snow. “Which means we have to ditch this sweet ride.”

Rune offered his hand to help Cecilia out of the car. 

“Thanks,” she said under her breath, taking it with a small leap into ankle-deep white. After that, Rune backed up to give Glacier space, which he managed to fumble anyway. He winced as his half-asleep leg buckled slightly, pinpricks shooting through it on impact.

“You good?” Rune asked, moving to help him.

“Fine, thanks,” Glacier replied with a shake of his head. It was enough for him to step away again, but a frown lingered. He dusted himself off, trying to ignore it, and made his way around to the trunk, where Noa was pulling out their bags. “How far of a walk across are we talking about?”

“About fifteen minutes,” she said, tossing a bag to Crow. “Anything longer than that and we might freeze to death out here. Take this—” She held out a bag toward Glacier before she passed another to Rune, who stepped up next to him. “Have the coordinates memorized?”

“Of course.” Rune handed her a small chip in return.

“Crow!” she called, holding the chip between gloved fingers. He cursed, dropped his bag in the snow, and fished out his phone to toss over to her. In one quick motion, she popped the SIM card free and pocketed the phone, repeating the process with her own before she dumped the cards in the now-empty trunk. “You weren’t attached to this car, were you?”

Glacier hesitated. “Why do I feel like that doesn’t matter right now?”

She shrugged. “Just thought I would ask before I turn it into a smoldering heap of unusable evidence.”

“I-I’m sorry, what?” Cecilia asked, her expression horrified.

“She’s blowing up the car so we can’t be tracked,” Crow snapped, which earned him another disapproving look from Rune.

“Everyone got their belongings?” Noa asked with a too-bright smile. “Good, now follow Rune safely away from the vehicle while I destroy the love of my life and mourn her untimely death.” She pulled a small gray brick from the bag Glacier held and motioned for him to follow Rune.

Glacier reached him just in time to see Noa sliding out from under the SUV, wiping away the snow once she was back on her feet. She jogged back over, and Rune started to lead the way with Crow on his heels.

“Explosion’s on a timer, so let’s get a move-on, shall we?” She retrieved the bag from Glacier’s arms, giving a mock bow to follow. “After you.” 

Cecilia started forward, glancing back after a few steps. He was rooted to the spot for a moment, unable to comprehend that they were fifteen minutes away from stepping outside of the only world he’d ever known. He pushed down that anxiety and turned his back on the last familiar remnant of his life about to melt away.

He’d be back in a week’s time, at most. Kat would return with him, and they’d set everything right again—maybe even to something even better than what her father would’ve ever allowed as regent. A radical upheaval into peace that no one believed could ever be accomplished, but one that she’d promised to negotiate in a secret deal with the Miraltan Prime Minister while she was away. One that he could now potentially be a part of like Kat had wanted: a symbol of unity.

And yet, with every step he took, he shivered at the image of her standing there. Watching him drown. “There… um…” he began over his shoulder to Noa. “There aren’t any lakes or ponds around here, are there?”

Noa slowed, all signs of satisfaction slipping from her face. “Not that I’m aware of… Why?”

“I’d just… rather not have to cross ice right now,” he said, rubbing his arms as he dropped the rest of his comment to a mutter. “Especially after everything else that has gone wrong today.”

The crunching of their footfalls carried on for about ten minutes until Rune paused up ahead, fumbling with something before a screen cut through the dark.

“How are we looking?” Noa called out.

“Just slightly off, but we’re close,” Rune called back.

“Does that mean we’re in Miralta?” Cecilia asked.

“Yep,” Noa said, rubbing her gloved hands together. “Welcome to the land of magic and Mages. I’m assuming this is your first time out of the country?”

“Yes,” Cecilia said, shivering as she bumped shoulders with Glacier.

Noa broke into a chuckle. “You’re in for a wild ride. Now let’s hurry before we start losing fingers. I’d very much like to keep mine.”

Two lights flicked on up again, interrupting Cecilia’s next breath of a question. “Which one of you is Amelia?” came a heavily accented voice.

Glacier almost didn’t understand what the man was saying, but Noa pushed her way forward, moving past Crow and Rune, who kept their distance from the road up ahead. It sounded almost… Bellegardian from the intonation and lilt, though Glacier’s only reference point was various educational recordings that referenced their native language.

“I am,” Noa spoke up as her voice slid into a similar accent. “Et ton nom?”

Rune held up his arm as Glacier and Cecilia caught up, holding them back as Noa continued her conversation in fluid Bellegardian. His mind made every effort to decipher it, but it was rare to hear another language outside of the common, international language that Amarais had adopted as a baseline centuries ago. Glacier eyed Rune again, frowning with a brief glance back at Noa. Why wasn’t someone like Rune doing the talking when he looked far better suited for the part?

“Je m'appelle Étienne. J'ai ta voiture,” he replied with a quick motion to the vehicle tucked behind the one with its lights on and the windshield wipers flicking back and forth in agitation. It matched the driver’s expression, who huffed out wispy, white breaths and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel.

Noa bowed her head in thanks. “Merci, Étienne. A million thank-yous.”

“Mon plaisir, Amelia,” he called back as he slid into his car, and it lurched forward. The vehicle emitted a low, deep hum on its way past, causing Glacier to cringe. Those two would be lucky to make it to their destination if it was anywhere further than a couple kilometers away with something in that bad of shape. But he supposed they were fortunate to have any sort of self-transportation at all, this far out in the middle of nowhere.

Rune hurried them up the slope to the road, where they piled into the car behind Noa. She’d already cranked up the heat, letting out a sigh as all the doors slammed shut. “Well…” she said, picking at the worn cloth seats with a grimace. “This isn’t exactly the luxury ride I would’ve asked for, but I guess as long as it still runs, we’ll make it the thirty kilometers to the station.”

Rune toyed with his phone again. “You’re not going to question why Nyx sent a Bellegardian native all the way out here to deliver a car?”

“There are certain things I’ve learned to let go with her, specifically ones involving resources. I’m just going to call this a win since there’s heat in this trash heap.” She spun the wheel to guide them back onto the road, much gentler than back in Amarais, and Glacier settled in for the remainder of the ride.