Edward inched toward deep divots of footprints, scattered ice chips, and trinkets of belongings strewn across the plain. By a large blade of ice, a raven-black outfit lay flat in the drift, and Edward’s eyes froze on the snapped Patrol staff stabbed into the snow beside it.

“By the sharpest wind…” His throat constricted; he moved for the cloak, tugging it flat to reveal the golden flake brooch, and Edward’s hand slapped o’er his mouth.

A gap in the sky’s haze released a ray of sunlight upon the destroyed meadow, and something above the jacket glimmered in the snow. Edward’s quivering hand dug it from the drift. He raised a pair of medallions, just as the sunlight was suffocated again and the meadow grew dim.

With heavy breaths, Edward slid the medallions into his pocket and stood, looking ‘round at the wind, the skies, the trees. There was no indication of where the Patrol had gone from here, as though they had vanished into thin air.

THE NINTH

THE NINTH

Zane tried to lead us through as many villages as possible, but there were times we had no choice but to brave the fallen logs and slippery brush of the forest.

Nighttime caught us again, and we found ourselves tucked in an alley to escape the cold wind, just off a street dotted with giant-bulb lampposts of live flames. Zane coughed, and coughed, and coughed until he flopped back against the wall. I expected him to fall asleep when his eyes slid closed, but he spoke between shivers. “Did I ever tell you the one about the ice tower the Rime Folk built so they could get to the White Kingdom without Elowin’s blessing?” he asked.

I leaned against his shoulder to share my warmth. “No, I don’t think I’ve heard that one,” I said. “But Zane, you don’t have to tell me a story right n—”

“Shh. I’m storytelling, Trite. It started with an ancient king in Polar Territory. He’d collected riches from across Winter, stealing a measure of it, swindling the defenseless folk for the rest. He refused to recognize the Truth as a living, breathing being.” He paused to cough again. “The king commissioned a thousand plus five hundred more Rime Folk to help him build a mighty steeple of ice ladders. He planned to climb over the barrier into the White Kingdom to live eternally among those who had been faithful to the True King since the first age. But sometimes Elowin has a sense of humour about these things.”

I glanced over at his bluing lips. “What did Elowin do?”