They moved on, their pace slowing as exhaustion began to take its toll.The sun arced across the sky, offering brief respite from the cold before beginning its descent toward the western horizon.As twilight approached, Thalia's legs trembled with fatigue, each step through the shifting dunes of frozen sand an exercise in determination.
"We should make camp," Luna suggested, her voice breathless from exertion."Before it's fully dark."
Ashe nodded, scanning the shoreline until her gaze settled on a natural hollow between two massive rock formations."There.It'll shelter us from the worst of the wind."
They stumbled toward the outcropping, dropping their packs with audible relief.The hollow was indeed more protected; the constant howl of the wind reduced to a manageable moan as it passed over the rocks above.
"Luna, gather driftwood for a fire," Ashe directed."There should be plenty along the tide line.Thalia, come with me—I'll show you what we can harvest for food."
Luna trudged off toward the water's edge while Thalia followed Ashe to where the rocky shore met the sea.Ashe knelt, brushing away snow to reveal a patch of something dark and leafy clinging to the stone.
"Sea lichen," she explained."Not particularly tasty, but edible and surprisingly filling.And here—" She moved closer to the waterline, plunging her hands into the frigid surf to extract a handful of oval-shaped shells."Surf clams.They burrow just beneath the sand where the waves break."
With numb fingers, Thalia gathered these sparse provisions, marveling silently at Ashe's knowledge.At Frostforge, Ashe had never been a stand-out recruit; she’d shown average aptitude at best for cryomancy and metallurgy, and had graduated relatively low in the ranks, which explained her assignment to the same desolate outpost as the Southerners despite her Northern heritage.But Thalia had come to learn that her survival skills were peerless, and out here, in this frozen wasteland, they were proving invaluable.
By the time they returned to the hollow, Luna had assembled a respectable pile of salt-bleached wood.Ashe produced a flint from her pack, and soon they had a small fire crackling between them, its heat precious against the encroaching night.They arranged the clams around the flames to cook, the shells popping open one by one as their contents steamed.
Following Ashe's lead, Thalia cautiously sucked one out of its shell, surprised by the mild, oceanic flavor that flooded her mouth.After weeks of the bland porridge and tough, stringy meat that had been their staple at the outpost, even these simple shellfish were a delight.
"You’re brilliant, you know," she said to Ashe when they'd finished eating."We'd have perished many times over without you."
Ashe shrugged off the compliment, though Thalia could see the slight smile that tugged at the corner of her mouth."Clan children learn survival before they learn to read or hold a hammer," she said."These skills were drilled into me by my father long before Frostforge."
The fire cast dancing shadows across their faces as they settled closer to its warmth.Luna had gone uncharacteristically quiet, her gaze fixed on the distant horizon where the last light was fading.Suddenly, she pointed.
"Look," she said softly."The Rimspires."
Thalia followed her gesture and felt her breath catch.There on the horizon, barely visible in the gloaming, rose the jagged silhouettes of the mountain range that cradled Frostforge Academy.Even at this distance, their majesty was unmistakable, sharp peaks that tore at the sky like the teeth of some colossal beast.
A sudden, unexpected fondness welled in Thalia's chest.Despite all the hardships she'd faced in those mountains—the brutal training, the prejudice against Southerners, the constant threat of failure or death—they were beautiful.And compared to the awful outpost in the Reaches, Frostforge was like home.It was the place where she'd found allies, where she'd learned to hone her current-sensing abilities, where she’d first discovered her talent for smithing.The place where she'd transformed from a desperate slum-dweller to a fighter with magical gifts of her own.
Yet even within that familiarity lurked trepidation.Returning to Frostforge wouldn't mean returning "home."It would mean facing Roran's trial and possible execution.It would mean her own potential punishment for desertion, when—not if—she was caught.She bit her lip, thinking of the possibilities.She’d never known any deserters; she had no idea what to expect.A loss of opportunities for promotion, certainly.Permanent servitude in the icy, desolate North.Potentially, if she were unlucky, a frost-brand upon her skin, the mark of a deserter.She had yet to see a soldier bearing one of these brands, but she'd heard a few of the older soldiers speak of them in hushed, grim tones.A frost-brand forever chilled the flesh it adorned and marked the bearer as untrustworthy, cutting them off from any position of respect or authority.It was a punishment designed to cripple a person's future.
"We should rest while we can," Ashe said, interrupting Thalia's thoughts."We've got a long journey ahead, and the terrain only gets more challenging from here."
They arranged their sleeping furs close to the fire, and Thalia volunteered for the first watch."My nerves are going to prevent me from sleeping anyway," she admitted, settling on a flat rock where she could see both the sea and the approach from the land.
Luna and Ashe didn't argue, exhaustion clearly pulling at them both.Soon their breathing deepened into the rhythm of sleep, leaving Thalia alone with her thoughts and the crackling of the fire.
For some time, the night was quiet save for the crashing of the waves.The fire died down to embers, casting a dim red glow over their small camp.Thalia listened to the ocean, her attention focused seaward.Of the myriad threats that could present themselves by night, the Isle Wardens seemed the most dangerous, and their attacks would come from the direction of the ocean.She kept her eyes on the dark waters until she heard it: a long, mournful howl from behind her, beyond the dunes.The first howl was followed by two more in different pitches.
Rimwolves.
Thalia shuddered, turning so that she could split her attention between the sea and the land behind them.She’d forgotten about the dangers posed by nature, by the Reaches themselves.Years of training for war had taught her to beware human enemies, but the wilderness was a formidable foe on its own.
Around an hour after she’d heard the howls, she noticed glinting eyes catching the moonlight beyond the edge of the firelight's reach.One pair became two, then four, the gleam shifting as the creatures moved with predatory grace along the periphery of their camp.
She slowly drew her military-issue ice-steel blade, her heart climbing into her throat.Moving cautiously toward her sleeping companions, she placed a hand on Ashe's shoulder, then Luna's, cautioning them in a low voice as they stirred.
"Rimwolves," she whispered."Don't make any sudden movements."
Ashe was instantly alert, her hand finding the crossbow at her hip and nocking an ice-steel-tipped bolt in one fluid motion.Luna was less graceful, scrambling upright and fumbling for her sword in the semi-darkness, nearly upsetting the glowing coals of the driftwood fire.
A low growl rumbled from beyond the dunes, closer now, the sound vibrating in Thalia's bones.The first Rimwolf stepped into view.It was massive, its fur bristling with frost, the pale blue sheen of its eyes fixed on Thalia with predatory intent.Behind it, more shapes emerged, padding silently across the snow until eight or nine wolves could be seen in the dim light.They prowled at a distance of several yards until they had formed a loose circle around the camp; then they went still, watching, waiting.Their breath plumed in the frigid air, rising like smoke against the night sky.
"Back-to-back," Ashe murmured, her voice taut with controlled fear.
They formed a tight knot, facing outward toward the wolves that encircled their camp.Thalia's grip tightened on her blade, her palms slick with sweat despite the cold.She'd seen Rimwolves before from a distance, had studied them at Frostforge, but knowing their strength and speed in theory was very different from facing them in the flesh.
