Chapter 3: The Stone that Howled

 

Leshac was no longer quite sure just how long he had been wandering in the snows of Nortrieln. This was not a good position to be in. The wind had died down for once, but all around Leshac was mounds and mounds of snow. It was likely anything was buried underneath the snow. Most plants in Nortrieln were able to live sleeping under snow for a long time, at least until the white season ended and the snows fell less strongly.

Far in the distance there loomed tall mountains, but that was of little use to Leshac, a general idea of where he was wasn’t what he needed. On he went.

Then, Leshac heard a strange noise. At first he thought it was the wind returning but, what was whipping past was no wind.

It was a howl.

In part mournful, in part simmering with rage and frustration. Deep and strong it tore through the cold air and Leshac felt in his bones what the howl was coming from. Something was trapped, raging at this imprisonment it howled. Carried in this howl was a sense that injustice had been done, deception, trickery. Leshac considered the wisdom of following this howl, indeed many a monstrous creature in Kigan can imitate the sound of something in distress, only to devour whatever decided to follow it’s cries.

To believe that everything was as it seemed was, in many ways to show you had no respect for your continued life.

Leshac decided to follow it, pitiful as it was, and apart from anything else it’d be better than wandering around lost. Leshac was confident in his ability to take down most monstrous or fallen beings.

In short order, Leshac found the source of the howl. A huge stone loomed above Leshac. Its size was ominous, and there was nary a mark on it, no symbol, sigil or rune scarred its surface. It was clearly not natural, in fact to Leshac it seemed to be vaguely in the shape of some great being, rising in anger… defiance? Examining it closer he saw that it was not stone, but ice. No normal ice though.

There was something strange about this ice, it seemed, corrupted, like it had once been of a different origin that it was now. Leshac was intrigued. He wondered whether the ice had previously been normal ice, but something told him that the ice had always been magical, just that it had been twisted, made a thing of imprisonment…

Mirrors. It was like there was thousands of mirrors on the inside, he could feel it. Whatever was trapped inside wasn’t being held by the ice, but by the mirror like insides of it. Stranger and stranger. Leshac wanted to investigate it more, but a wave of exhaustion flowed over him. He had been awake and walking for many days clearly. It probably wasn’t the safest place to sleep, but he was a being of Awarth, if something tried to do something to his sleeping mind and spirit it would quickly suffer his wrath, that and the howling stone would offer some protection from the harsh elements.

Digging at the snow at the base of the Howling ice-stone, Leshac fell deep into sleep… his dreaming mind slipped into Awarth… so did Leshac the changeling dream.

Justice serves justice, Temperance pays dues to peace. Virtue’s fight is against the Chlans Fiarn, the fallenborn, those made by the Dark Shydhu Lords in their folly, pride and envy. At times Vigilance feels as if this is a endless fight, but one day, Patience shall rest down, and have to fight no more. Duty is weary but Unshakable continues, Mercy does not wish those weaker than Compassion to suffer from the foul Chlan. As a being of power and might, it is only just that Honour should crusade against the forces of evil. Wisdom is a Judge, though many of Glory’s kin have discarded that mission, Lasting will not forget it.

Beating mighty wings, still whole, Assurance heads from Retention’s lair, it is hard to leave massive hoard behind, but some things are more important, even for a being such as Preservation. Perfection smelt their stench here again, Unending Fury will not tolerate them in Greatness’ domain, no Absolute shall not tolerate their very existence, abominations all.

Eyes that see heavens, sees them, four chlan wanderers, wearing the husks of unfortunate beings they came across, but Clarity sees their true wicked and twisted forms, they are not even of the mobs, just balls of ill feeling. Walking wounds. They have not noticed Magnificence, Speed swoops down from the skies, Splendour giving them pain. Power breaths frosted breath, water melded with cold, a certain innate purity from it. They despise all that it is pure. Purity erases corruption.

Cunning makes a few passes, to be certain, then landing, Preparation must destroy the frozen forms to prevent future ills. Deceived. Illusion, the chlan wanderers were not frozen, Tempest rears up in rage, no illusion should fool Supremacy’s magical eyes, certainly not by beings as weak as these. That was Daring’s m-mi m-m-mistake, to slip in rage. Without thinking normally Genius breathed ice upon them again, only for it to turn on Wonder.

A tainted mirror had hidden them, a corrupted artefact and with it, they reflected Cold’s ice on Greatness, encasing Awesome in corrupted ice, and trapping Excellence in twisted mirror facets of ice. They laughed cruelly and taunted Gravid with what they planned to do…

Thus Power was entombed.

Leshac started awake in a fright, something had entered his dream, spoke to him, whoever was trapped in the ice-stone was powerful. Leshac decided he would free the being, it didn’t seem a bad sort. Breaking the cursed ice would be a problem however. He remembered the dream however, the being breathed ice, which meant that there should still be some fairly pure ice about.

Now that he knew what to look for it was not difficult, there was shards of ice, shining like the sun and simmering like the surface of a pool scattered all about. Finding a large shard, Leshac threw it at the cursed ice-stone like a javelin. To his surprise it stopped as soon as it touched the ice-stone and slowly sank into it, like it was passing through water.

For a while nothing happened, Leshac was about to try something else, when he heard a loud crack. This was followed by more and more cracks, louder and louder and Leshac could see the Chlan ice-stone quivering and crumbling apart. It then began to shine with a holy light, Leshac covered his eyes as it exploded in a flash.

When Leshac opened his eyes, before him was the awe-inspiring sight of an Ice Dragon.