The cold was unbearable. Raelyn's shivering grew more violent, her teeth clattering uncontrollably as she trudged forward. Her fingers felt like they no longer belonged to her, the numbness spreading up her arms and into her chest. She kept moving, each step a battle against the snow that clawed at her legs like a relentless tide.

A sudden, soft thud broke through the howling wind. Rakz collapsed beside her, his small body crumpling into the snow. His claws twitched weakly, then stilled completely, his trembling fading into stillness.

"Rakz!" Raelyn's voice cracked as panic surged through her. She stumbled forward, her legs aching as she dropped to her knees beside him, clutching Zypher tightly to her chest with one arm. "Rakz! Please, get up!" Her free hand, clumsy and numb, reached out to touch him. His scales, usually warm to the touch, were frighteningly cold. The sight of his limp form made her stomach twist painfully.

Hovan was at her side in an instant, his thick fingers inspected Rakz's body quickly, his expression grim. "He's still breathing, but he's freezing. He can't handle this cold much longer." His gaze darted toward Raelyn. "We have to find shelter, Raelyn. If we don't, he won't make it."

Raelyn's chest heaved, her breaths coming in shallow, rapid gasps as her mind spiraled. They were going to die out here. Rakz would freeze to death. Zypher, trembling violently in her arms, wouldn't last much longer. Hovan, Benji, Thomrik, Danio. She had led them all into this, and now they were going to perish. One by one, she pictured them succumbing to the cold, their frozen forms lying lifeless in the snow. Would they become the same as that creature they saw? Destined to roam the peaks as a banshee?

Her breaths grew faster, raspier, her vision blurring as her heart thundered in her chest. Her legs felt weak beneath her, and she wobbled, almost dropping Zypher. The gremlin let out a faint sound of protest, his trembling body pressing against hers as she tightened her grip instinctively.

"Raelyn!"

The sound of Hovan's voice reached her faintly, like a distant echo, barely registering through the chaos of her thoughts. She clutched her head with her free hand, her nails biting into her scalp as she tried to ground herself, but the panic was unrelenting. Her breaths turned shallow, each one scraping painfully against her throat.

"Raelyn!" Hovan's voice came again, louder this time, but still distant. Suddenly, strong hands gripped her shoulders firmly, shaking her. "Raelyn, look at me!"

The movement snapped her out of her spiraling thoughts, her blurry vision focusing on Hovan's face. His dark eyes locked onto hers. The wind whipped at his mohawk, but his gaze burned with a calm intensity that forced her to anchor herself to him.

"Panicking won't change what's happened," Hovan said firmly, his voice cutting through the storm. "It won't help Rakz, and it won't help us. You hear me? We all knew what we were signing up for. We knew the risks. This is not on you."

Raelyn stared at him, her breaths still uneven, but his words began to sink in, grounding her.

"But we're in trouble, Raelyn," Hovan continued, his grip tightening slightly on her shoulders. "Now, what are you going to do about it?"

Her throat tightened as her vision cleared. "I... I don't know," she whispered, her voice trembling.

"Then think," Hovan urged. "Put aside your fear. Focus on the next step."

Raelyn swallowed hard, forcing her mind to steady itself. She glanced down at Rakz, still limp in Hovan's arms, and then at Zypher, who shivered violently against her chest. Her thoughts raced, grasping for anything she could do to help. "Maybe..." She hesitated, her voice wavering. "Maybe I can use magic."

Hovan nodded, his expression unwavering. "Excellent idea," he said, his voice carrying an encouraging edge. "Whatever you can do, try it."

As Raelyn closed her eyes and began to focus, Hovan picked up Rakz from the snow, cradling the small dragon close to his chest to shield him from the storm. "I've got him," he said softly, his tone almost gentle now. "You focus on what you need to do."

Raelyn hesitated, staring down at her trembling hands, the numbness spreading through her fingers like frost creeping across glass. She flexed them weakly, the stiffness in her joints making even that small motion painful. The intricate gestures required for human magic flickered through her mind, but she knew immediately that it was impossible in her current state. Her fingers felt brittle, as though they might shatter like ice if she tried to move them too precisely.

Desperation clawed at her as her gaze darted to Rakz, his small, limp form cradled in Hovan's arms. His scales, usually vibrant, had dulled to an ashen hue. Every shallow breath he took made her heart twist painfully. She couldn't lose him—not Rakz, not after everything they had endured together. And if Rakz couldn't survive this cold, what hope did the rest of them have?

Fire. she thought. If I can summon fire, it'll warm Rakz. It'll give us all a chance.

Her lips parted, and she spoke the elven word for fire, her voice barely audible over the howling storm. Her hand outstretched and cupped, to summon and control the flames. "Írvanis."

Nothing.

The cold seemed to press in tighter, mocking her as her breath hitched. Her hands shook violently, whether from the cold or from fear, she couldn't tell. She took a deep breath, trying to steady her racing heart, and spoke louder this time. "Írvanis!"

A faint spark flickered to life in her palm, a tiny ember of warmth that filled her chest with fragile hope. But before she could feed it, the wind lashed against her, snuffing it out as though it had never existed.

Her frustration mounted, her throat tightening. "Please," she murmured, her voice cracking with desperation. She clenched her teeth and screamed the word, pouring every ounce of her will into it. "ÍRVANIS!"

A small flame burst to life in her hand, its flickering light casting warm, golden hues against the snow. Relief rippled through her as she stared at it, the faint warmth licking at her frozen fingers. Benji gave a cheer at the sight of the fire. Danio was the first to move towards her in an attempt to feel the warmth of it. Thomrik and Hovan soon followed. But the moment was fleeting. The storm roared louder, the wind whipping around her with vicious intensity, and the flame began to falter.

"No, no, no," she whispered, her voice trembling. She strained against the cold, willing the flame to stay alive, pouring more of her magic into the element, but it flickered and shrank with every gust. The biting wind stole its strength until, at last, it guttered out completely. Her hand was empty once more.

"Don't give up," Benji said. His voice, though gentle, held a firmness that broke through the despair rising within her. "You can do this, Raelyn."

She nodded shakily, but her hope felt fragile, as though it might crumble at the next misstep. The fire wasn't working. She would empty her magical reserve before she would succeed. Her mind raced for another solution. If the fire won't hold, maybe I can stop the wind. If the storm would die down, even for a moment, they could see better. They could find shelter, maybe even Grythenwald.

The word for wind surfaced in her thoughts like a lifeline. Her lips trembled as she spoke the word, "Válo."

Reaching out with her magic, she tried to connect with the storm, to feel the swirling air and subdue it. The blizzard resisted immediately. It was wild and untamed, an elemental force that seemed to revel in its chaos. Raelyn gritted her teeth, pushing harder, trying to impose her will on the howling wind.

For a fleeting moment, she felt a shift. The wind seemed to ease, its deafening roar softening slightly. A spark of hope ignited within her, but once again it was short-lived. The storm surged back with brutal force, the primal energy of the blizzard slamming into her magic and shattering her connection. She staggered, the wind nearly knocking her off her feet.

Lira's voice echoed in her mind. "Don't fight nature, Raelyn. You can't force it to bend to your will. Work with it, or it'll push back twice as hard."

This storm—these never-ending blizzards of Icevein Crest—weren't something she could simply command. They wouldn't yield just because she willed them to stop. The storm was vast, powerful, and unyielding. Her shoulders sagged under the crushing realization.

Raelyn shook her head, tears stinging her eyes as they mingled with the frost. The ache in her chest deepened as she whispered, "It's no use. I can't... I can't do it."

The group's fragile hope teetered on the edge as Raelyn lowered her hands, her magic spent and her confidence shattered. The storm howled louder around them, the biting cold cutting deeper into their resolve. She looked at Rakz, still limp in Hovan's arms, and felt the crushing weight of helplessness settle over her like the snow burying their path.

A sudden voice cut through the storm. "Raelyn!" It was Zypher, his trembling voice sharp and urgent. She looked down at the gremlin in her arms. His antennae twitched, and his eyes were wide as they stared through the lens of the locket. "I... I saw something," he stammered, his teeth clattering violently. He raised a trembling hand and pointed. "There... over there."

Raelyn's heart jumped. "Are you sure?"

Zypher nodded weakly. "The wind died for a second, and I saw it—a marker." His small hand pointed again, his antennae twitching as if to confirm.

Raelyn turned toward the direction he indicated, her pulse quickening. "Everyone!" she shouted, her voice cutting through the howling storm. "Zypher found something! There's a marker!"

Danio, his face pale and his movements sluggish, stumbled forward. "Finally!"

The others rallied around her, their movements filled with renewed purpose despite the biting cold and their aching bodies. Desperation and hope mingled in Raelyn's chest as she staggered forward, her legs burning from the effort of pushing through the snow.

"There!" Zypher croaked, his teeth chattering violently as he pointed a trembling finger toward a barely visible lump in the snow. "There... it's there."

Raelyn squinted through the biting wind, her lashes crusted with frost. All she could see was a rock sticking out of the snow.

Zypher held out the locket in his trembling hands, struggling to keep hold of it. The lens was already opened. "Look... see for yourself," he stammered, barely audible through his chattering teeth. She raised it to her eye, her breath catching in her throat as the world beyond the lens shifted.

Through the storm and the relentless snow, the rock Zypher had indicated came into sharp focus. Intricate carvings appeared on its surface—delicate, almost mechanical in design. The marker gleamed faintly, the etchings appearing to form an arrow pointing downward.

Raelyn angled the lens downward, the edge of her vision catching something faint and shimmering beneath the snow. It was subtle, nearly invisible, but unmistakably magic. The faint glow pulsed gently, as if calling to them.

Her breath hitched as relief and urgency surged through her. "There's something beneath the snow!" she shouted over the storm, her voice cracking. Her gaze darted toward the others. "We have to dig!"

"Dig?" Danio echoed incredulously, staggering up beside her. His lips were tinged blue. "With what? Our hands? You want us to—"

"Yes, Danio!" Thomrik's growl cut him off. The dwarf stomped through the snow, even his bushy eyebrows frosted over. "Unless you'd rather freeze where you stand. Start digging."

Danio hesitated for only a moment before muttering under his breath and dropping to his knees. "This is insane," he grumbled, plunging his hands into the snow. "I can't even feel my fingers."

"Hovan," Raelyn called, glancing back at the towering figure behind her. "Can you hold Zypher? I need to help."

Hovan nodded silently, his expression grim as he gathered both Rakz and Zypher into his arms. Rakz's small body barely stirred, his breaths shallow and weak. Zypher, from the looks of it, was not far behind a similar fate. "Hurry," Hovan said, his tone low but urgent. "They don't have much time."

Raelyn didn't waste another second. Her hands plunged into the snow, the icy wetness biting into her skin like daggers. The frost seared her already-numb fingers, but she ignored the pain, clawing at the dense layers of snow with frantic determination.

Thomrik worked beside her. "Keep at it," he urged, his voice a gruff encouragement.

Benji knelt on her other side and began digging alongside her. "We're going to find it."

Soon Raelyn's fingers scraped against something solid beneath the snow, the cold metal biting into her skin. Her breath hitched. "I've got something!" she cried, her voice cracking with a mixture of relief and urgency.

The others redoubled their efforts, brushing away the remaining snow to reveal a smooth, circular metal surface. Intricate gears were etched into the metal. Frost covered the surface, but it was unmistakably a hatch.

Zypher's teeth chattered as he looked down from Hovan's arms. "That's... it," he stammered. "An entrance... to Grythenwald."

Hope ignited in Raelyn's chest as she reached for the gear mechanism at the center of the hatch. "We've found it," she whispered to herself, her fingers trembling as she gripped the frozen metal "Thank the gods."

Her breath came out in uneven puffs of mist as she pulled at the gear, the icy surface numbing her already frozen fingers. Pain shot through her hands as she strained, the sensation like shards of glass stabbing beneath her skin. For a moment, she thought her fingers might shatter like brittle ice, but she gritted her teeth and pushed harder. "Come on," she muttered. But the mechanism didn't move—it remained as unyielding as the snow-packed ground beneath them, and a frustrated whimper escaped her lips. "It's frozen," she said, panic creeping into her voice.

"Step aside," Thomrik said, moving forward. His hands joined hers on the gear, his powerful arms straining as he pushed. "Benji, get over here!"

Benji scrambled into place, adding his weight to the effort. The three of them pulled and pushed in unison, their breath hissing through clenched teeth as the frost bit at their exposed skin.

Finally, with a loud, grinding crunch, the gear began to move. The sound of shifting mechanisms groaned from beneath the hatch, echoing even through the storm. The gears turned slowly at first, then with increasing momentum until a final click signaled the release of the lock.

The hatch jolted upward slightly, and Raelyn grabbed the edge, pulling it open with all her remaining strength, aided by Thomrik and Benji. The heavy metal creaked, revealing a dark tunnel descending into the depths of the mountain.

"It's open," Raelyn breathed, her voice barely audible over the storm. Her chest heaved as she stared down at the dark void beneath the hatch. The faint groan of the gears still echoed in her ears, blending with the relentless howl of the wind. She looked up at Hovan, who held Rakz and Zypher close, his broad shoulders hunched against the cold. "We have to go in—now."

The group gathered around the opening, the hatch yawning open before them, revealing a steep ladder descending into blackness. The edges of the tunnel were smooth and metallic, the faintest glint of frost catching the dull light from Raelyn's locket.

For a moment, no one moved. The storm continued to batter them, the wind tugging at their cloaks and hair, but the sight of the dark, unfamiliar space below rooted them in place.

"And what if this isn't it?" Thomrik said, his voice rough and low. "What if it's a trap—or leads nowhere at all?"

Zypher, trembling in Hovan's arms, stirred weakly but didn't lift his head. His antennae twitched faintly, but his exhaustion silenced any retort he might have made.

Hovan broke the silence. "It's either this or the storm," he said firmly, his gaze sweeping over the others. "If the markers led us here, then we have to trust this is the way. At the very least, it's shelter—somewhere we can recover."

Danio shifted uneasily, his hood pulled low over his face. "Shelter's good enough for me," he muttered, his voice tight with desperation. He stepped closer to the hatch, his movements stiff and hurried. "I'll go first."

Without waiting for agreement, Danio swung his legs over the edge, gripping the icy rungs of the ladder with trembling hands. The metal groaned faintly under his weight as he began his descent, his movements quick and eager to escape the storm's wrath. The others watched in tense silence, the sound of his boots against the rungs fading with each step.

The darkness below seemed to swallow him whole.

Benji leaned forward, his breath shallow as he peered after Danio. "Danio?" he called. "What's down there?"

The only response was the howling wind above and the faint creak of the ladder.

Finally, Danio's voice floated up, muffled and faint. "It's... dark," he said, his words slow and hesitant. There was a pause, then his voice came again, slightly louder. "But... it's warm. You should come down."

Benji exhaled audibly, a visible plume of breath escaping his lips. He turned to Raelyn, his expression softening with concern. "You should go next," he said gently. "Take Zypher. He needs warmth more than any of us. Hovan and Rakz will go next. Then Thomrik and I."

Raelyn nodded and turned to Hovan. "Give me Zypher," she said.

Hovan gently transferred the gremlin into her arms. Zypher clung to her weakly, his wide eyes staring at her, silently pleading for safety. His small hands gripped the folds of her cloak as though afraid she might let him go. Raelyn adjusted her hold, feeling the tremble in his frail body, and turned to face the open hatch.

The wind screeched above them, tugging at her hair and cloak as if trying to pull her back into its icy grip. Raelyn swung her legs over the edge, gripping the cold metal ladder with one hand while clutching Zypher tightly with the other. The rungs were slick with frost, biting into her palms as she began her descent.

The groaning storm faded ever so slightly as she climbed down, the muffled sound of howling wind replaced by the metallic creak of the ladder beneath her boots. Each step echoed faintly in the confined space, the sound magnified by the hollow walls around her. The air grew warmer with every rung, a stark contrast to the biting cold above. Raelyn tried to focus on the change in temperature, on the promise of relief.

She glanced upward, seeing Hovan standing at the edge of the hatch. The storm's fury whipped around him, his silhouette dark and solid against the swirling snow. Rakz hung limply in his arms, the small dragon's scales dulled and lifeless in the faint light. Hovan stepped onto the ladder, his broad shoulders filled the opening as he began his descent, moving steadily and carefully.

Raelyn's boots scraped against the bottom rung as she reached the floor. Her feet hit solid metal with a soft thud, and for a brief moment, she let herself exhale. Warmth—real warmth—brushed against her cheeks, though the ache of the cold lingered in her bones. The faint glow of her locket illuminated the space around her, casting silver light against smooth, metallic walls. The air here was still, heavy, and unsettlingly quiet save for the faint echo of boots on the ladder above her.

She turned to watch Hovan, who descended with deliberate care. The ladder groaned under his weight as he climbed down, Rakz still cradled protectively in his arms.

Raelyn could hear Benji and Thomrik starting their descent, their boots creating a rhythmic clanging as they moved. The sound seemed louder than it should have, echoing eerily in the enclosed space. For a brief moment, she wondered if the walls themselves were amplifying every sound, turning even the faintest noise into something oppressive.

The hatch above groaned again, its faint movement drawing her attention upward. The light from the storm outside flickered briefly against the edges before, with a resounding, echoing clang, it slammed shut. The sound reverberated through the space like a final blow, sealing them away from the outside world.

Raelyn's heart skipped at the harsh finality of the noise. Darkness enveloped them entirely, save for the faint, silvery glow of her locket. There was no going back now.