Elaria Silverstan's Arc

Chapter 4 of 22

Elaria climbed the last slope and the glacier rose in front of her. The wall was blue and sheer, marked with sharp ridges and dark cracks. There was no door. There was no seam. The wind cut harder here, and the cold pressed into her coat. She knew she could not stand here long, even with ice in her blood. She walked the base and found a weathered bronze marker set into the snow. Its peak pointed up at the wall like a finger. This was the place, then. The line where the glacier swallowed people whole. She set her pack down beside it and pulled out the axe she had carried since the village. The axe was wrapped in a cold, blue light. Its blade hummed when she lifted it. She set her feet, swung once, and struck the wall. A bright crack ran up the ice. She swung again. Chips flew. The glacier groaned like something waking. On the third swing, the wall split. A narrow opening yawned in front of her, dark and tall and breathing out colder air than the wind outside. She lowered the axe. Her arms shook. The cold inside the gap was not normal cold. It pulled at her, tasting her. Elaria slung the axe across her back and stepped through. The opening closed behind her with a soft, wet sound. She stood in the dark of the glacier now. There was no way back the way she came.