As we stepped into the portal, I felt a sense of uneasiness take hold of me. My body screamed at me to go back, yet there was a force that urged me to move deeper, even if only death waited for us. Tristan and I were now within the portal. As we traversed into the unknown I took in it's sensation.
It felt like every inch of my body was touched at the same time, like gentle hands massaging every crevice and creek. My mind loosened and I believed at that moment, if asked, I would confess every crime I had ever committed. Tristan beside me now appeared like a blur as our figures stretched beyond human recognition. Cool air moved up my tattered clothes and soothed every aching part of my body, my mangled arm now feeling like a dream. Strong winds blew as the air caressing me became colder until nearly unbearable.
"Zane," a muffled voice kept saying. "Zane!" it said again now sounding clear enough for me to detect the urgency within. Something shook my body. I hardly took note of it because of how numb I had become. I forced a hard breath, air too cold too be human escaped my lungs and I opened my eyes. "Zane!" the voice screamed again, much clearer than before, a figure loomed above me as I gazed at it from the ground.
"Tristan?" I asked not sure who the person before me truly was. "Who else?" he responded in his usual jovial manner. Before I asked another question I looked around. We were in what appeared to be a cave, stalagmites and stalactites lining it's roof and floor. They were bluish white in colour, seemingly made of ice. The cave walls were the same. Crystal clear ice surrounding us, giving me the feeling they could give out at any moment. A snow covered wall blocked the only visible entrance too the cave, leaving only a little space at the top for blood freezing cold air and faint light to pass through.
"How did we end up here?" I asked, wondering what happened while I was unconscious. Tristan breathed out, cold air escaping his mouth. "The feeling of entering the realm was so surreal, unnatural…" he said, taking a pause as though reminiscing it once more. "Something happened, that seemed to take us from our initial destination, to here," he looked around, glaring the icy walls contemptibly.
"We appeared here suddenly, cold air whipping at us like slave masters upon our arrival. You fell unconscious, and I conjured a golem to carry us through the blizzard. It was very hard too maintain it because of the storm, but I found a cave before my body gave out and restructured the golem to the wall you see at the entrance too block the cold."
I closed my eyes, imagining the words Tristan said too me. I always knew he was resourceful, but now I was sure he was indeed a genius. While he was trying his best for us too survive, I was unconscious, enjoying the sensation I felt at the time. Physically, I was better than most in all aspects, training myself in the way of the sword to make up for my lack of magic. I believed if I continued on that path I could become a forgebounder: mages whose souls are bonded to their weapons, strengthening both of them. The power is mostly inherited and forging the bond is quite rare, but I was hoping I could achieve it.
I trained with my sword everyday, learning slashes, stabs and thrusts. I thrusted over 10,000 times daily, believing I would one day bond with my rusted weapon. My reflexes, sight, strength, speed, all improved overtime and yet I was still weak. "What are our options?" I asked, unaware of our current situation. "I saw a castle some kilometers ahead, the closer we came to it, the warmer our surroundings became, I also think the realm's exit would be there," Tristan answered, lacking his usual playful tone.
I pondered his words. He had explained in detail how he had barely managed to get us to the cave, and now suggests our best bet is a castle few kilometers away. I couldn't argue, he protected us both from the blizzard and so I trusted his judgement. "What's your plan?" I asked hoping he actually had one. He grinned as he usually did, and turned around to face the wall of snow behind us. He raised his hand and then flicked his wrist downwards. The wall crumbled, and a tunnel revealed itself behind it.
"When we got here I heard strange noises coming from the tunnels and so I sealed it. I anticipated strange creatures attacking us and acted accordingly. I think the tunnels lead straight to the castle, so I didn't collapse it." I moved close to it, the cold, heavy, air surrounding me giving way to it's warmer colleague emanating from the tunnels. I heard a growling noise coming from deep within, like a sleeping animal, killing any who disturbs it's slumber.
Tristan entered the tunnel, stopping after walking a few meters, then turned to face me. "You coming?" "Already?!" I replied shocked at his sudden impulse. "If you prefer preserving your corpse I recommend you stay here, I don't intend to become one so I'm going to find the exit," he said already moving deeper. I followed, hoping he was right about the exit. I also hoped we could find some valuables as we traversed the realm.
Upon approaching the tunnels, I instinctively put my hand on the wall as I moved. It was cold and not in the ordinary sense. It felt like all the heat was being taken from me and replaced with air freezing cold. I felt my body's temperature drop and withdrew my hand. The walls were a shimmering metallic mix of mostly white and a tinge of blue. They looked smooth, appearing intentionally carved out. Tristan and I walked for about twenty minutes before he came to an abrupt stop before a left turn.
"What are you…" I was cut off as he put his hand over my mouth and dragged me to the ground. He looked at me in the eye and then towards the turn behind him. "Bear," he whispered as he spared a glance once more. I crawled to his front. The icy floors cooling my knees till it burnt. I peeped ever so slightly, trying my best to keep most of my body hidden. I knew my crimson eyes gave my position away in the cave system of mostly silvery colours. That didn't mean I expected the white bear to face my direction the moment my eyes came into view.
I stayed still on the off chance that it was a mere coincidence, hoping it would look away and continue whatever it was doing. It stood up from where it rested and moved in our direction. It was about 4 meters tall. It's hide appearing a snowy white. It's claw looked the same as the walls, though it was only silver without even the slightest hint of blue.
I pulled my head back, accepting that I'd been seen.
"It's coming, right?" Tristan asked, though it sounded more like confirmation. He pressed both hands to the tunnel wall and murmured an incantation. Brick by brick, rough-hewn stone burst forth with a deep rumble, coalescing into a towering golem.
"How?" I whispered, astonished. It matched the ice bear's height and gripped a spiked mace in its left hand.
The golem lumbered forward—slow, but deadly. Bare-chested and clad only in a rough kilt, it looked like a stone-born barbarian. Its mace seemed crudely fashioned, yet the golem's muscles were impeccably defined, which made me wonder where Tristan's priorities lay.
The bear sidestepped easily, its massive paw scraping a slab of stone loose from the golem's chest. With brutal strength, it lifted the construct and hurled it into the icy wall. I stared at Tristan, stunned that his first golem fell so quickly.
"Don't blame me," he muttered, embarrassment coloring his voice. "It's my first time conjuring one for combat."
Behind me, the bear tore the golem apart, ensuring it would not rise again. Tristan didn't waste a moment. He whispered fresh words, and the shattered stones reassembled before my eyes into a second golem—half the size of the first, armored in polished cobblestone and wielding a granite sword.
"Check this out," Tristan panted, fatigue etched into every line of his face. The frigid realm was draining him fast. He stretched out an arm—and the golem mirrored the motion perfectly.
"I've mapped its movements to my own," he said with a proud grin. I glanced down at his palm: a dark sigil spread from his wrist to the base of his fingers.
"What's that?" I asked.
"No idea," he admitted, flexing his fingers again. The golem followed, then stepped forward.
The bear lunged, but the golem stopped just beyond its reach. With a sudden, precise thrust—almost like one of my own sword techniques—the golem drove its granite blade into the creature's heart.
A bone-shaking shriek split the air. I pressed my hands to my ears to keep them from bursting. Tristan stood frozen, eyes wide, as the beast collapsed into a heap of snow.
"That scream was something else," he finally said, staring at the drifting powder where the bear fell. I imagined it had been me summoning the golem—and was grateful it wasn't.
Tristan leaned against the wall and shook out his hand. "It's freezing," I warned.
"Thanks for the warning," he shot back, though his teeth were chattering.
We pressed onward for hours, pausing only briefly to rest. After a quick right turn, the tunnel's ceiling soared upward until, ten minutes later, we walked beneath an icy vault nearly a hundred meters high.
Tristan made a left turn and hurried back. "Another bear?" I asked, but his expression told me otherwise. I peeked around the corner and froze at the sight of a leviathan: a sixty-meter-tall colossus scanning its surroundings. It resembled Tristan's original golem but lacked any humanoid shape—its arms were more than twice a man's length, its stomach distended, and it wielded a massive sledgehammer in its right hand.
The creature wore a horned helm and sported a long, braided beard. Its skin shimmered silver like the cave walls, veins bulging along its enormous arms. Tristan yanked me back and shot me a questioning glance. "Can you make one that big?" I asked, hopeful. "Not even close," he sighed, opening his mouth to speak then closing it again.
A blast of icy air swept over me. I whipped my head around to see the giant looming inches from my face, its placid expression twisting into irritation.
We bolted toward its legs and dashed through the gap between them, heading for the massive door it guarded. A wisp of glittering silver air whooshed past us, coalescing into the towering figure once more. We skidded to a halt, and Tristan raised a dome of stone overhead.
I heard the giant hammering at the dome, and Tristan's stance wavered under each blow. With a gesture, he reshaped the dome into a sturdy column of earth. The creature stumbled back, and we seized the chance to put distance between us. I drew my sword and sprinted toward it while Tristan conjured a staircase under my feet. At the ledge, I leapt.
I slashed its chest—my blade shattered against its silver flesh. Was this my limit? All those hours of training, and I was still a burden. The giant flicked its hand like a careless swat, but a wall of earth erupted between us. As I fell, I jammed my broken sword into the barrier to slow my descent. Thirty meters above the ground, the giant demolished the wall, and I resumed my free fall. I rolled on impact, narrowly dodging massive boulders tumbling down with me. One boulder nearly crushed my skull before dissolving into sand just centimeters above my head.
Tristan summoned a massive stalagmite from the ceiling, impaling the giant's helm—only for it to be torn away by the creature's raw strength. He panted heavily; it was clear he was nearing his limit. "Here," he rasped, materializing a sword and hurling it to me. I caught it with a grunt—it was too heavy and unbalanced for my fighting style.
"I can manage one more attack, make it count," before I could respond, the ice under our feet quickly transformed to earth. It emerged from the ground, roughly the same height with the Goliath. Tristan stretched out his hands and stone threads dropped from the ceiling. They spun around the giants limbs holding it in place. "Now!" he screamed as I felt the weight of the sword in my hand rapidly increase.
I ran, letting the adrenaline fuel me as I rushed forward. A sledge hammer materialized in it's hand and it swung, missing me wide. I jumped landing on it's head though my sword made contact first, it's weight splitting it in two. It's body fell backward and I landed on it. The sword in my hand dissolved and the earth floor Tristan created collapsed. The body of the giant fell on the monumental door and swung it open. Warm air blasted my body, dissolving the ice shards on my skin.
"Let's go," I yelled towards Tristan who was behind me and hadn't said anything so far which was unlike him. I moved in his direction and saw him sitting on the ground. I tapped him but he didn't move. I raised his head and saw his eyes staring aimlessly. "He's dead," I said in disbelief as my vision became blurry from the tears that formed within.
"Tristan!" I screamed hoping I was wrong. I shook his body to no avail. As I shook him I heard growling noises approach. "Shitters!" I screamed at whatever waited in the darkness. I carried Tristan on my shoulder, wondering how he had died. "When the giant missed, he must have…" I paused, not wanting to continue the train of thought.
I moved closer to the door, holding onto Tristan tightly. Inside the room was warm, it was almost as big as the hall we had just emerged from, though it's design was incomparable. Multiple pillars supported the room, and an arched wall divided it. I passed the arch and saw a woman sitting on a silver throne. I didn't know whether to scream, collapse, or ask for help. But her eyes… they pinned me in place.
Her hair was platinum blonde, and her eyes were gunmetal gray, like moonlit orbs staring into my soul. Her clothes were blue, shimmering white lights littering her fitted dress. She wore no shoes as her feet made direct contact with the cold ground. The room was warm but the ground was still cold.
A grin appeared on her face and she stood up from her icy throne.
"You've finally arrived, boy of unknown origins."