Species (according to Ursa):
8) Icedwellers
- Basically, a Firedweller but in ice
- Large humanoid creates that appear to be made of ice
- Have veins of frigid blue liquid that looks like water
- Live in coldest areas of world when they lived in our world (none of these creatures are here anymore supposedly…they are all in Taikaa)
o North Pole
o Antarctica
o Mount Everest
§ They are what people thought were yetis (again according to Ursa)
- Craftsmen of leather and furs
- Are more docile than Firedwellers (meaning they don't work as mercenaries)
- Good guides
- Love yak's milk ?
- Believe that images can be seen in blizzards (omens, predictions, etc)
Dawn broke over the horizon as Chenoa stood, petting Ursa's muzzle. The dragon purred as she closed her eyes. Cor kept talking, explaining more about spellbinding and such things. Chenoa wasn't really paying attention, though. She focused on the ever-changing texture of Ursa's scales and fur. Her mind was too numb to absorb anymore. Not to mention she felt guilty for what she could only assume was betraying her father.
Papa Bear's expression when she had asked him to forgive her had broken her heart. Saying nothing, Papa Bear had turned and left them in the fields. Words and anger had failed him. In her heart, Chenoa knew why her father was upset and she recognized the sacrifice that her mother had made. However, Chenoa also knew in her heart her mother would want her to be herself and, if being a Spellbinder was really what she was, then she had to do it.
"Chenoa? Chenoa?" Cor repeated, waving his hands to get her attention.
"Huh?" Chenoa snapped back to reality.
"This has been a long night. You should get some sleep. We can continue training and explaining everything tomorrow."
"Oh okay. I do have school in a few hours. I should get some sleep. What about you all? Where will you all rest?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, Ursa is kind of big and noticeable. When sun comes up, someone will see her and the tree, you said she was in, is now destroyed."
"Oh, that is no problem," Ursa laughed and she glowed electric blue.
Gasping, Chenoa watched as Ursa shrank to the size of a cockatiel. Flapping her wings, Ursa planted herself on Chenoa's shoulder. Stunned Chenoa didn't know what to say.
"It's a handy trick I know," Ursa chirped in amusement at Chenoa's shocked expression.
"O…okay. How about you, Cor?"
"I am fine, Chenoa. Don't worry about me. Go rest with Ursa."
Wanting to object, Chenoa tried to, but she felt so exhausted that she gave up. Waving goodnight to Cor, Chenoa headed back to her home with Ursa on her shoulder. She trudged upstairs and crawled into bed for a few hours of sleep.
Gentle kneading woke Chenoa for school. Groaning she opened eyes and saw the miniature Ursa on her chest. Ursa gave her best dragon smile and kept kneading Chenoa's shirt. Taking a deep breath, Chenoa sat up and threw her blankets off. The blankets landed on something, catching her attention. Cautiously Chenoa pulled the blankets back and almost screamed bloody murder, but the scream got caught in her throat.
At the foot of her bed was humongous wolf. Not only was it a wolf but it was four times the size of a large dog with red-brown fur, electric blue designs flowing around its entire body and huge condor like wings that were currently folded tight to its back. The wolf was sleeping soundly, its chest rising up and down slowly. Stumbling backwards, Chenoa hit the window by her bed and found that it was open a few inches.
"Calm down, Chenoa," Ursa said kindly as she watched the scared Chenoa from the bed. "That is Cor in his natural form."
"That is Cor?" Chenoa gasped.
She found herself unable to tear her eyes from the monstrous wolf.
"All the winds are winged wolves. They can live or appear in human form, but the wolf form is their most natural," Ursa explained. "It is easier to direct the winds on four legs."
"I didn't know…"
"Of course, you didn't, little one. You just officially met him and it's not like he started off by saying 'Hi, I'm Cor and I'm actually a large winged wolf.' I mean that would be a crazy start to a conversation.'"
"When did he come into my room?"
"Your father came in around five and opened your window."
"So?"
"Oh, right. Cor is Ventus Cordis, Heart of the Winds. The winds can only go where winds can exist. There is no wind inside a sealed house. When there is a window or door opened, even just a crack, then wind can enter the house. The same concept applies to any of the Ventus family."
"Oh, that actually makes sense."
"It also is damn useful because if you want any of them to leave you alone, you just have to close a window or door and they disappear from the building."
"Huh. I'll have to remember that."
Both of them watched Cor sleep soundly. Scratching her head, Chenoa felt like it was going to be a long day. Her body ached from exhaustion and there was a winged wolf and dragon on her bed. Shaking it off, Chenoa showered then dressed for school. She knew she was running slowly, but no matter what she did, she couldn't push her body faster.
"Do you want me to wake him?" Ursa asked as Chenoa started to exit her bedroom.
"No," Chenoa said, glancing at Cor. "If he's really been following me around this last month, dealing with Tristan and me, he must be exhausted. Let him sleep."
With that, Chenoa left the room. Ursa curled up on the bed and decided to rest a bit more herself. There was a moment of silence before it was broken.
"She's so different and yet the same all at once," Cor said, his eyes still closed.
"I know," Ursa said, closing her own eyes.
"She is going to be in serious trouble very soon."
"I know."
"We may not be able to protect her."
"I know."
Cor shifted his body, laying his head on his paws, tilting it away from Ursa.
"Well, it's nice to know after all these hundreds of years you haven't changed. You're still a little know-it-all."
Without opening an eye, Ursa's tail grew and snapped the window shut. There was a soft chuckle as Cor disappeared from the room.
On the bus Chenoa fell asleep on Gabby's shoulder. Gabby silently laughed at her friend as Chenoa slept soundly. Not knowing what Chenoa had been through the night before, Gabby thought it best for her to sleep. Chris watched Chenoa sleep from his seat two rows back. She looked peaceful and serene. For brief a moment Chris wished that he could switch with Gabby. The urge distracted him so much that he looked away from Chenoa to his own reflection in the bus window. What the hell was wrong with him?
Nick, on the other hand, studied Chenoa for other reasons. While he had always thought Chenoa was a nice girl, she had never been his type. The reason he studied her sleeping is that she seemed to be glowing like a lighting bug. Whenever she took a deep breath in, her body seemed to glow with a faint light. It was a shimmery light that lasted barely a second, but he could have sworn he saw it. What was she? He wondered.
At school, Chenoa dragged all day. It was hard to concentrate in classes but finally lunch came. Chenoa thought about going to eat, yet she was so tired that she wasn't hungry.
"I'm going to go take a nap in the nurse's office," Chenoa yawned.
She nodded down the hall in the direction of the nurse's office.
"Okay. I'll come wake you up when lunch is over," Gabby agreed, waving as she headed to the cafeteria.
Chenoa disappeared down the hall and Gabby grabbed her lunch. Sitting, Gabby started eating, lost in her own thought. A soft clacking noise drew her attention. Shifting her gaze up, Gabby saw Nick take a seat across from her. Raising an eyebrow, Gabby gave Nick a questioning look. She had known Nick since she was six years old. They had always gotten along but, since middle school, he never really associated with her outside of a class project or casual conversation on the bus.
"Yes?" she asked, very suspicious of him.
"We need to talk about Chenoa," Nick said seriously.
"Why?"
"Because something strange is going on with her."
"Look if you like her, why don't you just ask her out?"
"Like her? What the hell makes you think that?"
"You don't stop watching her and you are now trying to talk about her to her best friend. Sounds like you have a crush and don't know how to handle it."
"Gabby, look, Chenoa is pretty and sweet, but she isn't my type."
Gabby gave him a skeptical look. With a small smile, Nick grabbed Gabby's hand and held it in his while he looked her straight in the eyes.
"Gabby, trust me Chenoa is not my type."
Blanching, Gabby didn't know how to react for a moment before she pulled her hand away from him. While she didn't break eye contact, Gabby felt uneasy about the conversation.
"Then what about Chenoa?"
"What is going on with her? We both have seen the way shadows follow her."
"We could be imagining things."
"Both of us? And I've seen it a bunch of times for the last three months, since that big snow storm. And didn't you notice the way she seemed to glow on the bus today?"
"What are you talking about?"
"When she was sleeping, Chenoa seemed to pulse with a soft shimmery light."
"You are just crazy, Nick. You are seeing things. I think you have been watching too many movies or reading too many books."
"Gabby, I'm not making this up. Why would I?"
"I don't know to get some kind of kick out of it. To make me look stupid for believing or going along with it. To make Chenoa look like a freak or something. This could be some elaborate gag that Chris and you cooked up to pick on Chenoa."
"You know me better than that…"
"Nick, we haven't had a real conversation outside of a classroom topic since sixth grade. I don't know you at all."
"I am not someone who believes in picking on others or trying to make people look bad. If I wanted to do that, I would be telling my friends about Chenoa, not her best friend. I would have told everyone about the shadows already."
"No one would believe you."
"Let's be honest. I am pretty popular and viewed as an overall nice guy. People would believe me."
He had a point, Gabby thought, but she would never admit it to him.
"Something weird is going on with Chenoa and I really think you should find out. You are her best friend and I just have a feeling that it is serious."
"I'll think about it, but I really think that you are over reacting."
"If you really thought I was, you would have left the table already."
Smirking, Gabby thought for a moment before sighing and placing her head in one of her hands. All this stuff was giving her a headache. Didn't she have enough to worry about without worrying about what was "wrong" with her best friend? Of course, she was worried about Chenoa, but it couldn't be that serious.
"I'll try talking to her, but it is probably nothing, Nick. Try to forget about it."
"Fine, but I know I'm going to be right."
Nick stood up and left, leaving Gabby to think for a moment. After a few moments she took a deep breath and stood up. She had to go wake up Chenoa for the next period. Heading down the hall, she looked at the floor to observer the shadows. Maybe their movement was something to do with the sun or something. Maybe they moved on their own normally and people just didn't usually notice. Yet the few shadows in the hall were still and unmoving.
Entering the nurse's office, Gabby stopped dead in her tracks. The nurse had her head down on her desk and appeared to be sleeping. Chenoa slept soundly on one of the cots, her body seeming to shimmer with light with each intake of breath. Shadows seemed to be surrounding her, but all of that didn't seem as strange as the man standing over her.
It was the man Gabby had seen before. The man so perfect looking that it hurt to look at him directly. The man who had made her heart stand still for a moment, not out of desire or attraction, but for a strange, unexplainable reason, like she was looking at something greater than herself. He was standing next to Chenoa's bed, looking down at her with an unusual look. His right hand was extended down towards Chenoa with his fingertips barely a breath away from her forehead. A light that looked like navy blue and bright midnight blue threads woven together seemed to be flowing out of his body and spiraling down his arm towards Chenoa. When it touched her forehead, the different color strands split apart and seemed to writhe around her forehead.
Stunned Gabby felt her voice stick in her throat. Barely managing a small squeak, Gabby forced herself to take a step forward. Snapping his head up, the man's eyes were sharp until he saw it was Gabby. Placing the index finger of his left hand to his lips, the man grinned wolfishly at her.
"What are you doing to her?" she gasped, her feet stuck to the ground.
"Shhh," the man said softly.
"Leave Chenoa alone!" Gabby said a little louder this time.
"Shhh!" the man said in a harsher tone.
He snapped his fingers on his left hand. Pain radiated in Gabby's jaw as she felt it snap shut. It felt as if metal straps bound around her jaw, smashing her bones and teeth together. Gabby clawed at her own jaw, trying to find what was binding it. Running her tongue along the back of her teeth, Gabby felt like her teeth had somehow sealed together seamlessly.
"I told you to be quiet," the man said in a soft voice that felt like velvet to Gabby's ears.
The lights were still flowing down his arm, writhing around Chenoa's s face. Her skin looked pale, but her face was calm. Gabby had an internal fight of fear and wanting to help her friend. While she didn't know what the man was doing to Chenoa, she knew it couldn't be good.
Forcing her feet up and forward, Gabby felt as if hundred-pound weights were strapped to her legs, dragging her down as she tried to get to her friend. The perfect man frowned and waved his left hand at her. The weight seemed to double, pulling on her muscles, but still Gabby tried. If he was doing this to her, somehow, then he had to be hurting Chenoa.
"Stubborn mortal," the man growled.
Gabby was forcing him to focus on her instead of Chenoa. When it became apparent that Gabby wasn't going to give up, the man removed his fingers from Chenoa's forehead, turning to Gabby. His whole body seemed to glow with the braided blue light. Gabby realized she was in danger and no one was coming to help her. Her mind screamed for help as he advanced.
Looking behind him, Gabby saw Chenoa's pale, sleeping face. Just as Gabby had been the only one around to save Chenoa, now Chenoa was the only one around to save Gabby. Screaming out Chenoa's name in her mind, Gabby begged for her to wake up. The scream became desperate as the man held out his right hand and the light shot at her, lifting her into the air a few feet. Smiling, the man held her there as her body convulsed painful muscle spasms.
"Chenoa!" Gabby screamed in agony in her mind.
Chenoa's eyes snapped open, though they were wide and unfocused, open but unseeing. Her body blazed like a torch, making the rest of the room seem dim. The blaring of color around her body was a braiding of burgundy and blood red. The light seemed to crackle with energy, drawing the man and Gabby's attention. They both stared open mouthed until a ball of the red light smashed against the man. Both Gabby and the man were sent flying. Gabby slid on the floor until she hit the wall next to the nurse's office door. Meanwhile the man hit the ceiling and crashed to the floor.
Red light surrounded and suppressed the blue light around the man, sparking off him like fire. A few of the sparks hit Gabby who flinched but realized the light didn't hurt her. Rather the woven light felt like a warm breeze against her cheek. However, when a spark hit her face, Gabby felt her jaw instantly spring apart. Yet Gabby was too stunned to speak.
Picking himself up from the floor, the man started to stride towards Chenoa when Cor appeared. His eyes blazed brighter than normal as he stood between the man and Chenoa. While her body still glowed, it had turned more into a pulsing light.
"Who are you?" Cor demanded.
His voice filled every space in the room. Gabby watched in silence, barely able to hear over her own heartbeat.
"Still the perfect little guard dog, huh, Cordis?" the man laughed.
"Do I know you?" Cor growled.
"No, you don't."
"Why are you here then?"
"I'm visiting our little girl."
"She is not yours in anyway."
"Not yet but soon…very soon."
"Not if I can help it."
"It's not up to you…it's up to her and trust me when I say soon enough she will come to me."
Cor growled, baring his teeth and seeming much more like his wolf-self. Gabby had no idea what was going on, but she knew that it was much bigger than she could understand. Standing, Gabby felt her body shake. Both men looked at her and Cor appeared genuinely surprised. The perfect man smiled, turning back to Cor.
"Tell our little girl that we will be together soon, and I'll leave you to clean up this mess," the man sneered, flicking his eyes back to Gabby before vanishing into thin air.
Cor sighed, looking very tired and worried. He approached Chenoa and touched her forehead as if to check her temperature. Finding her normal, Cor closed his eyes and placed his forehead against hers. She was okay. Swiveling, Cor thought as he observed the terrified Gabby and the sleeping nurse. Ambling to Gabby, Cor made sure he looked calm so as to not scare Gabby.
"Don't worry, sweet friend," he said sweetly. "You are okay. Your friend is okay."
"What are you?" Gabby stammered.
"I am a friend of Chenoa."
"What is she?"
"Chenoa is still just Chenoa. What she is doesn't matter…does it? Long as she hasn't changed in her personality and heart."
"I guess it doesn't…I just don't get what's going on."
"When it is time for you to know, Chenoa will tell you. She hasn't learned about it all anyway. She can't tell you what she doesn't know."
"Why are you telling me all of this?"
"Because you won't remember any of this."
"Why?"
Tears started pouring down Gabby's cheeks. What would he do to make her not remember? Was that even possible?
"Do you really want to remember this? To remember this and remember that you can't tell anyone, even Chenoa?"
"No…no…that would be scary and lonely."
"It can be. I can't make you forget unless you want to, Gabriella."
"You can't?"
"No, I can't."
Chewing on her lip, Gabby wasn't sure until she looked at Chenoa's face. She wouldn't be able to tell Chenoa about the danger she saw whether she kept her memories or not, but not remembering it would make her feel a lot less guilty about hiding a secret from her best friend. Nodding slowly Gabby decided to forget. Before she had even finished nodding her head, Gabby collapsed in Cor's arms, fast asleep.
Laying her on the cot next to Chenoa, Cor rolled out his shoulders. He already felt the stress building up. Why couldn't her awakening go smoothly? With a crooked smile, Cor stared at Chenoa for a long moment. Naw…it wouldn't be her if it was easy. Striding over to the nurse, Cor touched the back of her neck gently and she stirred from her sleep. Blinking, she stretched and couldn't believe she had fallen asleep. Getting up the nurse walked to the window and shut it. Had it been open before? She couldn't remember. Turning around, she saw two girls fast asleep. They both were pale and didn't look great, so she decided to let them sleep.
Outside the window, Cor monitored Chenoa's sleep. He remembered the woven light that had come from her body. It had sparked from the buildup of energy. Suddenly concerned, Cor worried about her power becoming too strong for her body to suppress. She…no the world…couldn't afford for her to lose control of such vast power.