Lanius opened his eyes. A cold wind slammed against his body. He looked around im confusion, but all that he could see was snow. Snow and mountains.
"Freida?" the Winter called out for the spirit.
No response.
The wind screamed as it passed between the mountains, making the scene even more terrifying. Suddenly, a voice whispered in his ear.
"Laaaniusss..."
It called for him. The young man began to walk towards the direction of said voice, unsure of why he decided to follow it. He didn't know how much time passed, when he finally stopped in front of a giant canyon and the whispers ceased along with the wind. The young man looked down, towards the empty space that was between the two sides. Numerous bridges spanned across is in various lengths, tho directly below him stood one, the biggest of them all.
"The bridge of Sorrows." a voice spoke in Freijlordian behind him, followed by a giant thud that tossed snow on his back. The young man turned around, only to be met with a gigantic ice phoenix. Lanius was left speechless as he looked at it in awe.
The phoenix lowered its head and looked at him. Lanius finally understood what he was seeing. He was standing in front of Anivia, the Great Cryophoenix.
"So...you are the new Winter?" she asked. Lanius noted that despite not opening her giant beak, he could perfectly hear her, similar to when Freida directly spoke to him inside his head.
Lanius nodded. He was so captivated by the whole scene that he couldn't speak.
"I heard that you want to get your revenge against Noxus. It seems that you are determined to bring the whole first lands to them. I wish that you will live up to my expectations." she continued. "You are the last Winter and the last of the Verhea. The last of the many that has hosted my daughter."
"I am. And I know what will happen if I die." Lanius was finally able to speak.
"Ironic, isn't it?" Anivia lowered her body, bringing her head to his level. Lanius slightly pulled his head back. "A spirit so powerful that can burry the word in snow has grown so attached to the human proportions, that after detaching from them, she won't be able to control her powers and will bring snow everywhere." she continued.
"Great Frostbringer, I assure you that I will not fail you." Lanius said.
"I see...and what do you plan to do?" Anivia brought her frozen beak inches away from his face. The ice patch around the young man's left eye reacted by first lighting up and then turning from the original colorless foggy shade of clear ice to a crystal blue, identical to the Frostbringers feathers. For a few seconds, Lanius felt it as if it was burning.
"Is it...?" he asked as he touched it. His vision was now blocked from that side.
"...True Ice. It cannot melt naturally, unlike the one you previously had that remained frozen due to Freidas powers. While you may not be able to see normally now, your Sovereign's Dominance will be more powerful. This is my gift to you, use it wisely." Anivia said.
"I'll do so." Lanius replied. "I guess I plan to prevent an ice age by just not dying and getting stronger. The more power I'll be able to use, the less the damage that I will cause if I die."
The Cryophoenix raised its head high and laughed. "You have great potential, young Lanius."
Lanius turned around and faced the canyon." What is this bridge?" he asked. He could hear the wind, howling below.
"Oh, this is more than just a bridge, you know. Maybe it was once a simple thing of stone and mortar, but now it bears the weight of the entire Freljord on its back. The fate of this land was decided here, ages ago, in a long and brutal battle. Just look around and listen..." she paused for a second. "...That noise is more than the wind, it is the cry of the vanquished, thrown howling into The Abyss." she continued.
"The Howling Abyss..." Lanius muttered.
"Correct..." Anivia nodded. "...This is where the Freljordian history was written. Where the three sisters died to fight the Watchers. Where the first Winter was born..."
"...And where the Frostbites Fist is." The Winter added.
"Half of it, to be precise." Anivia said. "There other half is somewhere in Valoran."
Lanius spun around. "It's not in Ionia?" he asked, confused.
Anivia chuckled. "Yes it's not in The First Lands. Tho I shall not tell you where it is. Its up to you to find it." Anivia stood up right. "I do trust you, yet you should consider this as a task in order to gain this power." Anivia opened her wings. Lanius roughly measured the opening of them to be roughly 40 meters. "So I ask you this, Lanius, son of Zefarin: Will you accept this challenge?"
Lanius closed his eyes,and once he opened them, the white membrane had covered them and glowed bright blue, just like when he had awakened. The winds blew again and snow began to fall.
"I...Lanius, Son of Zefarin, The Embodiment of the Winter, The Prince of the Winter, vow that I shall prove worthy. I accept the challenge that the great Cryophoenix gave me. I shall recover the Frostbites Fist and use its power to both avenge my people, and keep my part of the deal." Lanius vowed.
Anivia flapped her wings and rose a few meters in the air, sending snow everywhere.
"Good, now you need to wake up. Have faith to your powers." she spoke.
"So this is a dream?"Lanius said.
"A dream, a vision and a connection. All of them together. You will remember this when you wake up. Good luck, you Winter." Anivia took off, disappearing. Lanius turned towards the Howling Abyss. He then stepped a few meters back.
"Time to wake up." he thought and began running forward, diving off the edge. Everything around him became hazy as he fell. Lanius didn't scream, he did not feel afraid. The last image he saw before he woke up was a giant spike of dark ice inches away from his face.
.
.
.
Lanius stood up straight in the bed as he woke up. He looked around the room, trying to realise where he was. After a few seconds he realised that he was still in the Inn. Fellista was gone, probably left the room when he fell asleep, hours ago. He got up and moved towards the window. The sun was about to rise.
"Lanius? Did you see a nightmare?" Freida called out for him.
"Yeah" he answered.
"What happened to your eye?" her voice seemed distressed, causing the young man to rush to the mirror. Lanius looked straight at his eye, and discovered that the patch of normal ice was replaced true ice.
"So it wasn't a dream, huh?" Lanius muttered, recalling the dream/vision.
"What...is this doing there?" The Spirit of the Winter asked.
"This? Just a gift from your mother." Lanius replied as he watched the sun rise...