Kael's sword cleaved through the air, his entire body coursing with a raw, chaotic energy. The Black Frost pulsed in his veins, a relentless force that demanded to be unleashed. He swung again, this time with all the might he could summon, his cursed hand crackling with dark energy. The creature reeled back, its fur and ice smoking where the frost had touched it. But it wasn't enough. It was still alive, still coming for him.
The creature, towering and monstrous, wiped away the ice from its fur like a man brushing off rain. It shook itself, snarling low, its blue eyes now burning with fury. It lunged again, faster this time, slashing with claws that seemed to freeze the air around them.
Kael barely had time to react. He raised his sword to block, but the impact sent him crashing to the ground. His cursed hand screamed in agony, as if protesting its bond with him, the raw power tearing at the seams of his very soul. The Black Frost roared beneath his skin.
"You need to control it," Lira's voice cut through his pain, though it was strained, "Focus! Don't let it consume you!"
Kael's chest heaved with each breath, his vision blurring with the force of the curse. He couldn't think straight—every instinct was telling him to use the Black Frost, to let it surge through him, to give in and destroy everything in his path. But Lira's words rang in his ears. Control. Focus.
Lira's blade flashed, catching the creature off-guard, slicing through its exposed side. The creature shrieked, spinning away from her strike, but its injuries seemed to heal faster than Kael could process. Its icy hide closed over the wound as if the slash had never been made.
Lira gritted her teeth, her movements fluid, but even she was struggling to keep up with the creature's relentless assault. Kael staggered to his feet, his breath ragged, his vision flickering as though the world was fading around him. The Black Frost pulsed, a constant reminder of the power he wielded—and the cost it exacted.
The creature stalked forward again, its eyes narrowing, as if it had finally sized him up. This time, when it lunged, Kael's instincts kicked in, and the Black Frost overwhelmed his control. He felt it surge violently through his body, blasting outward in a shockwave of icy power. His hand shot forward, the frost forming into jagged spears that flew toward the creature with terrifying speed.
For a moment, the world went quiet. Kael stood frozen, his breath misting in the air, as the spears of Black Frost struck the creature. The force of the impact shook the ground beneath them, sending tremors through the snow. The creature let out a roar, but this time, it was not one of rage. It was one of agony.
But Kael didn't stop. The Black Frost had taken control, and the creature was no longer his focus. The power inside him screamed for more. The curse was too strong to resist, too consuming to escape.
"Kael!" Lira's voice broke through the fog in his mind, urgent and sharp.
He barely heard her. The Black Frost had consumed him, and all he could see was the creature, pinned against a rocky outcrop, struggling to break free. But there was no mercy in Kael now. The Black Frost had given him strength, had turned him into something other than human—and that strength was all-consuming.
The creature's body cracked under the weight of the ice shards, its limbs frozen stiff as the frost spread rapidly through its veins. A moment later, it collapsed to the ground with a final, frozen groan, its body completely encased in ice. Kael stood over it, chest heaving, staring down at the lifeless form.
But the victory tasted empty. It tasted bitter.
Lira's footsteps approached cautiously, and Kael felt her presence behind him. She didn't speak right away, as though weighing her words carefully. He could feel her disapproval, like a heavy weight pressing down on him.
"That wasn't you," she said softly, but firmly. "That was the curse."
Kael clenched his fists, the Black Frost still swirling in his veins, still demanding release. "It doesn't feel like the curse. It feels like power."
Lira stepped into his line of sight, her expression unreadable. "That's the danger, Kael. The curse is power, but it's also a prison. And if you keep feeding it, you'll lose yourself."
Kael stared at the frozen creature in front of him. He felt…nothing. No triumph, no satisfaction. Just an emptiness that gnawed at his insides. The power had surged through him, overwhelming his senses, but it had taken something with it. Something important.
"I didn't want this," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "I just wanted to survive."
Lira's eyes softened for a moment, her gaze flickering with understanding, but she didn't say anything more. Instead, she reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder. "We need to keep moving, Kael. We can't stay here. They'll be looking for us."
Kael nodded stiffly, his mind a whirlwind of thoughts, the Black Frost still clawing at his sanity. He didn't know how much longer he could keep this up. He didn't know if he could control it or if it would control him first.
As they turned to leave, Kael felt the weight of the world pressing down on him, a cold, crushing presence that seemed to follow them wherever they went. The Frostborn were dead, but their master—whatever dark force commanded them—was still out there, watching, waiting.
And Kael was no closer to understanding the full extent of the curse inside him. The Black Frost wasn't just a weapon. It was something far more dangerous. And the deeper he fell into it, the harder it would be to escape.
They walked for hours, the storm growing fiercer with every step. The land around them seemed to close in, the shadows growing longer, the darkness more oppressive. It felt as though the world itself was closing in around them, and Kael couldn't shake the feeling that something was waiting—waiting for him to make his next move.
Finally, they reached a narrow pass between two towering cliffs. Lira stopped, her eyes scanning the landscape with practiced precision.
"We'll camp here for the night," she said, her voice calm but laced with concern. "Get some rest, Kael. Tomorrow, we head for the ruins."
Kael didn't respond. He could barely hear her over the roaring wind in his ears. He dropped to his knees, the weight of his sword dragging him down, his head swimming with exhaustion. But he didn't sleep. Not really. Every time his eyes closed, the Black Frost would creep into his dreams, twisting and warping, taking on monstrous forms, telling him things he couldn't understand.
Something had changed in him. Something deep inside. And he didn't know if he could fight it anymore.
But one thing was certain—whatever was coming next, Kael would face it with the Black Frost at his side.
And that might be the very thing that destroyed him