Page 38 of The Enchanted Frost

The glacial surroundings of Borealis’s frozen citadel gradually faded as the air shifted with a magic unlike any I’d experienced since entering Frost’s realm—rather than a shimmer of light or gust of wind, there was only overwhelming cold, so intense it stole the breath from my lungs.

Frost’s hand tightened around mine as the ground beneath us seemed to vanish, replaced by a strange sensation of falling—not through space but through time, into something deeper and older than the world we knew. The cold wrapped around us, a sensation sharper and more ancient than the chill of winter I’d grown accustomed to, coiling around me like icy fingers dragging me into darkness.

The world twisted, as though reality itself was bending. My vision blurred, swallowed by a swirling sea of snow and ice, endless and suffocating. I tried to move, to call out to Frost, but my voice was swallowed by the void.

Then, just as suddenly as the disorienting shifting had begun, it stopped. I caught my breath, blinking as I took in the unfamiliar surroundings. Around us loomed towering walls of crystalline ice branching into various paths whose destinations I could not see, so smooth and clear they reflected our figures in a thousand fractured images, distorting reality into endless illusions. The shimmering surfaces seemed alive, shifting with the light as though the labyrinth itself was breathing.

Frost pulled me to my feet, his eyes already scanning the intricate maze with a practiced, wary gaze. Magic lingered in the air, sharp and ancient, pulsing beneath our feet, as if the ground could vanish at any moment. The biting cold choking the air seemed more sentient than the mere chill of winter—alive, aware, and watching.

Frost drew in a sharp breath, his features tightening in recognition. “Borealis has sent us to the FrostVeil Labyrinth,” he said, voice edged with tension. “I hoped we wouldn’t have to face this.”

My chest tightened, an unspoken fear settling in the pit of my stomach. The dread clouding his usual calm, unshakable demeanor had shifted to a tension I hadn’t seen before, even with the stress of losing his powers.

“What is this place?”

Jaw clenched, Frost exhaled slowly, his breath visible in the freezing air. “The FrostVeil Labyrinth isn’t just any maze—it’s carved deep within Borealis’s glacier fortress. It’s ancient, alive, and constantly shifting and changing to disorient anyone who dares to enter…but the true purpose lies at its heart.”

He glanced toward the center of the labyrinth; though the ice walls obscured our view, I could sense he knew exactly what lay within. “At the center of this maze is the FrostHeart—the heart of winter itself…and the source of my power.”

“The heart of winter?” My throat tightened with apprehension; I didn’t understand what the heart of winter entailed, but the note of dread in his tone made it clear that it was not a place to approach lightly.

He nodded grimly, his gaze darkening. “The FrostHeart holds the purest essence of winter’s balance. It’s what allows me to create snow, control the blizzards, and maintain the cycle of the season. Without it, winter would spiral into chaos. But it’s dangerous not because of the difficulty of finding it, but because it demands sacrifice. To reach it means facing trials, and those who make it to the center don’t leave unchanged.”

The weight of his explanation pressed down on me. “And Borealis sent us here?”

Frost’s usual icy calm cracked further, replaced by something sharper and more urgent. “Borealis guards the FrostHeart closely. He’s the only one with the power to place one of Season’s Keepers on trial before it. By sending us here, my abilities as the Winter King are not only being tested, but I’ll have to decide between two paths: severing my connection to the mortal world entirely, sacrificing the last shred of humanity I have left…or abandoning my power altogether and becoming mortal, leaving Borealis to take my place as Keeper of Winter.”

My breath fogged the icy air as the weight of his explanation settled over me like the air’s biting chill. This wasn’t just a labyrinth or a puzzle to solve—it was a trial of the highest stakes that would decide Frost’s fate, testing not only his powers but his very soul. Yet there was no turning back from the path ahead, shrouded in ice and uncertainty.

The icy wind bit at my skin as we crossed the threshold of the labyrinth, its soul-penetrating chill far deeper than the frigid air. Silence hung thick and heavy, broken only by the soft crunch of our footsteps and the occasional groan ofshifting ice beneath us, as though the maze itself were alive and responding to our presence.

My thoughts whirled faster than the winter wind swirling through the twisting corridors. The weight of his confession filled the frozen space around us with a warmth no fire could match, making my heart flutter in a way I hadn’t thought possible in such a cold, desolate place.

He loved me.

I could hardly believe that the mystical, enigmatic figure who commanded the very essence of winter felt the same fierce emotion for me that I did for him. I wanted to hold onto that moment forever, to stay wrapped in the safety of his affection and let the world fade away. Despite the dire nature of our current predicament, happiness surged through me like the first sunlight after a long winter, warming parts of my heart I hadn’t realized were frozen.

I squeezed his hand as we walked, savoring the coolness of his skin against mine. Even as the elation of his love filled me, a shadow crept in alongside it, tempering my joy with the reminder of the cost of this love. I wasn’t ready to let him sacrifice so much for me, nor could I stand the thought of him losing any part of himself that I had come to love.

As we moved deeper into the labyrinth—choosing our steps carefully between the swaying walls—I dwelt on the way it felt to finally give voice to the feelings I’d tried to push aside for so long. Yet worry gnawed at me—Frost was preparing to sacrifice not just his immortality, but his powers…all for a regret-laden soul. I couldn’t bear for him to lose his identity as the Winter King, the man who had shown me the beauty in his cold, austere world.

Frost had been quiet since we entered the labyrinth, his distant gaze betraying an inner battle I couldn’t fully understand. His silence pulled at me, stirring my own anxiety until it felt like the cold itself had crept into my bones.

My worry drew his attention. His eyes softened, his serious countenance melting just enough to show the tenderness I knew so well.

“You’re troubled.” His quiet tone cut through the eerie silence cloaking the labyrinth.

I bit my lip as I glanced at my taut expression reflected in the ever-shifting walls of ice around us, as though the maze was echoing the conflict inside me. “It wasn’t until that frozen night in the alley when I was faced with death that I realized how little I had truly lived. You helped me find myself, and I can’t bear the thought of it coming at the cost of you giving everything up for me.”

We paused in front of a towering ice wall and he turned to me, his blue eyes locking onto mine, colder than the ice, yet holding a warmth only I seemed to see. His hand brushed my cheek, the chill of his fingers sharp against my skin, the familiarity of his touch offering a comfort that grounded me when everything else made me feel like I was falling.

“I’ve lived for centuries as the Keeper of Winter,” he said softly. “I’ve maintained balance and watched over this world, but in all that time I never felt alive…until I met you.”

My heart raced at his words, but worry maintained its clinging hold, refusing to let go. “I don’t want to be the reason you lose what makes you...you. You’re part of something bigger—your power, your connection to winter…how could you sacrifice all of that?” My voice trembled, thick with the weight of my fear.

His expression softened further and he cupped my face gently, his thumb brushing against my cheek. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I do know I am more than just winter, just as you are more than your own past. I would give anything to be with you and keep this love that you’ve shown me. Though winter will always be a part of me, in the end it’s just a season…and it’s time for my own to finally come to an end and for a new one to begin, a spring that only you can offer. Whatever happens, I’ll never regret loving you.”

Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes as I leaned into his touch. Though I couldn’t regret that these last precious moments with him had finally possessed meaning and happiness, I wasn’t ready to lose him—not to this trial, nor the sacrifice looming over us like the icy walls of the labyrinth. Therehadto be a way for us to be together without him giving up everything he had built across the eternity he had existed.

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