Frozen Tides

Cleo battled her way against the ice storm. Her face was on fire and she struggled to keep a steady pace. On her right Nic was pale and expressionless. His teeth chattered and his fingers had begun to turn blue, but he remained in a state of shock. Magnus was ten paces ahead and now waited impatiently for them to catch up.

None of them had spoken a single word to each other since they had left the temple of Valoria. The air was thick with tension and there were so many things she wanted to say. She couldn't help but feel completely alone. For the first time in her life, she had nowhere to go. They couldn't go back to Auranos or Cleo would be executed immediately and the rebels might let her live but Magnus would never be allowed to set foot in rebel camp unharmed.

The only thing they could do was search for Lucia and hope that nobody would notice them. They had found fresh footprints of snow leading down a trail in the opposite way Amara had fled. As the ice shards continued to fall from the sky, the footprints were covered and it was getting harder to track Lucia's trail.

"Magnus, it's no use." Cleo finally managed to say. "We have been walking for hours, following a trail that is about to be covered in a fresh coat of snow. We need to focus on the more pressing issue here."

That earned a glare from Magnus. He was blinded by his love for his sister. Cleo, on the other hand, was positive that Lucia could take care of herself. As much as she wanted to search for her, they needed to focus on finding Amara.

"And what, princess, is a more pressing issue than my sister eloping and marrying a guy who is using her for his own benefit? I don't trust his intentions, and I need to stop her from making the biggest mistake of her life." Magnus replied matter-of-factly.

"Magnus, I know you are worried about her, but you underestimate her powers." Cleo argued.

"And you overestimate them." He said shortly.

"If we don't go after Amara now, she will convince her father to declare war on Mytica. We will all die. Who knows what will happen to Lucia? She may become a prisoner of the Kraeshian Empire because she is too valuable to kill. If we don't stop Amara now, it will mean the end for all of us." Cleo countered.

Magnus said nothing for a long time. He remained stone-faced, but Cleo could tell his mind was racing. She was right and he knew it.

Finally, it was Nic who spoke up. "Cleo, is right, we need to go after Amara. We need to find her and make her suffer for everything she did before we slowly and painfully kill her."

Cleo winced at the remark but said nothing. The way he had said those words with such certainty in his voice made her sure that they needed to keep Nic away from Amara. As much as she wanted to kill her, Cleo knew that it would lead to an instant war and they would be blamed for both Ashur's and Amara's death.

"I suppose it makes the most sense to go after Amara." Magnus conceded. "Unfortunately, both of you are unaccustomed to Limerian weather. Any longer out here and you'll freeze. Let's stop somewhere for the night and pick-up some warm clothes. "

No one argued so they continued walking, but this time, with renewed energy.

Cleo surveyed her surroundings. Despite the cold weather, it was quite beautiful. They were in the heart of a small town just south of the temple. The town shops were lined up in neat rows and houses seemed quaint yet cozy. Far in the distance, Cleo heard lively music and the faint sound of laughter. Even though the streets were deserted at this this time of the night, it felt safe. Cleo, Nic and Magnus settled into a comfortable silence until they reached an inn.

"Wait out here." Magnus whispered into Nic's ear. "The innkeeper will be surprised to see the Prince and Princess of Mytica traveling with a stable boy and we need to keep up appearances. Cleo and I will go in first and you can enter 20 minutes after us."

"Nic can come in with us. We'll pretend that we brought along a servant for our journey." Cleo interjected.

Magnus scowled but didn't say anything as all three of them entered the inn. The man at the desk was snoring heavily and Magnus impatiently cleared his throat to get the man's attention. The man's eyes widened as he looked at his new visitors and immediately made arrangements for them to get the best rooms in the inn.

Cleo breathed in a sigh of relief as feeling returned to her body. Their bags were carried up to the third floor and Magnus and Cleo were placed in a room adjacent to Nic. The room was quite well decorated with its honey-coloured walls and luxurious carpeting. There was a large bed with a vanity and a small workplace. Connecting to that was a spacious bathroom that was furnished expensively.

Cleo was exhausted and she immediately began to create a makeshift bed out of all the extra sheets and blankets she could find. Magnus watched her while she worked, his eyebrows furrowed and his lips formed a small frown.

"I'll take the floor." He said not meeting her eyes.

Cleo stared at him, wondering where this sudden act of kindness had come from but she was in no mood to argue.

"Thank you" She murmured softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. She could feel the unresolved tension in the air as Magnus pulled away quickly, his expression blank.

"Enjoy this while it lasts, princess. After tonight, we won't have time to rest. If we want to catch Amara, we must keep traveling, even through the night so that we can catch up to her." He smiled grimly and turned away.

Cleo hit the bed and sleep overtook her. In her dreams she was a bird, flying away from all her problems.