It grew colder as they journeyed farther and farther north to the Ice Mountains, but it getting easier for Izo to handle instead of harder. Something about once he saw them come into view thrilled him deep down. He wanted to get closer and closer to the point where he dreamed about it. He could not go too fast in the days because the cold was bothersome for Wind Master and Ocean Apprentice. Izo watched her shiver, wishing he could pull the cold away from her like his father had surrounded his mother with heat when they were up here. She insisted they keep going though, wanting to get to one of the grandfather's outposts to destroy it like Maeshu asked.
They got to the outpost, slower than Izo liked, but he did feel weary. Rock Master was even feeling it. They reached the cold, abandoned outpost. It was dusty and derelict inside, but was a shield from both the bright sun of the day, and the coldness of the climate. Rock Master ruled they should stay there for a few days to rest up and recuperate before razing the place.
The others were quick to head for the main room and light a fire to warm up, but Izo hung back, wanting to explore the place first. He waited impatiently for the Rock Master to tell them they could.
Finally he allowed it, but they had to be in pairs. Ocean Apprentice went with Izo, both of them drawing lots to go explore the top floor of the building. When they reached the top floor, he felt like he could almost sense something or someone familiar about them.
"Airi, do you sense that?" he asked her softly, stopping in front one of the doors.
"No, what is it?" she asked, looking about the hallway.
He jiggled the handle, trying to get it open. The door seemed locked. He summoned up his ice dragon, making a makeshift key to unlock the door. Inside revealed an abandoned bedroom with an alcove tucked above a large bay window. Afternoon sunlight streamed brightly into the window. He stepped over to the window, wiping away the dust that had settled on it. The window was open just a crack. He opened the window fully and looked out.
"Close that, will you," Ocean Apprentice griped. He turned back to see her arms around her chest. "Why isn't the elf or even the angel in you freezing half to death?" she grumbled.
Izo shut the window, latching it closed. "Having a fire demon father helps," he teased. To his ice dragon, he thought, 'think I'll claim this room tonight.'
'Figure out the mystery you're sensing,' it purred, equally curious. He nodded.
With Ocean Apprentice, Izo explore the rest of the floor, revealing more bedrooms. The two of them figured it was likely where the grandfather and some of his higher ups had stayed as they kept finding more abandoned bedrooms, unlocking the doors as they went.
When they met up with the others, they each reported back what they had found. The lot of them went to the kitchens, reclaiming them to set up dinner that wasn't cooked over an open camp fire for once.
Once dinner was finished and cleaned up, they each went to their own newly claimed and separate bedrooms. Izo had taken the one with the alcove and bay window from earlier. He sensed around the room, combing over every inch that he could see. He could not figure out what he had sensed before or where the feeling even went now that he was alone in the room. He felt almost tempted to go get Ocean Apprentice and bring her back into the room with him, but felt flushed at the very idea. Having her come to his room after everyone had gone to bed would send a very bad impression.
After he had gone over the room twice, sensing nothing much to his frustration, he summed up his ice dragon and dropped the temperature in the room. It did nothing but make him puff out frozen breaths. He gave up, allowing the room to thaw back out, and climbed into the bed, coughing as the dust puffed around him. He ignored it, liking that he at least had somewhere softer to lay his head for the night. Before falling asleep, he pulled out Mother's letter, now wrinkled from all the traveling, reading it over once more. He sat it down beside him on the bed before he felt asleep.
Izo had no clue how long he had been asleep when he was shocked awake by sensing someone or something in his room. He had his ice dragon out and around his neck in the first instant. In the next instant, he was off the bed and standing up on guard next to it. He blinked once or twice when he finally realized a slim, youngish looking woman with a round belly stood before him. Her teal blue hair was a rat's nest, her clothes, now tattered and worn, once were beautiful. She had been heading for the door, but had frozen mid step to gawk at him. She seemed to thaw out and made a run for the door.
She was slow and clumsy when compared to him. He side stepped in front of the door, blocking her way. She all but ran into him. He reached behind himself and locked the door. She retreated from him as if frightened he would touch her.
"Who are you?" he asked, ice dragon around his neck to show her he was not messing around.
She opened her mouth slightly, but then closed it again. She stared at his ice dragon in surprise and awe. She shook her head. He took a step towards her. She backed up, shaking her head vigorously now. She grunted panicky, backing away from them. She held her hands up in front of her, pushing them forward in the air as if to tell him to back off.
He caught her by the wrist, halting her in her tracks. She whimpered, looking right at his hand on her wrist sadly.
"Who are you?" he asked once more. "Answer me." He looked her over, seeing how slim she was in an unhealthy way. She was pregnant though, that much he could tell from looking at her up close. He had no clue how far along she was though. "Be quick about it," he told her coolly. She shook her head again. He could see tears welling up in her eyes. He pulled back and let her go, channeling gentleness. "Are you hungry?" he asked.
He raised his hands up to show no aggression. He stepped over to his pack on the floor, opening it up and rummaging through it quickly. He pulled out a mealy looking apple. He held it up for her, offering it to her so, but in a way where she would have to come to him to get it. She hesitated, looking between him and the door and back again. He knew if she made a run for the door, he could still stop her in time.
She stumbled over to him, snatching up the apple from his hand without touching his skin. She bit into it, taking the largest bite her mouth would allow. She began wolfing it down.
Izo jumped up and went to her. "Hey, slowly, slowly, slowly," he advised her. "You'll make yourself sick." He reached over to stay her hand, but flinched, pulling the apple away from his reach. She was almost like a feral animal. "How long has it been since you last ate?" he asked softly.
She bit into the apple, taking a smaller bite this time at least. She shook her head. She put her free hand on her throat and shook her head. She twisted her hand and mimicked yanking on something from within it.
"You can't speak?" he asked. She lowered her head, nodding it. She had reached the core of the apple, still eating away at it. She consumed the it. Out of pity, he dared not stop her. "If you come with me to the kitchen, I can make you something else. Something that will be gentle on your stomach," he offered.
She looked at the now empty hand that had held the apple. She nodded. He retrieved his shoes from by his bed and went back to her. He went to the door and held his hand out to her. She hesitated, hand floating in the air towards his tentatively, but then she shook her head and pulled it back.
"Don't run from me," he requested. He turned and walked out the door.
He felt relieved when he saw her follow him out. Her eyes darted to and fro, watching each door as they passed them. She made zero noise as she walked, which was incredibly impressive to him. He lead her down to the first floor to the kitchens the shinobi had discovered and ate dinner together in earlier.
Once there, he dug through the pack that had their meal supplies, finding a packet of dried noodles. He figured those would be gentlest on her stomach. He boiled some water and made her a bowlful of them. He added only a slight bit of salt and seasonings least her stomach get upset by that.
When he sat the noodles and a pair of chopsticks down in front of her, she immediately reached for the bowl. She pulled it over to herself, but flinched her hands away when she burned her finger slightly on the sides of the bowl.
"Slowly now," he said in a soothing voice. "I know you're hungry, but you must eat slowly." He reached his hands over to hers, readying himself to heal her slight burns there. She pulled her hands up and out of his reach, shaking her head. "I won't hurt you," he promised. "I can heal those if you wish."
She shook her head, looking down at the noodles. She picked up the chopsticks delicately in her hands and used them to pull the noodle bowl as close as she could to herself. The noodles might not have been fully cooked yet, and yet she began slurping them up hungrily.
He watched her, his heart full of pity. She was so focused on eating. He took the chance to slip quietly from the room. Her back was to the door, so she hopefully would not notice.
He rushed through the outpost, going to the nearest person's room to wake them up. He disliked that it was Make Up Master's room, but he did not want to leave the hungry woman alone for long in case she ran off. He told Make Up Master that he had found the hungry, pregnant woman in a rush and asked him for help to figure out what was going on with her.
Make Up Master at first was irked to be awoken by Izo, but once he said the word 'woman,' Make Up Master was suddenly intrigued. He followed Izo back down to the kitchen where, thankfully, the hungry woman still sat at the table. She had the bowl in her hands, guzzling down the broth that remained.
Make Up Master gasped at the sight of the hungry woman. She heard him, turning around in her chair to look back behind herself. Her eyes went wide and her broth stained lips trembled at the sight of the two of them. She seemed frozen in her chair.
"Where did she come from?" Make Up Master asked.
"I told you. She was hiding in my room, likely in the alcove. I sensed her earlier, but didn't know what it was. She was sneaking out of my room when I woke up. She's starved and pregnant," Izo reexplained. "We have to help her."
Make Up Master looked back and forth between Izo and the hungry woman. "Don't let her leave," he told Izo. "I'll get the others. Don't touch her either."
Make Up Master left the kitchen. The hungry woman sat the bowl down, taking a chance to lick the rim of the bowl first. Izo saw her eye the back door of the kitchens that lead to the gardens.
"Those lead to the pantry. No exit," he lied to her, not wanting her to make a run for it. "Gama will be back soon. You'll be safe with us." He stepped over to her, busing the bowl and chopsticks for her. He sat them down next to the sink to be washed later.
He looked back over at her. She might have been strong, or even pretty if she was cleaned up and properly fed. He like the color of her hair, more like Yukina's hair than his. He wished he had his comb to share with her. He stepped over to her, reaching to touch her hair.
The door from the hallway slammed open. "Don't touch her!" Rock Master was there, shouting much too loudly for the hour of night it was.
Rock Master came into the room, the others in their own various groggy states behind him. The hungry woman stood up, rushing away from the table and the others, including Izo. She was whimpering, blinking fast as tears started to well in her eyes. She was shaking like a leaf.
"So he did find himself a true ice maiden," Wind Master commented, looking pale. "She doesn't look that dangerous. Like a wisp of a bit."
"Don't let her looks fool you," Rock Master advised. He summoned up rock around his arm, forming a sword from them. He looked at the hungry woman with a cold and callous look in his eyes. He moved around the table towards her.
"What are you doing?" Izo asked, shocked.
The hungry woman ran from the table and over to the opposite wall that held a cupboard full of dusty dishes. She leaned against it, pressing her back against it. Rock Master looked solemn when he approached her. She cowered before him.
"You know what you are and you know what your sisters will do when they find you. I'll make it quick and painless. They would draw it out."
She looked up at Rock Master, wiping her eyes before any tears could fall. She sunk down to her knees, surrendering.
"What are doing?" Izo asked again, watching aghast. He stood by the table, half way between Rock Master and the hungry woman and the other shinobi.
"She has to die and she knows it," Rock Master explained. "Otherwise she'll draw her sisters down on us as well."
"What are you talking about it?" Izo pressed. He hoped if he kept Rock Master talking long enough, maybe he convince him not to kill her. Everything in him screamed to stop this unexpected murder.
"The ice maidens," Ice Master explained. "They're a race of warrioress demonesses who hate men, seeing them as the root of corruption in the world. This one is far too young to be pregnant immaculately like they all are supposed to be. She's been impregnated by a man, which would be a death sentence for her and her child after he is born. She's being hunted likely, has been hiding from the huntresses for some time. Anyone who helps her will be hunted down and killed as well by them. Especially if they touch her because her essence would be stained on them."
Izo paled, looking over back over at Rock Master and the hungry woman. The hungry woman had her head in her hands now at Ice Master's words, tears slipping her eyes. He was surprised to see light blue gemstones fall from her hands instead.
Rock Master stood over her, standing rigid. "I'll kill her and then we need to flee. We need to run as far south as South goes. Hopefully the huntresses won't pursue us if we leave her dead body here." He brought his rock sword up over her.
"NO!" Izo screamed, running over to them before it was too late. He had his ice dragon out in sword form, blocking the rock sword before it hit the hungry woman.
Rock Master looked livid with him. "Get out of the way, you foolish boy," he ordered.
Izo shook his head, even though his arms shook. "I won't let you kill her," he determined. "What crime could she have committed to be murdered by you? We can take her with us, down south. She'll be safer with us." Izo refused to put his ice sword down.
Ice Master called over to him, "Back away, Izo. She's not worth dying for. We won't be safe if she's left alive and the huntresses come after her."
Izo shook his head. "I touched her. Earlier in my room. If you want to kill her, you'll have to kill me, too."
Rock Master looked forlorn at that statement. He took a breath, and grimaced. "That can be arranged as well," he ruled.
Rock Master pulled his sword away, walked back over to the others in the room. He looked at Izo, and then down to the hungry woman behind him. "Shinobi, kill them. Do so without touching her, or we'll have to kill you, too."
No one moved, tension hanging uneasy in the air. Izo held his sword up, ready for when one of them finally broke ranks and attacked him.
The silence finally broke. "No," Izo heard Ocean Apprentice whimper next to her father.
"Airi," Wind Master said her name in a warning tone.
"He's supposed to lead the shinobi with me one day. Alongside Haru and I. You said," she insisted. She looked over at Izo, then at the hungry woman behind her. She gave him an apologetic look. "I'll do it," she choked out.
Ocean Apprentice took a step to Izo and the hungry woman, but not a malicious looking one. Izo watched her, ears drawn back. He could never imagine her hurting him. She gathered up water into her hands, drawing it from the air around them. She manipulated it in the air, making it swirl.
"Drown them, girl, just like your mother would have," Make Up Master advised her.
Ocean Apprentice looked back Make Up Master, frowning. She looked back at Izo. Eyes shifting over and over to the door leading to the gardens.
"I don't want to fight you, Airi," he said.
Ocean Apprentice gathered the water under her control into a wide shield in front of her, stepping closer over to him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the hungry woman step up in line with him. She raise her hand up, freezing the Ocean Apprentice's water midair and spreading it out into an ice wall between the two of them and the others. He heard Ocean Apprentice shout in annoyance at that.
The hungry woman next to him doubled over, panting heavily. Whoever she was, whatever she was, she bought them precious moments. Izo wasted no time, seizing the hungry woman by the hand, and hauling her away. He half dragged her, half ran with her out the door to the gardens. She loosed a throaty scream as he forced her to sprint outside and through the gardens with him. He pulled her against him, summoning up his ice dragon to its fullest form. He pulled her up and onto it in front of him. It charged away from the outpost, fleeing with the two of them at a high speed into the night.