It wasn’t just a wall; it was a wonder of craftsmanship and engineering.
As Rakel solidified the wall, forcing it to such a low temperature the ice around it popped and crackled, the wind ripped her hair from its already mussed braid, ruffling her wild, snow-white locks as she pulled more and more on her magic. When the wall was sufficiently tall—rising well above what any man-made wall in Verglas aspired to—she released her magic. She staggered at the sudden drop of pressure and risked a glance at Farrin.
He was staring at her ice wall as if it were a fairy tale creature. The strength-magic girl and the snow bear had managed to break through Rakel’s ice spikes, but the snow bear sat down in shock, and it seemed like the only thing holding the younger girl up was her grip on one of the spikes.
Good, Rakel thought as she backed up until her back hit the ice wall.If they are that awed, then they don’t have a way of getting through this.The ice wall was so cold, even Rakel cringed in discomfort when she touched it.
“Rakel—wait!” Farrin shouted, jumping from the spike and sprinting for her.
Rakel leaned against the ice wall, ignoring the bone-chilling cold. The wall eased behind her and then snapped back in place in front of her, putting her out of reach as Farrin stretched out, almost grazing the icy glaze. Rakel saw him snatch his hand back—most likely tingling from the temperature—and she pushed her way through her wall.
When she popped out on the other side, her pale skin was pink from the cold, and evenherbreath produced a silvery mist. She gasped, trying to regain mental equilibrium.
“That was an incredible play you produced at the end there, Little Wolf!” Phile whooped—still on her liberated horse. She twirled Foedus as the Verglas soldiers tried to organize themselves. It appeared they had dispatched the remaining Chosen soldiers, but they had yet to leave the pass.
Rakel tried to speak, but nothing would slip past her lips. She staggered out of range of the bone-searing chill the walls radiated and dropped to her knees.
“Your Highness,” Oskar said, kneeling next to her. “Your arm!”
“I’ll get Halvor,” Phile said, nudging her horse into a trot.
My side, Rakel thought, wincing as she shifted. Her trip through the wall had frozen the blood of her wounds, so at least she wasn’t bleeding, but it was pretty painful to have the chill settled on her open wounds. “The soldiers?” she finally managed to spit out.
“There were losses—steeper than we would have liked. Will your wall hold out? One of their magic users had strength magic.”
“S-she won’t be able to get n-near it,” Rakel said, her teeth chattering. She tried to push herself to her feet, but not a muscle in her body appeared to be under her control. “T-too cold.” She forced herself to face the soldiers, her heart tight with anxiety.
She had hit some of them with her magic. More correctly, Farrin had deflected it onto them, but Rakel doubted they would be so understanding as to accept that. Moreover, they had lost because she couldn’t handle the Chosen colonel. She was prepared to face their ire and anger, but to do that she need toget up!Perversely, her body seemed to slip further from her control. She could feel her mind growing hazy.What is wrong with me?She thought, fear spiking through her. If she didn’t regain her head, it would be easy for a disgruntled Verglas soldier to end her.
Rakel spasmed as all control dropped from her, and she would have fallen face-first into the snow if Oskar hadn’t caught her.
“Princess?” Oskar said, his voice tight.
The world started to have a hazy edge to it.No!Rakel wanted to scream, and tried to scream.Stop! Get up!She felt betrayed by her own body as it started to shut down, and a second fear entered her mind.What’s wrong with me? This has never happened before!
“Princess!” Oskar shouted. His voice sounded distorted.
She saw Captain Halvor’s glittery armor, and her gaze went black. Terror pulsed in Rakel as she fell unconscious, huddled on Oskar’s lap.
CHAPTER 11
PARANOIA CONFIRMED
When Rakel awoke, every part of her screamed with fear. She snapped her eyes open and sat up in bed—the blankets icing over in her terror.
“Rakel—it’s okay!”
Rakel ignored the assurance and threw up a shield, her breath feeling short in her panic as she blinked and tried to clear her vision.
“Little Wolf—listen to me!”
Finally recognizing Phile’s voice, Rakel paused, allowing herself to regain her bearings. She was in a darkened room, which she recognized as her encampment quarters. It possessed a bed, two packs containing her dresses, and a book on castle architecture she couldn’t bear to leave behind. The room also contained a chair swaddled in blankets, which—Rakel could see through the hazy distortion of her ice shell—held a frowning Phile.
“What happened?” Rakel asked, letting her shield crack and disintegrate.
“You fell unconscious.”
“What did the soldiers do?” Rakel asked, her voice tightly coiled. She was still in her dirty and torn dress, but her arm and side were wrapped and treated.
