The Prince of Winter

Kaelus' eyes fluttered open, the familiar sight of the three moons appearing in his vision. The cold surface of the rock beneath him was a stark contrast to the warmth at his side. Looking down, Lunafreya was nestled against his chest, fast asleep. Kaelus remained still for a moment, letting the cool air fill his lungs as he stared at the moons overhead.

So beautiful. He thought, always mesmerised by the beauty of the moons and their silver glow casting an ethereal light over the plains. No matter how dire the situation, no matter how much the realm around him tried to end his life, the moons remained, his first sign of solace and hope in this world of darkness.

For a moment he let himself get lost in their glow, the way their soft radiance reflected off of the white blades of grass, making the plains look almost peaceful. Almost. He knew better. Beneath that beauty lurked danger; his recent dance with said danger proved that.

What to do now then. Kaelus had limited options, but he needed a solid plan if he wanted to reach the forest without being overwhelmed by the monstrous grass. As he had already found out, if he runs fast enough, he is able to stay ahead of the grass, as it only weaves its way out of the earth once the grass he was standing on had completely withered, leaving the blackened soil visible.

Whilst this seemed to be the safest way to cross the plains, there were just too many unknown factors. Then there was the rock outcropping he was currently resting on, if Lunafreya could locate more non grass surfaces, he could more safely traverse the plains catching his breath and recovering his stamina at the safe zones. But from what he could see, the white plains stretched endlessly with no obvious safe zones except for the one he was currently standing on.

Well, the easiest way to find out is to send Lunafreya to search the surroundings, but I don't really want to send her out on her own. Shaking off the thought, Kaelus looked down at Lunafreya, who was watching him. "Haah, what is it?" he said, running a hand through his hair.

"I fly."

"No, it's too dangerous." Shaking his head, he responded, earning a bite to the side.

"It's okay. I fly." She repeated.

"…" Kaelus remained silent; on one hand, she could fly safely without being attacked as she wasn't in contact with the grass. But what if there is another creature capable of flying like that humanoid? He frowned, was he willing to risk losing his companion like this? Letting her go alone, even if it was logical, left an uneasy feeling in his chest. He had barely begun to understand the bond between them, but the thought of something happening to her—

"Ow! Stop biting me!"

"Trust me." Lunafreya's voice resounded in his head, full of assurance, her golden eyes shining with an intensity that stunned him.

Trust. That was the heart of it, wasn't it? After a long pause, he sighed. "Haah, okay, I trust you. But if you sense any danger, flee immediately. Also, don't go too far. I want to at least be able to see you, understood?"

Hoot

Lunafreya gave a satisfied hoot before spreading her wings. "Understood." With a powerful beat of her wings, she lifted off from his side and soared into the sky. "Just scout the surroundings for now!" He shouted, watching as Lunafreya nodded her head at him before flying away. Kaelus clenched his jaw, watching her disappear into the night sky. Please be safe…

*

Kaelus sat impatiently, waiting for Lunafreya to return. His foot was tapping the ground continuously as his worry and irritation grew. He could feel her through the connection but couldn't see her, she'd flown too far away. She's going to get a good beating when she gets back. I specifically told her not to fly out of my sight. Veins pulsed on his forehead as he stared in the direction in which he sensed her.

Time seemed to stretch unbearably long. Every minute without seeing her return felt heavier, filling him with worry. His feet shifted restlessly, his arms crossed as he restrained himself from running after her. She said to trust her, and that's what he would do, not that he liked it.

Then, finally—

A shadow cut through the pale moonlight above.

Kaelus' eyes snapped upwards as Lunafreya descended, her wings outstretched as she slowly glided towards him. Kaelus exhaled, tension slipping from his shoulders. Although he was angry, he was even more relieved to see her safe and sound. "What did I say about going too far?" He asked, with a not-so-friendly smile on his face.

Lunafreya seemed to stiffen midair before landing on his shoulder. "Sorry," she whispered in his mind, lowering her head. His expression eased, but he said nothing. Instead, he focused on the more important matter for now. "So, did you find anything?"

Lunafreya perked up at the question. "Yes. Safe place." Lifting her wing, she pointed in a certain direction towards the forest. Kaelus let out a breath of relief, a small smirk playing at his lips. "Good job, Lunafreya."

The owl fluffed up at the praise, tilting her head expectantly.

Shaking his head in amusement, Kaelus reached up and gently patted the top of her head. "It's great that you found something, but don't do anything risky like that again," he stated, his tone serious. "Until we know more about this place, don't just disappear on your own."

Even though he was angry, he was still really grateful. With the knowledge of a safe zone ahead, his next steps were clearer. Looking towards the horizon, he exhaled and muttered, "Rest on my shoulder and give me directions towards the safe zone. I'll do the running. Also look after this." Kaelus placed the gemstone on his shoulder in front of the owl. Trying to fight whilst making sure he didn't drop the mysterious stone was a real challenge, especially when the grass attacked his arm and hand.

"Okay." Scooping up the gemstone with her talon, Lunafreya kept it held safely in her grasp. Seeing her keep the stone safe, Kaelus faced the direction of the safe zone. His foot pressed against the rock's edge, his gaze locked ahead and his heartbeat steady. With one last exhale, he leapt off the rock mound and ran.

Immediately the grass beneath his feet reacted, withering and turning to ash. But this time Kaelus was prepared. Ignoring the phenomenon, he carried on running, leaving the tendrils of grass unable to grasp at his legs. However, even whilst running at full speed, he noticed. There's more.

The further into the plains he ran, the more blades of grass that sprouted from the earth. They're getting faster too. This isn't good news. Before, running as fast as he could, he could dodge the grass with relative ease. They were close to catching him but not enough to seriously worry him. Now, though, things were different. The grass sprouted from the earth faster, and the speed at which they got faster was increasing.

"Lunafreya, how much further is the safe zone?" Running at full speed for such long distances was taxing, and although he felt he could run for quite a long time, he didn't want to risk running out of stamina before reaching safety. "Not far." Not good. I need to slow down a bit and preserve some stamina. Dropping his pace slightly, Kaelus ran just faster than the blades of grass, staying just a few inches out of reach.

Dividing his focus, Kaelus directed half of his attention on the grass, watching for any changes or abnormalities. The remaining half focused on himself. He took deep breaths in through his nose, syncing his inhales and exhales with his footsteps. His form became relaxed, his posture leaning forward slightly as he took longer, powerful strides.

Suddenly, Kaelus' instincts warned him of danger. Without thinking, he leapt into the air, narrowly dodging a huge blur of white. What the hell was that?! He was about to look back, but Lunafreya's hurried voice stopped him. "Don't stop!" Heeding her words, he continued running without turning back. "What was that, Lunafr—" His words were cut off as his instincts warned him again.

Whoosh!

Diving to the ground, Kaelus watched as another blur of white passed over his head. That's… The blur of white was, in fact, grass, interwoven into one large amalgamation of grass. Not only was it faster, but it was stronger as well.

"A little further!" Gritting his teeth, Kaelus scrambled to his feet and took off into a sprint. All form and breathing techniques went out the window as he focused solely on running away. "Kaelus!" He ducked, barely dodging as the blade of grass lashed out, slicing the air where his head had been.

Whoosh!

Another amalgamation of grass shot up at his side, curving unnaturally to intercept his path. He twisted mid-stride, throwing his weight to the side in a reckless dive. He hit the ground hard before rolling onto his feet without losing momentum.

There! "Safety!" Just ahead, he spotted the safe zone. It was an unnaturally flat, broken surface of stone. With renowned vigour, he ran forward even faster. The ground behind him shuddered; casting a fleeting glance back, he watched as countless white blades of grass erupted from the ground, forming 3 large amalgamations of white.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Shit… They shot towards him with blistering speed, blurring in his vision. Before he knew it, the first struck him in the legs, tripping him and causing him to fall to the ground. "Dodge!" Kaelus rolled blindly to his left, dodging the second amalgamation, and landed on his back. His eyes widened as he watched the third and final blade of grass soar through the air straight for his heart.

I can't dodge it! The blade of grass was moving too fast—there was no time to roll, no time to push himself out of the way. He was too slow. "Move!" Lunafreya's voice screamed in his mind, but he couldn't.

Kaelus did the only thing he could. He raised his arm in an attempt to block the grass' attack. Pain exploded through his body as the grass tore through his arm, leaving a gaping hole in his forearm. It didn't stop. But the force of it was enough to change the attack's trajectory.