It stood at the edge of Emberfall's line and looked in.
It was taller than the trees by the stream. It had a long, thin body like a heron, but it was white all over, and it glittered. Its legs were as thin as spears. Its head was long and narrow, and it had no eyes. Where its feet touched the grass, the grass turned white and stiff and snapped.
Frost was spreading from it in a wide ring.
It came right up to the warm white stones of the line, and then it kept coming. It crept across the red-glowing grass inside, slow and silver. Behind it, the grass went pale and brittle.
"A Stillfrost," Hessa said quietly. "It ends warmth."
The cold came in with the dawn.
At first it was only uncomfortable. People pulled their coats tighter and moved closer to the fires. Then the fires began to shrink.
