The cave held its breath.
Her voice still lingered, that word---
Frostveil.
It wasn't just a name.
It was a weight.
A curse.
An omen.
Riven's grip wouldn't loosen.
Wooooooh!
His chest rose, fell, but his eyes stayed locked on the cave's mouth as if the snow itself called him.
He stared at the girl.
She didn't speak again, as her steps faltered backwards into the sanctuary of the cave.
Her lips trembled slightly, those red eyes holding shock.
"Frostveil?" Riven turned his eyes to the girl.
That word.
He'd heard it before.
Back then---
When he'd first come to.
The list of regions glowing cold blue on his holo-phone.
The memory of it came fast.
He'd seen it then....to think he'd have to live it now.
A cold breath drew, both from the temperature and realisation.
'....Wait'.
A sudden thought.
His hand whipped to his back pocket.
Numb fingers brushed against a polished black surface.
Sleek edges. Thin design.
The holo-phone.
He tapped the side immediately, and a faint hum answered.....
But no screen came.
crackle
Faint static in silence, then nothing.
It was like the device itself was being smothered.
"...No signal?" his whisper fogged the air.
It was more than that.....
It was jammed.
The princess's eyes widened as she noticed, her own hands diving for her silver device.
Her hands fumbled, attempting to find the device....
No luck.
"It was taken..."
The realisation hit her.
What could they do now?
They were cut off.
Riven watched, lips pressed.
The way her shoulders shook slightly; it wasn't just the cold, it was the truth.
Both came hand in hand.
His own grip on dark holo-phone tightened.
For all its sleek edges, all its polished materials....it was useless.
Dead weight.
Woooh!
Crunch-
A sound.
A step?
Something.
He heard it from outside.
He was sure.
Riven immediately stood up, legs stabilising unevenly.
Clouds of air misted from his lips as the princess stared.
That sudden reaction....
Why?
Her voice slipped out, crimson eyes staring at his focused expression.
"...What's out there?"
He didn't answer.
Those grey eyes stared at the cave mouth.
They shone.
Waiting.
Hoping....
A thick silence stretched, broken only by gusts.
Woooh!
Her brows knit as she stared at the boy.
The guards hadn't answer her either, and even dared to attack.
Now this boy?
This silent?
She pushed herself upright, voice sharper.
"I asked you a question."
Still, he said nothing.
Those grey eyes hid more beneath the surface....
His breath was uneven.
The silence stretched like the snow outside; endless, suffocating.
The situation had even dulled the drip, drip percussion overhead.
Her jaw tightened as golden hair swayed.
"...Riven."
That made him turn.
At last, those grey eyes shifted, an unreadable gaze.
Red met grey.
She stared waiting as he remained tight lipped.
'Again.'
The thought came to her.
"Are you deaf, or do you enjoy ignoring me?"
Sharp.
Still nothing.
His eyes flicked toward the cave mouth, then back to her.
Finally, he muttered, low.
Rough.
"How do you know my name?"
'..huh'
She blinked, almost laughing, although it sounded frail in the cold.
"How? Nearly everyone in Eldris must have that duel you two had. Jacob Lacura and yourself."
He said nothing, but a faint twitch spoke loud.
She narrowed her eyes, "Now that I've got your attention...what's out there?"
Riven's gaze lingered back to the cave mouth.
"....Nothing you want to meet."
More meaning between his eyes than in his words.
Her brows knit once more, but before she could press further, his voice cut in again.
"What's your name?"
Her lips parted. "...Saphira."
A pause, then softer, "Saphira Elyndor."
Her gaze lingered, waiting for recognition.
But none came; a visible display of disbelief on her face.
"...You don't know who I am?" slight offence taken.
He turned, looking at her, painting the air in breath:
"I know who you are."
A pause.
The words hung in the cold.
A vision floated in his mind.
Long arms, long legs.
A towering presence.
"....It doesn't matter here."
Woooh!
Drip. Drip. Drip.
The faint wind drew sharper at the truth.
The drips had re-entered their senses.
Saphira's lips closed at the comment.
'...He's right.'
Her shoulders trembled, not from pride being stung, but the wave of chill.
Grrr!
A faint growl slipped from her stomach, a hollowness that sounded.
It broke the stillness.
Her face heated, something that shouldn't have been too possible in such a location.
She wrapped her arms tighter around herself, trying to hide it.
Riven shifted, briefly, then away.
His hand hovered near his side as if there should have been something there....but there wasn't.
Nothing.
No rations.
No supplies.
The realisation settled like frost on both.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
"...I'll find something."
He finally spoke, voice rough, low.
It wasn't a promise.
But a fact.
She glanced up towards him, his steps beginning to travel out.
"I'll come with you."
A cracked, hurried voice.
Riven stopped mid-step.
He didn't turn.
The dim glow caught the edge of his blade, those dark wrappings and grooves woven seamlessly.
The words scraped something raw inside him.
A memory.
Rile's voice echoing in his head.
"Nobody'd know."
The sight of blood.
The way it ended.
His jaw tightened.
He didn't look back as he spoke, only at the darkness waiting outside.
"You just woke up. Your body's not ready."
A pause.
His voice dipped, "I won't be long."
It wasn't an order.
It wasn't a comfort either.
It was the only thing he could manage.
Her lips pressed as though wanting to argue, but it quelled.
"...Fine. But come back," she whispered.
He didn't answer.
The only answer was the adjusting grip on Mael's Fang, and a shallow breath.
Snow whispered against stone outside.
WOOOOOOOHH!!!
The cold leaned.
It was waiting.
Then, he stepped out.
Saphira watched him depart; her chest tightening against the hollow air.
It was an ache she hadn't expected.
Since waking, it was the first time the cave felt larger....emptier....and colder without him.
In the cold, their names whispered.