Chapter 18:The Final Snow Dance: The Queen of Winter vs. The Heir of the North
The ice-clouds above thickened, gathering slowly until they smothered the moonlight like a dense white curtain.
And then… the snow began to fall.
But this was no ordinary snow.
Each flake carried with it pure frost energy—energy potent enough to freeze the very air at a touch.
I knew that technique instantly.
My voice came out hoarse amidst the howling winds:The Snowstorm…
It was the very skill I had taught her myself.
And yet, here she was now, unleashing it against me… with a force far greater than I had ever imagined.
In a single heartbeat, the sky became an ocean of raging snow.
The flakes piled upon the ground at a terrifying pace, turning the battlefield slick and frozen.
Every step became a burden, every movement slowed my body.
Then came the second phase of the skill—the killing flakes.
They fell in unnatural torrents, some glowing with a dark-blue light, each one carrying enough power to freeze blood in the veins.
One brushed against my wing—
And instantly I felt a horrifying chill bite down to the bone.
"Have you grown this strong already, Aislin?" I muttered, unleashing a roar that shook the storm.
But she did not answer.
She was swimming through the sky, in the very blizzard she had created with her own hands, like the Queen of Winter herself,commanding the winds, the frost, and the snow.
With her next wingbeat, the skill shifted into its final stage—the Great Ice Storm.
The sky tore open like an enraged maw, and a surge of howling snow-winds crashed down to swallow everything.
The temperature plummeted to a level I had not felt in thousands of years. Even I, the one they call the Heir of the North, felt it pierce into my depths.
Ice began to form on my skin, on my wings, even on my breath.
Every exhale turned into scattering crystals in the air.
And yet… I smiled.
Beautiful, Aislin… you've truly mastered it.
I raised my hand toward the sky as the icy winds swirled around me, and roared into the heart of the storm: But don't forget who taught you how to seize the winter!
The moment she whispered, her hoarse voice carried on the wind:
"Snowfall Rain…
And with those words, the scene shifted into a white nightmare.
Snowflakes poured down like a relentless rain—no warmth, no mercy.
Each one carried spiritual energy potent enough to freeze blood in the veins.
I quickly forged a dense ice shield around my body, its layers overlapping like living crystal armor, reflecting the frozen light.
Then I sank my claws into the earth, carving a deep pit at a rapid pace. It froze the instant it opened, turning the entire area into a frozen battlefield, cold vapor rising like the breath of a sleeping dragon.
The winds howled around me, carrying shards of razor-sharp ice that struck the ground with explosive cracks.
I spread my wings in a swift motion, trying to regain control of the situation, but the snow thickened further, blanketing every inch of the ground until it became slick and treacherous—
a trap laid for a single misstep.
In that moment, my breath froze—not from fear… but from realization.
This wasn't the end… this was the beginning of the next stage.
I stopped completely.
Closed my eyes, listening to the sound of the wind, the pulse of the earth beneath the ice—Then I began digging again—this time, beneath the ground.
Beneath the very center of the storm.
While the snowflakes above grew denser and the sky transformed into a mass of white, I vanished.
When I reached enough depth, I unleashed my final ice shield, forming a statue of solid frost shaped exactly like me on the surface.
It was covered in a hardened layer of ice, pulsing with spiritual energy identical to mine.
To any eyes, it looked like me—standing defiant in the heart of the storm.
While Aislin focused on the blizzard she had created, absorbed in maintaining its grip,I emerged silently from the depths of the ice…
And in a single moment, I spread my wings.
The winds split apart.
Ice scattered like crystalline wings.
I launched myself at her with the speed of a lightning bolt.
I was soaring through the sky, my breath turning to cold mist that dissolved into the blizzard.
The dense snow no longer hindered me—it became my veil, concealing my movements.
And amid the raging white, I saw her.
Aislin, high above, hovering in the storm she had born, her outstretched wings glowing with majestic icy blue light—
like the absolute Queen of Winter herself.
But I was not there to admire her…
I was there to fight her.
I gathered my spiritual energy in my chest, feeling the dragon's heart within me beat with a rising force, flooding my wings with an unbreakable frozen power.
Then I activated a secondary skill—the Hidden Ice Spears.
Dozens of spears formed soundlessly around me,
like transparent spirits awaiting their master's signal.
I aimed them at her… but did not release them yet.
I was testing her.
Testing her patience… her control over the storm.
And then, amidst the roar of the wind, I whispered—so softly only the ice itself could hear: Let's dance among the snow, Aislin…
In one swift motion, I folded my wings like an arrow and shot toward her at blinding speed.
Every ice spear followed behind me, forming a tail of white death,
cutting its path through the blizzard toward the Queen of Winter herself—to begin the final stage of the icebound dance.
The moment I closed in on Aislin, her glowing blue eyes snapped open amid the storm—locking onto me through the roar of wind and the frenzy of snow, as if she could sense my presence through the chaos itself.
Our gazes met in the sky ablaze with white, surrounded by a storm of madly dancing snowflakes, and in that instant, I knew—this would not be a mere clash between two dragons.
It was a battle between two wills that refused to bow.
She raised her hand with elegant precision, and an immense surge of frost erupted from her body.
Her wings flared with a celestial brilliance, forging from them a shield of nine interlocking layers of ice—each one gleaming with her pride and power.
In the blink of an eye, she twisted her body midair. My spears collided with her barrier, shattering one after another against the glimmering ice with sounds like breaking glass.
She managed to evade me… but the storm between us had already begun.
Our eyes met again through the blizzard's fury.
Aislin's voice rang out, laced with both scolding and laughter:
"You tricked me! You burrowed underground like a mole and ran away… that's cheating!"
I smiled in return, my tone cool and assured:
"My beautiful Aislin, that wasn't running away… that was strategy. You should know—in battle, there is no such thing as honor. Haven't you heard the saying? 'War is deception.'"
Then I closed my eyes for a brief moment and reopened them with a faint smile.
"What matters now… is that this time, I'll be serious. And I'll make you yield."
Aislin laughed softly, a short sound mixing challenge with something almost tender.
"Really? Then show me, Aison. We dragons only respect strength. So, my dear brother… show me if you're truly worthy of that respect!"
As her words faded into the storm, I didn't wait another heartbeat.
Our bodies collided in a sudden burst, my roar splitting the air—an icy bellow whose echo made the very heavens tremble.
Aislin moved with impossible grace and fluidity, spinning through the sky like a dancer moving to the rhythm of an endless winter.
But I could see her—I could read her.
Every motion, every beat of her wings, every twist of her body—etched deep into my memory.
It was as if we were reenacting a deadly dance we had both learned long ago.
As she curved to my side, I thrust one of my long ice spears—not to pierce her, but to pin her wings to the frozen ground.
The air quaked as the spear drove into the ice. Her scales shattered, and her crimson blood splattered across the white earth, staining it like a scar upon purity.
She let out a sharp, brief cry—not only from pain… but from shock.
She screamed, struggling to break free—but my claws moved faster.
I seized her body in both talons and slammed her downward with overwhelming force.
We crashed into the frozen earth, the ice cracking and bursting beneath us, leaving behind a deep crater shrouded in white mist.
Then I raised my claws high and struck the ground. Towering ice pillars erupted around her, closing in swiftly—
forming a prison of crystal that trapped her at its heart.
I exhaled slowly, white vapor rising from my breath and vanishing into the cold storm.
I gazed at her as she strained against the cage in vain, and spoke in a low voice that carried the full weight of domination:
"You've been subdued, Aislin… this isn't the end—this is the beginning of your awakening to my true power."
For a long moment, silence reigned, broken only by the whisper of falling snow,
as if winter itself was blessing the victor of the first round in the dragons' dance.
We weren't merely rivals…
We were twin storms of ice, colliding beneath the same sky to decide who was stronger—who was truly worthy to be called Heir of the North.
I whispered softly, watching her through the crystal cage: Aislin… from this day forth, this won't be a battle we forget.
It will be a memory carved into the snow itself… one that will never fade.
Third-Person POV
Inside the deep cavern covered in glimmering ice crystals, a heavy silence reigned—broken only by the distant echo of a mighty roar tearing through the stillness of the North.
Selina slowly opened her eyes, gazing up at the sparkling ceiling above her, then turned toward the source of the sound that had pierced the heart of the frozen land.
That roar… it was not ordinary.
She recognized it instantly—it was Aislin's roar.
But there was something different about its tone.
It wasn't the roar of battle, nor a call for help.
It was… a blend of power, confusion, and raw emotion—something that could only mean one thing.
Selina lifted her head slightly and saw, in the distance, a sight she hadn't expected to witness so soon.
Across the vast icy plain before the cave, two Ice Dragons were entwined amid the raging storm.
The ground quaked beneath them, and the snow swirled wildly around their outstretched wings.
The male dragon was pressing the female beneath him, their bodies locked in a fierce embrace that resembled combat—but to a discerning eye, it was clear this was no longer a battle.
The air around them was thick with a strange energy—a mixture of restrained heat and deadly frost.
The male's wings spread wide, shielding the female completely, shutting out the light above, as though the world itself had shrunk into a small circle containing only the two of them.
Selina sighed deeply, lowering her gaze. Then she closed her eyes once more, settling back into calm.
She knew what would follow.
This would not end soon.
A week at least—a week of intensity, turmoil, and chaos that turned consciousness into fog.
In that time, reason would vanish.
They would forget everything—their rivalry, their pride, their purpose, even their identity as descendants of the great dragon.
All that would remain within them was instinct.
Desire—pure and consuming.
They had crossed that threshold dividing youth from primal instinct—that moment when the cold fire inside dragons transforms into an uncontrollable tide of passion.
And Selina… she smiled faintly, like one remembering the distant past.
She too had once known this.
She knew what it meant to be devoured by both ice and fire at once—to feel freezing and longing merge into one and the same.
That was why she did not intervene.
Because she knew perfectly well… this was not a conflict that could be stopped, nor one that should ever be stopped.
——————————————————————————————————————
🌟 Word count of this chapter: 2073 words! 🥰✨
Writing was a fun challenge,
while reading it is an easy and enjoyable journey! 📖💫
If you enjoyed it, support me with ratings and comments.
Your words ignite my passion for writing and inspire me to create even more exciting chapters! 🔥✍️
§ I'm not asking for much—just a sincere review from your heart is enough to be a huge motivation §