Chương 14: Episode 11: The Frozen Temple

Ice shattered as I slammed my fist into the wall.

"Yo, looks like I'm getting stronger," I said, checking over my knuckles. A fresh moveset was definitely on the horizon—the old stuff was starting to feel stale, and with my power leveling up, it was time for some new tricks. Crunching through the soft snow, I headed toward the igloo where everyone was hanging out. My wings were still frozen solid, which made the whole Hydra nightmare feel a little too real. I plopped down next to Ella.

"Hey, what's up?" she asked, looking over at me.

"Since the Hydra fight, you've been off."

"I'm good."

"Guys, guess what?!" Jocabed burst into the igloo, her eyes sparkling. Sophia rolled her eyes.

"What is it, fox girl?"

"There are Power Gems in the Frozen Temple! So we're all going through it!" Prince immediately spit out his drink.

"GOING WHERE?!"

"NO WAY! Y'all gotta be crazy if we're heading into the Frozen Temple!" Olsen yelled. Everyone slowly turned to look at him. I broke the silence.

"Bro, you literally dance for no reason."

"That's different!" Olsen snapped.

"Enough! We're going to the Frozen Temple because I said so," Jocabed declared. I shook my head.

"Jocabed, why are you asking for a death wish?"

"For real. Remember what happened to the last explorers?" Archie added.

"They died." Angel stepped forward.

"Look, if we're after the Power Gems, it's worth the risk. It could give the prophecy a major boost." The room went quiet as we exchanged looks, the hesitation fading as everyone slowly came around.

"Yeah, sounds good," Demaurion muttered.

"Why not," Prince sighed.

"We're the Chosen Ones, after all!" Ella laughed. Olsen slumped back against the ice wall.

"Great. Can't wait to die today." Emely looked down at the map.

"Good. The Frozen Temple is just north of here. We're in the middle of Eclitsic, so it's gonna be a long trek." Ella's face immediately went deadpan.

"Three hours. Not thrilled."

"Power Gems, though," Javier reassured her.

"The plural means more than one. Definitely worth it." Sophia popped her headphones on.

"Let's go before dark."

"Dark?!" I yelled.

"Dark in Eclitsic is a whole other nightmare! It's pitch-black—no stars, no moon, nothing. You know I'm terrified of deep dark, right?!"

"Stop being a baby, Don. It's just dark," Sophia said with a smirk. I nodded sarcastically.

"Yeah, totally fine. No crying when it's darker than the abyss, right guys?"

"Quit wasting time and let's move before the weather turns," Power said. We stepped out of the cave into the freezing wilderness as a blizzard rolled across Eclitsic. The wind howled against the jagged mountains, and frost bit at my cheeks as we trekked over endless sheets of white ice. Massive crystal spikes jutted from the frozen earth, glowing with a faint blue light. Eventually, we crossed a frozen lake leading into a yeti village.

Large huts made from wood and stone lined the snowy path, where massive, white-furred yetis carrying wooden maces watched us pass. As the blizzard grew harsher, I wrapped my dragon wings tightly around myself for warmth. The sun vanished, and the void took over. Without stars or a moon, Eclitsic at night turned completely pitch-black. I couldn't see my own hand in front of my face, and my tail began glowing a faint purple out of pure anxiety.

Fear crept in, but I kept moving—if I wanted to lead the Celestianites and fulfill the prophecy, I had to push through it. Thanks to Ella's night vision, we finally reached the temple. It was massive—an enormous palace carved entirely from slick, frozen crystal. At the very top, a silhouette of an owl was sculpted into the ice like a guardian watching the land. We stepped through the pitch-black entrance into a massive corridor.

Sophia switched on a lamp, revealing a narrow road of white ice stretching into the distance beneath hanging stalactites.

"This is phenomenal," I breathed. Jocabed's ears perked up.

"Historians believe this temple was built thousands of years ago during the Ancient Frozenanite Era as a containment structure."

"A what?" Prince asked.

"A containment structure," Jocabed repeated, lowering her voice.

"They built sanctuaries like this to seal away entities known as the Mysterious Loose—beings so dangerous they couldn't be destroyed." Ahead of us, a huge rectangular door sat at the end of a creaking ice bridge. Suddenly, ice shards shattered overhead, echoing through the hall. Jocabed looked toward the darkness.

"Watch out for the Eclitsic Queen. Legend says she took the form of the Owl Griffin—the Glacier Loose. Watch out for weird hoots." Olsen squinted.

"Wait.

'Mysterious Loose'? Bro, that sounds like a terrible stage name." This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Imagine getting hunted by something called Loose," I said, choking back a laugh. Prince started cracking up.

"You just hear a hoot in the dark and panic—'IT'S LOOSE!'" Archie doubled over, flames sputtering from his palms.

"Ain't no way the queen turned into a bird just from hooting too much!" Jocabed tried to keep a straight face, but her lip twitched.

"It's true! She cheered every day during the war like, 'Hoot for justice!'" Power snorted so loudly it echoed down the hall, cupping his hands over his mouth: "HOOOOOOT!" Everyone lost it. We laughed so hard the bridge started swaying beneath our boots. Ella face-palmed while I held my stomach.

"So she hooted for a full year and turned into an owl monster?" I asked.

"Exactly," Olsen wiped a tear from his eye.

"The Glacier Loose has been extinct for thirty-five million years." Power smirked.

"Back before Avangard was even a thing, I actually befriended one near here."

"Dude, we get it. You're old," I groaned.

"At least I wasn't hooting my way into extinction," Power grinned. That sent everyone over the edge again, echoing laughter through the icy cavern until a sudden gust of wind roared through the temple. The laughter died instantly. The temperature plummeted, snow swirled into the corridor, and a deep, guttural hoot echoed from the dark stairs ahead. Archie swallowed hard.

"Y'all heard that, right?" Nobody answered. We pushed through the heavy doors and began descending the icy blue stairs into the dark—and right on cue, my foot caught the edge of a slick step. I smashed into a massive ice boulder, catapulting over it before thudding onto the frozen earth. Groaning, I pushed myself up, dazed. Somehow, we were outside. Dark gray clouds smothered the sky, streaks of snow slicing like silver needles. Full-blown blizzard.

I yanked my dragon hoodie over my head—it helped a little, shielding me from the biting cold. The wind howled like an angry ghost. Then I realized—we were on a towering, razor-edged mountain blanketed in blinding white. My suit was seconds from being swallowed whole by the storm. Behind me, the team scrambled up like a chaotic stampede.

"Slow down!" I barked. Nope. They wiped out face-first in the snow. Classic. Leaning over the ledge, my stomach dropped. Something moved below. A dark silhouette. I activated Overview. My chest fell. A colossal Lunaranite Dragon. Scales gleaming faintly, icy eyes locking dead on us. Panic. I ducked behind a snow-coated rock, my breath hanging in the freezing air as a low growl echoed through the blizzard.

It started deep and guttural, almost too low to hear beneath the howling wind, but it kept building, rising into a monstrous roar that sounded like a lion fused with a spinosaurus. The beast had seen us. Worse. It knew exactly where we were. Me? Done. Its maw slowly illuminated with silver lunar energy, the light growing brighter and brighter until the snow around its jaws began to glow. My eyes widened.

"Uh—WE GOT A BEAM INCOMING!!!" We dove away just as the lunar blast erupted across the mountainside, obliterating the rock behind us in a blinding explosion that shattered ice, snow, and stone into a swirling storm. The shockwave swallowed us whole and launched us off the edge of the mountain like rag dolls. Suddenly I was free-falling through a white void. The blizzard spun around me. Up and down didn't exist anymore. Then a dark shape pierced through the storm.

The dragon folded its wings and dove straight toward me before twisting through the air, lunar energy wrapping around its body as it transformed into Dark Don. His feet struck the snow, and he slid across the snowy mountain, skating from side to side and scattering snow behind him while I rolled violently nearby. He twisted his body and rocketed toward me, blasting snow in his wake.

I bounded over him, then flipped and landed beside him, racing down the mountain with snow spraying behind my back and cosmic energy streaming around me. I bolted beside him, power surging as he sprinted next to me, our elbows grinding against each other as we rushed down the mountain.

"WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?!"

"YOU THOUGHT I FORGOT ABOUT YOU?!" he yelled back, lunging and hammering me downward with a punch. I careened across the mountainside, tumbling and bouncing until I finally struck the ground. CSHKKK! My body skidded across the ice as snow erupted outward. My feet slammed into the ground, and I kept moving, light energy crackling around me as I weaved between massive frozen spires. He landed from afar, and I zipped past the pillars, bursting forward and launching chunks of ice into the air behind me.

I thrust my fist forward, crackling with energy.

"JUST QUIT THE TARGETING!" He whipped out his lance and spun it, leaping toward me and smashing me into the ground with it. BOOM! I crashed into the ice. It shattered beneath me, blood flew from my nose, and I scrambled back up. I looked around. He wasn't anywhere in sight. I turned. He twirled his lance in rapid blurs, striking my face with every third spin. I whipped out my daggers. He brought the lance down. CLANG!! The weapons collided, unleashing a shockwave across the land.

I gritted my teeth and looked up at him, straining as we stood in the middle of the frozen battlefield. He glared down at me, visibly pissed and completely unamused. I glared back.

"We wouldn't be doing this right now if you could just tell me why you want to kill me so bad!"

"Because I NEED AN ANSWER!" He swung his lance. BAM! The weapon slammed deep into my gut and sent me flying aside. Then he dashed toward me, grabbed my neck, and drove me into the ground so hard that a massive shockwave rippled outward. He tore across the battlefield, shredding the ice as he dragged me along the ground. Shards sprayed everywhere while he looked down at me through gritted teeth.

"YOU WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND!" He lifted me and hurled me toward a frozen structure. CRASHKKKK!!! I burst through it and crashed onto the ground, celestial energy charging around my fists and rings as I tried amplifying it while getting back up. I settled into my stance, spitting blood onto the ice.

"This is gonna hurt a bit…" BOOM! I blasted forward and shot through the air. His eyes locked onto me. They widened for a split second before hardening again. I tore through the sky and slammed into him, hurling ice backward as I wrapped my arms around his body. I ripped through mountains with sheer force, plowing through one after another as I screamed,"RAHHHHH!!!" He slammed me down in midair. I crashed hard enough for ice to explode into the sky. I flipped backward just as he drove his lance down and landed.

I blasted forward and threw a left hook, then a right. He blocked the first punch and charged a lunar fist. BOOOOM!!! The strike blasted me backward as a lunar shockwave rippled across the battlefield. I got up. He grabbed my head and smashed it against his knee. CRACK!! My eyes turned completely pale white. My pupils vanished as pain surged through my skull. He flung me aside and smacked his lance across my face. Then he twirled it again and cracked it against my jaw, launching me into the sky.

I retaliated, charging with celestial energy and diving back toward him. I struck the ground with a celestial burst. He wasn't in the crater. I twisted. FWOOSH! A lunar blast ripped through the air and slammed into my body, hurling me across the battlefield before detonating. My body tumbled across the frozen ground until I staggered back to my feet, fists crackling with energy. He was nowhere to be seen. Until— FWISH! I spun instantly and caught his fist before it could hit me. BANG! I headbutted him. BAM!

Then I drove my knee into him. I twisted around him and backhanded him across the battlefield. He tumbled and smashed through a frozen structure, dropping his lance. Then he disappeared. He reappeared at my flank, fists blazing with energy. I turned. He vanished again. I looked up. BAM! He slammed both fists against my head, driving me into the ice. The impact detonated in a violent blast of lunar energy, exploding into a white dome.

Smoke slowly rose into the air as I lay in a crater, energy faintly crackling around me. Dark Don stood above me, lunar energy dancing around his fists as he stared down at me. He slowly raised one fist.

"This is a decision that I had to make myself… and I don't know if I'm truly making the right choice." Lunar fire engulfed his hand.

"But it seems like I have no choice…" He brought it down. My eyes flashed. VTZZ! I disappeared, dropping onto a snowy mountain ridge and crashing into the ice as blood pooled from my nose. My body was bruised. My Hero Suit was okay, and my rings were, of course, scratched. I sighed and slowly got to my feet, brushing the snow off myself. The blizzard raged on. A chill crawled down my spine.

"…Where is everybody?"