Between Ash and Ice

The Girl in Chains

The ruins stretched ahead, silent and waiting. Each step I took echoed against the cracked stone, swallowed quickly by the mist curling at my feet. The presence watching me still lingered—unseen, but undeniable.

Then I heard it.

A scream.

Sharp. Ragged. Filled with terror.

I froze. My heart slammed against my ribs as the sound cut through the stillness like a blade. It came from deeper in the ruins, somewhere beyond the crumbling archways and twisted spires.

Another scream. Desperate. Pleading.

I moved before I could think.

My feet pounded against the uneven ground as I sprinted forward, weaving through shattered columns and debris, the air growing heavier with every step. The mist thickened, clinging to my skin like cold fingers, but I didn’t stop.

Then I saw her.

A girl—no, a woman, barely older than me—collapsed in the center of what had once been a courtyard. Her arms were bound in iron chains, glowing with runes that pulsed with an eerie light. Magic. Her body was battered, blood staining the tattered remains of her clothes, dark curls clinging to her sweat-slicked face.

A deep gash ran along her side, her breathing ragged as she tried, failed, to pull against her restraints.

And looming over her—

A creature.

Massive, twisted, its form shifting like the thing I had fought in the cavern, but larger. Stronger. Shadows coiled around its jagged limbs, its mouth a gaping maw of shifting teeth.

I didn’t hesitate.

The fire erupted before I even summoned it, heat surging to my palms as I launched a streak of flame toward the beast. It roared, recoiling as the fire struck its side, its form shuddering under the golden blaze.

The girl’s head jerked up, wide eyes locking onto mine.

“Get back!” I shouted.

She flinched, but didn’t move—couldn’t move. The chains glowed brighter, tightening around her wrists as if feeding off her pain.

The creature recovered fast, snarling as it turned its molten gaze toward me. The shadows around it thickened, lunging toward me like living tendrils.

I threw another blast of fire, but this time, the darkness swallowed it.

Damn it.

It was adapting. Learning. It wouldn’t fall as easily as the last one.

I pivoted, darting forward, closing the distance between me and the girl. My pulse roared in my ears as I skidded to a stop beside her, hands already reaching for the chains. The magic in them pulsed against my fingers, burning cold, but I gritted my teeth and pulled.

“Don’t—” she gasped, her voice weak. “The chains—curse—”

I ignored her, fire flaring to life around my fingers, consuming the metal as I willed it to break.

The chains shuddered, resisting, but the moment the flames licked over the runes, they cracked.

The girl let out a choked gasp, her body sagging as the magic drained from her limbs. The moment the bindings shattered completely, the ground trembled beneath us.

The creature roared, its form twisting violently, as if something had been severed between it and the magic in the chains. It lunged.

I threw myself over the girl as the ground behind us exploded in a wave of dark energy. The shockwave sent us both tumbling, my vision flickering with white-hot pain as my shoulder slammed into stone.

Dust filled the air. The ruins groaned as rubble crashed down around us.

And then—silence.

I blinked, coughing through the haze. The girl was still beneath me, eyes wide, chest rising and falling in rapid gasps.

She was alive.

I turned my head, searching the clearing. The creature was gone. Only a blackened scorch mark remained where it had stood, the shadows dissipating into nothing.

I exhaled sharply, the fire in my veins still thrumming, the weight of exhaustion settling over me.

The girl stirred beneath me, and I pushed myself up, wincing. Her gaze met mine, wariness flickering through her dark eyes.

I offered a hand. “You going to tell me what the hell that was, or do I have to guess?”

She hesitated, then reached up, gripping my arm as I pulled her to her feet.

Her voice was hoarse, but steady. “I owe you my life. But if you stay with me... you may regret it.”