Chapter 23: The Frozen Sentinels
The blizzard howled like a wounded beast, tearing at their clothes and blinding their vision. Just as the Alpha and Omega reached the narrow pass leading to the Sun-Stone, the ground beneath them began to vibrate.
From the swirling snow emerged the Frost Walkers—massive, ancient creatures made of solid blue ice and jagged stone. Their eyes glowed with a cold, pale light, and their breath froze the very air around them.
"Stay behind me!" the Alpha roared, shifting halfway into his wolf form to better handle the sub-zero temperatures. He lunged at the nearest Sentinel, his claws scraping against its frozen skin, sending shards of ice flying into the wind.
But the Frost Walkers were relentless. Every time the Alpha struck one down, the snow seemed to pull the pieces back together.
"They aren't dying!" the Omega cried out, her breath visible in the freezing air. She felt the white light within her chest pulsing, reacting to the unnatural cold of the enemies.
"Then we don't kill them—we melt them!" the Alpha shouted, narrowly dodging a massive icy club that shattered a boulder next to him.
The Omega closed her eyes, focusing all her will on the warmth of the First Mother. She held out her hands, and instead of a blast, a soft, golden radiance began to flow from her palms. The snow around them immediately began to turn into mist.
As the golden heat touched the Frost Walkers, their icy bodies began to crack and liquefy. They let out a high-pitched shriek that echoed through the mountains before dissolving into harmless puddles of water.
The path was finally clear, but the effort left the Omega leaning heavily against the Alpha.
"We're close," he whispered, kissing her forehead. "The Sun-Stone is just ahead."