CHAPTER 6 - THE LAND OF WINTER

IN THE DUNGEONS OF WINTER LAND

"Cold as hell in here" Taurus complained.

"Yeah no shit" Mary agreed. Each one had their own cell, including Logan and Gage. 

It was only last week since they were captured and arrested by King Christyl Frosts Huntsmen. The king ordered their execution to be in a months time if they were still alive in those freezing cells they were in. Apparently no one lasted a month in those cells.

Red Mary and her gang were notorious criminals known all across Beaunotique, known for crime, murder, theft and other illegal activities. The cells of Winter Land were the fifth that they've been to.

Their first time getting caught was in The Iron Islands, where Gage is from. Then Dragon Isle, in Dragon Isle when they were caught by the Legion after robbing a store. Their next capture was in Dorne, after blowing up half the cells there for fun. King Dorian was about to have their heads until Mary blew their way out. Mary wanted to stay there as their prisoner only because of how dashing Daerason looked to her. Then they were locked up in Theronia, then the Liquid Isle, and after they escaped they found themselves lost in the Land Of Winter. After being ambushed by yetis the Huntsmen caught them and here they were: freezing in the cells of winter

"We'll die here before the month ends" Taurus said.

"Good, that way we wont be shortened by head" said Logan.

"Youre already so short" Mary said to her twin brother Logan, "If they cut that head from you youll look like a headless dwalf". Taurus laughed aloud. He looked at Gage who was quiet in his cell.

"Hows the weather back there?" He laughed. Gage said nothing, he didnt even give eye contact. 

"That one wont feel the cold" Red mocked, "he has his fat to keep him warm". Everyone else laughed except for Gage. He just ignored them. This all was normal for them, the way they treated eachother. Mary was the rude one, Taurus was the funny guy, Gage the quiet one and Logan, the smart guy.

"I see you guys are having a good time" a voice caught their attention followed by slow footsteps. He appeared in the light with a wooden chair and sat on it. He wore a mask concealing his face and a hoody over his head, a long black coat and a warm scarf.

"Who are you?" Logan asked him. Gage eyed the stranger aswell not saying a word.

"Just a man" said the stranger.

"You dont look like one of the Huntsmen" Taurus said.

"Im not" he said.

"Then how did you get pass all the guards here?" Red asked, "you know what, we don't care. What do you want?"

"I want to offer you freedom" said the man, "I know who you are. I know the work you do. I want to hire you"

"Oh yea?" Logan smiled, "what kind of job do you have in mind?"

"Well" the man cleared his throat, "Theres a package that I want you to deliver for me from Liquid Isle"

"Liquid Isle?" Mary gasped, "we got our asses handed to us not so long ago in Liquid Isle. Then we escaped lucky but got lost here, and you want us to go back there? You're crazy"

The masked man pulled a bag from his caot and tossed it in Marys cell. She opened it and found a golden coin. She then realised that the bag only had golden coins, real gold. She bit one and was convinced.

"Thats still the deposit. Theres more when the job gets done" the man assured, "so are you still interested?"

"Im convinced." Mary said. 

DIEGO 

The next day they were ready to leave that morning. Altar still had the bandages on his chest, he told them not to worry about it then wore his armour over it. The golden sword that Proceeded Daerason had left there was given to Diego.

"Now youll have something to defend yourself with when push comes to shove" Balon told her. Diego protested that she didn't know how to use a sword. Altar just said," Stab em with the pointy end". Diego kept the sword sheathed in a leather sheath that she had found in Balons house and hung around her waist.

Lord Rickard Hyde supplied them with horses and food for their journey, then they rode out of the Earth City and into the Forgotten Forest.

Diego and Balon wore green Earth Triber jackets and Altar was forced to wear one aswell. "Its for your own safety" Balon assured,"Earth Tribe dress codes is familiar in the Winter Land apparently because of our allience with them. If you dont cover that metal armour you have on the Huntsmen will attack thinking you're from the Dornish."

"Fine" Altar wore the green coat. After an hour on the road they made it at the Boarders. It was the biggest wall Diego had ever seen in her life. Five times the size of the wall in Dorne and probably like ten yards wide. Altar whistled and almost fell from his horse, "You must be kidding me"

"Im afraid im not" Bacon got off his horse and ordered them to stand back. He slapped his hands together then hit the ground with palms. The ground began to shake and a tunnel appeared on the ground in front of Balon. Diego looked into the hole and only saw stairs that lead down into the darkness.

"This way"  Balon said, "Leave the horses. My uncle will send men to collect them. This is as far as they can take us"

Balon lead the way into the tunnel. With a snap of Altars finger, his finger caught fire and there was light.  The tunnel entrance shut then they began walking straight after the stairs. 

"We're walking underneath the Boarders....just so you know" Balon explained. 

"To think that theres a tunnel underneath this..." Diego was still amazed.

"Yeah its genius isnt it?" Balon said, "Long ago Lord Bronwyn built this tunnel to secretly meet with the Frosts without the knowledge of the Dornish."

The temperature suddenly dropped. She heard Altar curse,"Oh Shit....."

They walked for ten minutes then found stairs that lead up. Balon opened the tunnel with his Earth powers then a cold wind welcomed them. 

"I don't think I'll like it here" Altar said. They got out of the tunnel and found themselves in a whole new world. The blue sky was grey with clouds raining snow. They were in a forest  with skeleton frees and snow everywhere in the place of grass and sand. Balon pulled out a map he got from Rickard Hyde.

"They call this the Frozen Forest of Yetis" Balon said. "So be careful."

"Careful of what?" Altar asked.

"Yetis" said Balon. Before Altar could say anything else a strong wild wind attacked them knocking them apart from eachother.

"Dont tell me..." Balon tried to told on but the wind was too strong. Altar had already been blown away.

BALON

Altar had been blown away far from  them. They didnt know what direction the wind took him to. Balon brushed his hair from the snow and scanned around.

"That was no ordinary wind" Balon said to Diego. "That was an attack"

"Whatever that was it took Altar with it" Diego said, "and i thought you said if we wore in Earth Tribe dress codes we wouldn't be attacked"

"I said we wouldn't be attacked by Huntsmen" Balon said. "The Huntsmen of Winter Land dont use Wind nature. We were attacked by the Yetis of this forest."

"Yetis?" Diego echoed. 

"Yes. Abominable snowmen" Balon said. Balon read about the Yetis of the Land of Winter before, apparently they were strong and fierce creatures like the minotaurs. They were able to produce strong violent winds from the mouths as a long range attack and works perfectly for ambush attacks. 

'They separated us....is that they're plan?' Balon reflected. He said, "We must find Altar, and fast"

"Altar is strong" said Diego, "im sure he can handle them"

"Thats all the more reason we have to find him before they do because if he kills just one of them it could mean his head" Balon explained,"The Yetis here are sacred and interact with the peoples of this place. You might say they protect this place from outsiders and threats, because anything or anyone that enters this place goes through them first."

"This is depressing" Diego said, "somethings always tryna kill us. The Dornish, the minotaurs....now monkeys"

"Well we just at the bottom of the food chain" Balon shgugged his shoulders, "but look at the brightside, atleast youll be free from the Dornish aslong as you're here'

Then they heard a branch break and steps in the snow. There the yeti stood on four, coated with white thick fur. Its blue ugly face sneered at them showing its giant canines. 

"Thats....thats a yeti?" Diego paused in fear. Balon nodded. The yeti beat its chest like any ordinary baboons then more of them appeared from the trees. 

"And they attack in groups" Balons voice was softer now, "the art of divide and conquer." Diego unsheathed her golden blade and held it with both hands shaking. Balon wasnt sure if she was shivering out of fear or the cold. All he knew that Diegos sword was going to cause a bigger problem for them. "Diego. Sheath the blade, their numbers are too great and remembered what i told you about killing them". Diego sheathed her blade and ran the opposite direction with Balon.  

The Yetis were too fast, they swung on trees and one of them already dived at Diego.  Balon got to her first, and pushed her out of dangers way. They rolled on the snow together and when the Yetis jumped straight for them Balon used his Earth powers and created a coccoon made of rocks around them both.

They could hear the yetis beating the cocoon with their fists and roaring angrily.

"This wont hold very long" Diego said.

"I know" Balon said, "We have to think of a plan of action here."

"We must fight" Diego said. Balon sais nothing, he knew she was right.  One of the Yetis punched a hold through the coccoon. "Prepare yourself Princess" Balon said. 

A whistle came through and the yetis retreated. "What happened?" Diego gasped. The coccoon broke apart and they found themselves in the presence of the Winter Lands Huntsmen. "We're saved" Balon assured. 

ALTAR 

Altar woke up alone covered in snow. He did not know where he was nor what direction to go. "Balon? Diego....?" He looked around but the only response he'd get is the sound of the cold wind cutting through the skeleton trees. Altar began walking to wherever the wind took him. The snow was so thick that with every step Altar took his legs would get buried in till his knees.

"This sucks" Altar said aloud to himself. His voice echoed back at him. Altar sense another presence and that made him stop in his tracks and pause. His left reached for his blades slowly, then something jumped at him from the trees covered in white fur. Altar dived away and rolled on the snow scanning the figure infont of him.

"Ugly face, white fur....well I'll be damned" Altar whistled," This what Balon was talking about huh?" The yeti roared and beat its chest. Altar tried to keep his cool, the weather was too cold for him he felt as thought he was freezing. The wounds in his palms under the bandages began hurting again, including the one on his shoulder. 

"Fifty percent huh..." he said to himself. While Altar was fixed on the yeti he saw infront of him another appeared from out of nowhere then slapped the boy on the chest. The hit was so strong it sent thr boy yards away till he hit on a tree with his back then fell on the snow.

Altar quickly rose to his feet and saw the yetis closing in from the trees ahead of him. One by one the jumped at him. The first one Altar evaded, the second got kicked on the face, then the third, he punched the fourth. The fifth one got him, spear heading the boy into the snow. Altar rolled with the yeti till he was on top then punched it on the face twice. Another one jumped at him and the boy dived away and pulled out both blades. He noticed his hands shivering and his grip on his blades wasnt as tight. Just holding his swords was painful but Altar had to ignore it.  He was fighting two enemies now, the yetis and the cold. Altar found that he was surrounded, they were everywhere, mostly on the trees growling. "Come on man...." he said hopelessly. Altar made a turn to run then was face to face with a yeti, already with its teeth locked on his blade that was inches from his nose. Altar panted and his heart beat faster. 'That was too close'. The Yetis on the trees inhaled a gust of wind then blew it straight at the boy hitting them both with the yeti.  Altar wasnt able to escape from that, he found himself laying on the snow like a star exhausted and cold. 

'I can't handle them all' Altar thought, 'not like this...' he found his blades next to him. The yetis caught up to him from the trees then inhaled again for another wind attack. "Really?" Altar sighed. He didnt have time to catch his breath, he sheathed his swords then made a run for it. The wind attacks left holes in the snow for every shot.  Some of the attacks tore through the trees, Altar knew getting caught by one of those again would be bad. He found himself running in a frozen river then he had an idea on where he could be. He remembered on Balons map he saw a the Frozen Pool in the Cold Forest of Yetis. 'This river will lead to the Frozen Pool....thats close to the kingdom of winter, and far from the Boarders...from Balon and Diego. I must go back'. Distracted by his thoughts one of the yetis dived at him catching Altar till they rolled on the ice leaving cracks. The yetis had torn Altars green jacket and only his metal armour was visible.  The ice under the yeti cracked then broke, the yeti fell in the ice cold water. Altar staggered back then ran on ahead to avoid falling in the water but his leg got stuck then frozen. The ice traveled from his right leg up to his thight then his waist in unbelievable speed.

'What's happening?' He thought, 'who's doing this?' The boy rose his body temperature breaking the ice off him but then the river underneath him melted and he fell in. After falling in the river the water spat him right out and Altar knocked on a tree coughing. Before he could move, ice appeared all around his body immobilizing him completely. A man appeared infront of the boy with his hand on his hip.

"So its you?" Altar hissed.

"Silence Dornish" the man said, "How dare you step on this land?"