Rise of the Frozen Sovereign
Aiden countered, his voice a sharp blade of ice, "here we are. If they were truly gods, we’d be dead. If we were truly just prey, we wouldn't have made it out of the Highlands. Vane, focus. The Conduit. Does it bypass the main checkpoint?"
Vane tapped a shaky finger on the parchment. "The intake valves. It’s an old drainage system for the capital’s cooling plants. The heat from the geothermal generators gets vented through here. It’s tight, it’s miserable, and it’s hotter than the pits of hell. If your hands are already dead, Aiden, the heat might actually be more dangerous for you than the cold."
Aiden stared at his grey, withered fingers. The skin felt like parchment stretched over stone.