The Elementals - The Ice Princess

Prologue

     The temperature on the thermometer reads -5° Celsius but with the wind howling as strong as it is, it probably feels closer to -20. The snow outside is coming down in large flakes which makes seeing any more than twenty feet in front of you nearly impossible. It would look quite peaceful, if not for the current circumstances.

     Jack Taylor can feel the cold radiating from the window as he intently watches his wife, Hailey hold his lifeless seven-year old daughter Gwineria outside in nothing but a thin sweater. He pulls the blanket around his shoulders not even contemplating for a single second leaving the window to layer up his clothes. Jack has gotten used to always having something on hand to keep warm as Hailey would prefer the thermostat in the mid 60's. Lately, it's been even lower, hovering consistently around the 57 degree mark. Jack almost wonders at what point he is going to start seeing his breath inside the house. Similarly, when in the house both girls seem to be completely un-phased by the temperature. They are standing in a blistering cold that would give any normal person frostbite in a few short minutes, Jack quickly looks at his watch and sees they have been out in the cold for nearly thirty and show no signs of being any worse for wear.

     When Jack returns his gaze outside, he sees Hailey looking back at him through the window and gives her a head a quick shake. It's not working and his heart begins to sink. The extreme cold is not helping like they would have hoped. Eira is still fevered and he has no idea what to do next. They have tried everything they can think of to bring her fever down without the help of traditional medicine which Hailey has been adamant against using. This morning both Hailey and Eira were in a bathtub full of ice for nearly an hour. When that didn't work, Hailey thought that the more extreme the cold, the better it would be for their daughter which is why they ventured outside.

     Eira has been barely conscious for the last two days. When she is awake, Hailey is continually making her eat ice chips to try and internally cool her and as hydrated as possible. Those moments have been fleeting as of late as the last time she was awake was nearly six hours ago. The problem is that Hailey's theory about the cold hasn't panned out and now they are at a loss for what to do next.

     The back door slams shut and a gust of cold wind bites through the blanket that is wrapped around Jack's shoulders. He shudders as the icy blast penetrates his skin, giving him goosebumps and sending chills through his body.

    "It's not working." Hailey says carrying Eira into the living room and setting her down on the couch.

     Eira's face still looks rosy and flushed, even though she has just come in from outside. Jack reaches down and feels her cheeks and finds they feel just as hot, if not hotter than before. "It doesn't feel like she's changed at all." He says looking up at his wife. "It feels like she's getting worse!"

     The concerned look on Hailey's face doesn't make him feel any better. He really doesn't understand the powers that both his wife and daughter possess, so he usually leaves the development aspect to her. He wish he understood them but has come to understand that there are things in this world that he simply will not understand.

     "Can we try medicine? Taking her to the doctor? There has to be something that we can try outside of this? It hasn't worked."

     "Jack, I've told you before, to bring her to the doctor's puts her in a completely different kind of jeopardy. Your kind of medicine and treatment has never worked on my kind. There is nothing they can do for her. And besides, if they attempt to take blood, they are going to know she's different. That will not end well for any of us."

     "We can't just leave her here? She's not getting better. Please Hail, just this once." Jack says on the verge of tears looking up into Hailey's eyes.

     He can tell immediately by the expression on her face that something has changed. Maybe it's the fact that his voice cracked a bit, or maybe it's that his eyes are watering at the thought of his little girl going through the agony that she is and he can't help, he doesn't quite know.

     Hailey's head drops. "Okay. We take her to emerge, but only on the condition that they don't draw any blood. Deal?"

     "Of course," Jack says scooping Eira into his arms not giving Hailey a chance to change her mind.

                                                                                               *

     The snow has made the road slick, but not completely un-driveable. Vision seems to be more of an issue which means that Jack can't exactly drive the car as quickly as he would like, so he keeps the Honda Accord at a steady clip. The blackness outside is only disrupted by the headlights on the car. The closest hospital is about 20 miles away and he only dares drive about 20 miles an hour. There would be no benefit in them winding up on a ditch, or worse on this night. The wipers are constantly moving as the snow seems to have gotten thicker, falling in huge flakes that stick to the windshield making the drive even more dangerous. Jack pulls in a deep breath of cold air through his nose and re-adjusts his grip on the steering wheel reassuring himself that everything is going to be alright. His eyes only waver from the road to steal a quick look in the rear-view mirror at Eira.

     She is strapped into the backseat. Her head hangs lifelessly to the right, swaying back and forth as the tires try to make purchase on the snow covered road. Beside Eira is her winter coat, which is more for show than anything. She has been instructed to wear it around people so they don't question why the cold doesn't bother her. Hailey reaches over and gently removes one of Jack's hands from the steering wheel and places hers in his. He takes a quick look over at her and she gives him a brief smile.

     "She's going to be okay" Jack doesn't quite know if she is telling him that or if she asking, so he simply responds with a quick squeeze of her hand. She returns her gaze out the window and then abruptly removes her hand from his. When he looks over, he sees her rubbing the sides of her head with enough force that he half thinks she may actually pull some of her hair out.

    "What's the matter? You okay?" he asks, still not daring to take his hand off the steering wheel.

    "I..I don't know, something is not right. I don't know what. Keep driving."

    "Your necklace Hail, it's glowing through your shirt."

     Hailey reaches down into her shirt and pulls out a platinum necklace, with a small pendant attached to it. He has seen the pendant glow an icy blue color before, but he has never seen it shine like this. It practically illuminates the entire inside of the car, partially obstructing Jack's view from the road. If there were any passerby's, they would look like a slow moving ball of white fire. Jack's eyes sting against the light as they try to adjust. He does everything he can to continue their course through curtains of blackness.

     Hailey pulls off the necklace and looks into the glowing pendant. To his best memory, it's the first time she has ever removed it from around her neck. Almost instinctively, she undoes her seat belt and turns in her seat to place the necklace over Eira's head.

     The instant that the necklace is fully on Eira, her eyes shoot open as if she has been surprised by a punch in the gut. She gasps for air and the light vanishes. It doesn't just disappear the way light goes out when you flip a switch, it's more like Eira absorbs the light into her chest. She takes a moment, as if awakening from a dream to catch her breath and looks at both her mom and dad. They have both turned around to assess her and the situation.

     "Mom? Dad? Where are we?" Eira asks.

     This question will never get an answer because before either one can vocalize their thoughts, hell descends upon them.