Chapter 15 Ban
I avoid Neve after my run-in with the Snow Queen.
She’s in meetings again today, prepping with so many different people in the palace, like there is a war coming instead of a ball.
If we were in Sherwood, perhaps I would agree, but there’s no way anyone would be able to cross Icicle Pass with enough force to cause a stir.
Someone arriving by sea is unheard of, so after pushing myself to sweep through the small towns near the capital, I take refuge on the icy cliffs above the docks.
The wind is frigid this morning, cooler than it was last night.
Another storm’s moving in, so whoever the guest of honor is, they might be stuck in port for longer than anticipated.
Leaning against the rocks, I watch as sails appear on the horizon.
My sea skills are shoddy, and to be frank, nothing about the sails tells me anything about who’s arriving.
I’m not even sure there’s an identifying flag on this ship.
My energy is low this morning, and the plan was to let my ice and shadows rest after last night.
Once this guest arrives, no matter who it is, I need to leave the palace and travel through the land.
The outlying villages are where there’s the most dead to collect.
Usually, I routinely take care of those areas, visiting the capital rarely since, for the most part, living conditions are better.
Speaking with Zarev briefly gave me something else to focus on, but with a ball supposed to be happening tonight, I’m on edge to find out who this oh-so-special guest is going to be.
Tensing, I feel the spirit before I see her.
After snapping my staff from the shadows, I turn and eye a young girl.
She’s transparent, her hands gripped together in front of her chest, big eyes full of fear staring back at me.
This isn’t a place I expected to see a spirit; the docks are on the far side of the castle, backing the sea, so there are few homes in this area.
The nobility don’t live outside the city proper, and half the structures on this side are abandoned since the docks haven’t seen use in years.
There’s no one working in the area, aside from a few people wearing the palace uniform.
She’s wearing the same uniform, so I suppose her spirit was drawn over here. But why is a child who worked in the palace dying so young? “I’m afraid.”
I offer her a soft smile, holding out my free hand. The snowflakes that dance off my palm make her young eyes widen with delight, and she gives me a curious look. “You have magic like the Queen’s.”
Ugh. I try not to let the fact that people are grouping Neve and Ronnie together bother me. “I do. I have other magic too. That’s how you found me. I’m here to help you move on.”
I let the snow flutter off my hand and join the rest on the ground. I spin my staff, and slam it into the earth. It creates a small tear in the ground, and as I drag the staff upward, the tear widens to reveal the void beyond.
Eyeing her, I see that the fear has returned. But her eyes dance between the tear and myself. “What’s happening to me?”
Kneeling, I leave the tear as it is. This time, instead of the snowflakes, I let the shadows drip off my palm. “I’m a Reaper. My name’s Ban. I will help you find your way to the next life.”
“Next life?”
I nod to the rip. “Your soul is finished with this side of the divide. You want to leave before anything happens. If you linger, it gives your soul time to splinter and become something else. Wraiths are a little more common in other places, but have you heard of Icebound?”
Her eyes widen, and she bobs her head vigorously. “Momma said that the Queen’s attendants are Icebound. She said there ain’t nothing right about them.”
Now that’s interesting.
“Who’s your mom?” I ask, tilting my head.
Her eyes follow my hair as it falls over my shoulder, and I create another swirl of snowflakes around her until she giggles.
Kids tend to find comfort in the snow when we meet.
I don’t know how my other three Hell Brothers soothe the souls when they can’t sprinkle any sort of joy into people’s passing.
“Anya,” the little girl says. “I’m Anastasia. Momma used to be Snow Queen Snedronningen’s personal attendant until Lady Nyra came along.”
That’s a mouthful. “When did Nyra show up?”
“Three years ago,” she whispers, dropping her gaze. “Last time the Queen of Hearts appeared.”
My mind halts, malfunctioning as I process the name. Queen of Hearts. The Mad Queen.
How did I not realize she was back in the Frostlands only a handful of years ago? I do avoid the capital like the plague, but to miss something like that?
Anastasia can’t be more than eight years old. “Do you remember her from her last visit? The Queen of Hearts?”
Anastasia nods, her head bobbing so fast that it almost bounces off her transparent body.
I almost ask her how long ago she died, but kids are difficult to read.
Some kids are intrigued by death, eager to learn, and understanding what happens makes it easier for them to accept and move on.
Others are left in the dark, parents failing to explain the circle of life, or they have already departed from this world.
Anastasia might have a good grasp of death and understanding what happens next, but she hasn’t pressed me with a bunch of questions, either. If anything, I’m the one asking them.
The whole time I’ve been at the palace with Neve, I haven’t had to send a spirit on from within the walls. I have to go to the city for that, outside the palace gates. So why a child?
“She was scary,” Anastasia says, drawing me back to the present. “She had gems in her teeth and a crown she made from her enemies.”
That must be the bone crown she’s fond of.
“Did you see why she came?” I press.
“To visit with the girl.”
I make another whirlwind of snow for Anastasia as I mull that over.
She giggles, letting me stew in my thoughts.
Would Ronnie show another royal where she hid Neve all these years?
I only visited the Ice Queen a few times, just to see if her condition was better or worse.
Stalking the Snow Queen while her daughter lay frozen would have eventually driven me mad.
And if I had never stepped away from my goal of waking the Ice Queen, I never would have met my Hell Brothers.
I consider the timeline with a sigh. Years ago, when I was still coming to grips with being an ice mage, I first happened across Ronnie and the spinning wheel dilemma. I was stalking her through the castle, using magic to help hide me, and saw her remove the spinning wheel from Neve’s room.
“Take this,” she said to an attendant, who looked at the wheel in confusion. “Send it with the next delivery to King Gordias. His son, Midas, has a penchant for gold. Perhaps he can do something with it.”
“You don’t wish to leave it for the Queen’s return, Your Majesty?”
“No. I’ll have visitors in the coming weeks who need attending. The wheel is an eyesore. It’s not even whole anymore. My silly daughter lost the needle long before she became queen. We’ll tidy up the room for her when she’s back among the people.”
I was so distracted by the wheel and what Ronnie said back then, I didn’t even wonder who the guest was. Has Ronnie been speaking with the Mad Queen in secret all these years?
That’s how I originally found out about the spinning wheel, but I lacked power and drive.
It took ages for me to find the courage across Icicle Pass after dying there years before.
And by the time I entered Sherwood for the first time, Gordias was dead and Midas was taking the throne.
I let fear drive me, and I turned back to the Frostlands for a number of years before trying again.
It was a fool’s mission then, but perhaps I let opportunity slip me by. As for the girl Anastasia mentioned…
“What girl?” I ask once the snowflakes have all fallen. “Queen Neve?”
Anastasia peers up at me, shaking her head. I try to refocus my thoughts and not allow the past to haunt me. “The girl in the ice. Momma went with Queen Snedronningen and saw the girl. She told me to never go into the mountains with her.” Sadness creeps across her young face. “Then Momma died.”
I rack my brain, trying to recall if I have reaped a woman named Anya in the past few years from the castle. Some spirits offer names, some don’t. “Did your mum pass three years ago?”
She nods quickly, stepping a little closer. Guilt hits me; I should send her on without peppering her with more questions. “Momma went into the mountains with Queen Snedronningen, and they came back with Sir Kael and Lady Nyra.”
Son of a bitch, she did collect herself some Icebound. “And she went on this trip with the Mad–with the Queen of Hearts?”
Anastasia keeps nodding, looking out to the sea. The ship approaches, and I swear, there’s nothing distinguishing about it. Beige sails, black hull. I was right: There’s no flag flying against the gray, cloudy sky.
“The Queen of Hearts stayed for a while, and Sir Kael and Lady Nyra did, too. I thought they would go home with the Queen, but they stayed. Then one night–”
She stops talking, her little eyes misting, and I get the idea. “Do you know who took her?”
“Yes,” she says immediately. “The same man who killed me: Sir Kael.”
Well, that’s not a good sign. Any splintered spirit, Icebound or not, is going to get a taste for blood. the more they spill. If Kael killed a child, how many others has he murdered?
But the girl in the ice… if that’s not Neve, who was never frozen physically at all, just trapped in her sleep, I don’t know who it could be. No one else of great importance is missing in the Frostlands, as far as I know, unless it’s someone the Mad Queen brought with her.
But how, and why? None of it makes sense.