Chapter 11: Ice Crystals

Kyrian took another week to reach the village. But along the way, he already sensed that something was wrong and decided to quicken his pace.

The path was covered in snow. This time of year shouldn’t be like this. But now, because of that bird, it was hard to walk through there.

He was relatively fine in this cold, for he was more resistant after his eyes had strengthened him that one time. But for the others…

As soon as he arrived in the village.

The snow covered everything.

The paths the villagers used were buried, making it hard to walk.

Kyrian stepped into the village slowly. His footsteps sank into the silence. No sound, no movement.

The usual smoke from the chimneys was gone.

Only the cutting wind and houses as if frozen in time.

He already knew what he would find there, but still, he walked toward the first house.

It was the hunter’s house, the one from whom he copied the movements of that strange dance, which his mother later explained was the only way to protect oneself, by fighting.

The door was open, swaying in the wind. Inside, the man and his wife lay embraced. Their bodies are as rigid as stone. Both had smiles on their faces, as if they had died together.

Kyrian observed their faces for a moment, then left.

He headed to the village’s central square. When he arrived, six children were petrified in the middle of their games.

He remembered their names and their faces. They were the ones who had judged his eyes as cursed and tried to bully him.

One of them was also the girl who had followed his father to the city of Falk on the same day Kyrian had hidden in the city. She had grown a little. But now she would remain like that forever.

Seeing their situation now, he only felt something bad, as if everyone seemed fragile, just like him.

In the village chief’s house, there was a frozen dinner. Forks still in the hands of the chief and his wife.

He then reached his own house.

But he decided not to go in, for he knew there would be nothing there anyway. He went to the trees behind the house.

He sat under one of the trees, looking at the place where he had buried his mother.

He did not cry, did not scream.

He just spoke, low and clear.

“I’m back. I hope you didn’t miss me too much.”

“You were right, mom. If I want to survive, I need to be strong. With each passing day, I realize this even more.”

“Did you know? Everyone in the village… is dead. In fact, maybe you knew before I did.”

“Do you think… any of them are there with you? Wherever you are…”

…

“You know, I traveled to the city. It really was very big, like you said. I am now the vice-captain of the guard… I think you’d laugh if I told you how that happened.”

…

“So, I fought the captain again, but I wasn’t strong enough.”

…

“Then Beni was killed…”

“And I avenged him, even if I had to kill more people…”

…

“I know what killed the people in the village. You always said the world is much bigger than this place. But I think you never imagined…”

“That a being like that exists, maybe not far from where we lived.”

“That bird… It hasn’t left my mind since I saw it. I feel like if I go after it, I’ll discover something.”

“Something about me.”

“And then, grow stronger and stronger. Strong enough to be above everything and to witness and observe everything. With these eyes you gave me.”

“This time… I don’t think I’ll be back here anytime soon. I thought about leaving. On a long journey.”

“I will train, grow, train, get stronger and stronger, and get to know the world, people. And then… I’ll come back to tell you all about it someday.”

“…”

When Kyrian stopped speaking, night was already falling.

He gave one last look to the tree where his mother was buried and then entered his house.

He lay on the bed and slept.

As always, he woke when the sun was just starting to rise.

Then he decided to begin the work.

Kyrian began digging in a place near the village.

He cleared the snow with a shovel and broke the frozen layer with a pickaxe. Then he began digging again.

Grave after grave.

There weren’t enough coffins for everyone.

But Kyrian still buried them all, one by one.

Those who were still clinging to each other even in death, Kyrian buried together, not wanting to separate them.

And then, a large space on the right side of the village became a vast cemetery.

Kyrian took two whole days to bury everyone. And on the morning of the third, he decided to leave.

He said goodbye to his mother once more. Looked up at the sky.

“It’s cold…”

Kyrian began to move forward.

Not out of the territory, but deeper into its center. He could not contain his curiosity.

On his back was his spear. In his right hand, a rope pulling an improvised wooden box. Inside was all the food he had found in the village, along with plenty of water.

He moved slowly.

Without looking back, heading north.

…

The journey was lonely.

Before, he would see one or two animals. But now, there was no sign of life. The only things that existed were wind and snow.

And the cold, which grew harsher with each day.

Kyrian didn’t count, but after many days, something finally changed.

His nose and ears began to burn. The cold seemed more concentrated.

But another thing was different. The particles.

They were present in many places. Kyrian absorbed them into his eyes as much as he could.

And so he continued traveling. Until he really had to stop.

Danger.

That’s what his eyes told him as he looked ahead.

In front of him, he saw, for the first time, something different from the particles.

There were tiny blue crystals, so many that it was impossible to count them. They were two meters away.

As if forming a barrier, Kyrian looked at the sky from there. The small crystals stretched as far as he could see. That was very, very high.

The crystals seemed stuck to that place, as if something was holding them there. But he couldn’t see what it was.

He stood still. Looking with all his attention. His eyes told him it was dangerous for his body, but at the same time, told him it was something that would help him. Despite his body trembling, he knew his eyes could withstand one of the crystals.

He had two options. Leave, come back later when he felt confident.

Or try to absorb one of the crystals.

And that’s what he did.

Kyrian couldn’t resist. The curiosity, the desire to grow stronger, was greater. He knew, and felt, it would be dangerous, but he wanted to try more than anything.

He wanted to step into this world he didn’t know.

And so, he decided quickly. Without hesitation, he approached the crystals. He focused his eyes, searching for the farthest crystal among them all, the one that would be easiest to pull.

When he found it, he acted fast.

His small hand flew quickly toward the crystal, but as soon as it got closer, its speed dropped sharply.

Kyrian didn’t care, if he stopped now, he wouldn’t be able to do it again, so he kept going.

His fingers touched the crystal. But in that moment.

His flesh collapsed. The ice seemed to explode from the inside out, cracking his skin, turning his blood into sharp crystals. The pain was so unbearable that he couldn’t even scream.

He just froze as he felt the internal freezing of his body climb through his wrist, elbow, and shoulder.

If it continued, Kyrian knew.

’I… will die.’

’DO IT! DO IT!’

His heart raced.

There was no time to hesitate.

Desperate, Kyrian used his other hand with all his strength, pulling the crystal toward him. The pain came again, but Kyrian, with every bit of effort possible.

With the last movement his body allowed, Kyrian tore the crystal into the air and crushed it against his eyes.

Then, his world exploded in white.

Pain. As if a spear had pierced his skull and shattered his mind into a thousand pieces.

Pain as if all his nerves had been slowly frozen.

Pain as if every point of his existence had been frozen.

He fell to his knees, then face-first to the ground.

His whole body was frozen. Not on the outside, but inside.

His body became as pale as a ghost. Blue veins appeared everywhere.

Inside, he was covered by a frozen energy, his heart stopped. All his organs froze. His brain stopped working. And then the pain and consciousness vanished into despair.

But there was something that hadn’t stopped.

His eyes. Something inside them was slowly changing.

While everything else was frozen, they burned with a glow that would not fade.

And so, time passed.

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