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J ai heaved himself over the edge, gasping like a beached fish. His tendons were on fire, his fingers crooked stiff, even as he shoved them down his trousers for warmth.

He rolled away from the ledge, choking down a few breaths, hugging the rock as if it were his dearest friend.

But it was not. This place was so inhospitable, Jai could not imagine why the Caelite chose to live here. The air was thin, such that no matter how much he gasped, he could never seem to catch his breath.

Still, there was a cold beauty here. For he had climbed through the clouds, to reach the high peak of the Yaltai Mountains. And above that grey blanket that covered the sky... was blue. A deep, bright blue, as if the firmament were made of lapis.

Beneath it, there was the sheer white of the mountains, spearing through the clouds like Winter’s fangs. Among them, he could see the only source of life and movement – the great nests of the roqs, woven from twigs and dried grasses. Few were occupied.

Now he could make out the two devotees ahead of him, huddled together for warmth. At first, he had not seen them, for the snow coated them. The two were motionless, and Jai feared the worst.

He forced himself to his knees, his legs quivering. He could feel the cold seeping deep, his body shaking uncontrollably in the frigid air. His trembling hands were already purple from the cold.

Wherever he was, this peak was far higher than the one he had flown to with Winter. Winter!

He called out to her, the familiar connection soothing him when Winter’s consciousness twitched, responding to his summons. She was already on her way, using her wings to beat her way up the steep incline. Jai could feel her struggle, the effort of her flight consuming her dwindling mana.

Jai staggered to the edge, looking down. The vista yawned out, an endless expanse of white. Below, he could see the cloud bank he had climbed through, and nothing more. Winter was somewhere below, battling the wind.

He could see the two terror birds, making their way up the stairs. It would be an hour at least before they reached their soulbound counterparts.

He watched as Winter finally broke through the clouds, her white scales gleaming. She flapped above him, the wind dragging her back, until she landed in a lopsided skip, her wings folding against her body. She panted heavily, her sides heaving, and Jai could tell that she had given everything to get there.

He rushed to her, wrapping his arms around her neck, the warmth of her scales a welcome relief against his freezing skin.

‘There now, my darling,’ he murmured into her neck.

Turning back to the two devotees, he shuffled closer. He was not their enemy, not now, not here. They were all just trying to survive.

Summoning his strength, Jai dragged the unconscious devotees towards Winter. The dragon grumbled, but did not protest, letting her body shield them against the biting wind. She curled around them, rumbling softly.

Jai ducked into the lee of her wings, crouched under her heaving chest. His body screamed for rest, eyes growing heavy despite the bitter cold. He pulled Winter’s wings tighter, creating a makeshift tent against the swirling gale around them.

The devotees were blue. He could see the older woman’s face, eyes half-closed, expression a rictus of suffering. The other man was little better, though at least he still shuddered, while the woman’s body was far too still.

Jai cursed the cold, trying to calm, to soulbreathe. He managed a few gulps of mana, but the golden motes were few and far between up here, just as the air was.

He struggled to spurt a small ball of flame, knowing it wasa better use of his mana than the hungry healing spell. It was small, hanging in the air like an oscillating pinprick of sun. Any more, and he would not be able to sustain it, but the warmth was blessed.

He breathed in the half-trance, taking in what mana he could, fuelling his weak spell. Together with Winter, he waited, shuddering, his clothing growing sodden as the frost melted from his clothes. Their small cocoon warmed slowly, and he slapped at the older woman’s flesh, glad to see her chest rising and falling in halting gasps, and the colour returning to her face.

A clap of palms. It was so faint, and Jai was not sure he heard it. Then another. And another.

He sucked in a breath, and let the spell sputter away. Pushed aside a wing, and poked his head out into the howling cold.

Jai looked around, unable to see the source of the noise.

Then a drift of snow moved from a flat rock, not far from where they lay. To Jai’s surprise, he saw a man sitting upon the rocks. He had the same bald appearance as the roq-riding Caelite, his lack of eyebrows giving him a strange, emotionless expression.

He held a falx blade in his hand rather than the strange roped weapons Jai had seen earlier. He also wore almost no clothing, bare-chested as Jai was, seemingly unaffected by the cold.

Now Jai had caught his eye, the man shook the snow from his body and leaped down, facing Jai. He raised his blade, and held it out.

‘What is this?’ Jai said, his voice cracking after being silent for so long.

His opponent said nothing. Only stood his ground, blade outstretched.

‘I have no wish to fight you,’ Jai said, speaking loudly lest his words be snatched away by the howling wind.

Still, silence.

Jai stood as straight as he could, pulling the long blade of the falx from the scabbard on his back. The man remained, motionless.

‘What do you want?’ Jai repeated.

Nothing.

Jai pushed past Winter’s wings, wading through powdery snow. He brought his falx up to meet its opposite, grinding his feet for purchase. It was not so different from fighting in the tall grass, if a little thicker, and lower.

The man darted, his falx smashing Jai’s aside and lunging for his throat. Jai barely avoided it. No... he hadn’t. A thin trail of warmth trickling down his neck where the blade had grazed him. Jai cut back in a wild swing, but the man had already danced out of reach.

He smiled, and bowed with a flourish. Winter let out a low growl, and the man’s smile widened, wagging his finger at her.

‘Winter, stay!’ Jai yelled, feeling Winter stir.

The man had made it clear – this was a duel between them, and them alone.

Jai lunged, only to have his blade slapped down with the flat of his opponent’s. The counter was swift, the sword flickering, and Jai felt another sting of pain along his chest, and blood warm for but a moment before freezing on his skin.

The man was playing with him. Dread pooled in Jai’s belly, but he had no choice but to fight on.

Again and again, Jai struck and the man countered, always grazing, teasing. Jai barely managed to defend himself, let alone counterattack.

Jai’s strength was waning, his falx heavier with every move. Meanwhile, the other man seemed undisturbed by any kind of exertion. His eyes tracked Jai’s every movement, and never without a smile upon his face.

Desperate, Jai lunged, locking blades with the man, then turning in and low, sweeping his leg, the way Kiran had taught him.

It was like kicking a steel post, but it was enough. The man slipped, staggered.

Reacted .

Jai moved to counter, only for his enemy’s hand to contort, as majicking fixed Jai’s blade in the air, stopping it dead. Defenceless, Jai strained, fearing the next attack he wouldn’t be able to counter...

Only for the man to bow low, his free hand folding over his chest in a show of respect.

Jai near tripped as the resistance fell away; his strange opponent stepped aside, gesturing towards the path beyond with his falx.

‘And... these two?’ he asked, breath ragged.

The man seemed to contemplate the question, then nodded.

As Jai sheathed his blade and moved past him, the man sat back down in the snow, crossing his legs beneath him. His bare skin seemed unaffected by the cold, his focus returning to the skyline before him. The man’s gaze was already distant, as though he had forgotten Jai was there.