• Softly, coldly the wind blew. The land was frozen with snow and ice from the winter storms that were carrying into the months of spring. Was winter ever to end? It didn’t seem likely. Nothing had stirred in these icy mountains for over six months going into seven and doors to homes were frozen shut. Every one that lived there had frozen to death before they could ever starve because the temperature had dropped to fifty below zero in one night.

    It was cruel fate. Even those whom lived in the palace that was etched into the mountain had suffered but… not all had died from the harshest of weather. About twelve hundred still lived within the mountain. They lived in the heart of the mountain where lava boiled, bubbled, and streamed ever hot from the earths molten core. Yes, they lived near the lava. It was their only source of warmth in this dire time of need. Bad thing was they didn’t have very much to eat and they were starting to turn on each other, becoming cannibals.

    Their skin was so pale and chalky that it was as white as the snow that covered the ground outside. One of them peered out of the fur blanket that covered them. A girl looked around then moved from under the blanket. Her clothes was made from skin of different animals that could survive this harsh weather with fur trim from wolves that were the size of horses.

    “Mother?”

    No answer came from the warm furry cover. She looked back at the blanket and frowned. Did her mother die in the middle of the night? It wouldn’t be a surprise. Her mother had been one of the many sickly and it was amazing she had lasted so long.

    From living with death for so long, she was used to it, which was why she shed no tears, nor looked sad. All she did was start to walk down one of the long winding tunnels that lead to the outside of the mountain. Normally she would never go down these tunnels but now she wanted to see for herself what it looked like outside of the mountain