"Eurus!"
Vivia embraced a trembling Eurus. His little palms tightly held onto her as he buried his face in her chest.
"Eurus. Eurus," she tried to coax him to face her, but he curled himself into a shell where her voice couldn't reach him.
Tears plopped down her cheeks, a stinging agony piercing her heart. His shivering back emanated such terror that reminded her of how Zerath and her had found him lonely in the desolate cave. Seeing Vivia hurt had unleashed the storm within him that he had somehow managed to contain with their warmth.
"Eurus, I'm fine. Please, look at me. Don't feel afraid. I'm here with you."
Eurus remained unresponsive. Agitated, she took a look beyond the pavilion and paled seeing Lucian lying half-frozen on the ground. He struggled to break free, but Astaroth's previous attack had rendered him too weak to move.
"Sir Lucian!" Her heart dropped and so did her expression.
Lucian turned his head toward her breathlessly. "Princess…Please stay where you are. I'll come to your side…soon."
Across from them, Astaroth fought his own battle. The ice spike that had pierced through his wrist refused to melt despite his igniting flames.
"What has he done…What has he done!? Release me this instant!"
His fiery roar screamed through Vivia's ears, but she solely concentrated on Eurus, whose small body shook in her embrace. She tightened her arms around him, holding on to provide him reassurance. Her fingers numbed as she shivered uncontrollably, the icy wind cutting through her like a blade.
But then, a small ripple of warmth flooded over her back as a long overcoat enveloped her shoulders. Her shivering body welcomed the relief. She lifted her gaze and met the mesmerizing golden obsidians of the demon she was all too familiar with.
"Zerath…"
She saw other demons accompanying him whom she hadn't met before, except for Doloros, and surmised that they were the Order.
Zerath kneeled to her level and whispered in a soft voice, "Does it feel more comfortable now?"
She nodded with puffed mists of air escaping through her lips. "Yes…Buf Crown Prince, I understand the ice and everything looks extremely dire, but it's not Eurus's-"
"...Why is your hand injured?"
Zerath lifted her hand with the gentlest movement possible, careful not to touch the wounded flesh. He stared at her burnt skin through which blood that once seeped out now lay frozen. A layer of ice rested over her injury that strived to soothe Vivia's pain.
Asmodea squinted her pink orbs at Vivia's injury and slightly bit her lip, mumbling to herself. "This will make things difficult…"
A dark, impending doom shrouded Zerath's gaze. To Vivia, his silence felt more frightening than the tornado of ice surrounding them.
"Sir Doloros. Tend to Princess Clairette right now," he said quietly.
"Yes, my lord," Doloros bowed, he too, feeling the unmistakable chill in his voice.
"Astaroth!" Balam, who had just arrived at the pavilion, gasped in horror upon witnessing his son's state.
Astaroth screamed. "Father!"
Balam's expression drained at the sight of an ice spike lodged through his son's arm.
"What…How did this happen!?"
Leaving Vivia in Doloros's care, Zerath strode swiftly to Lucian's side.
"Lucian!"
Lucian bowed, his teeth clattering with the chill. "My deepest apologies, my lord. I couldn't protect the Princess from harm…Young lord Astaroth was…too agitated to listen to me."
"Do not speak any further," Zerath commanded.
He beckoned Draconis to come to his side, but his jittery gaze stayed fixed at Astaroth and the menacing ice spike.
"I wouldn't repeat myself, Sir Draconis," Zerath's quiet whisper sent goosebumps across his skin.
"My lord!" He bowed.
"Can you free him with your magic?"
"Certainly!"
Draconis touched the ice with his bare palm, and his spine convulsed with a sharp shudder. He then whispered a spell that formed a glow atop the ice.
The spell was meant to shatter it and free Lucian without any harm. But Draconis soon began to pant out of breath. At first, the magic didn't seem to bring even a crack along the ice, much less break it.
After several agonizing attempts, the ice relented before his magic and Lucian was set free. Zerath immediately draped a second overcoat around Lucian and helped him to his feet when Balam's angry voice bellowed.
"This is preposterous! Princess Clairette dared to stab my son and now this criminal did the same with his ice! Astaroth…My son is wounded!"
Amidst all the accusations, Vivia remained unaffected. The accusations didn't faze her as much as Eurus's wellbeing did.
"Sir Doloros, I'm fine. But kindly take a look at Eurus! He hasn't been answering me and he is shivering and trembling…" she explained with a paled countenance.
"Princess, your wound is quite severe-"
She shook her head. "Eurus. Please help Eurus first. His neck is bruised, and he is burning up with a fever."
Doloros took a look at the trembling child almost curled into a cocoon in Vivia's embrace. He reached out to take his wrist and gauge his pulse, but he pushed him away.
"Eurus, let Sir Doloros examine you," she whispered gently.
Zerath returned to her side but was heavily dissatisfied upon seeing her wounds yet unattended.
Doloros explained. "It's the Princess's wish to examine the child first."
"Can you summon your disciples here, Sir Doloros?"
"I suspect if anybody within the palace is able to move, my lord. But it doesn't hurt to try."
Doloros took out a small leaf from his robe and placed it on his palm, blowing a gentle breath over it. The leaf glowed with a bluish hue before lifting off. Vivia stared at the leaf floating away in the direction of the castle like any other leaf.
"It's a useful summoning tool," Doloros said.
Vivia nodded and tried to coax Eurus again into allowing Doloros to examine him, but he continued to protest.
Zerath's eyes narrowed. "You wouldn't be allowed to sleep with the princess in her chamber tonight if you continue to be stubborn."
Eurus stiffened.
She quickly said, "I-I'm almost there. We don't have to threaten him…"
"Princess."
Zerath's gaze held a rare chill as opposed to his usual warmth.
"As much as I adore Eurus like you, there are simply too many crises around us. You're wounded and so is he. The palace is frozen. The people inside must be injured and buried in ice. We don't have time to spare."
"Eurus didn't do it intentionally…"
"I believe you, Princess," Zerath glanced at his cousin, a cold, lethal glint flickering in his eyes. "I believe you."
Balam impatiently glowered at Draconis. "Sir Draconis, why is it taking so long? Look at so much blood my son is losing…!"
Draconis was soaked in sweat as he panted with ragged bursts of breaths.
"This is…not so easy as you make it look like, Sir Balam…This ice is too hard to break."
Astaroth looked at his father in alarm. "That's true, father. My flames are failing against this ice too! See for yourself."
Concentrating on his arm, Astaroth focused every ounce of his power and centered his energy to release a burst of flames. Crackles of fire danced around the ice, but it only lasted for a few moments before they diminished again.
Orobas said, "Why do you look so surprised? If flames were the answer to the child's ice, then wouldn't we have ended eternal winter years ago?"
Astaroth felt a blow to his pride, and he shot a seething look at Eurus.
Nefarion, who had been observing the chaos, asked as he looked at the perilous sky above.
"Why did the child unleash his powers?"
Just then, Doloros's young disciples came rushing to the pavilion. He looked back at them with a hint of surprise. He clearly had more questions as to how they managed to escape but didn't have liberty to ask in this urgent crisis.
"Tarin, Kael, you two tend to Princess Clairette's burn wounds while I take care of the child."
"Yes, Master!"
On the other side, Doloros finally got hold of Eurus. As he inspected the strangulation marks on his neck, he and Zerath exchanged a grim look. Coupled with Vivia's injuries and Lucian's state, they could paint the picture of how the situation unfolded to the present.
Astaroth looked in denial, but Balam certainly felt everybody's piercing gazes.
"This is all a farce, Your Majesty! The truth isn't what this human is claiming!" He took a defensive stance.
"Your Majesty!"
Gressil, who was off to study the extent of damage in the palace, rushed to Nefarion's side with all his might. He dropped to one knee and bowed.
"Your Majesty, the crisis is even more severe than we expected."
Nefarion looked alarmed. "Explain."
He looked up, dread filling his eyes.
"It's not just the royal palace that's frozen. The ice tide has not come to a halt at all. It's heading straight towards the capital!"