The mouth of Frostgrave Hollow yawned before them, a jagged wound torn into the bones of the Frostveil Mountains.
Wind howled from its depths like the breath of something ancient and hungry, carrying with it a chill so sharp it cut straight to the marrow.
Ryujin stood at the threshold, Nox and Crimson flanking him like living shadows. His breath came in white plumes. Even layered in thick furs, the cold bit deep to the bone.
This was not the kind of chill a man could adapt to; it was the kind that gnawed endlessly, eager to settle into the cracks of bone and soul.
Snow crunched under his boots as he took a step forward.
The ground here wasn't just frozen, it throbbed, a faint hum beneath the surface that resonated with the core of his being. The bond threads to his dragons pulsed faintly in answer, uneasy.
DING!
~----~
[You have entered Frostgrave Hollow]
[Domain Suppression: Movement speed, reaction time, and flame potency reduced by 15%]
[Lair Master Awareness: ACTIVE – Intruder detected.]
~----~
A warning already. 'Great,' Ryujin thought bitterly.
His lips curved in a grim smile. "So it knows we're here".
They moved into the hollow. At the moment, going forward still seemed like the better decision than going back to the hunters.
At least, with his legacy, he stood a chance against a Dragon.
The light from the entrance quickly faded, replaced by the flickering flow of Ryujin's torch and the faint blue luminescence of frost-veined walls.
Ice coated everything; stalactites like crystal spears hung from the ceiling, frost webs stretched between jagged stone, and beneath their feet, the ice was glassy enough to catch distorted reflections.
Bones littered the entrance chamber.
Not animal bones alone; Ryujin spotted rusted swords frozen mid-swing, a shattered shield encased in ice, and what looked like the blackened ribcage of a wyvern-sized beast.
He gulped, suddenly doubting the sanity of his decision.
Even through the frost, he could see old claw marks gouged deep into the stone, scars of battles long past.
Nox's molten eyes scanned the darkness ahead, his breath a low hiss of steam. Crimson's wings flexed slightly, ember glow curling from between his teeth.
Ryujin felt it too… the presence.
It was not just a beast waiting in its den. It was aware. Watching. Judging.
The first signs was a sound; soft, deliberate, echoing from somewhere above.
Ryujin froze, tilting his head. It was faint, but rhythmic.
Claws on ice.
For a moment, Ryujin felt ice in his veins. But then, he found the courage to turn his torch upward.
Nothing… at first.
Then, in the shifting shadows, he noticed a ripple of movement along the upper cavern wall. It was swift, silent, gone before the light could touch it.
Ryujin clenched his fist around his spear.
He didn't like that. Not one bit.
The Wyvern wasn't charging. It was circling.
DING!
~----~
[Domain Resonance: 35%]
>Lair Master's environmental control increasing.
~----~
His fingers tightened on his spear shaft. "It's building the field," he murmured.
This was not a brute. This time, he was facing a smart predator. Despite the massive rank difference between them, this Wyvern wanted the battlefield perfect before it struck.
But then…
BAM!
The attack came with no warning.
The ice ceiling exploded above them, shards the size of swords raining down.
A shape dropped through the breach; a blur of white and blue, wings wide enough to blot out the torchlight.
The Frostfang Wyvern landed with a quake of stone and ice, talons carving trenches in the frozen ground. Its scales shimmered like winter sunlight on glaciers, jagged icicles running along its spine.
Its breath fogged the air in heavy, visible clouds, each one rimmed with frost.
Its eyes; cold, ancient blue, locked onto Ryujin.
The Hollow's temperature plummeted instantly.
It moved before Ryujin could take another breath. The first sweep was its tail, a whip crack that shattered the ice floor and sent a wave of frost-laced shards slicing towards him.
Despite the raw fear in him, Ryujin found the courage to move.
He dove aside, rolling across the slick surface. The Wyvern's frost breath followed; a cone of absolute cold that turned the air to diamond dust.
Nox intercepted, lunging forward and blasting shadowflame. The black fire clashed with the icy breath, the collision sending a shockwave through the cavern.
But even so, Nox staggered back, frost spreading along his flank.
Crimson countered with a roaring blast of emberflame toward the Wyvern's exposed shoulder.
The Wyvern moved through it. Its scales steamed but held firm.
Ryujin's breath came fast.
This thing was faster than it had any right to be for its size. Stronger too. Even with two bonded dragons, the pressure was suffocating.
It wasn't just fighting them, it was controlling the Hollow itself.
Each wingbeat stirred flurries that obscured sight. Each claw strike cracked the ice in calculated ways, forcing Ryujin toward narrower footing.
The system's cold assessment didn't help.
DING!
~----~
[Estimated Survival Chance: 27%]
[Soul Strain Risk: CRITICAL if bonding attempted within current cooldown.]
~----~
Ryujin gritted his teeth. "I didn't come here to run".
He signaled; two short clicks of his tongue through teeth.
His Dragons reacted immediately. Nox surged right, spewing shadowflame in a wide arc, while Crimson swept left, blasting molten fire to melt sections of ice under the Wyvern's claws.
The combined assault forced the Wyvern to shift its stance, talons slipping slightly on weakened footing.
Ryujin lunged, spear aimed for the joint between wing and shoulder.
The strike connected…
CLANG!
…but only scraped frost-hardened scale.
The Wyvern's head snapped toward him instantly, maw opening to reveal the frigid glow of another breath attack.
Ryujin barely rolled clear before the blast hit, ice erupting where he'd been standing. Ryujin was dancing between the threads of life and death.
The Wyvern shifted tactics. Instead of pressing, it began tearing at the cavern itself; slamming its tail into icicle columns, sending them crashing down to block paths of retreat.
It was herding them, forcing them toward the inner sanctum.
Ryujin could already feel the temperature there was worse; his breath misted thicker, and his fingers arched from the cold despite gloves.
He stumbled once, catching himself on the spear.
The ground beneath was thick ice over dark water.
The Wyvern landed heavily on a ledge above, its shadow stretching over them like a frozen guillotine. Frost smoke curled from between its teeth.
The next strike wouldn't be a test. It would be a kill.