An Unforgettable Summer

Chapter 7: The Cold Mountain

The royal family of CiAr has been walking for some time since they crossed the portal. They are walking in a high area among trees and bushes. It looks like an ordinary forest, but the temperature is different. It is much colder here than in the marsh or in the Forest of Peace. And as they advance, the temperature seems to drop further.
Of course, there have been cold days in CiAr, but not too cold. Flyons are not used to very low temperatures. But this trip is for exploring new territories and meeting new species, especially for the children. That's why it's important to visit different places with different temperatures.
Maine and Taya II are walking under the wing of their sister Lilikiki. Although she also feels some cold, Lili wants to keep her sisters warm and comfortable.
“How long until we get there?” Maine asks.
"I don't know." Askaru answers. “I just remember flying over this place. We just have to walk a little further.”
“You could have opened a portal that would take us directly there.” Lili comments.
"That would be risky, especially given the sudden big temperature difference."
“Don't worry, girls. Try to stay warm.” Says Tayarinne.
"I have an idea. Tayarinne. You know the magic of body temperature, right?” Askaru asks suggestively.
“Yes, but… I don't have much practice. I haven't done that in a long time.”
“It's going to be fine, dear. You can do it." Askaru gives her a light lick on her cheek, making her blush a little.
“Alright, my king. You convinced me.” She responds, now more confident. Tayarinne approaches her daughters. "Girls. I need you to focus now.”
"Yes, mom." They reply.
"We're going to have to bring our tails together so I can cast a group body warming spell."
“Cool.” Maine comments.
"Let's go, girls." Askaru's tail hugs Lilikiki's.
The family unites their tails and Tayarinne prepares to cast the spell. "Don't let go of your tails until the spell is complete." She asks and then begins the spell. “Udrž naše teplo a skryj chlad. Nechť jsme na sněhu v bezpečí.” The lioness repeats this phrase three times and their bodies begin to warm up. In the end, they separate their tails. “How do you feel?” Tayarinne asks, always worried about her family.
"We're fine, mom." Taya II responds.
"Yes, mom. Don't worry." Lilikiki adds.
“You did really well, dear.” Askaru praises his queen.
"So now we won't be cold anymore?" Maine asks curiously.
Her mother explains. “Actually, I don't know how long this spell will last. It’s always uncertain, especially in a group of animals like ours.”
"So we'd better continue if we want to meet the animals in this icy habitat." Suggests Askaru.
"You're right, honey." Tayarinne agrees. "Let's go."
The family continues walking for a few minutes, until they reach a snow-covered territory with little vegetation. In addition to this terrain, they can see a mountain, also covered with snow.
“Is this the place you saw, dad?”
“Yes, Lili. I've flown over this spot in the past, but I never stopped to talk to anyone.”
Suddenly, a male white fox appears. “Hello, outsiders.”
“Oh. Hello. Who are you?" Askaru asks.
“My name is Bílý. I'm the leader of the arctic foxes' skuk.”
“Nice to meet you, Bílý.” Tayarinne smiles.
“I bet you came for the snow. Everyone likes snow.”
“Actually, we would like to get to know this territory and its inhabitants better.” Askaru explains.
"Of course. Come with me. I can guide you through our territory.”
“That looks wonderful.” Syas Tayarinne.
Bílý guides the royal family through this icy territory as he explains what he knows about the animals that live there, including his own species.
“We arctic foxes are very good at camouflage because our fur is so much like snow.”
“Cool!” Maine and Tayarinne II look excited.
“And what do you eat?” Lilikiki asks.
“We especially eat small creatures like lemmings or voles.”
“Interesting...” Lili wonders how these new creatures taste like.
“Aren't you cold?” Maine asks curiously.
“Actually, our fur helps protect us from the cold.”
“Wow…”
“And what other species live here, Bílý?” Tayarinne asks.
“There are many small creatures in this territory, but there is one species that we can hardly see around. The arctic hare. They are fast and hide very well. But... Maybe you can go higher.” Bílý points to the snow-covered mountain.
"Why? What's up there?” Askaru asks.
“It's not even at the top, but… Somewhere on the mountain live the snow leopards. We're not exactly friends, so we hardly ever talk. But... I'm sure they can teach you a few things about their species.”
"Very well. It sounds like a good idea." Askaru looks at his daughters with a smile. “What do you say? Do you want to meet the snow leopards?”
"Yeah!" They respond enthusiastically.
"Alright." Then Askaru goes back to talking to the fox. “Thanks for everything, Bílý.”
"No problem. You can come back whenever you want.”
“Thank you, Bílý.” Tayarinne thanks him.
Bílý returns to his skulk and the flyon family continues walking towards the mountain. As they go up, they can see some vegetation and lots of rocks, some taller, some smaller. The family continues to walk for some time, but they still dind't see any snow leopards.
“Mom? Where are the snow leopards?” Maine asks, confused and curious.
"I don't know, dear." Tayarinne responds, also curious.
"Weird. It looks like they are hiding.” Askaru says.
"What? Are they afraid of us?” Asks Lilikiki.
"Maybe."
“Hey! Snow Leopards! Don't hide!" Lili screams. "We don't want to hurt you!"
"Lili! Stop!" Her mother asks. "We don't want to scare them more."
"Please don't scream." A male voice speaks calmly.
“Aaahhh!” The family screams, startled to see a snow leopard that has suddenly appeared.
"Easy, easy. I'm not a threat.” Says the leopard, calming them down.
"Sorry. It’s just that you suddenly appeared.” Explains Tayarinne.
“You probably didn't see me because of my camouflage. You know? We snow leopards can easily hide between snow and rocks due to our spotted fur.”
"It makes sense." Says Lilikiki.
"So..."
“Sníh. My name is Sníh.”
"So, Sníh... Are the other leopards around?" Tayarinne asks, looking around but failing to see another snow leopard.
“Actually, we've been hiding in caves for as long as we can remember. We only go out hunting because we need to eat. Or else to warn visitors of the danger they are in by walking around here.”
"Danger? What kind of danger?” Askaru asks.
“There is a creature with huge paws that appears at night to wreak havoc on our territory.”
“What kind of havoc?” Askaru is curious about this mysterious creature.
“Because of his huge paws, he often covers our caves with rocks or covers them with snow.”
“Why does he do that?” Tayarinne asks.
“Because he's bad. That's why."
"There must be another reason."
“That creature is a monster. He destroys our lairs just because he wants to and can.”
“Well, Sníh. We know from experience that things are not always as they seem. Maybe this big-footed creature isn't so bad after all." Tayarinne explains, remembering Chamti, the bear they helped in the Forest of Peace.
“You guys are kidding, right?” The snow leopard doesn't believe the mysterious creature has good intentions or has a reason to act that way.
“Where does this creature live?” Askaru asks.
"Can't you guys be thinking...?"
“Where does the creature live?” Askaru insists.
"On the mountain's top." Sníh responds, somewhat apprehensively. “Once we found big footprints in the snow by the wall.”
“Thank you, Sníh. Now you can go back to your lair if you want.”
“What are you going to do?”
"I'm going to talk to that creature." Askaru speaks confidently.
“You know what? You're crazy. I'm going back to my lair.”
"As you wish."
Sníh returns to his lair, muttering something to himself.
"Honey. You're not thinking of going alone to talk to that mysterious creature, are you?” Tayarinne asks, worried about her king.
“Relax, my queen. Nothing bad will happen.”
"Of course not. Because we're going with you.”
"What?"
“We are a family and we are traveling together. So let's go talk to that creature together.”
“You always manage to convince me.” Askaru smiles with love.
“Perhaps this is my most powerful magic.” She jokes, smiling back lovingly.
"Of course it is." Then Askaru looks at his daughters. "Girls. We're going up the mountain to try to talk to the mysterious creature. Please don't walk away and always stay close to me and your mother.”
"Yes, dad." They respond.
The family continues to walk up the mountain. There is more and more snow and ice and the cold increases. Fortunately, the magic continues to keep the family warm, but they have to be on their guard, as the magic weakens as time goes on. They reach a fairly high wall and look up, where they only see clouds.
"Well. Looks like we won't be able to talk to that creature. It's a shame.” Lilikiki turns around, preparing to go back, but...
"Wait." Her father speaks, making her look back at them. “I can't believe that snow leopard lied to us. He was clearly afraid of something. That creature he mentioned must live somewhere up there.”
“Is it some kind of bird?” Tayarinne asks.
"Either it's an animal with wings or it's a magical creature."
"Magic?" Their daughters are amazed.
“Magic is everywhere and any creature can learn to do magic. However, some prefer to hide their magic, while others don't mind sharing it with others.”
"So... Does the creature that's been destroying the snow leopards' lairs know how to do magic?" Maine asks curiously.
"It is possible. But soon we'll find out. Are you all ready to go up?”
"Yeah." They respond.
Lilikiki helps her sisters, while Askaru helps Tayarinne. As Tayarinne is already using a body group warming spell, she cannot transform into a lioness as this would weaken her and possibly break the other spell. So, the king decides to use his El'drian magic, through the camouflaged crystal he wears as a necklace, to increase his strength a little to be able to carry his queen to the top of the mountain. Tayarinne is in awe of her king's strength, starting to suspect he's hiding something.
It's a long flight up, but finally the family makes it to the top, landing in the snow. It's colder at the top of the mountain, but Tayarinne's magic continues to keep them warm... for now. Ahead of them is a large ice arch with the words “Yetiho Doupě” engraved on it.
“Daddy. What is a yeti?” Tayarinne II asks curiously.
“I thought it was just a legend.” Says the lioness.
“Some legends may be true.” Explains Askaru. “The yeti is a creature that lives hidden in the ice. The legend says that there is only one in the whole world and that he keeps himself hidden so that nothing bad happens to him. But it seems that he's not always hiding after all.”
"Maybe he's a predator that loves to eat snow leopards." Suggests Lilikiki.
"I don't think so, Lili." Says her mother. “Legend has it that the yeti eats a little of everything and I don't think he wants to risk his life every time he gets hungry.”
"Let's go try to talk to him." Askaru says.
The family approaches the arch. Apparently, there is nothing on the other side. They only see snow and ice.
“There is something here.” Suspicious, Askaru approaches slowly and, with his paw, tries to cross the arch, but his paw stops when touching an invisible protective shield. "Interesting."
“What is it, dad?” Maine asks.
“It seems that the yeti also knows magic and has protected his home with an invisible shield.”
“How are we going to cross it? I cannot cast any more spells.” Explains Tayarinne. “And we can't take too long. The heat spell's energy is going down."
"My queen. Leave it to me.” Askaru smiles and points his tail at the invisible shield. His tail begins to glow and an orange bolt shoots at the shield, opening a temporary entrance.
“Wow.” The cubs are in awe of their father's magic.
“How did you do that?” Tayarinne asks suspiciously. Askaru is hiding something for sure.
“Now we don't have time, dear. Let's go. We have to go inside.”
"Alright..." She won't give up until she finds out how her king does magic without having access to El'dra's crystal.
The family walks through the shield and, once inside, is able to see a huge ice palace, not much smaller than their castle.
"Are you kidding? That yeti has his own palace!” Lili is in awe of the beauty of the yeti's palace.
"Let's go talk to him." Askaru says, continuing to walk with his family, as the shield closes back completely behind them.
As they walk, Tayarinne speaks to her king. “Don't you have something to tell me?”
"What?"
“You just did magic to open the shield and you managed to have enough strength to carry me to the top of the mountain. How?"
"Well... I'll explain after we talk to the yeti."
"You better explain to me, Askaru." She doesn't look very happy.
There's a huge door ahead of them. As Askaru is getting ready to ring the bell, the door opens by itself. The cubs are a little scared and hug their older sister, who hugs them back to calm them down. Askaru and Tayarinne look at each other curiously and finally decide to go inside. Once inside, the door closes behind them. Maine and Taya II jump startled.
“Calm down, girls. I'm sure the yeti isn't evil.” Lili tries to calm her sisters down.
"And I'm not." A male voice comes from the top of a staircase.
The yeti's house is all made of ice. It looks like one of CiAr's mansions, but completely made in ice.
"Hello, Mr. Yeti. We are..."
"I know who you are." The yeti interrupts Askaru, surprising the family.
“Do you… know who we are? How?" Tayarinne asks.
“As the only yeti in the world, I enjoy discovering new places and new creatures. However, I need to keep myself hidden so that no one harms me. You know? The world is full of magic and this magic is often used by creatures with bad intentions. I can't just risk walking outside.”
“We understand that, Mr. Yeti, but you still hasn’t explained to us how you know who we are.” Says Tayarinne.
“I'll explain to you. As I was saying, I like meeting new creatures and new worlds, but I can't risk leaving my mountain. Besides, I developed my mental abilities and trained many types of spells through the books of my ancestors. Now I can travel without leaving my palace. I just cast a mental visualization spell. All I need to know is the name of the place I want to visit and have at least a picture of that place. I saw an image of CiAr in one of my books and visited that kingdom on one of my mind trips. That's how I met the royal family. You."
“Mind spells are quite powerful and dangerous. How can you do it by yourself?” Askaru asks.
“Of course it's not easy. It took years of practice. But with no one here to bother me, the learning process went faster than I expected. Still, I can't take long mental trips for too long. At the end of each trip, I need to sleep to recover my energy.”
“You said you don't need to leave your palace to visit other lands. So how do snow leopards know about you? Apparently, you've been destroying their lairs overnight.” The king flyon explains.
“That's not quite true. I need to go out and get food sometimes. And since I'm very big, I can't always tell where I'm stepping, especially at night. I would never harm any creature.”
“But you have destroyed the lairs of the snow leopards. Maybe there's a way you can get food without destroying their lairs.” Says Tayarinne.
“Why don't you talk to them? I'm sure they would accept your apology." Suggests Lilikiki.
"No! No one can know of my existence! You have to promise not to tell anyone.”
"We promise." Says the lioness.
“In that case, I only see one solution.” Askaru speaks. “Once you have good psychic ability, you can cast a temporary levitation spell to avoid doing more damage. That way you get your food and the leopards don't lose their lairs.”
"I like that idea, but I've never cast a levitation spell before."
“Try it.” Askaru smiles at the yeti, giving him some confidence.
"Alright. I will try."
The yeti takes his spell book from a shelf not far away. He searches the pages for the spell. "Here it is." Finally he discovers the spell and decides to try it out. “Se svým těžkým tělem a velikostí si nemůžu dělat, co chci. Ale s tímto levitačním kouzlem nebudu potřebovat chodit.”
The yeti begins to levitate, his big feet above the ground. Maine and Tayarinne watch him in awe, while the others just smile.
"This is fantastic!" The yeti's happy. “It works! But... I have to be careful. The book says that the spell's duration depends on the size and weight of whoever is levitated. I’ll have to be quick when I go out to get food.”
"I'm sure it's going to be all right." Tayarinne smiles, giving him some confidence.
Maine and Tayarinne start shaking a little.
“Are you okay, girls?” Lilikiki asks, worried about her sisters.
“It's getting cold.” Replies Tayarinne II.
“Uh… Mom? Dad?" Lilikiki calls out, making the adults look at their daughters.
“What is it, Lili?” Askaru asks.
"I think the body warming spell is wearing off."
"I'm cold." Says Maine.
"Oh no." Tayarinne is worried. “Maybe it would be better if we left.”
“Wait. Are you using a body warming spell?” Asks the yeti curiously.
"Yeah." Askaru answers.
"Well... Maybe I can extend the duration of this spell a little bit by casting a new spell."
“Do you think you can do that?”
"Of course yes. I live in the cold. Of course I've done this before.”
“In that case, we appreciate your help.” Tayarinne thanks him.
"Very well. Get into position.” As happened earlier, the royal family of CiAr joins their tails, but this time, it's the yeti who will cast the spell. "Are you ready?"
"Yes."
The yeti concentrates and places his hand on Askaru's back as he casts the spell. “Udržujte je v teple, skryjte chlad. Udržujte je v bezpečí, dokud neopustí sníh.” He repeats this phrase three times and the bodies of the lioness and flyons begin to warm up. Then they separate their bodies again.
“It worked.” Says Tayarinne. “Thank you again, Mr. Yeti. I no longer have to spend my energy. How long does the spell last?”
"Well. Let's just say you can stay here as long as you want.” He smiles. "The spell will start to wear off as you move away from my palace."
"Thanks, but we can't stay." Askaru explains. “We are having a family vacation. A learning journey.”
"I see. Still, I'd like to show you my palace. What do you say?”
"Yes, yes!" The cubs celebrate, wanting to see the yeti's palace.
“Visiting a palace after exploring some dirty places? Of course yes." Lili comments, also happy.
"It would be a pleasure." Says Tayarinne.
"Alright. Come with me."
The yeti guides Askaru's family through his ice palace. The palace has a very spacious entrance hall. He shows them his big library, his huge bedroom, a big hall where he practices his spells, including his mind trips... At a certain point, the yeti stops floating and starts walking again. The palace even has a large kitchen, where the yeti prepares some cooking, in addition to what he collects outside. Once in the kitchen, the yeti invites the family to have lunch with him, since he always eats alone. It's nice to have company once in a lifetime. The family accepts the yeti's invitation and eats with him. The yeti eats a little of everything, but his kitchen has more fruits and plants. He doesn't eat much meat because he cannot risk going hunting. That could make everyone discover him.
After visiting the yeti's palace, the group gathers outside the invisible protective shield near the arch.
“I loved meeting you.” Says the yeti. “I hope that someday you'll come back to visit me.”
“Of course we'll be back.” Tayarinne says.
"But don't forget that no one can know of my existence."
"We know. And I already know how to make the snow leopards forget what happened.” Askaru smiles, having something in mind.
"That would be amazing."
“Goodbye, Mr. Yeti. It was a pleasure to meet you." The cubs say goodbye.
“The food was good, but I still prefer pizza.” Lili comments.
“As I said, I hope to see you again someday. Enjoy your trip, my friends.”
"Thank you." They say goodbye to the yeti, watching him pass through the protective shield, back to his palace.
"It's time to go back, girls." Askaru says. “Ready?”
"Yes."
"Let's go."
This time, Tayarinne transforms into a flyon so she can descend more easily, while Askaru helps carry her daughters Maine and Tayarinne II. Lilikiki keeps close to them.
When they land, the queen reverts to her real lioness form and the family begins walking back down the mountain.
Back in the snow leopard's territory, the family goes to Sníh.
“Are you alive?” The snow leopard is in awe. “Were you able to speak with the creature?”
“Which creature?” Askaru pretends he doesn't know what he's talking about. "We didn't see any creatures."
"It's not possible. I'm sure there's a creature with big paws on top of the mountain.”
“It's probably the night wind. All we saw was snow and ice. You shouldn't believe those stories."
"But... But..."
“There is none of that.” Maine adds.
“These creatures only exist in stories to scare the young ones.” Says Lili, enjoying lying to the leopard.
“I... Okay, maybe...” Now Sníh starts to believe them. "But... I'll keep an eye out."
"Of course." Askaru says. "But I'm sure you won't find anything because there's nothing to find out." Then he goes back to talking to the family. "Let's go?"
"Yes, dad." His daughters respond.
“Goodbye, Sníh. Try not to think about this creature that doesn't exist anymore.”
Sníh doesn't answer, just looking thoughtful.
The family walks back. “Now that the yeti knows the levitation spell, he can use it to avoid bothering the snow leopards.” Askaru says.
“I'm sure it's going to be okay.” Adds Tayarinne.
Going further down the mountain, Bílý, the arctic fox, will meet them. “Are you leaving yet?”
"Hello. Yes, Bílý. We must continue our journey.” Answers the queen.
"Yeah. We do.” Lili shakes a little. The yeti's palace is already far away, so the body warm spell doesn't have much effect where they are at the moment.
“It's a pity. I would like you to get to know our territory better.”
“Maybe another time, Bílý.” Explains Askaru, also feeling cold. “Now we really need to go on.”
"Well. So I wish you a good trip.”
“Thank you, Bílý.” They answer, before continuing to walk.
The family continues to walk for some time, trying to get further away from the mountain.
As they walk...
“Hey, dad. That yeti is more powerful than you, huh?” Lili teases her father a bit, as she often does.
“I don't know what you are talking about.” Askaru didn't like her daughter's comment.
"His magic is more powerful."
"Not really."
"Yes it is, yes it is, yes it is..." Lili insists.
"Honey." Tayarinne speaks to her king, interrupting his argument with their daughter.
"Yeah?"
“Can you explain to me how you did that magic without having access to the crystal?” Tayarinne speaks in a somewhat serious tone, wanting to find out the truth.
"Well..." Askaru looks around and sees that there is still a lot of snow. “Now we have to open a portal to another place.”
“Askaru…” Tayarinne insists, wanting to hear her explanation.
"Please, my queen. I'll explain everything to you, but first we need to get out of here.”
"I'm cold." Says Maine as she is hugged by Lilikiki, along with Tayarinne II.
Their mother looks at them and then she talks back to Askaru. "Alright. Let's get out of this cold place. But once we get to a warmer place, you'll have to tell me how you managed to do those things without the magic crystal.”
"You have my word, my queen." Askaru nuzzles Tayarinne, which always calms her down.
“Can we go now? It's very cold here.” Lilikiki asks.
"Yes, sweetheart." Tayarinne responds.
“The next location is the opposite of this one. I'm sure you'll like it.”
"As long as it's not cold, I'm ready for anything." Comments Lili.
"That's the spirit."
"Let's open the portal." Says Tayarinne, getting ready to do magic.
As they did this morning, Askaru and Tayarinne wag their tails in a circle, pointing to the same spot, while casting the spell: “Chci otevřít svým ocasem tento portál do vzdálené země, společně nezklameme a najdeme cestu.” Their tails glow and a portal appears.
"Now, girls." Tayarinne warns.
Their daughters cross the portal and, soon after, Tayarinne and Askaru also cross, before the portal closes.