Jack reacted quickly, as the monstrous beast unleashed a punch—facing him—to the face. Jack crouched as the abdominal beast's heavy hands hit the tree, destroying it completely.
In an attempt to escape, he pushed the power of ice to his feet, preparing to go on a glide. Before Jack could move, the white-furred beast raised his hand, slamming it directly to the floor. Shaking it, the beast disturbed his balance, making him slip and fall to the floor.
Jack had fallen—facing the abomination from only meters away, towering above him. Jack commanded ice to form as spikes in an attempt to trap, harm, or kill the monster.
But it was too strong.
His hands—rough and big—tore through the ice as if it was nothing.
Weak.
He is scarier, much scarier than you...
I must. She can't die.
Sorry, FROST.
The monster's mouth curled into a grin. The beast's posture was curved. His hands hung from his body loosely.
Jack stared in disbelief—in horror of what could come.
The beast placed his hands on the floor, pushing himself toward Jack. Suddenly, his eyes lit brightly in a blue hue—his hair momentaneously turning white, matching the snow. His voice echoed in the forest with strong determination.
"Die, beast."
Jack commanded the ice around him to disperse. Spikes rose from the snow, enveloping the forest in crystalline ice.
The beast closed his eyes for half a second, then he broke the spikes in front of him with his fist—furiously. Breaking more and more, blocking his vision from where Jack was.
Finally, the beast broke the last piece of ice stopping him from getting to Jack.
But he was gone.
Jack had distracted the beast, using that small moment to flee.
A fluke.
Jack was once again gliding outside of the snowy forest, his feet above the snow. His hair—raven—seemingly showing a diminishing in his power. Sweat was coming down his pale face.
Catching his breath, he continued gliding.
What was that...?
Did that beast know me?
No. He knew the Frost.
Why?
How could that beast know when I barely knew it myself...?
And who was he talking about?
What scared Jack the most was not its heavy hand. Or its roar that stirred up the forest.
What scared him the most... was the mind of the beast.
It possessed intelligence.
Since the only thing worse than a beast... was a beast with intellect.
And even more so—a smart beast that knew about him...
About his lineage.
Something that took Jack fifteen years to realize he was a part of.
***
Jack reached the village, sliding toward Nicholas' workshop. The village people stared at Jack—some with awe, some with fear—at the unknown young man that had entered their village. Finally reaching his doorstep, Jack stormed in.
"Nicholas! There's a beast in the forest…"
Jack noticed Nicholas lying on the floor, exhausted. His brown hair seemed more ragged than usual; his gaze tired. Noticing Jack with a lazy look, Nicholas sighed and closed his eyes for a second.
Jack stared for a couple of seconds awkwardly, since it was bizarre to see him in this state. Jack noticed the room was filled with more dust wood than before. To Jack's right, he realized that lying beside Nicholas was a pile of hundreds of boxes wrapped in paper and wood, covering half his workshop. Nicholas' hammer was on the floor beside him.
What is this...?
Nicholas' tired voice resounded in the workshop.
"What? Could you repeat that for me, boy?"
His voice seemed tired and rough as sweat left his face. Nicholas pushed himself up, sitting on the floor.
"What is this?"
Jack stared at Nicholas intensely.
Nicholas answered before he could say anything else.
"It's for the festival tonight."
"I'm working on some gifts."
Nicholas grabbed a small towel resting on his shoulder, wiping off his sweat.
"Did you say something about a beast?"
Jack's eyes widened in confusion.
Gifts? This old man... giving gifts?
He brushed off the thought and composed himself.
"Yes."
"Remember that footprint we talked about?"
"I saw the beast that made it."
Nicholas' eyes widened, leaving his tired composure behind.
"What?! You saw it?"
"Where is he?!"
Jack placed his hands in front of him, gesturing for him to calm down.
"Relax. He is far away—deep into the forest."
"Something was off... he spoke."
Nicholas stared at him, confused.
"Spoke?"
"That beast?"
Jack answered.
"Yes, he spoke. Not only that—he knows of my lineage."
Nicholas scratched his beard slowly in thought.
"Now that you mention it, I remember your mother mentioning a smart beast..."
"I don't quite remember what she said back then..."
My mother fought that?
Nicholas stared up, lost in thought—as if forgetting something.
"Well, we need to take care of that. It's a risk for the people."
Nicholas sighed.
"Well... it can wait."
Jack stared at him; eyes widened.
"Can wait?!"
"That beast?!"
Nicholas answered calmly.
"Well yes, it shouldn't attack for now. Beasts like those tend to sleep a lot."
"And much less likely to attack again—since it already wasted some of its energy, he'll wait for another opportunity."
"Besides, I have my hands full today. The festival will begin at dawn."
Jack sighed and sat on the floor next to Nicholas exhausted from his flee.
"Well, if you say it's going to be okay…"
Nicholas stared back at him.
"Soo… Did you learn anything in your training?"
Nicholas then thought about everything that had transcurred. How strong he felt but also how much it drained him.
"Well, my hair turns white I guess."
Nicholas stared at him curiously.
"White?"
Jack crossed his arms firmly
"Yes "
"Besides that, I learned how to control it a bit more… I can glide now, using ice to push myself."
"Nothing much, only that for a brief second—when my hair was white—I felt stronger…"
He looked down, his voice growing quieter.
"And yet, I still felt like I could've done nothing against that beast… His strength terrified me."
"It made me feel weak… It made every piece of my body scream to run away."
"Now I know—I need to become stronger."
Stronger to go and find them.
He closed his fist tightly.
Nicholas chuckled at Jack and formed a smile.
"Well, good."
"You do need to be strong. And I will help you do just that."
Jack stood up, relaxing, as if the tension from the fight before had only now worn off.
He stared at Nicholas, who was still lying on the floor.
"Oh, by the way…"
"Did you say something about gifts?"