Conquering His Cold Heart

"What's your name elf?" Asked Bella with a clear tone of respect in her voice. Frost, though mere prey was worthy of her attention. His stubbornness, patience, wit and focus had won him the right to be treated as a true foe thus Bella ordered her subordinates to lower their javelins despite having Frost in their crosshairs.

He was to be her prey and hers alone….of course if he stupidly attempted to flee from her loving embrace then things would be different therefore the javelins were only lowered not sheathed.

"Frost, my name is Frost….and you." Feeling the spectre of death fading Frost replied with a strained smile, doing whatever he could to keep those looming giants at bay. Bella alone was hard enough to deal with, if he had to face the threat of another 8 frost giants then he might as well dig his own grave.

His current situation was extremely perilous, death constantly looming but he didn't lose hope. He could still move, still attack and still defend himself. As long as he could still draw breath the battle was far from over. He didn't have a powerful guardian who could teleport to his side anymore, but he had faith in both his own capabilities and those of Kiba, Borris and Avira.

As long as he bought enough time, help would come.

"Bella." With a wild smile that was steeped in barbarity, joy, carnage and battle lust Bella formally introduced herself. She curtly bowed her head in greeting before intensifying the aura that surrounded her body.

"Be proud little elf for you have earned the right to die under my hammer as a true foe." Her muscles tensed and bulged to obscene levels as she raised her hammer above her head. Ice chakra then formed over her body to protect the areas not covered by her armour.

Her technique wasn't as refined as Frost's, but the density and thickness was certainly there and with her insane level of strength the extra weight would only increase her potential devastation.

Frost felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as Bella readied herself for a true battle rather than a game of cat and mouse. His heart thumped away like a jack hammer and an indescribable excitement flowed through his veins as the pressure from her aura attempted to crush his spirit and body.

It was clear that Bella was going easy before, a notion that should have him quaking in his boots but instead it brought a mad smile to his lips.

In response to her shift in attitude Frost also released his restraints. Without having to keep an eye on those behind him he could now go all out.

His royal aspected aura battled against the heavier aura released from Bella, defying it at every turn despite being weaker. He gripped the shaft of his glaive with both hands, calmed his breathing and readied himself for the most dangerous yet also the most exciting fight of his young life.

He completely forgot about the frost giants surrounding him and erased any and all thoughts of escape and instead focused entirely on the large woman before him. She was his enemy, and an enemy must be killed.

Fwoosh!

Frost vanished in an instant and appeared a moment later before Bella with his glaive at the ready. The only thing he had over her was speed, so he was going to use that advantage to its upmost.

While Frost began his true engagement with Bella, Kiba, Borris and Avira were desperately fleeing north as fast as they possibly could.

"Hurry Kiba every second counts!" Borris roared at the top of his lungs, a guilty expression adorning his face as Frost grew smaller and smaller in his rear view.

'Damn bastard!' He cursed Frost internally, feeling awful about the situation at hand. Frost was young, kind and full of potential while he was nearing his deathbed, an old man with only so much left to give. It should have been him to make the sacrifice but unfortunately he was just too weak.

He and Avira didn't even get any prior notice, one minute Frost was facing off against Bella the next snow and ice dust obscured their surroundings and Kiba launched himself to the North with them on his back.

Though he hated the situation Borris knew better than to ruin Frost's efforts, so he strengthened his grip and encouraged Kiba to go faster all while making sure that Avira was locked in place. The young girl may very well do something foolish like jump off and run back to Frost's side to die alongside him.

"Borris!?" Still shellshocked by their sudden departure Avira rotated her neck and shouted at the old dwarf with a mix of anger and confusion.

"Not a word V, Frost knows what he's doing." Borris wrapped his arms around Avira to hold her down before continuing. "We need to get to Icethorne as soon as possible, you especially, only then can we help him."

"But?" Avira wriggled, her gaze looking firmly at the gradually shrinking form of their protector.

"We're useless against those kind of monsters V, only by reaching Icethorne and you requesting aid from their soldiers can we help him." Borris knew full well of his intentions. Frost couldn't win against Bella, nor would he be able to escape from her clutches, all he could do was buy time, time for them to get help.

Icethorne was close, close enough for help to reach him in time and with Avira's status that help was pretty much guaranteed.

"Garow!!" Kiba loudly chuffed in agreement, picking up even more speed, he even used his wings to propel them forward, desperately using every scrap of strength he had to increase their speed.

The group of three, a winged glacial tiger, a dwarven smith and a princess travelling incognito barrelled through the falling snow, heading directly North towards the vast fortress in the distance, hoping to find aid as fast as possible.

Unfortunately with their reactions and massive steps it didn't take long for Costa and Davros to narrow the gap.

"Shit! Kiba we've got company." Within 15 minutes Borris caught sight of Costa and Davros chasing after them with a large contingent of frost giants behind them all armed with javelins.

"Grrrrr!!" Kiba growled and tried to accelerate but he was already going as fast as he possibly could. All his earlier running along with the two heavy weights that were Borris and Avira -mostly Borris- had greatly taxed his stamina. At their current rate the frost giants would be within javelin range in 3 maybe 5 minutes.

Icethorne was still far in the distance, and they hadn't run into a single patrol so far… things weren't looking good.

"Kiba if you can't lose them in the next two minutes I'll buy you some time and lighten your load. Without me dragging you down you should be able to reach the fortress in time." Said Borris with a resolved expression.

He didn't know how much time his weak ass could actually buy them but even if it was just a few seconds Kiba could likely drag that out for several minutes thanks to the reduction in weight.

Kiba tilted his head slightly to stare at Borris, the two exchanged looks for a second before Kiba chuffed and nodded his head. The agreement had been made, if he couldn't lose their followers within the next two minutes Borris would voluntarily jump from his back and face them with his hammer.

Tears streamed down Avira's cheeks as she silently held strong onto Kiba's back and fur. She was too weak to do anything, a pathetic princess who's only use was her status, something she was born with rather than earned.

Kiba did his best to lose Davros and Costa but unfortunately in the end he failed. The frost giants with their massive strides, lack of extra baggage and non-exhausted states allowed them to eventually catch up with the winged glacial tiger.

Seeing this Borris leaned back and gently smiled as his life flashed before his eyes. It was a life well lived. Though he failed to reach the peak of the smithing world he made a decent attempt and never gave up on his dreams even in old age. More importantly he met a beautiful woman who filled him with joy each and every day that they were together.

She blessed him with many children and they in turn blessed him with adorable grandchildren. It was a life filled with love and bliss. He truly had nothing to regret.

As the last seconds ticked by and the frost giants started to make their moves Borris bore a gentle smile. He looked fondly at Kiba who was on the brink of tears and then at the young woman who he recently met and travelled with through the glacial mountains. A woman who reminded him so much of his grandchildren yet bore such a heavy responsibility.

"Hahahaha" He laughed before placing a hand on Avira's hood and gently saying, "become a good Empress V."

Then in that moment he pushed against Kiba's back with his free hand and allowed his body to safely dismount from the tiger's back.

Borris readied himself for a worthy death.