Black Ice (Black Records Book 3)

by Mark Feenstra

  Nathan had just gunned the engine on our snowmobile to launch it up over a steep embankment when I heard a panicked shout from behind us. I turned just in time to see Nicola on her back, frantically scrambling away from the snowmobile that had pitched over onto its side.

  “Shit,” Nathan grunted as he hopped off his snowmobile. “She must’ve been leaning too far forward in that dip.”

  I jumped off after him and we both scrambled down the incline.

  “Are you okay?” I asked Nicola, offering her hand up.

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” she said. “My front ski got caught. The whole damn thing just went over before I could shift my weight.”

  “Looks like there’s a creek running under this,” said Nathan. He gave the snowmobile a solid push, then kicked snow away from the front runner. “You broke through the ice. I’m going to need to tow you out.”

  Nathan returned to his snowmobile where he dug out a long length of sturdy cable. He attached one end to Nicola’s snowmobile, hiked off to the side of the trail, and ran the cable around the side of a sturdy tree. He then climbed back up the embankment and fastened the other end of the cable to the back of his snowmobile.

  “Alex,” he shouted. “I’m going to need you to rock that thing back and forth when I give it gas. Be careful. When it starts to come free I don’t want you falling into the hole it made in the ice.”

  I motioned for Nicola to stand back a little, then got a firm grip on the side of the snowmobile. The thing seemed to weigh a ton, not even budging when I pushed on it. Even after Nathan started up his own snowmobile, pulling the cable tight and adding his own force to the effort, the stuck snowmobile refused to move more than an inch or two before the sound of splintering wood made Nathan shut his snowmobile off again.

  “It’s really wedged in here,” I shouted at Nathan. “Try again. This time I’ll give it a little something extra.”

  If the snowmobile had weighed even half what it did, I might have been able to levitate it free. Stuck and heavy as it was, I’d be lucky to add enough leverage for Nathan to tow it all the way out. When I saw the cable pull tight again, I conjured energy into the area beneath the large tread. Without actually touching the machine, I managed to lift the front end just high enough that the tension on the cable was finally able to pull it free from its icy trap.

  “Did you just magic that thing out of there?” Nicola asked.

  “I did,” I admitted.

  “Damn. If you can do stuff like that, why don’t you use your magic for everything?” She asked. “I’d be magicking stuff left right and center if I had that kind of power.”

  “Everything has a cost,” I explained. “That may not have looked like much to you, but energy-wise, it did a number on me. Remember last night in the forest? That lightning attack depleted nearly every bit of magic in my system, not to mention how much it exhausted me both physically and mentally. If I had to do something like that right now, I don’t know if I’d have the strength. Using magic when I don’t actually need it is a good way to burn through my resources. With how weird things have been around here lately, I don’t plan on using it unless I absolutely have to.”

  “Let’s hope you don’t have to use it tonight,” Nicola said. For the first time that day, I saw a crack in her carefree demeanor. She looked suddenly quite young and afraid. “I didn’t want to say anything earlier, but I’m not super comfortable about spending the night out in the woods after what’s been happening to me. Even thinking about those snow-rats swarming all over me gives me the creeps.”

  “Don’t worry about that,” Nathan said as he trudged back down the hill towards us. He climbed aboard Nicola’s snowmobile. “Where we’re going tonight, we should be safe from malevolent forces. It’s a sacred place my great-grandfather used to take me to when I was a kid.”

  Nathan fired up the snowmobile, then powered it up the hill where he parked it next to his own. Nicola and I scrambled up after him. We all remounted, and then we set off down the trail once more. After climbing that last ridge, the ground began to level off somewhat. Although it still took some effort to push the snowmobiles through deep snow drifts and around hidden obstacles like fallen trees and boulders, we made much better time until Nathan eventually called a halt.

  “This is the place,” he said. “Make yourselves comfortable for a little while. I’m going to need some time to set up.”

  Nathan had brought us to a secluded little glen. Nestled at the end of a valley between towering mountain ranges, we sat in a small sub-alpine clearing. Somewhere beside us, a hidden creek babbled away beneath its icy blanket of snow. The area was peaceful and calm. Nicola showed me how to shape a makeshift seat in the deep snow, then we settled down to watch Nathan unpack the sled. He removed some long wooden poles and several bundles that looked like rolled animal hides. When he had everything unloaded, he trampled down a large circle of snow, working meticulously to level off the area before arranging the flexible poles into a rough frame.

  “Is that what I think it is?” asked Nicola.

  “If you think it’s a sweat lodge, then yeah,” I said. “At least, that’s the only thing that could possibly explain why Nathan had us bring our bathing suits.”

  Nathan was too busy working to hear us, but Nicola lowered her voice and leaned in to whisper conspiratorially.

  “Do you think we can trust this guy?” she asked. “I mean, what do we even know about him?”

  “I trust the person who suggested I talk to him in the first place,” I said. “That’s just kind of how these things go. Besides, I don’t give anyone my full trust until they’ve proven themselves. In my line of work, you can’t be too careful.”

  “What are you two whispering about?” asked Nathan, standing up from where he’d been lashing two support poles together.

  “Girl stuff,” said Nicola. “Nothing that concerns you.”

  “I’m sure,” he said. Nathan shrugged out of his jacket. “This is going to take me a little while. There’s tea in that thermos over there if you want. It’s important you don’t eat anything, though. Things are going to get intense tonight, and I don’t want anyone throwing up on me.”

  I got up and fetched the tea, pouring a little into the thermos lid and handing it to Nicola. We took turns sipping at it. The tea was pleasantly warm on the way down, going a long way towards fighting off the below-freezing outside temperature. Our snow chairs were comfortable enough, but the cold had begun to seep through my waterproof pants and heavy long underwear. If we were going to have to wait around any longer, I worried I might have to burn a bit of energy on a warming spell.

  When the framework was completely set up, Nathan stepped back to admire his handiwork before walking over to us.

  “You two look like you could use a job to keep you busy,” he said. “There’s a creek just down that embankment. Find as many large rocks as you can carry, and bring them back up here for me.”

  He then collected a hatchet from his gear sled and stalked off towards the trees. Nicola and I exchanged a glance, then dragged ourselves to our feet and went off in search of rocks.

  An hour later we had a considerable pile of large smooth river stones sitting around a roaring fire. The sun had begun to set by the time Nathan put a kettle on the rocks to boil a fresh pot of tea. I was painfully aware of the fact that we hadn’t eaten anything since lunch several hours earlier. Nathan still insisted we shouldn’t eat anything, despite my stomach’s growling protests.

  “You brought breakfast at least, right?” I asked.

  Nathan laughed. “Yeah, I brought food for tomorrow. In another hour you’ll forget all about being hungry. Trust me.”

  We drank our tea and waited for the fire to burn down to coals. In the meantime, Nathan finish wrapping his structure with several layers of tarp and animal hide. When he was finally done, he’d built a dome-shaped tent that looked just barely big enough for all three of us to climb inside. Nicola and I watched silently when Nathan wr
apped his hands with long strips of leather. He then proceeded to lift each blistering hot rock in order to carry it into the tent.

  “Okay,” he said when he’d finished. The timbre of his voice had changed. He spoke with a seriousness that made Nicola and I give him our undivided attention. “Time to get changed. I’ll look the other way, but be quick about it.”

  Nicola and I had decided to wear our bathing suits beneath our clothes, so we quickly peeled off our layers, balancing on the snowmobiles while we removed snow pants and long underwear before shoving our feet back into our boots. The frosty air nipped at our skin, sending us into violent fits of shivering by the time we’d told Nathan he could turn around again.

  “I’ll make this quick,” he said. “This is not going to be a traditional sweat. In fact, if my people knew I was doing this, I’d be in a more trouble than I want to think about. Things might get weird in there, but I want you to remember that everything is under control. Whatever you experience will only be in your mind. I won’t let anything hurt you.”

  “Got it,” I said through chattering teeth. “Can we get this party started already?”

  Nathan pulled his shirt over his head, then unbuttoned his pants and pulled them down to his boots. Clad only in surf shorts, he kicked off his boots and crawled into the low opening. Nicola and I followed suit, the warm moist air taking my breath away as soon as I poked my head inside.

  The only light came from a few glowing coals in the center of a ring of hot stones that had been wrapped in a protective layer of leather hides. Nathan had laid several large animal furs down over the floor. The effect would have been quite cozy if it hadn’t been for the fact that it must have been over a hundred degrees inside the sweat lodge.

  When all three of us had crammed ourselves into the claustrophobic little tent, Nathan reached over and pulled down the flap covering the entrance. With no more cool air flowing inside, the temperature shot up another notch. Not more than a minute or two had passed, but my body was already dripping with sweat. I was keenly aware of the fact that I hadn’t eaten anything in hours.

  “It’s important that you give yourself over to the process,” Nathan said. He produced a bundle of sage and other dried plants from a satchel beside him. “Your mind is going to want to wander. Let it. This will only work if you follow the path, no matter where it leads you.”

  Nathan placed the end of the sage stick into the coals. Bittersweet smoke filled the interior of the sweat lodge, stinging my eyes and making me cough several times.

  “If the heat gets too intense, lie down for a while,” Nathan offered. “It’s cooler near the floor.”

  Already feeling extremely lightheaded, I lay down and scrunched a bit of fur up into a pillow. My heartbeat raced wildly, protesting the extreme shift in conditions. Only a couple of minutes ago I’d been shivering, and now I worried I was going to die of heat exhaustion.

  “My tongue feels weird,” Nicola said, her voice sounding distant and small. “What was in that tea you gave us?”

  “Something to expand your mind,” said Nathan. “Don’t think about that now. Just let yourself go with it.”

  He sounded very far away. The coals had burned down even further, reducing the light in the sweat lodge to almost nothing. If I squinted, I could just make out a few sharp lines of Nathan’s face hovering in the darkness. Even that became more and more difficult to make out. Strange colors shimmered at the edge of my vision, obvious signs of oncoming hallucination.

  Nicola said something else, but she was too far away for me to hear it. My own breathing echoed in my head. It took a monumental amount of effort just to draw breath. Each inhalation scalded my lungs. The air leaving my nostrils was comparatively cool compared to the oppressive heat around me. My eyelids had grown impossibly heavy, and before long there was nothing I could do to keep them open.

  Without apparent transition, I found myself in an open field. There was no sound whatsoever. Though I was still in my bathing suit and barefoot, the snow beneath my feet didn’t feel cold. I didn’t shiver, and I no longer felt like I was dying of fever. A line of trees stretched off on the horizon, but when I tried to walk towards them, they never got any closer. I was alone in a flat expanse of white. No matter which direction I walked I couldn’t seem to make any progress.

  Then I caught a glimpse of a familiar sight soaring through the sky. It was the very same owl that had flown down onto the path yesterday. I lifted my hand to shield my eyes against the sun, not realizing at first that the owl was swooping down on me, razor-sharp talons slicing through the air just inches away from where my head. I ducked to avoid the attack. The owl curved back up into the sky, turning in a wide smooth arc before diving down on me again.

  “Who are you?” I shouted. “What do you want from me?”

  The owl screeched in answer, swooping down again. This time, its claws connected with my shoulder, knocking me off balance enough to send me sprawling backwards. Only a moment ago I’d been able to walk through the snow just fine, but now it was white quicksand, pulling me under and threatening to suffocate me.

  The owl landed on the snow just inches away from my face. It stretched its wings out to its full span, staring at me with haunting yellow eyes.

  “Why are you doing this?” I asked. “What do you know about the Black Fog?”

  The owl beat its wings together, buffeting me with wind. I flinched away and tried to pull my arm free from the snow to cover my face. That’s when I noticed the darkness encroaching on us. Like tendrils of the blackest ink dripping through water, darkness stained the sky. The owl launched itself back into the air, swooping here and there, screeching loudly while it beat its wings against the darkness.

  It was then I realize that the owl hadn’t been trying to attack me; it had been trying to save me. Sensation returned to my limbs, at once freezing cold and burning hot. I knew my body was still in the sweat lodge lying safe from physical danger, but that didn’t make the oppressive darkness closing in around me any less frightening. The owl fought bravely, slowing the approach of the Black Fog. I tried to summon magic to help the owl, but nothing happened. Whatever this place was, I was powerless to help. I could do nothing but watch while the two forces above me battled for control.

  Eventually, the Black Fog blotted out nearly every inch of the sky above me. With nowhere to fly, the owl was swallowed and consumed, leaving the deadly black cloud free to resume its advance unchecked, choking out everything around me until it cradled me in its emptiness.

  Spiritual vision or not, I felt the full brunt of the Black Fog attacking my mind. I knew immediately that something had gone horribly wrong. I became more aware than ever of my body lying inert far away. The darkness was in my thoughts, filling me with cold dread and consuming whatever light it found. I struggled against it as best I could, but I worried that any further attempt to use magic to fight it off might result in my body unleashing a spell on Nathan and Nicola back in the sweat lodge.

  Eventually, I could fight no longer. The darkness consumed me, dragging me down into a hellish nightmare from which I couldn’t seem to wake.

  Chapter Nineteen

  When I awoke again, I was outside. A fire burned nearby, and I had been covered with several heavy blankets. I felt sick and exhausted, hungover from the combination of heat and whatever had been in that tea Nathan had given me. My memory of the Black Fog embracing and then consuming me was painfully fresh in my mind. I could still feel its fingers in my brain, poisoning my every thought.

  I sat up and clutched the blanket tighter around me. I was still in my bathing suit, but the sweat had long since evaporated from my skin. I had no way of knowing how long I’d been unconscious, but judging by how soundly Nicola slept only a few feet away, I figured a good portion of the night had passed.

  “You’re awake,” Nathan said from where he lay propped up on his elbow, firelight illuminating his face.

  “Barely,” I said. “I feel like I’m still half stuck
in a dream. I know that was just a vision, but it felt so real.”

  Nathan threw back his blanket and got to his feet. He retrieved a water bottle from within his pack, unscrewing the cap while he crouched beside me.

  “Drink carefully,” he said.

  He held the bottle up to my lips, tipping it until a thin stream of water poured into my mouth. The liquid was cool and refreshing, perking me up a little. I wanted to gulp it down greedily, but Nathan pulled it away before I could drink too much.

  “I’m so thirsty,” I said. I pulled the blankets tighter around my shoulders. “What exactly happened in there?”

  “You went under pretty fast,” Nathan said. “I tried to follow you, but something pushed me away. The last I saw, you were in a snowy field. You were marching around, but you never seemed to be able to get anywhere.”

  I nodded, remembering the impossible to cross expanse of snow. I wondered if Nathan had seen the owl or any of what had followed after.

  “What did you see?” He asked. “Did your vision teach you anything about the Black Fog?”

  “I don’t know,” I said. I then recapped everything that had happened. It was difficult to convey the absolute terror and isolation I’d felt after being wrapped up in the darkness, but I did my best to explain it in as much detail as I could remember.

  “And then I woke up,” I said. “I don’t feel any further ahead than I was before.”

  “I wouldn’t be so quick to discount what you’ve learned,” Nathan said. “While we may not be any closer to understanding the source of the Black Fog, I think we can safely say that at least some part of the legend is true. A great force is seeping into the world. If it was able to take hold of you inside your vision, there’s no telling what it might be capable of.”