Outside was pitch-dark except for the rolling thunder and an occasional flash of lightning so close that the entire inn seemed to shudder under the force of the storm.He sat up, then, at the creaking of his door, turned to see it swing open.Didn’t you bar it?Two thumps followed and, ridiculously, sitting in the doorway was a black rabbit, staring fixedly at Quaeryt. But before he could even stand, a musketeer filled the doorway, leveling a dark musket directly at him. Quaeryt immediately raised full shields, but as the musket ball struck the barrier, ice formed everywhere.Because of the warm rain?The cold was so intense that he immediately began to shiver … and then the ice that coated everything shattered, and chill rivulets covered Quaeryt. His head felt as though it would burst.His skin was like ice … … and he found himself lying on his back in bed, once more, covered in shards of ice that were melting into his underdrawers and undershirt.Slowly he sat up in the darkness, his eyes traveling to the door, still barred, to the window, its shutters still fastened, and to the floor, covered, as was the bed, with slivers and shards of clear ice.
