The snow was falling violently: a full-blown blizzard. The weakest trees were ripped up by the force of the wind and carried several meters away. The sky had darkened considerably; it was probably night.
The boys had fallen asleep. Itoî held his brother close so they wouldn't freeze to death.
Tracks imprinted themselves in the snow. But they weren't simple footprints: they were canine prints. Dogs? No... Wolves?
Three spirits then appeared before them. They did indeed have a lupine shape, and each bore a mark on its forehead.
Two bore a symbol consisting of a circle containing a swirl. The third bore a symbol made of three circles: one large and two smaller ones, all stacked and aligned. It was also slightly larger than the other two.
The three wolves had white fur, but a bluish aura served as a reminder that they were spirits and not truly alive.
The two wolves bearing the swirl symbol stepped forward toward the children and sniffed Itoî and Uyan. Their scent intrigued them.
"That's... That's a rather special scent. Chief, I think they're part of us."
Hearing this, the large wolf stepped forward to sniff them as well. Its predatory pupils dilated, and it seemed stunned.
"They're... They're..."
"Yes, Chief, they are indeed descendants of ours. Their fate seems tragic, and their current situation doesn't look any better. Given that they're in the illusory season, it's impossible for them to survive on their own. Should we help them?"
The large wolf thought for a moment. It looked at the poor children, who seemed exhausted. It was probably only a matter of time before they died.
"Very well. Exceptionally, I agree to help these little ones. But if they find themselves in a dire situation again, I won't be able to change their fate. Let's stop this blizzard and summon a fire on the branches laid on the ground so the little ones can warm up. We won't change the season, however. It's up to them to overcome this trial, which is now much easier."
The other two wolves nodded.
"A presence isn't far from here," one of the wolves said.
"Is it hostile?" the large wolf asked.
"No."
"Good. Then, to work."
The wolf spirits vanished, howling. The fire ignited as if by magic, and the storm gradually stopped.
Uyan woke up to the crackling of the fire. He rubbed his eyes, then slowly opened them.
"Hmm... Itoî, can you keep it down?" he said, half asleep.
"Oh... Huh? How is this possible? We have fire, Itoî! We have fire!" Uyan exclaimed.
It was Itoî's turn to get up. Like his brother, he was half asleep.
"What are you talking about, Uyan... Huh? WHOA!"
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He bolted upright and started bouncing.
"We have fire!"
Itoî grabbed his little brother's hands, and they danced in a circle around the fire before cheering joyfully:
"We have fire! We have fire! We have fire! WOOHOO!
"But how did we make a fire?" Uyan asked, looking at his brother.
"I have no idea, man. Maybe this cave is really well sheltered..."
Then he pulled a face and yelled:
"BOO!"
Uyan jumped.
"AAAH!"
"Damn it, Itoî, you're such a kid!"
Itoî laughed.
"Seriously, how did we make a fire?" Uyan asked again.
"I have no idea. Aren't you the one who said not to overthink things?" Itoî replied, scratching his head.
"Yeah, but still... This is weird, man..."
Itoî picked up Uyan's armor, which he had placed near the cave entrance. As he picked it up, he noticed that the wind had calmed considerably.
He'd had trouble sleeping because of the violent howling of the wind, and now, nothing. Absolutely nothing. The snow was falling very lightly.
He stepped outside briefly and raised his hand, palm facing the sky.
"Even the snow calmed down..."
Uyan ran to the cave entrance.
"What are you doing? It's freezing outsi— Huh? The wind is completely gone! And the snow... It's barely falling..."
Itoî looked at his brother with a smile, then said:
"I have no idea, but it's a good thing! Let's get some sleep, then we'll try to find Vars, okay?"
Uyan was pumped. He replied enthusiastically:
"Yeah! I'd say our chances are pretty good now!"
Itoî nodded, then handed Uyan his armor. He put it back on and almost felt like he was in a house with a freshly lit fireplace.
"Paaah... That feels good..." he said.
"You bet, hahaha!" Itoî laughed.
"Alright, let's hit the sack!" Itoî continued.
The two boys went back to sleep peacefully.
A few hours later, morning arrived. The two boys got up without putting out the fire, in case they needed to come back here at night.
They each grabbed a stick, lit the tip, and headed for the exit. They couldn't believe their eyes when the sun's rays hit them.
"Whoa, wait... How is this possible?" Uyan asked, completely astonished.
Itoî shrugged. He knew no more than his brother. The torches were useless after all, since the sun was already shining.
"Uyan, by the way, didn't you carve marks on the trees on the way here?" Itoî asked.
"Right. I did it right after you put me down. I didn't tell you because I wasn't sure it would work, but I marked some trees with a small knife I found in the garden when the assassins attacked us. I was actually going to try to defend Mom with it..." he said, looking a bit defeated.
"I know. That's stupid enough already, no need to remind me."
Itoî smiled at his brother, then said:
"Not at all! I'm almost... uh... admiring?" He scratched his head like a dope.
"Admiring?" Uyan offered.
"Yeah, there we go! Bingo! Admiring! I mean, it's true: I didn't know what to do, while you jumped straight into action."
Itoî seemed to be encouraging his brother. After all, the young boy who lacked self-confidence was starting to come into his own.
Uyan blushed for a moment, then said:
"A-Anyway! Let's go!"
Then he started walking funny, hands on his hips. He looked like a little wooden soldier.
Itoî laughed and said:
"Yes, sir, yes, sir!"
He brought his hand to his forehead in a military salute.
The two boys moved forward and indeed found trees marked with a faint line. Up close, it looked like an arrow, probably meant to indicate the direction they had come from.
"I found one," Uyan said.
Itoî ran over to his brother, looked at the tree, and saw the mark.
"Alright, let's go!"
Their bellies growled loudly, and they said simultaneously:
"I'm so hungrrry..."
"If only there was food around here..." Itoî said, desperate.
"Actually, there might be," Uyan replied, examining the trees carefully.
"Wait, look! Aren't those some kind of fruits?" he continued, pointing at a greenish fruit.
"Yeah! Looks like it! Let me climb up!" Itoî said, starting to scale the tree.
"Don't fall, okay!" Uyan called out.
Itoî seemed to have a knack for climbing trees. The boys used to have contests to see who could climb the fastest, and Vars always won.
Itoî started running out of breath but managed to grab the fruit.
"Woohoo!" he cheered.
Unfortunately, he slipped and fell.
"AAAAAAH!!!" Itoî screamed.
"No! Itoî!" Uyan cried.
A shadow leapt to catch the young boy and landed with precision.
"Yo!"
Both boys' eyes went wide, then they screamed simultaneously:
"Vars?! Is that you?!"
"Yep!" he replied with a smile.
"I found you guys pretty quick thanks to my new friend," he said, thumbing at what was behind him.
A gigantic shadow was hiding behind the trees.