Chapter 7: Our Frozen Exile

Aine awoke from her dreamless slumber. Aine looked around; the gremlin was knitting in the corner, and Abaddon was nowhere to be seen. There were skewers of meat being cooked on the campfire.

As Aine got up, the gremlin turned its back and greeted her.

"Good morning, Mistress, Is there anything you want?" it asked.

"Water would be nice," said Aine.

The gremlin rushed to the buckets, filled a cup of water, and handed it to Aine. The cup was made of a rock that the gremlin somehow made into the cup. Aine drank the water.

"Hey gremlin, where is Abaddon?" she asked.

"He said he was mapping out the area around the cave more accurately," it replied.

"Why would he do that?" asked Aine.

The gremlin proceeded to explain the whole situation about Obice's Barrier to Aine.

"So, we're trapped here?" Asked Aine.

"For now, but I'm sure the master has a plan up his sleeve," confirmed the gremlin.

"What about my magic training?" Asked Aine again.

"I'm sure the master has no plan to go against his promise."

Aine then took one of the cooked skewers of meat and ate it. As she was eating, she began thinking about the gravity of the situation.

She just kept on thinking and thinking until, eventually, Abaddon would return with some timber. The gremlin would greet Abaddon as Abaddon crouched down to the gremlin's height; they were whispering something.

The gremlin immediately rushed to its corner of the cave, where he was knitting, and took out a coat of sorts.

"What's that?" Asked Aine.

"It's a coat that I will infuse with the power of fire," answered Abaddon.

Abaddon lifted his right hand, and it lit on fire. The gremlin gave Abaddon the coat, and he began burning it. Aine looked at the burning coat with a mesmerized look.

The power of fire was slowly seeping into the coat. As the flame raged around the coat, it began to darken and blacken. Soon after, it even began to glow red as the fire around it turned black. The fire soon turned invisible to the eye, but the heat it emanated raged on.

The coat that was once only enough to cover someone's top lengthened. It lengthened in size, and now it can even cover all the way down to their legs. It started resembling more of a dress or a trench coat, and the fur around the neck puffed up, like the ones on a faux fur coat, but everything else looked relatively thin.

Finally, the heat from the invisible fire dissipated, revealing a beautiful black trench coat with a puffed-up scarf built in.

"And this is for you," said Abaddon.

Aine grabbed the floating coat and held it in her hands. It looked like it was made from a very rough material from a distance, but actually holding it tells a different story. It was soft-perhaps the softest thing Aine had encountered in this world.

"Mistress Aine, please don't forget the boots I made you," said the gremlin.

The boots were not really boots; they were a pair of winter heels fit for a true mistress. The sleeve of the heels reached all the way up to her knee; it was black in color. The material on the inside was also very soft and kept her foot warm.

She tried the boots on, and it felt very natural for Aine. The heels were not too high to the point that they immobilized her, but high enough to notice.

The gremlin also handed Aine new undergarments.

Aine looked at the one-piece undergarment. It was a sleeveless, silky black onesie that didn't expose the cleavage and had a turtleneck. It had a bra built in and doubled as a pantyhose that reached all the way down to her toes. It was not translucent; it was opaque and tight. But it had no zippers or buttons.

Aine looked at the undergarment with a confused look.

"Where did you get this?" asked Aine.

"It's a royal demon's undergarment; all the female demons wear it. Not only does it provide armor, it also mirror's the wearer's personality," answered Abaddon.

"What do you mean by mirror?"

"If a succubus were to wear this, it would change its form to show more cleavage," said Abaddon.

"So, it can be whatever I want?" asked Aine.

"Yes, Lady Aine," said Abaddon.

Aine was both intrigued and scared.

"So, how do I wear it?" asked Aine.

"You just put it on your body, like push your body against it," answered Abaddon.

Aine stared at them both with the classic 'What the fuck did I just hear' face.

"We'll be over there, tell us how it fits," said Abaddon as he left for the entrance of the cave with the gremlin.

Aine looked to make sure they weren't looking at her and began to strip. She took the peculiar undergarment and pressed it up against her body. The undergarment began ripping its own cloth and wrapping itself around Aine. Once it fitted itself around Aine's body, it restitched itself and became one again.

It locked tightly on Aine's body. It felt a lot cooler than before she was wearing it; the suit was adapting to match the current temperature to make her feel as comfortable as possible. The undergarment even slipped right inside the boots and covered her feet.

The form of the undergarment didn't really change like how Abaddon described it. It only reduced the turtleneck by a slight margin. Other than that, it still showed no cleavage and was sleeveless.

"Are you done dressing, Lady Aine?" asked Abaddon.

"Pretty much," she answered.

"The best part about the undergarment is that you don't have to wash it," said Abaddon.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I don't know how it works but you don't have to wash it."

Aine put on the coat, and it fit her like a glove. She buttoned up the coat, and Abaddon went around the corner. She fastened the built-in belt of the coat and wore the necklace Abaddon gave her as that happened.

"See, it looks great," complimented Abaddon.

"T-Thanks," said Aine shyly.

Aine was slightly blushing and walking around awkwardly.

"Anyways, do you want to begin with the magic training?" offered Abaddon.

"Really?" asked Aine passionately.

"Of course, let's go outside," said Abaddon.

"Outside?"

Abaddon walked outside and into the blizzard. He immediately disappeared the moment he stepped out, showing how dense the snowstorm was. Aine hesitated; she didn't want to walk out. The blizzard was also deafening; she thought they wouldn't be able to hear each other.

"Come on, Lady Aine, it'll be okay," shouted Abaddon from outside.

"No! I refuse!" said Aine.

The gremlin then pushed Aine into the blizzard. Aine tripped and fell into the snow. But it wasn't as cold as before. The gremlin stayed behind in the cave.

"Huh, this is warmer than I remembered," said Aine.

"It's the clothes," said Abaddon as he reached his hand out for Aine.

"Is this undergarment really that strong?" asked Aine as she got up with the help of Abaddon.

"Well, no, but it comes close; the coat has cold resistance," said Abaddon.

Aine thought of something.

"Couldn't we just walk down the mountain like this?" asked Aine.

"No, the blizzard will keep weakening the magic in the coat that keeps you warm. It'll take 4 hours, but the closest base camp is about a day's walk away," said Abaddon.

"Can't you just turn into a bird again and ask for help?" asked Aine.

"The blizzard is preventing me from transforming; even if I do, it'll be too hard to fly in this condition," said Abaddon.

Aine followed Abaddon down the slope. Weirdly enough, the blizzard was thinner today. She wondered what that's about.

"Alright, this is far enough from the cave," said Abaddon. "Alright, I will teach you fire magic, since it's the magic I know best," he continued.

"Just wondering, do you have any other magic?"

"Lightning and Curse, but at this moment, I really wish I had invested in Ice magic," said Abaddon jokingly.

Aine laughed and humored Abaddon.

"Anyways, let's start with the most basic fire magic: a fireball," said Abaddon.

"Okay, how do I do that?" asked Aine.

"Observe," said Abaddon.

Abaddon drew one of his arms out and opened his palm. "Focus on the tip of your fingers; imagine what the fireball will look like," he said. His hand began to glow red, and fire began accumulating inside his palm. It formed the shape of a baseball. He then threw the baseball-sized fireball, and they watched it explode mid-air.

"That's a fireball; now you try, Lady Aine," said Abaddon.

"Uhm, sure, and also, you can stop calling me 'Lady Aine'," she said.

"What do you mean?" asked Abaddon.

"Just call me Aine; drop the formalities; if anything, I should be calling you master," said Aine.

"No, don't call me master; you showed me the light; it's only fair I have respect for you."

"But you don't have to refer to me as a lady; I'm pretty much a nobody," said Aine.

Abaddon sighed and said, "Alright, if that is what you want, I will drop the formalities. Just Aine from now on."

"Thank you; anyway, let's try this fireball."

Attempt after attempt, hour after hour, and nothing-not even a spark of fire. As Aine kept on going, Abaddon was collecting wood from the nearby trees. Until it was time to come back, Aine was starting to get chilly.

"We should head back for now," said Abaddon as he carried logs.

"Yeah..." said Aine with a depressed tone.

They walked back up the slope and back into the cave. The gremlin was there to greet them enthusiastically. It even prepared dinner. As Aine sat by the campfire, eating her skewered meat, she began doubting her abilities. Meanwhile, Abaddon was using his sword to cut the logs he brought in; it seems he was making something.

Aine felt a bit depressed, but that was only day one; there was still time. Abaddon even tried to comfort her, saying, "Maybe since the blizzard weakens magic, it's harder to cast your fireball; all you have to do is show that blizzard who's boss."

"We'll go again tomorrow," said Abaddon.

"Tomorrow? But wouldn't I be cold, since it weakens the warming effect?" asked Aine.

As long as we don't stay in there for too long, it shouldn't result in permanent harm to our equipment, according to Abaddon, who explained that magic only becomes weaker when it is buffeted by the blizzard.

"And is this cave safe?" asked Aine.

"Yes, just make sure to stay warm by the fire."

The next day, Aine and Abaddon would go out once again. Aine diligently kept trying to cast the fireball while Abaddon gathered more wood. No fireballs were cast that day, and they returned to the cave. Aine tried to stay optimistic.

The day after, Aine would still fail to cast a fireball; she was doing all the steps correctly, but nothing was showing. Abaddon collected even more logs, and they were beginning to pile up outside the cave. They returned for the day, where Aine's hope just kept on dwindling.

Abaddon remained outdoors; he built an improved wood storage area outside the cave. Now, instead of just putting the logs in random order, they are stored more securely.

As Aine slept, Abaddon just kept on building. Whatever he was building, it must be big if it needs that much wood.

Days pass, to no avail. One week later, Aine and Abaddon began training early. The depressed Aine kept on trying to cast the fireball. Instead of gathering wood today, Abaddon supervised Aine's development. Though he was still giving her the benefit of the doubt, Abaddon started to believe that it was simply not meant to be.

Aine got frustrated.

"Why can't I do it?" asked Aine in a mad tone.

"Aine..." said Abaddon.

"Why can't I do it? I'm doing everything perfectly!" said Aine.

"Aine, maybe it's just not meant to be," said Abaddon.

Aine squated on the snow and began crying.

"Why, why, why, why?" she kept repeating.

Her tears froze immediately the moment they left her eyes. She sobbed and sobbed, hitting the snow with her gloveless hands. Abaddon got down on one knee next to her to comfort her.

"Come on, Aine, cheer up," said Abaddon.

She kept on crying and mumbling words; she was genuinely heartbroken from failing over and over again. She shouted out of frustration and continued to cry.

Abaddon could not help but also get slightly emotional; however, this emotional moment was cut short by a tremor. The ground began to shake. Aine stopped crying and began looking around.

"Aine, stay close," said Abaddon as he stood up.

Abaddon looked up the slope of the mountain in hopes of finding a clue to what was happening. Unfortunately, the thick blizzard and the dark surroundings made it impossible to look around.

The ground began quaking more violently, and a loud crashing noise followed.

"Aine, get behind me!" ordered Abaddon.

"Why? What's going on?" asked Aine in a panicked tone.

"Avalanche, quickly!" shouted Abaddon.

Aine got behind Abaddon, he pulled out his sword and formed a barrier in front of them, the same barrier from the Ryujin fight. "King Shield!" he shouted.

Just then, the snow in the metric tons collapsed and blasted its way in their direction. Abaddon was clinging on for dear life, resisting the impact of the avalanche.

Just when Abaddon thought he could hold the avalanche back, the ground under them began to also slide off. Aine began to panic more and more as Abaddon was starting to lose his footing, causing his barrier to falter.

It's now or never for Aine; she didn't want to die. She began trying to cast a fireball, as if it would help, but she was powerless at the moment, so she did the only thing she could think of.

She began focusing her energy and praying. Suddenly, a red glow appeared before her eyes. A tiny red fireball appeared on her hands. She knows it isn't powerful enough, but with nothing else to do, she attempts to lob the fireball over Abaddon's barrier and onto the oncoming avalanche.

She readied herself, but before she could throw the fireball, a loud, heavenly-sounding bell could be heard echoing over the mountain range.

"That bell," she said to herself.

Just as the echoes of the bell ended, the fireball once in her hands turned blue and began enveloping her right arm with fire. There was no burning sensation; her eyes glowed blue, and the veins on her left arm also began to glow blue.

"Please, protect me," she said.

She raised her right fist to the sky, and the fire that was once enveloping her arm blasted skyward. It accumulated into one gigantic fireball that had a blue aura but was black in color.

The gigantic fireball exploded and released an ungodly amount of energy. The blast repelled the avalanche away, causing it to go back up the mountain while the blizzard was temporarily pushed away and the sky glowed like the sun was never gone. Weirdly, it did not hurt Abaddon or Aine.

The snow that they were standing on evaporated immediately, revealing rocky terrain. Abaddon looked around him with awe; he had never seen the world so bright.

Abaddon looked at Aine. "I have no idea what you just did, but I think I am even more indebted to you now," he said.

After the bright light vanished, it became dark once more. The blizzard returned soon after, as it was only temporarily pushed back.

"Now then, I don't even know how to comment on that, so I won't even try; do you at least know how to recreate that?" asked Abaddon.

"I hope," said Aine.

Aine felt accomplished in herself; she felt strong-perhaps a little too strong. Nonetheless, they both walked back to the cave and chatted along the way about this experience.

Abaddon could barely believe what he had just witnessed, and neither could Aine. Aine's worries about not being able to do magic dissipated.