Winterheart

Chapter 1

Departure


Minerva took one last look over the books arrayed before her, confirming the portal's location. The coordinates were vague, if they weren't wrong entirely. Probably to prevent widespread knowledge of the temple near it. However, by cross-referencing it with other records, she had narrowed it down to a single area. Admittedly a fairly large area, but she wasn't in any hurry. The temple (and portal) had been there for ages, and would likely remain for many more.

Stepping away from her desk, she dressed. Smooth silk shirt under a tough corset, a sensible knee-length skirt, and thick boots. Every part of this outfit was magical, whether crafted herself or conjured with a Wish.

In addition to the clothes, she attached a small bag (actually a bag of holding) to her waist, along with several magic items attached to her stylishly. After a brief moments thought, she lifted up her skirt and attached a band holding a sheath to her thigh, placing a magical dagger in it. She looked over what else was in her room, and decided to place several of her favorite or unread books into the Bag of Holding.

She looked herself over in the mirror. Minerva beheld a girl who looked far more confident than she usually was. Her outfit was a far cry from the long concealing dresses she normally wore. However, the was the slight hint of nervousness in those eyes.

The stories painted adventurers as such a daring bunch. Her appearance seemed quite tame, compared to the depictions of adventurer outfits she had seen. She wondered if she should unbutton her part of shirt to show of her cleavage, like many female adventurers liked to do. She was in the middle of considering it, when she heard a knock at the door to her quarters.

She strode over to open it. Standing before her was a tall, bald, pale-skinned man. Despite his intimidating appearance, he looked sad and worried. "So, your really leaving."

"Yes." Minerva said. "I am."

Her father sighed.

"You and I know there's no real reason for me to stay. I don't have any duties that would be missed, I never really fit in with any of my siblings, and I've always wanted to learn more. More than I can staying here. So don't ask me to stay." Minerva said.

"That's not why I'm here."

"Then what do you want?" Minerva demanded.

"What all parents should want. Their children to be happy."

Minerva felt a tugging in her heart.

"I'm not asking you to stay. It's clear that keeping you here would make you miserable. I just ask that when out there, be careful, don't act rashly."

"I'll be fine dad." Minerva said. "I'm as good as, if not better at combat than the others."

"I know, it's just the nature of a parent to worry." He said.

"I know, thanks."

"Just remember, that no matter where you're journey takes you, you'll always have a home back here. I love you,"

Minerva embraced her father. "I love you too."

Her father nodded as they let go. "Farewell."

Minerva tapped into her magic, using this particular ability for the first time. Her vision blurred, and everything turned silvery-white.

Minerva found herself flying in an endless blue sky, once the magic ended. The sight was completely new and alien to Minerva, who had only rarely been outside the cavern where her hometown was located. However, the Plane of Air was not her destination, merely a midway point. She activated her dimensional travel abilities again, returning to a different location on Paraelemental Ice.

After the brief moment of silver-white, Minerva reappeared on the side of a mountain. A fierce blizzard raged, though it was no impediment to her, visual or otherwise. She actually felt more at home among the freezing cold and blasting snow.

Minerva surveyed her location. She wasn't too far actually. The temple near the portal was strong in magic and would prevent any sort of teleportation towards the area near it. She was lucky, the planeshift had dropped her not too far outside that area. Minerva effortlessly skated her down the mountain, gracefully gliding atop the snow.

She kept sliding for a good half-hour. The glacial mountain, Mount Thrym, was large, even for an Inner Plane. It was named as such because of the large population of Frost Giants, who referred to themselves as Jotuns. Minerva hadn't encountered anyone on her way down, and she hoped this continued. Jotuns were known for their aggressive, warlike nature. They wouldn't hesitate to attack.

Unfortunately, this was not to be the case. As Minerva skated down the mountain, she rounded a mound of ice, only to run smack into the middle of what appeared to be a war camp.

"Huh?" An Ice Genasi clad in robes turned from where he had been conversing with a mephit. "Intruder!"

The large camp consisted of Ice Paramentals, Frost Giants, Ice Mephits, Ice Genasi, and even an Ice Flenser. Cryonax's forces. Wonderful...

Minerva was about to planeshift away, when several Ice Elementals emerged from the snow, surrounding her.

"Wait! Hold it!" The genasi wizard approached. "You don't seem like an attacker."

"She doesn't?" Asked an elemental.

"Why else would this Genasi come gallivanting into our camp unarmed?"

"I guess..."

The wizard paced around Minerva, examining her. "Now then. You're a pretty one. Did Halfax send you as reinforcements?"

"Y-yes."

"Nice!" The genasi spanked her playfully, and then started fondling her butt.

Minerva stiffened, before relenting. Play along. Until an opportunity presents itself.

The wizard wrapped his arm around her waist. "Why don't we retire to my tent, to discuss things in... private."

Minerva suppressed the urge to shudder, and followed him. As she did so, she considered her options. She could Plane Shift, though that would immediately raise suspicion, and she wasn't sure if the wizard didn't have some method of following her or negating it. Judging from the Paramentals rising up from beneath her, they had the area beneath the camp patrolled as well. If she tried to fly, they would just shoot her down. They probably had something to detect invisible attackers, so invisibility was right out. However, the wizard had called her a Genasi, meaning he didn't know she was a full-blooded genie. There might be something...

"What are you thinking about?" The wizard asked.

"Oh!" Now she was put on the spot. Perhaps... "I need a to know how far you've progressed on you're mission."

"Damn, why are you thinking about that when we could be having the time of our lives?"

Minerva didn't want to think about what this man meant by that. "Business before pleasure."

"Well if you must know." The wizard sighed. "We've located Snowheart Temple, in a cave near the base of the mountain. The door's sealed, but last I heard they were making progress on that."

Minerva swore internally. If the portal wasn't too far from where the Temple entrance was, she could run smack into an even larger amount of Cryonax's minions.

"Good! Now where were we!" Damn, that probably sounded too eager.

"Right this way!" Apparently, he didn't pick up on it.

He lead her to a fairly large tent. By the looks of the structure, this was a long term camp. He opened the flap, gesturing her inside.

"I've activated some incense stones! Rare, expensive, soothing. Damn do I need it!"

Minerva rarely bothered to breathe, so she couldn't tell. Still, playing along she asked. "Rough day?"

"You have no idea" The wizard asked. "Everyone out there? Bunch of fucking idiots. Had to keep everyone in line, all the live long day. Without me, this whole place would fall apart. That's not to mention all the annoyances from those mephit traders."

"Sounds rough."

"Damn. I totally wish I could just forget all of it. And with you, I just might!"

There! Minerva recognized the request for what it was. She felt the sheer thrill that ran through her as she invoked the most powerful of magics. The wizards eyes widened as realization swept over him, but it was too late. His eyes dulled, and he looked around in confusion. She wondered if she should have said some sort of one-liner, but nothing good came to mind. While he was still trying to get his bearings right, Minerva took the opportunity to transform herself into an Ice Mephit, feeling her body shrink down, and wings sprout from her back. Her nose grew longer, and her fingers became claws. Her clothes vanished (making her feel slightly embarrassed), though the wizard didn't seem to care.

The wizard fully came to, and looked at her. "Alright, you'll be delivering my message to the temple base now, right?"

"Yes." Mephit-Minerva said, her voice taking on the typical screechy pitch of a mephit.

"Don't screw this up, we've had two messengers get lost already, I'd go tell them myself if teleport worked, and I could afford to leave the bumbling fools here alone."

Minerva only nodded, and flew out of the tent flap. The others in the camp didn't give her a seconds thought, and she flew off, away.

Once she was a safe distance from the camp, Minerva shifted back to her normal form and returned to skating down the mountain towards the temple. She smiled to herself. Well handled. I may be better at this adventuring thing than I thought!

Then she happened to look up, and her heart sank. Above her she could see a robed figure flying straight towards her. Or not. Almost immediately, Minerva turned invisible, hoping to evade them. No dice. The wizard still flew towards her, unerringly.

She stopped, ice forming around her hands as she prepared to fight. However, as the figure approached, it turned out to not be the wizard she had duped. First of all, they were female. She had very long blue hair done in twin-tails. She wore a bright blue outfit that seemed to blur the line between robe and dress. It was cut so extremely low that were it not obviously magical, a single slip could expose more of her (very large, Minerva noted) breasts than just cleavage. She had detatched sleeves that came past her hands, though sliding back when she moved them to wave. The entire outfit had runes that flowed into it, that subtly changed position when Minerva didn't focus on them.

Though this wasn't the genasi wizard, this was clearly a woman of magic. Perhaps she was allied with him? Though if she was, she could have attacked with spells as a much longer distance. Whatever her purpose, best to go in ready for a fight. The ice surrounding Minerva's hands reshaped itself, forming into a scimitar.

The woman didn't show any signs of hostility as she approached, even when Minerva brandished the ice sword, dropping into a fighting stance.

"Who are you?" She demanded, hoping she sounded intimidating.

"Um? I come in peace?" the woman said. She gave a gentle smile that put Minerva at ease. However, Minerva couldn't be sure it wasn't a trap. The woman slowly approached. Minerva took a better look at her, now that she was even closer. Though pale, her skin tones were still in the range of a humans. However, looking at the way she walked across the snow unhindered, without making a sound implied she wasn't entire mortal. A half-breed perhaps?

"Who are you?" Minerva demanded again, though now that she heard the phrase repeated again, couldn't believe that she was intimidating. Perhaps she should shapeshift into something more frightening. Or...

Minerva performed yet another form shift. This time, she grew in size, until she stood a good ten feet taller than the woman.

"Relax, I mean you no harm. I'm not with Cryonax." Said the woman. The woman's tone was warm and friendly, and once again, seemed to reassure Minerva. She hesitated, before shrinking down to her smaller form. She didn't drop her guard however.

"Then who are you?"

"My name is Elise. You might have heard about me." Said the woman.

"Why would I know you?"

The woman paused. "You might know me by one of my titles. Mistress of Cold and Death? Winterqueen?"

If it were possible for Minerva to turn paler, she would.

"The W-Winterqueen?"

"So you have heard of me!" The Winterqueen said with a smile.

Minerva backed away, hastily scanning the area for an escape route. Maybe she could plane shift- no, she's probably already anchored the area. Maybe.

"Is something wrong? You seem upset." The Winterqueen looked perplexed.

"You're the Winterqueen! I've read about you! Why would I not be afraid?" Crap, bad idea. The reply just came so automatic.

The Winterqueen sighed, placing her fingers to her temples. "I understand. Let me guess. You've read a book, long and overly verbose, entitled Magics of the Inner Planes and it's Practitioners: A Guide to the Mystic Arts of the Elements, and Detailed Guide to it's Wielders in Addition to Methods of Counterattack Should One Encounter Them, written by one Valthrush, Master of the Elements, Heir to the Versanian Order, Champion of the Suffocation Wars, ect."

"Er... yes." Minerva said.

"In which I'm descibed as a, and I quote, 'bloodthirsty despot, leading an army of the living dead in a brutal war against any she sees fit to make suffer'."

"Er... yes." Minerva said.

"Would you like to know that Valthrush is in fact a egotistical, self-absorbed wizard, who's more concerned with promoting his own 'genius' than actually writing honestly. Who also, appears to have a personal vendetta against me, for reasons I have yet to learn?"

"Um... Sorry?" Minerva said, akwardly.

"No, it's not you're fault. Just always be careful about what you read. There's a lot of books out there full of nonsense. It can be difficult to verify what's accurate and whats not. But I can assure you I'm not like what Valthrush makes me out to be."

"Oh... So, what do you do then?"

"I mostly teach, nowadays. I own and operate the Dragonspire Academy of Magic."

"Where's that?" Minerva asked, she'd never heard of such a place, and she knew almost everything there was to know about her home plane.

"Not on Ice. Actually, it's on a Prime world called Valoris. Perhaps you've heard of it?"

"Some. I've never been to the Prime Material though. It's a plane of little worlds floating in a void, separated by crystal spheres, right?"

"Something like that."

"So what do you want with me" Minerva asked.

"I saw your encounter with Cryonax's forces. Very well handled, actually."

"Er, thanks."

"Where exactly are you headed, though?" Elise asked.

"There's a portal to Sigil at the bottom of this mountain." Minerva explained.

"Why Sigil?"

"Well, I want to become an adventurer."

"How?"

"Umm... What?"

"How? Are you going to sign up at the 'Adventurers HQ'? Are you going to hand them a resume?"

"I don't understand what you're saying?"

"Did you really think this through? Adventurer isn't really a career choice, now is it? Most people who end up becoming adventurers are forced into their situation, through circumstances entirely out of their control. They don't usually choose to adventure now. Most people who choose the path of their own free will have no idea what they're getting themselves into, and more often than not, end up dying early on, to a whole number of possible threats. I myself, only became an adventure after several incidents forced me to."

Minerva tried to speak up at the pause, though Elise continued before she could say anything.

"And, adventuring isn't as glamorous or exciting as the bards and books make it out to be. It's a harsh, dangerous, often traumatic and short life. Dungeon delving especially, what with deadly traps and violent monsters. And dungeons aren't even the most dangerous environments out there. Far many more adventures die to these threats than those that overcome them. So, why seek it out, Minerva?"

She knows my name?! Minerva was shocked, but this woman was a powerful wizard. A basic name wouldn't be anything difficult for her to obtain. "What about you're school?" Minerva countered. "What about all your students?"

"I don't train them to be adventures. I can count on maybe two hands the number of my students who have become what one would term an 'adventurer'. The majority use their magic for more basic purposes. Getting chores done, supporting themselves, 'wage mage' positions. Maybe a few join the town guard, or patrols around the area, but those rarely see any actual combat. Their magic is used to making a living, supporting themselves and their families. Which brings me to another question. Why leave?"

"What?"

"Why leave your hometown? You have a comfortable life, a loving family, an roof over your head, security from harm, and though you don't need it, reliable food, and a place to rest your head. Do you know how valuable that actually is? Do you know how many people in the multiverse have to constantly worry about where their next meal is coming from, or whether the person next to them will stab them and steal their belongings? Why leave all that behind, exchanged for painful experiences, more enemies than you can keep track of, dangerous environments, threats around every corner, and a constant fear of injury, death, or worse?" Elise finally stopped her lecture, and looked at Minerva, expectantly.

Minerva opened her mouth to reply, but realized she had nothing to say. She paused, and thought. More than once she looked back up at Elise, who appeared to have all the patience in the world, as she waited for Minerva to come up with an answer. Was this a test? Perhaps...

"I want to help make the world a better place. All that suffering you've described. I want to bring it to an end. That's why I want to adventure."

"How?"

"Huh?"

"How do you plan on going about this?"

"I-I'm a genie. I can grant Wishes. We use that power to feed and support our mortal subjects!"

"Which works on the planes where the genies are in power. Elsewhere, not so much. You try to do something like that on the Prime Material, maybe it works for a while, but then someone powerful gets wind of whats going on, and immediately moves to claim you for themselves. Genies are often bound like this, you must be aware."

"Um... yes."

"Even on the Paraplane of Ice, this happens in a way. Cryonax is the dominant force on this plane, and he hunts down any Qorrash he can find, enslaving them for their Wish abilities. Why do you think your people live underground?"

"I-"

"But it won't stop there. Once he has you, you'll be tortured until you're forced to give up the location of your hometown. Then he invades, capturing and enslaving all the residents. Then he tortures them, to see if they know the locations of any other settlements."

"I can handle Cryonax's forces! You just saw me do that!" Minerva insisted.

"You got lucky. The people manning that camp were idiots. But counting on luck is a sure way to bring yourself to ruin. I've fought against Cryonax for years. He may look like a brute, but he's far more cunning and dangerous than he lets on. Many of his followers are the same. The camp at the base of the mountain. Far too dangerous. They would see through any disguise you try, and then you'd be captured."

Minerva's heart sank. She looked towards the ground, too afraid to meet Elise's eyes. Everything she had wanted to do, everything, gone!

"I-"

"What? Speak up."

"I can't turn back! All those problems you've described. If people just keep saying that it's too dangerous, it's never going to get solved. Nothings going to change if everyone's too afraid to even try to stop being afraid. Yes, I've been sheltered and spoiled. So what?! I want to change. I want to help. I know about Cryonax, even if I didn't tell my family. They all talk big and boast of their power, but the idea of standing up to Cryonax never crosses their minds! We all live in fear of him, but we never try to do anything about it? So I might not know much about adventuring, but you do! Why not teach me what you know?! Why else are you talking to me?"

Elise's expression became unreadable. For a few seconds, Minerva feared she had done something wrong.

Then the wizardess smiled. "Well said."

"Wait, what?"

"I'd say that's a lesson well learned." Elise said.

"So this was a test!" Minerva exclaimed.

"Of a sorts. I needed to be sure you knew what you're getting yourself into. You don't, but you're willing to learn. Gods know that's a rare trait."

"So what now?"

"We get moving. You were headed to Sigil originally, right?"

"Yes."

"I may have something you can help with there. I'll take you to the portal."

Elise took off flying, gesturing for Minerva to follow. She took off into the air after her.

"So, what kind of adventures have you been on? Where have you been?"

"Oh, all over. I think I've been to every major plane at least once. I do spend a lot of time here though."

"Do you have a home here?" Minerva asked.

"I have a tower up in the Glistening Crystal where I do some of my research, actually."

"That's kind of an odd place to build one. You want seclusion?"

"Yes. The place is dangerous to both denizens of Lightning and Ice, so it's only sparsely traveled. Cryonax's forces won't risk going there, leaving me free to do what I want. I'm thinking of opening a second school there... Oh here we are!"

The camp at the base of the mountain came into view. Unlike the previous camp, this one was massive, spreading out farther than she could see. Walls, made not of ice but of some sort of stone surrounded it. The place was constantly guarded. Mephits and White Dragons patrolled the skies above it, while Frost Giants, and Ice Paramentals guarded it's walls and gates. Minerva noted with some anger, that several Qorrash were among the guard as well.

"What are they doing here?"

"The temple. Cryonax must think that there's something of value inside. A lot of value, if the size of this place is to judge."

"The temple's sealed shut, though I was told that they're close to opening it."

"That was a lie. I've been keeping tabs on this place. They're no closer to opening it then when they first arrived here, but I'm not going to bet on it staying that way."

"So what do we do?"

"About this? Nothing, right now at least. Were headed to the portal to Sigil. Take my hand."

Minerva did so, as Elise cast a spell. She sank beneath the snow, with Minerva following behind her. They headed beneath the camp, where they ran into a solid stone barrier, protecting the camp from ice gliders.

"Were stuck."

"Nope!" Elise winked, and then spoke more words of magic. Tanah perubahan berair! Hantuke dalam kendala!"

Minerva felt the sensation of magic running through her. She touched the stone, and felt the same feeling that came when she phased through ice and snow. Elise floated upwards, pulling Minerva along with her. They arose in a currently empty lane of the camp. The majority of the buildings were constructed out of stone or metal.

"They plan to be here for a while." Minerva noted. "Just what exactly do they believe is in that temple?"

"Not sure, but I do have my suspicions."

"Should we stop them?"

"Not you. You'll be headed towards Sigil."

"So the portal is located in this camp?"

"Shouldn't be too hard to find." Elise said. "Perubahan tak'kelihatan Hantu Edar!"

Elise's eyes glowed briefly, and she looked around, before focusing on a direction. "That way!"

The were about to move when Minerva suddenly stopped. "Wait! Won't they recognize you?"

"No, not particularly."

"But you've spent so long fighting them!"

"Observe!" Elise placed her hand over her face. Ice flowed out from her fingertips like water soon covering her face and neck. From there it spiked out, covering various parts of her outfit, creating spikes and armor in some places. Finally, her hair moved, spiking upwards above her head. She looked completely different now, more like someone deserving of the title, Mistress of Cold and Death.

"The portal is not very far from here. We should hurry."

Even Elise's voice was different, with a strange resonant effect.

The two of them hurried through the camp, staying out of sight of various patrols. Elise led her to an alleyway between two buildings. With a gesture, a swirling portal appeared at the end of the alley.

"That portal should take you directly to Sigil. When you get there, find a woman named Malin. Tell her I sent you, and that the Star is being sought after. She'll know what I mean."

Minerva nodded. "Okay, and thanks. I never would have made it in here without you."

"Good luck. And may the Aurora's shine in your skies."

Minerva smiled, and then turned back to the portal. She hesitated for a brief few seconds. The entire multiverse lay before her, only a step away. The prospect of such possibilities was a little overwhelming. Swallowing her nervousness, she stepped into the portal, and was whisked away.


So here we are, a brand new story! Like some of the other things, this is a part of the Illusionverse, a collection of stories all tied into the Planescape setting. Chronologically, this takes place before all the others currently up, save for Knife in the Dark. You don't need to read any of the others to understand anything here (though I would recommend you read them anyways!). Also it should be noted that I'll be running the factions, Sigil, and the Planes and other things somewhat differently than how they're presented in Canon. Anyways, expect the second chapter up soon. Tell me what you think so far, leave a review!

~Dragonexx