Chapter 1: Forbidden love
The first light of dawn crept over the jagged peaks that encircled the village of Frostvale like ancient guardians.The winter lasts longer than any season in these mountains.
The mountains stood tall and imposing, their snow-capped summits catching the early morning sun, casting a golden glow that slowly spread down their rocky faces until it touched the crystalline snow blanketing the valley below.
Wisps of smoke rose from stone chimneys, stretching toward the clear blue sky as the villagers began to stir from their slumber.
Winter had tightened its grip on Frostvale, as it did every year when the northern winds swept down from the Frostspine Mountains.
The river that gave the village its name still flowed, though ice had formed along its edges, creating a delicate border of crystalline white against the dark rushing waters. The sound of the stream provided a constant melody to village life, sometimes a whisper, sometimes a roar, but always present.
Garrick stepped out of his modest wooden house, his breath forming clouds in the crisp morning air.
Though not yet old, his forty-three years had etched lines around his eyes and silvered the edges of his dark beard. He paused on his porch, stretching his broad shoulders before retrieving the axe that leaned against the door frame. The worn wooden handle fit his calloused palm perfectly, the blade recently sharpened and gleaming in the morning light.
He made his way to the small pen behind his house where two cows stood patiently, their brown hides dusted with frost.
"Come on, girls," he murmured, opening the gate.
"Time to earn your keep."
As Garrick guided his cows onto the snow-covered path that wound through the village, he spotted a familiar figure approaching from a neighbouring house.
"Ho there, Garrick!" called out Aldein, his oldest friend. Aldein was a lanky man with a perpetually amused expression, his reddish beard meticulously braided in the style of the eastern valleys. "The gods bless us with another fine day of freezing our backsides off!"