Though Shakah seemed to regard Seton with skepticism at first, she finally relented and picked him up in her talons, carrying him up from the summit and toward the hills where his village resided. Compared to the slender dragons, the wyvern was slow and bulky, but she held him securely, and gave him no reason to fear being dropped. She flew him past the mountains, then down and over the wooded hills, where with snow-crested trees cluttered the land. Then, finally, they arrived at the clearing where the village sat, and where the spike of ice still held the little house up for all to see. Once they were near enough to the outskirts, the beast dropped Seton into the soft snow before landing nearby. She lowered her head in a gesture that she gave to the Frost King, but the look in her eyes suggested that she wasn't happy to do it. Nevertheless, Seton did his best to respond in kind before turning and entering into the village.

Almost immediately, people rushed from their homes to greet him, throwing their arms around him and proclaiming their praise for his great deed. They flocked around him, each asking a different question such as "How was the journey?" or "How many dragons did you kill?" Seton tried to break free from the crowd, but every time he got close, people circled around to trap him once more. They bombarded him with questions, but he couldn't form any words save for: "I'm sorry."

When he finally managed to gently push his way out of the crowd, he was met by Nalia, who threw herself forcefully into his arms, sending him toppling over into the snow. "You did it!" she squealed. "I knew you could, I knew it! I'm so glad you're okay!" Seton remained quiet, pulling himself up to sit, with Nalia still in his arms. Her smile faded as she realized that he wasn't returning her smile. "Seton, are you alright?"

He shook his head, standing up and gently pushing her away. "I'm sorry, Nalia, but I need to speak with Chief Rorun right away. Is he in his home?"

Looking confused, Nalia replied: "No, he's at the meeting hall. He wanted to gather the people there to congratulate you. Seton, what's wrong?"

"I need to speak with him," Seton said firmly, already starting toward the meeting hall. "Tell the others not to come yet. I have to talk in private first. I'll explain later, Nalia, I'm sorry."

The woman's brow furrowed, but she nodded before looking at the crowd of people that insisted on following him. Seton glanced back to see her trying to speak with them and hold them back. "Thank you, Nalia," he called behind him before entering the large, empty meeting hall where Rorun waited.

"Seton!" he exclaimed the moment the young man entered. "Congratulations on your..." his voice faded out as Seton forcefully threw down his sack and ax and strode toward him, a dangerous look in his eye. "Seton? What's wrong with you?"

Seton didn't speak until he stood almost a foot away from the chief, intensely locking eyes with the other man. "Why do we live on this hill?" he asked, his voice calm, but firm.

"What are you on about?" Rorun replied, rapidly becoming apprehensive.

"This village. On these hills, and in this mountain range. Why are we here?"

"Seton, you know why. Good soil. Thriving goats, and plentiful game. Seton, what's going on, here?"

"The valley below. Why don't we live down there?"

"Famine drove us out. Where the hell is this coming from?"

Seton narrowed his eyes, his hands clenching tightly into fists. "Did you know about the pact between the humans and the Frost King?"

Rorun's eyes widened for a moment before narrowing to match Seton's stare. "How do you know that?" he whispered.

"The Frost King told me."

Rorun's teeth clenched as he raised his hands to grip Seton's collar. "You spoke with that monster?" he snapped, his voice rising, but slightly restrained. "You were sent to kill it, not talk to it!"

"Tell me," Seton hissed. "Why did you choose to break that pact?"

"Me?" Rorun snapped back incredulously. "It was my father who ran out the dragons, and his father who moved our people up into these hills."

"And you never moved us back down. You chose to continue breaking the agreement. And I want to know why! Was it for the land? The food? The legacy of your filthy fathers!?"

"My fathers saved us!" Rorun shouted, the rage in his voice now front-and-center. "They saved us all, and I'll continue that work until the day I die! We were the ones who saw our people suffering about it and did something! We ran off the dragons because we knew it was us or them, and we had starving women and children on the brink of death! And we won! We won, and we took this land as our own, and if you hadn't failed in your duties, we'd have claim to all of these mountains! Whose side are you on, Seton? The side of the dragons that want us dead, or the innocent lives we still have to protect?"

"Do you know what I saw at the summit, Rorun?" Seton said, his voice still low.

"Whose side are you on!?" Rorun screamed again.

"I saw carvings depicting so many beasts that no human army could ever match them. I saw three terrible behemoths--rulers over the dragons, of which the Frost King was one. And I saw depictions of the god of all dragons. Do you know what happens if we kill the Frost King, Rorun?" Rorun opened his mouth to protest, but was cut off by Seton. "Do you know what happens!?" The sound of Seton's shout was sudden and deafening, causing Rorun to shut his eyes tightly as spit splattered onto his face.

"You've gone mad," Rorun growled, still reeling from the massive sound. "Even if they came, you'd have already killed one. How would one or two others be any different? You're the mightiest man this village has ever seen--practically born to slay beasts none of the rest of us can. What, do you doubt your own strength? Do you doubt the training we gave you? We raised you to be the best! Why are you acting like a coward now? Do you remember the debt you owe us!?" He was becoming frantic, and Seton could tell.

"So you did raise me just for this," Seton replied. "As far back as I can remember, you've been placing a weapon in my hand and sending me to go kill one creature or another. It was so perfect, wasn't it? You could point your finger and send me out, and I would go and make your problems disappear. And you never had to pay me, or worry about me complaining, because you knew I knew it was just me paying off some debt held over my head. Is that right?"

Rorun didn't respond immediately, seemingly searching for words before finally saying: "You're abandoning your duty to us, then? Is that it? You're going to sit back and let us all die, because you're too feeble of heart to kill one more beast? You'll let us all perish because of your own cowardice?"

At that moment, Seton snapped. He wrenched the chief's arms away from his body and stepped toward him, shoving the older man with tremendous force. Rorun gasped, tripping over his own feet for a moment before crashing to the ground. "I'll let us perish!?" he screamed, his voice reaching the same alarming level it did before. This time, all his rage poured out without reservation. "You and your bloody fathers doomed this village the moment they broke the agreement, and you never bothered to make things right. And now you want me to clean up your mess so you never have to face the consequences! But do you actually know why we haven't all perished yet? It's because the Frost King has been holding back! It's been commanding its dragons not to kill us, and has been waiting patiently in the hopes that maybe--just maybe!--we'll go back to the valley and give the land back to the dragons. Do you understand that? The Frost King has been showing us mercy. If not for that, we'd have all died long ago."

Rorun slowly got to his feet, visibly pained from the impact. "You've killed us all..."

Seton shook his head. "Not yet, I haven't. I thought that maybe--just maybe--I had it wrong. But I see how foolish that was." He took a deep breath, then locked eyes with Rorun once again. "The Frost King sends a message for you. You've been given time and mercy enough, and have ignored all warnings. Take the people and move them back into the valley. If you refuse, the Frost King has assured me that nobody will be spared. The choice is yours, Chief Rorun. I am to return to the Frost King the day after tomorrow to send my answer. I pray you'll make the right choice." At that, Seton turned and started toward the large double-doors of the meeting hall.

"You're a traitor!" Rorun shouted after him. "You don't deserve to stay in this village! You've abandoned your duties, and now you're threatening to turn the dragons on us!"

Seton stopped, but refused to respond.

"Do you hear me?" Rorun continued. "A bloody traitor! Wasting all we've given you, and damning us all to die! You aren't one of us, and it seems you never were! You aren't worthy to show your face here, and you aren't worthy of my daughter!"

Seton turned to glance back at Rorun, who looked more irate than ever. He gave a small scoff. "Unless you come tell me otherwise," he said, "I'll assume that you refuse to leave. If I have to tell that to the Frost King, then may every god known to man have mercy on you. Good day, Chief Rorun."

With that, he gathered his belongings, pushed through the doors, left the meeting hall, and came to face the crowd that waited outside. They looked up at him with wide eyes and silent mouths hung slightly agape. No doubt, they'd heard the muffled screams of the two men. They stared at him as though waiting for him to say something. There were several drawn-out moments of silence before one voice finally asked: "Is the Frost King really still alive?"

Seton took a deep breath. "He is. I'm sorry. Despite my journey, I was unable to kill him."

"So..." another voice started to say, "what's going to happen to us?"

Seton's eyes clamped shut, as he knew he would regret what he was about to say. "I don't know."

Silence.

Seton turned his eyes down, and walked past the crowd that no longer pushed to greet him. As he moved through, one hand grabbed him. Turning to the person, he saw that it was Yidna, looking up at him with a distraught expression. "Seton," she whispered. "Come."

He nodded, and she led him by the arm to her home, where she sat him down before pacing the room rapidly. "What sort of fool are you, Seton?" she asked, seemingly near to tears.

"What-"

"How could you return to us with nothing to show?" Yidna snapped, cutting him off. Seton tried to speak, but as silence as Yidna continued once again. "Didn't my husband and I raise you to be better than this? To not back down, and not return until you had claimed victory?"

"This was different, Yidna," Seton replied, his voice low, like a child to their angry mother. "I tried to kill it, but it was overwhelmingly strong."

"Goat shit," the woman scolded. "You're more than strong enough. We raised you to be stronger than any other, not to be a coward."

There was a moment of quiet before Seton responded. "Did you raise me just for this? Just to kill the Frost King? Was that your only goal when you put that ax in my hands?"

This time, it was Yidna who hesitated. "Seton, I chose to take you in because I wanted to. But when I saw your strength, I knew you had a skill none of us had. I knew before long that you could be the savior we needed, is that truly wrong?"

"Rorun knew about the pact between the first founders of this village and the Frost King. Did you?"

Another moment of silence. "Who told you about that?" Yidna said at last.

"The Frost King did, Yidna. When it had me trapped, it didn't kill me. Instead, it spoke to me, and told me everything. Tell me, Yidna. Please tell me there's an explanation for this. Tell me Rorun and his forefathers didn't damn us all. Tell me it's all a lie, and that the Frost King's mercy toward us wasn't just some elaborate mockery."

"Mercy?" Yidna gasped. "The thing killed half our livestock, toppled our houses, killed many men, women, and even children, and you call that mercy? How dare you!" The loud sound of a slap rang out as she struck Seton across the face. Unlike with Rorun, Seton made no attempt to protect himself from or retaliate against the older woman. He sat in silence as the dumbfounded Yidna stared at him. "Well?" she finally demanded. "What do you have to say?"

Seton finally brought his eyes to meet hers. "I'll tell you what I told Rorun: we're only even alive because the Frost King has allowed it. An army of dragons is at his command, and if he truly wished us dead, we'd be dead. Can't you understand that? He doesn't want us to die, and neither do I. But if I go back and kill him, that's exactly what's going to happen. Every single dragon from every single one of those mountains all around is going to want us dead, and the Frost King won't be there to stop them. Mercy is exactly what the Frost King is showing us, Yidna. We're still alive, and that alone is mercy."

"I don't believe what I'm hearing from you," Yidna scoffed. "We ran the dragons out, Seton. You think we couldn't fight back? We did it once before, and with you on our side, we could do it again. Enough of this shit about 'mercy.' Speak another word of it and the next beast on my carving table will be you, do you understand?"

Seton opened his mouth, fully intending to say "I understand," but he stopped himself instead. "I... don't," he managed. "I don't understand at all. I don't understand how all of you can be this foolish. I don't understand how you can look death itself in the eye and think you're the one in charge." He stood up from his chair, staring the woman down as his voice rose. "I don't understand how you can tell me what we--no, what I--am capable of, when I've seen it myself! I've seen the dragons, and met the Frost King! I've seen firsthand what a dragon can do!"

"You think I haven't seen a thing or two myself?" Yidna snapped back. "I've been around a lot longer than you, and I--along with all the elders here--earned that. You think we haven't seen danger? Seen terror? Seen the Frost King himself? You think you know better than us?"

"Have you truly seen the Frost King? Looked into his eyes while he held you frozen in place? Have you spoken with him, and felt like you might freeze to death just from hearing his voice? Have you been mere feet from him, wondering when he'd decide he wanted you dead? Have you, Yidna? Has anyone here in this village?"

"I've seen him leveling houses, Seton! I've seen him crush our children beneath his feet!"

"Don't act as though you care about the children, or the women, or any of the innocent lives lost," Seton hollered. "If you, or Rorun, or anyone else cared, you'd have left this place long ago, and the suffering would have stopped."

That was enough for Yidna. She strode toward her table, returning with a large knife, which she pointed between Seton's eyes. "That's enough from you," she growled. "I won't listen while you insult me like that. I didn't raise you to disrespect me like that."

"No," Seton hissed back. "You raised me to be an obedient little dog. Now put that knife down."

"You have no authority over me," Yidna growled, holding the knife steadily. "Apologize for the innocent, lost lives that you've insulted with your words."

"Their blood is on your hands. And Rorun's. And all of you who knew, but did nothing. Your. Filthy. Hands."

Yidna thrusted the

knife toward Seton's eye, but Seton was quicker, ducking to the side and gripping her arm before twisting it and forcing her to drop the blade. Once it was on the floor, he shoved her back and picked it up, feeling it in his hands before pointing it toward her. Almost immediately, her rage turned to terror. "What are you doing?" she whispered.

"I've killed a young dragon," Seton said, fiddling with the knife before gripping it by the flat side of the blade. "Meaning I'm about as dangerous as one. So if you truly think this village could fight them off, then surely you could do the same for me?"

"Put that down. You've gone mad," Yidna said, trying to appear strong. She slowly stepped back, edging toward the table where her skinning tools lay.

"I can't talk sense into you," Seton replied. "So I'll have to show you instead."

Yidna looked around for anything she could use to defend herself, finding another, smaller knife and flinging it at the man the moment her fingers found it. The blade spun toward Seton, who caught it between his fingers midair before flinging the knife he had found at her head, then throwing the other in quick succession. Both knives hit their mark, and blood trickled from the sides of Yidna's head as the two blades lodged themselves in the wall behind her. The cuts on her cheeks were shallow, but the look in her eyes displayed mortal terror nonetheless. She gasped for air for a moment before slumping to her knees, coughing and clutching her chest as though she wasn't sure her heart was still beating.

"That, turned on all of you, ten-thousand fold. That's what you, and all the others, have damned us to." Seton said as he turned to the door. "And both I and the Frost King are more merciful than the thousands of dragons you've made your enemies."

With that, he turned and left.