Duskfire Glacier with fists like atom bombs

Alarian had left, again. He'd left with no warning, no word. Lanawyn had left a few days ago and found him in the mountains, injured. She didn't know much beyond that. All she knew was that the young governor had left, gotten himself into some trouble, and had left her in charge once again.

Lily was tired of it.

It wasn't that she didn't appreciate the trust he put in her--quite the contrary. She was flattered that she was so high on his list of deputies; it served to boost her confidence and stroke her ego. What ate away at her was the fact that she didn't feel ready. Though approaching her second year, Lily was still young in mind and heart. Back home, she hadn't been responsible for anything. Her more put-together siblings had assisted her parents in running the place.

She'd been able to lope around with Freddie day in, day out, no worries, no cares. It couldn't have been more different than the situation she found herself in now: temporary leader of a pack that had grasped a tenuous foothold on the edge of tangled woods, held together by what seemed most days like a single thread.

She needed to blow off steam. With a word to Korei and plans to return later, Lily trotted out of Broken Boulder and onto the plains, heading for the magnificent stretch of gleaming white that was the glacier. She, too, found the cave by accident, drawn to the sound of rushing water within--all else was ice, and stone. Lily had slipped in and was weaving through the darkness when the sound of pawsteps other than her own brought her to a screeching halt.

A scent wafted toward her, strong and foreign. That of a wolf, a male wolf, one she did not know.

"Hallo?" Lily called out, her voice echoing off the walls. "Who's there?"