Chapter One

A VAST SNOWY PLAIN, relentlessly assaulted by pounding winds, desolation, and hardship, stretches across a treeless tundra. In the background, a wall of mountains rises up, creating a false barricade against the harsh climate. These white-tipped peaks give me a feeling of comfort regardless, and I feel guarded against whatever horrors lie beyond the rocky horizon. The sky seems trapped in a perpetual state of gray, one that will segue to black once night falls. The light of the st...