Red Hood's Revenge

said.
    “Then you and they have something in common.” Snow pressed her other hand to the water, pouring more magic into her spell and using her mirrors to try to dissipate some of the excess heat. The ice crept upward, creating a dam across the archway. The trickling of the water died. She flinched as another rock cracked against the wall. “Would you mind?”
    Talia crouched, searching the water with one hand until she found one of the rocks. She sent it hurtling back down the tunnel. A goblin squealed in the darkness.
    Perspiration dripped from Snow’s forehead, tickling her cheeks as it fell. The ice cracked and refroze as it spread into the reservoir. The sound reminded her of damp firewood popping in the flames. Goblin howls changed to cries of shock, and Snow smiled.
    The mice in her pouch chose that moment to squirm and struggle, making Snow jump. “Quiet in there,” she said.
    The crackling grew louder. The ice had reached the goblin’s raft now, freezing it into place. The goblin’s eyes widened. He reached out to scratch the ice with his claws. With a frightened squeal, he pulled himself onto the ice and tried to crawl away. He kept yanking his hands up as the cold tried to freeze his wet body to the surface.
    “They live in the desert,” Snow said smugly. “They’ve probably never seen ice before.”
    Panicked shouts and splashing signaled the goblins’ retreat. The one from the raft scrambled across the ice, trying to catch up with the others. His hands and legs kept sliding out from under him until he finally flipped onto his back and grabbed the ceiling to pull himself along.
    Snow broke her hands free of the ice. She couldn’t feel her fingers, and her nails had a bluish tinge. She grabbed the side of the archway, but between the frost on the stones and her own dizziness, she nearly fell. Talia caught her arms and held her steady.
    “What about the ones behind us?” Danielle asked.
    Roudette snorted. “Frightened off by the screams of their companions. Cowards, as I said.” She almost sounded disappointed.
    “Wait here.” Talia peeked through the archway. She grabbed the edges and pulled herself up. Snow could still hear two goblins screaming from within the reservoir. Those goblins’ screams grew shriller as Talia moved onto the ice.
    With Danielle’s help, Snow followed Talia into the reservoir. There she found two goblins trapped in the ice. The closer goblin had only a single arm free. His claws dug long gouges as he tried to free himself. The other was worse off. She must have grabbed the edge of the ice, trying to push it back with her bare hands. As the ice spread, it froze her hands in place, leaving only her fingers protruding like tiny wrinkled toadstools. Her hair was locked in the ice, holding her head back.
    The ice left barely enough room to crawl. Snow rolled onto her side against the wall and held her hands to her choker, using the still-warm mirrors to try to thaw her flesh.
    Danielle was next through, followed by Roudette. Roudette crawled straight toward the closest goblin, her hammer scraping along the ice.
    “No,” Danielle said. “They’re helpless.”
    “They would have killed and eaten you without a thought!”
    “We came into their home.” Danielle pushed herself between Roudette and the goblin.
    Roudette stared at her, then turned to face Talia and Snow. “Is she always like this?”
    “Pretty much,” said Talia. “You get used to it eventually.”
    Roudette scooted to one side on her hands and knees, trying to circle past Danielle. “Those filthy creatures are of fairy blood! They—”
    “Danielle’s right,” said Talia. “Leave them. Arathean goblins are little more than animals. A bit like yourself in that regard. They’re not working for Zestan. They barely even know how to speak.”
    Snow left them to their squabbling. She flexed her hands, gritting her teeth at the resultant pain that burned through her fingers. That pain meant she probably hadn’t done any permanent damage. She crawled toward the center of the reservoir, stopping when the ice grew too thin to support her. A quick punch broke a hole through the ice, and she peered down into the water. The reservoir was surprisingly deep. The bottom shone like silver, reflecting the light from her choker.
    It was also warm. Snow plunged her hands in, gasping as the water further thawed her fingers. Once she could feel her hands again, she slid into the water and swam toward the