The Frost-Weaver didn't die quietly. As its core splintered, the "silks" didn't just snap—they recoiled. The mountain itself seemed to groan in mourning for its architect.
The Collapse: Environmental Hazard
The Ceiling: Without the Weaver's magical structural support, the massive ice stalactites began to drop like glass guillotines.
The Floor: The "cathedral" began to tilt. The very permafrost was liquifying into a slushy, treacherous slide toward the abyss below the central dais.
"Crunchy Soul, unless you want to become a permanent part of the decor, we need to move!" Ignis buzzed, her golden glow dimming as the exertion of the 'Overdrive' took its toll.
The Rescue Effort
I didn't have the luxury of a slow exit. I grabbed Kaelen by his furs, hauling him up. The other three hunters were still semi-conscious, their limbs stiff with magical frost.
"Grab the others!" I barked at Kaelen. His eyes were still glazed, staring at the silver light of the Twin-Sun War Ax. "Move, or the mountain buries us all!"
The Ax pulsed. It felt lighter now—not because it had lost power, but because my "conviction" had harmonized with the 'Soul-Bound' enchantment. I swung the flat of the blade against a falling pillar, shattering it into harmless snow before it could crush the youngest scout.
The Weaver's Parting Gift (The "Interrogation" Alternative)
As we reached the mouth of the chamber, the Frost-Weaver's remaining shards didn't scream—they hummed. A psychic resonance flooded my mind, a final, cold vision:
A white tide. Not a storm, but an army. Thousands of Rime-Hounds led by something that made the Weaver look like a splinter.
"The Great Winter does not come for the village," the echo whispered. "It comes for the Spark you carry."
The Final Dash
We hit the tunnel just as the Central Chamber imploded. A wall of pressurized cold air slammed into our backs, propelling us forward through the narrow egress.
I skidded to a halt at the cliff's edge, the blizzard outside still raging, but the air felt thin and empty. The "Big Cold" was gone, but the horizon looked darker than it should have.