As Nicholai spoke to the Frost King about the gifts he brought with him, Darius looked away. He could hear Cleo's voice, but it was not the same haunting voice that he once heard from her. She had become one with the sleeping shard, so she shouldn't be awake as well, right?
It's just that on top of his horror from hearing her voice, Darius also heard how Cleo growled and questioned the creature sitting on the throne of the Frost King. Soon enough, Darius looked up at the Frost King again to stare at the man. His eyes then widened at what he saw.
In contrast to what Nicholai could see, the image of the Frost King was now overlaid with some kind of white exterior with tons of strings holding it up from the ceiling and the walls. The Frost King… was nothing but a moving cocoon!