Frostbite

Chapter 1

The fountain's closure sent a shockwave that echoed through the silent city. The burst shattered both ice and stone to anyone close by, leaving nothing but puddles and dust where frozen statues once lived. Those too far away felt the remnants heat, and began to melt. The sound boomed through the catacombs, television screens flickered to black, silencing the little bit of life left in that world. The world was nothing more than statues, puddles, and darkness.

Webbing cracks sprawled over Berdly's tomb before splintering across the floor. He gasped for air, the coldness sending sharp pain in his lungs and throat. Collapsing to the floor, shards digging into his numb hands and knees, he could barely feel the ground under his palms. The cold had cut so deep it left his soul frostbitten.

"Wha- where-?" He could barely get words out of his throat, breathy and strained, catching as tears burned his eyes. They crystallized on his cheeks before falling to the floor with a quiet clink. Every part of his body hurt, stiff and chilled to the bone. Shivering, he managed to push himself to his knees, not feeling the shards digging deeper, and fought back a sob.

The walls around him had once been covered in a thin layer of frost, but was now thawing. Puddles formed on the sidewalks. Even the shards of ice left from his imprisonment began to trickle away. The room around him had signs that it was warmer, but he could not feel it.

Slowly but surely, he pulled himself to his feet and began to wander the streets. Treading carefully, pointlessly, around collapsed remains. Death was all that surrounded him. An entire population turned to dust at the point of Kris's hand, Noelle as executioner. An empty world where no one would find him.

    And was there anyone who would really care? Without his carefully constructed act, he was never noticed. Never remembered. And even with it, not even Queen could get his name right. He was remembered, but hated. And now he's lost. Would they even notice, or would they rejoice at his absence? A twisting pit formed in his stomach at the thought.

Passing a darkened screen, he stared at his reflection fearfully. His headset was crystallized into a crown of ice, armor formed sharp icicle points. His beak, fingertips and around his eyes were black, charred by frostbite. His pupils were crystal blue. Stepping back, he could see his legs were the same black, but frozen over around his feet. He was a frozen husk of his former self.

A corpse Noelle left behind. His only friend left him behind. His only friend killed him. Was she even his friend, or did she just pretend to tolerate him? Too nice to hurt anyone, was that moment really a flash of true colors? She probably hated him to hell and back, and that's why he's here. Trapped in a frozen hell of her creation.

    He was lost with nothing to return back to. Did that really make him lost? Or was he just discarded?