Coldsnap: Storm's Call

Chapter 27: Slay The Spire

We last read Chapter 26, where Coldsnap and her girlfriend Keena venture to Leo's ruined workshop to see if they can't find anything to equip Coldsnap's adoptive family and friends with the weaponry they need to take on the Storm Sect. During their search, the two girls discuss Frost King Alpin and the effect he had on the Mage Aspects as a whole, which leads into Keena investigating a false call for help outside the workshop that results in her getting kidnapped by Typhoon, Commander Windsor Galeforce's right-hand woman. Continuing her examination, Coldsnap finds a hidden basement below the main floor of Leo's workshop which leads back to its first iteration, where she meets a long-neglected A.I. named W.A.M.—the Wholly Automated Mechanical—and builds bridges with him over their shared neglect at Leo's hands before leaving with the prototype Aegis Gauntlets that she finds, promising to liberate W.A.M. from Leo's basement once her adventure is done. However, she returns to the surface to find Keena missing. This time, we learn what happens next, as Coldsnap delivers the equipment to her adoptive family's residence and immediately begins making plans to rescue her lover.....

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-Coldsnap's Earth Residence, Jacksonville, Florida, United States-

"Ohhhh, you aren't touching the payload today, Reinhardt!" Alexis cheered as she leaned back in her gaming chair and soaked in her latest victory on Overwatch 2. "Tack that onto our win streak, Michael!"

Michael took off his headphones, got up from his gaming chair, and walked towards a whiteboard that was affixed to the wall, with a series of tally marks on it for every match that he and Alexis had won in a row. "That's.....uhhh....." Michael muttered as he took a few seconds to count all the marks. "Fifteen. Fifteen. Fifteen wins. In a row. ......And none of them have even been close....."

Alexis got up and gave Michael a high-five, which he reciprocated quickly. "Sometimes I wonder if we're too good for this game," she joked. "I've been getting gold healing for the past several matches, too."

"Hey, now.....we wouldn't have even been alive if it weren't for your healing," Michael pointed out. "We got a god-tier Mercy right here."

"You got that right. Now come on, let's go again!"

But at that moment, both of them heard the residence's doorbell going off.

"Alexis, can you get that?" Mike called from the kitchen. "The others and I are cooking lunch!"

"Yeah, Dad!" she replied as she left her bedroom to check on who exactly it could be. Perhaps it was a delivery worker coming to bring them a package. Or a pollster trying to encourage them to take part in the next election. Or a Boy Scout solicitor persuading them to purchase their Trail's End popcorn.

But, much to Alexis's intrigue, there was no one at the door; or at least, there was no one present when she answered it. Instead, as Michael also left Alexis's bedroom and rejoined her at her side, the two of them bore witness to nothing but a pile of prototype Aegis Gauntlets sitting squarely in the middle of the welcome mat, as well as a short note that was leaning against its side.

"Had to take care of something urgent. Here; prepare everyone else in the meantime."

Michael picked up the paper and examined its handwriting. "Yep.....this was Coldsnap....." he confirmed, before turning back around to his friend. ".....Let's rock and roll."

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-Skycrest, Limbo-