ChromaTober | 2023 FMS Writing Challenge

-| Day 14: Shelter |-

Sorry this one's a bit later! I've been posting these at 12-2 AM for way too long and it finally caught up to me lol.

AU: Permafrost (Claimed by TimelineStix13, unrelated to their book, I'm just going more into detail about something I wrote in the AU chapter)

Context: A better look at the story of how Sabre and Orange met :>

—————————————————————————————————————

[Sabre's POV]

It seems the Permafrost's blizzard has kicked up a bit. That means more chilled mobs than usual.

I pass by a few animals that have stayed in the Permafrost, becoming chilled like the monsters and undead creatures around here. I hold my staff close as I take my usual path for patrolling, already seeing a few zombies looking my way.

The layers of snow are already up to my knees, making it difficult to walk. The frozen creatures around me have no problem staying on top of the snow, but even though I've been living here for so long, I am not built for that and sink right through. Thankfully, the thicker layers of snow start to taper off as I get to a bit of higher ground, where there's an abundance in evergreen trees and bushes. They've been able to survive here because of their resistance to cold, and provide a welcome cover from the unyielding blizzard.

I was about to continue, but then I spot something brightly colored in one of the groups of bushes. I carefully make my way over, and when I brush off a bit of snow from the leaves, I see that there's an Orange Steve lying there inside the bushes. He's shivering, injured, and has quite a bit of ice forming on him, and it seems he's become unconscious.

...It's very rare that I come across a Steve that hasn't already fallen to the cold, and it looks like this one only recently started to freeze. He has a chance to survive. Not unscathed, yes, but he'll still be alive.

I carefully pick him up and lift him out of the bushes. Not wanting to risk him freezing to death on the way back, I gather my energy and teleport us back to my shelter.

—————————————————————————————————————

[Orange Steve's POV]

...

I slowly wake up to the sound of a crackling fire, and... warmth? But the last thing I remember is being stuck in that blizzard...

Sitting up, I see that I've been put in a bed next to a large fireplace, and there's a few layers of blankets over me. There's some hot water bottles laid around me too, still really warm. I notice that the injures I got from those... monsters have been treated and bandaged.

Looking around, I figure out that I'm in some sort of house... I think. The walls and floor are carved stone, with a rug in the middle of the sort of small room. There's a bucket of coal and a pile of firewood next to the fireplace. A chest with some medical supplies laid on top of it is on the opposite side of the room from the bed I'm in, with a wooden chair next to it. Across the room from the fireplace is an opening that looks like a doorway, leading to a hall that I can't see anything in from here.

Just as I finish looking around, a guy with a blindfold, weird brown hair and sand-colored skin, a fancy-looking golden staff with a glass orb holding something in it, and lots of winter clothes That are various colors of blue walks into the room. He looks surprised for a moment when he sees me.