Odd-Eyes

i. ~prelude~

  author's note: school is killing me right now. i intended to get this done faster (side note: this chapter was started after chapter I), but school decided to bite me in the ass. so, unfortunately, these updates are going to be slow. this is more of a quick backstory chapter. without further hesitation, enjoy.

  Silver's nails carved crescents through the snow. She took in shallow, uneven breaths, disguised as winces. Her throat burned from the icy air and her screams for help.
Anyone... I need someone. I can't die here...
  She looked down at her leg. Even if someone did come, would she be able to walk away? It grew more numb by the minute in the cruel frost. The rocks holding it captive were surely crushing whatever was left of her limb. Blood seeped from beneath the stone.
Mercury, papa... mama... someone, please...
  She looked up. So close to escape. The sky was as bright as it could be in Exhibito-murky, foreboding slate. Silver had lost track of how long she had been here. Her mangled leg had certainly become frostbitten, at the very least. The ravine's stairs were only a few metres away, miraculously unblocked by the fallen rocks.
I can't die here.
  Silver looked back to her leg. She was sure someone was out there, searching for her. She had to cling to any faith she could find. But, it was only a matter of hours before gangrene overtook the frostbite. Possibly even less. Maybe it already set in.
  There were two choices she had.
  Wait for her leg to freeze over in such an obscure location, if it already wasn't.
  Or, to sever it herself and crawl to the stairs.
  She was sure she was already clinging to life. Her thick jacket and clothing felt useless. Thirst drained her of the strength to shout anymore. It had to had been hours ago.
   Silver did not have the time to consider every side. Maybe she wasn't a genius, but she was going to survive. She pulled out her pocketknife, and flipped the blade. Silver carefully sliced the front of her skirt open. It cut the fabric cleanly, until she could tear it off her waist. She cut the pleated skirt into several long strips.
  Her leggings kept her thighs decently warm, but she still shivered from the loss of a layer. Silver whispered, "I'm going to survive... for papa, and mama, and Mercury..."
  Silver bit into a piece of the thicker waistband fabric of her skirt. She spread her hands apart. It took only a second for her to touch that pool of energy that she hid. A chill ran up her spine as a cyan ball formed between her hands.
  She clenched her eyes shut. Silver closed her hands. It took one, horrible second for her magic to materialise.
  Then, the blade cut clean through.
  Her impromptu gag barely did anything to silence her scream. Silver's vision blurred for a moment. Tears welled up almost instantly. She forced herself to look down. Blood poured alarmingly fast from her newly-maimed leg.
  Silver choked down more cries as she grabbed the strips of fabric beside her. She was no doctor, but she could try. Her body now trembled from the shock. Those shaking fingers pressed the fabric into the wound. Tears were dripping off her chin in a beat. Silver kept herself focused by some miracle. It felt as if her knee had been set ablaze, with flames of hell. Every breath caused the pain to resurge.
  By the time she completely covered the flesh, the blue fabric was crimson. She bound it as tight as possible with the longest strip. Silver looked up again. The ravine couldn't have been more than 3 metres deep. It seemed such a simple task, yet she found herself faltering.
  Silver forced herself to keep moving. She did not have time to wallow. Her fingers scratched along the rocks until she found a tiny ledge. A moment to steel herself, and she staggered up. Her single leg nearly buckled under the pressure. A new surge of agony racked her.
  She leaned against the frosty stones for a blink. Her breathing turned to long gasps. Silver briefly considered crawling. There were no real handholds- only stones and roots. She wiped her face on her shoulders, and reached to the closest root. The first hop was crippling. She needed another moment to recompose herself.
  The next was almost as bad, yet she found the strength to pull herself again.  Silver quickly found she could only take two steps before she had to stop. She was honestly surprised to find herself at the stairs so quickly. Silver realised the cold was numbing her bleeding limb. She swallowed and shoved onwards.
  She pushed herself as much as she could to rush along. If the cold was numbing her, then she was already running out of time. She had a brief moment where she wondered if blood could freeze in her situation. Silver shoved the thought out of her mind. She had to keep herself optimistic.
  Silver barely made it up two steps when she noticed the handholds were becoming too far apart. She grit her teeth as she considered it. It took her an infuriating minute before she remembered her knife. Silver drove it as far as she could into the hard dirt, and used more of the walls to support herself. She had begun to grow anxious. Time was not in her favour.
  Her shaking worsened by the minute. Silver had lost too much blood. She felt her heart pounding as if it were in her head. Her knife was the only thing keeping her from slipping against the wall. Silver shut her eyes as her head began to throb. When she opened them again, her vision fogged. She steadied herself before she tried to continue. Silver was not going to give in.
  There was only a few steps left before she could see over the walls. She shoved herself forwards. Silver's eyes peered over the edge. A gust of wind made her flinch. All she could see was white for a few seconds. She was nearly out. Silver staggered to the last step. Her foot caught on the edge, and she collapsed into the snow. Her vision faded out of focus again. She barely felt grounded.
  Silver's fingers were taut around her knife's hilt. She refused to be defeated now. Yet, she could barely lift her head. Silver growled a curse, before she screamed in rebellion. She was not going to die. She would not allow herself to.
  Then, she heard something. It was a faint whisper against the wind. She shouted again. Her throat sang with pain. Silver squinted trying to see. She could definitely make out someone yelling. It took her nearly a minute before she could make out a person running to her. Where excitement should have filled her, it was only exhaustion. Her body was strained far more than she thought.
  She was aware enough to feel relief. Silver fought to keep herself awake. It was only by a miracle that she was able to stay conscious when her saviour reached her. Her head swirled into a hurricane when they dropped to investigate. Their voice was definitely that of a man's. He roared, "Onyx! She's missing a leg!"
  Silver found her torso lifted out of the snow. He eased her onto her back, and checked her pulse. She could barely focus long enough to see any of his features. Silver was able to see his eyes though.
  Striking maroon- like a red rose. His thick glasses did nothing to lessen the sanguine shock. He reassured, "You're going to be fine. I see you're strong."
  She was barely able to nod, before her eyes snapped shut. The world slipped out of her vision, and she lost consciousness.

•
any comments are appreciated. i am open to editing published chapters, so please give some feedback. this was meant to be a short(ish) chapter, and the next chapter will also be, more than likely.
μsgala