Demons | Guardians of the Galaxy [3]

THIRTY SIX

CHAPTER THIRTY SIX
"Despite popular belief, um... I don't wanna die"

TYPICALLY, FROST WOULDN'T PANIC OR GROW fearful whenever something remotely dangerous occurred around her. She was too confident in herself to feel that way, much preferring snarky comments and insults instead of expressing actual emotions when anything remotely scary happened. It was what she had vowed to commit to, keeping Allison's mind free of the scarring imagery they see through the chaotic life the Ice Demon lives.

But, now was different.

Frost always had a certain distaste for the heat, but the increasing temperature in the cave systems below was forcing her to become weaker and weaker with each passing moment. Her powers were become less reliable and her body unimaginably heavy as the fires surrounding them reached out for her threateningly. However, despite her torturous pain, Frost didn't utter a single word or statement explaining it. She didn't need the other Guardians to pity and worry about her when there were bigger things surrounding them that needed to be dealt with.

The burning Sovereign ships raining from the sky didn't help, the explosions and lasers coating the air irritating her further. But, all that annoyance and anger was soon abruptly replaced with fear as she watched the Guardian's temporary vessel explode in the middle of the sky. Peter, Yondu, Nebula were still inside, Peter was still inside.

"Peter!" Frost voice came out uncharacteristically human, signs of Allison's kindhearted soul sleeping through at the mere thought of Peter being dead. "Fuck!" Frost yelled out in frustration, pressing her closed fist to her temples as she inhaled sharply and exhaled through her nose.

Nebula appeared first, landing with a loud thud and cold gaze focused on her sister. Gamora didn't break it until Nebula did, the later stiffly turning her head to look above. That caused those watching her to follow, Frost being one of them. The Ice Demon's hands were still rolled into tight fists as she lowered them, tilting her head back to watch the thick smoke slowly clear and reveal two figures. Yondu and Peter slowly descended, Peter using the help of an aero-ring where last Yondu was simply holding tightly onto his weapon of choice.

Peter let out a loud laugh as he looked up to Yondu. "Ha, you look like Marry Poppins," he chuckled as he stared up to an extremely confused Yondu.

"Is he cool?"

Peter offered a small nod as he smiled. "Hell, yeah, gems cool."

That seemed to make Yondu happy as he exclaimed; "I'm Marry Poppins, y'all!"

As they touched down on the ground, Peter yelled out in a mixture of shock and pain as Frost's punched his shoulder. "Don't you dare die!" she hissed through her own torturous pain, gritted teeth and narrowed eyes.

"Yeah! All right! I'm sorry!" he quickly apologized, rubbing his now throbbing shoulders as the other Guardians gathered around them in a group, all safe. Well, that was until a flying rock came out of nowhere and slammed into Mantis' head, knocking her out instantly.

Moments delayed, Drax shoulder with warning; "Mantis, look out!" earning a odd look from the Ice Demon who felt like she was slowly melting away.

As the girl's hold on Ego faded away, a shock was sent over the land they stood upon, signalling the Celestial to have awaken. The cave system began to rumble with characteristics that mimicked that of an earthquake, but it wasn't helping as the temperature increased. Fires were still ablaze in some parts with small embers littering most, all having it out for the Ice Demon. If possible, Frost's jaw clenched harder the before and hands balled into tighter fist. She refused to let them see her slowly being weakened with each passing moment.

"She's just unconscious," Drax assured as he picked up Mantis' limp body.

"How long until the bomb goes off?" Peter questioned with urgency as he glanced at Rocket, the raccoon hovering eye level with them currently.

Rocket's eyes didn't meet Peter's, anxiously scanning the roof above them, worried about how unstable it was becoming. "In the unlikely even that Groot doesn't kill us all, about six minutes."

The Guardians' attention shifted above as a large and deafening crack echoed through the caverns. They watched as the top slowly split apart, revealing the shimmering artificial sun Ego had and the clear sky.

"Kraglin, we need the quadrant for an extraction. T-minus five minutes," Yondu reported back to the man orbiting the living planet.

"Okay! Despite popular belief, um... I don't wanna die!" Frost admitted for the first time, her tone holding a fear none of them thought they'd ever hear come out of her. "So, can we speed this up a little!?"

As if for once taking her statement and listening, Peter exclaimed over the loud ruckus; "Somebody's gotta be up top when Kraglin arrives!" he reached over his shoulder and tore the aero-rig from between hus shoulder blades. "Drax, take Mantis." He stuck it to Drax's back, and the pair of them eere instantly off, with a yell echoing through the air from Drax, "ow! My nipples!"

The ground continued to shake violently, the rumbles causing the platform the Guardians were safely stood upon to crumble and break. As it snapped beneath Gamora, the ex assassin let out a scream as she dropped, arms flailing to grab ahold of anything.

"Gamora!" Peter and Frost yelled in unison as the woman disappeared in the thick cloud of ash and smoke beneath.

Large plasma tentacles lifted from the ground, startling the four that remained, they hadn't spotted Nebula also dropping with Gamora. Instinctively, Frost pushed both palms beneath her, stunned that her abilities were still working despite the heavy fever she was developing. She swerved through the air, paths shattering behind and beneath her as she attempted to connect ice to anything surrounding her.

"Peter! Come now, Peter. I know this isn't what you want," Ego exclaimed in his typical manipulative behavior as he attempted to smash any of the four still on this floor, the blasts from Peter's gun seeming to do nothing. "What kind of a father would I be to let you make this choice?"

Frost let out a yell as she was forced to abandon her bridge, leaping up and rolling towards the edge of one of the platforms. Forcing herself to push forward, she leaped up before she could fall, starting another bridge of the rock formation, swerving past Rocket and piercing one of the plasma tentacles targeting him. Yondu's sharp whistling as he led the crimson arrow echoed through the cave system and Frost ducked as the weapon soared past her, taking out one that was chasing her.

"Soon, Peter, we will be all there is. So, stop pissing me off!"

The Ice Demon was beginning to be overwhelmed, an with her diminishing powers, she was becoming slower. Ironic right? Frost tried her best to out run the plasma tentacles hot on her trail, jumping off multiple bridges and creating new ones to at least attempt to put some distance between them. It didn't work. Not one bit.

Frost screamed, something she never did, as her bridge collapsed into a mixture of ice shards and water, sending her plummeting. She cried out as she collided with the harsh ground, trying to scramble away, finding it difficult as the tentacles latched onto her ankles, pulling her back. Frost attempted to scramble away, but as the rocks built up around her waist, shr found it impossible, powers completely inaccessible in the predicament.

"Peter!" she cried out, but she didn't check to see if he was listening, genuinely thinking that this was it. "Allison loves you!" Her voice became strained and more painfilled as the rocks reached her shoulders and started wrapping around her neck. With one last gasp, she yelled; "And I'm incredibly sorry-" before drowning in the darkness covering her sight.