Double Lie {A Jelsa Tale}

I Did My Best

Nothing happened until Thursday afternoon. I was working on some homework in my room while I listened to music through my earbuds. When my ringtone interrupted the song I answered it without checking who it was.

"Yeah?" I asked as I tapped my pencil as I thought. Was the French Revolution before or after the American one . . ?

"Ready for adventure, Frozen?" Overland responded. I dropped my pencil.

"Now?"

"Danger waits for no one."

"Where should I go?"

"Corner of Maple and 42nd. Follow the sirens and smoke."

Overland hung up. Sirens and smoke? We were going to deal with a fire? That's what firefighters were for! It wasn't supposed to be up to teenagers.

But we had ice powers. Maybe for the first time there really was something we could do that others couldn't.

I grabbed my costume from the closet and darted into the bathroom to change.

---

By the time I reached the fire it was roaring to a dangerous height, threatening to swallow the entire three story hotel. Sections of wall were splattered with ice but even that was slowly melting and sizzling. A firetruck and two police cars were already at the scene.

"Overland said we should expect another hero," one of the firefighters said as he approached me. "What are you called?"

"Frozen. Where's Overland?"

"He's already inside retrieving victims and putting out the fire where he can."

"Why don't you use the fire hoses?"

"Because they're too powerful. They'd bring the building down on whoever's left inside. And it's too hot for our firefighter suits, so it's up to you and Overland."

"Got it. I'll be back," I told him. I took a deep breath and readied my power. I'd never used it in front of an audience, or on such a large scale before. But I had the feeling that I'd get plenty of practice before this was over.

I froze the base of the fires around the door and stepped into the burning hotel. Fire and embers covered almost everything. What remained was blackened and burnt. I couldn't find any indication of where Overland had gone.

"Find people who need help," I ordered myself as I released more frost. If I were trapped in a deadly burning building, where would I go? Probably to the highest windows so I could breath and escape the flames. So that was where I would check first.

I used my ice to clear out the flames in my path as I advanced to the stairwell and began to climb. If climbing stairs is hard, climbing stairs that were just on fire is even harder. In some places I had to reinforce the steps with ice. I didn't dare go too quickly for fear that the stairs would collapse beneath me. The hotel was an old one, and it seemed like everything had been made of wood. They were probably regretting that decision now.

I burst onto the top floor and hurried down the hall, calling out for any survivors and glancing into the rooms I passed for only a moment before moving on. It seemed to me like they were endless and empty. I was starting to doubt my plan. The building was cackling ominously around me. Glowing embers danced through the air. I was starting to feel exhausted from all of the ice I was creating.

A pitiful sound stopped me in my tracks. I ducked into the hotel room and glanced around. There wasn't any sign of life, but this room hadn't caught fire as badly as the others.

The sound came again and I stepped further into the room, cooling the air with a burst of frozen wind. A form emerged from beneath the bed. It was a small white dog, fur badly singed and missing in places. It whimpered and stepped hesitantly forward.

"Come here," I offered, crouching down and holding out a hand. "I won't hurt you. I'm here to help."

The dog limped towards me and I scooped it up into my arms. It didn't have a collar on, leaving me to wonder how it had gotten there and who it belonged to. The pungent smell of burning hair filled my nose but I only clutched the dog closer. This had been the last room on this floor. It was time to go.

I stepped back into the hallway and flinched back as hungry flames leapt towards me. The entire hallway was ablaze, blocking my exit. I gestured with my hand to put out the fire, but nothing happened. I was too exhausted to create any more ice. I was trapped. I backed against the wall. Even that was hot to the touch.

"Frozen!" a voice shouted. A cold breeze blew over me and all the flames sputtered and died beneath a layer of frost. Overland appeared at the end of the hall.

"Come on! The building's about to come down!" he shouted. I ran after him as he cleared our path with ice and snow. We emerged from the building just as it collapsed in a fiery heap. Overland stood beside me, panting slightly.

"We might have to work on your hero skills a bit," he decided. "Are you hurt?"

I shook my head. Gathered around us were the victims Overland had rescued. They were being attended to by various paramedics. I couldn't help but feel that I hadn't done anything to help. Only charge in and get myself stuck.

"That's that," Overland announced. He brushed some ashes from my hair, sending shivers racing down my spine. "Might want to go home and take a shower. And wash your dog."

"My dog?" I questioned. A small yip brought my attention back to the lump in my arms. The little dog was staring up at me with adoration in its eyes.

I had saved my first life.