(America POV)
Amidst my raging hysteria, I could hear a muffled call as it began to part through the turmoil. It was coming closer, getting louder and clearer but I still couldn't understand a word. I was too lost in the uproar in my head.
Suddenly something fell against my back and I looked, startled as I finally remembered there was someone with me. Russia was slumped over me with his arms slung over my shoulders to keep his fading body upright. His figure was cracking and falling away as he stared at me with anguish glimmering in his eyes. There were no words exchanged but his thoughts were clear.
My breath caught in my chest as dread replaced the drunken stupor I was trapped in and slowly but surely, I began to see my surroundings once more.
What have I done?
"STOP, STOP THIS NOW!" I screamed to myself as I desperately tried to deactivate but the fire paid me no mind. It was as if they were mocking me, crackling and laughing as all concepts of control were yanked from my grasp. I struggled as they continued to ravage everything in sight.
Russia began to slip and I quickly caught him, slowly lowering to my knees.
His breath was shallow as the light in his eyes began to fade along with the rest of his body. Almost half of him had split into pieces at this point and all I could do was sit there and watch.
I should be happy. The last, lingering trace of Soviet's legacy was dying right in front of me which meant I was going to pull off the promise I made to myself!
.
.
.
So why do my tears continue to fall?
"Hey Russia? Russia, stay with me now!" I quivered as I cradled him gingerly but he continued to slip away. I was losing him with every passing second and I was the reason. I was killing him.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."
"I never thought I'd see the day," he whispered, "A tearstained face does not suit you."
I stared into his eyes. The same ice grey eyes that had stirred so much anger in me before but now... I wasn't quite sure what I was feeling. All I knew was that it hurt.
My body began to shake from the uncontrollable sobs that heaved from my chest. It had been a long time since I had felt such dread but it stabbed me over and over.
Russia finally lost consciousness as I held him close to my chest. I couldn't bear to look as a furious howl erupted from the depths of my hell.
"Why do you grieve for him? What exactly is he to you?"
The blank canvas I once stood upon was stained red by the blood from the boy I had killed. He lay upon my lap as all his colors swirled around me. A storm of icy winds but instead of cold, it felt hot. Burning.
And the red...
It was so out of place.
So very ugly.
"Tell me, what are you going to do next?"
He sat down next to me but I made no move to acknowledge his presence. The man didn't seem to mind and simply gazed at the boy in my arms.
"You know about who he is, yet you still care that deeply?" he smirked as he gently leaned against my side.
"You've grown soft, America."
He had presented me with many questions but I had no answer to give. Nor did I care. Instead, I continued to hold my unexpected ally close as the flames rose with my tormented shrieks.
(NATO POV)
We were all unprepared for such a disaster to happen and now we were scrambling. The Retrieval Squad began to hustle and started to establish communications with HQ. I could only clench my jaw in frustration as my heel dug into the dirt. With what was going on now, even HQ couldn't help us now.
"Oi Canada, what exactly happened back there?" I inquired as the country hung his head in guilt.
"I'm not super sure but all I can describe is a barrier. I don't think I was supposed to find it but all I can describe is overflowing energy."
"Was there anything peculiar about the energy?"
Canada's eyes lit up, "Actually... yes. For one, the energy felt... frigid. It also flowed directly to Ame, like it was immediately drawn to him."
A crack in the sky suddenly appeared and NASA descended from the void and into the calamity. She hovered just above the reaches of the fire as she gazed at the situation in horror.
"NASA! OVER HERE!" I waved to get her attention and a moment later, she was at our side. Her starry form vanished as she deactivated her Awakening.
NASA pointed straight into the center of the storm, "Alright. What the hell happened?"
Canada quickly skimmed her through the circumstances and her face turned pale. She glanced at me and I nodded, validating the dread in her eyes.
"As you might have guessed already, the energy Canada found in Russia is the Final Permafrost." I sighed and rubbed my throbbing head. Canada fidgeted with the silver firearm and NASA just couldn't stand still. We were at a loss here.
Canada bit his lip, "So the Final Permafrost lets Ame use a massive amount of Sunfire without hurting himself? But at the cost of what?"
NASA placed a hand on the shaking country, "The Permafrost is only able to be released while Russia stands at the Gates of Death. As for Ame... well..."
"It's not quite Sunfire anymore," I continued, "It's something even more ruthless than that unquenchable beast."
"It's almost unimaginable that such a thing exists," NASA finished for me, "One step above Sunfire."
The Retrieval Squad ran to us with the Conduct glowing and passed it to us. UN's grim face shimmered through the small projected screen that hovered over the stone.
"Sir, I'm afraid the situation has taken a disastrous turn and-" I began but he held up his hand to stop me.
"I know." he groaned as he laced and unlaced his fingers; a habit he had when he was under pressure. "But still, I wish to see for myself. Show me what is going on right now."
I held the stone out in front towards the blazing blue core and waited as UN assessed the situation. His reaction was no different from the rest of ours.
"Don't tell me. Is this what the Final Permafrost brings? A fire even deadlier than Sunfire is just simply... inconceivable! And what about Russia's status?"
"Unknown, sir." I replied with a defeated sigh, "I wish I had better news but we can assume he's at the end of his rope."
UN closed his eyes, as he delivered his next orders. His tone was somber but he held himself together firmly.
"This has obviously gotten far too out of hand for just the handful of you. Fortunately, it seems that the gate is nearly functional again. So until it does, I'll leave it to you and NASA to buy us a little more time."
Now that was the problem. How the hell do you buy time against a probably unstoppable, never-before-seen godfire?
The answer is NASA.
She rolled up her sleeve and a small capsule unlatched from a secret compartment in her prosthetic arm.
"Personal energy pills," she explained as she crushed it between her teeth, allowing a fine, silver stream to escape, "Unfortunately, it only works for me."
"You have a plan, don't you?" I called after her as she zipped into the sky in a streak of starlight. She stopped and smiled at me, "Who do you think I am? You?"
I rolled my eyes and crossed my arm as she circled the area a couple of times. After a few moments, she was back and explained her plan and if I were to be honest, I was more than a bit nervous.
"For this to work, I'm going to need you all to push yourselves, especially you, Nada." she declared as she tossed him two silver darts that matched his firearm that was strapped to his forearm.
"Those are tranquilizer darts, made specifically for your brother. I'll explain that in a sec. Now listen up; I need all of you to channel all your energy through Canada to NATO. He will then do his best to nullify the flames. Once it is more manageable size, I will set up a split-space barrier to deprive the fire of oxygen."
This was a relatively safe plan but my worries did not end there but NASA had that in mind.
"However," she continued, " if for whatever reason that does solve things, I will need to open the doorway to a nearby black hole. We will still be quite a distance away from it's centre but the pull should still be enough. In that instance, anchor down to whatever you can but the barrier should be enough to hold."
"Oh surely we will not need to come to that," one of the men exclaimed but I shot him a glare that immediately shut him up.
"It's a fire that is even stronger than Sunfire and is supposedly one of the primordial elements that shaped the sky and sea. If I were to be completely honest, a black hole is probably nothing against that monstrosity."
"Which is why we have that," NASA gestured to the darts she gave him, "The job of NATO's nullifying and the black hole will be to simply give you enough of an opening to hit America with one of those. I'd wager that Russia is long past conscious at this point so he is no longer giving energy. America is simply taking it so once he passes out, everything should stop."
I looked over to the red haired Canadian who was clutching his weapon tightly. He was obviously feeling the pressure that was mounted on him so I went over and clapped him on the back.
"OW! Why does everyone smack me on the back like that?"
"Everyone?" I raised an eyebrow and he shook his head to dismiss it. We got into position and he placed his hand onto my shoulder with the other men backing us up.
"Focus on the first task first. Do not think of anything else," I guided as I monitored his breathing, pulse and movement. All was well and a sudden surge of power rushed through my veins.
Everything suddenly dimmed and midday turned into midnight. The fire began to flicker and writhe, as if it was being squashed under a blanket. It was working but just barely. Barely, but that was enough and soon, we could see the glowing forms of the two boys. Phase one was a success. NASA wasted no time and a pitch black veil, dotted with twinkling stars, draped over the area like a dome. Occasional flares burst from the dome but they quickly dissipated. Phase Two was also a success.
"Ready Canada?" I whispered and he complied as he lifted his arm, ready to fire. NASA saw this and opened up a small gap in the barrier, giving him a clear view of the target. This also was the moment that the fire took to try and escape its prison and it leaped towards the opening, racing right for us.
"NASA! PHASE THREE NOW!" I hollered as I quickly pulled everyone back as I continued to hold the fire down the best that I could. A jolt raced through my body. Even beyond the barrier, we could all feel the pull of the mighty, star shattering abyss. Canada clung onto me as his heels dug into the ground.
"Oh god, what about Ame and Russia?"
"Don't worry, NASA has them anchored down." I replied, "Now focus! She will open up at any second now..."
He lifted his arms one more time but it was shaking. His breathing was erratic and his gaze unfocused. It was only natural to feel fear or pressure. A soldier, whether it be a newbie or a veteran, will always experience such emotions on the battlefield.
"What you feel right now is no different from the rifle you hold in your hand!" I exclaimed, "It is a tool that will either help or kill you. Will you let the pressure drive you to success? Or will you succumb to the numbing fear of failure?"
With one arm, I helped support his arm and his pulse calmed down. His eyes shined with unwavering fortitude and his entire body became deathly still. Not even a rising breath was felt.
The pulling force abruptly stopped and the barrier opened once again. The remaining embers slowly began to stir. It was now or never-
(Canada POV)
Without hesitation, I lined up my shot and pulled the trigger in one swift motion. I gave myself no time to think, no time to doubt myself and the bullet flew, whistling in the air.
I had hit him right between the shoulder blades and with a lurch, he fell forward. With a dying hiss, the wisps of azure flames vanished, leaving nothing but blackened earth in its wake.
"Holy- Canada, you little lunatic, that was amazing! I really wasn't ready for that. You scared me back there!" NATO praised as he continued to wallop me on the back. I couldn't respond as I struggled to stay upright with every blow.
The Retrieval Team didn't stand around and with NASA, they descended to the center of the giant steaming crater.
I stood up to go too but my legs immediately gave out under me. The adrenaline from the rage of battle had finally faded, leaving me with an aching body and foggy mind.
NATO caught me before I hit the ground and as I drifted to sleep, the terrible roar of raging flames rang in my ears...
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
aye. Canada is MVP in my heart ❤️
Anyways... there ye go! The Earthbound Ark is almost done and soon we will be returning to Aliaterra and our other countries.
Also... quick question: What should Ame's new burn-everything-to-total-oblivion fire be called? Lemme hear your thoughts :D
See ya next week! Toodles!