(RUSSIA POV)
Enduring. Time and time again, and another hundred times more. The chill of winter was a bygone memory now. Only bitterness remained.
The wind's wretched howls were laced with another voice– one so pitiful that I dared not look. I was back in this hell on earth.
No. It was the hell of my mind. The same frozen wasteland that I always seemed to end up in. The only difference was the occasional trembling of the ground and the pleading voice which was getting more and more desperate. Then it all stopped abruptly, leaving an eerie silence in its wake.
Once the storm had calmed a little, I could see a figure, standing a little ways away from me. It wasn't unusual, for I often encountered the man I now recognized as the Soviet Union. But as I drew nearer, I could see it wasn't him. Instead it was another teenage boy, around the same age as me. His breaths were ragged and his sunglasses lay just out of reach, revealing his three, ultraviolet eyes that darted around wildly. He was bound by chains attached to nearby pikes of ice, allowing the rime frost to crawl over his skin. He was clearly in terrible shape and I had to take a moment to process what I was seeing.
"...A- America?"
At the sound of my voice, he jolted towards me with a gleam in his eyes. But it wasn't relief or joy. It was fiery red hatred.
"You've gone too far this time," he growled as his struggling became more aggressive, "Take one more step and I'll see you personally to hell!"
I was taken aback at this reaction when suddenly, a torrent of electric blue flames erupted from him. It raged straight for me, ready to tear me inside out. Incredibly, the rime ice chains that held him didn't melt. Instead, they seemed to gleam even brighter and the translucent white was replaced by a sharp, chilling gold. The rime grew at least five times their original size and dug into his flesh, drawing blood. This prodded a choked scream from Ame before the flames vanished and he collapsed. The rime had returned to its original state.
I was shaking, unsure of what to think of. What had I just seen? What was that?!
"The key to a new era," a deep, heartless voice replied. Soviet walked right past me and grabbed Ame by the chin, "This is the true ability of the Final Permafrost."
"Soviet, don't do this," America growled, "You know that you and I will both die. Stop this madness now!"
"I'm aware. But you're begging the wrong person."
"BEG?! I'M NOT BEGGING YOU– I'M THREATENING YOU!"
Soviet ignored him and tilted his head towards me, "The decision will belong to you. The Final Permafrost will be unleashed someday– it is inevitable. So decide whether the world will end in fire or ice.
...
The Coloso erupted with cheers. It was brought alive with all the students that had come down to watch the final days of training before the preliminaries. This was how it was yesterday. And the day before. And the day before that. People always came, despite rain or snow. Of course, most of them sat higher up and away from the edge now. They had learned to expect danger, even as audience members but that didn't stop a few daredevils from standing right at the front.
America blazed his own trail, and we followed as NATO stood before us. He seemed more energetic than usual and pulled no punches this time around. America took most of the beating but that was because he kept charging in headfirst. A one man army.
"How many times do I have to tell you," NATO scolded as he sent Ame crashing into the ground, "We're practicing coordinated attacks today!"
America quickly recovered and leapt back at it, clearly ignoring what NATO had said.
"We are! They're backing me up," he replied in between blows.
Though he was doing pretty well, NATO was unsatisfied. With a swipe of his hand, a coil of darkness suddenly swathed around America. When NATO pulled on this darkness, he staggered and fell to the ground, dimming exponentially. It was as if NATO had ripped all the energy out of him. Once his flames were snuffed out, he tossed the stunned Superpower up into the sky. Using the walls and ice like a ramp, he attacked him in midair while he struggled to put his guard up. With a solid kick, America was ripped out of the sky and crashed into the ground.
He didn't give us any time to react because as soon as Ame was out of the way, he charged straight towards us. Germany was quick to retreat as I prepared to send a tide of ice crashing over the advancing opponent. But NATO had seen it all before. He propelled himself over the glacial shield and landed right beside me. I was not too bad at close quarters but I had nothing against this man.
"Too obvious!" he criticized as he whaled on me, "The path of attack is so clear that I could avoid it with my eyes closed!"
I growled in acknowledgement but if I were to be honest, I was too busy trying not to die to hear anything he said. One of Germany's hounds ripped through the ground beneath NATO and slammed him into the stadium walls and pinned him there.
"Are you alright?" he called to me as I retreated back to his side. I nodded but frustration boiled inside me. We had only six days left until the tournament and no matter what I did, I couldn't seem to master any new attacks. I had followed what Five had said but Soviet revealed nothing new to me.
Until last night.
My hands twitched as I remembered what I had seen. The rime frost, the gilded gold... whatever that was, I could sense it was powerful. Probably even more so than Core Polaris.
But then why was America there?
NATO charged back towards us. Giant walls of ice shot out of the ground, blocking him on either side like a giant labyrinth. Like everything else, it was just a way of stalling him.
"Over here!" America called us over and we hoisted him to his feet. He had a few bruises and cuts but other than that, he was just as rowdy as ever.
"What's the plan?" I asked with urgency embedded in my voice, "We need to go on the offense or else we'll lose for sure."
"Then I have a plan to offer," Germany declared, "I might have an idea on how to coordinate all of our attacks."
"So we're actually doing combos? Cool! What do you have in mind?" America grinned. The sound of shattering ice grew louder and closer which prompted us to look over with worry.
Indigo mist pooled beneath each of our feet as he summoned his three hounds— Ker, Ber and Ros. Ber leapt to my side while Ker went to Ame. Ros remained by his summoner's side and Germany ran through his plan.
"Take them. I want you two to slowly infuse them with your fire and ice. Think of the fog as a catalyst of sorts. I'll lure NATO into the center while you two get to opposite sides of the arena so we surround him. Then command your hounds to attack at the same time. Make sure to get out of the crossfire!"
Before we could say anything in reply, the walls of the labyrinth came crashing down and NATO stepped over the frozen rubble. He was out of patience.
"GO!" Germany hollered as NATO quickly closed the distance between us. America shot out of his reach like a missile with Ker right behind him. I followed his example. At my beckon, Ber clamped onto my sleeve and pulled me along like a dog pulling a sled. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Germany was doing exactly what he had said he would. NATO was slowly pushed into the center of the Coloso. America was making good progress and I could see occasional flashes of fire churning in Ker's twisting form.
Ber kept pulling me along and occasionally tugging harder on my sleeve. It was motioning for me to begin infusing the fog that made up his body. The only problem was I had no idea what the fuck I was supposed to do. I had never infused anything before. But I couldn't get too technical because we were running out of time. Germany couldn't stall him forever.
The fog would act as a catalyst for Ame's fire, Germany had said. But in my case, I needed to combine the harsh, unmoving nature of ice with the flowing and flexible nature of the fog.
But that didn't feel right. That couldn't be the answer.
With a silent prayer in mind, I willed myself to funnel whatever I could muster into Ber, hoping it would succeed. Luckily, Ber seemed to realize what I was doing and shifted to encase the pooling blizzard raging within my mind. He became the vessel of winter.
All three of us were now in position and before NATO could make another move, Germany's hound led the charge and tore open the ground where he stood, anchoring him there.
"NOW!" he shrieked.
Wicked magenta flames, the size of a bonfire, flickered in the form of a massive wolf. With a whisk of his hand, Ame sent the hellish firestorm roaring towards NATO. I nodded towards Ber and he dove into the fray, leaving a ravaging blizzard in his wake.
Two massive forces of nature churned in the center of the Coloso, a twisting storm of fire and ice. Students in the crowd hollered and gasped as they ran for cover. The terribly painful winds of heat and cold pressed us to the very edges of the arena and we gathered under a shield I created for shelter.
"GERMANY, I THINK YOUR PLAN WORKED TOO WELL," America hollered to be heard over the winds, "WE WENT TOO FAR!!!"
"A MISCALCULATION!" Germany yelled back, "I DIDN'T REALIZE HOW MUCH POWER YOU GUYS HAD LEFT!"
A sense of dread washed over us as we thought about NATO who was surely getting broiled and flash frozen at the same time. It wouldn't kill him but still. He would be really messed up regardless.
That was what we all thought but a pulling force suddenly tugged on us. The storm also weakened drastically. In fact, the churning flames and tempest winds began to spin in the opposite direction towards a center where NATO was. It was like water when someone unplugged the drain.
Once it had completely disappeared, it revealed a starry dome, a flickering darkness like the void of space. It wavered and disappeared to expose a very disoriented NATO and another familiar figure.
"NASA!" Ame gasped.
"Long time no see!" she replied with a smile, "I have no idea why you want to kill NATO but that was a really cool attack there."
"I know right?!"
Nurse WHO made her way down to check on us but, thanks to NASA, no one was seriously injured. The nurse looked so relieved and thanked her while giving us three the evil eye.
Canada hopped down from the balcony too.
"Man, that was awesome. It was incredible how you worked together."
NATO rolled his eyes and muttered something I couldn't really hear.
A twinge of sadness flashed over the Canadian's face, "Though I wish I could have joined. I mean... I am going to participate right?"
"Don't worry about that, little man. We'll get to that," NATO grumbled, "If you participated in this activity, I'm pretty sure I would be a pile of frozen ash right now. So I'm gonna play it safe and have you work with one member at a time."
Speaking of members, we were still one person short of a team. Our deadline to submit the official roster was in three days. Time was running out and when I looked up at AU, I could see she was worrying about that too.
"C'mon Russia!" Ame nudged me out of my thoughts, " Let's go get lunch before I starve to death."
I sighed. There was no use worrying at the moment. Perhaps we could hear Germany's opinion about it as well but I agreed with America. I was famished.
(NASA POV)
"I heard they added a new mystery dessert in the cafeteria! Wanna get one?"
"Sure. That would be nice."
"I'm gonna pass."
"Aw come on Ruskiiiii!"
The Coloso finally cleared out as Ame's last remarks faded into the distance. I turned to see NATO slumped on the sidelines, clearly exhausted from dealing with them.
"It's okay, WHO," he grimaced, "You don't need to veil your Awakening. Just fix me up as soon as possible."
The nurse huffed, slightly irritated as she said, "You really didn't try to hold back at all huh. Protecting yourself wasn't on your mind, I'd bet."
"Nope. Had to push them offensively or else it would have been too easy- OW! Ack..."
He winced as delicate fangs pierced his wounded areas. He may not have acted like it but there was a cracked rib and multiple torn muscles that needed to be healed. Dozens of tiny white serpents, seemingly made from pure light, were on the job– latching onto injured areas with their tiny fangs. WHO sighed again as she sat down beside him.
"Self control. Is that word so alien to all of you?" WHO chided as she prodded his sore shoulder accusingly.
"You're just like your older brother."
"Nah. I'm pretty sure UN complains more than me."
Once the serpents had done their jobs, they detached and returned to WHO, bleeding into the shadows of her coat. NATO touched the damaged areas gingerly, only to find that all traces of injury had disappeared.
"Wow, that was faster than I remember!" he chuckled, "Honestly, why don't you do that more often? You would be done with your job a lot quicker too."
She scowled, "Do you think I hadn't thought of that? People get freaked out by the snakes. Even if they are made of light. And if they work miracles."
"Oh. Right, I forgot."
I smiled to myself as I watched them bicker. This feeling was exactly how it was back when we were still students here. We would show off and have mini matches right here in the Coloso, despite WHO's complaints. It was the best.
But that was then. This was now. I glanced back at my pager and reminded myself I was here for a reason. After WHO left, I gestured at NATO. There was something he needed to know.
"Didn't expect you to be in the area," he commented, "So I'm assuming you found something intriguing?"
"Yep. Though I'm not sure of the specifics, I was monitoring the Earth's energies in the atmosphere when I discovered something peculiar. When I went down to investigate further, I found traces of enemy activity near the abnormal area."
"You got their trail?! Any word from FVEY?"
"Negative. Not a thing. But they might be spread out elsewhere. I'm pretty sure he is digging for the center of their organization so it wouldn't be alarming for him to disregard this."
"You have a point. Alright, let's head to HQ. You can give me the rest there."
I agreed to meet him there but before I departed, I took a quick glance at the stadium center. It was unremarkable at first but upon closer inspection, the area touched by their last attack was covered in tiny rime crystals. From what I had seen, Russia had whipped up quite the blizzard so it wasn't completely out of the ordinary. What had piqued my curiosity was the color. It was as if someone had frozen flecks of gold.
Of course, I had no time to figure it out so I carefully scraped a few samples into a vial for future experiments. For now, I had to make it back to HQ.
In no time, we were zipped to my data chamber where I presented him with a visual. What I had found was a thunderstorm, larger than any I had ever seen. The rolling black clouds blanketed the land below, casting the land into an eternal night. The only sources of light were the faint electric glow from the buildings and the imposing flashes of lightning.
"We've contacted the humans in that area to evacuate as a precaution. Whatever this is, I'm pretty sure it's worth your while."
I pulled up my most recent findings recovered from the area in the thunderstorm. The energies in the atmosphere were nothing belonging to this world. It was what the humans would call "godly." NATO's eyes widened as an image appeared on the screen.
"Well that explains why the enemy is there now," he muttered under his breath, "Alert the soldiers. We have no time to lose."
I gave him a mock salute as I grinned, "Yes sir! Did I mention I'll be joining you on this one?"
"Oh for the love of- fine. Get everything ready. We're leaving immediately for Mount Olympus."
With a cheerful, "YESSIR!" I zipped through HQ and assembled ourselves at the Crossing Control Chamber. Once everything was accounted for, NATO took the lead and disappeared through the Gate.
With one last glance at the edge of Aliaterra, I took a deep breath and secured our rear end as the final one through.
Our mission: Retrieve the second weapon of the Cosmic grade
The Thunderbolt Keraunos
Before it is too late...
(America POV)
I peeked my head into the classroom, scanning for someone in particular. She was sitting in the back row of the classroom, disguising her phone in her textbook.
"Psst!" I whispered as quietly as I could but hopefully loud enough so that she would hear me. Luckily, I saw the back tufts of her hair (which were actually something like a fox ear) twitch, indicating that she had.
Without needing me to say anything, her hand shot up and she swiftly excused herself to the washroom. Except she didn't go to the washroom.
"Thanks Japan. Sorry to bother you-," I apologized but she waved me off.
"I wasn't paying attention anyways. So what's up?"
I opened my mouth but I hesitated a bit before I said anything else. She was surely going to jump to conclusions.
"I need your help to plan for a date..."
And just like I had thought, her eyes lit up brighter than my Sunfire.
"A DATE?!" she shrieked, "OMG FINALLY!-"
"WAIT WAIT WAIT! Let me finish," I hushed her as I guided us further down the hall where we wouldn't be disturbing any classes, "It's not what you think."
"What? Are you going to pull that formality bs again?" she scoffed, "Stop being so shifty 'cuz it's obvious you're gay for-,"
"I KNOW!" I whisper-yelled, "But this isn't about me! It's about Five. And AU."
Her frown immediately smoothed out and a shining smile returned to her face. After making her promise not to interrupt and hear me out, I gave her the rundown of it all.
"That's so cute," she gushed once I had finished, "But surely you don't need my help with that? Isn't your mom supposed to be famous with her romantic city of love? Why not ask her?"
"Uh... well... it's complicated," I stammered. I had thought of that but I wasn't sure it would be the best idea, given her past relationship with AU. It wasn't something I wanted to risk.
Whatever the case, Japan happily agreed and we parted ways. Things were going exactly to plan. After a few more stops around the school, a phone call or two and a trip to the greenhouse, (cough Smaragdus, the Plant-a-Plenty cough) I was finally done with all the necessary arrangements. But what Japan said was still bugging me.
Was I being a coward?
I didn't even know if we were ready to make it official.
What would Russia say? Would he agree? Would he change his mind?
This was too much for me to consider at the moment so I turned my attention to something else. Anything else!
That was when a blinding streak of light rocketed out from the sunset sky and into the woods near the Coloso. My breath caught in my chest as an idea popped into my head, prompting me to run over there. As I had thought, I found Poland perched upon the walls of the stadium, gazing intently at his freshly bought pastries from the bakery a little ways away from here.
With a little bit of a running start, I pushed off a nearby tree and mounted the wall with no problem.
"Hey Poland," I called out. He shrieked in surprise, nearly dropping all his baked goods in the process.
"WH- WHa- When did you get here?!" he stammered as he regained his balance, "Don't do that! I almost fell off!"
After a little while of silent eating, (yes he was nice enough to offer me a few) he glanced at me and asked, "So what do you want? If you're looking for Germany, he's in the dorms studying. I couldn't take his musing anymore so I headed out for a bite."
Even with his casual tone, his implication was as clear as crystal and a bit of color flushed into my cheeks.
"Look man... I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean to– I mean I..."
"It's fine," he interrupted, "That was rude of me. I don't really blame you for anything."
He stared me in the eyes, well... at my sunglasses, and said, "Let's try that again. How can I help?"
I paused for a moment to pick my words, "You... did you see our match at lunch? With NATO, I mean."
"Hell yeah. And even if I wasn't, basically the whole school would have filled me in."
"Well... there was something that was bothering me about that. Specifically when I was thrown into the air, I couldn't gather myself and it resulted in my defeat. It's happened before too and so..." I glanced up at Poland to see if he had caught on to what I was hinting at. He had but he remained silent, like he wanted me to say it. And so I did.
"Poland, I need to be able to fight in the air as well as I do on land. Maybe even better. So will you please teach me aerial combat? I can think of none better than you."
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
Poland's gonna take him skydiving.
Without a parachute.
Over a motion detecting artillery testing ground.
:)