Unbound

ICE

I wanna kill King Garonda XIV. I really do. I haven't seen my daughter in what's probably been over a decade, and he's caused me what'll probably end up being an eternity of pain and misery.

I leave behind a trail of blood. I left King Garonda XIV's castle at morning, and it's now nearing midday. He had said to be back by dinner time, but he won't care when I show up sometime around midnight. He barely notices anything anymore unless it has to do with himself or Wolf and Dove. Those legendary two rogues.

Why'd you do this to me, King Garonda XIV? Why'd you force me to send Clap away? What happened to you?

We were friends, but now I'm stuck forcing myself to make it through each and every day while pretending we're still friends and holding out for some miracle to occur so I can see Clap again and that you'll go back to how you were before.

I want you to go back to how you were before you titled yourself the King of Ragdon. I want the old you, the one who I became friends with. The one who was there for me when Freedom was killed before your mind became corrupted and twisted by the power of the Amethyst Throne.

Why did you curse me? Almost completely freeze my blood and stop my heart, only to have it beat once every three months? Imagine that, King Garonda XIV. Having your heart force near-frozen blood through your veins. Take that for a day and see how you fare. You said there was a way to stop it, but that's looking more and more like a lie with each passing day. I doubt you even know what it is that'll supposedly melt my heart.

A trail of ice follows behind me, and the soil hisses as it freezes. I swipe a paw to snap the icicles forming from my tears. I hiss as another wave of pain rolls over me. It takes me over, and my muscles lock up as my veins cry out.

Due to my blood being near-frozen, it takes hours for my heart to beat. I stumble, my legs giving out as I become temporarily paralyzed. A growl rumbles in the back of my throat. My claws dig into the soil, carving scores in the frozen ground. My sides heave with each and every breath as I try to force the pain down to a level I can handle.

When I try to distract myself, my mind wanders back to the time I met Wolf and Dove and those two cats. Ky and Phoenix, I think? King Garonda XIV made it more than clear that if I were to ever meet Wolf and Dove, I was to kill them on the spot, unless I was with Guard and Soldiers, in which case I was to capture and bring them back to him immediately. But that was at the height of the pain; I couldn't've killed them, and I had little control over my magic. And Ky changed my anger toward them. He approached me with no judgment, only concern and a want to help. They all wanted to help, except for Phoenix, who left with a snarl. I'll show him pain. But who knows what's got him so angry? Who knows what's going on?

A sparrow swoops down from a tree branch to land a little ways in front of me. It pecks at the ground, tilting its head to get a better view of what it's trying to eat. I watch the bird through my blurred vision until it flies away. Up and up, past the trees and up toward the clouds, the bird flies. I tilt my head back and follow its course until I can't see it anymore. Well, there goes the bird. The bird's gone.

I stand back up and meander through the forest, passing trees and bushes as I wait for the pain to die down. Once I'm back to normal, I'll return to King Garonda XIV's castle. But until then... I don't let myself finish the thought. My paws drag on the ground. I've no idea where I'm going, so I just let my paws take me wherever they want. Another wave of pain rolls over me like a tsunami. My mind goes numb.

I see something out of the corner of my eye, but I pay it no attention and instead focus on staying upright as the world tilts and contorts, the trees twisting as if they were dancing. Something tugs in my heart, but I ignore it, brushing it off. Blood drips from my mouth, coating my tongue in a coppery taste. My nose wrinkles as the pain suddenly spikes, rising even higher. A groan rumbles in my chest, pausing as I choke on my breath but quickly turning to a screech. I cross one of my forepaws across my body to prevent myself from falling.

"Who i-is he?" I hear a voice whisper to my right. I pause. That voice... My head snaps up. My gaze takes a few moments to focus, but my eyes widen when I see six figures, two humans, a blue unicorn, and three cats. But I can only see one of them- the smallest cat. I freeze, my breath catching in my throat and my nose quivering as my ears prick. My eyes widen as I start to tremble. The fur, the hair, the metal plates, the same horns. And the eyes. Those big blue eyes. How could I forget? She's so much bigger now. "Clap?" I murmur.

Someone punches me in the chest. Not literally, but it certainly feels an awful like it. My legs give out, and I collapse to the ground with a screech. The pain rockets to the sky, higher than it's ever been before. My veins scream in pain. "What the hell?" Phoenix, I'm assuming, snorts.

"Ice?" Clap murmurs.

I curl my lips into a silent shriek when the pain paralyzes me with my claws lodged deep in the ground, partway through carving scores through the frozen ground. My mind is taken over, and I lose feeling of everything except the pain. I'm shocked I haven't slipped away into the darkness yet. My sides heave as I try to force the pain back down.

"Wh-what's going on?" Clap asks.

"I've no idea, Clap," Brook replies.

I can just make out what they're saying through the haze of pain that has taken over my mind. The ring of frozen ground continues to creep outwards as I fight against the pain.

I don't know how long it is until I regain control. The pain creeps back down, agonizingly slowly. I lay on my side, trying to slow my rapid breaths. My claws curl and uncurl from the scores I'd carved into the ground. A while later, I roll to my stomach, only opening my eyes after I take several deep breaths.

What is this feeling? What is it? I've never felt this way in... Well, I can't remember ever feeling like this. Something has been lifted. I look around as I try to figure out just what it is that I'm feeling. Ky keeps trying to come closer, but Phoenix snarls that he shouldn't. He still tries, though, and lifts his paws rapidly when he pads across the frozen ground until it becomes too cold. I lay my head on my paws and close my eyes as exhaustion settles over me.

"A-a-are you ok, I-Ice?" I look up when Clap asks her question.

"I... I'll be fine," I say after a few moments of thought.

I begin to tremble. First, it's just ever-so-slightly noticeable shaking, but then it changes to violent movements, and I fall back to my side as my legs jerk. My body falls still a few minutes later. When is this going to end?

Something clenches in my chest. Something I haven't felt in years. Who knows how many years.

And there you have it, folks. Ice's chapter has started! Once it's done, The King's Remorse will be halfway done. If you enjoyed the story, please vote and comment your thoughts!

What is Ice talking about?

What hasn't he felt?

So Ice and King Garonda XIV are friends. What do you think of that?

-Werewolf 14-