Chapter Text
You haven't seen the group in over an hour. You were too busy moseying around and exploring rather than sticking with the group. But could you really blame yourself? This place is rad! Or… was rad. Actually, yes. You could blame yourself 'cause YOU'RE STUCK IN A FROZEN HELL. Yep, that's right. Everything is covered in snow and ice. As you trudge through the slush in this winter wonderland, you couldn't help but feel angry at all this. 'What could've done this? Why? What will I do now? How will I live? No- survive?! Everyone is a goddamn popsicle!' You thought.
Those kids. You had just moved in over the weekend and you accidentally stumbled on their little secret dimension-world-place-thing in the Librarby. And the one quiet kid… They seemed.. ok.. in class. All the kids were chill- er, nice to you really. 'Oh, what was their name? Kris? And the lizard.. Susie?' The doe and bird kids you sadly forgot the names of. And some new kid just appeared out of nowhere apparently knew your two peers. And now that you think about it, they looked like Kris' mom. Did he get here late or something? Those kids told you it was a dream. The doe and bird went with it. But really? Like, no? On the rare occasions you do dream, it's not like you're actively aware of the weird things going on that wouldn't be possible in real life. Like c'mon. MAGIC?! And- and PAIN?! Explain that one! Nah, you didn't buy it. Not after a minute. And if it's really a dream, you've been here for over an hour. Maybe you're in a coma for some inconvenient reason.
Loud metal clanking shook you out of your thoughts. Something was out there. And it has been like this since the black beacon went away. You definitely didn't take any chances and slipped into the nearest place to get warm. Good news was the lights were still working and bright as always. Better than being in total darkness. And it was a drug store too. Lined wall to wall with essential needs. You walked into an aisle and took a duffel bag off the shelf. Turning into another aisle, you jumped at the eerie sight of a frozen Ambyu-Lance standing with a hand raised.
Grabbing some soap, medicine, food and drinks as fast as possible, you headed to the backdoor. Once outside, you gently close the door until it clicks. It was definitely close. You guessed about some blocks away at most. Luckily the backdoor put you into an alley. You marched along in the shadows, only seeing peeks of the main road here and there.
You went back into autonomy, your mind slipping into a memory as you walked aimlessly. "Don't go th-at w-way." A darkner had told you. You whipped around to see a Plugboy hidden in a trash can. "What?" You eyed the stranger from the road. "I s-s-said, don't g-go that way." They shivered in the dropping temperature "Never go t-that way." "Why?" You asked. "The-re's nothing liv-ing in that d-direct-ion." That sent a chill down your spine.
"You hear that, Sam?" You scowled to yourself while trembling. "Your stupid split up almost killed your stupid life." Puffs of heat escaped your mouth and the sting of the cold hurt your lungs. Soon you found yourself at the end of the corridor and met the street again. In your view were tall shards jutting out of the snow. Nobody was alive. Even the sentient cars were chilled.
Around where that noise came from- just a couple blocks away, was a flash that lit up the building walls. Thunder soon followed. Again and again, it didn't stop. The light revealed thousands of dark green lines that went up high. Some screams and roars echo throughout the concrete labyrinth. A battle was taking place just behind those buildings and you wanted nothing to do with it.
Eventually the noises grew quiet and the flashes stopped. By then you were underneath what looked to be a rollercoaster that led nowhere. This area was rather cozy yet dark without any light sources. Isolated and thinner than a road.
Mini hill-sized lumps covered in snow lined the sidewalk. Walking up to one, you dug your gloved hand into the deep snow and swiped it away. It was black plastic. You grew curious and dusted off the snow as best you could. More black lumps showed in the darkness. They're garbage bags. All of them. You're in a landfill.
Well, you can't complain. At least nobody would come in here, hopefully, to get you while you slept. Might make for a good hideout. Brushing off the snow from your gloves, you went deeper into the area until there was no more area left to explore. To the right of you was a huge opening in the wooden support beams. There wasn't a drop of snow in there, perfect. Once inside, more trash was afoot. Hell, there's even cars under here! Lots of great places to hide or sleep. Yet best of all, there was a door in the pile of garbage. Cautiously and quietly tip-toeing to the doorknob, you put your ear to the door's cold surface and waited.
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Nothing. Not a damn sound. Not even a snore. If there was anyone here, they're either gone or sleeping hella silent. Reaching for the doorknob and turning it, you slowly opened the door. There was nobody there. Just a simple sunny mural with a vintage mahogany wooden desk and a rather nice office chair. Whoever lived here had exquisite taste or amazing luck in finding something of this luxury. Or both.
Whatever. Setting the duffle bag down behind the desk, you crawled underneath and used the bag as a back rest while you rested your eyes. It wasn't as comfortable as you'd like, but hey, better than being frozen.