A Mix Of Worlds

VII - A Heart of Ice

VII - A Heart of Ice

Kai's head felt like it was being split in two. The headaches had started the day he had entered the palace, and it was getting worse every day.

Sometimes, if he closed his right eye, he could see a faint glimmer of mildew on the walls and even dirtier surroundings. But when he opened both eyes to look properly, the mildew faded to shining ice, cold and crystalline. He dismissed it as a trick of the light.

The most beautiful thing here was Snow. She radiated kindness when she sat beside him and talked to him. She brought those pretty snowflakes with her wherever she went, and they always flocked to him, letting him dance in their midst. Once, they had even formed themselves into snow animals for him to pet.

Now and then, Kai would catch himself looking at Snow's hair. It reminded him of someone, but he could not remember who. Snow had said that if he could remember who he was, what he was before he got here, he could go free. In a way, he didn't want to remember. He was content to spend the rest of his life in this palace, where his hatred of all things ugly was embraced and accepted.

Just as he stood up to leave the throne room, a hideous figure rushed at him, threw her arms around him, and knocked him back to the floor. He reached up to push her hands away and she grabbed them, squeezing them tightly.

"Kai," she sobbed, "let's get out of here. Please."

He tore away from her, disgust clouding his features. Who was this? She had murky blue eyes and ratted, thin hair, almost as white as Snow's. As he stared at her, he felt his chest ache, sending waves of anger through his body.

The girl reached for his hands once more, her plain features contorting into a frown. "Kai, it's me, Gerda. Please, we have to go now, or the Snow Queen will-"

"Snow would never hurt me," Kai snapped. Somehow, he knew Gerda was a demon sent from Hell to torment and deceive him. No human could spit such sickly sweet lies.

Gerda gaped. His heart ached, begging him to kick her, to hit her, to make sure she got away from him. Still, he waited, wanting to see how the demon would react.

"What happened to you?" she whispered. "Your head..." She touched his forehead as if she saw the pain beneath, and her hand was so soft, so warm, that Kai began to sink his head into the touch.

Without warning, she wrapped her hand around the back of his head and kissed his lips.

Kai froze in shock. Part of him was repulsed, the other part longing to draw her in, hug her tight and never let go. Tears slipped from her eyes as her finger traced his cheek.

He didn’t know he was freezing until she placed a hand on his chest, above his heart.

"I love you," she whispered, and he began to cry as well.

His tears traced warm paths on his icy cheeks, thawing the sharp shard of ice in his eye. He sucked in a deep breath, feeling Gerda’s heat everywhere, dissolving the tight pain in his heart.

"I have to admit, I didn't expect you to get this far."

Gerda whirled around. Her hair no longer resembled a rat's nest, but flowed in wavy curls down her back. Curls that Kai longed to stroke.

Snow stood there, her icy eyes sly. For the first time, Kai understood why Gerda was afraid of Snow. He could see the evil hidden within those icy eyes, a hint of something straight from Hell.

"Foolish girl," Snow sneered, her beautiful face twisting into something cruel. "The boy cannot leave this place." She walked down the stairs, her heels clacking on the floor. "And since you're here... let's see how much little Kai can endure, shall we?"

She must have noticed Gerda's pale face because she laughed. "You didn't think I'd let you go so easily, did you? Silly girl. No one can stop the chill of winter."

Gerda turned to him, and her blue eyes were clear, her face restored to its original beauty. Just like that, Kai began to remember.

It started with the time he and Gerda went to seek the Snow Queen and found a snow-white woman surrounded by demons of darkness. The memories continued to flood back, one after another. He remembered nights spent by the fireplace, laughing and reading. He remembered plucking flowers for Gerda in the summertime as she danced in wild circles. He remembered Snow placing shards of a mirror in his eye and his heart. Kai’s entire body thawed, and he remembered.

"You will do no such thing," he said, looking straight into the Queen's eyes. Eyes that once seemed warm, but were now hostile. "As per our bargain, you cannot keep me in this hellhole any longer." For it was no longer a palace, but a huge, run-down mansion, its walls and floors caked with grime.

The Queen smiled⁠ — smiled as she withdrew a dagger from her robe. "I never said anything about you leaving here alive."

Gerda looked back and forth between the two, her eyes widening, and she did the unthinkable.

She fell to her knees and began to pray for the Queen. She prayed of heaven, of angels, of repentance, forgiveness, and acceptance. The Snow Queen began to scream. Gerda continued, her body seeming to glow.

Her innocence was power, Kai realised.

The queen doubled over in pain, covered her ears, and fell to her knees. She shrieked over and over again as her essence was stripped from her, beauty and smiles falling away to dark howls and a gruesome face.

Kai finally saw the demon behind the mask, a being so ghastly that he took a step back.

"Amen," Gerda whispered.

Sunlight filled the room and the queen's body dissolved, leaving behind a dark wraith that disappeared as soon as the light touched it.

Kai ran over to Gerda and held her trembling hands in his. Magical. She glowed in the sunlight, and Kai could feel the weariness radiating from her.

"I bet no one has ever prayed for her before."

Gerda let out a small chuckle.