hermitcraft oneshots :]

[Thawed Heart]

and here we are back again like ten minutes later with another oneshot 

this one was a rarepare request I think? I can't remember lol

It was written around the same time as circuitry, maybe a bit more recently

WARNING! This oneshot contains mentions of frostbite and other cold-related injuries, as well as being stuck in small spaces! If these topics make you uncomfortable or cause you panic, I'd advise not to read this oneshot, but it's your personal decision. 

WC: 1.6k

Freezing alive was not a good feeling.

It felt like the ice and snow around Etho was creeping into his bones and freezing every vein and nerve. His stomach felt like it was icing over and his lungs felt coated with ice. His breathing was raspy and ragged, and nearly nonexistent.

He was quite literally a sitting duck.

What are the chances of someone finding me in this kind of situation? No one's going to be out here...I might as well just wait.

Etho had been chasing a fox out of his ice farm when the snow underneath him had given way and he'd fallen into a chasm in the ground that had been hidden under snow and ice. His leg was lodged deep into the ice below him, and the rest of his body was wedged in between the two icy walls, slowly crushing him as he slid further and further down. At first he had panicked, and that had made him slide further down until there was no chance of him getting out on his own.

He'd been stuck in the chasm for at least an hour and a half, and it was freezing. He felt like he was shivering right from his core. He was numb, but at the same time he still felt immense pain. He definitely had frostbite, which was sending awful needling pain through his fingers and toes. He looked stiffly at the chasm's opening, his hope sinking as he noticed the sky fading from bright blue to a light orange-yellow-indigo. Night is coming, he thought, dread seeping through him. If I've only barely managed to survive the day, I might as well just give up hope once night falls.

Ren POV

Ren flew on his elytra through the crisp arctic night air. It was snowing lightly, and he kept having to flick cold snowflakes off his ears. Etho's impressive ice farm came into view, and Ren smiled at the sight of it. It warmed his heart to see something Etho had worked so hard on functioning flawlessly. The icicles loomed imposingly as he landed in the center of the ice farm, shivering as the temperature plummeted. Boy, Etho must be really accustomed to the cold to be able to work out here.

He looked around for the ninja, his tail gently flicking back and forth across the snow. His eyes narrowed in confusion when he couldn't spot Etho anywhere. "Etho?" he called, his voice echoing strangely across the ice crystals. He took off his sunglasses, putting them in his pocket. No response came to him.

But then he heard something.

He pricked his ears up, freezing completely. He stood on his toes to try and hear the sound better. It was so faint, but there; the sound of quiet, raspy breathing. His heart plummeted; that was not a good sound. He ran towards the sound, listening intently as it got louder and louder.

He inhaled sharply as he nearly slipped into a deep gash in the ground. His heart pounding with dread, he looked down the hole. Oh no...

Etho was down there, looking paler than ever. His hair and eyelashes were encrusted with frost and he was shivering violently, his blue-grey and red eyes staring at the wall blankly. "E-Etho!" Ren cried, his voice echoing down the chasm. Etho's head snapped upwards, his eyes widening at the sight of the dog-eared hermit. "R-Re-Ren-en," he stuttered, a small smile cracking on his face. "H-hi-i." Ren desperately tried to reach down for Etho, but the ninja was too far down. "Etho! Etho, don't worry, I'm going to get you out of there," Ren promised, his voice thick with panic. Etho nodded numbly, his eyes glazed over with pain.