Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Hands of Creation

Chapter 41 - Frozen Over

The northwestern corner of the world was covered in a perpetual, thick layer of ice. The white field was dotted with black rocks and sloping hills of snow and ice. The ground wasn't stable, and there were a few incidents early on where Valle had fallen into thinner portions of the ice and had to be hauled out before he sank to the bottom. With some levitation, they were able to manage their way through the worst of it—as Mystics, the cold didn't bother them too much at first. But the deeper they went into this icy territory, the more it seemed that their Mystic powers lost their effect. The cold's horrible fingers crept into Zena and Willow the most.

Willow trembled, the frost rapidly forming on her yellow fuzz. "I can't feel my... everything!"

Zena nodded. "It is... quite cold. I am glad that I can deal with such things normally... but it may be a bit much if I go any further... I feel like my Water form would solidify completely if I transformed..."

"I guess then you'd be a pretty Milotic ice sculpture, a-at l-least," Willow said.

"System processors are functional," ADAM said. "The current temperatures are allowing my CPU to overclock safely without additional cooling."

"The temperature has little effect on me," Valle said. "But I would want to avoid water. I do not want the ice to break through any cracks in my body. The expansion may destroy my limbs."

"You could always m-move, you know," Willow said. The tiny Joltik hopped from Zena's head onto ADAM's. The bitter cold licked at Willow's fur during the jump, and Zena, for that split-second, worried that the little Joltik would turn solid right then. Thankfully, she landed and dug a claw along the side of ADAM's smooth head—he buzzed in protest.

"Mmmm... that's so much better..."

"Adam's warmer?" asked Zena.

"Mhmmm..." Willow nuzzled up against one of ADAM's smooth eyes. His optical lens flickered nervously. "It's like Owen's head," she went on. "I wish he came with us. Owen feels nice..."

"He is nice..." Zena hummed.

"Huh?" Willow asked.

"Hm?" Zena blinked, looking back at her.

"Be careful," Valle interjected. "The ice ahead of us is thin."

Indeed, it seemed like the ice in front of them was clear, the water below a lot darker. Valle levitated off of the ground, gently floating above the frozen floor.

He rotated his body. "You should do the same."

"O-okay." Zena contorted and twisted her body, and then moved up, slithering through the air, reminiscent of a Rayquaza. "Well, this isn't so bad..." she said, wobbling unsteadily in the air. The bitter cold not only got through her Mystic aura, but it also seemed to interfere with their levitation. "We simply continue onward like this?"

"Yeah! Um... but what are we looking for?" Willow asked.

"Scanning..." ADAM said. "No Mystic Aura detected. The next scan will begin in 200 seconds."

"Oh, right, Mystic auras," Willow said. "I wonder what the Ice Guardian is like. I hope she's at least a little warmer..."

"I have my doubts," Zena said. "It has been getting... c-colder every step of the way."

Willow pressed her body as hard as she could against ADAM. "But you don't step."

"It's an ex-expression," Zena grunted. "Is it—getting even colder, by chance? I—I f-feel as if my v-very blood will be... solid soon..."