Crimson Snow

The snow was red now. Everywhere I looked, streaks of crimson marred the white, frozen surface. The bodies of the fallen were scattered, some twisted, some broken, all silent. Smoke rose from a few smoldering patches, and the stench of blood mixed with frost cut through the cold air.

Luna was on her knees, hands gripping Ricky’s empty form. She was shaking, screaming—“Brother! Brother!!”—over and over. Her voice cracked through the frozen forest, but it was too late. Too damn late. The wind carried her cries, and I felt it cut through me deeper than any claw or fang ever could.

I couldn’t just leave her there. Luna was shaking, her body stiff like a statue, her cries ragged and raw. I knelt beside her, ignoring the burning ache in my legs and chest, and hoisted her onto my back. Her arms hung limp over my shoulders, head resting on my neck. She didn’t even blink, didn’t move. Mentally… she was gone. Completely shattered.

My body screamed at me to stop, screamed at me that I was pushing it too far. My lungs burned with every breath, my muscles ached as if they were being torn apart from the inside. But the ice that had begun forming over me, that strange frost layering on my skin… it wasn’t stopping. It moved with me, covering me like a second skin. My hands, my legs, my torso… the thin ice shifted with every step, keeping me warm, keeping me moving. And I realized… I wasn’t just moving. I was fighting the cold in myself, shaping it into power, into protection.

I took a deep, ragged breath. I could feel it now—the cold inside me, not just frost on my skin, but something deeper. Every step I took, every muscle I strained, the ice moved, flowed, hardened and softened. It was like it had a mind of its own, and it wanted to keep her alive.

I stumbled, almost fell, but gritted my teeth and kept going. The forest was endless, the snow thick and bloodied, but the village… the village had to be ahead. I had to get her there. She was the only thing I had to hold onto right now, the only thing that made the pain feel worth it.

When we finally reached the outskirts of the village, the lights of torches flickered in the distance. People were already running toward us—Sora, Luna’s father, the village chief, and others. Their faces were a mix of shock, worry, and terror as they saw the state we’d come back from.

I dropped Luna carefully on the ground, her body limp, her face still pale, eyes still unfocused. Sora rushed to her side immediately, hands trembling, clinging to me as if letting go might make the nightmare start again.

“Ruu…” she whispered, her voice broken. I could feel the wet heat of her tears soaking my shoulder.

I straightened, chest heaving, frost still crawling across my skin. I looked at the village chief, Luna’s father, and the others. Their eyes widened, taking in the blood, the snow, the horror.

“I… I need to tell you everything,” I said, voice shaking. “The serpent… the attack… Ricky… everyone who came to help…” I swallowed hard, and my words tumbled out in a rush, raw, unfiltered. “It killed them. All of them. I… I couldn’t stop it. I barely got here. I… I carried Luna because she couldn’t… she couldn’t move… she’s broken… mentally, she’s gone…”

Luna’s father’s face went pale. His hands trembled as he reached for her, then froze as he saw Ricky’s absence. He dropped to his knees, grief slamming into him. “Ricky…” he whispered, voice breaking. “He… he’s gone?”

I didn’t have the strength to answer. I could only nod. And then, slowly, he looked at me, rage and grief wrestling in his eyes, and then… a silent, almost trembling gratitude. “Thank you… for protecting my daughter.”

Sora didn’t leave me. She clung to me, crying into my shoulder, holding me like if she let go the world would collapse. I could feel her heartbeat, frantic and warm, and I realized… I didn’t deserve any of this. None of it.

I thought of Ricky. I thought of the others, all of them, gone. I thought of the innocent lives taken in front of me, how powerless I had been, how close we’d come to being wiped out completely. And yet… somehow, I survived. Somehow, I still had this—Sora holding onto me, Luna in my care.

But I didn’t feel relief. I felt guilt. Shame. Pain. Every breath I took was heavy with it. I kept telling myself that I shouldn’t have survived, that I should have done more, that I should have been faster, stronger, smarter. Every life lost was a weight pressing into my chest, and I didn’t know if I’d ever shake it off.

I let my head drop, frost cracking faintly under my hands where it had hardened into thin sheets. I could feel it shift with my fingers, the ice moving with me, almost alive, but I didn’t even notice it. All I felt was the guilt, the fear, the anger at myself.

I didn’t deserve happiness. I didn’t deserve to survive. I didn’t deserve Sora’s tears, Luna’s fragile life, or anyone’s gratitude. All I could do… was hold on. Hold on to them, hold on to the living, because if I let go, everything—everyone—would be lost.

And even now, with the frost crawling further into me, with every step of survival dragging on, one thought burned brighter than anything else: I had to get stronger. I had to stop this from ever happening again.

Because if I didn’t… next time, even these lives, these people I cared about… they wouldn’t get the chance.