Chapter 19 Snowy Side Up

Iris breathed heavily as she lay almost lifeless on the cold floor. Her head rested on Cheryl's lap who continuously wiped the sweat off her burning forehead. She used a piece of torn cloth to absorb the heat and sweat and squeezed it to the side to let out all the water.

"They're here," Iris whispered, using up all the strength she could muster just to let out a sound. Her body ached all over and her head never ceased to pound.

"Shhhh, just rest your mind. You need to fight through this," Cheryl was saying, staring down at her with concerned eyes.

"I can feel them…" Iris gritted her teeth to keep them from shivering. Cheryl's face was a blur in front of her. Her vision spun around in circles till she crammed her eyes shut. Within a few seconds, she faded into unconsciousness.

"No no no, wake up!" Cheryl panicked, feeling tears well up heavily in front of her eyes. She quickly placed a hand near her mouth to check for breathing. It was subtle but still there. She breathed out.

"Please, please wake up… Dixon, where are you?!" She cried out.

.

I winced in pain, taking a step back. My hand went up to my chest, clenching my shirt. Ricky and Meryl looked back at me worriedly. The heaviness returned to my body, followed by something sinking inside. I could feel my heart rate go up.

"You okay?" Meryl was saying.

"Yeah…" I breathed out the word in a gasp.

As if right on time, an imitation of Jon appeared beside me. I craned my head towards him, with my body slightly hunched and chest heaving for breath.

"Did you find him?" I asked in a breathy manner.

"Her. You're going to have to see this." He was shaking his head with disbelief, "Follow me. It might get a little cold."

The three of us followed behind.

"I'm coming, Cheryl… wait just a little longer…" I whispered.

There was a small opening in a window from the back. Jonathan pulled himself up and disappeared inside. I followed, my feet landed on slippery ice. I placed a hand on the wall for support while holding out the other towards Meryl. She took it. Ricky lifted her from behind. Very carefully she placed her feet onto the floor.

The ice dissipated only at the spot where her feet touched down.

"This isn't as slippery as I thought," she commented, oblivious to everything.

Jon guided us through what seemed like classrooms with broken desks and chairs, home for spiders and all sorts of insects. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling of the dry gray walls. Moss seeped into the cracks. Meryl shuddered and quickened her pace, wincing as she looked around.

Darkness lurked around everywhere. Dim light shone in from the windows, reflecting off the iced floor, lighting our way. We exited into the hallway where Jon turned the corner into a room. A broken signboard hung from the wall with a plus sign painted roughly on it.

Upon entering the room, Meryl almost gasped as she clung to Ricky's arm. He, too, seemed a bit shaken at the sight. I made my way over to the girl in bed. She lay unconscious, with still and even breaths. An IV drip was stuck to the side of her arm. She had pale, lifeless skin, like a ghost, with white hair and lips.

"Apparently she's in a coma," Jon explained. "It says so on the file."

I looked towards a piece of paper stuck to a clipboard resting on the side table. The room was surprisingly clean and well maintained. There was no electrical equipment in sight, or electricity for that matter.

"I guess they have their way of making use of her powers while she sleeps," I said, inching closer. "Where's Edward?" I looked up at Jon who just pointed towards the bed behind the curtains. I could see the shadow of a hunched figure on the floor. Something screeched in the distance, as if being pushed against the floor.

"I think I found it!" Edward announced.

I pulled the curtains to the side to see an empty bed shifted out of its place. Underneath it was a square opening, with very steep stairs disappearing into the darkness below. I peered down, squinting my eyes trying to make out anything I could see.

"Haa…" A very breathy gasp rang in my ears from behind. I turned around swiftly, just in time to see Ricky pull Meryl away from the girl.

"What did you do?" he asked, beckoning her behind him.

"Nothing, I was just checking her forehead for her temperature."

"What's going on?" I suddenly started towards them, and then halted midway.

The girl supposedly in a coma, sat up straight in a wobbly, shaky manner. I heard her bones click as they moved. I gulped down the lump in my throat. It was like staring down a ghost. Her frosty white eyes slowly looked around at each of us, craning her stiff, boney neck.

I could hear the rest of the group backing away. She had her mouth half open. It trembled as she struggled to gain control of it, breathing hard all the while doing so.

"Hey…" Meryl was saying, taking a slow step forward. The girl's head snapped towards her in an instant, clicking like a zombie. Within seconds, she was up on the bed on all fours, staring down at all of us like an animal looking at its prey.

"All of you… get underground… go…" I made sure to say it in a very soft, and non aggressive manner. To my relief, they actually obeyed, backing away as steadily as they could, trying not to rile up any sudden movements.

Edward was the first to go down. Jon just disappeared into thin air. I noticed Meryl hadn't moved and because of that, neither did Ricky. The girl groaned as if nearing the end of her patience.

"Get back!" I shouted, already feeling the vibration beneath my feet. I jumped to one side, just in time before a shard of ice emerged from the ground. Another one emerged right behind Meryl. She screamed as she ran towards the door instead. A block of ice dropped down in front of her in the doorway, blocking the exit.

I glanced at Ricky with ready eyes who nodded back. Simultaneously we both crouched down to touch the floor. My shadow expanded in a flash, wrapping around the entire room over the layer of ice. Ricky's fingers discharged sparks into the floor, creating a web of sparks all around, overlapping my shadow. The room lit up like a bulb, so bright that the girl squinted her eyes, shielding them with her skeleton arms as she fell backwards. I could feel the shards attempting to break through the walls of shadow that I'd surrounded us with.

She rolled off the bed, hitting the floor with a thump. I breathed out. All went silent for a few seconds. Meryl looked back at the girl worriedly, then slowly tip-toed her way over to us.

"She's not moving…" she whispered. "What did you do?"

"Nothing, just a little light freaked her out," Ricky answered, inching over towards the bed. His footsteps were light as a feather in an attempt to not startle the girl again. Meryl grabbed my arm, digging her nails into my skin through the jacket. I could hear her breathing so loud next to me.

All of a sudden, my shadow stretched out into a hole under my palm without my consent, revealing the icy floor underneath.

"Damn it," I cursed, quickly shoving Meryl to one side just as an ice shard shot up through the floor, all the way to the ceiling, poking a hole in the shadow above.

"Ricky!" I warned him.

He had his back to us, standing next to the bed. He waved a hand and the web of sparks buzzed as they extended up to wrap around the giant shard. Suddenly the room became very hot. The web vibrantly lit up surrounding the ice. I watched as the shard directly evaporated into the air, disappearing from sight, leaving only a trail of fog behind.

I quickly filled the holes in the shadow wall, letting it expand till the floor beneath was no longer visible. After which I breathed out, slumping to the ground with my arms supporting my back while I sat. Meryl, who had rolled over to one side like a cat, now sat up straight, unharmed.

I asked her if she was alright in an upwards nod. She replied with another nod, yes. We watched Ricky crouch down in front of the shivering girl, making sign gestures that I was yet to understand.

"It's okay," he told her while acting it out roughly with his hands. "We're here to help you." His voice was soft, as if talking to a child. Apparently he was, knowing the girl had been in a coma for years, having skipped her entire childhood. She looked to be about our age if it wasn't for the skeleton-like figure.

She blinked at him, making it difficult to tell if she even understood anything. She then made a slight movement with her head downwards, signifying a nod. Ricky smiled politely at her and then turned towards me.

"I'll stay here and contact help. You guys go on without me."

"Are you sure you'll be alright on your own?" I asked.

"I'll stay with him," Meryl offered, raising her hand as if in a class.

I nodded, and then very slowly, the shadows retracted from the walls. Very obediently this time, they all returned to me. There was surprisingly no ice underneath.

"Damon," I called, getting back onto my feet.

He was at my side within seconds. Meryl watched him with part confusion and amazement at the same time as this was her first time meeting him.

"My lady," he began the minute he laid eyes on her, and then crouched down in a bow, except I grabbed his cape and pulled him back mid way.

"What did I say about bowing?"

"But it is the Lady," he objected, not making any sense.

"Keep her safe. I'm leaving her in your hands," I told him right before jumping down the hole in the ground.