. : It was ice while it lasted. : .

Map: 61 (?)

Kiyori's Perspective

"Tch, good luck with this one, scrub." Brushie drawls, pushing the sled in a lethargic way.

"Why, I think I'll get a brain freeze! Does anyone have something warm?!" Mayo questions, frantically rubbing his paws to create friction. He huffs, bubbles rising, managing to give off a puff of air.

"Please, I'm sure your pal can... suffice." I reply in monotone, face straight. Mayo pauses in his actions, his face an expression of horror and a hint of confusion.

"Kiyo, no.. No! That wasn't punny at all!" Mayo whines, scraping the frost off his bowl. The action was useless, as the snow continues to collect. Brushie shakes his head in agreement, folding his arms at his chest. He gives me a look of disapproval.

"I have to agree with the fish head this time, you're simply awful." Brushie admits, using his back to push instead. I join in and push along with my (weak) arms.

"Oh please! I'm very cool. Jeez, you're so cold. You need to chill." I retort, following up with multiple groans from others. (In a bad way. Not the kind of "it's bad but it's funny", unfortunately...) The longer I push, the more it seems the sled is actually just stuck in the ground. Can you imagine that? Frozen to the ground. Wow, what a waste of time and effort that would be. Not that my life isn't, I mean, come on? No? Yeah, I'll admit it, that one sunk real hard, too, me.

I quiver as the wind continues to briskly blow against my fur. A mouse pushing the makeshift sled alongside with us violently coughs, startling me enough to start tumbling down the icy slope. "Good thinking, scrub," Brushie pauses, "though at the same time you're a real idiot." He scorns me under a breath, but I'm too frightened to care.

"What is that supposed to mean?!" I shriek in hysterics, lifting my hind legs inwardly, the ice scraping my rump. Colliding into another mouse, I flip over onto my side in an abrupt, coarse motion. The sensation is bizarre. it felt as if I was burning instead of freezing; nevertheless, it is becoming unbearable.. My gaze wanders, finding the same mouse. Our eyes meet, and they heave another sickening cough in response. It seems the longer I reside in this place, the more questions I acquire...

"Scrub!" I snap out of my thoughts and crane my neck to look back. I choke back a scream in mortification. A sled with more than at least twenty mice, accelerates towards my direction and some others. I tense up, bracing for the impact. The sled knocks me into the air with such force, I actually made a back flip! The nonathletic me-- doing a flip-- inconceivable! I squint, a blur of yellow approaches me, and I stretch my paw outwards to graze it. It turns out to be enough, as the heavy block weighs upon my back once more, gravity pulling me further down. On instinct, I use my free paw to latch onto the floating ledge. I hoist myself inside with some effort. It was straining, but I manage to succeed.

I sigh in relief and content as gusts of warm air envelops me. I rub my aching (non-existent) muscles and recoil. Bruises, not a nice sign. I shift, realizing that most of the mice are starting to huddle near the candle. I trod leisurely to them, yet cringe once I hear another cough to my left. Slowly, I look over and wave, biting the inside of my cheek. They cough twice. Another shiver runs down my spine and I cry inwardly. If I stay here any longer, I'm going to catch ab infection. I swallow down my fear. I have to be polite.

"I'm... Kiyori, and you are..?" I ask in a slow manner, subtly (I hope) avoiding his gaze and fingering the locket dangling off my neck.

"R-Ronny, short for iRony actually--" He stammers and sneezes once more, causing me to grieve in silence, murmuring mantras to myself. Looking back, I noticed he was rather abnormal. (Then again, every mouse I have met so far is really strange). Ronny appears to be a grey mouse with a tad bit of blue and some brown spots on his fur. He covers his face with a white mask similar to that of surgeons. A lavender and navy blue striped scarf wraps around his neck. His hair was a light cerulean, short and curly, giving a slight feminine appearance. The unusual features about him was the porcelain horns placed on his head, shaped a bit like ones of a reindeer, and the icicles hanging off his ears. The icicles never seemed to show any sign of melting, and he continues to stare at me with silver eyes. Which was a bit nerve-wracking.

Did I say a bit? I meant extremely. This was awkward to an extreme.

- ='| Co rruption = - ._;

Third Perspective

With the entrance opening up, there was another 'ding' from the bell. All but Kiyori freezes upon so, Kiyori just continuing to pace around. Mayo gulps, nudging Brushie with his elbow. He clenches his fist, gaze not moving from the other.

"Is, is that..?" Mayo asks, unsure if what he's thinking is true. Brushie gives a slow nod of agreement, pressing his lips together tightly on the pipe. Mayo sucks in air, his shoulders rising. Ronny coughs, cautioning Kiyori to an area. Kiyori frowns and tries to follow the gaze of their eyes. It was just a meadow, a relaxing atmosphere.

"Is there something wrong?" Kiyori murmurs, perplexed. He couldn't see what was wrong, as all the mice were continuing their business as normal, jumping across or following the... actually, where is the shaman? Kiyori brushes the thought away as a tedious thing. Because obviously, they were helping!.. he assumes.

"It's one of, well, them," Mayo rushes his words and points to a vague direction, Kiyori is only more muddled. He starts squinting and his frown grows further. There was nothing except mice.

"Seriously, what are you guys talking about?" Kiyori looks a little further and finds a blurry figure. The figure contorts, appearing to be an obtuse triangle. It then turns into a kind of many points, but Kiyori couldn't place what it was. The shape dissipates, revealing a figure that of a mouse. Wings sprout from it, signaling that it was one of the two shamans.

"Don't leave our side, scrub. They're what you consider 'corrupt'." Brushie whispers, pulling Kiyori closer to his side in protection. Mayo looks around nervously and tugs at his tie. Water drips from his 'head'.

"We can't explain it at the moment. Stay with Brushie, got it?" Mayo whispers in an indescribable tone. Kiyori didn't have time to form an answer, Mayo and Ronny sprint towards a shaman. The shaman was overall dark and ominous in appearance. The symbols that radiate an even darker shade covers its entire frame. It materializes a cannon in mid-air, aiming it straight towards Kiyori. He hurls it off with a flick of his paw and Kiyori side-steps in instinct.

Kiyori comes to a realization and gives a violent flinch.

Their dull eyes, fueled only by blood-lust and rage. Pure-black irises, ones that light could not even reflect or pass through. The most unsettling to Kiyori was that smirk. A smirk that defies common anatomy, and was hostile in every way. He couldn't find a color alignment. Their symbols, pure black, just as the void was. He couldn't find a sense of hesitation.

Kiyori was hoping this is just a nightmare.

The corrupt shaman maneuvers their paws upward in a circular motion, chanting foreign words. A crimson aura begins to emit from the being, gradually turning into a conflagration that violently lashes in all directions.

Kiyori was really, really, begging it was just a nightmare.

"Scrub, you gotta move!" Brushie shouts, shoving Kiyori to the side, running back in haste to Mayo and Ronny. For a moment, Kiyori could see vague colors and other shapes. He blinks it away, concluding it was nothing more than another hallucination of his.

"Heeey, catch!" Mayo yells out, throwing a foreign object at Kiyori. It phases through him, but a block then appears on Kiyori's back. He stumbles in shock before regaining his balance. The trio catches up to him, forming a defensive ring. Brushie snaps his neck to look back. He grimaces.

"Tsk, damn bastards learnt about totems. No doubt one of 'em 'gods'. All for what!" Brushie groans, and not another word exchanges until they reach back. Before the entrance seals, Kiyori glimpses back once more. Carcasses litter the field, limbs that should not bend that way. Mice that used to be living. Should be living. The shaman cackles, firing off a continuous line of objects at any poor soul. Kiyori tears his gaze away in horror, pressing his paws against his eyes. He swallows the bile threatening to escape.

After a while, he looks back up. The group is avoiding his direction. There are less mice in the crowd, and each one of them had their own expression of terror, and some, in a way, exhilaration.

Kiyoris sighs and sprawls across the floor, propping his head onto his arms, tired. Tired of all the distractions. Tired of the change.

Tired of everything, if he had to be straightforward.

It takes a while to become accustomed to all the events that occurred in such a rapid pace. He hadn't slept a wink, but he didn't have the need to. Kiyori wouldn't have the effort to think about what happens. Nor did he have the desire to eat, and it was all confusing. It only piles more questions that did not have an answer. He just did not want to have to see... that, again.

There is shuffling and murmurs, some distinct voices of his group and Alice. Kiyori's ears perk up at the sound. It sounds to be a discussion of "staying for a price," and other details he could not perceive. He plays out a thought and speculates. A paw shakes his shoulder, Kiyori looks up and finds Brushie. Brushie makes a motion, one that said "follow," and Kiyori obliges.

Brushie oversees Kiyori, pursuing a blue light. The group follows behind, lacking any enthusiasm or energy. They eventually come to a stop, and Kiyori looks to find the mice he saw earlier were faded in the distance. He turns back and finds himself with a tunnel. He blinks to make sure it's real.

Peculiar enough, Kiyori never really noticed it earlier. He couldn't observe that there were other corridors than just the dark room. Kiyori did not even notice how large the room was. Maybe it was just the trick of the darkness? Whatever such, it puzzles him more than before. "Surely, I should have known by now?" Kiyori broods to himself, frowning in his lack of perception. Each step further in made a clacking echo.

...

Eventually, they reach a room. It illuminates a faint milky hue out of the cracks, but upon opening the glow disappears.

It was simplistic enough.

The floors oaken, and the walls a dull beige, torn and scratched at the edges. On one side of the wall, there was a stone fireplace. It burns brightly, sparks emitting every so often. Center-most of the room was an ornate and extravagant carving of a table, complementary chairs surrounding it. Five, enough to fit them all. They all take a seat and sit in a moment of silence. Kiyori takes the time to analyze the others again.

He travels his eyes to the left of him, Brushie, (or what Kiyori refers him,) the first one to speak to Kiyori.

Brushie was lost in his thoughts, puffing his pipe and grimacing. His hair was even more disheveled, and he seems to be torn up about things. More than usual. It was odd. Kiyori's first meeting with him involved a whole lot of grumpiness and demands. Earlier, he seemed ... afraid? Brushie doesn't show it anymore, but his face does have a touch of green. Kiyori shakes his head slightly and moves on.

The second one he met, Mayo.

Mayo was anxious and quiet. It was not like him, and said some things to Kiyori. He wasn't smiling, but not frowning. Mayo was akin to how Brushie is acting, pondering. It upsets Kiyori. He was getting used to Mayo's positive nature, and now it just isn't the same. He finds a tad of yellow within his eyes. Kiyori scrunches his face and moves on.

The third one he met, Ronny. Rather, iRony.

He appears the same, as close as to when Kiyori met him earlier. It was short, and he didn't know much to anything about Ronny. Though, what Kiyori did notice, is that Ronny did not cough nearly as much as before. Kiyori is already missing the disgusting feel of it. (As strange as it was.) The two have eye-contact, Ronny looking way instantaneously. He swears he saw a flicker of blue and green.

Then, it was just an empty chair.

Kiyori doesn't know if it will remain devoid, and doesn't even know how he got into this mayhem. He almost feels like this was a miscalculation on his part. That he should have just left the paper and stayed inside being a lazy grump. Kiyori's confusion and denial just keeps growing, because he never noticed the colors and shapes until now. If Kiyori's eyes linger on a living being, he could just... see. It wasn't a good feeling, but not bad either. How conflicting.

...

Even if he wants to stay home, he doesn't mind being brought into this mess.

Kiyori honestly enjoys their company, and tries to ignore the feeling of regret. He wishes that they would go back to being the same, and so he'll try.

- | X | -

Kiyori's Perspective

An uncomfortable silence befalls the room, everyone trying to avoid further eye contact. I look over to the hearth for a while. It was mesmerizing, and better than having to deal with the growing silence. It becomes dull, and the fire flickers, crackling into another life. Huh.

I was the first one to speak.

"Please, explain." I whisper, head dropping into my arms.

... Not a word utters, and everyone seems even more unnerved that I even bothered. They don't turn at all, resembling statues.

"Anything?" I cry out, begging for at least a word.

"We might as well, seeing you, uh, lived. You should settle." Mayo replies, tugging at his tie. I tilt my head in question. Ronny gets out of his seat and walks to the ajar door.

...

The door shuts loosely and locks with a "click", Brushie nods in thanks and motions Mayo. Mayor clears his throat.


"You already know the general idea about shamans. Helpful, mysterious, factions, trees, whatnot. Of course, you don't know everything, but that's besides the point," Mayo pauses, looking at me. I tense and he looks to the ceiling. I relax.

"There are numerous ways to go about it and become one... ah, there's quite a few number of theories on the subject. Then," Mayo hesitates, taking a gulp of his water. "There's that way. Mad with the past or seemingly unlimited power. You've noticed-- I'm sure you have-- mice falling? Yes, it does happen. It's becoming more common than average, truthfully. Perhaps they are accidents, but some fall... er, intentionally. Thing is, they don't really... die from 'it'. I've... looked into it, and there's many things about 'it'." Mayo slumps in his chair, leaning on his paw. It takes a few minutes before he speaks again.

"Though, one of them kind of... stands out the most. Apparently, if you repeatedly perish, you could have a glimpse of other worlds. It was claimed to be an outstanding sight-- addicting in a way. You know, a thrilling experience-- adrenaline that can make you mad to the brim. Now, this... this caused quite an outburst in the division. Almost every mouse changed, they started losing emotions and could barely contain themselves from tipping over the edge. It took a while, but eventually, it stopped. At a cost, of course. It was quite confusing, finding that most of the 'corrupted' mice were gone. Almost as if they were erased... ah, but then we caught wind of the news." They all start to look very distraught, and I tense up again.

"They were never gone. They moved. They spread like a disease, taking the other divisions in a storm. It took years, because almost every plan that was tried never succeeded. The place eventually gave up, accepting whatever devastation and hell-fire that came their way. It was a time of... despondency, for a lack of better words."

"It continued, on and on. Then it stopped, again. Now, at this point, every mouse was confused. Some went to their communities for insight, but the trace wasn't there. We discovered a fraction of them, but it wasn't life-threatening. Some assume that it's due to the "object of law". Anyways, that's... most of it. Like I said, I've only looked into it. I don't know all the details. I haven't experienced that time, and I'm grateful for that." Mayo exhales deeply, leaning his head back. He swings his paws at his sides and closes his eyes tight.

"Now that's over," Brushie stands up and brushes off whatever dust gathered on his fur. He looks up with a nonchalant look, "we're going to see a lot more of them. I'm certain. You better get ready, Kiyori. We don't even know if you'll last, so don't expect full stories and an easy life."

I only give a nod and close my eyes.

= | X | =

"Aah, I can not stand to wait another minute. I am being soo serious about this... I do not even feel like looking at their faces. Fuhuuu, they will not even be that entertaining at this point..."

"Patience. I would rather much love to deal with this problem as soon as possible, just as much as you do. Though, I do hope you will enjoy waiting for another generation because of your impatience. If not, then do not interfere with the process."

"Ooh, but... that is boring, you strict being.. too much waiting is not healthy for me.. waake me up when they arrive, eeh..?"