Chapter Text
The neon lights flicker brightly in the Cyber World.
They hum overhead in electric pinks and cold blues, reflecting off the slick pavement of the alley that leads toward the towering silhouette of Queen's mansion. The alley is different. No advertising nonsense in cheerful pixel fonts, no cute, bright lights. The ground is dark and stone, seeming like a completely different part of the city. One that doesn't belong, just like the few rooms before the ally. The air smells faintly like ozone.
Right in the middle of the alley, Berdly stands with his arms crossed smugly over his chest.
His blue feathers are outlined by shadows as he adjusts his glasses with exaggerated confidence. His stance is dramatic, almost theatrical, as though he has been waiting here specifically to deliver the speech currently swelling in his chest.
Across from him stand Kris and Noelle.
The three of them form a strange triangle in the glowing alleyway.
Berdly clears his throat loudly.
"Well, well, well!" He declares, his voice echoing slightly against the dark stone walls. "If it isn't the low rank student themselve! Oh, and hello, my dear Noelle."
He spreads his arms slightly, puffing his chest out.
"I must say, I'm rather impressed you managed to make it this far."
Kris doesn't move.
They simply stand there, quiet and still as always, their face half-shadowed beneath their dark hair.
Noelle stands beside them, clutching her hands together nervously. Her antlers cast shadows over the pavement. She looks tired, like she hasn't rested in days.
Berdly continues talking anyway.
"As Queen's most trusted advisor, it naturally falls upon me to ensure you do not interfere with her grand plans." He adjusts his glasses again with a smug little smile. "Not that you could, of course."
His sharp beak curls upward.
"I mean, really. Kris? You, of all people?"
No response.
Berdly tilts his head slightly.
"…And Noelle."
His tone softens for a moment when he says her name, though he tries to hide it quickly beneath another scoff.
"You too, huh? I must admit I'm disappointed. I expected better judgment from you."
Noelle flinches just slightly.
It's small enough that Berdly almost misses it.
Almost.
But something about the way she's standing is… strange.
Her shoulders are hunched inward. Her hands tremble slightly where they clutch each other. Her eyes don't meet his. She looks pale.
Berdly frowns faintly.
"Uh… Noelle?"
No answer.
She stares down at the ground, hands clutched together against her long white robe
Berdly shifts his weight.
"…Are you okay?"
Kris still hasn't said anything. They simply stand there, watching, barely even blinking.
Noelle's breathing sounds uneven.
"…Noelle?"
Finally, she looks up.
Her eyes look wrong. Wide. Glassy. Like she's somewhere far away.
A strange chill creeps down Berdly's spine. Something feels… off. He shakes the feeling away quickly.
"Hmph! Well! Regardless," he says, raising his voice again, trying to regain his usual confident rhythm. "If you two insist on standing in the way of Queen and I's brilliant future—"
A battle begins.
The world snaps sharply into the rigid, invisible geometry of combat.
Berdly doesn't question it. Battles happen all the time here.
"Well then!" He announces. "Allow me to demonstrate the overwhelming power of my intellect!"
Noelle stands frozen.
Kris moves first.
Berdly watches them curiously, adjusting his glasses again.
"Oh? Planning your strategy already?" He chuckles. "Wise decision. But unfortunately for you—"
Kris turns toward Noelle.
Their voice is calm. Quiet.
"Proceed."
Noelle freezes.
Her head jerks toward Kris.
"Wha?—" Her voice shakes immediately. "I— I can't…"
Berdly blinks.
What are they talking about?
Proceed with what?
Kris does not move.
"Snowgrave."
The word lands heavily.
Noelle's breathing quickens.
"…Kris… I…"
Her fingers tremble.
"I… I don't know that spell..."
Berdly frowns more deeply now. "Uh... excuse me? What exactly is going on here?"
Neither of them answers him.
Noelle looks like she might cry. Her eyes dart toward Berdly for a split second. Something in her expression makes his stomach twist.
Fear.
Not fear of him. Something else. Something much worse.
"Kris," she whispers weakly. "Please…"
Kris's face remains unreadable.
"Proceed."
The word sounds final.
Like a command.
Noelle's shoulders shake.
"…I…"
Berdly's feathers ruffle.
"…Noelle?"
The temperature in the alley drops suddenly.
No warning. No gradual shift. One moment the air hums with warmth, the next something violent and unnatural tears through it.
Cold.
Not the gentle winter chill, not the crisp bite of December wind. This is something deeper, sharper. It slams into the alley like a collapsing sky.
Snow explodes outward.
A violent white storm erupts around Berdly without explanation, spiraling. The world vanishes behind a roaring curtain of ice and frost. The air is instantly thick with swirling shards that sting against his face, his glasses, his feathers, and everywhere else. He instinctively raises his arms, but the motion barely begins before the cold catches him.
It spreads too fast.
Frost races up from the ground, locking around his talons, sealing his legs in place before his mind can even understand what's happening. Ice climbs higher, devouring movement, devouring warmth. His arms stiffen mid-motion as crystal spreads across them, the freezing pressure tightening around his chest.
The storm grows louder.
Wind howls through the alley in a suffocating spiral, snow packing thick against his face until the dark in front of his eyes turn white. Endless white.
Berdly tries to move.
Nothing responds.
The ice seals over him completely in a single brutal moment, swallowing sound, swallowing motion, swallowing breath. His body locks into absolute stillness, frozen solid inside the roaring blizzard.
And then, silence.
The storm vanishes as quickly as it came.
The alley returns.
Berdly stands there, encased in solid ice.
Inside the frozen shell, his mind is still awake.
But he cannot move.
He cannot see.
He cannot speak.
He cannot feel anything except the suffocating awareness that something has gone terribly, horribly wrong.
Somewhere beyond the ice, muffled footsteps begin moving away down the alley. He cannot turn his head to follow them. He cannot call out. He can only remain trapped in the silent blue-white ice, his thoughts racing helplessly inside the frozen prison around him.
And he does not understand why.
He can't see them leave.
He can't hear the exact moment the world moves on without him.
Inside the prison of ice, there is only soft, painful white and the distant, suffocating awareness of his own thoughts. Time feels wrong here, stretched thin, warped by the cold. He can't blink. He can't breathe deeper. He can't feel the pavement beneath his feet anymore.
But he knows he is still there. Still standing. Still trapped.
Somewhere beyond the frozen shell, footsteps scrape lightly against the glowing pavement.
Slow. Measured.
They pause for a moment.
Then they continue down the alley.
Kris does not look back.
And then Berdly is alone.
At first, Noelle doesn't realize she's running.
Her feet move before her mind can catch up.
The alley blurs past her as she bolts down the path. Her hooves slap against the pavement too loudly, echoing between the dark walls.
Her breathing is already uneven. Too fast. Too shallow. Her lungs burn as cold air scrapes down her throat.
What did I do?
The thought crashes into her all at once.
Her pace falters.
"No—"
Her voice cracks immediately.
She presses a hand against her chest as if that might slow her heart, but it's pounding too hard, too fast, slamming against her ribs like it's trying to escape.
The memory flashes in her mind. The storm. The ice. Berdly standing there. Frozen.
Her stomach twists violently. She stumbles forward another few steps before her legs suddenly give out beneath her.
Noelle drops down hard onto her knees in the middle of the empty street and she barely catches herself on the pavement.
Her breathing spirals completely out of control.
Air rushes in and out of her lungs in sharp, panicked gasps that don't feel like enough. Her chest tightens painfully, refusing to expand all the way.
"I— I—"
Her voice breaks apart. The world spins.
Heat floods her face. It's suddenly so hot. Way too hot.
Her robe clings to her skin, her body trembling as sweat prickles along her neck. The neon lights above blur and smear in her vision.
Her stomach lurches.
Noelle barely manages to turn her head before she retches violently onto the pavement.
There's nothing in her stomach, only bitter, burning bile.
Her body convulses again as she coughs and gags, her arms shaking so badly she can barely hold herself up.
Tears stream down her face uncontrollably.
I hurt him...
Another wave of nausea hits her.
Her shoulders shake as she hunches forward, dry heaving helplessly against the glowing ground.
The alley is empty. No one hears her.
Noelle presses her forehead against the pavement, sobbing as the panic claws deeper into her chest.
Berdly...
His name alone makes her stomach twist again.
The look on his face, the confusion, the fear, the way he didn't understand what was happening.
Her hands curl tightly into fists against the pavement.
"I didn't want to—"
Her voice dissolves into broken sobs.
The command echoes again in her mind.
Proceed.
She squeezes her eyes shut, shaking her head violently.
"No— no—"
Her breathing refuses to slow.
Each gasp feels smaller than the last, like the air around her is disappearing.
For a moment she wonders if she's going to pass out right there in the street, but somehow she forces herself back to her feet.
Her legs feel weak. Unsteady. But they move. One step, then another.
Noelle doesn't remember the path back to the room Queen gave her.
She barely remembers walking at all.
The glowing city blurs past in a haze of neon and tears until eventually she finds herself standing in front of the door.
Her hand shakes as she pushes it open.
The room inside is quiet and soft. Almost painfully normal compared to the chaos inside her head.
Noelle stumbles inside and shuts the door behind her. The moment the latch clicks, her legs finally give out again. She sinks down onto the floor beside the bed, curling into herself as the sobs come back harder than before.
Her entire body shakes. Her hands clutch weakly at her sleeves.
"I didn't—"
She buries her face in her arms.
"I didn't mean to..."
Minutes pass.
Or maybe longer.
The room is quiet except for the sound of Noelle crying.
The space fills with sharp, breathless sobs that catch painfully in her throat before spilling out again. She sits crumpled on the floor beside the bed Queen assigned her, knees drawn tightly to her chest, arms wrapped around herself like she's trying to hold her body together.
Her antlers glow faintly in the moonlight.
Her whole body shakes.
The door creaks open.
Susie steps inside.
She pauses immediately when she sees Noelle.
For once, the usual loud confidence in her posture disappears. The tough expression on her face falters slightly as she takes in the sight of Noelle curled on the floor, trembling and crying so hard she can barely breathe.
"…Hey." Her voice is quieter than usual.
Noelle doesn't respond. She might not have even heard her.
Susie closes the door gently behind her and walks further into the room, her boots thudding softly against the floor. The sound seems strangely loud in the silent space.
She stops a few feet away. For a moment she just stands there, awkward, unsure.
Seeing Noelle like this is… different. Scary, almost.
Noelle's shoulders hitch with another broken sob. Her hands clutch weakly at the fabric of her sleeves as she presses her face harder against her arms.
Her breathing is still wrong. Like she can't get enough air.
Susie's expression falters.
"…Whoa. Hey. Hey."
She kneels down quickly beside her.
Noelle flinches faintly at the sudden movement, but she doesn't pull away.
Her eyes stay squeezed shut.
"I—"
The word falls apart before it can become anything else.
Her stomach twists again and she presses a shaking hand against her mouth, swallowing hard as another wave of nausea rolls through her.
Susie notices immediately.
"Hey, hey— it's okay." She mutters quickly.
Her voice drops softer.
"Breathe, alright?"
Noelle tries.
But every inhale comes out shaky and uneven.
Susie glances around awkwardly for a second, like she's searching for instructions that aren't there.
Then she just… decides.
Carefully, slowly, she sits down beside Noelle on the floor. Then, after a small pause, Susie reaches out and wraps one arm around Noelle's shoulders.
Noelle stiffens at first.
Her body goes tense like she's expecting something else to happen.
But Susie doesn't squeeze hard, she just holds her there.
"It's okay," She murmurs.
Noelle shakes her head weakly.
Her breath hitches again.
She still can't stop crying.
Susie pulls her a little closer without forcing it, letting Noelle lean against her side if she wants to.
"Hey… hey, c'mon." She says. Her voice is strangely careful. "You're alright."
Noelle's fingers twitch uncertainly against her sleeve before finally grabbing onto the front of Susie's jacket.
It's a weak grip.
But she holds on.
Susie notices and doesn't comment on it.
Instead she rests her chin lightly against the top of Noelle's head.
"You're shaking like crazy." She mutters quietly.
Noelle's breathing stutters again.
"I—"
Her voice breaks immediately.
The rest of the sentence never comes out.
Susie doesn't push.
She just slowly rubs up and down Noelle's back.
"...Weird dream, huh?" She asks after a moment.
Noelle doesn't answer.
But her shoulders jerk slightly with another sob.
"…Yeah," Susie murmurs. "Those fucking suck."
The room stays quiet for a while.
Noelle's crying slowly softens from frantic sobs into quiet, exhausted sniffles. She presses her face into Susie's shoulder like she's trying to hide there.
Susie keeps her arm around her the whole time. Grounding. Steady.
"It's just a stupid dream..." Susie says softly after a while.
Noelle's grip on her jacket tightens slightly.
Her breathing still isn't completely normal, but it's not spiraling anymore.
"Nothing here can actually hurt you," Susie continues quietly.
She glances toward the door for a moment, then back down at the trembling deer girl leaning against her.
"See?" She says, her voice going even softer. "You're safe."
Noelle squeezes her eyes shut.
A fresh tear slips down her cheek.
She wants to believe that.
She really does.
But the memory of ice and blinding snow keeps flashing through her mind every time she closes her eyes.
Her stomach twists again.
Susie notices the way she curls inward slightly and shifts her arm a little so Noelle is more comfortably tucked against her side.
"Hey," she murmurs. "Focus on breathing, okay?"
She demonstrates slowly.
"In… and out."
Noelle tries to follow along.
Her breaths come shaky at first.
But Susie stays patient.
"Yeah. Like that."
Noelle's hands are still clutching the front of Susie's jacket.
She doesn't let go.
Susie doesn't make her.
Instead she leans back slightly against the side of the bed, letting Noelle rest against her however she needs.
"Dreams feel real sometimes." Susie mutters quietly. "But they're still just dreams."
She glances down at Noelle's tear-streaked face.
"You'll feel better after some sleep. Always cheers me up."
Noelle doesn't answer, but her breathing slowly begins to steady as she stays curled against Susie's side.
Susie keeps holding her. Quiet, patient, like she has nowhere else to be.
Outside the room, the glowing city of the Cyber World continues buzzing with endless neon light.
And somewhere far away, in that stupid, dark alley,
Berdly still stands frozen.
Neon signs buzz softly in the city, their shifting colors reflecting cheerily off the buildings in the city. Its a huge contrast from the shadows resting against thick ice that now stands in the middle of the pavement. The frozen shell is uneven and jagged, crystalline frost branching outward across the ground.
Inside it, Berdly is still conscious.
At first, his mind refuses to understand what has happened.
His thoughts rush forward all at once, frantic and disorganized, trying to catch up to a moment that happened too quickly for him to follow. Just seconds ago he had been standing there, talking, preparing to start another dramatic battle speech like he always does. Then the snow came. Now there is nothing.
He tries to move.
His body does not respond.
At first he assumes he simply hasn't tried hard enough. His brain sends the signal again automatically. Lift an arm, turn his head, blink his eyes, anything at all, but the command goes nowhere. It feels as though the connection between his thoughts and the rest of his body has been cut completely.
He can't feel his arms.
He can't feel his legs.
He can't even feel the ground beneath him anymore.
The only sensation left is the cold.
It burns.
The freezing pressure wraps tightly around every inch of him, pressing in from all directions. It crawls along his feathers and skin, sharp and biting, cold enough that it almost feels like heat at first. The sensation digs deeper and deeper, sinking into his chest, into his throat, and into his face.
Berdly tries to inhale sharply.
His lungs barely move.
Panic rises instantly.
He tries to breathe faster, but nothing changes. The ice does not allow it. His chest expands only the smallest amount before the freezing pressure squeezes it still again.
A wave of nausea rolls through him.
His stomach twists unpleasantly, the sensation distant but unmistakable. It leaves a sour, dizzy feeling behind that makes his thoughts stumble over themselves.
What is happening?
Why can't i move?
Why can't i see?
The darkness around him is complete.
His eyes must still be open, but there is no real light anywhere. The ice blocks everything, sealing him inside a silent, suffocating white.
His mind begins racing faster.
This can't be real.
This has to be some kind of Dark World trick, some strange puzzle mechanic he hasn't figured out yet. That would make sense. Cyber World is full of weird traps, after all. Maybe this is temporary. Maybe he just needs to wait a few seconds for it to wear off.
He waits.
Nothing happens.
The cold keeps spreading.
Slowly, the burning sensation dulls into something worse. The sharp bite fades away piece by piece, replaced by a heavy numbness that creeps across his body like a slow tide. It swallows the remaining warmth inside him, leaving behind a hollow, distant feeling where sensation used to be.
He tries to move again.
Still nothing.
A deeper fear begins forming in the pit of his stomach.
The memory of the storm flashes suddenly in his mind. The blinding snow, the violent rush of wind, the moment everything vanished behind white.
And before that—
Noelle.
He remembers the way she looked.
Her hands shaking.
Her voice barely audible.
He remembers the word Kris spoke.
Snowgrave.
The thought makes his chest tighten weakly.
Why would she do that?
Berdly searches desperately through his memory of the last few moments before the storm hit, trying to reconstruct the conversation. The pieces feel broken and scattered, like trying to remember a dream after waking up.
Kris standing there.
Noelle looking terrified.
A command.
Proceed.
His thoughts slow slightly.
Something about that moment feels wrong.
Noelle hadn't looked like someone preparing for battle. She hadn't looked confident or focused. She had looked sick, like she was forcing herself to move even though she didn't want to.
And Kris had just stood there.
Watching.
But... She still did it.
Berdly feels another wave of nausea twist through him.
His thoughts spiral faster now, racing in tight, frantic circles.
Maybe this is just a temporary spell. Maybe she didn't mean to do something this strong. Maybe she'll come back in a minute once the fight resets and fix it somehow. That's probably it. Dark World battles have strange mechanics all the time. There must be a way to undo this.
He tries to call out.
His throat does not move.
The realization hits him slowly.
He cannot speak.
His beak will not open. His lungs cannot push enough air to form words. Even if someone were standing right in front of him, he wouldn't be able to make a sound.
The fear sharpens immediately.
Noelle had run away.
He remembers hearing her footsteps fading down the alley just before the silence settled in.
Kris had been there too.
But those footsteps had left as well.
The alley is empty now.
And Berdly is still trapped here.
A new, colder wave of panic crawls through his chest.
What if no one comes back?
The thought lodges in his mind and refuses to leave.
He cannot see the alley anymore, but he remembers it clearly enough to imagine what it must look like now. Anyone passing through the city might walk right past this alley without ever noticing the frozen figure standing in the shadows.
What if hours pass?
What if days pass?
What if the ice never melts?
His thoughts start to feel sluggish as the numbness deepens.
The cold is no longer sharp. It no longer burns the way it did at first. Instead it feels distant and heavy, like his entire body has been wrapped in thick stone. The only thing left is the faint pressure of the ice surrounding him and the slow, uncomfortable churning in his stomach.
He tries again to move a finger.
Nothing happens.
He tries to blink.
Nothing happens.
The silence around him feels enormous.
For the first time in a very long while, Berdly feels something he almost never allows himself to admit.
He is terrified.
Not the dramatic kind of fear he might joke about during a game or a competition. This fear sits deep in his chest, heavy and quiet and impossible to argue away with logic.
He is completely helpless.
Trapped inside solid ice.
Unable to move.
Unable to see.
Unable to call for help.
And he has no idea if anyone is coming back for him.