chapter: The Frozen Prince

Voices. People whispering, laughing, just talking to each other. That was the first thing I heard.

Then I opened my eyes. I was on a flight.

For the first time in a long time, I was actually happy. Finally, I was going home.

I sat there listening to the people around me. I didn't understand everything, but some were speaking English, talking about how beautiful their country was.

One guy said, "I'm going back to my home after 20 years."

That made me freeze. 20 years? How the hell can anyone stay away from home for 20 years? Are they even human?

The air hostess started telling everyone to sit down. "Sir, please take your seats."

It took a while for everyone to settle. When the plane was finally ready for takeoff, I looked around. Everyone was sitting quietly, but the vibe was just... off.

It was taking too long. Usually, flights don't take this much time to move. And there was so much stuff stored everywhere.

"Miss," I asked the hostess. "We are like 20 minutes late, right?"

The second I asked, it was like I pulled a trigger. Everyone started shouting the same thing. My head started spinning—why is everyone screaming so much?

"Sir, there was a problem. Please sit, we are taking off now," she said. She had to explain a lot before they finally shut up.

I sat by the window. My reflection was staring back at me.

Blue eyes. Deep blue hair.

People call this face "beautiful," but for me, beauty means something else entirely. Cold air seemed to leak from my eyes, like they were made of ice.

"Today," I whispered to myself. "Today, my mission ends."

It's been 5 years since I was home. This face, this body... it's all become so strange. I feel like some weird animal that just attracts bad luck.

My name is Rio Isanami. I'm 23. And my life has never been normal.

The plane roared into the sky. I'm not used to this, so I started feeling dizzy. I covered my eyes and tried to take deep breaths.

That's when I saw them. Strange colors floating in the air.

Glowing light was bleeding out from those colors. Nobody else saw it. Only me. Why me? Why always me?

I pulled out my phone. A message from my sister, Sara.

"Bhai, it's been so many years. You don't even reply to me. But I know you are okay. Since we were kids, weird things happened to you. You saw things, talked about things, but you never got scared. You never gave up. People called you wrong, but you stayed true. I'm happy I have a brother like you."

"You said you'd come back last year, but you didn't. This time, just come to me. I'll hug you so tight and never let go. I hope you stopped seeing those 'weird things.' I pray to God for you every day."

God. If He exists, He has nothing to do with me. He wasn't there in my happy times, and He definitely wasn't there in my pain.

Ever since I was a kid, I only got this weird power. It never gave me anything but darkness.

I closed my eyes and tried to fake sleep. Seconds, minutes, hours—I was counting them all. My brain was working way too fast.

Then, the flight attendant came with chocolates. "Sir, would you like one?"

I just grabbed a handful. She went to the guy next to me. He said no, but she kept forcing him. "Sir, please, just try one."

Suddenly, he just... agreed. It was so weird.

The colors in the air started getting darker. The "smell" of those colors became heavy. My head felt like it was going to burst. A voice screamed in my skull:

"You are going to die! Run! Your true self is calling you!"

What are you talking about?! I shouted back in my mind.

Suddenly, a man came running and fell on his knees right in front of me. I reached out to help, and—BOOM. I felt a jolt. Everything turned red. Blood splattered all over me.

"He's dead," the voice said.

My hands started shaking. I couldn't move.

"What happened? Help him!" someone yelled. A man rushed to pick him up, but the next second, a bullet hit the fallen man's head.

Exactly like my vision.

I couldn't breathe. My head was pounding: "Everyone is going to die! Everyone is going to die!"

I grabbed my head with both hands. Men with masks and guns stormed in. "Nobody move or I'll kill you!"

Someone screamed. Another jolt hit me.

Then... time stopped.

The world was frozen. Blood was hanging in the air like red mist.

A woman appeared. Her clothes were covered in blood. Her face was hidden. She walked up to me and said:

"I want to give you an identity. Will you accept me?"

Her voice was so heavy, like it was crushing my chest. The air smelled like rot and burnt blood.