Callie permitted herself a sigh of contentment as she lay back in her deck chair, clutching the cocktail glass in one hand. Life, she reasoned, could not be any better right now.
Here she was, in a one-piece swimsuit, with sun, sand and surf - natural Inkling territory - all around her, topped off with all the conveniences of the modern world. The gazebo's thatched roof shaded her from the worst of the midday heat, whilst a cooling breeze worked in tandem to soothe her body from the tropical temperatures. Add to that the peach bellini in one hand and the relaxing sound of the waves crashing on the shore... There was no doubt in the squid's mind, as she sipped at her drink, what this was.
"This," she announced aloud, "is living."
"Don't get too comfortable." A turn of the head revealed Marie, slouched in an identical chair next to her with a highball glass of Pimm's in one hand. By contrast to her cousin, the grey-tentacled Squid Sister was wearing a more daring two-piece outfit that was more than likely tailor-made - Marie had always been the one who splashed out the most money.
"It's only for a few more days," she continued. "And then it's on the boat back to Inkopolis and our old jobs at the studio."
Callie gave another sigh as the reality of this situation hit her. "Boy, am I gonna miss this! Tropical drinks, great food, balmy weather, disco-ing until dawn..."
"And the tan," chipped in Marie, pointing at Callie's legs. The black-haired Inkling craned her neck to obseve, and smirked as she noted her skin was a little darker in tone than usual. If only she had the time to keep this up - she'd been going for this bronzed beach babe look she'd read about in Tentacles Weekly, but now it seemed unlikely she'd reach it.
Marie slurped her drink noisly, and continued. "At least we won't have to deal with the Kobbers again. I've had enough of that lot already, Cthulhu knows."
"That was your own fault," was the response. "If you'd just said 'hey, I'm a professional sniper and also I'm a very grumpy squid', you could have avoided all that!"
Marie glared. "Oh, and where were you, when I was getting mixed up in all that Aggie business?"
"Doing my job," was the curt response, followed by another sip of drink. "And besides, we're not always a double act. You seemed to get by just fine on your own, didn't you?"
"Well, it would have been nice to have some backup." Marie was now swirling her drink and staring out to see, the sign that she wasn't comfortable with this conversation anymore. "And I thought you would have enjoyed being part of all that superhero nonsense. You drooled over that Kamen Rider kid enough."
Callie went red in the face at this reminder, and was about to retort when something cold touched her on the nose. She spluttered, lifting one hand to brush away the offending whatever it was, and looked at her own fingers, which became damp and somewhat cold from touching the foreign particle. Utter confusion then took over her mind as she watched the remains of the snowflake dissolve into nothingness, leaving nothing behind but chilly water on her skin.
As she stared, another snowflake suddenly whizzed past her face, followed by another. She looked up, and saw that the things were now falling reguarly - a light drizzle, yes, but still very noticable in a sunny tropical sky. All around her, people were now looking up and pointing, as confused as she was as to the source of this phenomenon. Just what kind of shenanigans were at play to make it start snowing in weather like this? Unless it was volcanic ash, but that was unlikely...
Callie turned to Marie to ask what she thought of it, and saw she was still staring out to sea. Her expression was not one of bored distraction, but intense focus. The expression she wore on her face before she pulled the trigger and splatted some unfortunate newbie who didn't understand why running out into the open was a bad idea. The expression that told the younger cousin, immediately, that something was very wrong.
"Callie," said Marie, slowly.
"Yeah?" Nervous fear was creeping into Callie's body.
"The forecast was set for 'yet another glorious day', right?"
"Right."
Marie lifted a finger and pointed out to sea.
"Yeah?" Nervous fear was creeping into Callie's body.
"The forecast was set for 'yet another glorious day', right?"
"Right."
Marie lifted a finger and pointed out to sea.
"So what are those clouds...?"
Callie looked. And sure enough, there did seem to be clouds - huge, black ones, slowly drifting over the ocean and flickering with the odd spark of lightning from within. But they were moving at an angle that should have been impossible, pushing against the wind instead of alongside it, as if they were alive and moving with purpose. And, if she squinted hard enough, there was something else in there, a collection of shapes moving in formation, shapes that looked like.
The fear spiked into cold realization.
"...those aren't clouds."
Callie looked. And sure enough, there did seem to be clouds - huge, black ones, slowly drifting over the ocean and flickering with the odd spark of lightning from within. But they were moving at an angle that should have been impossible, pushing against the wind instead of alongside it, as if they were alive and moving with purpose. And, if she squinted hard enough, there was something else in there, a collection of shapes moving in formation, shapes that looked like.
The fear spiked into cold realization.
"...those aren't clouds."
-------
"Sire! Sire!"
The voice, high-pitched and squawking, broke through the meditative reviere of the one sitting upon the flagship's vast high chair. The heavy, blubbery bulk shifted slightly as the bloated body leaned forward to survey the one who had dared interrupt the owner's private thoughts. Piggy eyes full of malice and ill will bore down upon the speaker, glowing like two bright, sky-blue chips of ice.
"What is it?" came the demand, low and snarling.
"We found it! We found it!" The messenger, a tiny little penguin in a horned helmet, was struggling to stay on his feet, hopping up and down with excitement on a wooden deck slick with frost. "It really exists, just like you said!" And he pointed with one flipper, out towards where the steel towers of a city jutted out from the tropical waters.
At this, a rumbling sound came deep from within the massive being, the heavy moustache hiding a crooked grin of triumph. Muscles disguised by years of accumulated fat shifted and flexed as the arms pushed the bulk out of the chair and onto the ship deck, the hormed helmet wobbling slightly with the movement. The creaking of the wooden slats beneath them drew the attention of all away from their tasks, every hand on deck looking up as Lord Fredrik of the Snowmads stepped forward to speak.
"Bring me the Horn," he commanded.
The command was one that was carried out in short order - not for nothing did this ragtag collection of bandits and misfits serve under this leader for many years. A squadron of penguins, arranged upon the uppermost parts of the deck, sounded the call to arms on brass horns in a dull, ominous note. A retinue of walrus-like beings gathered in a circle, already beating the mighty drums in a slow, deliberate rhythm like the footsteps of a giant. These together were the first and only warning of the catastrophic event to come, and by then it was too late - as it always was.
A box was thrown open, and another set of penguins hauled out from it's depths a huge horn, made of cold-bleached ivory and reinforced with rings of studded iron. It's sheer size alone was impressive, for none could picture what creature it had once belonged to, but even more awe-inspiring was the icy mist that trickled from it's surface - a sign of clear enchantment at work. The bearers heaved and grunted as they carried the thing towards their leader, setting it within a wooden frame bolted into the deck to support it's weight before stepping respectfully back.
Fredrik permitted himself a cruel belly-laugh as he stepped forwards and took the pipe of the Horn in one pudgy paw.
"With this," he boomed, loud enough for all to hear, "we claim the land that is ours by might!"
And saying thus, he blew one deep, low, booming note upon the Horn.
Those who saw it coming were already too late to respond. It came as a dark, churning mass of thick cloud that shifted and changed as it rolled inexorably forwards - sometimes a wolf, sometimes a bear, sometimes a dragon with piercing eyes and awful teeth. What wasn't swept away by the screaming hurricane that lashed across the island like a giant scouring pad was buried under the deluge of white as the blizzard took it's place. People, animals, trees, buildings mechanical things - all were prey to this freak disaster that fell upon them and blanketed them in a freezing grip.
By the time it was over, there was nothing left but ice and snow.
Inkopolis was now a part of the Snowmad Territories.
-------
"Sire! Sire!"
The voice, high-pitched and squawking, broke through the meditative reviere of the one sitting upon the flagship's vast high chair. The heavy, blubbery bulk shifted slightly as the bloated body leaned forward to survey the one who had dared interrupt the owner's private thoughts. Piggy eyes full of malice and ill will bore down upon the speaker, glowing like two bright, sky-blue chips of ice.
"What is it?" came the demand, low and snarling.
"We found it! We found it!" The messenger, a tiny little penguin in a horned helmet, was struggling to stay on his feet, hopping up and down with excitement on a wooden deck slick with frost. "It really exists, just like you said!" And he pointed with one flipper, out towards where the steel towers of a city jutted out from the tropical waters.
At this, a rumbling sound came deep from within the massive being, the heavy moustache hiding a crooked grin of triumph. Muscles disguised by years of accumulated fat shifted and flexed as the arms pushed the bulk out of the chair and onto the ship deck, the hormed helmet wobbling slightly with the movement. The creaking of the wooden slats beneath them drew the attention of all away from their tasks, every hand on deck looking up as Lord Fredrik of the Snowmads stepped forward to speak.
"Bring me the Horn," he commanded.
The command was one that was carried out in short order - not for nothing did this ragtag collection of bandits and misfits serve under this leader for many years. A squadron of penguins, arranged upon the uppermost parts of the deck, sounded the call to arms on brass horns in a dull, ominous note. A retinue of walrus-like beings gathered in a circle, already beating the mighty drums in a slow, deliberate rhythm like the footsteps of a giant. These together were the first and only warning of the catastrophic event to come, and by then it was too late - as it always was.
A box was thrown open, and another set of penguins hauled out from it's depths a huge horn, made of cold-bleached ivory and reinforced with rings of studded iron. It's sheer size alone was impressive, for none could picture what creature it had once belonged to, but even more awe-inspiring was the icy mist that trickled from it's surface - a sign of clear enchantment at work. The bearers heaved and grunted as they carried the thing towards their leader, setting it within a wooden frame bolted into the deck to support it's weight before stepping respectfully back.
Fredrik permitted himself a cruel belly-laugh as he stepped forwards and took the pipe of the Horn in one pudgy paw.
"With this," he boomed, loud enough for all to hear, "we claim the land that is ours by might!"
And saying thus, he blew one deep, low, booming note upon the Horn.
Those who saw it coming were already too late to respond. It came as a dark, churning mass of thick cloud that shifted and changed as it rolled inexorably forwards - sometimes a wolf, sometimes a bear, sometimes a dragon with piercing eyes and awful teeth. What wasn't swept away by the screaming hurricane that lashed across the island like a giant scouring pad was buried under the deluge of white as the blizzard took it's place. People, animals, trees, buildings mechanical things - all were prey to this freak disaster that fell upon them and blanketed them in a freezing grip.
By the time it was over, there was nothing left but ice and snow.
Inkopolis was now a part of the Snowmad Territories.
-------
Callie stared at the mass of white that had once been a city.
Then, as hordes of screaming people began to abandon the beach and their belongings, she turned to Marie, who was clutching her highball glass and visibly shaking.
"Um... D'you think we could get a refund on those tickets?" she tried.
Her only response was a shattering noise and a very loud swear word.
TROPICAL FREEZE
A Steel Komodo Plot
A Steel Komodo Plot
~Coming Soon to ZFRP 2017~
