Chapter 7 - The Iceman Cometh

Another day dawned over the frozen wastes as Elsa, Snowflake and Kristoff continued their journey in their stolen Tank. After two days of driving along mountain cliffs and a breakdown, they were finally back on flat ground and were making progress.

According to Kristoff's navigation device, they would soon be at Ground Zero within another two days, but a big worry for all of them would be if their food would last.

There weren't any woods on the horizon, so hunting again would be out of the question.

As they trundled along in their large metal wagon, Elsa and Snowflake were sat together, Snowflake resting her head on Elsa's shoulder, sleeping.

Elsa smiled, looking down at her sleeping friend. Her hair was fully white at this point, no trace of her strawberry blonde locks. She wondered how long it would be before her skin was full blue. The swirling patterns on Snowflake's skin had just reached her neck by now.

Looking at Snowflake's face, Elsa felt her heart skip a few beats. Her feelings for Snowflake, now very much apparent, constantly distracted every free thought she had.

She knew it would be best to try and put these feelings aside, but she couldn't do it any longer.

They were in a quiet moment and soon they would be Ground Zero, ready to start their new lives.

Elsa gently stroked the back of Snowflake's neck, waking the young girl, her blue eyes opening and smiling. "Hey Elsa," she said. "Are we there yet?"

"Not quite yet," Elsa replied.

Snowflake sat up, stretching her arms. She yawned like a kitten before relaxing again. "I'm still thinking of the first thing I wanna do in Ground Zero. There are so many possibilities."

"Such as?" Elsa inquired.

"Well... I wanna see if I can look up any information on who I might have been before I was taken," Snowflake replied. "I mean, if this place has lots of people there, someone might know who I really am."

"I suppose so," Elsa said. "But we might want to get your... condition looked at first. Your hair is fully white now."

"It is?" Snowflake felt her braid, seeing it completely white as the snow outside. "My god... it is white now." She giggled. "I wonder if I can pass for being your grandmother."

Elsa smiled. Snowflake had grown a lot more positive being with her, something that Elsa had discovered she was feeling as well. Snowflake was happy, and so was she.

"Snowflake..." Elsa spoke, knowing this was the perfect moment. "There's something I have to tell you... something that's been on my mind for a while."

"What is it?"

Elsa gulped. She knew what the words needed to be. Something along the lines of "Snowflake, I love you. I've always loved you. I want to be with you." She blushed, very nervous. This was her first time feeling this way, and was unsure of how to express herself.

Then she saw Snowflake's waiting eyes, her adoring face. She was utterly perfect to her.

"I..."

She closed her eyes.

"Lo..."

Suddenly, Kristoff spun around on his chair, calling to them. "Hey, Elsa! There's something up ahead!"

Damnit, Elsa's thoughts groaned, Kristoff, having killed the moment. "What is it, Kristoff?"

"Come see for yourself," Kristoff replied, and Elsa joined him at the cockpit, looking out of the tank's window.

Out in the wastes, the two of them could see what appeared to be another Snowcat, like Elsa's, only this one was slightly larger and lacked the drill and canopy that defined Elsa's transport. Outside was a pair of tents and an extinguished campfire.

Standing by the site, waving to the tank, was a man dressed in cold weather gear from top to bottom.

"Looks like we aren't alone out here," Kristoff said. "Should we stop?"

Elsa thought for a moment before nodding. "I don't see why not. They might be traders and could be able to pass on some supplies to us."

"Alright," Kristoff agreed, putting on the brakes. The tank then ground to a halt in front of the camp and the back door opened, Elsa disembarking wearing her jacket.

She walked over to the family and waved to them. "Hello there!"

The man put down his arms and smiled. "Thank god you came!" He said gratefully. "I thought I'd never see another friendly face out here."

"It's alright," Elsa smiled. "Who are you, exactly?"

"Oh, my manners," the man paused. "My name is Eric Barnes. I've been travelling to Ground Zero with my wife and our little girl. I figured I could try getting some work over there, to help put food on our table."

"What a coincidence," Elsa remarked. "Ground Zero is where we're going too."

"Really?" Eric raised an eyebrow. "Well, glad to meet a fellow traveller." He gestured towards his Snowcat. "Although, I might not be travelling anytime soon. My Cat's engine died the other day and we've had to camp here for the night."

Elsa sighed. "That's... unfortunate."

Eric then looked at her. "If it's not too much, would you be alright taking us to Ground Zero. We don't have anything to trade, but it would mean a lot to us."

Stroking her chin, Elsa thought. She knew their supplies were low, but she couldn't just let these people starve out here. After all, Snowflake's compassion and kind nature was rubbing off on her.

Finally, Elsa had an answer. "Alright, we'll take you, but our supplies are running low. I don't know if we have enough food to last for all of us."

"Well... I do know somewhere that might be able to supply us for the rest of the journey," Eric said. "But I can tell you that later. Right now, we need to get my family to your vehicle."

"Of course," Elsa agreed.

Eric walked over to the camp and clapped his hands. "Ariel! Melody! We're gonna be okay! I found us transport."

Out of one of the tents, a young woman with red hair and blue eyes, around the same age as Elsa, stood up, holding the hand of a little girl with short black hair... and white streaks like Snowflake.

Elsa's face fell as she saw the girl's streaks. Clearly, Dr Tremaine had been right and Anna wasn't the only one with her condition.

"My name is Ariel," the woman said. "Are you... going to take us to Ground Zero?"

"Once your family is safe on my tank and we've got enough supplies," Elsa replied. She then looked at the little girl, smiling at her. "Hey there."

The girl looked away, rather shyly. "H-Hi."

Elsa stroked her cheek. "What's your name little one?"

"Melody," the girl replied. "Will you... be helping me too?" She held out her hand, virtually blue-skinned.

Elsa took it and held it tightly. "Of course... I think you might like to meet a friend of mine, Melody. She's got blue skin and white hair like you."

"Really?" The girl's eyes lit up. "I'm not the only one like this?"

Elsa shook her head. "No, you are not alone, my dear."

Eric walked over to his daughter, taking her hand. "Come on, Pumpkin. Let's get you wrapped up warm in the tank."

"Okay, daddy," Melody replied, smiling warmly and following her father's lead to the tank.

Elsa went over to Ariel, picking up some of her bags. "So... what's the story with your daughter then?" she inquired.

"None of us knows," Ariel replied. "A few days ago... she started puking up this blue stuff and coughing. We heard there was good medical care in Ground Zero, so she's part of the reason we're travelling."

"And the other part?"

Ariel then gestured to her belly, large and heavily pregnant. "This little one."

"Oh..." Elsa's eyes widened with glee. She hadn't seen a pregnant woman since her own mother was carrying her sister. She smiled and knelt beside the bump. "Can I touch?"

Ariel smiled. "Go ahead... I don't think she's awake right now."

Elsa placed a hand on the woman's tummy, feeling a tiny heartbeat within. "Oh... there it is." She blushed, feeling rather gooey inside. "When's she due?"

"Could be any day now," Ariel responded. "We couldn't raise two kids alone on our farm, so we figured the city might be better for them."

"Come on," Elsa said, taking Ariel's hand. "Allow me to show you to your carriage."

Ariel giggled. "You're too kind."

xXx

Once Eric and his family were onboard, Kristoff set off for their destination to hopefully resupply. As they headed along the wastes, he asked. "So... Where exactly are we going?"

Eric leaned over him, pointing to the navigation device. "Here," he said, typing in a new destination. "It's an abandoned military bunker. No one's been there in two years. It used to be owned by some weird high tech military group." He looked at the surface of the tank. "I think I saw vehicles like this back when the base was active."

"I think the people who attacked us and the ones who owned this base were the same, Eric," Kristoff responded.

"Wait, what if there are more of those creatures there?" Elsa wondered.

"No, there won't be anything there that's alive," Eric replied. "When the soldiers left, they didn't leave anything behind."

Elsa sighed. "Let's hope you are right."

In the back, Snowflake was caring for Ariel and Melody, the young girl having grown very fond of her, possibly in part to their similar appearance.

"I can't believe I met someone like me," the young girl expressed. "But your hair is so much whiter than mine."

Snowflake giggled. "It's okay... How long have you been like that?"

"About a month," Melody stated. "It hurt a lot at first, but I overcame it. My mommy says I'm a tough girl."

"You must be. I sometimes struggle with my pains too," Snowflake told her, ruffling the girl's hair.

"No, I just want to be here for my new sister when she's here," Melody explained, pointing to her mother's belly. "She's gonna be my best friend."

Ariel giggled. "It's okay, little one. I think you need a rest now."

"Awww, but I wanna talk to Snowflake more," Melody insisted, tugging on Snowflake's arm.

Snowflake looked down at her new friend, giving her a reassuring look. "It's alright, Melody. I'll still be here for you."

"You promise?"

"I promise," Snowflake replied, holding out her pinkie finger.

Melody put her pinkie on Snowflake's pinkie shaking it for a few seconds before Ariel handed her a cuddly fish and a blanket and she curled up on a bench nearby, falling asleep.

"Kids," Snowflake remarked. "So cute... but probably a hell of a lot to handle."

Ariel smiled. "But I love her so much. I just hope we can find a cure for... whatever is making her hair and skin like that."

"You will," Snowflake promised. "Elsa will make sure we all get a happy ever after."

"You like her a lot don't you," Ariel admitted. "You seem to hold her in very high regard."

"Well," Snowflake remarked. "She did help save me with Kristoff, so I guess she means a great deal to me."

"And it's just you and her out here," Ariel then said. "All alone against the world."

Snowflake raised an eyebrow. "What are you getting at?"

"I think you like Elsa more than you think," Ariel responded, giggling. "I remember how Eric used to think of me like that."

Snowflake blushed. "I...I don't know. I never put a whole lot of thought into it."
At that moment, Elsa called from the front of the tank. "Snowflake, heads up!"

Snowflake nodded and headed to the cockpit, finding Kristoff driving the tank into what appeared to be some sort of military compound. Her heart sank. "Elsa... what is this place?"

"This is where Eric said we'd find some supplies," Elsa explained. "He's gonna come with us, for backup."

"And I've agreed to babysit Ariel and Melody while you're gone," Kristoff stated. "I guess I've kinda become like the housewife around here."

"No..." Snowflake shook her head. "Elsa... I think I've been here before..."

Elsa raised an eyebrow. "You have?"

Snowflake nodded. "Yes, I think. I must have been here while I was the prisoner of... the man in the white coat."

"Well, there's no one here now," Eric said. "Hasn't been for years."

"But just in case, we should go in armed," Elsa said, going to pick up a rifle. "Last time Snowflake and I went exploring, we ran into a whole mess of trouble." She looked up at Eric. "Think you can hold a gun?"

"I can try my best," Eric agreed.

"Good," Elsa stated. "Kristoff, open the hatch."

Kristoff pressed a few buttons on the control console in front of him and the hatch on the rear of the tank opened, allowing Elsa, Snowflake and their new friend to disembark out onto the snow.

Eric got his bearings for a second, before pointing towards a large bunker. "That's where the soldiers always went into. I think it's like the command centre."

"You seem to know your stuff about this place, Eric," Elsa admitted.

"Well... to tell you the truth, Elsa," Eric then confessed. "I actually used to work here a long time ago."

"Y-you did?" Snowflake wondered.

"Yeah, but it was years ago," Eric said. "This whole place used to be a part of a local militia, protecting settlements from raider attacks, but then this new organization came in, claimed they would be looking out for people."

"Did they do that?"

"Yeah, in a way. The raiders were all gone in months and most of us folks who worked here before managed to get an early retirement," Eric replied. "After that, I met Ariel and we started a family together."

"So... if I was here," Snowflake stated. "You wouldn't have known about it."

"Sorry, Princess," Eric said. "I'm afraid so."

"Well, no more time for chit-chat," Elsa stated. "Right now, let's just get in and get out before we encounter any unexpected surprises."

The three of them walked towards the command bunker, Eric going to a nearby console beside the door and typing in on a number pad. "Now, It shouldn't have changed access codes but-" A loud beep sounded. "Ah, fuck. They did change the code."

"Not to worry," Elsa said, pointing her gun at the console. "I've got my own authorisation." She shot the console with her rifle, unlocking the door.

They were greeted with the sight of a stairwell, leading deep into the ground. The walls seemed old and rotten, befitting of a place no one had been in for years.

Eric held out his arm. "Ladies first."

Snowflake went down the stairs first, feeling the walls to her left. She could definitely remember being here now, being dragged down these steps by chains. When this had happened, she didn't know, but she could definitely hear her own screams in her mind.

Elsa put her hand on Snowflake's shoulder, seeing her concern. "Snowflake... are you okay?"

"I'm not sure," she replied quietly. "My head's still pretty foggy, but...I recognize this place. I've been here before."

Elsa smiled at her. "Don't worry, we'll be out of here before you know it."

Eric quickly descended the stairs, arriving in an entrance area. He then found a switch, activating the lights around the compound.

"Huh, the power's still on," He said. "I figured the generators would have gone out by now."

"Why would power be still on in an abandoned bunker?" Elsa wondered.

"Could be that they probably left something they wanted to pick up later," Eric assumed.

"Or wanted to keep something inside," Snowflake said, growing very concerned. "Can we just get going already? This place is giving me the creeps."

"Right, Right," Eric agreed. "Anyway, they should have this large preservation vault on this level. There's a whole bunch of food from before the Big Freeze, all fresh and mint in package, ready for the apocalypse."

"Lead the way," Elsa gestures and Eric began to walk down the hall.

As Elsa and Eric headed towards the vault on the other side of the bunker, Snowflake followed them, but as they passed a stairwell, she heard something.

It was a rattling, like metal chains, coming from the lower floors.

"Um, Eric?" Snowflake inquired. "What's supposed to be down there?"

Eric turned around, confused. "Hm, not sure. I don't this place even had a lower level when I was here."

"Why do you ask Snowflake?" Elsa then wondered.

"It's just... I heard something down there."

Elsa walked up to her, very concerned, especially since last they had heard something in a mysterious place, they had barely escaped with their lives. "Are you certain? What exactly did you hear?"

"I'm not really sure," Snowflake informed her. "It sounded kinda like rattling? Or something."

Eric then walked up to a large door he had found, opening up with the keypad on the side. The door swung open and Elsa and Snowflake were greeted with the sight of various preserved goods, all locked up in a large white room.

"Here's the vault," Eric stated. "Take whatever we'll need."

"You handle the goods," Elsa told him. "I'm gonna go and accompany Snowflake to the lower level."

"Wait, what? Why?" Eric asked bewildered. "We got what we came for right?"

"No, I don't think we're alone here," Elsa said. "And if shit hits the fan, we need to know what we're dealing with."

Eric looked at Elsa, glaring at her. "But why? I mean, what good is this place to us now that the supplies are ours."

"Because I need to be here," Snowflake then spoke up. "I can sense something drawing me down there... something cold... something familiar to me."

Eric sighed. "Fine, you win, but I'm not covering your asses if things go up shit creek." He held up his rifle. "I've got my own ass to watch and my family's."

Snowflake then began to descend down the second flight of stairs with Eric to the second level of the bunker. The lights were barely lit down there, flickering constantly.

Along the walls, Snowflake could see stains of what appeared to be a dried blue substance. It felt very familiar, like the same stuff she would often vomit during her coughing fits.

"Something the matter?" Elsa asked.

Snowflake nodded. "This stuff... it's the substance that's inside my body... could it be... that this was where I got..." She held up her hands. "This from?"

"It's a possibility, Snowflake," Elsa replied. "You did say you had been here before."

The two walked down a nearby corridor, finding themselves passing through what appeared to be some kind of cell block.

Inside each cell, Snowflake could see a deformed, mutilated corpse inside, rotting flesh and exposed bone. These people had clearly been exposed to some sort of horrific experiment, no doubt by the ones who worked for the man in the white coat.

Elsa shivered at the sight of the bodies. "My god... What happened here?"

"Trust me," Snowflake said. "I don't think you don't wanna know."

They both then heard the rattling again, coming from a larger cell in front of them. There was a large door covering it, with a window that was covered completely in condensation from something very cold inside.

"Looks like we found the noise," Elsa stated. "What's in there?"

Snowflake stepped up towards the cell, wiping her hand on the window to clean off the condensation. As she revealed what was inside, her heart skipped a beat.

Inside the cell, tied up in what appeared to be large metal chains, was a large hulking man, with blue skin and exposed veins. He was wearing brown pants and his muscles were bursting out of his limbs, veins stretching across his skin. Covering most of his body was a series of tubes connected to some sort of device on his chest, which was also connected some sort of mask covering his mouth.

The man then opened his deep blue eyes, before a metallic growl was heard from his mask.

"What. the fuck. Is that?" Snowflake exclaimed, her eyes wide.

"Whatever it is," Elsa replied, "I don't think we want to make it angry."

Snowflake reached her hand out towards the massive... thing, feeling like she and it were connected somehow. "Are you... like me?"

The beast looked at her, growling again as Snowflake's hand neared it.

"Easy, easy," Snowflake whispered. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Suddenly, the large hulk snorted loudly, before it spoke a single word in a heavily robotic voice. "Rime."

Elsa suddenly pulled Snowflake back from the creature, holding her. "Snowflake... we need to get out here."

"Elsa... this thing might know something about my past!" Snowflake argued. "We should try and get it to talk?"

Elsa looked at the monster, seeing it nothing more than a brute. "Snowflake... I don't think this thing even has a mind, let alone can talk to us."

"But it just spoke!" Snowflake insisted. "It's worth a shot, isn't it?"

Suddenly, the beast growled at them angrily, standing up on it's wide, five-toed feet. Its eyes narrowed and it lunged forward, breaking the chains from the walls. "RAAGGHHHHH!"

Elsa's eyes widened. "You were saying?!"

"Okay, I take it back," Snowflake admitted, gulping in fear. "We should get the fuck out of here!"

Elsa quickly grabbed Snowflake's hand as the creature broke free from the rest of its restraints, grabbing the door to its cell and tossing it to one side, roaring loudly. "RIIIIIIIIIME!"

"Why is it saying that?!" Elsa demanded. "What is Rime?!"

"Why are you asking me?!" Snowflake argued. "It's not like I'm an expert on all this!"

The beast lunged out of its cell, sprinting down the corridor as Snowflake and Elsa ran for their lives. It got down on all fours, pouncing towards them like a giant bear.

Snowflake panted, running up the stairs with Elsa, with the massive thing in hot pursuit.

"Eric!" Elsa shouted. "Have you got the supplies in the tank?!"

"Yeah, I just came to get you!" Eric responded. "What's going on?!"

They all then heard the roar and a loud shuffling as the monster that Elsa and Snowflake had found lumbered up the steps.

"Oh fuck me," Eric swore.

Eric quickly grabbed his rifle, pointing it down the hall. "You two get a move on, I'll hold it off!"

Snowflake and Elsa nodded, before making a run towards the entrance of the bunker, hoping to get to the freedom of the outside world.

The giant monster burst up from below, but Eric quickly unloaded a flurry of laser shots into its stomach. Sadly, the shots had no effect and monster merely snarled.

Eric then charged at the monster, trying to punch it, only for the creature to hit back, sending him flying into a nearby wall with unparalleled strength.

"Eric!" Elsa exclaimed.

The monster then stepped on Eric's leg, all three of them hearing bone crack from the weight.

"AHHHHHHHH!" Eric screamed in agony.

Snowflake's face contorted in rage, quickly grabbing onto Eric's rifle and opening fire at the monster dead in the face, her berserker state having been triggered. "LEAVE HIM ALONE!"

The creature roared as Snowflake's shots stunned it, giving Elsa time to get Eric up to his feet and towards the stairwell.

"Eric... are you alright?" Elsa wondered.

"No..." He groaned. "My leg... I think it's broken." He looked back, seeing Snowflake holding off the beast on her own. "How is she doing that?"

"Don't ask," Elsa responded, as Snowflake quickly ran alongside them up the stairwell as the beast was stunned by Snowflake's attacks.

The three of them managed to run out into the snow, with no sign of the beast in pursuit.

Snowflake breathed a sigh of relief, hoping that was the last they had seen of the monster, but then they heard its roars from down below. "Oh no..."

"We can't let that thing get out," Elsa stated. "We need to collapse the bunker on top of it, like we did with those ice creatures."

"Yeah, but we don't have a bomb this time," Snowflake reminded her.

Elsa then stared at the tank, seeing the large turret attached to its roof. "Oh... we most certainly do."

Elsa then ran towards the tank, quickly rushing into the back and heading to the cockpit.

Kristoff turned around, playing with Melody. "Elsa? What are you doing?"

"No time to explain," Elsa said, activating a console on the cockpit's left side.

The massive turret on the roof of the tank then turned around, taking aim at the entrance of the large bunker.

Snowflake and Eric managed to get back into the tank just in time, as the monster broke free of the bunker, roaring at them from the entrance.

Elsa scowled. "Hasta la vista, monster." She quickly pulled the trigger on a nearby handle. A massive shot of energy fired from the top of the turret, destroying the bunker and the monster in an instant with one fell swoop.

Kristoff's eyes widened. "Woah..."

Melody looked on in awe. "It's a fireworks show!"

Airel then looked at her husband, cradling him in her arms. "Eric... are you alright?"

"I'm fine... thanks to my new friend here," he responded, giving Snowflake a grateful smile.

"Melody deserves a father, Eric," Snowflake replied. "And so does your unborn daughter."

"I know," Eric said with a smile. "This is gonna make one hell of a bedtime story."

Kristoff merely scratched his head, very confused at what had just happened. "Can... someone tell me why no one told me we had a functioning gun on this thing?!"

Elsa smirked. "To be honest Kristoff, I didn't know either."

Snowflake blushed, feeling rather in awe of Elsa's act to save her life.

Ariel noticed this as well, giggling in happiness.

Eric looked at his wife, very confused. "What's so funny, dear?"

"Oh nothing," Ariel spoke. "It's just I think there might be love in the air."

xXx

Author's note: Another action packed chapter, folks! And here we introduce Ariel, Eric and their young family, going to be key parts of the story going on ahead. See you all next chapter!