Cyan Rot

Frostbite. What is it exactly?

It's an affliction, Crystal understood. One the Fae never need to worry about.

Unlike the Fae, a mortal can freeze. Their blood is unable to fight the cold.

Their skin slowly turns pale, then blue, then black. As the chill continues to creep into their bodies, eventually all feeling is lost and the flesh rots away.

This is something only mortals need to fear. But even the Fae, Crystal mused, have their own kind of rot.

When she returned to the Winter Court after awakening, she found her fellow Winter Fae had changed. Queen Mab had disappeared, and so they split into three courts, all growing silent.

Queen Mab would inspire the Winter Fae with her ferocity, encouraging them to reach their truest potential. Without her, they were left with nothing but their own frigidity and its rot.

Crystal didn’t rejoin them. Even she couldn’t bring herself to disrespect Queen Mab's orders for her to never return.

Everyone she once knew would be dead by now anyway. And these new Fae are mere shadows of the Winter Fae she knew.

She thought back on when she disguised herself as an elf to attend Enarlin and how much she had to hide there. More so than she was back in the wilderness.

In the wild, animals wouldn’t blink twice at a Faerie. In Raiaera, Crystal had to build a whole new elven identity for herself.

At the time, it seemed to be an interesting trade-off. Instead of living the rest of her life in the snowy forests of Salvar, she'd learn a magic made by mortals.

But in the end, Crystal only found true companionship with fellow Fae. And even then, the Fae she found were a far cry from the Winter Court.

Solga, Luna, Geo, and Anemo were Dheathain Fae, while Forrest was a Summer Faerie. Both of which are Seelie, unlike the Winter Fae who are Unseelie.

None of these Fae quite understand the thrill of battle or the satisfaction of victory. They'd rather play nice with the mortals that happen upon them.

And so, the rot continues. Only growing more with the union between Crystal and her friends.

Crystal didn’t want to lose those she called friends, not after she had already lost her own kind to her scales. But binding their souls to her own just made their real thoughts about her all the more clear.

Solga was always untrusting, especially towards Fae foreign to Dheathain, even those from the Summer Court. It took some time for him to get used to Crystal before the union, but now his rage against her burns through.

Luna never knew how to patch up that bleeding heart of hers. Her sorrow towards everyone involved flows in without any end.

Geo was a coward, to put it bluntly. He would stubbornly hide his fear behind a laidback demeanor, but there is no hiding his terror from Crystal now.

Anemo seemed to never take anything seriously, always laughing at something or making a joke. He's far more aware of the chaos of the world, and can't help but be amused by any and all misfortune, even his own.

Finally, Forrest was never one for low standards or high patience. With no secrets able to be hidden, his dissatisfaction with those he's bound to only continues to grow with each passing day.

Crystal used to be tormented by these conflicting natures within her, but such feelings have gone silent. Nothing left but rot.

She has no Court to call her own. No identity to call her own.

These were her thoughts, as she began to sing. Her entropic song echoed through the ruins, reverberating like a knell.

She knew what she was doing, yet she knew not what would happen. The emptiness wouldn’t subside, and her serenade ensured it would only grow.

As her melody rang throughout the hollowed hall of what she called her home, she remembered the first five decades of her life. The day she first opened her eyes, the moments she spent learning the ways of the Winter Fae, the minute she tore into the flesh of her first prey, the hours of watching the mortal children sing and dance for them, and so much more she wished to live again.

"If only things could’ve stayed like this." she thought. "If only things could've stayed like this."

As Crystal knew, only mortals need to fear the cold. And as the ice encased her, Crystal knew no fear.

Nor did the rest of her Voices, as her song had silenced them. There will be nothing they can do to wake her up this time.

In this world, Crystal figured, one must always lose something to gain something of equal value. Perhaps, if she gave up enough of her extended lifespan, she'll find something to call her own once again?

When last she slept, she had used Luna's songs to shield herself from any danger. This time, Crystal will welcome any risks and find her peace, whatever form it comes in.

The ice made its way across Crystal's skin, from her crossed legs to the crown of her head. To a Faerie like her, this was no less comfortable than a mortal would find a warm bed, but all the same, the ice continues the leave its rot.