———
And just like that... I lost my memories.
The next thing I knew and felt was my body almost crumpling. I was cold. Unrealistically cold... As cold as death itself.
I looked around me and all I saw was snow, blood, destroyed buildings, ice and corpses.
I turned around to find shattered ice on the ground, I had been hit by a van and flash frozen by the strange woman in the side of the van, she must've formed a cube of ice around me.
But it didn't matter, I didn't remember anything at the time.
I had felt something in my pocket, way warmer than my jeans. There was a single note in there.
"Follow the road home, South... Jasmine is your friend. - R.K"
I tucked it back into my pocket and sighed.
I had no idea who left it there.
I didn't remember much other than myself, my own name.
My own hands... They weren't the same, despite being in ice I had grown. My body had changed and developed, even my hair grew out a little more. The most important detail was that I was jacked, and I was now around 6'0 in height or 182 cm.
But other than that I was absolutely clueless. And despite me wearing a t-shirt it wasn't that cold.
I began walking towards the Eisturm Tower in the center of the city.
The city of Eiswelt— Not that I remember the name— Was filled with corpses.
It was tragic, really.
After half an hour or so I had reached the base of the tower.
It was also flash frozen, spikes sticking out of it like some sort of messed up rose. The giant ice spike where the port used to be also caught my attention, but then I looked back up at the tower.
Corpses.
Hung by strange connecting white rope, with white talismans over it. Ice spikes where embedded in almost all of the bodies, impaling them to the tower but they were also hung by the strange white rope. Blood laced the tips of the ice spikes.
It's unnatural how they even got up there. The tower was filled with corpses, and the weird rope and talismans were everywhere.
Even the central door leading inside of the tower was covered with them, and blood stains.
I turned around and saw a clearing in the city, a bunch of buildings in the north side burnt to ashes. Molten and frozen at the same time...
I saw the road home.
Not that I knew I was heading home, yet my feet started moving on their own, something inside of me refused to die. I wanted truth.
So I kept walking.
And walking..
And even more walking...
Halfway away from Eiswelt I realized I was still on the road, but no longer on the sea. I was in a forest basically.
Time felt weird for me, I didn't know it then but I had been walking South for over 2 months— No, 3 months.
I wasn't hungry or thirsty, at least not for sustenance.
I wanted truth, something... A warm blanket even.
I kept walking...
Somewhere down the road, after who knows how many steps... I found a car. Which was strange enough on it's own.
But it was my family's car, even if I didn't recognize it.
It was covered in ice spikes, it had been thrown by that strange woman all the way from Taured to here...
It didn't register at first in my mind.
I stepped closer and saw bodies.
My mother, Aunt Lara's dog Ricky and... Through the other side of the windshield I saw a man in a crimson suit, he had a matching fedora on his head and was wearing a black mask with carvings, it looked wooden. He was crouched over the corpse of my father. Humming a strange tune to himself, I was sad even though I didn't recognize him.
We locked eyes, I hopped up on top of the car.
James Karawei: "Did you... Sir, did you kill these people?"
???: "No James. But I am here to collect."
Suddenly the man grabbed my father by the neck, his hand glowing an unnatural red as a single red chain came forth from his palm which embedded itself into the neck of my father.
He stared me down with zero remorse as he pulled his hand back, a strange red glowing orb came forth and went into his chest. He shuddered and groaned as he stumbled back onto the ground, extending his arms and looking up at the sky.
He took a deep breath as his hand stopped glowing and stood up. His eyes narrowed confidently.
???: "Your name is James Karawei, you live at 573 Wheelbarrow, Darrilyn, Piasu, Ryomania. 18 km or so past the city of Havok, which is the capital. You and your family worked as farmers in the countryside before moving here."
He said as he stepped closer, I didn't move an inch or blink once.
James Karawei: "Why do you know so much about me? And what did you just do to that man?!"
I felt my hands ball up into fists, my teeth clenching before I knew it.
I took a step off the roof of the car and onto the hood.
The man chuckled and put his hands up as if he were held at gunpoint, slowly moving back towards the corpse of my father. Red mist seemed to creep out from the sleeves of the man's suit, he winced as if almost in pain and chuckled.
???: "Now now, I don't want to fight... Ngh— I just told you your address with precision James, go home my dear boy! You'll recover there. The truth I mean."
The man suddenly fell down onto his knees, shuddering again. Taking in deep breaths and groaning as his hands started shaking.
James Karawei: "You... Just s-stay out of my way!"
I jumped off the car and ran past him onto the road, I didn't even feel the tears falling off my face and onto the pavement as I ran into the woods.
The man shouted after me, but I couldn't hear anything.
Red cracks filled the air around me, my vision blurred as I ran, I didn't even notice the gas all around the area. The tears stopped and so did I.
My surroundings changed and... I found myself in a field of wheat.
I looked around trying to find the strange man or the road but it was nowhere in sight.
I saw smoke rising out of a house in the distance.
I fell to my knees and clutched my head as a sharp pain began crawling up my spine and to my temple.
I saw a bunch of images flash through my mind, things I didn't own, people I didn't recognize.
I yelled out before I could stop myself.
James Karawei: "Make it stop! Ngh... No!"
I thrashed around on the ground, my body suddenly tensing up.
I blacked out.
[The Karawei Farm, Darrilyn, Piasu, Ryomania, 2:21 PM, Friday, 2025]
My eyes snapped open and I stood up, a cold shiver wrecked my body and I felt sweat drip off of me.
Pure exhaustion... And then a gentle hand rested on my forehead.
Jasmine Olson: "Well well well... Little ol' Jamie has woken up! My oh my, how strong you've gotten~"
The girl grabbed a wet cold towel, gently dabbing my face with it.
James Karawei: "The man... He— What is this? Where is he?"
She chuckled and stood up. As I glanced around in panic.
Jasmine Olson: "Your house, your bedroom. Duh. You've got a lot of explaining to do, five years worth of stuff I reckon."
She pushed me back with her pointer finger, I laid down onto the bed and sighed.
James Karawei: "Hold on... What do you mean five years? Who are you exactly?"
She sat down next to me, grinning and shook my hand enthusiastically.
Jasmine Olson: "I'm Jasmine Olson, I'm your friend! Atleast that's what the note in your pocket said. And so do I, buckaroo."
I glanced under the blanket, a fierce blush creeping onto my face as I realized I had new clothes on.
Sweatpants and a red t-shirt that didn't feel right on me. Even though they were mine. She must've dressed me while I was blacked out.
James Karawei: "D-did you...?"
Jasmine Olson: "Yes. And it's nothing I haven't seen before~ Plus there was some weird ice on you, couldn't get it off so I crushed it with a hammer and make you a glass of orange juice! It's probably safe. Probably."
She handed me a glass while grinning, the liquid bubbling forth.
I almost dropped it as I struggled with the revelation, everything was going by way too fast.
I took a sip and set it down onto the coffee table.
James Karawei: "So... Friend? Um... I don't really know what to say. I woke up in this weird frozen city and that note told me to go South. I... Remember seeing a man down the road, he hurt some people. He had a weird red suit and a mask on his face. I ran from him and somehow found myself in the wheat field..."
Jasmine Olson: "Mhm, I know. I've been watching the news... Everyone knows Taured got destroyed five years ago by 'The Storm'. Although nobody knows much about her, the government thinks that Iris is trying to steal something from the mainland."
James Karawei: "What? I mean I... Taured. Uh. That does sound like the country I was in. And I do remember a strange woman with a glowing red eye... But who's R.K? And Iris?"
Jasmine chuckled and tilted her head up, looking at the ceiling fan as it spun round and round.
Jasmine Olson: "Yeah, so... R.K is..."
Her grin turned into a frown as she meet my gaze, she looked away nervously for a split second before clearing her throat.
Jasmine Olson: "Not important, Iris is the dangerous terrorist organization currently running rampant all over the globe. Our president thinks that King Henry has something to do with Iris, and that he paid for 'The Android' to be constructed, but those are just stupid rumors."
She stood up suddenly, grabbing the smoothie and drinking from it, not caring at all for the few droplets crawling down her neck. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, licking her upper lip.
Jasmine Olson: "I already called everyone and told them you're alive, but since I found you passed out cold in the fields... I reckon your family didn't make it."
I got the courage to swing my legs over the side of the bed and stand up. She let out a low whistle as she gave me a once-over.
Jasmine Olson: "Aren't you a tall bastard? Mhm, that cold air must've done something to ya Jamie. Or maybe you're just really manly~"
She wiggled her eyebrows and finished the smoothie, putting it down onto the dresser with too much force.
James Karawei: "Stop being weird... But yeah, I don't think they made it...Did I even have a family? My head hurts whenever I think about it, and it's also kind of hard to... Feel? Like... anything."
I looked down at my hands and clutched them into fists, I glanced up as she chuckled and put her hands on her hips, walking towards the door.
Jasmine Olson: "Alright well... I'm going home finally. I'm gonna miss this place, better than my little cave. Keys are on the dining table in the living room, don't ask. School starts tomorrow at 6, Cathy is furious and Jack is watching Two Piece tonight, again, don't ask."
She turned and walked out of the bedroom, whistling. Leaving me alone to my thoughts again...
She didn't ask too many questions, which was weird. But then again everything was weird...
I took a deep breath as I stared outside and fell back onto my bed, watching the sunset.
James Karawei: "R.K, Iris, the man in red... The strange woman... It's too much."
I muttered as I put a pillow over my face.
And then... I fell asleep.
~~~
Author's Note:
Ey, we made it to the end of James' backstory! Now everything begins...
Hope you guys like the chapters so far, it's really really fun to write this actually. I can't wait to start drawing sketches of these little goobers.
Also yeah, Jasmine is "flirty" with everyone, don't worry about it.
Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ok.
here's another funny guy: 😱
cya in the next chapter, PEACE!