Defrost my Heart Part Thirteen: I Remember!

Master Elements:

A young version of Lady Goldenheart stood next to me, her flowing golden waves dancing in the cool breeze of my hidden ice powers. Running her hands through the hair, her ocean blue eyes glitter with excitement. 

“My boy is a police officer.” She bragged while dusting off her shimmering golden super suit, the Victorian style a far cry from my designer suit. “Any clues about your twins?” Shaking my head, nothing had come to light. Grimacing to myself, the other heroes were freaked out by my choice to wear an emerald suit instead of something flashy. Little did they know that I used to have to be covered from head to toe, my own breath seconds from killing anyone near me. 

“That sounds great. I love that for you.” I returned while swallowing the lump in my throat, her big smile meeting my nervous grin. An alarm went off in the distance, ice discs forming underneath my dress shoes. Skating underneath her endless hooks, a horrific sight had her tearing up. The limp body of her son seemed stained red, an apologetic superhero spitting out and endless seas of I’m sorry. Every breath had heat to it, her hook taking him out. Stunned silence hung in the air, hooks killing every hero around me. Hitting her with all I had, a twisted grin spread ear to ear. None of this was okay!

“Join me and avenge the death of your children.” She offered crazily, her hook refusing to hit me. “Goddamn it! I can’t kill you. Curse you all!” Leaving me in a pool of spreading ruby, a numb look washed over. A hook snatched her son, the body getting too torn up to be anything. A familiar voice ripped from the nightmare.

“Dad! We need to get going.” Lady Nitro called through the door, a new layer of ice cracking into place. “I managed to get her to talk to us through some landline in a rundown burger place.” Sighing as I yanked on my suit, dread swelled within my chest. Tying on my mask, rubber groaned with every tug on my gloves. Stepping out to a confident Nitro, a deep sadness brewed in her bright eyes. Pride swelled in my eyes, her fingers fussing with the higher part of her skirt. 

“What is wrong with you? If we fail today, we fail.” She spoke simply, a bit of strain tainting her tone. “I am worried about you. Those files were horrendous. How could she turn so fucking fast? Why did she save you that day? So many questions plague my curious mind. We should get going.” Making our way to the elevator, she took my side. Every ding unsettled me to the core, the garage coming into view. A new heavily armored black sedan waited for us, the seat hissing as she plopped into the driver’s seat. Sliding the key, we had worked hard to make it Lady Goldenheart proof. The engine roared to life as I slammed my door shut, our seat belts clicking at the same time. 

“How can you be so relaxed about this?” I asked cautiously, hoping she wouldn’t lose her composure. Drawing a long breath, a cloud of breath escaped under her mask. Glancing over at me as she peeled onto the freshly paved concrete, a bit of light died in her eyes. 

“I am not. Putting on a smile makes it easier until you can actually smile. Please don’t worry about me.” She returned dejectedly, a bit of ice creeping up her face. “I have this feeling it won’t go well. Bravery is only stupid if you refuse to feel your fear. Another enemy kept, right?” When did she become so wise with her words? Snapping on the radio, heavy metal drowned out our increasing anxiety. Pulling up to a run down pizza restaurant, a worn chef waved us in. Taking the stools by the phone, a chill ran up my spine. Memories of Goldenheart and me chatting a couple of stools down shattered me from the inside, the sun-baked red now a dull pink. A layer of plastic peeled off the fake wood, the cheap green linoleum floor having seen better days. The shrill ring of the phone had her picking up the damn thing, her face paling instantly. Laying it down in between us, her cold voice paralyzed me. 

“Asking me to join you is pathetic.” She mused sarcastically, Nitro huffing with impatience. “I stand by my values. They killed my son so I will kill all you. He was there that day. I remember!” Hanging up with a click, time rewound itself around us. The damage repaired itself, Nitro grabbed at the counter. Cursing under my breath, the bitch used her trump card. 

“We have to survive twenty-four hours against her younger self.” I informed her with a nervous twitch of my brow. “Thankfully, she can use it once.” Hopping off the stool, her hands slid into the pocket of her skirt. Shrugging her shoulders, her level of acceptance was odd. 

“Maybe we should find your younger self then. If I am understanding this in the slightest, his memory will be wiped with the end of her trick.” She concluded agonizingly correctly, her hand resting on her hip. “Cool because we are going to need some help. We shouldn’t be in the open if she is going on her tirade. Remember all heroes must die to pay for their sins. I suppose it went that bad, huh?” Glass shards whistled by her head, a blast of ice from her fingers shattering the golden hooks approaching us. Snatching my hand, our footfalls echoed out of the space. Forming a gun made of ice in her palm, she skidded to a stop. The younger version of Lady Goldenheart stood in front me with blood dripping onto the dirt. Cocking the safety, determination burned in her eyes. Pulling the trigger, the bullet destroyed her approaching hook. 

“Maybe you should calm down.” Nitro suggested in an even tone, another ice bullet clicking into place. “Sending us back here was a dirty trick. Your son died but you didn’t have to do all of this. Heroes like to save people. Accidents happen but you wouldn’t know that.” Goldenheart’s eyes widened into a crazed expression, a bigger hook floating behind her. Yanking on my daughter to move, her head shook. Raising her hand, a wall of ice deflected her hook.

“Time to go. We need to go to the ruins.” She barked over the barrage of hooks smashing into the thick wall of ice. Ice discs formed under our feet, every skate away felt wrong. Tripping into the fresh debris of her last attack, dead bodies poked out of the rubble. Shivering with horror, frozen tears splashed to our feet. A wail stole our attention, my younger self coming into view. His dark green green hair danced in the cool breeze of our ice, his eyes meeting ours. Real tears pooled at his feet, his wet eyes meeting ours. Confusion softened his fearful expression, a gentle smile curling upon his lips. 

“So you found one of them. Something bad must have happened to our son.” He commented brokenly, my silence answering him. “So she used that fucking attack. Thank goodness she can only use it once. I probably should help you guys live.” Rising to his feet while wiping away his tears, his hands rested on hips the way hers always did. Glancing around, a few people cried out from underneath the rubble. 

“Do we get to become a grandfather?” He inquired shakily, Nitro wandering off to help the survivors. “What a perfect hero. We should probably help her. I can take the credit to make the heroes look okay again.” Knowing that his plan wouldn’t work, it would take my daughter reaching out to begin to rebuild what had just happened. Mumbling out a quick right, our survival didn’t matter. Lifting up every piece of concrete, survivors were happy to see us. Sealing their wounds shut with ice, the medical team wouldn’t be coming in time to slow the deadly wounds. A golden hook whistled by my head, the survivors scattered into the sole standing building. Whimpering had us spinning on our heels in horror, a severely injured Nitro blocked a hook from hitting an innocent looking Demonico. Had she always been there for him? Crouching down to cup his cheek, his hand held hers. Helping him run away, our turn to fight her came up. Quaking next to me, his powers refused to work. Clapping my hands in his face, those years had proved difficult for me in the professional sense. Hitting her with a ball of ice, her body smashed into a building. Fuck, that had to hurt.

“Pull yourself together or we will both die, damn it!” I barked hotly, the corner of my lips twitching. “Damn, I was a fucking idiot!” Rolling my eyes, vines grew into massive trees. Summoning a wave of water, ice crystals glistened in the water. Snapping my fingers, a scythe made of ice cracked into my palm. Sure, she was my partner but she hurt my daughter. Darting in between the trees, his wave brought me inches from her. Whacking her head with my scythe, her head shattered it. Raising her fist behind her head, a bruised up Nitro appeared behind her. Punching her in the neck, her head dropped forward. Hitting the ground in a heap, I had always wondered how she was caught for a couple of years. Landing clumsily by her, her palms hovered over her wrists and ankles, a thick layer of ice imprisoning her. Dropping her mask to her feet, frozen blood shattered on her boots. Red and blue lights cast shadows on her face, my younger self shoving us into the shadows. A van pulled up to take her away, the police thanking him. Lingering in his spot until they were all gone, shock rounded his eyes at Nitro collapsing into my arms. Scooping up her arms, a wave had us hiking back to my old apartment. Laying her on the couch, he tugged on an impressive amount of winter gear. Working in silence to make some sort of chemical medicine, his slender hand pouring it down her throat. A deeper slumber stole her away, the frozen blood sliding back down her throat. Kicking off his dress shoes, I felt like I should show him pictures of our future grandchildren. Digging around my coat pocket, the scent of hot pepper tea hit my nose. A smile spread to life underneath my mask, a hearty chuckle tumbled from his lips. Getting two mugs out, he began to brew my favorite tea.

“I hate to ask but are we doing a bit better mentally in the future?” He queried while watching the teapot, my smile faltering underneath my mask. “I see. Can I tell you that it really fucking nice that we became what we once were.” Pouring the cups of tea, anxiety had me shrinking back. Sitting down at the beat up counter, the twinkle had left his eyes. Plopping down across from him, I untied my mask to drink what no longer existed. This brand went under shortly after that fucking betrayal, the strike meaning to hurt me. 

“Hardly, I am happy to show you these.” I returned simply, sliding over the photos of the twins and Nitro posing with me. “Shit does better eventually. Hell, I thought she would never warm up to me. She has our attitude problem.” The couch groaned behind us, Nitro sitting up while tying her mask back on. Massaging her forehead, her narrowed eyes spoke of an intense headache. 

Plucking the photos off the table, pride glistened in his eyes. Sinking onto the stool next to me, his shaking palm slid the cup over to her. 

“If it means anything, you did a hell of a job finding me later.” She assured him sweetly, her gloved hand holding his. “I know you won’t remember anything about today but know that I forgive you. Shit went down and you did the best you could.” Untying her mask, his free palm caught it. Sipping at the tea, a creepy feeling washed over me at her conversing with my younger self so freely. Seeing him visibly relax melted my heart, good intentions making her the greatest hero I had ever met. Feeling around her pocket, she pressed a single ice crystal into his palm. 

“If you ever feel stressed or what have you, hold this in your palm. It won’t melt nor will you remember from whence it came but find solace in it.” She continued warmly, his hand clutching it close to his chest. The cracked ice crystal that was always in my pocket made sense, a soft smile returning to my lips. Of course, she would help the past version of me. Laying her head on the counter, snores echoed in the air. Allowing him to tie on the mask, sheer bliss shimmered in his wet eyes. Rubbing her back, my heart shattered that his happiness would be temporary. 

“Don’t worry about it. Any second of joy is worth it right now.” He comforted me warmly, the feeling of my younger self calming me down threw  me off. “Let me have this.” Backing off to let him dote on her, the hours flew by. His walls began to blur, a mouthed thank you lingering in my mind as the apartment became the pizza parlor. My daughter stirred awake, the tips of my fingers grazing the top of the ice crystal in my pocket. Placing it in front of her, an apology lingered on the tip of her tongue. Raising my hand to stop her, that beautiful mind of hers didn’t know how many times she had saved me. 

“Do you know how many times I would hold this in a shitty situation? That gift kept me from giving up and I never knew why.” I pointed out in a fatherly tone, her fingers scratching at her mask. “One time I was severely injured and the darn thing rolled into my palm. Instead of giving up like I wanted to, the warmth from this told me that I should keep looking for you guys.” Leaning her head on my shoulder, she bounced it off of her palm. 

“Sorry for leaving it with you but I couldn’t stand seeing you so fucking sad. The memory played out in my head like a bad dream so I was able to capture her.” She apologized sincerely, frozen tears forming in the corner of her eyes the second I caught the crystal. Hugging it to my chest, mixed emotions flashed in her eyes. Untying her mask, her real smile relaxed my fraying nerves. 

“Hope was what you needed at that moment.” She continued in a gentile tone, her icy breath reminding me of a dragon. “People needed hope. So saving that boy planted a bit of hope within that community. The worst part about the destroyed city kept getting hit by bad luck repeatedly. Why not help them?” Tying her mask back on, a shrill ring announced another person coming in. Demonico rushed in with a matching ice crystal in his palm, his body smashing into her. Burying him in a bear hug, it all made sense now. Demonico survived that day because of her, his respect for her growing that much bigger. Basking in the warmth of her comforting him, their bond seemed far stronger than any of my partners. Stepping back, he tucked the crystal into his pocket. 

“All the food and things you did for me makes all the sense in the world.” He gushed excitedly, his hands waving around. “Hell, I wouldn’t have been able to raise my siblings without you saving me. Offering him a seat, he plopped down next to her. Chatting her ear off, her attention shifted to him. Laughing along with him, it was clear they needed each other. The bell rang again, everyone piling in. Filling up the empty space, the twins caught my eyes. Emberox laid them in my arms, frozen tears of pride melting upon impact with their face. My daughter greeted everyone, the owner taking down the orders with a new vigor. Smothering the other little ones with love, their giggles twinkled like bells. Touched by the sight, Emberox leaned onto the counter next to me. 

“Would you look at that? A natural leader in her natural habitat. You raised a good one.” He complimented me with an honest grin, his fingers drumming on the counter. “Are you okay?” Nodding my head a couple of times, all of this felt so right. Seeing how far I grew from the frightened superhero, it was all because of my daughter. Basking in the moment, all prayers for continued good luck and a healthy family went to the one in charge. May it never end.