Like statues given life, he found the ice sculptures begin to move. Fastest, the humanoid figure sprinted towards him. It leapt with surprising agility, spinning around as it swung its shin towards his head.
He ducked beneath, letting the nimble ice-being pass by. As his palm pressed against the platform, vibrations hummed against it; the shavings of frost danced.
The rumbling brought him back to his feet as the sight of the charging, two-headed boar filled his vision. It had to be a solid few tons of ice, moving at the speed of a car.
He readied himself, facing it as he drew in a brisk inhale, spreading his feet and holding his arms out.
[…Maxizing strength in legs, fortifying stability…Maximizing strength in arms, securing grip…]
As the frost goliath charged in, he grabbed a hold of the giant horns, placing himself in a direct contest of strength.
He could feel how cold it was through his gloves, like touching the heart of the tundra. Fortifying his stance, he held his breath as he slid back several feet before countering the momentum—
"Hrrrrh!"
Every bit of strength was needed as he hoisted the goliath off the platform. With his utmost strength, he lifted it above his head as the beast of frost could only wave its legs. He caught his footing, as not to be pulled backwards by the sheer weight he flung, swinging it behind him.
Used like an impractical hammer, he let the two-headed entity slam down atop the humanoid figure, shattering both on impact.
They broke apart like glass, unleashing a chilling wind that immediately gripped his body. As he turned around, he immediately slipped back as a blade of ice passed in front of him.
"Huaa–"
He let out a breath, watching the sharpened frost narrowly miss him. As he stepped back, he watched the top right arm of the six-limbed figure swipe towards him. Ducking his head, he avoided a swift beheading.
While in the glacial warrior's guard, he countered with a quick strike to its torso. He expected to blast it into shards, only finding the impact sliding it back across the platform.
'It didn't break? Felt like I was hitting a wall of steel,' he thought.
There were only cracks left on the torso of the four-armed swordsman, leaving it quickly rushing towards him again. He held his ground as waves crashed against the lonesome platform of ice, waiting for the figure to arrive before–
With a clenched fist, he shot his hand forward, summoning the concept of "Mjolnir" once more–FWOOM. The devastating force burrowed through the ice-forged warrior, blowing it away into fragments.
"Haah," he exhaled a misty breath.
[Strain incurred on right arm…Further use of [Mjolnir Impact] may result in self-inflicted damage.]
Just as the sculptures were dealt with, he heard the sound of boots crunching against the bitter frost. He turned around, discovering the silver-haired, slender Fulminare warrior standing at the other end.
"I am sure of it," the extraterrestrial humanoid spoke with a silken, soft voice. "You're the one who slew Larios."
While he was hesitant to engage in conversation with the enemy, it seemed in his benefit to buy as much time as possible, as his body trembled from the cold, "Yeah, that was me. He attacked us–"
"You don't need to justify yourself. Larios lived for battle, and obtained the greatest death he would wish for," the frost-wielder said, adjusting the sleeve of his black, silver-laced uniform. "He was a comrade–a friend of mine, but…I hold no contempt for you."
"Thanks?" He said, keeping his guard raised.
Behind the Fulminare, he could see the surface of water rippling, rumbling with the awakening of what had laid dormant beneath it.
At the same time, the earpiece buzzed in, "//ETA…A few minutes, maybe–this thing has been sitting here without maintenance for who knows how long. It's taking longer than I thought to boot up.//" Haoyu's voice relayed.
"//Hold out, Seven. Just a bit longer,//" May added.
As he listened to his comrades speak, he stared across the snow-white platform towards the tall, imposing being, who stood there without any rush.
"What is your name, human?" The Fulminare asked.
"Seven," he answered hesitantly.
"Fascinating…Seven," the silver-haired figure repeated before returning the favor. "I am Alta, Commander of The Pale Quandary Squadron."
As the prestigious Fulminare introduced himself, the cold air only intensified, bringing a mist that hung above the surface of the ocean around them.
"You're not here for me, are you?" Seven asked, carefully sliding his boot across the crackling footing, readying his guard as he raised his fists. "--You're here to stop us from getting ahold of Erebus."
"I'm here in response to a strong rise in energy detected in this area. It led me to an even greater discovery," Alta explained, setting his frosted gaze on the young man. "Come, Strongest of Humanity–let me see your strength."
Any attempt to stall for time was cut away as he could feel the air change; the intense cold rose as the frost cracked and hissed. Just as he flexed his body, the Fulminare erupted in his direction. Only a millisecond was afforded to him to figure out the enemy's intended direction. It was a gamble, placing all chips on the Fulminare coming from the right.
He swung his fist in that direction, only finding his hand brushing through a chilling mist.
"You guessed wrong."
–From the left the voice gently reprimanded his choice. He instantly spun around, delivering his fist in the direction of the words, only to again touch only freezing air.
'Again?' He thought.
Without the chance to defend himself, he discovered the head of silver hair in front of him only a moment before an impact drove itself into his abdomen.
The air was frozen in his lungs, then shattered in the very next exhale. He slid back, nearly tumbling over the edge of the platform back into the water—thud.
A wall of ice stopped him harshly, knocking the wind out of him just as he tried to inhale.
"Hkk—"
One cough expelled shards of ice from his throat, feeling small cuts within.
[Body temperature rapidly decreasing. Risk of hypothermia; organs becoming frostbitten; internal bleeding detected. Beginning genetic adaptions…]