Chapter Text
Returning from Small Studio, they noticed that Shallare was gone, the raised platform empty.
Assuming he went back to the Cruise, they looked for Cyalm, noticing he, too, was gone.
The lights above them flickered, they flinched and looked up, but let out a sigh of relief that nothing was above them.
Though, were there always that many lights up there?
They brushed it off and proceeded to the next world’s entrance, staring at the spikes sticking out of the ground near it.
Its name was quite frightening, ‘Frozen Wasteland’ was quite a turn of theme considering the worlds they’ve gone through so far.
Nonetheless, they stepped inside of the portal and were whisked away instantaneously to a cold, foggy area.
They couldn’t see much except anything in their immediate vicinity, and what was there was snow.
Snow that seemed to slowly swallow them deeper in its grip, and whatever they tried, they couldn’t seem to escape it.
There was no warning or anything that could’ve helped them identify it was dangerous, unless it was covered by the fog and they were too far out to see any signs.
Just as when they were about to fully submerge into the snow, closing their eyes to submit to their fate as they couldn’t do anything else, they were fished out of it.
Audible panting from their rescuer as they fell downwards to solid ice.
They were panting, and so was their rescuer. Maybe it was because whoever rescued them pulled them out of snowy quicksand.
“.. Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?”
They opened their eyes and blinked. Once, twice, and then sat up.
“No, I’m okay, I think.. I probably should’ve been more careful though, right?”
Heavy boots came over to them, kneeling down to get a better look at the Tailor.
He stared into their eyes and they did the same.
They saw his symbol, an 8-pointed star was on his face, his head colored a light gray.
They noticed the lack of facial expression, not even his mouth was visible.
Aside from his facial features, they took note of the blue parka he wore with several buttons, reaching to his knees.
“You’re the new Tailor, yes?”
“That’d be right, yeah..”
“Let’s get you up then.”
He stood up and reached out to them, taking his hand, they were guided away from the area and to somewhere much safer.
Surprisingly, it took them quite a while to get there, and when they looked back, they could barely see the area.
Part of them wonders if it ever existed in the first place.
“This wasn’t how I expected our meeting to go, but at least you’re relatively safe.”
They were shivering, it wasn’t an exaggeration when it said that it was cold.
“Ah- you might need these.”
Looking at him again, he had a smaller parka and gloves in his hands.
They took the clothes from him and put them on, feeling significantly warmer.
“My name is Compale, the Point of Frozen Wasteland. As you can see, the climate’s quite harsh here.”
They tried burying themselves into the parka, still feeling cold.
“You already have a sufficient amount of threads already, but if you aim to gain more, especially here.. I’ll let you indulge.”
They started walking off to another side of the area until Compale called out to them.
“Make sure you know where you’re going! My world can be quite unforgiving, I’m sorry I can’t do much to help.”
They nodded to him and disappeared into the fog.
Their vision was constantly blocked by the thick mist surrounding them, and at times they wandered aimlessly in search of a path that would lead them to a new thread.
Thankfully enough, most of the Wasteland stayed on the ground, and they only had to climb up once.
When they did, they were surprised to see the fog didn’t stop there, but the further up they went, it gradually cleared.
“Goodness gracious..”
As they looked down, most of the land was enveloped in fog.
Grimacing, they went to go get the rest of the threads to not keep him waiting, it’d be rude of them if they left him there to stand in the frosty weather.
Fortunately, they came back not long after they left, most of the threads were in one area branching out into three paths, save for the one they had to climb for.
Despite the lack of expression, he greeted them with a warm gaze.
“Tailor, you’ve returned.. Now, are you more confident in your abilities?”
They nodded, trying to hide the fact their teeth were chattering.
He hummed, and gave them a small smile.
“I wish you luck, Tailor..”
The challenge course was quite short, despite nearly slipping up a few times, they managed to make it to the end unscathed.
They were transported to another area, less cold than the wasteland they were previously in.
Compale stood in the middle, patiently waiting for them without the parka and boots.
Tailor removed the clothes they were handed and gave them to him, which he sent away
“Where are we?”
“It’s a fleeting escape, Tailor.” He responded. “You may have completed my challenge course, but there is another trial you must go through before you fully gain my trust.”
They raised a brow at his words.
“You must prove yourself to me in combat.”
Tailor stiffened at his words, looking up at him in disbelief, to which he simply responded with a smile.
“Grab the yellow sewing needle when it appears in front of you, it shall be your weapon in battle.”
“Oh- okay, okay!” They replied excitedly, before giving him a look of concern.
“Wait, won’t you get hurt?”
“Not at all, this’ll simply be a test of your strength. You don’t have to worry, but thank you for your concern.”
They gave him a bright smile and watched as he floated upward to the other side of the arena.
A sewing needle appeared in front of them, and as soon as they brought it into their hands, the atmosphere of the place shifted.
Snowflakes and icicles were thrown their way, which they had no trouble with, but when he moved to release a shockwave by pushing down on a bigger icicle, it got slightly complicated.
It all went so fast, but they didn’t mind. All they could recall during the battle is the rush it gave them, how Compale’s attacks were relatively easy to dodge, and battling him with ease.
Things changed when he reverted to his true form, however.
They had to stop themselves from staring and focus on fighting him, though he did find it quite amusing how they were lost in thought before remembering they had to attack.
When he shifted the arena’s direction, it threw them for a loop, but it made them more enthusiastic about the battle as a whole.
They would never admit it, but having icicles directed to them while being restricted in a closed space was quite exhilarating.
Words were tossed around during battle, all kind and never malicious. Some words even made the lighter part of his gradient rise.
At the end of the battle, they were quite worn out, but very satisfied.
“Such a brilliant show of expertise! You’ve truly proven that you’re worthy of being the next Tailor.”
The pair exchanged smiles as Tailor reached for his symbol, the searing heat making them let out a sigh of relief.
“That was so awesome! Can we go again?”
Compale looked at them fondly and laid a hand on their head gently.
“Maybe after you’ve defeated Celesteal, yes?”
“Sure! Man, I can’t wait until I kick his butt to the stratosphere!”
They said, making hand chop motions to which he chuckled at.
“Would you like to return to the emporium? Cyalm is surely waiting.”
“One more thing-”
He looked at them curiously, before feeling arms wrap around his waist.
“I feel like you need this, since you’re always so cold.”
It took him a bit, but he hugged back.
“Alright then, off you go, Tailor.”
They smiled up at him one last time.
“Bye bye, Compale!”
Even after they left, he could still feel their warmth.
He really was cold.