The cold was relentless. The world had become a blur, time nothing more than a distant memory. The glow of Akio's hand had caused a force to rip through the air, pushing everyone back in a powerful wave. And when the dust finally settled, they saw it—the figure of Akio, frozen in a solid block of ice, his body perfectly preserved in a state that felt almost like a deep sleep. His breathing had stopped. The warmth of his body had vanished. He was gone, or so it seemed.
The beetle's massive form lay still, its life snuffed out by Akio's desperate strike. But there was no celebration, no triumph in the air. Only the silence. The class, battered and broken, stood in a stunned stupor, trying to comprehend what had just happened. The sounds of their labored breathing echoed, but they were barely aware of the weight of the world collapsing around them.
Threya knelt beside Akio, her trembling hands brushing against the ice that encased him. She felt nothing—nothing but the chill of the frost that held him captive.
"Akio..." she whispered softly, as if afraid her voice might shatter the fragile silence. "Please... come back."
But there was no answer. No movement. Only the eerie stillness that came with the ice that had taken him.
"Threya..." Benny said, his voice heavy with an emotion he didn't know how to express. He placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to offer comfort, though it felt empty. "We can't... we can't give up. He's still in there. He has to be."
Threya nodded, but the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes betrayed the truth she wasn't ready to accept.
Time passed.
Hours became days. The streets outside the crumbling school were filled with the distant hum of sirens. Police, emergency responders, and even heroes, all came to the scene. The word had spread like wildfire—Akio Kita, the youngest to ever kill a monster, the boy who saved his entire class. They called him a hero, a symbol of hope in a world that had so often seemed broken.
But all Akio had left behind was his frozen body.
The authorities tried everything to melt the ice. Fire heroes with immense power blasted flames at it for days, but nothing worked. No force on earth seemed strong enough to break through the strange structure that encased him.
At first, there was hope. But when weeks passed with no change, hope began to fade.
Months passed.
Akio's ice structure was moved to a museum, where it stood as an exhibit for all to see. The display had a simple plaque beneath it, reading:
"Akio Kita: The Youngest Hero to Ever Defeat a Monster."
Visitors came in droves. Families, aspiring heroes, students—all walked past the ice, gazing up at the boy who had given everything to protect the people around him. They marveled at his strength, his resolve. He had become a symbol, a living legend even in his frozen state.
But to the ones who knew him best, the sight of Akio encased in ice was nothing short of heartbreaking. Benny and Threya were the only ones who visited him now. They would sit for hours in front of the exhibit, staring at the ice with vacant expressions, their hearts heavy with grief.
"I can't believe this is all that's left of him," Benny muttered one day, his hands gripping the railing in front of Akio's frozen form. "He saved us... and now, this is it. We can't do anything."
Threya stood silently beside him, her eyes red from the countless nights spent crying. "He's still here, Benny. He's still in there. I know it."
"I know... but what if he's not? What if he's gone?"
Threya shook her head, refusing to entertain that possibility. "He's never given up. Not once. Not even when the odds were against him. We can't give up on him now."
But even as she said the words, doubt lingered in her heart. It had been months. What if Akio wasn't coming back? What if the Akio they knew, the one who fought so fiercely for his friends, was truly gone?
One evening, as the sun set behind the museum, casting long shadows over the streets, Benny and Threya stood together, the weight of the world pressing down on them. Benny broke the silence.
"I remember when we were kids, Akio used to tell us he'd be the greatest hero ever. He always said he'd do whatever it took to protect the people he loved..." Benny's voice cracked as he spoke, a deep sadness coloring his words. "He wasn't lying, was he? He did everything."
Threya's eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "He was always there for us. Even when he had no reason to be. He believed in us... and we have to believe in him."
Benny turned toward her, his eyes full of pain and uncertainty. "How? How do we believe in him when he's not even here anymore?"
"Because," Threya whispered, her voice thick with emotion, "Akio's strength wasn't in his powers. It was in his heart. And I know he's still fighting. I feel it. He'll come back. He has to."
Benny's expression softened, but his doubt still lingered in the furrow of his brow. "I hope you're right."
The days continued to drag on, each one blurring into the next. Time passed, but for Benny and Threya, it felt like the world had stopped. Every visit to the museum, every glance at Akio's frozen form, was a painful reminder that they had lost something precious—something irreplaceable.
But in their hearts, they held onto one truth. Akio had never given up before.
And they couldn't give up on him now.