Notes on Red Magic – Ice

Compiled and commented by Albert Weaver

"Fire screams. Ice waits."

 - Anonymous field manual, Wild Years

If Fire is the fist, Ice is the scalpel.

It doesn't roar. It hums. Spells trace from caster to target in silent, bluish threads. The temperature drops. Then the air snaps. Then whatever's caught is not coming back in one piece.

***

[Training Footage – Incident 12A, Arctis Facility, Breeze Years]

"Cadet miscalculated a basic freeze thread. Intended to pin a dummy. Overdrew. The figure shattered on contact. So did half the wall behind it. No injuries, but the instructor made everyone sit in the cold for an hour afterward. Lesson stuck."

***

Unlike Fire, Ice isn't about flash. It's about control. Every cast is a balance: drop the heat fast enough to disable, but slow enough to avoid brittle destruction - unless that's what you're after.

The best Ice Casters are meticulous. They map body heat like surgeons. They can freeze a weapon mid-swing, stop blood from pouring out of a wound, or silence a room by frosting the walls. Precision, not passion.

***

[Interview – Retired Warden "Soto"]

"People think Ice kills fast. It doesn't. Fire is quick. Ice lingers. If you're not careful, you freeze more than skin. You freeze memories. Nerve endings. Trust."

***

He later wrote:

"Ice is not cruelty. It's distance. A kind of magic that lets you keep your hands clean - while still doing the necessary cut."

But not all Ice work is clean.

In rogue use, it's the preferred magic for quiet assassinations. No noise. No smell. Just silence and frost. A body found days later, cold in a warm room.

***

[Confiscated Memo – Urban Mana Crimes Taskforce]

"Beware 'thread flickers' - signature of street-level Ice Casters. Often teens. Spell range is short, but deadly. Watch for breath mist indoors. That's your only warning."

***

Albert's final thought: 

"Fire wants you dead. Ice just wants you gone."