DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own "Ranger's Apprentice" and the universe of the series. I only own the country Yreshia and it's citizens. All hail the mighty John Flanagan for creating the magnificent piece of art which is "Ranger's Apprentice"!

Arrivals

Hallasholm was a strange sight. When Freya left Yreshia the first spring flowers had just broken through the snow, but here the snow was still laying on the earth in heavy layers. As the Windwolf, Erak's ship, pulled into the docks, Freya walked around near the railing. Everything was so white, it was unnatural. Freya was certain she'd freeze to death, and at that thought she rubbed her arms, which had many thousand goosebumps.

She looked around at the Skandians who walked around. They seemed to be used to the cold weather, and they worked as well, so she assumed they could keep warm. But a chick like her who was too weak or too tiny to do any real work, was freezing her toes off. As she swore at the Skandians in a non-lady-like manner in her thoughts, a huge weight was put upon her shoulders. Her back buckled in order to answer the weight, and she felt a strong arm be put around her to hold her up.

,,Sorry. We're not used to have whimsy hostages with us," Erak said and Freya wrinkled her nose, looking up at the Skandian captain, who was, again, securing her footing by wrapping an arm around her. It had happened a few times the past couple of days, but it still surprised her when it happened. She looked at her shoulders, seeing the huge bearskin that Erak had draped around her, and she smiled slowly, pulling a bit on it, so it covered more of her arms.

,,Thank you Captain," she said gratefully, and Erak nodded with a grunt, as he helped her steady herself, and the walked off to do whatever it is Captains do when the ship docks. Freya smiled absent-mindedly as she watched the huge man walk off. He had warmed up to her the past few days. She hadn't really seen a smile smile from him yet, but he would smile for real at her in time. At least, that's what Freya hoped for.

,,Freya! Oi, Freya, you can come down now!" Freya turned around, seeing Svengal on the docks, waving at her. She giggled slightly, nodding and running down the gangway, not realizing that the gangway was slippery with snow, sleet and ice. And of course, she slipped in the mess. She screamed as she fell forward and Svengal quickly ran to her, wrapping his arms around her. She breathed out in relief, smiling up at the Skandian.

,,Thank you Svengal" she thanked and Svengal sighed deeply, messing up her hair with his massive palm. All the Skandians had probably gotten used to saving the little princess. She always fell over something.

,,Freya, running is risky business in Skandia at this time of year," he pointed out and Freya shrugged with an apologetic smile.

,,Sorry. I didn't think the winter was still this harsh here," she apologised and Svengal shook his head in disbelief. He had seen the spring spread in Yreshia when they kidnapped the princess, but he didn't think she had gotten out of the awareness that came with snow and ice.

,,The winter is harsh here for many months," he commented and Freya nodded.

,,I've heard that from adventurers, but I guess I've got to learn everything the hard way," she complained with a small smile.

,,That's okay, chick, we'll teach ya!" Freya turned around, smiling at her three other friends. Technically she had become friends with most of the crew of the Windwolf, but Keld, Thom, Svengal and Jenge were her best friends, and probably always would be... Though Erak was becoming a dearer presence to her over time.

,,Thank you my friends. But I am afraid that might be a full-time occupation, and I am sure Captain Erak would not appreciate you guys hanging around me at all times," she said with a teasing note in her most carefree voice and laughter spread in the small group. And sure enough, a deep grunt from behind Freya made them aware of the Captain's gaze.

,,I sure as hell wouldn't, now get to work, you lazy bunch of ladies! Not you, Freya," he groaned and Freya smiled innocently, standing idly by the sideline as the Skandians unloaded the ship. Apparently they had been on a plundering mission before kidnapping her, and the princess made a face at the many invaluables that was being brought from the ship. She felt sorry for the nobleman or noblewoman who had lost the many pretty things, especially a large chandelier with diamonds embedded into the golden material.

She was so happy that the Skandians had chosen to take her, and then just took off. Then again, they probably couldn't have taken anything from Yreshia that was worse than taking Freya. To Freya it would be more horrible if they had taken Edel, of course, but to the rest of Yreshia... Freya honestly thought Freya was a bigger loss for them. They didn't see Edel as she did. They didn't understand, that the only reason Freya was like this, was because Edel had always been there to protect her during their childhood.

Now Freya was alone, and more unsure of herself than ever. But she would pull through... For Edel as much as for herself.

It felt like days before Edel and her feline companion got through the tunnel. And it might have been too... They had to stop more than once, either because Edel needed nourishment, in the shape of the sad dried meat they had brought along or the almost empty water cask. And at times Edel also needed a quick rest, because of a specifically steep passage. Edel found herself envying Arajha's feline grace or amazing stamina more than once, and even more frequent thanking the heavens for granting the white tiger these amazing feats, or Edel would have tripped more than a dozen of times because of the suffocating darkness in the tunnel.

The smell of the darkness was cramped and filled with muck. It filled her with an uneasy, nauseating feeling, and she felt fear creep up her neck more than once, when she thought she heard another breath than her own ragged and the tigers calm and even. Edel was sure she would have panicked after five minutes in the dark tunnel, if not for Arajha's soft fur beneath her left palm and the hard sheath of Qichang zhi Jian. It felt reassuring to have a powerful sword at one hand, and a just as fierce beast at the other.

But all these worries seemed to evaporate from her body as they got the end of the tunnel. Arajha hissed and stopped in it's tracks. Edel reached out as an instinct. Her hand met a cold, stony surface and she understood that a boulder had been placed before this end as well... She felt sweat pool on her neck, wondering if Qichang zhi Jian would be strong enough to break a boulder from this angle. Earlier she could slice the boulder in halves, but that freedom was not given her at this time. She slowly pulled Qichang zhi Jian, making sure to not hit something accidentally. It would be most disagreeable if she made the tunnel collapse when they finally found the exit.

The fresh air that came in through the small cracks between the boulder and the actual exit of the tunnel gave her courage, and she put pressure on the tiger, which immediately went behind her, to not be in the way. Edel really sometimes wondered if Arajha could read her mind, or something... That tiger was too smart.

Edel closed her eyes, though it made no real difference whether the darkness was caused by the tunnel or her eyelids, but it was a habit in order to attain inner calm. She stood like that, eyes closed and deep breathing, until her hands stopped shaking and she heard no sound besides her breathing. Even Arajha's breathing was unheard.

Then, in a quick second, Edel opened her eyes and hammered her sword into the boulder, not uttering a single sound. It was a waste of energy to say anything. She felt her sword go deep into the boulder, like penetrating a mountain, and her muscles shuddered at the resistance the boulder added to the job. Edel groaned as she pushed Qichang zhi Jian further into the stone, and when there was no more pressure, her sheath was almost touching the stone. Only one quarter of an inch was visible of her sword, the rest was inside the boulder.

She prayed silently to all the Yreshian gods, although she had never believed in them. She just needed a good deal of luck for this to be possible. She didn't have the muscle strength to cut the boulder like this, and therefore she had never tried. She just hoped Qichang zhi Jian was sharp enough to do the trick. She turned around, her back against the boulder. She lowered her knees a bit, gripped the sheath which was now just about her shoulder, bit her teeth tightly together and prepared herself. This was going to be very hard...

Edel had trained until her knees bled and the skin on her fingers was scraped off from her constant attempts at improving her swordsmanship. She had trained until she didn't own a single outfit without holes, and she had broken so many limbs, she thought they had been beyond repair. But they weren't...

Edel had never felt as excruciating pain as the one her muscles were feeling now. It was like the pressure from pushing Qichang zhi Jian upwards, to try and cut through the boulder, was ripping her muscles from each other, like tearing in cloth. She was so happy she'd bit her teeth together, or she might have bit hole in her tongue or lip, the pressure was sure to make her teeth clatter if they could. The sweat sprung out on her face like crazy, and she groaned through her teeth.

Freya better be bloody grateful when I get her back, Edel thought darkly, as she pushed her muscles further than she had ever done before. But she knew she couldn't do it. Her muscles were aching, her brain was clouding, and the loud, shrilling noise of the boulder, slowly being split by Qichang de Jian, was enough to give her goosebumps on every little inch of skin on her body. It was so hard to not give up... Perhaps just a second? A little second to give her body a rest... What could happen?

Freya's face popped into Edel's mind, and she groaned through clenched teeth. Her hate for the Skandians intensified, as if it was their fault all of this happened. It was... If they hadn't kidnapped Freya, her sister, her only true friend... If they hadn't kidnapped her, none of this would have happened. Through some kind of twisted miracle, she felt the strength returning to her body. With a last strain of her body, a strain she thought was going to tear her body apart, the boulder was severed.

As Edel fell to the ground, she saw a flash of white next to her, and with a huge roar from Arajha, the boulder was sent flying. Edel assumed it did anyway, since the tunnel was suddenly enveloped in a gentle light and a fresh breeze blew into it, easing her aching muscles. She groaned yet again, falling to the ground, her cheek smashing against the earth. She was so tired... Arajha walked to her, she could see the huge paw in front of her face. She felt the huge tongue licking her cheek, she felt the heat comforting her when the tiger laid down next to her and she felt the tears flow down her cheeks. She was going to ache so much tomorrow... She was going to be able to feel this for weeks, she was certain.

And with that fact in her mind, she went to sleep with a frustrated wrinkle on her smooth forehead and tiredness written in the very cells of her body. She was so tired, she didn't even had the energy to wonder about how the tiger had moved the boulder. She didn't even have the energy to worry about Freya, and usually that was her number one priority.

,,I'm scared" Erak looked at Freya through the corner of his eyes. He'd never have guessed it if the princess hadn't told him herself. Her back was straight, her eyes noble and diplomatic and a smile on her lips, that was as constant as her long, silky blonde hair and her electric blue eyes. And Erak hid yet another smile in his mind, in the special room he had created these past few weeks. He had hid all the smiles he wanted to give the young princess in there. All the smiles in the world wouldn't make her situation any better, and it would be better if she got some distance between herself and the Skandian crew she had befriended. Better for herself and for them.

Freya had never felt such fear before. When the Skandians kidnapped her, it was the shock and the surprise that made her fear the moment. Now, when she was so close to meet the man who ordered her kidnapped, her fear was another. It was a fear that witnessed of her uncertainty. And more than anything, she was afraid of separation. The Skandian crew of the Windwolf were her only friends in this place, and if she could never see them again... It would be a living hell.

She just hoped this 'Ragnak', Oberjarl of the Skandians, wouldn't keep her locked away. She needed human contact, and preferably pleasant human contact...