Ch 7
...
Amidst a sea of snow a particular clearing of trees stood out amongst the others. White tipped firs gave way to their bare brothers, exposed emerald needles giving off a feeling of spring as the snow melted into slushy puddles. Anna pushed Thor ever onward into the green hue, well aware at the rise of temperature the further they went. There was magic here, it was in the air and the ground, and the sparse blossoming flora surrounding them. Anna found it familiar, an electric buzz similar to when Elsa would weave her own power.
The forest soon gave way to a rocky opening. Moss, lichen and small flowers stuck to every surface, life blooming where there should be none. The air smelled of earth, damp and old and oddly comforting. Warm thermal gusts rose from the various cracks in the rock, bringing up old memories of her father telling tales of a sleeping dragon deep beneath the ground. Anna removed her mitts, no longer needed as the humidity held the heat like a warm blanket.
She dismounted Thor when a hoof slipped on a velvet covered outcropping of rock, deciding it best to lead him along the slippery stones cautiously. They soon came to an opening however, a mossy patch hidden deep within the forest. In its center a spiral of perfectly round stones of all sizes lay dormant, the formation just a tad too uniform to make the camouflage fool proof.
She bid Thor to stay as she approached them, a little unsure of how exactly one should approach trolls. She coughed as if to grab someone's attention, mentally kicking herself for not asking Kristoff about troll etiquette... or if there was even such a thing.
"Um... Hello? I hope I'm not interrupting anything but I could really use some... advice?"
The second she finished her question the round rock-like things sprang to life, unfolding into stubby granite skinned creatures. Two smaller ones ran up to her, smiling with massive toothy grins and ears too big for their heads. "It's Anna!" One shouted out enthusiastically, and soon Anna found herself surrounded by excited stone people, shouting and greeting her as if she were a long lost relative.
"Hey little guys, is Gran Pa-eek!"
The world spun around her in a blur when she was taken by the hand by a larger (what she would assume to be a female) troll, twirling Anna happily in a playful circle. "Oh you look just as beautiful as the last time we saw you, what brings you out here? Where is Kristoff? Oh! Has he finally asked the big question?!"
The troll's expression had Anna turning red. "W-what! No, no he hasn't! I came to ask you for—whoa!"
"He hasn't?!" The Troll suddenly let go, causing Anna to go sailing into a smaller group of youngsters who were giggling madly as they held her up eagerly. "That big idiot what's he waiting for! Where is he I need to give him a good talking-to!"
The little ones holding her seemed to realize she was trying to say something and allowed Anna to regain her balance. She thanked them, patting one of the smaller creatures on his(her?) moss covered head. "Sorry, I asked Kristoff to stay behind this time. Actually I came to ask you something, two somethings really, and I'm kind of scared they may be related."
Another boulder, a little bigger than the others rolled through the crowd. It unraveled into another troll, though this one was decorated with grass reeds and glowing stones. A stringy mane engulfed his head, while age and wisdom could be seen in his eyes. Anna knew this troll in particular, he had helped her twice before. Once when she was a child, and then again when Elsa froze her heart.
Grand Pabbie looked up at Anna, shooing the others away with a silent authority. "Forgive the others. It is not every day we get visitors you see. Though even the little ones can sense the worry in your voice, the fact that you left Kristoff behind is odd enough. Speak Princess and I will listen."
Anna knelt down when he took her hand in his larger one. A strange sensation, skin hard and rough yet radiating warmth. "Thank you, I'll try to keep it as short as possible, but it's about Sven and my sister."
Murmurs erupted at the mention of Sven, whispers wondering if he was sick or hurt. She decided not to bore them with too many details, quickly telling Pabbie about the raiders, about how Elsa held them off and how she decided one night to go off on her own. "Sven was fine until Elsa took him out to the mountain. He came back without her sometime in the night and ever since then he hasn't been the same. He won't eat, or play, and he barely lets Kristoff near him anymore."
Pabbie rubbed at a stony jaw. "Those two are practically brothers. To hear of Sven acting like that is troubling indeed. Was he injured in any way? Perhaps caught sickness from another wild animal?"
"No, there were no signs of that... but there's more actually. You see... Elsa didn't come back empty handed." That caught Pabbie's attention. He squeezed her hand gently as his focus sharpened on her words. "She brought back a sword, she said Marsh— her other snowman like Olaf, found it around her palace. Ever since then... she's been acting strange as well."
Pabbie pulled her hand closer. Anna could practically see him thinking behind those old eyes. "A sword you say? Describe it to me."
Anna could do better and pulled out her parchment. She unrolled it and held it out for Pabbie to see. "I'm sure it's nothing, what with everything going on." She said as Pabbie took the drawing and examined it.
His eyes widened immediately at the image before him, stubby hands turned the paper as he scrutinized every detail. A good few minutes went by without a sound from him, the others quietly crowding around curiously trying to gain a glimpse of Anna's drawing. His bushy brow shifted as his face changed through a myriad of expressions, from worried, to confused, and finally settling into an unreadable slate. Anna couldn't help but fold her arms around herself, his silence made her nervous.
"How long has she been in possession of this?" He asked suddenly, though his voice was low as if not to scare the others.
"Uh, going on maybe... three weeks?" Her anxiety worsened with his expression. "Have you seen it before?"
Pabbie shook his head in response. "Not physically no... But I pray it is not what I believe it to be." He turned from her taking the drawing with him. He said something Anna did not understand, guttural and grainy, like stones tumbling down a rocky slope. Trollish she assumed, and now wondered if Kristoff was fluent in it. Pabbie's voice had summoned a few of the bigger, elder looking trolls as they now gathered around him. "Excuse me Anna but I must discuss this with the others. Please make yourself at home, this may take some time."
Anna nodded, thanking him for his help in advance. She made her way back to Thor and sat next to him on a nearby flat rock. He nuzzled her hair as he sense her growing worry. The fact that the trolls were currently having the equivalent of a council meeting did not settle her nerves one bit.
Elsa, what have you gotten yourself into?
The docks were busy despite the late hour, soldiers and dockworkers were busy preparing two ships for voyage. Elsa stood by as she overlooked them silently, unfazed by the chilled wind that drifted from the fjord causing her dark cloak to billow around her. Her personal ship the Tempest had been outfitted first. Rather small considering it was the Queen's, but it was sleek and its sails were fast. It was also quite plain in its outer design, no doubt other nobles would scoff at its lack of trimming or artistic wood etching, Elsa had no need for extravagance.
The second, the Jotun was being prepared for her fighting men. Larger and much heavier, a warship at its core, it sat low in the water as men scurried about, loading supplies and checking and rechecking its side and front mounted cannons. Thought they expected this to be a land battle, it was always good to be prepared.
Her eyes caught sight as a flag was hoisted on the Jotun's mast. Gone was the familiar golden crocus, the deep green and purple of Arendelle's flag replaced with dark blue. The head of a great white wolf snarled beneath an emblazoned snowflake. Sharp eyes narrowed at the sight. Elsa had not authorized such a change, though she saw no reason to reprimand her men for it. Inspiration in a time of war could only boost moral. Besides, her own vessel would carry Arendelle's colours anyway.
Only two ships? Someone had questioned. She simply glared at him, realizing he was talking to the Snow Queen, (the Frost Wolf of Arendelle it would now seem). She would not need more than that.
"Excuse me, my Queen Elsa."
Elsa turned at the familiar voice of Bishop Gerald, she bowed immediately in respect. "Your grace, we have not spoken since my coronation, how may I help you?"
He returned the bow in kind. "I only wish to speak with you about... certain concerns coming from the citizens." He paused as two men carrying what looked like a heavy crate passed behind him. "Perhaps away from so many ears, would the Queen be ever grateful in following me to a quieter location?"
"Of course lead the way." She fell in step behind him as the Bishop led her away from the busy dock. They walked through the main court until they came to a stop at the western wall. The sight of guard and people thinned until they were the only souls around. The outer wall hung over the water's edge and would normally have a single patrol guarding it. Elsa noted there were none this night.
The Bishop seemed satisfied with the location as he turned to her and began to speak. "For such a young queen it is almost hard to believe the feats that have been told to me." His eyes wandered over her form noting her stance, the way she carried herself. She was the image of a powerful woman indeed. His gaze came to stop at the silver shining from her belt, his mouth turning down slightly. "Which brings me to the reason I have brought you out here, you see, there are some that are worried about... you behavior of late."
"My behavior?" Elsa turned her head at an angle, her people were safe and her men where currently flying a new flag in her honor. All she has seen is praise not concern.
"Yes, certain choices you have made. Some... contemplating if the path you are choosing, along with a certain item you carry is not in the name of some darker purpose." He looked her in the eyes as if testing for her reaction. "They worry you are straying from the path of light."
Elsa's expression turned to stone. He could not seriously be accusing his queen of heresy? "All of my actions have been in the best interest of my people. How many soldiers have I saved by intervening personally, how many towns have been spared now that the tiger has been slain?"
"Of course my Queen, I mean no insult." He said, though she did not catch the way his eyes kept wandering behind her. "But you see, it is not just the people of Arendelle, but the Princess as well. She came to see me the night you... disposed of the leader of the wandering bandits, quite distressed."
Elsa felt a pang of guilt. Anna had seemed fine when she came for her in the ice palace. "I'll admit I may have been quick to pass judgment, but Anna and I have worked it out since, I assure you."
"Hmm yes so it would seem. Still, she explained to me some... worrying things. That weapon for instance, she fears it is a thing of sorcery and perhaps... is having an effect on you."
Elsa wanted to groan. "Understand while I was away my sister was raised on tales of fantasy, her worries are nothing more than a healthy imagination."
The Bishop nodded, turning his head away and taking a single innocent step to the left. "As I suspect, but the matter still remains that Princess Anna bid me to talk with you, and talk I shall."
Elsa looked at him strangely, the way he said it, something was not right. She felt tense all of a sudden, like what she would imagine a tundra hare being stalked by an unseen predator would feel. Like instinct her body sensed the danger, and the steel at her waist hummed with warning. It was too late.
Pain flared in her left shoulder as a crossbow bolt buried itself into her flesh. Before she was aware of what happened another struck her in her sword arm, the bolt sinking deep into the bicep. Elsa cried out in agony as she tried to draw her sword in an attempt to defend herself and the Bishop. However her arm would not obey and was greeted with only flaring pain, the shooter had aimed well. Elsa would have yelled for Bishop Gerald to run when realization hit. The Bishop simply stood there, calm and unmoving, completely uncaring of the danger.
This was a trap.
The ice in her blood stirred, calling out as her anger slowly boiled beneath the skin. "What is the meaning of this?"
"I knew there was something unholy about you from the very day you were born." The Bishop took a step forward as another bolt struck Elsa in the thigh. The Queen fell to a knee, unable to do anything but listen as the Bishop lingered over her and continued on.
"Unnatural pale hair was the first sign, your parents bore none but dark, even your sister bears more resemblance to them than you. Your father was right in locking you away. They knew you were a cursed child from the start with those powers of yours, proof that you are nothing more than a foul aberration."
Elsa's stare became a dark glacier. He would view her ability as an affront to the church? "You dare..."
"Your sister was right to show concern. She came to me practically in tears, told me about that item you carry and your recent barbaric acts. She wants nothing more than for you to put away that that horrid satanic symbol, more evidence that you have turned your back on all that is good and just in this world." He pulled an ornate dagger from his long robes, golden handle and encrusted with precious gems. "Dear princess Anna's words have convinced me of what must be done. For the good of the kingdom, may she reign in the light and lift your curtain of evil from this land."
Elsa's glare lessened for a fraction of a second. Anna convinced the bishop of this? Anna went behind her back and turned these men against her? Her jaw tightened. Anna had betrayed her? After all Elsa had done for her, after everything they had gone through. Anna would never... she would Never.
He prayed. "I øynene til vår herre. I now free Arendelle of your curse and send your soul back to the depths!" and poised the dagger to strike.
For the first time in days, the sword resonated with her anger, it fed on it, strengthened her. Elsa's eyes turned to burning blue as she embraced it, slipping into the darkness and let it fuel the ice within her.
She saw nothing but hatred, felt nothing but rage.
"You dare!"
He struck.
Ice flared on the ground around as her left hand shot forward, catching his own and halting the dagger with it. He screamed as she squeezed with impossible strength, bones snapping as she crushed his hand against the handle of his own weapon. In his struggle to free himself he grabbed at the wooden shaft jutting from her shoulder, causing her to howl in pain and lose her grip. He managed to pull away from her, slipping on the ice in the process until he was sprawled on his back.
"Demon!" He screamed as he cradled his broken hand. "What are you waiting for!" He tried to turn to the others somewhere behind him. Elsa followed his gaze to the upper wall. "Kill her now! Kill hrrmph!"
A length of ice wrapped around his face silencing him, another wrapped around his waist, legs and finally his arms until he had been immobilized completely.
Elsa's wounds had her sluggish, unable to move in time as two guards in league with the Bishop took aim from the ramparts above. The Bishop watched in terror as her good hand slammed the ground, and out of the blast of cold two unearthly beasts emerged. Long undulating serpentine bodies covered in rough jagged scales, no limbs, only an eyeless opening of a maw containing rows upon rows of frozen teeth. Jormungar- frost worms.
One circled around her protectively, its iced hide deflecting another shot from a crossbow. The other moved like lighting, slithering its way up and over the wall and coiling itself tight around the unlucky shooter. It wound itself tighter and tighter until the man beneath could no longer breathe and his eyes rolled into his head. His accomplice drew his own sword and sliced the creature in two with a powerful swing. It let lose an ear piercing screech as it died, bursting into a cloud of snow. The guard turned back to the queen intent on finishing this, but a crossbow from behind her halted the assassin, causing him to seek cover instead.
"Queen Elsa! Guard help-help! The Queen is under attack!" It was the young guardsmen who she had kept running into during he attempted siege of Arendelle. He ran to her side unsure of what to do and a little wary of her guardian, but he was prepared to defend her at all cost. The notion was not lost on Elsa, he could be trusted. The worm itself sensed her thoughts, closing its hissing mouth and pulling away from him.
"Are you alright? Why do they attack you?" He said to her, watching as the two snipers raised their hands in surrender as they were put upon by more guard.
Elsa sighed with relief and stood with the young man's help, nearly falling once more as she pulled the bolt from her bicep painfully. "What is your name boy?"
"R-Rolf your majesty."
"Congratulations Rolf—" He flinched as she gripped him by the shoulder, a wave of cold passed through his entire being. His green eyes turned to a light blue. "You have been promoted to QueensGuard."
He did not seem aware of what just happened or what exactly that rank entailed, but he smiled with an eerie pride none the less. "Thank you your majesty!"
"Now, go gather the others." She stood on her own weight and turned her attention back to the half frozen bishop. Her worm slithered its way around him, widening its large circular fanged mouth as it drew closer to his face. "I am not finished with him yet."
"Good night Farfus." The royal ice harvester said to the tan mare as he settled her back in the stall. "You're no reindeer but you pull a sleigh with the best of them."
Both he and the horse jumped as the large stable doors burst inwards. Kristoff swung around not expecting to see anyone at this hour, let alone the Queen. He did not like the expression she held, but that was soon forgotten when she limped towards him, leaving a visible dotted trail of blood as she approached him.
"Elsa, what in the world happe—" His words were cut short as a cold hand grasped his collar. The walls shook as his back slammed against the stables, Elsa got right up in his face with a terrifying snarl.
"Where is Anna!" She hissed through clenched teeth.
The fury in her expression was unlike anything Kristoff had ever seen. Still, he had promised Anna not to say. "I told you she... she went—" He gasped when her hold on him tightened, his feet leaving the ground as she somehow lifted the big man. Kristoff pulled at her grip... dear lord her grip was powerful.
"You would lie to me? Are you apart of this conspiracy as well?" She all but spit in his face.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about." He grasped at the offending hand, her arm showing no strain despite holding his entire weight. How was she doing this? "I swear I've been tending to the horse most of the night! Anna would kill me if I did anything to harm you."
Something flickered in her eyes, the glare dimming in its intensity. This was Kristoff, Anna's beloved... she was hurting him... what was she doing?!
The pressure on his throat suddenly vanished and Kristoff fell to the ground. He landed hard on his rear, looking up to the queen in disbelief.
"No, you wouldn't... she would never forgive me if I ..." Her mind was muddled from pain and confusion both, unable to decide what to do. She held her injured arm and turned away from him and began talking to herself. "Where would she go... why would she go off on her own without telling me?"
Kristoff simply stared back at her. He dared not believe it, had thought Anna was just acting like a worried sister. His eyes lowered to the weapon at her side. "Anna was right, that thing is cursed."
The moment of clarity that came over her suddenly vanished in a torrent of rage. Elsa turned back to him sharply, thinking on his words. Her face twisted into a snarl as she came to a single conclusion. "Trolls..." she growled low, sounding more animal than human. Ignoring Kristoff, she made her way to the farthest stall and opened the pen releasing the reindeer within.
Kristoff was immediately on his feet, watching stunned as Elsa jumped onto Sven with little difficulty, awestruck that he seemed to let her—wanted her to ride him. It was clear now, Sven was not sick. Elsa had done something to him, had used her powers and somehow stolen Sven from him.
"No! I won't let you take him!" He stood to block their way, but Sven had other ideas. The great reindeer roared in defense of his queen, he thrust his head forward catching Kristoff with his antlers and threw the big man clear across the stables.
The last thing Kristoff remembered before his head connected with the hard wood, was the flaring pain in his side were the antler had caught him, and the cold magic swirling around his former friend. "Buddy... why?" The rest turned to black.
Anna snorted loudly when she nearly fell off the rock, having nodded off while she waited for the trolls to finish their discussion. Thor seemed a little startled from the unflattering noise she had made, but nuzzled her none the less. "Sorry boy, but they are taking their sweet time. Doesn't bode well huh?" She silently apologized to Kristoff for taking so long, but the matter was out of her hands now.
Thor huffed softly, his head turning at the sound of Grand Pabbie slowly walking towards them. Anna stood up as she waited for him to talk, the look on his face made her heart sink. "No one with good news ever walks that slow."
Pabbie could only sigh. "Anna, we have talked long and hard and I fear if it is truly the sword we think it be, then your sister is in possession of a very old, very dangerous relic." He took her hand and pulled her back to the center of the groove with the others. "Tell me, aside from her behavior has she shown any physical changes? Anything at all?"
Anna thought for a moment. "Well she always looks tired and she's a bit paler than normal. She's also become a lot stronger as well, as in I'm sure she could lift a guy over her head - stronger."
Pabbi looked troubled at that revelation. "Not a good sign, it's protecting the host..."
Anna was not sure she heard him correctly. "Host? Excuse me?"
He grunted as he tried to find the quickest way to explain. "There is an entity residing in the sword. Tales say it was once wielded by a powerful king whose dominion was the cold void of death itself. Anna, it was no coincidence it called out to her, their powers mirror each other."
Anna thought about it, that would explain the sudden boost to her ice magic.
Pabbie continued. "It will corrupt her until she accepts its power as her own- then the two will become something dark, something terrible. Anna the corruption will spread slowly, seeping into those around her. You are no exception."
"Me? I-I don't feel any different... I think." She shivered at the thought. How would she know?
"Your heart is strong and true Anna, it would take much to turn you. Elsa on the other hand has lived with fear all her life and is directly exposed to the swords influence. It wants her, called out to her... it may be already too late." He could see Anna's hope fading with every word, that would not do. "Does she listen to you? Have you talked her down from doing anything brash?"
"Kind of, I guess. I got her to come back with me a few times."
"That is good to hear. You must return to your sister immediately, do everything in your power to relive her of that sword. Throw it deep into the fjord if you have to. Your presence and your bond may very well be the only thing keeping her from falling over the edge completely, if she has not already."
Anna shook her head in defiance. "No! I refuse to believe that, I know she's still there. Who was this king anyway? I searched our entire library and found nothing about a king or a sword."
"That's because both are just as old as troll magic, if not older. He reigned during a time when the world was in an age of ice and great beasts wandered the land. His name has been lost to the ages, but the sword is still known." He stalled, as if saying it would enact some terrible curse in of itself. "It if is truly the one, then Elsa currently wields Frostmourne."
The mild almost warm temperature of the groove suddenly dropped violently. The trolls grew agitated, some clumping together protectively while others scattered and rolled away into hiding.
"A fitting name, don't you agree?"
"Elsa?" Anna spun unable to pinpoint the direction of the voice, it came from all directions at once.
Glowing blue eyes appeared from the darkness. The Queen appeared from the trees riding atop her mount, or rather her armored reindeer. Sven was now outfitted head to tail with silver plate, even his antlers now bore deadly gleaming spikes. Frost escaped his large nostrils as a glowing animalsitc stare observed blankly from behind a steel helm. Royal guard flanked them both, a matching glow to their cold stares as crossbows took aim at the stony beings.
"Sven?" Anna gawked at the reindeer and then noticed Elsa's blood stained clothes. "Oh my god what happened to you!" She went to run towards her, but as she drew closer Sven huffed at her defensively, threatening her with those steel tipped antlers.
"Hello dear sister." She marched Sven forward ever so slowly. "And Pabbie, it has been quite a while since last we met, pity both times have not been on better terms."
Grand Pabbie placed himself in front of Anna defensively. "Elsa, I can feel the conflict within you. Why can you not see that you are not yourself."
Elsa shifted her glare from her sister to the elder troll as she and Sven circled them like a hawk. "Has my sister already turned you creatures against me as well?" Elsa's voice was acidic. "Funny, I never thought you'd have such ambition Anna.
Anna was beyond confused, still dumbstruck at the sight of Elsa atop the outfitted Sven. "I don't understand, you're not making any sense."
"Tell me, how long had you planned this, how easy was it to convince those men to do your bidding?" Elsa's tone sunk low and dangerous, echoing amongst the rocks and trees as if two people were speaking at once.
Anna realized she may not be entirely talking to her sister, but still stood tall and braved a step closer. "What are you talking about? I have done nothing against you."
"Don't you dare lie to me!" Ice blossomed from under Sven's hooves and covered the entire rocky floor in a cold rime.
Anna nearly backed away from her, but she noticed the way her right arm dangled at her side, the blood trailing down those fingers. She looked closer and became aware of the wood shaft sticking out of her shoulder as well. "Elsa... you're bleeding."
As if being reminded of her wound, Elsa grasped the bolt and pulled it free with a painful grunt. "An unscheduled meeting with your dear friend Bishop Gerald turned quite interesting." She tossed it aside before she reached down and unhooked a leather sac from Sven. "Here, why don't you ask him what we discussed?"
She threw the sac at Anna's feet. It bounced once with a sickening thud, the ties coming undone. Anna paled as the head of the Bishop rolled across the ground, eyes white and staring in death.
Anna covered her mouth in sickening horror. "Elsa... what have you done?" Her voice barely registered.
Elsa dismounted from Sven, landing on her feet unsteadily. She pulled another shaft from her thigh before hobbling towards Anna. "Attempted regicide is punishable by death." She ignored the Troll at Anna's feet as it kicked the bishop out of sight. "I simply gave out immediate judgment as is my right after a failed attempt on my life. As for you Anna, your name came up often, somehow convincing the superstitious that I was in league with the devil. So please for your own sake... explain yourself."
Anna reeled back, the Bishop had tried to kill Elsa? She had not thought anyone would take her words on a cursed sword so seriously. She had to fix this, Elsa could not be made to believe she had a hand in this. "Whatever it is you think I have done, Elsa, I swear I had nothing to do with it. If the Bishop took my words wrongly I apologize but it was not my intention to endanger you."
Elsa stopped inches from her, Anna had never felt threatened in Elsa's presence in her entire life, but right now, the way she towered over her, the frozen glare reading her every movement. Anna had to do everything in her power not to take a step back.
Elsa's glare lessened ever so slightly. "I want to believe you Anna, I do more than anything. But why didn't you come to me? Why sneak away without my knowing and further incriminate yourself?"
Anna worked up the nerve to glare back. "Because I've tried Elsa, but whenever I bring up that sword... you would get so defensive and now I understand why. The sword... Frostmourne, it's controlling you. Look at yourself Elsa, you barely look alive can't you see it's killing you!"
Elsa scowled at the notion. "You were always a dreamer Anna." She looked away, a mixture of fury and sadness in her eyes. "Weselton has called for aid, I plan to sail at dawn. I would have liked you at my side... but now I have doubts about trusting you."
Anna could not believe the words coming from her sister. Pabbie must be right, the sword was corrupting her, had been doing so since the first moment she found it. There was no telling now how far gone Elsa had fallen.
"Elsa, I can't let you go." Anna said as she took another brave step forward. "You don't understand... Frostmourne won't let you understand. There's no telling what you will do in your state."
"I'm sorry Anna," Elsa turned away and began limping back to Sven. "You will remain here until I get back."
Anna finally grew angry and rushed forward, ignoring the way the guards turned on her and ignoring the angry stamping of the armored reindeer. "No Elsa, for once you will listen to—" She grabbed hold of Elsa's arm.
Elsa turned on her with such a force that Anna was tossed to the ground. Pabbie and a few others coming to her aid as she slid to a halt on the mossy rocks.
"I am your queen and you will obey or so help me I will lay judgment on you as well!"
Frostmourne was drawn, Anna came face to face with the cold steel, the point of the sword inches from her throat. She recoiled from Elsa, looking up at her unbelieving to what had just transpired. Her sister, her own flesh and blood had just threatened to kill her.
"Elsa?" It was a ghost of a word, Anna's heart may have well been frozen all over again. Her sister was not standing before her now, only a monster wearing her face.
Elsa stood unmoving. The sheer look of betrayal in Anna's eyes brought something back to the surface, the blue fire in her eyes fading to humble embers. Elsa stood there, aware of what she had just done, aware she had just broken the sacred bond between them. The sword began to shake as her injury bled, a single tear unknowingly slid down her face. "Anna..."
The runes flared. Frostmourne would have none of it.
Elsa's expression hardened once more as she turned away and limped her way back to Sven. She could not trust anyone, not her sister, not herself. Magic swirled around her and soon she was once again baring armor. But not like before, shadow encompassed her form instead of ice. A full suit of plated mail, black and terrible. Heavy round pauldrons closed around her shoulders, one carried large protective spikes while the other taking a skull like shape. Gauntlets protected her hands, while thick plates covered her chest and legs.
Like some horrid black knight of legend her final steps were metallic and heavy. She climbed onto her armored mount, Sven showing no ill for the added weight.
"Olaf!" She called out, her voice loud and vast. Something rumbled from beyond the trees, a giant warrior forged from ice thundered forward, looking over all with hallow eyes hidden behind a smooth domed helmet. Massively thick hands formed of gnarled wood held tight to a deadly looking double sided axe. It towered over everyone, even Elsa who sat high atop Sven.
"Watch her until I return." She ordered before she disappeared into the trees with her men.
Anna could only stare as the great snowman – for it was now quite man-shaped – closed on her with earth shaking steps. "Elsa no... how could you." This was not Olaf, this was some Nordic viking taken from a fantasy book.
Olaf belonged to the both of them, this was too much, this was crossing a line. Anna was helpless as she watch her sister's form fade among the trees. She fell to the ground, Pabbie wrapped his short arms around her as best he could as she cried into his shoulder.
He tried to reassure her it was not the end, not yet. "Do not lose hope Anna, surely you saw it just as I did."
Anna sniffled, ignoring the presence of the giant before her. "Saw what?"
Pabbie stroked her hair gently and whispered so 'Olaf' could not hear. "When you pressed her, challenged her, Elsa resurfaced. It was brief but it was enough to know she is still there."
Anna sat up straighter. Yes, she had seen it too. "But.. what can I do? Elsa is so strong and I'm... me."
"Yes, your sister is incredibly strong... but Frostmourne is weak. You are still here and not a slave to a dark power. It has no hold on you because you are stronger than you can imagine. You can defeat it Anna, I know you can."
Anna wiped away her tears. Pabbie was right. The show of power, the armor, the guards and even Sven. Frostmourne wasn't protecting Elsa, it was protecting itself! Anna smiled at this new perspective and at the ideas running through her mind. But first, all she had to do was get away from Olaf.
"Oh Olaf, what has she done to you."
Oddly enough, the giant tower-knight of a snowman suddenly looked disappointed behind the iced helmet, twirling his weapon as someone would twirl a parasol. "You... you don't like it?" He walked around and plopped himself down next to her rather unceremoniously.
"I think I look kinda sexy." He put down his giant axe and flexed the tree trunks that he now sported for arms. "At least tell me I look better than that fluff-ball Marshmallow! Oh I wonder if I'm taller than Marshy now too, maybe I can get him back for pelting me with all those giant snowballs..."
Anna, along with everyone else, simply stared slack-jawed. They had not expected that voice or those actions to come from the armored construct. "Olaf? You're still... you?"
The human shaped face behind the helm scrunched up at her almost comically. "Of course, who else would I be?"
*snort* this is getting ridiculous. I apologize for the length, but it didn't seem right to split in two.
Remember when I said there would be a teeny tiny crossover? Well that's it, just frostmourne, no orcs or elves just an evil sword that I thought would be interesting in the frozen universe. I hope it doesn't put anyone off.
Anyway, reviews or random thoughts always welcome. And thank you to the two that sent me those kind pm's it made my day. :)
