Chapter 7: Spartans Reborn
Hey guys, sorry if this took really long. As always, school has made me busy. But here's chapter seven. I haven't gotten any reviews the last few chapters, so feel free to leave some reviews of what you think I should do with this story in the future, what I need to work on, etc! Thanks. :3
-Dee
"That can't be good." gasped Kristoff.
Christian took the lead, "All of you, follow me."
With no hesitation, all three followed suit behind Christian, the dim outdoor lights illuminating the path under their feet. Whizzing by like a bird's chirp past an ear, the four's breathing became one. With all the same fears and same worries, they sprinted. With Anna slagging behind, Elsa slowed down her pace a bit until they were running at the same speed. But before they could shoot each other a look of hopefulness, they arrived at the scene.
A river of blood pooled down over the stairs, and Elsa followed with her eyes to the origin.
He was on the floor, face up, his own baton sticking out of his chest.
The second baton had been forced through his right eye socket, a splatter of blood on it, still wet and dripping. The eyeball was pooled with blood, unable to make out the iris or pupil. The red was quickly making its way down to his ear.
He looked pale, not because of death, but because of shock.
"Volart!" Elsa screamed, springing to his side.
He was already gone, but his left eye, still intact, was still open. A sliver of glass fell from her heart, and letting out another screech, the walls let out a crack, snowflakes spreading like a virus.
Elsa ignored the people stepping back and yelled, "Who did this?" No answer. "I said: who did this?!" She stood and clapped her hands together. She pulled them apart, revealing a snowball so cold it was hot. With the silence lingering, she started spreading her hands farther and farther apart, the ball of snow now two feet wide. Sounds of clinking icicles filled the room, almost like wind chimes in the whisper of wind.
Her eyes, white and crazy, searched the room. Silence still loitered.
Christian stepped up the stairs, the clicking of his boots being the loudest thing in the room. "Elsa."
"I'll kill you! Get back."
"No," he continued to inch further towards the Queen, "no, you won't. Let me help you."
"Get back!"
"Please, Elsa-"
A spiraling hurl of ice sent him smashing against the opposite wall, a separation of people where he'd been airborne just second before.
"Elsa," Anna whispered, "listen to me. Stop this."
"I can't." Elsa told her, remaining looking forwards, at the wall where Christian crashed just seconds ago. But he wasn't there. Had she imagined this? What was going on?
"Yes, you can. Just breathe, Elsa. Close your eyes."
The Queen closed her eyes, a fog of black hovering over her, breathing in, she imagined a pure cloud traveling through her nose, and breathing out...
A heavy object-a body-covered her like a veil.
That's the last thing she remembered before she was hit on the head and knocked out.
"Lunch." The monotone voice said.
Christian looked up, sweaty, as he held his hands out to receive the tray.
A bowl of soup, a crust of bread, and a small cup of water. It was gone within ten seconds. The dungeon cell door slammed with a clunk and a groan escaped his mouth.
Elsa hadn't woken yet, she'd been out 2 days. He'd meant to hit her hard to knock her out for a few hours, but not a few days. He figured he would try going back to sleep until she awoke. Either that or have a second round of "How Many Bad Words Can You Name in Ten Seconds?" with his new pal in the cell across from him.
Laying back in his dirty cot, he laughed to himself. He had ended up in dungeon and had lied to the Queen just like his brother. The only small difference was the reason. However different their decisions had been, they ended up in the same place, both were heavily influenced by emotion.
Christian couldn't face seeing Elsa hurt. Even if that meant physically and directly hurting her. He would make her see his reasons, and then he would tell the truth about who he was.
As if on cue, the Queen awoke with a gasp.
"This was an attack by Rane. Not by Christian. He would never…" Anna tried to find a reason, but she didn't know him. All she knew was that Elsa liked him. And anyone who was a friend of her sister's was also a friend of hers. But that wouldn't hw sufficient enough for Parliament.
"Your Majesty, we have no evidence that he is innocent."
"And none that he is guilty, either." She retorted.
A voice from the left side if the courtroom said, "He is left handed, and Instructor Volart's right eye was mutilated! He wasn't there at the scene of the crime-"
"He was with me, Kristoff, and my sister. Look, I know this looks really bad. But let me get the information I need before we put anyone to trial…let alone death."
"But Your Highness-" the small face of a large short man continued
Anna raised her hand in protest. "All due respect, but what I've said still stands. Please respect that. This court is dismissed." The Princess arose from her throne, quickly heading for the exit.
"Great work." A familiar blonde head bowed at her side.
Anna stifled a chuckle, "You think so?"
Kristoff pressed his lips against her cheek, "Absolutely."
Staring around the hallway as she walked, noticing the colors and waving to the people, Kristoff's cool hand grabbed hers. Fingers intertwining, Anna shot Kristoff a look.
"What?" Kristoff paused walking.
Anna's like pulled up in a small smile, "Why'd you do that?"
"Because."
"Because why? Ugh, nevermind." The strawberry blonde stuck her tongue out at him and began sprinting down the hallway, beginning another game of hide and seek.
"You'll figure out soon enough." Kristoff muttered under his breath before he sprang to catch up with her.
"Wh-where am I?" The Queen whispered, rubbing the side her head.
Christian whispered, "Elsa…"
"Christian!" She rushed to the partition, but she was jolted back by the handcuffs that completely enveloped her hands, keeping her a good 4 yards from Christian.
He stared through the bars empathetically, crawling closer to Elsa.
"…Not again." Her voice sounded hoarse, most likely from screeching like a predatorial bird days before.
"Again?"
"I was put in these by someone else before."
That rang a bell. Without thinking about it, he blurred out, "Hans."
She flicked her head up, wisps of lose hair hanging over her dry lips, "How did you know?"
"Elsa," he swallowed the lump in his throat, "I have something to tell you."
"What is it? Just tell me."
He breathed in slowly, a liquid fire spreading to his lungs. His stomach churned, his legs went numb, and his tongue went dry. "I'm…" he started, trying to control his shaking voice, "Hans is my brother."
Much to his surprise, she didn't scream, didn't freeze everything, didn't try to kill him. She just sat on the floor, keeping her head down.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I was sent by my parents to spy, just to make sure you weren't launching a war with us, and we bribed the Royal Union, and… And I'm sorry. I was supposed to be home a week ago." His shoulders sank.
The echoing silence ringed in his ears, a pain equivalent to a thousand swords being thrust into his body all at once, until he was a pile of muscle and blood, done for, gone.
"What stopped you from going home?" The Queen wondered, and Christian could now hear her soft sobs and muffled sniffling.
"You."
"Bullshit."
"It's not bullshit. I'm in love with you." Suddenly this confession had doubled in size and, apparently to Elsa, heartache.
"No! You c-you don't. Nobody can. I'm mad! The only person I love is Anna and Anna is the only person who loves me. That's how it is. You were a mistake. That's all you are…a mistake." She spat, not furious but not just annoyed.
The swords were back, except now there was ten thousands swords, making their way through his limbs, pieces of himself shattering on the floor. A numbness spread through him, a dark passion.
"No, Elsa! No! I refuse to believe I'm a mistake. And I refuse to believe you deserve to be alone forever. Whether you like it or not-" Christian paused, careful of his next words, "whether you like it or not I will follow you wherever you go, I'll do whatever you want, and give you whatever you want, because I'm in love you with you. Nothing you'll say will change that."
His face was now pressed to the ice cold bars separating her from him, hair drenched in summertime sweat, hands gripping the bars tightly.
She never lifted her face again that day, not even for the food.
She thought back to the day they'd met, how he saved her by pulling her close. The days he'd sat through the boring meetings, how she'd dismissed him but he still lingered there. Was that love? She thought back to one time in particular.
"But Your Royal Highness that will draw funds from trade!"
"If I am not safe, Corona will have nobody to trade with. Trade is important, but if you'll excuse me, Princess Anna's and my safety is more important than goddamn matches!"
This created chaos in the throne room, nobles erupted with protests, shaking their gold ring-covered fists.
"Queen Elsa, Corona is our most important trade partner!"
"I can't risk my sister's safety!"
"But Your Ma-"
"My men will take extra shifts, we'll work for free, and we'll be on the clock 20 hours a day." Christian's deep voice said from behind her.
"Problem solved." Gustav laughed, without humor.
Elsa, caught off guard by all of this, continued, "Y-Yes…the Royal Guard will take on overtime."
"This meeting is dismissed." Gustav announced. After Elsa had left the room, she turned to Christian.
"You can't honestly do this, you'll only get four hours of sleep. An exhausted guard is not a good one."
Christian half-smiled, amused, "But it's better than none at all, don't you agree, Queen Elsa?" She let out a small gasp at the mention of her name. He'd never called her Queen Elsa before.
"Yes, I suppose…why did you do it?"
Christian galloped in front of her turned around, began back walking, and made a funny face, "The fun. Who wouldn't want to get only four hours of sleep?"
Elsa managed a laugh, the first one she'd let out around him, "Seriously. Why?"
He slowed down and wait until she was in front of him to reply, "I guess Anna's and your safety is important to me, too. And partly because it's my job."
"Oh." She tucked one arm behind the other.
And then it was over, she was transported back to her cell, aside her cellmate. They were playing a game.
"Fuck-"
"W-what are you guys playing?" Elsa interrupted, but Christian kept cussing, with no hesitation.
"Good evening, Your Royal Highness. We're playing a round of 'How Many Bad Words Can You Name in Ten Seconds?'" A fellow, with a cockney accent, but without teeth practically hollered above Christian's obscenities.
Elsa's formed an "Oh" but no sound came out.
"…oh, and ass." Christian said, with great satisfaction.
"Well done, sir! Very well done!"
Christian, who was sitting, took a kind of mock bow and tipped his imaginary cap.
The dungeon door opened, and the three of them, turned to wait for the prisoner to enter. Hopeful that the culprit had been caught, she held her breath.
Until she saw the black embroidered flats her sister, standing outside her cell door.
"Elsa?" She whispered.
Standing still, Elsa gasped, "Anna!"
Anna had her crown on, she didn't know until now, wasn't on her head, "Elsa! Excuse me! Someone please release my sister."
"No," Elsa refused, "I can't."
"Elsa…why?"
"I can't control it. I was wrong. True love thawed, but I that's all it does, thaws. It can't erase it. It's still there." The Queen dropped her head.
"I'll help her." Christian stated behind her.
Anna glared at Christian, "You will not."
Christian let out a sarcastic chuckle, "Why?"
"You'll probably spill everything to Hans."
His mouth fell open, "You know. How?"
"Oh please, Arendelle figures out everything it needs to figure out… And I may have found this in your room." She tossed a folded up magenta handkerchief at him, only until it unraveled that Elsa saw it was Hans' cravat.
"You went through my stuff?" He growled.
"You're kind of a suspect now." Anna bit her lip.
"Peachy." Christian sighed.
Elsa squinted and looked at her sister, "Christian's suspected of murdering Volart? Why?"
Anna looked away towards the dungeon exit, "Long story. I'll debrief you as soon as we-"
Elsa's dungeon cell flew across the hallway, crashing into the cell door across from hers. "Let's go."
Anna, Elsa, and Christian ran back to the castle while the redhead debriefed them.
Apparently due to Christian's supposed absence, left-handedness, and overall capability(based on physique) he was a suspected murderer. Christian had expressed his disgust with booming volumes and Elsa gently placed a hand on his arm, and told him to calm down. This made Anna's eyebrows raise.
"Don't tell me to calm down." His eyes met Elsa's.
"Well, what would you like me to tell you?" She stared back into his orbs of royal blue.
"Lots of things." This made Anna look away from embarrassment. Christian ignored her, "But…I need to go."
"No!" Elsa gripped his arm, her long nails digging into his skin, "You're staying. That's an order."
Christian looked back at her, a stare of desperation in his eyes. A twinkle-the beginning of a tear or a light?-flickered in his eyes.
The words floated there for a few seconds, before she turned to Anna and watched the mute words, What is going on? across her lips. Later, Elsa mouthed back.
"Get Gustav." The Queen told Anna.
"There's no need." Christian's panting voice said behind them.
Both sisters swung around, to witness Gustav's knife under Christian's throat. He was in front of Gustav, head locked tight in his grip.
"I'll do it. I've done it before." He growled.
Elsa said in a small voice, "It was you."
"Very good, Your Majesty." Gustav's knife pressed further into Christian's neck, sending a small waterfall of blood down to his dirty white dungeon shirt.
"Why?"
"What can I say? Erik was all too convincing. He showed me what true power looks like. I've seen her, you know." Elsa raised one palm pointed at Gustav and lifted the other to nudge Anna back. "She is a Queen. She knows how to rule. She knows what it takes to sacrifice, to command, to-"
A blur descended from the roof and dropped to the ground. A shine reflected from the pink sun, and the blur raised its sword.
"Duck!" It hollered.
Christian's head shot down, his body crumpling to the ground. The Queen ran to his side, and continued to watch in amazement.
Gustav had turned around, apparently so arrogant that he thought he could would catch this red shadow.
With a groan, the sword was thrust through the air, ripping through the air like a ship's sail.
And within an instant, Gustav's head fell to the ground. His body fell, and remained kneeling before it plopped on the stone.
"I'm so relieved that worked out this time." A smooth voice slyly crooned.
"Hans." Anna sprinted toward him, a loud slap smacked across his cheek.
Evil laughs escaped his mouth, "Must you assault me every time you see my face?"
"What the hell are you doing here?" The feisty princess hollered.
With a swipe of his hand, he removed his glove and used it to clean the blood off his sword, "Here to make sure big brother hasn't gotten himself into any trouble. I was always the smarter one, you know."
Christian accepted Elsa's soft hand and got up, "Mother and Father sent you?"
"Surprised?" a playful smile appeared on his face.
A mob of blurs dropped from the roof overhead, all of them wearing the same uniform. A few seconds more men flew down, this time, all in different outfits, except for the white cravat.
"Andrew? William? I-I don't understand." Christian's voice shook, clearly feeling vulnerable.
Hans let out another menacing chuckle, "When the Southern Isles'd heard that our prince had been imprisoned-"
"It was a dungeon." Anna corrected, her voice low.
Hans' eyes shot open-shocked that someone would interrupt-but he continued, "-Mother and Father thought it would be best to send out a troops. You see, we were sure you had started a war. But now I gather that we no longer need to attack."
"You were going to attack with forty men?" Elsa chuckled.
"I like to think of us as the Spartans reborn." Hans waved his hand, as if to say please.
"Well, we don't need your help, so you can go." Elsa began marching towards Hans but Christian caught her by the arm.
"No, we need their help."
With a roll of her eyes she spat, "He tried to kill me!"
Pulling her closer, his eyes looked all over her face, "I know. But he won't."
"Oh," Hans said, a hint of amusement in his voice, "brother...have you been fooling around with the Queen? Such a clever-"
Christian's sword slid out of his scabbard and pointed at Hans' neck, "I know you may not think the one back in the Southern Isles deserves respect, but the Queen here does."
Hans' hands folded together behind his back, "You haven't changed a bit, brother."
"Christian, don't be stupid." one of his brothers with a shaggy brown beard warned.
Reluctantly shoving his sword back into his scabbard, Christian turned to Elsa.
Ignoring Christian's look of sudden regret for admitting they needed help, she questioned Hans. "You didn't get any prison time?"
"Actually, I was sentenced to eight months. But I was needed here on…well, you know the rest."
"Your parents decided to let a psychotic murderer join the kingdom's army?" Anna chimed in, scoffing.
"I see senselessness runs in the family." Elsa turned to her sister and rolled her eyes.
"So," Hans continued, giving the sister a look of disgust, "what's the battle plan?"
