The lively festivities of Arendelle were immediately replaced with terror and fear. The kingdom's subjects took refuge in the palace courtyard while King Agnarr was surrounded by several dozens of guards. The rest would protect his people at the gates while he looked for his missing daughter. The news from Anna speaking of strange wild animals attacking the village outskirts had shocked him, but with Elsa missing he was afraid. Yet, he remembered that Artyom did not arrive with Anna when she told him of the threat. He made his way through the streets, his men carried long spears, swords, and light crossbows.
The king held a tight grip on his sword when he arrived at the edge of the village. Bodies of dog-like creatures were lying on the ground with blood seeping into the dirt, but there was a strange detail he noted. There were small pieces of cylinder pieces on the ground as his growing concern for his daughter continued to grow. "Elsa!" He shouted to the top of his lungs.
To his surprise, Artyom arrived around the corner of a building on the farthest building from the palace gates. "Over here." The young man signalled in a calm tone. His appearance was completely different from the beginning of the Foundation Festival. His hat was nowhere to be seen and his uniform was unbuttoned with a strange weapon in his hands. However, the most concerning matter was the blood on his white shirt. "Elsa is alright."
Agnarr rushed over to him. "Is she alright?"
He nodded his head as he glanced over to quiet princess who was sitting on a bench holding her gloved hands tightly.
Meanwhile, the captain of the guard walked up to the Russian. "Good job, young man." He stated. "Men, take positions around the king and the princess."
The king walked over to his daughter, but he saw evidence of her power present. A wall of ice was slowly melting underneath the warm power of the sun while one of the creatures had its hands encased in ice. Elsa had used her powers in the open, but for what reason? "Elsa, what happened?" He wondered while he knelt before his daughter with his hands covering hers.
She looked up at him with a fearful look in her eyes. "I… I felt."
Then Artyom was quick to get his attention. "Your majesty, we should head back to the palace as soon as possible. I was only able to kill enough of the watchmen to drive them away, but the rest took refuge in the forest to the north. It's only a matter of time until they might come back."
Agnarr looked up at his guard and stood up. "How do you know these beasts?"
"I fought them whenever I left a particular section of my home." He answered as he looked over to the forests to the north. "What they don't have in strength, they make it up with numbers. If there are that many watchmen around, they're going to have a nest formed and I have to take it out myself."
"That is suicidal." The king protested at the thought. Whatever he was suggesting sounded like madness as he slipped his weapon into his holster. "You are just one man."
"I know that, but if we return to the palace I might bring enough firepower to put those mutants down." Artyom countered. "Besides, I also need to have a private conversation with you."
Queen Iduna found herself comforting her daughter as she quietly ate her chocolates one at a time. She was surprised to know that such danger existed in Arendelle, but the mere fact that her daughters were in safe hands had made those concerns no longer problematic. As she took a piece from Anna's plate, she savored her delight with great hopes that her family would be safe from what her daughter claimed to be monsters.
The door to the family library was opened with Kai entering the room. "My queen, Elsa and the king have returned."
She relaxed at the thought before swallowing her delight. "Thank you for the news, I appreciate it. Are they well?"
"Yes. Artyom has claimed to repelled the attack of these 'watchmen' from attacking Princess Elsa."
Anna spoke up. "So Elsa is alright?"
"Yes, my lady."
The room was filled with more company as Kai departed from the room with Agnarr and Elsa rejoining the family. Yet, Artyom accompanied them in his dirty and unkept uniform. "Artyom, what happened to you?"
He looked over to the king, who immediately kept his hands behind his back. "Elsa, Anna, I'm going to need both of you to leave this room at the moment. Your mother and I have to discuss an important matter with Artyom." The two princesses did as they were told and by the time the door closed a conversation was started. "You saw what Elsa is capable of."
Iduna was surprised, the family secret of Elsa's magical ice powers was a now revealed to an outsider. "Wait, when did Elsa reveal her powers?"
Agnarr glanced over to his wife. "A while ago." He answered. "She used her powers to save his life."
The foreigner nodded his head in acknowledgement. "Were it not for her ice powers, the watchman would have killed me."
"You don't seem to be shocked as I expected." The queen replied. "What are your thoughts on Elsa's powers."
"That's the right question to ask to the wrong person. It would have been better off to ask somebody who's not used to the strange and odd things in their lives."
"Still, your thoughts on Elsa would be helpful. We're trying to help her control her powers and make sure they don't get out of hand. My husband spoke with an expert on the matter and we're worried our daughter would be seen as a monster by others" Iduna explained in detail. "I'm worried she would be attacked for it."
"You truly want my opinion on the matter. Do you?"
She nodded her head in acknowledgement.
A long sigh escaped from the Russian and he placed both of his hands into his pockets. "In all of my travels, Princess Elsa with magical ice powers is the least strangest sight I've come across. Snow and ice is a natural thing to see every now and then, but it's not as terrifying as the horrors in my home."
"I am not fully convinced by your words alone."
Artyom looked away from the queen as he lowered his head. "An old friend once told me, there are places where no man or beast lurk. Even the rats refuse to go there." Then he took a glance at a strange device on his wrist. "I have to go, enough time has been wasted to stop the watchmen."
The alarm by the guards was enough for Kristoff to drag everything he had with his wagon into the palace of Arendelle. Although it was somewhat of a selfish decision, it was surprisingly helpful as people looked to him to help them find any missing people who didn't get the warning. As he counted the gold coins, the young man looked around to see the faces of his potential customers look to the front of the palace doors.
Out from palace came a stranger clad in black armor and clothes. Even the Arendelle guards were surprised by his presence while he shocked the subjects of the kingdom. He would have disregarded the man had he not been walking towards him and Sven. "Hello, may I help you?" Kristoff began while he hid away his previous payments behind his back.
Then the stranger raised his armored visor, revealing a familiar face. "Kristoff, do you mind if I borrow you and Sven for a bit?"
"Artyom?" Now that was a revelation. " What's up?"
"Heading out to slay some monsters and I need somebody to drop me off." He answered.
"Why would you want to do that? It's dangerous out there."
"Da; however, I'm going to rectify that problem. If the watchmen do come, I'll distract them enough while you get away."
"You sure seem so sure about that." Kristoff replied as he grabbed his belongings and took his seat behind his companion.
"This is not a first time I have came across these creatures. Better to deal with the problem at its early stage before the mutants ever get the chance to be problematic."
"Alright then, hop on. Don't put your boots on front, this is a well-made sled."
Artyom chuckled at his comment as he climbed up to join the driver. "No worries, I'm not an uncivilized man from a backwater farm."
"While that may be reassuring, I can't take any chances." Then he reached into his bag in the back and gestured a carrot towards the Arendelle guard. "Carrot?"
He presented his hand and shook his head. "No, I'm good. I already had some pie earlier."
Kristoff was quick to tell Sven to move as the guards opened the gates for the ice harvester. "I heard you and Princess Elsa were on the receiving end of a mess when Princess Anna passed by the chef's show of desserts. It must be an honor to be in the company of two lovely princesses. What are they like?" He asked.
"Anna and Elsa? The former is outgoing and sometimes I have to be prepared to stuff myself with chocolates. The latter is distant, but you can end up having a conversation with her when she wants to."
"Very interesting. Sounds like you talk with them on a daily basis."
He smiled. "You have no idea. I find that it's harder not to be given orders by the king himself to not hold a talk with them."
Princess Anna felt betrayed by her family. She and Elsa had listened in on the conversation of their parents and Artyom, but learning that her years of torment were the results of strange magic that her sister was born with. It was hard to take in, but being told that her memories were altered by some group of magical people to ensure Elsa's secret didn't escape was shocking. What Anna understood was that Elsa's… mistake caused this chain of events that found her confronting her parents and Elsa in the palace study. "Why?" Anna wondered. "Why did you do all of this? I would have understood that Elsa has powerful magic, but how long were you going to keep this away from me?"
Her father, King Agnarr of Arendelle, struggled to look to his daughter in the eye while she clenched her fists. "Anna, your mother and I thought that keeping Elsa and you away from each other would have been for the best. When Elsa struck you, we were truly lucky that you survived her strike. Then we made a decision to try and have your sister spend some time trying to control her powers-"
She was quick to cut him off. "Until when?!" She demanded. "How long did I have to suffer to not talk with my sister for a decade?!"
Then Elsa placed her hands in front of her as she lowered her head. "Until I was ready to go out into the world."
"You agreed into it? Why?"
"It was for your sake." She reasoned. "I… I almost harmed you permanently."
"If you had told me, I wouldn't have been so keen on trying to cause so much trouble." Anna replied. "How many years of our childhood were wasted trying to protect your secret? How many years of loneliness did we have to endure to keep me safe?"
"Anna, we're sorry." Her mother apologized. "It's just… we were just as afraid as Elsa. We were told that her powers would become more powerful over time. That's why we were heading to Corona. Your uncle might have a way to alleviate the problems with the ice powers or perhaps even getting rid of it altogether."
"Then why now?"
The king walked over to her and glanced towards her mother. "Your mother and I almost died at sea and we both realized that if the ocean truly took us then Elsa would have nothing to go on. Thankfully, Artyom's rescue made me change my entire outlook on your sister."
"So does Artyom know about this as well?" Anna wondered. After all, who else would know about this… family secret.
"Until now." He answered. "Yet, his reaction to your sister's power is the least strangest thing he has seen. Which is a blessing in its own right as he has not divulged this information to the rest of the guards or the working staff."
"In other words, this is still a family secret."
"I hope so." The king stated. "The mere sight of ice in the middle of summer might raise some questions amongst the guards, but that's it. We'll talk more of this after Artyom deals with this watchmen threat."
When Artyom was deep in the forest, he stepped off the sled and drew his makeshift railgun. "Alright Kristoff, I'll go the rest of the way on foot. It's best that you return back to the palace."
The blonde man was still concerned for him. "Are you sure you still want to do this?"
"Yes." He answered. "You should get started. The beasts might catch your smell."
"Goodbye, Artyom." Kristoff replied as he drove away.
"Kristoff, Sven, return safely."
Once the departing replies were finished, the young Russian walked deep into the woods while he grabbed ahold of the weapon's charger and cranked the energy to its maximum. It was better to strike down the watchmen in quick succession before the Ranger would be forced to switch to his assault rifle. Artyom crept through the forest with the same kind of caution he would have on the surface of the Dead City.
A bestial cry echoed from afar as the young man held his ground and raised his weapon. There was a pack of eight watchmen descending from the north with their jaws open in his direction. He lined up his sights and pulled the trigger. Hot ball-bearings flew in their direction as his weapon's electricity status dropped to the lowest level of power before the needle slowly returned to its former power. Not all shots met their targets as Artyom swore to himself. Only one of them had been clever enough to evade his killshots as it closed the distance. Although his weapon was never intended to be used in such a way, the Polis Ranger rammed the electrified barrel into the belly of the mutant. The beast echoed a painful sound before he kicked it back and finished it off with a single shot.
After the fighting was over, Artyom switched out the nearly empty cartridge for a new set of fifteen millimeter ball-bearings. Then he continued to press forward into the forest, but a small familiar scent of toxic chemicals were in the air. Rather than take any risks with something so dangerous, he held his breath and reached for his gasmask on his person. Soon after, Artyom was quick to attach it to his head before he immediately brought an air filter out and screwed the small, but important piece in.
When he was finished with his safety preparations, the young man walked into the direction of the danger where he was brought out into a clearing. This place wouldn't have mean much to the Polis Ranger if there wasn't a gaping hole in reality. Artyom was filled with curiosity as he approached one of the most anomalous sightings he had ever seen before. Through this hole, he could see a dozens of human bodies on the other side with an open blast door leading into a broken tunnel where the surface met the underground. "So this is where the beasts came from." He quietly spoke to himself before taking the chance to enter the hole.
By the time he stepped through, he looked at the ground to see the bodies of fallen stalkers who were met with an untimely end. The way their bodies were scarred was enough to tell him that they were killed by beasts than the poisonous air. Thankfully, the solution to his watchmen problem was apparent when he saw a small control panel on the left side of the blast doors. He was quick to run over to the switch and run the ancient doorway to a close.
Another bestial signal from the watchmen had received his attention as he looked out the doorway to see a very large swarm of the animals sprinting towards him. "Oh shit!" Came his words as he prayed the blast doors would close. Just in case some of them got close, he grabbed his makeshift grenades and lit their fuses before tossing them under the closing doors. Great explosions echoed on the other side as the light from the surface was gone.
Artyom turned on his flashlight and and looked around at the bodies. In another time and place, looting the dead would have been looked down upon. However, this was the Metro and had been the unspoken agreement between the stalkers who trekked across the dead surface. He searched through their bodies for additional medkits and ammo even taking off the weapons - which was plenty. Due to the simple fact that he wouldn't have an opportunity to get any more supplies than he needed. From an anti-material rifle to a prewar assault shotgun, he had enough firepower of a Ranger platoon.
When his new belongings weighed down on his person, a strange whisper called out to him after he returned to the kingdom of Arendelle. "Thank you…" The young man looked over his shoulder to see the hole in reality back into the Metro - his home. There were dozens of shadows standing above their bodies with the closest one to him had waved at him before the connection between Arendelle and the hostile surface of the Dead City simply disappeared. That was the first time a ghost had spoke back to Polis Ranger.
General Pavel Morozov stood near the edge as his train arrived at the station of Avtozavodskaya. This minor station was a communist one, just like the Red Line. However, he had been told by his peers that the people who were part of these minor groups were often 'simple communists' who tolerated the Red Line at best. It was a surprise that this station would permit the Order and several hundred troops of the Red Line to secure this station. Things had been uneasy ever since the white peace was declared between the two famous factions of the Metro. Despite the hostilities and the attack on D6, the general found himself questioning where Artyom went after Red Square. It was a sad moment for him when his orders came down from his predecessor - Korbut - to kill anyone in their sight, including Artyom Alekseyevich Chyornyj - the Savior of the Metro.
A cold-hearted voice spoke. "What's wrong, general? Having second thoughts?"
He looked around to see where that voice came from, only to see a woman on his right with her arms folded across her chest. "Me? No." He replied. "I'm just thinking about good man, pity I had to shoot at him. Who are you?"
"Did my father not tell you? My name is Anna and I'll be going to oversee your refugee efforts and report them back to him." The female Polis Ranger answered.
"You're the colonel's daughter? I'm…"
"Shocked?" She cut him off. "It's not the first time I've shocked men in their tracks before. Now you better get to work before I kick you off this train."
Thankfully, a communist soldier arrived at the platform to greet him. "Comrade General Morozov, it's good to finally meet you in person."
"Go ahead, I'll see to make sure that the baggage doesn't get stolen." Anna stated while Pavel took the opportunity to step off the train.
Then he looked to the soldier who greeted him as he slipped his hands in his pockets. "Ladna, what is it?"
The soldier gestured his head behind him. "Follow me, sir. You won't believe what we've found." The younger combat soldier lead the way while the general followed him. As they went through several checkpoints with the guards making sure his papers were in correct order, Pavel wondered what the Secretary General of the Red Line had in store for him. It sounded important if both his superior and the Order were willing to work together despite the blood being drawn. He turned around a corner, only to find the most strangest thing he had seen in the Metro. "Step into it, sir."
He did as he was told when he entered the hole in reality, only to find himself surprised and shocked at what just happened. Pavel looked around to see snow everywhere, just like the previous years on the surface of the Dead City. However, he saw hundreds of refugees settle with their new lives. Others were busy building shelters for those exposed to the unrelenting weather while others were making to forests in the distance with makeshift axes in hand. Yet, the most amazing part was the fact that nobody was wearing a gas mask. "Where are we?" He wondered.
"That's the question. We don't know."
Author's Note: Just to be clear, Pavel and his group are nowhere near Arendelle.
