A/N Wow, this part happens a lot earlier in the story than I remember.
Anna became aware of pain.
"Anna!"
She could hear someone calling her. She coughed.
"Anna! Are you alright?"
She tried to force her eyes open.
"Kristoff?" She managed to push words through her lips.
"Yes, it's me."
The voice seemed clearer now.
"D-darn it. They went too far this time. Anna, please, can you hear me?"
She shook her head. Two images of Kristoff overlapped together and her eyes came into focus. "I'm fine. Never better."
A bolt of pain shot through as she was enveloped by a pressure that seemed to want to crush her.
"too tight," she gasped. "You're holding me too tight."
"Sorry!" Kristoff let go of her and she slumped into a slouching position.
"What on earth did they do to you?" Kristoff ran a hand down her side. Her face was bruised and even sitting down she was shaky.
Anna shot up; her head crashed into Kristoff and sent him sprawling.
"Elsa!" she said, then, "sorry!" She helped Kristoff up.
"This has to stop," he said.
"It was an accident!" Anna brushed off his sleeve.
"No! I mean this-this-I don't even know what to call it. I'm not going to let it happen again." Kristoff pushed her into a horizontal position. "First of all you need to rest. You've been through way too much."
"You can stop worrying about me," Anna said though she made no move to get up. A deep fatigue began to catch up with her.
"I can't. Now rest; I have a plan."
Anna tried to get up. "What do you mean?"
Kristoff pushed her back down. "It means if you're rested by tomorrow we can escape."
-x-X-x-
It was almost impossible to tell time inside the wagon but when Anna was finally able to convince Kristoff she was rested he told her his plan. Anna listened while forcing herself to eat a piece of dry bread that Kristoff said he had saved from a supposed meal the boney guard had given them. Jacob sat in the corner quietly taking an occasional bite of his own piece. Anna's stomach still ached from her injuries and she wasn't sure she'd be able to hold anything down. Of course she wouldn't tell Kristoff that; he was worried enough as it was.
"Now this last part is important; are you feeling up to this? You'll have to run for what will probably be a long time over rough terrain; are you sure you can do it?" Kristoff concluded.
"I'm fine," Anna said. "Besides, all that applies to you too."
Kristoff felt a pain of guilt but pushed it away. "Two things; one, you're still hurt; second..." he trailed off.
"And second..." Anna prompted.
"Second isn't important right now." Kristoff looked over at Jacob. "Are you sure you aren't coming?" he asked before Anna could question him further.
"I'm too old to do anything like this," Jacob replied.
"I thought you were a trained soldier," Anna said.
"I was. Now I'm just an officer. I'll be fine here."
"How can you be sure?" Anna pressed. "If we escape Dagon may take it out on you."
Jacob glanced at Kristoff. "If I can read actions I will be fine. And as an emissary, reading actions is my job. "
Kristoff looked at Anna. "Right now the important thing is getting you out of here and getting help."
"Stop saying that! We all need to get out of here!"
"It's Jacob's choice. He'll be fine." Kristoff put a hand on Anna's arm. "We'll come back with help."
Anna chewed her lip for a moment. "Fine. We'll escape, then come back with help, and everything will be alright."
"Exactly," Kristoff said keeping the waver out of his voice. "Are you ready?"
Anna drew a breath and pushed aside her residual pain. "I'm ready."
"Okay," Kristoff said. Anna curled up in the corner and Kristoff slammed himself into the wall.
"How long are you scum going to keep us in here!?" he shouted.
There was a thump from the other side.
"Shaddup!" came the voice of the boney man.
Kristoff slammed into the wall again. "Next time baldo comes in here I'll kick his sorry-"
Another thump came. "I said shaddup!"
Kristoff kicked the door. "It's not so thick; I could break it down!" he said as loudly as he could.
The slot in the door slid open and the boney man peered in. "For the last time, SHADDUP!"
Kristoff double checked on Anna who was crouched in the corner.
"And once I do there will be nothing between you and me!" Kristoff yelled with a final bang against the door. He heard the boney man curse and the jingle of keys. The door swung open and the boney man stepped in.
"You're dead now kid!" The boney man pulled knife from a sheath on his belt.
Kristoff fell backwards causing the boney man to laugh. "Not so tough now are ya?" The man paused. "Where's the mouse gone to?" he said with a confused expression on his face.
"Behind the door," Kristoff said.
"What-?" As the boney man turned Anna slammed herself into the door, sending it smashing into his face and knocking him out cold. A look of dawning realization was left frozen on his face.
Kristoff got up. "I think you broke his nose."
"Not about to lose any sleep over it." Anna gestured to the now-open door. "And now, we were escaping..."
"Of course," Kristoff said. They stepped to the door and peered out. Around them horses ran and wagons' wheels rumbled across the ground.
Kristoff looked up at Anna. "You ready for this?"
"Still as ready as the last time you asked."
They jumped out onto the ground below. Kristoff stumbled as he hit the ground and both he and Anna ran as the righted themselves. Even slowing down would have left them crushed under the wagons. Kristoff glanced back to see Jacob standing in the door watching them. Already he could here men shouting.
"We split up," Kristoff said. "Don't look back no matter what. We need at least one of us to make it."
"This isn't the time to argue is it?" Anna said.
"No, it isn't."
Anna reached out a hand and Kristoff placed his in it. Their fingers brushed together briefly and they bolted in separate directions. Kristoff didn't look back.
"Perfect so far," he said. He hadn't told Anna the next part of his plan, and for a good reason.
"It only takes one person to get help," he said to himself.
Somewhere a horn blew and men began to poor out of the wagons. They shouted to one another and grabbed weapons from racks that hung from the side of a wagon. Without slowing down Kristoff bent over and snatched a stone off of the ground. He threw it at the men as hard as he could.
"That felt good," Kristoff said as he heard the sound stones make when they hit a skull. Some of the men released horses from their reins and climbed on them, charging towards Kristoff.
"That's right. Come after me," Kristoff muttered.
-x-X-x-
Anna weaved through the wagons; she nimbly avoiding crushing hooves, wheels, and large men with sharp objects. As she emerged from the edge of the war-like caravan she head a large commotion coming from deeper inside. A quick glance backwards nearly killed her as she stumbled up to the edge of a cliff. Letting out a quick yikes she spun her arms to regain her balance.
Perfect, she thought. We escaped while crossing through a bottleneck. She stood at the edge of bluff that ran as far as she could see. It dropped off in front of her into a churning sea.
A loud yell from inside the caravan made Anna turn around. Had Kristoff been caught? Every muscle in her body screamed to run back and look for him.
"I can't leave him behind," she said.
"hey!" a voice shouted. Men started to turn her way.
"Uh-oh. They spotted me." Anna took a step back and stumbled as her foot passed over empty air. She lost her balance and tumbled off the edge of the cliff.
-x-X-x-
Snake jumped down from the wagon and locked the door. He had heard that the prisoners had broken out and, as soon as the caravan came to a halt, had gone to check on the prisoners' wagon. Jacob had still been in it and hadn't made a move to leave at all.
Snake had heard some shouts a little earlier that signified that one of them had been caught. He hoped he hadn't missed his chance to inflict some pain. If he didn't get a chance to hit someone he knew it would ruin his good mood. As he walked he saw Dagon pinning the prisoner against a wagon.
With any luck I'll get the scraps once Dagon is done.
-x-X-x-
Dagon pinned Kristoff against the side of a wagon.
"Where is Anna?" Dagon snarled.
"Anna is gone. I told her to run away," Kristoff said.
"Don't try and be funny. There was nowhere for her to go. Are you saying she jumped off a cliff?" Dagon pulled Kristoff away from the wagon just far enough to slam him back into it.
"A cliff?" Kristoff said. "We're on a cliff?"
Dagon hit him across the face. "Don't play stupid boy."
"Why is everyone calling me a boy?" Kristoff said.
Dagon hit Kristoff again. "I want you to take a deep breath and think about your answer to this," he slammed Kristoff into the wall with each word as he continued.
"Where. Is. Anna?"
Kristoff grunted from pain but kept his composure. "She's gone. You can't catch her."
Dagon grabbed Kristoff's face. "If she isn't here then she's dead! Do you understand that? Dead!" Dagon cast Kristoff onto the ground.
Kristoff tried to pick himself up. "She isn't dead!"
Dagon ignored him and turned around to see Snake standing behind him. "Look for her!" Dagon said. "I need her alive."
"If she's dead there's not much I can do about that," Snake said.
Dagon began to pace. "What about the other prisoners?"
"The old man never made a break for it. The soldiers were kept secure over the whole thing."
Dagon quickened his strides. "I have no doubt that Elsa would want to protect any of them. All the same Anna made everything so easy." Dagon stopped and looked down at Kristoff. "Put him back in the cell and turn us around. We'll go around Arendelle and head towards the northern mountains.
"With all due respect," Snake said, "with their queen our prisoner we could easily conquer Arendelle."
"There is a kind of power that is more important to me than ruling a single kingdom," Dagon said. "I will no longer discuss the matter with you. Carry out my orders and do not make me repeat myself." Dagon turned heel and marched away.
Snake grabbed Kristoff's collar and grinned. "Luckily for me he didn't say you have to stay intact."
Kristoff knew what was coming from the moment he and Anna had escaped. But with each blow a cold dread sank into him. Was Anna even alive?
