I don't own Frozen
I'm so sorry this took awhile to get up. I've just had some issues with writing this. I hope you like the chapter, it's the longest one I've written and it was hard. Reviews would be nice, so I know if I'm doing this right. You guys are awesome and thank you if you've been keeping up with me and if you're new then I hope you enjoy the story!
Episode 11: A Battle of Revelations
"Ok Balin, we will station most of our catapults behind the second wall. We'll have a few on this wall but in the event that break through this wall; then we need as many advantages as possible. Tamirel your ships are going to have to make sure that they can't get their ships to dock all at once, otherwise we'll have a mess to deal with," Kaji spoke strictly.
He was on top of the main wall that blockaded the harbor of Arendelle. He was standing over a table with an updated map of Arendelle, while Balin and Tamirel overlooked it with him, planning their defense, listening to the plans their king had, while putting in their own inputs.
It had been about three days since they built the walls around Arendelle and so far Kaji and the others had been helping oversee the refit of Arendelle into a fortress. The walls were a good start but they needed to put a sizable force on them to keep them from falling to a massive army.
"My ships can hold them back but they can't hold them back altogether. They will reach the docks. It is inevitable if their numbers are so great," Tamriel said as she traced a line over the body of water their ships were stationed, behind the main wall. Kaji pointed an the space of ice land that Elsa had created behind the wall.
"We'll put most of our soldiers behind here. If they do manage to break through the gate here then we'll just have to choke them there. They can't take advantage of their numbers if they don't have the space they need," Kaji said.
"Milord I would like to add that currently we little over a thousand troops. If the walls are to be manned sufficiently then it is likely that only half of that number will be here," Balin said. Kaji sighed in annoyance at the problem.
"We'll just have to hope that my brother brings enough troops to fill in the gaps then. Until then we have to make this work with what we have," Kaji said.
"What do you mean hope? I thought you had an idea of how many men we were getting?" Tamriel asked. Kaji looked up at his admiral's expression. He sighed, he had picked her because of her willingness to voice her discomfort but sometimes it was just plain annoying.
"Yes I do have an idea but keep in mind that it is likely that Mitsu knows of my brother's treachery. For all I know, he might've attacked them before they could come here. And since we have not seen anything or heard anything, and might I add that he is overdue. All I can do is make sure that we can defend ourselves with what we have," Kaji said, firmly. Tamriel's gaze dropped back to the map, relenting her objection.
"How are our battlements looking?" Kaji asked.
"We have several cauldrons of oil and tar, right here. We can drop it on their ships if they try to get through but we have a limited supply. We have several small catapults here on the wall. It probably won't match the range of anything the enemy has but it'll help keep them at bay. Our large crossbow emplacements are in large supply so we have been able to share them between this wall and the inner wall without either being under armed," Balin summarized. Kaji nodded and looked at the map, trying to figure out what else they could do.
"Tamriel, how are our ships doing?" Kaji asked. Tamriel nodded and stood up slightly while still leaning onto the table.
"Our military grade ships were already fitted to their maximum potential. Our smaller ships have been outfitted as much as possible, given their small size we can't squeeze as much firepower out of them as we can for our bigger ships. It's likely that these ships won't survive in a naval battle," Tamriel said. Kaji growled slightly in annoyance.
"We should put these ships, along with our flagship near the inner wall then," Kaji said. Tamriel sighed but she nodded, seeing that Kaji wasn't in the mood to take questions about his plan.
"How are things looking on the inner wall and with the ciry?" Kaji asked, turning to Balin.
"We are making good progress, covering it with stones and brick to help hold it up. Pabbie and his trolls are especially efficient with this job. Queen Elsa decided to leave the front of it uncovered, due the slippery nature of the front. I agree with her judgment. Princess Anna and Princess Rapunzel are leading the movement to reinforce the town in case the enemy manages to break through our forces," he said. Kaji looked at him oddly before speaking.
"I thought the townspeople were being moved to the castle?" he asked. Balin nodded.
"They are, but apparently they don't want to lose their homes. They're willing to fight to keep their homes intact. Pabbie even sent a few of his trolls to help with the reinforcing of the town," he answered. Kaji sighed and leaned onto the table with both of his hands.
"Well that's good…I don't see what else we can do at this point to be honest," Kaji added.
"Yes, Milord. We're doing everything we can to prepare Arendelle for this battle. It'll come down to numbers now and the quality of our soldiers," Balin said, grimly.
"How are is the training going for our men anyway?" Kaji asked. Balin seemed to hesitate but he did answer after a few moments.
"Our knights are sufficiently trained, we can only hope it is enough. Corona's men are sufficiently trained, or enough that we don't have to drill them. Now our soldiers all have little fighting experience and the ones that volunteered have even less. My knights are trying to train them all how to hold a sword right and how not to kill themselves and their allies. Its…messy sir; as I said these men and woman all have little fighting experience. Many of them are simple shop owners or farmers. Most of them haven't even held a sword before." Balin said, grimly.
"Right…" Kaji sighed in a tired way. He was doing everything he could to prepare Arendelle for a war that he dragged them into. The issue was that they just didn't have enough competent fighters to make up for the numbers. Sure there was himself and Elsa but Adenia had his two brothers. Those two would keep them busy while their men rained hell on his forces. They needed the reinforcements that Chie was brining to stand a chance.
"Your Majesty! We see ships incoming!" a soldier shouted, urgently. Kaji's head snapped toward the sea. He rushed over towards the edge of the wall and looked out to see what was approaching. He saw a large group of military grade ships sailing towards them.
"It can't be, they shouldn't be here for another two weeks! All ballistas prepare to fire!" Balin shouted alarmed as their men got to their stations and loaded their bolts. Kaji took the telescope from the soldier that spotted them and looked out towards the sea. He got a closer look at the ships and he stiffened when he saw that they were indeed Adenian ships. He recognized the white and blue sails and the crest of Adenia. It was a long sword that was crossed with a lightning bolt. The young king was about to have a heart attack before he recognized the black wood of the lead ship.
"Hold fire! It's our reinforcements!" Kaji shouted.
"What?! Are you sure?" Tamriel asked.
"Yes, I'm sure. That's my father's flagship. It was passed on to the honor guard of Adenia and my brother, Chie until I became of age. Now stand down, all of you and open the gate. I'll go to the city and greet them there," Kaji ordered as he hurried down the stairs of the wall. He heard Balin and Tamriel barking orders at their troops but he didn't care enough to listen, their situation had just improved drastically.
When he reached the bottom of the wall he climbed onto the ship and told the crew to take him to the city quickly. They didn't question him since he sounded urgent and plus he was their king. The ship sailed fast, back to the city, which was only about five minutes but it felt like an hour to him. When they docked onto the port he jumped off the ship, literally.
"Clear the docks, our reinforcements have arrived, give them some space to dock!" Kaji ordered. The men at the docks scrambled after that and he quickly ran through the gate of the inner wall. He barely stopped to say hello to Anna and Rapunzel, who tried to catch him to tell them more but he kept going. He came to a stop and he looked around for Elsa and he saw her giving orders to some men before they saluted and ran off.
"Elsa!" he called as he rushed over. Elsa turned to him as he came over, surprised to see him.
"Kaji, what's wrong? I thought you weren't coming back for a few more hours?" Elsa asked alarmed as he came to a stop.
"Something's happened," he said. Elsa's eyes widened in fear, she probably thought that Adenia had arrived early but Kaji shook his head and smiled.
"It's my brother. He's here with help," he said. Elsa's eyes widened again but this time she smiled as well and she quickly hugged him. Kaji hugged her as well, lifting her up and twirling her around. They both laughed as they did this; they both knew that their situation had just lightened up considerably.
"That's great! That means that we'll have help!" Elsa said as Kaji set her down.
"Yes, come on, I'm pretty sure that some of their ships are going to dock soon. We should go greet them. I'm pretty sure Anna is already there with Rapunzel," Kaji said. Elsa nodded and they quickly walked back to the gate and walked out onto the port.
Like Kaji said, they saw a rather large ship pull into port, the lead ship that Kaji recognized. Two other ships pulled into port and when Kaji looked beyond them he saw a couple more sailing towards them. He quickly turned back to the black ship, and he winced as his eyesight changed, taking on a blue tint.
He had learned how to tap into his sight ability over the few days. He had to concentrate and focus on trying to see more than just what he usually saw. It was grueling but he managed to figure out how to do it. He quickly learned that he could do more than just read ancient text with the power; like when he was at the Southern Isles, when he spotted those guards in the crowds and the aura's he saw around his wife and the people.
Kaji was able to discern, with some help from Pabbie that these auras were the life force of the being he was looking at. They also figured out that he could discern them by the color of their aura. Green meaning that they were human, gold for what he was focusing on and then if they were neither of the two, then they were Old Race. The color of every Old Race differed apparently, though. His wife's was icy blue, probably referencing her powers over ice, while Anna's was white.
He focused his vision on the ship, but he was unable to discern if his brother was on the ship, because of the large green aura around the ship. The aura was no doubt coming from the crew and soldiers that were on the ship. He sighed even though he already knew that he wasn't going to find him that way. He blinked and his vision returned to normal, leaving him with a slight headache.
"Kaji…" Elsa said in a small scolding manner that made him wince. Unfortunately, Elsa didn't exactly like it whenever he used his other sight, mainly because it drained him a bit and it tended to give him headaches afterwards. He was getting better at it and the effects were lessening but she still didn't like it or his desire to master it. So he had to take care when he practiced using it, and if possible, practice when she wasn't around him, which was a problem since they were usually together.
"I had to try…it's the best way to get used to it and you know it," he said.
"I know…but that doesn't mean I like it," Elsa said lowly. Kaji frowned but he shook it off and led Elsa over towards the black ship. He saw Rapunzel and Anna turn their way as they approached.
"These are your ships? They're huge!" Anna commented in a bit of awe. Kaji smiled a bit and nodded towards the black ship.
"Yes, these are Adenia's warships. The largest, strongest, and most advanced ships that sail the sea," Kaji said with a bit of pride. Despite his distaste for his brother's he still felt proud to call himself Adenian, just not a member of the royal family, considering the people he shares that title with…
"And this is our father's flagship, the Inquisitor," the familiar tone of Chie's voice ran through Kaji's ears, making him smile as he looked toward the ship to see his brother standing on the ship. He nodded and quickly stepped off the ship, followed by two men, who wore silver armor from head to toe, holding spears in their hands. The two guards got down on their knees when they noticed Kaji, making him feel embarrassed before he quickly motioned for them to rise. He also heard the unmistakable sound of Anna and Rapunzel snickering behind him. He wiped the annoyance off his face though when he looked to his brother again.
"Chie!" Kaji greeted as he stepped towards his brother and gave him a warm hug, which Chie returned quickly. When Kaji pulled back he noticed that Chie looked like he'd been through hell. His brother only chuckled a bit when he noticed.
"I'm sorry, we're late. We had to get something before we could come here," Chie said softly, but Kaji had a feeling there was more to it then that.
"What's happened, Chie?" Kaji asked as he stepped back, to look over the damage. Chie was relatively undamaged, physically; it's just that he looked like he'd been in a fire or a nasty fight. Probably both, he thought. The weary look in his eyes also made Kaji nervous, but thankfully Elsa sensed his distress and held his hand, comfortingly.
"We have a lot to talk about," Chie paused and turned around towards the ship. "Captain, get out here; our sailors and soldiers don't need you to hold their hands with unloading supplies!" he ordered.
A few moments later, six men and women all wearing armor from head to toe, walked out of the ship, quickly. Their armor was silver like the two guards, accompanying Chie but their armor was fair more decorated, which was saying something. They wore black capes and faults, along with wings on their helmets. Ever one of them stood tall and straight with discipline. Kaji recognized these people as the honor guard of the royal family of Adenia; then his attention turned to the one that had the largest wings on his helmet.
"Captain Zala?" Kaji asked. The six men all bowed, following the lead of the one Kaji named.
"Your grace, it is an honor to be at your service once again," the man said in a rather rough voice. Kaji turned to his brother and Chie shrugged.
"This isn't all of them," Kaji said. Chie shook his head in agreement.
"No, most of them have sworn to stay neutral. These six have chosen to stay loyal to what our parents decided. They follow you as their king," Chie said. Kaji sighed a bit before he turned to the still kneeling guards.
"Rise," he commanded simply and they all stood.
"I thank you all for coming to aid me in my time of need, we all do," Kaji commended and he turned to Elsa who nodded in agreement.
"We are not worthy of your thanks your grace…we stood by and did nothing for all these years. It's only know that we believe that we can make up for our mistakes," Zala answered. Kaji frowned and looked at Chie, who only shrugged again before nodding towards his companions.
"Right, this is Rapunzel, Princess of Corona and this is Anna, Elsa's sister and Princess of Arendelle. And of course you remember my wife, Elsa?" Kaji said. Chie nodded to the two women but before he could speak, one of Zala's troops spoke up.
"This is your wife, your grace? " she asked. Kaji realized that no one back at Adenia knew he was married now, so he nodded.
"Yes, she is my wife," he said without hesitation, he smiled lightly when Elsa squeezed his hand. The guards all paused for a time before they bowed again.
"Then we shall protect her with our lives as well as her sister, your majesties," Zala answered. This time, Elsa blushed a bit in embarrassment, causing Kaji to chuckle in his head. Anna didn't seem fazed by the attention though.
"Rapunzel, Anna, go ahead and get the others and tell them to meet us at the command tent ok?" Elsa asked in a rushed matter. Anna chuckled slightly but she didn't argue as she and Rapunzel left to gather their friends.
"How much did you bring with you?" Kaji asked his brother. Chie smiled lightly before nodding towards the black ship.
"Thousands have flocked to your side in this fight. We still have about two hundred ships all carrying hundreds of soldiers. Most of the men and women who have come to this fight, remember who the real heir to the throne is, most of our experienced soldiers have decided to side with you in this fight, Zala here and his men are some of them," Chie said. Kaji heard Elsa sigh in relief and he was about to as well but the number of ships he said didn't sound right.
"Wait, two hundred ships?" Kaji asked. He wasn't complaining about the help of course but he knew that there should have been more than two hundred ships if most of the experienced troops were siding with him. Chie's face seemed to darken slightly from his question.
"Yes, we need to talk. I would prefer to tell you everything with your strategists present though. The men will follow when they're all unloaded and geared up," he said as he motioned for Kaji and Elsa to lead. Kaji shared a nervous look with Elsa but they both nodded to the prince before leading him down the dock. Kaji noticed that Zala and one of his men followed him and his wife, closely, flanking them on their right and left. Elsa seemed to notice as well and they shared an odd look. They weren't used to guards following them around since they were perfectly capable of taking care of themselves. Yet it appeared that Zala and his men were intent on guarding them. Kaji would have thought it was amusing if the situation wasn't dire.
"Zala, you don't have to follow us around so closely," Kaji said.
"It is our duty to protect you, and since she is your wife, we are sworn to protect Queen Elsa as well," Zala replied. Kaji wanted to reply but his brother, who was walking at his direct right, brought his attention to him.
"Don't pay that too much mind, they haven't seen you in over ten years, some of them weren't even in service yet. Put your attention into the situation at hand," Chie reminded. Kaji didn't reply after that and just kept leading his brother past the gate of their city, where their soldiers and Pabbie's trolls roamed and worked, swiftly. He heard his brother whistle slightly, making him turn to him.
"I must say that this place is a lot…smaller than I had originally hoped. Still though, I think it'll be able to do; this wall and the one guarding the harbor should be what we need," Chie said. Kaji didn't know whether to feel insulted or not as his brother looked over the kingdom that adopted him.
"I would hope so, my wife made the walls herself as well as the ice land we're standing on," Kaji said. Neither he nor Elsa held back his light laughter as Chie suddenly looked down and almost flinched, apparently he didn't realize that they were standing on ice, which amused them a bit.
"Wait, you made all this, milady?" the female guard, who was standing on their left asked. Elsa smiled a bit and nodded towards the guard.
"Yes, I extended Arendelle's land out over our harbor by a large margin and I built the walls that defend us now," Elsa asked. Chie looked confused and Kaji answered the question that he was probably asking.
"She has powers over ice and snow, Chie. Like I have power over thunder and lighting. Except, of course she can build things with her powers..." Kaji said longingly as he tapped the gate with his knuckles.
He was often envious of his wife's powers. She could create things, she could make life, she could make little skating rinks for the children, and she could create life. Then she made the walls. While the only thing he could do was destroy and fry things or strike fear into hearts. He wasn't bloodthirsty or power-hungry like his brothers. He just wanted to be able to do something other then destroy.
"Incredible…I heard rumors about this…but I thought they were just rumors…" Chie said in awe as he looked at Elsa in a new light, in fact Zala and his men were as well, causing a deep blush to appear on Elsa's cheeks. Kaji chuckled since he knew that she was modest and didn't exactly want attention like that. He could sympathize with that very well.
"Come on, I think Anna and Rapunzel have gotten everyone together by now," Kaji said as he and Elsa moved towards the command tent. He felt Elsa squeeze his hand and when he turned to her, she flashed him a grateful smile.
"Aren't Tamriel and Balin still up at the harbor wall?" Elsa asked.
"Yes, but they're too bust overseeing the enforcement of that wall at the moment. Though I did tell them to meet us at the command tent. They'll be late but they can adapt to the plan faster than most of us can," Kaji said. Elsa simply nodded but they didn't have much more time to talk since they already entered the tent. Just like they thought, Anna and Rapunzel already had Eugene, and Kristoff rounded up.
"Where's Pabbie?" Kaji asked.
"He's too busy overseeing the stone fitting of the wall. It's ok, his people won't be participating in the main fight unless it's necessary," Anna said, hopefully.
"There you are, what took you guys so long?" Krsitoff asked but when he noticed the other people standing with Kaji and Elsa, he looked like he understood. Kaji took his place at the front of the table along with Elsa while Zala and his troops spread out around the tent, at least they weren't sticking to their tails like fleas. Chie took position at the right of the table, where Balin usually stood.
"This is my brother, Chie. He's the leader of the group of Adenians that will aid us. Don't worry, he won't betray us, he's not like my other brothers," Kaji said. Everyone in the tent seemed to look him over, trying to figure out his worth.
"Are you sure?" Kristoff asked, skeptically. Kaji leaned forward and placed his hands on the table.
"Yes, I trust him. Trust in me now," Kaji said, lowly but firmly, not liking the way they judged his brother.
"I trust him too," Elsa added. Everyone seemed satisfied with that, which made Kaji slightly envious but he shook it off before his mind went somewhere he didn't want it to.
"I assume you can tell us what you've brought now? In detail?" Kaji asked, turning to Chie. His brother nodded and placed a hand on the table.
"We have a little over two hundred ships, all built for war, all full of soldiers and knights waiting to be deposited in this city. We have about a total of twenty thousand effective ground troops. We have sufficient arms and armor for them and we were even able to get some of our prototype crossbow emplacements. We also have plenty of supplies for the army in case they try to starve us out, but knowing Mitsu, he won't. The men are all well trained and many are experienced in real battles and real wars. Just tell me where you want us to put them." Chie finished. Everyone looked a bit surprised yet…relieved.
"Chie, you told me that most of the men that are following me are our most experienced troops, correct? As I recall, we should have more than five hundred ships and over forty thousand men, why is there little more than half, and where is Commander Yamato?" Kaji asked, cautiously, fearing the answer. Chie winced when he asked that.
"Well…" he hesitated to answer but Kaji kept his gaze on him, making him relent.
"I told you that I needed to go back to collect our forces correct? Well that wasn't the only thing I went back to get," he said as his face dropped a bit.
"What do you mean?" Anna asked.
"I went back to wrench a valuable artifact from Adenia, something that every king of Adenia since our ancestor has guarded, something the Mitus cannot be aloud to possess any longer," Chie said as he reached into his moderate waist pack to pull out a book that was slightly on the large side. The covers were grey/silver and they were plain except for the symbol on the front of the page. It was gold in color and if formed a symbol or…letter that Kaji didn't recognize but he did recognize the book.
"That's the book of the old world…" Kaji said in awe. He knew that Adenia possessed it but he never thought that he'd get to actually see it. Now it was right in front of him.
"Almost half our forces were killed taking and escaping with this book, Commader Yamato included…he led half of our fleet against Mitsu's to buy us time…" Chie said as he placed the book on the table.
"Yamato's dead?" Kaji asked, shocked. Chie nodded sadly, making Kaji clench his fists. He didn't know the man but he knew that he was a good and loyal friend to his father during his rein and the best strategist they had.
"What? All those people lost over a stupid book?" Eugene asked, alarmed.
"I agree, why is this book so important?" Rapunzel asked.
"It's not just a book, it's the only full record of everything that happened during the days of the precursor race, our ancestors. It ranges from the stories of the great heroes of the era to the rise of the kingdoms and of course…their artifacts," Kaji finished.
"You mean it actually has records from that time?" Elsa asked, intrigued.
"Yes…it's a valuable tool to someone that wants to learn…or a powerful weapon to a tyrant," Kaji said, bitterly referring to Mitsu.
"Indeed…it would be the end of everything if someone like Mistu knew the secrets of this book. However, fortunately it is not the easy to learn the secrets this book holds. It is written in the ancient text of the precursors and it cannot be simply deciphered no matter how much you try. The language was intended to trick and fool the more you try to figure it out so Mitsu does not know anything about what lies in the book," Chie explained.
"Then why did you have to go get it? If it's so secure then why sacrifice all those lives for it?" Anna asked. Kaji couldn't help but agree with his sister a bit, he knew that only someone like…him could read the book but there was no way Chie knew that he could. He didn't exactly understand the reasoning behind his brother's plan.
"Yes, I don't recall Mitsu or Tsuyo being able to read the text, why was it needed for you to take it back?" Kaji asked. Chie seemed hesitant to answer but did anyway.
"I'm going to be honest. We are badly outnumbered despite having most of the experienced forces on our side, it might not be enough," he said. Kaji was alarmed by his brother's pessimistic view of their situation.
"What about myself and Kaji? Surely we even the odds?" Elsa asked, sounding a bit offended.
"Yeah, you've seen what Elsa can do, and I've seen parts of what Kaji is capable of, how are we outmatched?" Anna asked.
"While they are very powerful indeed, they are still young and their powers are still growing. Plus even if they make up for our numbers, it'll just exhaust them, and we can't afford that if we're going to stop Tsuyo and Mitsu. That's why I took the book. It'll strengthen Kaji's claim to the throne, since it's likely that Mitsu didn't reveal that the book was stolen and he won't either in fear that it'll show his incompetence as a king. He's likely already under a lot of pressure since such a large amount of us escaped him. If we pass off that the book belongs to Kaji and that he can read it, then we'll have enough leverage," Chie summarized.
"Enough leverage to do what exactly?" Elsa asked. Kaji paled when he realized what his brother was hinting at. Something he had no desire to ever do in his life.
"Enough leverage to pressure Mitsu into a duel," Chie said grimly, noticing how affected Kaji was. Thankfully though, Kaji was able to keep himself from full on collapsing from fear.
"What kind of a duel exactly?" Elsa asked. Chie stood up and wiped his hair back before it fell back into it's usual place.
"A duel between him and Kaji, to decide who the ruler of Adenia shall be," Chie said. Kaji felt himself go light headed from the statement, it somehow made it worse to hear the words uttered. He felt Elsa place her hand on his arm but it did nothing to lessen his fear.
"Wait, you mean just those two? Why would he agree if he outnumbers us as much as you say?" Kristoff asked.
"It's a matter of honor, and a proving. Mitsu is…untested in the people's eyes, including the army. He has not proven himself on the battlefield or fought an equal opponent and won. The people of Adenia are very picky about who in the royal family is the best suited to rule. By rule, the oldest rules unless done otherwise, like in Kaji's case with our parents. However, as we know, Mitsu is pushing his claim to the throne as the oldest of the royal family, and Kaji must push for his claim as the chosen heir. Neither of them have proven themselves in the people's eyes, so this war is supposed to decide who gets the throne," Chie explained. Everyone nodded in understanding while Kaji was trying not to shiver too much; thankfully his wife was trying to calm him down though.
"How exactly does this mean he'll accept the duel then?" Eugene asked.
"Mitsu is in a tight spot, right now. We stole the book from the capital under his watch and he was unable to stop us from escaping. If the people of Adenia have not changed, then Mitsu is in a positon of incompetence right now, something that does not bode well for someone who hasn't proven him or herself yet. As I said, we took the book but he will not tell anyone, or else he'll look even worse. If we push this, and Kaji challenges him to a duel, then he will not have much choice but to accept or face the likely hood that he will be seen as a complete incompetent and a coward, neither are things that an Adenian King wants," Chie explained quickly.
"So…we just walk up to him and challenge him when he shows up or something?" Anna asked. Chie shook his head, but this time Kaji responded.
"If I remember my brother well enough, then he will nod doubt come over to have a "talk" with us first, demanding our surrender. It's custom in just warfare and in his case his arrogance demands it…I…I will challenge him…if it will avoid getting so many people killed…" Kaji answered in a shaky voice. He felt Elsa's cold hands try to sooth him by running them over his arm but it did little to quench the fear stirring within him.
Ever since he ran away, he knew that one day he would have to face Mitsu in combat if he ever wanted to return to Adenia. However, it was something that he swore never to do, because he was afraid of him. Ten years of his life were stripped from him; his childhood ripped from him. He just wanted to get away from his brothers and live a normal life, never having to deal with them again. Then he went and got himself married to Elsa and became the king of Arendelle; there was no other beacon stronger than that to tell people where he was, despite the secrecy they surrounded the marriage with.
Now, here he was, deciding to go up against his older brother who tortured him relentlessly. In single combat no less. He couldn't help but feel the dread seep into him. He knew when he got involved with Elsa and Arendelle that this would happen and he was slowly starting to chip away at the fear he held but this was too fast.
"Kaji are you sure?" Elsa asked. Kaji turned to his wife and saw that she looked very concerned, which was understandable since he wasn't exactly passing off that he was confident. He hardened his gaze and took a breath.
"I don't have much choice…" he answered lowly. Elsa looked like she was going to speak more to him but Chie interrupted.
"I'm sorry but there's more bad news…ever since we escaped, Mitsu has been chasing us, Commander Yamato delayed him but they were no much for Mitsu, especially on the sea, where he's at his strongest. But they're on their way right now. I imagine they'll be here in two days, tops," Chie said, grimly. That caused everyone in the room to flinch.
"What?! Already? Damn it, we have to move fast," Anna exclaimed.
"Yes, my men are already unloading everything to equip the walls. Many of them should be awaiting directions now," Chie said, quickly. Suddenly, one of Arendelle's soldiers rushed into the tent and he was almost held up by one of Zala's men but Kaji waved them off.
"Your majesties, our sentries have reported that there is something approaching outer wall towards the land!" the soldier reported. That made Kaji tense and he saw that Elsa did as well.
They knew that the enemy was going to be attacking them from the sea so they focused most of their time fitting that portion of the inner wall and the harbor wall. Elsa created three layers of walls to guard the land entrance to Arendelle, and they only kept it lightly manned. If something was going to hit them there, then there wouldn't be much there to stop them unless they moved fast.
"Do we know what it is?" Kaji asked. The guard shook his head.
"No, your grace, we couldn't tell, the snow storm is making it hard to determine but we know that they aren't ours. We received the last of our stranglers out in the land two days ago. General Balin already took a fill regiment towards the area," the soldier said.
"Round up another regiment then so I may lead them to aid in the wall's defense," Elsa said quickly. Kaji looked at her like she was crazy, did she just imply she was going without him? Before he could object, she beat him to it as the soldier left to go round up a group.
"There are three walls protecting that entrance to the city. Balin will need more than a hundred men to hold it. It'll be quicker if I pull some of Arendelle's soldiers and rush over. Our reinforcements haven't been fully unloaded yet. I know you'll join me soon. Besides, I can create a few giant snowmen to fight for me if we need the help," Elsa said. Kaji wanted to object but he saw the logic in her plan and nodded. Elsa reached up and placed her hand on his neck then he leaned down, knowing what she wanted and gave her a light kiss.
"Be safe…and if you do summon snowmen…don't overdue it…" Kaji whispered. He knew that his wife had the amazing power of creating life but Elsa told him that there's a difference between making someone like good old naïve and playful Olaf and someone like Marshmallow, who was more warlike and aggressive. The aggressive ones tended to be out of control and needed to be bound to his wife's will, she could bend one to her will without any issue but it gets harder and harder the more of them there are. If she overdid it then they'd have a bunch of angry snowmen to worry about.
Elsa seemed to sense his distress and gave him another kiss but before she could pull away Kaji pulled her back in and gave her a nice passionate kiss, which she returned right away, wrapping both her arms around his neck. He poured all the love and affection he could muster into that kiss. He didn't care if everyone in the room was staring; his wife was about to go headfirst into danger and he'd be damned if he didn't give her a proper goodbye and sign of his love for her. She seemed to feel the same since she held onto his desperately as if it was the last time they would embrace. When they finally parted they leaned their foreheads together for a few moments before Elsa pulled back and summoned her ice spear silently as she moved to leave the tent.
"I'll go with you," Anna said, firmly as she rushed over and grabbed her older sister's arm. Kaji thought she was going to get her way for a moment before Elsa shook her head.
"No, go guard the people, they need you right now," Elsa ordered, softly. Anna looked dismayed and Kaji couldn't help but feel guilty for forgetting about how Anna felt.
"I almost lost you when you went off by yourself last time…" Anna said softly. Elsa smiled softly at her sister and she gave her a warm hug, or a cold hug in her case.
"Don't worry, I'll be back and then we'll make another snowman, ok?" Elsa asked. Anna giggled lightly despite the situation and nodded. Then Elsa gave Kaji one last look before departing.
"Rapunzel, Eugene, go with Anna and take Pabbie and his people as well and whatever men you need and go protect the townspeople. I'll take our reinforcements and go reinforce Elsa, Chie go with them," Kaji ordered, quickly. Some of them looked like they were going to object but he gave them a rare glare, reminding them of his authority.
"Go…" he ordered as he picked the old book up from the table and pushed it into Chie's hands but he shook his head and pushed it back to him.
"It's yours…" he said softly.
"Well I'm ordering you to guard it for your king then, I don't want them seeing this yet," Kaji pressed, quickly. Chie nodded after hesitating for a few moments and then he quickly left with the ones Kaji ordered to go. Kaji took in a breath before leaving the tent, Zala and his men behind him.
"Zala, how long until we can get the men we need to reinforce Elsa and Balin?" Kaji asked. He saw several dozens of his Adenian troops, all dressed in silver armor, getting organized and pooling from the docks into the Iceland his wife created.
"We have several hundreds unloaded by now, but the rest will take time," Zala answered. Kaji took another breath and pushed aside his fear but before he could speak more he heard a large crash coming from the where their land walls were. He cursed when he realized that it was probably one of the gates giving out. Their suspicions of a hostile force were just proven and they were running out of time.
"Zala, you and your men stay here to form another force to follow me, I need to bring help to the gates now!" Kaji ordered as he rushed to the large mass of troops.
"Men! I need you to organize now!" Kaji ordered, so loudly and firmly that all of them froze and turned to him in shock. When they finally realized who was speaking to them, they quickly formed into ranks and stood at attention and shouted "Sir!" loudly.
"I know you just got here and that you may be tired but I need your help now. Arendelle is under attack and my wife is off about to risk her life in that battle and I intend to join her in the battle. I know that you all believe that I am your king, if that's true then that means my wife, Elsa; is your queen. Will you let your queen face the enemy unaided?" Kaji asked; in truth he had no idea where that all came from. The soldiers all answered by slamming their spears into the ground and straightening up, ready to be led into battle.
"Good, now come on!" Kaji ordered as he turned around and started running for the lands gates. He heard the hurried steps and sounds of metal clanking slightly, the sound of his men following him. He decided to cut through the town in case the gates broke before they got there so they could try to contain the enemy before they got to the people.
"Don't forget about me?" Kaji looked to his left and he saw Anna right next to him. She was wearing some silver armor and a purple mail and she had a sword strapped to her waist and a shield with the symbol of Arendelle stamped onto it. He had no idea how the hell she switched from her dress into full battle gear in only a few minutes but that was the least of his worries.
"Are you insane?! I thought we told you to go guard the people?" Kaji shouted as they ran. She flashed him a cheeky smile and just kept running.
"Hey it's my home too and Elsa's my big sister and you're my brother now so that means I have two siblings risking their lives out there. I'm not going anywhere but into that battle to help you two. Rapunzel and the others can keep them safe. You can chew me out later," Anna said. Kaji wanted to rebuke her and order her to go back but he knew that she would just come back and he didn't want to order his men to escort her there. But most of all he knew that she did deserve to stand by her sister in this fight and him as well.
"Just stay close to me in the battle and do what you're told," he ordered. She didn't reply but he had a feeling she let out a gleeful scream in her head. He sighed and kept running.
"Have to hurry…" Kaji thought as they ran through the town. The place was empty with only the few torches lighting the area; deeply contrasting the usual bustling that occurred before he left for the Southern Isles. Something else he had to protect from being destroyed. He thought of Melina and the flower shop that she ran. He remembered the one-day when he bought Elsa flowers from that shop. He knew that they were all counting on him and the others and he would be damned if he didn't live up to their expectations.
"I can't let them win…" he thought again as he kept running. Thankfully they didn't run into any resistance or hear any other signs of another gate giving way until they got close to the third gate. Kaji heard metal clashing against metal and the sound of dying screams as well as…loud banging. He thought it was the enemy trying to bash the second gate down. There were a dozen men trying to put something up against the third gate, which was open and he also saw Balin there, ordering the men.
"Balin!" Kaji shouted as he ran up to them. Balin turned to him in alarm. He had his great sword in his hand and it was covered in some blood and he had some bloodstains on his mail
"Milord you're here! And Milady you're he too?!" he shouted in surprise of seeing Anna. Kaji shook off his surprise and pressed forward.
"What's going on?" he asked. Balin shook off his stupor and stood up straight.
"They broke through the first wall…Milord it's something I've never seen before," Balin said grimly.
"What are you talking about?" Anna asked. At that moment a rather loud boom sounded and that brought Kaji to look past the open gates, towards the second gate. He saw Arendelle soldiers standing in front of the gate and then he saw two giant snowmen braced up against the gate. Then he saw Elsa standing in front of the gate, spraying her ice at the gate. He saw cracks on the door and Elsa was rushing to fix them. At that time something hit the doors, making them shake, the snowmen were even pushed a bit before they braced against the gate again. The cracks in the door seemed to worsen but Elsa was working hard to fix them before another loud boom sounded and the gate was struck again.
"It was a man, a giant man. He broke through the first gate with his bare goddamn hands like he had the force of a ram behind him. I've never seen anything like it," Balin said. Kaji felt his body go cold in fear. He knew that there were only two people with that kind of strength and they all knew Ulfric wasn't there. That only left one person…
"Tsuyo…" Kaji whispered softly, but Anna heard him.
"Wait…your brother?" she asked. Kaji nodded slowly but that didn't stop the dread from taking hold of him.
"Yes…he's the only other one that has strength like that besides Ulfric. I didn't think he'd be here before Mitsu though, he always followed him around like a dog…" Kaji said softly, regaining some composure after the shock wore off. He may be afraid of both his brother but if he had to choose one to fight at the moment, he'd prefer to fight Tsuyo.
"So what's the plan?' Anna asked. Kaji took a deep breath and he held up his hand and motioned forward, then his men started marching past the third gate.
"We have to hold them here. I would prefer not to have the city to our immediate backs when we fight them. Zala will be coming with more reinforcements soon enough. We will have to hold them with what we have," Kaji said. Balin nodded and followed the Adenian troops into the area. Kaji and Anna shared a look and Kaji pointed behind him, towards the city.
"Last chance to back out, I can't promise you that you'll walk out alive," he warned softly.
"I'm not going back," she said firmly as she stepped through the gates. Kaji shook his head and turned to the guards, guarding the gate.
"Reinforcements will be coming by shortly, keep the door closed until then or until commanded," Kaji ordered before running into the area, hearing the gates close behind him.
The men were all formed up in ranks and they parted so he could walk down the middle, towards where Elsa was. Kaji sighed when he realized that she was scolding Anna. She was no doubt angry over the fact that Anna had decided to accompany him to the battlefield. He hoped she wouldn't start scolding him as well.
"Why the hell did you come?" Elsa shouted as she struggled to hold the wall together. Her snowmen struggled to hold the gate up as well but it was harsh.
"I came to help you silly!" Anna shouted back in annoyance. Kaji sighed as he came up to them. He saw Balin looking a but amused and he shook his head before he held his hand up and pointed to the top of the wall.
"Archers! Half of you, move up there, the rest of you form up behind the lines! Swordsmen up front, Spearmen fill in the gaps between them!" he ordered. His men quickly and efficiently followed his commands as he turned to his wife and sister-in-law.
"Anna this is dangerous, you have to go back!" Elsa ordered. This time Kaji interfered though.
"It's too late for that I'm afraid…" he said grimly as fear started to grip him again when the gates were struck again. He felt his vision shift and the familiar blue tint appear in his vision. He looked at that gate and then he took a breath and focused. The door was still obscuring his view but he was able to make out a large orange aura that seeped through the door.
"Kaji? Why didn't you stop her?" Elsa asked. Kaji blinked and his vision returned to normal before he looked at his wife.
"I voiced my concern but she had none of it I'm afraid. She'll stick behind the lines though…won't you?" Kaji said firmly as Anna looked like she wanted to argue. Instead she gave a huff before retreating behind the lines.
"Balin, make sure she stays safe," Elsa added. Balin saluted and quickly followed Anna behind the main lines of their men.
"Can you hold them?" Kaji asked. Elsa grunted and shook her head.
"Not for much longer. Whoever this is, must be getting impatient," Elsa grit.
"It's one of my brothers on the other side of that wall. He's the one hitting the gate…" Kaji said grimly. Elsa seemed to tense up when he said that and he noticed her eyes narrow.
"Well…which one is it?" she asked.
"It's not Mitsu, obviously. He would have attacked us from the harbor. This is the other one I told you about…" Kaji said softly. Elsa seemed to take that into account before she summoned another two giant snowmen and commanded them to hold the gate closed.
"Well, let's give them a cold welcome then…" she said as she stopped repairing the wall and summoned her spear to her side. Kaji nodded and drew his sword out and held it up, signaling his men to prepare.
"Soldiers! Form up!" he ordered. Then the lines of soldiers walked up until they were shoulder to shoulder with him and his wife. He lowered his sword and sheathed it when they were in position and then he raised his hand towards the door and then cracks of lightning sounded through the sky and large storm clouds formed up above.
"Incoming!" someone shouted. Kaji looked towards the wall and then hundreds of arrows soured above it.
"Cover!" he shouted as all their soldiers raised their shields but they didn't have to worry because Elsa created a shield above them, blocking all the arrows before she dropped it, letting all the arrows fall down harmlessly.
"Let's give them a surprise…" Kaji said as he felt his power surging through him. Elsa nodded to him and then the winds started picking up and snow started falling from the sky. Kaji raised his hand to the sky and the thunder cracked even louder. Flashes of lightning flashed through the clouds then as he prepared.
"Ready?" he asked.
"I'm ready. Get back!" Elsa ordered. Then her four giant snowmen stepped back until they were standing with the lines of soldiers. Then right as the gate was struck again, knocking it off it's hinges, and smoke kicking up into the air, obscuring their vie. Kaji closed his hand into a fist and lightning came down and struck beyond the wall in multiple places at random. Kaji heard screams of pain but he didn't pay them any mind and blocked them out. He looked to his right and saw that Elsa had paled more than usual and quickly reassured her.
"Elsa! Don't worry about it! Go!" Kaji shouted as he sent a rather large bolt down with a loud boom. His little shout seemed to get to her since she pointed her hands to the ground and then large, slender spikes of ice sprouted up so high that they could see them beyond the wall. They were all covered in blood and some of them had bodies handing from them, and what made Kaji cringe slightly was that a lot of them were still moving as their life was fading from them.
"Time to finish this…" he thought as he summoned lightning into his hands and formed then her pointed them towards the open gate, which still held smoke. His vision turned blue again and he looked into the smoke. He saw many auras despite the bolts and spikes Elsa and he sent at them but what made him angry was that he still saw a orange aura that no doubt belonged to his brother.
"Enough of this…" he said as he pointed his hands towards the gate and fired a very strong bolt of lightning into it. More screams followed the act but Kaji didn't see his brother's aura die down at all while many of the ones around him ceased. The issue was that his brother seemed to be dodging or blocking his bolts. He kept trying and even focused more power into it but it still wasn't enough. His vision turned from blue to yellow and targets seemed to highlight even more clearly than usual but he didn't pay it too much mind.
"Kaji stop!" Elsa shouted. Kaji looked over at her and saw her alarmed look and ceased pouring his lightning into the breach, panting lightly. His vision turned back to blue and then to normal and he blinked slightly. He momentarily wondered why his vision turned yellow but he didn't have much time to think about it.
"Are you ok Kaji? Your eyes…they weren't blue, they were yellow…" Elsa asked cautiously. Kaji was confused by the situation but he didn't have any time to ponder the new development.
"Well well! Ha! Little brother is finally all grown up!" a loud obnoxious voice called. It made Kaji cringe slightly since he recognized the loud arrogant voice of his brother.
"It's been so long!" the smoke finally died down around the downed gate and out stepped a rather large man followed by many Adenian men, all dressed up in black armor. The man leading them seemed to dwarf even Ulfric in mass. He was a large man who was a little over seven feet tall, wearing heavy black armor. He had a giant buster sword leaned onto his shoulder like it was made of wood. His face was slightly tanned with hard, arrogant green eyes and a vicious scar running down the side of his face. He also had a lightly trimmed, brown beard and his helmet obscured his hair.
"Tsuyo…" Kaji said with a borderline growl. If Kaji was honest, he wasn't exactly afraid of Tsuyo anymore. Remembering how arrogant he was and seeing that he hadn't changed just seemed to make him more angry than afraid. Don't get him wrong, he was still scared of his brother but now that Mitsu, the string puller wasn't around, he had a feeling this could turn out well.
"Hello there…little brother…you know, Mitsu and I miss you. So do the people. They want to see Father's favorite child and heir to the throne…" he said mockingly. Kaji felt his anger start to boil over his fear. He never liked it when people mocked his father.
"And look at that…you even have a little whore to show around…I must say…it must be nice banging that in bed…I'll have to try it later…I bet she's a screamer, I'll enjoy it immensely…" he added, suggestively, looking at Elsa like she was some kind of toy, who in turn cringed in disgust and rebuked him, "Keep away from me you sick man! I would never do anything with you!"
"Ha! That's what they all say! I'll enjoy stuffing that mouth of yours…" Tsuyo taunted, making Elsa glare at him.
If Kaji was angry with Tsuyo for mocking their father, then he was completely furious at his brother for calling Elsa a whore and thinking of her as nothing more than a plaything. Then he had the audacity to threaten to violate her? Kaji felt his blood boil and the need to see his brother's head separate from his body. He quickly pulled his sword and held it up.
"Positions!" he commanded. The front line of swordsman raised their shields and then the spearmen behind them pointed their spears forward and then the archers behind them notched arrows and took aim.
"Well! Someone's feisty now!" Tsuyo laughed as he held up a hand and motioned forward, nonchalantly. Then his soldiers all let out a loud, collective battle cry and then they charged forward.
"Archers!" Kaji ordered. The archers behind the lines of soldiers notched arrows and aimed over the shoulders of the front linemen before letting loose a volley. The line of enemies took the volley head on. Blood spilled onto the ground as well as bodies of soldiers. Except, more were still pouring towards them.
"Archers fall back! Everyone one else, prepare to engage!" he ordered. The front line of swordsman dug in and kept their shields up while the spearmen kept their spears trained forward, hoping to catch someone by surprise.
"Let's see how they like this?" Elsa said as she slammed her spear down and then spikes sprouted from the snow on the ground, a few feet in front of their line. Kaji raised his sword up again and looked towards the archers behind them and they notched their arrows and aimed up above.
The enemy soldiers reacted too slowly to the trap and some of them stepped right on them, impaling their feet, and screaming in agony. Others tried to stop but were knocked into the spikes by people behind them that didn't notice. Kaji cringed slightly when some of them were impaled on the spikes but still hanged on to their life for a few painful moments.
"Archers fire!" he ordered. Soon enough a volley of arrows rained down on the halted enemies, killing many of them but their were still more.
"Another volley! Fire!" Elsa ordered as another volley from the archers on the wall behind the enemy fired straight into their backs. The soldiers started to thrash and break through the spikes that kept them from the army but it was a slow process.
"Archers fire!" Kaji ordered again as the archer lines behind their swordsmen and spearmen let loose another volley of arrows towards the slow moving forces. Many of them fell to the vicious volley, blood spilling onto the snowy ground but those bodies allowed their friends behind them to step over the spikes and get at their lines. They were going to have a vicious fight soon and Kaji had to make sure the men's spirits were high.
"These are not your brothers or sisters anymore! They are cowards who hide behind their masters! You are the strongest, and greatest soldiers that ever lived!" Kaji shouted. His men all slammed their weapons onto their shields.
"You are soldiers of Adenia no longer. Now you are soldiers of Arendelle and you will stand your ground and drive these traitors back!" Kaji ordered. His men slammed their shields again.
"Fight for your kingdom, fight for your future, fight to protect the ones beside you, fight to bring justice for the deaths of my father and mother; your King and Queen! As well as my sister, who these cowards killed! Today we show them and all that sacrificed their lives for you to reach me. Today we avenge the deaths of the countless lives these traitors have taken. But most of all, we show them that we remember and honor their sacrifices. For Arendelle!" Kaji shouted. This time his men let out a loud battle cry of agreement as the first of the enemy got over the ice spikes. Some of them even repeated what he shouted "For Arendelle!"
Kaji entered the battle first by springing forward and catching an enemy who had their gut open. He sliced through their stomach easily, making the enemy grab their gut to try and keep their organs from spilling up but then Kaji ended him by slicing off his head, blood spilling from the stump. Then he turned and caught a wrist before they could complete the swing of their sword. Then he turned to the attacker and ran him through with his sword before pulling it up, cleaving his torso in half. Blood splattered on his armor, and face, making his heroic white armor look a bit intimidating.
"Kaji!" Elsa brought his attention to his right where he saw his wife knock down an enemy soldier with the shaft of her spear and impale him on the ground with it, before summoning her ice short sword and cleaved the head off of another attacker.
"What is it!" Kaji asked as he went to her side, slashing the head off another attacker before ducking and rolling another enemy over his back and onto the ground, stomping his face in, smashing his skull in, ending the life of his attacker.
"We're still outnumbered!" she shouted as she fought on, hacking or stabbing her way through enemies. Kaji looked to his right and saw that their lines were holding steady but the sheer number of enemy soldiers was growing steadily.
"We can hold them until reinforcements arrive!" Kaji shouted back. As if proving him right a loud battle horn sounded and Kaji spared a glance backward to see Zala and his men leading in a pool of reinforcements. Then he caught a glimpse of Elsa's giant snowmen stomping and throwing multiple enemy soldiers at once, he even saw one rip one in half, spilling blood everywhere.
"See?!" Kaji shouted as he turned back to hack someone's arm off and stab him before wrenching his sword free and catching another's throat, making that person choke on their own blood.
"Oh be quiet!" Elsa shouted back as she drove her spear into an enemy's face. Then before either of them could register it, Anna came forward and slashed an enemy's throat open with her sword and stood right next to them.
"Anna!? Why are you here?! We told you to hang back!" Elsa scolded as she hacked down another enemy soldier.
"Where's the fun in that! I couldn't hang back and let you two have all the fun!" she retorted but Kaji had to stop a spear from impaling her by slicing off the tip before it reached her, then he ran his sword on the shaft and cut the aggressors head off.
"Pay attention Anna! Where's Balin anyway I thought I told him to keep you safe?" Kaji asked as he deflected blade with his gantlet and stabbed him in the chest with his sword.
"Right here Milord, ha!" came Balin's loud voice as several enemy soldiers around the trio were knocked off their feet or had their feet clean off was the better description. A rain of blood seemed to surround them for a few moments as Genral Balin stood in front of the three, protectively, wielding his great sword like it was made of paper.
"I thought we ordered you to protect Anna?" Elsa asked as she stopped a blade with her lance and placed her hand on her attackers chest, sending an ice spike through their body.
"I tried to milady, but she ran off," Balin replied as he beheaded an unlucky enemy.
"Figures," Kaji thought as he twirled around an enemy and delivered a lethal blow to their back. It was at that moment that he felt his vision shift into Orudo but his vision didn't even turn blue this time it went straight to yellow. He was confused about the development but he didn't exactly have time to think about it.
He reacted to an enemy knight that tried to attack him. However, there was something different about his vision now. Instead of the usual aura that he would see around a person, he saw…their hearts, muscle and weak points in their defenses? The knight's movements seemed to be even easier to predict than usual and weak points in his stance seemed to highlight in his vision. The area around his left elbow in particular seemed good to him and he quickly slashed it with his sword, severing his forearm before he could even swing, making the knight let out a pained yell before Kaji ended it with a stab to his heart.
"Milord!" Kaji heard Zala but he didn't turn to address him; he was too busy tearing fighting off the enemies around him.
"Protect the king and queen!" he heard Zala shout. Kaji kept using his new power to his advantage, taking the advantages given to him and the weaknesses shown to him. Soon there were bodies all around his little group until the enemies started to stop coming.
"Kaji, we're pushing them back!" Elsa shouted. Kaji turned to her and saw that she had blood splattered on her armor. Otherwise she looked fine. Anna was sitting on her knees, holding her sword tightly, and panting. She was covered in blood like her sister was and she had a cut on her arm but otherwise she was unharmed. He noted that Balin, Zala and Zala's men had formed a kind of circle around them, they were all covered in blood and had light wounds but they looked fine. Despite the line the formed around them, they still killed many of the enemy. He looked down at his sword and saw that it was covered in blood and his gauntleted hands and the rest of his armor had blood splattered over it. He whipped his sword sharply, sending the excess blood into the bloody snow at his feet.
"Drop the spikes, Elsa," he said swiftly as he raised a hand and zapped another enemy with his lightning, dropping them instantly in a smocking heap. He looked towards their lines of soldiers and knights and saw that their lines held against the onslaught and the area in front of their lines was littered with the enemies dead, though the center, where he and Elsa fought had the most bodies lying around in the snow. He even saw all four of Elsa's giant snowmen, or frost giants as he liked to call them now had gotten quite a few kills. They all had weapons and arrows sticking out of them and one of them had a dead Adenian soldier in its hand, crushed but otherwise they all looked fine. Their lines had withstood the enemies' advance and punished them for trying to overwhelm them.
"Are you sure?" she asked as she dislodged her spear from a straggler knight. He looked around the area, he saw their men wrapping up the rest of the enemy soldiers and knights. Blood and bodies covered the snowy ground and much of the snow had turned red from the amount of blood spilling from all the bodies. Kaji scoffed in disgust at the waste.
"Yes…my brother is on the other side…" he said. He didn't bother turning his vision back to normal since he knew that he'd need an advantage like what his new power granted him in order to deal with his brother's strength. As soon as the ice spikes dropped along with the bodies they held up, his eyes landed on his brother.
"Damn it! I hoped the ending of the metal clashing meant that we won!" he heard Tsuyo curse. There were about a dozen knights standing behind him but that was all. They had them outnumbered now.
"You've lost, Tsuyo. Your army is gone and we've suffered next to no casualties. You're outnumbered and outmatched," Kaji said. Tsuyo seemed to lose his cocky attitude and his smirk was wiped right off his face.
"So it seems…though I suppose that means I must join the fight now…" he said in a serious voice. Kaji narrowed his eyes at him, warily, his brother didn't sound very arrogant or aggressive now, this time he sounded dangerous.
"Guys be careful…" Anna said lightly as she stood up and held her sword up.
"Kaji, what can he do?" Elsa asked as she sent her sword away and leveled her spear up.
"He has strength that no mortal possesses like Ulfric but I'm willing to bet he has even more strength than Ulfric. He's also no slouch with a sword and he's wielding a very big one. Don't try to go into a lock with him unless there's no other choice and if you do then get out quickly before he overpowers you," Kaji informed.
"So basically, don't let him hit us?" Anna asked.
"Pretty much," Kaji answered.
"Well I guess that makes it simpler then?" Elsa asked. Kaji shrugged and leveled his sword at his brother.
"Everyone, stay back, let us handle this!" Kaji ordered. The men all backed off a little as Kaji and his small party closed in on Tsuyo and his party. Tsuyo picked his sword off his shoulder and stabbed it into the ground with a loud crunch.
"Before we begin, I'm supposed to read something to you,' he said as one of his knight handed him a scroll with a blue ribbon on it. Kaji paused and so did the others.
"Kaji?" Elsa asked. He nodded.
"Out with it then," he said to his brother as he snapped his fingers, his lightning arching over his armor, chipping off the blood, cleaning his armor. Tsuyo untied to ribbon on the scroll and unrolled it. Kaji even made his vision return to normal so he wouldn't be tempted.
"I, Mitsu, Emperor of Adenia and first of my house and name, hereby call out to my brother, Prince Kaji of Adenia and King of Arendelle. As demanded by the people of Adenia, I hearby challenge you in single combat once I reach Arendelle, assuming that you defeated the vanguard already which is obvious if you're reading this. It will be a fight to the death to decide who will rule Adenia as Emperor. If you accept then send this messenger back," Tsuyo read as he rolled the scroll back up and gave it back to the knight.
"Well Kaji? Brother is challenging you, as I'm sure you were intending anyway. Do you accept?" Tsuyo asked. Kaji narrowed his eyes at him and nodded.
"I accept the challenge issued," he said without hesitation. Tsuyo nodded and told his knight to go back and send the message to Mitsu. "Go, the fleet is on the way, if you go now then you will get the message to them before they get here,"
"Sir!" his knights saluted before leaving the area, leaving him there, alone.
"Well? Aren't you going to go crawl back to your master?" Elsa asked mockingly. Tsuyo narrowed his eyes at her.
"Watch your tone, bitch. I don't answer to my brother on this. I'm here to see what my little brother is really capable of. If he survives then he may be ready to face down our brother and claim his place as Emperor, if not though…then I guess Father, Mother, and Suri were wrong about you, Brother," Tsuyo said as he pulled his sword from the ground. Kaji grit his teeth and readied his sword but Elsa held up her hand.
"Kaji, let me do it," she said. Kaji looked at her like she was crazy but she shook her head. Kaji shook his head stubbornly as well; he was not about to let his wife fight his brother, alone.
"Elsa, no," he said firmly but she stood her ground as well.
"You have to face your brother soon and we can't afford to have you hurt or tired when that comes. We need you at your best if you're going to face him down," Elsa said seriously. Kaji wanted to argue more but he couldn't exactly refuse her logic. He looked at everyone else and they all seemed to agree, except for Anna.
"Sis, listen to Kaji! Why can't you both just fight him then and avoid both of you getting hurt?" she pressed. Kaji agreed but he wanted to see what Elsa thought.
"This isn't just about that…this is also for me…I need to see if I can stand on my own and protect my kingdom…just like our parents…our father defeated Adenia's past commander, saving our home from being integrated," she said lowly. Anna shook her head and hugged her sister. Kaji however was thrown into a bit of surprise. He did hear rumors that Adenia had tried to integrate Arendelle into their nation but the commander of the invasion force decided to give Arendelle the honorable chance and challenged the king to a duel. Obviously Arendelle won the day. It was…surprising to say the least…he was surprised that it was all hushed up though. He thought it was only a rumor since no one ever talked about it. Even Elsa didn't mention it to him.
"Just because father, was a well known swordsman and saved Arendelle by winning a single duel doesn't mean that you have to go and try doing the same thing!" Anna said. Kaji choose to agree with this.
"She's right, Elsa. Love, just because your father, King Adgar is known for dueling a renowned knight of Adenia doesn't mean that you have to go and throw yourself into a duel as well…" Kaji said quickly as he pulled her into a hug, careful to mind the spear she was holding
"I don't want to lose you," he said softly. Elsa seemed to take those words in carefully but Tsuyo ruined everything.
"King Adgar? Oh…so the rumor is true…I thought it was some tale that people made up but I guess not. No wonder why Mitsu was so focused on drowning that ship and everyone on it…" Kaji looked at his brother in shock. He almost couldn't believe what his brother was implying. He looked at Anna and saw that the realization had dawned on her as well.
The temperature visibly dropped and Kaji looked up to the sky to see that the storm clouds had darkened considerably. The snowfall had quickened and Kaji looked at Elsa and saw her visibly shaking. Her eyes were full of fury and she clenched her spear tightly. She batted his hands off her and turned to face Tsuyo and pointed her spear at him.
"What are you talking about?" she asked in a dark tone. Tsuyo seemed to note the obvious change in the weather but he still answered.
" When I was little, my brother, Mitsu led a relatively moderate sized fleet out in search of new land or people to integrate into our kingdom. He came across Arendelle and he decided to integrate the kingdom with us. The king didn't want to but Mitsu wouldn't accept no for an answer. He challenged the king to a duel and the winner would determine the fate of Arendelle. The king was old however and could not accept the duel, so his son, who was about ready to take the throne, accepted the challenge and met my brother in a duel. His name was Adgar and he defeated my brother in combat and shamed Mitsu bad. He agreed to not using his powers and he was humiliated in the fight. He felt so ashamed that while he was on the way home, he created a huge tsunami and huge whirlpools to wipe out everyone in the fleet so no one could tell of his failure. When he arrived, he said that while he slept, a massive storm struck the fleet and only he survived. It was believable but eventually the rumor spread that the mighty prince of the seas was defeated and shamed in combat. This rumor came from Arendelle. So after more than a decade, he finally planned to get his revenge on the one that shamed him so. And…three years ago…Adgar, now King of Arendelle and his Wife, Idun were lost in a massive storm at sea and thus a giant tsunami consumed their ship and them with it, never to be seen again…" Tsuyo said.
Elsa didn't seem very happy to hear that. She was shaking violently in anger and Anna had fallen to her knees in disbelief. Kaji understood all too well. It was sad to know that her parents were killed just because his brother wanted to get back at her father. Kaji wanted to comfort them both but something held him back…something that now haunted him.
"Wait…that ship…that ship that went down with their parents…it…it went down in a storm right? You're not talking about the storm on…that day right?" Kaji asked, fearfully as memories returned to him. He remembered the vicious currents and how desperate he was to escape the confines of Adenia and escape into freedom. The storm…he caused it because he did not expect his brother to find him so quickly…he thought it was odd how Mitsu wasn't present during his escape. That was the whole reason why they picked that day to break him out. He didn't realize that he was really out there for another reason entirely…he wondered why it seemed like Mitsu wasn't trying so hard to get him…instead he went after another galleon that happened to be sailing by. Kaji wondered why but now he knew…
"Oh…that's right…you escaped on that same night didn't you? I remember now. I wondered why there was such a strong lightning storm that night when it was the middle of summer," Tsuyo said thoughtfully.
"Oh…" Kaji felt his breath hitch. He looked at Anna and Elsa and they were both staring at him. He couldn't bear to look at Elsa, he didn't want to see the look of betrayal in her eyes that he was sure he would see if he looked. He wanted to tell her what really happened that night but he didn't know if it would do more harm than good. Thankfully she didn't press him.
"You're going to die…Tsuyo…" Elsa said darkly. Kaji looked back at his wife now and he saw that she was glaring at Tsuyo and his brother seemed a bit intimidated but he raised his sword.
"Come then, I suppose I'll fight you first then…" he said. Elsa let out a loud cry as she sent a wave of ice spikes at him but he blocked them all with his giant sword. Then she charged at him with her spear leveled. Tsuyo dodged the strike easily enough and tried to punish her but she easily ducked under his sword and evaded the kick he tried to deliver. Then she jumped and spun to the side when he tried to bring his sword down on her. She tried to slice him with her spear but he stopped it and forced her to pull away.
"Kaji? Did you…did you kill our parents?" Anna asked. Kaji looked at Anna and she had a look of hope on her face but also fear. Kaji shook his head quickly.
"I didn't. I had no idea their ship was even there to begin with. I caused the thunder and lightning storm on that day because I did not expect to see my brother there, waiting for me. It did not occur to me until now…that he was going after the other ship that was there…" Kaji said softly. Anna took the news rather well and she sighed.
"So you didn't kill them? You…saw it happen?" Anna asked, slowly.
"I saw them swallowed up by a giant wave. I was rather surprised that he went after that ship instead of me but now it's clear what his intent was…" Kaji said softly. Anna sighed in relief and Kaji inwardly sighed as well. He was thankful that she took the news well. She was going to talk more but a loud cry made them turn back to the fight.
Elsa had stabbed her spear into Tsuyo's shoulder but then he grabbed her spear and sent her flying. She was able to cushion her fall by creating a pool of soft snow to land in. Then she quickly got back onto her feet and summoned her sword into her hand. Tsuyo dropped her spear onto the ground and rushed her but before he could reach her, she flipped over him, catching his other shoulder as she passed. Tsuyo let out a roar and turned around and hit her with the flat of his blade, sending her skidding towards her spear.
"Ugh…" Elsa came to a painful stop and got onto her feet, shakily and picked up her spear since she stopped next to it. She had to lean onto her spear a bit since he had struck her pretty hard.
"Come on…don't you have anything else?" Tsuyo called as he walked towards her like he was bored. Kaji felt his heartbeat quicken so much that he forgot to realize that he still had his sword out and sheathed it when he did.
"I'm full of surprises…" Elsa said angrily as she leveled her spear and threw it at him like a javelin. He ran at her and dodged her spear like it was nothing before he swiped at her with his sword. Elsa brought up her sword to block it but she could barely hold him back as he forced her to her knees. She struggled to push back but he was toying with her.
"Is this what you fell for Kaji?! She's not anything special! Come on! Show me that you're worthy of an Adenian prince…" Tsuyo taunted. Kaji felt his hand on his sword tighten but he knew that he couldn't interfere now. They had already agreed to the duel and he was honor bound to not interfere, despite how much he desired to.
"Go to hell!" Elsa grunted. Tsuyo laughed and kept pressing.
"Why did you fall for my brother? Did he even tell you about his past? Did he tell you how we made him a slave and he did nothing to stand up for himself? Did he tell you that he killed his own people that just tried to bring him home? He was there when your parents died you know…he caused that lightning storm…how could you ever trust him?" Tsuyo pressed.
"I love Kaji…despite the things he may have done…I know there is more to his story then what you say…you have no right to call him a brother, not you or Mitsu…or anyone that stood there and did nothing to help him! Those bastards that he killed were just going to bring him back to be tormented by you bastards! You killed his sister! Now I'll kill you!" Elsa shouted.
Tsuyo laughed as he berated her again, "Hahahaha! So you boast, but it you reall-ughr!" suddenly, out of his chest, sprouted the tip of Elsa's spear. He stared at it in shock before he gasped as Elsa worked her way out from under him and pulled it straight through his chest, controlling it with her powers since it was made of ice. The spear was covered in blood but she took hold of it anyway.
"Ugh!" Tsuyo coughed out blood as he fell to his knees, dropping his sword. Blood poured out of the wound in his chest. Kaji and the others walked towards them but only Kaji stood right next to Elsa.
"You lose…" Kaji said to his brother almost…sorrowfully. He did hate him for everything he's done to him but he was still his brother…
"So I do…ha…I suppose this was coming…I had a feeling my arrogance would catch up to me…I should have just killed her when I had her…" he coughed more blood onto the snow and Elsa made her spear disappear before pointing her hand at Tsuyo's head.
"Heh…Mistu will be here when the sun rises…then…then the world will shake as two titans clash…mark my words…they will be-" Elsa finally silenced him by sending an ice spike through his head, killing him quickly. Kaji sighed as his brother's giant figure slumped over and feel back onto the ground. He sighed, as he knew that his brother would never want to be buried. And as much as he felt he didn't deserve it, his honor demanded he honor the dead, no matter how wicked they were in life.
"Rest in peace Tsuyo…mountain stomper…" he said softly as he raised his hand and then with a single, strong bolt he incinerated his brother and his belongings, his ashes, spreading into the wind, except for his sword, which he picked up and offered to Balin.
"Take it…I think you'll bring honor to this blade," he said. Balin nodded silently and took the sword without a word; it was fitting for him in Kaji's mind.
"Kaji?" Kaji turned back to his wife, who was looking at him…cautiously.
"Elsa…he didn't-" Anna tried but Elsa stopped her by raising her hand up.
"Yes?" Kaji asked softly. Her blue eyes stared into his and she grabbed his hand.
"We need to talk…" she said.