The Sins of the Father

Chapter Twenty-Five

Darkness

Valdarnaweth glared at the Empress, her eyes full of fire, her face cold, drawn. "Do not take that tone of voice with me, Granddaughter. I will not be spoken to like this!"

"WHY IS IT HERE?" the Empress screamed, moving directly in front of her grandmother. "Why would Isarn leave his ring in our lands? WHY?"

Valdarnaweth laughed. "Such a silly thing to get upset over, child. It is a ring, nothing more. It probably fell off his finger and accidentally ended up with our treasures. You are worrying over nothing."

"You're wrong!" Elsa's voice, still weak with injury, rang throughout the throne room. She held up her hand, Isarn's signet ring illuminated by the glow from the Eden-stone before it. "These rings were precious to Isarn. They meant everything to him! They reminded him of who he was, of the honor of his fathers he sought to uphold. He would never allow one of them to be carelessly discarded. Ever!"

She looked at the Empress, pleading with her to understand. "If he did remove it, it would only have been to give to someone who he cared deeply for. Deeply enough to give them something uniquely his, so they could remember him forever!"

The Empress turned back to Valdarnaweth. "Tell me about my mother. What happened to her."

"You already know," the Empress Emeritus replied. "I will not waste time—"

"I WANT TO HEAR IT AGAIN!" the Empress cried.

Valdarnaweth was beginning to lose her patience. "Your mother was seduced by that monster! He led her on with his lies, seducing her, betraying her!"

"No!" Arberish sat up, struggling to breathe. He glared at Valdarnaweth. "You forget, I was there, Majesty. I heard her words myself. Valanda wasn't seduced by Isarn. She offered herself to him of her own volition. She loved him!"

The Empress's face turned white, her hands trembling. "Grandmother? Please . . . Please don't tell me . . ."

"Who are you going to believe?" Valdarnaweth roared. "Me or this . . . this traitor here? He has turned on us already, Granddaughter. You cannot believe a word he says."

The Empress looked at Arberish. "What else?" she whispered.

Arberish forced himself to stand. "After the battle, I arrived at the entrance to the palace. Isarn and your grandmother were fighting, each unleashing their full fury upon the other. Each tried to convince me the other had initiated the attack. I didn't know who to believe so I . . . like a coward, I attacked Isarn, rendering him unconscious."

"YOU WILL BE SILENT!" Valdarnaweth roared, raising her hands, prepared to silence Arberish forever.

"NO!" the Empress cried, throwing herself into the path of Valdarnaweth's hands. "He will speak! Continue!"

"Your grandmother was about to execute Isarn when your mother threw herself upon him. She would not move unless the Empress agreed to spare his life. In exchange, Valanda was forbidden from ever seeing Isarn again. He was expelled from our lands, still unconscious, never having the opportunity to say goodbye."

His eyes filled with sorrow. "Your mother . . . I have never seen such heartbreak before. Your grandmother did this to her! She destroyed your mother's life because she could not accept that her own bigotry, everything she had ever believed about the ice bærers, was wrong!"

The Empress glared at Valdarnaweth, her lip trembling. "Tell me he's lying! Tell me you have not lied to me my entire life! Tell me you would never do something as terrible as what he says!"

Valdarnaweth stepped forward. "Granddaughter—"

"TELL ME!" the Empress screamed. "IF IT'S NOT TRUE, JUST SAY SO!"

Silence descended upon the throne room. The Empress drew her hand to her mouth, shaking her head, her mind spinning in a cyclone of emotion.

"You can't, can you?" she whispered. "You . . . You lied to me?! You . . . You made me hate Isarn . . . over your own prejudice?! You projected your own failures upon him?!"

Valdarnaweth finally spoke. "Granddaughter, I assure you there was a reason for this."

"WHAT REASON?!" the Empress screamed. "What explanation could you possibly give to make me understand?!"

Valdarnaweth could take it no longer. Dropping all pretense of composure, she began ranting, her anger rising to the surface. "Because your mother was weak! She was foolish! She could never have ruled in my stead! She allowed herself to become too emotional, too irrational! Imagine! She fell in love with a foreign man in one day! One day! What choice did I have? Had I allowed her to be with him, he would have corrupted her, destroying the integrity of our race! Do you think that is what is best for our people, Granddaughter? To have our purity tarnished by filth like Isarn, to be forced to watch our children intermingle and become tarnished, disgusting freaks like—"

She caught herself, but the damage had been done. The Empress stared at her grandmother in disbelief, tears welling up in her eyes. "Like me?" she whispered. "That's what you mean, isn't it? Freaks like me!"

"YES!" Valdarnaweth cried, no longer attempting to conceal the contempt she held for her grandchild. "Do you think I ever could have loved you? You are an abomination! Something that never should have existed! Every time you cried as a child and I was forced to hold you, I cringed! Every time you sought my comfort, I had to hold back my disgust! You are a member of a disgusting, filthy race, lower than animals, lower than the earth upon which we tread! I could never have loved you! Why do you think I gave you your name? You are unwanted! You are a monster!"

Anna watched, horrified, at the unspeakable cruelty Valdarnaweth inflicted upon her granddaughter. She glanced at Elsa, the sisters knowing all too well what was happening, what was running through the Empress's mind. She saw the Empress fall to the floor, overwhelmed by the cruel words her grandmother had unleashed upon her.

"That's enough!" Anna cried. She moved before the Empress, standing directly in front of Valdarnaweth. "How dare you? How dare you?! This poor woman has done nothing to you, Empress! She cannot help what she is! Instead of loving her, of accepting her, you have rejected her your entire life! How much pain have you caused her? Have you ever considered that? How can you be so cruel?!"

"I will not be lectured by you, girl!" Valdarnaweth cried. "I am Empress Valdarnaweth, Bearer of the Sacred Brann, Protector and Supreme Sovereign of my people! I will not let my race be tainted by the filth of other nations! We are proud! We are strong!"

"No," Elsa said, rising, fighting through her pain to stand. Agony coursing through her with each step, she forced herself to walk toward Valdarnaweth. "You are foolish! You have let your hatred for those you deem to be less worthy than yourself to corrupt you, to cloud your judgment! You have shed the lives of your men needlessly in the perverse hope of exterminating innocent people from the face of the earth!" She glanced at her older sister, still reeling on the throne room floor. "I have lived through the same pain she is feeling now, Your Majesty. And I assure you, she will only grow stronger because of it. But you! You have revealed yourself as nothing more than a spiteful, hateful woman! What power you may have had is gone now! Your granddaughter will never listen to you again! You no longer control her! She is free!"

Valdarnaweth's face twisted, her mouth contorted in a vengeful sneer. "No! She will never be free from me! I will not allow her tainted blood to corrupt my people! We will honor the traditions of our fathers! We will be faithful!"

Roaring, she unleashed an intense wave of flame upon Elsa, consuming the Snow Queen in fire. Anna screamed in terror, clutching Kristoff's arm, powerless to stop the enraged monarch.

The flames receded. Valdarnaweth's triumphant gaze turned to disbelief. "No! Not again! How is this possible?"

Elsa stood tall, unharmed, the flames having done nothing to her. "I am my father's child, Majesty," she said softly. "The blood of his fathers . . . the honorable blood of his fathers flows through my veins as well. I will not permit you to subject your people to your reign of terror anymore. They deserve better."

Faster than she had ever moved before, Elsa launched a blast of frigid ice and snow at Valdarnaweth. The monarch flew backwards, the wind knocked out of her as she landed. Valdarnaweth pulled herself to her feet just in time to be met once more with a blast of cold. This time, however, she was not caught by surprise. Concentrating, she countered Elsa's ice with a stream of flame. Both elemental wielders strained and struggled, fighting to overcome each other's attack.

"Arberish!" Elsa cried, gritting her teeth as she fought to keep Valdarnaweth's attack at bay. "A little help please!"

The brann wielder mercenary moved forward, fighting the signals from his legs that screamed at him to stop. His ice and snow joined Elsa's as together they worked to repel Valdarnaweth's assault.

"NO!" the retired Empress screamed. "You will not beat me! I will not be conquered by an inferior race! By the illegitimate child of an ice bærer!"

To Elsa and Arberish's astonishment, Valdarnaweth intensified her attack. The combination of fire and ice finally became too much for any of the three combatants to withstand. The energies collapsed upon each other, exploding, combusting, sending flame and snow every which way around the throne room and hurling Valdarnaweth, Arberish, and Elsa apart.

Anna, Kristoff, and Jansarnen dove to the floor in terror, fire and ice swirling about them unpredictably, shattering windows, blowing holes in the walls. Looking up, Anna gasped as, impossibly, Valdarnaweth stood, slowly advancing upon a dazed Elsa.

Over Kristoff and Jansarnen's objections, Anna rushed to the Empress, still sitting on the floor, her head in her hands, rocking back and forth. "Empress! Empress, please! Look at me!"

The Empress brought her eyes to Anna's, her gaze one of abject despair, rejection. "What am I?" she whispered. "I'm nothing! Nobody wants me! Nobody!"

Anna took the Empress's hand. "Elsa wants you," she said softly. "She has been through so much pain and suffering. If anyone can understand what you are going through, it's her."

The Empress shook her head, tears flooding her face. "I can't! Not after . . . Not after what I did to her!" She pointed to Valdarnaweth. "She's right! I am a monster! Unlovable!"

"No, you're not!" Anna said fiercely, shaking the Empress's shoulders. "Elsa knows you were lied to, that you were misled. It's not your fault. But if you want to make up for your mistakes, you need to help Elsa now." She looked at her sister, still struggling to stand. "Please, Empress! Please help her! You can stop Valdarnaweth! I know you can! You have to trust yourself!"

The retired Empress now stood directly over Elsa. The Snow Queen tried to stand, but her legs were exhausted, would not follow her commands. Valdarnaweth laughed mirthlessly.

"You stupid, foolish woman," she whispered. "Did you really think you could stop me? You know nothing of my power. You may have survived the last time, but I have weakened you. Now, you will truly taste the full power of my wrath. Farewell, Snow Queen."

Valdarnaweth raised her hands. Elsa closed her eyes, clearing her mind, preparing herself for death, as she knew she did not have the strength left to defend herself.

A terrified shriek filled the room. What? Elsa opened her eyes, gasping. Valdarnaweth was screaming, flame and ice pouring over her body. Incredulous, Elsa turned, trying to find the source of this new attack.

The Empress was on her feet, fire and cold flowing from her fingers, streaming over her grandmother's form. Her face was twisted in a cold glare of purest malice.

"Granddaughter!" Valdarnaweth gasped. "What . . . are . . . you doing?!"

"I am putting an end to your tyranny!" the Empress snarled. "You will no longer endanger the people of this continent. It all ends now!"

Valdarnaweth tried to resist, but her granddaughter's power was far greater than she had ever anticipated. "You . . . foolish . . . ungrateful . . ."

The Empress increased the intensity of her attack. Valdarnaweth's words disappeared, replaced solely with screams of agony. The once-proud Empress Emeritus fell to her knees, howling, writhing on the floor.

"Empress!" Elsa cried, her voice cracking. "That's enough! She has suffered enough!"

The Empress shook her head. "She deserves to die for what she has done! She has caused so much needless suffering! If anyone deserves death, it is her!"

Anna covered her mouth in horror, Kristoff and Jansarnen watching helplessly alongside her. Arberish pulled himself toward them, trying to get close enough to intervene, but lacking the strength to do anything.

Fighting the pain that threatened to consume her, Elsa forced herself to her feet. She staggered toward the Empress. "Empress, please! Don't give in to the darkness! Once you go down this path, you cannot recover! I know! I have almost given up hope myself!"

She looked at Anna, remembering the reason for her refusal to succumb those many times she had been tempted. "But then I remember why I refuse to fall. Because there are those who love me . . . unconditionally. Who bring out the best in me even when I cannot see it myself."

The Empress looked at Elsa, still sending her energy into Valdarnaweth. "Who do I have?" she asked, her face contorted with sorrow. "Who do I have to believe in me? I have nobody!"

Elsa shook her head. "That's not true! You don't have to be alone anymore! Please! Let me be there for you! Let me love you! Please . . . sister!"

To the Empress's astonishment, Elsa wrapped her arms around her, pulling her close, holding her in the tightest embrace she had ever experienced. The fire and ice disappeared as the Empress lowered her hands, too overcome with confusion, with unfamiliar feelings of comfort to continue her attack.

"Is . . . Is this what love feels like?" the Empress whispered, staring Elsa in the face. "Is this what it is to be wanted?"

Elsa nodded. "It is! This is what it is like to have people who care for you! To be loved!"

The Empress could take it no longer. She wrapped her arms around Elsa, returning the embrace, sobbing uncontrollably into Elsa's shoulder. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! For everything! I . . . I didn't know!"

"Shhh!" Elsa whispered, gingerly running her hand through the Empress's hair. "It's all right now. I'm here for you. I will always be here for you."

Anna stood, walking toward the two embracing monarchs. "I'm here for you too, Empress," she whispered. "You are my sister as well. If not by blood, then by love!"

The three women held each other tightly, refusing to let go of each other. Their peace, however, was interrupted by a harsh sound.

"You . . . fools!" Valdarnaweth whispered, coughing, blood pouring from her mouth. "You . . . know nothing of love! Love . . . makes you weak! Love . . . ruins you! You will lead our people . . . to their deaths!"

The Empress looked at her grandmother, her eyes filled not with anger, but with pity. "That is where you are wrong, Grandmother. That is where you have always been wrong. Love does not make me weak. It makes me strong! It reminds me of who I am, what I owe my people! Love . . ." She looked at Elsa and Anna. "Love makes me a better person."

Valdarnaweth smiled, laughing triumphantly. "Then . . . it is finished! Our race will come to an end! Everything our fathers worked for . . ."

"Will be made great once more in her," Elsa said. "You have lost, Valdarnaweth. It is over."

With a final act of defiance, Valdarnaweth rose to her knees. "We shall see about that!" She held her hand out, conjuring a single flame, allowing it to grow larger and larger. "Goodbye, Granddaughter. May your death be . . . painful as mine has been!"

She released the flames directly toward the three sisters, collapsing as she did, breathing her last.

"NO!" A figure leapt before the flame, absorbing the blow, flying across the room, landing painfully against the wall.

Elsa rushed to the figure, uncertain of what she would see. Kneeling before it, she gasped. "Jansarnen?!"

The mercenary's body was covered with intense burns, far too severe to be healed. Coughing, sputtering, he turned his head, smiling as he gazed upon Elsa's face. "'Ello, love," he whispered. "Did I surprise yeh?"

Elsa nodded, tears forming in her eyes. "Yes. Yes, you did! I didn't see that coming at all!"

Jansarnen smirked. "You now owe me . . . quadruple what you promised for that one, love!"

Elsa laughed, trying to remain strong. "You're going to be fine, Jansarnen. We . . . We'll get you to a healer. They can—"

"Oh, stop it, love," the mercenary said. "We both know . . . there's nothing that can be done."

Anna and Kristoff had rushed over. "No!" Anna gasped, taking Jansarnen's badly burned hand in her own. "No, Jansarnen! You can't do this!"

"It's all right, Princess," Jansarnen said, his eyes beginning to grow dim. "It's . . . nothin' at all." He glanced at Kristoff. "Take good care . . . of her, lad. This one's . . . a keeper."

Kristoff nodded, fighting back tears of his own. "I will. I swear."

He turned his gaze back to Elsa. "Yeh know, love . . . Yeh've spent all this time . . . worryin' about how yeh might hurt people . . . but . . . from what I've seen . . . yeh know how to bring out . . . the best in them." He paused. "Like yeh did . . . with me."

His breath caught in his throat, his eyes widening, as if beholding something indescribably amazing. "Blimey!" he whispered. "That's a neat trick . . ."

Jansarnen's eyes closed, air leaving his body like morning fog on a cool autumn day. Anna felt his hand go limp in her own. Tears fell down her face as she, Elsa, and Kristoff gazed somberly at the mercenary who had grown so dear to them over the past few days now lay still upon the black shine of the obsidian floor.

AN: More to come.