Hiram, the tone and hostility were unmistakable.

Isten, Hiram replied. The presence left. Nothing more needed to be said - soon they would meet face to face for the first time in years.

The inside of the castle was bare of decoration. No suits of armor lined the stone hallways and the floor was devoid of any decorative rugs. The torches provided light, but not heat - Hiram still felt a the chill from the colder northern climate.

Beside him, Elsa shivered.

"Are you alright, Elsa?" Hiram asked. He had learned much about her and her abilities since they met. One of the first was that her powers made her immune to some of the most extreme cold in the world. With that protection now gone, she was vulnerable.

The room buckled and rocked as a sharp pain erupted in the back of Hiram's head. He staggered and almost fell but for a strong hand steadying him. His ears rang and his head throbbed. Of course, he could no longer absorb blows to the head.

"Silence traitor," the guard holding him said.

It felt oddly familiar to stand at the doors leading to Isten's throne room. The sense that they were already condemned permeated the air like a colorless fog. Whatever would happen to them had already been decided, this was just a formality. Without a word the doors opened and they walked through without hesitating.

In stark contrast to the forbidding halls of seamless stone outside, the throne room held some of the most expensive decorations and relics Hiram had ever seen. It was even more lavish than the last fortress Hiram had destroyed all those years ago.

With a start, Hiram realized that the party had stopped in the middle of the throne room in perfect unison. When had he been told to stop? Did Isten use his powers for ensuring the smooth operation of ceremonies now?

He tried sparing a glance at Elsa but his neck refused to obey him. Instead, he found himself kneeling before the tyrant with the guards and Elsa. From the way Elsa's eyes were widening, Hiram was worried that she would soon start panicking.

"You may rise," Isten said. The guards stood but Hiram and Elsa remained where they were. Silence hung thick in the air. Isten slowly stood and Hiram was suddenly struck by how old he seemed. He didn't see a man at the height of his power and glory, but an old king on the verge of losing what strength he had left.

Hiram noted all of this in a second, but it was long enough for Isten to latch onto his train of thought. He felt the man's glare even in his mind, mixed with anger, desperation and resignation.

"Leave us," Isten commanded. Without a word everyone except the two prisoners quietly turned and filed out. They didn't even spare the captives a second glance. Only Isten's old servant remained. "You may stand."

Invisible chains immediately loosened in Hiram's mind and he found himself back in control of his legs. He shakily got to his feet and swayed from the leftover dizziness of being struck. Cool, almost cold fingers touched his arm and the shock banished the more intense effects. Hiram gave Elsa a small smile in thanks.

"I'm alright," she said, answering his earlier question.

"Hiram of the Derelict and Elsa of Arendelle," Isten said. "You both have become the greatest obstacles I have faced in ridding the world of our cursed legacy. However, I do not have the hardness of heart to kill you."

Still not willing to stoop that low, Hiram thought.

"That's right, boy," Isten said. "I have only killed once and that showed me the anguish and suffering a person endures when they experience it. I have no desire to inflict such pain on others, no matter what they have done to me."

"You're a saint," Hiram said sarcastically.

The comment didn't seem to phase Isten as much as it would have in the past. "Just a man doing what is necessary."

"Necessary for what?" Elsa asked.

Isten turned his grey to the young queen. "Necessary to eliminate one source of power mankind has fought over for millennia. When the last of us die in a few generations, one great cause of conflict will have been removed from human history."

"There will be others," Elsa said. Hiram knew she was right. Evil people will always find ways to gain power and use it to crush others. Ending one source would just cause them to look for another.

"Of course there will be others," Isten said irritably. "I don't have the kind of power to control what they want to kill each other over. The only thing I can control is the part our own kind plays in the grand scheme of things."

"Which is no part at all," Hiram said. This much he had known for years.

"Not anymore," Isten said, turning his attention back to him. "You two have destroyed any chance I had of completing my work." Pressure built up in Hiram's mind. "You, Hiram, could have been my successor. You could have taken the reigns of this great endeavor and seen it through in your lifetime. But you chose to contest it and jeopardized everything I worked for."

"You," He said to Elsa. "You exposed us to the world when the last fairy tales of wielders were fading away into obscurity. Now the old legends are being reborn for this age. There are scholars in China looking into their own history for signs of wielders living among them." He shook his head. "It'll take centuries for the damage to be undone."

His shoulders sagged as if a great weight fell on them. "Sorren is no better than a soldier. Matej and Harriet are both capable, but they are too addicted to my powers to take my place. You both have destroyed my legacy. And for that I will destroy yours."

He gestured for his servant and the old man stepped forward, his soft voice filling every inch of the throne room. "Hiram and Elsa. For your crimes against the Mind Lord and for undermining the safety of millions of people in exposing your powers to the world, you have been sentenced to a lifetime of bondage in the dungeons of the Mind Lord's stronghold. When you die, you will be given unmarked graves as a sign that your existence is to be unremembered in the annals of history."

When he finished, the doors once again opened and the soldiers walked in and led them away. Hiram and Elsa tried to resist when they were separated but their efforts were futile. Without their powers, they were helpless.

After Hiram was locked in his room, though he believed 'cell' would be the more appropriate term, he placed his hands on the wooden door and leaned against it until his mind and legs turned numb. He then looked at his new surroundings, noting the simple bed, dresser, and narrow door leading to a latrine. A small desk with a few sheets of paper sat near the tiny window.

He sat down heavily on the bed and sent a silent plea. "Please, Lord," he prayed. "Please help us."

-}=-|-={-

Besides the barest necessities Elsa's room had, she was also given a vanity table with a mirror. It was shabby and starting to wear away but she could still see her reflection clearly. Her makeup usually was ice based. She never really took the time to learn how to apply the complicated shades during her years of isolation.

Now that she thought about, Elsa felt that her current predicament was not very different than the period of her life locked in her room. Except now she would never see her family again. Tears ran down her cheeks, sparkling slightly in the dim candle light.

She laid her hands on her lap and rested her head on the vanity table, praying for a chance to escape.