Interlude – The Heroes

For the first time since this fight began, we have a plan. And I don't mean a plan to make it to tomorrow, to keep fighting one more day. I mean a plan to win. To endure. To survive.

Elsa's diary

Sadden's manor,

Arendelle

October 11th, 1843

Elsa sat on the table that they would be meeting at shortly, turned to look at Hans, who sat in one of the chairs. She glanced over at the clock set into the wall. Ten minutes. The others would start trickling in soon.

"Anyway," Hans continued, "do you think it could really work?"

"Yes," Elsa said idly, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. "I refuse to believe that our ancestors were so barbaric that wargates could only be activated with a wizard's sacrifice. We may have forgotten the way, but it's nothing that we can't re-learn."

Hans rubbed at his chin. It was a habit, Elsa noticed, that he'd picked up ever since he'd grown a full beard. "Well, in the grand scheme of how difficult the things that we're trying to accomplish are, I suppose that this is probably on the easier end. I'm not sure that's saying much."

They lapsed into silence for a moment, Elsa still twirling her hair. She realized what she was doing and stopped herself, then quickly wove her hair into a French braid and let it rest over her left shoulder.

"She's hurting," Elsa said abruptly. "I mean, obviously you knew that. But…"

"But nothing," Hans continued, smiling grimly. "She's right. Kristoff was a good man. He didn't deserve to die. And if either of us deserved a second chance, it definitely wasn't me. I mean, I guess this is my third chance. Maybe the fair thing to do would have been to give us each two."

Elsa sighed. "But you know that it doesn't work that way, and so does Anna. It's… more complicated than that."

"Yes, but her feelings are valid," Hans said, leaning forwards and clasping his hands together on the table. "I'm lucky that you ever forgave me. Most people would be more like your sister."

Why had she forgiven Hans? How had a man who once tried to kill her so quickly became a man she considered an indispensable friend? The answer, of course, was that relationships are complicated. It didn't seem so strange to Elsa, who'd still loved her parents enough to be devastated by their loss, even as they condemned her to solitary confinement. Who'd loved her sister, yet still tried to push her away, when that confinement ended. Love and hate could coexist. Sometimes, they were opposite sides of the same coin.

"Well, regardless, I'm sorry for what she said to you. I'm very glad that you're back, Hans."

He smiled. "Thank you, Elsa. I'm glad to be back. And don't begrudge Anna her feelings. Her passion is an asset to us in these dark times. She reminds us what's worth fighting for."

His face became more somber. "And… And losing Kristoff is a great blow. I mean it sincerely when I say that he was a good man. He was many things that I could only hope to ever be."

Elsa's reply was cut short as the door opened, and Charles Vander hobbled in, face a masked scowl. The elderly man had broken a leg during the attack on the city, and though Odette had done her best to heal it, his age had made it difficult. He would likely suffer a limp the rest of his life. Elsa smiled and slid off of the table, walking over to help him to his seat. Her smile broadened as Odette and Kariena entered behind him, and then Anna after that.

Anna sat herself as far as she could from Hans, though Elsa could read embarrassment in her face. She was ashamed of her earlier outburst, but she was a prideful girl sometimes. An apology would feel wrong, especially because many of the things that she'd said were at least partially true. Elsa walked to the head of the room and thought over her remarks another time as they waited for the last arrival to show.

Arno Belgold Montaigne was the last through the door, and he nodded apologetically to them. "Please excuse my tardiness, friends. I was just listening to young Captain Domrez voice his concerns about the melting of the iceblade."

Elsa frowned. "Something to worry about? If things grow urgent, I could probably find a way to strengthen pieces that are about to fall."

The giant, half-hemisphere of ice that still covered about half of the city on the southwestern side was melting faster than they'd expected due to a few unseasonably hot days in a row, threatening to crush abandoned buildings under massive, falling chunks of ice.

"Nothing urgent yet, miss," Montaigne said, finding a seat. "Captain Domrez merely wished to inform me that some of his men are drawing up a topological chart of its weaknesses."

Elsa nodded. "Very well, then. Are we ready to begin?" She glanced around the chamber. Almost immediately, Kariena spoke.

"Um, I'm sorry if this is a silly question, but… when we were preparing for the attack on the city, we had a bunch of mission-control meetings like this, but at all of those, we had a bunch more administrative and military people. Is there a reason that they're all missing?"

Elsa nodded. "The unfortunate truth is that many of them were killed. But that isn't the only thing. We'll get to that. Anything else?"

Hans crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. Nobody else spoke.

"Very well," Elsa said. "I've brought you all here because you are my closest friends and advisors, and the people that I trust the most. I'm about to make a radical proposal, and I need you all on board. But I'm also open to change, and to iteration. We're all in this together, and I want your input. Okay?"

One by one, they nodded.

"Okay," Elsa said, and then took a deep breath. "During the time that I was dominated by Everdark, I was made to serve his campaign in the Sea of Stars. It's not a direct analogue, but that's sort of the closest thing out there to what most people think of as heaven."

She inadvertently smiled at how ridiculous her words would seem to her own ears even just a year ago.

"In the Sea of Stars, Everdark used a series of powerful, magical portals to transport his forces large distances. They were called wargates. To activate a wargate required the soul of a wizard sacrifice, but I'm not convinced that it's the only way. If I had to guess, I would assume that ancients once knew other methods, and that they've just been lost.

"If we're serious about being able to save the world, then we can't afford to be at such a disadvantage, fighting an enemy whose forces can redeploy anywhere in the blink of an eye. We need access to these portals, too."

"What, so you plan to try to capture some?" Charles Vander said.

Elsa smiled. "No, I think that we should start trying to make them."

"But you just said that we don't know how," the elderly man said, frowning.

"Which is perfect," Elsa said with a smirk, "because it gives us a nice stretch goal."

Several of the room's faces stared back at her incredulously. Hans smirked.

"We're going to start looking for a way," Elsa said. "Odette, this will be your primary directive. Do whatever research you can, and find us a way."

Odette paled slightly, but nodded.

"By the end of this year, I want us to have functioning wargates to every major city that still stands against Everdark. They will be necessary if we hope to stand a chance against its overwhelming advantage of numbers.

"But we will need more to unite the world than just portals and a common enemy." Elsa said, growing more confident and excited now. "If the world is going to stand together against Everdark, we need to join together. There can be no question about authority, no dispute over our objectives. The world must unite under a common rule. Under one rule."

"You're talking about some sort of, what, an empire?" Asked Vander.

"An empire," Elsa said. "One person to rule us all. Someone who has the heart to lead us, and the vision to guide us. Someone who knows how to keep sight of what needs to be done, and someone who knows how to do what is right."

Around the room, everyone's eyes were on Elsa. She inadvertently smiled, because she wasn't about to proclaim herself empress.

"Most importantly, I think, our leader should not be a witch or a wizard," Elsa said. "Everdark can access the mind of anyone with access to magic, so we would be a fool to risk compromising the leader of the world to darkness. That is why I think that our empress should be you, Anna."

She turned to look at her shocked sister. She hadn't told Anna what she was going to suggest beforehand, of course; she'd known that Anna would have dismissed the idea out of hand. She wanted Anna to hear the opinions of the others.

"Me?" Anna said, voice sounding small.

"I think it's the only obvious choice. Our heritage will lend you legitimacy, and your lack of magic will ensure that your orders are trusted," Elsa said, and then turned to look at the others. "What say you all?"

Hans glanced around with interest, waiting for the others to speak first.

"I think that it's a logical choice," Odette said. "While you were in the Sea of Stars, Anna did an admirable job leading Arendelle."

"Yes, but I had Charles to help with the administration," Anna interjected. "I'm sorry, but I can't –"

"Well, that's the thing about being empress, right?" Kariena cut in. "You can just find someone to do all the mundane stuff for you. You'd be focused on leading and inspiring us."

"But I'm just… I'm just ordinary." Anna said. "Why not have you do it, Elsa?"

"You are anything but ordinary, dear sister," Elsa said. "And as for your suggestion, I couldn't possibly lead us. The empire will need me on the front lines, fighting. I won't have time to hold the fabric of the world's nations together. Besides, when we were young, Agnarr gave you all the same lessons as me. You know more about statecraft than many kings and queens."

"I concur," Charles Vander said, nodding his head. "I think that the princess would make an admirable choice. She will have time to learn administration, but what people need now is someone with the charisma to lead." He turned to look at her. "And you have that, princess."

"You sound like you've all been planning this," Anna said, surprised.

"This is the first time that any of them have heard it," Elsa said. No need to risk offending Anna by mentioning that Hans had been a part of the deliberation as well. "But they can spot a good idea."

Anna looked around the room, and each person nodded when she met their eyes. Finally, she looked to Hans. He smiled, and then inclined his head slightly.

"All right," Anna said, seeming surprised by her own words. "All right, I'll do it."

Elsa smiled. "Stand, Anna Siguror."

Her sister frowned, but did as asked.

Elsa knelt, facing her sister, and spoke. "Empress Anna Siguror, I pledge fealty to you. I trust in your wisdom to guide our people, and swear to follow your commands on pain of death. Lead us to glory."

For a few moments, the room was silent. Then Odette stood, pushed back her chair, and knelt towards Anna.

"Empress Anna Siguror, I pledge fealty to you. I trust in your wisdom to guide our people, and swear to follow your commands on pain of death. Lead us to peace."

One by one, every other person in the room swore themselves to Empress Anna Siguror's service.

Finally, they all stood again, and Elsa smiled at her sister. Silent tears streaked the young redhead's cheeks. May the Lost Immortals bless your rule, sister. May you be a better leader than I ever was.

"Well, empress?" Elsa asked. "What now?"

Anna looked surprised to be asked, but she quickly recovered and set her jaw. "The first thing we need to do is ensure that everyone has been evacuated from under the iceblade. We should have enough able-bodied army men to be able to get it done in a few days. After that, we'll organize a memorial ceremony for those lost in the fighting and dispose of their remains with the most dignity that we can."

She looked around the room. "And after that, I suppose that we'd better do an official coronation."

She cast an uncertain glance towards Elsa, who smiled and nodded. Anna took a deep breath. She was going to have to get used to being the center of attention.

"Alright, let's go save the world."

The End

of Trials of Light and Darkness

Volume II: Words of the Protector

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The Trials of Light and Darkness saga will continue with the short story Wargate, which launches July 30th.

Then, the last three arcs of the fantasy epic will be detailed in TLD Volume III: Immortal, which launches on August 27th.

The war against darkness has just begun.

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