Iduna regained consciousness to the sound of singing.

Am I dead? That was the first thought that came to her mind; small wonder, for she could clearly remember the fire smiting her before everything had gone black.

The sheer despair that came with the thought made her refuse to open her eyes, and for a while she remained crawled up and shut-eyed as she silently wept. She never really had her hopes high up, but to come this far only to fail after all was too much for a sixteen-year-old girl's mind.

Never again would she be able to thank her spirit friends who have kept her company through her loneliest times. Never again would she set foot on her home alive, to even know if her family and friends were alive and well. Never again would she return to Arendelle and Agnarr, who had given her a new home when she'd been in the deepest of despair.

What if it was all for the best? As long as there were spirits that followed her callings she was potential danger to any humanfolk anyway. Maybe, if she just perished here, everyone else will finally be free.

The idea didn't make her feel better, but it did calm her enough to hear the singing again – and this time her eyes snapped open in recognition.

It was the traditional Northuldra song of welcome.

Iduna scrambled to her feet, only to blink in confusion; something was wrong with her sight. Everything was so blurred, as if she was seeing through smoke.

Smoke… was this her vision through fire? Was she seeing a glimpse of the future?

"Maybe I'm not dead after all," muttered Iduna as she rubbed her eyes, though the hazy vision did not relent. "Or maybe I am, and this is the last thing I see before the flames eat me up."

Well, either way she wasn't about to miss it.

Squinting as best as she could, Iduna managed to deduce where she was in a moment, for she had been here before; she was standing on a tall ledge with a narrow road, beyond which she knew the entrance to the Enchanted Forest would be.

Hurrying onward to see what her home would look like in the vision, Iduna's breath was caught in her throat, for even with her clouded sight she could see that the Mist was not there.

Now she was almost afraid to believe that the fire was showing her this. Will the forest eventually be freed? If so, when? How far in the future was this?

And then something else caught her eye, again something too big to dodge even her hazy eyes: the imposing forms of Earth, towering over the four totems that signed the entrance into the Northurlands.

The spirits are free too! The thought sent a shiver of glee all over Iduna, making her desperate to see further. It seemed that many people have gathered in the large clearing just outside the entrance. Though it was too blurry to see, Iduna's heart skipped a beat as she took in the beige leather outfits of the Northuldra, mingled with the various-colored clothes that belonged to the Arendellians. There seemed to be a reindeer game going on in the center, just like the day when she escaped the forest five years ago.

Arendelle and the Northuldra, her two homes, joined in harmony.

Iduna didn't realize that she was crying until she felt the tears welling up in her eyes, messing up her already impaired sight even more. Busily wiping them off, Iduna almost rolled down the ledge to see the celebration up close. She was still too amazed to believe that this will really happen someday, but for now she didn't care; she was just happy to be able to drink in this sight here and now.

At the center of the clearing there seemed to be two figures, one in a green dress and one in white. Iduna's vision was still too marred to see their faces, but she noticed that the green-clothed woman was wearing a tiara on her head. The Queen of Arendelle, perhaps?

And then she turned her attention to the other woman – who was holding a familiar blue lizard in her hands. With a gasp of shock Iduna recognized Fire, rubbing itself so playfully in the mysterious woman's hand. Noticing the sign affection Wind arrived in a swirl of leaves and its telltale whistle, wreathing itself around the woman in white as if pleading for attention. Even Water trotted over and rested its head against her shoulder, though its liquescent body was covered in what seemed to be frost.

A human that is loved by the spirits… Iduna had heard of such a being from her family legends.

"The Fifth Spirit," breathed the young girl as she took off her scarf, the only Northuldra heirloom she had brought to Arendelle. Sewn in it were the symbols of the four elementals along with a fifth one – the one who shall arrive one day to be a bridge between nature and humanfolk.

She still wasn't close enough to see anyone's faces, but it was obvious that the two women were enjoying each other's' company, and a pang of inexplicable pain threatened to overcome Iduna. She wanted so desperately to go to them, to see what they looked like…

But it had seemed that the fire had revealed enough. The haze that impaired her vision began to thicken, and soon Iduna found herself being engulfed in darkness again. But just before the blackness claimed her she thought she imagined the two women turning in her direction, and were saying something to her, a single word:

"Mother…"

A splash of water jolted Iduna awake, and her eyes shot open with a gasp – her vision was clear this time.

"Are you alright?"

Iduna almost leaped up in surprise at Agnarr's voice sounding behind her, and she whirled around to see that it was the Morphling, having assumed the young King's form as he(?) looked down at her with concern.

"You saved me from the fire," realized Iduna as she looked down at her dripping self, parts of her body and clothes singed by the fire but otherwise pretty intact. The volcanic bomb that had torched her hadn't even cooled off yet, which meant that the vision really had been a flash of a moment – though for Iduna it had felt like minutes had passed.

The memory of the vision brought a flash of warmth through her body; the Northurland freed and restored, peace and friendship between her people and Arendelle, the arrival of the Fifth Spirit…

It wasn't what she asked or expected to see, but the fire of Ahtohallan had shown her a wonderful future. And it dawned on her that she has a part to play in making that future come true as well.

"Well, it looks like you've seen a lot more than what you've bargained for," spoke a cool, low voice, and Iduna looked up to see that Vanessa was observing her with a strangely gleeful look.

"I promised you to share what Ahtohallan told me," began Iduna, but to her surprise Vanessa shook her head.

"No need for that; I've already seen it through your eyes," chuckled the sea witch as one of her eyes suddenly glowed yellow. "Courtesy of my magic. That vision was precious, though you won't realize what it means for you yet."

"You mean you understand it?" Asked back Iduna as she shakily got to her feet, only to stagger in surprise as a violent tremor shook the entire island, followed by a savage roar.

"I'd love to stay around and explain it, but I'm afraid the dragon's quite not finished yet," pointed out Vanessa as she glanced upward. The Ice Dragon was still enraged, though its objective has now turned to the volcano as it spewed lava and fireballs at the intruder. Now its deadly ice breath was striking the river of fire, cooling it into the same black stone that covered the rest of the island – besides the newly formed ice, of course.

"Well, now we know what people say about this place," sighed Vanessa as she and Iduna beheld the devastation that was unfolding. "Every time someone reaches here it changes forever… who knew that a change would come in the shape of an angry dragon?"

Iduna only shuddered, remembering that Maleficent had told her something similar back at the Moors. But there was no time to mourn over the sacred place for her people being desecrated.

"I have to go back to Arendelle," she decided with resolution. She was aware that, for the present, the Arendellians remembered the Northuldra and the spirits with fear and treachery. She didn't know any details about the battle that had caused it, so she had no chance of undoing that prejudice on her own. But maybe someday, far in the future, there may be people who will be less judgmental to her people and more willing to open up.

Maybe it was her destiny to stay in Arendelle and watch over people who believe in peace rather than distrust. Perhaps she will teach her own children that, if she ever gets a chance. Then, someday, when the Fifth Spirit arrives to free the forest, her people will find the Arendellians in friendship again.

As for the spirits… Iduna was still unsure of the possibility of having dangerous spirits following her calls. But she hadn't made one in a long while, and now that she had a strong reason to return she could convince herself that she could find a way to overcome it, perhaps together with the spirits that do mean well.

And, with a flash of embarrassment, Iduna realized that even without those reasons her heart wanted to go back. Finally admitting it did take a huge load off her back.

"I suppose you do," admitted Vanessa, looking out vaguely toward the shore. "And look; it looks like your ride is back."

Iduna looked up at that, and almost cried out in relief as she saw the Mist Knight racing back towards the island at breakneck speed, the Sylph flanking its fellow air spirit to create a tailwind. The Ice Dragon was too busy wrestling the volcano to notice its opponent's return, and it took full advantage of the distraction as it landed right in front of Iduna with a solid thud.

"We have to go back!" Gasped Iduna as she practically launched herself onto the mist horse. Taking one last look at Vanessa, she didn't forget to add: "Thank you for bringing me here."

"That was the part of the deal," shrugged Vanessa dismissively, and whatever she was saying next was lost to Iduna as the Mist Knight took off the island, racing across the raging Dark Sea to return the Spiritcaller back to Arendelle.

"Interesting…" said 'Vanessa' to herself as she took in everything she had seen in Iduna's vision. "To think that the girl's offspring will grow to be a spirit of such power…!"

As she spoke she began walking back into the churning waters instead of calling out for her chariot like before. And as she did that, her 'legs' began to split and bloat up, as well as her entire body. Brown hair shortened and turned white, large violet eyes became black and smaller…

By the time she was completely submerged, the figure of the beautiful human woman was gone, replaced by an enormous half-woman half-octopus creature, black magic radiating from the very fiber of her being.

"And you just let her go, Mistress Ursula?" Asked one of the Moray eels that had been pulling her chariot before, its single yellow eye gleaming with malice.

"Oh, we will meet again, Flotsam," cackled Ursula lightly. "She is of no use to me now, but when that day comes… she will belong to me, and by that her daughter as well. With the human-spirit's aid, I shall truly become Master of the Sea!"

Her ambitious announcement was answered by a menacing snarl, and the Sea Witch turned around to see that the Ice Dragon had completely frozen the volcano shut, and was now eyeing the new powerful opponent hungrily.

"Touchy, touchy," sighed Ursula as she ignored the dragon, walking into the water with a derisive flick of her hand. The Ice Dragon, enraged by the witch's indifference and gleeful at witnessing her exposed back, didn't hesitate to pounce like a cat would hunt a mouse –

- only to roar in shock as enormous tentacles suddenly shot out of the sea to wrap themselves around the beast.

"Feast on it, Kraken," purred Ursula with a dark laugh as she completely vanished under the waves, shortly followed by the entangled Ice Dragon as the Kraken dragged its helpless victim into the depths.

It took less than an hour before Ahtohallan was devoid of visitors as it had been before. But Iduna's short visit had changed the island forever, as her eldest daughter would find out 29 years later.

You might've guessed, but a sequel is scheduled after this fic is finished, and some of the characters that appeared here will have a recurring role in that sequel. I've barely started on its draft, and it'll take a really long time before I actually begin posting it, but someday, I think, what happened in this chapter and some others can be explained more clearly.