A/N: I'm sorry for the very late update, but yes, I'm back. If you ask me what happened, well, life happens. But Frozen 2 gave me the inspirations I needed to finally finish this story. And I'm quite lucky that some of the plot elements in Frozen 2 meshed with what I had in mind, so I'll be incorporating those into the story. Stay tuned!
Like her sister, she was never one to sweat easily, but droplets were now starting to form on Anna's forehead. Mountains upon mountains of documents awaiting the princess' signature. The seemingly endless task has started to take its toll on the Princess Regent. Provision for new army recruits, increment of taxes from the people to support the ongoing war... Truly, it was no understatement to say that war was every monarch's nightmare.
She remembered what Hans told her about war.
"What do you think would happen to the soldiers that would lose their lives in war? They have families too. Can you imagine families torn apart, fathers and sons, never to meet each other again? Can you bear such a burden, knowing that it's your decision that lets such a misfortune to befall those families?"
She felt foolish now that she had experienced it first-hand…
Anna let out a sigh.
"Anna, are you okay?"
From across her, Olaf the Snowman was looking at her with concerned eyes.
"I'm fine Olaf, thank you," Anna smiled. "I guess all work and no play makes Anna a dull girl," she breathed in deeply and stretched. "I'm just a little tired," she added, smiling at the snowman who was tilting his head quizzically.
"Oh!" the snowman beamed, "in that case, do you want some chocolate?"
Olaf darted towards the coffee table across the room and grabbed a tray of dark coloured candy balls, which he hoisted overhead.
"Thank you, Olaf," Anna chuckled, reaching for one of the candies. The bittersweet taste that filled her mouth managed to alleviate some of the pent-up stress weighing her head.
The Princess looked around the study. Elsa's study was one of the rooms that she's been into the least for the entirety of her life in Arendelle castle. She wasn't one for study rooms; outdoor picnics and adventures would always beat being confined in a cramped room. But now that she had no choice on the matter, Anna couldn't help but marvel at how neatly it was arranged. From books, maps, to documents… She knew Elsa was a neat freak, but this was something else. Their talents when it came to organizing really were too different. Which made Anna feel even more dejected.
Oh Elsa, how I wish you were here… There's still too much I don't know about managing all this…
"Say, Olaf?"
"Yes, Anna?"
"You have this magical connection with Elsa, right? Can you know what she is thinking right now?"
"No, I don't think so Anna. Why?"
Anna sighed. "I was wondering if you could somehow communicate with her… All this work is killing me. Honestly, I don't even know if half of the documents I've signed are even needed in the first place."
She drew another deep breath. "I guess I'm just not suited to running a country. I wish she'll be back soon."
The snowman hung his head. "Oh… If it's about that… I don't think I can help you with that, Anna, I'm sorry. But hey, at least I know Elsa's fine! And I think, I can feel another presence growing more and more powerful."
"Presence?"
"Yes, it was really small at first I almost couldn't notice it. But day by day, it keeps growing stronger. And it follows Elsa wherever she goes."
Anna's pupil dilated. "Could it be… her baby?"
To Anna's sudden amusement, the snowman too look shocked. "Oh my gosh, you're right! Elsa IS pregnant!"
They both laughed. It's funny; the mere knowledge of her sister being safe and sound took almost all the burden out of her mind. With renewed vigor, Anna set her sight once again to the unfinished work before her.
"Alright, that's enough break," she huffed and reached for another stack of documents towards her.
"Here, let me help you," Olaf said, pushing the stack of documents, which Anna received with a wink. But before the princess could continue, a knock from beyond the study interrupted them.
"Come in!" Anna called.
The door swung open and in came the Prime Minister of Arendelle, who looked rather ghastly and out of breath.
"*pant* I'm sorry to interrupt *pant* Your Highness *pant* but there's an urgent news."
"No, it's fine, Prime Minister Ludvig, what is it?"
"Senadon has fallen...! Nordgard has taken over Corona…!"
Screams. Burning heat. The smell of smoke and blood filled his nostrils on his every step. Corpses. Prisoners.
The great streets of Senadon, now in ruins. Though the battle itself was swift and decisive, it was the aftermath that caused the most damage.
"The battle is over!" Hans kept shouting at the citizens of Corona as he marched down the city. "Surrender yourself peacefully to us, and you will be spared!"
To the army of Nordgard, he commanded, "Do not harm those who surrenders! We do not sack this city! I will personally execute those who step out of the line!"
As restrained as it was, thanks to Hans' efforts, the savagery of the White Wolf Army of Nordgard was nearly inexorable. A large part of him wished for this brutality to just… end.
"NOOO!"
A high-pitched scream pierced his ear. From the side of his eyes, he saw the silhouette of a young girl, pinned down by a White Wolf Soldier!
"No, please STOP!" the girl kept yelling, helplessly flailing at the soldier who was on top of her.
"Not so fast, my pretty!" the soldier grinned lecherously. "We're going to have some fun first."
"Please stop, I beg you…" Tears started to fall down her cheeks.
"Hans… please, you're hurting me…"
Elsa's face. Glistening with tears. The surfaced memory brought Hans into a blinding rage. Swift as the wind, he unsheathed his sword, and…
*THWACK*
Lopped the soldier's head off with a single stroke. Blood spurted out of the soldier's stump, spraying onto the unfortunate young woman below him.
"EEK!" she shrieked, her face and body covered in blood. Terror etched her face as the armored and masked man stood before her, sword coated in blood.
"Go," Hans commanded, wiping the blood off his sword and sheathing it, "I won't save you a second time."
Still shaking, the young girl picked herself up, clutching her ragged clothings. She then darted off without looking back.
Hans turned his gaze on the Nordgardian soldiers nearby, whose attentions were now onto him.
"I have said that this city is not to be sacked," Hans hissed, "Ignore my orders and you too shall meet the same fate. Am I understood?"
"Yes, Your Honor!"
A thin smile formed on the lips behind the steel mask…
"A pleasure to meet you, Your Majesties. I am General Hennings of the White Wolf Army of Nordgard."
The throne room, splattered with blood, was in a complete disarray. Marks of gunshots and blades stretched across every surface. Bodies of the Coronan Royal Guard were scattered, lifeless. There in the center of the bloodbath stood the Coronan Royalty, their postures undaunted and defiant, even though a fierce battle has just raged around them.
"A shame. To have sullied the throne room that stood pristine for thousand of years," said the general, stepping closer towards the Royalty. "A real shame," he stopped right in front of the king. "You should have pledged your allegiance to us from the beginning. Then none of this," he made a sweeping gesture across the room, "would have happened, Your Majesty King Tomas."
"I would see myself dead before bowing to your uncivilized beast of a king," spat the King of Corona, "We have issued our surrender. Command your men to stay put and stop harming my people."
"Ah, but I'm afraid you are not in a position to make demands, Your Majesty," the general smiled maliciously. "The time to make demands passed long ago. Now that we have taken over your city, we can do as we please to it, can we not?"
"You fiend- Ugh!" King Tomas reacted in anger, but a blow to the stomach from the general's elite guard stopped him short.
"Father!" Rapunzel shrieked.
"Ah-ah, that would be unwise," the general held up a finger, noting the furious expression in Eugene's face. "I'll let you in to a secret. I'm feeling rather generous today, so why don't we wrap this up?"
The King looked quizzically.
"What do you mean?"
"Well conquering a country is one thing but keeping it is another matter entirely. Pledge your support and all of your resources to Nordgard and I shall spare you. And your family."
The King of Corona was silent. He slowly turned his head to his wife, then Rapunzel and Eugene. Their silent nods were all the affirmations he needed.
"Never," he hissed defiantly.
"Well that's a shame," the general sighed, lifting his flintlock and pointed it at the king's head, "You will be missed, King Tomas."
Just as the execution was about to take place, the door to the throne room swung open with a loud bang.
In came the armored Magister.
"Magister Jeigan!" the general exclaimed, "You surprise me!"
"What happened here?" Hans demanded the general, ignoring his earlier statement.
"Well you see, Your Honor, King Tomas here refused to pledge his allegiance to us. By the express orders of King Vaynord, we are to summarily execute him, are we not?"
"I see," Hans approached the King, "Is that true, Your Majesty. You will not bow down to Nordgard to spare your family, and your people, all this pain?"
"Not on my life," King Tomas growled, "I know what kind of man your king is. Human lives are just playthings to him. And I refuse to let his wretched claws control my people."
"Really? Even though we will kill you anyways and take over the control of your country?"
"Try as you might, you will only kill a man," the King stared aggressively. "The people of Corona will endure. We will fight you from the shadows, so long as any of us are alive."
Hans glanced at General Hennings, who shrugged.
"Shame," the general said, handing the gun over to the Magister.
"Shame indeed," Hans said, lifting the gun.
But it was not the King he aimed at. And the general's eyes widened.
*BANG*
With blinding speed, Hans dropped the gun and drew his sword, slashing at the nearest Nordgardian guard surrounding them. His throat ripped, the guard was dead before he touched the ground. Still in shock, two other guards did not even get to draw their swords before Hans' own struck them squarely in their vitals, killing them. The fourth was about to draw his sword from the scabbard when Hans' blade separated his head from his neck. The final one drew his blade and struck back at the Magister, but did not manage to put up any meaningful resistance before he too fell to the Magister's blade.
"So here's what happened: General Hennings and his guards came into the throne room, expecting your surrender and pledge of allegiance," Hans said, sheathing his sword. "But you, in your desperation, decided to blow yourselves up with him. And thus ends the resistance of Corona."
"Have you lost your mind!?" the King shouted. What just happened before him was incomprehensible, to say the least.
Eugene grabbed a sword from one of the fallen guards and pointed it at Hans.
"Mad or not, this man has just saved us a lot of trouble, Father," he said. "Come, I will be your opponent."
"I just spared your lives," Hans growled. "Do not dally here and flee. Save yourselves."
"And am I to believe that the moment we turn our back on you, you will not attack us?" Eugene sneered. "How do I know this is not just some sick joke to you?"
Hans' answer came in a swift stroke, knocking the sword out of Eugene's hands.
"You waste time. I would have killed all of you if I had the intention to. There will be more guards coming here soon. Make haste!"
"I will not leave my people-"
"King Tomas! Queen Rosa!" Hans bellowed, shocking the Royal Family of Corona back into reality, "Do not let pride give you pause! You know King Vaynord will have this country under his control, with you dead or alive! Flee and save your lives to fight another day!"
The Royal Family looked at each other silently.
"Father, Mother," Rapunzel said finally, "He's right. As long as we are alive, we can still fight. Let us survive another day."
The King and Queen finally relented.
"There is a secret passage behind the throne. Let us pass through there," the King said quietly.
Without looking at their masked savior, the King and Queen turned to leave.
"I don't know who you are," Rapunzel whispered. "But thank you for saving us." She too turned to leave.
Eugene was last.
"Don't think this is over. We will take back this country, or die trying!"
Hans stared silently at the disappearing figures of the Coronan Royals. Only when he was sure they had departed, he reached for his satchel and pulled out a few black orbs. With lightning fast reflexes, he threw four orbs into the corners of the room and darted towards the door.
The explosion and flames that resulted engulfed the room, and now only he knows the truth of what happened amidst the smithereens…
Corona has fallen! Thousands of Citizens Dead! The Royal Family Presumed Missing or Dead!
Elsa sighed as she read the headline for the fifth time. Nothing seemed capable to stop the advance of these monsters. Now with Corona fallen, Nordgard would have free reins in most of the West. Southern Isles. Arendelle. The time might come sooner that her hands would be forced.
"The Magister Jeigan was one of the first on the scene," Linus said, a thick bundle of documents in front of him, "It is said that the throne room was already in shambles when the army arrived. The Magister reportedly said that in desperation, the Royal Family blew themselves up to take down General Hennings."
"That doesn't sound like King Tomas," Karl said. "I know he's much more rational than that, and he would never stake human lives on such a foolish maneuver, let alone his own family's."
Elsa's eyes widened, hopeful. "Could it be…?"
"Indeed, even amongst the Nordgardian ranks, there were whispers that the Magister Jeigan was the one orchestrating this whole affair," Linus continued, "but no conclusive evidence could be found. So they kept their whispers unto themselves."
"Fredrik?"
"Oh, it is most certainly him," Fredrik whistled nonchalantly. "He is always the type to pull off these half-baked schemes on the fly. If I recall correctly, they couldn't even find a single body matching of the Coronan Royal Family's profile? No conclusive evidence despite such high levels of suspicions pointing to him? Typical Hans, always trying to do everything on his own. 'Trust no one', I always said to him, but a good strategist should know better than to rely on himself all the time."
Elsa sipped her tea. The bittersweer aroma of Earl Grey filled her tastebuds, bringing a modicum of calm. Even amidst her former husband's machinations to keep the damages brought by Nordgard to a minimum, she couldn't shake this feeling of uneasiness as long as Nordgard roamed free.
A knock suddenly came from beyond her doors.
"Yes?" Elsa called.
"Queen Elsa, it is time. Preparations have been made and we are awaiting you, Your Majesty."
"I will be there," the Snow Queen said. She set aside the tea and newspaper she was holding and brushed herself up.
With a sweeping gesture, she called the frost to envelop her, encasing her in a new garment that would both provide protection and allow flexible movements.
She was ready.
Elsa opened the door and briskly closed it behind her. The newspaper she set aside fell, revealing another page and headline,
Nordgard Begins Advance against The Southern Isles
