There's Danger Here
(A/N: So this is as far in the story as I've gotten so far. I have ideas for where it's going, so hopefully it won't be long before the next chapter is up. Odds were it won't be tomorrow though. No guarantee it'll be the next day either. Might take a few days before it's ready to be posted, depending on where my motivation to write goes. Again, though, I'm hoping it won't be too long a wait. I'll shoot for next week at the latest. Let me know what you all think of it so far and feel free to share ideas. They might find their way in, who knows?)
Thord's eyes fluttered weakly open. He winced and slowly raised himself up on his arms. He looked around, puzzled. He was by a stream? How had he gotten here? The last thing he remembered was a wave washing him overboard and him being certain he was going to die until… His eyes widened. Until some freaky water horse appeared in front of him and spirited him away at a gallop for whatever unfathomable reason. He winced again as he sat up straight, looking around. He looked uneasily into the water and gasped when he saw a horse staring back. He cried out in alarm, scrambling away from the water's edge as the creature climbed out of it, walking towards him. He stared in mortification. It was a nokk. A brook horse or a kelpie, he knew instantly, and neither one meant anything good for him! "You rescued me?" he quickly said, trying to buy time. Maybe some answers too. It paused and stared quietly. "Why? Your whole spiel is drowning people." The brook horse looked highly unimpressed. He hadn't thought it was possible for a horse to look unimpressed. "Why did you save me?" Thord asked again.
It tilted its head, then reared up, whinnying. As it slammed its hooves down in a puddle, water splashed up in the form of Elsa, swirling there for a moment before vanishing. So for Elsa's sake then, Thord noted. "You were that fond of her, huh?" he finally asked. "My cousin, that is. Elsa." The horse snorted and pawed at the ground, acting slightly annoyed and agitated at the remark. He frowned curiously at it before brushing it off as nothing. He sighed instead and stood, turning and walking away to try and find civilization. "Thanks for the save," he said as he went. It remained by the water before starting to follow. Thord frowned, looking warily back. He didn't appreciate being shadowed by this thing. He paused. "What?" he asked a bit testily. The horse stomped a puddle and this time an image of Hans splashed up. "That's her husband," Thord said. "Soon to be daddy of her future baby." The horse whinnied and Thord jumped. That sounded… angry. He frowned a bit. "I take it you're not a fan?" he asked. The horse was still. Maybe it hadn't formed a definite opinion yet? Maybe it was something else. "Well it's not like you can trample him to death or drown him or anything." The horse vanished into the puddle, causing Thord to jump in surprise and stare at it. He carefully approached and peered in. What he saw made him gasp and leap back about a foot with an alarmed cry. The face staring back at him from the water wasn't the visage of a horse. It was of a man! "Oh shit, oh shit," he said, quickly scrambling back, pushing himself against a tree and gaping at the puddle in horror as from its depths rose the form of a man. Kelpie. It was definitely a kelpie! A kelpie that made him feel as if it were staring through his very soul.
"To be determined," the creature darkly replied.
Thord's eyes slowly widened. Oh… Oh! Oh no. Oh this just got better and better, didn't it? He frowned, unimpressed. "Great. Perfect," he grumbled. He straightened up, meeting its eyes firmly. "She's pregnant by him. You're too late. You ever want a shot, you wait 'til the man dies of natural causes or is killed in battle, but good flipping luck with that. He controls fire! And is tainted by a magical mirror. Thanks for the save, it'll earn you some point in Elsa's books, but don't expect it to be enough. You have a long, long road to walk, or swim as the case may be, if you want to try and snag her away from her husband," he continued.
There was silence. Curious, Thord frowned. "A mirror?" the creature finally and somewhat darkly asked.
Thord shifted, feeling like he'd probably said something wrong. "Yes?" he answered reluctantly.
"What mirror?" it asked.
Thord stared. "The evil troll's," he answered, weighing his words carefully.
Silence. "Then he is already dead," the creature finally replied. Thord frowned curiously, suddenly intently interested in what that meant. "He will not stand against it."
"He has so far," Thord replied. "For years and years."
"He will be consumed," the kelpie answered, and how it seemed to suddenly seem completely unconcerned about Elsa being with Hans worried Thord more than anything.
"Don't give the Fire King up for lost just yet," Thord replied.
"Chameleon King," the creature said.
"Chameleon King, Fire King, whatever the hell you choose to call him! Just leave well enough alone, for goodness sakes man. Find some nice faerie girl to marry or something," Thord replied immediately, getting defensive of his cousin and, to his own surprise, Hans.
"You're injured," the kelpie noted.
"No crap!" Thord replied.
"Badly," the creature said. "Your blood taints the earth."
Thord paused and looked immediately at his wrists. Sure enough, his blood had dyed the sloppy bindings red and was now dripping onto the ground. He was silent, watching it in morbid fascination and unease. He closed his fists, glancing nervously to the side before looking ahead again. "Which is why I need to find help," he answered in a voice that was calmer than he felt. He was entirely too tired and lethargic to be comfortable with. He just wanted to lay down and sleep, frankly.
"You will find help if you continue to follow the path you're on and do not stray from it," the creature said.
"What do you want in exchange for that tidbit?" Thord replied. The creature didn't answer, simply melted back into the puddle. When Thord worked up the nerve to approach and peer into it, the thing was gone. He winced, looked again at his wrists, became aware of the agonizing pain in his chest from clearly cracked if not broken ribs, then drew a breath and forged on. Here was hoping the tip was on the level. He wished he knew what had happened on the sea…
Frozen
The forest was beautiful, but it was also horrifying. Mysterious sounds, unsettling noises, he was pretty damn sure he'd heard whispers at some point of another, and singing. He'd seen firelight in the distance, but he'd be damned if he went toward it. Especially since he'd only seen it after catching sight of a white stag, and that was bad news all around. He was done with the Fair Folk. He rounded a corner and froze, gasping. There ahead of him stood a young woman She watched him warily and he bristled at her gaze. "What now?" he finally dared call out.
She summed him up quietly, scanning him. "You're hurt," she noted.
"Really? I never would have noticed," he dryly replied.
She tilted her head. An amused smile pulled at her lips. Okay, so she was pretty, he allowed himself to note, but whatever. She looked to the side and gasped, backing away from something. He looked quickly over and bristled too. In the forest stood a woman who definitely was not a woman. He watched her carefully. The girl seemed afraid and looked over at him in concern. He met her gaze then looked to the new figure lingering nearby. "What are you?!" he called out to it. The girl looked quickly at him in disbelief.
The strange figure watched quietly before turning and walking away. Thord frowned and went to follow her, but the young woman crossed quickly to him and caught his arm. "Don't," she said quickly and quietly. He looked curiously at her. "Come with me," she insisted. "Never follow them into the forest."
"What is 'them'?" he asked.
"The faerie folk," she answered in a secretive whisper like just saying the words caused her dread. He turned to look in the direction the figure had gone, then looked to the girl again. "You need help," she pressed. "Please. I'll take you somewhere safe where you can be healed."
He was quiet, watching her. "Fine," he finally relented. She relaxed and her grip on his sleeve loosened. "Who are you?" he asked, pulling away.
"My name is Honeymaren," she answered.
"That's… a name," he replied, raising an eyebrow.
She frowned. "And what's yours?" she asked, somewhat annoyed.
"Thord," he answered. "So I suppose I can't really talk, but even still my name is more typical of this region than yours."
She looked at him like she wasn't sure what to make of him, then smiled in amusement. "You're a fun one, aren't you?" she half-teased.
"Depends on whether you can appreciate sarcasm and tongue-in-cheek," he answered.
"I appreciate it well enough," she answered before heading off. He smiled, amused, and followed her. The sooner his injuries were tended, the sooner he could search for his cousins. "Have you seen any others of her kind?" the woman asked.
"Depends on what you mean when you say 'her kind'," he answered.
"The Fair Folk," she explained seriously. "I need to know. Have you seen any others?"
He frowned, pausing. "I was rescued by one," he finally replied.
She turned to him. "What sort?" she asked.
He shifted, looking back, then turned to her again. "A neck," he finally replied. "In the form of a horse but also the form of a man."
She let out a breath seeming a little troubled. "Was there a body nearby him?" she questioned.
"A body? Why?" he asked.
"There are… two sisters among us, whose cousin fell into the sea and was lost. Whether he's alive or dead, no one knows," she said.
He frowned. "Two sisters? Wait, do you mean Elsa and Anna?" he asked, perking up a bit and looking hopeful. She started, surprised. "I'm the cousin that fell into the sea! Where are they? Are they alright?"
"You're Thord?" she said, surprised but also looking excited, a grin spreading across her face.
"Yes!" he said. "They've been looking?"
"Why wouldn't they? They've been worried sick about you. They feared the worst had happened," she answered. "Elsa claimed she suspected the nokk had saved you when you went overboard. Her husband told her that the nokk had probably drowned you instead, in so many words. She and Anna haven't been able to get that remark out of their heads since. They tried to find it and you. Nokk found Elsa instead, and she begged him to lead her to you, but he wouldn't. She's afraid that it killed you, after it spoke to her last. She was vague but… something happened between them. It and Elsa and her husband."
"His name is Hans," Thord said.
"Hans," she repeated, nodding as she committed it to memory.
"I'm alive, clearly. And I kind of need a doctor because I'm feeling like I'm on the verge of passing out here," he said, showing his wrists. She looked at them again and concern filled her eyes. "Hurry. We'll get you to them then talk later," she said, taking his arm just above one of his wrists and pulling him into a run. He stumbled after her. She slowed down when she needed to, or when he started getting unsteady, but she kept the pace quick until they reached the safety of her home.
Frozen
Thord looked down into the village, watching the people mingling there. Anna was by the fire with Kristoff looking like they'd just come back from a search. He breathed quickly in what sounded like a partial laugh, grinning wide. The grin fell, though, to an uncertain look once more. "What's wrong?" the woman, Honeymaren, asked in concern.
"I… screwed up. Did something really bad that… that cost them more than you know… I don't know how thrilled they'll be to see me, after they're satisfied I'm alive," he answered.
"The way they worried about you and insisted on searching tells me that whatever you did, it wasn't enough to cost you their love," she answered.
"Maybe it should have," he said with a frustrated sigh, drawing a hand through his hair.
"Come on. Worry about that later," she insisted, pulling him towards the village. She looked ahead. "Anna!"
Anna looked over and caught her breath on seeing the man with Honeymaren. "Thord!" the princess screamed, breaking away from the fire and racing to him. She all but threw herself into his arms, hugging him tight around the neck. He caught her with an 'oomph' and took a second to process what was happening before closing his eyes and tightening his embrace on her, swaying her gently. She sniffed, pulling back, and grinned as she laughed. "You're alive," she said, happy tears threatening her eyes but not falling.
"For now," he answered in a breath. He showed his wrists and she gasped, paling. "I need to get this dealt with before I commit to that statement," he ruefully added, shaking his head. She looked concernedly at him.
"Thord, you made it!" Kristoff said, approaching quickly with baby Gerda in his arms. The infant began to squeal and give little baby laughs, waving her tiny hands at Thord like she wanted to be picked up.
"Not until after I'm fixed up kiddo," he said to her with a sigh.
"Thord, you're alive!" Olaf's excited voice exclaimed. He looked over and saw Olaf quickly waddling over with Sven. "I can't believe it! We thought you were a goner for sure." He hugged the man's legs tight.
"Hey snow guy," Thord replied with a somewhat amused smirk and roll of his eyes as he patted the snowman's head. He frowned immediately. Wait, warm fuzzy feelings. Absolutely not. He barred them immediately and turned to Anna in concern. "Where's Elsa? What happened out there? I heard there was an incident?"
"I told him," Honeymaren chimed, smiling.
"Figures," a young man who looked a lot like the woman said. He would assume a brother, though it wasn't impossible he was a lover that just happened to look like her. He was banking on the former though. Totally not just because he thought Honeymaren was really cute and was low-key curious about her. If he was wrong, hey, live and learn.
"There was no reason not to tell and every reason to do so, Ryder," Honeymaren replied with a frown, folding her arms.
"Elsa's in the tent she's staying in with Hans," Anna answered Thord, looking at him.
"Has she gone into full labour yet?" Thord asked.
"No, and Jekyll's getting really concerned," Anna replied grimly. "Hans… isn't taking it well. The sooner that baby is out, the sooner we can focus our attention on fending off Carabis if he follows us here."
"Will he be able to get through the fog?" Thord asked.
"We don't know. That's the scariest part of all of this," she replied. "We may have just unleashed an army of wicked sprites on an unsuspecting forest guarded by powerful beings, sure, but not untouchable ones. Plus, they only have mastery over one thing each. Specialists. Most other fae aren't limited like that and are more jacks of all trades. Not even the Nokk is limited to just water, I suspect. We're trying to sort this all out, but we don't even know where to start or who to ask about any of it."
"My two cents? Forget everything your father told you about them being 'the most powerful spirits of all'," Thord replied. "He might have thought that or been told it, and at the time it might have even seemed true to him, but in the end, he knew nothing about them at all. Your mother would have been a better source, but for obvious reasons that's not in the cards right now."
"I know," Anna said quietly, looking down. She turned to Thord again. "You should go see Elsa. She's been sick with fear for you since…" Anna trailed off.
"Since she figured out the nokk was a kelpie who had a thing for her and wasn't impressed she ended up with someone else?" Thord dryly said.
Anna started, looking at him in surprise, then smirked in amusement, shaking her head. "I guess I should have figured you'd piece that together," she said.
"No, you shouldn't have," he answered. "There was no reason for it to let that information slip to me. It chose to. That's probably not a good sign for any of us."
"It may view you as a tool," the young man, Ryder, remarked in realization.
"This one's clever," Throd said, jerking a thumb back at him.
"Thanks," Ryder chirped.
"Don't make me stand corrected," Thord said, frowning at him. He looked at Anna. "Bring me to Elsa." Anna nodded and took his hand, leading him away. Honeymaren smiled after them and gave Thord an appreciative once over.
"No," Ryder dryly said, frowning at her. She laughed a little and nudged him playfully, grinning.
Frozen
Elsa held Thord tightly. He embraced her back. Anna had gone off to fetch Doctor Jekyll, because apparently Thord was in no rush to get to the medical tent where he'd be stuck in close quarters with Xe again. Elsa clung to him like she wasn't going to let him go, though when Jekyll entered the tent she reluctantly did so. Thord went to the doctor and showed his wrists. Jekyll sighed and sat him down on a chair before fishing around in his medical bag. He pulled out two tourniquets, tying the injuries off, then undid the bandages and grimaced at the savagery of the wounds. "It's a miracle you lasted so long," he dryly said. "This isn't going to be a painless fix, just so you know." Thord grimaced. He'd figured as much. He looked around and frowned. "Where did Hans go?" he asked.
"He's… kind of steamed," Anna said, grimacing.
"What's he steamed at this time?" Thord wryly asked, rolling his eyes as Jekyll prepared his things for tending the wrists.
"Everything," Kristoff dryly said. Ryder snickered.
"The Knights of the Round Table," Elsa said. "They're the ones who ultimately ended up the scapegoats for his anger, after he realized he couldn't do anything about the nokk right now. He can do something about the Knights though."
"What justifies his anger towards them?" Thord wryly asked.
"They took off into the forest the first chance they got," Elsa said with a sigh. "I guess it brings back memories of better times for them. A lot of memories. But it meant they weren't there when we needed them most. That was Hans' story and he plans on sticking to it. So they're not going to have a good time of it when they return. I just hope he doesn't end up burning bridges." She caught her breath suddenly and grimaced in pain.
"Contraction?" Thord asked in concern. His hissed in pain at Jekyll's doctoring and gave the man a dirty look, though he didn't complain. There were bigger things to complain about right now.
"They're starting to be more frequent," Elsa said with a breathy but nervous laugh.
"I'm monitoring her closely," Jekyll said. "It won't be long now before she's in full labor."
"The sooner the better," Anna said, looking at her sister in concern.
Frozen
Hans stood on the top of a hill crest, Sitron at his side. He kept a sharp eye out for the return of the knights. He didn't acknowledge anyone who tried to talk to him, and if they attempted to persist, he would scoff and walk away or brush them off. Seriously, where the hell were the knights? "You've gotta back off them you know. They're your friends, aren't they? Besides, they can't be everywhere at once," a voice said. Ryder's, he knew. Hans rolled his eyes and commenced to ignoring him. "They couldn't have known what was going to happen, majesty," Ryder persisted. "You didn't see it coming either." Hans gave him a sharp, narrow-eyed look. "I'm not wrong," Ryder continued.
"They're our bodyguards. At least two of them are. They weren't supposed to let the either of us out of their sights," Hans replied.
"You'd have let them tag along with you and your wife on a romantic walk through the forest?" Ryder dubiously asked. Hans' jaw twitched and he shifted a little. "See?" Ryder said, sounding smug.
Hans' frowned deepened. "Shove it," he answered, searching again.
"Just keep that in mind when you confront them at least? We really could do with less stress and strife around here, you know," Ryder said, shrugging and walking away. He'd made his point and got the king thinking. Best he not stick around and cramp the guy's style on top of it.
Hans watched after him and sighed. Sitron, who had also watched Ryder go, turned to Hans as if to say 'he has a point'. Hans grimaced. He knew Ryder had a point, as much as he hated to admit it, but this whole situation still peeved him. Still, it was probably the stress talking more than anything else. But gods he was ticked. His expression darkened again, and he set to scanning the forest once more. He paused on seeing four figures in the distance picking their way through the woods heading towards the village, mist swirling around their feet. His anger came back full force and he scowled, clenching his fists. He kept Ryder's words in mind and willed himself not to launch into confrontation shouting his head off at them and dressing them down into the ground, but his hands were on fire now. He heard scuttling and looked over. Bruni was scurrying up to him and quickly climbed his body, examining the flames in wonder like he hadn't believed him about the fire before.
Hans' wrath quelled a bit and he sighed, letting the flames die out. Bruni looked questioningly up at him. "Told you so," Hans said, smirking a little. He turned to the nearing knights and frowned once more. He picked up the lizard and rested him on a rock next to Sitron before marching down to meet them at an agitated but controlled pace. It was the pirate, he saw, who first noticed him and stopped the others by holding an arm out in front of them. He could see Sir Kay look up and frown from here. The man folded his arms, sensing inevitable confrontation and obviously not in the mood to deal with the attitude of a 'bratty prince', as the man had called him before when he started getting on the knight's nerves.
Hans didn't let the looks quell him. He marched right up to the group and got pretty well in their faces. "Where the hell were you?" he demanded testily.
"Excuse us?" the man Raynold replied, frowning at him with eyes narrowed to slits pretty much.
"Where. The hell. Were you?!" he shouted, jabbing a finger pointedly into Sir Bedivere's chest with each emphasized fragment. Bedivere seemed the easiest going of them, so he was safer using the aggressive action on him than on the others.
"Exploring the forest?" Bedivere replied, raising a dubious eyebrow and frowning a bit at the young king.
"Who the hell gave you permission to wander off into the forest without any warning?" Hans all but sneered.
The four knights exchanged looks between one another. They seemed to come to a silent agreement that Lamiel would be the one to speak, because it was the pirate who took action first and got between the young king and the others. "Majesty, your wife's cousin was missing, and it was clear to all of us you didn't trust the forest, so we determined to scout it out. Mostly for you, but in part for us as well, we'll admit to that bit of selfishness," the pirate said.
"You I should have hung for your occupation alone, just like I probably should have had your bandit friend strung up," Hans nipped. He was testing their patience, he knew. He saw the enraged flame licking in Kay's eyes. Bedivere put a calming hand on his friend's shoulder, but his gaze had gone cold and angry too. Raynold sneered darkly. Lamiel was the only one who gave precious little for outward reaction, though his jaw did twitch slightly.
"You're agitated. Upset. What happened, your highness?" Lamiel chose to say. Hans was more than a little annoyed at the calm reply, he'd been sporting for a fight, but in the back of his mind he knew a fight wasn't going to help him or anyone and would probably only end up jeopardizing their working relationships to each other. It was probably smart on the part of the knights to get the senior most of them to be the spokesperson. It was clear Lamiel was the oldest of the bunch. Probably had over a decade, maybe even two, on the others. He'd guesstimate late thirties early forties? Heck, maybe even late forties, though it was a stretch and hard to tell besides. Fine. He'd play things less confrontational then. It would probably feel better in the long run anyway.
"My wife and I were almost killed and you weren't anywhere to be found!" Hans shouted.
Kay bristled slightly, jaw tightening. "What happened?" the man finally asked when it was clear Lamiel was taking his sweet time digesting that news.
Hans scowled then sighed, shoulders sagging as he willed himself to let his anger go and allow vulnerability to slip through. It wasn't like he was trying to establish dominance with his brothers or political rivals or corrupt councils. It wasn't like he was talking to people who wouldn't listen to him or who would just brush him off or who wouldn't take him seriously. He was talking to people who genuinely cared and genuinely wanted to help, and isolating them was the worst thing he could do right now. For himself and for his family. "There was a nixie," he finally forced himself to spit out. "Playing its infernal fiddle and luring Elsa to the creek to try and drown her. I didn't even hear it until the creek was almost in sight. I grabbed Elsa and pulled her away, placing myself between it and her, and it tried to drown me. Elsa came to the rescue as soon as she snapped out of the daze and realized what was happening. She got me away from it and we tried to break the surface, but it got the upper hand and tried to drown the both of us. Then Elsa's nokk friend made the scene and swept her out of harm's way, leaving me behind. Elsa of course came back for me and the nokk wasn't exactly impressed. Turns out he's a kelpie who probably has a thing for my wife, so now there's that."
"Yikes. That's rough," Bedivere said sympathetically.
"Seems you handled it fine on your own, so why throw your carelessness back on us?" Raynold more insensitively replied, clearly not giving a damn about sympathy.
"Screw you," Hans sneered at him.
"I'm just saying," Raynold replied, rolling his eyes. "Sheesh, you didn't have to lose it on us. What, was it going to kill you to say 'thank goodness you're back, we have a problem'?"
Hans bristled at the tone, fists clenching and jaw tightening. Why the hell was everyone suddenly making good sense and decent points? "Fine," he finally relented. "Sorry," he forced himself to mumble. He was sorry, genuinely, but it still wasn't a word that was easy for him to say. "I'm just…" He sighed. "I'm stressed, I'm tired, and there's just so much happening around me… I don't know how much longer I can keep this up."
To his surprise, it was Kay who spoke first. "You're going to be alright," the knight gruffly assured, though there was something of a gentleness hidden under the rough tone. "We're here now."
"And we'll stay at your sides from this point on. We won't leave again without your express permission. We shouldn't have gone without speaking to you or the Queen first, majesty, we know that now. Forgive us," Lamiel followed up, though his gaze was on Kay. He looked completely mystified at the man's response. So did Raynold and Bedivere. Clearly Kay, who was refusing to meet any of their gazes, was acting out of character, and they weren't sure why. Heck, Hans wasn't even certain why Kay had such a vested interest in his well-being and the well-being of his brothers. The guy had stayed at Jurgen's side for quite a while, when Jurgen was first brought to the medical tent to be tended. That had been weird in and of itself, because Sir Kay had no real ties to Jurgen beyond a meeting in Avalon, so yeah.
"It's fine," Hans relented with a sigh. "Just… as long as you stay." Silence. "Did you find anything out there?" he asked after a moment, sounding worried.
"Yes," Lamiel gravely answered, expression grim now. He looked back and up at the sky. "Something is trying to get through the mist. Many somethings." Hans felt a chill shoot up his spine.
Frozen
"I would like to take your knights with me for an excursion in the forest," the Duke of Weselton said to Elsa as he sat next to her bed reading from a book.
"What for?" Elsa asked.
"I am determined to find answers, my dear. About all of this," the Duke replied, gesturing around. "This forest is bound to hold them, and if not, then some fae does. Any chance your Elfin King wanders these woods on occasion?"
"If only I knew," Elsa replied ruefully, shaking her head. "But the question would be whether he'd hold audience with you or not, and whether you'd come out of it unscathed. Don't risk it, papa."
"Last resort. I promise," he replied with a fond smile. "So, knights?"
"I'm in agreement. Your challenge will be convincing Hans," she answered. "He's out there waiting for them to come back as it, and he's not going to be happy when they do. They're his scapegoat for what happened by the creek."
"That boy," the Duke said with an annoyed sigh, shaking his head hopelessly.
"What boy?" Hans asked, coming inside.
"You," the Duke replied. "Antagonizing forces beyond your understanding."
"Coming from you?" Hans bit with a scoff.
"I learn from my mistakes," the Duke replied, sauntering up to him and rapping him on the head with the book. "I need your knights."
"What?" Hans asked.
"Your knights. I need them for an excursion," the Duke replied.
"Uh, no? They're here to protect me and Elsa, not you!" Hans protested.
"What you really mean is they're here to protect Elsa, but you're not saying it because you want to appeal to her feminine pride. Young man, if she gets huffy about it, she's the one being hard-headed and naïve. Your wife is in labour. She isn't in a position to defend herself as she usually is. That's the flat truth of it whether she likes it or not," the Duke said.
"I wouldn't have gotten offended," Elsa said, smirking and shrugging, amused by the exchange she was witnessing.
"There, see? No need to claim they're here for you and her both when they're clearly here for her. And now you're here to protect her, so you can afford to let those men come with me," the Duke said.
"My Duke, if Carabis gets through the mist, I won't be enough!" Hans protested.
"Wait, what?" Elsa asked, tensing up. The Duke looked startled too.
Hans bit his tongue, inwardly cursing. Right. He hadn't told them about what the knights had discovered. "The knights were scouting the forest. They came to a field, a wide one leading down to the sea, and they saw on the horizon the mists appearing to be struggling to keep something out. They were swirling and kind of caving in, in a particular spot. Like a monster was trying to emerge from them. One probably is."
"Oh dear," the Duke said in concern.
"Perhaps your investigation should be put off after all, Dear Duke," Elsa said worriedly.
"I agree," the Duke said. "Have you told Yelana?" he asked Hans.
"I'm about to," he answered. "I just wanted to make sure things were fine here."
"I'm alright. Go. Warn the Northuldra," Elsa said, pointing at the exit. Hans bowed and obeyed, leaving without a word further. Elsa watched after him worriedly then looked at the Duke. "What do we do?" she asked.
"There, there dear. We have a potent force with us. You have me and the shadows, you have the forces of nature—except you, you're in no condition for that—you have the Ice Maiden, Vertigo, Vertigo's brothers, the Sunbeams married to said brothers, the nokk, the Knights of the Round Table, your family and friends, more likely than not the Fair Folk… We're ready for this."
"I hope you're right," Elsa replied.
"I do too," the Duke wryly said.
Elsa thought a moment. "If you find answers, they could help us," she finally said.
"Elsa, the Knights are here for your protection," he answered.
"Take the Knights. You recited all the others I have at my side. If Carabis gets through while you're all gone, we'll still be able to manage it," she said. "But I need to know if we're really as equipped to tackle this as we hope we are. That requires figuring out how powerful they really are, what the Nokk actually is, where I fit into all of this… There are so many questions that need to be sorted through. So many answers that need to be found."
"Could Ahtohallan hold them? Or at least give us a starting place?" The Duke said. Elsa looked quickly at him, curious. "The River of Memory," he explained. "Doubtless then it is stemmed from Lethe. Or even a part Lethe. Or Lethe itself under a Norse name," the Duke said. "It may hold the answers or a foothold to them. And… and it will be safer for you there, than it will be to remain here."
Elsa was quiet, staring at him. "Then we need to go. Now," she said. "All of us?"
"Was that island large enough?" he questioned.
"Yes," she replied. "But… but it also may be the first place Carabis looks."
"Also the most protected place," the Duke pointed out. "It will doom us or save us. The chance is fifty-fifty."
"What are the odds if we remain here?" Elsa asked.
The Duke was quiet. "I don't know," he finally and solemnly admitted. "But I don't think they're quite that forgiving."
Hans came back in. "Yelana has been warned. She's informing her people of the situation. We need a battle plan. We need…" He trailed off when he saw Elsa and the Duke staring tiredly into each others' eyes with resigned expressions. "Uh, Elsa?" Hans asked.
Elsa turned to him. "We move to Ahtohallan. Now," she said.
He was silent, staring at her like she'd lost her mind. "What?" he finally replied.
"We need to go to Ahtohallan," she repeated. "Our odds there are fifty-fifty if Carabis gets through. Our odds here? The Duke and I are both betting they aren't as high.
Hans was quiet, watching her. He looked to the Duke, then back at Elsa visibly strained now. "Okay," he relented. He'd defer to them on this. He left quickly to tell Yelana.
Elsa breathed a sigh. "It will be alright, my dear," the Duke said, gently patting her hand.
"I hope you're right, papa," she answered.
