Chapter Twenty Eight

Last Hope

ANNA

The thawing process had been an extremely slow one. After all, Elsa was now unhinged, and had trapped Maui in a block of ice that had taken ages to melt. Thankfully, the museum was closed for the night and there had not been anyone else, otherwise things would have gotten messy. Anna had first regrouped with Kristoff before finding Maui frozen solid. They had tried chipping away at the ice, only to find that it was impossible to break Maui out of it. The only thing they could do was turn up the heat in the museum and wait.

Eventually, the ice melted enough for Maui to bust his way out, and he did it with flair. With a deafening roar, he had broken the ice that had encapsulated him, freeing himself from the icy chamber that Elsa had imprisoned him in. And boy, was he mad. It had taken quite some effort for Anna to calm the furious demigod down before she could get him to fly them back to Arendelle.

The journey back was an arduous and tiring one, as it had begun raining mid flight. Drenched, Maui had soldiered on, carrying Anna and Kristoff all the way back to Arendelle. The trip had taken them a considerably longer time than it took to get to Srevnjor, partially because the weather wasn't in their favour, and also because Maui was exhausted. Nonetheless, they had made it to the castle in the wee hours of the morning, and they stumbled gratefully into the drawing room, collapsing in a heap in front of the confused Captain Frederick.

And now, morning had come, though it was a gloomy one. Both the skies were dull and dark, and so were the Warriors' spirits. Melody and Tracy had not yet returned, and Anna had feared the worst. Being the optimist, this was new to her, but it was starting to catch on, unfortunately. The entire experience with the League and her sister going dark had taken a toll on her, and the Warriors had noticed, especially Kristoff. Anna shook her head as she splashed her face with water, scrutinising the slight bruise on her left cheek Elsa had put there.

Anna sighed and leaned against the wall of the toilet. This was a new low point. Back then, she had thought that being struck in the heart by ice was the worst that could happen to her, causing her to turn to ice. Being hit by her sister intentionally hadn't hurt an awful lot, but it was far worse because it left not just a physical scar, but a huge emotional scar. Elsa was too far gone now, and there was nothing else Anna could do to save her sister.

Walking out of the toilet, Anna dragged herself down the hallway and back to the drawing room to find both Maui and Kristoff already up. Kristoff sat on the long sofa in silence while Maui did the same at the other side of the room, staring out the large window at the dull grey morning skies. Normally, she would have been the last to wake up, but given the circumstances she found that she had trouble sleeping, and in spite of being exhausted, the thought of having fully lost Elsa to the League had kept her awake.

"How are you feeling?" Anna asked, and Kristoff glanced up at her presence.

"Terrible." Kristoff glanced at her. "You?"

"Same." Anna plonked herself down beside him.

"Come here," Kristoff opened his arms and Anna snuggled up to him. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be silly. What happened in Srevnjor wasn't your fault." Anna looked up at him, her head on his chest.

"I could have gotten away with the map, but-"

"It's not your fault. It was the League." Anna glanced away. "It was Elsa."

"I'm sorry, Anna." Kristoff said. "I wished we could have saved her."

"Me too." She shifted her position slightly. "At first I was confused why my sister was suddenly working with the League. But then after learning about my father's…crime, I thought I understood why Elsa had seemingly turned evil. My father was blackmailed into joining the League, and I thought that maybe Elsa was too. I thought that she was protecting me from the truth about our father."

"But she wasn't?"

Anna nodded morosely. "I thought that was my trump card. Confronting her in Srevnjor, getting her to see that I knew the truth. Turning the tables against the League of Sorcerers. But it didn't work. Elsa told me coldly that it changed nothing before she hit me and left with the Elemental Sorcerers. It was like…" Anna swallowed hard and choked back a tear. "…she was devoid of humanity."

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah. And now I'm fresh out of hope." She glanced at Kristoff. "I mean, what are we gonna do now? The League has Will Daltrey, the map, and Elsa's positively evil now. We've tried fighting them. Twice. And we lost badly both times."

"Not to mention Melody and Tracy are gone to who knows where." Kristoff added, though it really wasn't helping things. "Getting that amulet thing was our best shot at stopping the Pilgrim, and only Tracy knows how to wield it. And neither of them are here."

"Exactly. What do we do now?"

"Honestly, I don't know." Kristoff grimaced.

"Huh." Anna pursed her lips and looked over at the other side of the room at Maui. "Any ideas, Maui?"

The demigod had definitely heard her, but he remained uncharacteristically quiet, continuing to stare out the window.

"Maui?" Anna got up off the sofa, leaving Kristoff slumped miserably in it, and crossed the drawing room. "Hey. Are you okay?"

"No, not really." Maui looked straight ahead as Anna approached him.

"Welcome to the club," she muttered under her breath. "But no, seriously. What's going on with you? I know we all have a lot on our plate right now, but we're all in this together, right? Spit it out bud."

"It's funny," Maui began. "You know, the only reason I came back to the human world from Pride Rock was because I wanted to help save Elsa. I wouldn't have come back here otherwise. There was too much guilt. But I did it anyway, because I thought Elsa needed our help. My help." He glanced at Anna. "When I saw her in Quodrun, I didn't want to believe it. But then you found a lead in the journals and I thought that maybe Elsa was still good. But now, after Srevnjor, I think we can all agree that Elsa…is beyond saving."

Anna honestly couldn't find the words to reply, as downcast and crushed as the demigod was.

He turned from the window and faced her. "Now that we know the truth, that Elsa has fallen to the opposite side, there's no more reason for me to stay. I only returned to the human world on account of my friendship with Elsa, but now…I think it's time for me to go."

"No, wait. Please." Anna pleaded with him. "Don't go. We need you."

"What for? Elsa's no longer on our side and half the Warriors are missing in the middle of the ocean. The mission is over. We failed."

"Look," Kristoff said, walking over from the sofa. He had obviously heard every word of the conversation. "Going back into exile isn't going to solve anything."

"I shouldn't be around humans. Not anymore."

"No Maui, that's not the answer." Anna argued. "You think going back to a bunch of lions and living as a wild beast is going to take away all your guilt and problems? It isn't. This is where you can make a difference and make up for your mistakes. By being here with the Warriors."

"Half the Warriors are gone."

"But we're still here." Kristoff said. "And we're going to think of something."

"Like what?"

"We thought you might have an idea." Anna said.

"Do I look like the idea guy?"

"No, that was always Melody." Anna admitted.

"But she's not here. And neither is Tracy." Maui said pessimistically. This mission has really been taking a toll on everyone, Anna thought to herself.

Right then and there, as if they had been waiting for the perfect entrance line, a Crossing Point opened and seawater spilled out onto the expensive carpet on the floor of the drawing room. Melody and Tracy stepped out, soaked to the bone.