Chapter 23 / Comes Out in the Light
Anna poked her head out of the air duct and scanned her surroundings. Once she knew it was clear, she climbed out and dropped down to the cool grass.
"Alright, Kristoff has the reliquary, Elsa is on her way out. Time to make my exit," she muttered to herself as she brushed off her hands.
Just then, a pair of guards approached Anna's position. She quickly ducked behind a nearby shrub as they passed.
"Überprüfen sie die unterbrecher!" One guard ordered.
"Jawohl," came the reply, as the pair swiped a key card through an electronic lock and entered the breaker room that Anna had just left.
Anna left her cover from behind the brush, creeping to a nearby building and scaling it to the rooftop. From her position, she could see guards patrolling all over the estate grounds. She still had considerable ground to cover between there and the main castle, and further still towards the section of wall where she had made ingress into the estate.
She pressed a finger to her ear and crouched. "Guys? What's our escape plan?" she asked.
"Working on it, head towards the front entranc- oh shit," Kristoff said before he was cut off by sudden shouting.
"Kristoff?! Talk to me!" Anna exclaimed. "Shit, Elsa? Are you there?"
Inside the castle, a string of gunfire rang out, echoing throughout the property. Outside, guards snapped to attention, running in the direction of the ballroom.
"Ah, crap!" Anna cried. "They're in trouble!"
... ... ...
"Whoa, you've got the wrong guy! I'm just a waiter!" Kristoff stated. "Ah, damn. That was in English," he muttered to himself.
Three guards were approaching him, sub-machine guns leveled at his chest. One of them stepped forward.
"Auf deinen knien!" he shouted.
"This has to be some kind of mistake fellas… ah, screw it." Kristoff tried to explain, before deciding it wasn't worth the effort.
In a flash, he turned to his left, grabbing hold of the swan ice sculpture and toppling it over onto the first guard. As the other pair opened fire, Kristoff leapt over the table, landing in a heap behind it and knocking it on its side to use as cover. Automatic fire continued to rip through the table as he crawled to the far end.
"Aw, nuts. I thought that would work!" Kristoff said, shielding his head from the splintering wood around him.
"Hey, over here!" Elsa shouted from behind the pair of guards shooting at Kristoff. They both wheeled around and Elsa swung back and brought the scepter she had found crashing down on the head of one of the guards. He fell into a crumpled heap and before the other could react, Elsa swung hard again and knocked the gun out of the second guard's grasp.
It fell to the ground with a clatter and slid some distance away. Elsa prepared to swing again, but the guard was ready, catching her arms as she did and wrenching scepter out of her hands. Stunned, Elsa was caught off balance and wasn't prepared for the fist that struck her cheek and fell to the ground.
Behind him, Kristoff had noticed the scuffle and charged forward, roaring. The guard spun around and before he could react, Kristoff dipped low and tackled into his midsection, raising him up in the air before forcing him down to the ground with all of his weight. Rising before the guard could, Kristoff grabbed the nearby scepter and whacked him across the face with it, knocking him out.
"Thanks," Elsa said, rubbing her cheek.
Kristoff rose up, and helped her to her feet. "Come on. We've really kicked the hornet's nest now," he said as he bent to retrieve one of the fallen guns. He tossed it to Elsa, and then tossed her a spare magazine from one of the unconscious guards.
She caught them easily, pulling the charging handle to inspect it for ammunition before closing it and slipping the spare magazine into the loop of her stockings at her thigh. Kristoff did the same with his own weapon, ensuring it was loaded and pocketing some extra ammunition before the sound of rushing footsteps forced the pair to relocate.
... ... ...
Anna stepped up to the edge of the roof, inspecting the distance between her position and the walls of the castle before her. She paced back to the opposite end of the rooftop, setting in her knees before surging forward, sprinting as fast as she could. As she reached the edge, she leapt forward, flying through the air and slamming into the castle wall. Anna caught the edges of the masonry easily.
"Just hold on, Elsa," she panted. "I'm coming."
Inside, the gunfire raged on, which Anna took as an encouraging sign that Elsa or Kristoff had yet to be apprehended.
Anna climbed upwards, nearing a balcony that stood out just above her to her right. She reached it, then slid over the edge and found herself in front of a set of glass double doors. Anna tried the handle, jiggling it once and as it opened, she slid inside quietly.
She was inside a large library, with tall bookshelves arranged in orderly rows all around her. Anna spotted another set of wooden double doors; the entry she surmised and proceeded towards it. As she laid a hand on the doorknob to open it, something else pushed it back towards Anna as an auburn haired man in a white tuxedo stepped in.
Anna backed up a few paces, taking in the appearance of the man.
Those are ridiculous sideburns, Jesus, what year did you just crawl out of? 1840? she mused to herself.
"Oh, excus- you don't belong here," he said simply, eyeing Anna's attire.
"Oh! You mean this isn't… the cosplay convention?" Anna feigned ignorance and began making her way to the exit. "Crap, I must have the wrong castle. I'll just head out, don't mind me."
"I don't think so," he said, placing an arm in front of the door, barring Anna's way. He closed it behind him, and took a menacing step forward. "I know you have it, hand it over."
"Have… what? I don't know what you're talking about," Anna chuckled, trying to defuse the situation.
She looked around, searching for an escape route when the man suddenly rushed forward, pinning Anna against a bookshelf with one arm across her chest.
"Please. I would rather not take it from you. Just give me the artifact," the man hissed.
Anna rolled her eyes. Lying wasn't working and whoever this man was, he clearly knew what Anna's game was. Distantly, she recalled that Weselton was working with Hans Westguard and she deduced that this must be him.
"You know how many artifacts I've stolen?" Anna quipped as she abandoned her pretense. "You're going to have to be a lot more specific."
Hans chuckled dryly. "I know who you are, Ms. Croft. I've already met your lovely sister. But I'm afraid if neither of you give up, I will have to do something I really don't want to," he said in an acidic tone, as his other hand came up to Anna's midriff and drifted down a little too slowly and hovered a little too long over her buttocks for her liking as he searched her.
A staccato burst of gunfire erupted down the hallway, distracting Hans for a moment as he turned to the doorway. Anna seized the opportunity to drive her knee hard up into Hans's crotch.
"Hands off, asshole!" Anna spat as Hans grunted and keeled over in pain, releasing his grasp on Anna.
She stepped aside, and grabbed the closest and thickest book from the bookshelf she could find and brought it crashing down onto the back of his head. Hans crumpled to the floor in a heap and did not rise.
Tossing the book aside, Anna raced towards the doorway, shouting over her shoulder as she ran out.
"You look like an idiot with those sideburns!"
... ... ...
Elsa and Kristoff were cornered in the entry foyer, hiding behind two pillars as gunfire shattered the marble flooring and ripped holes in the walls. A squad of five guards were barring their way from their exit at the front doors of the castle, taking cover behind upturned tables or pillars.
Kristoff fired blindly around the corner with his sub-machine gun, forcing the two nearest guards to duck their heads in cover. Using the temporary pause in shooting, Elsa peered around the side of her pillar and shot one dead as he peeked up. Renewed gunfire shredded the edge of the pillar as Elsa ducked back behind cover. Trapped as she was, Elsa used the time to reload her weapon. Pulling back the charging handle and removing the magazine, Elsa reached down to her thigh where she had stashed the spare and slotted it into the magazine well, then slapped the bolt back into place.
As the shooting paused again, Kristoff charged forward at the nearest guard reloading his weapon behind a thick, overturned table. He slid into a crouch next to it, and as the guard raised his weapon to fire again, Kristoff grabbed it by the barrel and pulled it down. With his other hand, he punched the guard across the jaw then grasped the back of his head and slammed it down on the edge of the table. Dazed, the guard did not resist when Kristoff ripped his gun free from his hands and stuck him in the forehead with the stock, knocking him out.
With three guards remaining, Elsa left her position behind the pillar and joined Kristoff. Automatic gunfire tore through the around them as the trio of guards rained down suppressing fire.
... ... ...
Anna ran towards the sound of fighting, sliding on her feet around a corner then turning into the entry foyer. She was by the landing of the upper floor where the two staircases joined. From her viewpoint, she spotted Elsa and Kristoff taking cover behind a table as three guards assaulted their position. Two of them remained in cover, while one advanced forward, firing his weapon.
Acting on impulse, Anna sprinted towards the landing, leaping up onto the banister and jumping towards the crystal chandelier. She held on to its edge, but the sudden addition of her weight wrenched the chandelier loose from its mooring in the ceiling and it dropped downwards, swinging in an arc towards the lone guard.
"ELLLLSSAAAAAAA!" Anna cried out as her momentum propelled her forwards.
As the chandelier dipped to the bottom of its arc and began to swing upwards she released her grip, flying through the air towards the guard. Anna adjusted the angle of her approach so that as she landed on top of him, she struck him in the chest with all of her weight and momentum. Anna landed in a crouch on top of him as the guard collapsed to the floor unconscious.
Above them, the chandelier snapped off the chain connecting it to the roof and barreled towards the two remaining guards. Neither could evade it in time as the chandelier careened into them with a resounding crash of broken glass and marble.
"Jesus Christ! Anna?!" Kristoff exclaimed, flinching from the explosion of glass, marble, and metal.
"Anna, that was… amazing," Elsa said, staring at Anna with a look of complete awe.
"Good… because I don't think I can do that again," Anna replied, panting. "I believe we were leaving?"
"Right, let's get the hell out of here before more company shows up," Kristoff said, pacing towards the door.
Anna caught her breath, and shrugged sheepishly at Elsa.
From the other end of the foyer, rapid footsteps and shouting was approaching their location.
"Come on, run!" Elsa shouted.
The trio made their way to the exterior of the castle, then turned sharply towards the parking lot where their car was kept. As they ran and ducked among rows of cars, glass shattered around them as the guards opened fire once more.
"Okay! Get in!" Kristoff yelled as they approached their car. He slid into the driver seat while behind him Elsa crawled into the back and Anna jumped in on top of her.
Throwing the car in reverse, Kristoff slammed into a car parked opposite from them, then peeled away in a cloud of dust and burning rubber.
"Heh, we have to stop meeting like this," Anna teased as she pushed herself off Elsa, who looked up at her and flushed red.
A barrage of gunfire erupted around them and Elsa pulled Anna sharply back down and shielded her younger sister with her body.
As they sped down the road and the Rahn Estate disappeared behind them, Elsa loosened her grip on Anna and pulled away first. With no signs of pursuit, they allowed themselves to finally catch their breath. For a moment, Anna sorely missed the contact before they both sat upright, glanced at each other and chuckled.