Chapter Seven

The Blood Mage

TALYA

Her hands trembled, and if it weren't for the gloves, Talya was sure that her sorcery would have already been unleashed upon the world for all to see. The Southern Isles Commandos stood before them, weapons raised and trained on her entourage. She badly wanted to rip off her gloves and force the enemies back with her ice sorcery, but she didn't know how. She had absolutely no idea how to get her powers to work for her.

"Get back!" Colonel Torrein shouted, waving her and Val back the way they'd come. They ducked behind the wall just as the Valquerson Rifles took up a defensive position two ranks deep in a sort of skirmishing fashion. More soldiers in green came up to reinforce the defence against the invaders.

Talya cast a glance over at Val. He was shaken, but he was doing quite well in keeping it together. His calm and cold demeanour had been broken, but had been replaced by a sort of calculating look as he methodically analysed the situation for a way out. She had marvelled at his ability to redirect the ships' missiles to destroy the enemy submarines, and she was genuinely impressed by his prowess. However, they were not going to be of any help in a firefight like this one.

She jammed her fingers into her ears, clenching her jaw as rifles cracked from both ends, sending volleys of bullets into opposite sides. The gunshots were relentless, the rat-tat-tat of the rifles threatening to blow out her eardrums. Beside her, Val had shut his eyes tightly, his jaw clenched.

"We have to keep moving!" Torrein roared, beckoning for the siblings as well as the Prime Minister to follow him. "It's not safe here!"

"Yeah, no shit!" Val spat. "We're in a damn war zone!"

"Back! Back the way we came!" Johan gasped, evidently worn out from the physical exertion in his old age. "Before they kill us all!"

From seemingly out of nowhere, even more soldiers in green appeared, and with them, was Liam, Captain of the Valquerson Rifles.

"We'll stall them, Your Majesty!" Liam shouted as his men filed past him with rifles, pistols and smoke grenades in hand. "Just get to safety!"

"Come on!" Torrein urged them again, and this time, Talya tore herself away from the wall and so did Val. The two of them didn't have any combat training or experience, and Talya found herself wishing that she had received some lessons in self defence. They would have come in rather useful right now. Or maybe they wouldn't. This is a full scale invasion after all.

As the small entourage retraced their steps down the hallway, there was a thundering explosion on the roof, sending dust, debris and brick crumbling. Talya yelped and covered her head with her hands. Fourteen enemy commandos began rappelling from the roof, tethered securely to titanium cables. As they descended, they brandished assault rifles, ballistic masks obscuring their faces and protecting their heads from enemy fire. The moment their feet touched the carpet of the long hallway, their weapons were up in an instant, trained on Talya, Val, Torrein, Johan and the ten Valquerson Rifles who were with them.

Then, a lone figure began to descend from the roof the same way his companions did. Only this man was different. He was tall and built like a train, carrying no rifle though he wore the same protective vest, gear and ballistic mask as the other commandos. He landed neatly, boots hitting the ground with a single, solid thud, highlighting his build and weight. He unhooked the cable that had secured him, and confidently strode to the front of the line where his commandos had levelled their rifles.

"Greetings," the man said, sketching a bow. "Your Majesty. Your Highness." He looked at the Valquerson Rifles who had also brought their weapons to bear, and waved them away as if they were of no consequence. "You may stand down."

"I give the orders here, not an enemy commander." Torrein said sharply. "Who the hell are you?"

"Right. Where are my manners." The man removed his ballistic mask and hooked it on his belt. "General Laskar Bjorn, brother of the esteemed Ulrich the Seventh."

The name ringing in her ears, Talya stared at the enemy before her. He was a brown-skinned man with deep set black eyes and a sharp nose, and he had a beard that was evidently well trimmed and groomed. His hair was short and jet black, trimmed with a high slope. By the looks of it, he was not more than a couple of years older than her. Probably in his late twenties at most, but he had the appearance and air of someone who had already seen much in life.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Val asked, his tone like ice.

Bjorn cocked his head as if it weren't obvious. "What does it look like?" He spread his hands. "We're taking over."

"Like hell you are." Talya said. "King Ulrich sent you to invade us?"

"And with all due respect, you have been beaten, Your Majesty." Bjorn said, his voice impassive. "Tell your dogs to stand down, and we don't have to make a mess of things. Surrender, and no further blood needs to be shed."

"That's rich, coming from you." Val retorted. "You rained fire down upon our kingdom and you have the Southern Isles fleet headed our way. I'll say you damn well declared war on us."

Bjorn shrugged. "War, invasion, call it what you like. I am here for one thing, and one thing only."

"And what's that?" Talya asked.

"Glory." Bjorn said simply. "The glory of the Southern Isles. For centuries, this land has remained unconquered by our great kingdom. That ends today. Tonight, we finally claim Arendelle under our banner."

Talya narrowed her eyes. "I don't think so."

"I'm sorry, I assume you have some kind of plan to deter me. What do you have in mind?"

She bit her lip. Her hand twitched, and she had to restrain herself. All she wanted to do was to rip her gloves off and to direct her sorcery into the heart of the enemy force that was directly in front of her. To freeze them all where they stood, and singlehandedly save her kingdom just like Queen Anna did back in her day. But no, that was wishful thinking. She couldn't even control her ice sorcery in the simplest ways, let alone take down an entire army of invaders. Besides, her powers were more likely to be a liability to the people she cared about. Val could get hurt.

"I thought so." Bjorn said, his face a stolid mask. He took a step forward.

"General Bjorn, stop or we will open fire." Torrein warned.

"Colonel, you have no idea what you're up against." Bjorn glanced at him from the corner of his eye as he continued to move towards them unafraid. "I suggest you stand down for your own sake."

"Open fire!" Torrein roared, and ten rifles cracked at once, lighting up the wide corridor like Christmas.

Quicker than the muzzle flashes, Bjorn raised a hand and made a swiping motion. In mid-air, all the bullets were sent off trajectory, flying past Bjorn and his commandos. The general made a fist, and jerked it towards himself. The rifles were pulled out of the Arendellians' hands, flying and clattering uselessly before Bjorn. He stepped forward, flicking his wrist. Four soldiers were sent flying sideways, impacting the wall heavily. With another jerk of the wrist, he pulled them back, sending them crashing into their comrades' flank. Lifting a hand, all ten soldiers from the Valquerson Rifles were levitated into the air, and with a twitch of his finger, their necks snapped and Bjorn released his hold on them. Every last one of them fell to the ground, lifeless and limp as rag dolls.

Cursing, Colonel Torrein drew his pistol but before he could raise it, Bjorn had levitated him and sent him crashing out the window with nothing more than a single thought.

Val's eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head, and his mouth gaped open, speechless. Johan looked the same way.

Talya stared at the general, unable to believe what she had seen transpire right before her very eyes. "You-you're…one of them. A Blood Mage."

"Yes." Bjorn looked unhappy as he flexed his wrist. "Though I wish I didn't have to do that."

"What the hell is going on?" Val was bewildered. "What's a Blood Mage? What are you talking about? What just-"

"Enough." Bjorn said sharply. "You've seen what I can do. Now I suggest you comply. I would hate to have to spill even more blood."

Still in shock, Talya nodded slowly. "We surrender."

"Your Majesty," Johan whispered. His face had gone very pale, and he was sweating even more than usual. "You can't-"

"We surrender." Talya said louder in confirmation, raising both her gloved hands for Bjorn to see.

"Excellent." Bjorn signalled to his commandos to lower their weapons. "Thank you for not making things difficult."

"Didn't look like we had much of a choice." Talya growled.

"Lock them in the dungeons." Bjorn ordered. "We might have use for them at a later date."

Scowling, Talya allowed the Southern Isles commandos to cuff her, and watched as the others restrained Val and the Prime Minister. Now she knew for certain that even if she'd chosen to reveal her powers, they would have done nothing against General Bjorn. The king's brother was a Blood Mage, which meant that there was no stopping him. Arendelle is doomed.