Where Magic Flows

M. Lauren

Part Two: Of the Water

She awoke warmer than she had in a long while. It reminded Elsa of winter evenings when her bedroom fireplace had been forcibly lit. Yet, this wasn't quite the same. It was a surprising warmth, stemming from the steady pressure applied to her abdomen. It roused her from sleep; a deep sleep.

Driven curious, Elsa opened her eyes. She looked down, but her head held in place. Something had braced itself under her chin and tickled at her nose. She looked to the side. Tangles of brown hair splayed out across her chest and pillow, masking her view and blending with her own.

Honeymaren had evidently stayed the night. Knowing she needed the comfort of a friend, and quite appreciating the closeness herself, Elsa didn't mind. In fact, she enjoyed it. Elsa felt giddied by this new warmth, and considered she might not be as cold as she always believed she was.

During the night, Elsa had remained impossibly still. Subconsciously, she must have believed moving would jar Honeymaren from sleep. Instead, Elsa's arms had wrapped around her. Her hand caught protectively at Honeymaren's waist, and the second ran the length of her back.

Honeymaren, however, must have spent the whole night tossing and turning. She rotated completely onto her side and buried her face into Elsa's neck. Her right leg stretched, pining Elsa's knees to the mattress. Even Honeymaren's hands grappled on desperately. Like a leetch, she secured each part of her to Elsa, seemingly afraid she might leave her while she slept.

Elsa wondered if she should feel embarrassed by their predicament. She certainly didn't feel that way. She felt calm and sedated by the warmth surrounding her, but Elsa was also cautious. She considered how it would feel to be caught in this manner, by her sister or someone in the village. Was it appropriate for Honeymaren to be here with her? Were they breaking some unspoken rule for conduct by engaging in closeness? In that moment, Elsa wasn't the only one thinking this. As Honeymaren stirred beside her, she quickly retracted herself from Elsa's arms with a swift tug.

"Gah!" she nearly shouted. She sat up straight, eyes wild with concern. "I am so sorry!"

Rising to follow, Elsa shrugged. "It's alright. I told you to stay... You didn't do anything wrong."

"I know, but," Honeymaren paused, blushing madly. "I never meant to fall asleep here! You were being so kind to me, and I would never want to take advantage, and- I'm sorry!"

Elsa giggled. "Aren't I always kind to you? Besides, like I said, it's really okay…"

Despite the subtle upward movement of Elsa's brow, Honeymaren didn't appear convinced. Her eyes trailed over Elsa's face. She began to sweat. With her gaze flickering between the bed and the door, Honeymaren tilted her head.

Her expression brightened noticeably. A laxidasical smirk tugged at her lips and she stood. Honeymaren said nothing as she moved toward the door. Humor bloomed behind her eyes, and she turned back to Elsa.

"You like me." Honeymaren smiled. Hand caressing the tarp, her shoulder pulled into her ear. A small giggle escaped her throat and she quickly left the hut.

"Mercury?" The word left Anna's lips with ease. She felt it rolling awkwardly over her tongue.

Standing beside her was Doctor Laugen and Mattias. They stood at the edge of the dock, overlooking the fjord. The doctor handed Anna a small vial from his pocket. Squinting, she lowered her eyes to the silver liquid behind the glass and frowned.

"It was discovered along the shore by one of our merchants, your majesty." Mattias explained. "It appears to have spread two kilometers south of the town."

Anna blinked. She turned to Doctor Laugen. "You believe this to be the culprit behind the illness? It looks harmless!"

Seeing her face scrunch in confusion, Doctor Laugen's eyes lifted. "When this discovery was brought to my attention, I had to go back to my books. I remembered reading about mercury during my study years at the academy. It was used in ancient Chinese medical practices as an attempt to aid in the healing of epidermis infections. That was, until they learned of the long term health effects it caused. Patients treated with mercury began developing stomach sickness. In extreme cases, patients died. You see, what mercury does is it builds up in our bodies. During prolonged exposure, it poisons and breaks down the different organ systems that allow us to function.

"The reason mercury has affected the children so drastically is because their young age and manner of digestion. It has made them vulnerable to immediate illness. It's summer. They've been playing in, and drinking from the fjord. Their underdeveloped nervous system is weak to the poisonous nature of mercury. Overtime, the adults would have been at risk for the same decline in health. The longer we ate from our fish supply and drank the infected waters, we would have fallen ill as well; and with no known way of counteracting it."

Shaking the vial, Anna's frown deepened. "I don't understand. How does this amount of mercury end up in our water supply? Has it always been there? Were we at risk of poisoning all along- my sister never said…"

"This is difficult for me to answer because mercury is a naturally occurring element. It derives from an ore called cinnabar, found in tropical climates and deep-well mines. However, because both cinnabar and mercury are highly coveted exports, I imagine large shipments of ores navigate through our trade routes on a monthly basis."

Anna's expression only continued to darken. "What you're saying is, this whole ordeal could have been as simple as an overturned shipping vessel?"

Taking a deep breath, Doctor Laugen's hands turned at his sides. "Again… difficult. Cinnabar must be mined in order to extract the mercury, and to produce the levels we are seeing in our fjord- that would require multiple overturned vessels. Or-" he paused. His face flickered cautiously. "-or this would have required a strategic exploit of our waterways."

Anna hummed. "Many ships, dumping many supplies…"

Nodding, Doctor Laugen watched her eyes pull back toward the vial. Anna's nail tapped against the glass and she sighed once more.

"Where do we go from here, then?" She asked. Her attention returned. " I'm aware it falls to me to locate our culprit still, and to lead the motion to make amends, but what do we do about the fjord? How do we protect ourselves from being poisoned?"

"Really, it's as simple as finding an uncontaminated supply, and it is as complex as flooding the fjord with fresh water to dilute the mercury concentration. Neither is without caution, of course, and constant testing efforts, but it is reversible. Until then, we will have to be diligent about avoiding drinking and eating from the fjord."

Biting her lip, Anna's shoulders drew to her ears. "This will create complications amongst the markets. We will have to direct all fishing efforts out to sea."

"We will put more men on ships to assist." Mattias suggested. "If we double our fishing efforts we will still be able to meet our winter stock quota."

Anna returned the vial to Doctor Laugen before burying her hands in the fold of her dress. "The Royal Guard will address the fish supply. I will meet with the counsel and report to the village, and Doctor Laugen, if you could, see to it that your apprentices locate trainees for water maintenance. With those efforts, we will be off to a good start."

"Of course," The doctor nodded. "I will put together a team of our best scientists from the area. I will teach them what they need to know and put them in charge of conservation."

WIth her lips pursed, Anna lowered her eyes. "Good," Her chin jerked downward sharply. "Let's get this behind us, and I will worry about finding out how and why it happened in the first place."

"We will be relocating South of the forest entrance."

Standing before her people, Yelena addressed them calmly. Her hands wrung patiently at her waist, and her wide eyes scanned the crowd.

She waited for their chatter to die down before continuing.

"It would be foolish to wait for the final leg of this revolt before making moves toward safety. Having said this, it is in our best interest to seek refuge beyond the borders of our home. Graciously, Elsa has offered up her palace in the North Mountain for our people to recollect, while we plan how to take back our lands."

As she finished, the villagers' commentary surfaced all at once. Confusion stuck their faces and their words scrambled over each other's.

"But when will we be leaving?"
"What of our supplies?"
"When will we return?"

Batting her hands, Yelena silenced them.

"We will be leaving before mid-day. I suggest everyone partakes in breakfast, and collects any necessity that will ensure our survival for at least two remote weeks."

"Yelena, Yelena!" Their voices barreled together once more.

"Yelena, what about the reindeer?" It was Ryder. He was frowning as he hobbled forward against his crutch.

Stifling a sigh, Yelena turned to the herders. "We will drive the reindeer to the northern border, but that is as far as we can take them. As I understand it, the mountain impasse is too narrow. The deer would not be expected to survive the trip."

As the questions continued, Honeymaren pulled Elsa aside. "You knew about this?" she frowned. "-last night, you knew about this, but you didn't say anything to me?"

Her tone was flat, but showed no indication that she was angry.

"It didn't come up. We had other matters to discuss, and I knew it would not change the outcome…"

Honeymaren's hands pulled under her arms. A spike of anxiety shot through her spine. She had never left the forest before.

"I do want you to know, though, I will not be going with you." When Elsa continued, Honeymaren's gaze turned wide. "I told Yelena this morning that I intend to stay in the forest. I must be here to protect our home after the last of our magic fades. Perhaps once our defenses are down, our culprit will finally show its face..."

Honeymaren shook her head. "Are you crazy?" she balked. "You can't take on the Nokk by yourself! It's not safe, and it's insane for you to stand in harm's way because you believe there's a small chance you might find an answer!"

Pulling in a deep breath, Elsa kept her emotioned reined in. "I tamed the Nokk on my own. He is no match for my powers."

"Yeah, except it was only yesterday you told me that your powers were failing! May I remind you of that? What if Nokk rebels and you find yourself without the ability to counter his attack? You would plan to sacrifice yourself all because of a theory that whoever is behind this is waiting until the spirits fall before attacking us?"

Elsa reached to take her hand, but Honeymaren stepped back out of reach. "I'm sorry." she replied with a snap. "-but there is nothing you can say that will change my mind. I will be staying here with or without your support."

"And what does Yelena have to say about you risking your life for us?" she hummed. "I can hardly see her agreeing to something as idiotic as this plan!"

She folded her arms. Elsa's eyes lowered sharply. "She is not thrilled about it, but she knows that it is pointless to try and convince me otherwise."

"If you do this, I am staying with you!"

It felt wrong to smile, but Elsa couldn't help it. Honeymaren sounded so much like Anna at that moment; wanting to throw everything aside to help her. The sentiment had Elsa feeling warm with affection.

"You know I would never allow that to happen." she whispered. "No sooner than I would decide to leave, would I permit you to stay behind with me."

Honeymaren fell silent. Her attention dropped to her feet. Agitated, tight fists drew to her sides and she scoffed as she kicked at the dirt.

"You will be traveling to a secluded mountain; the location of a home I built for myself when I had nowhere else to turn." Elsa explained. "It is well-hidden, and you will be safe there, and that is exactly how I would like for you to remain."

She stood there for a long moment. Honeymaren's face was stern and her eyes flickered while her mind drew quickly between thoughts. Finally, feeling her anger spike, she stomped away.

Elsa painfully watched her go, forcing herself to believe that at the end of the day this would all be for the best.

Within the hour, the Northuldra village was packed for their departure. Elsa meant to see them off, but she found herself walking away when the herders set out with the reindeer. It was more upsetting than she anticipated; to watch her family leave the forest. The sense of guilt that came with it was devastating, and Elsa couldn't help but blame herself.

When Honeymaren drew her bag to her shoulder, she turned her head to find Elsa. Her friend was nowhere to be seen. Angry or not, her disappearance stung. Part of her wondered if she would ever see Elsa again, and now Honeymaren had been robbed of that final opportunity to do so.

She was made to hold back tears as the village moved forward. Her nails dug into her palm, and she struggled for a deep breath. Honeymaren's eyes directed to the South. She took up the rear of the group, and forced herself follow as her people began heading... into the unknown.

A mile North, Elsa was seated on the bank of the Dark Sea. Her eyes glued to the horizon, leading out to Ahtohallan.

Nokk was stationed calmly at her side. He brayed into her open hand, nuzzling Elsa softly.

She knew he'd turn soon. It was only a matter of time, but he had come to her on his own. While she softly cried against the shore, Nokk conjured up from the sea. Allowing her fingers to drift over his cool form, Elsa wanted to savor the moment.

In a matter of a few weeks, she had lost the earth giants, Bruni, and Gale; her most treasured friends. Elsa was on the brink of losing Nokk now, too, and she wanted the peace of knowing she would get to say goodbye.

"If I may ask you for one favor," Elsa turned to him. "-please, try and fight this.

"Don't leave me to care for Northuldra on my own. I need you at my side." she pleaded.

Cheers,

-M.