Chapter Sixty
A Storm is Coming
ANNA
When this is all over, I need a long trip with Kristoff. Anna sighed and looked out at the next wave of citizens who were shouting frantically in a panic, clawing at the carriages and to let them board. After she had officially released the news to the public that a war was coming and that a full scale evacuation was in effect, the kingdom officials and the Queen's Guard had worked tirelessly for hours to organise safe passage to the south.
A valley lay a distance away from Einsfelt, a half day's walk from Arendelle. Kristoff, herself and the other ministers had spent time poring over a map to figure out the safest place for the citizens to hide till the situation was under control. She had to admit that Kristoff was doing a far better job than she had expected. He would make a pretty good ruler indeed in spite of his constant denials.
He was busy overseeing the march of Arendelle's two bridgades as they journeyed out to the hills on the western border of Arendelle to prepare for deployment, while a separate column branched off to march down to the coast road to prepare for the Southern Isles' Navy. It was been quite a spectacle, seeing all those soldiers in green marching to the steady drum of the beat, a long column of soldiers snaking as far as the eye could see, accompanied by supply wagons, cannons limbered to horses, and carts carrying all sorts of other miscellaneous items.
She'd given the green light for the evacuation to begin, and as expected, the people were in a panic. How could they not be? Their home and their safety was being threatened by a foreign kingdom that sought to engulf them entirely.
To aid with the evacuation, all the farmers' horses, carriages, wagons and carts that belonged to every citizen as well as supply crates belonging to the merchants from the marketplace had been commandeered for the sole purpose of transporting everything and everyone to the safety of the valley.
But as much as everyone had chipped in, there simply weren't enough wagons to carry enough supplies to last the people through the crisis, and there certainly weren't enough carriages to ferry everyone out. Some of the carriages had to double back after delivering their passengers, and people were forced to squeeze into the carriages and cabriolets to ensure that they got out before any fighting started.
It had been a nightmare to coordinate, but Anna felt like she owed it to the people to get involved with helping out, and thankfully she had been joined by Maui, her assistant Hayley, and many of the officials and soldiers.
"That's the last wave." Hayley said, nodding at the final crowd of people waiting by the side of the road while a few old carriages turned up.
Anna heaved a sigh of relief as she watched people clamouring to enter the carriages for fear of being left behind. "I thought it would never end."
She glanced up at the sky. It was dark already by this time. Further out from Arendelle, storm clouds were approaching from Denmark as if to symbolise that a storm was coming which would not only include rain, but blood too.
"A storm is coming." Maui came over to where she and Hayley was. "We should get these people out of here quickly."
"I doubt we'll have to push them. They're already pretty eager all by themselves. Please excuse me, Your Majesty." Hayley hastened to tend to another matter that required her attention further down the road.
Anna sighed again. "At least this is done and we can focus on getting ready for tomorrow. Have Elsa and the rest turned up yet?"
Maui shook his head, but then a portal of purple mist opened a short distance behind them on the road.
"Better late than never." Maui said as four figures stepped out of the Crossing Point, looking tired, wet and dishevelled.
"Elsa!" Anna ran up to hug her sister tightly, squeezing the breath out of her. "I was so worried!"
"I'm fine," Elsa winced. "But watch the arm."
Anna looked down to see a nasty looking cut across her sister's bare arm, and gritted her teeth. "Sorry."
"It's good to see you too, Anna." Elsa smiled feebly and she rested her chin on Anna's shoulder while they continued to linger in each other's embrace. "For a while, I didn't think I would ever see you again."
"Well, I'm here. And so are you."
"Guys," Maui called out. "What's hood face doing here?"
Anna glanced and for the first time noticed that the mercenary in the black hood and mask, Prometheus, was standing beside Deirdre and Holli, clutching a bloodied shoulder. She had been so focused on her sister that she had briefly forgotten that there had been anyone else.
"What's going on?" Anna asked as she looked at Prometheus warily, her fist suddenly clenching. "Why is he here?"
"Ummn…" Elsa drawled. "To cut a long story short, he's on our side now."
"Wait, what?" Anna blinked. Her fist loosened.
"Like I said, it's a long story. Look, I'll tell you about it when we have more time, but don't worry." Elsa reassured.
"You sure we can trust him?" Maui sounded unsure. "He did kidnap you, remember?"
Prometheus glanced up at the big demigod, with no trace of fear or being offended behind the obscurity of his black mask and hood.
"He saved my life." Elsa sounded firm. "And he helped to save Melody's parents from the Empire. Janus, Prometheus that is, is on our side. Trust me."
"Okay…" Anna stole another glance at the scary mercenary. "Thank you, I guess? For saving my sister."
"You're welcome." Prometheus - or Janus - said through the filters in his mask, his voice deep and mechanical as it had always been.
Anna looked around, and couldn't help but notice that besides Elsa and Janus, only Deirdre and Holli had returned with them. The latter was holding on to Melody's new bow and arrows. The absence of the rest was glaringly obvious by the lack of their originally larger numbers.
"Ummn, Elsa. Where's the rest?" Anna cocked her head, and glanced back at Deirdre. "Not that it's not good to see you two. Welcome back to Arendelle."
"Thanks." Holli said, and Deirdre nodded, looking sullen as always.
Elsa paused. "Melody and Tracy are down in the sea."
"Huh?"
"She asked me take these back for her." Holli waved the flashy bow and indicated the quiver on her back.
"What?" Anna was so confused. "And where's Jade and Will? I thought they were with you guys."
At this, Elsa stopped again and glanced back at Deirdre, who shook her head forlornly. Elsa exhaled deeply and followed suit, shaking her head like Deirdre had done.
"Melody told us that Jade stayed behind." Elsa started slowly. "To blow up the Empire's supplies in Fort Kroxendal."
"Doesn't look like that stopped the Imperial Horde from continuing their march though." Maui said. "Last we heard, they're still coming."
"Yes, well, we…don't know what happened to Jade after that." Elsa said with a tortured expression on her face, as though it pained her not knowing if Jade was still alive.
Anna herself had gone rather grim, the foul, dark mood hanging in the air like a thick, contagious cloud. "And Will?"
Elsa glanced back at Deirdre again, who refused to meet her gaze, and then gave a shuddering sigh. "He…he's gone."
"Gone?" Anna felt the blood drain from her face. "What do you mean gone?" Though she knew exactly what it meant, she hoped stupidly that some part of her had interpreted it wrongly.
"He died trying to save the Insurgency." Elsa's voice cracked. "If it wasn't for him, the First Imperials…they would have slaughtered everyone."
"No…" Anna took a step back. "Will…he's dead?"
"I'm sorry." Elsa said quietly, trying to regain her own composure. "I should have saved him."
"There's nothing any of us could have done." Holli spoke up sharply, though she too was evidently grieved. "Elsa, you have to stop beating yourself up over this."
"I'm sorry." Elsa repeated. "It's just that…he never wanted any part of this to begin with. And now he's dead."
Anna was very quiet, and exchanged a glance with Maui. All of them were speechless. She closed her eyes and pinched her nose bridge. This mission had extracted a very heavy toll, far greater than any of them could have imagined. Granted, everyone knew that this mission was going to be the most dangerous one they had ever faced yet, but she was sure that no one had expected any deaths.
She opened her eyes, and found the rest gloomily staring at the ground, or at her, and realised that they were looking for an answer as to what came next. Clearing her throat, she drew herself up. As the queen, she knew she had to be strong, even if she herself was grieving for the loss of her friends.
"I'm…I'm sorry about Will and Jade. But we should get to the castle. I'll have rooms prepared so that you guys can rest before tomorrow. We…need to get our heads on straight. Come on," she motioned for the rest to follow her. "Let's see about getting you guys some proper rest before meeting up with the other League members in the morning."
###
As if her day hadn't been long enough already. First, she had returned to Arendelle with the help of Hiro the inventor, and then with Maui's help, flown to Einsfelt to seek help and back to Arendelle again to check on the army. Next came the evacuation which sapped most of her time and strength, and when that was done, her friends returned and she had arranged accommodations for them.
All in all, it was rather safe to say that the day had been a thoroughly exhausting one, though something told her that the imminent war in two days time would make today's work seem like child's play.
Outside, rain pattered constantly against her window, and was occasionally was joined by a chorus of soft rumbling thunder rolling across the sky. Anna mused that it really added to the gloomy, foreboding atmosphere, and slouched forward in her chair in her dimly lit study, placing her elbows on the sturdy desk and putting her heavy head in her hands. She had reached a point in exhaustion where she was too restless to sleep, and she imagined it had something to do with the fact that soon there would be a full scale war with not one but two opposing forces.
The royal study had become a place of solace for her. Her predecessors would often sit in the private room to ponder the big questions of their reign. In her case, what bigger question could there be at this point than "Have I led my kingdom into a war that could have been prevented?"
And yet, she hadn't forgotten what Hiro had shown her about all those alternate versions of herself. They had hung around in her mind since she had gotten back to her own world. She still had an incredulously hard time imagining multiple planes of existence where she was a tyrant just like Eleanor, or even worse. Maybe, just maybe I really am doing better than I think.
Someone rapped on the door of her study. Anna glanced at the clock nearby, that was illuminated by a single candle on her desk. It was already eleven in the night. Who could it possibly be at this hour?
"Who is it?" Anna called out tiredly. If it was one of the Cabinet ministers, she swore she was going to scream.
"It's me." Elsa's voice drifted through the door and across the room.
"Oh. Come on in."
The door creaked open and Elsa peered in, dressed in one of her sleeveless light blue blouses with a lavender coat thrown around her shoulders, and casual tight pants. She had also done up her hair in her traditional French braid again, and she smelled washed and fresh with the strong scent of lavender.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything."
"Oh, I'm very busy, as you can see." Anna spread her hands across her empty desk which she had cleared not long ago.
Elsa gave a weak chuckle and closed the door behind her, before crossing the room to a sofa and sinking into it. She leaned her head on the soft backing of the sofa, letting out a quiet but lengthy breath.
"Tiring day, huh." Anna said.
"You have no idea."
"I feel you, sis." Anna leaned backwards in her own chair which gave a long creak. "Sometimes I wish it was still you on this side of the desk."
"No thanks." Elsa said quickly. "I think you're doing great. Better than I ever have, in fact."
"Hah. Drink?" Anna motioned at a flask on her desk containing fine scotch given to her by some noble during one of the many visits from foreign dignitaries. "I'm gonna have one myself."
"Yes please."
"Great." Anna reached for the flask and fished out from under her desk. "You look like you could use it."
"Never knew you had a taste for scotch." Elsa watched her pour a two servings of scotch into two expensive looking whisky glasses and adding a few drops of spring water.
"Taking up the job has taken its toll I suppose." Anna joked, crossing the room to hand one glass to Elsa, and then sitting down beside her on the sofa.
Elsa took a sip. "I know every little bit helps from time to time."
"So," Anna set down her glass on a little handmade round table beside the sofa. "I heard from Tracy you had a little run in with Hans after I vanished."
"Tracy talks too much." Elsa muttered under her breath.
"You wanna tell me about it?" Anna asked.
"I'm not sure you want to know, Anna."
"I do. Please. I want to know what he did to you." Anna said, indignation in her voice. A horrible thought crossed her mind. "Did he…"
"What? No, no, he didn't." Elsa answered hurriedly, distraught at the suggestion. "He's in love with Eleanor. He made it clear that he wasn't going to take liberties with me."
"Wait, what? Gross." Anna scrunched up her nose. "Hans and Eleanor?"
Elsa shrugged. "I did see them kiss."
I guess the mock marriage offer was never truly on the table. "So what exactly happened? What did Hans do?"
Elsa sighed. "After you vanished, Hans came into my cell to gloat. He told me that there was a time before my coronation that he was determined to love me and marry me the right way. But when it didn't go according to his initial plan, unrequited love turned to hatred. He blamed me for everything that went wrong with his plan to usurp the throne two years ago, and wanted to make me suffer for it."
Anna's eyebrows furrowed as she listened to Elsa recount the rest of the story, and her fists clenched by her side, growing tighter with every horrid detail.
"He almost succeeded too." Elsa shuddered at the memory. "He broke me. I was ready to die, and he was going to shoot me."
"Elsa…" Anna whispered, horrified at Hans' merciless actions. "I'm sorry…"
"But then Tracy swooped in at the right moment and saved me." Elsa closed her eyes. "Otherwise I would have been a goner for sure."
Anna stared anxiously at her sister. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine now."
"I'm going to see to it that justice is served." Anna seethed. "He won't get away with this."
"I sort of dealt with him already." Elsa admitted. "He was in the castle with Eleanor when we stormed it. But he escaped again. You'll get your chance tomorrow. I'm pretty sure he'll turn up at the battlefield when the fighting starts. He's not one to miss out on the action."
"Then neither will I." Anna said determinedly. "You sure you're alright?"
"Anna, I'm fine." Elsa reassured her and took another sip from her glass. "Just tired, is all."
There was a pregnant pause, and Anna slowly deduced that Elsa wanted to tell her something, but didn't know how to go about doing so.
"Elsa, there's something else, isn't there?" Anna said.
She nodded slowly. "I've been plagued with a thought that refuses to go away. I don't know. I can't help but wonder if things would have turned out better if I had never returned from the forest. If Will and Jade would….would be…"
"You can't think like that." Anna placed her hand on Elsa's knee.
"I just…"
"I know." Anna said. "You can't stop thinking of how you could've done things differently. I know I do, and it's eating me up bit by bit. I was angry at myself for letting us all fall into Eleanor's trap. She orchestrated the whole thing, and I got us into trouble."
"You didn't, Anna. No one could have seen that coming."
"Still, I felt responsible. I'm sure Melody told you about this other world we got sent to?"
"She didn't really give us details."
"I can see why." Anna murmured. "It isn't easy to explain. Suffice to say, it was a futuristic world where magic didn't exist. I met this inventor who used some cool gadgets to show me all these other worlds in existence out there where there are versions of me who were far worse than I am."
"I'm sorry, I don't get it." Elsa's eyebrows furrowed as she ran a hand through her hair. "Other worlds out there? Other versions of you?'
"Look, I don't understand it any better than you do." Anna said. "But I saw with my own eyes. There are other worlds out there where other versions of ourselves exist. I saw versions of myself where I was a horrible leader and ruler, throwing Arendelle into destruction and chaos."
Anna decided to neglect the part about her seeing other versions of herself try to kill Elsa. No, she didn't need to know about that. Anna had no idea what the knowledge of their rivalry on many other worlds would do to Elsa. And in a time like this, it was definitely best not to distract her. The lesser she knew, the better.
Elsa was very quiet, looking confused and stunned, her head cocked slightly and her tired eyes watching Anna.
"The point is," Anna continued. "I realised that this version of me, whichever that is, is a far better ruler than most of my counterparts. At least I didn't deliberately cause the downfall of Arendelle and became a tyrant like Eleanor. It made me realise that I wasn't doing as bad a job as I thought. And I'm willing to bet that this version of you-" Anna patted Elsa's knee. "-is far better than many of your counterparts somewhere out there in the multiverse."
Elsa was still rather quiet, taking time to let the newfound knowledge sink in. All that remained was the sound of the rain drumming against the window of the study. Anna held her breath, not knowing how Elsa would react. Was this too much knowledge for the night before a war?
"I can't pretend to understand what you've just told me, Anna." Elsa finally spoke. "But I guess you're right. We're probably doing better than we think. I hope."
"Definitely." Anna smiled reassuringly, though she herself was still trying to believe it. "Look, Jade, Will and the rest, they make their own decisions, even if you're the Pilgrim. If they decided to do something, then there wouldn't have been anything you could have done to stop them. And if Jade is still alive, we'll get her back."
"You're probably right." Elsa said, though still slightly gloomy. "I just think I need to be a better leader to the League. I haven't exactly been around for them."
"You'll get plenty of chances when we're done dealing with Exon." Anna said cheerily, even though she didn't feel it. This was way more optimism than she actually had in her own tank. "We all have things we want to rectify when this is all over. For me, it's sealing the deal with Kristoff."
"What?" Elsa straightened up a little.
"I guess you're the first one to know." Anna couldn't stop the smile from spreading on her face, even though danger still loomed ahead. "Kristoff and I are getting married after the battle."
"That…" Elsa's face had changed almost entirely, brightening up, her eyes sparkling with tears of joy for her sister. "That's wonderful!"
"I know, right?" Anna chortled. "We didn't see any point in waiting any longer. In the world we live in, who knows what might come next?"
"I'm so glad for you, Anna." Elsa hugged her sister tightly. "You and Kristoff deserve to be happy."
"Well so do you, Elsa." Anna said. "You should go talk to Janus."
Elsa blinked and the smile vanished. "What?"
"Don't think I didn't notice." Anna laughed. "Remember what we said about you going to Denmark and finding your love partner?"
By the looks of it, Elsa couldn't seem to find an appropriate response.
"You two are pretty cute together." Anna giggled and gulped down the remainder of her scotch. "Even though he's a scary mercenary and all."
"Former mercenary." Elsa corrected her. "He's…he's working with us now."
"Sure, sure, whatever you say." Anna couldn't wipe the grin off her face. "I'm happy for you, Elsa. You deserve to be with someone you actually love."
Elsa's cheeks flushed red and Anna guessed that it wasn't from the scotch. She did her best to avoid eye contact with Anna, evidently embarrassed.
"So…have you two…" Anna waggled her eyebrows suggestively.
"No." Elsa said hastily before she could finish. "Not…yet at least…not with everything that's been going on."
"Seems to me there's no time like the present." Anna grinned cheekily. "As far as I know, you aren't busy, and neither is he."
Elsa gawked. "Anna-"
"Go. Talk to him. Cherish tonight while we still have it. We don't know what's in store for us." Anna urged her.
Elsa stood up, her cheeks still red. "I guess I could talk to him."
"That's more like it." Anna giggled. "Come on, I'll walk you out."
