~Chapter 20~

Anna

Rasmus gave me no information regarding those I had to track down to sacrifice with the horn. Though he did tell me I gained a power as his siren along with my fire. All I had to do was sing close enough to my target and lure them to me. It was a spell nobody could escape once my voice hit their ears. Reminding me even of that old story of the Pied Piper except instead of rats, I'm finding those that sealed my master away. Rasmus has been silent for some weeks only popping into my head on very rare occasions. Though it was nice to only have my voice alone when I did because sometimes the other me would try to slip through. I wouldn't let her, I was her after all, but a violent side of her that never could leave her subconscious until I took on Elsa's corruption. A selfless courageous act, but now I had full take over and I'd never go back. This is me.

I had to of been able to use the horn on anyone, but only certain individuals would set my master free. To test this theory, after leaving Arendelle I rode south on the back of Kristoff, the great white polar bear, to a small fishing village where Arendelle bought fish for the kingdom. It was secluded hidden in a glen surrounded by trees not far from the fjord. Nearing midnight as Kristoff stomped through the village square. All lights were out save for a small candle in the window of one of the nearby homes. Kristoff moved me closer to the window as I began to sing. Both soft and loud dynamics came from my mouth. I watched as the candle moved out from the window. The door to the home opened with a man who came lured by my voice. I marched him from the village onto the banks of the fjord. He couldn't help himself. The Siren's voice was strong. I kept singing as I had the man stop as I brought the horn to my lips that I had tied to my belt. Rasmus led me to it yesterday and it took Kristoff's bear strength to fish it from the fjord easily enough. This fjord held many secrets beneath its depths. I blew the horn as I watched the color drain from his face, he dropped the candle with a look of terror etched on his face as he fell over. A small white orb left his mouth and floated into the horn. The instrument was powerful and clearly any life did count as the horn collected the life that was taken.

"No Anna," I heard Rasmus bellow, "Find those responsible."

"But the horn collected this man's soul," I tried to reason, "You haven't told me who I am looking for."

"The number is high, go to the place where they all came from. Read documented accounts."

I recalled a memory in this moment. I knew those that went after Rasmus after the flooding of Carcallier were from the Southern Isles.

"Didn't your capture take place a few centuries ago, so those individuals."

"Are long gone, yes." He snapped, "I get to settle for descendants. Now go."

Rasmus couldn't have been any vaguer, but I was intelligent and I had an arsenal of power at my command. I would get the answers I needed.

Kristoff in his bear form couldn't get me there. I needed to cross the fjord. There was a curiosity about the Southern Isles that had never been answered and now was the chance to find out. My master was waiting and he would soon be free. It was up to me alone. There weren't many harbors between Arendelle and the Southern Isles. I couldn't go back to Arendelle, not that I couldn't make swift work of Arendellian guards, but for travel and surprise, I would take a more stealthy approach for once. Though traveling with a polar bear would make that quite the challenge. Signs near the fishing village pointed me to a single pair of docks where a small Brigantine ship was docked. As Kristoff and I walked the dock, nobody was on deck, so we climbed the gangplank on board. I didn't know the first thing about ship sailing and maybe Kristoff could help if he were human. I turned toward him with his beady black eyes looking back into mine.

"Let's let them know we're here, shall we?" I said, scruffing Kristoff's fur around his neck. His big bear paws stomped on the deck as he bellowed a guttural growl that seemed to echo across the fjord. The sound of men's boots hitting the ground below deck hit my ears as the crew came up the stairs from below. There were around ten of them to deal with and I would make them an offer, they couldn't refuse. All of them unsheathed weapons upon seeing Kristoff towering behind me. Though he didn't dare attack except on my command.

"Who are you, lass?" The first sailor who approached asked. He had a thick accent probably from Scotland.

"Sail me to the Southern Isles," I said, directly, "Or you won't live to see the morning sunrise."

It was nearing midnight and I didn't know how long it would take to get across the fjord, especially in less than optimal conditions with the lurking storms.

"Who are you to come order us?"

Clearly, they didn't recognize the princess of Arendelle though maybe they should as my name would usher fear as gossip would spread. If I wasn't careful, someone would come after me and get in my way, I couldn't let that happen.

"Take me now or you might lose your ship," I warned, "And quite possibly a few men."

My hands began to glow a fiery rage as I snapped my fingers as Kristoff attacked the nearest man. I set that man ablaze as his screams of agony terrorized the rest of the sailors. The man was put out of his misery in seconds as Kristoff picked up the dead man tossing him overboard.

"Get it?" I asked the sailors.

The man who addressed me agreed to my demands promptly ordering his men to ready the sails immediately to depart. He must have been the captain of the ship and he was wise clearly not wanting to fight me or sacrifice his men.

"What do we call you, lass?" He asked.

"Anna," I said.

His brows raised in recognition.

"Like the princess of Arendelle?"

"My namesake,"

"Don't hurt any of my men, they're good people."

"Get me to the Southern Isles before morning and this will all seem like a bad dream." I nodded.

"Take my captain's quarters below." He offered, showering me with kindness not wanting to anger me. Wise choice.

We descended the stairs as the captain showed me his room. The only one with a door. The rest of the sailors slept in various hammocks that were strewn up below deck. The captain had a hammock as well, but at least he had the privacy of a room to himself, which Kristoff and I would now occupy.

"There are biscuits in the cabinet by the window and water in that barrel."

"Good, now get out. Sail on."

The captain nodded but left me in a grumbled huff. Kristoff nudged me from behind as I patted his head.

"My master did me a favor by making you into this great beast. His influence reaches though he is not here."

The bear snorted.

"I know you don't understand, but it's nice to imagine you do. I wonder if these memories will haunt you or if you won't remember a thing. I guess we'll have to wait and see as you'll be a man in a matter of hours."

The ship lurched as I looked out the window and we began moving though not a smooth ride. The fjord had been treacherous as of late I remembered from past memories. Those losses didn't matter to me, so long as the ship remained I would make it to the Southern Isles to seek the names of my master's victims. A task I looked forward to carrying out.

Kristoff snorted as he laid down on his side in the corner of the room. With each lurch and choppy movement of the ship, I'll admit, my sea legs were lacking. I couldn't let myself get distracted. I had a job to do, the reminder of that was fastened to my belt at my hip. The horn. Thoughts of Elsa filled my mind in her final moments. They were cathartic and thrilling, but haunted me at the same time. I could feel the anguish of my other self screeching in the back of my mind. It was all I could do to push her to silence, but sometimes I was tired and her voice leeched through. I wondered if Elsa could sense her other self before I intervened. Nobody would dare come after me unless Niklas went on a revenge ploy, but he knew what I was capable of. My brother-in-law was many things, but stupid wasn't one of them. If he left me alone, I'd leave Arendelle alone. All I wanted was to free my master and serve him the best I could. My eyes felt heavy with the swaying of the ship rocking me to sleep. I wanted to remain alert, but Kristoff was here should any sailor try something foolish to ambush me. I looked at my hands as my eyes began to droop. Elsa's blood was on my hands. My lips curled into a smile. Master must be so proud of me, I thought.

I was stirred awake by a guttural sound and a light engulfing the room. I sat up with a start lighting my hand up on fire in defense glancing outside, it was almost sunrise. The fur of a polar bear disappeared as I saw hands and arms emerge from the light followed by the rest of Kristoff back into a man just like Rasmus said would happen. He looked around dazed and confused touching his face and hands making sure it was all real before looking up at me. I doused my fire.

"A-Anna,"

"Hello again, Kristoff,"

"What happened?"

"All you need to know is you serve me. The woman you know is gone. My master put you under a transfiguration curse where you are only a man for one hour a day, right before sunrise, during all other hours a polar bear who does my bidding. Behave while you're human and we'll get along, disobey me and you will be punished. I don't need you, but you are a means to an end, though I can't argue the brute strength you have as a beast."

"Anna," He stepped toward me as I ignited my hands.

"Stay put, Romeo. You don't get long as a human each day, so I suggest you make the most of it."

"Where are we headed?" He asked, glancing out the window.

"That's need know only, Kristoff."

"Where's Elsa? Did you kidnap her too?"

"My sister is dead," I said bluntly.

I relished in the look of terror he gave me upon saying those words. Equal parts disbelief and horror.

"You're lying," He spat, "Anna wouldn't ever hurt her sister,"

"Sure I would," I replied, "She was in my masters' way, so she had to be eliminated."

He paused just staring at me in disbelief.

"Anna please, I know you're in there."

He stepped toward me desperately and my quick reflex reaction was grabbing him by the wrist as he got close. My hold surprised him as I lit my hand, burning his wrist in the process. Only for a few seconds did I listen to Kristoff cry out in pain before I quelled my fire. He took a knee as I released his wrist.

"That's merely a warning," I told him, "Don't be stupid."

I stepped over him as I gazed out the window. The back of my head was screaming his name. She was giving me a headache as her voice rang in my head. Why was she still here? I reignited my hand reaching for his head to test a theory I had. As my heat grew, she screamed at me to stop.

"Don't hurt him!" She cried, "I'll do whatever you want,"

"You know what I want," I replied.

The headache suddenly ebbed and I felt a newfound clarity in my mind. I don't think she was gone, after all, I was her, but I held the ace. Kristoff was the ace. Atta girl.

Kristoff

What was she doing? Anna had burned me before, but not like this. Her eyes were not her own as they held a purple hue. She had no remorse for bringing me to my knees or causing pain. I wasn't sure what to do. She couldn't outmatch my strength, but she had fire which was the ultimate wild card. I didn't want to leave her in this state, my Anna was still in there. I had to find a way to reach her and bring her out. When she burned me before, I sensed the slightest hesitation, which made me think she would have hurt me far worse, but couldn't do it. The raw, blistered skin that she had marred was stinging just as badly now as when she first grabbed my wrist. Sitting here in pain was fruitless, I had to do something. I looked at my surroundings and saw nothing immediately I could grab or any weapon. Though I knew if there were weapons, I couldn't use them against her. She could hurt me so easily wounding me with her fire, but it wouldn't be easy for me to harm her even in self-defense. I love her. I had to get my Anna back and I'll stick with her until I figure out how to do it. I finally spotted something next to a canister of water. A bag of flour. It would be heavy and I wasn't sure I could lift it with my injury, but I had to try. I glanced over my shoulder and Anna had her back to me looking at the window complaining about the speed of the ship.

"Ugh, we need to go faster. I must speak to the captain purposefully slowing down our voyage. I will burn him." She growled.

I reached and grabbed the bag with my good arm spinning around to thrust it toward Anna. It hit her in the jaw and the momentum from my throw pushed her head into the window cracking it. Flour showered everywhere in the vicinity and made a white cloud. It knocked Anna to the floor in a daze, but not unconscious. I wouldn't have much time.

"I'm sorry, Anna," I said before rising to my feet and running out of the room.

I heard her scream my name with poorly aimed fireballs being thrown in every direction and I had to duck to avoid two. I climbed the stairs to the deck where I saw the sailors going about their business keeping their heads down out of fear. The moon was still out only just as it was setting toward the west. I didn't have much time before my time as a man would be over. Quickly spotting the captain at the ship's wheel, I approached him as he looked at me suspiciously.

"Oy, I don't recognize you. There are no stowaways on my ship."

"Says the captain whose ship has been hijacked by a woman wielding fire and a polar bear."

His gaze narrowed.

"How do you know that?"

"I'm that bear,"

"You're drunk," The captain insisted, "Have too much ale before boarding?"

I saw flashes of fire beginning to shoot out from below deck, Anna was coming straight after me. I should have hit her harder, but I knew I couldn't manage it.

"Listen to me, once you get her to the Southern Isles, cross the fjord again back to Arendelle and speak to King Niklas."

The captain tried to contain laughter.

"You think I can get an audience with a king? Why would he see a foreigner like me?"

"Tell him Kristoff is with Anna in the Southern Isles. That's it."

His amusement turned into horror in a single glance.

"You're telling me that woman is the Princess of Arendelle?" He asked in disbelief.

Before I could clarify, a fireball missed my face flying right between me and the captain. Anna was on deck glaring at me with her back arched and her hands engulfed in flames. She had a small cut on her forehead probably from hitting the window.

"I prefer you as a bear, much more obedient." She growled.

"You misunderstand, I just needed fresh air. I don't do well on ships."

Anna practically flew up the steps toward me and the captain at the wheel. She snapped her gaze at the captain who wouldn't look her in the eye.

"What did he tell you?" Anna asked, threatening him with a fireball inching toward his face.

"He merely introduced himself, lass. His name is Kristopher,"

A small lie, but I hope Anna wouldn't pick up on it. I didn't want her to hurt anyone else. Without another word, she grabbed me by the arm and yanked me downstairs pulling me all the way below deck. I prepared for a painful punishment from the woman I love. How long could my heart take this before it would give out?

Anna

Yanking him by the arm, I brought him back to the captain's quarters below deck pushing him into the room before me. I turned as I closed the door melting the lock trapping us inside for the duration of the voyage.

"You're more trouble than you're worth, you know that?"

"You need me,"

"My master thinks I need a bear for protection when I have fire. It's ludicrous."

My body language was still so tense and fire still engulfed my hands. I stood aggressively and I wanted to punish him, but that hesitation was there.

"You don't need to trap me in here. My time as a man is almost over anyway. Where am I going to go?"

"It's only an hour, but it's enough time to seek help and run away from me." I spat.

"You're my fiancee, I'm not running away." He said calmly.

"I told you she's gone," I replied, raising my voice.

"I don't believe that,"

"Then you're an idiot," I growled, my voice growing louder.

"Well maybe I am," he replied.

"Enough!" I shouted, slapping him across the face.

My nails dug into his face on that hit and yet his gaze was kind and soft even after that. Blood was slowly coming down my forehead. In the mess of flour left behind from before, there were ripped pieces of linen from the bag that broke when Kristoff hit me with it. He picked up a scrap and I narrowed my gaze suspiciously.

"What?" I questioned.

"You're bleeding."

"So what?"

"Let me clean it up,"

"I don't care," I said.

"Well, I do. Hold still." He said calmly.

He approached with the cloth reaching for my face slowly. My hands were still on fire as a show of aggression and I had half a mind to reach for his other wrist and burn that one like the other, but I didn't act on it. Was this her? She was still fighting me. Kristoff cleaned me up quickly as we both saw the sunrise from the window. It wasn't long before he was shouting in pain as his bones reformed and reshaped. Fur grew across his body and he was on all fours again. That transformation was punishment enough for his disobedience.

The rest of the voyage was quiet. The rough waters made me nauseous as it was all I could do to distract myself. Kristoff just sat on the floor patiently waiting for a command I'd make of him. In my head, I began thinking of where I was going to start looking for the victims I was to find for my master. It would be like a needle in a haystack, but Rasmus was waiting and I couldn't disappoint him. He would not regret making me his siren. Smoke was seen drifting in the air outside as I heard the captain bellow from the deck.

"Land hoe! Southern Isles imminent."

I climbed the stairs onto the deck and my eyes began watering from all the smoke. Pillars of smoke engulfed the city. Screams were heard as agonized cries rang out across the water as we approached docking into the harbor. For a kingdom with such a formerly large royal family to lead, it was smaller than I expected. Perhaps only just smaller than Arendelle. A small village was engulfed in flames just up from the harbor and there was a palace sitting on top of a hill just outside the city. Two sailors put down the gangplank as the captain stood nearby. I climbed on Kristoff's back glancing at the captain.

"You were obedient, a wise choice indeed," I told him.

"I got you here, so that was all you wanted." He spoke nervously.

I nodded as I urged Kristoff forward and onto the dock. I glanced over my shoulder igniting my hand blasting a fireball at the ship. The flames engulfed the ship in moments as the captain and his sailors dove off the side to safety. Nobody would know I was here and I intended to keep it that way.

Pillaging and ransacking was rampant. Groups of men ran through the streets with weapons in their hands kicking down doors of any home they came across. Throwing furniture through windows and setting some homes on fire. It appeared as if I had already been here. One rough group saw me alone and weren't even intimidated by Kristoff until I patted his side and he roared at them. I charged at the man closest to me and struck him down with fire. His agonized cries didn't last long before he collapsed dead. His friends all looked at each other and quickly backed away from me. Kristoff ran us ahead of them, but just in case I blasted a line of fire cutting off the path between us. This kingdom was a confusing layout with lots of winding alleyways that I didn't anticipate as I got my early visuals from the ship. Families ran by me, mothers with crying children in their arms, and elderly with canes trying to escape the smoke and flames. Without leadership, any city would fall into corruption and chaos. I knew this would be a challenge. Where was I to find records from centuries past? I saw no sign of a library. Then I heard his voice.

"Recall the human name depicted from Carcallier, Siren."

"Can't you just tell me?"

No answer came from the recesses of my mind. His influence was palpable in my head, but even he couldn't reach far if he was still sealed away. The further I moved out of the city and toward the palace, the easier it was to see. Most of the smoke was downhill blowing toward the fjord. Though the palace was in horrific shape. I wondered if everything started here. Fires erupted here too though they were already put out. Windows on both floors broken. A once grand building now lay in ruin. Kristoff mowed down the door that practically fell off its hinges. A broken chandelier hung crookedly from the entrance as this entire place looked as if a stampede had come through. Scorch marks marred the floor and walls. There were a single set of stairs just passed the entryway leading to the second floor. Though if I had to guess, records would be kept closest to the leadership, which would be on the ground level. Many rooms were empty with their contents burned to a crisp and falling apart. After searching for an hour, I had one room that was out of the way hidden under the stairs. I almost missed it. I got off Kristoff's back and went inside as he followed behind me. Inside this room was the charred table with an emblem etched into the wood. I could only guess the emblem was that of the Southern Isles kingdom, but I wasn't sure as I saw no flags flying since arriving. Wall hangings and a few tapestries covered the walls and were burned. Chairs around the table knocked over though they appeared to be formerly of expensive taste. As I moved around the table, my foot caught something as I tripped falling to the ground. Rolling over to see what I stumbled over, to my surprise it was the remains of a body with an arm reaching out toward the wall. I stood up brushing my clothes off glancing at Kristoff.

"Why would one person stay here?" I mused, "Unless-"

It was as if this person was pointing toward the wall. Putting my ear against it giving a firm knock, it was hollow. There was something that laid beyond it. I quickly began pushing against the one wall, but it wouldn't move an inch. I searched the table to see if there was a hidden button or something. Kristoff tipped it on its side for easier access, but there was nothing. I flipped over every chair and pounded the other walls. Frustrated, I sat in a slump.

"Rasmus, help me," I whispered.

No reply came. Kristoff laid beside me with his head resting against my leg. I patted his head as I glanced at the wall hanging across the way from me. All my wall knocking had shifted it against the wall, it was crooked now. There sticking out just beneath the bottom corner was a small raised surface that matched the color of the wall. I got up and pressed it and the nearby wall opened up a doorway.

"Hidden in plain sight," I told Kristoff.

He snorted as he moved ahead of me into the new hidden room. It was completely intact with bookcases that filled the space with a desk and an oil lamp in the corner. Finally, I was getting somewhere. I picked up a stack of books and began skimming them for keywords and dates. Anything regarding Carcallier. After speeding through the first five books, I brought a hand to my mouth covering a yawn. I hadn't slept in two days and the fatigue was hitting me. Though I couldn't stop. Master would reward my perseverance.

I didn't stop for hours trying to focus on the task at hand. My eyes were tired and drooping, but I didn't let that stop me. Thunder rumbled outside perking up Kristoff as he stood up nervously pacing rather than laying curled in a ball.

"Coward," I grumbled as I looked up from the books.

Kristoff snorted and wobbled to the room outside. It was more spacious for a bear anyway. I reached the record detailing Han's betrayal and disgrace. I still don't know why Elsa ever let him come near us again. If I ever came across him as I am now, I'd burn him alive. Forgiveness is weak and I am anything, but weak. The dates in the books weren't assembled in any particular order, but at least I could make note of each year I came across. Rasmus wasn't from this era, but even still there were years to glance through in each page. By mid-afternoon, I was starving and irritated, still unable to find the information. Rasmus had been silent and I couldn't reach him. Every hour or so I moved from the desk to the floor just for a change of position. I was growing impatient and I wouldn't dare let my master know that. I had half a mind set all these records on fire. Maybe what I was looking for wasn't here and I was wrong, but odds are, a secret room had secrets to be hidden. I had scoured over half the shelves in the room getting details on the origins of the Southern Isles, Lord Alastor's rise to power, and the rest of the family line. As I moved to a new shelf to keep studying, one small, thin book in the case caught my attention. It was navy blue with old Norwegian script on the spine. I slid it out of its place and read the cover. Poorly written letters and it was hard to make out, which told me this was older due to the obvious yellowing pages. The rough translation on the cover was: Tragedy in Carcallier. I exhaled a sharp breath of relief. I opened the cover and began to read once more and thankfully the final time. It read more like a journal entry than a historical account for Southern Isles leadership. The year was 1653 long before Norway was established. Just an occupied part of Denmark before it became its own country.

23 Juli 1653

It has been a blazing hot summer with the effects of a drought drying out our lands. The king has commissioned me to look for a man of great power rumored to have made his home near the shores of the fjord. If the rumors are true, he might have the power to save the crops and land in Carcallier. My home that I so desperately wish to protect. This search may take me from my wife and son for some time, but I haven't a choice. My king demands it.

The entries were short and the writer had no name so far, but I didn't care about his name. I just needed those who sealed Rasmus. I read on.

2 September 1653

I have found him. His name is Raevich and he cannot be a man because he possesses strange, unique power. With a flip of his hand, he can grow things, but with another, he causes death and decay. I do not trust this man. He is dangerous. My king wants him to be escorted to Carcallier to use his powers of controlling the water to dampen our lands again. He is eager to come along and I fear for Carcallier, but my king won't hear my concerns.

28 November 1653

I did all that was asked of me and for a terrible cost. This man who was brought to save us had led to our destruction. Raevich is a WICKED man. He craves power and he gains it upon taking lives. He seemed civil and kind upon first arriving conjuring a rainstorm to bring moisture to our land and soil to help the drought. It was a facade to earn our trust. I doomed us all.

1 December 1653

Carcallier has fallen. Most the population was drowned due to flooding that Raevich caused. Those of us who survived took all that we could on some rowboats and paddled as far away as possible landing on a string of islands we have since named the Southern Isles. For now we are safe and so are my wife and son. How long would the peace last? Raevich wants to hunt us down like cattle to feed his power.

2 January 1654

There were fifty of us left from Carcallier. We made this new island our home and built it from the ground up. I had to do whatever I could to protect my family. Trying our best to build up defenses, but there had to be a way to protect ourselves offensively. Yesterday I went hunting and fell into a hidden cave injuring my ankle. Before crawling out, a strange glow caught my attention. It was entrancing to the eye leading me deeper into the cave and a dead end. There were four smooth stones spread out in this room. Each stone was glowing with a symbol on each. These symbols were that of the four elements. I took these stones back home with me. They had some power because on the way back, my limp was gone and my injury to my ankle was healed. I didn't know what the stones could do for us, but if they were powerful, it might give us an edge against Raevich.

As expected, our peace didn't last and it wasn't long before all of us survivors took the runes and fought back against Raevich.

3 January 1654

The stones weakened him. We couldn't end him, but he is gone. We are free and protected. The fjord now holds him for all time. He must always remain there.

The rest of the pages were blank. The author never wrote anything else. I still never got any names. In anguish, I lit the book on fire and it burned to a crisp in moments falling into ash caking a spot on the ground. If these survivors escaped Carcallier forming the Southern Isles then-I paused my thoughts. The Southern Isles royal family. All dead except for two. Hans and Niklas. Ending their lives would be my pleasure, but then I stopped again. If the seal had been weakened by the shipwreck that claimed most of the royal Southern Isles family, Rasmus would be stronger because of that. Instead, he remains silent merely coming and going in waves of influence. It couldn't be the royal family. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I closed my eyes to focus. A memory came to the forefront of my mind. Descendants. My former self had a memory of that village underground. The Clan of Shadows. The man Bayard was the leader. He told me that they were descendants of the ancestors who sealed Raevich.

"No!," A voice in my mind cried out, "Leave them alone."

Who knew I had the answers the whole time. I couldn't hear him, but I could imagine my master saying "well done." I would use my memories to find them. Suddenly I heard a gutteral roar from Kristoff in the next room followed by a thump to the ground. I ran outside the room with my hands ablaze ready to light up whoever was here. Sliding into the room with all haste, Kristoff was lying on the ground just ahead of me. He was breathing heavily and I didn't see any injuries as I looked him over from tail to nose. I looked at his eyes and they were mostly shut only open slightly. I spun around curiously, but didn't see anyone. I heard a slight noise overhead as I looked toward the ceiling where the chandelier hung, a darkly dressed hooded figure was there. I blasted fire at the chandelier engulfing it completely, but the stranger leapt to safety. They landed right behind me concealed by a cover of smoke.

"Hello, Anna." An all too familiar voice spoke to me. The voice was that of a woman.

She stuck something in my neck that felt like something bit me. Whatever it is was fast acting bringing me to my knees as my eyes began to darken.

"In less than ten years, a Scottish doctor will invent a syringe. A handy contraption."

My body tipped over lying on the ground as it took everything in me to fight my eyes wanting to close. The hooded figure stood over me just waiting for me to finally pass out.

"What do you want?" I muttered.

I tried to lift my hands to blast fire at her, but my body was numb. She knew what I was trying to do and took my hand in hers. I felt a strong sense of warmth and heat. She pulled back the hood letting her long red hair fall down below her shoulders. I was looking at me.

"I want to stop you from hurting anyone else," She said.

She watched me until my eyes completely darkened.

Anna

My head was banging as I stirred awake. My eyes blinked themselves into clarity that didn't come right away to my vision. I rubbed my neck from where I felt that prick of a bite. As I sat up, I was in a solitary room behind what looked like iron bars. Kristoff was gone and I was alone. A chilling mist escaped my lips, but I didn't need to see that to know this place was freezing. I was stripped down of my warm clothes and was put in thin cotton ones. I might as well have been buck-naked. There was something tight and fixed to my neck. As my fingers traced around my neck it seemed to resemble that of a dog's collar. She would pay for this, but they would especially given I wasn't bound and could move around the room freely. I rose to my feet from the small cot I was in and stepped toward the bars to examine them. Did they think this would contain me? I grabbed the metal bars and upon closer inspection, these weren't iron at all. Iron could be easily melted or at least bent with enough heat. This metal was thicker, the likes of which I had never seen. My teeth were chattering and I couldn't get warm. I tried to conjure a fireball from my hand, but my hands just trembled. Soon, a door opened from an area out of my visual right in front of me. From around a corner, she appeared. The other me. She had a tray of food as she opened another door between us and the metal bars.

"You should eat something. You've been out for three days."

No wonder I was so groggy. The other me put the tray of food in a compartment in the wall, pushed a button and a small square in the wall opened inside my cell.

"Did you kill the bear?" I asked, taking the tray not realizing how hungry I was until I smelled the food.

"Kristoff is here with us, just in another cell." She answered, "While he's the bear he is loyal to you, so quite aggressive. Though I've talked to him when he's been human and offer to get him back where he belongs, but he insists on staying with you."

Idiot. Save for his curse as the polar bear, he could be a free man. Why not escape? Rasmus thought he'd be helpful in brute strength, but honestly I had no use for him.

"Where is here?"

"Sweden." She replied, "Father once spoke of bunkers that were used during the war of 1814 between Norway and Sweden."

"Not that I wanted a history lesson. What did you do to me?"

"Are you referring to your fire?" She asked, mockingly.

I nodded simply growing furious. She talked to me in a condescending tone and I'd fry her if I got the chance.

"Every few hours, I pump paralytic into your system to knock you out. Then I take your hands in mine and drain you of your fire energy. It's not perfect only lasting a few hours until you recharge your energy and I have to do it all again."

"How clever, but you missed a critical detail," I smirked.

I opened my mouth to sing and use my power of the Siren, but the moment my throat echoed a single note. An electric shock jolted me as I screamed. The pain brought me to my knees as I crumbled to the floor.

"We didn't miss anything, Anna." She said, "That collar around your neck recognizes the difference in vocal tones with talking versus singing. You've essentially been cut off from any use of your power. I thought the collar was a better option. Trying to do myself a favor, ya know?"

I coughed as I looked up at her. My body stinging from the electricity.

"You don't seem much like me," I said.

"I have my sister to thank for that, she brought me back snapping me to my senses."

"So this is why you have me incarcerated then since I killed Elsa myself. I'm a threat."

"What?"

"You heard me," I growled, "The Snow Queen of Arendelle is dead."

"Get used to these walls, you'll be here until we can get your true self back."

"This is my true self," I spat, "You are the anomaly."

"Get comfortable, Anna." She said, "You'll be here for the foreseeable future."

The other me walked around the corner out of sight and I was alone in the cold. The best thing about being left alone is having time to think and I'd think up a strategy to get out of here. It might take time, but I swore I wouldn't let my master down. Everyone here would die the moment they let their guard down.