Hans sat in his cell. His brother had insisted on bringing him in order to 'keep an eye on' him. But both Westerguards knew the truth; Baragor was afraid.
As well he should be.
Hans stared out of a tiny hole in the side of the ship that opened towards the bay. The sight of Arendelle was the only point of sanity for him. If he shut his eyes, he could see...
no...
Hans shuddered. There was no point in remembering. As it was, the only reason he was here was due to his past successes against the Black Spot pirates. If 'success' is an accurate term for how he fought them.
Two hundred... damned years... fighting that... filth!
Hans swallowed hard, focusing on the lights of Arendelle that were starting to click on. It was so beautiful and peaceful here. If only he was king, he wouldn't have to deal with bloodthirsty pirates any more.
Elsa was a fool. She'd locked herself in a room for a decade. That wasn't a queen, that was a nervous breakdown waiting to happen. She had no chance in fighting these men. Her strategy employed 'negotiation'. You don't negotiate with those men. You just don't. They were monsters!
Hans shuddered again. In modern science, what he was experiencing now would be labeled as a 'panic attack'. In military terms, he was told he had a weak liver which lead to inexplicable bouts of fear.
blood, blood everywhere. A severed head. fingers and toes lying severed next to one another. A jawbone twisted and crooked. All of it in a pile of ash.
Hans erupted from the ashes, coughing and wheezing, breathing in the body and silt.
The prince rose from his cot, coughing. He rocked on his bed for a moment, bringing himself back to Arendelle, back to the moment he was in, not the hell he had experienced for two years.
"Never again," He growled, mostly to himself, "Never ever, ever again."
...the truth was he was scared.
Oh, it was funny to think they had returned when he was safe (ish) in his cell. And he could fake it in front of Elsa, but the truth was, Hans Westerguard was afraid to fight the Black Spot pirates again. They... did things... horrible things...
He shivered like a small child. It didn't matter. He was just here because that... fool Elsa dragged him here.
Baragor would never allow him out, let alone force him to fight.
Right!
...right?