The forest loomed over him. The trees a wall of darkness against the fading grey light. Then, somewhere deep in the forest, a blast of ice blue light erupted into the sky.

A manic smile broke over Hans' face, and he charged through the trees to the light.

Elsa had never seen a storm like this, not without her being the root cause of it. The wind was whipping around the tree trunks, the sound a delightful howling that rang through the forest. Thanks to her powers and the traditional Northuldra dress she wore, Elsa felt no cold, only elation. The tribe was settling in, the campsite packed up and the tents tied down, everyone was retreating to their warm quarters. "Elsa. You should be coming inside." Honeymaren placed a hand on Elsa's shoulder and gave her a smile. "You know the cold doesn't bother me." Elsa said with a raise of her eyebrow. Honeymaren laughed. "That's true, but you being out here alone in the cold bothers me." she put a hand to her heart and looked up at Elsa through her eyelashes. The wind whipped her black hair around her face. "Please, please come inside out of the wind." she stuck out her lip and gave Elsa the best puppy dog eyes she'd ever seen. Elsa laughed and gave her a little boop on her nose. "Okay okay I'm coming. I just want to try something first." Honeymaren crossed her arms and looked Elsa up and down. "Okay, go ahead." Elsa turned her back to her and spread her arms. From the ground, from the underwater springs that flowed into the dark sea, came a wall of ice. Honeymaren gasped as Elsa manipulated the ice and water to bend and curve over the camp. When she was finished there was a dome of ice over the Northuldra. The wind still howled, but it could no longer touch them. Honeymaren turned walked over to the wall of ice, which was a milky white. She ran her hand along it and whistled lowly. "Wow. That was clever."

Elsa smiled. "You think so?"

Honeymaren looked at her and laughed, the sound echoing against the ice.

"Elsa you just made an igloo big enough for the entire tribe! I think that's pretty amazing." she walked over and put her hands on Elsa's shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "I think YOU'RE pretty amazing." Elsa's face, so pale and cold, was suddenly tinted the prettiest shade of pink. She stuttered a response, then quickly turned to the tents. "We should...get out of the cold." She gestured lamely to the tents. Honeymaren started to follow her, but then-

CRACK

The ice around them started to break, splintering and threatening to collapse. "Honey, move!" Elsa screamed as the ice around them started to shatter and fall to the ground. Honey raced from the wall to safety. Elsa started shooting the ice with her magic, lifting it off of the ground and deflecting it away from the camps. People had started to come out of their tents at the noise. The small children cried out in fear.

"It's okay everyone! The Fifth Spirit will protect us!"

Honey ushered them away from the tents while Elsa struggled under the weight of the ice.

"ELSA." a shout from the edge of the ice.

That voice registered something in the back of Elsa's head. "Oh no…" Elsa whispered under her breath. The ice shattered, causing the Northuldra people to cower against the sleet.

Hans stood on the edge of the ice, the wind whipped his cape around him. His hair was longer than the last time she had seen him, and he had a long red scar across his face. He was staring at her with something savage in his eyes.

He held open his arms and cackled. "What's the matter, Queen Elsa? I just want to talk." with that final word Hans shot a blast of fire towards her. She blocked it, but only barely. "What…" Elsa stared at him in horror. Hans started towards her. "Get everyone away, he's dangerous!" Elsa called out to Honeymaren, who quickly rounded up the Northuldra and tried to convince the elders to not attack.

Hans saw them moving and shook his head. With a wave of his hands a circle of fire encompassed the tribe. While his head was turned Elsa charged towards him and froze his feet to the ground. Hans looked down with mild surprise. A split second later Elsa shot a blast of ice at his head. But he held up his hand and melted it before it her eyes.

Tsking and shaking his head, he melted the ice around his feet and started towards her. The trees around them had started to catch, the people of the Northuldra were restless but Honeymaren kept them back. Magic battles were not theirs to fight.

Elsa slung an arrow of ice at him, but he was ready. He melted it mid air and shot flames at her feet. She fell backwards into the snow, her head slamming into the ground. A circle of fire ensnared her, the heat was overpowering- Elsa felt herself growing weaker, her powers were fading.

"Elsa!" Honeymaren shouted, trying to pass the flames that kept her back, but they only flared higher.

"NO" Hans shouted.

"No one moves. Queen Elsa…" He turned to her, a faux expression of concern slipped across his face. "If you do not succumb to me, these people will die...this forest with burn...and your sister, your sister will have suffered in vain." he ended with a chuckle.

Elsa, who was fighting to keep the darkness that crept into her vision at bay, looked up at him at the mention of her sister.

"Anna? You...You were in Arendell?" Hans turned up his nose. "It was that brat who gave me this, nearly ruining my beautiful face." he gestured to his scar. Then he smiled. "But soon no one will remember her, or you. Just me, the new king of Arende-AGH!" Hans collapsed in pain. Behind him stood Honeymaren, brandishing a solid wooden staff. "Honey!" Elsa gasped. Hans growled and whipped around, knocking Honeymaren to the ground, where she scrambled to get away. "NO MORE." Hans thrust his hand into the air and an enormous flame encased Honeymaren, who began to scream. "No, no STOP!" Elsa fought her way through the flames and shot an arrow of ice into Hans' arm. It pierced his skin, then melted, blending with the blood she had drawn. He looked at her with unmatched fury. The flame that burned Honeymaren dropped away, and she collapsed on the ground. For a moment there was silence, broken only by the howling of the wind.

"Leave them ALONE." Elsa stood strong, her loose hair blowing in the breeze, her eyes a determined grey. Honeymaren wasn't moving, and the fear that her lifeless body stirred in her was immobilizing.

"If you leave these people, if you leave them be...I will let you live. You can go free."

Hans stared at her, un-reacting.

And then he laughed. A horrendous sound.

"It's amazing how you think you're calling the shots here, Elsa. Your idiocy is unparalleled, truly." and with that, the fireball he had been forming in his hand was let loose, and struck Elsa's head.

The rush of heat.

The darkness…

Then nothing.