Elsa has a vision of the first Curse of the Frozen heart, hinting at its true original purpose.
July 23rd, 1840
The Royal Palace, Arendal.
An sluggish Elsa made her way up to her royal chambers, exhausted by the night's events. It was well after midnight, having stayed awake as a precaution after the breach in the Palace security by the masked woman. She was still uneasy, but at this point her mind was demanding sleep.
The way to her room was brighter than usual, thanks to the efforts of the Royal Guards who didn't want as much as a single unlit patch of hallway after the intrusion. Not surprisingly, the number of Guards had increased yet again. Short on manpower the Guard had begun pressing new recruits, local Landwehr and Royal Grenadiers into service, as the Guardsmen were running on empty. Even yesterday she had sworn in half a dozen new Guardsmen who had been graduated early.
As she finally reached the doorway, she took the moment to greet the "Queen's Own" Guard that stood by the door, which tonight was Corporal Eriksen. Starting to overcome some of the stage fright that often came with the new Guardsmen, his response wasn't stammered for a change. She may have smiled to see a promising young soldier progress if she wasn't exhausted to the point of simply pushing her door open, kick off her shoes and collapse on her bed. She made a halfhearted attempt to undress before passing out, only succeeding in shedding her jacket.
…
Elsa awoke, though it was only as an observer. Before long she realized that she was not in her body or home, either. She was in a great hall, much like those she had read about in the great myths and history books. To an untrained eye it appeared to be a mere feast, but Elsa recognized it as a Court right away. Advisors, courtiers and Guards milled about much like they did in Elsa's own court. The key difference to Elsa was the time period. Based on their clothes and appearance, these were the Pagan ancestors of her people.
Shifting her eyes to her "own" body, she too was different. But in much more than just the furs and textiles of over a millennia ago. Her body was clearly larger in stature than anyone else in the hall, even the men. Her skin was a pale blue shade, much like that of the mythical ice giants. She was also clearly sitting on a throne of animal bones, stone and ice. Based on these observations she could draw the conclusion that she was an Ice Giantess, and a Queen at that. Elsa wondered if this was an ancient ancestor, and if Ice Giant heritage led to her magic. So many questions…
Any further questions were silenced when the large wooden doors to the hall open, as a posse of soldiers dragged a chained man into the hall, before bringing him before her. The man in clasped irons was bedraggled in every respect, with an air of self-loathing that eclipsed the even filth of the dungeon and the wounds of torture. This was a man who hated himself.
One of the guard's bowed, before getting to business. "Your holiness, I bring before you Markus the Cold-Hearted. This man has already been found in the act of treason by your agents. As his treason was against you, you made it clear you wanted to sentence this man yourself. He awaits your judgement."
Elsa's body stood, as Elsa could only watch as "her" body moved and spoke. The Giantess then began to speak.
"Markus Cold Heart, you stand convicted of the crime of treason against your Goddess and Queen, Skadi."
Elsa was dumbfounded. If this was an ancestor, then she was descended from Skadi herself. That is, if was anything other than a fantasy. The Goddess of the hunt continued.
"I remember a time when I counted on you, Markus, to carry out my will in Midgard. I gave you the gift of youth when you performed great services for me. And yet, you have betrayed me and your adopted people. I have no choice but to see you pay, no matter what your past deeds may have been. What say you?"
The man did not lift his eyes from their casting upon the ground, as he sat in silence. Any spirit this man had once possessed had died prior to this day. Instead he sat dumbfound, much like a cow standing before the abattoir.
"Defense noted. Markus Cold Heart, I find you guilty of treason. I sentence you to Outlawry. You are now a marked man in Thrymheimr, outside of the protection of the law. Furthermore, I curse you.
Without warning, she immediately sent a blast of ice magic directly into his heart, causing Markus to collapse in pain and shock. As he gripped his heart, a sizeable chunk of his hair turned snow white. Skadi then calmly walked over to the collapsed traitor, explaining in calm detail what she had done while he writhed from the pain and cold.
"Markus, I have inflicted the curse of the frozen heart upon you. Let your hair be the mark of an unloved and forsaken man. If you cannot once again find true loyalty or love, and demonstrate it with a true act, you will die a horrible painful death. And even then, should you ever cast love and loyalty out from your heart again, you will once again find ice worming its way in."
Turning to her Guards she ended the trial. "Men, banish this dog to Midgard. Should he ever return to Thrymheimr, kill him."
…
Elsa's eyes opened, the dream over. Before she could truly ponder the significance of the dream, a voice rang out.
"Trust the vision, Elsa."
She knew that voice anywhere. It was her father's.
Her heart exploded into overdrive, as she immediately moved her shaking hands to light a lantern. As the whale oil wick sparked to life, she turned about looking throughout the room, hoping without hope to see her father again. Sadly, the room was empty with the exception of herself. Holding back tears, Elsa sighed and extinguished the lamp, returning to sleep.
…
Tryggvason, Northern Arendal
Surtrsen washed his face, having just finished shaving with his trusted razor. Appearances had to be perfect for today would be an important day. Personal hygiene complete, he donned his jacket and straightened out his uniform before turning to the door. As requested of his batman, all of the pagan symbols including the crocus had been replaced. Now a simple cross adorned his tunic's chest, as there was no going back from tonight. He took a deep breath.
He stepped out the door into his office, where a number of co-conspirators awaited. Ranging from Company Commanders to Corporals, they represented the leadership of the fanatical Christians in Tryggvason. Eagerly awaiting the order to go, they all knew their tasks and mission for the night. All they waited on was the word to go.
Surtrsen paused to gather thought, before speaking. "Soldiers of Christ, tonight is the night we begin our great Crusade. Tonight, we take back our country from both the heathens and the heretics. A witch sits on the throne, but the cowards in the cloth refuse to stand against her. As such we have no choice. We will cleanse our nation of all of the wicked, and build a true kingdom of heaven. God wills it!"
A hearty shout was sounded in response, as they paid their respects via salutes and clicking to attention before turning to depart. For his role, Surtrsen would do very little. He had set his instruments of destruction abound, and they would do the night's killing. He would stay back and coordinate his forces as they seized the garrison and town, and kill those that had already been marked for death. Even so, he knew better to think himself above any wicked retribution. He may have well as stabbed his former Battalion Commander himself. For now, there was no going back.
The Holy Revolution had begun.
…
The Royal Palace, Arendal
Anna was never an early bird, let alone one to be woken in the middle of the night for matters regarding the state. As such it took nearly incessant prodding from the Gerda before Anna finally climbed out of bed. Not that the Royal Guard hadn't tried knocking, of course.
As such she stumbled into the small meeting room, her hair undone and still wearing her night clothes and a robe, she was greeted by her sister. While Elsa was clearly more alert than she was, Elsa still was similarly undressed. If Anna wasn't still bleary eyed, she'd have likely freaked out.
"Nice to see you awake, Anna." Elsa said calmly, as she stirred a cup of tea. A special blend with a reduced amount of caffeine, it was meant to give a monarch just enough of a pick-me-up to handle a midnight crisis, but not enough that they would not be able to go to sleep again. Elsa was quite experienced with it.
"Elsa, what's going on?"
"I don't know myself Anna. I was awoken because I was informed Kristoff had important information for us."
Anna had just propped her face down on a hand and was nodding off as she processed the information. "Kris… toff." A moment passed before the connection was made in Anna's brain, caused her to jolt awake. "Kristoff's here?! Where is he?"
"Outside. I was waiting until you were present and awake before I sent him in. Speaking of which, Gerda?"
The familiar voice of the woman that helped raised them sounded through the door. "Your Majesty?"
"Send in Master Bjorgman."
"Are you sure you don't wished to get dressed first, your Majesty?"
A valid point, but one Elsa had not deemed important, something that surprised Anna.
"I'm sure, Gerda. Send him in."
As the two waited for Kristoff to be brought in, Anna took a moment to comment on Elsa's lack of formality.
"Elsa, are you sure you don't want to get dressed first?"
"Anna, I get woken up in the middle of the night at least once a week. Lately, more so. Kristoff will not be the first man to see my nightgown, and he won't be the last. This is part of ruling."
Before Anna could respond, the door opened as Kristoff was led into the room by Sergeant Raewald. Surprisingly, a second Guardsman brought in a small boulder, which Anna and Kristoff alone knew the significance of. Or so she thought.
"Your majesty." Sergeant Raewald began with a bow. "The Royal Ice Master and Deliverer insisted he see you. But I believe he means foul play. He claims the rock is just a rock, but I have reason to suspect it's really-"
"A troll, yes Sergeant. I am well aware of the trolls and they are well aware of me. You may carry on."
"Your majesty, both myself and Captain Edvard would prefer if a Guardsman remained in the room when you met with… outside parties."
"Very well. Kristoff, go ahead."
Kristoff blushed, a little daunted by the fact that two very fair women, one of which he fancied, were before him in nightgowns. On top of the fact that he was still very nervous of Queen Elsa, he barely got out his piece. "Uh, Your Majesty, Grandpabbie is more the uh, speaker here."
Midsentence, Grandpabbie had unrolled, beginning his piece immediately after Kristoff finished.
"Your Majesty, I came as soon as I could. There is an aberration plaguing your land. I do not know what it is exactly, but I felt a dark and unnatural presence even from the Valley of the Living rock."
Anna raised her eyebrows, before barely raising a hand before speaking. "Aberration?"
"An unnatural creature, your Highness. Something that does not belong in this world."
"Bold words from a troll." Raewald quipped harshly, with clear disdain in his eyes. The Elder troll sighed, before responding.
"Your grievances with trolls aside, does my mere presence make you uneasy, Guardsman? Do you feel that there is something inherently wrong with me?"
Raewald, too proud to go back on the prejudices instilled in him as a child simply shrugged, as Pabbie finished his explanation.
"Trolls, while abnormal to humans, are natural beings. Aberrations are not. I wish I could give you more information, Your Majesty. If there was anything unusual with recent reports, I may help you there, but that is the most of what I can do."
"Actually, there is a lot we can tell you. Merely hours ago we were affronted by an unknown person that certainly was unnatural. Down to the feeling of uneasiness and revulsion you described."
"Good. Tell me everything you can."
"Very well. She appeared to be human, yet she was covered in head to toe, even her face. She appeared weak and frail, yet she had super-human strength and speed. And she had no fear of my magic, shrugging off both an icy encasement and impalement."
"A dangerous foe, your majesty. But I still cannot say for certain what it is. If there's anything else you can remember-"
"Wait!" It was Anna this time. "I remember, she had glowing blue eyes, but not only that. I was hard to make out, but her skin around her eyes was blue, and she wore a lot of perfume. Even then, she had the smell of death on her."
Elsa chimed back in. "That's right, she did smell slightly like death. Does that help, Grandpabbie?" She turned back to the troll, becoming disturbed that for the first time she had seen fear on the troll's face. She hardly knew the Chieftain of the trolls as well as Kristoff, but she also remembered that this was also the same troll that reacted to her magic the same way a doctor reacts to a slight fever.
The Pabbie's fear worsened, as he began to mutter in ancient Norse what all else in the room assumed to be a mix of "No's" and cursing. As he carried on Anna slid back to whisper to Kristoff, having had a similar thought to Elsa. "Have you ever seen him like this?"
Kristoff shook his head, fighting hard to stifle his own fear at the thought of his adopted chief panicking. "No, I've never seen him like this. Ever."
Elsa was the one to finally ask the million krone question, the one they all wanted to hear. "Grandpabbie, what's wrong? Do you know what the creature is?"
Still shaking from fear, Grandpabbie could only get out one word. "Draugr."
To Anna, Elsa, and Kristoff, the word had no meaning. But to the only other folklore-versed in the room, the fear struck deep. Raewald's eyes grew to the size of saucers, as he too began to shake with fear. "Oh gods, no!"
Kristoff spoke, trying to get answers from the elder chief. "Grandpabbie, I don't understand, what's a Draugr?"
Instead, Raewald cut in as Grandpabbie attempted to gather his calm. "A Draugr's death, boy. Period."
Having gather words, Grandpabbie began to speak. "A Draugr… is a reanimated corpse. Someone with enough sheer will that they overcome death itself, and return to the living. Victims of great tragedies. Vengeful people who never got their revenge. Even killers who have not satisfied their bloodlust. All can become Draugrs. Unless the proper rituals are observed in burial, of course."
"So I guessing we're hoping that this Draugr isn't the sadistic killer type, right?"
Pabbie shook his head. "No, just the opposite. A blood-thirsty Draugr doesn't last long. He's too destructive, and he can be found quickly and turned. What we fear is a Draugr with a cause. While Draugr are incredibly strong, and can turn both man and beast mad with simple exposure, and nigh indestructible, their greatest strength is their cunning. They are smart. Very Smart."
"Then why expose itself to Queen Elsa?"
"Simply put my boy, fear. An intelligent Draugr will quickly discover it's ability to drive a person mad, and will use it as a weapon. But even Draugr need something to fuel the madness. For this Draugr, it must have sensed Queen Elsa's struggles with fear and decided to use it. What I don't understand is why it stopped."
"What?"
"No offence to the Royal Guard or Queen Elsa, but if the Draugr had wanted you dead or insane tonight, it would have succeeded. What happened to make it stop?"
"I don't know either. It was mere feet away from us when something happened. The Draugr suddenly clasped its head and screamed, before bolting out of the courtyard."
"Ah, of course! Recollection!" Raewald had surprised everyone with the outburst, before he continued. "Recollection. The primary weakness of a Draugr. A Draugr is a corpse revived and sustained with an incredibly strong but simple will. However it may encounter something that reminds it of its own life, sending it into a daze or if the memory is terrible enough, agony. That is what saved you."
"Okay, but how do you kill it?" Raewald gave off a single, sarcastic laugh, as Grandpabbie sighed.
"You can't kill a Draugr. It just cannot be done. In fact there's only two ways to get rid of a Draugr. First, you somehow bind it long enough that a turning ritual can be performed, once again sending the Draugr into a long sleep."
"And the second?"
"You let it do what it feels obligated to do, until it feels at peace. And based on the Draugr's previous attack, I doubt we can do that without courting disaster."
"What do we do then?"
"I don't know, child. Draugr are incredible dangerous, and have been the death of Kingdoms before. The only course of action open to us is to use the ancient Crystals of memories, and find out what Draugr we are even dealing with. Then we can take steps to counter its plans. Kristoff, when can we depart back to the north?"
Kristoff sighed deeply, as he pressed his hands into his face as a temporary relief of his exhaustion. "I and Sven can be ready tomorrow morning, fully rested. But if you need us to go now, I can-"
"That will not be necessary, Master Bjorgman. I am sure that this matter can wait until you and… Sven are fully rested." Elsa stated with an imperial aura, seemingly unconcerned by the impending doom that seemed to cloud the room. It was all a lie though. Every voice in her head screamed to panic and force Kristoff back to the trolls, at sword point if necessary. But that would be counterproductive. Firstly, she was the Queen. She was in charge, and nothing would panic others more than to see her doubt herself or make rash decisions. Secondly, was Anna. Anna liked this fellow, and she would be heartbroken if anything were to happen to him. So Elsa would give the Sami his best chance of a safe journey. He would leave in the morning.
"Very Well." Pabbie spoke with a tired voice, tired from both his many, many years and what had been a taxing night for him as well. "We shall leave in the morning. Your Majesty, is there anything else?"
"There is, but it's a private matter. Sergeant Raewald can you please escort Princess Anna and Master Bjorgman to their quarters?"
"Your will be done, Your Majesty." Raewald responded quickly, while clicking his heels to attention. He then set about guide both the protesting Princess and exhausted ice merchant back to their quarters, as Elsa and Pabbie sat quietly until they were gone. Once they were, Elsa wasted no time before making her inquiry.
"Grandpabbie, before you came to me tonight I had a strange dream. So strange, I believe it may have been a vision."
"I see. Have you experienced visions before?"
"No, this is the first."
"Very well. It is possible that despite not having the ability to prophesize, a spirit or deity may have sent you a message."
"A spirit?" Elsa thought of the unexplained voice she heard, the voice of her father and wondered if it really was him speaking to her. If the troll was right, he may well have been.
"Yes. Sometimes both the spirits of the natural world and that of the dead can converse with the living. Now, I can help you answer any questions you have if you would kindly describe your vision to me."
"Yes, of course." Elsa began from the very beginning of her dream and explained every detail she could remember from it. While she did, Grandpabbie listened intently, growing a pained and sad expression as Elsa went on. When she finally finished, the troll Chieftain shook his head before responding.
"I'm afraid what you saw was in fact more or less true. All the ancient legends of the past seem to indicate that the curse you inflicted upon Anna was originally used as a punishment for treason. A permanent one."
"So Anna is-"
"Yes, Anna will bear this curse until it either kills her or she dies of other causes. There is no cure. So Anna must remain loving and loyal in her heart. While it would take quite a bit to send her back to the brink of death, any straying from the true course would mean a corresponding increase in the curse. It truly was a dreadful thing."
"But it was an accident! How could something so complicated be so random?"
"That… is what pains me as I tell you the truth. There is no possible way you could have casted such a terrible curse accidently. Some part of you MUST have demanded it. You may not have made the conscious decision to do it, but your heart did."
Elsa staggered over to a chair, crashing down on it as her head went numb through sheer shock. With her head light, she shook her head in horror. "They were right. I am a monster."
"Your Majesty, we're all monsters. The difference is that for one reason or another, you were given a powerful magic and therefore the ability to express your heart in both a wonderful and terrible way. And in my experience, there's always a greater reason."
"So what can I do?"
"Be yourself. Princess Anna is luckily naturally loyal and loving by heart. If there is one person who can endure the curse, it is her."
"But she shouldn't have to!" Elsa cried out as she slammed her fist into her chair arm, freezing well over half the chair. Realizing she was growing angry again, she took a deep breath before waving away the ice with her hand. "Before we end this, I have a question. In the vision I saw that I was the goddess Skadi. Is my family descended from her?"
"Yes, but that is a story for another time."
"Very well. We will speak in the morning."
As the troll nodded his head and left, Elsa sat with her thoughts and the realization that the demons of her own heart were responsible for her sister's suffering. First though, her mind wandered to the fact that the spirit of her father had given her the vision.
"Mama, Papa, do you help me with these visions? Or are they punishment for my sins? I wish you were here to guide me, as I fear I will destroy your legacy. Please, help me…
Unseen, Agdar and Idun sat helplessly as they watched their child suffer, and despite their spirits being in the same room, there was nothing they could do. While they could help in minor ways, the higher powers and made the rules quite clear to them. This was Elsa's battle, and she would have to fight it without them.
…
Kristoff entered the room, groaning from his own exhaustion as he kicked off his boots and prepared to launch himself onto the bed. Normally the mountaineering Sami would have protested about the suite he had been assigned to, as well as being separated from Sven. But in this case he was simply too tired to put up a fight.
As he shed his woolen and cotton clothes, a thought passed through his head about how fortunate it was that he had deloused his clothes back in the valley before he left. Body lice would have been horrible to deal with, and it would have been a true shame to contaminate the bedding of the suite. As tired as he was, he would not have dared to simply fall on the bed with dirty, muddy clothes. Not out of fear of punishment, but simply to avoid ruining a pure, beautiful thing as white sheets.
Finally naked, he lumbered up onto the bed and passed out, backside up.
He remained that way for close to an hour when Anna entered the room, unsuspecting of Kristoff's state off undress. She recoiled with a soft "Gah!" before realizing that her potential suitor was sleeping. Remembering a past comment from the Sami that he never wore underclothes when sleeping, she began to creep into the room to leave her gift.
In her hands was a shawl she had made months prior in one of her more bored moods, despite having no real use for it. She had worn it a number of times, but she never cared for the thing too much. But she figured Kristoff might appreciate it, even though to him it was essentially a large scarf. As such she draped the woolen cloth over the naked man before planting a quick kiss on the side of his face. She quickly turned to creep out of the room as a thought struck her. She turned back around, covering Kristoff's bare ass with one of the spare blankets before actually leaving the room. After all, as mischievous as she was, she had no wish for a maid to stumble upon Kristoff in the nude.
No need to give poor Gerda a heart attack, after all.
…
Tryggvason, Northern Arendal
Surtrsen dismissed the messenger, before taking a glance out the window. The sun was rising over the mountains, its rays heating his bones after a fairly cool night, at least for summer. He had just been informed that the last hold-out of loyalist forces in the immediate region had been snuffed out, meaning the long night of constant dispatching of orders and troops had finally come to an end. While the ensuing accountability detail would determine whether any men escaped to warn the Witch Queen, for now he had won his first battle.
No longer bound to his command post, the would-be Regent took a deep breath as he stood up and grabbed his cap, before stepping outside to survey the results. His white drill uniform now adorned with the cross gleamed in the early morning sun as he strolled through the garrison as he took in the carnage of what he had wrought. His soldiers now where throwing the bloody bodies of their former comrades into shallow ditches, careful to keep them face up for easy identification. These grim scene combined with the smoldering remains of the fires that had started earlier that night when loyalists had not let themselves go quietly put the Major into a somber mood.
He had known that a number of these men where good Christian men whose only crime was letting their minds be warped by the vile Sorceress into defending her. He even suspected that a number would have been loyal to their cause had they been persuaded. But at this crucial stage no chances could have been given. Anyone not known to be totally on their side was purged, as even a single whisper of mutiny would have had them all hanged. So they did what was needed to be done.
Even so it was worth it. Any doubt in his mind washed away when he saw his men take down the pagan influenced flag of the Queen, and raise a new one in its place. With the Golden Cross of Arendal imposed on a sea of white, it certainly had the desired effect of symbolizing the rebirth of Christianity in this Godless land. With the stunning success here, there was no doubt now.
God was with them, as a new era dawned for Arendal.