Usual disclaimer. Yo, sorry for posting this so late today. I had my grandmom's retirement party all day. This is worth the wait (eventhoughitsangstfilledandipromisethattherewillbeeslannafluffnextchapterokaybye)! Also, a Umthakathi is an evil African witch.
Rí gazed upon the man that was brought before him. Laoch had recommended him as the man to be tasked with the job of killing the seven Mansings who were being held at the Temple. He was kneeling before him, dressed in a simple black button up and Khaki pants. His fist was over his heart, awaiting his King's command to rise.
"Rise, Oran," Rí said, commanding the cocoa-skinned man to his feet. Rí had never met Oran prior to this; so when he made eye contact with the shockingly bright green eyes the man had, he was almost startled. He had a long, thick scar over his left eye, and when he smiled at him, Rí could have sworn the man had fangs for canines. His long mane of black hair reached his mid-back, and facial hair of the same color lining his jaw; the man was an odd sort of handsome.
The kind that can kill.
Had he not been part of the Special Ops, he would have had him for one of his Interrogators.
"I hear that you have requested my skills for a mission, Your Majesty," he said in an oily voice. Rí nodded, confirming his question.
"Indeed. But first, I must hear of your background," he replied, "Who you were prior to the joining of the Ranganna an Rí and the taking of a new name?" The man frowned.
"Before coming into Your Majesty's service, I was a member of the Order. My name was Amada Okoye, but most knew me by my old moniker, Scar. I was the eldest son of Lutalo Okoye, and…," he crinkled his nose, "brother to Mufasa Okoye."
"I used to be of Fire, and my brother was of Earth. He and I feuded constantly – he was the golden child, the baby boy, the man who got all the attention that should have been set on me. He went on to be inducted into the Terra Magus, and I into the Ignis Magum. I made great strides in my Magic – but of course, that wasn't enough for Lutalo," he spat.
"Mufasa went on to have marry a woman named Sarabi and the two had a son, Simba. Little brat looked just like his father; golden skin, red hair and brown eyes. Mufasa settled down, content with his life," he said, nose crinkling with distaste, "I, on the other hand, was not."
"So what did you do?" asked Rí. Oran smiled unnervingly, eyes glinting a dangerous green.
"I joined an Uhakathi, Your Majesty. And he taught me all the Magic that the Order couldn't," he said, "I learned rather… untraditional ways of using my Energy. The Umthakathi taught me the act of Face Stealing." Rí quirked a brow.
"And please, do detail; what is 'Face Stealing?" Rí asked. Behind Oran, Laoch grinned wickedly. Oran's eyes glowed white before putting his hand over his face, smile disappearing last.
"So glad you asked, Your Majesty," he said, removing his hand. For the first time since becoming King, Rí was rendered completely and utterly speechless. Staring back at him was…
Himself.
Every detail of his face was mirrored onto the head of Oran, down to even the most minute curvature in his nose.
"What in the hell…"
Rí was terrified, confused, and intrigued all at the same time. Oran's eyes glowed white once more as he began to raise his hand to his face again, almost seeming to wipe away the guise of his King.
"Of course, given more time, I could have done a full body transformation. This is what I learned from the Umthakathi, Your Majesty," Oran said, smiling, "At the cost of a life. I had to kill someone that I had known for more than ten years; Face Stealing is a Blood Magic, and can only truly be used after one has killed. So my brother and I took a walk one day, to view the country – and what do you know, Your Majesty, a cliff just… appeared at my convenience."
"And I pushed Mufasa from that cliff, Your Majesty. The Order found out eventually, and I was excommunicated… Until the Lord Commander found me and gave me a place in the Special Ops. I am now at Your Majesty's command." Oran bowed and rose back up.
Rí liked this man.
He was a bonafide coldblooded killer, exactly the kind of man he needed for the job. The Face Stealing Magic was going to be useful on several occasions; this mission was one of them.
"I need you to go to the Temple. There are seven men there who were daft enough to get caught; they are known by the names Ota, Inys, Cein, Ungus, Pearce, Lun, and Corisa," he said, getting up from his throne and walking over to Oran, "I want it done as quietly as possible. Find one of the Temple servants – imprison them, kill them, I don't really care – and go under the cover of being them. I can see now that there should be no problem with that." He pulled a bottle of clear liquid out and swirled it around. It turned a light purple, faintly luminescent.
"Bragsdar," Oran said, "A perfect choice for a stealth mission, Your Majesty."
"Indeed. It will leave no trace in the autopsy and will kill them quickly and quietly. I would recommend dropping it in before they go to sleep," Rí replied. Oran nodded.
"Very well, Your Majesty. Consider the job done," he said. He bowed once more and took his leave.
"He's quite the character, is he not?" Laoch said, walking up beside Rí. The King nodded, looking over at the taller man next to him. For a moment, there was silence, the sound of metal clanging below them.
"Meet me in our chambers in fifteen minutes. You require a reward for bringing me such a talent," Rí said to him. Laoch's pupils dilated and he stood straighter.
"Yes, my King," he said. Rí leaned in close to him; he could smell Laoch's aftershave from this distance.
"And it will be a very good reward," he murmured. He turned on his heel and went the other way, setting off in the direction of the East Corridor. Laoch's heart was pounding; with all the preparation they had done for the past few months, they had hardly gotten anytime to themselves.
"Break for lunch men, you've worked hard today!" He yelled down to the men in the training field. The nodded and saluted.
"Yes, Lord Commander!" They all shouted. The army turned and went toward the West Corridor, where the Mess Hall lay. As he headed toward the East Corridor, he could have sworn he could hear Rí already moaning from their chambers.
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
It was almost torture, waiting to hear what the doctor's thought about her father's condition. When she and Anna pulled up to the Arendelle Area Hospital, her father had paled and was on the verge of unconsciousness. Anna swung into a parking spot as soon as possible. Amidst the chaos in the car and Elsa's borderline hysteria, Anna was the calm in the storm. She gently scooped Agðar up and brought him into the ER, explaining to the lady at the front desk the situation. Elsa had never been more thankful for the redhead than she had in those moments; she had ensured her father's safety when Elsa herself could not.
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
"It's agony to wait," Elsa said, staring up at the clock that was mocking her with its ticking. Anna nodded and placed her hand on Elsa's.
"It's agony to wait," she repeated back to her. And it was; she was just anxious as Elsa in that regard, both for Elsa's dad and for Elsa herself. She knew that if Elsa were to lose her father that the result wouldn't be pretty. She didn't know if it would be like today, with her being so infuriated that her powers spiraled out of control, or if she would just go numb.
She prayed to Vita that it would be neither of the two.
"Elsa Isånd?" A nurse called. She stood up immediately, getting a slight headrush from how fast she had just moved.
"That's me," she said, a bit breathless.
"We're ready to see you," the nurse said, his eyes shifting to the ground. Elsa gulped before feeling a warmth slide into her palm.
"Hey," Anna said, "I'm here if you need me, and I'll be here the entire time. Okay?" Elsa couldn't meet her eye, but muttered out a thank you. The acknowledgement was all that she needed.
"Let's go," Elsa said. They started along down the hallway, the silence bearing down heavily on the pair. The nurse walked quietly ahead, looking for the door number.
"Here it is," he said as they walked up to room 184. Elsa took a deep, shaky breath, then went inside.
She was surprised to find that her father didn't look much different. His eyes were baggy, true, but aside from that and the paleness of his complexion he didn't seem too much different. However, she knew that on the inside he was getting torn to bits. The thought that she could do nothing to help him cut her down to her very core.
"Doctor Hamada will be with you in a few moments, Ms. Isånd," he said. She nodded mutely, taking in her father's features. She and Anna sat down in the bed beside him; Elsa took his hand in hers, hoping to somehow will him awake. It worked, somehow; he exhaled loudly and looked over at her, his grey green eyes interlocking with her blue ones.
"Hey, Papa," she said, voice cracking, "We're in the hospital, in case you couldn't tell by all the beeping." He chuckled, rubbing his thumb along her hand. He looked over at Anna in a way that politely asked her to leave. She nodded her head and rose, stepping out into the hallway to give them the privacy they deserved.
"I know," he said. His smile faded as he cleared his throat. "Elsa, I… I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I just… I didn't have the strength. I didn't want you being hurt, and without Mama here, I didn't have the willpower to do it on my own. I'm truly, truly sorry, Baby Girl. Please forgive me." Elsa's eyes were misted over by the end of the mini-speech. She got up and hugged her father gently, nodding against his shoulder before pulling back.
"You're the only one I have left. I can't stay mad at you, Papa. I just hope that the doctors come back and say that you'll be okay; it may be a foolish hope, but I can't imagine a life without you in it," she said, lip trembling. He gave a grimace that looked exactly like hers, no doubt a family trait. The thought made her even more sad. She sat back down in her chair, his hand still firmly in hers. There was a knock on the door before a man in a white coat came in and greeted them.
"Hello Mr. Isånd and Ms. Isånd. My name is Dr. Tadashi Hamada," he said, shaking both of their hands. He was a handsome fellow, tall and with a nice looking face. The expression in his eyes belied his smiling countenance, however. She began to dread what the doctors had to say.
"So… I'm sure you already knew beforehand about the cancer, Mr. Isånd." Agðar nodded mutely. Dr. Hamada took a deep breath, looking at Elsa first then Agðar.
"It has developed to Stage M1B, sir; meaning, other parts of your body aside from your lungs have cancer now as well. It's a severe form; since you rejected chemotherapy and radiation therapy early on, I'm not sure we can do much at this stage in the cancer. There are things we can do to ease the pain at this point – medication being one of the options – but aside from that, it will be very difficult and very expensive for you to try treatment," he explained. Elsa sat back in her seat, absolutely floored.
"It's terminal, the doctors told me in the beginning. So, Doctor – how long do I have left to live?" Agðar asked, surprised at himself for the bravery he needed to ask the question. Dr. Hamada pursed his lips.
"It depends on how fast the cancer spreads, really. At maximum, you have ten months, I'd say. At minimum, four. I'd recommend staying in the hospital from hereon out; of course, we can't detain you. If you'd like to go home after you're discharged, you have that option as well," he said. He looked to Elsa.
"However, if he decided to go home, you must take very good care of him. You'd have to make sure his movement was minimal, that he's fed properly and nutritiously, and that he breathes clean air," he explained. The doctor looked at the two of them.
"I'll let you two decide. When you're cleared for discharge, Mr. Isånd, please let me know what your final decision is." Agðar nodded. Dr. Hamada shook both of their hands again and took his leave. Many questions ran through her head.
"Why did you reject treatment, Papa?" she asked. He looked away guiltily.
"You'd find out if I would have. I didn't want to seem weak," he said
"And now, you're dying," she said. He flinched at her choice of words.
"And now, I'm dying." They looked at each other for a few moments, before he opened her arms. She broke down and started bawling, crawling into bed next to him. He rubbed up and down her back, soothing her in the way that he used to when she was younger.
"Don't leave me, Papa, please," she said. His voice caught in his throat.
"I can't promise you I won't, but I can promise you that I will make the most of my time left with you. We'll go down to Arendelle and look at the Ice Sculptures like we did when you were little," he said, smiling at the memories, "And you can even make some for me now, too. I promise, Elsa, our time together will not be wasted." She calmed down a wee bit, but the fact that she had a limited amount of time with him made her forlorn.
"Cherish your father. He might make you worry, but at the very least… He's here to make you worry." She knew this phrase was more true now than ever, Anna's words bearing down on her heavily. She had taken the time they had for granted, but no longer.
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
Now, she would make every tick and every tock count.
Finding the targets was easy enough. Taking a servant was as well. While he had to watch the servant for a little bit before taking him hostage, the man was easy enough to figure it out. He was the man taking the meals to the seven dunces that had gotten themselves caught; his name was Noa. Oran felt the warm bottle of Bragsdar in his pocket as he stealthily captured him; one swift punch to the temple and he was knocked out. Oran dragged him to an abandoned shed that he had found in the woods by the Temple. His eyes glowing white, he made his body transform in about a half an hour. He stole the clothes of the servant's body, putting them on his own person and shrugging into them.
He tied the young servant to the chair and put a gag in his mouth, making sure that he would not awaken anytime soon. Swiftly, he walked up to the Temple and walked among the servants, the bottle of Bragsdar now tied and secured against his left thigh.
"Hello, Noa," one of the female servants said, blushing. He smiled warmly, a mannerism he had learned that Noa did.
"Hello," he said, voice deep and not his own, "As much as I would like to talk, I have to give the prisoners their dinner. I hope you understand." She nodded and scurried along. He contemplated whether he should kill the idiots tonight or tomorrow, after their verdict would be received. He decided to do the later option, just for the fun of the game. He quickly got their food and brought it down to them, taking in their features to remember each of them tomorrow.
Tomorrow, they would die, no matter if the weak-willed Magi and that bitch-for-peace Ultimum Maleficus sentenced them to or not.
A/N: yeah. That happened. I promise that next chapter will be happier, and perhaps even THE chapter... take that as you will. No promises though!
And now, for the reviews! (Thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, commented and PM'd. Y'all kick ass!)
Strasza: This is getting rather interesting, Elsa's finally opening up, her dad is probably going to die, and we have new info on the X-Rebels. If my fantasy warfare knowledge is correct, then the hypothetical death of Elsa's dad will somehow allow her to reach her true potential. Other than that, I shall wait until next week to see what happens in the world of Magical Soap Operas.
Burns: Maybe. I hope I haven't disappointed with this week's installment of the Magical Soap Opera!
PenguinVuelve: I started reading your fic yesterday and it was awesome! I wonder when they'll be on another date :P. I also have seen that you're reading also others fics that I love . Hope the best for your imagination and yourself!
Burns: Au contraire monsieur, I foresee another date in their future... You know, as soon as Elsa can move past the crippling grief of her father being diagnosed with Stage IV cancer.
The Myth Rider: This is coming along great, as an experienced world builder who's also a huge sucker for it, I only get happier with each chapter. I'm glad Elsa finally knows about her father, if only because now they can deal with it together. Though I confess, I have that thing where you imagine other people's pain happiness to yourself, so the blood-coughing is really getting to me, hehehe.
Hmm...wait, something not right... *looks behind me* Uh-oh...no, oh no! The story is too good! My Frozen OC has broken my barrier and now he knows! Shit! BACK YOU GREAT WHITE ASS, THIS ISN'T YOUR STORY, BACK TO THE PIT FROM WHENCE YOU CAME.
Burns: Hahaha man, I was cracking up while reading this. It's also called empathetic feeling (when you can feel other people's happiness/pain). Thank you so much for the compliment; your stories are awesome too! I'm currently reading Trials by Beasts I: Frost & Snow and I'm really enjoying it so far!
(okay MidnightNightm3re left four reviews this week and Imma put all four and then answer all four in the same paragraph): 1. (ch.1) Ok... I am absolutely in love with your brain and imagination... completely hearteyed right now.
2. (ch.2) First I think making a mythology story and a Latin words glossary will be a great idea. And also name the gods you mentioned and what they do... will there only be 4 gods? For each element? Secondly in my opinion third person is the best POV to write in. Challenging but much nicer to write and read.
Lastly... did you conjure this absolutely wonderful world up? What was your inspiration?
3. (ch.3) Ok is jy Netherlands of Suid Afrikaans? Dis so verstommend om dit uit te vind! Ek het heeltemal vergeet wat ek wou sê.
4. (ch.8) The whole review thing sucks. But I love this story so I guess ima just be sticking it out.
Burns:
1. Thank you so so so much! I really take that to heart :)
2. Okay, cool. I'll try and put it on my tumblr ( therealburnsx3 ) within the next week, if I can. I'm a tad bit busy so I might not be able to; that said I'll try to answer the immediate questions. There are actually 5 gods: Vita is the supreme goddess; Floriana is the goddess of Earth; Chara is the goddess of Water; Otho is the god of Fire; and Plinius is the god of Air.I did conjure this world up on my own. it just came to me one night while I was chillin' in my bed, not doing my homework and thinking of things to do. I've always enjoyed writing and fantasy was my strong suit; that said, the ideas for the Elementals came to me. I didn't really have inspiration; but this story grows with me as I grow as a writer, and I've included things in there that I've drawn inspiration from in other aspects. For example, Bragsdar is a play off of Essence of Nightshade from Game of Thrones. I also disagree with the fact that Anna seems so... normal and cast aside in so many different fics. Yeah, she might not have been affected by anything in the movie, but I think that she's really the only one truly immune to Elsa's powers, and that within its own right makes her special. So I wanted to make her special in mine, because she really, truly is.
3. Ek is eintlik ook nie! Ek is Amerikaans, en net soos om ander tale aan te leer. Hoe meer dinge ek kan praat, hoe meer mense kan ek my stories deel!
4. Yeah, but people have been reviewing more recently and it makes me incredibly happy!
Alright guys, that's all for this week. I'll see you next time! ~ Burns