Elena, Naomi, Gabe, Paola, and Gervaso all sat at a table in their conference room. Naomi's parents had finally arrived in Fuerza, bringing with them 40 ships and a good part of Norberg's Navy. Elena had been overwhelmed with joy from the amount of support she was receiving from former allies. It felt good knowing that they didn't just stand by Avalor, they stood by her. Now that they had the force in numbers, it was time to act.
"My parents said they have urgent news regarding Cariza. As soon as they get settled, they'll be right over" Naomi said before they got started with their daily morning meeting.
"What does Cariza have to do with anything?" Gervaso asked, sounding a bit annoyed.
"A lot actually" Naomi snapped back in response.
"I offered to help you take back Avalor, anything to do with Cariza was not part of my deal" Gervaso stated, speaking to Elena and then glacing over at Gabe who had always been his closest confidant in their scheming. Gabe put up his hands, gesturing for Gervaso to calm down a bit. Naomi liked to push his buttons and Gabe could tell Gervaso was already anticipating her to do so once again.
"I know" Elena responded quickly before anyone could get too worked up. "And I would never expect you to do anything you weren't comfortable with. But if something is going on in Cariza that might effect our plans to return to Avalor then I think we need to weigh all possibilities. Let's just wait and see what the Turners have to say" Elena said, staying calm and collected and sounding like a true Queen. Gabe gazed at her affectionately, Paola nodded her head in agreement, Naomi shot Gervaso a cocky grin and Gervaso just rolled his eyes as he could hear the young captain silently telling him "ha!" In a childish manor.
"Hope we didn't keep you waiting long!" Scarlett Turner announced as she and her husband burst into the tent.
"Not at all" Elena told them sweetly, offering them seats at the table as she greeted and welcomed them.
"Shall we begin?" Elena asked her temporary counsel once all were seated. They all agreed they were ready to start. "Captain Turner and Captain Turner, you've had news from Cariza?"
"Yes!" Scarlett Turner began "Their kingdom is in dire need of assistance. They are falling apart under the leadership of Victor Delgado"
"Or lack of leadership" Daniel Turner added.
"Exactly!" Scarlett continued. "There is complete lack of leadership. Their economy is failing, their people are starving, their army is weak and ready to rebel. Victor has enslaved anyone who opposes him. Meanwhile, he just taxes the citizens to no end and sits in his palace surrounded by luxurious jewels, clothes, wines and foods. He does nothing to maintain the city and he's barely even kept up with maintaining the palace. I hear it's all falling apart. He'd rather keep the gold for himself than spend it on upkeep. He has a counsel that he ignores..."
"What does any of this have to do with us?!" Gervaso interrupted, his patience Waring.
"Because there is a darker force at play that he is simply choosing to ignore" Daniel retorted. "There has been talk of a dark army marching South."
"From where?" Gabe asked concerned and a it confused "What kind of army? There's nothing up north except tiny villages. I don't even think they have any sort of government or belong to any particular kingdom"
"It's not that kind of army..." Daniel answered, his eyes filled with fear.
"I'm sorry Captain Turner, I'm not understanding..." Elena said, needing him to further explain.
"They're spirits princess, excuse me, Queen Elena" he told her and everyone gasped, except Gervaso
"Spirits?" Gervaso laughed.
"Yes! Spirits!" Daniel replied with all seriousness. "I assure you, sir, this is no joke. The army is large in size and destroys anything that gets in its way and no one knows how to defeat them and not just that... They simply do not kill whoever they come across, they recruit"
"Meaning..." Gabe asked, terrified of the answer he would get.
"Meaning that whoever they come in contact with becomes one of them. A spirit of dark magic" Scarlett finished.
"I can defeat them" Elena offered. "With my scepter. I can send them back to the spirit world. I've done it before"
"Yeah, with one spirit, Orizaba.. And doing that sent you to your bed for two days!" Gabe told her, needing her to understand what she was up against before making any rash decisions. "This is an army Elena, it's not the same thing"
"He's right" Naomi offered "you can't defeat them alone"
"Again, what does any of this have to do with us?" Gervaso asked again.
"They're marching towards Avalor!" Scarlett shouted, now fed up with his ignorance of the situation. "They'll have to go through Cariza and with the kingdom being as weak as they are, they will have zero defenses against the army, meaning every single man, woman and child will be recruited into this spirit army. Meaning that by the time they reach Avalor they will have more than doubled in size! We can take back Avalor now but we will have to turn right around and defend it against this army of spirits and I don't know about you but I'd like to face the least amount of spirits as possible"
"So we go to Cariza first then" Elena stated calmly. "We free the kingdom from Victor's reign and evacuate as many citizens as we can"
"The refugees can come stay here in Fuerza, until something more permanent can be arranged" Gervaso gratiously offered in an apologetic tone, now seeing the scope of their situation. This wasn't just a war with Avalor now. It was a war between spirits and human beings. He was a modest enough man to admit that the Turners were right. This was bigger than all of their petty feuds and bigger than anyone's right to sit upon any throne.
The group all silently looked to one another, they were all in agreement. They would put their return to Avalor on hold for now and head to Cariza first.
After going over any remaining business, the group began to disperse. The Turners returned to their navy to brief them on the plans and Gervaso left to do the same with the Fuerza army. Naomi chose to follow Gervaso out, wanting to make sure their militaries were all on the same page since the Fuerza would be under her command once aboard her ships. Paola went to Elena before she left.
"You did good today and you're doing a great thing for the people of Cariza and a smart thing for the people of Avalor" Paola told Elena, placing a hand on the queen's shoulder, sensing that her friend was feeling a bit uncertain about things after the meeting.
Elena placed her hand atop Paola's and thanked her for her kind words.
Gabe hung back a bit and watched Elena stand alone after everyone had left. She was carrying what seemed like the weight of the world on her shoulders. The new information about a spirit army headed towards Avalor had changed everything. She was finally where she needed to be to take back Avalor and now she had a newer and bigger challenge to face.
"Are you OK?" Gabe asked Elena. She turned around to face him, her body language conveyed every worry she was feeling. She didn't say anything but Gabe saw in her eyes that she wasn't OK at all. He stepped forward and took her in his arms, pulling her close to him. She rested her head on his chest and sighed.
"I need Mateo" She told him. "Defeating Shuriki's army with the Navy and army we have now is one thing but... this is all so much bigger. How am I supposed to defeat a spirit army without his magic to help me. He would know what to do. I need him"
"I know you do..." Gabe said, wishing he could do something to help but knowing she was right. She needed her friend and royal wizard. He gave her another tight squeeze before kissing her atop her head and releasing her. "You're going to figure this out. Just take everything one step at a time. You made the right decision about heading to Cariza first. We'll figure out anything else when the time comes."
"You're right. Thank you" Elena said, happy to have the love and support that Gabe always gave her but her spirits hadn't been lifted any. "I think I just need some time alone to think a bit"
"Of course" Gabe said, understanding. "I should go check up on Naomi and Gervaso anyways. Make sure they're not at each other's throats again" He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.
Elena smiled momentarily and walked out of the tent with Gabe and towards her own tent. When Gabe had left her alone, she plopped herself down on her bed, closed her eyes, and let out a grunt of frustration. She wasn't satisfied with taking things one step at a time. She always needed to be ahead of the game. She wanted to have a plan now.
"Zuzo?" She tentatively called aloud to her spirit guide fox. It had been quite some time since she summoned him for advice. Usually she only did so when it came to the magic she had inherited when she was trapped inside the amulet and when she was in the depths of her depression, she really didn't want to hear from anyone, so she refrained from seeking him out.
"Princess! Long time no see!" Zuzo said excitedly, suddenly appearing by Elena's side. He looked around at Elena's tent. "So... I see some things have changed..."
Elena instantly smiled at Zuzo's presence and upbeat attitude. No matter how dire a situation was he always made things seem not so bad.
"I'm Queen now Zuzo. Of Fuerza" Elena explained.
"I know!" Zuzo told her "Just because you don't summon me for advise anymore doesn't mean that I'm not always lurking around. You've done well. Look at you! Queen! Ready to take back Avalor! Ready to free an oppressed Cariza! You're rocking this whole ruler thing!"
"Really?" Elena asked confused. "Cause I kind of feel like I'm failing at everything..."
"No way!" Zuzo told her truthfully. "You were pretty bad there for awhile but look at you now! You can easily take back Avalor! and Cariza? That's just a small bump in the road for you!"
"Yeah but what about this spirit army?" Elena asked.
"Oh yeah... that!" Zuzo said, thinking for a moment. "Hm... Well you certainly can't defeat them by yourself and if I were you... I wouldn't even try. So don't."
"Well great..." Elena said, already knowing that and scratching her head a bit at her guide's lack of wisdom for her.
"Don't worry princess. I have a feeling you won't be alone in this battle." He winked at her as if he knew something he wasn't quite telling yet. "You have a lot of friends out there and I guarantee you that they are all willing to help" Zuzo told her.
"So... is there anything you can tell me about the army?" Elena asked.
"Yup! I sure can!" Zuzo started. "They were summoned by dark magic. There aren't many dark wizards left and I would bet that Shuriki may have been the one to do it. Which would make sense why they are marching towards Avalor. They'll follow whoever summons them."
"So... if I defeat Shuriki, then I defeat the dark army?" Elena wondered, feeling a bit positive.
"Well no." Zuzo said, bringing Elena's mood right back down. "Once she's defeated the army will still remain. They will need to be sent back to the spirit world. Just like you did with Orizaba. The problem is, you don't have the strength to send them all back on your own"
"So then what do I do?" Elena asked, feeling hopeless.
"You're going to need to find others who have that ability and then figure out a way to take them out in masses." Zuzo explained.
"Thanks Zuzo" Elena said, although he didn't provide that much new information, she felt slightly better knowing that she had him to guide her and he was right. Others would be willing to fight with her, she just needed to find them. Her thoughts drifted back to Mateo. No one had confirmed what had even happened to him. She closed her eyes and prayed that he was somewhere safe and that once she returned to Avalor, he too would return.