Elena stood tall at the bow of one of the lead Norberg ships. She closed her eyes and savored the feel of the wind on her face and the way it swept through her hair. She soaked up the power of the sea and hoped that she could match it's strength when they landed in Cariza. This would be her first taste of war as a leader and she needed to prove herself. She looked to the ship on her left and saw Naomi strongly in command of not just that particular vessel, but the entire fleet. Gervaso stood by Naomi's side and though they bickered often, he respected his young captain and was ready to follow command and get the job done. Elena looked over her shoulder at Gabe who was all business, ready for battle, ready to stand by his Queen and fight for her. Elena's lips turned up into a gratifying grin. She was so proud of the people in her life who chose to stand by her. The people she called her friends. They had all come so far and grown so much. There was nothing they couldn't do. Using the word empowered would be an understatement for the way Elena was feeling at the moment.
Victor watched from his palace window as the ships entered his harbor. There was no place to go. His advisors had reported that they were approaching up and down the entire coastline of the kingdom. They would be coming for him.
"Ready the entire Royal guard!" Victor ordered the commander of his army.
"It's already been done your Majesty. We simply do not have the forces to defend ourselves against this attack and quite frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if those who are still holding rank abandon when they are faced with these warriors. The Fuerza are fierce in battle. One of their soldiers has the strength of five of ours." He explained to Victor.
"This is unacceptable!" Victor shouted.
"I'm sorry your Majesty but Queen Shuriki took most of our strong soldiers for her own army when she invaded Avalor. She's left us with nothing and excuse me sir but I've been begging for your support in rebuilding our defenses and you have yet to respond" The general boldly told his King, which of course, only angered Victor.
"You're saying this is my fault?" Victor snapped
"I'm saying that Shuriki promised you power and a throne in order to get you to do her dirty work, never mentioning that the throne you'd be sitting upon belonged to a kingdom that she ripped apart and left to crumble. No one in Cariza has any desire to defend this land or the governing party."
"Do what you can to defend General and leave me be" Victor ordered in a defeated voice. The General obeyed and left to organize what little defenses he had.
Victor continued to stare out the window. Everything the general said was right. Shuriki had used him and Carla to gain power for herself and herself only. She didn't care what happened to Cariza and it's people. She knew the kingdom would fail and Victor would be blamed for it all. And Carla, his beloved daughter, was now gone because of the deadly Game of Thrones they had all been playing. And for what? A title? A crown? By the end of the day, he would have neither and worse, he would have no one left in his life. He was alone in it all. He had failed at everything because of his greed for power and riches and his envy for those who had what he didn't.
As the ships hit the shore Gervaso and his warriors stormed the city. Naomi had expected a Navy to meet them upon their arrival but there was none. She wondered if her family, who was invading further north would encounter them. But she highly doubted that if there even was a navy, that they'd leave Cariza's palace and main port city open for attack. She gave her second in command orders to captain her ship and she hopped on Luna's back and flew over to Gabe and Elena.
"You ready?" She asked them.
"Lets do this!" Gabe said as he mounted Migs and Elena climbed on Skylar.
The soldiers aboard Gabe and Elena's ship followed behind Gervaso's army and the three jaquins hovered above, giving them a perfect vantage point for the battle.
The fighting was hand to hand combat at the port and leading into the city. The Fuerza soldiers had no trouble making it through Cariza's first line of defense. They then made their way through the city itself and marched towards the palace. The citizens put up no fight and many even cheered for Elena and her army. They had recognized the princess from her many visits to their kingdom and knew that she was there to set them all free from Victor's reign of terror. Her presence was a blessing to them. As Elena flew overhead, she waved and let the people know that they would all be just fine. It was all very liberating. Nothing like Shuriki's violent attack on Avalor and its citizens.
Elena hovered as her army reached the palace and what little guards they had, stepped up to defend.
"Do you think that's all they have?" Elena asked her friends.
"Yeah" Gabe replied. "Trust me, if they had the troops, they'd be here defending"
"Wow. This is worse than I had imagined" Elena said, feeling pity for what was left of the kingdom.
Once the troops were inside the castle walls, Elena and Gabe landed and joined them. Naomi, seeing that everything was taken care of in the city, headed up North to check on her parents and their battle.
"We have to find Victor" Elena said to Gabe as she readied her scepter. He agreed, letting her lead the way as he watched her back. They left the Fuerza army to finish the battle and round up any of the Cariza guards or anyone who tried to oppose them. Mostly, the fighting had already ceased though.
The pair headed towards the throne room, Elena had been in the palace before and knew her way around for the most part.
"Reveal!" She shouted before entering the throne room. Her scepter came to life, revealing what was behind the closed doors.
There was nothing.
"Where now?" Gabe asked.
Elena thought a moment and headed up he nearest stairs.
"The tower" she said "He's probably been watching everything from the safety of the tower"
They rushed up the stairs and found themselves in a long hallway.
"Reveal!" Elena shouted, pointing her scepter towards each room as she looked for the man who called himself king.
Empty.
Empty.
Empty.
"Teresa!" She said as her scepter revealed a scared woman who was once her ally and now powerlessly serving as Queen of Cariza. "We have to go to her!"
"Let's find Victor first" Gabe suggested, not wanting to lose sight of their mission. "She'll be safe where she is for now"
Elena reluctantly agreed. She wanted to help her friend and ease the clear anxiety that she was feeling. Gabe was right though. As long as Victor was on the lose, they were still in danger.
"Reveal!" Elena shouted once more, aiming the scepter towards the last room at the end of the hall.
"He's there" Elena said after seeing Victor staring out the large opened window of his tower, overlooking the bay. He was hunched over and looking like he had lost all hope. He knew he had lost and knew that he had never had a chance to win.
"Is he alone?" Gabe asked. Elena nodded that he was. "Should I go with you?" Gabe wondered aloud placing a hand on Elena's shoulder. He knew she had the situation under control but wanted to offer his support anyways.
"I've got this" Elena told him as she stepped forward towards the room.
"I'll be right out here if you get into any trouble." Gabe reminded her.
Elena opened the door and stepped into the tower, letting her scepter lead the way.
"It's over Victor" She said softly but with conviction.
Victor turned around to face Elena. His face was long. A tear fell from his cheek. Elena wasn't expecting to find him in such a state. Her tension faded and she lowered her scepter slightly but remained on guard. She wasn't sure how to react.
"I know..." He said with much sorrow and hung his head. "It's been over for some time now"
Elena now lowered her Royal weapon completely and stood tall, giving Victor a confused look.
"You deserve to sit on the throne in Avalor. You and your sister are a true leaders. Both so Strong. The rest of us are just weak. We are nothing" Victor continued as he looked down at the ground, burdened with shame for all of his sins.
"My sister? I don't understand... " Elena questioned, taking a step towards Victor but it was if he heard nothing.
"If you ever see Esteban again... Tell him it's not worth it... The power and the greed mean nothing. I have nothing now..." Victor explained. He then looked up at Elena and she saw the true sadness in his eyes. There was regret and loss and emptiness like she had never seen before. He then squeezed his eyes shut and took a step back against the window and before Elena could realize what he was about to do, he let himself fall straight back, tumbling out the opened tower window and onto the rocks below, meeting his fate in the same tragic fashion as his beloved daughter.
"Noooo!" Elena cried and rushed to the window.
Gabe came bursting into the room at the sound of her cry and ran to her.
"What happened?!" He asked in a panicked manor, looking around the room for Victor.
"He just... He just threw himself out the window" Elena replied, breathless and with great disbelief. She and Gabe peered over the ledge together and winced at the sight of Victor's demolished and lifeless body down below. They pulled back quickly and Elena hid her face in Gabe's chest as he pulled her in close.
"It's done Elena. It's over. We've won." Gabe whispered to her, trying to shine light on the darkness she had just witnessed.
"Teresa... I need to go tell her what happened. She's free." Elena said looking up at Gabe and taking a deep breath. The thought of freeing the people of Cariza bringing her some positive energy. "Can you find Cat?"
"I'm on it!" Gabe said and left Elena's side to find the princess.
"Gervaso, the leader of the Fuerza army will take your people over to the islands on our ships. We need to move as quickly as possible. My friend Paola will help you all settle into the village there" Elena explained to Teresa after their happy reunion and getting right down to business. Teresa was aware of the dark army approaching and was grateful for Elena's escape plan.
"I cannot thank you enough for everything you've done" Teresa said and embraced Elena. It warmed Elena's heart and she knew that she had made the right decision in postponing her plans in order to free and evacuate Cariza.
"Your majesty!" Gervaso addressed as he entered the room. "The city is secure. We've only had a handful of casualties. It was beyond a successful mission."
"Great" Elena told him and then introduced him to Queen Teresa and the three leaders continued on with their planning.
Naomi returned next, reporting that the Cariza guards in the north had surrendered and were on their way back to the city, escorted by Captain Daniel Turner and a group of the Fuerza warriors. Scarlett Turner would remain in the north and help evacuate the villagers.
"Perfect" Elena replied, excited that it was all coming together.
"So where is Victor? What happened?" Naomi asked.
"He knew it was all over..." Elena explained. "He killed himself. He just looked... so sad. Lost. Almost sorry for everything he'd done. If it wasn't for all the awful things he's done to people who've meant so much to me, I could almost... pity him."
"He's been that way since he heard about Carla's death" Teresa informed them. "He gave up then. He just stayed in that room"
"Carla? She's dead?" Elena asked. Last she heard, Carla was ruling Cordoba along with Alonso.
"Yes. Alonso murdered her in order to marry Isabel" Teresa told her. Elena's jaw dropped and she looked utterly perplexed. Teresa was beginning to realize that Elena was unaware of what had happened. "Elena, Isabel married Alonso and then exposed what he had done. She's taken over Cordoba"
"Mom!" Cat cried as she ran into the room and into her mother's arms.
Gabe walked in just behind and smiled as he watched the touching moment between Teresa and Cat. Tears began to form in the corners of his eyes and he quickly cleared his throat and looked away, not wanting anyone to see. He looked over to Elena who stood frozen, staring beyond anything that was in front of her. Stunned. Gabe furrowed his brow and walked over to her. Naomi followed, the same look plastered on her face.
"What's going on?" Gabe asked. "What did I miss?"
"Isa's alive?" Elena whispered to herself, barely audible.
Gabe looked to Naomi for some sort of explaination.
"Isa's alive" She said, hardly believing the news herself.
Elena looked up at her friends. Her eyes darted back and forth between Naomi and Gabe, a smile filled with joy and relief slowly started to spread across her face. She began to inhale and exhale quickly, recovering from her breathless state.
"Isa's alive!" She said loudly, now fully grinning from ear to ear. The reality of it was setting in as she spoke the words aloud. She was so overcome with emotion, that she didn't know what else to do or say. Her legs then began to feel weak. "I need a chair. I need to sit" she told them.
Naomi took charge and quickly grabbed the nearest chair and brought it to her friend as Gabe grabbed Elena's hand and wrapped an arm around her waist to steady her as she took a seat.
Teresa, with Cat still in her arms saw what was happening. "Elena? I thought you knew..."
"No..." Elena exhaled, shaking her head, still in daze. "Is she alone? Who's taking care of her?"
"Umm... I believe she is ruling on her own" Teresa said. "She did have some help. Your royal wizard?"
"Mateo?!" Naomi gasped.
"Yes. That's it. Mateo" Teresa confirmed.
The three friends from Avalor all exchanged a look. Their hearts rejoiced and happiness twinkled in their eyes. They were all alive. Elena quickly rose from her seat.
"I need to get to Cordoba" She announced, haste resonating in her voice. "Teresa, do you think that you, Gervaso and the Turners will be alright with getting the kingdom evacuated until I can return?"
"We can" The Queen confirmed.
"great" She said and then turned to face Naomi and Gabe "Will you two come with me?"
"Of course" Gabe told her, taking her hand. Naomi nodded and took Elena's other hand in hers and grabbed Gabe's free one as well. The trio stood in a circle, none of them saying a thing. There was nothing to say. They simply savored the moment. Against all odds, they had all survived and soon they would all be together.
"Wings up amigos!" Skylar instructed as he and the other jaquins, carrying Elena, Gabe and Naomi, all headed east towards the kingdom of Cordoba.