Chapter 4

Elsa's heart was beating at a dangerous pace. She couldn't breathe correctly due to heat and stress. The creature gazed at her with his monstrous yellow eyes, and grey smoke was coming out of his nostrils. The queen looked like an ant compared to this gigantic monster. She was trapped, as her only possible ways to exit were blocked by the two immense wings of the dragon. It looked like she was doomed.

But she still had faith in her strength. The dragon was staring at her in a strange way, heavily breathing, but looking strangely peaceful. She didn't know if the monster could talk and understand the human language – the only dragons she had ever seen were in the books her parents read to her and Anna when they were younger. Anyway, she tried to communicate, as it appeared to be the best option for the moment :

- Why do you do this ? Why are you attacking us ?

No answer. The dragon didn't even seem to have noticed that she was talking to him. He turned his head to the left in a grunt. He had smelled something. Or someone.

The citizens.

Elsa reacted instantly. She rose her hands and shot a powerful ice beam at the dragon's chest. The monster let out a furious howl as his body was getting frozen, bit by bit, in a great ice jail. Elsa smiled out of relief : it was working ! The ice grew like blue shining ivy all over the creature, immobilizing his legs.

However, the wings and the neck were still free. The scales of the dragon illuminated for a moment, getting brighter and brighter, so bright, in fact, that Elsa had to protect her eyes with her arms. She heard the ice crackle. When she opened her eyes again, she saw the monster moving his head back, charging blue fire in his mouth. This was bad news.

She instantly created an ice pillar under her feet, projecting her in the air with the momentum, allowing her to escape the terrifying storm of fire that the dragon threw from his mouth just a second later. She passed right over him and, while in the air, quickly threw two other ice beams at the creature's wings. She created an ice slide to land safely, but the dragon went berserk, and destroyed it with a quick slash of his long tail.
Elsa protected her head with her left arm from the burst of ice. She used her right one to create another slide, but it was a bit late, and she couldn't finish it perfectly before landing. She nearly broke a leg. But she didn't have time to recover : the spiked tail was now coming at her. She instantly blocked it with a very thick wall of ice. But even with such a protection, the tail nearly broke through, projecting dangerous pieces of ice everywhere. She definitely couldn't have thought of a more formidable foe.

Elsa could hear another raging howl as she was running away, trying to find the infortunate citizens. Her breath was loud and heavy and her leg was hurting really bad. The smell of incinerated wood and canvas irritated her nose. Her dress, full of water, was slowing her. The sticky mix of ashes and water on her face was itchy, and she was already dead tired from using so much of her powers in such a heat. She had to be extremely careful.

The fire hadn't reached the lower part of the town yet. She slalomed through the houses, hoping for the dragon not to find her too soon. The bay was really close, now. She could hear human voices coming from it. She rushed even faster. Finally ! She could see them ! They were all gathered in the water, at the end of the alley. There were maybe twenty of them, swimming close to the border, watching what was happening to their town, in prey to despair.

Elsa was about to reach the last house, thirty feet before the sea, when an explosion in her back sent her flying. She screamed out of surprise as she landed heavily on her back, her dress half-burned and torn apart. The silhouette of the dragon, freed from his ice jail, rose over her and snorted out a little cloud of smoke. Her back, as well as every part of her body, hurt badly. Strength had left her. It was all over. She groaned as she got back on her elbows, back to the sea, her long blond hair freely floating in the air. She was about to pass out.

- Don't..., she begged. Don't hurt... my people... do you hear me... ?

The dragon snorted again and Elsa could hear everyone screaming out of terror in her back. He looked extremely mad. Apparently, Elsa's ice beams had tore his wings apart. He also had scars all over his body due to the ice jail he had escaped from. Unable to fly, badly wounded, he had rushed through the houses as if they had been straw piles, only powered by pain and fury. Elsa tried to get back on her feet, but stumbled and fell on her knees. She was helpless. If only she had been prepared... but how ? How could anyone have anticipated such a catastrophe ? Dragons were supposed to be a legend.

She gritted her teeth and waited for her opponent's last blow. The dragon opened his mouth, revealing his razor-sharp fangs. Then, he approached slowly, step by step, ready to enjoy a good meal. Elsa bowed her head.

But a thought stroke her like lightning. She was not « Elsa ». She was Queen Elsa of Arendelle. She was the sovereign of this country. She had no right to bow her head. She had no right to let her people alone.

She had no right to leave Anna. To let her get eaten by that monster.

Elsa rose up her head. The dragon had opened his mouth really wide, ready to take a good bite of his prey. She could see the inside of the creature.

- Eat this, she said.

She extended her arms in front of her, and with every last bit of her strength, created an ice storm. The dragon literally didn't see it coming. He froze instantly from the inside, his body pierced by countless ice spikes. But he storm was so powerful that it affected the entire town. It blew away most of the fire in a matter of seconds, covering everything under a thick blanket of snow. The citizens were not affected, however, as their queen carefully guided the attack so it would not strike what was in her back.

When the storm stopped, the dragon had been changed into a harmless statue.

Elsa could hear the citizens burst out of joy, and smiled right before collapsing. She had done everything she could to protect her people. And succeeded.