The water rations were so plentiful that the group which had left the Caspian, still had enough to carry it through the journey. Although the threat of thirst was removed, there were plenty of kilometers to walk through, just to reach the city of Vladivostok. With the desert at their backs, there was nothing left for them except press forward. Artyom was fortunate enough to make sense out of the satellite maps that Giul had managed to scrounge for the party, but it saddened his heart that she remained in the land of the bandits. Perhaps there was a chance she would survive long enough for him to return with help; however, it was a vain hope.
Artyom, the soldiers from Moscow Metro and OSKOM, had finally set up camp once the sand was out of sight. The long hours of marching had taken their toll and the troops rested around multiple fires for warmth and comfort. Meanwhile, few had taken the responsibility of sentry duty for everyone's sake. It was surprising how the soldiers of the Red Line, Fourth Reich, and Hansa were able to tolerate each other for so long without pointing a gun in their direction. Maybe it had to do with the old saying, 'Better the devil you know.
The young man laid his back against the tree and began to inspect the maps from the Caspian. His eyes fell upon the map's legends about the state of radiation after the fall of the bombs. It seemed somewhat too technical for him; however, like a cartographer of the older ages he managed to take his time with the information since it was a life or death situation. They had to traverse mostly in the wild territory since the cities contained the strongest concentrations of radiation. Yet, it would be a slow pace due to the lack of infrastructure before and after the war. A dangerous thought that had come into mind was the threat of winter. If he and the soldiers didn't make their preparations or arrive in Vladivostok quickly, morale would deteriorate and the last thought he needed to worry about was mutiny.
Life in the camp became more active as he looked up from his maps to find Pavel and a group of Red Line soldiers return from scavenging the local surroundings. They carried bundles of clothing before passing them out to every soul they could find. Then the communist officer managed to bring enough over to the Polis Ranger. "Comrade, it's great to see you busy with our survival. While you were looking at the maps, we found a local settlement willing to trade with us."
The first thought that came into Artyom's mind was the transaction. "What did you trade?"
"We gave the villagers some extra guns and ammo, even some of our water rations for stuff like food and clothes," He answered as he sat down on a rock across from him and passed out folded canvas, "Here's a plash palatka, we can't have anyone from our outfit getting sick on the way."
"Thanks, Pavel, "Artyom answered with genuine care in his words, "I appreciate the help."
He settled down and started to wear his Soviet poncho, "Do not thank me, you should thank the locals. If we're going to survive long enough, we'll have to be nice to the people we meet."
He stole a glance from the communist, only to find worry on his face. "Something wrong?"
"It's the Nazis. I know those bastards well and it would be difficult to acquire supplies if they start referring to people as mutants or sub-human. That is the last thing we need to deal with."
Curiosity about his concerns had come into mind and Artyom took the consideration quite seriously. "If it's possible, I could talk with them and try to be reasonable."
Pavel scoffed at the suggestion. "Trying to make sense out of a Nazi is like trying to tame a demon. It won't end well."
"I have to do something," He answered, knowing full well that the problem could not be left alone, "Letting details like that fester will hurt everyone in the long run."
He shook his head. "You're a Polis Ranger, I understand. My friend, there are things you can't change, no matter how hard you try."
The young man looked at his satellite maps and pondered about his situation. Maybe Pavel was right? Yet, he needed the cooperation of the entire party to return to Arendelle.
Sukhoi's arrival had broken Elsa's long streak of hiding in the bedroom. The queen would have preferred starvation to express her grief, but a servant telling her of his arrival was enough to change her mind. It would have been wrong to do that, especially when her heart knew that he would be looking for answers or solace. The days spent in isolation had taken their toll on her appearance as she sought out fresh clothes from her closet and fixed her unkempt hair back into the French braid she loved. Hours spent in reclaiming the look of a regal royal had return albeit saddened by Artyom's disappearance.
When all the touches were done, she stepped out of her bedroom and proceeded to make her way towards the chapel. With every step she took, the queen became more reluctant in seeing the station commander of Exhibition once again. Despite the fear, there was no turning back from facing the issue of the death of her friend. Passing servants took notice and bowed with eager grace and respect. Some even smiled, which did cheer her weary heart.
The queen arrived at the chapel doors and opened the doors to enter. At the first row of chairs was an old man observing the religious iconography placed before him. He leaned back in his seat as if it gave him comfort; however, it was not indicative of his feelings whatsoever.
Elsa took her first step, alerting Sukhoi to her presence. As she approached him, he stood up and turned around, expressing the sorrow on his face. "Your majesty, I didn't know you were coming."
She let out a small smile before expressing the truth. "Neither did I, station commander."
Sukhoi looked down before taking another glance at the Christian cross. "When my people received news from the Council that we would be evacuated to your kingdom, this was supposed to be the greatest celebration we would have since the disappearance of the Dark Ones. I wanted to share that with Artyom and now… it feels like I have nothing left."
"I am sorry it ended this way. None of this should have had happened. If I could turn back time, I wished he would come back."
"That is not your fault. None of this is," He answered, "Part of me felt he would find that demise just like his father. It's just that I didn't want to think about it."
The two sat down together in the first row of seats as she kept her hands in her lap. She thought about that night and it felt wrong to keep those feelings bottled up. "I loved him."
His head turned, caught unaware of her emotions.
"Even though my heart belongs to another, I loved him in my special way," Then she recalled the life before the confrontation about her powers, "Artyom gave me a chance to talk with my sister, a debt I could never truly repay. He didn't have to go any further than that. Yet, he was willing to sacrifice his well-being for his."
A hand reached out to hers as Elsa found the old man's grip to be comforting. "Somehow, I knew you two could be together and it is such a shame that Artyom would never live long enough to truly have a life."
Emotional memories flowed in the back of her mind about that night. "He wanted to tell me the night before we were separated."
Sukhoi hugged her dragging her closer. "It's okay to cry. You just have a heart that shows how much good you have in your soul for others."
"I already shed my tears," She replied, "All I need is some closure. That is all."
"We all do," He said, "I carried a great responsibility in taking care of him, long enough for Artyom to become the man he was born to be. Tragically, his bloodline will go no further in this day and age."
The queen pushed herself away from the senior's bear hug as if there was a secret she needed to know. "Bloodline?"
"Yes, Artyom hails from a long line of royals who ruled Russia in our world. Rather, he was the last trace of royalty that survived the revolution and the civil war that came with it. A long story about that one and grieves me that his parents will never know how close he was to reclaim that legacy."
"What do you mean?" She asked. It was a good question as she never truly considered her friend's background other than his position in the Moscow Metro, "Are you saying that he is just like me?"
He nodded his head. "The throne of Imperial Russia in our world was lost, but the royal bloodline was still there, hiding in the shadows. Artyom was the direct descendent of Tsar Nicholas II Alexandrovich Romanov, the last emperor of Russia."
A small pause was allowed between the two as he curled forward and rested his elbows upon his knees.
"The Soviet Union, my country, had come to your kingdom a long time ago and I was with his father when we were part of the first task force to explore it. Your mother and father were close friends to Hunter and myself, but everything changed when we were introduced to Princess Marya of the Russian court. She was Artyom's mother."
Her eyes widened at the revelation of the truth that Artyom was not some mere individual in a dead world, but someone with a high degree of royal birth. "So what does this mean?"
"I do not know the fate of the Russian court," Sukhoi answered with a slight glimpse of happiness on his jaded expression, "But my boy would have been the crown prince of Imperial Russia in this world."
It was truly a wonderful thought now that she learned about a secret that her powers seemed to show her back then. Yet, it was a hollow point of excitement as she remembered her coronation day occurring in this very same room. Elsa's eyes looked upon the alter and recalled the moment she was declared the Queen of Arendelle. Then she turned her head and looked back at the spot where Artyom waited for her near the doorway.
The knowledge of Artyom's bloodline and the memories she shared with him had reminded her of those childish days with her sister. Retelling stories about a prince and princess falling for each other and surmising that relationship with a true loves' kiss. Little did the queen consider that her life was that kind of story where the regal and beautiful queen would be smitten by a man from another world - a knight of the apocalypse and a prince of Russia.
Kristoff opened his eyes as he felt warmth on his face. Had he been saved? His head looked around to discover his body was recently pulled out of the water, but when he saw the campfire, several armed Polis Rangers were sitting beside him. They immediately went over with cups and small containers filled with food. Yet, he was surprised that they managed to fish him out. "Where am I?"
One of the soldiers took off his helmet and let it rest underneath his arm before handing him a cup full of liquid. "Here, take a sip. You'll need this before you talk."
The ice harvester took a quick sip and was surprised at the relaxing taste that came with it. "Who are you?"
The soldier offering him food and drink had continued. "My name is Samuel Taylor, I'm one of the Rangers. An old captain waiting by the docks noticed you were tossed in the fjord. We sent a guy to check it out when the ship's crew was busy. Any longer and you'd wake up with some brain damage. Any reason why they would want you to die like that?"
"I knew something they didn't want to know," He replied as his memories recalled that moment in the deepest parts of the ship, "Prince Hans wanted me dead so that I wouldn't tell anyone about his cooperation with Princess Anna's kidnappers."
Six soldiers in the group had turned their heads, silence taking their voices. The one who took off his helmet began, "Are you sure that happened?"
Kristoff nodded his head. "The prince wanted my silence. I agreed out of fear, but he tried to have me killed."
"Okay, here's what we want from you. For the time being, we need you to stay as far away from Arendelle as you can."
"Why? Aren't you going to get back at the man who did this? The one who got your people attacked."
They exchanged glances at each other before the unhelmeted soldier continued. "What you are saying is a serious accusation. Plus, this is way above my paygrade."
What were they trying to say? "So you're going to wait and see what else he's going to do?"
"Look kid, we're just a simple squad right now. We'll pass this up with our superiors and we'll go from there. Until then, we need you to go in hiding for a bit and not risk another attempt on your life."
The response was not what he wanted to hear, but it seemed like they were willing to help. As he huddled closer to the flames, Kristoff took a glance at their surroundings and it seemed to be that he was taken into a forest. Not a bad place to avoid Prince Hans and his men, but somehow he had to go back to the wild and return to his usual jobs. Maybe he could still stay close to his family of trolls.
A crack of a branch had set the soldiers loose as they immediately turned away from the flames with their weapons drawn. The barrels of their guns pointed at the source of the noise and as Kristoff turned his head, one of the soldiers shined a white light on the area, only to reveal a scared reindeer caught red-handed. Yet, the young man knew it his closest friend. "Don't shoot, it's Sven!"
He ran over to the terrified creature before wrapping his arms around him in a warm embrace. The reindeer rubbed his head into his chest to return the same degree of comfort before bringing him over to the rest of the campfire. Kristoff's eyes glanced at the soldiers, who lowered their firearms and relaxed at the creature's proximity.
"I'm sorry he scared you guys like that."
Sam laughed and began to set up a teapot above the fire. "Part of me was worried it was Prince Hans looking for you. If what you said about him is indeed true, Colonel Mel'nikov needs to know. He'll know what to do."
Nightfall seemed to take over the sky as another of the soldiers had brought out a guitar-like instrument to pass the time. Then the strings were pulled to play a sorrowful melody that didn't seem to end.
Countless hours were spent in the search for the military installation near Vladivostok. The number of troops needed to make the search safe as possible from both the mutants and the bandits that made their sorties. Yet, the obstacles had been overturned thanks to the assistance of Tom and Klim.
Colonel Klebnikov entered the facility with a company of men, who searched out the various rooms in the bunker complex. It was far deep than he anticipated and that there were interlocking systems that could house warships themselves. There were also storages full of ammo and food as if it was designed to preserve the people living here. However, the true objective lay beyond such immediate treasures.
The colonel and a dozen of his men had stood in front of an airlock door as he waited for his counterparts to assist. He then heard a hallway speaker spark to life and the door's camera move for a moment. "Just a second, Colonel Klebnikov. I'm accessing the various door controls."
He waited for a few minutes before taking a glance at the camera. "Done?"
"Yes sir, here we go."
Walls groaned at the awakening of the layered doors. When they had begun to split apart and make way for the soldiers of OSKOM, yellow caution lights flickered inside as they entered the room with their weapons ready. White lights from the flashlights began to search the room scanning asserting dominance within the darkness, but all it did was validate what the whole expedition had come here for. "Comrades, secure the room! Someone fetch the technicians and the engineers to get this working. We'll need to reconnect with the Order and OSKOM ASAP."
The men acknowledged his orders as he walked away from the room and reached for his radio. "Uhlman, we found the objective. I say again, we found the objective."
Soon the Polis Ranger replied with eagerness in his heart. "Finally, I was thinking things were boring here. A pity that we had to convince Tom that we had to find it when we couldn't keep our deal."
"Yes, it is unfortunate, but it also means we can relax for the time being."
"As if we weren't doing that in the first place," He joked, "I just hope we can make it up to the American one way or another."
The plan to take the Arendellian throne was going accordingly to plan. Prince Hans would have to reconnect with the Baron and give him his dues, presuming they were not dead in the first place. Nonetheless, the battles between the bandits and the soldiers of this other world had made it quite clear that he couldn't tolerate them the longer they lingered in the kingdom. Not only did their abilities on the field of combat show that they were capable of the impossible, but they could challenge him should he go against their interests.
That possibility was unacceptable.
He had reached the rooftops of the castle to find Queen Elsa standing near the edge underneath the moonlight. If there was one positive aspect in courting the royal, she was not only beautiful but her innocence and inexperience was an advantage he could take over. Elsa and Anna's emotional problems could be played against each other and he would isolate her through ungentlemanly means.
When she turned her head to find who was present, Prince Hans eagerly bowed and used his grace to play her. "Your majesty, I heard you were up here and I wanted to see if you were alright."
Elsa smiled as she leaned against the ramparts. "I appreciate the company. It has been missed these days."
"What ails you, my dear?" The prince said so sweetly as he went to her side. There had to be a way to perceive an idea of love, "Rumor has it that you haven't been eating as much."
Her eyes revealed how vulnerable she was to her emotions. "It was my way to grieve for a friend and now he's no longer there to come to my aid anymore. Now, this castle loses another soul."
"You are never alone, my queen. Elsa, you are strong and have endured so much despite these horrific moments in your life. It is the reason why I love you."
"Yes," She answered. Perhaps it was the words that seemed to move her as she looked at the moon, "Yet, the strength you see is merely my griefing coping with that harsh life I must contend to. What you do not understand is that Artyom gave me the confidence to handle the losses in a better way. Now he is gone and taken from me from the world he hailed from."
Something had to be done to make her appreciate his comfort. Then he considered the usual expectations of love as he reached his hand towards hers and gently moved closer to her side. "Although we have never spoken much, he seemed to be a good soul that I rarely see these days. A great defender of grace and honor that you would find in the warriors of yore. Truly, I was jealous of the space he had in your heart, but if I knew more about him life could have been different."
The queen grimaced at the thought. "You surprise me with your honesty, your highness. Part of me wonders what I did to deserve you."
Hans and Elsa took the moment to confront each other that night as he looked into her eyes. "I love you and it pains me to see you suffer the grief. If you take my hand, I will do everything in my power to make sure your friend did not fall into the vain hope that you didn't find happiness in his sacrifice."
A tear fell down her cheek before she brought the prince and fulfilled her sorrow with love. It would have been a tender kiss between lovers had it not been for the prince's machinations to see his goal complete. The plan was one step closer to completion.