Chapter 128

Ice in Summer

"SLAM ON!"

With Donald officiating, Riku, Kairi, and Aqua clashed in a three-man game of Tin Pin Slammer. The tops bounced off of the books and boxes that had been set up as walls and crashed against each other. Their friends cheered them on as the tops did battle. Sora was glad that he was allowed to keep the pins that he received during the Reapers' Game, even though he would not be able to use the Psychs attached anymore. Donald, however, was fascinated by the powers that Sora had described and wanted to study the brand of magic that was built into them. Riku and Kairi agreed with Sora that they were neat souvenirs of the visit and they were cool-looking.

After a round of clashing, Aqua's spinner fell off of the table, and Riku's went soon after. Kairi cheered and pumped her fists into the air, celebrating her win.

"Nice one, Kairi!" Sora applauded. He gave her a high-five.

"Good game," Riku commended.

Kairi nodded. "Yeah. You too," she replied.

"We should do game nights more often," Aqua suggested. "I need to find the game Terra, Ven and I used to play, 'Command Board'."

"That sounds like fun," Kairi said.

"I've heard of that. I'll see what I can find," Mickey said.

"Well, that's enough play for today. Let's plot a course," Donald asserted.

Everyone put the pins and spinners away and went up to the cockpit. Sora and Donald began to race each other to the pilot's seat, but Riku warped into place, taking the seat. Grumbling about how it was "no fair", they took the other main chairs, Sora as the co-pilot and Donald as the gunner, while Riku laid back with a cocky smirk.

Jiminy hopped up into the cupholder on the dashboard. "Well, then? What's our heading?" he asked.

Sora brought the map of the worlds up for all to see. "Well, there's an asteroid belt here," he said, pointing at a speckled section of the map. "Agrabah is the nearest world in that direction. But there's some strange activity on this side of the Misty Stream." He pointed at a world that had not been labeled as having been charted, which was surrounded by red dots that indicated ships.

"I wonder what that's about," Riku mused. "Let's check it out." Everyone agreed and buckled themselves in. "Okay. Let's plot a course."

The world they found was distinguishable by a castle and village with blue roofs which sat on a fjord, as well as a snow-capped forest-covered mountain. If they squinted, they would see ships that waved different sails and banners were docked in the fjord.

"Any sign of the bogeys?" Mickey asked.

Sora checked the radar and compared it to what he saw out of the cockpit window. He shook his head. "Nothing. But it doesn't look like they just dispersed." He brought up an advanced scan of the world, which showed the localized time of day, the date positioning it in the middle of summer, and energy readings on a variety of frequencies. "Not a lot of hostile energy either, so they probably aren't invaders, or Heartless ships."

"Well, let's disembark and look around," Riku said. He brought the ship into a position to park and selected a point to beam down. The party stepped into the glowing circle and went down to the new world.

They walked through the village, noticing that the buildings were decorated as if there was some sort of big event going on. "Is there a festival?" Kairi asked, recalling the decorations around Corona's thoroughfare.

"I'm not sure it's quite like that," Riku argued. He pointed ahead to a plaza where a crowd was gathered facing the castle's front gates. "It looks like they're waiting for something."

As they approached the crowd, Donald warned Sora to watch what he says, lest he let on that he was not from around there. Sora wondered how he would inquire as to what was going on without making that point obvious. Kairi also noted that it was a moot point, as it would become apparent as soon as they summoned their Keyblades when Heartless appeared. When they reached the crowd, Sora shrugged, causing Donald to groan as he understood that Sora was going to ask in a straightforward manner anyway.

"Excuse me. What's everyone waiting for?" Sora asked one of the townspeople.

However, the woman did not seem concerned with his ignorance, likely determining that he was merely from out of town. "We're waiting for the new queen to come out and greet everyone," she explained. "Her coronation was this afternoon, and right now she's at the afterparty with the visiting dignitaries."

"A coronation? Cool," Sora exclaimed.

Just then, the doors opened up, and a young woman ran out, but she stopped in surprise when she saw the crowd. She had a tall and slender build, blue eyes, and platinum-blonde hair in a French braided crown twist bun, and she wore purple eyeshadow and magenta lipstick. She wore a long-sleeved black turtleneck blouse with red and teal crystal-shaped prints, a teal dress with a sweetheart bodice that had bronze trim and rosemaling on the skirt and bodice, a magenta cape, a gold tiara, and dark brown flats. A long satin, cyan-colored glove covered her right hand while the left one was bare.

Everyone in the crowd applauded when the woman appeared, making it easy to guess who she was. "Is that her?" Sora asked.

The woman in front of him nodded. "Yes. That is Queen Elsa, of Arendelle," she replied.

"Is she alright?" Riku asked, noticing that Elsa's face bore a fearful expression. Hearing footsteps, the queen glanced back in the direction she came and ran, trying to make her way through the crowd. She appeared as though she wanted to avoid everyone as best she could, though most people did not seem to notice, continuing to clap for her and bow when she drew near. One woman noticed her discomfort and asked if she was alright. Panicking, the queen stumbled back as far as she could go. When she leaned back and gripped the edge of the fountain behind her, icicles shot up around her left hand. Frost spread across the stone rapidly, and the water began to freeze. Realizing what she had done, she let go and turned around. She gaped in horror as the fountain froze completely, the water that shot up crystallizing and contorting into a wild shape.

The crowd fell silent, barring a few gasps, as they stared in shock as the ice spread at the queen's touch. Sora and company were similarly taken by surprise. "Wow. I didn't see that coming," Sora remarked.

"Uh-uh," Donald agreed, shaking his head.

"There she is!" an elderly man dressed in formal attire shouted as he and his two bodyguards came to the door. "Stop her!"

"Please, just stay away from me!" Elsa pleaded. "Stay away!" Suddenly, magic shot out of her hand and hit the steps leading up to the door, to the surprise of everyone, including her. The steps and doors frosted over and icicles sprouted up like spikes. The force of the magic blast caused the old man and his guards to lose their footing and fall backward.

"Monster… Monster!" The old man pointed at Elsa accusingly.

As Elsa looked at her hand, horrified at what she had just done, the people at the front of the crowd stepped back, with parents blocking their children protectively. Elsa ran through the crowd, everyone nearby making room for her to flee.

A young woman in a green dress, who appeared to be younger than the queen, appeared at the doors, shouting for Elsa. She scanned the crowd to locate her, then ran after her. A man in a white uniform followed after her, while the old man and his guards regained their bearings.

The world travelers watched Elsa make her way to a side exit. "She can use magic," Kairi mused.

"What made her lose control?" Riku wondered.

"Could she control it? She seemed afraid of her own power," Aqua added.

"Let's see if we can catch up with her," Sora suggested. They ran around the crowd and made their way to the door that Elsa had gone through, reaching it a moment after the younger woman and the man had gone through. They came out of a door on the outside of the village wall, where they saw Elsa running down a stairway to a rocky shore at the edge of the fjord.

"Elsa! Wait, please!" the younger woman called. Elsa turned to look back up at them nervously. She backed up slowly, then felt that something was different in the surface she was standing on. She looked down and saw that the water was freezing over around the area where she stood. Gingerly, she stepped onto the ice and saw a snowflake-shaped symbol glow where she stepped as the ice hardened. The group ran down the steps to catch up to her, but she started to run, the ice spreading with each step she took. Unbeknownst to her, her magic did not simply freeze the area that she would step on, but the ice spread out sideways.

"Elsa, stop!" the woman pleaded once more. She tried to pursue her across the ice, but slipped and fell to her knees.

"Anna!" the man called in concern, rushing to her side.

"Whoa," Sora gasped as he watched Elsa run across the freezing water. "Have you seen anything like that, Donald?"

"Not by magic that's used by mortals," Donald said in disbelief.

"No…" the woman, Anna, whispered as she watched Elsa flee across the freezing water to the forest on the opposite shore.

"Look! The fjord!" Mickey gasped. Everyone looked around as they saw the water freezing completely, the ice magic expanding even after Elsa had stepped onto dry land. The ice spread around and under the ships in dock, locking them in place.

While everyone else simply stared in shock, Riku slowly walked down the stairs, making his way to the sheet of ice. "Riku, what are you doing?" Kairi asked when she saw this.

Riku turned back to face his friends, a step away from the frozen water. "That girl, Elsa... she looked so scared. She has this power, and she seemed terrified of it, of herself," he said. "It seemed as if she thought the only thing she could do to keep everyone else safe was to run away." He let out a sigh. He knew that feeling better than anyone. That was a lot like how he felt after he had let himself succumb to darkness. He now knew that that was not the way to go, but Elsa was lost in her own fear. "I need to go talk to her. Try to help her."

"Well, you're not going alone! I'm coming with you," Donald insisted. He ran down to join him.

"I will, too," Aqua said, joining them.

"We'll stick around for a bit," Mickey said. "Good luck."

Riku, Donald and Aqua nodded in affirmation, then turned to march across the ice.

After they had left, Sora ran down to help Anna and her companion. "Hey, are you alright?" he asked.

"No," Anna replied.

"Are you and the queen close?" Kairi asked, making note of Anna's concern for Elsa.

"We were," Anna said sadly. "Elsa is my sister."

"Your sister?" Goofy parroted. "So, that would make you…"

Anna nodded. "Princess Anna of Arendelle," she finished, introducing herself properly.

Anna shared many features with her sister, including the shape of her face and her blue eyes, although her hair was a strawberry blonde color rather than platinum blonde, and there was also a thin streak of white on the right side. She wore her hair in a bun and had some of it braided like a headband. She was dressed in a black sweetheart bodice with dark green off-shoulder straps, a greenish-gold trim, and rose, teal, blue, and purple prints, as well as a black satin-laced necklace with a bronze pendant, an olive drab pleated skirt with sashes that had multicolored designs, a cream petticoat with frilly knee-length pantalettes, white stockings, and a pair of black ballet shoes. Her hair was decorated with a green comb-shaped barrette with a couple satin ribbons and green chartreuse. She also wore dark pink lipstick. She held a satin glove in her hand, the counterpart to the one that Elsa wore.

Realizing that they were talking to the kingdom's princess, the world travelers bowed respectfully. They proceeded to introduce themselves in turn.

"I am Prince Hans, of the Southern Isles," the man beside Anna said, bowing respectfully. He was a well-built, handsome man with green eyes and auburn hair and sideburns. He was wearing a cream blazer with red and gold designs, a yellow shirt underneath, a red sash, black boots, white stockings, gold and red epaulets, and a cream ascot.

Kairi shivered and rubbed her arms to keep warm. "Did it just get colder?" she asked.

Goofy exhaled and saw that his breath had become visible. "Gawrsh, I can see my breath," he remarked.

"Didn't the radar say it was summer here?" Mickey asked.

"We should head back into the village and check in on everyone," Hans suggested.

They went back up to the street, where the townspeople were still confused and shocked by the events that had transpired. Guards were breaking ice spikes and crushing them to prevent them from causing accidental harm to others. It had also started to snow, causing concern all around as it became apparent that the unstable ice magic had begun to affect the atmosphere and weather.

"Did you know?" Hans asked Anna, referring to her sister's powers.

"No," Anna answered.

"Look! It's snowing! It's snowing! The queen has cursed this land!" the old man panicked. He turned to his bodyguards. "She must be stopped! You must go after her."

"Wait, no!" Anna protested, running up to the man.

The old man hid behind his bodyguards and glared accusingly at Anna. "You! Is there sorcery in you? Are you a monster, too?"

"No. No. I'm completely ordinary," Anna replied.

"That's right, she is," Hans asserted, placing his hand on Anna's shoulder supportively. He caught himself and noticed that his tone might have been untoward. "...In the best way," he added, giving her a sweet smile.

"I think you need to calm down and back off," Sora said, approaching the group and shooting a glare at the old man. The man prepared a sharp retort, but thought better of it.

"My sister's not a monster," Anna insisted.

"She tried to kill me!" the old man argued.

"You slipped on ice," Hans retorted.

"Her ice!"

"Can't you see she was scared?" Sora argued. "I could tell that she didn't want to hurt anyone. She lost control of her powers, and she didn't know how to handle them in her stress. You didn't seem like you were helping."

The old man scoffed and adjusted his glasses. "To think I crossed the Misty Stream to attend a trade partner's royal's ascension only to be trapped in a mystic curse," he grumbled.

Sora blinked, picking up on the mention of the space sector they had just passed through. "Wait, what was that?"

"Sora!" a familiar voice blurted from several feet away. He turned to locate the source of the voice when a brunette in a purple dress ran up and wrapped him in a bear hug.

Kairi and Mickey gasped as they recognized the girl. Sora pulled her off to get a look at her face, and he was just as shocked as them. "Rapunzel?"

The princess of Corona laughed. "It's good to see you," she said.

Sora chuckled nervously. "Uh, same. But what are you doing here?" he asked. "This isn't anywhere near Corona."

"Well, the same thing that the rest of us are doing here," the old man said. "This kingdom has guests from many different kingdoms and nations spreading far and wide. I am the duke representing Weselton, Arendelle's closest trading partner."

Sora crossed his arms as he processed what he was being told, his confusion visible on his face. "You… crossed the sea between worlds?"

The Duke of Weselton nodded. "As we have done several times in our many years of international relations," he added, as if it should have been obvious.

"M-Many years?" Sora parroted in bewilderment. "But I thought the worlds were supposed to be separate, and people weren't supposed to know that there were other worlds beyond their own. 'World Order', Donald keeps telling me."

"That would be true for the common gentry," a man dressed in a Colonial British naval uniform interjected. "But governments and blue-blooded houses have known of the greater World for centuries, and have engaged in international relations with many of the other lands since we have been able."

Sora and his companions were taken aback. People have been traveling between worlds long before them? If so, then what was the point of the secrecy that Donald always used to give him grief over?

Goofy leaned down to whisper into Mickey's ear. "Did you know about this, your Majesty?" he asked.

Mickey shrugged. "My experience with external relations was mostly related to my responsibilities as a Keyblade Master," he replied. "Though I guess that explains how Minnie and Scrooge understood it well enough."

"Kingdoms and nations that make business in commerce cannot well trade or profit much if their reach is a world border that stops two meters from the edge of their dominion," the British merchant added. "Were that so, the East India Trading Company would not exist."

"East India Trading Company? I feel like I've heard that somewhere before," Kairi mused.

"Oh, there you are, Rapunzel. I was wondering where you'd run off to." The party turned to the new speaker and recognized him as Eugene Fitzherbert, accompanied by one of the Kingdom of Corona's royal guards. He was dressed in more formal attire, donning a black suit with a purple vest marked with the sun-shaped sigil of Corona. Sora smiled, putting his confusion to one side as he was simply happy to see his friend. "Oh, hello there, Sora, Kairi, Mickey, Goofy. Fancy seeing you here."

"Hey, Eugene," Sora greeted.

"Hang on. The worlds had barriers separating them until a few years ago. How have you been able to sail the Lanes Between before that?" Kairi asked.

The trading company merchant smirked. "We have our means," he said cryptically. "Although I'll admit, we did enjoy the lack of barriers in the last few years, even while our business locations were being lost."

"But how do you reinforce your ships against the darkness of the Lanes Between?" Mickey asked. "Especially for the crew members out in the open."

"Really? I didn't feel a thing," Eugene remarked. "Then again, I don't really understand what you're talking about."

"A-hyuck. I guess you could say the same thing about Captain Hook's pirate ship," Goofy said, recalling how the vessel sailed around the Gummi Ship to ambush and capture them. The trading company merchant frowned at the mention of pirates.

Rapunzel shivered and did an erratic jig. "Brrr… My feet are freezing!" she complained.

"Say, maybe we should find you some shoes," Eugene suggested.

"And a cloak, too," Hans added.

"It's that blasted queen's curse," the Duke spat. "That monster and her wretched sorcery."

Eugene was incensed at the Duke's remarks against magic, as Rapunzel used to have powers and Sora and company had their magic, and they would by extension fall under his "wretched monsters" categorization. He stepped up close to the Duke and glared down at him. "Do you have something against magic, pal?"

The Duke gulped in reaction to his threatening tone, then quickly composed himself and cleared his throat. "As a matter of fact, I do," he replied sternly. His bodyguards gently nudged Eugene to take a step back.

Eugene shrugged. "I'll admit, I'm not sure what answer I was expecting." The Corona guard rolled his eyes.

"Either way, the queen's magic is freezing us in, and something must be done before it gets worse," the trading company merchant said.

"Yes. Something must be done about the queen," the Duke agreed.

"It was an accident. She was scared. She didn't mean it. She didn't mean any of this," Anna insisted once again. While the others were talking, she had reflected on recent events and had reached a decision. She knew what she had to do. "Tonight was my fault. I pushed her, so I'm the one that needs to go after her."

"What?" Hans gasped.

"Bring me my horse," Anna hailed the royal handler.

"Anna, no! It's too dangerous," Hans pleaded, placing a hand on her shoulder to try to stop her.

"Elsa's not dangerous," Anna assured him. She continued on her way to where the royal handler and her horse were. "I'll bring her back and I'll make this right."

"I'm coming with you," Hans said, taking her hand.

"No, I need you here to take care of Arendelle." The royal handler placed a cloak over her.

"On my honor," Hans promised.

"We'll come with you," Sora volunteered. Kairi nodded in agreement.

Anna raised an eyebrow quizzically. "Are you sure?" she asked.

"We want to do what we can to help. And it might be dangerous to go out into this alone," Sora replied.

"You can trust them," Rapunzel assured her.

Anna considered the offer, then nodded. "Okay." She mounted her horse. "I leave Prince Hans in charge," she announced.

"Well, I'll stay here and do what I can to help," Mickey said.

Hans looked down at him and nodded. "I appreciate your assistance." He looked back up at Anna. "Are you sure you can trust her?" he asked, his worry evident in his tone. "I don't want you getting hurt."

Anna smiled in a reassuring manner. "She's my sister. She would never hurt me." She snapped the reins, and her horse began to run through the streets.

"We'll catch up later," Eugene told Sora and company. "Good luck."

Rapunzel gave Sora a parting hug, which Sora reciprocated, then Sora, Kairi and Goofy waved good-bye and ran off after Anna. "Hey, wait up!" Sora called after the princess as she rode her horse out through the front gates.

Well, that's a wrench in the status quo of the lore itself. Please, let me know what you thought in a review. I would like to see your opinions on what I did and how you think this will impact events going forward. But please, be civil about it.