Chapter Twenty Four

Gladiator

ELSA

"She does look ridiculous, doesn't she?" Hans doubled over with laughter. "No, she never did make a good soldier."

Tracy walked to the centre of the arena, clad in oversized cuirassier armour belonging to one of the Exonian heavy cavalry. The loose helmet on her head did not conceal the wild, frizzy dreadlocks or the annoyance in the girl's eyes.

"Alright, seriously, whose bloody idea was this?" Tracy shouted as she rattled the heavy iron breastplate, vambraces and gauntlets for all to see. Her voice echoed through the enclosed arena. "Who in the blue hell thought this armour was good for fighting?"

"Ever the jester till the end," Hans chuckled, turning to Elsa. "Maybe you should take a page out of your friend's book."

"Leave her out of this!" Elsa struggled to get up, only to have a pair of hands restrain her shoulders from behind. "You promised not to hurt her if I did what you said!"

"I did, didn't I?" Hans mused. "But see, I am a man of my word."

"What are you talking about?"

"Ah, there she is." Hans announced proudly as he indicated the arena. "My new favourite assassin."

Elsa's eyes widened as a second figure emerged from the shadows and stepped onto the battlefield, hands sparkling with blue lightning dancing at her fingertips. No, no, no, no.

Dressed in a dark brown cloak and with heavy eyeshadow contrasting her glowing red eyes, Jade walked towards Tracy, who was still struggling to adjust her armour. The latter stopped in her tracks the moment she saw the Elemental Sorceress. The entire 'colosseum' was silent.

"Jade?" Tracy gawked, her words echoing loud enough for Elsa to hear. "What the bloody hell are you doing here? What happened to your eyes?"

No response.

"Jade, get your ass over here and get me out of this damn thing!"

Still no response.

Her blood ran cold. Lord Magnus and the Crimson Order must have succeeded in turning Jade into one of the Mage Slayers. Elsa turned to Hans, a wild look in her eyes. "Please don't do this. Call her off."

"You're not the only one deserving of a treat." Hans didn't even bother looking at her. "I thought Jade would've liked a break after an entire week trying to hunt down that pesky mercenary in the catacombs."

She stared at him, a deathly whisper escaping her throat. "Janus."

"I figured she'd finally catch him if I gave her the chance to let off some steam in the arena."

"Hans," Elsa pleaded. "Please! Call her off!"

"Shush. The match is about to begin."

Distraught, Elsa stared at the arena below. There was nothing she could do to help. Her strength was gone, her sorcery dampened. Tracy was on her own against Jade. She didn't doubt Tracy's prowess with black magic, but beating an Elemental Sorceress who had orders to kill was an extremely tall order.

"Jade! What's wrong with you?" Tracy looked taken aback as Jade stepped up to her and swung a fist covered with sparkling lightning. The former ducked with a loud grunt, the cuirassier's armour weighing her down. She managed to undo a clasp and hurriedly unbuckled the heavy breastplate. Tossing it aside, she back-pedalled, fumbling with the pauldrons.

Extending her arm, Jade pointed at Tracy and a bolt of lightning shot out. Tracy yelped and leapt away clumsily, the armour again weighing her down. But she managed to get to safety, the lightning bolt impacting the stony ground and bits of chipped-off stone jumped.

"What the hell?" Tracy swore and threw off the pauldrons. Jade came at her again with both hands outstretched and sparkling blue. She shrieked as Jade clasped her shoulders and sent jolts of electricity rushing through her.

"Should've left the pauldrons on." Hans mused.

"Stop! You're killing her!" Elsa screamed.

Hans suddenly got off his seat and crossed over to her in one great stride. A vicious backhand slap across the cheek snapped her backwards and she fell on her back, skin stinging. Hans towered over her, pinning her to the ground. Leaning forward, he pressed his knee against her chest as he drew a knife. "Be quiet and enjoy the show," he whispered as he yanked her up by the collar, forcing her to face the arena again.

Pain written all over her features, Tracy somehow managed to break Jade's grip and drove one gauntlet into the Elemental Sorceress' stomach. As the air abruptly left Jade, Tracy leaned back and threw her forehead into Jade's. The helmet bounced off Jade while leaving Tracy unharmed, and Tracy swiftly wound up and threw an armoured fist across Jade's jaw.

"Sorry, not sorry." Tracy grimaced as she staggered back and tried to wrench the gauntlets off her hands. She succeeded and tossed them at Jade, who fell in a daze.

The Elemental Sorceress sat up all of a sudden, cold fury brimming in her eyes. Another bolt of lightning lashed out, prompting Tracy to roll out of the way. The attack glanced off her arm, and Tracy let out a sharp yelp. She sprawled heavily, and Jade was on top of her in an instant.

An energy wave of purple erupted out like a growing forcefield, sending Jade stumbling backwards and off Tracy. Quickly getting back to her feet, Tracy launched another wave of her black magic at Jade in rapid succession, driving the Elemental Sorceress back even further.

"Oh dear, I suppose I underestimated your friend." Hans remained kneeling beside Elsa with an arm draped across her shoulders, a blade resting against her neck as a warning.

Tracy continued to fight back, keeping Jade off balance with her potent black magic. "Bloody hell! Come on, Jade, you gotta work with me here! Snap out of it!" She shouted. "Don't let that smug bastard control you!"

"Well that's rude." Hans muttered.

"Call Jade off. Please. Don't let this get any further." Elsa pleaded.

"Shhh. It's getting to the good part."

Jade must have picked up on Tracy's attack pattern, for she swung herself out of the way and Tracy's blast of sorcery went wide. With a loud cry, Jade leapt and blue tendrils of lightning formed in her hands. She brought them down towards Tracy with all her might.

Tracy just managed to get her hands up in the nick of time, moving her head and grabbing Jade's wrists, preventing the tendrils from destroying her helmet - and in all likelihood her head along with it. The tendrils slowly lowered towards Tracy, who struggled frantically but to no avail.

"And now your time has come," Swiftly, Hans unlocked the magic dampening collar around Elsa's neck and tossed it aside with his knife. "You only have one chance."

Elsa stared at him, feeling the tiniest measure of sorcery flowing through her weakened body. "What are you saying?"

"I know you're angry. I don't doubt that with your emotions behind your sorcery at such close range, you can incapacitate me in a block of ice and end my 'reign of terror' once and for all." Hans stood and spread his hands in a vulnerable position. "Or," he glanced down at the arena. "You can use whatever that's left of your magic reserve to save your friend. So what will it be?"

Tearing her gaze away from Hans, she watched as Jade lowered the tendrils slowly towards Tracy's head, blue lightning flashing ferociously and casting a strong blue glow across the walls of the arena. Hans was making her choose. She could end all of it right now by freezing him whole, or she could save Tracy. But she couldn't have both.

Drawing on all the strength and remnant of sorcery left in her, Elsa cried out in frustration and lifted her hands still weighed down by heavy iron, throwing them out towards Jade. Ice rushed out of her hands, rocketing forward on a straight path towards the Elemental Sorceress who was quickly overwhelming Tracy. The stream of ice hit Jade's side, catapulting her through the air and off the former sea witch. She hit the wall and fell in a daze, struggling to get back to her feet but failing.

Exhausted, Tracy rested the back of her head against the ground and closed her eyes.

"And now you've hurt the friend you've been trying to save." Hans shook his head. "What would Jade say?"

"I'm sorry." Elsa whispered as she crumpled to the ground from the exertion, no longer able to hold herself up.

"You wasted your chance, my dear." Hans sounded almost sympathetic. "Your love for your friends has doomed them all. You could've stopped me once and for all, but you chose sentiment over logic." He laughed good-naturedly. "And that is why you fail."

His voice rang distant in her ears as she laid on the ground with her cheek against the ground. She vaguely felt hands picking her up as her head lolled, the last trace of her strength evaporating into thin air. Body quivering from the exhaustion and dehydration, she breathed with great difficulty as her heavy eyelids closed.

###

"Awake?" The voice of her most hated enemy echoed distant in her ears as she felt her right wrist being clamped in shackles.

Elsa opened her eyes and groaned again, her sight a complete blur. Her mind and body still hurt all over. She couldn't think straight.

"I am impressed." Hans said as he roughly locked her other wrist in shackles. "Anyone else would have been out cold after what you've been through."

"What was the point of it all?" She snarled with great difficulty.

"You see, many kings and tyrants resort to torturing their prisoners for entertainment. Whipping. Starving. Beating. But I am above all that." Hans whispered, clapping rusted shackles around her ankles. "I won't break your body. I'll break your mind. Slowly, painfully, in every way I know how."

Elsa growled softly as he stood and fastened the magic dampening collar around her neck again.

"And then when the war is finally over and all your friends have fallen," Hans leaned in close and tenderly touched her cheek. "I have more plans for you."

Elsa would've spat in his face if she had any moisture left in her mouth, but she didn't. Instead, she mustered up a scoff, the effort paining her dry throat. "More torture?"

"I told you I would kill you when I'm satisfied, but I've had a change of heart. I don't want you dead anymore, because what fun would that be? No, you will endure a defeat far more painful than death."

He turned on his heel and paced towards the door of the cell with his hands clasped behind his back. "How would you like to be the new Empress of Exon?"

Horror seized Elsa as her eyes grew wide, and she felt herself grow more ill than she already was. "No."

"I must admit, I myself am a little surprised. I thought that I only had nothing but hatred for you after what you put me through. But then I realised that after all of it, looking at you like this," he turned and glanced at her long and hard. "I actually feel sorry for you. And beneath that sympathy - I'm a little embarrassed to admit - deep affection."

"You're sick." She rasped. "I want nothing to do with you."

"With Eleanor gone, I'll need a bride. My Empire deserves to have a new Empress," He explained in a calm voice. He paced back towards Elsa. "It's funny how things come full circle, don't they? Back then, all I ever wanted was to marry you and live happily ever after as the rulers of Arendelle. But after all we've been through, fate has willed us together again." Hans' lips turned upward in a cruel smile as he drew in close.

"Get away from me." She snarled.

"You will be my betrothed. It'll be a glorious marriage. The Last Emperor and the beautiful, deadly Snow Queen. And we will live happily ever after this time."

"The Exonians won't stand for it." Elsa spat acidly at him. "Sorcery is an abomination to them!"

"Oh, they will stand for whatever I say. After all, I am their saviour."

Elsa stiffened. "I won't do it. You can kill me, but I'll never be your bride."

"You won't have a choice, my dear." He lifted her chin to look into her eyes. "With your friend Tracy still at my mercy, you'd do anything to make sure her blood isn't spilt all over your innocent little hands, won't you?"

When Elsa responded silently with an angry glare, he went on. "I thought so. You're too predictable. I want you to live, knowing that you failed to save the day this time. I want you to live on while the rest of your allies and loved ones die by my hand. But most importantly, I want you to live, knowing there's nothing you can do to stop me."

Without another word, he let go of her and walked out of her cell. Slamming the door shut, he locked it and pocketed the key, whistling an eerie tune as he left her behind in the dungeon. The echo of his whistling grew fainter and fainter till there was nothing left but the depressing silence of the catacombs.

Elsa closed her eyes. She'd been holding in her fury and despair, but now her tears flowed freely down her face. No matter how she fought or resisted, she knew that this time, Hans had won. And there wasn't a damn thing she could do to stop him. The psychological torment coupled with the physical pain that pulsated through her body was enough to drive her back into oblivion.