Fantasy Arendelle: Return of the Sky King

[KaitWink]

David suddenly scooted away from her, and Elsa wondered if she was crowding him too much. She felt embarrassed from having been so close, so she shifted back as well, to give him some more space.

He quickly explained himself, and Elsa nodded along in understanding as he spoke. Gronweld, the nation that had attacked them. So that was it's name.

"Wait, you bond with the spirits?"

She looked a little baffled. The two were very alike, but she hasn't known someone could become one with the other elements. Since she was one of the elements herself... did that mean... ?

"I've never been able to do that." She admitted sheepishly. "I didn't know it was possible. Even after discovering who I truly was." Elsa smiled a bit. "But I had no idea there were others out there like me."

 

[Dragonlord318]

David nodded. "Yes, I-" he stopped mid-sentence when she said others like me. His jaw slowly fell to the earth as his eyes widened. He blinked a couple times before composing himself and shaking his head. "Wait." He looked to the side, blinking his eyes, then back to Elsa. "You..." He shook his head again, "You're an Elemental?"

He couldn't believe his ears. Though it made sense. She could create ice, after all. He just shook his head some more. "I...I can't believe it! Another elemental? Wow!" He put his hands on his head, a stupid grin on his face. "I...I've never had anyone I could talk to about this! So," he got comfortable on the bed, gesturing with his hands. "Did you pretty much have to like...um, prove yourself to the spirits for them to accept you?"

It was obvious all the walls he had prepared broke down when she mentioned that. Just then, they heard Anna yell "Yyyes!" followed by feet running away from the door. From the tone, Elsa would be able to imagine her pumping her arm in victory.

 

[KaitWink]

There was a quiet moment, and suddenly David was so excited that Elsa couldn't keep up. She supposed it hadn't occurred to him that she was an elemental, and now that it had sunk in, he seemed elated about it. Perhaps he, just like herself, had thought they were one of a kind...

"Oh, yes," she replied with her soft smile. "I'm the spirit of ice. For so long, I thought there were only four. When I crossed the Dark Sea... I found out I was one of them as well." Elsa nodded. "I had to tame the water horse that attacked me, but once I did he took me straight across. Ahtohallan is where I learned about the past and... well, sort of... grew into my power, I guess."

At this, Anna yelled from outside the door, making the older Queen jump a bit. She shook her head, smiling. "Anna," she said quietly. "She might be queen now, but she's the same goofball she has always been."

 

[Dragonlord318]

Anna whooped and hollered down the hallway, jumping and pumping her fist in the air. After she got a good ways from the guest room, she stopped and kissed Kristoff hard, then practically yelled at him, "Elsa found someone! Whoo!" Kristoff and Sven looked at each other oddly while Olaf out his hands together in a way a girl would who was flattered, and batted his eyes at no-one in particular.

"Ahtohallan," David said as he pondered it. "I've...heard that somewhere, but can't remember where." He laughed at the yell and Elsa's response, cringing from the pain it caused his side, then looked up at Elsa, a forced smile in his face. "I take it you're related?" He asked in a jovial tone, obviously masking his pain.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa chuckled a little. "Yes. That's Anna, Queen of Arendelle... and my younger sister."

Elsa quickly filled David in on what had happened five years ago, the story of Northuldra and how she and her sister, of course with the others' help, freed those trapped in the forest. How she traveled the Dark Sea and arrived at the frozen river, what she found out there, who she became. And of course, how she stayed behind while Anna and Kristoff returned to rule Arendelle.

It was a lot to take in, but he seemed to follow pretty well. He had laughed earlier, and seemed in pain. She noticed David's forced smile as he held his side.

"Is it very painful?" She asked, concerned. "We had someone look over you while you were unconscious, but they couldn't find anything physically wrong... We had to assume you were just overworked." They must have missed something, if he was acting so sore.

 

[Dragonlord318]

He nodded. "It's not physical. You've got that right. Having Phalanx - my Fire Spirit - away from me for so long, then fighting without properly bonding with her did cause some strain." He wouldn't tell her that since his fire spirit was the spirit of Heart - Hence his chant - his heart was slowly turning to rock, having been without the Phoenix for so long. The fight, however, had accelerated that change, thus causing the pain. "I'll...I'll be fine," he said. Just as the words came out of his mouth, a knock came to the door. "Elsa?" came a familiar, gravelly voice and Pabbie stepped through, rolling up to the bed and unfurling, staff in hand.

Kristoff walked in behind him. "Thought gramps might be able to help. Since you couldn't find anything wrong with him physically, maybe..." he gestured with his hand, then closed the door. David suddenly got up. "I'll be fine." He said coldly. He knew of trolls, and their mystical abilities. He refused to worry the citizens of Arendelle about his condition. He'd find a cure...somehow. He grabbed his trench coat from the rack by the door and left quickly. He asked the nearest servant for directions to the exit and walked out - to hundreds of people cheering and confetti blown over his head.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa still seemed concerned, though David had brushed off the pain as if it was nothing. Before she could speak up again, they were greeted with a familiar face. Elsa smiled, saying hello to Pabbie, but David had already stood up.

"I'll be fine." He said coldly, leaving the room before anyone could even react. Elsa looked apologetically at Pabbie, then Kristoff, before standing up and following after him.

"David?" She called out as she walked into the hallway. The Queen walked quickly, trying to catch him before he got too far away. What had just happened? They were getting along so well, Elsa thought. Had she said something wrong?

"David, wait!"

 

[Dragonlord318]

When the sunlight hit him, coupled with the loud noise and the movement, it was too much. He looked back and saw Elsa with her blue dress...blonde hair...blue eyes..."Momma?" he said softly, then put his hands on his head and screamed, then pushed his way through the crowd, holding his chest. When he finally got clear, he felt a soft touch on his arm. He looked and saw Elsa again. "Just...please. Stop." He ran forward, and in a burst of air, vaulted into the sky with enough force to create a small crater in the cobblestone.

Pabbie rolled up to Elsa's side, his brow furrowing. He tapped her with his staff lightly. "I...think I may know what ails him." David's four spirits gathered nearby, looking at Pabbie and Elsa, then at their fifth spirit as he departed. The phoenix landed on Pabbie's staff and looked down at him, cooing in a sorrowful tone. Pabbie nodded. "As I thought." He then relayed the message to Elsa, though she'd also be able to hear the fire bird's words. "Hardening heart."

Pabbie looked at the man disappearing into the distance and spoke softly, "This man's heart has slowly been hardening into stone. He lost something early on, then he lost one of his closest friends." He stroked Phalanx's chest, earning a pleased coo from the bird. He looked up at the Ice queen. "You know what you have to do." David had no idea what direction he was traveling. He just knew he needed to get away. Little did
he know, he was traveling due north.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa followed him as quickly as she could, stopping only when he did at the outburst of people celebrating his victory. He turned to look at the ice queen, muttering under his breath. It almost sounded like he called her "mama."

David continued on, pushing through the crowds, and Elsa stayed on his heels, finally reaching him and placing a hand on his shoulder to slow him. He told her to stop, and fled.

She watched as he vanished into the sky, letting out a bewildered sigh. Pabbie had followed her outside, saying that he had an idea of what was wrong with the sky king.

Hardening heart.

Pabbie looked to Elsa, who had understood the phoenix's caw as plain as day, and told her that she knew what needed to be done. Elsa nodded briefly and went back into the castle, preparing whatever she might need to chase David down and try to help him before his heart turned to stone.

As soon as she was ready, she told Anna of her plans, reassuring the younger woman that she would return safely with David in tow. "I'll make this right." She promised, and started off in the direction the man had flown.

He was heading north, and she followed suit. There were many places he could go, but luckily she knew that area and had hope that she could locate him before anything bad happened.

 

[Dragonlord318]

David went high into the sky, inside the storm that was created from his clashing emotions, letting the naturally increased pressure keep him aloft while he cried, hanging his head. Why did she have to look so much like her? He lifted his head in a scream and a bolt of lightning struck the earth. He composed himself slightly, then saw where he was. He first saw a great river, then what looked like where a bridge or dam used to be, a lake, and a large forest. He felt a connection, like a voice in his head, drawing him northward.

He gaped at what he saw. A palace of ice stood on the shore of what could only be described as a massive glacier. He hovered above it for a while before landing gingerly on the frozen flow, his coat whipping in the ocean wind. He walked up to the glacier, seeing that it was caved in. His left hand touched it and a million images flowed through his mind. Elsa's journey, the deception and murder her grandfather had committed, her near-death, how she found that her mother called beyond the grave to show her that she was strong. Then, two girls playing. An icy mind, memories erased, a snowman, isolation, fear, the frozen heart.

Then, all of a sudden he was pulled from the vision by something. He heard a voice...calling. From the ice castle? He wanted to see the end of the vision, what happened to Anna after her heart was frozen? She seemed fine now. He turned and walked up the large staircase, his feet somehow not slipping on the frozen surface. He got to the top and opened the door.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa called Nokk as soon as she started out, freezing him into solid form so she could chase after David on land. He was headed North, and she knew where he would end up if he went that way. Being a spirit herself, she knew he would be drawn to Ahtohallan, similar to how she was.

She quickly passed through the enchanted forest, reaching the sea and urging Nokk to go faster as he transitioned back into water form. They galloped over the calm surface, the waves stopping as they sensed the water horse nearing. In the distance, Elsa saw the glacier where she had discovered her inner power.

Above, she could see David, floating. He eased down to the frozen ground and made his way inside, retracing the steps Elsa had taken years ago as she searched for the voice that she later found was her mother's. She dismounted Nokk and raced after him, reaching him in time to see part of his memories flashing around him. She saw his mother's death, David protecting those around him. She saw how he discovered his power, amongst a few other memories as well.

Elsa walked in at the end, not wanting to disturb the other elemental. After all, this was something very personal to him and she wanted to let him see it through.

"David?" She said softly once all the images had faded. Not wanting to get too close in case he lashed out again, she remained in the entrance of the room.

 

[Dragonlord318]

"Please..." He replied weakly. "Please just let me die in peace." He was in the fetal position facing her on the floor of the glacier-turned-palace, the floor wet near his head. The liquid flowed slowly toward Elsa, stopping a few feet short of her. He closed his eyes tightly as a few ragged breaths escaped his lips. He curled up tighter as though he was warding off an unseen threat.

He had seen and relived everything. His childhood. His mother's death. How his father and sister lived with the thought that he was dead. The elves that raised him. His limited interactions with trolls. His heart that he thought couldn't be fixed. It was all too much. He barely saw the good things that he had done that were revealed to him. He refused to believe that they were depicting him, and if they were, they were false.

He had lived without another's love for so long. He had no idea how it felt to be loved. To be held. To be rescued. Only how to do the same to others, out of a sense of honoring his mother.

 

[KaitWink]

David was curled up on the floor, begging Elsa to leave him alone so he could die in peace.

Elsa was a little taken aback by all this. David truly wanted to die? She had watched his memories and could tell that he had had a hard life, but it surely hadn't been all bad.

She had seen the wood elves who had raised him as their own child, similarly to how Kristoff was taken in by the trolls. He hadn't had the worst life, but it seemed he was only able to focus on the bad things that had happened.

"No," she finally replied. "I won't." Elsa took a few steps forward, not bothering to avoid the wetness on the floor as she steadily approached him.

He wasn't going to let himself waste away like this. The two of them had only just met, but the ice queen knew that he still had something to live for. He just couldn't see it.

 

[Dragonlord318]

David heard her response and her approaching footsteps. "Why?" He asked. "Everyone else left. You should too." Visions started floating around them, visions of his mother standing there, blonde hair, blue eyes and her favorite blue dress. Then she slowly vanished, signifying her death.

Then it showed how, after he was an adult, he couldn't find anyone to befriend him. Whenever they found out he was different, they left him alone. And those that thought him interesting...lost interest when they realized he didn't have a family, and that he lived alone.

David slowly sat up as the last vision faded. "You look so much like my mother." His words were quiet, almost mumbled. "Anyway." He raised his voice for her to hear. "I'm going to die in a few days, Elsa." He looked up at her. "My heart is going to be frozen solid into rock, and not even Phalanx's fire could melt it." His voice sounded defeated as spoke again. "There's nothing that can melt a frozen heart."

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa had made her way over to him now and helped him off the floor into a seated position as his memories once again flashed around the two of them. It seemed that, after his mother died, no one else had really taken much of an interest in him. He had no family, other than the elves, and no friends that he would admit to.

"The elves were your family," Elsa explained. "They cared for you as one of their own. You can't say that they didn't." She motioned toward the memories of him growing up with them, and how he was treated no differently than their own children.

"There is one thing that can thaw a frozen heart." She went on. "I've seen it before. I... was the cause of it before. My sister, Anna... I lashed out years ago and froze her heart. The trolls told her that only an act of true love could save her. She thought that it meant a kiss..."

Elsa paused, remembering how Anna had been betrayed by the man who had promised to love her forever. She clenched her jaw and tried to push the memory away, but it appeared in the ice around them just as David's memories had earlier. "But it was still love that saved her..." The memory of Anna saving Elsa showed on the walls. Anna froze into solid ice, having saved her elder sister's life. But that, and Elsa telling Anna with tears in her eyes how much she loved her, was what saved Anna in the end.

The memory showed Anna thaw and the two sisters embracing each other on the frozen fjord. "An act of true love." Elsa restated softly, a smile on her face.

 

[Dragonlord318]

David shook his head. "Tch." He stood up and brushed off his trench coat. "Yeah. Well, there's no-one around here that loves me enough to do that. The only people that do...they think I'm dead or they're on the other side of my continent. If I were to fly over there to them, I'd be dead before I hit the ground.

The elementals can't do that, as they see me more as a pack leader than part of a family. God, well He already did His act by sending His Son thousands of years ago." He shook his head as he walked past her back to the entrance. "Thanks for the information, Elsa. But there's no-one here that loves me like you and your sister love each other. That's a bond that's forged over years. I've only got a few days."

With that, he walked back out of the frozen palace and onto the glacier. He saw a ship sailing toward them that bore the flag of Arendelle, and shook his head. "Why won't they just leave me alone?" he muttered as he rose into the air and vanished into the clouds overhead.

Anna stepped off the ship as she saw her sister at the entrance to the ice palace. "Elsa!" She called out, trying not to slip on the ice. Kristoff, Sven, and ever loyal Olaf followed, all except the latter having trouble on the icy river.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa followed David from the palace, the man obviously convinced that he had no place here. As she left, stepping out onto the glacier, she heard him say something she didn't quite catch before he vanished once again.

Looking out, she saw an Arendellian ship, her sister disembarking and rushing to her side.

"Anna?" She asked, catching her younger sister before she could fall on the ice. "What are all of you doing here?" Glancing over, she saw Kristoff, Sven, and Olaf making their way toward them.

How had they gotten here so quickly? Elsa looked up at the sky. "He's gone again. I don't know where to." She said. Looking back at the younger Queen, she sighed. "He's convinced he's unworthy of love... his heart is freezing over, just like yours did all those years ago. I don't know what to do." She said the last part quietly, almost embarrassed to admit to her younger sibling that she didn't have all the answers.

 

[Dragonlord318]

To answer Elsa's question of how the ship had traveled so fast, David's water spirit appeared in huge form and lifted the boat up on its back, shaking slightly, then retreated back into the water. Anna walked up to Elsa, concern etched on her face. "Pabbie told us what happened," she told the ice queen. "He said he told you you knew what to do." She looked up to where she had seen the stranger vanish into the sky, then back to her sister. "It looks like you really don't." She smiled softly as she walked up to her sister and wrapped her arms around her, then looked up into her eyes. "All you have to do is show him an act of true love."

She smiled softly. "At first, I thought you two were meant to be together-" she stopped and looked hard at Elsa "-I still think that way. But..." her gaze softened again. "It wasn't the love of a partner that saved me. It was your love. Our love. The love of sisters who'd do anything for each other." She got a smirk. "Now, after all this is over, I expect you two to be dating. But," her facial expressions changed like the wind again, this time to one of sincerity, "you need to show him how much Arendelle loves him. And only you can figure out how to do that."

David flew up and over the sea, seeing the northern wood. He found the atmosphere of it to be calming, and landed softly in the forest, taking in the magical air around him. He found a rock that was short and flat and opted to use it for a chair. He sat down and waited for inevitability to take its course.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa saw the water spirit lift up the ship, and suddenly it made sense how her sister was able to come to her side so quickly. Anna filled her in on what Pabbie had said, and then said that Elsa didn't seem to know what she was meant to do.

She truly didn't. Elsa understood that it would take an act of true love to save David, but they had only just met. There was no history between them. But what Anna explained was right. Arendelle loved him. He had saved their entire city, and everyone was grateful for it. He just needed to see how much his act of kindness was appreciated.

"Right." Elsa said. "I need to get David to come back to Arendelle." What better way to show him he was loved than to have the whole Kingdom tell him at once?

"But first... I have to find him."

Elsa sighed. She had no idea where to start... but maybe the spirits would know!

The spirits followed David everywhere. Surely they could help Elsa locate him. She called out to the spirits.

"Please," she told them. "I need your help to save David. I need to know where he is."

 

[Dragonlord318]

Anna placed a hand on Elsa's arm as she shook her head, a knowing smile on her face. "You are part of Arendelle too, Elsa. Remember how I showed my love for you." The Queen of Arendelle was goofy at times, but the last few years had endowed a wisdom beyond her age. She booped her on the nose and whispered, "How far will you go to save him?" Anna smiled her wise smile, knowing that simply putting forth the effort of sacrifice was enough to show the true power of love. One need not die to prove they're willing to sacrifice. But she wouldn't tell her sister that. She'd have to figure that out on her own.

As her younger sister gave her words of guidance, the words of the Storm Spirit came back to Elsa. I sacrifice my life for them. They sacrifice their power for me.

The water-serpent let out a gurgling call, and at first it seemed like it had no effect. But a few minutes later Phalanx and the Wind Cougar flew over the water at breakneck speed, Phalanx stopping short of the shore. The cougar made of wind and leaves ran up to Elsa, purring while rubbing its head on her side. It then crouched and looked at her, using its tail to snake behind her and nudge her forward in a silent invitation to mount it.

Once Elsa did mount the cat, it took her up and over Northuldra, flying this way and that as it zeroed in on its fifth spirit. After an hour of searching, the cat paused over the canopy of green and suddenly dropped down, stopping just a few feet above the forest floor. The wind spirit then touched down gracefully, crouching to allow the Ice Queen to dismount. Elsa would see David a few yards away, crying silent tears as he sat on a flat stone.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa smiled at Anna's words, impressed at how well her little sister had grown up. She was wise beyond her years, even if she was a bit of a goofball. Which was punctuated by the boop on the Ice Queen's nose.

The taller sister let out a chuckle. "I'll find him. I'll make him understand." She replied. A lot of talking to David simply seemed to involve chasing him around. She hoped that, this time, he would stay put and hear her out.

The cougar made it's way to Elsa, wrapping it's tail around her leg and urging her to climb atop it's back. She mounted it and held on to what she could manage, hoping the ride would be swift rather than shaky. Elsa gave one last bid to her sister before they flew into the air and were gone.

Within minutes, she reached the Sky King.

The spirit dropped her nearby, close enough to hear his sobs but far enough not to frighten him. "David?" She called over to him, approaching him softly in the crunching leaves.

 

[Dragonlord318]

Anna looked on as her sister departed. "I hope I told her the right thing to do," she said quietly before returning to the ship.

As Elsa dismounted from the cat and called out his name, David just closed his eyes, breathing out. Why wouldn't she leave him alone? There's nothing she could do for him. Why must she persist? He sighed deeply before turning away from her, but not moving from the rock.

Something came to Elsa's mind...something from long ago...the memory of her parents. It was as though she was caught again in her vision at Ahtohallan. It was the water-memory of her parents risking their lives to find out how best to help their daughter, trying to get to Ahtohallan before it was too late. Her magic prompted her to recreate the scene here and now. How her father met her mother, how they showed their love for their daughter, how they would go to any length to protect their children. Then, Elsa would remember seeing the vision of the day David's mother died, protecting him with her final act of true love, as the rain came pouring down to douse the flames.

She would remember the one thing that connected both their parents and how they died, and the same thing that was there at both instances.

Water.

 

[KaitWink]

Elsa sighed as she approached and saw him turn away from her. It was obvious that he hadn't wanted her to follow, but she had to. She felt compelled to help him, just as he had helped her yesterday. They might not even be here without him right now, so she had to prove to him that he was loved and needed. She didn't want him to die.

Wondering how best to help him, she remembered that water has memories. Her mother and father had died to save her, to try to figure out how to help her control her powers. She remembered seeing David's memories, and that his mother had died to protect him as well. If only she could make him see...

She could!

Remembering what she had done before, Elsa froze the water nearby in the air to recreate the scenes that she wanted, trying to show David his mother's love, her parents love. And maybe even Arendelle's love for him. The figures were frozen in time, but she could possibly make them move if she still wasn't able to get through to him.

"David," she said. "You can't say you don't know love." She gave a small smile as she approached him again, surrounded by the icy scenes frozen in time.

 

[Dragonlord318]

David looked up at the scenes before him. He saw his mother caring for him at a young age, his father and twin sister showing him affection and love, and also how his mother died protecting him in her final act of true love. Elsa had recreated every scene. Even how his mother fought off-

David bolted up from his seat and practically ran to the image floating in the air of his mother fighting off someone coming into their house. It was a...a thief? No. He turned to Elsa. "Can you...um...what's the word...elaborate on this scene? Make it bigger?" When she did, his jaw dropped. There, setting fire to his home after trying to take his mother's innocence, was a man dressed in clothes with fire patterns on them.

David looked at the Gronweldian soldier as he and others set fire not just to his home, but his city. He saw his father and sister running, hiding in a carriage that was headed out of the city. David lowered his head, took on a look of anger, which turned into a look of determination. He looked up at Elsa. "I know what I have to do." With a burst of air, he rocketed up and headed south. The wind cougar again prompted Elsa to mount it.

When David arrived at Arendelle, he looked for the dungeon. He knew Elsa would follow him, but he didn't care. She couldn't stop him. He heard her clicking footsteps behind him even as he descended the stairs to the prison after getting directions from a guard. As he approached the cells where the men were being held, his foot felt heavy. He looked down and sighed in disappointment. It was stone. The last flight to Arendelle accelerated the petrification to its last degree.

David walked right up to the oldest of the three, his stone foot clinking on the floor made if the same material. He stopped, put his hands on the bars and asked, "Were you part of the squad that attacked Fordhem City 24 years ago?" The Gronweldian looked up at David and nodded. "I was there. I was tasked with eliminating the one that had been identified as a fifth spirit." David closed his eyes, feeling the stone creep up his body and a tear run down his face. He breathed in and out, then looked the man in the eyes. "I forgive you." Then the stone covered his head.

Anna and Kristoff were still on the boat and were just arriving back at the city-nation's port when they saw David and Elsa both land at rhe castle. After some inquiry, they found that they went to the prisons. Anna rushed to find them, and found Elsa weeping and gasped when she saw the statue that had once been their savior. Then, the ground started shaking and cracking stone could be heard.

Light shone through thin lines appearing across the stone that had overtaken the Spirit of Storms, then it crumbled to the ground, showing David glowing brightly, transparent. They could see his heart as the last bit of stone was burned - yes burned - away by a red substance that they couldn't quite describe. Then David solidified and whispered "If anyone has caused you pain...forgive him...reaffirming your love."

 

[KaitWink]

David seemed to catch onto something in one of the images, asking Elsa to make it larger so he could see it in greater detail. She obliged, and he looked shocked.

Without much of a remark, he was off again. Elsa sighed, ready to chase him, when the cougar reappeared to give her a ride. They chased David down as he raced to Arendelle.

"David, where are you going?" The Ice Queen called out, but he was singlemindedly rushing to his destination. He made his way to the dungeons, and Elsa ran harder to try to catch up to him. He had recognized the fire nation from yesterday's attack, but what did he plan to do now?

As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she was only just in time to see him solidify into stone. "No..." Elsa whispered, not having overheard David's forgiveness of the soldier.

She was too late.

A tear ran down her cheek as she closed the distance between herself and David, who was pure stone by now. She covered her eyes, feeling nothing but regret. After everything, she couldn't save him.

Anna could be heard coming down the stone stairs, and Elsa turned to her, wiping tears from her face. "Anna..." She said softly, her voice breaking. She was about to embrace the younger girl when the statue next to her lit up, beams shooting out from its center.

The stone burned away, revealing David alive and well. Elsa smiled and wiped the last of her tears away. She quickly ran over and hugged David.

"I thought I was too late..." She said softly.