Elsa looked back at the wall of mist. They were free. She did it.

She felt a small brush of confidence. Elsa had always lived in fear of her power, knowing it could one day consume her. Her training as a knight had given her back control as she learned to recognize her power as a tool and not a death sentence. But even so, she always doubted her powers were of much use for anything beyond the battlefield. Maybe it did have a use.

The mist swirled, briefly clearing enough for Elsa to see the fjord. Arendelle and its lovely landscape, the mountains high above. Is this the last time I'll ever see my home? No, she couldn't let herself think that way. She would return, if not for herself, but for her sister.

She fixed her attention on Arendelle as the ships moved forward, moving from the castle to the mountains. There, something in the distant land caught her eye. A swirl of wind caught leaves flowing as the air moved down the mountains, across the fjord, close to the mist wall. It almost seemed to wave at her.

Ah ah oh

Elsa startled at the voice. The window that Elsa had gazed upon Arendelle through was shut, as mist rushed to fill the hole. Once again, the mist became a sparkling, white and gray wall, allowing no glimpse of what lay on the other side.

Ah ah oh oh oh

She heard the voice again, softer, as they pressed on. A silent call, for when she would return. But Elsa knew the voice would have to wait, for now, they were going into the unknown.

…

Try as they might to be dignified, the Queen and princess of Arendelle had never been on a ship, and their resounding sea sickness was not something they were fond of.

"Cousin," as Anna had taken to calling Rapunzel in effort to breach the years of friendship the two had been denied, "you wouldn't happen to know how much longer it is until we arrive at Corona?"

"If our navigations are right, we should be there before sunset."

Anna kept her head over the railing of the ship, should her nausea get the better again. "Good, good," she said, relived it would only be a few more hours. "You'll have to forgive my sister and I; we don't get out much," Anna tried to joke, but laughing didn't seem to help her cause much.

Rapunzel, however, did chuckle. "Don't worry, I had the same problem when I first got on a ship. My husband, Eugene was in the same position as us right now, only I was the one with my head over the railing. I only wish I could do more to help you, but its all a matter of letting your body adjust."

"Your husband?" Anna asked, trying to take her mind off the swaying of the ocean waves.

"Yes, Eugene Fitzherbert. He was the one who helped me be free of the tower I was trapped in for 18 years. The first man I ever met," Rapunzel longingly gazed upon the horizon, a warm smile upon her face. "I remember he said "Blondie, this isn't something your hair can fix, you just have to sit tight and wait it out."

"Oh… uh that's nice," Anna responded, a bit perplexed by the hair comment. Anna decided she was no longer going to hurl and sat herself down on the deck, closing her eyes. She peeked at Rapunzel, who had grown quiet, looking out at the sea. "Where is he now? Your husband?"

Rapunzel at last took her eyes off the horizon and glanced at her cousin, sitting with her arms wrapped around her legs, looking every bit as miserable as her other cousin Elsa, who was hugging the railing towards the bow of the ship. "He'll be waiting for us in Corona, he's Captain of the Guard."

"He didn't come with you?" Anna was certainly interested in her cousin's life, but she was more focused on distracting herself from the seasickness.

Rapunzel chuckled again, "No, he knows I can handle myself just fine. Even so, I have one of my captains with me. Cassandra." Rapunzel motioned towards the captain of the ship, holding the steering wheel steady on course. She notices Rapunzel's gaze and gave a brisk nod. "We go way back, she used to be my lady in waiting and we had a bit of a … falling out of sorts, but our friendship is stronger than ever. There's no one I trust more at my side, besides Eugene of course."

Rapunzel felt she may be dragging on and looked to her cousin for a response. Anna had grabbed a bucket and was hugging it against her chest. Rapunzel held back her laughter, not wanting to embarrass Anna further. "What about you? Anyone special in your life?" Rapunzel asked Anna, trying a new tactic to distract her.

"Well there's my … um… my sister of course, Elsa, but also my," Anna paused. "I'm really not sure what to call him, we're not married, YET, but we are a couple. His name is Kristoff, I met him a year ago in this… incident we had where Elsa ran away and created an eternal winter. Blah blah blah, it's a long story I think I'll save for another time, but he's just a loveable guy. He thinks he's all big and tough, but on the inside he's a marshmallow."

"Actually," she continued, "you probably saw him. He was one of the guys hauling cargo onto the ship when we left. Tall blonde guy." Rapunzel looked at the Arendellian men on the ship and noticed they all matched that description. She merely looked back at Anna with an awkward smile.

"The guy with the reindeer and the snowman!"

"Ohhhhhhhhh," Rapunzel glanced at the first Arendellian ship behind them, the reindeer noticeable even from where she stood. "Yeah, I know who you're talking about. He told me that if there was any need for ice hauling where we were going, he was the guy to talk to. I think he mentioned their names were Sven and Olaf?" Anna nodded, "Yes, that's them! Our happy little family."

There was another moment of silence.

"Rapunzel? Cousin," Anna corrected herself. "This war you mentioned… what can you tell me about it?"

Rapunzel sat down upon a bench near the mast. "It's unlike any war written in any book I've ever read, or anything in memory. We've been fighting for a year now, but our forces are outnumbered, and stretched too thin. This enemy only seems to get stronger, waiting in the darkness."

Anna opened her eyes at last, sensing the fear in Rapunzel's voice. "At first it was just a skirmish over a border, hardly anything Corona would ever start a war over, but our neighboring country, invaded. At first it was a normal war. I know that sounds strange to be calling it that, but we had no idea what it would turn into."

The crew upon the ship paused, listening in on the princess' words. Even the Arendelle citizens sensed the shift in the mood. Cassandra took her eyes of the horizon for a moment, looking down at where the two girls sat on the deck. Even Elsa gave up her place at the bow of the ship and moved closer to hear the words of the princess.

"A sickness started spreading across the land, affecting the wildlife. We had trouble maintaining enough food. Then there was the use of… dark, horrible things upon the battlefield. Dark magic that took away the life of many of my soldiers. Death is something we all knew might come but what came next was something that we never could have expected."

Elsa glanced at Anna, their shared sickness forgotten and replaced by a new sense of dread. Everyone on the ship stood still as the warm glow of the sun was blocked by rainclouds in the far distance.

"By some unnatural force, they were able to take control of our dead, our wounded, and reanimate them into creatures of darkness. Anyone who was weakened was susceptible to that magic. Good people, innocents, civilians, children, the magic stopped at nothing. We had to stop fighting on the front lines because everyone who fell became another weapon in the hands of the enemy. That dark magic, that evil, will consume life as we know it if not stopped."

A collective shudder ran down the backs of the people gathered around listening intently. Anna could not take her eyes off her cousin, who was rubbing her forehead, trying to appease the rush of emotions she felt. Rapunzel looked up at both of her cousins, Anna sitting across from her, Elsa standing not too far away. "That is why we are searching for allies who are willing to stand and fight for those who cannot. We can't afford to lose." Rapunzel, ever aware of the wary people gathered around her, added, "so we won't."

The people gathered were instilled with a small amount of hope at the confidence their princess showed, and they gradually moved away from the three royals and resumed their work, getting the ship ready for dock, as Corona was now in view.

Rapunzel glanced from Anna to Elsa. "I read of a magic force that dwelled in Arendelle, long before our sister kingdoms ever existed. I went to find you, not just to help your people escape the consuming dark magic, but to hopefully find the power that may help us fight back against this darkness. And I believe that may be you," she said, eyes locked upon Elsa.

Elsa held Rapunzel's stare, hiding her troubled nature at having been named their one hope at defeating a darkness that this girl, who seemed to be made of light and yet looked like she had seen into the dark before, was so afraid of. She took a deep breath. "Who have you contacted so far?"

"Our allies are few in number, but strong, nonetheless. The kingdom of DunBroch has agreed to bring its entire force. My husband's father is the king of the Dark Kingdom, which isn't evil despite its name, and he, my father-in-law, has agreed to help us in any way he can, along with his Brotherhood. I know this may sound crazy, but did you ever hear of Saint Nicholas when you were young?"

Elsa and Anna exchanged a look. "Santa Claus?" they asked in unison.

Rapunzel smiled at their recognition, "ok, I know its going to sound crazy but, he is very much real, along with the Easter Bunny, the tooth fairy, the Sandman, and Jack Frost. When the darkness began to take children, they revealed themselves to us and have been doing whatever they can to aid us. They are all very much forces of magic and I wouldn't quite know how to explain them if I tried. They call themselves the Guardians."

Anna looked away in surprise, Elsa raiding her eyebrow with disbelief. "Trust me, that's not even the craziest story we have."

Anna asked with excitement, "What's the craziest?"

Rapunzel leaned in. "Well, they're our newest ally. We received word from them just a few days before I set out to find you. Apparently, they're seafaring Vikings, battle hardened and with hundreds of warriors. But the most amazing thing is, they say they have…"

Anna and Elsa found themselves leaning in as well.

"Dragons."

Ok so two chapters, one week. What an interesting turn of events. We'll see what happens next.