The Queen's Monster, Chapter #14

Chapter 14

Never did Elsa think she'd be back in the dungeons and chained to the floor like an animal. Probably as a way to mock her and to reaffirm that he thought that she's a monster, the Duke had thrown her in the same cell as when Arendelle was frozen, back when she herself believed she was a monster. The man rubbed salt further into the wound by donning the exact same chains as well as keeping the magic blocking ones on. Both were very tight around her wrists and she could barely feel her hands. She couldn't even more her wrists because the metal would rub against her skin so tightly that it bled. She cried silent tears, both from the chains and for her sister.

Though the chains hurt, it hurt the Queen even more that she was separated from Anna when she needed her the most. She could've been dying for all she knew and Elsa wasn't there to comfort her.

"Kristoff?" She called quietly, moving to a certain section of the wall and crouching down. "Kristoff?" She hissed. She waited for a minute before she heard the scraping of a rock and a small section of the wall opening. Smiling with tears, she looked through the opening into the adjacent cell. "How is she?" She asked the instant she saw Kristoff.

"She's sleeping." The iceman answered wearily. "I've managed to stop the bleeding but she's lost a lot of blood."

"Will she be alright?" Elsa asked desperately though she knew that Kristoff probably didn't know enough about medicine to answer that question without a doubt. The man let out a sigh.

"I don't know." He answered. Even though she had expected the answer, Elsa still felt upset. She gave the man a nod and a forced smile. She stood up and moved to lie down on the hard bench and try to sleep while Kristoff replaced the brick. Sleep didn't come easily as it was difficult to find a good way to lie down with her hands chained behind her back. She found a somewhat comfortable position and slowly fell into a deep and uneasy sleep.

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The Queen had only been imprisoned for a few hours but Arendelle had already descended into chaos. With the Queen, her personal guard and her council out of the way, the Duke assumed that it would be easy to gain control of the people and the council.

How wrong he was.

The Duke had grossly underestimated how rooted the love for the Snow Queen was. Only a small sect of the populace walked over to his side willingly as they had always feared the Queen's magic but the rest were staunchly opposed to the Duke's forced rule and instantly began to fight against him. Fear eventually drove the rioters back as the Duke publicly executed the Queen's guards and anyone that fought against him. He had no mercy, killing men, women and children as young as toddlers. The blood ran through the streets, mixing with the puddles from a recent rainstorms, and created sight that spread fear into the hearts of the bravest. Many still fought against the Duke but the fear silenced the majority.

Hans watched it all in horror from the passages behind the walls. He had never liked the Duke but now, he absolutely despised him. If the man thought he could make Arendelle love him by killing its citizens and holding its queen and her council prisoner, then he was the greatest idiot in the world.

Although he was an idiot, Hans knew that the Duke was not a complete fool. It would only be a matter of time before the Duke's had enough and killed the Queen and any councilor that wouldn't change his loyalty. When she was captured, Hans did have an instant where he wanted to flee and retreat back to his home in the forest but, after everything Elsa had done for him, he couldn't leave her or Anna to die.

Only minutes after making that decision, he had been quietly exploring the passage in an attempt to find a way to the dungeons and an exit to the castle. It is during this that he finds the Queen's council locked in his room, all the men eerily silent as if one noise would mean their death. Hans decided he would come back for them once he had found an exit and, bearing that thought, he continued exploring. There must've been a higher power that favored him because he found an exit that led directly to the forest. Excited, Hans ran back to his room. Carefully, he pushes the wall open, sneaking in without any of the councilors noticing. He slips through the shadow towards the chair by the window, where Kai was sitting.

"Kai!" Hans whispers, catching the man's attention.

"What are you doing here?" The man asks in awe and shock, standing up and going to the man which caught the attention of the other councilors.

"Getting all of you out of here." Hans explained as Landvik approached him.

"Who are you?" He demanded softly. Forgetting that he had a mutilated face, Hans stepped out of the shadow to several gasps and a clear expression of horror on Landvik's face.

"My name is Fiyero. I'm a friend of the Queen." Hans could see that the man was disgusted by him and was ready to accept whatever insult he was going to say when a different council man interceded.

"How did you get in here?" He asked. To answer his question, Hans walked to the wall and opened it with a hard tug on a nearby tapestry. He pushed it completely out to the countless murmurs.

"There are passages behind the walls." He explained, speaking softly as there no doubt were  guards outside the door. He looked at Kai. "I've done some exploring; there's a way out of the castle." The moment Hans had spoken, several councilmen started heading into the tunnel but they were stopped when Landvik stood in their way.

"How can we trust you?" He asked, glaring at the man. Hans glared right back.

"I owe the Queen my life. I'm just repaying the debt." Landvik glared at Hans for a moment before stepping out the way. Hans walked in and motioned for the men to follow him. "Kai, you come in last and close the wall." Kai nodded and Hans, after grabbing a cloak with a hood, walked in front of the councilors, leading them through the passages to the exit. Once they were there, Hans looked at Landvik. "Take them into the forest. Stay close to the edge but not close enough to be seen. Don't move until I get there."

"Normally, I wouldn't take orders from a man like you." Landvik started, giving Hans a glare that told him that the councilman thought he was below the lowest in society. "But, for the sake of my country, I will listen." Hans gave an appreciative nod and was about to usher them towards the woods when a councilman spoke.

"What of the Queen and Princess?" He asked. All eyes simultaneously turned to the scarred man.

"I didn't forget about them." Hans told the aging men, "El- Her Majesty will need her council if she's going to reclaim her throne and the weasel would notice sooner if the Queen were missing rather than her council." The men nodded and Hans waited until the councilors were safe in the forest before dashing back and heading to the dungeons. He had found the passage in his earlier explorations and had no issue retracing his steps.

The guards were huddled around a table, gambling and drinking wine stolen from the cellar. They were too distracted to notice the wall opening. Hans dashed for the shadow, trying to figure out how to initiate the next part of his plan. He guessed that, because of those magic draining chains, there would only be one, maybe two, guards who were stationed by Elsa and Anna's cells. That would likely mean that the rest were huddled right here in front of him. He needed a big enough distraction that would get them all away from the passage that led to the rest of the dungeon. It was either that or wait for the wine to knock them all out. He could sneak by them too but there was too much light from the torches.

Unless…

Hans stared down at his hands, biting his lip as an unlikely thought crossed his mind. maybe he could use his magic to blow out the torches and sneak by in the darkness but the instant the though came, he hesitated. He was not accustomed to using them and controlling them was in the same league. He could accidentally set the straw on fire or even attack a guard. What made it worse what that whenever he used it beyond the small portion of lighting a fire, more scars and burns would be added to the horrible collection he already had. And, most importantly, the more he used it, the more the beast inside would take control.

"Come on, Hans!" He scolded himself, "It'll be one scar, maybe two, and it'll be on quick motion." He paused but then added, "Do it for Elsa."

He concentrated, trying to think of nothing but the torches, trying to get them under his control. He felt the magic pulse within him and, when the moment felt right, he swung his hand.

The guards chattered in surprise when the dungeon suddenly fell dark. While they scrambled to relight the room, Hans snuck by, diving into the pathway they had been blocking. It was there that another problem arose.

When the guards were only within earshot did Hans realize that he had no idea where Elsa was actually locked up. Considering that there were over a hundred cells, he did not have the time to examine them all; he'd probably get lost before he found her. Well, maybe not entirely. He had been there once before when he carried Elsa to the dungeon after the unfortunate events in her ice palace.

Hans never tried to think back on those times because it reminded him of all the mistakes he had made, things he wished he could change. But he couldn't change the past, he could only hope for a better future; so far, that outlook was bleak. He knew from experience that everything he ever did had always gone from bad to worse. His life before his parents' divorce was the only exception but there were times that he could barely remember it. Everything after that phase followed the pattern of bad to worse.  Arendelle had been a shiny beacon of escape and the whole world knew how that had ended.

"Please don't let this one of those times." He muttered as he continued down the passage, figuring that, if he was going to start anywhere, it would be at the same cell where he had put Elsa.

The silence was unnerving as he made his way down the hall towards the lower levels, the severe vacancy of the cells doing little to ease his nerves.

He stopped at the turn that lead to the cell and peered around the wall. He saw two guards, one of which was close to falling asleep while the other was clearly bored out of his mind. It made Hans smile a little; that would only make the break out easier. The man looked around him briefly for something to knock out the two men with. All that he could find was a torch. Not one of those wooden ones but the kind that was made of metal. Hans extinguished the flame and wormed the torch from its holder and waited until the guards were remotely looking in the opposite direction.

Once they were, Hans dashed forward and slammed the torch as hard as he could against the guard's head, rendering him unconscious. The slumbering guard was roused by the noise but he was rendered unconscious before he was even aware of what was happening.

"That was easy." Hans thought proudly as he snatched the keys from one of the guards' belts. He went for the left cell, cringing when the lock clunked loudly.

When he entered, Hans was greeted by a hulking blonde man who stood protectively in front of someone lying on the poor excuse of a bed. Hans immediately recognized the person to be Anna and he sort of knew who the man was. Elsa had spoken about him several times but his name currently escaped his mind. It was Kristopher or something along those lines. Hans didn't ponder on it for even a second because the man looked as though he was going to attack him if he set even a step closer to Anna. Hans held up his hands and pushed back his cloak to show that his belt was vacant of weaponry.

"I'm a friend." He said calmly, taking a cautious step forward. The gesture only riled the blonde man up more as he balled his fists and had them ready to throw a punch.

"Can you prove it?" He demanded.

"My name is Fiyero. Anna may have mentioned me." Hans tried, feeling anxious because the more time they spent down here, the more likely they would get caught. The blonde stood firm.

"Anyone could say that." He sneered, making Hans groan and roll his eyes.

"We don't have time for this!" He snapped. "If I was with the Duke, do you really think I would knock out the guards to get in here?" The blonde stared at him before lowering his hands the slightest, his aggressive stance wavering.

'"You do have a point there." He said. He then pointed threateningly at Hans. "If you're lying, you're going to regret it." He only took one step before pointing again, "And move one step, I'll make you regret that too." He waited until Hans gave some sign that he understood before he glanced out the door. "Wow." He muttered when he saw the unconscious guards. He retreated back into the cell and looked at the cloaked man. "Now I believe you."

"Thank you, Kristopher." Hans sighed, glad that that was over but he was still ticked off.

"It's Kristoff." The blonde corrected.

"Sorry." Hans said, being in too bad a mood to really mean the words. He moved over to Anna and gently shook her shoulder. The princess groaned. "Anna, wake up." He whispered, all too aware that Kristoff was glaring at him. "Anna." He tried again. The Princess let out a weak groan and, to Hans' relief, opened her weary eyes.

"Who… Who are you?" She asked, too weak and tired to really react to the sight of Hans' face under the hood. The man smiled and, in a spurt of relief, took her hand.

"It's me: Fiyero."

"Fiyero?"

"I'm going to get you out of here, okay?" Anna was still for a moment but then nodded, making Hans smile. With a final squeeze of her hand, he turned his attention back to Kristoff, who was still glaring at him. Hans decided to ignore it. "Can you carry her?" Kristoff nodded and immediately went to the Princess, picking her up in a manner where she experienced no pain. Hans had paced to the door but he couldn't help but watch them for a moment. A small smile played on his face; Anna finally had a man she deserved.

He left the cell and opened the one adjacent to it. At first, he thought it was empty but he spotted Elsa fast asleep on the bed. He glided quietly to her and placed his hand over her mouth. As he had expected, her eyes shot open the instant he touched her. She screamed briefly, the noise muffled by his hand, but she stopped when she realized who it was.

Hans said nothing as he turned her around so he could unlock one of her binds.

"What are you doing here?" Elsa asked, sighing in relief when the first set of chains were released.

"Isn't it obvious?" Hans replied, helping her up, "I'm helping you escape."

"That might be a little easier if you would take off these." Elsa said, nodding towards her back, where her hands were still locked in the magic blocking chains. Hans looked at her.

"Your Majesty, I may have picked locks on a daily basis as a child but right now, I'm a little out of practice. And a dozen or so guards can storm us at any minute and then we're all as good as dead. Now, come on!" He grabbed her arm and began pulling her out the door. He motioned to Kristoff to follow him.

"Or you could just undo them now and I'll blast the Duke with my magic!" Elsa hissed as he continued to pull her.

"That's not going to happen." Hans replied bluntly.

"And why not?" Elsa demanded, grunting when Hans put a hand over her mouth again. They were nearing the area with all the guards. It was a lot more quiet compared to the last time Hans passed them. He motioned to the others to stop as he continued and peeked around the corner. Most of the guards were fast asleep, thanks to the wine no doubt. Two were still awake but Hans could see that they had had too much to drink. Smirking, he emerged from the passageway and punched each man hard enough to render them unconscious. "You can come now!" He called. But just as Elsa and Kristoff emerged, Hans heard shouting behind him. "Oh, no." He whispered and ran for the entrance to the tunnel when guards appeared down the hall. "Get in!" Hans hollered at them. Kristoff didn't' hesitate to move but Elsa stopped when she was next to Hans.

"What about you?" But Hans didn't answer her. He simply shut the wall, leaving her in the dark

The screams that radiated through the wall were terrifying but Elsa forced herself to run. She sort of knew where she was heading. She knew there was a way out of the castle through the tunnels and figured that that was where Hans had intended to led her. She and Kristoff ran quietly and, with some errors, they managed to find the exit. They all but sprinted out the tunnel towards the forest. Elsa looked over her shoulder towards the exit and hoped that Hans would come bursting out of it and join them but no one came out.

When they reached the forest line, Elsa stopped to catch her breath.

"Your Majesty?" She heard a voice say. With a gasp, she looked up.

"Kai!" She cried out in joy, running to the man, wanting to embrace him but unable to. Even so, the man embraced her.

"Are you alright? Where's Fiyero?" Elsa could feel the tears form in her eyes at the mention of that name. She was going to answer that he stayed behind to help them escape when they heard a loud rumbling coming from the castle. Elsa, Kristoff, Kai and all the other councilmen stared at the castle.

BOOM!

A burst of light shot out of the castle and soared into the sky. It let out a screech and circled around the castle once before heading towards the forest.

"What.. Is… That?" One councilman managed to say past his awe. The light started lowering as it came closer and once it reached the forest line, it landed. There they could see it was a bird. It stared at them, breathing heavily while the flames on his body gave off an immense amount of heat. Staring at the creature, Elsa started to carefully walk towards it.

"Your Majesty!" Landvik hissed but Kai shushed him. The Queen continued towards the beast, wishing her hands weren't bound. With each step, the bird snorted at her but he didn't attack, lowering his head as she came closer. For Elsa, the heat was unbearable but it didn't waver her. She stopped once she could directly look in its eyes. She had expected them to be red or yellow or some color that was associated with fire but to her surprise, they were green.

"Hans?" She asked quietly. The creature looked back at her but suddenly whipped his head up to the sky and let out a roar.

"Your Majesty!" She heard several cry and she felt Kai pull her back while several men tried to keep the animal at bay, it biting back at them.

"Kai, let me go!" Elsa screamed but the man didn't stop, joined by Landvik. The Queen struggled against their grip while staring at the bird and looked on in horror as the bird breathed fire upon the councilors. When the horrific screams of the men had died, the bird took back to the sky, flying to a different section of the forest, landing in an area higher in the mountain, where there were few trees.

Elsa let Landvik and Kai drag her away, too stunned by what she had seen to resist. Hans had told her about this monstrous thing but she had never believed it to be that terrifying and she had nearly lost her entire council because she believed he had some control over the beast, even though he had blatantly told her he didn't.

While the dragging continued, an interesting thought crossed Elsa's mind: he pushed her into the tunnel and stayed behind to give her time. With that thought, Elsa wondered if he had willing turned into the beast to help them escape, knowing that he couldn't control it once he did. As the beast roared in the distance, a cheeky grin spread on Elsa's face because the Hans at her coronation wouldn't have done that so readily.