I would like to thank roxygoth, BurningFox6, krystal lazuli, and LukeJames for beta reading and helping me improve!
Feedback is always appreciated!
Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen. Frozen is owned by Disney. I only lay claim to Prince Edmund, Prince Lucas, and Master Stephen.
Chapter 7
The next morning, the three guests were making their way to the Great Hall for breakfast. Now that they knew what time breakfast would be served, the three men no longer needed to have any concerns about being late.
"Good morning, gentlemen," Elsa greeted them as they entered the room. "Did all three of you sleep well?"
Edmund nodded. "Master Stephen and I slept great. He and I did some yoga after we got out of bed. We do it every morning to keep the flexibility of our bodies keen for as long as possible."
"Isn't it a little cold to stretch?" Anna wondered as the three guests sat in their seats.
"Cold can stiffen the muscles. Thus, we exercise to get our muscles warmed up before stretching," Edmund said.
"Glad you have a way to prevent any muscle tears. I'm sure those are no fun," the princess stated.
"I have never torn a muscle before. Based on what I have heard about them, I hope it never happens to me or anyone else," Edmund replied.
"I agree with you, Edmund. Tearing any part of the body sounds like it would be agonizing," Elsa replied.
"I have no doubt it would be painful," Edmund agreed.
"What about you, Lucas? How did you sleep?" the Ice Queen asked the Belgian prince.
"I slept well. Upon waking up I did some saber practice to maintain my skill with the weapon. Of course, I made sure to not hit anything with the saber. That definitely would not have ended so well," Lucas elaborated.
"Yes. I would prefer not having anyone cause destruction in my kingdom," Elsa replied.
"Of course. Since you have been so kind to me, I must return the favor by treating your kingdom as if it were my own," the Belgian prince said with a smile.
"Thank you for your generosity, Lucas," the Snow Queen replied gratefully.
"You are welcome!" Lucas responded, grinning.
Soon the three guests and the royal family ordered what they would like to eat for breakfast. After the cooks served them, there was a pleasant silence that filled the room as everyone enjoyed their meals.
The princess realized she must have underestimated how healthy the three guests like to eat. Not only did they order mixed berry smoothies with spinach, kale, and seeds, but they also requested omelettes with assorted vegetables. This made Anna have a desire to ask the three guests what they really enjoyed eating outside of meals.
"Since you three gentlemen like to eat so healthy, what are your favorite kinds of snacks?" Anna asked.
"My favorite fruits are apples, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries. I also enjoy consuming almonds, oats, broccoli, and carrots," Edmund said.
"Those all sound delicious," Anna praised.
"They are indeed great-tasting and loaded with important nutrients as well," the English prince stated.
"What about you, Stephen and Lucas?" the princess wondered.
"I like pretty much the same things as Edmund, along with oranges, chia seeds, and peanuts," Stephen replied.
"As for me, I like avocados, bananas, bell peppers, carrots, tomatoes, and quinoa. Occasionally I will add in some dark chocolate," Lucas said.
"Sounds like you guys really care about your health," Anna noted.
All three men nodded. "You only have one life. Therefore, you must take great care of your body. Be careful with what you are putting inside your body, get active, and give yourself the proper rest whenever you need it," the English prince elaborated.
"Ever since my childhood, my parents have always been telling me to eat my fruits and vegetables if I wanted to grow up to be big and strong," Lucas added.
"Our parents told us that as well," the princess said fondly.
"Well, they have a good reason to tell us, and that is to eat essential nutrients your body needs to function properly," Lucas said.
Anna nodded in agreement as the royals continued with their breakfast.
Elsa was the first to break the silence. "Edmund and Lucas?"
The two princes turned their attention from their smoothies to the Snow Queen.
"Since both of you went ice harvesting with Kristoff yesterday, I assume you will go see the town today?" Elsa asked.
"I would love to. While I only saw a small portion of it yesterday, I already like what I have seen thus far," Edmund replied.
"The town certainly looked appealing to my eyes. I am hoping to go deeper into the town and find out what the townspeople are like and what I can find within it," Lucas said.
Stephen decided to add in the fact the townspeople were very nice and welcoming. "The townspeople are wonderful, and the town is quite fascinating if I say so myself."
"That is good to hear Master. Since you enjoyed the town, that only increases my desire to see it for myself," Edmund said with a grin.
"Mine too," Lucas added. "Speaking of the town, is there anything interesting you saw?"
Stephen nodded. "There is a nice café in town square. I really liked their tea. The next time I go there I will have to give their food a try."
"Then I will make sure to see the café for myself," Lucas replied.
"What about you, Master? Is there anything you would like to do today?" the English prince asked his mentor.
"In case the hooded figure attempts to invade the castle, I would like to stay behind. While I have no doubt Captain William is well-trained, it does not hurt to have reinforcements in case something goes wrong," Stephen explained.
"Are you sure you would like to stay in the castle instead of joining Lucas and I?" Edmund asked.
Stephen nodded. "I am sure, Edmund."
"Please forgive me if I am offending you Stephen, but I think it would be smart for you to make sure Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff are not threatened by the hooded figure. Since it is a mystery to all of us, we have no idea how powerful or strong the figure might be. If Captain William ends up getting overwhelmed, then the castle would be defenseless against any threat the figure might pose. Since you and Edmund know every single fighting style there is, it would be a good idea for at least one of you guys to be here and fight the figure if necessary," Lucas explained.
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After everyone had finished their breakfast and left the Great Hall, the group was beginning to separate to stroll to their locations. They would not get far, however, as Captain William spontaneously ran up to the group, clutching his sword in his right hand.
"Your Majesty!" Captain William exclaimed.
"Captain William? What is wrong?" Elsa asked, clearly concerned at seeing the captain having drawn his weapon.
"The castle is under attack! Guards are being overwhelmed!" the captain cried.
"What?!" the Snow Queen exclaimed with wide eyes.
Stephen looked at the captain straight in the eyes. "Was there by any chance that hooded figure I have been talking about?"
"Yes! The guards cannot beat him! He is too skilled!" Captain William cried, alarmed.
Stephen groaned with resentment. "I should have known that figure would be up to no good!"
"There is more! He is accompanied by many men! The guards just cannot fight them off!" the captain continued.
The English prince was coming up with a plan to stop the figure. Thinking quickly, he came up with an idea. "Captain, Kristoff, and Master Stephen, please get Elsa and Anna somewhere safe as soon as possible. Lucas and I will stay in the castle hallways and try to fight the villainous creature and his men off."
"What if they have ranged weapons?" Elsa asked, worried for Edmund and Lucas.
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"Lucas and I can take care of ourselves. The last thing we need is for anyone to get hurt or killed. We will get to Luc's room as soon as possible to retrieve his saber," Edmund stated.
"Okay. Just please be careful," the Ice Queen said with an anxious look.
"We will be fine. I promise. Let's go, Lucas!" the English prince said as he and Lucas ran off as fast as they could.
"Let's get to my room everyone. Fast!" Elsa said as the five ran off to the Ice Queen's room. Once they were all inside and closed the door, Elsa locked the door. Everyone got in a fighting position, anticipating the possibility the intruders could successfully pick the lock.
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The two princes had nearly reached Lucas' room when they saw the black hooded figure accompanied by ten other men dressed in black clothing. All ten men were equipped with crossbows and swords. The hooded figure, however, was equipped with what looked like a much more deadly and dangerous sword, and a dark-colored bow. Both weapons appeared to be a very dark shade of red.
"There they are! Get them!" the figure exclaimed as he and the ten men went to attack Edmund and Lucas. The hooded creature swung his sword at the duo as they approached the door to Lucas' room, but the princes both dodged it and opened the door. As soon as they were inside, Lucas slammed the door shut in the figure's face, right before he could get in and swiftly locked it.
Edmund quickly leaned up against the door, doing his best to impede the figure's progress in attempting to open the door. "Lucas! Get your saber! Quickly!"
The Belgian prince nodded and obeyed his best friend without question, running to the container in which his saber was stored and retrieving his prized weapon.
As soon as Lucas was in a fighting position, the door burst open, sending Edmund flying further into the room. Recovering quickly, Edmund landed on his feet and entered a fighting position.
"Good morning, Edmund. It is so nice to see you again," the figure greeted with a sinister smile underneath his hood.
"Who are you? How do you know my name?" Edmund demanded.
"You are in no position to make demands with me, Your Highness. Soon enough you will know who I am. Men, attack them!" the figure ordered with an evil chuckle as his men readied their crossbows.
The figure's men were just about to fire their crossbows, but Edmund and Lucas were ready. Edmund and Lucas quickly charged toward the figure and his men, knocking away their ranged weapons. Unfazed, the men drew their swords and lunged toward the two princes, attempting to surround them.
One of the men swung his sword at the English prince, who masterfully veered out of the sword's path and punched the man in the face, knocking him out cold instantly. Edmund then sensed another man ready to fire his crossbow at him. Thinking quickly, Edmund managed to get a hand on the crossbow before the man could fire it. The man then curled his other hand into a fist and attempted to pummel the English prince. Edmund parried the blow and then gave the man a swift kick to the hip. With the man doubled over in pain, Edmund took advantage and knocked him out with a powerful punch.
Lucas was fighting two men simultaneously. He made sure to focus on the men that had their attention on him, as he knew Edmund could fend for himself. The Belgian prince viciously swung his saber at one of the men, who ducked under it to avoid getting hit. While Lucas was distracted, the other man threw his sword down toward the Belgian prince. Lucas saw the sword in the corner of his eye and barely managed to avoid it.
Soon Edmund had knocked out all the men except the two fighting Lucas. The figure growled with frustration. "Looks like I underestimated you. However, you will not be able to defeat me."
"I suppose we shall find out?" Edmund asked.
"Yes. We will," the figure accosted as he drew his claret sword and stormed at the English prince. Edmund, however, was ready. When the figure's sword came down towards him, the English prince rolled out of the way and tried to land a hit on the figure's head. The figure managed to block Edmund's fist, swinging his sword at the English prince's feet. Edmund jumped out of the way.
The English prince and the figure were very evenly matched. Neither managed to gain an advantage or a hit on the other. Said evenness would end, however, when Edmund saw the two men Lucas was fighting earlier pointing their swords at him while he was trapped in a corner. His saber was unfortunately out of his reach, so he was defenseless.
Determined not to let anything happen to his best friend, the English prince managed to get the figure off balance momentarily. That was all Edmund needed to turn the fight in his favor, however. Edmund managed to land a hard thump on the figure's hood which knocked him down.
The English prince was facing the ultima of either knocking out the figure or saving his best friend. Staying true to his selflessness, he decided to choose the latter. The two men did not anticipate the English prince coming up behind them. Before they could do anything to Edmund, he grabbed the two men from behind and caused them to headbutt each other. Both men fell to the floor, unconscious.
"You okay, Lucas?" Edmund asked with concern as he offered his hand.
"Yeah, I am alright. Thank you," Lucas said gratefully as he accepted Edmund's hand and was lifted back onto his feet.
The two princes turned their attention to the figure getting back onto his feet with venomous looks on their faces.
All the figure did was smirk and tell the princes, "You have not seen the last of me. This is not over."
Before Edmund or Lucas could do anything, the figure ran toward the window and teleported outside. The princes rushed to the window to see if they could spot the figure. No matter where they looked, however, he was nowhere to be seen. They stared out the window a moment longer.
Then their eyes widened as they realized something.
"Edmund, we have to go see if Elsa and everyone else is alright," Lucas stated.
"Yes, we do. Before anything bad happens to them. Grab your saber and let's go," Edmund instructed as Lucas grabbed his saber and ran right behind Edmund to Elsa's room.
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In Elsa's room, Captain William, Stephen, and Kristoff all stood protectively in front of Anna and Elsa as all five of them watched the locked door in front of them. Although locked, they were thinking of the possibility the intruders would get through anyway.
Both sisters were concerned for the two princes. They were hoping Edmund and Lucas were doing alright and nothing horrendous had happened to them.
"You two okay?" Kristoff asked the two sisters.
"Yeah, we're doing fine," Anna responded.
"Stay sharp everyone. They could burst through the door at any moment now," Stephen stated.
Everyone obliged with Stephen's statement as at that moment, the lock, which was being picked with for a little bit, gave way and ten men burst through the doorway.
"Nobody move! Drop your weapons and put your hands where I can see them!" one of the men ordered as all ten of them aimed their crossbows at the group.
Left with no other choice, Captain William dropped his sword, unwilling to risk anyone's safety. He then lifted his hands, along with everyone else.
"Kristoff, what should we do now?" Anna asked worriedly.
"We simply do as they say," the ice harvester replied.
"Oh, and no business with ice, Your Majesty," the same man warned threateningly, turning his crossbow towards Elsa.
The Snow Queen was terrified of what was happening before her. It was ten against five. There was no way they would be able to attack them without getting shot by at least one of the men. Elsa did her best to keep calm. Not one little snowflake could fall, or else it probably would not end so well.
They were in trouble now.
Suddenly, one of the men in the back made a funny face and fell to the ground. The five stared at the man in bewilderment.
"Alright who's there?" one of the men turned around to see if there was anyone there.
There was seemingly no one behind them.
"Who's there?!" the man shouted. "This isn't funny! Show yourself!"
The Snow Queen took advantage of the disturbance and summoned her powers with full force. Pillars of ice quickly rose from the ground and caught the ten men off-guard. All of them were hit in the head and knocked over. The group subsequently charged at the men to attack them.
"Take this!" Elsa exclaimed as she summoned pillars around one man and delivered a mighty uppercut to him, rendering him unconscious.
Stephen was surrounded by three men who had their swords ready to attack him. "Bring it on," Stephen said.
One of the men lunged at the brown-haired man, but Stephen, despite having no weapons, used his hand and hit a section of the sword that was not sharp. Not only did he swipe the sword out of the man's grasp, but Stephen also twirled the sword in such a way it was suddenly in his possession, much to the astonishment of the two other men. They wondered how Stephen did such a thing without cutting himself in the process.
"Clever move there, sir. Let's see if you have any more tricks up your sleeve," one of the men responded as he and the other man charged at Stephen.
"Have it your way," Stephen replied as he and the two men engaged in a swordfight.
As the two men approached the brown-haired man, Stephen lunged at the first man, knocking his sword aside and whacking him in the face with a swift, powerful strike. The man staggered, clutching his head, but he would not fall over. He tried to answer with a wallop of his own, which Stephen rebuffed with little effort. Stephen then punched the first man again, and this time he fell to the floor, unconscious. Turning his attention to the second man, Stephen ran up to him, and before the man could attack him, Stephen leapt into the air and landed a painful kick to the man's face. The man was subsequently knocked out cold.
"You stay away from Anna!" Kristoff roared as he grabbed the shirt of one of the men and punched him in the gut, knocking the wind out of him.
At that moment, Edmund and Lucas entered to join the fight. The English prince now had a sword of his own, as well as a bow and quiver of arrows. Lucas was clutching his saber in his right hand.
"You guys need some help?" Edmund asked as he knocked a man aside.
"I am glad you two are okay. Let's end this!" Elsa said with a determined smile.
Captain William managed to take out two more men, leaving only one man left.
"There is nowhere to run. Now, tell me who sent you!" the Snow Queen glared at the man cornered by the window.
What was odd, however, was the man had a smirk on his face. "What is with that smirk on your face?" Lucas demanded.
"That's enough!" one of the men shouted from behind the group.
The group turned around and the sight before them had their eyes wide with horror. One of the men had hidden while the fight ensued and was now holding Anna at sword point. The man by the window took advantage of the inattentive group and rushed up to the other man.
"We tire of this nonsense," the man holding Anna said.
"What nonsense?! You just threatened Arendelle and their royal family!" Captain William hissed, venom in his eyes.
"Let her go right now or else I'm going to beat you up!" Kristoff vociferated as he began to make his way toward the men holding Anna hostage.
With the princess' life on the line, Edmund and Lucas held the ice harvester back, knowing it would be a bad idea to approach the three as they could just slit Anna's throat.
"Oh, we know exactly what we did. Do you really think this is the last you will see of us? Well, you are dead wrong if all of you are thinking that right now. This is only the beginning," one of the men elaborated.
"Beginning of what?" Anna asked despite the sword at her throat.
All the man said was, "All in good time," with a devilish smile on his face.
The two men were suddenly knocked out as Elsa summoned two icy fists that collided with their heads from their sides. Anna let out a sigh of relief as the sword the man was holding fell harmlessly to the ground.
Kristoff rushed forward to his girlfriend. "Are you alright Anna? He didn't hurt you, did he?" the ice harvester asked, inspecting her neck. Fortunately, the sword did not inflict even a small cut on Anna's throat, much to Kristoff's relief.
Anna gave him a relieved smile. "No. I'm okay."
The couple hugged each other as the others smiled.
Captain William cleared his throat. "Not to ruin this moment, but what should we do with these men?"
"Take all of them to the dungeon. They will have questions to answer about what is coming," Elsa said.
The captain nodded and went on with his orders.
"Captain? Could you also take care of the men in my room as well please? I do not feel very comfortable having them in there with me," Lucas asked.
"As you wish, Prince Lucas," Captain William replied.
Edmund looked at Elsa and walked up to her. "Are you okay, Elsa?"
The Snow Queen nodded. "I am fine. Are you alright?"
"Yes. I am not hurt," Edmund replied.
"Did you and Lucas manage to get a better look at the figure?" Elsa wondered.
"We did. Based on what I saw of him, I am pretty sure he is a person with magical powers. He had black shoes on, and I saw he had human hands. While Lucas and I fought him, he teleported out of the room and was nowhere to be seen after that," Edmund elaborated.
"Magical powers?" the Ice Queen asked, clearly shocked at what the English prince was telling her.
"As much as I dread to say it, I am afraid you are not the only one with magical powers," Edmund said solemnly.
"When do you think the figure will return? Do you know his name?" Elsa inquired.
"While he is a person, I unfortunately do not know his identity yet. The next time that scoundrel decides to show up, we will be prepared and find out who he really is," Edmund responded.