1. Frozen: Of Frost and Flame

CHAPTER VII

The Endless Sea. April 13, 1842. H.M.S. The Selkie. Navigator's quarters.

Isaiah Goldstein

Isaiah: (leaning over his desk; doesn't look up, speaks in Norwegian) You wish to speak with me.

Elsa: (pauses a few feet away; jokingly) Am I that loud?

Isaiah: Your footsteps sound like thin ice cracking.

Elsa: (surprised) Really?

Isaiah: (looks up, mildly surprised) You didn't know?

Elsa: No.

Isaiah: (shrugs) Understandable. Most people can't hear as well as me. I wouldn't be surprised if even (louder) the good Captain Thornglade, who is standing outside my doorway (normal volume) couldn't hear it.

Elsa: (long pause) I guess you can come in, then, Archer.

Archer: (steps inside, red-faced)

Isaiah: Nice of you to join us, Captain.

Archer: How did you know I was outside?

Isaiah: Your footsteps sound like a soldier trying to march quietly.

Archer: (frowns) I thought I was being silent.

Isaiah: Silence is the Siqari'im, the ninja of Israel. Silence is a man walking through a desert alone. Silence is an owl, streaking through the night sky. You are not silent.

Archer: (face grows redder)

Elsa: (fails to hide a snicker)

Isaiah: Now then. I assume Your Highness wishes to hear a story, hm?

Elsa: You assume correctly, mister...

Isaiah: Goldstein. Isaiah Goldstein. You may call me Mr. Navigator.

Elsa: Alright, Mr. Navigator—(switches to Hebrew) mah hassipur shelekha?

Isaiah: (unsurprised; also speaking in Hebrew) My tale begins in Israel. My parents had migrated back to their home country in 1801. That is when I was born. I was raised there, too, as a shepherd boy. However, I soon developed an affinity to fishing and switched occupations. Then, when I began pointing out routes and currents where more fish would gather, my father had an idea.

Elsa: He made you a navigator?

Isaiah: You presume correctly, Your Highness. We lived on the coast of Israel, bordering the Mediterranean. After more training from my father's friend, who was also a navigator, merchants began hiring me to assist them on journeys across the sea. When I was 27, however, I went on one journey that I never came back from.

Elsa: What happened?

Isaiah: We slipped through the Strait of Gibraltar and headed north to England, meaning to trade in some rare stones for a new ship. But there was a storm—

Elsa: Now, hold on. Every time I've spoken to someone on board, they say a storm drove them off course and sent them to Arendelle. Why do you suppose that is?

Isaiah: I don't know. Providence, perhaps. They say YAHWEH works in mysterious ways. There must have been a purpose for all those men being sent here. (stands and turns to look out window) Perhaps this was their purpose. Helping you.