1. Frozen: Of Frost and Flame

CHAPTER XI

The Endless Sea. April 17, 1842. H.M.S. The Selkie. Beginning of the seventh hour.

"Exactly how long is the Endless Sea?" Yrjansson moaned, rubbing his face with his hands.

"It's magic," Mr. Navigator replied, scribbling something down in his notepad. "So it seems basically endless, hence the name. Don't worry—at the pace we've been going thanks to the queen and the Firemonger, we should reach Misthaven before sunset."

From his place at the wheel, Captain Mairnéalach narrowed his eyes at the sky. "Red," he muttered.

"Yes, I noticed that, too," David remarked, arms crossed. "Looks like we'll have some storms later on."

"There be a bad one comin'," Mairnéalach said, sniffing the air. "I can smell it."

"You can smell storms?" Yrjansson scoffed. "That'd come in handy when Her Most Magicalness has a tantrum."

"I heard that, Lieutenant," Elsa called as she stepped above-decks, wearing her classic Snow Queen dress.

"I meant for you to hear that, Queen," Yrjansson replied.

Mairnéalach let out a growl. "May I flay him, Yer Majesty?" he asked.

"Not yet, Captain," Elsa replied, turning and narrowing her eyes at Yrjansson. "But... soon."

Mairnéalach grunted. Then he asked, "Yer Majesty, could ye be givin' us a push? I want to make it to Misthaven before the storm be rollin' in."

"Of course." Elsa quickly made her way to the upper level and filled the sails with magical wind. "How's that?" she asked, glancing at the captain over her shoulder.

Captain Mairnéalach dipped his head in thanks.

Yrjansson cocked his head at the queen. "Hey, Else," he said rudely, "where's your Prince Not-At-All-Charming?"

"If you're referring to Captain Thornglade, he's still belowdecks," Elsa replied, still keeping her calm. "He's helping with repairs."

Yrjansson whistled, surprised. "Captain Thornglade?" he repeated. "I thought you two were on a first-name basis. Or did you break up?" He fake-groaned. "Man, I wanted to see that!"

In an unveiled show of emotion, Elsa whipped her hand backwards, and Yrjansson's legs froze to the ship's deck.

"Yaa-HAAAAAA!" Yrjansson screeched, his eyes widening as the piercing cold shot through him. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry!"

"'Sorry' doesn't break the ice, Lieutenant," Elsa responded, impeccably calm, as she turned back to the sails.

"Neither does hitting it," Mr. Navigator added without looking up from his notes as Yrjansson began pounding on the ice.

"Maybe I can help," a new voice suggested as T'chetri came to the upper level. He snapped his fingers, and the ice instantly melted form Yrjansson's legs.

Yrjansson sighed with relief and sank to the ground. "Thank you," he breathed.

"No problem."

Elsa glared at T'chetri over her shoulder. "It's not your place to end a punishment I place on any of these men," she said, her voice steely.

T'chetri ignored her and began to help filling the sails. "So how close are we?" he asked Mr. Navigator.

Mr. Navigator shrugged. "No idea," he replied. "But I'd assume we're close, judging from the amount of time it took for the queen's parents to make it to Misthaven. At our speed, we should be arriving by evening."