Battle of the Castle

The Challenges of Battling Monsters I

Kristoff was baffling. "Okay, why is the castle all black and white?" He inquired.

Barley was resolute. "It's the sorcerer's spell." He guessed.

Varian was puzzled. "That might explain why the castle is all grayscale from inside of it." He said.

Kristoff was skeptic. "Well whatever the case of this peculiar place, let's just get in, find Elsa's sister and get out before the sorcerer notice." He declared.

Barley shrugs his shoulders. "Okay, but I wouldn't be surprised if there are monsters in the castle." He said.

Kristoff shook his head. "Don't patronize me, Barley." Kristoff warned.

Barley raises his arms in the air. "I'm just saying. It could anything." He assured.

Varian was bothersome. He shook his head at them.

They entered the castle cautiously.

No one has been seeing any monsters...yet...

The alchemist looks at his outfit. "Is it just me or do we look black and white anyhow?" Varian asked.

The blue burly elf stares at his pair of hands. "I was right. The sorcerer's spell." Barley answered.

The mountain man stared at his satchel of apples. "The elf's not lying. It's like we're being inside of the vintage photograph." Kristoff said.

Barley was smirking. "Or the old movies before technicolor appeared years later." He stated.

Kristoff sighs. The mountain man was emotionless. "Okay, Barley the Monster Expert, where should we start searching for Elsa's sister?" Kristoff wondered.

Barley smiles. "I suggest we go to the dungeon." He replied.

Kristoff was confused. "Wait, what?" He inquires.

Varian was concerned. "The dungeon? We're not gonna check the five towers first?" He asks.

Barley still smiles. "Ah, on the quest, a clear path is never the right one." He answers.

Kristoff was still confused. "Seriously?" He inquires again.

Barley glances at Varian and Kristoff. Barley was confident. "On The Quest of Yore, Shrub Rosehammer took the easiest route. He suddenly encounters the Gelatinous Cube. The reason I didn't take the same one. I followed my gut. And it's telling me that we should check out the underground dungeon." Barley explained.

The alchemist was anxious. "No way. When I met Eugene Fitzherbert, he stole the princess's crown from the kingdom of Corona, using the name Flynn Rider as his identity. I was the one who decided to see the tower back in my world." Varian mentioned.

Kristoff was skeptical at Varian. "Did you and Eugene know the princess was in the tower from your world?" Kristoff wonders.

Varian made a nervous smile. "Uhh, I heard a story from my dad about it. Although, it seems to be true. I have seen the princess's paintings on her tower walls for Corona's sake." He replies.

Barley was mystified. "Did you and Eugene really saved the princess from the tower?" Barley asked.

Varian sighed. The alchemist was melancholy. "No. Someone else did. And it was after we lost the crown." He answered.

Kristoff perturbed. "Oh wait, wait a minute." He said.

Then, Kristoff was astonished. "You mean to tell us that you met a thief who stole the crown? And you didn't turn him in to the guards?" He inquired.

Varian took a deep breath. "I caught him by my goo trap in my house. I thought it was a raccoon. Flynn Rider was just the storybook character. I wanted him to take me to see the tower. I also wanted to believe that Rapunzel was in there." He explained more.

Kristoff blinked his eyes twice.

Barley kept quiet. He pitied the alchemist.

Varian made a sad smile. "It's really a long story about Rapunzel...Cassandra...and even my big brother...Eugene..." Varian said.

Kristoff raises his eyebrow at the alchemist. "Was Eugene still a thief, Varian?" Kristoff wondered.

Varian shook his head. Then, the alchemist smiles bigger. "Eugene's protecting Corona as the captain of the guard." Varian replied.

Barley was amazed. "Nice." He said.

The hissing noise startles Kristoff, Varian and Barley.

They faced at the opened doorway to the right.

Varian hides behind the mountain man. The alchemist was frightened. "What was that?" Varian asks.

Kristoff was determined. "I don't know." He answers.

Barley was worried. "Looks like we got ourselves a big gruesome hairy crawler with more than four legs and eyes." He described in his whisper.

Kristoff looks at Barley. "A what?" Kristoff inquires.

The hissing sound startled them again.

From the doorway, there was a black crawler. It was as big as the ogre. The black crawler can't fit thru the doorway. It continues walking in all eight legs to get out of the doorway.

Varian was alarmed. "Oh my gosh, it's a very...very big spider..." he whispered, quivering himself.

Kristoff comforts the alchemist. "Calm down, calm down, Varian. It can hear us but it can't see us." Kristoff reassures in his whisper.

Barley nodded his head a few times. "Kristoff was right." He said in his whisper.

Barley was confident. "Oh I got it. The giant spider won't get us unless Varian blocks the doorway." Barley suggested in his whisper.

The alchemist hatched his idea from his mind. Varian was astounded. "Oh, my alchemy." He whispers.

The alchemist scrambles in his satchel. Varian was mischievous. He sticks his tongue out. The alchemist brought out his light blue orb. Varian looks at Kristoff and Barley. Varian was concerning. "Kristoff, Barley, this freeze component I have will not last forever. We have to make haste for the princess before the sorcerer knows we're here." Varian said, whispering in his low volume.

Kristoff was perplexed at the alchemist. "How long the spider will be frozen in ice?" He wonders in his whisper.

Varian pondered. "Um..." he said.

Then, Varian was definite. "I'm pretty sure about more than eighteen hours." He replies in his whisper.

Barley shrugged, smiling. "That gives enough time to find her." He reassured in his whisper.

The black giant arachnid keeps trying to get out of the doorway. It still doesn't work.

Kristoff and Barley backed away slowly from Varian.

Kristoff shushes at the elf.

Barley was annoyed at the mountain man. "I am shushing, Kristoff." He vented in his whisper.

Varian takes a couple deeper breaths. The alchemist focused on the giant spider. Varian was resolute.

The alchemist grunted after he threw his light blue orb at the giant arachnid.

The light blue orb hit the giant spider.

The giant black arachnid freezes after the light blue orbs in seconds.

Varian was beaming at himself.

Kristoff sighed in relief.

Barley was happy. He raises his roofs up. "Oh-oh-oh yeah!" Barley exclaims.

Then, the elf was surprised at Kristoff and Varian. "Hey, where are you guys going?" Barley asks.

They are determining, running up the stairs. "To the five towers!" Kristoff and Varian exclaimed in unison in their answers.

Barley growls. He was irritated. "Ugh, the towers is a little too obvious." Barley muttered, hurrying up to them.

They could have just took the elf's gut feeling.