Frosted Scales - When Worlds Collide: A HTTYD X Frozen Tale

Ice Cubes and Remote Islands

Elsa's anger boiled within her, and once again, her powers had caused her trouble—the worst yet, she guessed. She found herself floating in the middle of the vast ocean, encased in a hollow block of ice. The horizon stretched endlessly, a lonely expanse of water with no land in sight.

She paced along one side of her frozen prison, the icy surface beneath her feet offering no comfort as she remembered how she ended up in this predicament. She had just finished performing her first-ever epic solo, "The cold never bothered me anyway," the words still echoing off the walls of her newly formed Ice Palace. The giant pink double doors slammed shut behind her, and she leaned against them, trying to catch her breath. The snowflake carving on the doors pressed coolly against her back, a stark contrast to her heated skin. As she began to release the anger and fear that overwhelmed her during her coronation, her heart started to calm.

But then, the emotions surged over her again—"Why am I so different?" "I'm a monster!" "Why was I cursed?" These thoughts ricocheted around her mind, and a blue light had erupted from her slender blonde form. The Tower trembled under the force of her self-loathing, long, drawn-out cracks echoing ominously through the air before everything went eerily silent. Elsa's panic momentarily stilled her coursing magic.

Rising back to her most elegant posture, she thrust both arms into the air, letting out an exuberant "Woohoo!" But this time, the shaking was so violent that Elsa closed her eyes and began to pray. Then, without warning, she found herself falling as the entire top of her frosty palace slid into the sea.

Now, Elsa screamed in frustration, kicking the wall of her icy prison. The stupidity of her musical temper tantrum embarrassed her even more now. Her ice cube raft vibrated with her wrath, forcing her to cool off. She must have knocked her head when the tower had come down because she had woken up floating on one of the pink doors she had leaned against earlier.

For three long days, she drifted, sometimes skimming through the water quickly, other times barely moving. The first time she stuck her head out of a hole she made in the ceiling, all she could see was an endless expanse of still water. Her powers ebbed and flowed like her emotions—at times, it took every ounce of concentration to keep the block of ice intact; at other times, mini-icebergs erupted from the water without her even trying.

The only productive thing Elsa managed during those three days was practicing her magic. When her power surged, she would push herself to her limits before the icy flow slipped out of her grasp. Over time, she learned to recognize when her power was strong and when it ebbed completely—it reminded her of the ocean she floated on.

With a slight flex of the dwindling power left to her, she made the walls of her icy cube clear. Her eyes closed as she felt for the trickle of magic. When she found it, she focused her will, sweat forming on her brow. A blue light expanded from her until it touched each wall, and the icy haze slowly faded away, leaving the walls as clear as glass.

Peeking with one eye, she scanned the horizons one by one. A speck of green was visible to the east! Elsa had been so excited that she missed the black blur that passed behind her, blocking out the sunlight for a brief moment. Releasing the power she managed to grasp, the walls became hazy once more, and Elsa was left panting, rivulets of sweat streaming down her temple.

Land! She had spotted land! Taking deep breaths, she began to focus her mind again. Changing the direction of the cube took much more power and effort than making the ice see-through. The flow of magic had to be channeled differently as well.

"I can do this," she mumbled softly to herself as she closed her eyes again. Her breath become even and steady, sweat now flowing in rivers as she reached further into the depths of her magic. Deeper than she ever had before, she pulled the flow of chilly magic toward her, determined not to let anything get in her way this time.