THE LOST LAND OF ICE
By Dila Prila Jayuna
Lost does not mean forgetting, but the universe has not allowed it to be present in memory.
***
After being haunted by feelings of uncertainty for years, the blonde girl finally found peace in her life after took on the task of keeping the peace between Northuldra and Arandelle. The fears she had kept to herself in the past had now become her friends. She was able to control it, now was the one who controls her, as well as her fears. It was Elsa, the peacekeeper and the part of the magical spirits.
However, a few days ago, Elsa felt that uncertainty again. A mysterious voice called out to her again. She did not know what would happen next, the point was that she could not sleep peacefully.
This voice was different from the voice she had heard several years ago. This time its voice heard more powerful and domineering. In fact, the mysterious voice said her name clearly. She really did not have any clue about this voice.
Actually, what did this mysterious voice want?
Why was it so strong and domineering?
What would happen in the future?
Everything became a mystery that passed through Elsa's mind. As a result, she could not did her activity properly. Sometimes her focus was lost, which caused the aura around her to suddenly became extremely cold.
"Hi, Elsa!" said Olaf.
Absolutely no answer.
Olaf drew closer to his queen. "Elsa, are you okay?" he asked.
Again, no answer from Elsa. In fact, now the woman was staring at the floor with a blank stare. Her body was with Olaf, but her soul was somewhere else.
"ELSA!" said Olaf once again.
Elsa blinked in surprise. "Uh, hi, Olaf! Have you been here long?" Olaf rolled his eyes.
"Do not ask, I've been here a long time!" he babbled.
The blonde-haired woman leaned back against the chair, then exhaled roughly.
"What's wrong, Elsa? Are you okay?" asked Olaf again.
"Olaf, I'm hearing mysterious voices again. This time the voice said my name. But I really can't think of anything right now," Elsa replied.
Olaf smiled, trying to calm her down. "Do you remember Elsa, the times when you didn't recognize yourself at all?" he asked again.
"Yes, I remember. But this is different Olaf, now that I recognize myself—"
"Wait a minute, Elsa, I'm not done yet," Olaf interrupted. "How did you feel then?" he added.
There was a moment of silence before Elsa let out a heavy breath. "At that time I was scared and confused," she replied.
"Yeah, that's how you feel right now. Then, how do you deal with all that?"
"I control it, and I follow my heart. Until finally, I know, that love can control my power. At that time I loved the people of Arandelle and wanted to save them, as well as my sister. And I can help them with the power I have," Elsa replied.
"Yeah, that's the point! Maybe this time, you should also try to control your feelings, after all, you have the power to protect yourself. You shouldn't be afraid and confused. We never know until we try. Maybe later, there will be exciting adventures for you to face—oh no, the two of us to be exact," Olaf smiled, paused. "Because I am your friend, I will accompany your adventure!" he said excitedly.
Elsa's eyes widened, indicating that she had hope again. Yes, Olaf was right, it could be that the mysterious voice was leading her on an adventure. Maybe through this adventure, she could get to know herself better and could control herself and her powers.
"You're smart, Olaf!" Elsa said with a smile.
"I am!" replied Olaf. "Well, here it is! Realize Elsa, your feelings affect the circumstances around you. Look, even the leaves are frozen."
Elsa rolled her eyes. "Oh, my goodness! I'm sorry, thank you, Olaf."
***
The day after her conversation with Olaf, when the mysterious voice came again, Elsa woke up from her sleep. After that, she walked to Olaf's room and immediately woke up her best friend.
"You're finally awake," Elsa said.
"What's wrong, Elsa?"
"The voice is back again, now it says the cave and my name. I don't know anything about caves, Olaf," she answered passionately.
Olaf was silent, then his eyes wandered as if he was remembering something. "I think I know where the cave is. In fact, I often go there, but I never go in because the cave is very dark, "he explained.
***
After a long debate, finally, Elsa and Olaf went to the cave. While in this enchanted forest, Olaf often wandered around, just to rolled on the grass and fallen leaves. It was strange, but that was how that snowman behaves.
The journey that was quite far has been taken, now in front of Elsa and Olaf, there was a small cave that was indeed very dark when viewed from the outside. But strangely, the cave did not look scary according to Elsa. Seen in the cave yard, there were absolutely no shrubs covered it, it looked clean.
"Come in, Olaf!" Elsa said.
Olaf followed Elsa to walk towards the cave. Even though he was afraid, he could not just leave Elsa alone. He promised to protect her.
For some reason, Elsa was so sure that it was the cave the mysterious voice was referring to. It was so lucky to get to know Olaf, who liked to walk around the enchanted forest.
One step after they entered the mouth of the cave, suddenly the torches on the walls of the cave lit up, showed the beauty of the cave. There were many rocks there, uniquely the colors were the same, black and white.
In addition, there was also a river that flowed, did not know where the clear water ends up. The water was so calm that there was no sound of ran water. It was strange.
Olaf had explored the interior of the cave, and it seemed that the cave had no guards. Because there was no sign of life in there. As for Elsa, she was even stunned at relief on the cave wall. The picture was very eye-catching.
In the relief, there was an island with mountains that seemed to be covered in snow. Moreover, there were also reliefs depicting people with powers related to ice such as flew with snowflakes in the wind, removed sharp ice from their hands, and there was even a relief depicting a person who made a snowman, then depicting him played with that snowman. Ah, yes, it reminds her of Olaf.
Uh, wait, where was Olaf?
"Olaf! Olaf! Where are you?" called Elsa.
After looked around the cave, Elsa finally found Olaf sleeping by the river. She shook her head, it was funny that Olaf fell asleep when she was engrossed in diving into the reliefs in this cave.
She sat down beside Olaf's head, dipped her feet in the stream. The atmosphere was really calm and cool, it was only natural that Olaf felt at home slept here. After a while, her eyes grew heavy. Less than a few seconds, she must have been in her dream, but it was just a dream because she was startled by a laugh in the cave.
The blonde-haired woman was quick to protect Olaf and immediately woke him up.
"Who are you?" Elsa asked.
"Who are you?" The man who was supposed to be the source of the laughter even asked back. "You saw me?"
What did it mean? Nothing, she thought. Elsa rolled her eyes. "I'm Elsa."
"Oh, hi! I'm Jack Frost. Just call me Jack," the man replied cheerfully. "You can really see me?" he asked still in disbelief.
"Why do you ask like that? I am talking to you, and see your form," Elsa replied.
Jack Frost chuckled and started to sat on the bank of the river dunked his feet, just like Elsa had done earlier. "I'm just happy, it turns out I can still meet people who believe in my existence," he replied.
"I don't understand," Elsa said, then began to sit down with Olaf beside Jack Frost.
"I won't be seen when no one believes in me, and you can see me," Jack explained with a smile.
Jack Frost's gaze shifted to Olaf. "Can you see me?"
"Yes of course!" Olaf replied.
"Oh, this is Olaf, Jack." Elsa interrupted.
"Oh ha... ha... ha... you're such a cute snowman!"
Elsa frowned. "Why are you laughing? You were laughing too before."
Before answered, Jack Frost smiled then chuckled softly. "It's just funny. As for the previous one, sorry if I startled you, but I just find it ridiculous. The Moon told me that I had to find the lost treasure soon. Then suddenly the wind brought me here, an empty cave. No treasure at all, so ridiculous." He closed his sentence, shook his head.
Elsa thought. "Or perhaps, you also have powers related to ice or snow? I thought I could be here because I have the power to control the ice and snow."
"Well, my power is that I can have fun with the little ones using snow or ice. I make them happy," replied Jack Frost.
Elsa and Olaf looked at each other, then the woman turned her gaze to Jack Frost enthusiastically. "Come with me!" she invited.
Elsa showed the reliefs on the cave walls. She also told Jack Frost what she understood about the story behind the relief. After they both understood that there seemed to be a group of people similar to them—the possessor of the power of ice and snow, they finally decided to start looked for the place referred to as the relief.
***
The first place they would go was the Troll Valley in the middle of the forest. Elsa wanted to make sure, maybe the Trolls had a vision or prophecy about the island that contained people who had the power of ice and snow.
After arrived at the Troll Valley, they were greeted by the Trolls who rolled on the ground, then surrounded the three guests.
"Ho... ho... ho... after a long time, you're finally here, Elsa," the Troll Leader said. "Wait, who is this?"
"I'm Olaf!"
"Not you! Who is this handsome man? Your lover, El—"
"No, it's Jack Frost, my..." Elsa turned to Jack Frost, ensured of what to say.
"Her friend," added Jack Frost, smiled at Elsa, then the Troll leader.
Elsa smiled, showed a row of white teeth. After that, she began to tell everything, included her plan to start an expedition to find the island in the relief. Occasionally Jack Frost added.
The Troll Leader nodded his head three times. After that, he moved his hands to form a circle that was directed towards the sky. Instantly a light purple lit appeared in which there was a shadow of an island, just like the one in the relief.
"The place is in the middle of the ocean, at the end of this forest," said the Troll Leader, then the light disappeared.
"Elsa, are we going to the sea?" asked Olaf.
Elsa was silent for a moment, then looked at Jack Frost, they nodded at each other. "Yes, Olaf, get ready," she said confidently.
Then Jack Frost advanced toward the Troll leader. "Thank you, please wish our expedition a success," he said.
***
They arrived at a beach at the end of the forest. The tiredness after walked through the forest, paid off with a very beautiful sunset view. Olaf was enthusiastically rolled on the sand. This beach is very quiet, like uninhabited, only the sound of the waves and the mysterious sounds of nature could be heard.
"Elsa, it looks like we should rest here before we cross the ocean," suggested Jack Frost.
"Okay, I agree." Elsa then sat on the sand, her eyes still glued to the sunset.
Jack Frost watched Elsa who was still glued to the sunset. "Elsa, do you really like sunsets?" he asked.
Elsa smiled. "Yes, I love it, I rarely see this moment. Especially, when I was still in the kingdom of Arandelle," she replied.
Jack Frost became interested in Elsa's conversation. He also began to wonder about Elsa's life as The Queen of Arandelle. Apparently, life in the royal family was not easy, full of pressure and expectations. He was lucky to be a free human being, and of course, he could have fun every day.
"This is interesting, Elsa. At that time you were a woman—"
"So what if I'm a woman?" interrupted Elsa with a cold smile.
Jack Frost raised his eyebrows. "Ah, it's okay, I'm just amazed at a strong woman like you, yes from your story it seems you are a strong woman," he replied.
Elsa just chuckled.
The sun that had already half set did not escape the sight of the two of them. Meanwhile, Olaf is still engrossed in playing with the sand, he was even making a sandman. Seriously.
"You lead Arandelle, in a state of anxiety because you haven't been able to control your powers. That was just amazing, and I know that was hard, right?" Jack Frost continued his conversation.
"Yes, very hard. You know, I haven't been able to recognize who I really am, then I have to become a leader. I'm so scared," Elsa said, then exhaled roughly. "Especially when my power was discovered, I was very afraid that the people of Arandelle would actually think of me as a monster. That's why I decided to be alone at that time."
Jack Frost nodded his head. "And here you are now, being the present Elsa, and the process you went through must have been invaluable," he concluded.
Elsa smiled. "How about you? You're having a hard time too, aren't you?" she asked.
"Yes, of course, I suddenly woke up and couldn't be seen by others. It was very stifling. And I was always wondering and angry at the moon, why am I lived if I can't be seen?" asked Jack Frost rhetorically.
"And that was your process to become the Jack Frost that you are today. A guardian, right?" Elsa said.
Jack Frost laughed softly, remembered those suffocating times.
"Hey! Shall we not swim across that ocean? I'm done playing the sand!" said Olaf.
"Ha... ha... ha... take it easy, Olaf. We'll cross it," replied Jack Frost. "Elsa, is it okay if we leave now?" he asked.
"Oh, it is okay. The sooner, the better," Elsa replied.
"Aren't you going to be cold across the ocean at this time of night?" Jack Frost confirmed.
Elsa smiled. "The cold never bothered me anyway."
"Ha... ha... ha..." the three of them laughed.
They continued their journey to the island in the middle of the sea. They agreed to race speed to get there. They did not swim but ran on water that turned to ice after they stepped on it. Jack Frost used his wand to increase his running speed. Meanwhile, Elsa started to use her power while holding Olaf.
***
It was night, the three of them had found an island with mountains covered in snow—just like Elsa's shadow in the relief. Another interesting part was the sky which is decorated with beautiful green aurora. The three of them looked around the island.
"It's like in the relief Elsa, really exists, the island is real," muttered Jack Frost.
"I still can't believe it, but are those people still around? Looks like this island—" Elsa's speech was cut short by a laugh.
"Welcome! Welcome!" said the person.
Jack Frost widened his eyes. "North! What are you doing here?" he asked.
"Ha... ha... ha... this is where I live," replied the old man whose name was North.
"I don't get it!" said Jack Frost.
"Jack, do you know him?" whispered Olaf.
"Of course."
"Hey, no need to whisper! I can hear it! Let me introduce myself, I'm North the chief of this island. Welcome to The Lost Land of Ice!" North explained.
"North! You—"
"Calm down Jack, let's go to my house first." North welcomes.
The guests were treated quite lavishly as if North knew they would be there that evening. Lots of food was served on the dining table made of stone. Also, do not forget that North's house is made of compacted snow, just like the Igloo house that Eskimos usually live in.
Between dinners, North told that this ice island has been around for a long time. But not many people knew. In the past, this island was home to people with the power of ice and snow.
"So, where are those people now?" Elsa asked.
North was silent for a moment. "They were dead, struck by lightning thousands of years ago."
The conversation deepens. The food had run out, now they focused on listening to North's story.
"How did you survive?" asked Jack Frost.
North told that in fact, he himself was a new generation just like Jack Frost and Elsa. He could come to this island because there was a hint from the Moon. When he arrived at this island, there was an old man who lived there. He was the only survivor because at that time he was hidden by the tribal chief in a barrel.
Until finally he lived alone on the island and died a few days after making North the chief of the tribe here.
"But why is this island is not known by many people? And the history seems to be lost and forgotten, I even just found out from the reliefs in the cave," Elsa said.
"Missing does not mean forgetting, but the universe that has not allowed it to be present in memory," North responded with a laugh. "Since you are already here, perhaps, the universe wants you to do something. There must be a reason behind all this."
Jack Frost and Elsa looked at each other, then nodded their heads. Maybe it was true, there would be a reason why something could happen. Jack thought, on this island he found a treasure, as The Moon said. Not gold or diamonds, but the history of the ice island inhabited by people like him. Meanwhile, Elsa managed to regain control of herself who had been afraid, and finally, she found something she had never imagined before.
Olaf is right, we never know until we try. The next adventure is to find the reason why the universe sent them to this place. A mysterious and magical place—The Lost Land of Ice.
-The End-