Anna rarely has any true enemies. Will Harrison is one of them. He’s been plaguing Anna ever since our queen discovered the existence of the Exalted, of which he was once a member. He was her first truly international enemy, and the only one that managed to best and humiliate her, dealing severe economic harm to Arendelle.
When she ascended to the Exalted’s leadership not too long ago, Anna managed to return the favour by expelling him from the secret society. But since then, he’s grown wealthier and more powerful. And he’s on the hunt.
Now, as Anna rises in stature and authority among the world powers, he would love nothing more than to drag Anna down and reduce Arendelle to his private fiefdom.
Will Harrison and his equally ruthless secretary, Tiffany Hunsecker, are back. And they plan to make Anna’s life hell.
ARENDELLE; BOSTON – In a heavy blow for Queen Anna and her government, Arendelle is poised to sign the Treaty of Weselton, which will cede to Will Harrison of Virginia two of Her Majesty’s four coveted trading freedoms with the Celestial Empire. Our queen will retain the lower taxes for Arendellian banks, and continue to enjoy the privilege of exercising Arendellian law in territory assigned to Arendellians by the Chinese emperor. But the tariff-free imports and expedited customs – critical for volume and speed in importing products – will be transferred to Harrison’s private monopolies.
Reporters say that whether the State of Virginia demands that Mr. Harrison share these privileges with the Virginian government remains an internal American dispute.
Story art by Alanna (@alhuart)
Harrison had instigated a corporate war between two Arendellian companies: Kristoff’s Bjorgman and Lars Krogh’s Skau Krogh. Harrison used Skau-Krogh to plunge Arendelle into economic uncertainty, before moving against Anna’s Entente of Small Kingdoms. While he failed to subdue Chatho, Harrison defeated a combined force of Weselton, Vesterland, and Arendellian forces attempting to liberate Weselton of Skau-Krogh’s occupation. With Princess Mari of Vesterland and the Duke captured, Anna took the dramatic step of opening talks with Mr. Harrison to negotiate their release.
Harrison has arrived in Arendelle to sign the treaty. His private clipper, the Enslaver, is to dock in the harbour – beside Anna’s own flagship, Pride of Elsa.
The concession of two trade privileges rather than four is good news for Arendelle, but remains symbolically crushing for Anna as they represent the terms of the Celestial Empire’s gift to Agnarr and Iduna on the night of Elsa’s birth. This marks the lowest point in Anna’s reign since the early days of her conflict with Countess Vi Mundilfari. As the current prime minister, Lady Mundilfari is absent from Arendelle and unable to assist Anna.
It’s unknown what will happen to Skau-Krogh now that Mr. Harrison seems to have wrenched his desired deal from Queen Anna.
Unbeknownst to the queen of Arendelle, one of her most formidable geopolitical adversaries was in Arendelle, in person.
He didn’t let anyone know, of course, and he wouldn’t be around for too long if he could help it. He’d dressed modestly in a bland, grey suit, and gotten off his clipper ship by the time the dawn’s rays had just started to brush the waters. Will Harrison, heir to Virginia’s most powerful (and slaveholding) First Family, was an unremarkable, modestly handsome young man, with blonde hair, striking brown eyes and a friendly smile. He didn’t stop to look around even the Plaza, which wasn’t too far away from the docks. Instead, he made his way several blocks down the harbourside, beyond the office building of The Arendelle Guardian, stopping at a three-storey, stately-looking building.
This was the headquarters of Skau-Krogh, the main rival to Kristoff’s company of Bjorgman House.
I have two memories of the Exalted, this secret society of the world’s most influential rulers. The first was during Christmas in 1840, while I was queen. His Imperial Highness of the Celestial Empire enjoys receiving letters from the monarchs of Arendelle. That year’s Winter Solstice, he asked me to write him a letter without my Chinese translator, so that he could teach himself Arendellian. Instead, I wrote him a letter all in Chinese characters. He couldn’t stop showing my writing off to his imperial harem (much to his concubines’ annoyance and my embarrassment). It’s a story our diplomats fondly recall from time to time.
The second memory is exactly one year later, after my allied armada of Vakretta, Zaria, and Chatho had repulsed the Russian fleet in the North Sea. I met the tsar in Saint Petersburg for negotiations, and he was rotten, ill-tempered, and bitter about everything the entire time. Despite being the aggressor that tried to divide and rule us smaller kingdoms, the tsar acted as if I had wronged him. I’ll never forget the lady by his side, several years younger than me, who glared at me with pure hatred for daring to resist her father.
The Arendelle Guardian 