Author's Note: Fair Warning there are strong scenes here and torture, not for the faint hearted.
Author's Note 2 : Happy Halloween to all my readers.
Let the game begin
Regina groaned, not awake yet, but her sleep was disturbed by buzzing and a light going on and off. She didn't sleep very well to begin with she reckoned. In fact she couldn't even remember falling asleep, at least not in a sitting position. Something was off, because no room in her house were ever this cold.
Her eyes shut open as she looked around now. The flickering light coming from a TV close by her. In the dimmed light she assumed she was in some kind of warehouse or a cave underground. She did not recognize her surroundings. It was then she realized she could not move her legs. She gasped, bending over to feel them, chains around them, heavy metal impossible to move. She tried to access her powers but couldn't. Something was blocking them. And there was something else, tightening around her neck. She felt it, a collar, was it metal or…Did it have spikes, no that couldn't be. She felt around it, on the front it was what seemed to be a half of a heart, a lock.
What was she doing there and how had she gotten there to begin with. She tried to remember but couldn't. Henry, where was Henry had he been taken as well or what is just her.
A shiver of fear went through her as the TV turned on and she saw a clown. No that couldn't be, she had seen this in a horror movie one time, but it couldn't be for real. Still it was enough to have fear go through her body, she swallowed hard. He laughed viciously, saying, "Let's play a game, you win, you like and Emma dies. You lose, you lose Emma lives and you die. You are probably wondering why you are captured here, let me tell you why. You are here to feel the pain you have caused so many, now you will have for yourself to chose who will live or die. If you dies there will not be a loss to many, if she dies there will be a loss to more."
Around your neck is a necklace that will slowly grow in and crush your neck if you don't find the key to open it in time. You can see your magic is blocked, we are too make it work. Your legs are locked and you need to find the key to open it so you can move to find Emma and get out before it is too late. If it is not already too late. Now let the game begin."
The TV went back and Regina screamed out, in terror and frustration, dragging her legs against the chains, causing them to cut into her leg more. Tears in her eyes as she wondered who was doing this to her. She only knew she needed the key or something to the damn ankle chains. So in the darkness her eyes started a frantic search.
Emma was hurting. In fact she had snapped out of her sweet slumber hurting which wasn't all that usual, unless she of course kicked or hit something in her sleep. It did however not occur that often and it was not like this. She slowly opened her eyes and tried to shift when she realized something was wrong. Very wrong. She gasped finding she was not in her bed at all. In fact she couldn't move her arms. She looked up gasping, they were tied in chains above her head. Thick chains even. She looked beneath her, her legs were free it seemed, but far below she could hear the sound of water.
That wasn't the only thing she could feel something pressing around her neck. Moving her head, what was that spikes. She swallowed hard, as a shiver of fear ran down her spine. She could hear a noise clear to her head, seeing a screen in the darkness and a clown figure escape. Jigsaw, but he wasn't real, he only excited on the movie screen. Someone was toying with her but why?
Be rational, keep calm.
"Welcome, I want to play a game. Emma, you are the savior, but can you save yourself when it all comes down to it. As you by now have realized your hands are tied above your head, you are above a well. As time runs you will be lowered further and further into the water until you cannot hold your head above it. To make matters worse there is a chain around your neck that will dig deeper and deeper in until there is nothing more to dig into. The key to that lock is held by someone else. Get up of die like the dirty rat you are," the voice said before she was left in the darkness.
Emma didn't even know why but she screamed, "Regina, get me out of here!"
Of course there was for no use as the brunette was most likely not close by in any case. She took a deep breath wondering how the hell she was going to get out of this one, and who had trapped her there. Whoever it was was going to pay big time when she got out. If she got out that was…
Regina groaned in pain, she was on the floor, her ankles was still tied to the chair. She took a deep breath dragging her body towards a small thing in the darkness. Hoping it was the key.
Unlucky for her it was a hair cliff, her own as a matter of fact. She looked around the dim light, finally spotting the key that was hanging on the opposite wall, to high for her to reach. What was it Emma and Snow had said about picking the lock. She slowly let her fingers go frantic to the lock, trying to make it open in that position. She groaned as her elbows and knees got scraped from the floor she was on.
Where are you Emma?
Tears in her eyes as she groaned in pain over the position she was in. Her fingers dropping the pin every once in a while, making her reach out to get them all over. Finally after what seemed like hours she managed to pick the lock open. First one then the other, stroking over her ankles to check the damage the chain had caused. She took a breath of relief as her mind went to who was holding her trapped.
In fact it could be anyone. Anyone in this godforsaken town could have a grudge against her from the time she was the evil queen. Anyone really could have wanted her dead or for her to suffer at one point or another. Or maybe it was Rumple that had decided to give her a lesson.
I swear when I get out from here you will pay whoever you are…
She took a couple of moments to gather herself, determined to get out of there and to get Emma out of there before she slowly got up. Her eyes examining the room in the dim light, nothing but the chair she had been on and a table. She looked at her hand, canalizing her powers, it had to work, it just had to.
A small flame hardly even visible appeared for a short second. Enough to find there was a door in the room, she slowly walked towards it. Not knowing what to wait on the other side she took a deep breath before opening the handle. She knew she should have realized by now that she was barefoot, yet she had not. The floor felt cold towards her feet. She looked outside a hallway with dim lights in it. Was Emma behind one of those doors?
She opened the first and went inside, it was dark, but once she came inside the light was turned on and pictures was on every wall, of all the people she had killed and how. A hand went to her lips. Had she not changed it would not have mattered, now it however did as it made her stomach turn. She hurried out of the room, and closed the door, leaning against it, breathing hard and fast.
The necklace was growing tighter round her neck, she was slightly bleeding she knew.
Regina slowly open the door to the second room, seeing the images of her old horse, dead Daniel and her parents, over them it was written in blood "You caused this."
"No, no I didn't," she whispered, sinking to her knees, head in her hands. This wasn't who she was anymore. She had changed, she was not evil anymore and she regretted those actions dearly, she would do anything to go back and change it. She got up and out of the room faster than she had gotten into it,
"Emma, can you hear me?" she screamed out, afraid to open the next door.
Where are you, I need you, I need you to save me from this hellish nightmare. I need you to be okay.
Meanwhile Emma was trying to drag herself the rope In which she was hanging from from. It seemed like an even impossible task and much heavier than she thought it would at first. Inside her head was kind two thoughts that kept her going. Regina and Henry. She didn't know why but she had a feeling that the brunette was trapped like her somewhere like she was. She groaned as the chain seemed to be getting longer and longer and she was getting tired. That her hands was getting sweaty didn't help either. Soon she slipped and fell down, screaming out in agony. It hurt so badly as it snapped in her wrists, she almost thought they would be torn right of. She shivered in pain, somehow curling up as she was hanging.
Tears in her eyes as she could feel herself weaken, she needed to get out of this, she needed to get to Henry. She needed to be alive. She needed to keep climbing until she reached the top. It was then she heard a metallic sound, like the sound of a wheel turning and she realized she was being lowered further down on the well.
That wasn't the worst part of it as she could feel ice cold water crash down around her.
Fuck, fuck fuck fuck
"You will not win, I will get out of here and when I do you will pay," she snarled. The heck with this she was getting out of this fucking hellhole. She snarled and with anger used as a trigger she again started to climb.
Regina had come to the forth door after shutting the third close, a room filled with flames. It was to simulate a sleeping curse she was quite sure. The first was filled with broken mirrors, glass on the floor. Mirrors showing her broken face, her broken soul. Tears stinging in her eyes. She truly hated this so very much. She felt the glass cutting into her feet as she walked into the room, looking at her face and body seemingly cut up. Was this how she would die, hunting for Emma, or was she hunting herself in ghosts of memories. She wasn't even sure yet. If she had dealt with what seemed like reflections of the bad things she had done, including this her vanity, what was waiting next. A broken future, she didn't care that she stepped on more broken glass. The pain underneath her feet could not compare with the one inside of her. A broken soul. Maybe she deserved this. she took up a broken piece of the glass, carefully dragging it over her wrist, it wasn't deep enough to cause any pain, but it was deep enough to case her to bleed.
I need you to save me, save me from myself...
Carefully she used the broken shard of glass making three horizontal lines across the vertical she cut she had just made making it form the letter E. E for Emma her savior. If both was found at least they could see that she had thought of her before she died if she didn't make it out alive. Her blood dripping from her writs onto broken pieces of glass as she dragged herself out of the room.
I will find you if it will kills me doing so
Bloody footprints on the cold floor as she dragged herself to door number five, for another new horror she was sure. She didn't care, as long as she found Emma in the end she could deal with whatever horror that was inside these doors first.
Emma had climbed up and fallen down four times, and for each time she fell further and further down, her wrists was hurting, she knew the chains around her wrists was gnawing into her skin more for each drop. That wasn't the worst though it was the buckets of ice water being constantly thrown over her head.
She was being worn down, not standing the thought of climbing back up. The collar around her neck was getting tighter also. Digging into her neck further, most likely it would cut of her head when the time ran out.
She felt that the water below reached up to her knees. She took a deep breath wondering why she would captured and if this was how she would die. Cold and alone in a well. She suddenly felt so tired. So very tired and so her eyes close, she couldn't fight anymore. Her body tilting forward causing her chains to tighten. She didn't care. She was screwed and she knew it.
Regina was tired, so very very tired as she opened the last door at the end of the hall. The thing was normally she was all for games and riddles. She had been hunted and been the hunter, making traps that was inhumane. To her it had been a game, but now it was no longer a game. If she didn't solve this riddle she was dead, that was not fun. Not at all.
She pushed open the seventh door and found a room that was surrounded by darkness. She stood still listening, the sound of water. Focusing intensely with the little she had left of powers she managed to conjure a fireball. She could soon see the only thing in the room was a well. A well where a chain was hanging over the edge of.
Emma!
She made her way to it and started to pull. but she was heavier than she though. No she was so close, she needed to get her up. She just had to. Using her last of powers she somehow got her up and saw she had the key to unlock the chain around her neck. She used it quickly removing her own then Emma's, pulling her into her lap, stroking her, she was cold as ice.
What did he do to you?
"I..got you," her voice broken like she was. Tears falling down on her face as she planted kisses all over. Desperation and a love she had never before felt. She found the key to remove her wrist bands next and stroke gently over them. The cuts they were so deep, they would scar she knew. She kissed them also not caring for the taste of blood.
"Please come back to me," sobs escaping her she was shaking now.
"Re..Gina, I knew you...would find me," a weak voice sounded. Regina kissed her face all over again, she was weak but alive, that was a start.
"Of course, without sounding like your parents I will always find you," she kissed her lips gently.
"Are you okay," Emma opened her eyes slowly, her face was grey, her eyes sad, her cheeks grimy. She clung to her in the darkness.
Regina was about to answer when they heard a dark voice say, "How did you do it, you were not suppose to get out of this alive!"
Regina looked up, looking at her son, her Henry, no this had to be a mistake. Only he didn't sound like him, and his eyes, something was wrong. It scared her. She swallowed hard saying, "Henry you did this, why?!"
"My name is not Henry I am Astoros," he spoke.
"Gina," Emma whispered, she was scared.
"Oh to hell with this," Regina said annoyed. She of course knew for a fact that spits could take possession on people, especially on Halloween when all gateways was open, but to use her son. She stroked Emma saying, "I need your magic. Our magic."
Emma nodded weakly and took her hands, focusing before they shoot a purple light ball against Henry. He feel to the ground and a sky of black left his body. Regina sighed finding this all hard to believe hoping Henry would never remember it at all. She let Emma lie on the floor, placing a hand over his head, removing those memories. She managed to get Emma over to him and slowly teleported them home, where she lay Henry in his bed and Emma in her own. She lay close holding her, crying against her, wondering how this had happened in the first place.
Regina would get the explanation later on. Henry had been working with Gold when he stumbled over some old spells he wanted to try out, sadly they had backfired and so the demon had came to take hold on his body. He promised he would never do such things again. He didn't remember what he did but Regina had a cut on her wrist and Emma had wounds on both of hers so it couldn't not be good.
As Halloween night slowly arose Regina had tended to Emma's wounds and they were sitting in front of the TV, Henry came to join them saying, "Want to watch a scary movie?"
"No I think I have had enough for some time," said Regina, rolling her eyes.
"I do agree," said Emma curling up against her, giving her a peck on the cheek.
Feedback always welcome and very much appreciated :o)
