Chapter 3: The Beginning
Regina was peacefully asleep in her bed when she heard the explosion. As she ran out to the hallway, she saw maids and guards running in both directions. What the hell just happened? Leopold's kingdom was one of the most peaceful so there would be no need for war. More explosions came and shook the castle. Regina ran to the king's room to find answers.
As she pushed open the door she saw what she believed to be a wraith hovering over the king. It took her a millisecond to process what was happening. She opened her palm and thought about all the times her mother abused her. "Magic is created through emotion, dearie." Rumpelstiltskin's words echoed through her head. A spark of light flickered in her hand and as soon as the fireball formed she hurled it forward. The wraith was to busy sucking the king's soul out to notice the fire hurdling towards it. As soon as it made contact, the wraith screeched and flew out the open balcony.
Regina quickly ran to the king's side. It was true that she hated the man but if his death seemed for like an accident the kingdom would be easier on her.
"Your Majesty!" She called. "Leopold!"
She tried shaking him but he didn't respond. She tried finding his pulse but had no such luck. The king is dead. She backed away slowly. No, he's not supposed to go out like this. He was supposed to die by my hand. She still wasn't used to running the kingdom and now she would have no one at her side to help her. No one except Snow.
Snow. What ever happened to the little brat anyways? That was when Regina noticed the explosions had stopped. She made her way through the empty halls of the castle that were once filled with chaos. She entered the throne room to find all the servants, guards, and Snow looking up to her. Her heart froze. They were all awaiting orders from the king and hoped that she had some idea what they were.
"My Queen," Johanna piped up, "what actions must we take? Where is the king?"
Regina's head was still spinning over what had just happened.
"The king... is dead."
It felt as if everyone in the room had stopped breathing. Regina looked over all the faces. All the faces that now looked to her for a leader. She froze when she saw Snow's face. Her eyes were full of devastation and anger, something Regina thought she would never see in the princess.
"Do we have any idea who did this?" Regina broke the silence.
"No your majesty. All we saw was shadows firing from a distance. They just attacked and left." Well this was definitely turning out to be one hell of a night.
"Send out a party to try and get more information on the attackers. Everyone else; you should try to get some sleep. We'll figure things out in the morning." Really Regina? That's the best you can come up with? If mother was here she would know exactly what to do. Regina scolded herself.
Regina went up to her room and locked the door. She really hated going to him for answers but she knew she had no other way.
"Rumpelstiltskin."
"So. The king is dead. Nice work dearie." The imp appeared in a cloud of red smoke.
"Do you have any idea as to who was behind it? Someone sent a wraith to collect his soul."
"Dark forces are rising dearie. Forces that make your mother look like a saint. Their goal is to destroy the enchanted forest as well as its residents. What's the use of being a queen when you have no one to rule over?"
"Tell me what I must do." Regina was getting impatient with the imp.
"For me to tell you what to do, I'd have to look into your future and, alas, all magic comes with a price," He said with a wicked grin on his face.
Regina rolled her eyes. She had no idea what that idiot brunette Belle saw in him. "What is it that you want?"
He started circling her like he was stalking his prey. "Well lets see. Ah! Your firstborn." He released one of his famous giggle when he saw to stumped look on Regina's face.
"But, you gave me a potion so I wouldn't be able to conceive."
"Well then... what's the harm?"
"Deal." He released another giggle.
"Seems to me dearie that you have to put together a team to defeat this threat. A team that consists of one with the darkest heart, one with the purest heart, the heartless, and one full of heart, one that has gotten everything and one that has gotten nothing."
Words could not express the hatred Regina had for the dark one's puzzles. She had to find six people who were opposites of each other and one could only assume that they had a deadline to find them.
"Where do I find them?"
"Some will be right in front of you. Others will come to you." With that he took his leave and left Regina alone in her room to figure out who was needed to protect the kingdom.
Please leave a review. This is only my second fanfic and I want to make sure I don't mess things up!
