Chapter 7: Palace Intrigue

Camelot

"This is Merlin." King Arthur said.

Arthur stood in the royal garden with his wife Queen Guinevere and their visitors Zelena and Emma Swan. They stood in front of an old, tall, wide tree. Zelena was controlling Emma (the new Dark One) with the Dark One's Dagger, the missing piece Arthur needed to reunite the powerful sword Excalibur. He had a plan to steal it from the witch, but for now, he'd have to play along with her quest to free Merlin.

"This is a tree." Zelena said. "I'm looking for the most powerful wizard of all time, not a nice picnic spot."

"He's been trapped in this tree for thousands of years." Arthur said. "We've tried everything we can to release him, but nothing's worked."

"You clearly don't know what you're doing then." Zelena said. "I've got magic strong enough to free him."

"That's wonderful news." Guinevere said. "Perhaps we should wait until tomorrow. It's nearly nightfall and guests will soon start arriving for the ball. You two should get some rest before trying such a feat. Come. We'll show you to your rooms and you can prepare for the party or get some rest."

"Fine." Zelena said.


Hours passed as Zelena and Emma stayed in their separate rooms to prepare for the evening. Zelena still held the dagger close to be sure Emma couldn't use the power of the Dark One against her. Jafar and Merida had been outside the castle watching Zelena and Emma. Jafar had used magic to disguise himself and Merida as Cora and Regina. This was part of Jafar's plan to get the Dark One's power from Zelena, so he could use it to free Merlin.

"When are we going to do something?" Merida asked, with the voice of Regina.

"Now." Cora (Jafar) replied. "Just follow my lead, but stay quiet and don't speak unless she speaks to you. I know about Zelena's complicated relationship with Cora and Regina. You don't. If you say the wrong thing, she'll discover the truth."

"Ok." Regina (Merida) said.

Jafar then waved his arm, consuming them both in magic smoke and teleporting them inside Zelena's room. The Wicked Witch was wearing a black dress, a color that stood out against her green skin. She was looking at herself in the mirror and holding the dagger. When she turned around, she was shocked to find her mother and sister standing side by side at the other side of the room.

"Hello Zelena." Cora said.

"Mother?" Zelena asked. "What are you doing here? Why is Regina with you? When I last saw you, you were leading an army into Storybrooke to destroy Regina."

"Things have changed since then." Cora said. "We've reconnected so to speak."

"Regina hates you." Zelena said.

"We've put that behind us." Cora said. "We didn't come all this way to fight."

"How did you know where to find me?" Zelena asked. "I was very careful not to tell either of you that I was in Camelot."

"You control the Dark One." Cora said. "You didn't think you could stay hidden forever did you?"

"I suppose not." Zelena said. "What about you Regina? You haven't said a word."

"I agree with everything our mother says." Regina said.

"What did she do to make you agree with her so easily?" Zelena asked.

"We just...compromised." Regina said.

Zelena was now very certain that this woman was not Regina.

"How is your daughter doing Regina?" Zelena asked.

"She's good." Regina replied.

Zelena then waved her hand, paralyzing both Cora and Regina.

"I don't know who you are, but you've got a lot of nerve impersonating the Queen of Hearts and the Evil Queen. Did you even put any effort into this? You didn't even know that Regina has a son not a daughter. Dark One!"

At the call of her name, Emma Swan appeared in the room.

"Regina!" Emma said. "What's going on here?"

"That's not Regina." Zelena said. "Use your magic. Reveal their true identities."

Emma waved her hand. Then, Cora and Regina were transformed into their true selves, Jafar and Merida.

"Jafar." Zelena said. "I should've known. Now I've just had a very clever idea. Dark One. Rip out their hearts."

Emma did as she was told. She reached her arms into Jafar and Merida's chests and ripped out their hearts. Jafar's heart was especially black. Zelena then gave them mobility again.

"What did she just do?" Merida asked.

"She took your hearts." Zelena said. "The Dark One now controls you and I control the Dark One. That means I control a powerful dark wizard and his little servant girl."

"I'm no servant." Merida said. "I'm a warrior queen."

"Even better." Zelena said. "We're going to free Merlin. Tonight."


Will Scarlet, Anastasia, Glinda, David, Taj, Rafi, Hook, and Mr. Gold followed the red dragon sword to the castle of Camelot. It was night now and there seemed to be some sort of party going on. They used magic to open the gates and walk inside. They hoped they would find Emma here.


The goddess Artemis stood atop a hill on this starry night in Camelot in her golden armor. She could see the lights of the royal castle glowing in the distance. She knew Jafar was there. It was her mission to hunt him down and bring him to Olympus for justice after the murder of Poseidon. She was the goddess of the hunt and she was closing in on her prey.