A/N: As promised, here is the first possible ending. The other three alternative endings will be posted over the next few days, as soon as I finish revising/editing them. Read one of your choosing, or read all four and let me know which one you like best :) . Each one will open with the last few paragraphs of chapter 13 (in italics) to help refresh your memory of where we left off.
ENDING ONE
Emma reached into her pocket and pulled out the magic bean, handing it to Rumplestiltskin. "As promised. Good luck," she said, giving him a nod. With everyone distracted by the wraith, he could easily slip away and escape through the portal before anyone would notice.
"Thank you. And I am sorry," he said as he took the bean from her and stepped back.
Emma looked up at the sky, as the wraith approached, its arms out and sending its magic toward the blonde, preparing to capture its prize.
Regina felt a movement as the wraith attacked Emma, realizing that the jerking motion she felt was Emma's hand being forced away from her own. She collapsed to the ground, screaming the blonde's name as the rest of the crowd watched in horror as the wraith's blue light connected with Emma's chest, ripping her essence from her body.
As the royal families looked on in horror as the wraith slowly drained the life from Emma, Rumple carefully turned the bean over in his hand. He tossed the magic bean off the stage, creating a portal behind them that would take him to a new realm, one where he could find his long-lost son.
It was then that he had an idea. He knew he had to travel to a land without magic to find his boy. The wraith was a magical creature, and therefore could not survive a trip to the land. He realized that if he could pull Emma into the portal, the wraith would not be able to cross into that realm and would cease to exist as they crossed through it.
With the last shred of humanity that remained in his darkened soul, fueled only by his love for his son, Rumple decided he would try to save the princess, who was rapidly losing strength as the wraith took what now belonged to it. The brunette princess was still crumpled on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably as she watched her soulmate begin to disintegrate next to her. Before anyone could stop him, Rumple grabbed Emma and Regina by the back of their gowns and pulled them toward the portal, dragging along the wraith that was still magically attached to Emma.
"Hold on, dearies," he said as he fell backward into the portal, leaving little time for a stunned Regina and a barely-conscious Emma to brace themselves for what was to come.
"Ugh, my head," Regina moaned as she rolled onto her side and opened her eyes. She felt soft grass below her hands and the sun blinded her as she got her bearings. She slowly sat up and panicked as she took in the scene around her. Dozens of people dressed in a strange red uniform were scattered around her, strange wooden swords discarded next to them and blood staining their clothing. Her memory was hazy. The last thing she remembered was watching the wraith unleash its attack on Emma as she cried helplessly. Did the wraith kill her, too? Was she in the underworld?
She shrunk back down, not wanting to draw attention to herself as she took in the corpses around her — at least not until she had a plan and knew what she was up against. She continued to look around the field, noting a glint of blonde hair and the gown she recognized as the one Emma wore at the match. "Emma," she exhaled in hope. If the blonde was there, perhaps she was awake as well, and they could be united in this afterlife. She crawled her way over to the woman, careful not to disturb any of the men lying in the field. "Emma," she smiled when she saw the blonde stir slightly, lolling her head from side to side as she regained consciousness.
"Regina?" Emma asked, opening her eyes and then quickly shielding them with her hands to keep out the light. "What happened? Where are we?"
The brunette lightly ran her hands down Emma's arms, sighing in relief that she was okay. "I…I don't know, exactly. It looks like there was some sort of massacre. We need to get out of here," she said. "Can you sit up? Stay low to the ground."
Emma nodded as she pressed herself into a seated position, then moved onto her hands and knees as she followed Regina, crawling across the grass. "Where are we going?"
"Let's take cover behind those trees over there, and then we can figure it out," Regina suggested.
They scurried to the edge of the field, relaxing as they sat against a tree, hiding from view. "What is this place?" Emma asked, hearing strange noises in the distance. It was nothing like she had ever heard before — a constant hum.
"I have no idea. I thought it was the afterlife, but this is not at all like I imagined."
Emma shook her head. "Me, either. But at least we're together," she said, taking Regina's hand in hers.
"That you are, dearies," they heard a voice from behind them and turned around in shock. He was still dressed in the linen and leather clothing he was wearing as the match arbiter, but his skin had completely lost its golden shine. He looked purely human.
"Rumple, what are you doing here?" Regina asked, alarmed. She tried to form a fireball in her hand to protect herself and Emma from him, but she couldn't feel her magic. "Work, damn you," she muttered under her breath.
"That will not help you, Princess," he chastised. "Welcome to the Land Without Magic."
"The what?" Emma asked in confusion.
Rumple walked closer to the girls, contemplating sitting down to join them, but thought better of it. He may not be the Dark One in this world, but he still had more self-respect than to sit on the dirty ground. "The Land Without Magic," he said again. "You gave me the bean to find my son, and this is where he is."
"So, we are really in a different realm?" Regina asked.
"Indeed you are."
"But how? Why am I not dead?" Emma asked. "Or am I?"
Rumple rolled his eyes. "Do you feel dead, dearie? Of course you are still alive. During your battle with the hellbeast I managed to open the portal with the bean you gave me. I pulled you both through it with me, knowing that might be the only way to defeat it."
"What?" Emma asked, still stunned.
"You are welcome, by the way," Rumple deadpanned. "The wraith followed us through the portal since it was still connected to you, but it was vanquished during the journey as soon as it made contact with this non-magical world. As a purely magical being, it could not exist here."
"So it is gone forever?" Regina asked. "It can never hurt anyone again?"
Rumple shook his head. "Not that wraith, no. There might be others…other medallions attached to other wraiths, but the one your mother still has in her possession is now entirely useless."
"I see. So, where exactly are we? What is this place? And why are we surrounded by piles of deceased people?" Emma asked.
"From what I have gathered from my preliminary lap around the perimeter, we are in a park of some sort in a place called 'New York City.'"
"Wait, you had time to take a lap around this park, but you didn't look for us? Were you going to leave us here?" Regina asked, annoyed.
"I already saved your lives once today. I owe you nothing. If I want to leave you to fend for yourselves and rot, that is my prerogative," Rumple stated. "But, no. You were not anywhere near me when I awoke in this place, so I went exploring."
"Are we safe here?" Regina asked, gesturing to the mass casualties surrounding them. "Do we need to protect ourselves from whoever did all this?"
Rumple giggled. "No, dearie. If you walk up a little farther that way, you will find a large audience of perfectly uninjured people. Apparently this is some sort of war reenactment the villagers here do to entertain themselves. Today is some holiday where they celebrate their freedom from an evil King, so they put on a show to commemorate the war they won."
Regina crinkled her brow in confusion. "How odd."
"Yes. I do not understand it. But, now that you two are awake and alive, I could use your help locating my son."
"And what makes you think we will help you?" Emma asked.
"Well, I did save your life today, and I brought your little girlfriend with you. Plus, somehow I do not think two princesses from another realm would do well on their own without any knowledge of this world."
Emma looked at Regina, who shrugged. "He has a point."
"Okay, fine. Let's go find your son."
END
A/N: So, Rumple has some good in him after all...or he just realized he needed the extra help to locate Baelfire. After all, two attractive 20-something young women might be more successful at locating and approaching a guy than a creepy old dude would be :P
If you're not a fan of this ending, there are three more possibilities headed your way soon. Ending two should be ready to post tomorrow or Saturday. I'm not going to reveal which was the original ending until I've posted all four :)