I just want to thank my amazing wife for always helping out with all of my writing and always being my loyal beta. I also would like to thank one of my really great friends, who just so happens to have the same name as one of the main characters in this story (and yes, it's a complete coincidence because we didn't even know each other until I had already posted at least 10 chapters of this thing). She has been there for me through all my writer's block and she even helped me get out of a really bad bout of it a while back. Also, to each and every one of you who have read and left reviews, thank you so much for your support! All of you have been so great and I'm so lucky to have readers like you! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!
A Savior Too Late
Chapter 21
Becoming lost on several occasions while trying to escape the King's castle, Emma and Regina finally saw the large doors that would exit outside. Regina assumed there would be heavily guarded gate outside waiting on them. The former mayor was tiring quickly, but couldn't for the life of her figure out why. Her blonde counterpart still had plenty of stamina left to levitate and throw guards around with her magic, but Regina still had years of experience mounted against Emma. Regina panted as if she were midway through a marathon. She would have to wrap her mind around it later because now a horde of guards were rushing them.
Emma had noticed her lover's endurance was quickly running down. She took a step in front of her Queen and held a sword out she had retrieved from a downed guard earlier. "I got this!" she affirmed over her shoulder to Regina, "Go figure out how to open that door!"
"But Emma!" Regina pleaded with worry.
"I'll be fine, Regina!" Emma reassured before light lit up in her free hand. Her head whipped back to glance at Regina again. "Now go!"
Regina scowled, not used to taking orders from the sheriff. She huffed before waving her hands to allow herself to be enveloped in a plume of purple smoke. Regina reappeared next to the door. Her hand flung out to blast the doors open, but the magical energy hit a barrier. Regina cursed under her breath before turning back to see Emma taking on at least ten guards, fighting them with both her sword and magic. In that moment, the blonde's movements seemed to resemble Charming's. There was no time for the brunette to gawk at the Savior's toned arms, so she quickly turned back to the door. She prayed to whatever higher power that was out there that bringing down this barrier spell wouldn't take long.
The Savior slashed her sword across one guard's chest before planting the bottom of her boot into his chest and shoving him back. That's when another man came up from behind and drug his own blade across her back. Emma grimaced as the blade slice through her flesh, effectively leaving a gaping hole in her white tank top. However, her adrenaline would not allow her to stumble forward. The blonde simply spun on a heel bringing a palm of magic to the guard's face causing his body to tumble back away from her. "You almost done?!" she called out to Regina while scuffling with another guard.
"Just a little longer!" Regina shouted back. She wanted desperately to look and see if Emma was alright, but she had to concentrate as much as possible.
"Good! 'Cause I'm losing this battle!"
"I thought you said you had it!"
"I did at first!" Emma replied as she smashed the hilt of her sword into the face of guard, bloodying his nose.
The door suddenly blew open and Regina dropped her hands, breathing heavily. "Emma! Now!"
A white aura engulfed Emma's body and surged out around her effectively knocking the remaining soldiers onto their backs. The blonde charged towards Regina and caught her around the waist before she hit her knees. "Regina, are you ok?!"
"I-I don't know," the brunette admitted, "It's as if my magic is depleting my energy more rapidly than it normally would."
Emma noticed that Regina's tan complexion was a bit paler. "You don't look so hot right now."
"Gee, thanks Miss Swan. That's exactly what a girl wants to hear."
The Savior huffed in frustration, "You know that's not what I meant." She placed one of Regina's arms around her shoulders and began pulling her towards the castle gates. Once, they were down the steps, Emma flicked her wrist to close the doors behind them, obviously trying to show off for the woman in her arms.
"I don't know, Emma, but we have more pressing issues than my physical state. We need to rendezvous with the others and inform them of what we know." For a moment, a wave of déjà vu washed over Regina. Emma was once again pulling her out of the flames, saving her, except this time, Regina's ankle wasn't sprained.
The two women were both relieved to find that the gate was not manned by any guards whatsoever. Emma released Regina, who was able to stand up on her own now, to go and pull a lever to open the gates. Unbeknownst to either of them, one of the guards inside the castle had managed to escape before the doors slammed shut. That's the moment, Regina's entire world came crashing and burning to the ground.
"You'd think I would keep up to date with the technology of our time and just have this thing open with the push of a button," Emma growled out as she pulled down on the lever. She was about to make another remark when it happened.
It all happened so fast and Regina felt immediately guilty for not being able to stop it. The blade of a longsword pierced straight through the Savior's back until her flesh touched the hilt. A small gasp escaped Emma's throat and she got a brief glance at the crimson coated metal protruding from her midsection before it was quickly removed. All of her surroundings moved in slow motion and all noise was drowned out by the moment. The only thing that reached her ears was the blood curdling scream of her name. Emma didn't even hear the loud snap of the guard's neck, which had been caused by Regina's magic. Emma's hands instinctively went to grasp for the fatal wound, but they never made it as the strength in her body faded rapidly as she collapsed onto the ground.
Knees hitting the ground next to the blonde, Regina placed a hand over the gaping wound, the Savior's blood soaking her palm. She placed her other hand on Emma's cheek and she could not control the tears that began spilling from her eyes. "NO! No, no, no!" Regina cried out. It was happening again, just like it always did with those she loved. "Please, no!" she sobbed as she tried to muster up every bit of Light Magic she had, concentrating on it to flow into her hand over the wound. It wasn't enough to heal the woman she had fallen so in love with. She cursed whatever it was that had her so drained to the point she could not even save the love of her life. The nightmare Regina had in the cave was coming to pass.
"Hey," Emma half rasped and half gurgled out as blood began to coat the back of her throat, "It's ok..."
"No, it will never be ok," Regina choked out, pressing her forehead to the blonde's.
"I can't...destroy everything now," the blonde sputtered, finding it harder and harder to breathe.
"Emma, please...I love you...I can't do this again..."
"I have...always loved you...Regina Mills."
"I think it's high time we got everything out in the open," the Queen spoke, breaking the thick silence that had fallen over herself and the King once their younger counterparts had left.
Emma crossed her arms and glanced towards her wife with a quick nod. "What exactly happened?"
"Well, apparently, your jealous ex had been putting this plan together for years before she had set it into motion. With her patience, you'd think she had Rumpelstiltskin as a tutor. She sought you out and somehow found her way to Storybrooke."
"How did she manage to get across the town line?"
"That still remains a mystery, but I'm assuming it had something to with the magic you transferred onto her. She killed Marian," Regina explained with a saddened sigh, "I haven't the slightest clue as to why she thought that would be a good idea, but I guess even after a being married to the Savior for nearly a decade, people still figure that the Evil Queen can fall back into old routines within a moment's notice."
"I'm guessing Robin never actually thought you killed his wife and Lily was controlling him?" When Emma was given a nod she exhaled, thinking about how fucked up the situation was. "I never could wrap my head around why he would think that, especially since you and I were married and had another child together."
"Were?" Regina asked, appearing to be a bit taken back by the use of past tense language.
"Regina," Emma let out with a sigh, "You were dead, or so I thought. It's been two decades. I can't even feel for you. That's that."
Regina pushed away from the wall she was leaned up against. She knew she would get nowhere with that topic. "Alright, would you like to explain what happened with our son?"
"I..." Emma began, but trailed off for a moment, "I didn't know he was going to kill Gold...If I had, of course I would have stopped him..."
"So, the next reasonable thing was to imprison him with the dagger and control him?" Regina chastised.
"I didn't want him to end up like Gold," Emma defended, "I took the dagger to protect him..."
"And yet, you claim to not have a caring nor loving bone in your body?"
The King sighed and looked away, shaking her head while biting her lip. "It took a while for me to become like this. Even after I removed my heart...it wasn't just an overnight change. At first, I was doing it to protect him...That was when I could still feel compassion...and slowly, but surely, he became a tool...a weapon."
"And that just makes everything alright, doesn't it?" Regina enunciated with a small sarcastic chuckle. "So, what's your excuse for trying to have your way with the younger me?"
Emma exhaled heavily before pushing away from the wall, stomping towards the exit of the dungeon, but she was promptly stopped when Regina reached out with her magic. A faint blue glow emanated from the blonde's body and she growled in frustration when her limbs refused to move. "Look, I don't claim to have an excuse for every wrong decision I've made! I know what I did and I'll live with the consequences, but I won't stand here and have you or anyone else throw it in my face!"
The Queen appeared shocked and offended as she rounded in front of Emma and landed a hard smack to her face. "How dare you?! You tried to force yourself onto her, onto me!" Regina practically screamed, her voice turned hoarse as tears clouded her vision. "No, you know what? When Lily has been dealt with and everyone goes back to the past...when this is over, we are over."
"What?" Emma gasped. For the first time in years, the King felt her blood run cold. She had almost forgotten what fear felt like. The enchantment over her body vanished and she was able to move freely again.
"You heard me the first time, Miss Swan," Regina muttered, "You've broken your last promise. You destroyed our family, and now I'm going to take them back."
The words were like a sword impaling her through her abdomen, and as soon as the thought swept through her mind, Emma dropped to both knees. She placed both hands over her armor-covered abs, grunting and groaning in real physical pain. If she could describe the sensation, Emma would say it felt like molten lava expanding from her midsection to the rest of her body. Emma made an attempt to fill her lung with air, but the pain was too much and prevented her from getting a full breath.
The whole scene caught Regina off guard and she was starting to regret her words. Dropping down next to Emma, she placed a hand on the back of the King's armor plating. To her complete horror, Emma's body was very slowly becoming transparent. "What's happening?!"
Her blonde locks fell over her face while she pressed her forehead against the floor. Now both arms encompassed her abdomen as her body doubled over on itself. Emma's mouth watered due to the immense amount of pain she was in, some drops of her saliva escaping her lips as she croaked out, "The Savior is about...to die."
Regina was reeled back by the bit of information. Her mouth opened and shut as she tried to figure out what to say. Grasping the King with both hands, the Queen's face looked determined. "Then we have to help them." She was about to magic them away, but one of Emma's hands weakly wrapped around one of her arms, catching her attention.
"No," the blonde whispered, shaking her head slowly.
"But, Emma-"
"Let her...let us die..."
"Why would I do that?!"
"To save everyone," Emma panted in a reply, "Lily will have no purpose...and then I cannot ruin everyone's lives..."
"But maybe they can still go back and change things!" Regina tried to reason, holding back tears. She could hardly believe the words coming out of Emma's mouth. This Evil King was someone who was not supposed to have compassion nor remorse, but at the moment, all Regina could hear was Emma...her sweet, kind, and protective Emma. It was the woman she married and raised two children with, the woman who was willing to sacrifice everything for her family, be it the Charmings or the Mills side. Then the thought of their daughter struck her and Regina's eyes widened to their capacity. "No, Emma, we have to help them! What about Avalon?!"
"And then the big ogre came down like this!" Emma said dramatically as she slammed her hands down on either side of her five year old daughter. Avalon laid on her back, feigning horror all the while trying to conceal her fit of giggles. "And he was all like 'ARGH!'" Emma continued to reenact the tale. The imitation of the ogre's roar fished a high pitched squeal, followed by another adorable giggle from the small dark-haired child. "And it was almost over with, until..." The blonde made a small whistle while pretending to poke herself in the eye and fall backwards. "Until your grandma shot him in the eye with an arrow, and down he went!" Emma grumbled, pretending to be a dying ogre.
Ava seemed completely enthralled with the story as she sat up on her knees, leaning forward with her eyes slightly widened, expecting more. "And then what happened?" she asked with about as much cuteness as a tiny curious kitten.
"Dinner's ready," Regina called out from the kitchen.
Emma breathed a small sigh of relief. It was her job to keep their small bundle of infinite energy occupied and entertained by any means necessary to give Regina the time to cook dinner. Ava was practically joined at the hip with Regina at any other point. Not by any means did the sheriff not enjoy spending time playing with the child that she and Regina created. It's just that their daughter was so energetic at times that Emma couldn't keep up. Avalon certainly kept both of her mothers on their toes and sometimes even Henry when he came home from college to visit. Emma chuckled and gave Ava a wide smile before replying, "And then Momma learned that guns don't work against ogres." She snatched up the small child as she rose to her feet. "Now, let's go eat before Mommy comes in here with an ogre attitude," she said before carrying the kid into the dining room where Regina was placing food onto the plates on the table.
"I heard that," Regina said in an accusatory tone.
Emma smirked as she sat Ava into a chair with a booster seat. She walked around to her seat opposite from her daughter, stopping momentarily to give Regina a light peck on the lips before taking her seat. Avalon scrunched up her nose in disgust and groaned out, "Ewww! Kisses are gross!"
Regina faked a shocked expression before gasping, "Is that so? Then why is it that you enjoy my kisses at bedtime so much?"
"I dunno what you're talkin' 'bout, Mommy," Ava spouted out in her high pitched childlike voice.
"Regina!" Emma exhaled, "You're giving my kisses away?" The blonde pretended to be heartbroken. "How could you?"
"Perhaps Ava gives better kisses than you," Regina quipped with a smirk.
Emma's eyes widened and she held a hand over her mouth. "I can't believe you would say such a thing."
Ava pointed at her blonde mother and laughed before declaring, "I get all Mommy's kisses. None for you!"
"You guys are meanie heads!" Emma pouted, crossing her arms over her chest while poking out her bottom lip.
"Alright you two," Regina chastised softly with a smile, "It's time to eat."
"Ava...sh-she's fine...I-I can sense her," Emma stuttered as she writhed in pain, "J-just...let me go, Regina...let this end...please."
Regina remain silent for a moment, contemplating what to do next. If Avalon was not in danger of being wiped from existence, then that meant only one thing was for certain. The brunette quickly shook her head, wiping away any consideration that was forming in her mind of letting Emma die. Yes, it would protect her from two decades of pain by watching the former Savior destroy their family, but Regina would not have traded those ten good years with Emma for anything. Regardless of all the evil the King had committed and her empty threats to leave the blonde, she still loved Emma with every bit of her heart and soul. Regina tightened her grip on the blonde and angrily yelled, "Emma Swan, I swear you're the biggest idiot I know!" The Queen paused for a moment to take in a breath. "But you're my idiot and I refuse to let you die." They were both engulfed in Regina's magical smoke, disappearing into thin air.