I can't thank you all enough. Your ongoing support really keeps me going with this, every follow, favourite, and especially reviews mean so much to me.
Just quickly in one part I've written feet instead of metres (after all it's from Emma's perspective) but for all of us that use the metric system 50 feet is about 15 metres, 100 feet about 30.
So I'm really sorry about this (especially because of the episode last week), and you'll see why:
Most of the ride was made in silence, broken only when Neal muttered, "We probably should have brought more weapons." When they hit the bottom the lift shuddered and David was the first to get out.
"We're in some sort of underground cavern." He stated.
"Yes, thank you for your observation." Gold said sarcastically as he limped out next to him. "Very astute."
"I'm just trying to gather any information I can, we don't know what little thing could help us." David defended.
"Do you hear something?" Mary Margaret whispered suddenly.
The entire group instantly fell silent, listening for anything.
"I hear it," Neal murmured.
"Me too." David added.
Emma strained her ears harder and heard what they were talking about. A shuddering noise that lasted for about three seconds then a whooshing sound, followed by a moment of quiet before the shudder repeated.
"It's almost as if…" She trailed off, unsure of how to phrase it without sounding crazy.
"As if some giant creature were breathing." Gold finished grimly.
"You mean –?!" David exclaimed, and Gold nodded.
"The dragon."
"Geez, melodramatic much." Emma muttered under her breath.
They slowly made their way further into the cavern, passing an empty shell that Emma vaguely recognise as Snow White's coffin from Henry's book.
"Everyone stay alert," Neal ordered. "Watch out for anything suspicious and try not to touch anything."
Just as he finished speaking Mary Margaret let out a squeal, as she stumbled over the uneven ground and flung out a hand to steady herself. Unfortunately her hand found a dark, rough surface that they all thought was part of the wall. That is, until the surface started to move.
"Sorry!" Mary Margaret cried apologetically as the group made a rapid retreat. Neal huffed and Emma could tell he was resisting the urge to roll his eyes.
"Let's just focus – we need a plan!" He shouted.
Before them the beast rose up to reveal itself. Coal black with malicious green eyes, it unfurled two enormous wings and let out a ferocious roar, it's chest glowing a red-gold colour as the monster spurted flames.
"Yeah, the plan is to kill it!" Emma responded, discarding the sword in favour of her gun. She shot at it repeatedly but the bullets just bounced off the scaly hide. Upon seeing that her gun was useless she screamed, "Run!" and none of them needed to be told twice.
They scattered, Mary Margaret, David, and Gold going one way while Emma and Neal ran the other.
"Get to higher ground!" David instructed from across the cavern, voice echoing eerily. Both parties dodged the fire by taking refuge behind pillars, boulders, and any other large structures they came across, working their way steadily upwards. They lost sight of each other for a few minutes, everyone focusing all their attention on avoiding the dragon.
Neal and Emma were about to make a dash to the other side to see if they could locate the others when the dragon burst into view, eyes fixed intently on the two of them as it stomped over, leaving them no choice but to scale the closest went first while Emma attempted to shoot the creature again, but with no luck. "Really?" Was all she said as she chucked it aside.
"Yeah, I wish you'd kept that sword," Neal grunted as he climbed further up, Emma hot on his heels.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I should have realised that the bullet proof giant monster's weakness is a thin piece of metal." She answered sarcastically, causing him to gin despite the situation.
He heard her swear suddenly and the sound of rocks clattering below and quickly turned around, only to see that she'd slipped and slid back a few feet.
Sensing an opportunity the beast lunged forward and Neal searched the area frantically for some form of weapon, seizing the heaviest thing within reaching distance; a large, jagged rock.
He pitched it with as much strength as he could muster and it flew straight for the monster's exposed chest. Instead off piercing the skin, however, the rock was bathed in an icy blue light before being flung across the cavern, where it collided with the wall and dropped to the floor, smoking slightly.
While it didn't kill the dragon it did distract it enough to give Neal time to haul Emma up, and the two made a quick getaway up the narrow path.
"What the hell was that about?" Neal wondered out loud.
"On it's neck, did you see? It has a small box or something tied around its neck. I was watching it when you threw the rock, it gave out a sort of a spark just before that light switched on." Emma answered.
They made it to the top and stopped for breath. They were on the edge of a panel of rock jutting out from the cave wall. A parallel shelf ran across the other wall, barely 50 feet away, and between them was the ground, about 100 feet down.
They held their breath as the dragon prowled the lower floor. Thankfully they were above eye level, and both exhaled in relief as it moved around the corner and out of sight.
Without spoken agreement they both stayed stationary, each knowing that the position they were in was a relatively safe one. There was a minute of shouts, roars, and echoes, presumably from the other three, in which Neal and Emma attempted to catch their breath.
A flash of light on the ground caught Neal's eye and his face lit up as he recognized it. He bumped Emma and when she looked at him in confusion he indicated with a jerk of his head. Emma grinned as she saw it. The sword, lying were Emma had cast it not three minutes ago, just waiting for them.
Before they could think of a plan Mary Margaret appeared at the base of the steep steps on the opposite side to the two of them, and sprinted up followed by David and Mr Gold.
"There you are!" Mary Margaret cried, out of breath.
"Tell you what," David panted, "Coming down here I was a little doubtful, but I definitely believe in magic now!"
"Shhhhh," Emma and Neal hissed in unison. Neal added, "It'll hear you!"
"No, it won't," David grinned, "It's deaf!"
"It's… what?" Emma asked, baffled.
"Stone deaf! Can't hear a thing."
Mr Gold sighed in irritation. "Indeed it is. We were waiting behind a column when we heard movement. Miss Blanchard seemed to think it would be a good idea to call out to it." He emphasised, voice full of disdain.
"I thought it was the pair of you." She muttered sheepishly, cheeks turning a faint pink.
"Anyway, the thing just walked straight past us." David finished in elation.
"Yeah? Well while that's all well and good we've got a problem that just about makes up for it." Neal told them grimly.
They raised their eyebrows and Emma explained, "It's got some kind of collar thing that acts as a force field. Neal almost hit it in the chest with a rock but there was a spark from the collar and a light appeared and then the rock was tossed away."
"What kind of light?" Gold demanded.
"Er – "
"Colour, Swan, colour?! This is important!"
"Blue." Neal answered for her. "Cold, ice blue."
Gold closed his eyes. "I feared as much," he muttered before announcing in a louder tone, "Regina. She's tampered here. This is her doing – I'm sure of it. There is only one thing I know of that fits that description; a Protection Curse."
"Hang on, Protection Curse? Wouldn't protection be a blessing or spell or something?" Emma said skeptically at the same time as Mary Margaret said, "But I thought Regina doesn't have her magic?"
"Looks like she found a way." Gold answered darkly. "As for your question, Miss Swan – "
"No one make any sudden movements." David instructed suddenly. They fell silent as the beast once again made it's way through the trench below them, roaring in frustration at the loss of its victims.
It was only once the danger had passed Gold continued speaking. "A Protection Curse is different to that of spell or blessing because unlike those examples the main purpose of a Protection Curse is not to defend the wearer from harm. Instead, it aims to cause as much damage as possible to those who would attack them. So, if I were to shoot a gun at someone shielded by a Spell the bullets would most likely disintegrate with no harm done, whereas the recipient of a Protection Curse would repel the bullets whilst retaining information on the shooter, to be used against them at a later point."
"But I shot at the dragon…" Emma trailed off, finally understanding.
Gold nodded. "And you are now a target."
"Great," She mumbled sarcastically.
"So all we need to do is get the collar off." David said decisively.
"It has to be someone that's already attacked it," Gold reminded him, "Taking the collar off will not be enough to convince the Curse you're trying to harm the creature, it would be unresponsive to any attempt to take it off. If it's someone whom it has already identified as a threat, however…"
"It would kill them," Mary Margaret whispered, looking towards Emma in horror.
"Most likely," Gold conceded. "Although in doing so it would probably destroy itself."
They stopped talking for moment and the only sounds that could be heard was the distant crashing and thundering of the dragon. Neal already knew what had to be done.
"I'll do it."
There was a pause as what Neal had just offered to do sunk in.
"When it comes past next, I'll jump on it's back and rip the collar off." He stated calmly. Emma couldn't believe what she was hearing. She was going to lose him again, just like that?
For once Gold let his careful composure slip. "No!"
Emma watched as Neal faced him across the chasm and said, "I have to. I know… I know I've said some things – that I did mean, don't get me wrong – I meant every word, but… I want you to know that in the end – I forgive you. Doesn't mean I'm not still mad. But I forgive you."
Gold swallowed, eyes bright with tears that he wouldn't allow to fall. "Don't do this, Bae," He pleaded, "Don't do it, son."
"You were a terrible father. And your papa was a terrible father. And thanks to your stupid curse I've had to be a terrible father. Not anymore. I'm going to make the right choice for once, so that my kids can grow up safe and happy. I'm going to do something no one in our family has done for at least 300 years. I'm going to be a Dad. And if that means throwing myself at a dragon then I'll do it. I have to."
"You can't." Emma spoke up.
"Well, you'd owe me a drink," Neal joked, but upon seeing her serious expression he dropped it and simply repeated, "I have to."
"No, you don't." She countered, refusing to let him go that easily. "I could do it."
"Emma!" She heard Mary Margaret cry out in panic, but she was too focused on Neal to respond.
Neal was shaking his head. "You've got the kids to look after." He argued.
"They're your kids too." She rebutted, "They finally have their dad back. Don't take that away from them."
"It's got to be one of us," he said gently. "And they've been just fine without me for the past six years."
"Both of us then." She said desperately. "We both do it."
Neal just looked at her sadly. "Rosie and Henry are the two most beautiful people I have ever known. They're bright, and happy, and loved. Don't change that. Don't make them grow up the way we did."
"I can't let you go again." She choked out, not even caring that David, Mary Margaret, and Gold could hear her. At this Neal sucked in a deep breath and ran his hands through his hair.
The bangs and clashes of the dragon were no longer so distant and Emma had a feeling that it wouldn't be long before it was back again.
Neal dropped his hands from his head and placed them gently on her shoulders. "Em. You are so much stronger than me. I know you can do anything, no matter how impossible or difficult it seems, because you are strong, and brave, and not afraid to kick some ass." She gave a watery chuckle and he kept talking, "The world doesn't need me, but it sure as hell needs you. I have lived with your death for six years, and I can't live through a single day more. Because in all that time I learnt one vital thing: a world without Emma Swan is not a world worth living in. And believe me, I've been in my fair share of worlds."
The creature was almost in sight now, Emma could see the shadows flickering on the cavern walls as it approached. She was getting desperate – she needed to stop him. He couldn't die, not now, not after she'd just found him again.
Emma was suddenly furious. Who did he think he was? Swooping back into her life just when she was starting to feel okay and reminding her of the hole he'd left in her heart. The monster rounded the corner as she yelled, "You think you can just sacrifice yourself and what? It'll prove you're not a coward? You've never believed it Neal but I know you. I know you better than anyone else, and no one else has ever tried as hard as you do to be a good person. And that makes you the bravest man I've ever met. You don't have to play the hero and save me to prove it." She was shouting just to be heard now.
The ledge was shaking with the force of each step the dragon took, almost directly under them. Emma held Neal's gaze, pleading silently with him not to jump, trying to convey everything she was feeling in that moment.
Neal gave a melancholy smile. "I'm not doing this to save you, Em, I'm doing it because you saved me. So many times, and in so many ways. You made me the braver man. I love you, Emma Swan."
And with that Neal flung himself off the edge of the shelf, hurtling through the abyss towards the monster below.
Don't murder me! I actually had that planned out in detail before Quiet Minds aired. Please review, you guys know I live off feedback!