I am back and I am so sorry for the wait! My junior year of college was by far the hardest yet, and I had absolutely no energy to write anymore. I had the basic idea for this chapter written down, but it still needed a lot of work. Unfortunately I had waited too long and it was deleted. I tried to write again on the bare skeletal version that I had managed to keep safe, but for some reason it just didn't seem good enough. Here is a different version. When I wrote the previous version I had thought to take it one way, but this kept coming and I think I like this version better.

Time had no meaning anymore for The Cursed One. Years of enslavement where stretched behind her in endless suffering, but She well knew that the years ahead under Dalia's control would make those seem like a pleasant dream. What good was immortality? What good was fangs, a werewolf's venom, or claws in the face of the weight of eternal servitude to this woman? Where before she would have had the slightest hope of someday being free, or at least able to have the pleasure of terrifying masters, now it was over. Dalia would have no fear of her new pet. She would have no equal that could kill her. Hope might have a chance if given time, but The Cursed One knew that Dalia could twist her and break her, until she had no thought but to obey. Dalia might do it with kindness instead of from force, but whether through fear or love, one way or another there would be no freedom for Hope, or The Cursed One.

The Cursed One could see it as if it was already happening. Dalia would give Hope the kindness, and She would be the hand of force. Hope would learn to fear The Cursed One, and this would make her turn to Dalia for protection and safety. Hope would come to know Dalia's true nature in time, but it would be too late. The love and trust that was so evident in Hope's eyes for the monster, that was The Cursed One, would turn to fear and hatred. Dalia would so masterfully twist each of them so that they would constantly try to tear each other down. If they banded together there might be a chance to bring her down, but Dalia would make sure that they stayed forever divided. The weapon on one side, and the power on the other.

The Cursed One saw all of this in the course of a matter of seconds, as if someone had gifted her with a foreknowledge of what will be. Whatever might have happened if the siblings had won, was now lost in what was now reality. The weight of powerlessness was crushing her, and She found that she could not bear it. The Cursed One sank to her knees and watched her new mistress with despair, knowing that there was nothing that She could do to change things.

"Now at last, my dear child, you see that there is nothing you can do that will ever defeat me." Dalia said, leaving her protective circle. Despite still holding Freya down, and exerting power over the Mikaelson siblings, Dalia seemed to harness unlimited power, and her exertions did not weaken her in the slightest.

Dalia walked slowly, confidently towards her slave. She came to a stop before the kneeling woman and bent over her, tenderly running her fingers down The Cursed One's face, until she cupped her chin.

"My dear, watch as those that had the most chance, small as it was, die by my hand. Know that this is the end. Once they are dead there will be no one else will be there for you to ally with. My dear girl." Here she walked around The Cursed One until she came to a stop at her shoulder, resting her hand on The Cursed One's head. The Cursed One couldn't stop the shiver that ran through her body, no matter how tender the touch may be. "Can you imagine the power I will have, with Hope and her descendents to power me, and your own fierce nature to protect us? Change, I want to see the monster that hides behind the woman."

Unable to do anything but obey, The Cursed One undressed. She purposefully ignored the gasps of agony from the siblings, as well as the incredulous gaze of Esther. Naked she shifted into her wolf form, for once not gaining any pleasure from it.

"Fight! You must fight! Don't give up now, don't let her win! Please!"

The Cursed One whined, unable to do as Kierra asked.

"If she wins Hope is lost. If you don't do it for her, do it for us!"

"What do you want me to do!" The Cursed One asked silently. "We are powerless to do anything!"

"Do something! Anything!"

"WHAT?!"

"I am sorry, am I boring you?" Dalia asked. It seemed that The Cursed One's inattention was noted, and it irritated the witch. If the situation wasn't so bad She might have smirked at accomplishing it.

"All good dogs must be brought to HEEL." Dalia said, infusing the power of command into the last word.

The Cursed One whined again as she walked over to stand at her mistress' side.

"Good girl." Dalia said, petting The Cursed One on the head. Dalia then started to walk back towards the circle, The Cursed One kept at the side of Dalia, keeping pace with her until they both were inside the circle, which had parted to allow The Cursed One access, then closed once they were inside.

Dalia turned when Esther addressed her, and The Cursed One turned with her. If She was naive she would almost hope that Esther had a credible plan, but The Cursed one was not naive, nor did she believe in a fool's hope. She shuddered as Dalia combed her fingers through The Cursed One's fur in what would be, to anyone else, be seen as a soothing manner, to The Cursed One however it was anything but soothing. She nearly whined again but was able to cut it off before uttering the barest of sounds. She knew that there was nothing she could do, so what was the use of giving voice to her despair? Dalia had won. There was nothing that The Cursed One could do, now or ever.

Thank you all who have reviewed this, and please let me know what you think!

Thank you Lyryenn for your review and I hope this is what you were waiting for.

Black Star thanks for your review as well! As far as Klaus and Dalia being the master of the ring. Dalia was the first master, the one the ring was "coded" for. As such she is the original holder of it and as such has the overall power of it. Klaus was able to become the master because he expanded what was already coded in the ring to include him. So hypothetically he could take charge again, but since the ring also recognizes Dalia as the master, he would have to kill her (temporarily or permanently in order for the ring to go back to him. I hope this makes sense and that this answered some of your questions and if not then I will try to answer them in the next chapter.