At Granny's Bed and Breakfast, Neal wakes up to find Tamara out of bed, already dressed, and preparing to go out. He squints with exhaustion as he looks at the time on the clock that reads six a.m.
"How about we sleep in just this once?" He suggests.
"The marathon's in three weeks." Tamara says, amused, as she finishes tying her shoes. "I have to train."
"Come back to bed. I'll give you a workout." He teases as he buries his head into the pillows.
Tamara chuckles as she walks over to him, placing a gentle kiss on his forehead. "I'll see you later."
"Okay. Bye."
As Tamara walks out, Neal attempts to go back to sleep until he's interrupted by the sound of something shattering outside, followed by his father's voice.
Outside, Mr. Gold, who has Lacey by his side, is hovering his foot over Dr. Whale's face, demanding the doctor that he kiss it. "If you won't kiss it, you're gonna taste it anyway." Gold threatens.
"Come on, Gold." Dr. Whale protests, as he lays on the ground. "I didn't do anything."
"You stared at her, and I know how you think. So, kiss…my…boot." He grits.
But before Gold is able to place his foot on the doctor's face, Neal runs up from behind him, restraining him. "What the hell are you doing!?" He shouts at his father.
Seeing the opportunity, Dr. Whale jumps up and storms away. "This doesn't concern you." Gold tells his son. "Let go of me, son!"
Neal pushes his father away, laughing. "Surprised you didn't turn him into a snail." He says, considering Gold's past.
Lacey laughs. "A snail? What are you talking about?"
"Lacey, why don't you go and wait for me in the shop?" Gold hands his girlfriend the keys. "I'll be along shortly." Lacey walks away.
Neal scoffs. "You're unreal, you know that? You spent years looking for me. I come to town. You disappear. You haven't even bothered to meet Tamara."
"Why should I concern myself with her?" Gold wonders, uninterested.
"We're getting married!" Neal exclaims.
"That's never gonna last, not while you carry a torch for Emma."
Neal hesitates for a moment, but he doesn't deny it. "You know, you haven't changed one bit. For a second, I thought you might have. I started to think maybe you were worth my time. I guess I was wrong."
"And yet you're still here." Gold points out.
Neal nods. "Yeah. I am. But you don't deserve my reason. As far as I'm concerned, you can stay the hell away from me." And with that, Neal walks away, leaving Gold to watch him turn away from him yet again without a second look back.
At the Mayoral office, Emma and David bursts into Regina's office, their handguns in tow. They look around, seeing the office empty with no sign of Regina.
"It's okay!" Emma shouts. "She's not here."
Snow and Avia walk in. "So, what's the plan when you find her?" Avia asks, curiously.
"We just want the beans she stole from us." Emma tells her as she investigates Regina's alarm system.
"I don't get it." Snow says, perturbed. "Why would Regina leave her office unlocked?"
Avia walks over to the incubator with a plant inside, which used to contain the beans. "Especially when she's keeping the beans here." David says, stepping next to his daughter.
Snow sighs as she steps up, behind Avia. "Was keeping them here. They're gone."
"Something's not right." Emma says, looking confused. "Regina would never leave evidence like this behind."
"Maybe she already used the beans to get out of Storybrooke." Avia assumes.
"Have you spoken to Nick or Karley today?" Snow asks her daughter.
Avia narrows her eyes up at her mother. "You took my phone, remember?"
Snow closes her eyes, exhaling. "Ah, yes."
"Here." Emma tosses her phone to Avia, who catches it easily.
Avia starts to dial Nick's number when a noise outside the office grabs their attention. David and Emma both reach for the guns when Nick and Karley walk in. Karley gasps, startled. "It's just us." Nick says, quickly, raising his hands.
Emma and David reach back. "Never mind." Avia mutters. "What are you guys doing here?" She asks her friends.
Nick and Karley walk further inside the office, looking around. "We were looking for Regina." Karley tells her.
"But, I guess since you're here, then she's not." Nick adds.
The Charming family look at one another in confusion. "Wait. You're looking for your mom?" Avia asks, surprised.
Nick shrugs. "We haven't seen her since yesterday morning."
"She's been gone all night." Karley states. "We thought we'd check here first before coming to you."
"The security system says the last time someone was in the office was around six this morning." Emma says, reading off the system. "They used an override code to get in."
"Why would Regina need an override code on her own alarm?" David asks.
"She wouldn't."
"You think someone else broke in and took the beans?" Snow wonders.
"Well, we haven't found Regina anywhere and they haven't seen her since yesterday." Emma says, pointing to the two worried siblings.
"So, something must have happened to her." Nick says. Avia places her hand on her friend's shoulder. Even though Nick was still mad at his mom, Avia could see how worried he truly was. After all, Regina is still his mother despite everything.
"We're gonna find her, Nick." Emma assures the boy.
"There's only one person who could overpower Regina." Snow says, shrewdly.
"Gold." David glares.
Emma furrows her brows. "He's too busy with his new/old girlfriend." She reminds them.
Avia looks around the room, seeing them all in deep thought of who could possibly want to harm Regina. "Um." She hesitates. "Well, what if it's – "
Emma looks up at her sister – just as their parents do with one another, she could practically read her sister's mind. "Tamara." They both say in unison.
Snow gives her girls a disapproving look. "Haven't you already gone down that road?" She asks Emma.
"Maybe not far enough." Emma says, firmly.
"Or – " Snow grimaces. " – maybe it's time for you to let it go?"
"August was attacked the day Tamara came to town." Emma recaps. "I don't think that was a coincidence."
"I agree with Emma." Avia says as she walks to Emma's side, looking back at their parents. "I get a bad vibe from her. And I'm pretty good at reading people. It took me a long time to get used to all of this, and, honestly, I'm still not really used to it. But Tamara comes into town and learns about everything in a day, and she barely even reacts – something's not right. No person from the outside would ever just be okay with this."
But Emma could see that despite Avia's attempt to get them on their side, their parents still were having trouble believing Tamara's involvement. "If Regina's in trouble, we can't just drop everything else because of a hunch." David tells them.
"Which is why we're not gonna drop everything else." Emma argues. "Go to Gold. I'm sure he has some kind of magic that can help locate Regina."
Snow nods, agreeing. "Where are you going to go?" She asks her daughter.
"Back to Tamara's room."
At the Storybrooke Cannery Company, Tamara walks inside a room and over to the window which shows a view into another room where Regina is strapped down, lying on a table, with Hook standing over her.
Greg walks up. "Did you get into her office?" He asks Tamara.
"Have I ever let you down?" She asks, complacently. She turns around, looking at her boyfriend. "Look what I found." She opens a pea-pod, revealing two magic beans.
"Are these what I think they are?"
"Magic beans." Tamara confirms. "Neal told me all about them. They open portals."
Greg looks at her with a hint of jealousy to his face. "I bet he told you a lot, huh?"
"Don't be jealous. As soon as we're done, - " Tamara holds up her left hand, showing the engagement ring on her finger. " – this is coming off."
"Yeah, well, you can have this one instead." He holds up a pouch, handing it to her.
Tamara opens the pouch, looking inside at the black diamond. "What the hell is that?"
"I don't know. Regina had it on her."
"I'll send it back with the rest of the data. I think the home office is gonna have a field day with everything we collected so far."
Greg chuckles at her excitement. "I still have one more thing that I have to do."
"Make it quick. We'll be getting our instructions soon."
"Oh, this isn't gonna take long." Greg wheels some sort of machine out of the room.
Inside the room Regina is in, she looks up at Hook, who is still hovering over her.
"Whatever they're offering you, it's not worth it." She tells the pirate.
"Well, considering they're offering to have me kill Rumplestiltskin, I'd say it is." Hook says.
"And you actually trust them?" Regina chuckles. "You don't even know who you're working for."
Greg walks inside, wheeling the equipment into the room. "Good morning, Regina." He greets the Mayor.
"This part of your mission?" She asks, eyeing the machine.
"No." Greg walks closer and places an electrode on Regina's forehead. "This is personal." He says as he continues to place a few other electrodes on her body. "See, this is about my father."
Regina rolls her eyes. "I already told you, he left town."
"Yet he never came to find his only son." Greg says, finding that rather odd. "Look, would you mind lending me a hand?" He asks, chuckling towards Hook. "Preferably your good one."
"Sorry, Mate." Hook shrugs. "Gonna have to say no. When you're interested in killing Rumplestiltskin and not torturing the Queen, find me." Hook walks out, leaving Greg and Regina alone.
"Well, I guess it's just me and you." Greg walks over to the machine, turning it on.
Regina smirks. "Is that supposed to frighten me?"
"Well, it should." Greg places metal clips onto Regina's hands and arms, as she tries her best to look unafraid. "You see, this is how we deal with your kind. And, yes, it's going to be unpleasant. Now, exactly how unpleasant – well, that depends on you." Greg walks back over to the machine – charging it up. "Now, where is my father?"
Regina looks at the man, refusing to answer. Greg turns a knob on the machine and sends a flood of electricity through Regina's body, causing her to writhe in pain.
Neal opens his room door and Emma walks right in, not waiting for his invite. "I need to search you room." She tells him. "For real this time."
"You wanna tell me what this is about, Sheriff?" Neal asks, amused. "Where's your deputy?"
"Where's your fiancé?" Emma asks.
"She's on a run. What do you think she did this time?"
"Regina's gone missing."
"And you think she – " Neal groans in frustration as Emma walks to the closet, searching it. "You're still onto Tamara. You gotta be kidding me. She came to town to support me, her fiancé. She's not a kidnapper."
Emma looks firmly at her ex. "Where'd she go running?"
"The same place she goes every morning – the woods."
"How long she been gone?" Emma wonders as she kneels down to inspect something on the floor.
"Couple of hours." Neal answers. "Does it matter? She's training for a marathon."
Emma brushes her hand over the floor, feeling sand. "If she runs in the woods, then why did she track sand in here?" She asks, standing back up.
"Maybe she likes to run along the beach instead. What does that prove?"
"That she lied to you." Emma states, bluntly, as she walks out of the closet. "If she lied about this, then you can bet she's lied about other things, too."
Neal shrugs. "Maybe she just likes to run on the beach."
Emma arches her brow. "One way to find out."
At Gold's shop, David, Snow, Avia, Nick, and Karley walk in to find Lacey sitting on the counter having a drink.
"Sorry to interrupt the party." David says blatantly.
Gold turns around, unenthused to see the Charming family in his shop. "Well, I certainly don't remembering inviting you. We're closed."
"Not to us." Snow tells him. "We need your help. Regina's missing, and we think she might be in danger."
"Just the way I like her. Now if you'll excuse me – "
"Wait!" Nick jumps in. Gold looks back at the worried boy. "You have to help."
Gold chuckles. "Sorry, dearie. But I don't have to do anything. You should be thrilled your mother has disappeared."
Nick lets out a frustrating sigh. "Well, I'm not."
"Well, that's not my problem." Gold refuses to give in.
Avia looks desperately up at parents. "Whatever your feelings are about Regina, you still owe me a favor." David reminds the imp.
Gold simply puts on a smile as he looks at a confused Lacey. "Lacey, if you could excuse us, I have some business to attend to."
Lacey grabs Gold's hand, allowing him to help her down from the counter. "Make it quick." She says before glaring at the Charming family as she walks past them and out of the shop.
Gold walks behind the counter and begins searching his cabinets. "I'm sure I could whip up something to find Regina, but now, tell me, why do the Charmings want to help the Evil Queen?"
"Because I owe her, after what I did to Cora." Snow tells him.
Gold grabs a tiny wooden container from the cabinet and turns to Snow with a smile before placing the container on the counter. "Never underestimate the power of a guilty conscience."
"What is that?" Avia asks, seeing the small vial that Gold takes out of the container, which contains some sort of transparent liquid.
"This is one of Regina's tears, dearie."
"Why do you have one of Regina's tears?" Snow wonders in confusion.
Gold chuckles. "Because I do." He walks over to the group. "This spell, however, requires two tears."
Snow narrows her eyes at the imp. "You want one from me?"
"Well, just think of a dark moment, dearie – something bleak and hopeless. I know you have a few." Avia looks up at Snow wondering of which dark moment she could possibly be thinking about as Snow's face grows saddened and her eyes begin to water. Gold places the vile underneath Snow's eye, just in time to catch the fallen tear. "Perfect." He whispers. Gold swirls the glowing vial and closes it before he explains to them what to do. "Now, when you drop this into your eye, you will be connected with Regina, wherever she is. Whatever she sees, you'll see. Whatever she feels, you'll feel."
Avia looks at Nick and Karley who share the same look of concern. "How long does the spell last?" David asks.
"Long enough to lead you to her." David accepts the vial. "And with that, I've fulfilled my end of the bargain. Good-bye."
David sighs. "Always a pleasure." He says sarcastically, following his wife and daughter, and her friends, out of the shop.
As Gold replaces the container back into the cabinet, Lacey clears her throat, emerging from the other room. "So, it's true?" Gold slowly turns to face Lacey, knowing he's be caught. "I heard everything." She says, walking closer, obviously intrigued by this. "You really can do magic."
"I think you might wanna pour yourself another drink." Gold tells her, unwilling to tell her truth. Lacey simply nods but does as she is told.
At the apartment, David is holding the vial that contains his wife's and Regina's tears.
He lets out a long sigh. "You don't have to do this, you know." He says as he sits in the chair next to his wife, as the three teens stand at the kitchen counter, anxiously awaiting to see what's going to happen. "You've been through enough already."
"That's why I do have to do it." Snow says strongly. "My heart is dark because of what I did to Regina. If I can help find her, if we could save her, maybe it'll help let some of the light back in."
David stares lovingly at his wife as he puts on a small smile. "Okay." He turns to the kids. "You three should head upstairs."
"Why?" Avia scowls. "I want to be here. They should be here." She points to her friends.
Snow stands and walks over to her daughter. "Avia, we don't know what's going to happen." She say softly. "I will find Regina, and we will come and get you as soon as we have answers."
Avia shakes her head in disbelief. "You can't keep leaving me out. I'm apart of this now. You made me apart of this. I never asked for it."
Nick understood why Snow and David didn't want Avia to watch. He, unfortunately, had experience with magic. And, whatever Gold's potion contained, he was sure it would be hard to watch, especially for his best friend who has already seen so much already. "You promise to come get us as soon as you find out where she is?" He asks Snow.
Snow nods, smiling softly at the boy. "I promise." She looks at her daughter, who is glaring at her friend.
Nick nods and looks at Avia. "Come on, Avia."
Avia rolls her eyes, and pushes past her mother. She runs upstairs with Nick and Karley following. David, who was still sitting down, reaches over and grabs his wife's hand. "She'll be okay." He assures her.
Snow frowns. "I know." She turns around, sitting back in the chair. "I just – "
"I know." David understands. Avia's right. She didn't ask for any of this, and yet, she has it. It wasn't fair. But, unfortunately, there wasn't much they could do except to shield her from they could, when need be. David removes the liquid-filled pipette from the vial and drips the tears into Snow's eye, once she tilts her head back.
Upstairs, Avia opens her bedroom door much to Nick's dismay. "They'll come get us when they're finished, Avia."
Avia glares at her friend. "I'm not just going to sit here, Nick."
"She's right." Karley says, surprising Avia. "This is about Regina. I know you're still upset with her, but I also know you don't want anything bad to happen to her either. Or else, you wouldn't be here right now."
Nick knew he couldn't argue. Of course he cared about Regina. She's his mother. If something happened to her before he could forgive her, he'd regret that for the rest of his life. "Fine." He gives in.
Avia nods and opens the door wider. They walk out and sit at the top of the stairs, looking down at Snow and David. They both look at one another in disappointment, expecting something to happen right away until suddenly Snow lets out a loud gasps and leans forward, feeling everything that Regina is feeling. Avia tries to run down the stairs, but she is held back by her friends. Snow can see Regina strapped down on a table, the electrodes on her head and hands, and Greg turning up the machine which is sending massive, painful surges of electricity through the Evil Queen's body.
Tears develop in Avia's eyes as she watches Snow lean back in her chair, writhing from the unbearable pain she is feeling through Regina. Avia struggles from the hold her friends have on her as she tries to run down the stairs.
David begins to panic. "Snow! Snow!"
"Mary Margaret!" Avia then shouts.
David looks at the stairs with wide eyes at his daughter who was struggling against Nick and Karley's grip on her as she tries to free herself to run towards her pain stricken mother.
Meanwhile, Emma and Neal are walking across the beach, searching for Tamara.
"So, where do you think she'd hiding Regina… a sand castle?" Neal jokes.
"They have to be somewhere." Emma says determinedly.
"Emma, you're letting your emotions get in the way of your judgment."
Emma stops and turns to him. "Do you really think this is all about me trying to break up you and Tamara?" She asks, amused. "What do you wanna hear, Neal? That it killed me you never came looking for me even once I was locked up?"
"Emma – "
"That it didn't hurt that you found Tallahassee with someone else?"
Before Neal can reply, footsteps are heard approaching them. "Neal?" They turn to find Tamara running towards them.
"Hey!" Neal greets his fiancé.
"Hey." Tamara says, breathlessly. "What are you doing down here?"
"We were – we were just – I thought you go running in the woods." He says, confused.
"Yeah, I start in the woods, but then I run along the beach." Tamara says, looking curiously at the two. Emma forces a smile, finding this all rather convenient. "Everything all right?"
"Regina's missing." Emma informs her.
Tamara fakes a shocked reaction. "Oh, my gosh. That's terrible."
"I thought maybe she was down here, but I was wrong."
"Well, I'm sure she'll turn up somewhere. Let me know if I can help at all." Emma smiles, gratefully, as Tamara kisses Neal on the cheek. "I'll see you later." She tells him before she runs off.
Emma begins to walk away. "Oh, Emma." Neal tries to stop her, but she ignores him. "I wanted to go to jail for you." He admits.
Emma sighs, turning to look at Neal. "Neal – "
"It kills me that I let August talk me into letting you go." He says as he walks closer to Emma.
"I don't wanna hear it." Emma groans.
"No, okay, I have to say it. I wanted to look for you. I just – I was too afraid."
"Of what?"
"That you would never forgive me, cause I never forgave myself. There hasn't been a day that's gone by that I don't regret having left you. I'm sorry, Emma, for everything."
Emma smiles, appreciatively. "Me, too."
They continue to stare awkwardly at one another before continuing their walk along the beach.
Inside the cannery, Tamara is walking around a tortured and weak Regina, who is still strapped down on the table.
"Everything's taken care of." She says to Greg.
"They bought it?" Greg asks, surprised.
"As far as Emma and Neal are concerned, I'm just running on the beach. How are things going with the Queen?" She asks, earning a dark glare from the Queen herself.
"You know, she's not exactly cooperative, but that's all about to change." Greg says as he fiddles with a couple of knobs on the equipment. "Right, Regina?" He activates the device, sending another electrical surge through Regina's body. Regina begins to cringe and convulse from the pain vibrating throughout her entire body.
"You have no idea who you're dealing with." Regina says, weakly, once Greg hits another button, stopping the electricity.
"Actually, no, you have no idea who you're dealing with."
Regina exhales, amused. "A couple of fools in over their heads who go around stealing magic."
"Stealing magic." Tamara chuckles. "That's what you think we're here to do?"
"We're not here to steal magic." Greg tells her. "We're here to destroy it."
Regina scowls in confusion. "Magic does not belong in this world." Tamara adds. "It's unholy. We're here to cleanse this land of it."
Regina laughs. "You think you can destroy magic? Just the two of you?"
Greg and Tamara glance at once another. "Well, who said there's only two of us?" Greg asks. "Oh, we're everywhere, Regina. See, after I left Storybrooke, as a boy, I was babbling about magic, about what I had seen, and what had happened to my father. You know, most folks, they wrote me off. But some didn't. And they found me."
"'They'?" Regina questions.
"Believers. People that know that magic is real."
"And that it doesn't belong in this world." Tamara adds. "And are willing to do something about it."
"This little quest of yours to cleanse the world of magic – it's not gonna work." Regina informs the two.
"No, of course it will." Greg says, undoubtedly. "We've done it before, and we'll do it again. Do you think that Storybrooke is the first time that magic has crossed over?"
"Magic has been doing its damage for a long time." Tamara says.
"And people like us – " Greg points to himself and Tamara. " – we're here to stop it." He presses the button on the machine, sending another wave of terrible pain Regina's way.
Back in the apartment, Snow is unconscious after having suffered through one of Regina's torturings.
"Why isn't she waking up?" Avia panics as she and her friends stand on the side, looking helplessly down at Snow.
David cradles the side of Snow's head and begins to stroke the other side of her face. "Snow?" He calls out to his wife, attempting to wake her up. Snow starts to come to, looking weakly up at her husband. "Are you okay?"
"It was awful." Snow whispers. "The worst pain I've ever felt. Wherever Regina is, she's powerless. She can't fight back."
"Could you see where she was?" He asks as he sits back down in front of her. "Could you see who was keeping her there?"
Snow holds onto her head, exhaling. "I just remember pain and screaming." She says quickly.
"Okay, okay. Okay." David says, soothingly. "Concentrate. The smallest detail might lead us to her."
Snow begins to breathe heavily, shaking her head. "I don't know."
Avia walks up, placing a gentle hand on her mother's shoulder. Snow looks up, not having realized her daughter and her friends were standing there. She looks up at Avia and could see she was trying her hardest to stay strong, considering what she just witnessed. But she was, instead, sending an encouraging smile to her mother. "You can do it." Avia tells her softly.
Snow places her hand on top of her daughter's as she begins to remember. "My hands were tied down. And my legs – and it was cold, and it smelled weird, like…sardines. I don't know." She exclaims, painfully. "I wish I could remember more."
David and Avia share a look as Snow drops her head down. Karley turns to look at her brother, but he's no longer standing behind her. She furrows her brows in confusion. "Nick?" Snow, David, and Avia look her way. "Nick?"
"Where'd he go?" Avia wonders.
"I don't know." Karley frowns. "He was standing right here."
The girls then run upstairs. "Nick?" Avia shouts.
"So, she didn't see anything?" Emma asks David, over the phone, as she and Neal are walking down the docks.
"Not much." David says. "She could sense Regina was in pain. It was cold. She was strapped down."
The girls then come running back down. "He's not up there." Avia tells him.
"What's going on?" Emma asks, hearing her sister's voice.
David sighs. "Nick is missing. He was just here, but he disappeared while Snow was describing everything."
"He must have went looking for Regina." Emma realizes. "Did she see anything else?"
"Uh, she said she could smell sardines."
Emma looks across the pier to the Storybrooke Cannery Co. "I think I know where Nick went. Get down to the docks right now." She hangs up. "I was right." She says to Neal. "Tamara was not down here for a run. She was in there – " Emma points. " – with Regina."
"Where did he go?" Avia asks.
"I have to get to the docks." David stands up and grabs his jacket.
"Where are you going?"
"Where's my brother?" Karley exclaims.
"I have to go to the docks."
And without a second thought, Avia and Karley shoot out of the apartment. "Avia!" David and Snow shout.
In the pawn shop, Mr. Gold takes a clear bottle of liquid and waves his hand over it, turning it green.
Lacey chuckles. "So, why didn't you tell me sooner?" She wonders as she takes a closer look.
"Because magic always comes with a price." Mr. Gold recites. "Tends to drive away the people I care about most."
"Well, then you've been caring about the wrong people. What else can you do?"
Mr. Gold grins before he raises his hand and a beautiful necklace appears out of thin air. "Anything." He places the necklace around Lacey's neck. "There are many perks to being the dark one."
"Immortality being one of them, right?" She asks, curiously. Mr. Gold nods. "Could you keep me young?"
"Yeah."
Lacey wraps her arms around Gold's neck. "Cause then we can be together forever. Nothing can keep us apart." When Gold doesn't say anything, Lacey looks back at him, perplexed. "What?"
"There is one thing."
"What is it?"
"Immortal means to live forever." Gold states. "It doesn't mean one can't be killed. There was prophecy that someone might be my undoing."
"Well, do you know who this someone is?" Lacey asks. Mr. Gold nods. "Then get rid of them. Stop them."
"It's complicated. Something's standing in my way."
"I thought you were a man who wouldn't let anything stand in his way."
Mr. Gold grabs Lacey around her waist, pulling her towards him, earning a flirtatious giggle from the girl. "I am."
Neal and Emma, who is holding out her handgun, walk cautiously into the dark Storybrooke Cannery Co., and approach a doorway that leads to more heavy machinery.
"You sure you wanna be here?" Emma asks Neal.
"I'm not gonna leave you alone in this place." Neal tells her.
"If something does go down with Tamara, I need to know you've got my back."
"Emma, if Tamara is hiding Regina here in her evil lair by the docks, yeah, I got your back." He says sarcastically.
Emma keeps her gun aimed forward, as they continue to walk through the building, when they hear a noise. Emma gasps and starts to run to the nearest pipe, leaning against it. They hear a sound of a door opening, so Emma runs towards it, aiming her gun at David, who's also aiming one at her. Snow, Avia, and Karley are standing behind him. They all sigh in relief. "What the hell, guys?" She asks her parents.
"Here." David hands his daughter a walkie-talkie. "So that doesn't happen again."
"Why are they here?" She asks, looking at her sister and Karley.
"Nick is here, Emma. He has to be." Avia tells her.
Emma rolls her eyes. "Fine. You four take the basement. We'll search the main floor. Regina's gotta be here somewhere."
"Come on." Snow grabs the girls' hands and follows David out of the room.
"Time to go." Tamara says to herself as she watches the gang on her laptop through security footage. She starts to pack up her things while knocking on the window that looks through into the next room where Greg and Regina are. Greg walks to the doorway, meeting Tamara. "They found us."
"Who, Emma and Neal?" Greg asks. "I thought that you took care of them."
"Yeah, so did I. We need to go."
Greg shakes his head. "I need more time with her."
"Greg, if you get caught, this whole thing is blown."
"We wouldn't even know about this town if it wasn't for my dad. I'm not leaving until I find out where he is." He says stubbornly.
Tamara watches as Greg walks back to the torture machine. "Fine." She begrudgingly agrees. "Meet me at the rendezvous point when you're done." She walks away.
Greg turns up the knob on the machine. "I'm moving up the timeline." He informs Regina. "Now, I'm gonna give you one last chance. Tell me where my father is." Regina remains silent. "Okay, time's up."
"Wait." Regina says, faintly.
"Where is he?" He asks hurriedly.
Regina gives him a sick smile. "Dead." She finally answers. "I killed him." Greg steps back, his face dropping glumly. "The minute you ran away – "
"No, you're lying to me."
"Don't believe me? Go see for yourself. I buried his body at your campsite. I doubt he gets many visitors there. Now go ahead and kill me. I just wanted to see the look on your face when I – " She is cut off when Greg violently hits the machine, sending a full charge of electricity through Regina, causing her to scream out in pain.
Greg leaves the machine on as he walks away, letting the electricity continue to surge through Regina's body in hopes of killing her. Nick runs in, looking horrified as he hears his mother's painful shrills. "Mom!" He shouts. He runs to the machine and clicks it off. "Mom!" Nick hurries over to Regina, who seemed to be having trouble staying awake. "Mom!"
Regina narrows her eyes weakly at her son. "I'm sorry, Nicholas." She says quietly.
Tears threaten to escape the boy's eyes as he watches Regina give up. "I forgive you!" He says quickly. "I forgive you! You have to stay awake!" He starts to unwrap the ties that are binding Regina's arms and legs down. "Mom!" But Regina's body begins to give up, and she closes her eyes. "No! Help! Help!" Nick begins to shout.
David, Snow, Avia, and Karley run in. "Nick!" Avia exclaims.
"Regina!" Karley gasps.
Snow looks Regina over. "Help her." Nick pleads, pitifully.
"David." Snow grabs her husband's attention. David was searching the area for the person responsible. "We need to get her help, or she'll die."
David places his gun back into his holster. "We gotta get her to Mother Superior. Emma?" He calls out to his daughter through the walkie-talkie. "You gotta block the exits."
"Already on it." Emma says on the other end. "You guys all right?"
"Oh, we're fine. We found Regina."
"She was with that Mendell guy." Nick tells them.
David looks up, surprised. "Uh. It was Greg Mendell, Emma."
Once Emma and Neal walk into another room, Emma is shocked at the mention of the new guy. "Greg Mendell." She repeats to Neal.
"So, I was right." Neal shrugs. "It wasn't Tamara."
Suddenly, Emma is hit on the back of the head by a large metal pole and falls to the floor. Neal turns around to see Tamara. "Actually – " Tamara picks up Emma's gun. " – it was." She aims the gun at Neal. "I just had some help."
Neal raises his hands in the air. "What are you doing, Tamara?" He exclaims.
"I have to keep magic out of this world, Neal. It doesn't belong here. You more than anyone should understand that. It's a poison."
Neal's face falls realizing that Emma's been right all along. "You've been lying to me. How long have you been lying to me?"
"This is more important than any – "
"How long!?" Neal demands loudly.
"Since I spilled coffee on you." Tamara answers.
"It wasn't an accident. You planned it all. None of it was real."
"Neal, you're a good man. I know that." She says, still aiming the gun at him. "So, please try to understand. I had a job to do – an important one, one I think you can agree with."
"You never loved me."
"No."
Neal nods as he slowly approaches her. "I can't let you leave here, Tamara."
"Neal, please don't make me." Tamara fires the gun anyway, leaving no room for Neal to back down, shooting him in the side. He stumble backwards and falls to the floor. She walks closer and aims the gun to his face. "I'm sorry, Neal." She says, emotionless.
"You should be!" Emma runs over, kicking the gun out of Tamara's hand, knocking it to the floor. She then punches Tamara in the face and throws another fist which is blocked by Tamara's arm. Tamara throws Emma against the wall before Emma turns back around and grabs Tamara by her hair, pushing her against the wall and slamming her face into it. As the two continue to battle, Neal begins to kneel over in pain from the bullet that's lodged in his side. Tamara throws several kicks at Emma which Emma successfully blocks. Tamara then sticks her arm around and grabs Emma's neck, putting her into a headlock and kneeing Emma in the stomach. Emma cries out in pain as she notices the gun on the floor. Taking this opportunity, Emma lifts Tamara over her shoulder and slams her into the ground before running and picking up the gun, aiming it at Tamara, who starts to sit up. "It's over."
"No. It's not." Tamara grabs something from her pocket and throws down the magic bean, which rolls under Emma's feet, activating. Emma gasps and steps back as the bean glows, opening up a portal. She refused to fall down another one of those, so Emma jumps up and hangs onto a metal pipe that immediately begins to bend. Neal, having been through one of those as well, not knowing where it leads to, starts to scoot away from the portal. "Bye." Tamara backs away and walks out of the cannery.
Emma starts to cry out as she dangles over the opening of the portal. Neal, who is clutching his bullet wound, crawls back towards the portal, hoping to help Emma. "Emma!" Emma, having no choice, lets go of the pipe. "I got you." Neal catches her and pulls them both away from the edge.
"We gotta get you to a hospital." Emma tells him as he sets her down. Suddenly, the floorboards begin to snap from the power of the portal and Neal begins to fall in. "Neal!" Emma falls to the edge, holding tight to Neal's hand.
"Emma!" Neal shouts as he dangles inside the portal. "You can't hold both of us!"
"I'm not letting go of you!" She attempts to move backwards, but she's unable to.
"You have to."
"Neal, you're shot! If you fall through that portal, you'll die no matter what world you land in!"
"No, but, Emma, Avia needs you. She can't lose you again, and I won't let her."
"Don't let go." Emma cries. "I need you. I love you."
"I love you, too." They smile at one another through dreadful tears as Neal slips his hand out of hers and falls into the swirling green portal.
"No!" Emma screams. The portal then dissipates, taking Neal and leaving nothing behind except for a large hold in the floor. Emma lays on the floorboards, hanging over the hole, looking down at nothing. She then closes her eyes, allowing more tears to fall down her redden cheeks, devastated.
In the woods, Greg Mendell is digging a shovel in the soil where Regina claims to have buried his father. As he digs deeper, he eventually hits something hard in the ground. Greg's face grows worried as he drops to his knees and begins to rifle through the dirt with his hands before discovering Kurt Flynn's skull.
"Dad." Greg says, shakily standing to his feet, appalled at the sight of his father's corpse.
At the apartment, Snow, David, and the kids are watching Mother Superior wave her wand over Regina, who was still unconscious, as she lays on the Charmings' bed.
"Now that the cuff is off, she's gonna be okay." Mother Superior tells them. "Given time and rest. Her magic will return."
Avia gently shoves Nick. "You could have gotten killed."
Nick shrugs, looking back at his mom. "I know." He agrees. "But I couldn't lose another parent." He falls on the other side of the bed, staring down at Regina. Karley steps up from behind and places her hand on her brother's shoulder.
The front door opens and Emma steps through, disheveled, and staring blankly as her parents approach her. Avia stays behind, watching from the bedroom. "What happened?" David asks. Emma remains silent. "What is it?"
"Where's Neal?" Snow asks.
Emma looks back at her parents with tearful eyes. "He's gone." She says in a saddened tone. "She killed him."
Emma is sitting on the stairs with David sitting by her side, trying comfort his daughter the best way that he knew how, as Avia watches quietly from the bedroom.
"Emma." He places his arm around her. "I'm so sorry." Avia had never seen her sister in this state before. She's always been the strong one – at least in front of her. It was odd that she was seeking comfort from their father, never knowing of Emma letting anyone in except for herself and Neal. She started to wonder if this is how it was when Emma lived in the Enchanted Forest for the first eight years of her life. Did their father wrap her in his arms like he's doing now? Did Emma willingly seek comfort from her parents, knowing they'd make it better no matter what? It was odd to see. And then there's Neal. Neal was – is Emma's first love. She's the only man Avia had ever seen Emma be giddy around – willing to do whatever for. So, she wasn't surprised to see her sister in deep devastation over the lost of the man. The man Avia had been angry with for the last four years of her life due to the fact that he is the reason she and Emma were separated from each other for a year. The only contact were letters that neither one was sure the other received. She hated Neal for so long. But, now, all Avia wanted was for Neal to be there, putting a smile back on her sister's face. Avia continues to watch her father and sister as they sit together on the stairs. Feeling Emma shake under his touch, David leans down, placing a kiss onto his daughter's head.
Inside the bedroom, Snow is sitting on the edge of the bed, dabbing a cool towel over Regina's forehead. David walks up and sees that Nick and Karley have fallen asleep on the other side of the bed.
Regina starts to wake, looking up at Snow. "You – You saved me?" She asks in disbelief.
Snow nods her head towards Nick. "Technically, your son did. But we got you out of there and back here to Mother Superior, who healed you."
Regina turns her head to look at the sleeping teens. She smiles, now remembering her encounter with her son before she passed out. "You really think we'd let you die?" David asks her.
Regina takes in a deep breath, exhaling heavily. "Where are they?" She asks about Greg and Tamara. "Where are Greg and Tamara?"
"They got away."
"So, they still have it." Regina utters, worried.
David and Snow look on, confused. "Still have what?" Snow asks.
In the woods, Tamara is walking through, holding the black diamond fail-safe in her hand. She approaches Greg, who is reburying his father.
"Sorry about your father."
"Me, too." He says. Tamara hands him the diamond. "Do the folks back at the home office know anything about it?"
"Yeah." Tamara nods. "They did. And you're never gonna believe what it does."
"A trigger?" David asks firmly, trying to understand.
Regina glares up at David as she places a gentle hand on her son's cheek. "That will destroy Storybrooke." She says more quietly.
"No." Snow says, refusing to believe it. She turns to the living room where Avia and Emma are sitting.
"I had a fail-safe built into the curse."
"Then why exactly were you carrying it around?"
"She was gonna destroy us, Snow." David answers for Regina.
"I was going to use the beans to take Nicholas and Karley back to the Enchanted Forest." Regina tells them.
"And in the process, kill all of us." Snow says, horrified.
"You wanna discuss justification? You were going to abandon me. Or shall we discuss the more pressing issue? Which is that I no longer control the trigger."
"What are we supposed to do with it?" Greg asks.
"They want us to move to the next phase." Tamara tells him.
"Already?"
"Yeah. There's only one way to get what we all want." She takes the diamond from the Greg. "We have to blow Storybrooke off the map."
In town, Mr. Gold is walking down the street when Snow and David approach him.
"Mr. Gold, we have some news we need to share with you, and it's not good." Snow solemnly tells the man.
Gold continues to walk, raising his hand up at the Charmings. "Not interested."
"It's about your son." David informs the imp, who stops walking at the mention of Neal.
"What about him?"
"Tamara shot him."
Gold looks back at the two, plundered by the news of his son, who he just had an argument with that morning. "What? He's dead?"
"They used a bean to open a portal." David explains. "Neal was hurt so badly, he fell through." Gold gasps, stumbling back. "He's gone."
"Bae wasn't supposed to die." Gold says, feeling guilty.
"Greg and Tamara – they took something from Regina – a magical trigger. A fail-safe in the curse that can destroy Storybrooke."
"If they activate it, it's a self-destruct." Snow adds. "Everyone not born in this world will die."
"I know this is hard, but we need your help."
Gold shakes his head, refusing. "No."
"They killed your son in cold blood, and you don't wanna stop them?" David asks in disbelief.
"They didn't kill my son." Gold says, tearfully. "I did. I brought magic to this world to find Bae. And now he's dead. Magic always has a price, and this – this is it. But I'm prepared to pay it."
"But we'll die." Snow tells him. "You'll die."
Mr. Gold nods, understanding. "No, I've made my peace with that." Snow and David stare at the imp, taken aback, as Mr. Gold turns around and walks away.
Down in the mines, Greg and Tamara, along with Captain Hook, are walking through, searching for the right place to activate the diamond.
"It's just ahead." Greg says as he follows the map on his phone.
"You sure whoever's in charge of you guys doesn't want you to die in a mine collapse?" Hook asks, skeptically.
"Just keep moving." Tamara glares.
"Who is telling you what to do?" Hook continues to probe curiously.
"You know what? That's not your concern." Greg tells him as he walks ahead. "It's not ours, either."
"Not your concern? So, you're telling me you don't know who commands you?"
Tamara sighs, heavily. "Unlike you, Hook, we believe in something. We have faith in the sacredness of our cause."
"We're here." Greg tells them as he approaches the dwarves' pickaxes.
"So, your sacred cause is pilfering a dwarf's pickax?" Hook asks, sarcastically.
Greg picks up Happy's axe and walks over to the two. "Regina had this in her pocket when you turned her over to us." Tamara says, showing Hook the diamond.
"It's a trigger." Greg adds. "And this axe, according to our people, is what activates it."
"You're going to destroy an entire town and kill everyone in it – "
"Yeah, including your enemy." Greg interrupts Hook. He grabs a rock from the side wall, and places it in the middle of the tracks.
"Rumplestiltskin won't be immune to this?" Hook asks.
"None of your kind will be." Tamara assures him. "Once this thing gets activated, nothing can shut it off."
"This whole town will revert to the forest it was." Greg tells him. "So, tell us, Hook. We're willing to die for our cause. Are you willing to die for yours?"
The pirate stares blankly at Greg before he smiles. "Absolutely."
Tamara places the diamond on the rock, and Greg lifts the pickax in the air before bringing it down and stabbing the diamond in one swing. The diamond glows blue and begins to hover above the rock. It then lets out a burst of blue energy and Greg, Tamara, and Hook quickly evacuate the mines.
Up above, the entire town begins to rumble, and a glowing bright blue light escapes the clock tower as vines extend from the building and wrap themselves around it.
Inside the apartment, feeling well enough, Regina stands from the bed as Nick and Karley watch from the side.
"Are you sure you're feeling better?" Karley asks.
Regina smiles down at the girl. "I am." She looks at Nick, who is holding the same worried look. "I promise. Now, how are you both doing?"
Karley and Nick share a look with one another. "You scared us." Karley admits. "We thought we were losing another parent."
Regina smiles softly. They were finally considering her as a parent. She leans down, looking both teens in their eyes. "You could never lose me."
Suddenly, Emma, David, Snow, and Avia come barging through the front door just as the town begins to shake and valuables begin to fall from the shelves. Regina wraps her arms securely around Nick and Karley as Emma does the same with Avia, and David and Snow grab onto one another. They all look around in confusion once the rumbling stops. "What was that?" Avia asks as she looks around the group with wide eyes.
They all turn to Regina. "The diamond was activated." She says, fearfully.
"So, we're all gonna die." Nick says as Regina squeezes him close.
David and Snow look anxiously at one another. "We're not gonna let that happen. You did this." Emma accuses Regina. "Now, make it stop."
"I can't. There's no way." Regina stresses.
"Well, figure it out." Emma demands, angrily. "It's your fault."
"I can't!"
"Stop!" Avia shouts. She looks up at Emma. "We're not going to solve anything if we're at each other throats."
"From the mouths of babes." They all turn to see Hook walk through the front door. "I'd say the lass has a point."
David suddenly reaches back and punches Hook square in the face. "For the last time we met." He pulls out his gun from his holster. "And tell us why you're here before I use something else other than my fist."
"I think threatening to kill me is a bit redundant when we're all about to die anyway." Hook glares at the Prince.
"No thanks to you." Emma tells him. "Regina just told us you were working with Tamara and Greg to get your revenge."
"Well, that was before they told me I had to die to get it."
Emma looks at her parents. "We don't have time for this." She says, impatiently. "We have a real problem."
"Which is why I'm here, cause staring death in the face has made me realize if there's one thing I want more than my revenge, it's my life. So, should we start this thing now and then resume bickering?"
Regina steps up. "There is no stopping it." Avia looks up at Snow, who places her arm around her daughter, pulling her close. "And the best thing I can do is slow it down, but that will only delay the inevitable."
"It'll give us the time we need." David says.
Snow looks up at her husband, perplexed. "The time for what?"
"To steal back the beans." David says, determined. "Use them to get everyone back into the Enchanted Forest before Storybrooke is gone."
"How?" Emma asks. "We don't even know where Greg and Tamara are."
"Well, I do." Hook says. "I can help."
"Help yourself. You'll just take them and leave us all behind." Avia glares at the pirate.
Hook smirks, looking at Emma. "She has a mouth like her big sis, I see."
Emma rolls her eyes. "Why should we even trust you?"
"No, we won't have to." David tells her. "I'll go with him. If he tries anything, I'll shoot him in the face."
Hook grins. "Quite hostile, aren't we?"
"Just being clear."
"I'll take Regina to slow down the diamond, give you guys time." Emma says.
"I'll take the kids and gather everyone." Snow says.
"Wait." Avia stops her sister before they can walk out of the apartment. "Emma…"
Emma could see the worry in her sister's eyes, and she knew exactly what she was thinking. She bends down and brings Avia into her arms. "It's going to be okay."
"You promise?" Avia mumbles tearfully into Emma's shoulder as she holds her sister tight.
Emma pulls back, cupping Avia's face with her hands. "Have I ever lied to you?"
Avia smirks. "Not on purpose."
Emma chuckles before placing a kiss on her sister's forehead. "Come on. Let's save our family." Avia puts on a smile and nods as she and Emma walk out, following their parents.
At the pawn shop, Mr. Gold steps out from the back to find the dwarves ransacking his shop.
"A sure sign of impending doom." Gold says, making himself known. "Looters."
Leroy places a cup down on the counter. "It ain't looting if the stuff you find's already yours. We need Sneezy's drinking stein. We can bring his memories back."
"Oh, can you?" Gold asks, appearing skeptical.
"Mother Superior finally figured it out." Leroy explains, showing Mr. Gold the tube of blue liquid. "He needs to drink this out of his old stein – something important to him."
"So, she found a solution to the memory problem? Today? In the nick of time before we all die?"
"Die?" Mr. Clark a.k.a Sneezy asks, looking confused. "Who's dying?"
Leroy glares at the imp. "She's been working on it all along. Then when she had to transform August back to Pinocchio, she found the ingredient she needed. A hair from Pinocchio's head. Someone who returned to who he should be – someone who wasn't cursed."
"So, you're gonna wake your friend up – " Gold points to Mr. Clark. " – to tell him he's about die?"
"I don't want that." Mr. Clark says, horrified.
"Shut it, Clark." Leroy exclaims before turning back to Gold. "He wants to know who he is and be with his family, no matter how much time he has left."
Mr. Clark scoffs. "Not if I'm gonna die."
"Let's take him back to Granny's. Do it there."
Mr. Gold watches as they escort Sneezy out of the shop. Leroy then approaches Gold with the tube of the potion. "I asked her to make a second dose. This is for you."
"Well, what am I supposed to do with that?" Gold wonders, though he knows exactly what Leroy wants him to do with it.
"Belle once helped remind me who I was. I've never forgotten. I wanna return the favor. Don't let her die as Lacey."
Mr. Gold accepts the potion and Leroy turns around, running out to catch up with his brothers. Lacey then walks in, having heard the commotion. "What was all that about?"
Mr. Gold places the potion in his pocket before turning to his girlfriend. "Oh, that was nothing." He says as he walks past her and into the other room.
Over at the cannery, Greg is standing outside, pouring files from a binder into a trash fire, burning them. He tosses the binder into the back of his truck and runs back inside the building.
David then pulls up and he and Hook jump out of the truck. "Over there." Hook tells him just as the ground begins to shake again. "Time's running out!"
"Oh, is that what that means?" David asks sarcastically.
In front of City Hall, Avia is sitting on the bench, watching as a crowd of people run every which way, preparing for their return home. She watches as Snow tries her best to lead them in the right direction before she looks down at the book in her lap – the fairytale book her mother gave to her on her second day in Storybrooke – a book Avia never thought would ever mean so much to her. This book, even before the curse, brought her into a world full of adventures and brought a whole new light into the fairytales she thought she knew. But, after the curse, it continued to bring her adventures, not only from inside the book, but it brought everything to life right in front of her. It brought Avia her family and her friends. It taught her how to open up – how to let down the walls she worked so hard to build up. It taught her how to love. And now, after everything she worked so hard for, she may possibly never have any of that ever again.
"This book can still bring you hope, Avia."
Avia looks up, as a tear slides down her cheek. "How?" She asks her mother. "How can I still have hope when I may be losing everything today?"
Snow wipes away her daughter's tears before wrapping her arm around her little girl, pulling her close. "Because I still do."
Avia shakes her head. "I'm sorry." She says, her voice breaking. "I can't. I'm not strong like you and David, or even Emma. I've lost so much already. And I just found you. We just started to become a family, and now, I'm losing you again. I'm losing myself." Avia drops her head.
Snow quickly wipes away her own tears before she gently grabs Avia's chin, lifting her head up – green eyes looking into green eyes. "I find my hope every time I look at you, Emma, and your father. The three of you are my hope to moving forward – to never giving up. In these last seven months, and those five minutes I had with you and Emma before you were taken away, have made me the happiest I have ever been."
Avia smirks. "Even when I was being a sucky daughter?"
Snow chuckles, dropping her forehead down on her daughter's. "Even then." She teases. "But you could never be anything but amazing, even when you are feeling at your worse. I wouldn't trade these last few months for anything."
"I don't want to lose you." Avia admits as more tears begin to fall.
"Oh, baby." Snow sighs as she pulls Avia to her chest and rests her chin on top of her daughter's head. They've come way too far to have this break them apart. "No matter what happens, I need you to know that nothing could ever break this family apart. We will always be with each other. Always. No curse, villain, or – "
"Fail-safe?"
"Or fail-safe will ever stop us from being a family."
"Do you really think Regina will be able to slow it down long enough for us to open a portal?" Avia asks.
Snow places her free hand over her daughter's that is resting on top of the fairytale book. "All we can do is hope."
Avia closes her eyes, resting her head on Snow's chest, as tears continue to fall. "Something's not right." Avia whispers, suddenly.
Snow pulls back, furrowing her brows, as she look down at her daughter. "What's wrong? Is it your head?"
Avia frowns. "No. I don't know. But something doesn't feel right."
Snow continues to look worried as she holds Avia at arms length.
Inside the cannery, David and Hook are walking amongst the machinery, searching for Greg and Tamara.
"So, tell me, Hook, all this time, it's been about revenge for you?" David asks inquisitively. "Why is that suddenly so important to you that you survive?" Hook looks back at David, staying silent. "I know what I'm fighting for – my family. What are you fighting for?"
"Myself." Hook answers honestly. "That's plenty of motivation, I can assure you." The two of them hear something around the corner. "Quiet." Hook says lowly.
David pulls out his gun and steps forward, leading Hook into a room. They walk from behind a barrel and spot Greg Mendell. "The beans – give them to me."
Greg sets his bags down and casually retrieves the beans from his pocket. "You mean these?"
Tamara emerges from behind the corner with a gun and fires at the men. The bullet hits a barrel beside David, causing him to stumble backwards into them. Greg tries to make a run for it, but Hook tackles him down, which causes the jar the beans are in to fall to the floor. David jumps up and chases after Tamara, who runs out of the room. As Greg and Hook wrestle on the floor, the pirate punches Greg in the face and Greg screams out. Hook attempts to reach for the beans with his hook, but Greg is determined to stop him, grabbing Hook and pulling him back. Outside the room, David continues chasing after Tamara, finally catching up with her. She runs into another room, but fortunately trips, dropping her gun. David walks towards her with his gun drawn. She quickly stands up to face him just as Greg runs out, suddenly, and tackles David to the ground. Tamara attempts to grab David's gun, but Greg stops her. "No! Come on. We got what we need."
As they run out, Hook runs up and stops David from running after them. "What are you doing!?" David exclaims, pulling away from the pirate. "They've got the beans."
"Not all of them! I snagged one." Hook shows him the bean.
"Where are the rest?"
Hook puts the bean in his pouch. "Who cares? All we need is one." David tries to go after Tamara and Greg again, but Hook grabs his arm. "Hey! Live to fight another day, Mate."
David furiously shrugs Hook off him, glaring at the pirate. "I'm not your mate." He grabs Hook's pouch and goes running through the cannery with it; Hook follows.
Emma and Regina are walking through the mines, searching for the trigger. Emma frowns. "I can feel it. It's like the oxygen's being sucked out of the air."
"Not the oxygen." Regina tells her, frightfully. "The magic." They turn the corner and see the blue-glowing black diamond hovering above ground. "There it is. Once it stops glowing, its destruction is achieved, and then, well, then we'll see the real carnage." They walk closer, standing on either side of the diamond. "I'll try to contain its energy as long as I can."
"It won't be long." Emma says, trying her best to sound hopeful. "We'll have the bean soon. Then we can get the hell out of here."
Regina shakes her head, looking, however, hopeless. "Slowing the device… it's going to require all the strength I have." She explains.
Emma then realizes what Regina is trying to tell her. "You're not coming with us, are you?"
Regina look down, thinking about Nick and Karley. "I made Nick my son through the curse in hopes of having someone who loves me."
"He does love you." Emma assures her.
Regina smiles. "But I never thought I'd end up with two. I got lucky. I got more than I ever asked for. I need you to make sure they stay safe. They need to know much I really love them." She chuckles lightly. "I need them to know that they are everything to me. I need you to tell them that, okay?"
"Regina, no, there has gotta be another way."
"You were right, you know, everything that's happening – it's my fault. I created this device. It's only fitting that it takes my life." Regina says tearfully. "And tell Nick and Karley that in the end, it wasn't too late for me to do the right thing."
"Regina, please – " Emma begs.
"Everyone looks at me as the Evil Queen. Let me die as Regina."
Emma sighs as she stares at Regina before turning around to leave, but as she walks away, she stops and turns to Regina. "Regina – "
However, at that very moment, Regina produces magic from her hands which flow into the diamond. Emma could see that it was already taking a toll on Regina and quickly runs out of the mines.
A forest begins to grow all over the town, leaving sprouts across the roofs of all the stores, causing the townspeople to run through town, screaming.
Inside of the pawn shop, Mr. Gold is pouring himself a drink. "To the end of the world." He says, handing a glass to Lacey who seems confused. "Come on. It'll help numb it."
Lacey scoffs. "I'll drink to that." She reaches for the glass, but ends up knocking it over, spilling the contents across the counter. "Oh, I'm sorry!" She apologizes frantically. She grabs Baelfire's shawl, attempting to wipe up the scotch. "Here. I got it."
"Stop!" Gold exclaims. "Put that down."
"It's just an old rag."
Gold snatches it from her. "It belonged to someone very important." He exclaims. "You wouldn't understand."
"I said I'm sorry." Lacey says genuinely. Gold carefully places the shawl back onto the shelf as he looks at Lacey with tearful eyes. He then walks over to his cabinet and grabs a blue pouch before walking back towards Lacey. He opens the pouch and pours out the contents which is the remains of Belle's broken tea cup. Gold waves his hand and repairs the cup instantly, leaving the chip on the brim of the cup. Lacey furrows her brows, recognizing the tea cup as the one she threw against the wall in the hospital. "That cup again. What is it?"
"It's something from my past – from our past." He clarifies. "And I'm sorry. Let's not fight." Gold grabs the blue potion that Leroy had given to him and pours the contents in the cup, and then into his own glass. He hands the tea cup to Lacey before grabbing his own, clinking their cups together before taking a drink. Lacey starts to glow blue, for just a moment, returning back to her true self. She looks up at Gold, her memories flooding back. Gold bursts into tears. "Belle."
"Rumple." Belle cries before kissing him passionately.
"I'm so sorry." Gold apologizes, pulling away just a bit. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to wake you up to die. But I needed you."
Belle traces her hand down Gold's face. "You lost your son. I'm so sorry." She rests her head on his shoulder, comforting him. "I'm sorry."
"I've failed." Gold cries, hugging her close. "I've failed."
David and Hook walk into Granny's diner, carrying the pirate's satchel that has the bean inside.
"We have the beans." David announces.
Emma walks in from behind them. "You did it?" She asks her father.
"Yeah."
Avia sees the blood on David's shirt as she and her mother approach him. "Are you okay? You're bleeding." Avia says, worried.
"It's just a graze." He assures his daughter. "It's fine."
"Okay, let's get going." Emma tells them.
"Where's my mom?" Nick asks as he and Karley walk up.
Emma looks sadly at the two children who have lost so much already. "Regina can hold off the self-destruct device long enough for us to escape, but – "
"She's not going to make it, is she?" Avia asks.
Emma shares a look with her mother before looking back down at the kids. "She won't survive."
"No." Nick refuses to believe that.
"Nick, I'm sorry. I promised her I'd get you and Karley to safety."
"But we can't." Karley exclaims. "She's our family now. She's all we've got."
"Karley's right, Emma. We can't leave Regina behind." Avia says firmly.
"But it's what she wants." Emma tells them. "We have a way out. We have to take it."
"We saved her from the wraith." Avia reminds them. "How is that any different?"
Suddenly an idea reaches Snow. "The wraith." She repeats, looking at her daughters.
"What?" Emma asks.
"We sent it through a portal." She reminds them. "Why can't we do the same thing with the self-destruct?"
"Can that work?" Avia asks.
"It could." Snow shrugs.
"Yeah." David agrees.
"But it's too risky." Emma fears. "No one will go along with it."
Archie steps up. "Yes, we will. Because it's the right thing to do." Snow gives her girls an encouraging smile. "Look, Snow White and the Prince have always led us before, and we've always won. So, who's willing to let them lead us again?"
All the dwarves including Granny and Ruby, raise their hands, agreeing. "Thank you, Archie." Snow says, gratefully. "This is what we should do."
"And will do." David adds.
"Emma?" Avia looks up at her big sister who looks back down at her, bringing her into her arms.
"I know we haven't had a lot of chances to be parents but give us this one." Snow pleads to her girls. "Let us do the right thing. It's not too late."
Avia looks up at Emma. "I don't want to be alone anymore, Emma." She says quietly, yet loud enough for those around her to hear.
But before Emma can respond, the town begins to rumble again, causing them all to stumble back. "This plan could fail." Emma states. "If we use that bean now, we can get away for sure. We will survive."
"But it's wrong." Snow exclaims. "Emma, I killed her mother."
"You did that to Cora because you had to."
"I did it because it was easy." Snow confesses, surprising Emma. "It was a mistake. There were other paths – harder paths, and I wish I had taken them." Snow steps up to her oldest, begging. "So, please, Emma, honey, let's take the hard path. Because if we don't, we will be building a future on Regina's blood."
Emma takes a moment contemplating everything her mother had said. She looks at her parents and her sister, along with Avia's friends, who are all staring back at her expectantly. "Okay." Emma gives in.
David tosses the satchel to Emma, but before she can catch it, Hook retrieves it instead. "You're all mad." He says, turning away.
Emma looks at her father for help as they rush towards the pirate. "Give it back." Emma demands.
"I can live with myself. If she wants to die for us, I say let her."
"You and I – we understand each other." Emma tells him. "Look out for yourself, and you'll never get hurt, right?"
"Worked quite well for me." Hook shrugs.
"Yeah, till the day that it doesn't. We're doing this. It might be stupid. It might be crazy, but we're doing it. So, you can join us and be a part of something, or you can do what you can do best and be alone." Emma holds out her hand, wanting the bean back.
Hook stares longingly at Emma before giving in and handing over the satchel. "Quite passionate, Swan."
"Let's go." Nick runs out with Avia and Karley and David and Snow following closely behind.
"Why are you really doing this?" Hook asks Emma in a hushed tone.
"Those kids have lost everything." Emma tells him. "I'm not letting them lose the only parents they have left." And with the satchel held tight over chest, Emma walks out of the diner.
Down in the mines, Regina is still sending her magic into the black diamond when the Charmings and Nick and Karley rush in.
She looks up, shocked to see them. "What are you doing here?"
"You were willing to die to save us." Nick tells his mother.
"That makes you a hero." Karley adds.
"And now we're gonna be heroes." Avia says firmly.
"We're gonna open up a portal, throw this thing into a void." David explains.
"No." Regina refuses. "You don't know that it'll work."
"We have to try." Snow tells her.
"Everybody, step aside." David says, leading them against the rock wall. Nick and Karley step to the other side, holding each other close. Emma opens the pouch, digging inside for the bean. Her eyes widen when she realizes the pouch is empty. David sees his daughter's hesitation. "Emma?"
Emma turns to her parents and sister. "It's empty."
"Hook." Avia seethes.
Out on his ship, Hook looks down at the magic bean in his hand, as he begins to sail further away from Storybrooke.
Back in town, the townspeople are running and screaming as vines and trees rapidly spread throughout the streets.
Down in the mines, Regina is still sending her magic into the diamond, beginning to shake and grow weak.
"I can't contain this much longer." She tells them.
Emma looks at her sadly, the satchel still in her hand. She looks at her parents who already have Avia wrapped in their arms. Emma steps forward with tears in her eyes, repeating the two words she hasn't said since she was eight years old, except for the time she said it back with her mother in the Enchanted Forest recently. "Mom… Dad…" She says, her lips quivering, as she walks into their open arms, bringing their daughters into a tight embrace. Hearing those words come from her sister, Avia realized that this was truly the end. She finally found her family, only to lose them…again.
With hands held, Nick and Karley walk up to Regina. "I love you both so much." Regina tells them. "I only wish I was strong enough to stop all this." Nick and Karley wrap their arms around the woman who they never thought would ever be a mother to them. "I'm just not." She cries.
"Wait." Avia opens her eyes, pulling away from her parents and Emma. She looks at Regina and then at the diamond. Her parents and Emma look inquisitively at the girl who approaches Regina. "You may not be strong enough." She says before looking up at Emma. "But maybe we are."
"Avia, are you sure?" Emma asks as she steps to her sister's side.
Avia looks at her parents, who are staring back at her in awe. Then, she looks at her friends, who want nothing more than to have a family again. She looks back up at Emma. "I don't want to be alone again." She repeats her same statement she said before inside the diner.
Emma nods. "Okay, then." She turns to her parents who quickly lead Nick and Karley far enough away from the diamond.
Avia and Emma step up closer to the diamond and raise their own hands over the black diamond, sending their own magic into the diamond. As their magic combines with Regina's, the diamond begins to rapidly vibrate before a large burst of energy is released from the device, sending Emma, Avia, and Regina flying in opposite directions. The diamond lands on the rock, dying down.
In town, the vines and leaves soon retract, and vanish, from the buildings. The diamond's effects are reversed and Storybrooke is safe once more.
Back in the mines, the Charmings and Karley stand up, looking around before their eyes settle on the diamond.
David rushes over to Emma and helps her up. "We're alive!" He exclaims. Snow walks over to her daughter, checking her over.
Regina grabs the diamond. "We did it."
Snow looks around for Avia. "Where's Avia?"
Emma looks around as well. "She must have flew further than I did."
Karley begins looking around, too, furrowing her brows in confusion. "Wait. Where's Nick? He was right by me."
"Nick?" Regina calls out to her son as they search for the teens.
They walk around the corner, shining the flashlight. "Avia?" Emma shouts.
"Nick?"
Emma then spots Avia's bag. She runs over and kneels down, her eyes widening. "Emma, what is it?" Snow asks, panicked by her daughter's silence.
Up on the surface, Avia is in the clutches of Greg and Tamara.
"Let me go!" Avia screams as she struggles to get away.
"We're not going to hurt you." Tamara tells her.
"Just my family, right?" Avia glares. "You tried to blow up Storybrooke."
"True, but that was never the point."
"Avia!" Nick shouts.
Avia turns to see Nick running after them. "Nick!"
"We came here to destroy magic." Greg tells her as they quicken their pace through the docks. "But then we found something more important – something that changed everything."
"Avia!" Nick yells.
They stand at the end of the dock, near the water. Avia looks up at Greg, who gives her a wicked smile. "You want me." She realizes.
As Nick approaches them, the Charming family, Regina, and Karley run around the corner, seeing them from afar. "Nick!" Karley screams.
"They've got Avia!" Nick yells back.
"Nicholas, wait!" Regina shouts.
Avia turns to see her family running towards them. "Emma!"
Greg throws a magic bean into the sea. "The last bean." Regina says as a portal opens in the ocean. "They've opened a portal."
"No!" Snow exclaims as they all yell for Avia.
Greg and Tamara grab Avia by her arms and quickly jump into the small portal. "Avia!" Nick yells, jumping in after them without hesitation.
"Nick!" Regina and Karley yell as they watch Nick jump into the portal after Avia.
They reach the edge of the dock. "No! No!" Emma yells hysterically, attempting to jump after them.
"Avia!" Snow tries to follow, but David manages to grab both of them around their waists, pulling them back.
"No! We have to follow them!"
"David!" Snow cries out.
"Where are they!?" Karley yells, looking up at Regina.
Regina looks out into the empty sea. "We don't know where they went, and we can't follow because Hook stole the last bean! Without it, there's no way to follow."
"There has to be!" Emma exclaims, trying her best to get out of her father's restraints. "We can't let them just take Avia!"
Snow falls to her knees. She had yet again watched helplessly as her baby girl disappeared from her world. "You have to do something, Regina!" Karley pleads.
"They've taken Avia and Nicholas?" The group turns around to find Mr. Gold and Belle approaching them.
"Yeah." David confirms. "You're the Dark One. Do something."
"Gold, help us." Emma begs. David finally lets Emma go, and helps a crying Snow to her feet.
"There's no way." Mr. Gold tells them. "I spent a lifetime trying to cross worlds to find my son. There's no way in this world without a portal."
Snow drops her head into David's chest. "So, that's it?" Regina asks furiously. "They're gone forever? I refuse to believe that."
Karley looks out into the sea, and behind her glistening eyes, she spots something in the distance. "What is that?"
The rest of them turn around, looking out into the sea where Captain Hook's pirate ship is sailing towards the shore. "Hook." Emma says. They walk over to where the ship is now docked, and where Hook is walking off. "What the hell are you doing here?"
Hook rolls his eyes. "Helping."
"Well, you're too late." Regina tells him.
"Am I?"
"I thought you didn't care about anyone but yourself." Emma says.
Hook takes his satchel from his pocket and hands it to Emma. "Maybe I just needed reminding that I could."
Emma opens the satchel and pours the bean into the palm of her hand. "Enough waiting around. Let's go." Regina tells them, impatiently.
"Go?" Hook questions. "Where? I thought we were saving the town."
"We already did." David says, clutching his distress wife close to his side. "Now we need to save our daughter."
"And my son." Regina adds.
"Greg and Tamara took them through a portal." Emma explains to the pirate.
"Well, I offer my ship and my services to help follow them." Hook says.
"Well, that's great, Hook, but how will we track them?" Regina asks.
"Leave that to me." Mr. Gold assures them. "I can get us where we need to go."
"Then let's do it." Snow finally speaks up as they one-by-one board the ship.
Regina quickly turns around, though, stopping Karley. "What are you doing?" Karley asks, confused. "We have to go save Nick and Avia."
Regina sighs. "I know." She says, trailing her hand gently down the girl's cheek. "I will save Nick and Avia, but I need you to stay here."
Karley furrows her brows. "What? No! He's my brother! I have to go!"
Belle steps up. "I can take care of her while you're gone."
"No!" Karley looks back at Regina, pleading with tear stained eyes. "I want to go with you. I want to save them."
Regina shakes her head sadly. "I can't save them and risk something happening to you, too, Karley. Please. Just stay here where I know you're going to be safe. Belle will take care of you. I promise." But Karley was determined to fight. "Please, Karley." Regina says more sternly. "If you want me to be your mother, then I need you to let me. I promise I will bring Nicholas back. You can trust me."
Karley's lip trembles as she stares into Regina's eyes. "I know." She says quietly.
Regina pulls Karley into a hug before stepping back. She gives the girl one last look before boarding the ship. Gold steps up to Belle. "Are you okay with me going?" He asks.
Belle reluctantly nods. "If you can help, then help." She tells him. "I will take care of the town while you are all gone."
Gold smiles, proudly. "That's just what I wanted to hear." He pulls out a tiny scroll, handing it to Belle. "After we've gone, follow these instructions. It's a cloaking spell. It'll shield the town, making it impossible for anyone to find."
Belle nods, understanding. "Then how will you find your way back to me?" Gold looks away, remaining silent. "You're not coming back, are you?"
"The prophecy." Gold states. "The girl is my undoing. But she is innocent. I must save her. I must do this to honor Baelfire." Tears develop in Belle's eyes as she listens to Gold. "He's gone. And I didn't even get the chance to say good-bye."
"I understand, but I also know - " Belle wraps her arms around Gold's neck. " - that the future isn't always what it seems. I will see you again." The two exchange a passionate kiss before Belle pulls away. "Baelfire would be very proud of you." Gold nods, looking longingly at her, as his eyes glisten with tears.
Belle walks over to Karley and stands behind her, placing her hands on the girl's shoulders as they watch the ship sail away.
Present / The Enchanted Forest…
On the beach, the waves are crashing against the sand where Neal Cassidy is lying unconscious, still wounded after being shot by Tamara.
"Who is he?" A man approaches.
"I don't know." A woman exclaims.
Prince Phillip, Princess Aurora, and Mulan kneel down next to Neal and roll him over on his back. "Is he alive?" Prince Phillip asks.
Aurora puts her hand under his nose, feeling his breath. "Barely. We have to get him help."
"Help me get him up."
Present / Storybrooke…
On the Jolly Roger, Mr. Gold approaches Hook. "So, are you done trying to kill me?"
"I believe so." Hook says.
"Excellent. Then you can live."
The group walks up just as Gold waves his hand, and in a puff of purple smoke, a globe, given to him by Cora, magically appears. Gold pricks his finger on the tip of the globe's axis and presses his blood to the white surface. They watch as his blood spreads through the globe and a red map appears upon it.
"Where is that?" Regina asks Hook. "Where did they take Nick and Avia?"
Hook looks up, narrowing his eyes in suspense. "Neverland."
The group takes their places on the ship, preparing for a bumpy ride through a portal. Emma hands Hook the magic bean and he tosses it into the ocean, opening a portal. The water begins to swirl, and Hook starts to steer his ship towards the hole while everyone holds on to what they can.
"So, who are we up against?" David asks. "Who are Greg and Tamara?"
"They're merely pawns, - " Gold tells them. " – manipulated by forces far greater than they can conceive. They have no idea who they're truly working for."
"And who's that?" Emma asks.
"Someone we all should fear."
As the Jolly Roger sails to the portal, Emma, Regina, Snow, David, and Mr. Gold grasp tightly to the ropes, stabilizing themselves as Hook continues to steer them closer across the bumpy sea. They reach the edge of the portal before being carried down into the hole by a large wave.
Another final wave crashes and a small burst of magic spreads across the now completely still ocean.
The portal is gone.