"Sit down," Mal snapped, shoving Queenie down onto a bar stool. Celia and Dizzy squealed and jumped back from the villain, wide-eyed, empty breakfast trays in hand. Dizzy glanced over at Evie with a concerned and fearful expression.
"Girls, go find Ben," Evie instructed them gently. She ushered them out of the room, but they really didn't need the encouragement, nearly flying out the door of their own accord. She turned when she reached the door, closing and locking it behind her.
"Speak! How did you find us?" Mal demanded, getting right up in Queenie's face.
"Find out if she knows where Morgana is," Jay suggested.
"A-and Maleficent," Carlos added. "And maybe how they're planning to take over Auradon." Evie and Jay looked at him. "What? Just saying..."
"Okay, you guys?" Mal turned toward them in exasperation. "I've got this." She frowned as her gaze fell on Doug who was standing nervously between Carlos and Evie. He had said nothing since Queenie had arrived. She suspected he was still in shock.
Evie seemed to notice something was off as well. She bumped his shoulder and gave him an encouraging smile. "Hey," she whispered. He looked at her but barely managed more than a half-fake smile.
"You aren't as safe here as you think," Queenie hissed, sitting up straighter. "Morgana. She knows about this place. She's coming for you as we speak. And there's no point of trying to run. She'll just hunt you down." She smirked at them, spinning her chair back and forth, glancing between Mal who was leaning on the island, blocking the others from view, and Doug who was cowering in the corner. Evie stepped in front of her boyfriend protectively.
Mal was not impressed. "So, that's it? You came all this way, let yourself get caught, just to tell us that? Yeah, I don't think so. So...care to try again?"
"I have this." With that, Queenie held up a small object. At first, Mal couldn't tell what it was. Then, her eyes widened at the realization. A Dragon Ring. "It belonged to your mother," she added, holding it out to Doug. He stared, frowning in confusion. "I guess it belongs to you now."
"Wait, hold it!" Mal snapped, stepping between the exchange as Evie cautiously pulled Doug's outstretched hand down with a faint whisper of warning. Mal chuckled slightly, turning to face Queenie. "I don't trust you. And I certainly don't think you're here of your own accord. Morgana sent you, didn't she?"
"I like to think of it as a little more like a white flag of truce," Queenie objected with a shrug. "I'm here, offering to help you take down Morgana and the other villains."
Mal raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really? And why would we believe you? You've done nothing that would make us trust you. Chances are good that you're just a spy, and you're trying to get us to trust you, that way you can report back to Morgana, or, maybe even try to kill Doug yourself!"
"What do you want in return?" Carlos questioned, stepping into the light now. He noticed the looks from Evie and Mal but went on anyway. "If you help us save Auradon, what do you want from us?"
"I want to say here," Queenie answered. "In Auradon. Like Uma, Harry, and Gil. I just want a chance like the rest of you."
"But, Queenie, the barrier is down," Evie pointed out. "You could have come at any time! Why do all of this just for that?"
"The barrier may be down, but that does not mean we're welcome," Queenie fired back. "Some of us want to come to Auradon Prep, to have a chance. Like the other VKs you brought over. Don't the rest of us deserve that opportunity?" She watched Evie pleadingly. Mal didn't trust her, even as Evie seemed to melt a little. It was a well-known fact that Evie was Ben's advisor. If she could wear the girl down, then maybe she could sweet-talk her way into Auradon.
"Evie, be careful," Mal hissed. "Remember what happened before? She killed you and tried to do the same to Doug! I don't think we can trust her."
Evie hesitated. Her eyes flashed with pure confusion. And then, leaning forward, she took the Dragon Ring from Queenie and studied it. Nothing was said for a moment.
Mal frowned. "Earth to Evie."
She snapped out of her trance-like state. "Huh? What? Oh...seems all right to me." She handed it off to Doug who took it hesitantly. "So, what is it? And if it belonged to Doug's mother, how do you have it?"
"I did a bit of research," Queenie answered , waving off Evie 's accusing tone. "Turns out his mother is this super-powerful sorceress from the Isle. The ring? She gave it to me. It's a lot like Merlin's. But not exactly the same."
"What are you saying?" Doug questioned, speaking up for the first time. "Are...you saying...my mother's alive?"
"Alive and kicking," Queenie replied with a tight smirk.
All color drained from the dwarf's face. Evie noticed this and moved to catch him in case he suddenly fainted. "What are you talking about?" the bluenette demanded angrily, trying to coax Doug into a seat before he fell over.
Queenie shrugged. "I mean, it's not like it's a big secret. Everyone on the Isle knows she had a hero's kid."
"I didn't know that." Evie pointed at herself. "How? As far as I knew, no villains on the Isle...other than my mother...had any kids with an heroes."
"Well, then, how is he here?" Queenie gestured toward Doug with an eye roll. "Seriously, think about it! He's the NeoMerlin! His coming was foretold hundreds of years ago. And that ring just furthers the proof. Now, is that enough to show you I come in peace?"
"Not quite," Mal snapped. "Tell us who his mother is."
Now Queenie looked truly shocked. "You mean you don't know? How? I mean, it's so obvious!" She looked Doug up and down, scowling at his favorite lime green shirt and white everything else. He no longer looked like a villain, and it was as clear as day.
"Not really," Jay pointed out.
"So spill," Carlos added.
"Please," Evie finished, clinging desperately to Doug's arm.
Queenie hesitated.
"You want us to trust you?" Mal snapped at the red-head. "Well, this is the way."
Queenie scowled at her. "Fine," she growled through gritted teeth. "If that's how you want to play this, so be it. His mother is-"
She was interrupted by a scream from Ben as he sprinted down the hall and broke through the door. "MORGANA!" he bellowed, ushering the kids in and shoving them underneath a table for protection. "EVERYBODY GET DOWN!"
All around her, Mal felt the others obey. Thinking on instinct, she seized Queenie by the shirt collar and threw her to the floor before diving down next to her. She didn't know what was happening, but she had heard the sorceress's name, meaning that whatever was about to follow would most likely be loud, dramatic, and painful.
She was right.
One minute, everything was quiet. The next, there was a hiss like a dragon about to take a breath...and the entire room went up in flames. Mal felt the heat of the explosion and covered her head with her arms and squeezed her eyes shut. Even through her eyelids, she saw the flash of white and the screams as everything erupted into chaos. The force of the impact sent her flying across the room where she smashed into a wall and fell painfully to the ground.
And then, everything stopped.
She heard Ben shrieking her name. Ears still ringing, she slowly looked up, gasping at what she found. The entire room had been obliterated. In fact, the entire house had been reduced to nothing more than ruins. Coughing, she pushed sheet rock off of her and slowly pulled herself into a crawling position. "Ben?" she groaned. "Evie? Jay? Carlos? Kids?"
A groan emitted from underneath a pile of rocks and debris. Carlos' fluffy white hair came into view, closely followed by the rest of him. "Here," he coughed. "Jay," he went on. "You okay, bro?" He glanced over toward the island. Jay popped up from behind him, grime all over his hair. He shook it out with a whoop.
"Mal!" Ben called, standing up across the room.
"Ben!" Mal cried. "You're all right! Wait, where are the kids? Dizzy? Celia? Twins?"
"Right here," Queenie's voice was weak. Her hand appeared a little ways away and she stood up slowly, revealing the four VKs she'd lunged to protect. "How's that?" she asked Mal with a smirk. "Believe me now?"
Although Mal detested it, she knew Queenie could have left the kids unprotected. But she had shielded them selflessly. And, to Mal, that was a sign that she might be telling the truth. "For now," she confessed. "But I'm still going to be keeping a close eye on you."
Queenie nodded solemnly, but Mal had already turned away and started searching for the only two teens who hadn't responded. "Evie! Doug!"
When Mal had yelled their names, Doug had been moments away from fainting from exhaustion. In fact, the only reason he hadn't was the overwhelming curiosity that was eating away at him as the bright blue barrier shielded from the blast and Evie clung to him in a desperate hug, just in case it had been their last. The last thing he remembered was the fiery explosion and the sheer panic that had erupted inside of him. He had acted without thinking, pulling Evie close, and closing his eyes tightly. I love you! He had screamed silently to Evie, unconsciously knowing she couldn't hear his thoughts.
The shield appeared out nowhere, seconds before the blast would have killed them both. Doug didn't know what he's done, or truly, if he'd even been the one to do it. All he knew was that they were safe. Well, maybe safe was the wrong word. Alive. They were alive.
What was that?
Slowly, grimacing in pain, he sat up. Evil hadn't seemed to realize the threat was gone and was still holding on tightly. His eyes widened as he saw the shimmering dome arched over their heads, flickering, dancing as though containing a life of its own. "Whoa, Evie!"
Slowly, she glanced up, her eyes filled with terror and tears. "What?" her voice cracked terribly.
"Look!" He pointed.
She wiped her tears away quickly, gasping at the dome. "Did you-"
"I don't know. I think...I think it was you."
"Me?" She looked startled. "But...you're the one with magic!"
"So do you," he reminded her gently. "And my shield isn't nearly this strong. And it's green. Not blue." Then, just to make his point, he focused on removing the barrier. Nothing happened. He looked pointedly at her.
Evie sighed. "Fine." She waved a hand and the dome flickered into non-existence. There was a crash as debris and rubble crumbled around them and they both flinched.
"Are you all right?" he asked her.
She nodded. "I'm okay." She sat up and looked around, confused. "Uh...Doug?"
"Yeah?"
"Where is everybody?"
He looked around now. She was right. In an instant, he realized two things. One; his home was gone...reduced to nothing but smithereens. Two: the others were no where to be seen. Instantly, his head began to hurt and he gasped, staggering back.
I've seen this before! The house...the fire...the vision.
All that's left is...
His thoughts were cut off by a ferocious roar and he whipped around in horror, seeing the huge purple dragon rising from the debris. "Mal!" he realized, grabbing Evie's arm and spinning to her face him. It's happening! Everything I saw...it's all coming true...
"Mal?" Evie repeated. Then, her eyes lit up. "MAL!" she screamed, waving her arms wildly in the air. Doug breathed a sigh of relief as Mal turned at Evie's voice and let out a growl of satisfaction, starting toward them.
Suddenly, a beam of green light rocketed from the nearby trees, slamming into Mal's side. The dragon queen howled and tumbled towards the earth. "MAL!"Evie shrieked, starting to run to her friend. Seeing the danger, Doug quickly grabbed her and held her back. "LET GO!" Evie bellowed at him.
"Evie! Wait!" Doug pleaded, wincing as she hit his arms. "Please! Something doesn't feel right!"
"Well, well," came the chilling voice from the treeline right behind them. The two teens twirled around and Doug felt Evie move in front of him protectively and they both stared at Morgana in horror. "That was so much easier than I'd anticipated. Get out of my way, girl." She flicked a hand and Evie screamed as she was knocked forcibly away by an unseen force.
"EVIE!" Doug yelled, starting to move toward her.
Morgana disappeared into thin air, reappearing behind him before he could react, and stuck him hard in the back with her staff. A flash of green electricity shot through him and, with a scream of anguish, Doug tumbled onto the grass. Morgana moved swiftly, raising a hand enveloped in a green fire. Doug lay there, gasping in pain. "Now." she hissed, kicking away his sword as he clumsily grabbed for it, and placing her foot on his chest. "I'll kill you. Just as I killed your mother." She twisted her hand, and Doug shrieked as the pain ripped through his body and he felt his breath slipping away.
"DOUG!" Evie screamed. The boy gasped, struggling to breathe. His vision blurred. Weakly, he writhed, trying to free himself to no avail. He reached for his sword, groaning, realizing it was out of his grasp.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the light and stared as two flaming balls of fire smashed into Morgana's side and the witch screamed, lurching back, dissipating into smoke for a split second. Doug slid across the ground, and then scrambled to his feet, wheezing. He turned to see Evie standing there, hands glowing dangerously with magic.
"Run!" she screamed, hurrying over, grabbing his hand, and taking off like a flash.
Doug didn't argue. He raced after her, running faster than he'd ever done before. Already, he could feel Morgana's petrifying gaze as she began to reform behind them. How did she find us so quickly? How did she know...how... "What about the others?" he yelled.
"No time!" Evie retorted over Morgana's furious scream. "Mal will be fine! She'll find the others! We need somewhere to hide! Cover of some kind!"
"The mines!" Doug gasped.
She glanced back at him in a panic as a nearby tree erupted into flames. "WHAT?"
"This way!" With that, Doug took the lead, dragging her toward a small river. The forest pressed in on them from every side as the air grew heavier and darker by the moment and thunder rolled in the heavens. He ignored this as the two raced across an old fallen tree over a large ravine, and towards a series of cliffs and caverns in the distance.
Another spell blasted by their head. Evie shrieked and ducked. Doug turned sharply away and kept running. They neared the mines. Doug skidded to a halt before the entrance and ushered Evie inside hastily. "Go, go, go!" he hissed. They ducked and entered the mine. Morgana was not very far behind them now.
The inside of the mines was pitch black. Doug once more took the lead, pushing all of his anxiety to the back of his mind and taking a deep breath. "Evie?"
"Here."
"Stay close. It's hard to see down here."
"Yeah...right...ow!"
"What?"
"I fell over something! Doug, your mine doesn't like me!"
Doug groaned. "Okay, come over here." He felt along the wall, noting the temperature in the cavern seemed to drop tremendously with every step. "You there?" Evie gave a small whisper of confirmation. "All right. My turn to teach you. Put your hands on the wall."
There was silence. And then. "Like this?"
"I can't really see you," Doug pointed out. "But probably. Now, use what you can feel to work your way down the cavern toward my voice."
A moment passed. A lot of stumbling followed. Doug felt her brush up against his side. "Hi," she said.
"Hey," he answered. "Come on," he continued, beginning to work his way further into the caverns. "There are some lanterns up ahead."
"Doug...it's so cold..."
Feels fine to me. Doug shrugged it off as just her overactive nerves. "Are you still there?" he called over his shoulder.
"Doug..."
He felt the room expand around him and knew they had reached the main shaft. Releasing the wall and relying on his memory alone, he clumsily found his way over to an old mine-cart and pulled out two oil lamps, twisting them on and shining them around the cavern. In the eerie orange light, he spotted Evie stumbling in, looking irritable, tired, and in pain. But she still tried to hide them when their eyes met.
"This way," he told her, pointing down a random passageway. He felt a strong pull in that direction, though he didn't know why. Evie nodded slowly and followed him as he started off.
The silence was deafening as they walked quietly through the halls. As they went, Doug began to get the sense that he'd been here before. But...no...it wasn't possible. He had never been able to get this far before without the claustrophobia forcing his retreat. "Evie?" he asked in a hoarse whisper.
"Right...behind you..."
Something about her voice sounded off. Doug paused and held up the lamp, turning to face her. "Evie, you okay?"
She looked at him weakly, grimacing. "Yes, I'm just fine."
Doug frowned. "Okay..." He turned and prepared to start off again.
That was when he felt the sharp jab of a blade in his back.
He screamed, feeling his body hit the stone floor and the lamp shatter. As the light dimmed and the pain exploded in his nerves, he heard Evie step daintily over towards him. He acted without thinking. Running on pure terror and adrenaline, he drug himself around a bend, leaning up against a wall, breathing heavily as Evie prowled closer and closer. What is she doing?
But, even as he asked, he knew the answer. She'd been spelled. But how? He'd been with her the whole time! The Dragon Ring...the realization crashed over him. Queenie. It had all been a trap. And he'd fallen right into it.
His first vision had come true.
Evie was out to kill him.