See previous chapters for summaries and warnings.
Thanks for the incredible response to this fic! Keep the reviews coming.
Once more, it is important to remember that Cora has cursed Kathryn to be this way and she is the Evil Queen here. She married Leopold. Regina and Snow are step-sisters and love each other. Thanks for all the reviews. Except the negative troll reviews. I delete those and respond to them accordingly. This story is for true Snowing fans that know something like an age gap would never hinder their love.
The curse has lasted 20 years in this verse until they found Storybrooke.
Here are individual responses:
Ghostwriter: Yeah, if this were a show, that last chapter probably would have been a season finale or this one, cause it ends in another cliffhanger. But it's edge of your seat stuff. :)
Grace5231973: I know, that was a cliffie and this one kind of is too, but it's good. Hope you had a Happy Easter too! :)
DarthFiona: So glad you like it! I hope you continue to enjoy and get caught up. I agree though, chapter 16 was the best. :)
Jennifer Baratta: Thanks, glad you liked it!
Number Ten: Yep, no magic to stop it, but possibly also no magic so maybe the town wasn't completely wiped off the map. But still...it won't be good. Cora has lost it, but you ain't seen nothing yet. She really goes off the deep end in this chapter. But Snow has had it too and is a total badass as usual. Yes, they will likely survive, but I think I have a few twists that you won't see coming in this chapter. It's wild :)
Kimba Kellie: You're welcome, glad you liked it.
Sexystarwarslover: Yep, another cliffhanger! Yes, Cora will regret taking them hostage. Yep, Cora is the reason Kathryn is the way she is. I know, that was really emotional. Charming would do anything for his Snow. Yep, Cora is getting away, but Snow is done with her crap. Glad you're enjoying it!
AnonSnowing: Yeah, Kathryn might have been indifferent if Cora wasn't controlling her. But she's under Cora's spell so that's why she's horrible. Yep, Cora is the only villain here. I know, I loved that line. Charming does just make you swoon and he'd do anything for Snow. I thought about sending them back to the Enchanted Forest, but I like Storybrooke. Hmm...hold that thought on Cora dying. You might get your wish. Yeah, Snow is done with Cora's bull and she's ready to take her out. I do tend to make her quite the badass. Yep, Cora finally pushed Snow over the edge and David is almost there as well as you'll see in this chapter. It's wild. Yep, cliffhanger here and this chapter is a cliffhanger as well. I know, I'm bad. Glad you enjoyed it. :)
A Darker Curse
Chapter 27: A Land Without Magic
David looked back at town and saw a blueish black glow.
"It's happening…" Rumple warned, as the sapling glowed brightly, creating a protective radius for those around it.
"Everyone get down!" David called to those outside the town line. He took Snow and Emma's hands, as they made their way back toward the truck. But Cora was not finished and grabbed Snow's leg. She kicked her away and the other woman saw the blueish black wave of destruction coming at them. She let go of Snow's leg and started running for the town line.
"Mom! Dad!" Emma called, as she got to the box of the truck. She was about to go back for them, but they stopped her.
"No Emma!" Snow called, as they hurried toward the truck. David saw the shock wave coming through and tackled his wife to the ground, as it swept over them all. Emma peered up from the box of the truck and heard her son coo between her and Neal, as she began to check him over.
"He's fine…" Neal assured her and her eyes widened.
"Mom! Dad!" she cried, as she jumped out of the truck and looked around. Fear knotted in her stomach, as she could find no trace of them. But that was alleviated when she heard her mother's voice.
"Emma…" Snow called, as she and David rolled out from under the truck. Somehow, her father had managed to roll them beneath it and into the protective cocoon that their sapling had created around the vehicle. She breathed a sigh of relief and helped them to their feet, before they enveloped her in a hug between them.
"Do you think any of the town survived?" Emma asked.
"There's only one way to find out," David replied, as Regina approached the town line and the confused, cursed citizens just outside it.
"Everyone...there was a very large explosion set off in our town," she announced.
"Was it a bomb?" Archie questioned.
"In a manner of speaking...yes and it was caused by my mother, your former Mayor, Cora Mills," she announced.
"Why would she do that?" Marco asked.
"Uh...have you met the woman? She's pure evil," Granny chimed in.
"Widow Lucas and I are in agreement on that and she will be held accountable...if she's still alive," Regina announced.
"Oh...she's alive," Tink chimed in, as she was standing by the road and looking into a ditch, just inside the town line. Regina walked over and gasped, as she looked down at her mother. She was awake and had suffered severe burns to part of her face and probably several other parts of her body.
"Regina...help me…" she cried in pain.
"Help you?" Regina asked in outrage, as Ethan gently sided up to her. But her mother was the reason he was Ethan and not her husband, Robin.
"Please...I'm your mother…" she pleaded.
"You just tried to kill us all! And you want us to help you!?" Regina cried in outrage.
"I'm…I'm your mother," she repeated and groaned in pain.
"I don't care," Regina said coldly, as she turned away.
"You...you can't leave me here," she pleaded.
"Oh, we won't be," she replied.
"You'll get treatment, but that's only if there is any medical equipment left, let alone a hospital, but you'll be handcuffed while you receive help," Regina said, as Emma moved in to cuff her.
"Sheriff Graham...please help her into one of the vehicles and then you're officially on paid leave until further notice," Regina decided.
"You know it's not his fault, right?" Emma muttered.
"I know, but my mother still has his heart somewhere. We can't take any more chances until we can find it," Regina whispered back.
"I understand...and for what it's worth, I am sorry for doing her bidding. I didn't want to...I still don't know why I did," he stammered, but she put her hand up.
"I know and trust me, it's not really your fault. But in the meantime, Emma will assume the role of Sheriff," she announced.
"Me?" Emma asked in surprise.
"Yes...you," Regina replied.
"But in the grand scheme of things...Dad has way more experience in this stuff," Emma said.
"No...it should be you. I'm perfectly content to be your deputy," David interjected, giving her a loving smile.
"If there is even a town left to Sheriff," Gold interjected.
"Papa…" Neal chided.
"It's a valid interjection," he argued and none of them could refute that. They had no idea what level of destruction awaited them.
"Wait...if the town was just leveled, then why the hell are we going back?" Leroy questioned.
"Yeah...shouldn't we leave if we have no home?" Walter questioned.
"Some of us, unlike you two, had businesses here. We have to at least see what's left and if any of it can be salvaged," Tom Clark argued.
"He's right…now is not the time to abandon our home," Archie agreed.
"If there is one," Gold muttered.
"Always a ray of sunshine," Neal deadpanned.
"It's a valid argument. Meanwhile...remind me again why we're not leaving her to die in that ditch?" Gold questioned, as he glared at an injured Cora, though he was enjoying that her injuries had been caused by her own doing.
"Yeah...why aren't we?" David agreed and Snow did not chide him for it either. There was a time she might have, for she had always tried to show mercy to those that had done her wrong and did not deserve it. But Snow had no mercy left in her for this woman and she was no longer ashamed to admit that she wanted to see Cora Mills in a grave.
"Because it will be more satisfying to lock her away in a dark cell where she gets to rot for the rest of her miserable life, while we take back our happy endings," Regina said.
"If you say so, dearie...but her in a grave would be more satisfying," Gold commented, as Cora was put into the bed of the truck.
"You people are crazy! This bitch just set off a bomb in town and you're going back into it? We need to call the National Guard!" Michael cried. August rolled his eyes.
"So...he's completely clueless on all of this, isn't he? Unlike you and Greg?" he asked the former fairy.
"As far as I know, but I also don't know what his superiors are after either," Tink replied, as she pointed at Greg.
"I don't know either. I told you that I am here to see that she pays for killing my father," Greg insisted, as he pointed at Cora.
"I don't even know who you are," Cora said.
"Of course you don't...but my father died, because of you and I agree with everyone else. Why the hell aren't we killing her?" he asked.
"She's getting locked up," Regina insisted, as she turned to the other detective.
"Detective Bishop...I think it's safe to say that it's in your best interest if you leave now. Storybrooke does not need your assistance," Regina said.
"I have orders to bring Neal Cassidy back to Oregon on grand larceny charges and Emma Swan as well on charges as his accomplice. I'm not leaving without them in handcuffs," the detective refuted.
"Well...then you're not leaving, because there's no way in hell you're taking them anywhere," David refuted.
"Is that a threat?" Michael questioned.
"A threat...a promise...whichever one you want to call it. But you're not taking our daughter or Gold's son," David refuted.
"The hell I'm not...that's it. I don't know what the hell is going on here, but I will have more officers here in a matter of hours," he said, as he pulled out his phone.
"Don't…" David warned, as he surprised everyone and pulled his gun on the detective. Except Gold maybe. He just wore a smirk on his face. The Prince had been pushed way too far to lose his daughter to some stupid detective from muggle land.
"You're not going to shoot me," Michael said, calling his bluff.
"I literally just got my wife and daughter back and you really want to try me on this? I've waited too damn long and suffered too much to lose one of them to some fool with a badge," David said as Emma tossed him a pair of cuffs and he put them on the detective.
"This is an unlawful arrest...you are all going to jail once I get my phone call," Michael warned.
"Under the laws of this land...you're right. But under the laws of where we're from...I actually have the power to deny you anything I want and so does he," Regina interjected.
"None of that makes any sense! What the hell do you mean by any of that!?" Michael questioned.
"Trust me...it's probably best you don't know. On the other hand, if you did know, it might send you running for the town line and never look back," Emma quipped.
"Oh no way...I don't know what's going on here, but I am a Detective and I will fight to uphold the law," he announced. Snow rolled her eyes, as she hooked her hand on her husband's elbow.
"Well, my husband is a Prince and he'll fight to protect his family, as will I. And trust me, that's a battle you'll lose," Snow promised, silencing him.
With that, a caravan of cars and confused citizens, followed David's truck back toward town.
Tamara angrily slammed the phone down and contemplated her next move. Neither Greg nor Tia were answering her calls and that meant something was off. She hadn't been planning to do so this soon, but she didn't see any other course of action. She exited her office at the precinct and grabbed her jacket.
"I'll be out of town for a while. You'll report to Lieutenant Brown while I'm gone," she said to her subordinates.
"Yes Captain," they answered. She smirked, as she left the building and looked at her badge. She had never really earned it and had only gained this position to do the bidding of the Home Office and she intended to carry out her mission...
When they arrived back in town, they were stunned to speechlessness by the level of devastation. Their first stop was the hospital and the building was lopsided and there was no way it was operable. Regina quickly put the dwarves on the detail of getting tents set up in the park, while the hospital staff gathered what they safely could.
The center of town, around the clocktower was the worst hit, being the epicenter and Granny's was completely destroyed. They sent several off to gather canned goods and packaged foods from the grocery store, while David, Emma, and Snow assessed the situation at the Sheriff's station.
"What a mess," Emma said, as she looked around at their half collapsed building.
"It could have been worse if there was magic to fuel the trigger," David said.
"Small favors...there would be nothing left if that trigger had gone off in a town full of magic. It would have been like a nuclear bomb," Snow reasoned.
"Cora got everything she deserved," Emma muttered.
"No arguments there...I still think letting her continue to breathe might be a mistake," David said.
"Agreed...there's not much to salvage here I guess. We should probably head to the park and see what we can help with," Snow said, as they felt a sudden rumbling beneath their feet.
"What now?" Emma wondered, as David took Snow's hand and they hurried out after her. They ran toward the shop, where Gold, Neal, and Lacey exited with the little David.
"The shop held up surprisingly well. It's a mess, but a lot of it survived," Neal said, as they heard another rumble.
"We have much bigger problems than that right now. There are swords and a bow inside the shop. You're about to need them," Gold said, as they went back in and found the weapons.
"Why are we going to need these?" Emma asked. Her question was answered though, as what remained of the clocktower literally exploded and a dragon emerged into the sky.
"Oh shit…" Neal uttered.
"It seems Cora's stunt has awakened an old friend," Rumple said.
"Maleficent…" Snow said.
"Why is there a dragon?" Emma asked in disbelief.
"Because that was her punishment. Cora trapped her beneath the clocktower in her other form, but the trigger has awakened her prematurely," Rumple answered, as she roared angrily. Lacey was stunned at what she as seeing, being that she did not have her memories yet.
"She seems pissed," Emma commented.
"You would be too after what my mother did to her," Regina said, as she arrived.
"What did she do? Because that story isn't in the book" August replied, as they dogged her fiery breath.
"No time for that now…" Regina said, as she stepped forward.
"Maleficent! It's me!" Regina called, but she was beyond reason and obviously looking for someone specific.
"Give her Cora...it's the only way to calm her down," Rumple reasoned.
"I agree with him…" David said.
"Dad...we're not savages," Emma chided.
"No...but Cora is, honey. The short story is that she forced Maleficent to work with her against us. She held her egg hostage and so Maleficent did her bidding," Snow explained.
"And in return...my mother destroyed her egg," Regina added.
"She's going to rip through this town until she finds her," David said.
"Keep her busy...and keep trying to get through to her. I'll be back," Regina said, as she stormed to her car.
"You did this mother...and you're going to fix it," she growled. But distraction wasn't possible, as Maleficent abandoned them in search of her true target, sending the rest of them following Regina to the park.
Cora hissed in pain, as Whale not so gently dabbed her burns with a burn treatment patch.
"Does it hurt?" he asked sarcastically.
"I was good to you, Dr. Whale...you know what happens when you cross me," Cora warned.
"Perhaps in the past, but for the first time, you are at the mercy of this entire town; not the other way around, former Mayor Mills, so I think it goes without saying that everyone is enjoying your pain a bit," Whale commented, as he started patching her burns when they heard a roaring sound.
"What the hell is that?" Tom Clark asked, as he arrived with a box of supplies from his store.
"It's coming!" Leroy shouted, his face alight with terror.
"What's coming?" Archie asked.
"A dragon!" Leroy cried.
"Okaaay...guess you found a stash of your favorite sauce, cause you're drunk," Whale said, as they heard the roaring again and peered outside the tent. Screams of terror ensued, as an actual dragon dive bombed on their makeshift camp. They all ran, abandoning Cora, as she attempted to get away as well.
"Help me!" Cora cried, as they arrived at the park.
"Maleficent!" Regina called, trying to get her attention. The dragon roared, but then seemed to calm down when she saw the toddler in Neal's arms.
"What's she doing?" Emma asked fearfully.
"It's the baby...she won't risk anything with the baby around," Snow said.
"Yeah...this may be what gets through to her," David added.
"What...what did you do to her, you bitch?" Emma demanded to know, as she glared at Cora.
"The same thing I was going to do to you, Miss Swan…" Cora revealed and she saw the pain on her parent's faces.
"And I would have eliminated you like I did that egg if your father hadn't put you and your mother through that wardrobe. Snow choked back a sob, as she remembered that night vividly. It had haunted her for twenty years, after all.
Snow sobbed almost uncontrollably, as he led her to the nursery.
"I can't do this...I need you!" she cried. He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her tenderly.
"I know...but you know we must. Your father and step-mother will kill our baby if you stay. You'll go through the wardrobe and be safe from the curse," Charming promised.
"But what about you? How can I leave you?" she protested.
"It won't be forever...you'll find me and save me as I did you," he promised, as he pressed his forehead against hers.
"This isn't fair...we're supposed to be a family," Snow sobbed. Tears slipped down his cheeks as well.
"I know, my love. But as long as you and Emma are safe, then there will be an end to curse and we'll be reunited," he said, as he kissed her again, this time deeply and passionately.
"I love you," she sniffed.
"And I love you. When you share an eternal love like we do...there is nothing that can keep us apart, not forever," he promised, as he lifted her into the wardrobe.
"I'll find you!" she promised. He smiled and gave her one last fleeting kiss, before closing the doors.
"I know you will, my darling," he whispered, as he heard the Black Knights storm into the nursery with Cora following.
"Where is she?" the Evil Queen demanded. He smirked smugly.
"She's gone...far away from here where you can't hurt her or our daughter," Charming replied.
"But Maleficent wasn't so lucky. My mother and Snow's father stole her egg and made her do their misdeeds for a while. Then, as a reward, she burned Maleficent's castle to the ground with her egg inside. We weren't able to recover it," Regina explained.
"That's when I told Gepetto that he had to get the wardrobe done...that we couldn't risk you being born in our land. I knew you'd never be safe from her," David said and tears filled Emma's eyes.
"And you guys gave up everything for me," she said.
"Oh no sweetheart...you're our baby. We did what we had to in order to save you. You're everything to us," Snow said, as she took her husband's hand.
"We knew our love was strong enough to survive anything, even the worst situations," she said.
"And we were right," he added.
"Yes...it has survived everything so far, despite my best efforts," Cora rasped, making her presence known once again.
"But let's see if your love will survive this," she growled, as Emma felt a sharp pain in her side, as Cora stabbed her with a dagger. Snow's blood curdling scream chilled them all to the bone. Emma fell into her father's arms and he became covered in her blood, as he cradled her.
"WHALE!" Regina screamed, calling him over.
"Pack the wound!" he called to his nurses, as they moved in and tried to stop the bleeding.
"She's losing it too fast and I have no way to do surgery. Her only chance is to stop the bleeding. I'm going to have to cauterize her wound," he said. David nodded and saw his wife lose it, as August held her back from ripping Cora apart.
"Mother...what have you done!?" Regina cried.
"I finished the job, but you'll get your wish. You wanted to break the curse and so it shall be when she dies!" Cora growled, as she glared at Snow and Charming.
"I finally did it...I won again and you two idiots lose," she declared. But an angry roaring caught her by surprise from behind and she saw her death seconds before it came, as Maleficent breathed fire down upon her. Cora screamed in agony for a few seconds, before the flames cleared and her ashes floated to the ground. She was dead, but the damage was done.
"This is going to hurt like hell...you need to give her something to bite down on," Whale instructed, as David removed his leather belt and kissed Emma's forehead. Her eyes were glassy, as she stared up at her sobbing parents.
"It's going to be okay, princess...this is going to hurt, but it has to be done," he said in a soothing voice, as Snow cried against him. Whale used fire and cauterized the wound, causing Emma to scream in agony, as her father gently rocked her. Maleficent looked on, the concern still obvious, even in her dragon form.
"I can save her...if I get what the Prince hid inside you," he whispered to the dragon. She seemed to regard him with scrutiny for a moment and then opened her gill, allowing the golden egg to slip out.
"Papa...what is that?" Neal asked desperately.
"Just a shell protecting the real magic on the inside," Rumple replied.
"Magic?" Neal asked.
"Light magic...true love in a bottle that I made from her parent's hairs," Rumple replied.
"Can you save her?" he asked.
"Yes, but I must get this to the well...and I don't have much time," he said, as he walked toward his shop. Little David whined and he turned away from the scene. He was young, but Neal didn't want him to see Emma like this.
"It's going to be okay, buddy...it has to be," he whispered, as he kissed his head.
"Where are you going?" Lacey called, as she watched him unlock the egg and extract a bottle with a sparkling pink substance inside.
"I need to get to the well and you should come with me if you want to see something incredible," he said, as she got into his car with him and he sped off toward the edge of town. Fortunately, it was a short drive and Lacey followed him on the trek to the well. He popped the cork on the potion and dropped it into the well.
"What...what is that?" Lacey asked, as pinkish/purple smoke began to billow from the well.
"Magic…" he said, as they were suddenly struck with a rainbow wave of rainbow colored light.
"Oh no…" he uttered.
"Rumple…" Belle cried, as he enveloped her in a bittersweet hug.
"I remember…" she said, with a smile and then she frowned.
"Does that mean…" she started to say.
"I'm afraid so...but magic is here. There might still be a chance for Emma," he replied.
"We have to go and now," he said, as he felt the magic at his fingertips once more and they disappeared in a puff of red smoke...