Part 51 – The Devil You Don't Know
"Keep moving," the reporter urged his cameraman as they ran through the castle's halls, following the guards that had charged inside after receiving a call for help. They hadn't noticed the two news people following them in, and none were paying attention to them now. Over the sound of the camera being jostled, and the cameramen's heavy breathing, were the sounds of screams and shouts. At the end of the hall guards could be seen crossing through an intersection, shouted orders heard as they passed. Just before they reached the intersection a wave of green energy blasted by them, followed by the sight of several guards flying past, their unconscious bodies landing over each other. The cameraman stopped and on the screen, the reporter was seen peeking around the hallway corner. "Come on," he waved after seeing that whatever had happened was more than likely not going to happen again. They followed the shouting and found themselves in the meeting room. The cameraman set himself up just outside the doorway, giving him the room to move the camera and follow the action.
Inside the room was a melee of chaos. What few guards that weren't taken out by the earlier blast wave, were trying to fight off Dagon's soldiers. Charming was involved, fighting with a soldier, doing his best to keep his wife, Audrey and her mother behind him while they slowly made their way toward an exit. As the camera panned the room, they saw that the conference table had been turned over and pushed to a far side of the room. Just beyond these throng of bodies fighting, Jane, Mal, Harriet, and Chad were ducked behind it along with an unconscious Fairy Godmother who'd been targeted near the beginning of the attack. One would have been puzzled as to the absence of Ben and Belle, since they had not seen the guards rushing them out of the room at Adam's urging.
Near the center of the room, Adam and Phillip were trying to fight off Dagon himself. Phillip was trying to fend him off with his broadsword. He tried bringing the sword down, its blade directed at Dagon's torso, only for Dagon to block it with his own broadsword. While they struggled, Dagon pushed back with his arm, and once Phillip was trying to regain his footing, Dagon kicked him hard in the chest, sending the royal flying back against the wall. Dagon then felt Adam grab his from behind, tapping him in a bear hug. Using his height to his advantage he lifted Dagon off the ground. "Phillip, now," he shouted.
Phillip charged, sword pointed forward, but before he could deliver what would undoubtedly be a killing blow, one of Dagon's soldiers intervened, tackling Phillip to the ground, another soldier coming over and kicking Phillip's sword away from him. Dagon then threw his head back, slamming it into Adam's face. When he refused to let go, Dagon did it two more times, the last strike causing a cracking sound as Adam's nose broke. With a shout of pain, Adam dropped Dagon, who then turned and began punching away on the former King of Auradon. Once Adam was reeling, Dagon stomped his foot on Adam's and then kicked the leg out from under him, forcing Adam to one knee. He then hit Adam in the head with his knee, knocking him onto his back.
Dagon moved to stand over Adam, his foot on his chest. He then raised his sword, pointing it at Adam's chest. He turned toward the camera, letting the cameraman, the reporter, and all of the viewers know that he was watching. He then pointed his hand toward the camera, and started to magically pull them toward him until they were no more than five or six feet away from him. "This kingdom tried to wipe me from memory, but after today, all of Auradon will know who I am."
Dagon once again raised his sword to deliver the killing blow, but before he could bring it down…
"Then we best show them who you really are."
The camera watched as Dagon looked toward the door, his eyes widening in shock. Everyone else looked just as shocked when they turned, they're gazes falling upon… Dagon and his five men.
"What the…?" Audrey asks as she and everyone tried to make sense of what they were seeing.
"Did you really think I was going to stand by and let what happened fifteen years ago happen today?" Dagon then looked over his shoulder to his men. "I'd prefer his men alive, but if protecting the people in this room makes necessary, I won't hold it against you if they die."
"What?" the Imposter Dagon shouts.
With no further delay, Dagon's men charge past him. The Imposter Dagon's soldiers move to meet them. Dagon begins to move though the room toward the imposter. "You stole my face once, and condemned me for fifteen years, I've come to return the favor," Dagon said as he materialized his cutlass to his hand. The imposter gripped his broadsword with both hands and swung at Dagon. Dagon deflected the attack with his sword and returned with his own attack. The imposter parried and soon, the two men were locked in a fierce back and forth.
Philip moved to grab Adam and dragged him toward a wall. The two royals, along with everyone else not fighting watched in stunned fascination. The soldiers brought by the imposter were fighting hard, harder even than when they were fighting with the guards and Adam, Charming, and Philip. But apparently the men that had come with Dagon had better training, as they were handing the soldiers with far more efficiency than one might think was possible when they were outnumbered two to one.
"There are two of them right? It's not just the head shots or the broken nose?" Adam asked Philip as he tried to get his bearings back while watching the fight.
"Which one do you think is the real one?" Philip asked.
"Which one looks like the better swordsman?" Adam countered.
Philip watched the two Dagons fight. He quickly assessed the styles and moves. "The one with the cutlass."
"There you go."
"Then who were we fighting just now?" Philip asked confused.
"You've gotten better while I was gone," Dagon said as he and the imposter locked up their swords.
"You have no idea who I am," the imposter groaned as he pushed Dagon off and swiped at his head. Dagon ducked the move and gave the imposter a thrust kick to his chest. The blow was hard enough to force the imposter back into the wall.
"Revelare verum faciem eius," Dagon said quickly. Suddenly, the imposter began to groan in pained muffling as he tried to resist the spell, but it was to no avail. In a swirling mass of bright white orbs, the imposter's face began to change until his true face was revealed. When the orbs dissipated, the royals and the civilians, and the viewers at home were shocked and speechless to see Joshua Merlin.
Joshua glanced around, the stunned faces proving just how bad his cover was blown. "You bastard!" he shouted at Dagon. "You couldn't just stay a statue?"
"Magic finds a way, especially since it's smarter than you," Dagon replied as he began to charge Joshua.
"No one's smarter than me," Joshua said as he lunged forward, but rather than meet Dagon, he disappeared in a flowy mass of smoke.
Dagon stopped himself, angered at the cowardly action. A scream from across the room caught his attention. He turned and saw Joshua was by Chad and the girls. He'd already forced Chad and Harriet away and was straddling Fairy Godmother's unconscious body, and he had hand on Mal and Jane's throats. "We're far from done," he uttered menacingly as suddenly, he teleported all four of them away.
Part 52 – Unequal Under Auradon Law
"Sir, we've secured Merlin's men," Edward, Dagon's second told him as they tried to evaluate the situation now that the battle was over.
"Bring one to me," Dagon ordered. Edward nodded and moved to gather one of Joshua's soldiers.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Adam said as he approached Dagon. "Hold on for a moment."
"We don't have a moment," Dagon replied to him.
"Well make one because I want to know what the hell all that was?"
Dagon stared back at Adam, both their gazes steeled against the other. Dagon then turned toward the reporter and the cameraman, who was still recording. "Sorry, but the adults need to talk," he told them right before snapped his fingers and teleported them away.
"Don't want a record of your crimes?" Charming asked insolently.
Dagon scoffed. "Can't you get your heads far enough out of your asses to see they were sent here, by Joshua?"
"Why would he send them? Adam demanded to know.
"To do what he did fifteen years ago – frame me," Dagon growled. Before anyone could respond, Edward had produced one of Joshua's soldiers. "Where did he go? Somewhere close?" he began.
"What the hell do you mean frame you?" Adam asked in disbelief.
"Is everyone alright?" Ben's voice interrupted as he entered the room with his mother, two guards flanking behind them. Edward led the prisoner away after Dagon pointed with his head.
"We're fine, but Fairy Godmother, Jane, and Mal were taken," Adam answered his son.
"Taken? What do you mean taken?" Ben asked, his voice going frantic. "What did you do?" he asked Dagon angrily.
"Besides keep everyone in this room alive," Dagon replied matter-of-factly.
"This is no time to –"
Adam stopped mid-sentence when Dagon turned his head to face him, his eyes smoldering. He then turned fully, standing toe to toe with him. "What is it huh? All these years of acting like your villains – like evil itself – is something you can shuttle off somewhere, and pretend it doesn't exist. Did it help you all sleep? Or, did it make you just plain naïve?"
Dagon turned away from Adam and began looking around the room, making sure every royal was paying attention. "Fifteen years ago, Joshua Merlin paid one of your guards to shut down the cameras in my location of the palace, costing me an alibi, while he killed his brother, and used my face to do it."
"That… it sounds too simple, and a little too convenient if you ask me," Adam said, though the bluster of his earlier assuredness was wavering.
"Simple? Convenient? Like assuming I was guilty so that you all didn't even entertain the idea of confirming what you saw?" Dagon told Adam, and every royal there coldly. "You just assumed that since I used to be a villain, that I was guilty. Then you all condemned me, and then proceeded to erase me. You were so sure… so certain… so confident in yourselves as heroes that you'd made the right and just decision that none of you ever second guessed yourselves. When really, all you were, every one of you… was goddamn arrogant. And because of your arrogance, a murderer has been running free in Auradon planning God knows what right under your noses."
"And you're not arrogant?" Adam fired back at him. "When you got free, instead of coming to us and doing things the right way, you instead caused chaos across the kingd –"
Everyone watched as Dagon punched Adam across his jaw. As Adam turned to slowly look at Dagon, Dagon never hesitated and punched him again.
"Don't you dare talk to me about doing things the right way. I paid the price of doing things the right way; so you'll excuse me if I'm not sold on the virtues of Auradon's justice." Adam shook off the punches and then once again stood before Dagon, both men glaring at each other. "Come on, Beasty, I'd love to kick your ass in front of your wife and boy again. Maybe I'll break that chiseled jaw to match the nose Joshy Merlin just broke."
"Enough!" Ben shouted. He stepped in between his father and Dagon, making sure he was looking at the angered former knight of Auradon. "I understand you were treated unfairly, but we can address that later. Right now, we have a much more urgent situation. Fairy Godmother, Mal, and Jane have been kidnapped, and we have to figure out what to do, especially since because of your actions, we don't know where they've been taken and we don't have enough guards to go after them."
"That's not entirely true," Edward stepped up. Dagon nodded at him to continue. "While you all have been… discussing, I continued to integrate the prisoners. Joshua Merlin is heading back to Camelot."
"Then we'll get a message to Arthur," Adam said.
Edward shook his head. "According to one of the captives, Mr. Merlin has been using magic to control King Arthur and his entire administration for years."
"Which means Camelot's army is going to be no help," Philip commented.
"Luckily, at least one of us has access to an army," Dagon replied knowingly. He made his way over to Chad and Harriet. Chad stepped in front of Harriet when he realized what was going on. "Don't go getting brave now, sweet prince."
Chad stood his ground, only to feel Harriet's hand on his shoulder. "It… it's okay," she told him. Chad looked at her, unsure but was willing to trust her judgement and stepped aside.
Harriet gulped hard as Dagon stood before her. "You're going to do me a favor," he told her. Harriet nodded nervously, remembering what happened last time she was this close to Dagon. "I need to tell a friend of mine what happened here today. And let them know that I need reinforcements sent to Camelot – enough to take on their army if necessary. Understand?"
"Uh-huh, I… I mean yes, sir."
Dagon politely nudged her to the side while out stretching his hand. Suddenly, a swirling vortex of smoke and light appeared before him. "I'd remember to bow upon arrival," he instructed her before grabbing her and pushing her though the portal, everyone watching as it closed behind her.
"Where did you send her?" Belle demanded to know.
"To a friend who can help. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a murderer to catch, and well, flying just isn't going get me there fast enough," Dagon says right before he opens a portal for himself and walks through it.
Harriet felt herself covering her eyes on instinct as one moment she felt herself being pushed. The next moment, she was falling, and then landing hard. She turned herself over, sitting on whatever ground she'd landed on, waiting to feel if anything hurt from her landing.
"Well hello… Harriet is it?"
Harriet, still getting her bearings, looked around and finally found the source of the voice. "Oh my God," she gasped in shock.
Part 53 – No Remorse, No Regret
As Fairy Godmother came to, the first thing she realized was that her head felt like it had been hit by a truck. The second thing she realized was that her hands were in shackles. She was able to push herself up from her prone position, but when she tried to steady herself, she was unable to spread her hands. "What the…?"
"Mom?" Jane gasped from her side of the room when she heard the stirring from her mother. "Mal, she's awake."
Both girls rushed over to her, helping her get to a sitting position. Fairy Godmother looked around and saw that she and the girls were in some kind of room. The walls were made from stone with a single wrought iron door as the only way in or out. There were two torches next to the door, one of each side, that were currently lit even though it was daylight outside as evidenced by the small window above their heads from their current position opposite the door. The only furniture was a single wooden table with three accompanying chairs. "Help me get her up," Mal instructed Jane. The siblings each took one of her hands and pulled her to her feet.
As they did so, Fairy Godmother noticed that Mal and Jane were in the same kind of shackles. Once they helped her to one of the chairs, she inspected the shackles, quickly recognizing the etching on them. Magic suppressing symbols, she thought to herself. She glanced at the girls' shackles and saw the same symbols etched onto theirs. She realized that short of someone letting them out, or them devising some kind of escape, magic was not going to be an option to get out of wherever they were.
"What happened? How long have I been out?" she asked the girls.
"Almost an hour and a half," Jane answered.
Fairy Godmother gasped at the answer. "Where did your father bring us?" she asked in follow up. Mal and Jane looked at each other awkwardly. "Girls?"
"It wasn't…," Mal began, unsure what word to use to describe her father.
"What wasn't?" Fairy Godmother asked growing impatient.
"Mr. Merlin brought us here," Jane answered her mother timidly.
"Joshua? Then why are we cuffed like this?"
"Because Jane pissed them off by using magic to push him and some guards away from us so we could try to run," Mal answered her.
Fairy Godmother looked at her daughter in disbelief. "Janey?"
"It… it really wasn't all that much," Jane replied sheepishly.
Fairy Godmother looked at Mal for confirmation. "Wasn't all that much?" Mal replied skeptically. "It was Merlin and around seven guards he had waiting here. She knocked them back like thirty feet," Mal revealed, sounding completely impressed with her little sister.
Fairy Godmother then looked at daughter, this time feeling prouder than she could ever remember, and considering that she was usually always proud of her little girl, that was a big admission for her. Though one thing confused her. "Where'd you learn to…?"
"Dad taught me," she answered softly.
"Well, that explains the thirty feet," she smiled.
"They also didn't like it when Mal started throwing energy balls at them," Jane told her mother.
"Energy balls? You've been reading your mother's spell book haven't you?" Fairy Godmother asked. Mal nodded, not sure if she should feel guilty or not. Despite not being completely comfortable with the idea of Mal using Maleficent's spell book, she couldn't argue with the results. Both of the girls fought back. Something that she didn't think they'd try, or even be capable of despite how outnumbered they probably were. "You two really are your father's daughters," she told them, her eyes actually beaming with happiness at the realization. And as she looked at both of them, she saw each of them actually beam with a little bit of pride at her compliment.
Before anything else could be said between the three of them, the sound of the door unlocking broke the silence. They huddled together as the door opened and in walked Joshua Merlin along with two guards. Fairy Godmother could tell that something was different about Joshua. He was still exuding his usual serious demeanor, but something felt off. It was almost like the care free nature that was always lingering on the surface and acted as a counter balance was missing.
"I'm glad to see you're awake," Joshua said calmly.
"Joshua, what are we doing here?" Fairy Godmother asked. She stood to meet him, and was frightened back into her chair when the guards pulled their swords on her.
"Now, now, there's no need for that," he chastised the guards for their reaction, though his tone seemed almost mocking. "You'll have to excuse them, they're a little overzealous."
"What is going on?" Fairy Godmother demanded, louder and much more firm.
Joshua chuckled. "Really? You're girls didn't tell you what happened?"
"We didn't get that far," Mal spoke up.
"Well don't let me stop you," Joshua gave her an evil grin.
Mal felt her blood run cold from the way he looked at her. She hadn't met the man until a few days ago, but even then, she felt unnerved by him. But now, now she felt frightened, an emotion she wasn't quick to feeling.
"He attacked the castle, and he looked like Dagon to do it," Mal revealed to Fairy Godmother.
"We're alive because Dad showed up and reversed whatever glamour spell was being used," Jane chimed in. "Said he wasn't going to let what happened fifteen years ago happen again."
"Again?" Fairy Godmother asked confused.
Joshua smiled and almost laughed. "Seems almost fruitless to keep up the charade at this point," he mused out loud. Sighing, he walked toward them and leaned onto the table. Now that he was more on their eye level, he looked directly into Fairy Godmother's eyes. He could see uncertainty in them, and if he studied them deeper, maybe a little bit of unconfirmed dread. He savored the seconds ticking by before he finally smiled and spoke. "Fifteen years ago, I killed my brother… and framed Dagon for it."
Fairy Godmother was speechless. She was stupefied. She didn't think the words she'd heard were real. She felt a sense of denial for a few fleeting seconds before her mind wiped them away and forced her to begin processing them.
"Nothing to say?" Joshua asked, his smile almost ear to ear. "Maybe a question will help get those synapses firing. Tell me, how does it feel to know that not only did you not believe the man you claimed to love of his innocence, but that you condemned him to a life sentence as a statue? And in doing so, denied these girls their father?" he asked, almost gloating.
Fairy Godmother felt her stomach churn, and fought to not begin vomiting at the realization of what she'd learned. "W… why?" she managed to stutter out.
"To protect my power," he answered nonchalantly.
"Your power?" Fairy Godmother asked astounded.
"Fifteen years ago, Michael and I were in Olympus for matters of state. During a lull in our assignment, we decide to visit their Oracle. We asked if our family's magical legacy will be remembered throughout history. And do you know what she revealed to us? That our legacy wood be stained and forgotten while the magical legacy born from the blood of the raven would be revered throughout history."
"The raven? Dagon?" Fairy Godmother asked, not believing what she'd heard.
Joshua nodded. "I wasn't sure what she meant, not completely at least. Part of me though, it knew. And I didn't want to believe it. I refused to believe it. But then, you announced that you were pregnant… with his child," Joshua explained, glaring with hate-filled eyes at Jane. "And I knew what the Oracle foretold was coming to pass. I realized then, I had to stop it."
"Stop it? Stop what? Me?" Jane asked confused and growing angry.
Joshua ignored her.
"I went to my brother, let him know that we had to act. But he – like everybody else – was happy for you two. I implored him to reconsider. Told him that we couldn't just let ourselves be forgotten. And do you know what he told me? That magic always knows what's best for itself and that maybe it was time for our family to step aside." Joshua scoffed dismissively. "I knew then what I had to do. I had to stop the prophecy at all costs. And if my brother wasn't going to stand with me, well… then he had to go too."
Fairy Godmother, Jane, and Mal sat in stunned silence. This revelation was nowhere near what they ever thought they'd hear.
"I assumed I had won. Dagon was labeled a murderer and sentenced to the Isle," he mused, turning to Jane once more. She felt her skin crawl. He then faced Fairy Godmother again. "All that was left was to get close to you, so I could truly end that prophecy by raising Jane in my image. But apparently I misjudged how much you loved him," he said with a stroke of Fairy Godmother's cheek. She shook her head to force his hand away. "I could've loved you."
"You only love yourself. And I would never let you touch me," she fired back at him. "And you didn't stop anything," she added, indicating Mal and Jane.
Joshua chuckled sarcastically.
"I know. Imagine my surprise when we arrive at the Isle to condemn Dagon, only to find out that my brother was right – magic was trying to get its way because lo and behold, Dagon has fathered another filthy little half-breed."
Fairy Godmother stood up in defense. "Watch your mouth, or I'll –"
"You'll do nothing. Not with those shackles on at least," Joshua reminded her. He then looked at Mal, pure disdain his eyes. "You're the reason Auradon doesn't have magic you know. The barrier would suppress your magic abilities, and that gave me the idea of how to suppress your little mongrel sister's powers too."
"That's why you petitioned Adam and Belle to do away with magic, wasn't it?" Fairy Godmother asked.
Joshua smiled wickedly. "One daughter never gets access to her abilities. And the other never grows into them because you, Fairy Godmother, always needing to set the good example, would never teach Jane to use hers. All the while, I continued to perfect mine." He started laughing triumphantly.
"You're a monster," Fairy Godmother tells him.
"You're the reason Jane and I didn't have a father growing up?" Mal asked him angrily.
"Let's be honest you little mutt, with Dagon as your father, you'd have daddy issues whether I did anything or not," he taunts. He then turned toward Jane. "After all, baby sister isn't exactly the most emotionally stable now is she?"
"You really need to hope I don't get out of these shackles," Fairy Godmother tells him coldly.
Joshua comes around the table and leans toward her, their faces inches apart. "Like you'd be a threat. Tell me, what could you do to me?" The next sound heard wasn't a witty or menacing retort from Fairy Godmother, but a scream from Joshua as Mal and Jane, and Joshua's accompanying guards, watched her head-butt him with everything she had. Joshua recoiled, his hands quickly covering his face. "What the hell!?" he shouted at her through his hands. Once he removed them to inspect what he felt covering his hands, everyone saw blood trickling from his mouth, and his teeth were stained in red.
"I learned that from their father," Fairy Godmother said smugly.
Joshua, in a blazing anger, used his powers to begin moving the three fairies from their seated positions across the floor by their shackles. They screamed, both in fear, and at him, as they felt themselves being herded toward the back wall. They then groaned in pain as their arms were forced above their heads. The sound of stone cracking and breaking floated to their ears as the wall sprouted hooks with which Joshua used to suspend them from. He closed the distance until he was practically nose to nose with Fairy Godmother.
"Is this where you tell me 'I'm going to pay for that'?" she asked him defiantly, keeping a brave face for the girls. "Is that gonna make you feel better?"
Joshua took a step back and spit out some blood. He smiled at Fairy Godmother, and then Mal and Jane watched in shock as he gave her a backhanded slap.
"Mom," Jane shouted in concern.
Fairy Godmother turned back to face Joshua, a spot of blood trickling from her lip. "Do you feel like a man now?" she asked stoically.
Before he could respond, a third guard walked into the cell. "Sir?"
"What?" Joshua asked coldly, never taking his angry gaze from Fairy Godmother.
"Dagon is here. He's fighting his way through the castle."
"Tell the guards to capture him – alive – and bring him to me." Joshua locked eyes with Fairy Godmother and grinned maliciously. "Show time." He then noticed that Jane is staring daggers at him. "Got something you'd like to say, Jane?"
She turns to Mal and then glares at Joshua. "Our father is going to kick your ass."
There were four unconscious guards on the floor. Dagon had a fifth pinned against the wall. His right forearm was pressed into the guard's throat while he struggled with the guard's sword wielding right hand with his own left. With a grunted effort, he reared his left arm back, and slammed the guard's wrist and hand against the stone wall three times as hard as he could. The guard's sword fell from his hand and Dagon proceeded to press his forearm tighter into the guard's throat.
"Where's Joshua Merlin?" he shouted. The guard shook his head. Dagon quickly grabbed him by his throat, and pulled him off the wall, only to spin him around and slam him back into it. The guard shouted as his head impacted the large stones. Dagon then pressed his thumb into the hollow of the guard's throat. "Where's Merlin?" Dagon asked again, more menacing this time.
"H-holding cells," the guard grunted, struggling to catch a breath at the same time. "One level above the actual dungeon."
His usefulness ended, Dagon knocked the guard out and began making his way toward that part of the castle. As he moved, he encountered more guards. In some cases, he simply dispatched them hand to hand. But when he encountered the unit of what looked thirty men when he reached the back end of the castle, and was standing at the beginning of the long corridor that separated the castle proper from the building that housed the holding cells and the dungeons beneath it… he decided to engage them in a different manner.
"Seize him," the Unit Commander shouted. The guards began rushing, but in their haste to carry out Joshua's orders, they failed to take into account their surroundings. They advanced in rows, shouldered up four by four as the corridor constricted their numbers.
Dagon smiled.
He clenched his fist and slammed it into the ground. The floor beneath them shook, unbalancing the advancing soldiers. But before they regained their footing, they saw the floor bulging up and moving toward them like a wave. Some of them tried to fall back, but the stone wave reached them first, knocking most of the guards near the front off of their feet. Those near the back were able to brace against the wall and kept themselves standing. Dagon then looked at the windows and saw that in this corridor, they had no glass on them.
"Immunda insecta," he intoned while spreading open his arms.
Suddenly, the air started to sound like it was vibrating. The guards looked around, trying to figure out what the source of the sound was. They unfortunately found out when a plague of insects numbering in what had to be thousands came flying in through every window and began swarming the soldiers. They at first tried swinging at them with their swords, but the insects were too small and too numerous. They swatted at them with their hands, before finally screaming at each other to get down and cover up, but the insects stayed with them.
Dagon ran towards them, and then jumped against the wall to his right, kicking himself off it. The sound of him cawing was heard as he turned himself into a bird and flew over the mass of men and insects and out the other end of the corridor. Once he was a safe distance pass them, he returned to human form and found himself in a hallway with four iron doors along the walls.
"Joshua," he yelled out. "Where are you? Don't be shy."
"Down here," came Joshua's voice from end of the hallway. Dagon followed it. As he neared the last door on the right, it opened of its own volition. He walked in, and stopped. Joshua Merlin was standing in the center of the room. Behind him, chained to the wall were Fairy Godmother and his daughters, each with a guard in front of them, sword drawn and pointed at their throats.