AN: Sorry if y'all are sick of this particular plot thread, but it's what I wrote and I'm not changing it now. Plus, I like it. So... Not sorry. I hope y'all like the chapter! It gets pretty dramatic...
Music: "Nothing Left to Lose" from Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure
NOTES!: "Not even a storm could contain her. You're going to have to face the truth someday. Some people are just meant to be free."
Chapter 27: Nothing Left to Lose
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! The dude wants to turn you into a troll?!" Toby was freaking out a little bit, but Jim had to admit that it was a little comforting that someone else thought it was weird.
"Are you going to do it?" Claire asked, keeping her voice low as she glanced briefly at the others who were all asleep despite the rocking and jerking of the ferry.
"Are you crazy? This has bad idea written all over it!" Toby continued to rant, but Claire shook her head at him.
"I don't agree with Merlin's methods either, but you have to admit. Even with all of us working together, I'm not sure we'll be strong enough to take down Gunmar." Claire reasoned, and if Jim were human, he might agree with her. Heck, he probably would've agreed with Merlin yesterday and used the damn potion.
"I need time to think. For now, let's just try to stay focused on the quest, okay?" Jim suggested and the other two nodded. Claire moved off to peek out the hatch on the boat's deck and check their progress, but Toby scooted closer to Jim and dropped his voice to a whisper.
"You didn't tell about... That, did you?" He asked, and Jim shook his head.
"Not a chance." Jim replied instantly.
"Then why is this even a discussion? You know you can't use that potion, it's meant for a human." Toby said.
"Yeah, but to make that point to everyone else, I would have to tell them I'm not human." Jim muttered.
"So the decision isn't whether or not to take the potion. It's whether or not to come clean?" Toby looked at him for confirmation, and though it was immensely uncomfortable to admit it, Jim nodded.
"Rapunzel said I need to find my own path. Make my own choice... I'm just not sure what that is yet." Jim explained, and Toby nodded in understanding as they both fell into a thoughtful silence.
The swaying of the boat became a lot less significant along with some tapping noises against the hull, and Jim perked up. There was some shuffling, and then the hatch was yanked open above their heads to reveal Draal adorned in his heavy cloak.
"We've arrived." He informed them and reached down to start pulling them up one-by-one.
"Alright, this is as far as we can take ya'." Hook-Hand told them, as Jim was pulled up after Claire. Toby was waking up the others.
"Thanks for your help, guys." Jim smiled at them.
"A friend of Rapunzel's is a friend of ours. Besides, she asked us to look out for you as long as we could." Big-Nose told him.
"Well, you went above and beyond. I owe you one." Jim said as Draal continued pulling up the rest of their team from the belly of the small ship.
"You kids be careful. Neutral territories can be dangerous when you don't know what you're doing." Hook-Hand warned him.
"Or if you're caught spying on wealthy people?" Jim remarked smartly. Hook-Hand grumbled something about a smart-mouth, but Big-Nose chuckled and nodded.
"We'll hang around the town back on shore for a couple of days. If you need help getting back, come look us up. We won't have the ferry anymore, but we've still got our wagon." He offered, and Jim nodded his thanks.
Once everyone had gotten up onto the deck, Jim turned to take in their surroundings. The island before them was mostly dark with the exception of a distant glow coming from the other side of the small mountain. The sun had already set and the last few rays of light were disappearing beneath the horizon. The gangplank was lowered and Jim turned to see if his team was prepared to disembark. He'd chosen Hiro, Gustav, and Steve to come along with him, Toby, Claire, and Draal. Pulling up his hood, Jim nodded to the others to do the same as he turned towards the island.
Jim led the way into the ghost town that was once a Pirate Haven. According to what Jim had been told, the only building still in use was the main gathering place that had been converted into a Night Club on the other side of the island. Jim and his team slipped along the deserted streets, peering ahead into the darkness of the night. They went through the tropical forest to come up at the back of the building. There was a slight overhang that allowed them to peer down at the structure filled with life.
Light was bursting out of every crevice, and Jim could hear the music clearly from their position. The building wasn't like anything Jim was used to seeing; three levels with massive balconies on the two higher ones. Each level was a little offset from the one below it, following the incline of the mountain. A large deck protruded out the front and overlooked the ocean. Guards were stationed all around the place, but because of the shape of the structure there were several blind-spots.
"If we take out the guard on the side balcony there, we can sneak in without anyone knowing." Claire pointed down at the singular guard.
"Right. Okay, Draal and I will take out the guard and scope out the entry point. I'll signal you once it's clear." Jim told the others, motioning for them to hold their position.
One well-placed clonk on the head later, and Jim was pressing his back against the wall as he looked down a long and narrow corridor. With no sign of any other guards coming, he nodded to Draal and he waved to the others to follow. When they caught up, Jim looked to Toby who was already digging into his bag.
"Blinky gave us these Talk-Stones. If you want to talk to us, just squeeze the stone till it glows and then talk into it. Only one of us can talk at a time, though, so try not to use it unless it's an emergency." Jim told them all while Toby went about passing out the stones. "We're going to split into teams. Draal will stay out here and watch our exit. Claire, Hiro, Gustav, and Steve, I need you four to focus on the backrooms. Private conversations, paper files, artifacts, any evidence you can find. Toby and I will check out the main room and see if we can spot any familiar faces."
With everyone clear on their objectives, Jim and Toby set off apart from the others, heading towards the main room where the festivities occurred. The room was hazy with smoke, scantily dressed women walked around serving drinks and food. On the stage was a young singer with a red dress and wavy black hair that draped mysteriously over one eye. There were over a dozen round tables set up around the room and all of the men and women in attendance were dressed in the finest silks and brocades.
Jim and Toby looked down at the club goers from an upper balcony that went all the way around the room, attaching to a lot of different doors that lead who-knew-where. The scent of smoke and perfume was overpowering and stifling, especially up close to the rafters. Jim tried not to focus on the resulting headache as he and Toby slinked along the shadows of that upper balcony, looking down at each of the tables to see if they could recognize anybody.
There was cheering and hooting as many of the men rose from their seats as the singer finished an upbeat musical number. They cheered for more, but the singer only blew a kiss to the audience before slipping back behind the stage. Jim was distracted from it all when Toby vigorously tapped his arm to get his attention while pointing down at a specific table.
"Dude! Isn't that Antonio Perez?" Toby hissed frantically, and Jim followed his gaze down to a table at a back corner of the room.
"Not just Antonio, but his dad, too!" Jim agreed, peering down at them. They were seated on one side of the round table with a hooded figure across from them. Jim couldn't tell who it was. "We have to get a closer look!"
Jim was just about to stand up and find a way to the ground floor when Toby pulled him down, holding up his Talk-Stone which was glowing softly.
"Jim, come in!" Claire's voice came through the stone. "Jim, we need back up! There's something down here -!" There was a thump and then silence as the stone's glow faded away.
The boys looked at each other and then back to the stone as Toby squeezed it and tried to make contact. "Claire? Claire, come in!"
"It's no use, Tobes. Come on, we've gotta find them!" Jim said, hurrying back in the direction they'd come from. He took one last glance down at Antonio and his father, but they were getting up from the table with the hooded figure.
Jim shook his head. There was nothing he could do about it right now.
"Claire, can you hear me? Hiro? Draal are you there?" Jim whispered into his own Talk-Stone as he and Toby ran along different corridors to try and find their friends. There was no response, though. Jim tucked the stone back into his pocket and turned a corner just to come to a sudden stop at what he saw. Toby ran into his back, but they stayed upright.
"Hey, what's going on -Whoa..." Toby gaped at the tunnel before them. The wood of the corridor gave way to the rock of the mountain; a tunnel that went down a small flight of stairs and then off into darkness. Toby whined. "We have to go down there, don't we?"
"We have to find them, Tobes." Jim said, pulling out his wand to light their path.
Jim and Toby followed the tunnel deeper into the mountain for a few minutes until they came to a fork in the road. Two paths stretched out in front of them, but Jim hesitated on choosing a path. Instead he looked around the cavern and down at the ground, bending down so he could gently touch the footprints in the dirt.
"Jim," Toby whispered. Jim looked up and saw Toby holding Gustav's dragon-tooth necklace. Jim took it with a twist in his gut.
"We need to find out which way they went." He said.
"How do we do that? The footprints just end right here!" Toby pointed out with only a slight edge of panic to his voice.
Before Jim could come up with an answer to that particular problem, a large hand and arm reached out of the shadows and grabbed onto Toby's leg. They both screamed as Toby was dragged across the floor and into the shadows. Jim grabbed onto his arm and tried to stop it, but whatever had him was too strong. They both lost their grip and Toby was dragged down a hole as he screamed.
"Toby!" Jim called after him, reaching into the hole after him. Panting, Jim stood up and tried not to panic. Steeling himself, he donned his armor and summoned his sword of Daylight. Just as he was about to jump down the hole after Toby, a stone shot out of the ground and into the wall, covering the hole. Jim jumped back and whirled around, sword at the ready.
A shadow disappeared down of the tunnels, and Jim chased after it. He raced down the tunnel as it twisted and turned, barely keeping up with the vague shadowy image. Finally the tunnel opened up to a large cavern area that was littered with the cursed stones. Jim kept walking towards the center of the room, his sword at the ready and trying not to jump at his own reflections in the stones.
"What are you doing here?"
That did make him jump and spin around, leveling his sword at the source of the voice, but then he froze. Emma stood before him in the same blue and black garbs the Moonstone gave her on that night. Her darkened hair was loose, but pushed back behind her ears to reveal her mismatched eyes that glowed a little in the darkness.
"It was you earlier. On the stage." Jim said, lowering his sword to his side. Emma's arms were crossed over her chest, but she let them fall as she huffed out a sigh.
"Well, I've had some practice performing for rich snobs." She muttered, and Jim winced.
"Why are you here, Emma?" He wanted to know.
"I asked you first." She shot back, and Jim blew a breath out his nose.
"Someone is telling Pitch Black our strategies. I've been sent to find out if this is the place where it's been happening... We spotted Antonio Perez and his dad. I know you two have some history." Jim informed her, remembering what Emma had vaguely told him about the boy betraying her for political gain.
"And now you want to know if I'm included in their little circle?" Emma asked sharply, her eyebrows drawing down into a glare.
"No." Jim told her firmly, but then he softened. "I know you wouldn't... But I do need to know why you're here."
Emma pursed her lips and strolled along the wall of the cavern, circling him with a wide birth. She finally turned to him with a considering look, and then admitted. "Same as you. I'm here to make Perez pay for what he's done."
"What do you mean by that?" Jim questioned her cautiously, taking a small step towards her as she turned to face him fully.
"What do you think?" She responded dryly.
"I can't let you do that, Emma. I need to take them back alive to the Royal Council." Jim explained, hoping she would understand and maybe they could help each other.
"And why should I care?" She demanded. "They'd all see me locked up just as quickly!"
"Please, Emma. Let me help you." Jim begged her, holding out his hand to her.
"I don't need help! I chose this, and I'm not going to let the Royal Council or anyone else try to hold me back! Not anymore!" Emma snapped.
"Emma, you're angry, I get it! Believe me I know what it's like! But you are making a mistake..." Jim tried again, thinking back to that moment of nothing but anger and pain when he made the decision to wear the Eclipse armor and enter the Darklands by himself. He looked off to the side, and was slightly startled to see his own memories reflected in the stones all around him. "The path of hate is a dangerous track. You take one step and it's hard to turn back. It pulls you along, And though it seems wrong it feels right..."
"Don't you see this path you're on leaves a permanent mark. It feels good at first, then it slowly turns dark. With each passing day, You're further astray from the light!" Emma turned away from him, looking at her own reflection, but then she shifted and his image replaced hers. She sniffed and walked away again, going further into the shadows. Jim ran after her.
"Suddenly, you lose your way and lose the thread! Lose your cool, then lose your head! Every loss is harder to excuse!" Jim slid to a stop in front of her, but she only rolled her eyes and redirected herself. She stopped though, when she saw reflections of his memories; when he let his emotions get the better of him and he made the choice to enter the Darklands. And the images of when he lost AAARRRGH!, left his friends behind, and watched her get taken away.
"Then you'll see you'll lose your faith and lose your soul! 'Til you lose complete control! And realize there's nothing left to lose! Nothing left to lose!" Jim stepped toward her and gently took her hand, and for a moment he thought she would let him, but then she yanked her hand away and stalked back to the center of the room. Jim followed her again.
"Emma, trust me. Becoming the villain isn't the answer -!" He called after her, but she twisted around and cut him off, her eyes snapping with fury.
"Is that what you think I am?" She sneered at him. "The path I'm on is a path paved in black. I'm taking that road and I'm not looking back. Each twist and each turn, Leads straight where I'm yearning to go!" She held up her palm to show him the Moonstone, and then she used it to surround herself with a spiral of rocks, the one at the very center raising her high above the rest as she reached even further up.
"Yes, it's true, my path is dark but I see where it ends. My rivals will fall as my power ascends. Despise me, that's fine! I'm taking what's mine even so!" Emma turned her back to him, looking up to the small crack in the ceiling that allowed a sliver of Moonlight to shine through. She looked back at him, and then took a jump, catching herself with another angled stone that let her slide gracefully down to the ground again. She prowled around him before stopping with a large gap between them.
"Not like you! You lost your nerve, you lost the game! But you and I, we're not the same! I'm not lost, this fate was mine to choose!" She threw out one hand and more stones shot out of the ground, reflecting images of them both. His own memories showed him taking orders from Merlin and standing on trial before the Troll Tribunal while hers were memories of befriending the blue dragon she'd set loose and fighting the beast who's head she'd severed. She watched him with clear intention as he took it in. They'd both made choices.
"So I chose to lose my doubts and lose my chains! Lose each weakness that remains! Now that I have nothing left to lose! Nothing left to lose!" Emma spun away from him again, throwing out her arms as the memories shifted to ones of her playing with her brother, hanging out with Venellope and Cupcake, and laughing with him and Toby and the trolls. Jim reached a hand out to her, taking a few steps towards her, but Emma whipped around with her blade appearing in her hand and she pointed it at his throat.
"You have so much to hold onto." Jim didn't flinch as he locked eyes with her, trying to find what they'd lost.
"I only want my rightful dues!" Emma gritted her teeth, but swiped her knife to the side and threw some rocks forward at him instead. Jim leaped back out of the blow, falling onto his back and then rolling onto his feet so he could face Emma as she advanced on him.
"Listen please, you've lost your grip! And lost your mind!" They were facing each other now, both their voices ringing but neither fully heard. "I'm not gonna lose!"
"All's not lost, don't be so blind!" He reached his arms out to her as she threw hers out. "I refuse!"
"Cut your losses, drop the IOUs!" He was begging and she was gripping at her hair. "I refuse!"
"Oh-oh, choose!" He desperately reached out for her as she pulled away from him again, shaking her head.
"I lose no tears and lose no sleep! What I want I'll take and keep!" She snapped towards him again and threw out more stones.
"It's time for you to choose!" Jim stumbled backwards.
"You can't stop the turning on the screws!" Emma rushed forward, swinging her leg out to kick him, and Jim fell completely back. He was startled when the floor seemed to give way and he went tumbling down, hitting the ground and rolling a few feet until he finally came to a stop on his side.
Jim pushed himself onto his hands and knees as Toby, Claire, and all the others gathered around. Bars clanging shut lifted their eyes to Emma, who was standing outside their new prison cell.
"You'll stay in that cage until this is done. And just in case you think of escaping," Emma said, moving to the side a bit as Angor Rot stepped out of the shadows with a vicious grin.
Jim felt a sharp pang in his chest as he watched Emma leave them there with Angor Rot as their guard.
"Now I have nothing left to lose..." She gave one last glance back at him before walking out the door and slamming it shut behind her.
Jim was curled up in the corner, pressed against the stone at his back and the bars at his side. He hadn't spoken much to the others besides making sure they were okay, but he knew they were worried. They were all sitting around the cell, either trying to figure out what had happened or what they should do, but none of that was very easy with Angor Rot watching them. He stood leaning against the wall across from their cell, carving some stone with his knife.
It wasn't until a pebble hit him in the side of his head that Jim finally looked up from his own brooding.
Toby's face was twisted into a very forced relaxed expression as he nodded and twitched towards a loose pile of rocks in the back corner opposite Jim. Draal stretched and walked over to Toby, casually leaning against the wall there and blocking his smaller stature from view. Jim caught on as well.
"You know," Jim began slowly, shifting his gaze over to Angor Rot who still had his eyes on his carving. "I heard you were once a great warrior. A hero to troll-kind."
Angor Rot paused in his movements for a long moment, and then his gaze moved up to Jim with a suspicious scowl.
"What's your excuse now that you have your soul back?" Jim asked him, giving a clear look at the ring on Angor Rot's hand. The troll only chuckled deep in his throat, going back to his carving as he spoke.
"What I do now is my own business, Trollhunter." He rumbled, only glancing up again briefly. "I suppose I do have you to thank for that."
Jim's hands clenched into fists as he caught onto the meaning of his words. Hiro and Claire looked at Angor Rot and then over at Jim, confused. Angor Rot seemed to notice this and stood up straighter, approaching the bars to loom over Jim even as he stood up.
"So, you haven't told them? Would it interest your friends to know that you were the one to give the Inferna Copula to Emma Frost?" Angor Rot laughed outright as Jim glared at him. "That's right, Trollhunter. You have only yourself to blame for where you are now. My Lady returned my soul to me, and now I am free. I have decided of my own will to work with her."
Angor Rot started laughing again, but then Toby's hammer slammed into his head. Angor Rot dropped to the ground, unconscious, and Toby looked back a Jim with a shrug. Claire, however, was more concerned about what they'd just learned.
"You gave Emma the ring? You said it was destroyed!" Claire said incredulously, and Jim sighed heavily.
"Yell at me later. Right now we have to stop her. Toby?" Jim turned to his best friend and he grinned.
"Stand back!" He warned them, winding up his hammer.
"Within the next couple of days, a full fleet of Allied Forces ships will be passing through Sharktooth Way. It will provide supplies and reinforcements to Syracuse and the Southern Isles." Eduardo Perez shared with the hooded figure behind the desk. He and his son were reclined in comfortable armchairs while the cloaked figure leaned forward over steepled fingers.
"You're certain of this?" The hooded figure hissed quietly.
"Absolutely! My sources do not lie! And why would they? My family is still well respected among the Allied nobles. They have no reason to suspect the Perez family!" Eduardo spoke with certainty.
Emma watched on from her hiding place behind a wall that would open if she pressed the switch. There was a small grate that allowed her to peek through and see what was happening, but she kept her back pressed against the side wall to be sure they would spot her. Just a little longer and she would know everything she needed to.
"Excellent. And you're positive they have no idea about the dam we've constructed?" The hooded drawled slowly, reaching forward to pick up his quill from the desk.
"Yes, sir. The Allied Forces don't know anything about the construction within the pass. I made sure of it myself." Eduardo chuckled to himself as he stroked his mustache.
"Very well. I will see to it that the battalion is prepared for when the fleet arrives. I want it destroyed as quickly as possible so they cannot report back to their Royals." The hooded figured stated as he wrote something on his parchment.
"That won't be a problem, I'm sure. The dam will prevent them from escaping forward, and their numbers will limit their ability to turn around in such a narrow pass. They'll be trapped and easy to dispose of." Antonio spoke up for the first time, and the hooded figure chuckled.
"I see you are training your son well, Perez." He said.
Eduardo chuckled as well. "Yes, he'll do well when the time comes for him to take over the family business."
"I look forward to working with him more in the future." The cloaked man nodded. "Please, enjoy the rest of your stay. I must deliver this message to my master."
As all three of them stood up, Emma shifted onto her toes and slid her knife out of her sleeve. She would have to act fast in order to capture all three of them for questioning. She took a breath, reached over to the switch, and... Hands grabbed her shoulders and covered her mouth from behind, yanking her back into the tunnel. She immediately started kicking and bit down hard on the hand covering her mouth. There was yelp and a shout.
"She bit me!" Gustav squealed, cradling his hands as he stood right in front of her.
"Sshhhh!" Someone else hissed as Emma's foot connected with a knee.
"Ow!" A third person gasped as quietly as he could right behind Emma's head. So she knew that was the one holding her with her arms pinned to her sides and her feet off the ground.
"Steve! Are you okay, buddy?" Gustav asked.
There was a lot of noise and movement all around her and inside the room she'd been watching. Growling again, Emma threw her head back and felt it connect with the person's, Steve's, nose. The arms around her middle instantly dropped away and Emma landed on the floor in a crouch. She threw one leg out to swipe the feet out from under the one whose hand she'd bitten, and then she made a mad dash for the wall. She hit the switch and burst into the room only to find it a complete mess with the desk overturned and the bookshelf smashed. All three men from before were missing.
"Of all the clumsy, idiotic -!" She ranted as she turned around to find Claire Nunez of all people following her out of the tunnel.
"Where do you think you're going?" The girl demanded, pointing her wand at Emma.
"I'm in a bad mood, you should really reconsider this." Emma warned her.
"Expelliarmus!" Claire threw her arm forward. Emma rolled to the side to dodge the spell and then lunged at her with a scream, Vorpal Blade glinting in the dim light.
Wand and blade met, but Emma angled her blade to simply knock it from the other girl's hand rather than snap it in half. Claire threw a punch with her other hand, and Emma could admit she had a decent left hook. Emma kicked out behind her, catching Claire in the stomach and shoving her back into the tunnel. As Claire tumbled back onto her ass, Emma hit the switch to close the tunnel. Once it was shut, Emma went to the window and shoved it open, giving a sharp whistle into the night.
There were bells ringing everywhere and people were shouting into the night, thundering footsteps could be heard running throughout the building. Everyone was aware there were intruders now, and there was no way to salvage this botched mission. Emma watched Bluewhistle swoop out of the trees and down towards her position. She got up on the sill, and then jumped, landing on Blue's back as he sped passed. They dove low into the mist coming up off the sea, angling along the rocks until they reached the hidden cove. A small dock with a paddle boat tied to it was situated there and connected with the tunnels. Angor Rot was already waiting there.
"What happened?" She was asking the question before Bluewhistle had even landed completely.
"The fat one managed to sneak out of the cell and used his hammer on me. I would have gone after them, but you told me specifically not to kill them." He said honestly, and Emma huffed out her frustration.
It would be alright. She'd gotten the most important bits of information. Even if the rest of the quest turned into an utter disaster.
"I know, you're right." She said before holding her hand out to him. "Get on. We need to get out of here." Angor Rot and Bluewhistle looked up at her, and she glanced between them. "What?..."
They looked at each other and then back at Emma with an even sharper knowing look.
"Okay, fine! I feel bad and we're going back to make sure they don't get themselves killed!" Emma finally admitted. Bluewhistle gave a happy tune, and Angor Rot rolled his eyes, but they started moving. Angor jumped onto Blue's back and the trio took off back towards the club.
They circled around above the club, trying to see where Jim and the others may try to escape from. Angor tapped her arm and pointed at one of the side balconies where Draal came rolling out of the door with a burst, throwing a guard over the railing. Some of the boys ran out right behind him, but some were missing, and there were a lot of guards chasing them, ready to overwhelm them.
"Let's go!" Emma tapped Blue's shoulder, and the dragon chirped as he dropped into a dive. He landed between Draal and the boys and the guards from the club. He gave a spray of fire, incapacitating several guards and chasing off all the others with a mighty roar. Emma dropped down at his side and looked back at Draal.
"Go! We'll cover you!" She told him, ignoring the indignant cry from Gustav and Steve and the confused look from Hiro.
"They're still inside!" Draal pointed to the door, and Emma followed his gesture. Straight down the corridor. Jim, Claire, and Toby were surrounded by guards and several of them were drawing arrows on their crossbows, preparing to fire.
"No!" Emma shouted, running forward. She called on her magic to create the same bursts that allowed her to dodge and jump around her opponents. Instead of pulling it to her and bursting into a million wings, she threw the energy forward to encase Jim, Toby, and Claire. The arrows were loosed, but the three had already disappeared. Emma could hear her heartbeat in her ears and she reached up to touch the warmth on her lip. There was blood on her fingers.
The world began to spin, and Emma collapsed.