"You can't keep us here!" Christina yelled at the sneering trio.
"Oh, can't we?" Drew snapped his fingers.
At once they were surrounded by the very horrors that had slaughtered Shaggy's family.
"Now," Regina drawled, "How exactly did you two get free?" she demanded of Venus and Duncan.
"Why would we tell you anything?" Venus snarled.
"Because if you don't..."
The two minions closest to Christina pressed their iron-tipped weapons into her already burnt skin making her cry out as she crumpled to the ground.
"The Princess gets it," Drew laughed.
"Tell them," Melinda hissed.
"It was actually very simple," Duncan smiled, catching on to what Melinda was thinking.
…...
Minutes Earlier:
"Melinda!" Christina whispered as she raced into the dungeon hall.
"Christina! How did you get past the guards?"
"Like, I knocked them over the head," Shaggy grinned entering, Robecca, Hoodude and the pups following, "Let's like, get you out of here,"
"Let's get all of you out of here," Christina amended spotting Duncan and Venus.
"I'm afraid you can't," Duncan sighed sadly.
"Why not?" Christina asked, stubbornly.
"This is why," Duncan pointed to the collar locked around his neck, "It keeps me from using my powers so if I try to breathe fire to, say, destroy the bars to my cell; I'll get shocked unconscious", Duncan explained. "Same thing if I try to remove the collar. That blood-sucking witch and her four-armed hag of a friend thought of everything."
"And they enchanted the bars and walls of my cell to be impervious to my vines", Venus added. "We've tried everything to escape. It's hopeless."
"Don't say that!", Hoodude urged. "There's always hope!"
"He's right", Robecca agreed. "You say you've both tried everything to escape. Have you tried working together?"
"What do you mean?", Duncan asked.
"Plants are semi-resistant to electricity", Robecca replied. "If you could help Duncan get that collar off, then he could break himself and you out of here"
Duncan face-palmed after sharing a look with Venus. It was so simple! How did they not think of it themselves? Because they had given up hope, that's how Duncan carefully extended his hands through the bars of his cell. Venus just as carefully grew vines toward him to wrap his hands in protective 'mitts'. He took a preparatory breath, then grabbed his collar. High voltage shot through stingingly, but not enough to stop him from...*SNAP!* The collar was off! He grinned fiercely.
"All of you take cover! Things are about to get HOT in here!", he told them. He inhaled deeply then blasted his cell door with intense flames! As the bars turned red-hot, the protective enchantments collapsed. He then easily bent the bars as he tore the door off its hinges, "I'll have you girls out shortly,"
…...
"How interesting," Revolta sneered, "Now, to deal with you-"
Before she could finish her sentence, Duncan snapped the rope holding the chandelier above the minions causing it to fall and ensnare them. the group took their chance and bolted, Shaggy picking Christina up as they ran.
"SEIZE THEM! SEIZE THEM!" Revolta ordered.
The horrors struggled to get free and followed behind the frazzled villains as they raced after the heroes. Once they had rounded the corner, the heroes stepped out of hiding and fled up the stairs.
"There they go!" hollered Drew as he spotted them.
"Half of you this way!" Regina pointed to the left, "The other half this way!" she pointed to the right.
Meanwhile, the heroes continued to run, through a door to an outside walkway, hanging a sharp right they entered a room with three connecting halls.
"Where do we go now?" Shaggy asked.
"This way! Come on!" Hoodude urged.
Onto another exposed walkway they ran to the opposite tower only to come face to face with their perusers. They quickly turned back only to be cornered in the original hall.
"Did you think you were clever?" Revolta demanded, pushing through the guards, "Well, first I'll deal with you and then I'll make sure the Princess forgets everything"
A fire sparked in her palms, "How about a little fire, Hoodude?" she cackled before chucking it at him.
"I'm burning! I'm burning!" he cried hopping up and down in pain.
As it would happen, a bucket of water had been left by a lazy servant earlier that day. It was just within Christina's reach. Without much thought she grabbed it, ignoring Revolta as she ordered her not to throw it and did so anyway just as Hoodude was in front of the witch. She succeeded at putting the fire out and soaking Revolta in the process.
"You cursed brat!" she yelled, "Look what you've done," she was beginning to shrink, "! I'm melting! Melting! Oh, what a world! What a world! Who would have thought a good little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness! Ohhh! Look out! Look out! I'm going! Ohhhh – Ohhhhhhhhhh!"
All that remained was the dress she once wore.
With the witch gone, the enchantments she had cast came undone thus freeing the guards that surrounded them, however, the battle wasn't over yet as the heroes took off in hopes of finding another exit only to come face to face with Regina.
"You may have bested Revolta but I don't melt" she bragged.
"The necklace, Christina," Melinda mumbled, "Get it"
Christina didn't have time to even respond before Regina singled her out and began to attack, firing beam after beam of magic her way. Shaggy jumped in front of her only to be thrown to the opposite wall. The same fate befell the others until Christina, battered and bruised, was the only one remaining.
"Ha! I was practicing Magic before you were ever born!" boasted Regina, firing another bolt at Christina.
As scared as she was, heart, pounding loudly in her ears, Christina raised her hands to cover her face only to create a shield that repelled the magic and sent it back toward her adversary.
"I-I did that?" Christina asked herself, staring at her hands.
"Try, Christina!" Melinda encouraged, "Magic's always been part of you, now use it!"
I have NO IDEA what to do! Christina inwardly panicked. The magic, her magic seemed to have a mind of its own at that moment, the fire crackling to life in her palms as Regina fired again. Raising her hands once more the fire burst intercepting the attack and pushing it back. Regina fought back, the beams of magic locking and fighting halfway across the room. Christina dug her heels into the ground even as the force pushed her back. Shoulders heaving she glanced at her friends who were steadily getting to their feet.
Shaggy was bleeding.
Christina snapped, wings bursting into flames.
One step forward.
Two steps.
Three.
Fighting against the increasing force of Regina's attack until the witch was within arms reach.
With a final yell of desperation and anger, Christina grabbed the necklace and pulled it harshly, snapping the chain into a dozen little pieces before crushing the pendant under her feet with a stomp.
The effect was instant. The magical backlash knocking Regina to the ground while the power she'd been steadily draining from Duncan was returned to him.
"Noo" Regina whimpered, the light in the room growing brighter and brighter, coming from Christina herself as she crossed the floor with a confidence and ferocity that she hadn't thought possible.
"You're finished," Christina said sternly, light exploding, revealing her to be cleaned up and healed, dressed like the princess she was.
"MOTHER" Drew cried out, coming to her aid, only for a completely restored Duncan to slam him into the wall.
"What-what are you going to do?" Regina whispered, "Kill us?"
"No, I don't kill," Christina said, "I'm going to banish you to a realm without magic, where you hide and work to survive"
A portal opened behind both vampires.
"Goodbye"
and they were sucked inside.
Christina turned to her friends to find them wide-eyed.
Just as with Revolta, Regina's enchantments had come undone allowing people all across Oz to remember what Melinda had known all along. That they were ruled by a queen and that queen had a child.
The real ruler of Oz.
At once, Christina's friends kneeled before her. The castle servants quickly followed suit.
"Welcome back, Princess Christina"
"Please," Christina pleaded, "You must be mistaken"
"It's no mistake, look," Melinda directed her to a mirror.
That's me?
The farm girl was gone for good it seemed. The girl standing in the mirror was not her. The one in the mirror was dressed in a flowing green satin gown, the silver shoes sparkling in the firelight. Eyes drifting up she found her hair loose, spilling over her shoulders and down her back. A delicate silver circlet with a single emerald in the shape of a heart gleamed on her forehead. She touched it and the gown nervously.
They were real. As shocked as she was, Christina turned to her friends,
"Come on, let's get what we came for and go back to the city, I need some answers"
"Yes-"
"If you finish that sentence I will tie you up and hang you over the courtyard, Melinda"
"Understood," she chuckled, turning to the nearest servant she ordered them to bring the broom and spellbook.
One gave the broom to Melinda while another presented the spellbook to Christina.
As soon as Christina touched it the book underwent a transformation of its own.
"It's yours, Christina," Robecca gasped.
She nodded at the statement, tucking the book under her arm she approached Shaggy laying her hand to his open wound and sealing it shut.
"To the City," Christina said quietly, "All of us," she added, noticing the sheepish Duncan and Venus shared.
And off they went.
…...
Clawdeen was startled by the sudden appearance of the group just inside the gates. She stood suddenly,
"Please, don't," Christina said as she dipped into a curtsy.
She stood straight once more, "What do you want me to do, Princess?"
"Take care of them," Christina gestured to Venus and Duncan.
Clawdeen blushed under her fur at the sight of Duncan but managed to keep her composure.
"Now," said, Christina, "We're off to see the Wizard"
…...
"Can I believe my eyes?" the Wizard boomed, "Why have you returned?"
"We've done what you told us," Christina declared, "Now keep your promise,"
"I'll have to give the matter a little thought, go away and come back tomorrow"
"NO!" Christina yelled, "Keep your promise, now!"
"Do you mean to criticize-"
As the wizard continued his speech the pups wandered over to a curtain that had gone unnoticed before.
They pulled it back before alerting the others.
Robecca gasped.
The wizard was really her father.
Hexiciah Steam.
…...
This was supposed to be the last chapter but so much is going on that I feared I was overloading it so I split it in half. A big thank you goes to my friend, DRAGONDAVE45 for the Dungeon break-out flashback which I tweaked a bit to fit with the previous chapter.
Review, please.