AN: See chapter 1 for story notes and summaries.

Ships: Snowing, Rumbelle, Swan Believer, Swanfire, Daddy Charming, Mama Snow, HadesxPersephone, Mama Persephone, and a delightful Golden Mad Charming BroT3. :)

Please consider leaving a review. Feedback is much appreciated and vital. Reviews have dropped a lot and any feedback you can give is much appreciated. Unless you're a troll.

Special note: Many of you have probably noticed that this one seemed like it's building to a big climax and you would be right. I have made the decision to bring this story to a close. I believe this one has run its course and I'm ready to move on to another big verse I have on the back burner. This story has been very special to me and turned out to be very unique. Part of me is sad to end it, but I feel it's time for this one. It has about 2 maybe 3 chapters left and I'll be bringing it to a close with the Final Battle. I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. :)

Also, feel free to follow me on Tumblr lilacmoon83.

Special note:

Here are the main face claims that we're dealing with right now. For other minor Gods/Goddesses/characters, see previous chapters:

Gal Gadot as Persephone

Robert Downey Jr. as Hades

Ben Affleck as Prince Eli

Here are individual responses:

Saberius Prime: Yep, things are really heating up! Glad you're still enjoying. :)

Grace5231973: Haha, I know, she thought she did there for a minute, but I thought it would be a funny way to release Merlin from the tree. Yep, the Calvary is coming and it's almost time for the final battle!

Naomi Blue: Yep, Merlin is free and won't be uselessly killed here. :)

Jennifer Baratta: Yep, Zelena is on her last stand. Glad you enjoyed it! :)

Number Ten: Yep, Merlin is free and I can tell you he won't be dying uselessly. I think you might be surprised by the direction I took with Arthur here. I threw another twist in. Deimos is definitely another story and hopefully will be dealt with very soon. I never watched a ton of Dracula stuff, but I would probably choose Christopher Lee. He's always such a great villain and it's kind of paying tribute to my Star Wars days in a way. I like Gary Oldman, but I always see Sirius in him or Commissioner Gordon. Yeah, I went with it being painful since it's kind of literally freezing all your insides in a way. :)

Beth1980: Yep, Liz is very non-likeable. Yeah, we know the Dark One will win. Ha yeah, Wonderland sucks. Yeah...I do like to bring my villains back, but Circe is gone for good. Or is she? No, she is...haha. Yeah, that was a lot of restraint for Rumple. Yep, Zelena wasn't dead. Yeah, Van Helsing is a funny guy. Yep, the final battle is coming. I know, I love Snowing with their babies. I think I might surprise you with the direction I went with Arthur. Gawain will get what he deserves too. Yep, no more Cronus. Now if they could just get rid of Deimos. Yep, Snow is having prophetic dreams. Glad you liked the banter between David and James. Van Helsing and Hades are hilarious too. Yep, Hyde became a vampire to get rid of Jekyll without the serum. A twist I've never seen done so I had to do it. Yep, David's fire doesn't hurt Snow at all. Glad you liked how Merlin appeared. I thought it was a cool way to bring him in. I really liked the dreamscape flashback too. We're building to the final battle! :)

Dreaming Out Loud

Chapter 130: Baptism of Fire, Pt 2

"That's a promise you won't be keeping, Snow White," Gawain hissed, as he advanced, but flames cut him off, as they shot up around them. David growled, as he tried pulling at the chains with all his might, despite the excruciating pain.

"He's...he's doing it! He's breaking through the chains," Hades said in awe, even as he and Persephone were still being restrained.

"How? It was Hercules that freed Prometheus from his bonds," Hades uttered, but she only smiled.

"Their true love knows no bounds, so Snow will free him," she said proudly. Arthur's furious gaze shot to Frollo as he emerged, looking on in disbelief.

"You said you could bind him and his brat indefinitely!" the King roared.

"This...this shouldn't be possible!" Frollo insisted.

"This...is sorcery! Demonic witchcraft of hell!" he claimed. Hades rolled his eyes.

"I'm really sick of this bitch," he muttered, as he held out his hand and attempted to summon his blue fire.

"Dammit...I'd really like to just light him up and be done with it," he cursed. Persephone smirked.

"I'd like to strike him down too, but unfortunately, we have to do this without magic. But they don't…" Persephone said, as David still struggled against the chains, even as they seared against his skin. Snow looked on helplessly and tried to comfort him as much as she could, as his flames sequestered them away from the enemies surrounding them. She knew they wanted to rip her from his arms, but fortunately were kept at bay.

"Snow...I don't know if I can break through these chains," he said breathlessly, as he struggled.

"You have to go…" he pleaded, as Frollo moved in closer and he feared that he would find a way to bypass the fire since he had created the chains.

"Stop him!" Arthur demanded, as Frollo moved to a control panel in the Throne room.

"Not to worry, Your Majesty...once I electrify the chains, he won't be going anywhere. Then I'll be happy to take the fair Snow White off your hands," he said, as he looked at her through the flames with a smug, evil smirk.

"Snow...you have to run…" David insisted, as the evil Judge started powering up his equipment.

"I am not leaving you...they are not taking you from me!" she said fiercely.

"You can break these chains, my love...I know it," she added, as she caressed his face. She put her hand into the flame and pulled it back, showing him that there was not even one mark on her skin.

"You are holding back, because you're still fearing that you'll hurt me. But that's simply not possible," she said, as she held his face in her hands and then kissed him passionately.

"What about your parents?" he questioned, but she shook her head.

"They'll find cover...they know what's coming," she assured.

"Let's end this...it's time. I am sick of these villains that keep trying to curse us or tear us apart," she said.

"The final battle...Rumple once said there would be a final battle. You think this is it?" he asked. She shrugged.

"If the final battle means that we win and the fighting ends...then I want it to be. I will spend the rest of our lives fighting battle after battle if it means being with you," she said, as she caressed his face again.

"But if there is a way to end all of it...then let's take it. No more defeat and repeat," she continued.

"We keep letting the villains come to us and I think it's time we go to them. It's time to take what is ours and that's our happy ending, which we both know is only the beginning of eternity for us," she said, as she looked at him fondly.

"I'm afraid that your time together is finally at an end. Once I flip this switch, ten thousand volts of electricity will course through you, Prince Charming and it will allow the chains to take root. This will bind you in this place for eternity," Frollo stated

"I am afraid I cannot allow you to do that," a voice said, as a man appeared and raised his hand. The control panel sparked and short circuited, rendering it useless.

"No…" Arthur growled and they saw their daughter behind this man, concluding that this must be Merlin.

"The time is now," he said. Snow nodded to him and put her arms around his neck. He growled and started to struggle against the chains once again. He managed to get to his feet and felt bolstered in the presence of his beloved.

"You can do this, my love…" she urged.

"For you...I can do anything…" he said with certainty. He hollered a fierce battle cry and with all his might, he pulled and strained against his bindings. Fire exploded around them, seeming to consume them and the chains shattered into a million pieces. Emma smiled and rushed into the flames, finding her parents in the center of them.

"You did it!" she cried, as they hugged her between them and David cradled her head.

"No...you did it. You freed Merlin," he said.

"I just want this all to be over," she said. He smiled.

"Yeah...you're not the only one," he said, as he looked at his wife fondly.

"It's time we make it happen," he agreed, as the flames started to die down and the three of them emerged, ready for the battle to come.

"Inconceivable...you destroyed my chains!" Frollo exclaimed.

"And you're next," David said, as he unsheathed his sword. Hades and Persephone emerged from where they had found cover, as did Arthur and his remaining Knights. But the King was horrified at what he found. Their flames had broken the spell of the mists of Avalon. Camelot was now visible as the broken Kingdom it was and he stared up at the sky through the holes in the castle.

"What have you done?!" he cried.

"I'd say that they've finally freed your people from what not even the Gods could," Persephone announced, as the castle doors swung open and the angry citizens of Camelot filed in, being led by Regina, James, Rumple, Belle, and Lancelot.

"Looks like your time is up," Emma commented, as the King glared at Merlin, who waved casually at him.

"You…" he hissed.

"I had such hopes for you...but I'm afraid your deception has come to an end and you must be unseated," Merlin stated.

"Unseated?! You put me on this path! You burdened me with your prophecy! I am destined to rule Camelot!" he claimed.

"You were destined to rule Camelot...not deceive it and break it," Merlin corrected.

"It was broken when I got it!" Arthur shouted, as the broken Excalibur clattered to the floor and the King pointed to David.

"And you and your kid are going to fix it for me," he ordered.

"You're not our King...and we're not doing anything for you, especially since it would mean destroying the dagger," David refused.

"Well...there you have it, people of Camelot! The illustrious Prince Charming has refused to save your Kingdom in favor of sparing the Dark One! Is this really the leader you want to look to?" he claimed. Snow stepped forward.

"That's King David to you…" she said, as she approached him.

"And I'm almost certain that the people would rather follow honorable people like my husband and my daughter than you," she hissed. He growled and picked up his sword, before grabbing her arm and putting the blade to her throat.

"Get your filthy hands off her!" David snapped.

"Not a step closer...one nick from Excalibur and she's dead," he warned.

"Arthur...stop this now. You are not too far gone down this dark path to return to the light. Your destiny to rule can still be that...but you must give up this destructive quest," Merlin reasoned.

"You put me on this quest! You told me to pull the blade from the stone!" he claimed, as he held Snow hostage.

"And you did...I never said that Excalibur would be whole. I broke it for a reason. But it does not mean you cannot make your Kingdom whole and rule benevolently as you were destined to," Merlin stated.

"He's right...if I can return from the dark path I once walked, then so can you," Regina told him. The tears in the King's eyes were evident and Snow gasped, as he released her. David swept in and took her in his arms, as she turned to him. He helplessly dropped the sword again and it clattered to the floor a second time.

"I...I'm sorry. I have been a terrible King and a terrible husband," he said, as he looked to his wife. Snow looked at her husband and nodded. He looked a tad skeptical, but always trusted her judgment. He picked up the blade and Emma held it to, as they used their Promethean fire to reforge the blade, without rejoining it with the dagger. Arthur looked on in amazement, as it became whole again at last. David approached him and flipped the blade to offer the hilt to him. Arthur looked up at the other King in surprise and wonder.

"Do better this time, Your Majesty," he said, as King Arthur took the hilt and held Excalibur whole for the first time.

"I will," he promised, as he looked to his wife and former best friend, before swallowing thickly.

"You should be with him," he said sadly. She looked torn.

"I'm sorry...I was wrong. I should have never betrayed our vows," she replied.

"No...but I made many mistakes as well. Perhaps if I had been the husband you deserved, then you wouldn't have needed to seek comfort in another. Please...go," he said. He loved her, but he would let her go be with the person who now held her heart, even if it pained him.

"What are you doing? Are you insane?" Frollo exclaimed. But Snow had enough of him and drew her husband's sword from the sheath on his hip, before leveling it at the evil cretin.

"You've done quite enough, Judge Frollo and the only place you're going is prison," she declared. He smirked and took a potion from his robes.

"Afraid not...underworld spawn," he said, as he tossed the potion down and they coughed. Once the smoke cleared, he was gone.

"We'll get him later. My sister is the more immediate threat," Regina stated, as there was a puff of green smoke.

"How right you are...sis," Zelena said, as she appeared with Deimos in tow. David took his sword from his wife and stepped forward.

"A duel between you and me has been a long time coming and this time, I can promise you that nothing is going to bring you back," David claimed. Deimos drew his own blade and stepped forward.

"Last time you defeated me, you had to rely on your wolf friend to tear me to pieces," he reminded him. But David smirked and let his fire light his blade.

"And this time I have all the fire I need to make sure you never come near Snow again," he answered. Deimos clenched his teeth.

"We'll see, Prince Charming...because I am fairly certain I can still end you just as easily as I could have before," he claimed, as they circled.

"David…" Snow cried in worry. She knew Deimos would never fight fairly and her mother and Hades put their arms around her.

"He'll be fine, snowdrop...he's no match for David now. Not just in power anymore, but his love for you will give him all the power he needs to finally end that monster," Hades assured.

"He's right sweetheart," Persephone said.

"Not that it will matter...because none of you have the power to defeat me anymore," Zelena claimed, as her hands became alive with green fire.

"You sure about that?" Emma questioned, as she stepped forward to fight her. But Zelena smirked, as the palace doors swung open again and Liz walked in with her goons, who had captured Henry, Annie, and Adrian.

"Henry!" Regina cried.

"They are refusing to repair the broken author's pen, my Queen," Liz stated.

"That's okay...they're not the ones with the power to do it. Only the Sorcerer can," Zelena said, as she grabbed her nephew and put her green fire close to his face.

"Repair the author's pen or he dies," she threatened.

"Zelena...don't do this! He's my son!" Regina pleaded, but her plea fell on deaf ears.

"No need to harm the boy...I'll do as you ask," Merlin stated, as he stepped forward.

"We told you to get to Storybrooke…" James hissed at them.

"We did...but she found us," Adrian said, as he motioned to Liz, who smirked evilly.

"Yes...they tried to run, but we found them quite easily, thanks to a blunder on your part, Your Majesty," she said, looking at Regina, just as they saw Charming and Deimos charge at each other and begin their duel.

We're sorry…" Annie said, as they explained what had happened.

Thirty Minutes Earlier

The bug sped onto the streets of Camelot and Adrian rounded the corner, only to brake suddenly, as they saw the people being lined up in the square.

"What's going on?" Henry asked.

"Crowley…" Annie hissed, as she spied the evil woman and her goons forcing people out of the diner and the businesses in town, taking them hostage with her hired guns.

"She's looking for the pen," Adrian deduced.

"But it's broken," Henry reminded him.

"It may be broken, kid, but there are ways to fix that and she can't get it," Annie said, as she took it out of her pocket.

"I think I know where we can hide it then," he said.

"Where?" Adrian asked.

"My mom's vault," he replied.

"They won't be able to get in," he added.

"It's as good as any," Adrian said, as he put the car in reverse and turned around, heading off for the cemetery. Liz had spotted them and they now gave chase. Fortunately, they made it to the cemetery and Henry led them to Regina's vault. They went in and were mesmerized by the way the wall glowed red and was beating with hearts from all the boxes in the wall.

"Whoa...it's way creepier in person than reading about it," he mentioned.

"Yeah...the Queen's vault. Never thought I'd be in here," Annie mentioned, as she looked around curiously.

"Yeah...this place used to scare me, but my Mom has changed and now she uses the things that are in here for good," Henry said.

"Except the stolen hearts that are kept in the breathing wall," Adrian deadpanned.

"So...the pen can be fixed?" Henry asked.

"Yeah...there's a way," Annie confirmed.

"How?" he asked curiously and she smiled.

"Unfortunately, nothing that's in here," she replied.

"And it's a good thing. We can't fix it...not with that damned wannabe sorceress on the loose. No one wants to read a Once Upon a Time book written by a Crowley. She's an evil lunatic," Adrian commented.

"Yeah...did her family really influence some of your family or other authors?" Henry asked. Annie nodded.

"They would whisper their darkness to them. That's why you ended up with stories where Cinderella's step-sisters cut off their toes to fit their feet in the glass slippers and ones where the Little Mermaid dies while her prince marries someone else," she explained.

"Yeah...not even the well known Disney versions were immune to the whispers of a Crowley. Ever notice how most of the parents in those movies are dead?" Adrian pointed out. Henry thought for a moment.

"Huh...yeah I guess I never thought about it, but that is a bit dark. I mean...imagine if my mom's parents really were dead. Her life would be so...much worse and so would mine," he realized. They nodded.

"But you wrote this book and their story is much better here," he pointed out. She nodded.

"Because thankfully, for whatever reason, our father and I don't hear their whispers. That's why true love is winning and the darkness is losing. But if Liz gets this pen...then she'll destroy all the happy endings," Annie said.

"Does she know how to repair it?" Henry asked. Annie nodded.

"The Sorcerer can fix the pen," she replied.

"But Merlin is trapped," Henry told them.

"Not if your mother and grandfather free him from his trappings," Adrian said.

"Which means we need to keep this pen as far away from Camelot as possible," Annie replied.

"Too bad that's not going to happen," Liz said, as she entered the vault and pointed a gun at them.

"How did you get in here?" Henry demanded to know and Zelena followed her down into the vault with Deimos.

"Your mum is going to regret not removing the blood magic from her vault," Zelena revealed.

"Let's go...we have pressing matters to tend to in Camelot," she said, as she snapped her fingers and they disappeared in a puff of green smoke.

Present Time

"My vault…" Regina realized.

"Yeah...bet you're regretting not removing that blood magic from your vault now," Zelena hissed.

"Well, you're supposed to be dead," Regina spat in return, but the redhead smirked.

"Repair the pen...it's time for a new author that can write me a good future; one where I finally win and you lose, sis," she demanded. Merlin's magic swirled around the pen and repaired it. Liz greedily snatched it up and one of her goons brought Henry's book to her. She flipped to the last page and prepared to put the ink to the paper.

"No...that's not yours! You can't do this!" he pleaded. She looked smugly at the boy and proceeded to put the pen to the paper.

"Oh the horrors I am about to wrought," she hissed with glee, as she looked at Snow White.

"I think I shall rip your happy ending apart first, fairest one," she leered, as she looked at Charming, who dueled Deimos furiously.

"No...please…" Snow pleaded, but the evil woman put the pen to the paper. She frowned though, as nothing happened.

"What...what is this?!" she demanded to know, as it was Merlin's turn to smirk smugly.

"Oh, the boy was quite right...you literally can't do this," he said.

"But I have the pen! I am the author now!" she shouted.

"No...then pen has not chosen you," Merlin clarified.

"But you...choose the author. You chose me when you repaired the pen," she claimed. But he shook his head.

"Yeah...that's not how this works. I don't choose the author," he corrected.

"I have a say...I can step in and influence things another way if I don't like the job that an author is doing. It's why there are so many throughout history and so many offshoots. Take Aesop for example," Merlin said.

"I didn't care for some of his work...he heard you Crowley's in his head too loudly and made a mockery of love. He wouldn't allow true love to be what I knew it could, so I chose another bloodline to bestow the power to," he continued.

"The Grimms…" she hissed. He nodded.

"They fared a bit better, though I was not at all happy with some of their versions either. They were hearing your ancestors too...until Annie's father. He wasn't hearing your father at all...which made me very happy and finally, true love was born between Snow and Charming. Then along came Emma and I knew then that I could finally tip the scales away from darkness and there could be balance," he said.

"But there never will be with your kind in existence," he added, as the pen grew hot and it fell from her hand. They watched the pen roll toward Annie, but it didn't stop and slowly rolled toward someone else.

"Oh my God…" Regina uttered, as she watched her son kneel down and pick it up. The pen glowed and accepted its new scribe.

"Henry…" Persephone said.

"He's the author now," Hades said, finishing her sentence. He looked at the pen in wonder and then back at Merlin, who smiled with approval.

"Not for long!" Zelena screamed, as she prepared to bring her magic down on him. But Regina ran at her and tackled her to the ground.

"Not today witch!" she growled and Zelena screamed, as her sister pulled her pendant off her neck and smashed it to the ground.

"Nooo!" Zelena cried, as the magic in it pulsed and in a bright flash spread back to all the realms. Lightning crackled in Persephone's hand, while Blue fire appeared in Hades'. Rumple tossed his cane away and fire appeared in his palm, as he stalked toward Zelena, who back away in fear.

"Rumple…" Belle called.

"She has to die, Belle…" he growled, as they heard a peculiar noise. Even Deimos and David stopped their duel, as they all looked up into the sky.

"What is that?" James asked.

"A dirigible…" Van Helsing answered.

"From the Land of Untold Stories…" David said, the castle walls rattled, just as the ship's underbelly scraped the roof of the castle, sending chunks of debris falling. David kicked Deimos away from him and hurried back to Snow, huddling with her, as the debris fell. Emma, Regina, and James did the same with Henry, as did Rumple with Belle, as they could only watch the ship crash into the courtyard just beyond the palace.

"Damn...not to quote those space movies you like so much, kid, but I have a bad feeling about this," James commented.

"Shit...this is bad. I can smell the bastard…" Van Helsing cursed.

"Who?" Regina asked.

"The King of bloodsuckers himself and he makes this guy look like a walk in the park," Van Helsing answered, referring to Deimos.

"The King?" Regina questioned.

"Dracula," Snow answered.

"Seriously?!" Regina cried.

"Yeah...and forget any cartoonish visions you're having about him now...he's no joke," David warned.

"Perfect...like we don't have enough problems…" she growled.

"So is this it? Is this the Final Battle you told us about all those years ago?" David questioned, as he looked to Rumple. The imp only gave him a curt nod.

"Do we win?" Hades asked.

"You know better than that, dearie...not even I or your dear Persephone are privileged to that information," Rumple answered.

"Get ready...we don't know who else is coming off that ship, but we know that they'll have a feeding frenzy if we don't stop them here and now," Hades said, as they prepared to fight.

"We haven't finished our duel, Charming," Deimos interjected.

"Yeah...well, we have bigger fish to fry right now. I'll kill you later," David snapped, as he held Snow close. He knew how much Dracula wanted her demi-Goddess blood and he would be damned if he let her out of his sight.

"Camelot will fight with you," Arthur announced, as he wielded Excalibur and his remaining Knights joined him.

"Thank you...but we could use some more magic wielders," he said, as Persephone closed her eyes and sent her message out.

"Hopefully reinforcements will answer our call," she said, as they marched out into the field to meet whoever exited that ship. But they knew whoever did would be looking for a fight and that this was the one that would determine the fate for all the realms.

Snow looked at him tearfully and he met her gaze.

"I love you…" she said.

"I love you too, my darling," he told her, as he used the hand that was on the small of her back to press her closer and their lips met in a passionate kiss, just as the door on the dirigible opened...