Chapter 3

Shivers went down my spine as the recognizable sound of the door open in Gold's shop echoed around the room. This version of it was even worse than the real one in Storybrooke. All of the various items that had lived in here had either disappeared or were covered in cobwebs or in pieces on the shelves. It was dank and dark, it felt like the center of this hellish version of Storybrooke. The Crocodile slowly strutted into the main room, his eyes narrowed slightly as he caught sight of me.

"Oh Joy of Joys. It's my favorite pirate and his insufferable girlfriend's family. Does this mean that we can get out of here?" Said a voice which I loathe the most.

"We don't need your childish squabbling, Gold. Just tell us where we need to go in order to leave." Said Regina, stepping forward towards the Dark One.

"If I must. Go to where the harbor is in real Storybrooke. You will find a palace there, you must go inside if you want to leave, but be warned, leaving is not an easy task."

"So everyone remember the plan," Emma said as we walked briskly towards the docks, "Mom and Dad, you stay with Henry and keep him safe if anything happens. Regina, you need to ensure that Killian's heart gets split. Robin and Killian, if anything comes after us all, you fight it. I'll do the speaking with whatever tries to stop us."

"But, Love, what if my heart doesn't suffice, after all it does have darkness in it." I said to Emma, nervous about what would face us ahead.

"Killian, I know it will. Your heart is as big as your ship, and you don't give in to the darkness anymore." Emma said, looking deeply into my eyes.

We proceeded through the destroyed Storybrooke, it was like a familiar stranger; I could feel in my heart that I knew this place, yet I couldn't recognize it, not in the state it was in. When we were nearing the harbor, I could already see the palace of which Crocodile spoke of. It had many dark, twisted spires with jagged edges. The palace was shrouded by shadows, everything was dark near it.

I squeezed Emma's hand as we walked into the dark castle, while every instinct in my body told me to leave due to the dark magic manifested here. We stood in room of which I had no idea of its size since no light could reach it, leaving us in pitch black. Suddenly, huge numbers of candles burst into strange blue flame, filling the empty hall with blue light. There was nothing in the enormous hall, only dark brick walls and a high, arching ceiling.

Out of the shadows stepped a man. He was clothed in a completely black modern suit; black jacket, black pants, black tie, black shirt you get the point. This man, instead of hair, had the same blue flame atop his head. He walked up to us slowly, his small eyes shifting between all of us.

"I'm Hades. Nice to meet ya." He said oddly casually. He suddenly took in a gasp of air, completely overacting, "Is it my birthday? Six living people and a dead pirate. Sounds like a good Friday night. What are all of these mortals doing here? You don't come to the underworld for no reason."

"We want to leave and take Killian with us," said Emma defiantly, taking a step towards the king of the Underworld.

"Whoa, hey beautiful. Sorry. No can do." It took all of the control in my being to not say anything. I knew that one wrong word could keep me here forever.

"I know that we need to trade a life for his." Emma replied coolly.

"Oh who's the lucky guy then?"

"Girl. I am giving my life for Killian to have one." Emma looked at me and nodded with raised eyebrows, asking me if I was all right without words. I nodded back at her, despite the fact that I was in no way ready to watch someone take my Swan's heart. I mouthed 'I love you' at her, and she replied, mouthing 'I love you too'.

"Okay then, so it is." Hades plunged his hand into Emma's chest, her scream resonating around the room. I balled my hands into tight fists and clenched my jaw, willing for this terrible moment to be over. Hades looked around the room with an open mouth. From Emma's heart shined a white light, the opposite of what a heart with darkness in it looked. "What a beautiful heart, what a shame I will have to crush it." I closed my eyes shut, not bearing to look at what was happening, I opened my eyes to see Emma's body on the floor and Hades pouring the leftover dust onto the floor.

I ran over to Emma, placing a gentle kiss on her pale forehead. "I will see you again, Swan." I said with a wavering voice. I swallowed my tears down and gently picked up her limp form.

"Ooo a dead lover, my favorite." Hades said, clapping his hands together like an excited child.

"Now, show us the way back home." I said to him quietly, while giving him one of my classic death stares.

"Oh, I can't get you back home, only you can do that, but I will help you, to uphold my side of the deal. I will simply poof you all into the River Styx, there you will face your darkest and worst fears. If you can conquer them, you will wake up in your beloved Storybrooke. If you don't, well to put it bluntly, you will become a spirit confined to the waters of the River Styx for the rest of eternity." With a flick of his hand, the hall flew away. I felt the feeling of falling, then the cold embrace of water and everything went black.