Chapter 17: Hellfire
The moon slowly rose from the horizon past the sea, casting a pale light that fell through the large windows looking into the king and queen's bedroom. The queen sat in a chair by the windows, looking forlornly up at the night sky, dressed in a long white sleeping gown made of silk. The king stood by the bed, preparing for a night's rest, dressed in a similarly colored set of silk night clothes. He looked over at his wife, his face saddening as he saw her staring out the window up at the moon.
"Come to bed, Susanne," he said gently.
The queen sighed, before standing up, the hem of her dress pooling around her bare feet. She turned towards the bed, giving one last glance at the moon. As she did, something else caught her eye. Looking at it, her eyes narrowed in confusion.
"Henri," she said in befuddlement, "Come look at this."
Walking over to his wife with a perplexed look on his face, the king stood behind her and followed her gaze. Down in the city, near the cathedral, he could see the lights from many fires coming from the courtyard in front of it. He also noticed a few other fires around the city, much more than the usual torchlight of the evening. As he continued to watch he could see more and more fires coming to life around the city.
"I think those are people's homes," Susanne whispered in fear, covering her mouth in horror.
As they watched the city burn, a knock at the door caught their attention. They looked at each other in surprise, confused by the late intrusion.
"Who is it?" the king demanded.
"Guard captain, your majesty," said a voice that was clearly not Phoebus', "Can you open the door, your highness?"
The king hesitated, looking over his shoulder and signaling his wife to remain where she was. She nodded at him and he walked over to the door before opening it, finding two men whom he had never seen before dressed in the gold colored armor of a guard captain. They both looked like they had recently been in fights, fresh bruises and scratches mixing with the old scars on their faces. They were accompanied by a dozen other armed guards.
"What is the meaning of this?" Henri asked, raising an eyebrow at the men.
"The Minister of Justice requested we bring you to a meeting with him down by the cathedral," Drake Stabbington stated evenly.
"The Minister?" the king asked in confusion, "At this hour? Tell him I decline."
The king moved to close the door but was stopped when Drake reached out and grabbed it.
"I don't think you understand, your majesty," Drake said solemnly, glowering at the king, "I wasn't asking."
Before Henri could react, Drake gave the door a shove, forcing the king backwards and allowing the guards entrance into the room.
"Henri, what's happening!?" the queen asked, near panic.
"Stay there, Susanne," he said, before turning to Drake and Fletcher as they stepped up to him, "I order you to stand down and leave."
"Yeah," Drake said, a knowing grin appearing on his face.
"That's not going to happen," Fletcher finished, his expression mirroring Drake's.
Before Henri could react, both Drake and Fletcher reached out and grabbed his arms, trying to wrestle them behind his back.
"Unhand me!" the king shouted as he struggled with the two men.
"Get the queen," Drake ordered the other men as he and his brother continued to struggle with the King. The guards nodded, approaching the frightened Susanne as she backed herself up into the corner of the room.
"Susanne!" Henri exclaimed, before glaring at the guards, "Don't you touch her!"
Wrenching his arm from Fletcher's grip, Henri backhanded the man, causing Fletch to stumble away and crash onto the bed. Turning, the king punched Drake hard in the face, sending the other man reeling. Henri rushed over to the guards, tackling one of them as he approached Susanne and beating on the man with his fists. As he did, the other guards swarmed the king and tackled him to the ground, holding him down.
"Henri!" the queen exclaimed as she tried to rush to his side but was stopped as Drake recovered and grabbed her, before beginning to drag her away as she kicked and struggled against him, crying out in fear.
"Get him up!" Fletcher ordered, wiping blood from his now split lip. The guards hauled the still struggling king to his feet before they began to drag him out of his bedroom.
"This is treason!" Henri shouted as the guards continued to drag him away, "I'll see you all hanged for this! Traitors!"
Fletcher could only chuckle as the guards dragged the king down the hall, his threats reverberating off the walls.
Meanwhile, the courtyard of Eglise Soliel,
Fires burnt and people screamed as people were herded into the courtyard outside Eglise Soliel. In front of the mighty cathedral, wooden scaffolding had been set up, surrounded by and ever growing pile of wood. On the scaffolding, two long poles stood straight, looking ominous as they stood above the scene.
Before the pile a number of cages had been set up, each holding one of Quasi's friends. Around them, an army of guards were station, many bringing more and more of the city's citizens into the courtyard and cramming them outside the cathedral, the citizens looking around in confusion.
Quasi watched this all from the cathedral's bell tower, seeing the smoke rising from the fires that had been lit on the roofs of people's homes. His arms were held above his head by chains, which were attached to the columns the flanked him.
Frollo chuckled darkly as he stepped next to Quasi, looming over him, a leather whip in his hands.
"It seems my revolution has begun," Frollo commented, observing the burning city.
"Funny," Quasi grumble, "I thought most revolutionaries were the underdogs."
"Is that cheek, I hear?" Frollo said with surprised amusement, "My, we have grown bold haven't we? I remember when you wouldn't even look me in the eye if I was cross with you. Now look at you."
As if to challenge him, Quasi glared up at Frollo, his gaze not wavering from the older man's.
"Such defiance," Frollo chuckled before his expression shifted into a frown and he smacked Quasi across the face with the bundled up whip, "I hate defiance."
Reaching down, he grabbed Quasi by the chin and turned Quasi's face to look him in the eyes.
"I warned you about defying me, Quasimodo, and yet you continue to do so," Frollo growled, "I even tried to kill you because of it. Now I see that for the lesson to stick, your punishment must be more severe."
Moving to the side, he forced Quasi to look down at the gathered people down below. At his friends caged like animals.
"I'm going to kill them, Quasimodo," he stated simply, "I'm going to kill each and every one of them. It will be slow, and they will suffer. And you will watch."
Quasi began to panic as the thought ran through his head, realizing what Frollo's threat entailed.
"And then, when they're all dead and gone, I'll turn my attention to you," Frollo continued, drawing closer to Quasi and lowering his voice so that he was whispering into the hunchback's ear, "I will make you suffer in ways you could not possibly imagine. I will break your body, your mind and your spirit. By the end of it, you will beg me for death. And I, being your merciful master, will oblige."
As Frollo pulled away, he looked down at Quasi, a smirk on his face. All the color had drained from his face as he looked up at Frollo in fear.
"There's the look I remember," Frollo sneer, unraveling the whip as he stepped behind Quasi, "Now let's get started, shall we?"
The whip cracked as Quasi screamed in pain, blood oozing up from the fresh cut in his back and tunic. Quasi could only take a few harsh breaths before the whip cracked again and burning pain shot through his back, eliciting another shout of pain from Quasi.
Down below, despite how high above they were, the crack of the whip and Quasi's screams of agony reached down to the courtyard below, causing the people gathered to look up to try and discern what was happening.
"What's he doing to him!?" Rapunzel wailed, grabbing the bars of her cage and sticking her head between the bars, her short brown spikey hair bouncing wildly as she did.
"He's whipping him," Phoebus growled, glaring up at where the sounds were coming from as he gripped the bars of his cage so hard his knuckles began to turn white. He had been stripped of his armor, gloves, even his boots, dressed only in a white linen shirt and brown pants.
"This is horrible," Esmeralda whispered, scrunching up her eyes and turning away as Quasi's shouts of pain echoed down to them. Eugene, who was in the cage next to her, reached over and grasped her hand, a look of sorrow on his face as he listened to their friend's cries of agony.
Everyone was distracted from this however, when the Stabbington brothers unceremoniously dragged the king and queen into the courtyard. The crowd of people gasped in shock and horror as their royals were thrown to the ground. Susanne hissed in pain as she skinned her knee. Henri quickly picked himself up and made his way over to his wife, gingerly helping her to her feet.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" Drake bellowed, catching everyone's attention, "May I present to you, King Henri and Queen Susanne!"
The color left Rapunzel's face as she saw the two royals pick themselves up, looking around with frightened and confused expressions.
"That's them…aren't they?" she whispered, not taking her eyes off of the two of them, "My parents."
Phoebus, Esmeralda and Eugene looked at her in pity for a few moments as she stared at the king and queen.
"Yes," Esmeralda finally whispered, looking sadly at Rapunzel. At her words, Rapunzel began to sob as she fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face.
Meanwhile, far above, Frollo looked down at the courtyard as Quasi sagged from exhaustion, held up only by the chains as blood flowed from the dozen cuts on his back, his tunic in tatters, barely hanging onto him.
"Well, it would appear that I am needed elsewhere," Frollo stated, before tossing the whip onto the ground next to Quasi.
"You killed them, didn't you?" Quasi wheezed, barely loud enough for Frollo to hear.
"Killed who, dear boy?" Frollo asked, curious.
"My parents," Quasi stated, lifting his head weakly to look at Frollo.
A cruel smile spread across Frollo's face as he looked down at Quasi.
"Yes," he answered, the word stabbing through Quasi's heart like a knife, "Or at least I believe I did."
"What do you mean you believe?" Quasi questioned.
"There were two men with your mother that night, when they tried to escape the city after the princess had been kidnapped. I had them both hanged. I'm not sure which one was your father if either of them were," Frollo explained.
"And my mother?" Quasi asked, a hint of his rising anger in his voice.
"Ah, her I remember," Frollo grinned, looking away from Quasi as a thoughtful look crossed his face, "Ironically, I recall that she was rather comely. At least until her skull was cracked open on the cathedral stairs."
"So you lied to me," Quasi growled, "She never abandoned me. You murdered her."
"You say that like she didn't deserve to die for giving birth to a monster like yourself," Frollo sneered, as he turned to leave, "You're a mistake, Quasimodo. One I plan on fixing soon enough."
"I hope you enjoy the show, Quasimodo," he stated, looking back at the younger man over his shoulder before leaving.
Frollo quickly made his way down the stairs, leading him back into the large room dedicated to worship on the first floor. He made his way across the room towards the front door, his footsteps echoing across the empty chamber. Glancing up, he could see angry red light from the fires mixing the dark night sky, pouring in from the large windows. Suddenly, he heard something, stopping at the center of the depiction of an angry red sun on the floor.
"Stop," a voice whispered, like the one he had heard the night before, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.
"Who's there!?" Frollo demanded, "Show yourself!"
"Stop," the voice said again, pleadingly.
"Who's there!?" Frollo called out, "Stop what!?"
"Look at the innocent blood you have spilt," the voice stated.
"I have done nothing wrong!" Frollo shouted, "I am righteous. I have taken steps to insure that these corrupt and wicked souls will not plague this city any longer. Even if that means I have to take it by force!"
He smiled at the thought of punishing those who had wronged him. Those who had dared to stand up to him. He grinned as he pictured each of their face. His grin faltered however as he thought of the last person. The image of Gothel was burned into his mind, every detail of her form visible to him. He realized that this was a weakness for him, but he didn't know what he could do about it. He looked forlornly at the image of the sun above him, his heart over his chest.
"Seigneur Soliel," he sang softly, staring at the painting above him, "You know I am a righteous man. Of my virtue I am justly proud."
"Seigneur Soliel," he continued as he made his way out of the building, throwing the doors open as he exited, allowing him a view of the people gathered in the courtyard, "You know that I am so much purer than the common, vulgar, weak, licentious crowd!"
"Then tell me, Soliel," he sang as his eyes fell on Gothel clenching the bars of her cage, her eyes going wide and her face paling as she saw him, "Why I stare at her standing there? Why her smoldering eyes still scorch my soul?"
"I see her," he said, continuing to stare at Gothel, gripping the door frame as he leaned against it, "I feel her! The firelight caught in her raven hair, is blazing in me out of all control!"
"Like fire! Hellfire!" he exclaimed, taking a step back as the fires burning around the city flared up, casting the courtyard in a hellish light, "This burning desire, I swear it shall not win!"
"It's not my fault!" he growled as he stepped back outside and began moving down the stairs, "I'm not to blame! It is she, Gothel, the witch who set this flame!"
"It's not my fault!" he continued, shoving one of his guards out of the way as he stomped down the stairs, "Please understand, this chaos was never meant to be in my plan!"
"Forgive me, Soliel," Frollo begged as he stepped onto the courtyard, rushing towards where the cages sat, "Don't let that siren cast her spell, don't let her fire sear my flesh and bone!"
"I will destroy Gothel, and let her taste hellfire's embrace" he snarled as he approached her, causing her to move away from him as far as her cage would let her "unless she becomes mine and mine alone!"
He finished walking across the courtyard and grabbed onto the bars of Gothel's cage so hard it rocked, causing her to jump in fright.
"Good evening, my dear," he said, grinning as his breathed quick and harshly, sounding like a rabid animal.
"I'm not your dear," Gothel spat back, though her courage didn't quite reach her demeanor.
"Ah, defiance," he said with a sinister grin, "I just had a chat with Quasimodo about how I feel about defiance."
Gothel blanched at what he was implying, Quasi's cries of agony still echoing through her head.
"So now you have a choice, Gothel," he growled, leering at her.
"W-What's that?" she asked, her nerves failing her.
Turning around, he snatched a lit torch from a passing guard. Whirling around again, he threw the torch, sending it flipping through the air before landing in the window of a building, causing it catch fire. People screamed in panic as smoke began to rise from the building and fire danced inside. Gothel was horrorstruck, turning to face the fire and backing away from it, not realizing what she was doing until Frollo had latched onto her shoulders.
"Hellfire! Dark fire!" he sang as he looked up at the fire before leaning over so his head was next to hers looking at her so their eyes met, "Now Gothel, it's your turn!"
"Choose me or" he continued, turning her around to look at him, gripping her arm tightly as he indicated to himself before indicating to the pile of wood outside the cathedral, "the pyre! Be mine or you will burn!"
Gothel looked at Frollo in abject horror, seeing the full extent of his madness before her. It was then, despite her long fear of death and what lay beyond, and how long she had been avoiding it, she immediately knew her answer.
"No," she whispered, quite but firm, "Never."
Frollo's face became the epitome of rage. Pulling her forward, Frollo slammed Gothel hard against the iron bars, causing her to gasp in pain before he shoved her away, slamming her against the back of the cage, rocking it as she fell to the ground.
"Get her out of their and bring her to the pyre!" he shouted at his men, pointing an accusatory finger at her, "Bring up the Princess too!"
His men sprang into action, opening Gothel's cage and pulling her out. As they dragged her past him, Frollo stopped them. Reaching down, he grabbed Gothel's chin and forced her to look at him.
"I would have given you everything," he growled, squeezing her cheeks hard, "I offered it all and you spat in my face."
As if on cue, Gothel spat a large wad of saliva at him, hitting him directly on his nose. Frollo let out a cry of disgust and anger before slapping her across the face. The guards quickly dragged Gothel away as Frollo wiped the spit from his face. Turning, he saw the Stabbington brothers guarding the king and queen, a smile spreading across his face. He walked over, the king glaring at him as he did.
"Frollo, what is the meaning of this outrage!?" he demanded.
"Good evening, my liege," Frollo greeted, ignoring the question, "I'm glad to see you in such fine spirits."
"Answer me, Minister!" the king bellowed, losing any form of patience, "What is going on here!?"
"To put it simply, we are going through a regime change," Frollo explained, his smile never faltering.
"Regime change?" Susanne asked, before realization struck her, "This is a coupe!"
"In so many words, yes," Frollo stated, his grin growing larger.
"You traitorous cur!" the king shouted as he tried to leap at Frollo but was held back by the Stabbingtons, "You think the people will just stand back at let this happen!?"
"The people?" Frollo asked with a laugh, "What are the people going to do? I've ruled this city for years right under your nose. I control the guard! I control everything! What can the people do against me?"
The king and queen were silent as Frollo sneered at them.
"What do you plan to do with us?" the king asked.
"You? Perhaps lock you away in the castle or the Palace of Justice for the rest of your lives," Frollo pondered, "I haven't truly decided. You see, you are rather popular with the peasants and the neighboring kingdoms, and killing you would only make more problems for me."
As he said that a scream caught all their attentions. Turning they saw as two guards dragged Rapunzel out of her cage, the young girl struggling in vain against them.
"Rapunzel!" Eugene shouted, panicked.
"Leave her alone!" Esmeralda shouted at the guards, holding onto the bars of her cage so tightly it looked like she was going to break them.
"Take your hands off her!" Phoebus shouted, banging against the bars like a caged animal.
"What's happening?" the queen asked, "Who is that girl? What are you doing?"
"Ending your line," Frollo said simply, watching as Rapunzel was dragged towards them.
"What do you mean?" Susanne asked, even as her stomach clenched into a cold hard ball as she began to suspect what he meant.
"That's your daughter," he stated simply, an evil grin growing across his face as he saw the looks of shock on the two royals.
"Y-You're lying," Henri said as he stared at the girl, trying desperately not to believe, "T-that can't be her! You're lying!"
Susanne however, didn't say anything as she continued to stare at Rapunzel as she was led by. The two locked eyes and everything seemed to slow down for the queen. The girl's hair was a darker shade of brown like Henri's, and she could see her teeth were slightly bucked like his. Other than that though, it was like looking into a mirror. The same green eyes looked back at her as tears streamed down the girl's face. She had the same nose, the same build, the same face, the same everything! Realization struck her as the girl nodded while weeping, unable to do anything as the guards dragged her up the stairs.
"Oh Sun above, it's her!" Susanne shouted as she struggled against a guard, who grabbed on to her, thrashing madly "It's her Henri, it's her!"
"What!?" Henri asked, horrorstruck as he looked up at the girl as she was dragged up the stairs.
"Oh merciful Sun, it's her!" she cried, tears streaming down her face, before she turned to Frollo and fell to her knees, "Please, don't do this! We'll do anything! I'll do anything!"
"She had her chance," Frollo said simply, as he turned and began walking away, "Enjoy your reunion."
"Frollo!" Henri bellowed, barely restrained by the Stabbingtons, "Frollo you let her go this instant! I'm ordering you!"
This caused Frollo to pause for a moment before he turned and walked back towards the king, stopping in front of him.
"You no longer have that authority, Henri," Frollo stated with a sneer, patting the king on the cheek before turning and walking away again.
"Frollo!" Henri bellowed, "FROLLO!"
Frollo ignored him chuckling as he made his way past the cages towards the stairs. Walking up the stairs, he watched as Rapunzel and Gothel were tied to the posts on the scaffolding. Rapunzel began to weep uncontrollably, barely able to stand.
"Rapunzel," Gothe said, trying to catch the girl's attention, "Rapunzel!"
Rapunzel snapped to attention, looking at Gothel with a confused and frightened expression.
"Don't cry," Gothel said, looking intensely into the girl's eyes.
"What?" Rapunzel asked, dumbfounded.
"Don't let them see you cry," Gothel explained, her gaze never wavering, "Don't let them see you cry. Don't let them see you beg. Don't give them the satisfaction."
Rapunzel nodded in understanding collecting herself as best she could with a few calming breaths, wishing desperately she could wipe her red rimmed eyes as Frollo approached.
"Last chance, my dear," Frollo said, stopping in front of Gothel, cupping her chin with his hand.
"Bite me," Gothel spat back, glaring at him.
"Not yet, my dear," he replied coldly, glaring at her, "You're not properly cooked yet."
He turned to look at Rapunzel, who glared back at him with emerald eyes.
"Any last words, Princess?" he asked with false sincerity.
"A few," she replied, forcing herself to keep calm, "One thing really. You're a monster, Frollo, and you're going to burn for it."
Frollo let out a loud laugh at this, needing a moment to compose himself as Rapunzel continued to glare at him.
"You think I am a monster? And what does that make the disgusting creature you care for?" he laughed, "You don't understand what a monster is do you?"
"I do, but I don't think you do," she replied, her glare never faltering, "You're an amoral, murderous, hypocritical bigot. I never even understood what it was to hate someone until I heard of you. Not met you. Heard of you. Heard of your cruelties from Quasi and the others. You're a monster Frollo, something that shouldn't exist with the kinder, sweeter, better people of this kingdom. It's not your outside that makes you a monster. It's your inside, it's your soul. And your soul is the ugliest thing I've ever seen. I don't know a lot about the religion that this building your about to kill us in front of represents, but if it's true, then your soul and mine are going to very different places."
Frollo stared coldly into Rapunzel's unwavering emerald glare, all amusement having fled his features.
"Get me a torch," he growled finally, still holding Rapunzel's glare.
"Sir?" a guard nearby asked, not hearing what he said.
"GET ME A DAMN TORCH!" Frollo bellowed turning on the man with a fury. The guard jumped in fright before racing off to get the demanded item while Frollo turned away from the two women and stomped off.
Rapunzel began shaking after he stomped off, barely able to hold herself up.
"That was very brave, Rapunzel," Gothel complimented her, "Don't worry, it will all be over soon."
"Will it hurt?" Rapunzel asked.
"From what I understand, it won't be pleasant," Gothel explained, looking down as Frollo snatched a torch from a guard and began making his way to the front of the wood pile, "We won't die from the fire. It will be the smoke."
Rapunzel nodded solemnly, clearly fighting back tears.
"Did you mean it?" Rapunzel asked.
"Mean what?" Gothel questioned.
"That you loved me," Rapunzel clarified.
"Of course I did, flower," she said sincerely, before closing her eyes in sorrow, "I've been so selfish, and I will never be able to make it up to you. But never doubt that I loved you."
Gothel sighed as Rapunzel continued to watch her with tear filled eyes.
"You deserved so much more than me, Rapunzel," she stated, looking down at the king and queen, "You deserved them."
Rapunzel looked sadly at the king and queen as they continued to struggle against their captors, trying desperately to stop Frollo as he approached the pyre with the torch.
"I'm so sorry, Rapunzel," Gothel said sorrowfully.
As she spoke, Frollo turned to address the crowd.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" he boomed, "Friends all! It has come to my attention that we are living in the middle of a criminal epidemic! Corruption reigns supreme in our fair kingdom, reaching all the way to our beloved king and queen!"
"You lying-!" the king began but was silenced as Drake kneed him in the stomach.
"Luckily for all of you, I have discovered all of those who would bring your kingdom to ruin and they will now face justice, while I rise to lead you through an uncertain tomorrow!" he continued.
While Frollo ranted to the audience before him, Djali moved relatively unnoticed through the crowd, Pascal on his back. They slipped to the front of the crowd, allowing them a better view of what was happening. Looking around, Pascal saw a guard near Phoebus' cell had a key ring on his belt. Pascal knew if he tried to take it now he'd be caught. If only he had some form of distraction.
"The first to be punished will be these two!" Frollo exclaimed indicating towards Gothel and Rapunzel as the chameleon pondered, "Two witches who seduced many a man with their wicked wiles and helped start the crisis we find ourselves in today!"
"Frollo, you lying dog!" Phoebus barked, slamming himself in vein against the bars of his cage, "I'll hang you myself when I get out of here!"
"Silence!" Frollo shouted, pointing the torch at Phoebus, "You shall have your turn in time, traitor!"
Phoebus merely growled in reply, shaking the door to his cage violently.
"For now though, we must punish these witches for their sins against our people!" Frollo shouted turning towards the pyre with the torch raised, "And there is only one way to deal with witches."
He then tossed the torch onto the pyre, the flame immediately catching and beginning to spread across the dry kindling.
"NOOOOOOOO!" the queen screamed as she fell to her knees and began to wail uncontrollably as the fire raced towards her daughter. The king stood stock still, unable to look away at the horror unfolding before him. Esmeralda began to weep, turning Eugene, who comfort her the best he could between their cages, while turning away so he did not have to watch as the fire rose. The others similarly turned away, Coplin taking off his hat and lowering it to his chest as his eyes fell to his feet. Pascal stood gob smacked on Djali's head, his mouth hanging open as his green skin turned pale white. As the heat and smoke rose into the air, Quasi fell to his knees and began to sob.
Looking down, Gothel saw the king and queen through the haze of the rising heat, looking on with sorrow and horror.
"I'm sorry!" Gothel exclaimed, regret covering her features as she called out to the king and queen, "This is all my fault! I'm so sorry!"
The two of them looked up, horrible understanding on their faces as she lowered her head sadly. Looking to her side, she saw Rapunzel trying not to panic and cringing against the coming heat, while the black smoke began to eat up their air.
"Rapunzel!" Gothel called out, catching the girl's attention again, letting out a few ragged coughs "If there was anything you wanted to not leave unsaid, anything at all, now would be the time to say it."
Rapunzel merely stared at Gothel for a few moments, as the fire continued to race towards them, the heat becoming unbearable as the smoke started choking them. A thought passed through her head, causing her to nod to herself, take a few quick breathes, and lean back so she could see the cathedral looming above her. Her breathes became quicker as she let out a few choked coughs, tears welling up in her eyes. Whether they were from sorrow or smoke, she wasn't sure. All she knew is she had to bare her heart before it was too late.
"I LOVE YOU, QUASIMODO!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, before descending into a hacking fit from the smoke invading her lungs. Her anguished cry reverberated off the stone walls of the surrounding buildings, echoing for everyone to hear. The gather citizens let out cries of shock and dismay, muttering amongst themselves. Eugene crunched his eyes closed as tears leaked out, while Esmeralda held on to him like her life depended on it.
Quasi was shaken to his very core when the words reached him. All of his emotions seem to come rushing out at once. Joy that Rapunzel loved him. Fear of losing her. Sorrow because he knew he was going to lose her. Anger at the fact he knew. Despair at the fact he couldn't do anything about it. He seemed to freeze up, staring at the ground in front of him as he sat on his knees.
"Quasi, what are you doing!?" he heard Laverne ask. Lifting his head up, he saw Laverne, Victor and Hugo standing around him with panicked looks on their faces.
"What?" he asked in confusion.
"Rapunzel needs your help, Quasi," Victor stated, indicating down below, "You must help her!"
"Yeah, what are you doing laying around for?" Hugo asked, before noticing Quasi's back and cringing when he saw the cuts on Quasi's back, "Ugh, what happened to you? Loose a fight with a cheese grater?"
"What are you all doing?" he asked, still clearly confused.
"We're trying to get you up!" Laverne exclaimed, starting to panic, "You need to save Rapunzel!"
"I can't!" Quasi shouted in both frustration and sorrow, "Can you guys not see these chains on my wrists!?"
"We see them," Victor affirmed, "We also know that you possess the strength to break them!"
"You can do this, Quasi!" Laverne encouraged him.
Rising to his feet, Quasi began to pull on the chains, desperately trying to break them. The iron links groaned and creaked against the strain and the chain vibrated violently, but ultimately they held.
"I can't do it…" Quasi said, collapsing to his knees again, covering his face with his hands as he began to weep again, "…I can't do it…"
"Cut the crap!" Hugo suddenly shouted, startling everyone else as he glared down at Quasi, "Damn it, now isn't the time to get all weepy. You need to get angry!"
"Hugo…" Victor began.
"No!" the short gargoyle snapped, rounding on Victor and pointing a finger at him, "Don't say anything! Just let me handle this!"
Having successfully cowed Victor, Hugo turned back to Quasi, startling the young man with the intensity of his look.
"Like I was saying, Quasi," Hugo continued, his gaze not leaving Quasi's, "You need to get angry."
"I am angry," Quasi growled back.
"No, not nearly angry enough," Hugo replied, moving forward so he was standing right in front of Quasi, the gargoyle's face almost looking demonic to the hunchback, "You need to get mean. I mean mad dog mean! You have to hate!"
"I…I don't think…" Quasi mumbled, withering under Hugo's gaze.
"Of course you can!" Hugo shouted, grabbing Quasi by the shoulders and shaking him, "Think of everything Frollo has done to you! Think of everything he's taken from you! Your father! Your mother! He's going to kill everyone who's become your friend! He's going to burn Rapunzel alive! The girl who just declared she loved you! And you're just going to sit here at let it happen!?"
"No!" Quasi shouted back, feeling the anger rising in his blood as Hugo spoke, racing through his veins and burning him like molten lava.
"Well, then do something about it!" Hugo urged as Quasi stood, his hands clenched into fists, "Go down there and show him that he can't push you around anymore! Show this whole city that you're not going to let this injustice go unpunished! Show everyone what happens when YOU GET ANGRY!"
As Hugo's speech finished, Quasi let out a guttural roar that echoed across the courtyard and beyond as he pulled on the chains. The metal links groaned and shook from the strain, vibrating rapidly. Suddenly, there was a cracking sound mixed with a snapping sound as the iron links broke while the moorings were pulled out of the columns, sending dust and stone chips scattering as the broken chain links fell to the floor. Growling, Quasi quickly grabbed the manacles and ripped them off his wrists, sending them clattering across the stone floor.
"Now get down there and show them what you're made of!" Hugo bellowed, pointing to the courtyard below. Quasi didn't say another word as he rushed past the gargoyles and leapt over the railing. After falling for a handful of seconds, Quasi reached out and grabbed part of the architecture and swung himself over to a column, sliding down it at blinding speeds. Black clouds of smoke swirled around him as Quasi leapt off the column, grabbing onto a rope hanging from the side of the building and swinging down to the platform that held up the stakes that Gothel and Rapunzel had been tied to, the crowd gasping in surprise as they watched him land.
Quasi began to cough and choke as the black smoke swirled around him while he cringed against the wave of blistering heat that encompassed the air around him. Looking through the smoke, he saw Gothel choking on the unbreathable cloud, barely able to stay standing. Next to her, he saw something that made his blood run cold.
Rapunzel was lying limp against the stake, only held up by her bound arms. Racing over to her, he saw that she was barely breathing, her face covered in a combination of ash and sweat. Reaching down, he pulled the ropes from her wrists, causing her to slump to the ground as the fire raced towards them. Picking her up in his arms, Quasi quickly began to make his way out of the smoke cloud. As he did, he heard Gothel let out another chocking cough. Glancing back, he saw Gothel fall to her knees, gagging as she desperately tried to catch her breath. Quasi paused for a moment before he was brought back to reality by the sound of guards approaching. Thinking quickly, Quasi turned around and hustled over to Gothel. Holding Rapunzel with one arm, he quickly tore off Gothel bonds, causing her to fall onto her hands and knees, coughing in pain before she looked up at him in confusion.
"Come on!" Quasi shouted, holding Rapunzel with two hands again. Gothel nodded before she forced herself to her feet and followed Quasi as he made his way out of the smoke. As the three burst through the smoke, Quasi spotted a group of guards running up the stairs towards them. Rushing forward, Quasi kicked one of the guards in the chest as he got close enough, knocking the man backwards into his comrades and sending some of them tumbling down the stairs.
A number of people in the crowd let out gasps of shock while others let out shouts of approval at the sight, the loudest among them being Quasi's friends. Seeing all the attention on him, an impulse over took Quasi as he hoisted Rapunzel's limp form above his head.
"SANCTUARY!" he bellowed down at the gathered crowd, "SANCTUARY!"
More of the crowd shouted their approval, including the king and queen, as the guards began to recover.
"Get them!" Frollo shouted, pointing a bony finger at them, "Get them, you imbeciles!"
As the guards began to rush up the stairs towards them, Quasi and Gothel quickly entered the cathedral. Handing Rapunzel to Gothel, Quasi pushed the doors shut, before grabbing a large brass candlestick and sticking it through the door handles. Then, taking both ends of the candlestick, and with a grunt of effort, bent the candlestick into a knot, jamming the door closed just as the guards bashed against it, trying to gain entry.
"Follow me!" Quasi shouted as he took Rapunzel back from Gothel and raced across the room towards the stairs leading to the belltower, Gothel right behind him as the hammering on the door became louder and louder.
"Sir!" one of the guards said as Frollo reached the door, "They've barricaded the door somehow!"
"Then knock it down!" Frollo roared, causing the guard to scurry away in fear.
As the guards were distracted, Pascal saw his chance. Climbing off of Djali's head, the chameleon scurried across the ground, darting over feet and between legs before reaching the guard that possessed the keys. Carefully climbing up the guard's leg, Pascal reached the man's belt unnoticed. Slowly, he reached out and pulled the key ring off the man's belt, causing them to jingle and catch the guard's attention.
"What the-?" he said, looking down and surprised to see a chameleon stealing his keys.
"Hey!" the guard shouted as Pascal panicked, hurling the keys away and jumping away as the guard reached to grab him. The keys flew through the air before they were snagged by Phoebus.
Flipping the keys around, he unlocked the door and opened it as the guard ran over to try and stop him. Thrusting the door open, Phoebus hit the metal door against the guard's face, breaking the man's nose. As the guard stumbled back, holding his hand to his nose to try and stem the flow of blood, Phoebus reached out and grabbed the front of his breast plate. Pulling back, Phoebus slammed the guard against the metal bars of the cage with a resounding clang. As the guard fell to his knees in pain, Phoebus grabbed his head before slamming it against the frame of the cage door. Holding the man's head there, Phoebus stepped out of the cage, grabbed the open door of the cage and slammed it closed onto the guard's head, knocking him out.
As Phoebus released the unconscious man's head, allowing the guard to slump to the ground, he turned to find two more guards hesitantly towards him with weapons drawn.
"Now, normally, this would be the part where I ask you two nicely to put your weapons down so we can handle this peacefully," Phoebus growled at them, slowly approaching them like a predator stalking its prey, "But this whole situation has got me so angry that I'm going to beat you both senseless regardless of what you do."
The two men observed Phoebus with wide eyes as they hesitated.
"So what's it going to be, men?" Phoebus asked.
After giving each other a nervous glance, the two men let out half-panicked battle cries before charging at Phoebus with weapons raised.
"Good choice," Phoebus stated with a savage grin as he moved forward to meet the two assailants.
Phoebus ducked under the first guard's wild swing before tackling into the second, knocking him off his feet and slamming the man into the ground. As the guard lay stunned on the ground, Phoebus picked himself up as the first guard charged him again. Phoebus stepped to the side as the guard slashed down at him, the man's sword clanging off the ground. Lashing out with his foot, Phoebus kicked the sword out of the guard's hand, sending it clattering across the ground.
As the guard tried to recover, Phoebus punched him in the face before kneeing him in the gut, causing him to double over as the air was knocked from the man's lungs. Phoebus followed by grabbing the man's helmet with one hand and punching him with the other, the force of the blow knocking the man's head back and causing Phoebus to pull the guard's helmet off. As the guard reeled, Phoebus swung the man's helmet at him, hitting him on the side of the head with it, knocking the guard to the ground. As the guard tried to pick himself up, Phoebus slammed the helmet against the back of the man's head, slamming him to the ground and knocking him out.
As the second guard stood up, Phoebus turned towards him and hurled the helmet at the man, hitting him square in the face. As the man stumbled back from the unexpected blow, Phoebus rushed over before driving his foot into the guard's stomach. As the guard doubled over, Phoebus reached down and grabbed him by the throat with one hand and the back of the man's armor. With a grunt, Phoebus lifted the man into the air before slamming him back down on ground, knocking him out.
Leaning down, he took the man's sword, before turning around and tossing the key ring to Eugene. As he turned back, he found more guards gathering to face him.
"Alright," he said, giving the sword a flourishing twirl, "Who's next?"
Meanwhile,
Quasi carefully lay Rapunzel on the bed that once been his own, little more than a pile of hay with some ratty blankets. Gothel hovered next to him, an equally worried expression on her face. The booming sound of the guards using an improvised ram on the door below echoed up to them, though they seemed to pay the sound no mind.
The two of them kneeled down next to Rapunzel, both looking at her anxiously. Quasi could see angry red burn marks on her feet, while her dressed and the rest of her skin was marked with black soot. But it was what he didn't see that chilled him to the bone.
"She's not breathing," he whispered, frozen in shock.
"What!?" Gothel screamed, leaning over Rapunzel to see for herself. Panic set in as she looked Rapunzel over, seeing that Quasi was right. She wasn't breathing.
Quasi slowly began to back away as Gothel began to shake Rapunzel, trying to rouse her.
"Rapunzel!" Gothel shouted as Quasi pushed himself up against the wall, his breathing rapid with panic, "Rapunzel! Wake up!"
Tears began to form in Gothel's eyes as she continued to shake Rapunzel.
"Please wake up!" Gothel cried, laying her head on Rapunzel's shoulder, her voice barely above a whisper, "Please."
Quasi slowly slid down the stone wall before sitting on the floor, cradling his head in the palms of his hands and began to weep. She was dead. It was all for nothing. The one girl who could ever love him was dead. All because he couldn't save her.
The boom from the ram against the door echoed up to him, causing Quasi to raise his head from his hands as realization struck him. No, it wasn't his fault. He hadn't killed Rapunzel. Frollo had. Him and him minions. And now they were trying to kill him. Again. And all his friends. They probably wanted to take Rapunzel's body and do something unspeakable with it. Well, he wasn't going to let that happen!
There was another boomed, accompanied by a loud crash.
"They're in," Quasi said solemnly as he stood up and began walking out of the room.
"Where are you going?" Gothel asked, looking up as she saw him leaving.
"My whole life people have told me I'm a monster," Quasi said, glancing over his shoulder to give her a cold glare, "If they want a monster so bad, I figure it's about time I give them one."
With that, Quasi left the room, leaving Gothel alone with Rapunzel's body as the first rays of day began to peak over the horizon.
A/N: Here we go, first part of the big finale and more to come next time. This chapter ended up being much longer than I was expecting it to be but it was a blast to write all the same. Thank you to all of you guys who have stuck with me this long and I hope you like what I've got in store for you. In the meantime please review! Later!