Seconds turned into minutes. Minutes turned to hours. Hours turned into days. Days turned into weeks. The similarities were astounding, and if it didn't pain Esme so much she may have found the irony somewhat comical. The despondency was the same, the food was better and the training regime was s much worse.

Everyday we was woken up to a breakfast of eggs and milk; her protein. She then had to wait until 4 or 5 guards appeared at the door and let her out of her cage so that her body was at its optimum performing capacity, or so she was told. They kept her hands and feet shackled with eh heavy, rusty chains until she was safely in the square she had first seen when she arrived and was surrounded by around 30 men; they knew that she wouldn't be able to compel or knock out all of them. They slowly took her cuff off and within seconds she was attacked from every angle with a force and malice so unexpected, Esme initially couldn't hold her own. The first day, she was knocked unconscious within 5 minutes. The second, she was knocked to the floor so hard within 10 minutes that she spent the night in what Cyrus called a hospital. After that, Esme couldn't quite decide if the injuries grew less severe or if she subconsciously decided to simply stopped feeling them. The first few days were the worst, and as she returned to her cell all bloody, bruised and alone, she cried so much that her eyes began to sting and her head began to ache with every sob. She didn't care that people came in to leave her her plate of leaves for dinner; she continued to cry because pain was the only thing she felt. At least, this was until it came to around day 7, and then that defeatist mentality changed. After receiving a rather severe gash on her shoulder after she was unable to compel a man to freeze, Esme returned to her cell and continued to cry, much the same she had done in the days prior to that. Typically the guards sat on the ancient wooden bench that was placed parallel to her cell and gave her a status report while she ate and she pretended to listen- how she should have done this, how she shouldn't have done that etcetera - but that night, however, is was Evan who appeared and loomed over her and watched as she ate. Despite making Esme feel remarkably uncomfortable, it also angered her. This was the first time he had graced her with his presence since he ripped away her parents, and although she dreamt of what she would do to make him pay for making her feel so alone, her cuff and the bars and engulfed her made sure she couldn't touch him.

"Can I help you?" Esme spat as she ate her tasteless leaves.

"You could have avoided that," Cyrus stated simply as he pointed to the 4 inch gash on her arm.

"Not really. The other man was aiming for my stomach; i'd rather have a slice on my arm, thanks!" Esme explained but she wasn't sure why she had to. Cyrus would have seen the man aim for her stomach and known her decision was a tactical one, something he had told her to do; this was a loaded question, not one of concern.

"You last two hours out there today," Cyrus said in a tone that made Esme unsure about whether he was impressed or annoyed.

"And felt every second of it," Esme said as she stood and handed him the plate before returning to her corner.

"You'll be ready soon."

"Good."

"Don't you want to know the plan?"

"You idiots actually have one?" Esme replied, to which Cyrus laughed a sarcastic, sickening laugh.

"Has anyone ever told you you're like your mother? She was feisty too-"

"Don't ever mention my mother," Esme snarled as she stared at him with daggers in her eyes; if only they were real.

"Why? That lady is a absolute fox, i don't know what she's doing with that- what even is he? Farmer?"

"You need to shut the hell up," Esme said through gritted teeth and tightly clenched fists. How could he stand there and mock two people he shoved through a portal just days ago! Cyrus laughed at her, then left.

From then on, Esme vowed to herself that he wouldn't see her vulnerable, he wouldn't know she was in pain and he certainly would never see her weak.

After her incident with Cyrus, Esme woke up every morning with a type of fire in her belly; not one that made her like being there or took her pain away, but one that made her determined not to show any of that. She fought harder and for longer with each day that passed and as days turned to weeks, they taught her more and more; they said they were 'preparing her for her war'. As if it was her decision to fight it. She could compel up to 4 people at once, she could practically paralyse them with her mind, she could knock out multiple people in seconds; she was impressive and now understood why people like her were so feared. However as her powers grew, so did the security around her; the 30 men grew to 40, then 50 and before Esme knew it, her practice sessions had the entire male side of Messene in the castle courtyard. She even learned to sword fight and was able to hold her own against some of the strongest men on the island and along with her seeing powers, her practices had become quite the spectacle, which hoards of people now there specifically to watch her fight these huge groups of grown men, and occasionally to join in. Every victory was met with a huge round of applause; one that echoed through the hallowed halls of the castle and made Esme sick to her stomach. She felt like she was somehow endorsing this regime of brutality, like she was Cyrus' pet that he liked to show off. What Esme didn't want Cyrus to know was that her powers were growing at a rate that superseded the magic in the cuff. Esme had purposely never used her witch powers in her practices, so nobody here knew that she was a witch; somehow, that made her feel like she wasn't just their dancing monkey. Somehow she had kept something for herself, that they couldn't use. The problem was, she couldn't use it either. The cuff on her wrist prevented her from doing so, and because the only time she had it off was when she was in public, she had relented that that was just something else that she had lost. Now, as Esme sat in her cell, alone, she longed for something, she just didn't know what. Todays session had been particularly brutal but she had emerged victorious. Although Cyrus raised her arm to the crowds like a referee does in a boxing match, when the crowds dispersed, Esme was thrown into the cell and had been left alone. She was staring longingly at the knife that remained in the far corner of Robin and Regina's old cell tauntingly, as if it offered her some sort of beacon of hope,when suddenly, it moved. Esme jumped and immediately looked around to see who the culprit was but the cell was empty from what she could see; the candle that was burning in an iron holder on the wall offered limited lighting. If the cell was empty, that meant that she must have done it, right? But that wasn't possible, not with the cuff on? Esme had had a few visions since she arrived here, which she interpreted as dreams simply because she didn't think it was possible to have a vision with this cuff on. Nevertheless, what she had dreamt came true on two occasions, and so She decided to test her theory, and tried to remember everything Regina had taught her; she closed her eyes, focused on the knife, focused her energy and envisaged where she wanted the knife to go. She was astounded that when she then opened her eyes the knife had moved about two feet closer to her; granted she wanted it to end up in her hand but still, it worked; she was getting so strong, the magic in the cuff no longer prevented her powers all together.

With this information, Esme couldn't help but smile. She wasn't sure what she was going to do with it, or how, or when, but it offered her something she hadn't had in almost a month; hope. Hope of being free, seeing her family again, hope of going home. She wanted that so desperately, it was the only thought she allowed herself to think. She couldn't stay here much longer, not if her last memory was of Regina, defeated and thinking Esme didn't want or love her.

"What are you doing?" asked a guard Esme hadn't noticed had entered. Her heart stopped beating for a brief moment when she heard his deep voice echo through the empty tower however when she turned around, her fear was replace with confusion. The man standing in front of her couldn't have been much older than her and he didn't have the armour that every other guard had worn. He saw the confusion on Esme's face and quickly laughed.

"My apologise, Miss Esmerelda. I do not think we have been properly introduced. My name is Levi. Levi of Messene," he said as he introduced himself with a courteous little bow.

Esme stood up but her confusion never left her. This was Levi? When Esme heard of him, she envisaged an old man, with a long white beard and a robe of some sort; the man standing in front of her seemed utterly ordinary.

"You seem confused?" Levi explained.

"I am.." Esme said, studying him. Irregardless of his age, Esme wasn't sure which side he fought for; the one to overthrow Zoe or the one to overthrow both Zoe and Cyrus, and so she didn't feel safe to talk as she didn't want to share too much.

"So i see" Levi said as he laughed.

"I've seen you fighting. You really are rather brilliant, Miss Esmerelda. They really did underestimate you" Levi continued as turned to sit on the long wooden bench which was the only item of furniture; thus offering those who had climbed up the countless number of stairs to ascend the tower some relief.

"Who did?" Esme asked. She had lost all her diplomacy, and manners, weeks ago.

"Ah, i see they still have not told you. I'm afraid i may have said too much," Levi said. Esme found it amusing that even though Levi was no older than her, he occasionally spoke like an old man; although this endeared him to her slightly, she didn't trust him - anyone else here. Esme remained silent, unsure about what to say, and assumed he would leave after that; she didn't typically get visitors. Her only company were the lines she had drawn on the wall every night to remind herself of how long she had been here. Her cell had an odd quality; in it time was irrelevant. Each day could easily blend nicely into the next but she wouldn't relinquish anything else to Cyrus or even Evan. For some reason, those little etches on the wall and knowing how long she had been here made her feel like she at least still had her brain; it was weak, and bruised but it was hers. Esme had lost herself, staring at the 30 etches in the stone which were now now barely visible in the corner of the cell, but when Levi coughed, she saw that he was still there.

"You're Cyrus' sorcerer?" Esme asked. She was well aware this was not a particularly veiled attempt to determine which side he fought on, but she was too exhausted and sore to honestly care. They wouldn't kill her and they couldn't hurt her family so all she had to do was exist, day after day; they couldn't hurt her, not really.

"More Evans. That's actually why i'm here. I wanted to apologise for my uncles behaviour. He has been under-"

"Your uncle? You are Evans nephew?!" Esme said with utter disbelief.

"I am. I just wanted to say that he is a good man and loves his country; he just wants to make it strong again. But occasionally his passion comes across as-"

"Evil. He's a monster!" Esme spat.

"He's no monster. The monster is Cyrus," Levi explained as his noticed his chiselled jaw clench when she insulted his uncle.

"To me they are no different. You precious uncle took my parents away from me, before i even had a chance to say goodbye!" Esme screamed with utter frustration.

"That wasn't my uncle, that was Cyrus! How do you even know about that, they said you weren't aware-" Levi explained.

"What? I saw him! It was your uncle!"

"What? You couldn't possibly remember-"

"It was one month ago-" she began but then she stopped. Realisation spread across Levi's face and, although he tried desperately to hide it, there was a moment of horror; he was not supposed to have told her this, and she certainly wasn't supposed to have found out.

And then the realisation of what they were both talking about dawned on her and she gasped. Yes, it was Evan who took Robin and Regina from Esme one month ago, but it was Cyrus who took Esme from Robin and Regina over 20 years ago