Emma paced nervously as she waited for her parents to join them in the library. Killian had remained silent, sitting statuesque in an old oak chair watching the fire engulf the wood in the ornate stone fireplace in front of him. His silence did nothing to calm Emma's mind, which was running as fast as her heart was beating. She wasn't nervous to tell her parents about Henry, it was what came next. As the door handle turned and her parents entered the room Emma had still not decided if she would tell them the truth about who Henry's true father was. Time had betrayed her; a decision would have to be made.
"Emma", the King affectionately kissed his daughter's temple, stepping back to take another look while shaking his head in disbelief. "It will take time to get used to the transition from baby girl to grown woman...well overnight, really!"
"We've missed so much, Emma." Queen Mary Margaret held her daughter's hand, "Tell us again how you and Killian came to meet? We have heard so much tragedy today; I wish to hear something good."
Emma cleared her throat as her parents found their seats around the fire. She walked over and perched on the arm of Killian's chair; he took her hand and gave it a squeeze partnered with a sad smile.
"Well..." she began, telling them of how she tried to steal her own crown just to wind up in the castle cells with a proposal from a prince. David and Mary Margret's heads snapped in Killian's direction, who quickly explained the situation with his heart and upcoming summer solstice. Emma explained how despite not having his heart Killian had cared for her and treated her with such kindness she began to fall in love with him. It surprised Killian to hear how early on in their relationship Emma had developed feelings for him, the revelation made him both happy and sad.
"There is something else we need to tell you" Emma said slowly. Her eyes darted back and forth between her parents then she confessed, "You have a grandson."
The King and Queen gasped before jumping from their seats and rushing over to Killian and Emma to congratulate them.
"That's wonderful" Mary Margaret's eyes began to water.
David turned to Killian, "I'm a grandfather?"
"Aye, Your Majesty, to an amazing lad, called Henry."
"Killian, please, you've given me a grandson, I think you can call me David."
Killian glanced at Emma for guidance. She sighed and nodded sadly.
"There is something else you need to know" she said, "and this can't leave this room, for Henry's safety"
She had their attention; Killian bit his tongue and braced himself for their reaction.
"Killian...isn't, well, no one knows this, but what I'm trying to say is that when I was engaged to Killian I discovered that I was pregnant."
David and Mary Margaret looked at each other not entirely sure what Emma was saying exactly.
"I had been in a relationship with another pirate, Baelfire; he was helping me try to steal the crown. But when I was caught he bailed, abandoning me, sailing away with my ship, and leaving me to pay for our crime. I discovered a few weeks later I was carrying his child. I told Killian straight away, assuming that he would want to call off the wedding but he offered to protect my child and I and to let the people think he was the father if I still wanted to stay and go through with the wedding. He gave us everything, Henry is the crown prince of Aaralyn and Killian has gone above and beyond in his role as father. I wish you could see them together, Henry adores him."
"I'm rather fond of the lad too; I love him as if he was my own flesh." Killian added quietly. "I can never thank Emma enough for allowing me the honour of calling him son."
It was Emma's turn to get misty eyed. The King and Queen were rendered silent while they processed the news. Finally David walked over to Killian and threw his arms around him, "thank you" he choked.
"Yours is quite the love story" Mary Margaret beamed. "Your secret is safe with us, but what about the other pirate, Baelfire?"
"He's dead." Emma said, void of emotion. "And we've found out since that he was the Dark One's son, though we don't know if he ever knew that. That is why it is so important people believe Henry is Killian's, if the Dark One found out he had a grandson...it doesn't bear thinking about." She shuddered.
King David nodded his head in understanding. "The Dark One has threatened my family for long enough. It's time to end this."
The summer air was turning cooler, the trees beginning to display a kaleidoscope of colours. It seemed, newly awoken; nature was determined to showcase her most beautiful natural art exhibit with so many years to make up for. David and Killian rounded up Misthaven's troupes and marched to Merlin's Forest, just outside the boarder to Camelot. It had taken military precision and tactical planning to move the 10,000 strong army in smaller groups using different paths and traveling at different times of day to avoid attracting unwanted attention.
Spirits were high on arrival, families ripped apart by the curse were now reunited, and seeing the size of their army now Arendelle, Misthaven, and Aaralyn's forces were joined made the people feel as though they had a fighting chance. Best of all they had their King and Queen back, if the return of the Swan Princess had inspired the people to join together, the safe return of King David and Queen Mary Margaret whipped them into a euphoric frenzy. The Dark One's curse had been broken; surely nothing could stop them now!
While pleased with the kingdom's confidence and new found zeal, David, Mary Margaret, Emma, Killian, and their closest confidants couldn't help but be on edge. So far they had been extremely fortunate with their circumstances and wondered how long their lucky streak could possibly continue, they hadn't actually come face to face with a The Dark One yet and they were still none the wiser how to defeat their foe. There was also the added problem of Merlin; the wizard was unaccounted for having not shown up to the council meeting back in Aaralyn before Killian and Emma left for Misthaven and not being present at his home now either. Killian's plan had relied heavily on Merlin's help and without it he was at a loss.
His days were now filled searching Merlin's house with Emma and David trying to find anything that could help them while Ruby and Graham were in charge of intel, leading the scouting groups, Mary Margaret rode back to Aaralyn to help Granny care for and protect the children and Robin and Will continued training the armies.
Though Merlin's house was not grand in size, it was a hoarder's dream; there were piles of books from floor to ceiling, every drawer, shelf, cupboard, nook and cranny was jammed packed with bottles, jars, boxes, envelopes, and sacks, all stuffed to the brim! Housekeeping had obviously not been a past time of the conjuror, a thick layer of dust blanketed the house and all its contents sending the searchers into fits of sneezes periodically when a new item was moved disrupting its coating.
They had unearthed an endless amount of curiosities; what looked like a pickled newt collection, a box full of shed fairy wings (Emma hadn't been aware that fairies shed their wings but apparently this was common knowledge), vials of unicorn tears, a leather pouch of mermaid scales, a collection of crystals, and enchanted objects that occasionally fought back being handled or flew around the room bashing into the unwanted guests. "It's bloody useless" Killian blurted, kicking a crate of empty bottles sending glass shards scattering across the floor causing him to curse again and storm out the building.
"Killian!" David started to go after him but Emma grabbed her father's arm.
"It's best to leave him when he gets upset like that, he'll walk it off, cool down and then be back with a clear head." She'd grown accustomed to her husband's moods, and like a thunderstorm clears the sea air, Killian's outbursts cleared his mind.
"Perhaps a walk would be beneficial to all of us." David suggested offering his arm to Emma.
She smiled and let her father lead her into the forest and to the nearby river where they perched on a rock, Emma removing her shoes and sipping her feet in the fresh cool running water.
"He puts a lot of pressure on himself, you know." Emma broke the silence, sticking up for her husband. "He wants so badly to do a good job for you."
David listened as Emma explained Killian's admiration for the King, "He's so hard on himself, every mistake he sees as another disappointment to you."
"Killian and I have a lot in common, we both found ourselves in the role of King with no training. I made a lot of mistakes too, some that cost people their lives; it is a steep learning curve that will forever haunt me. Killian was too young to remember."
Emma could see whatever memory her father had dug up was causing him pain so changed the subject, "You know it was here, at Merlin's house, that Killian discovered who I really was and you had a role to play in that."
David looked up at her in surprise, "Me?"
She lifted her silver pendant over her head, playing with it in her hands.
"Your necklace, you still have it after all these years." He gasped.
"I never knew this was the Misthaven star, I held the answer to who I was my whole childhood and was completely unaware." She traced the lines of the star with her finger. "I left it with Graham to give to Henry the night The Dark One kidnapped me. Graham recognised the emblem immediately but it was too late, The Dark One had me, he rushed back to Killian, who was already on his way here to ask Merlin to return his heart. He knew he loved me before he knew who I really was. I guess we really were destined to be together..." she smiled to herself.
"I couldn't agree more."
"How did you and mother know we should be together?" She asked.
King David shrugged, "We didn't. Brennan Jones was a trusted advisor, we were very close, and Killian and Liam felt like sons, I trusted their family with you." His voice trailed off as if he suddenly was remembering something from the furthest reaches of his recollection. "You know, Merlin forged that necklace, I wanted something special for you for your first birthday and he, being a gifted alchemist as well as sorcerer, created it, the metal is special, there was an inscription if I remember...a poem of some kind."
Emma turned the pendant over, she'd never noticed any words before, just the usual scratches and marks you'd expect over years wear and tear. She handed it to King David.
"There on the back" he pointed.
Emma squinted, "Are you sure? They just look like scratches to me."
"It's faded over time...I wonder..."
He rose and started back towards Merlin's cottage, "I have an idea!"
Killian had lost track of the time, as he often did when stomping off wandering into his dark thoughts. The sun had begun to set and he was just turning to start his walk back to their camp when the sound of rustling leaves and growling alerted him. Something was wrong. A silvery grey wolf leapt from the undergrowth pinning him to the ground. "Ruby, dammit, where is your cloak?" No matter how many times he saw her in her wolf form it never stopped his heart racing when she surprised him like that. The wolf stepped off him, snorted and started back towards the camp; he followed her, running trying to keep up. She sped into a tent and on following her he found her red velvet cloak hanging on a chair, throwing it over the beast she transformed back into her human form.
"It's Merlin" she panted, "He's dead!"
King David was flicking through Merlin's books; he'd thought he'd remembered seeing a chapter on enchanted metals during one of their searches. Finally his eyes fell on what he was looking for, Here!" he pointed to a chapter on Indium, a highly malleable metal, making it easy to shape and infuse with magic properties. Used by sorcerers to hide secret spells or messages when inscribed with a palladium blade the message becomes hidden over time but can be revealed by soaking in a concoction of chemicals. The recipe for the metal bath was laid out on the page.
"I think all the ingredients are here" Emma noted, turning quickly to search through several of Merlin's overcrowded cabinets. "Read them out to me."
Bottles clinked against each other as Emma quickly gathered each element David listed.
"Alright, so we mix them all together over a medium heat and then when it begins to simmer we drop in your necklace until the metal turns white…" David read aloud, "then the writing should become clear to read again."
The two amateur chemists huddled over the pot watching the necklace swirl around the simmering concoction looking for any sign of the metal whitening.
"I think it's changing" Emma exclaimed.
"You're right!" David quickly searched the workbench for some metal tongs to lift the jewellery out of the pot, laying it gently on the table and turning it to the back. "There! See the writing?"
Emma leaned in with a quill and parchment at the ready, jotting down the message as her father read it aloud.
The strongest weapon you could wield
Isn't any sword or shield
To overcome life's toughest trials
You'll need magic not found in vials
Only light can conquer dark
And light magic resides in your heart
True power's found when we forgive
That is the only way you'll live.
"Ok…that's cryptic." Emma sounded unimpressed. She folded up the paper and tucked it away in her pocket should the message fade away on her locket again before returning the necklace to her neck. "Do you think Merlin knew about the Dark One and what would happen back when he made this?"
"Hard to say" King David shrugged, "Merlin always spoke in riddles and seemed to know more than he let on."
"I wish we could find him." Emma's gaze drifted to the open window, in the distance she saw Killian and Ruby running towards them. "Something is wrong." She rushed outside to meet the duo half way.
"Merlin is dead." Killian panted the moment she reached him, "Ruby saw it happen, The Dark One killed him."
King David jogged up behind Emma; he'd overheard the news and was trying to make sense of it. "Come inside," he ushered them, "Tell us everything."
Ruby, still shaken by what she had seen and heard sat with a thud on an old trunk sending a cloud of dust swirling in the air. She closed her eyes firmly before recounting what she had witnessed.
She could feel the hairs on her arms rising to attention as she neared the battle field. The scent of war lingered thick and putrid assaulting her senses. The fighting had built to a climax, The Evil Queen and The Dark One facing off against each other in the middle of a carpet of scattered corpses, collateral damage in their feud. Ruby strained to try and hear what the two foes said to each other but could only pick up fragments. "You took her!" The Dark One had hissed, "You had no right!" The Queen had leaned in to whisper something Ruby couldn't hear. Suddenly more of The Dark Ones troupes surfaced from the forest at the far side of their battlefield in full charge towards them. The Queen rolled her eyes in frustration and with a mere swipe of her arm an invisible force wiped them out and she returned to their heated exchange. "If you're so powerful why don't you kill her?" She screamed in The Dark One's face. "At least I've imprisoned her where she can never be freed." He shot back, knocking the Queen over with a bolt of magic firing out from his outstretched hand. The Queen quickly rose to her feet hurling a fireball towards him. He clicked his fingers, disappearing a millisecond before the fire reached him and reappearing again behind lifting his arms to strike again.
"Emma cannot be held by your shackles"
Ruby jumped when she heard Merlin's voice and saw him standing 50 yards from her, in plain sight before the two duelling enemies. How he came to be there at that moment was a mystery to her, no one before had managed to slip past her undetected. With an uneasy sense of foreboding she ducked down in the shelter of the bushes around her to watch what happened next.
"Go home before you get hurt old man; you don't know what you're talking about." The Dark One scoffed.
"You should have paid heed when I warned you the girl would be your undoing. Now you have gone too far and the only end for you is destruction." Merlin warned.
"What is he talking about?" The Queen demanded.
"The man is deluded." The Dark One sneered, "He thinks he can put a leash on my power, that he can control me. I've spent years mastering what you taught me, old man, I may have been your student once but now I am my only master."
He walked menacingly towards Merlin, who remained perfectly still with his arms folded, hands tucked into his larger sleeves. As his protégé squared up to him he remained looking straight ahead. The Dark One lowered his voice but Ruby could still make him out as he leaned into Merlin's ear.
"You taught me too well, you made me strong, and then when you tried to go back, tried to tame me, you were too late, I'd tasted the power, I knew what I was capable of. I saw my future laid out before me, complete domination over all the realms and there was nothing you could do to stop me." He sneered at the wizard, "There is nothing you can do. I've taken every one from you and you do nothing, you've lost your power haven't you."
"Power does not always come by show of force" Merlin answered quietly. "You cannot stop the wheels in motion, you cannot stop the prophecy. She will be your undoing. She will be your end."
The Queen watched nervously, "What is he talking about?"
The Dark One ignored her, his full attention was taken up with the wizard who introduced him to magic, the wizard who equipped him with the tools and disciplines that he took and developed and adapted to channel the dark arts. He looked at the man he once revered with distaste. "Any last words, teacher?"
Ruby strained but she couldn't hear what Merlin said, but the moment he uttered them he kneeled to the ground and as the Dark One fired a bolt of magic in his direction the old wizard was engulfed in flames and reduced to ashes in seconds.
The Dark One was thrown back on the ground by the force of what had just happened, the victor looked strangely shaken and pale. By the time he turned to face The Evil Queen she had disappeared fleeing whatever dark magic she had just witnessed. Ruby turned and fled.
"I can't believe he is gone" Killian slowly dropped down on a bench in Merlin's house. The belongings cluttering the place took on a new feel now their owner was dead; it was as if the whole house mourned his loss.
"What now?" Ruby asked solemnly.
David sighed, "We regroup and come up with a plan. From what Ruby said, it sounded like whatever happened with Merlin weakened The Dark One."
"But he has dark magic; we still don't know how to defeat him." Killian reminded them.
Emma turned her silver pendant over, reading Merlin's words again. It felt as though he was speaking to her directly from the grave. Pieces started to fit together in her head; her kidnapping as a child, The Dark One's inability to kill her when she was his prisoner, his recoiling as she approached him, his desperation to find her and imprison her. She turned to her father, "How long has The Dark One threatened Misthaven?"
David thought back, "Since you were born, why?"
Ignoring his question she went on, "And why did you call me your Swan Princess?"
David shook his head, unsure of what any of this mattered right now. "Something Merlin said when he learned your mother was pregnant; he said 'the swan princess will be our saviour'. We didn't even know yet if we were having a boy or a girl, it seemed like senseless babbling at the time but when you were born I remembered it and the nickname just stuck."
Killian lifted his head, he'd just assumed it was a name that King David had made up himself, he knew nothing of Merlin's prophecy. "He called Emma our saviour?"
"I don't know what he meant exactly" David shrugged, "It's like I said, he always spoke in riddles, half the time I had no idea what he was talking about. When the curse was coming and I sent you away, Emma, I thought Merlin must have foreseen the sleeping curse and known you were the only one who'd be able to wake us."
Emma read the poem once again. "What if…what if he wasn't talking specifically about the sleeping curse? What if he meant I was the only one who could defeat The Dark One?"
Everyone stared at Emma in disbelief.
Finally Killian spoke up, "Luv, there is no doubt that you are a skilled fighter and as fearless as they come, I pity any soul that comes against you, but The Dark One has magic…"
"'And light magic resides in your heart' she quoted her necklace, taking it off her neck and holding it up to them.
"Let me see that" said Killian as he took the necklace she held out to him. He read the poem and looked up at her, "Have these words always been here?"
"They faded over time, I didn't know they were there until I mentioned my necklace to my father today and he told me Merlin made it and inscribed this poem on the back. We looked in his books and found the spell to reveal the words; we'd only just discovered them when you and Ruby arrived now."
"Emma do you know what this means?" Killian spoke in hushed wonderment. "You hold the secret to defeating the most powerful entity in this realm. The Swan Princess isn't just a lost girl who would break the sleeping curse simply because she was the daughter of the King and Queen, light magic lives in you and it is powerful enough to finally put an end to him once and for all."
Emma looked around the room at her family and friend, she'd come to the chilling realisation seconds before them but a part of her hoped she was wrong. Now the expectation on their faces shocked her into the reality of the weight that was now resting solely on her shoulders. "Right…" She whispered, "Now all I have to do is figure out how to use it."