The night before the battle Jack's team gathered again. They were back in Emma's office, going over the battle plan again with some new additions. Fianna had worked with Clarion to create the perfect spell for their conjuration of Fianna's dragon form. And because Aaron watched a Godzilla movie, they also had conjurations of King Ghidorah and Rodan to fight for them. All of them would be keeping Mal and Lily busy. Not only that, but they had a storm spell connected to them and they would use it to hide their movements. Spencer taught them his sight spell so they could move through the storm with ease. Most of their original plan was still the same. Clarion would still create her conjured soldiers and Marie would still protect her back. Hansel, Gretel and Emma would still be their long range snipers and archers. Spencer would keep tabs on everyone's location. Shang and Aaron would blitz attack as soon as the storm was in place and Benji would do the same after he conjured his Zelena attack drone. Jack would join those attacking and Henry would sneak around to the enemy castle to capture their flag. It was a solid plan and Jack was pleased with it, until Spencer suddenly gasped.
"What?" Benji asked.
"We screwed ourselves." He said, pointing at Clarion. "We gave Mom information on how to combine light magic and dark magic. She probably helped Aunt Regina…"
"We're fucked." Emma sighed.
"Guys, relax." Marie scoffed. "We knew this would be a tough battle going into it and we know Aunt Zelena probably has a thousand more spells under her belt. Honestly, telling her about Clarion's magic won't make much of a difference."
"We need a failsafe." Benji said. "In case they get to our castle."
"We have a forest on our side of the river. We could animate the plants to attack anyone that gets past us." Hansel suggested.
Spencer raised his hand. "I can take care of that."
"We should move the flag too." Henry suggested softly. "Out of the castle." He avoided looking at the others, choosing instead to watch the fireplace.
"Agreed." Jack said after a while. "Where do you suggest, Lord Henry?"
Henry looked up momentarily to glare at him. "I don't know, Prince Jack. Wherever his highness wishes."
Jack turned back to the others. "Should we put it in the river?"
"Yes!" Marie agreed. "Also, we should conjure up multiple and hide them all over the place."
"I think Shang and I should also go for their flag." Aaron cut in. "We're putting a lot of trust in the idea that Henry can sneak in, so he can be a failsafe. We've got a lot of stuff to distract the big players, but the others of the pack are still no joke. Mulan, for instance, can destroy us in hand to hand combat and with a sword."
"Mom enchanted that sword by the way." Marie added. "It's much stronger now."
"Dorothy could hold her own against Zelena. Mal's also been training Belle, Kathryn, and Aurora to fight as well and there's no telling what they're breaking out." Aaron continued. "Clarion gave Tink a book on new magic and Merida's been teaching her the bow. We all know what Merida can do. We're not going to win!" He flopped onto the couch behind him and Marie rolled her eyes.
"So we take out your moms as soon as possible." She asked, looking at Jack.
Jack nodded. "By the way, if I get eliminated, you call the shots. After that, then you, Benji. Then Spencer."
"Why not Clarion?" Benji asked.
"She'll be too preoccupied." He replied.
"Our plan is shot if they decide to play defensive and hole up in the castle." Marie added.
Benji snorted. "True, but Mom and Mal aren't going to play defensive. There's a slight chance that Regina will, but I doubt it. They're not going to hide. They want to see what we can do."
"Agreed." Clarion voiced. "Besides, Maleficent will be at full strength and she believes herself invincible. As long as she leaves the castle I can get the others out."
"Oh?" Everyone turned to her with interest. "How?" Jack asked.
Clarion smirked. "By throwing Mal through the front door."
/
Jack hardly got any sleep that night. His mothers already surmised that he and the other children wouldn't and informed them that the battle wouldn't take place until that afternoon so he was able to catch a few more hours of rest before the time came to get suited up. He'd wanted to fight in a suit as a homage to Regina, but fighting in a suit was harder than anticipated so he went with a more practical choice. His attire consisted of the black boots and pants that he usually trained in and the wolf emblazoned chestplate he got from Fianna's store that she'd enchanted for him. The only other thing he wore was a red wristband.
He could hear everyone else getting ready downstairs and so he crouched to reach under his bed and pulled out the small case underneath. It was his secret weapon, one he hadn't even told Clarion about. He had given up on his fire spell and kept practicing with Clarion's light magic, but it gave him another idea. Clarion taught him to manipulate light, to solidify it but it made him wonder if he could do other things to it. Sharpen it, for instance. A blade made of light magic and fire was his best idea and he'd spent the last week with Mulan and Mal, honing his skill with it. They just thought he was using a regular sword as a last resort, not one like this. He even made sure the hilt looked just like one of the swords he practiced with.
"Jack? You awake?" Regina called through the door.
He quickly sheathed the weapon on his back and stood up. "I'm up." Regina opened the door and leaned in, holding out a hand. She looked ready for battle as well, in a modified version of one of her Evil Queen outfits. It was an all black dress pants combo that he was sure he'd seen her wear before and he could've sworn it was once red. She'd also removed all of the beading and jewels that it once had. He moved under her hand, letting her put an arm around him so they could walk downstairs together.
"You ready?" She asked, gently messing with his hair.
"Yep."
"To lose, I mean."
Jack smirked. "Mom, we've already made our peace with losing, but you guys are going to have to work for that win."
There was a lot of bustling in the living room. Mulan and Dorothy were sharpening their swords, Merida was making arrows, Mal was helping Tink into a suit of leather armor, Zelena was helping Belle into one as well, and Benji and Aaron were doing stretches. Regina led him into the kitchen where the rest of the pack was eating. It was mostly a light meal, but there were a lot of choices with different meats, fresh fruit, some steamed vegetables and rolls.
"I know you might be anxious but it is important you eat something." Regina said. "You don't want to be using a lot of magic on an empty stomach. You'll need the energy."
"Have you eaten?" Jack asked, taking a seat at the table next to Marie.
"I have. Don't worry. So has Ruby."
"Text Clarion. Make sure she has too."
"Already done. She said she'll be here soon."
Jack filled up a bowl with fruit, picked out a couple of rolls and a few steak bites. A few minutes later, Emma and Henry arrived, both looking surprised at the spread on the table.
"You guys are snacking on steak?" Emma said.
"Mal is a member of the pack." Jack replied, as if that answered everything.
"Eat if you want." Regina told them before touching Jack's head. "I'm going to check on the pups in the nursery."
"Okay."
"We should be ready to start in the next hour or so."
That hour seemed to take three to pass. The adults of the pack seemed calm and collected but the children were restless and antsy, pacing and rechecking their equipment and spells over and over. Clarion soon arrived, bringing a guest with her.
"Oh for fuck's sake." Mal groaned as Fianna burst through the front door. This time, the dragoness was wearing a splendid black and red dress that trailed the ground several feet after her. She wore matching jewelry that sparkled with rubies and she had a steel pauldron on her right arm. She grinned as she immediately went to throw her arms around Mal's neck and kiss her cheek.
"Don't be rude, Maleficent. I was invited to watch your game. It's been a long time since I've seen you fight." She looked at Mulan. "Does she still favor her right side?"
"She does."
"Enough!" Mal cut in quickly. "I don't need you giving out fighting tips to defeat me. I know you've analyzed my fighting style."
"Of course I have. We should spar again one of these days."
"I would love to see that match." Mulan grinned.
"Sorry to disappoint." Mal replied. "If we do spar, you will not be there to see it."
"She doesn't want to lose in front of her mate." Fianna whispered to Mulan.
The elder dragon spent the next half hour annoying Mal before Granny finally arrived and Zelena announced that they were ready to begin. The witch opened a portal in the living room wall. As they walked through it, she stamped their foreheads with a magical seal that would prevent them from injury. They stepped out onto the battlefield. It was just as described on their map. The sky was dark but there was a full moon to provide light. A river split the field in half. There were two castles at each end. On the adults' side, the land was bare of any plants, just an open dirt field. On the kids' side, starting a few feet from the river, there was a thick forest that reached right up to their castle walls. Behind the castles were two tall walls of stone that marked the end of their land.
"Alright!" Ruby called out, drawing everyone's attention. "Since we have some newbies, let's go over the rules again." She gestured to Zelena, who stepped forward.
"We all know the rules of capture the flag. You get the opponents' flag and take it back to your base, but that's not the only way to win. If you eliminate all of the other players on the other team, you win. If the members of the other team forfeit, you win. If the members of the other team cannot continue, you win. Any questions?" She paused to see if there would be any. Emma raised her hand. "No, you won't get hurt, Miss Swan." Zelena said. "That seal on your forehead will keep you from hurting yourself and overexerting yourself and there will be no pain. There is no risk of you dying here. The pregnant ladies are safe. However, the seal will also mimic the effects of injury and overexertion. For example…" She conjured a knife and stabbed the nearest person in the chest, which happened to be Regina. The alpha instantly collapsed to the ground and disappeared. "You won't actually feel any wounds, but if it is a serious enough wound without the seal, you will be eliminated. If you use more magical energy than you actually have, you will be eliminated."
"What if we get stabbed in the leg?" Henry asked.
"Then it will be as if you have a leg wound. You will be forced to limp until you are 'healed' by a teammate or you heal yourself. You get hit in the eye, you won't be able to use that eye. Mal steps on you, you will be eliminated. Mulan stabs you in the stomach, you'll be eliminated. Merida shoots you in the chest, you're done. I know that with some wounds you might be able to recover from given time and medicine but we're ignoring that for now. If you are eliminated, you will be teleported to the viewing room where you can watch the rest of the game with Granny, Fianna and the pups. Any more questions?" There were none. Regina returned, looking peeved, and conjured their flags. The adults had a bright red one with a moon symbol on it. The kids had a bright blue one with a wolf head on it. Aaron accepted their flag and wrapped it around his shoulders.
"Now," Zelena continued. "Both teams will have a half hour to get the lay of the land and decide how to mount their defense. You will be notified when you have five minutes left. Begin!"
Both teams took off running to their castles. Jack and Clarion remained at the river border. Ruby and Regina did as well. Regina raised an eyebrow and he copied her, making her smile.
"If you think I'm going to go easy on you because you're my son…you're wrong." Regina said.
"Now we have to destroy her first." Clarion murmured just loud enough for Regina and Ruby to hear.
Jack smirked and took another look around the field. There was plenty of space for a battle on the adults' side which was one of the reasons they wanted to take the fight to them as soon as possible. They didn't want to destroy the forest on their side because they could use it as a layer of defense.
A few minutes later, Marie teleported to his side. "Everything's set. Clarion, you want to check it?" The fairy nodded and teleported away. "What's going on here?" Marie whispered.
"Nothing." Jack shrugged. "They think they're being intimidating but they just look like moms."
"What?!" Ruby yelled.
At the five minute mark, he teleported to the castle to see the interior. It was very simple. Just a wall with a gate and a stone structure inside. His team had covered all of the walls with fake flags. Spencer activated his spell with a click of his ring and Jack looked around, seeing the other members of their team lit up through the trees. Hansel, Gretel and Emma were already in position, hidden in the trees or on the cliff. Spencer clicked his ring again and he could see the adults of the pack in their castle. They were all there except for Regina and Ruby and there was a dragon sitting on the cliff behind their castle. Judging by the horns it was Lily. Marie also passed out the rest of the ear pieces for them to keep in contact with each other.
"Everyone ready?" Jack asked. "Sound off." Everyone called in to ensure everything was working properly. "Alright, we're about to start. Keep a lookout for Zelena. She'll probably be on her broomstick at some point and watch out for Mal. Her scales will be difficult to see in the darkness."
"Let's go!" Aaron yelled into the earpiece.
Jack smiled. He was just as excited, but he was also nervous. As long as he wasn't eliminated in the first five minutes, he might even count it a victory. He teleported back to the river border with Aaron, Shang, Benji, Marie and Clarion. His jaw instantly dropped when he saw the massive wolf waiting on the other side of the river. It was like Fenrir, the monstrous wolf from Norse mythology had come to life. Ruby was gigantic, easily rivaling Lily in size. She had moved back, standing in front of the castle gates and Regina was still at her side.
"That's new." Marie said.
"It means nothing." Benji scoffed. "We're ready."
"Is your Zelena drone ready?" Jack asked.
"Yep. As soon as Mom shows up it'll lock on. Clarion, are you still going to get them out of the castle for us?"
"With pleasure."
And so, they waited for the clock to tick down. Jack started to pace as they waited for it to begin. Finally, they heard the buzzer for the first capture the flag battle to start. No one moved to attack. In fact, Regina waved for them to make the first move.
"Stand back." Clarion said. Jack raised an eyebrow as he moved back with the others. The fairy walked forward, right up to the river's edge. Unlike the rest of the pack, who were all wearing some sort of armor, the fairy was wearing a long golden dress that had undoubtedly come from Fianna. Other than that, she wore no jewelry, no armor, no shoes and carried no weapons. "Maleficent!" Clarion yelled at the top of her lungs. "You fucking bitch!" Ruby and Regina exchanged shocked looks. Even Jack was stunned. "You really think you're the most powerful one in this town? You are but a child compared to me! Do you know why I always evaded you during training? It was because I did not want to embarrass you in front of your mate and children. You've built such a reputation for yourself, I did not want to ruin it. I know about dragons and their egos." She paused, looking up at the night sky. "Are you hiding? I suppose it is hard to see a dragon so small!"
Jack exchanged looks with Marie. Even he knew that dragons loved their dragon form and its size meant a great deal to them. Bigger dragons were often older, faster, stronger and wealthier. Mal took great pride in being the oldest person, (ignoring Blue and the other fairies), and largest dragon in Storybrooke. She was no longer the eldest and even though Lily was a muscular dragon, Mal was still a good size larger. To call her small was the same as calling her weak and they all knew Mal would not let that stand.
"Those are fighting words." Shang whispered.
Marie giggled softly and shook her head. "Here she comes."
The words were barely out of her mouth before Jack heard the wingbeats. Maleficent materialized in the night sky. She appeared out of nowhere, dive bombing Clarion with reckless abandon and every intention to crush her. Clarion's hands glowed softly and she made a circle gesture and a giant portal opened in front of her, just in time for Mal to blast through it. There was no hope of stopping in time. The portal reopened up in front of Ruby and Jack burst out laughing at his mother's shocked scream as Mal slammed into her and sent them both careening backwards. The whole castle crumbled underneath the two giant beasts and he could see people scrambling to avoid being crushed underneath them, Regina included.
"Eyes on." Jack commanded, whispering a word of magic. He could hear the others doing the same. With this spell, his eyes worked similar to night vision goggles, allowing him to see through difficult weather. "Send the storm with Ghidorah and Rodan. Let's eliminate Mom and Mal as soon as possible. Clarion, send the soldiers. We'll save Fianna for a trump card." The wind instantly began to pick up. He'd seen what it looked like when Clarion was creating it and he couldn't imagine what the rest of the pack were thinking seeing the wall of cold wind, ice and snow barrelling towards them. He drew the hilt on his back and the blade sprang to life. It was golden and bright and sparking like electricity. It was a bit more chaotic than Clarion's, but he could improve it later. Clarion gave him a proud smile as he leaped the river, leading the storm. Dozens of soldiers in silver armor followed at his heels. More were being conjured every moment that passed and soon, he had an army at his back. Aaron ran with him while Shang blasted through the air. They would aim for someone else but he had his sights set on Regina.
The adults of the pack were recovering quickly. Regina was already back on her feet, black swords in both hands. Ruby and Mal were still trying to untangle themselves. Just when they had, a shadow passed overhead and Jack spared a small glance up as their conjuration of King Ghidorah roared, blasting the sky with bursts of electric fire. Lily attempted to stop it, flying to meet the three headed dragon in battle, but Rodan materialized out of the storm, crashing into her and sending them both to the ground. The earth shook violently and Jake slipped, but he quickly recovered and focused on his target, meeting Regina in a battle of blades.
Regina was grinning as he went on the offensive. "Mom, you're supposed to be fighting me, not looking proud." He snapped, avoiding the sword swinging for his head. Regina shrugged before suddenly kicking him square in the chest. He hit the ground hard, the air rushing out of his lungs and he rolled to avoid the swords striking the earth where he once was. The only reason he survived the duel was because of the other soldiers that leaped in to defend him. Still, Regina was dispatching them at a fantastic rate.
"Ruby's shifting back down." Spencer informed him over coms.
"Clarion, new soldiers." Jack called, deftly fending off his mother's blades. He sent out a clone who tackled Regina to the ground. "Target Ruby. Now!" The soldiers immediately took off running, melting into the storm and leaving him with Regina who was fighting his clone. There was a lot of roaring and explosions off in the distance.
"Ruby's out. Dorothy and Kathryn were eliminated when they wrecked the castle. Zelena's in the air with the drone."
He heard a yell from behind him and refocused on Regina. His clone was gone. He went back into a fighting stance, but Regina didn't raise her swords. In fact, she dropped one. She raised the empty hand towards him and her palm glowed with an orange light. He barely managed to dive to the side when he realized what it was. A sharp boom accompanied the blast of fire from Regina's hand and when it hit the ground near him, it exploded, sending him flying once again. The air rushed out of his lungs again and he wheezed as he scrambled to get up again before Regina attacked. Luckily, she was having too much fun toying with him.
"What the heck, Mom?!" He yelled. Regina raised her eyebrows, looking innocent. "You learned my spell and fixed it without telling me?!"
"It was after you changed your mind about it!" Regina yelled back. "Besides, didn't Zelena tell you that others could learn your spells?"
"I bet Aunt Zelena said a lot of stuff!"
Regina grinned. "Yeah, I agree. We will thank Clarion for our win." White light began pouring from one of her hands. She dropped her other sword to grab the ball of light with both hands. Jack took a few steps back and felt his magic stir uncomfortably at all of the magical energy raging around his mother. This was something new and he had no idea what she was doing. Regina's arms were shaking as she strained to control the light magic, smashing it into a tiny ball in the palm of her hand before tossing it into the air. There was a bright flash of light and all at once, their storm was gone. Jack's jaw dropped. Fianna and Clarion had made the spell for it. How did Regina get rid of it so easily?
Regina threw her arms down and another boom accompanied her sudden ascent. Flames sprang from her hands and feet, blasting her into the air. She flew over Ghidorah, who'd been locked in battle with Mal. Jack watched in awe as a beam of white light flashed from his mother's hands, striking the three headed dragon in the back and all at once, Ghidorah was gone.
"What the hell?! Target Regina! Now!" He yelled.
"On it." Hansel said. "I got a surprise for her."
Regina had landed and was giving him a smug grin. She barely looked away in order to catch the arrow that was aimed for her face. She caught it, as she usually did, but he saw her flinch and touch the side of her neck. When she looked up, she just looked extremely annoyed.
"Poison pin arrows." Hansel said as Regina collapsed only to disappear. "Made just for your mom."
"Thanks." He took stock of the field again. Zelena was still fighting Benji and his Wicked Witch drone on her broomstick. The trio were flying erratically all over the place, just balls of green and blue magic blasting back and forth. Mal was in human form now, fighting Shang and Aaron. Lily was still battling it out with Rodan. Belle, Aurora, Tink and Merida were still unaccounted for. "Emma, if you get a shot, take out Zelena." Behind Mal, the witch was the most dangerous. Thankfully, she was easily distracted and Benji was keeping her busy. "Lily's going to beat Rodan. Take her out as soon as she's done. The rest of us need to target Mal. Spencer, keep an eye out on the missing four. I haven't seen them and I don't know if they're eliminated."
He took a deep breath and lit up his blade once again. Golden electricity covered him like a second skin as he summoned three more clones of himself and launched himself forward using the speed spell Clarion taught him. It was a gamble to use so many spells at once. He knew he hadn't practiced enough with them and Mal was a threat that could destroy all of them. She needed to be taken off the field. So he joined Aaron and Shang in the attack on the Dragon Queen. They were supported by Gretel's magic bolts that kept Mal on her toes. Shang's waves of fire did little to hurt the dragon but it kept distracting her and Aaron followed them up with hard shots of his own. He'd used his magic spell to create a suit of stone and he was right up in Mal's space, managing to get several shots in on her stomach. Unfortunately, all of this only seemed to piss her off. Jack and his clones attacked everywhere they could and as fast as he could. He also kept flashing his light magic, blinding her repeatedly. They had to overwhelm her. They had to keep going.
/
"They're doing well." Ruby commented.
Regina smiled. "They are." Although she knew it was a lost cause. Mal thrived in the midst of battle. She preferred to be surrounded by enemies. That way she didn't have to worry about hitting any friends.
"Would be better if I didn't get squashed by a giant wolf ass in the first five seconds." Dorothy muttered next to her.
"Take that up with Mal and Clarion." Ruby replied with a smile. Her mate wasn't the least bit concerned with winning or losing. In fact, whenever they played a game there was a 50/50 chance that Ruby would either be extremely competitive or not competitive at all. It was a gamble for anyone to be on her team.
Regina glanced behind her at the pups and the dragonlings, who were wrestling together in their little bed. Granny was keeping an eye on them while watching the battle through a tablet in her hands. The rest of the eliminated participants and Fianna were standing at the viewing window. The viewing room itself was invisible to those on the battlefield and acted as box seats would at a basketball game, allowing them to keep track of the action after being eliminated. It was a dark room with three rows of seats and a giant window overlooking the field.
"I shouldn't have caught that arrow." Regina said. "I knew as soon as I did that it was a trap. Did all that work with light magic and I got killed by a pin." She had figured that they would have a solution for her arrow catching ability and she figured it would be a magic arrow of some sort, but Hansel's arrow was just a plain arrow with an attachment. As soon as she caught the arrow, a pin was fired from the arrowhead that was apparently dipped in a powerful toxin because it eliminated her in seconds. "Who the hell gave him poison?"
"Probably Zelena." Ruby shrugged.
Below, the battle was still in full swing but Regna could see the kids were tiring. Jack's clones were gone and he was no longer using the speed spell. Shang's fire waves were coming less frequently and it was taking longer for Aaron to repair his armor. Their only saving grace were Hansel and Gretel who kept peppering Mal with magic arrows and bolts. By now they seemed to be throwing everything they had at her. The dragon had conjured her staff and was able to keep up with the children attacking her while knocking away the arrows and bolts. She shrugged off any that managed to hit her and these arrows would have destroyed anyone else. There were shock arrows, flashbang arrows, ice arrows that exploded into shards of jagged ice, but Mal withstood them all. Then something changed. Regina assumed that their plan had finally reached fruition. Unbeknownst to the children, the adults had several of their team members going through a tunnel underground to try and infiltrate their castle from below. To her surprise, the trees and plants started moving, tearing through the earth to get at the detected intruders.
"Why did we give them the forest?" Dorothy asked. "We didn't get one."
"We wanted to make it fairer for them." Regina answered, watching as everything went off the rails. Lily finally defeated Rodan and took flight, soaring over the forest and setting it aflame. She was almost instantly met with a massive blast of golden light from Clarion. She didn't even have the chance to fall to the ground before she appeared in the viewing room in human form.
"What was that shit?!" She demanded. "Clarion won't even fight in practice but she can pull that out of nowhere?"
"To be fair, you have no idea how old she is." Fianna smirked. "Nor what she has seen or what magic she knows. You wouldn't have made it much further anyway. Miss Swan had you in her sights."
"What?" They looked down again just as Emma readjusted and aimed her gun. They couldn't hear what was said, but the blonde held position, waiting as Clarion and Marie began using magic to tear up the forest floor completely, unearthing the tunnel and those who had been trying to sneak into the castle. Emma instantly started firing. Regina frowned, watching her spray the bullets in a strange pattern and completely missing the others who were completely exposed and trying to cover themselves behind rocks and fallen trees. She knew the blonde to be a good shot. Clarion sent more conjured soldiers into the new trench and Mulan stepped forward to fend them off, doing so expertly all on her own. But that was expected from the Savior of China and the Dragon Queen's Mate. Belle began firing her crossbow at Marie, who conjured up a shield to protect them. Tink and Merida took off down the other end, sprinting for the castle. It all came to a head when Belle fired an explosive crossbow at Clarion's feet, destroying the rest of her soldiers and sending clouds of dirt into her face. Mulan surged forward, grabbing the blonde and slamming them both into the nearest tree. Regina and Ruby both flinched at the sound they made. Mulan was on her feet instantly but it took Clarion a few seconds. The warrior had already raised her sword to eliminate her. She brought it down just as Marie tackled her to the ground. The young dragon's skin was covered in scales and a pair of great white wings had sprouted from her back. Both of them rolled back to their feet and faced each other.
Mulan smirked at her daughter. "Mal hasn't seen this yet, has she?"
"No." Marie grinned. "Or she would be right here."
Mulan glanced at Clarion as the fairy got back to her feet, one hand wrapped around her midriff. "You could've won easily. That move you pulled against Lily would've caught everyone off guard."
"I agree." Clarion shrugged. "But this isn't really my test and we're going to win anyway. Right, Savior?"
"Excuse me?" Mulan frowned.
"Oh sorry, I meant our Savior."
Marie flinched at the sound of the gunshot that hit Mulan in the side and nearly blasted the woman off her feet. Her armor seemed to prevent a lot of damage but Emma then chose to unleash a barrage that had Mulan diving into cover behind a tree.
"Oi!" Regina turned when she heard Merida. The archer had infiltrated the castle and was on the walls. She fired up at the cliff where Emma was perched with three arrows in quick succession. Emma backed away from the ledge but it was no good. The arrows were explosive and the blasts began destroying the cliff entirely, causing huge chunks of rock to fall onto the castle below. Emma disappeared into the flying dirt and falling rubble.
"Looks like Emma's about to be out." Dorothy said.
"Ha!" Regina exclaimed. "Emma and her family are like little cockroaches. The only way to kill them is to…Where's Henry?"
"I haven't seen him or Spencer." Ruby answered. "Both plans are going to hell."
That was true. The entire battlefield was a mess of small battles that were leading nowhere. No one was focusing on the flags and the children were now on the defensive. Their original plan was long gone by now. Regina was supposed to keep the kids' attention while some of the others went through the tunnel. They'd expected for the kids to be focused on Mal for the most part and if all else fails, Lily or Zelena were supposed to fly over and grab the flag but none of that was going to happen now. Lily was out and Mal and Zelena were preoccupied. Marie and Clarion were now fighting Mulan since Emma wasn't shooting at her anymore and Merida and Tink were in the enemy castle searching through the many flags the kids had conjured. However, if someone were to attack them now she wasn't sure who would win. Merida and Tink weren't the best in close combat.
A gunshot went off and Tink appeared next to her. "Damn it."
Regina looked back at the castle and rolled her eyes, finding a smile inching its way across her lips. Of course the savior survived. Emma's white suit was covered in dirt and she was limping, but her gun was still functional. Both she and Merida were locked in close combat, each one landing a few kicks and quick shots by swinging their weapons. They were too close to fire them.
"Look at my mate." Lily purred. "Look how fierce she is. She doesn't even need to be a dragon."
Regina flicked an eyebrow as she watched Emma fight. Suddenly, the blonde's leg gave out and Merida lined up a shot instantly. The dirt around Emma quickly rose to cover her and huge vines began to rise around the castle. Merida began firing rapidly, each arrow finding a place in a vine and blasting it to pieces. While she was distracted, the dirt around Emma parted just enough for her to fire.
"Fuck!" Merida hissed as she appeared nearby. "Where's their damn flag?"
"We don't know." Regina said.
"It can't be in the castle. I swear I checked all of them." Tink added.
Then an explosion shook the field, covering the entire battlefield in a magical blast that sent dirt and trees everywhere and left a massive crater in the center of the field. It was green so she could only imagine who caused it. It completely wiped out everything and almost everyone. The viewing room filled up with people, all of them confused at the sudden change of events. Zelena and Benji appeared next to Regina, both arguing at the tops of their lungs.
"Why would you overload my drone with dark magic? We tested that in your vault. We almost blew up the whole place!" Benji yelled.
"Because of you and that stupid fake me wouldn't get off me!" Zelena snapped. "By the way, how dare you use me against me?! And with light magic, no less!"
"I didn't think you would take out everyone trying to get rid of it!"
"Way to kill your own teammates!" Lily yelled.
"Excuse me? Everyone knows dark magic is my one weakness and I was left alone to fight myself!"
"I thought the Wicked Witch was all powerful?"
"I thought you figured out how to mix light and dark magic." Tink said.
"Yeah, for Regina!"
"Enough, all of you!" Ruby sighed. Zelena and Benji pouted like children while Regina searched the room for her son. She couldn't help but smile when she saw him coming to her for a hug.
"You did so well." She said.
"Thanks-"
"Where's your flag?"
Jack snorted. "It's in the river, tied to a rock. Who's left?" He looked around. "Marie? Clarion?"
"Here." Both came at his call and he sighed.
"Guess who's not fucking here." Emma scowled, ignoring Lily who was wrapped around her and purring her head off. Her expressions changed when she took another look around. "Is Henry here?"
/
Clarion turned back to the field. Maleficent was still standing. She seemed to have shifted into dragon form just before the blast hit and there was a huge trench where she'd been pushed off her feet, but she'd managed to survive. She was winded and a little unsteady on her feet, but she was still in the game. The only one left on Clarion's team was Henry. "We won, guys." She called with a grin.
"What?" Dorothy scoffed, looking at her like she was crazy. "Are you serious? Henry against Mal, that's not even a contest."
"Agreed." Clarion replied, watching Mal scan the field for any more people. When she found nothing, she shifted back into human form and made her way back to her own castle, either to check for her own flag or to play defense. With a wave of her hand, pieces of the castle began to rise, moving out of her way as she walked. The only thing inside was a hole and Clarion assumed that to be the start of their tunnel.
"I know you're here!" Mal called out. "This is the only place that the explosion didn't reach. Come on out, Little Prince."
Henry suddenly materialized across the room. He pulled the red flag out of his shirt and held it out like a matador.
"Are you serious?" The dragon growled.
Henry smirked as he nodded and shook the flag like he was facing down a raging bull. Clarion grinned when she glimpsed the button on his gauntlet flashing. Time for their trump card. Mal seemed wary of the boy, but she was also probably tired at this point so she didn't waste time dashing across the castle interior to grab the boy by his breastplate and lifted him off his feet.
"Where is that damn flag?" She hissed.
"It's in the river." He replied. "But you're not going to make it there to get it."
"Oh? Why not?"
A finger tapped on the dragon's shoulder and she glanced back only to instantly roll her eyes. "Oh for fuck's sake! What the hell are you doing here?" She glared at the conjuration of Fianna, who was wearing a long silver gown with her hair in a long braid resting on her left shoulder. Fianna only smirked. Mal squinted at her for a second and slowly put Henry down. She struck with a speed that Clarion almost missed, but Fianna was one step ahead and in one swift move she'd thrown Mal over her shoulder and slammed her into the dirt.
"As I said," Clarion grinned at Dorothy. "We've won."
Mal was quick to regain her feet and launch another attack against Fianna, but every strike was either dodged or deflected. To her credit, Mal held her own, but she was tired, having taken the brunt of the initial attack. However, this Fianna was merely a conjuration and Clarion could almost see the moment this clicked in the dragon's head and she began attacking with renewed vigor. Magic of different colors began circling her fists as she tried different spells and magicks. One of them, Clarion wasn't even sure which, made the Fianna conjuration disappear instantly.
"What was that?" She asked, glancing at the real Fianna next to her.
"Looked like Raven magic. Smart to-"
"What's Raven magic?" Zelena asked, practically gliding over to listen in.
"I have a book on it." Clarion said, fixated on the match below. "You can read it later."
Mal had won her match but she hadn't moved to chase down Henry. Using so much magic and so many different types would exhaust anyone. True to that thought, Mal collapsed seconds later. When she disappeared the kids burst into cheers and all but tackled Clarion, Fianna and Emma.
Mal and Henry appeared in the viewing room to even more cheers. Emma was quick to wrap her son in a bearhug and the rest of the pack swarmed Mal, despite her loss. Winning and losing was only part of the game. Learning and training was part of it as well.
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