╔═════ ═════╗
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
BIRTH
╚═════ ═════╝

THEY HAD BEEN CHAINED TO TREES. Teresa was absolutely furious, her glare was fixated on Zelena, who stood amongst them with a victorious and smug look plastered on her face. Next to Zelena was Arthur and Merlin, the letter of the two having but no choice to side against them as Arthur continued to wield Excalibur. It was dead silent as they waited for Emma to show herself, the blonde having gotten a message from Merlin to meet them in the woods with the dagger and the spark.

Teresa hands were bound behind her back with iron chains. On the tree next to hers, was David. And behind her, she could see Robin. Her heart was racing as she still colony see Henry. She wondered if Zelena had left him elsewhere, but that he was most likely on a tree that she just couldn't see.

It wasn't much later that Emma arrived, her white cloak dragging behind her as she held both the spark and the dagger in her hands. Her face held anger.

"I brought the dagger and the flame, but you don't get it until you free my family."

"No. You will hand it over now, or I unleash Merlin."

"Emma, please," Merlin said, with a shake of his head. "I don't want to fight you."

"No, but I do." Zelena smirked. "So, now that mommy's got her magic back...tell us, Dark One. What are you gonna do?"

➳

PRESENT DAY
STORYBROOKE

Teresa panted as she ran down the hallway of the hospital. Soon, she reached Snow and skidded to a stop so she wouldn't knock into her friend. "I came as quick as fast as I could, what's the emergency?"

Just as Snow replied, a scream could be heard from the nearby room. "Zelena's having her baby."

Teresa's eyes widened. "WHAT? But she's, like, three months!"

"Two," Snow corrected.

Teresa rolled her eyes. "How the hell is she already having the baby?"

"Dark magic."

Teresa sighed, her face lighting up in realization. "Emma..."

Snow nodded. "Yea."

Belle then suddenly came running down the hall, panting, as she held a large hard back book in arms. "Belle, what is it?"

"The baby..." Belle panted. "Emma needs it to complete her spell."

Teresa's eyes widened. "Like hell is she getting that baby."

The trio barged into the room, where Belle then placed the book at Zelena's feet, the now huge pregnant woman clutching at her belly as the contractions were beginning.

Even though she had already been told that Zelena was having the baby, Teresa's eyes still widened at the size of her fast-grown belly.

"Everybody get ready. We have to protect that baby from Emma."

Robin's eyes widened. "She's here?"

"She will be soon." Belle gestured to the page that had a spell written on it. "And we found that spell to destroy light magic in Merlin's spell book."

"The only thing she needs other than Excalibur is..."

"Cries of a newborn child."

Robin shook his head, his heart dropping. "Well, she's not taking this baby. Not while I'm still alive."

"Regina," Zelena pleaded. "Take this cuff off so I can defend myself and my child. Please."

Teresa frowned, wishing she could. Every mother deserves the right to protect their child, even Zelena.

"You are far from trustworthy," Regina snapped, and then her features softened. "But worry not. I'll protect the baby. What happens to you, well..."

"Just do something!" Zelena then clutched at her belly as another contraction arrived. She threw her head back, releasing a scream.

➳

THREE WEEK AGO
CAMELOT

"So, Dark One, who should I execute first? Hmm? Your boyfriend, your father, or your son?"

At the mention of Henry, Teresa's blood began to boil. Over my dead body will she touch Henry again.

"You can have the flame."

Zelena smirked as she grabbed the tiny concealed case from the new Dark One.

"Zelena, make sure that's real," King Arthur demanded.

Zelena opened the box, and smiled, until dark ropes erupted from the box and wrapped themselves around the Wicked Witch. Zelena gasped as she was dragged all the way back and to a tree.

Teresa smirked.

"Now," Emma said. "You want to give me my family? Or keep fighting?"

"Merlin!"

Merlin sighed. "Please, Emma. Give him the flame. This is a battle you cannot win."

It was eerily silent for a long moment, before both Emma and Merlin thrust their hands forward. Bursts of magic, one white and one an incredible blue color met and shimmered brightly.

Merlin grunted. "I wish you could defeat me, Emma. But I've played this game for too long."

Their magic holds, but Emma soon loses the struggle and is knocked back. "Aah!"

"Merlin, kill her mother."

Teresa's eyes widened as she looked ahead where Snow was bound.

Merlin turned and held his hand out toward Snow, before conjuring a vine that snaked around her neck. Snow began to gasp.

"Snow!"

"Mary Margaret!"

Teresa pulled at the chains, her heart racing as she listened to Snow's desperate gasps for breath.

"Merlin, you have to fight it," Emma said.

Merlin gritted his teeth, his hand shaking. It was clear that he was trying to, but to no avail. "I can't!"

"You are the greatest sorcerer that has ever lived. If you cannot fight off the darkness, no one can."

With more shaking of his hand, Merlin eventually is able to beat the pull on him, and he locks his hands at his sides. The vine slowly released Snow, causing Teresa and David to let out a breath of relief.

"I said kill her! By the sword, I command you! Kill her!"

"I can't hold him off much longer," Merlin said, his fists shaking at his sides as he kept himself under his own control. Teresa knew it would only be a short amount time before he could no longer keep himself under control.

"You...will...kill her."

Suddenly, Hook was free. "Not today, mate." He lunged at King Arthur, catching him off guard with a left hook. Literally. He used his hook to throw the punch, which made Teresa smirk and raise her brows in amusement.

King Arthur grunted as he landed in a heap on the groun. Before he could pick up the fallen sword, Hook stepped on his hand to keep him from picking it up. "I know someone else who needs that."

Hook then stepped off his hand, and he scrambled to his feet, bolting toward Zelena. He was quick to untie her. "Get us out of here."

"Coward," Teresa muttered under her breath, as Zelena teleported both herself and King Arthur away in a cloud of green smoke.

As soon as they were gone, the chains had disappeared from their wrists. Teresa let out a sigh of relief as she brought her wrists around and rubbed them. They were red from her having tugged on them so hard the entire time.

Henry was suddenly at her side, placing a gentle hand on her shouldler. "Are you okay?"

Teresa raised a brow at him. "Shouldn't I be asking you that? Did Zelena hurt you?"

Henry smiled at her concern. "I'm fine."

➳

PRESENT DAY
STORYBROOKE

"I can't believe it's come to this," Regina said, heaving a heavy sigh. "Am I really helping Zelena?"

"It's the right thing to do, Regina," Teresa said from the end of the hallway, where she was watching for Emma.

"So, are you ready to meet the newest member of your family?" Snow asked, her arms crossed over her chest as she stared at Regina.

"Honestly...I don't know." With that, Regina walked over to the door, and after knocking, she entered.

Teresa heard footsteps, and was prepared to fire her magic at Emma, when she only realized is was Snow joining her.

"So...the festival." Snow nudged her shoulder with a grin plastered on her face. "Did you and Henry have fun?"

Teresa was unable to contain her smile. "We played some games, had some popcorn — we had fun, yes."

"And...?"

Teresa gave her a strange look. "And what? That's it, we played some of the games and ate some popcorn."

Snow smirked. "There was no sweet innocent kiss under the lights?"

Teresa playfully slapped her arm. "Snow, nothing happened."

Before anything else could be said, Regina came stalking out of the room, a determined look plastered on her face. Her fists were clenched tightly at her sides, and her strides were long.

Teresa and Snow glanced at each other before jogging after her.

"What happened?"

"Emma came."

"What? She took the baby?"

"No, she took Zelena."

➳

THREE WEEKS AGO
CAMELOT

"Are you ready?" Merlin asked, his eyes set on Emma. On the table in front of Emma was the spark, Excalibur and the Dark One dagger.

"Yes." Emma nodded. "Then it's time to destroy the darkness once and for all."

Emma inhaled a deep breath before beginning. She opened the box that contained the flame, and with a wave of her hand, she lit it. It levitated in the air, allowing Emma to do her thing.

She waved her hands, brightening the flame. Emma then crushed it in her hands before releasing it once more, only for it to be glowing even brighter.

As she lifted noth Excalibur and the Dark One dagger to the burst of light, Hook suddenly began to gasp and clutch at his neck, his face scrunching up in pain.

"Bloody hell." All eyes were now on the pirate.

"Hook, what's wrong?"

"He's bleeding!" Snow gasped, her eyes widening.

Hook stumbled forward, falling into a heap on the floor before Teresa and Henry, who stepped back in shock. Emma was instantly at his side as he groaned in lain.

"Killian..." Emma gently peeled away his hand and her eyes widened as she seen the cut on his neck that had previously healed was now cut open even larger and bleeding profusely.

"When the hell did that happen?" Teresa asked, her eyes widening.

"It was Excalibur. But it was just a small cut. I healed it."

"I'm afraid it only seemed that way. Excalibur was forged to cut immortal ties. A wound from it cannot be healed."

"What? There has to be something we can do, that she can do!" Snow said.

Merlin shook his head. "Even Emma's power isn't strong enough, nor is my own."

"Killian, you have to hold on. I can't lose you." Emma's eyes filled with tears as she stared at her dying love.

"It's alright," Hook's voice was weak, his breathing heavy. "Emma, it's alright."

"No. Please, no. Don't leave me. You have to stay. You have to stay. Come on, Killian. What about our future together?"

"Our future is now," he weakly replied. "Reunite the blades so I can see them before I go."

"No!"

"No?"

"I'm not gonna let him die when I know there's a way to save him."

"Emma...Merlin said it. There's nothing you can do," Regina said.

"That's what he said, but it's not true, is it?" Emma whipped around to look at Merlin. "You told me how powerful I am. Let's use that power. I-I can use the Promethean Flame to release you from Excalibur, and then I can use it to tether Hook's life to it instead. It could save him."

"Emma, you know what that could do."

"Create another Dark One," Regina realized, her eyes widening in shock and disbelief.

"It will multiply the darkness so that it cannot be destroyed. Not without you paying the steepest of prices. It will be your final step into the dark."

"I don't care what happens to me."

Snow and David fell to their knees because their daughter with pleading eyes. "Emma, wait. Please. Listen, you can't."

"Emma, your parents are right," Regina said."

Emma whipped around, giving Regina a sharp glare. "If you could've saved Daniel, or Alice, or Robin...look how far you were willing to go, how far you pushed me to save him!" Her voice began to break. "I'm not gonna lose Killian. I won't let anyone stop me."

Before anybody could stop her, Emma waved her hand, teleporting herself, Hook, and Excalibur from the diner.

"No..."

"Damn it," Regina stressed.

"David...she..."

David wrapped an arm around his wife in comfort. "I know."

Suddenly, Merlin began to gasp, black darkness sweeping out from within his body, causing their eyes to widen.

"What's happening?"

"It's too late."