The Lost Princess - A Once Upon A Time Fanfic

Magic Renewed // Camelot

*6 weeks earlier*

Kyla held on tight to Rider's hand, staring up at the beautiful kingdom of Camelot. They bowed in sight of the King Arthur and Queen Guinevere, but she still felt unsteady. Rider could tell something was wrong and held her up as best as he could so no one would see her falter. 

King Arthur then shared the knew of the ball they had planned. A ball for the once prophesied Savior that would save Camelot and make the kingdom whole again. 

Anxiety rose through everyone. 

The Savior was meant to free Merlin from his prison:

A tree. 

Arthur led the heroes to the tree, still unaware that the Dark One was in their midst. Hook stayed close to Emma while Rider kept his hand on the small of Kyla's back at all times. 

When they reached the tree, Kyla felt as if she couldn't breathe, for no other reason than shock. It stood as tall as the kingdom itself, beautiful in every aspect, especially the flowers that grew from it. She recognized it immediately and felt woozy once again.

"So the most powerful sorcerer in all the realms is stuck inside a bloody tree?" Hook asked, agitated. 

"I said the same exact thing the first time I stood there," Arthur said, standing behind the heroes. 

"And you think we can get him out?" Emma asked. 

"Oh, we don't think," Arthur said. "We know. Merlin's prophecies are never wrong."

"Why are you so eager to free him?" One of the knights of the round table asked. 

They looked at each other, not wanting to reveal their secret. 

"Our home," David spoke up. "It's being threatened by...it's called the Dark One." 

No one dared to look at Emma. 

"The Dark One," Arthur said, not surprised by the name. "We're well aware of that demon. I pray Merlin can help. But first we must free him from this prison."

Kyla was barely listening. While everyone was looking at each other, she stared up at the tree. Every sense in her body was electrified. She was shaking, but not because she felt ill. 

She felt stronger than she had in weeks. 

Then, Arthur said something that caught her attention. 

"It's said that one of you is the Savior." 

He meant Emma, but Emma was in no condition to use light magic. They all knew that. Regina held the dagger close to her. She was ready to step up and take the place of the Savior, but Kyla wouldn't allow her to. 

She was unable to help herself when she turned around to say:

"I'm the Savior." 

Her family turned their eyes toward her, trying to hide their surprise. Regina covertly grabbed the dagger, preventing Emma from saying anything more. 

"I'm the one who's going to free Merlin from that tree," Kyla continued, "and then we can take care of the Dark One." 

Her voice was almost robotic. The tree called to her and she had every intention of listening to it. But she needed Arthur and his knights to walk away. 

"Very well. Well, this ball will be in your honor, Lady Rapunzel, if you don't mind me calling you that," Arthur said with a small bow of his head. Kyla turned back to look up at the tree. 

"I don't," she said, her voice far away. 

"Ah," Arthur said, taking the hint, "we shall let you get to work."