Daughter of Darkness || Once Upon a Time

Chapter Nineteen | The Wrong Time to Die

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|Arendelle|
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Either Anna hadn't mentioned the people living in the woods or she didn't know they were even there. But whichever it was, Ruby and Mulan were now standing back to back with swords facing outwards. And whoever these people were, they definitely were not the Children of the Moon.

"How dare you trespass in our woods?" the lead man asked. "We tolerated it the first time because it was royalty. But we will not tolerate you."

"Listen, we weren't trying to trespass," Ruby tried to reason, "we're just looking for a pack of wolves."

"Ha! And why would you go in search of wolves? Hans!"

A man stepped forward and pulled a sword out of his sheath. "Friends of the Princess, I presume? Wonderful. I do hope Anna hears that it was me who killed you."

"We don't want any trouble!" Ruby tried again. "Honestly, we didn't even know you were here-- wait, how do you know Anna?" She narrowed her eyes at Hans.

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that you two end up dead." At these words, everyone except for the lead man and Hans stepped backwards and faded into the shadows provided by the trees. Both the leader and Hans readied their swords and charged for Ruby and Mulan.

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|Storybrooke|
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Belle was reorganizing Rumple's shop when Dorothy burst in. "Belle!"

Belle glanced up at Dorothy and set the wand she was holding down on the counter. "Yes?"

"There's going to be a New Moon tonight. Are you ready to go to the Underworld?"

Belle smiled. She was finally going to be able to see Rumple again and tell him about the baby. "Of course I'm ready. When do we leave?"

"Just after sunset, three hours from now." Dorothy left after that, and Belle rushed to the back room to grab the few things she would need to take to the Underworld. Food, a flashlight, her phone, and a knife that Rumple had in the shop for some reason. In a few hours, she would be on her way to see Rumple.

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|Arendelle|
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Hans and the leader seemed to have even more stamina than what Ruby had worked up over the past few years and Hans was finally able to knock her sword out of her hand. Although, it didn't help that she was fighting in a dress and cloak.

"Mulan!" Ruby called, but Mulan was too busy fighting the leader to help Ruby. Hans ran his sword through Ruby's stomach, and the wolf dropped to the ground, clutching the wound.

"Ruby!" Mulan knocked the leader back and dropped down next to her friend. "Ruby, no! No, you can't die on me, okay?"

"I'm sorry," Ruby managed. But as she closed her eyes, a glowing yellow light was emitted from her wound and when it faded, she was completely healed except for a quickly fading ache in her stomach.

"What kind of sorcery is this?!" Hans demanded.

"Hades has sealed us off from the Underworld," the leader said. "We must wait until the Overworld and Underworld are connected again to kill them." The leader stepped towards the two women on the ground, but Mulan stood up and waved her sword in a large arc, causing both the leader and Hans to back away. "Touch her, and I'll run this sword straight through you, which will cause plenty of pain even if you don't die."

The leader met Mulan's sword with his and their duel under the moonless sky continued. Mulan was growing tired from fighting for so long without much sleep, but she wasn't planning on giving in, even if she wouldn't die. Hans was behind her, ready to kill Ruby again with a word from the leader, but he hadn't made any move to yet.

And then the wind stilled. Mulan froze for a split second and let her guard down because she felt scared now, like she could actually die. Which meant the Underworld wasn't sealed off anymore.

"NOW!" The leader bellowed, and Hans jabbed his sword into Ruby's stomach again, but this time, there was no glowing light to resurrect her. Mulan let Ruby's cry of pain distract enough for the leader to drive his sword into Mulan's stomach as well. The warrior dropped to the ground, her sword slipping out of her hand. Everything was blurry for a few seconds before the world went dark.

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|Storybrooke|
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Arthur was glad no one gave a thought to him after they locked him in the sheriff's station because that allowed him to quietly escape and figure out what was going on in Storybrooke. And it wasn't hard for him to discover that some woman named Dorothy had killed Zelena in Oz and come here to gloat about it.

But another thing Arthur had discovered was that Belle had convinced Dorothy to help her create a portal to the Underworld. The Underworld, where people went after they died.

The Underworld, where Zelena would be now.

And so on the night of the New Moon when Dorothy and Belle met on the banks of the pond in Storybrooke, Arthur hid in the shadows and watched as Dorothy poured a vial of liquid into the water. Belle stepped in first and Dorothy followed her. After they had both disappeared, Arthur ran for the portal and jumped through just before it closed off, once again sealing off the Underworld from the land of the living.

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|The Underworld|
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Mulan appeared on the banks of a river next to Ruby.

"Mulan!" Ruby exclaimed. She hugged her friend before backing away with a serious expression on her face. "I think this is the Underworld. Does that mean...?"

Mulan nodded. "We both died."

"Oh," Ruby's face fell. "Well...maybe my people are here?"

"I don't know, Ruby."

A boat came into view and Ruby and Mulan watched as the cloaked man standing in it rowed towards them. "Come with me," he said. "Hades has judged you and you have both been selected for the Fields of Asphodel."

Ruby and Mulan glanced warily at each other before stepping into the boat. The man continued rowing down the river and neither Ruby or Mulan knew where, exactly, they were headed.