QUEEN OF DARKNESS | HENRY MILLS [3]

XXII. escape

Chapter Status: Edited.

"Hurry!"

Ryder pushes shut the metallic door, locking it with the two metal locks it had come with. Shortly after they had been taken to the secret exit of the castle, it was overrun by savages. Despite not hearing anyone or anything lurking in the tunnel, Chloe insists she feels a dark presence around them. She stops them before traps are set off and takes them down the correct path of the many forked exits they come across.

Chloe suddenly stops, pressing her hands instinctively against the bricks to her right in a pattern. A door loudly rumbles open, and a gust of wind rushes towards them. Chloe forces them inside before pressing a button, making the door disappear before the wind can reach them.

"What was that thing?" Henry questions, breathing heavily.

"A dark wind spirit, sent by Rumplestiltskin, I can hear the demand in my mind," Chloe replies seriously, unafriad. "This is our way out, there is usually safe havens around these for soldiers and royals of which had to escape. William told me there was one down the path and to the right."

"They weren't wrong about you becoming emotionless, were they?" Regina mumbles.

"I am not emotionless," Chloe growls, so suddenly that Regina takes a step backwards. "In the beginning, it will be difficult for me to understand my feelings and control my Oracle abilities, I can sense the future but not without concentration."

"Give her a break, mum, she's the saver of worlds, and she will be the saver of us all," Henry says.

"You put too much faith in me, I sense death will be near soon, it's strong, but I can't make out who," she frowns.

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself, whoever dies will die, whether you save them now or not, you cannot escape death if it is your time," Sandy says softly, with her hand on Chloe's shoulder.

"She's right, however, we must continue onward, the more time we waste here, the longer we leave ourselves vulnerable. We're in Rumple's land now, we must keep moving," Izzy instructs.

No one questions her, following her out of the dark cave, however, it is not much brighter outside. The sun sets across the horizon, the sky a dark blue mixed with a darker orange and a pastel pink. Chloe leads them, seeming uneasy, but not saying a word. The path that guides them is made of stone, sand, and gravel, hurting their feet despite their shoes protecting them.

They soon reach an almost invisible exit, pushing through shrubbery and dense trees until they reach a large stone.

"A dead end? Some safe haven!" Regina growls.

"Shh," Chloe hisses.

She then turns back to the stone, frowning at it before whispering some words in Latin. The stone shakes slightly, silent, before rolling to the left, creating an entrance into what looks like a bunker. Fires instantly light up the large room, where 20 or so beds create lines; tins of food and water sit on a large table of which is surrounded by chairs.

"Quickly," Peter hisses.

Everyone listens, too afraid to stay out in the open for much longer, hurrying inside before Chloe shuts the door.

+++

"I've lost them," Rumplestiltskin frowns in confusion and frustration

Tahlia looks at him, her dark eyes fuelled by anger, "what do you mean you've lost them?"

"They're no longer on the path, they've disappeared, I can't feel their presence," he replies. "Perhaps they've left the land knowing they are too weak to defeat me," he suggests, smirking.