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Regina blinked slowly as she woke lying on the ground with the feel of wet grass against the palms of her hands. At first all she noticed was darkness then little by little she became more aware of the moonlight that bathed her surroundings. “Wh…” All it took was one look around to confirm what she already suspected this was neither the underworld nor Storybrooke.?
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The last thing she remembered was walking through a cemetery with the others then being swept into a tornado. Slowly climbing to her feet while dusting herself off she looked around until her gaze came to rest on the water rushing around the rocks nearby. “Definitely not the River Styx.”?
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Someone was behind opening that portal, but who? Emma wouldn't have dared without having found Hook first because the trip there was probably a one shot deal. Slowly turning in a small circle searching her surroundings once more she noticed there were others lying about though their little search party seemed to have gotten smaller.?
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(tag: characters from Lost Souls RPG)
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The gremlin felt cold. He'd not felt cold in the place in which he had been when...whatever ad happened to him happened. Something through the water and now it was all hazy. He looked around for? thee human girl running one green scaled hand across his eyes. Stripe stood and gazed around at the grass with a disgruntled look on his usually happily smiling face. Nothing fun in sight and most definitely no chocolate!
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Spike glanced up at the sky and frowned.
"Well at least it's night so where ever we are I won't be in for it just yet," he murmured half to himself.
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Then in a louder voice he called"Hello! Anyone happen to know where we bloody are by any chance? Anyone at all will do."
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Dew Morgan had to admit, it was somewhat disappointing to leave Mr Gold behind, and yet it was also reassuring. The man had seemed so friendly most of the time, so helpful, yet there was another aspect to his personality. Dew could not place it really. It wasn't exactly leering, she didn't think. She didn't know completely, because nobody leered at her back in the village, but it?was a strange look nonetheless. She remembered it from long ago, a similar one.?A kind but pitying look on the face of her fairy grandmother.?As if she could do so much more but?wasn't living up to her potential. Dew really didn't like?the look. In fact she wasn't even sure why she thought of it or Mr Gold just then.
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She was travelling with a friend after all. The gremlin ahead of her never lost his charm, he was still so magical, so...friendly and that made the perilous?journey more palatable. As Stripe began calling people to himself, Dew rubbed at her eyes. She wasn't sure, possibly they didn't see clearly, and it was hard to tell on the background of such greenery but..."Hey Stripe, are those humans lying around?" the girl wondered almost excitedly,, her enthusiasm subsided when she realized she did not have a good experience interacting with?fellow humans, and the gremlin was even less socially inclined.
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Of course, they could help us get out of here, the girl?thoughtfully corrected herself, her enthusiasm partly returning, and her calls joined those of her green scaled friend. ??
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Upon hearing the girl's? voice Spike turned in her direction, eyes widening slightly in speculative interest at sight of pretty girl. Seeing the? Gremlin near her his gaze narrowed. The vampire knew of Gremlins, but...they didn't live in hell as far as he knew.
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"Not in hell," he murmured half to himself.
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"Indeed not."
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The voice spoke from behind him and Spike whirled.
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Gold stood watching with a glint of amusement in his eyes mixed with thoughtful speculation.
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"It appears that? someone has chosen to smile upon us, Ms. Morgan," Rumple told the dark Cupid, completely ignoring the vampire.
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Spike didn't mind, for the odd little man had also answered his own question.
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"Well then. Lets go and find out where we are," he? said brightly.
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Stripe, for his part looked skeptical. He wasn't accustom to traveling with humans and the tall one smelled odd and had seemed to recognize him. Moving to stand just behind Dew, though, he made his choice to? tag along for now if they were going somewhere.
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"Stripe," he said gruffly, pointing with one green clawed finger to his chest while looking up at the humans.
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Spike grinned and pointed to his own chest.
"Well met Stripe. I'm Spike. And I've not seen a gremlin sense the 40s."
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"You can call me Gold," the smaller man said with an amiable smile.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Dew has not noticed the strange human before. Well, he looked almost normal, only his hair was unusual and his clothes...She thought she has seen it all in Hell, different clothing styles, nudity, variations of every theme, but somehow she had missed that one. He was handsome, in his own, a little unusual way. In the past, were she still in her village, she might have looked at him more keenly, hoping for some reaction. But she was not that na?ve girl anymore.
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She knew she had been right about Derik and what he had done. Even if she failed to trust her own instincts, the appearance of her fairy godmother and the teachings of Sisyphos would have been sufficient to convince her that all boys were the same. Even so, she could not suppress a polite, entirely natural smile that came to her lips. If they were to travel together, it didn't matter if the new boy liked her?or not, but civility still had to be observed. Especially since he was clearly allowed to accompany Mr Gold.
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At least, Dew could not imagine that Mr Gold would not smite down any human he had not approved of, he had power in abundance after all. If she were honest with herself, she still did not know how she felt about his sudden resurgence. She was proud, that such a mighty man was her teacher, and concerned as well, for reasons inexplicable even to herself. She could not even recall if she has given away her surname, but the fact that he knew it anyway, was not surprising, he already knew so much.
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Dew would have asked her scaly friend for advice, huddled with him for support, but figured that might be too much. Just because she craved?comforting touch did not mean he was willing to provide it.? And she?shouldn't even need comfort. The fact that Mr Gold seemingly arrived out of nowhere, was only the testament of his powers, ones he would utilize in teaching her.? His comment,?well, did not seem too menacing either. It was most likely friendly, it had to be.
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Dew decided not to dwell on it too much. Concentrating on the friendly feeling towards Mr Gold, and ignoring a sense of alarm, she smiled at him. "How nice to see you again. Yes, it might be that my earlier prayers to Hilda the Subterranean paid off and she was the one to smile on us and grace us with your guiding presence, dearest mentor." Dew doubted Mr Gold was one of those who left his eggs in a basket for Hilda, the Earth Spirit supposedly protecting her village. She could not blame him if so. Hilda did not do much for her either, but invoking her name made Dew feel good regardless and she did resolve not to dwell on the matter.
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"Spike, what a clever name for an interesting man like you," she complimented, not sure her remark was particularly skillful, but not minding the distraction to her thoughts it provided anyway.???
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Spike grinned.
"Yeah, refers to the way I used to kill people back in the day," he said casually.
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Stripe gave a low hiss from behind Dew. Humans who killed had come after his kind...forced him into doing things out of necessity.
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"Easy little fella. I'm not lookin' for trouble with your lot," Spike told the gremlin.
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"I saw what you lot could do in world war II."
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"That certainly was impressive," Mr. Gold said, tone sounding attentive but sharp gaze scanning their surroundings. Where was Regina? Not that he cared what had happened to her but he did care about his grandson. Not to mention where ever thee evil queen went, trouble followed and he liked to be in charge of any trouble going down or at the least aware and tolerant.
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"Lets find out just where we are, shall we? This way looks good," he said, setting off.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Stripe's response to Spike's words made Dew stiffen up defensively, but as the strange man explained his intentions, she relented. Dew had to admit, if once she had an affection for her own species, it has been tried too many times to remain unmarred. Sometimes, well, as loathe as she was to admit it, she rather relished the thought of striking back. Of...well hurting them fir what they have done to her collectively. Her life was no picnic, but the lives of other humans seemed to be in comparison.
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At least the rest of them had somebody they married or were in love with. At least they did not end up in Hell itself. No, killing humans was only problematic because it could mean lack of boundaries, and pose danger to her friends. Once she was reassured, she could not really blame the handsome man for what he felt compelled to do. She couldn't know objectively that his victims did not deserve it. Perhaps she has gotten to be more wicked, but she could not have cared less. Such considerations were for the past, for the awful time when her destiny was not waiting for her and urging her on.
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"Oh Stripe you were at War? How exciting, I assume. Nobody of your got hurt, did they? If so, I am sorry. Only I heard such exciting stories about the Ogre war. Such battles, such victories, such romance..." Dew admitted, unable to suppress the wistful note in her voice despite her previous bitter thoughts on humanity.
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Relieved?at Mr Gold's encouragement, Dew readily agreed. "Isn't there some magic you could use to find...well just about everything," she wondered at her mentor, with an even mixture of thrill and envy. ?
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Emma lifted her head finding herself to be lying at the base of a large tree within earshot of the ‘evil queen’. At first her thoughts focused on the chance she'd been denied when they were swept up into the tornado. Killian was still trapped there. The thought alone made it hard to focus but as soon as she managed to shake it off she began looking around. “Henry!?!” Her son was nowhere to be seen and neither were her parents. “Henry!?!”
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Regina was about to turn around when a white horse strolled over the water, at first glance there was nothing out of the ordinary though upon a closer look she noticed its eyes were a dark glowing red. “Emma.” She spoke the blonde’s name as a means of both silencing and getting her attention.?
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Slowly scanning their surroundings she began looking for the rider then her gaze swiftly moved back to the river as there seemed to be something moving just beneath its surface. Instinctively taking a step back as moonlight first struck what looked like a broad axe. “We need to find the others…NOW.” She had a bad feeling about this.?
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Emma cautiously approached the spot where she stood just as the headless figure rose from the depths of the river as if ascending a set of stairs or having hiked up the side of a hill. “You have got to be kidding me.”
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“I wish.” Regina kept a close watch as the headless figure mounted the strange white horse with the broad axe now in full view. She felt reasonably certain she could handle whatever he was if he charged them though so far he hadn't seemed to take notice yet.
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She heard voices though didn't turn to look for them as it meant taking her eyes off the headless horseman. Who or what was he?
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(ooc: seemed like a good time to introduce our headless friend.)
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"Silence,"Gold barked to his party, then sped up his steps, sensing something even worse than himself up ahead at the water. There Regina was, but it wasn't her? that he had sensed.
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"No bloody way, though why should I really be surprised,"Spike muttered under his breath, vampiric vision picking up on the headless horseman even before Gold did.
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Not far behind, however, Gold's hand came up in a warding gesture as he spoke several words in a rapid harsh tongue. The words were not English, Spike noted and he'd never heard anything like them either.
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A red light, much like that in the glowing eyes of the horse, shot forth from gGold's palm at the horseman.
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The Gremlin went flat onto the ground just behind Dew, staying back and down for? his part. Stripe had no idea what thee thing on the horse was, but? he knew it? didn't look fun.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Regina looked from left to right without ever taking her eyes off the horseman, quietly searching their surroundings for either a sign the others were nearby or that he hadn't come with backup. Either way her train of thought was brought to a screeching halt by the red light sent flying towards the headless figure.?
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Her breath caught in her throat as she waited for it to connect, the looming figure was knocked from his worse and for a moment lay motionless. Looking away she caught sight of Gold coming closer then quickly turned just as the horseman sat up rather abruptly. “Damn it.”
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No matter their differences leaving her old friend to fend for himself when his actions might well have been intended to protect her and Emma was never her style. Without a word she stepped up beside him throwing a fireball that at the very least caused the now standing horseman to stagger back a few steps.
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Emma took a deep breath, tensing as their efforts merely stunned the horseman who twirled his broad axe as if preparing to hurl it at any moment. She was starting to think maybe the gremlin had the right idea in spite of trying to come up with some sort of plan. But if neither Gold nor Regina could find a magical way of dealing with this guy then the odds of a more inexperienced person doing so were slim to none.?
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"Somebody needs to get that ax from him,"Spike said.
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The vampire slowly approached from the side at an angel, gaze trained on the headless horseman's throwing arm, ready to dodge if need be. He was counting on his vampiric speed, readying himself to tackle the figure if it moved closer. With the ax in his own hand, things would surely improve.
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Gold was glad of Regina's aid, assuming that she understood at least to some degree what they were up against and why. Were this creature less dangerous, he'd have left the horseman to finish the evil queen, and may the best bad win, but this was so much worse than that. Lifting his hand again, frowning in concentration, he aimed the blast of red death fire for the ax. Without that the creature would at least be less of a threat to some degree. Though the 4 horsemen always had some power regardless so he would still present a danger. One thing at a time, though...Unless the weapon was just as resilient as the wielder...even as he threw the fire, this thought occurred but he had to try.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Dew was not so sure what the trouble was from an innocent looking horse. Or at least her old self would not have been certain and wondered. The girl she has become, well, she knew that bad things could happen to good people. She used to be one of these good people, until she ended up in Hell. Perhaps somebody disagreed with her definition of "good," she was willing to admit that. But she was going to keep taking care of herself first, and since that implied listening to her mentor, she instantly obeyed.
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Briefly looking back, she noticed that her scaled friend was laying on the ground but seemed alright. If that was what his instinct for survival telling him to do, she did not wish to be left behind and followed his example. As mall part of her wondered if being a Cupid gave her any special powers over the horseman. She could almost toy with the idea of making the headless rider?fall in love with his horse, and twist that love into something new, and shiny red, but she didn't quite dare.
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Perhaps that kind of a creature was immune to her magic, perhaps he could not even feel love or attachment of any kind. It could even be that she simply didn't want to risk it until she was confident in her powers. But one thing was certain. Dew Morgan?found it very comfortable to simply lay down and let her betters take care of the situation. She could always ask Mr Gold to show her the spell he used later on,?provided he would have a clear answer and her powers would allow her to use it.?She was always willing to learn, so long as safety was no longer her concern.?
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When the new person, this Spike, suggested the axe needed to be separated from its wielder, Dew was hoping he wasn't talking to her. She might have been flattered, if Mr Gold told his companion about Dew's abilities to understand, feel some trees and their spirits, and thus could affect the axe, provided it was also wooden. But she did not mind too much when Spike himself approached the strange assailant. She could not tell from this distance what the axe was made of, was not sure if her powers would extend to this type of tree, or even work?too far away from Hell in the first place.
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Yes, the man?seemed capable. She was going to agree with his decisions and let?him execute them. Checking?again on?Stripe, she was reassured that her friend remained?where he was. She was probably concerned for nothing. If the man's comments were accurate, Stripe was war veteran and could take care of himself.?Dew reminded herself to ask the gremlin?later, but in the mean time focused on the headless horseman. Trying to gage his intentions, she began studying his motions. At first, she had to wonder if his armor was debilitating his motions, making him move jerkily. Later she realized with a start that despite lacking the head, he may be trying a subterfuge.
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He was moving faster than he should be able to, even when?Mr Gold cast his spell. She didn't see too many bouts of jousting, they were a rare treat for simple villagers. but a few times celebrated knights passed on their way to the capital,?and she thought?she recognized a kind of a feint. Hesitating between doubts of misleading their?male companion since she knew so little, and following her instinct, Dew decided on the later, almost cringing at the thought of being ridiculed.
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"Be careful," she cautioned Spike after seconds of hesitation. "He should be moving heavier than he is something isn't right. He might be...too fast," she whispered, not sure if Spike could hear her in the heat of battle, would listen, or if Gold could produce some miraculous spell at the last moment to serve as a distraction.?Breathing with relief as Gold released his fire spell, Dew intently peered at the horseman's figure, not sure?if it withstood the impact, and what would happen if it did. ??
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"Ya think,"Spike shouted back to thee girl in the period looking clothing without even glancing back at her.
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"The bastard hasn't got a head...so ya think maybe something isn't normal?"
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He knew she was attempting to be helpful but...
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Lunging for the ax arm he attempted to throw his weight on it and twist to dislodge the ax, even knowing ass he did that he touched something more otherworldly and undead, if those were even the proper words, than he himself.
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For his part as thee gremlin hugged the ground Dew's former question about war passed through his mind. Perhaps gremlins who had come before but not him. Not? until the human Billy and the Gismo embryo had attacked him, coming at him with a gun and other intentions to kill. the gremlin's eyes briefly squeezed closed. He had been forced to fight back then. Forced to fight instead of just having fun and running a muck. And that had done something to him for? while. He knew that.
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"No," he told the girl simply, speaking quietly as she was close enough to hear.
I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Dew sighed in response to Spike's outburst. At least he didn't consider her warning inaccurate, only unnecessary. She supposed she could live with that. She had learned to live with all kinds of strangeness, outside as well as in herself. Even the?fact that something didn't possess a head was no longer too disturbing. She had seen such sights in Hell. Specters drifting up, monsters plunging down, in?many sizes and shapes, and did not think much of it. She didn't even have to consider the danger?such an unusual sight could pose to her. Spike was right of course. When Mr Gold was concerned, it had to be serious enough. Well, the important thing was that he was going to be careful.??
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For a few seconds, Dew idly wondered If she could at least converse with some trees or plants in the vicinity, if they would agree to help her against the horseman and entangle him. Stripe's response distracted her from her considerations. Looking back at him, she nodded her understanding and realized that he may have saved her from a grievous error. Even should the trees agree to help her, they would only place themselves in the line of fire that could be crucial to Gold. Perhaps, if they sent some energy blast instead of physically attacking, but she didn't know enough about the magic of the trees after all, and was forced to abandon that line of thought as well.
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In one swift motion the axe was moved from the fire’s path as the horseman swung with an almost eerie precision in response to the lunging move. Further proving he somehow had an awareness of what was happening around him then stalking toward the others with an almost frightening level of determination as patience wore thin.
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Emma was circling around with the intention of getting her hands on the axe, just ?barely avoiding its blade as he swung again while the expanse of skin now visible through the slash in her shirt was proof of how close she'd gotten to having her stomach sliced open.?
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Everything happened so quickly there was very little opportunity to regain her balance after the heel of her right boot caught on a tree root sending her falling backwards onto the ground. Quickly rolling to the side narrowly avoiding the axe once more.
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“Emma!” Regina called out unable to see whether the blonde was injured but right now she couldn't afford to check on her with the horseman now heading straight for the two of them. The swirl of the axe in his hand was most unsettling but she threw another fireball despite knowing it would only slow him down. Eyes narrowing when the horseman turned his upper body just enough to dodge it and kept coming.?
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The horseman swung again though this time his axe was aimed at the two in his path.
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Regina managed to throw him backwards with a wave of her hand pushing through the pain as the heated blade cut into her arm. “We need to get out of here. NOW!” She didn't know whether it was possible to defeat the horseman but taking the opportunity to regroup and plan an attack was probably their best bet.?
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She caught sight of an unfamiliar looking brunette now standing near the horse with a satisfied smirk as the scene played out. However, the woman made no move to attack or lend a hand. Something about her wasn't quite right.?
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Eve lightly placed a hand on the horse while watching the impending carnage, debating on the precise moment to intervene. Perhaps she'd let them get a little banged up before she called him off, after all, they made the first move.?
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A wicked smile played on her lips as she thought of another she intended to unleash…one so many labeled ‘the boogeyman’. It was most impressive seeing the bloody trail left in his wake as he tore through Haddonfield.
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(ooc: up to you what if any damage was done when the horseman swung at Spike and Gold)
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"Fuck,"Spike snarled, feeling the sting of pain in his hand as the ax flew past.
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?He was fast but this bastard, whatever he was, was somehow even faster, oddly without precisely appearing to be. The vampire felt his hand healing, but hoped he and the woman with the fireballs wouldn't suffer any nasty after effects from this shit later.
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When she basically advised that it was time to run, he gave a short nod.
"You read my bloody mind."
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Gold flung both hands in a gesture out and down at once causing the earth to erupt under the horseman then the horse. A volcanically hot pit would open, but he didn't wait to see if the horse and rider were able to overcome falling into it. Stumbling back a little from the shocks the hearth gave off from the implosion he had caused, he snatched Emma up from the ground and began to run with the assistance of wind to speed him along. the wind caught up Dew and thee Gremlin keeping them floating rather at Gold's side. It was never wise to leave useful tools behind to be killed, after all. Glancing briefly over his shoulder he cast shields around his little party that would hopefully deflect the ax if his earth mine spell hadn't worked.
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For his part, Spike kept up easily with vampiric speed, though he did send the odd little man an admiring look. Been a while sense he'd witnessed such magic personally. No wait, maybe he had never witnessed that? much power, though Willow had pulled some impressive stunts in her day, Spike thought.
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Regina was admittedly surprised that her former mentor hadn't left Emma to fend for herself when they had all taken off running to escape almost certain death. She had been about to go for her in spite of the searing pain that made her even more determined to find the means of hurting their headless friend and whoever that smirking woman had been.
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She fought against the urge to look back to ensure they weren't being followed as Henry would no doubt point that out as a typical mistake made in horror movies. So, instead she chose to take it as a good sign when she hadn't heard the rapid fall of hooves coming up behind them.?
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Being in unfamiliar territory made things all that much worse because if they were back in Storybrooke or even the Enchanted Forest then she would have some idea as to where they could hold up until some sort of plan was hashed out. But here, wherever that was, she had no clue. “I wonder who his lady friend was.” What she had managed to pick up on left her less than thrilled as the woman could potentially be just as big a threat as the horseman.
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Eve lifted each hand then with a flick of her wrists moved the ‘targets’ to safety as she couldn't have those particular pieces being cleared from the board. At a slow even pace she moved to the horseman’s side lightly placing a hand on his arm. It was easy enough to sense his anger and to tell what he had in mind but that would have to wait for another time. Provided they didn't make themselves useful first.?
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She would take him to the ‘sin-eater’ otherwise known as War as perhaps with his talents he could be of some assistance with the communication barrier. Though fortunately for now Abraham seemed willing to obey even a silent command. Perhaps the hope of a reunion with his lost love.?
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(ooc: figured it could be a good opening for Henry if you're still intending to play him.)
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"How's a bloke what got no head have any friends at all,"Spike retorted dryly in answer to Regina's question.
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"And he doesn't seem the sort to strike it right with the ladies...so I'd say she could more likely be his puppeteer."
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"Sharp thinking, young man," Gold said, giving Spike a brief smile of pleased surprise as he glanced over at him without breaking his hasty and magically enhanced strides.
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It was a pity he hadn't any 7 league boots with him, he thought in mild annoyed regret.
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"Now I do hate to quote Paris Hilton, but where the hell are we," Spike quipped.
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The gremlin's head came up, interested in the answer to that question too, though likely no one knew it.
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Meanwhile...
Henry swore as his scrying bowl shattered, spilling water all over his finely pressed slacks. The dark rich fabric was soaked in a matter of seconds, but at least he had avoided being cut by any stray shards of glass and the pages to the ancient tome, open before him, hadn't been splattered.
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The surge of magic wasn't traceable which annoyed him and caused him a small headache that pressed just little behind his eyes/just enough to cause a distraction. And then he felt the likely reason...approaching...alarmed he turned quick as a snake.
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I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed.
I get along with the voices inside of my head.
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Once they were clear of the woods she noticed there was pavement beneath their feet then as Regina began looking around a bit more she caught sight of a sign by the road that read ‘Village of Sleepy Hollow. Pop. 144,000.’ What possible reason could there be for someone to drop them all here? “Which begs the more troubling question as to why she didn't want us dead because I got a feeling he could have taken us all out. So, what does she want with us? What does she think we can do for?”
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She turned back to the others suddenly wishing that some Good Samaritan would give them lift before the mystery woman set her little pet loose. Carefully lifting one hand to indicate the sign she'd spotted moments before when the question of their location was posed. “Which explains headless back there. Sort of.” She didn't remember any part of the story that dealt with rising from the depths of a river considering he wouldn't or couldn't cross the bridge. So, that little detail was proved in accurate right off the bat.
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A soft white light began to seemingly radiate from her hand as it was held over her wound, focusing her energy on healing herself as they talked. Once she was a hundred percent she would use the spell on any others in need. Glancing briefly toward Emma who seemed fine despite an unusual silence, probably because her mind was either on the whereabouts of her family or the pirate.?
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Kat