 
### Wicked Warlock of Oz

GENDERBENT FAIRYTALES COLLECTION

Book 6

By KuroKoneko Kamen

Copyright 2019 by KuroKoneko Kamen

Cover Design by Leah Keeler

Smashwords Edition, License notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or give away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. All characters are invented. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

### Chapter 1:

"It feels good to be wicked," Jadyn remarked to himself as he crossed number four off his checklist of important things to do. The list had been written on a piece of parchment in black ink, and read as follows:

World Domination Plan:

  1. Become the Goblin King

  2. Become King of the Direwolves

  3. Befriend Theodore Gale, the Foretold Savior of Oz

  4. Save the Emerald City from peril

  5. Become King of the Trolls

  6. Defeat the Good Wizard of the North

  7. Defeat the Wicked Warlock of the East, Dr. Doppelganger

  8. Defeat the Good Wizard of the South, Reginald

The people of Oz had lowered their guards against Jadyn ever since he'd befriended Theodore Gale. And because he'd helped to save the Emerald City from Dr. Doppelganger's army of robots and lovely cyborg assassins he looked like a bona fide hero. A sly smile curled Jadyn's lips at the thought.

They'd never suspect the villainous activity he was currently up to. Now was the perfect time to strike the North and catch his brother Noryn by surprise.

"Oh, yes. The North will be mine! Muahaha!" Jadyn threw his head back and let out an evil cackle.

"Halt! Who goes there?" a deep, gruff male voice demanded as a tall, humanoid figure stepped into the moonlight. The silvery rays illuminated the intimidating sight of an eight-foot-tall troll with bulging muscles. The troll had blue skin, tusks jutting out from its mouth, and an impressive set of horns curling out of the top of its head. The troll was wearing a crudely made steel breastplate, vambraces, and greaves. The skin of what appeared to be a direwolf was wrapped around its waist as a loincloth.

The warlock lowered his hood to reveal his face and since the troll was a good two feet taller than Jadyn he had to crane his neck to meet the troll's questioning gaze. "A fighter," he drawled coolly.

The troll guard raised a skeptical eyebrow as he looked down at Jadyn. Jadyn had glamoured himself to have the appearance of a troll. The warlock's green skin was currently a dark shade of purple. He also had tusks, horns, and yellow eyes. Jadyn had decided to forgo heavy armor that would have only slowed him down, and had chosen to wrap an animal skin around his waist to protect his loins. Marzanna, his trusty demon-possessed sword, was strapped to his side.

Jadyn raised his chin as the troll's critical gaze raked over him. He may have been short for a troll, but...he wasn't as lanky as he used to be. His chest was now leanly muscled. Still, he wasn't as muscular as say, Theodore Gale, and that stung a little bit that no matter how hard Jadyn tried to put on muscle before coming here to participate in the Trolls' Fighting Competition, his current physique was as good as it was going to get.

Jadyn was well aware that he didn't look very formidable. But that was all part of the plan. He _wanted_ to be underestimated. First things first, he still needed to get past this tiresome troll guard...

After the troll had finished his assessment of Jadyn he let out a loud snort. "Pffft. _You_ a fighter?" His yellow eyes narrowed into thin slits. "You're small for a troll. Are you a half-breed?"

Jadyn stiffened at the unwelcome term 'half-breed'. That's _exactly_ what he was, in truth, being half-goblin half-human, but that troll guard didn't know this. If he didn't need the troll guard alive to open the portal to Troll Kingdom by using his unique, innate magic he would have disposed of him already. Jadyn's hand twitched and he had to resist the urge to use Marzanna to slit this insolent troll's throat. "I'm a runt," Jadyn explained through gritted teeth.

The troll guard's eyes widened in understanding before he threw his head back and guffawed. He laughed for several minutes while Jadyn grinded his teeth.

Finally, the troll guard stopped laughing, and wiped a tear from his eye with his index finger. "That you are. You are a very tiny troll. Are you sure you want to enter the Competition? The King's Champion will probably snap your arms in half like twigs." The troll had a gleeful time pretending to snap a branch in half and made the accompanying sound effects. "You'll be dead meat. Very dead."

"I like to live dangerously," Jadyn challenged with a glint in his eyes.

"Okay. If you're sure. It's your funeral." The troll guard spun to face the large, arching stone bridge that was the only way to enter Troll Kingdom. The guard walked towards the stone arch, stood in front of it, waved his hand, and muttered the words of the incantation that would activate the portal to open.

Jadyn memorized the words of the incantation in case things went south, and he had to make a quick getaway. At any rate, he wouldn't need the guard's help again. After all, he could perform magic too.

Runes, glyphs, and ancient symbols that had been carved into the bridge started to glow with a blue light, and pulse with magic. Seconds later, a portal of blue, swirling energy appeared beneath the bridge.

Jadyn raised his chin and walked confidently towards the portal. He wished he were as confident as he probably appeared to be. Just as he was about to step through the portal the troll guard called after him, "Hey, runt! If you lose...can I eat you?"

A vein at Jadyn's temple throbbed in irritation at the callous request, and pointedly ignoring the troll he stepped through the portal. In a blink, Jadyn was standing on the edge of a precipice that overlooked an enormous underground cavern that contained a city inhabited entirely by trolls.

Trolls were a bit simple-minded, and they had a primitive culture that mostly revolved around mining, mating, and fighting, but despite this Jadyn found himself to be impressed by their city. The trolls made their homes out of the hundreds of caves that existed inside of the cavern. Most of the caves had been there to begin with while others had been carved into the stone.

Jadyn caught sight of several male trolls that were wielding pickaxes while they mined emeralds from the walls of the cavern. Wheelbarrows filled with glittering emeralds were being transported towards the marketplace situated in the heart of the city where trolls had set up stands to sell their wares. Troll females were known for being skilled at making jewelry, and troll males were good at making jewel-encrusted weapons.

The emeralds that decorated the Emerald City had all come from Troll Kingdom. The Sultry Sorceress, Ozlyn, had paid the trolls handsomely for their emeralds. Their Kingdom was rich...or rather _should have been_ rich. Jadyn frowned as he noticed that several of the trolls appeared to be malnourished.

That didn't make a lot of sense. And even though the troll females were selling jewelry none of them were wearing it. Jadyn noted that their customers were human denizens from the Emerald City. Jadyn ducked his head in case he would be recognized by the structure of his face, which had remained the same even with his troll glamour spell.

Jadyn glanced around and saw that several precious stones were sticking out of the cavern's walls just waiting to be mined. He narrowed his eyes on a red stone and hoped it wasn't Ozanite. He shuddered.

The city's most impressive feature, at least, in Jadyn's opinion, was the gargantuan, enchanted emerald that hung from the center of the cavern's ceiling. It glowed so brightly that it served as an artificial sun, shedding a green-tinged light over the entire city.

Jadyn's eyes fixated on a round building in the distance, which was his destination. The coliseum was where the Trolls' Fighting Competition took place. Jadyn started to make his way down a narrow, winding path, and headed for the coliseum.

He kept his head lowered, not wanting to draw too much attention to himself, but even so he could feel the trolls' curious eyes upon him. A few of the troll males muttered 'runt' cruelly under their breath, and sniggered at him. Curiosity getting the better of him, Jadyn looked up to see who'd insulted him and spotted two male trolls walking past him.

Jadyn gulped. Troll males were eight-feet-tall, and had blue, purple, pink or yellow skin. All trolls had horns curling out of the tops of their heads, and tusks. Troll eye colors tended to be yellow or black. The males were very muscular and had loincloths made out of animal skins wrapped around their waists.

A giggle captured Jadyn's attention next, and he spotted two troll females watching him from a shadowed alcove with enamored looks on their faces. Jadyn's eyebrows shot up to his hairline at their expressions, and he glanced behind him, assuming that there was a handsome troll male standing directly behind him. But there was no one there.

Troll females were seven-feet-tall and more delicate in physique than Jadyn would have expected from this race that was known for being powerful and bloodthirsty. The females were dressed in short dresses made out of animal skins that left little to the imagination.

Jadyn's gaze accidentally settled upon the impressive cleavage of one of the females and he quickly wrenched his gaze away, feeling a blush creeping up the back of his neck. Still, his frown deepened at their primitive, cheap clothing. The Troll Kingdom was one of the wealthiest Kingdoms in all of Oz. Their people should be dressed in finer clothes and the females should be wearing silk and be adorned in jewelry.

Jadyn shook his head as he passed the giggling females. He wondered if he should have changed his regal facial features to match a troll's better. He'd always been proud of his straight, Romanesque nose. Most trolls had button noses, and Jadyn kicked himself for his vanity. He could end up blowing his cover before he even reached the coliseum. Jadyn's nose was so unique that the troll females seemed interested in him, even though he was a runt.

The coliseum was the largest architectural structure in the city, and was an essential part of troll life. According to Jadyn's spies, the winged monkeys, competitions were held daily. Trolls would participate in the Fighting Competition in order to win monetary prizes granted by the Troll King. Champions had the option of forgoing their monetary prize and instead make a request of King Bellwort, who was honor bound to grant anything to them within his power.

The Troll King was known to grant boons of all kinds, and it was a boon that Jadyn was there for. Jadyn intended to fight King Bellwort's Champion, win, and then make a certain request.

Jadyn reached the coliseum unhindered and made his way inside. The coliseum had a large, oval-shaped, sandy arena surrounded by tiered seats that were carved out of stone. The seats were filled with cheering male and female trolls.

Jadyn walked down an aisle between two sections of tiered seats, and peered out over the arena to try and catch a glimpse of the Troll King's beloved, undefeated Champion.

"Hawthorn! Hawthorn! Hawthorn!" the trolls chanted loudly as they clapped and waved their arms through the air.

The eight-foot-tall troll with bulging muscles, who had two enormous, curling black horns on the top of his head was hard to miss. Hawthorn had dark purple skin, the same shade as Jadyn's. His shoulder-length black hair was shaggy and unkempt, and the troll's yellow eyes were gleaming with malice.

Hawthorn grinned widely at the crowd, showing off his impressive tusks, and raised his great sword high over his head. The dimensions of his sword were insane: five-feet-long and a foot wide. Jadyn knew that he wouldn't be able to lift that sword no matter how hard he tried. It was the type of sword that could literally cleave a man in two with one swing.

The female trolls were letting out appreciative shrieks, which made Jadyn think that for a troll Hawthorn must have been considered _handsome_. Jadyn just thought he was terrifying and demonic in appearance.

Hawthorn's armor was less crude than most of the armor Jadyn had seen the trolls wearing thus far, and consisted of a black steel breastplate, spiked shoulder armor, and spiked vambraces. The pelt of a black direwolf was wrapped around his waist.

Hawthorn's opponent looked _angelic_ in comparison with his yellow skin, small horns, and tiny tusks that barely peeked past his puffy lips. He was wearing a brown loincloth and wielding a large battleaxe.

The two trolls let out roars before charging towards each other with thunderous steps. Their weapons clashed with such force that a shockwave of power spread out through the coliseum that almost knocked Jadyn right off his feet. A loud clanging sound reverberated through the air following their vicious attacks.

Then Hawthorn swung his great sword horizontally, and when it impacted with his opponent's battleaxe, the axe shattered, pieces of metal soaring through the air dangerously. Hawthorn continued his swing and sliced his opponent's head off.

The troll's head went flying through the air and the crowd went wild: "Hawthorn! Hawthorn! Hawthorn!" Jadyn unconsciously rubbed his neck at the gruesome sight.

Hawthorn grinned up at the stands, showing off his sharp teeth. He waved at the troll females and sent a wink their way. Several females swooned in response. Hawthorn stomped over to pick up the head of his felled opponent by the hair and showed it off like a trophy. "Yeah! Who's your Champion? I'm your Champion!"

Bile rose up Jadyn's throat at the crude display, but he stubbornly swallowed it down. _I'm going to have to fight that demon...if I want to cross off number five on my list._ Jadyn gulped as he watched Hawthorn parade across the bloody arena floor. _I'm doomed. No!_ Jadyn slapped his cheeks in an effort to pull himself together. He could do this. He _had_ to this. For _them_. Er, for World Domination, of course.

King Bellwort stood up from his throne that had been specially situated in the stands, and raised his arms to get everyone's attention. Instantly, the cheers died down. "Well done, my Champion! Well done! Sadly your opponent, Hyacinth, lost, and therefore will _not_ receive the precious gems he wanted. I suppose his starving wife and daughter will just have to continue starving. Such a pity." Jadyn had the feeling that the sad look on King Bellwort's face was insincere, and he narrowed his eyes at the Troll King.

Bellwort's height and size were similar to Hawthorn's, and only his long white hair and beard gave away his age. Even though the king was wearing a silver breastplate, Jadyn was still able to see that his chest and arms were covered with battle scars. The pelt of a white direwolf was wrapped around the king's waist. Bellwort's skin was a sky-blue color, and his yellow eyes gleamed with wisdom. The horns that curled out of the top of the king's head were an ivory white.

Hawthorn was obviously physically powerful, but didn't appear to possess much intelligence. Intelligence was much more dangerous in Jadyn's opinion than physical strength. One didn't become King of the Trolls easily, and Jadyn would make sure not to underestimate the elderly troll.

Seated to King Bellwort's right was his son, Prince Periwinkle. Jadyn was surprised to see that the king's heir was, in fact, a runt, and only seven-feet-tall. From the unhappy and self-conscious expression on the young man's face, Jadyn had the gut feeling that he wasn't accepted by troll society. He bore a very similar appearance to his father. They both had sky-blue skin, the horns curling out of the top of Periwinkle's head were white, and his eyes were yellow. The only notable difference was that Periwinkle's shoulder-length hair was a dark blue color.

Due to the small size of Periwinkle's horns and tusks, Jadyn thought the troll prince looked almost human in appearance, which in his opinion wasn't a bad thing. Jadyn had the feeling that the other trolls probably ridiculed Periwinkle for his unusual appearance, however.

Jadyn's gaze was drawn to the troll female that was seated to King Bellwort's left next. He instantly deduced that she must be Bellwort's daughter, Princess Dahlia. Jadyn had gotten so used to seeing the troll females dressed in primitive, animal-skin dresses that Dahlia's pink, silk gown caught him by surprise. She was also wearing a gold and amethyst necklace that looked lovely against her purple skin. Princess Dahlia's long pink hair was decorated with scattered braids.

If not for her horns and tusks Jadyn would have called Princess Dahlia 'beautiful'. But he supposed she was beautiful in her own special way.

Beautiful. Special. Those words made Jadyn recall a certain cyborg assassin named Tina Woodcutter. There was something about Tina that drew Jadyn to her like a moth to the flame.

_Head in the game._ Jadyn slapped his cheeks. He didn't have time to be thinking about some _woman_.

"Now, who here has the stones to face my Champion?" King Bellwort bellowed, his voice carrying across the coliseum. "The victor will win the current pot of gems, or I will grant them a single request!" The Troll King arched an eyebrow at the crowd expectantly.

A few minutes ticked by and a sinister smile spread across the king's face. "Well, if no one is going to volunteer for my entertainment I suppose I'll just have to draw a name from the lottery." King Bellwort made an impatient motion with his hand and a troll appeared at his side carrying a large ceramic pot that was filled with tiny, folded slips of paper.

Jadyn's eyes narrowed on the pot and he frowned. _Lottery?_ He mused. His spies hadn't mentioned anything about a lottery. Those slips of paper most likely had the names of trolls written on them. This was a new development, but not one that really concerned Jadyn. "That won't be necessary, Your Majesty!" Jadyn called out in a loud voice, amplified by his magic.

With all eyes now on him, Jadyn hopped down into the arena. It was a ten-foot-drop, but nothing Jadyn couldn't handle with a murmured cushioning spell.

King Bellwort's yellow eyes pinned on Jadyn and narrowed in suspicion, but he ultimately smiled. "Well, well, well, what do we have here? A brave young troll." He raked his eyes over Jadyn's form, a sneer curling his lips as he took in the fact that Jadyn was only six-feet-tall. Jadyn was even shorter than his useless son Periwinkle. "Brave and very foolish. What do you fight for, young troll. Riches or a boon?"

Jadyn met King Bellwort's condescending stare and raised his chin. "I have a request I'd like to make."

"Win...and if it is within my power to grant it to you, it shall be granted," King Bellwort promised in a booming voice. "You have my word as the Troll King." Jadyn regally inclined his head in King Bellwort's direction.

Hawthorn shot King Bellwort a questioning look. King Bellwort slashed his index finger across his throat. His meaning was quite clear.

_Very subtle._ Jadyn thought sarcastically. _Why do I get the feeling that these little matches are rigged so that the greedy Troll King can keep his pot of gems all to himself?_

King Bellwort took a seat on his heavy, stone throne, and then raised his hand. "Fighters...begin!"

Hawthorn gripped his sword's hilt in a two-handed grip, and raised it before him. Jadyn unsheathed Marzanna and mirrored Hawthorn's movements. _Alright, Marzanna, let's do this!_ Jadyn thought confidently as he spoke to his demon-possessed sword in his mind, but received no response. The warlock paled, causing his skin to turn a lavender color. _Marzanna?_

Hawthorn let out a roar and charged towards Jadyn. Jadyn gulped as the ground beneath his feet trembled. As soon as Hawthorn was close enough he swung his sword at Jadyn. Jadyn ducked, the sword whizzing over his head and taking a few of his dark locks with it.

Hawthorn executed an overhead downward slash next. Jadyn leapt backwards to avoid the attack and the troll's sword impacted against the ground forming a small crater there.

Hawthorn rushed forward with surprising speed for such a large troll and swung his heavy sword horizontally. Instinctively, Jadyn raised his sword before him to block the attack.

Big mistake.

The force of the impact from Hawthorn's great sword colliding against Marzanna's blade had Jadyn flying back through the air, head over heels. He slammed into the arena wall hard, and had the wind knocked out of his lungs. Jadyn's eyes bugged from the pain, and he coughed up a trickle of blood. There was a Jadyn-shaped crater on the arena wall now.

_I'm such an idiot._ Jadyn berated himself. _Why did I think I could handle blocking Hawthorn's powerful attack? I'm physically weak. Only my Dark Magic is strong. What was I thinking?_

_You really ARE an idiot._ Haughty, mocking feminine laughter filled his head. _And you obviously weren't thinking._

_Marzanna!_ Jadyn thought, as a feeling of relief swept over him upon hearing the voice of the she-demon Marzanna inside of his head. _You must help me defeat this troll..._

_Must I?_ Marzanna said in a petulant voice in Jadyn's mind. _Why would I want to defeat a stinky old troll anyways? It sounds quite dull._

_This is all part of my evil master plan for world domination._ Jadyn replied silkily.

_Don't lie to me, Jadyn._ Marzanna snapped, her irritation evident in her tone. _I'm inside of your head, remember?_

Jadyn ground his back molars out of frustration. _This troll's death should please you. He is the Troll King's Champion. A worthy soul for you to take with you to hell, and one that you should find delicious._

_The Troll King's Champion._ Marzanna's tone had turned pensive, considering. _I bet I'm better._

_After I have defeated the Troll King's Champion...I plan to kill King Bellwort._ Jadyn revealed, knowing that Marzanna wouldn't be able to resist helping him now.

_Ooo why didn't you say so in the first place, Jadyn?_ Marzanna sounded pleased inside of his mind. _That should cause some wonderful chaos within the Troll Kingdom indeed. You'll be lucky to get out of here alive after you do that, you naughty boy._

_I know what I'm doing._ Jadyn retorted in his mind-voice. _Or at least I hope so._

_Let's end this troll._ Marzanna announced, her voice laced with malice.

Jadyn slid down the arena wall, leaving a trail of blood behind him. He pushed himself up off the ground, and straightened. He took a step forward and staggered. _I need to be fast. Faster than he is._ Jadyn spoke in his mind-voice.

_I know...just leave it to me._ Marzanna assured, her purring voice filling his mind. _I'll control your body just like a puppet whose strings I now control._

Jadyn ran towards Hawthorn. At first, his steps were staggering, but then he picked up speed. Hawthorn grinned and charged forward to meet him. They met in the center of the arena and immediately began to launch attacks at each other. Jadyn ducked and sidestepped the massive sword that was trying to cleave him in two.

_We just need to get past his defenses._ Jadyn spoke in his mind-voice before ducking another horizontal slash of Hawthorn's sword, running forward, and slashing his sword through the air in a horizontal slash of his own. Jadyn was surprised he'd managed it as he watched Marzanna slicing through Hawthorn's flesh just below his breastplate, and cutting his stomach open. _We got him!_ Jadyn crowed triumphantly in his mind.

_Watch out!_ Marzanna cautioned.

Hawthorn growled and backhanded Jadyn, sending him flying, head over heels. The warlock hit the ground and rolled across it. "Ugh," Jadyn moaned. _What the hell happened?_

_I may have forgotten to mention...trolls have incredible regeneration abilities._ Marzanna spoke in his mind, sounding morbidly pleased.

Jadyn inwardly swore. _Marzanna, you traitorous bitch._ He had to be careful. Marzanna wasn't his friend or ally, really. She was a demon...who liked to consume delicious souls. She wanted to eat his soul eventually. Marzanna had explained to him that the more Jadyn suffered the more delicious his soul would become. She liked it when he suffered for this very reason. Apparently, suffering was _spice_ to a soul for a demon.

Jadyn pushed himself up off the ground into a sitting position, and looked up at Hawthorn. His gaze went to the wound on Hawthorn's stomach that was healing right before his eyes. _Damnation!_ Jadyn inwardly swore again. _Marzanna, you useless-!_

Marzanna cut Jadyn's rant off, speaking in his mind. _The only way to kill a troll is to decapitate it. I thought you would have known that already._ _You usually do your research before doing something like this. Did you have no books on trolls in your library?_

Jadyn ground his back teeth. Marzanna was right. When he'd gone off to challenge the leader of the direwolf pack he'd done his research on direwolves first to discover their leader's weakness. Apparently, direwolves were terrified of fire, and Jadyn was rather skilled at conjuring fireballs, so it had been an easy victory.

_Oh, shut up._ Jadyn snapped in his mind-voice before pushing himself up off the ground and straightening. He swayed on his feet and coughed up a glob of blood. He cringed, disgusted with himself. _Yuck._ He craned his neck up to glare at Hawthorn. _How the hell am I supposed to cut that monster's head off when it's all the way up there?_

_I have an idea. Just leave it to me._ Marzanna assured in her purring voice.

_It can't look like magic._ Jadyn warned. He didn't want to reveal his trump card to King Bellwort so soon.

_I know._ Marzanna snapped.

Jadyn started to run circles around Hawthorn while cackling maniacally until he was running so quickly that to the naked eye it looked like multiple Jadyns had appeared out of thin air, and were running circles around Hawthorn.

Hawthorn's eyes widened in surprise, and he gaped at the duplicates running circles around him. "What the?" Hawthorn let out a roar of frustration and stabbed forward with his sword, impaling one of the false doubles.

_Now!_ Marzanna commanded.

Jadyn bent his knees and leapt up onto Hawthorn's shoulders from behind the troll. He placed Marzanna to the troll's throat and wrenched the sword back, decapitating Hawthorn. As Hawthorn's decapitated body started to collapse Jadyn leapt off the troll's shoulders, and landed nimbly on his feet. The crowd of spectators had been rendered silent out of shock for the unexpected victory.

King Bellwort was looking particularly gobsmacked by this unexpected turn of events. A six-foot-tall runt had managed to defeat his eight-foot-tall champion. Unreal. "What...?" he muttered to himself in disbelief.

Jadyn raised his bloody sword high in victory. And the trolls went wild. A chant started up from one or two trolls, and then the entire crowd was chanting the same thing over and over: "Runt! Runt! Runt!"

A muscle at Jadyn's temple throbbed out of irk. He should have told King Bellwort some made-up name before fighting his champion. Hindsight.

A deep scowl formed on King Bellwort's face and he dug his nails into the arms of his throne. The stone began to crack from the pressure as King Bellwort tried to contain his anger. How dare this no-name runt slay his Champion! And now he'd have to hand over his pot of precious gems to him. _Inconceivable!_

Jadyn stalked across the arena and stood before the Troll King. Jadyn watched in amusement as a flash of quickly concealed rage flitted over the Toll King's face. Jadyn could only imagine what King Bellwort was feeling in that moment. If it were him...Jadyn would already be plotting his demise.

King Bellwort schooled his expression though and did his best to look pleased. "Well done, Young Troll. I'm impressed. My Champion has been undefeated for years, and suddenly you appear out of nowhere and slay him. A troll runt, at that! It was almost like..." The Troll King stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Dare I say... _magic_?"

At the mention of magic, Jadyn flinched, but managed to keep his composure. "King Bellwort, I have defeated your Champion. I would like you to please hear my humble request..."

"What is it you want, Young Troll?" King Bellwort waved his hand through the air. "You want the gems, don't you? Everyone does."

"No," Jadyn said firmly. "I wish to challenge you for the throne of Troll Kingdom."

King Bellwort was so surprised he almost fell right off his throne. He gawked at Jadyn open-mouthed for a few seconds before he shut his mouth. " _You_ wish to fight _me_...in single combat?" A slow, sinister smile spread across the Troll King's face. Bellwort had planned to send trolls after Jadyn's head as soon as he left the coliseum, but now Bellwort had the perfect opportunity to get rid of this runt himself. "Very well. I accept your challenge for the throne, Young Troll. What would you say if I said we can use magic?"

The Troll King's yellow eyes were glittering with malice and Jadyn merely smirked. "As you wish, King Bellwort." All trolls possessed a special, innate magic, and an affinity for Earth Magic in particular. Jadyn had no doubt that King Bellwort's overconfidence was because of the powerful earth magic he would wield. But, King Bellwort was in for a surprise because he was the Wicked Warlock of the West!

King Bellwort stood up from his throne and stomped over towards the edge of the tiered seats. He then hopped down into the arena, landing with a loud thud. Bellwort met Jadyn's challenging stare unflinchingly. "My daughter, Princess Dahlia, will give the signal for us to begin."

Jadyn nodded and glanced up at Princess Dahlia. Her skin had turned from a dark purple color to a lavender color, and due to Jadyn's own experience from having purple skin knew that she'd paled. Was she angry or terrified that he was about to try and kill her father, the king? _Tough luck, Princess. It's nothing personal._ Jadyn thought.

Princess Dahlia raised her hand and then slashed it down through the air. "Fighters...begin!"

Bellwort crouched and slammed the palms of his hands against the ground. The ground beneath Jadyn's feet trembled as Bellwort chanted the words of a spell.

Seconds later, a mammoth hand that was twenty-feet-tall and made out of sand emerged from the arena floor. The hand rose up, hovered over Jadyn, and swiftly came down as if trying to squash Jadyn like a bug.

Jadyn lithely dodged the attack. The giant sand hand came at him again. This time, Jadyn rolled across the ground. He then sprang to his feet and ran across the arena. That's when a second hand rose up from the arena floor directly in front of him. _Shit!_ Jadyn inwardly swore. He glanced over his shoulder and realized that the hands were trying to corner him.

All of a sudden Jadyn knew what a mosquito must feel like right before it gets squashed between two human hands. There was no escape. One hand was coming at Jadyn from his left, and the other sand hand was coming at him from his right. The hands inevitably slammed together, a cloud of dust forming in the air, and the crowd gasped as they watched Jadyn disappear from sight.

"Look! He's still alive!" a troll cried out.

"He made it!" another troll exclaimed excitedly.

At the very last second, right before Jadyn would have been squashed between the two sand hands, the warlock had summoned his broom, mounted it, and had taken off into the air.

King Bellwort let out a roar of anger and frustration. "You won't get away, Runt!" Bellwort concentrated on controlling the sand hands and had them attack Jadyn as he flew through the air on his broom.

Jadyn glanced over his shoulder and swerved around the sand hands that were trying to swat him out of the air. _Exactly how a mosquito feels._ Jadyn thought to himself sardonically.

Jadyn swooped down and swung his sword at Bellwort's neck. Bellwort raised his sword and blocked the attack with very little effort. Jadyn should have expected Bellwort's quick, battle-honed reflexes. _Damn. Of course, it couldn't be that easy._ Jadyn inwardly complained. King Bellwort was covered in scars he'd received in probably hundreds of battles. He had experience on his side. On the other hand, when it came to hand-to-hand combat Jadyn's experience was sorely lacking.

Jadyn knew that he wouldn't last long against the Troll King in an honorable fight. _Honorable?_ Jadyn suddenly mused and smiled crookedly. _I'd rather be wicked. Time to play dirty._

Keeping his left hand on his broom handle, Jadyn summoned his crystal ball to his right hand, and began to chant the words of a scrying spell. Jadyn swooped down, headed towards Bellwort, and finished the words of the spell. " _Solis Manifesto!_ Show me the sun!" Abruptly, the sun appeared shinning brightly inside of the crystal ball. Jadyn directed the sun's rays to hit only the Troll King's body.

King Bellwort's eyes widened in horror and disbelief. "The sun? How? No!" A blood-curdling scream was wrenched from Bellwort's mouth as he began to turn into stone.

Marzanna's bitching earlier had given Jadyn an idea. He'd read about trolls, of course. And he knew of their number one weakness and greatest fear: the sun. Trolls turned to stone when exposed to sunlight, which is why they lived underground. Jadyn had set aside this little tidbit of knowledge since he'd known he'd be fighting the Troll King underground, but then realized how silly it was to ignore such a thing when he was, after all, a warlock.

Just before the Troll King's hand turned to stone, Bellwort managed to grab a dagger from his belt, which he flung towards Jadyn. "You lose, Runt." The dagger pierced Jadyn's side and Bellwort smiled triumphantly, right before his entire body was finally turned to stone.

Jadyn winced in pain, grabbed the hilt of the dagger, and wrenched it out of his flesh. He looked down at the blade and saw that it had been coated with a purple-tinged substance. He frowned. Some kind of poison, perhaps. He'd worry about that later...

As soon as Bellwort's body had completely been turned to stone, Jadyn leapt off his broom and brought his sword down upon the Troll King. Bellwort's body shattered, pieces of rock flying through the air. Jadyn landed gracefully on his feet, and turned to regard the crowd of stunned trolls. _Now, for the hard part._ Jadyn thought to himself taking a deep breath.

Jadyn waved a hand over himself, and let his glamour spell fall, revealing his true appearance and green skin. He quickly summoned his usual outfit, and his black robes, and black, wide-brimmed, pointed hat appeared on his body. "Troll-kind, according to your traditions and laws your king has always been chosen through single combat. As I have defeated your former king...I have won his crown. Whether you like it or not, I, Jadyn, the Wicked Warlock of the West, am your king now. _Despair!_ Muahahaha!" Jadyn started to laugh maniacally.

_Here comes the 'booing'._ Jadyn thought grimly.

But then the trolls all began to cheer with obvious happiness. "Yeah! Whoo!"

Jadyn blinked, stopped laughing, and frowned. "What...?" The trolls were actually...cheering? What the hell was going on? Jadyn didn't bother to hide his bewilderment or confusion, and it was written plainly across his face.

Princess Dahlia and Prince Periwinkle shared a look before they stood up from their seats, and made their way to the edge of the stands before jumping down into the arena to join Jadyn.

Jadyn tightened his grip on his sword when he noticed the two trolls approaching him. That's when he realized belatedly that he had no strength left. He really hoped Bellwort's kids didn't want to try for revenge so soon. _I miscalculated. I'm practically a sitting duck at the moment. One wrong move, and I'm dead._ Jadyn thought, beginning to sweat.

When Prince Periwinkle and Princess Dahlia were just a few feet away from Jadyn they suddenly knelt before him. Jadyn blinked.

Prince Periwinkle held out his sword horizontally, the blade resting upon the palm of his left hand. "I, Prince Periwinkle, pledge my allegiance to you, King Jadyn." There was a twinkle in the troll prince's eye. "King of Monsters."

"I, too, wish to pledge my allegiance and loyalty, King Jadyn..." Princess Dahlia started in a tentative tone. "I would also like to pledge my sword to you, but King Bellwort forbade females from wielding weapons..." She trailed off with an obvious wistful note to her voice.

Jadyn scratched his cheek with his index finger. "You wish to be a fighter, Princess Dahlia?"

"More than anything," Princess Dahlia confirmed passionately. "It's my dream to be a fighter."

"Then, your wish is granted." Jadyn waved his hand through the air in a dismissive gesture. "Princess Dahlia, henceforth, you are a fighter."

"Really?" Princess Dahlia asked in shock.

"I happen to see men and woman as equals," Jadyn explained with a tiny smirk playing on his lips as he couldn't help but think about Tina Woodcutter again. Tina had managed to truly kick his ass once. She'd managed to cut all the clothes off of Jadyn's body without harming him at all. It had been humiliating and humbling, and it had also made Jadyn's heart pound inside of his chest. _That woman..._

"Well, in that case..." Prince Dahlia whipped off her gown to reveal that beneath it she was wearing female warrior armor. Her armor consisted of a steel breastplate, armored leather skirt, vambraces and greaves. Two daggers with curved blades were strapped at her sides. Dahlia whipped out her daggers and held them out before her. "I pledge my daggers to you, King Jadyn."

Until now Jadyn never would have imagined that a pink-haired female could be so...intimidating. He raised an eyebrow at the armor Princess Dahlia had been secretly wearing beneath her gown. King Bellwort was probably rolling in his grave right about now. The thought brought a smile to Jadyn's lips. The wound in his side was still throbbing in pain. "I'm glad to have them." Princess Dahlia beamed at Jadyn's easy acceptance.

"King Jadyn..." Prince Periwinkle began in a hesitant manner. "If I may...I wanted to know...what are your intentions for troll-kind now that you are our king."

Jadyn smiled silkily. "I plan to conquer all of Oz and rule as its king. And I plan to have troll-kind aid me in my pursuit of world domination. First, we must march north where I must defeat my half-brother Noryn. With an army of trolls at my back...I _will_ be able to defeat him. Unfortunately, my goblin army would be useless in the North because-"

"The goblins will go into hibernation because of the cold," Prince Periwinkle piped up. "Right?"

Jadyn's eyes narrowed at the troll prince. He was smarter than he looked. "Indeed."

Periwinkle was grinning. "I read about goblins. Well, you're lucky. Trolls aren't affected by the cold. Only sunlight. As _you_ well know." Periwinkle glanced over at the pieces of stone that were once his father.

Jadyn followed Prince Periwinkle's line of sight, and spotted the stone head of Bellwort. He cleared his throat; feeling uncomfortable all of a sudden. "I hope you won't hold your father's death against me. I want us to be allies. I mean, I'm sorry-"

"Oh, no need to apologize," Prince Periwinkle swiftly cut Jadyn off. "Our father was a tyrant! I don't know if you're aware, but...it's our people who mined all of the emeralds that decorate the Emerald City. We should be a rich and prosperous people, but King Bellwort hoarded those riches all for himself. Our people were starving, and there was nothing I could do to stop him. I wasn't strong enough. I'm a runt, and not a very good fighter. But now, I see that size doesn't matter, in the end. _This_ does." Periwinkle tapped the side of his head.

Jadyn offered the troll prince a sincere smile. "Indeed." He was beginning to like this young troll. Trolls weren't exactly known for their intellectual pursuits, and he was surprised the prince had read books on goblins. _A kindred spirit, perhaps._ Jadyn thought to himself.

Princess Dahlia was giving Jadyn a concerned look while nibbling on her lower lip. After a few minutes she gathered the courage to say what was on her mind. "Forgive my impertinence, King Jadyn, but are you also in danger of going into hibernation if you go up north?"

Jadyn stiffened. One never revealed a weakness to a potential enemy. He narrowed his eyes at the troll princess. "No," he snapped coldly.

A chagrined expression fell over Dahlia's face. "I only ask because if that were the case...my brother and I could lead the army to the north and fight for you, under your instructions. You need not go at all. We could handle everything for you."

"You think I'd trust you enough to put you and your brother in command of the troll army?" Jadyn mused aloud.

Princess Dahlia seemed to realize how absurd she was being and blushed. "Forgive me, King Jadyn. I was out of line to suggest such nonsense-"

Jadyn stroked his chin in a thoughtful manner. "No. Wait. That's an excellent idea. Will the troops follow you and your brother?"

"Yes," Princess Dahlia said. "As long as you bestow the authority to command the army upon us there shouldn't be a problem."

"Then, consider it bestowed." Jadyn waved a careless hand in their direction. "I will accompany the army to the frontlines, but after the battle starts there are more urgent matters that I must attend to. Alone. Therefore, I will leave the army in your hands at that point."

"My brother and I are yours to command," Princess Dahlia said, batting her eyelashes flirtatiously at Jadyn. Prince Periwinkle gawped at his sister in horror for her audacity, but thankfully Jadyn was completely oblivious to her flirting. Periwinkle let out a sigh of relief.

"Excellent," Jadyn cooed evilly. "The north will be ours. Muahahaha!" He let out an evil cackle and gave the trolls an expectant look.

Princess Dahlia and Prince Periwinkle exchanged a look before they began to join in and laugh along with Jadyn.

***

After Jadyn was sure that the trolls understood his plan to the best of their ability, he teleported to his bedchamber within his castle located in the west of Oz. As soon as he was sure that he was alone in his room he allowed himself to sink to his knees.

He let his glamour spells fall and stared at the stab wound that King Bellwort had managed to inflict upon him right before he died. Jadyn touched the wound and then stared at the blood on his hand. His blood didn't appear to be clotting, and the wound was still bleeding profusely and didn't appear to be healing at all. This...wasn't good.

Jadyn summoned a healing potion to his hand, unstoppered the vial, and drank the red potion. He watched the wound expectantly, waiting for it to start to heal and close. But...nothing happened.

Jadyn frowned, prodded at the wound curiously, and winced at the pain that caused him. Why wasn't it healing? What kind of poison had been on the Troll King's blade? Angry black lines were traveling from the wound and spreading over his green skin. _A curse, perhaps?_ Jadyn sighed. He'd have to worry about finding a way to break this curse later. He had more important things to attend to...such as preparing for his battle against his brother Noryn.

Jadyn summoned a roll of white cloth bandages, and wrapped the bandages around his lower torso, covering the stab wound. That would have to do for now. Perhaps, his innate magic would heal the wound eventually, if left on its own, if he were lucky.

Jadyn's thoughts strayed to Leona and her ability to heal wounds with her enchanted singing. Leona's singing may be able to help break the curse. But he couldn't go to his 'friends' for help since with his current actions he'd already betrayed them.

They were about to be on opposing sides once again.

Jadyn would be marching upon the north, and he was sure Theodore Gale would show up to try and stop him. But he couldn't let Theodore win this time. He had to emerge victorious from this battle. He had to defeat his brother Noryn, the Good Wizard of the North.

_I wonder what that fool of a cowboy is doing right now?_ A crooked smile formed on Jadyn's face. _He's probably busy getting drunk. I never should have taught him how to brew beer._ The warlock mused dryly before he blacked out and collapsed on the cold, stone floor of his bedchamber.

To be continued in...Chapter 2:

### Chapter 2:

Theodore Gale was having the time of his life. He was at a football game, and there were super hot cheerleaders and he had a cold, _alcoholic_ beer in his hand. It really didn't get any better than this. _I'm on top of the world._ Theo inwardly crowed to himself.

Seated next to him was Anne Raggedy - the brilliant, former living doll now human, and now with a very fuckable pussy. Did Theo mention that she was _his_ girlfriend? _Booyah!_

The cowboy reached out, grabbed her hand, and held it - just because he could. Anne was wearing a sleeveless, black and red plaid shirt, a short jean skirt, brown cowboy hat, and matching cowboy boots. He'd designed the outfit himself and the seamstresses in the Emerald City had made it for him to gift to Anne. Anne's apple-red hair was styled into two braided pigtails.

And, no - Theo wasn't back on Earth. He was still in Oz and currently inside the new stadium that had been constructed in the Emerald City. He'd decided to enlighten the denizens of the Emerald City to the greatness of American football, and had even taught them how to play.

He'd also explained that every football game needed cheerleaders. A group of curious girls had listened intently to Theo's explanation on what cheerleaders were, and had made Theo teach them a few of the cheerleading moves he remembered from off the top of his head from all the games he'd attended with his Uncle Em.

Thinking about his uncle caused him to feel a pang in his chest. He wasn't too worried about Uncle Em anymore though. He'd had Jadyn open a portal to the Gale Farm and drop a small fortune in gold coins right on Uncle Em's front step. The gold had been a reward given to him by Ozlyn for saving the Emerald City, but Theo didn't really need that much money to begin with.

A lascivious grin spread across Theo's face as he leered at the cheerleaders and admired the outfits they were wearing. He'd designed the outfits, of course, and they had been made to his exact specifications. The cheerleaders were wearing gold sports bras, short, green, plaited skirts, white knee socks, and tennis shoes. The girls were holding green and gold pompoms - one in each hand. On the tops of their heads they were wearing headbands that had a pair of white, fuzzy bunny ears attached.

They were perfectly normal cheerleading outfits. Right?

Even though Theo was ogling the cheerleaders he was a changed man - a _one-woman man_ now. He was in a serious relationship with Anne Raggedy. He just hoped he didn't fuck it up...like he usually did. Theo took a large swig of his beer to distract himself from his way-too-sober thoughts.

The cold beer Theo was holding in his hand was courtesy of the Wicked Warlock of the West, Jadyn - who'd actually kept his promise, and had taught Theo how to brew beer and the art of winemaking. Theo had passed his newfound knowledge of making booze to the Munchkins who'd immediately opened up a brewery and a vineyard.

Jadyn may have had 'Wicked' in his job title, but Theo thought he was a good bro. Back in Kansas, Theo didn't have many guy friends since he tended to unintentionally steal their girlfriends. _Whoops._ But now, Theo was happy that he finally had a guy friend his age. Besides, having a powerful warlock that could do magic as a friend was just freakin awesome.

Also seated in the stands with him were his other new friends: a sexy lion girl, and a badass cyborg assassin. Leona Bravehart was wearing a glittery, pink and gold tank top, a pair of tight jeans, and black leather ankle boots. Her golden-blonde hair was loose and cascaded around her shoulders in soft waves. Leona's golden eyes with slit pupils were sparkling with interest as she watched the football game.

Tina Woodcutter was wearing a black leather corset, pencil skirt, and a pair of black stilettos that had red soles. Her long black hair had dark blue streaks in it that brought out the color of her gray-blue eyes. Tina no longer wore the silver facemask, which concealed the features of her face, and Theo was having a bit of a hard time getting used to seeing someone with his mother's face basically. Although, Tina looked much younger than his mother did, it was still strange. But, Theo supposed that it was only to be expected since Tina was a clone of his mother.

Theo had also designed these outfits for the girls. He'd wanted Leona to look like a Pop Idol and Tina to look like a Dominatrix Secretary. Theo nodded to himself thinking that he'd done a pretty good job on their makeovers.

In a way, Theo was surprised everyone put up with his crazy ideas. He flashed a cheeky grin at the two girls, and they just smiled back at him. A warm feeling bubbled up inside of his chest. He had awesome friends. Friends that he'd do anything for.

Theo made an effort to pull his gaze off his hot female friends, and returned his attention to the football game. Theo had helped the Ozians to come up with two team names: _The Flying Monkeys_ and _The Hammerheads_. Hammerheads were actually a race of people in Oz that had necks like an accordion. If a Hammerhead felt threatened they would extend their neck rapidly in a headbutt attack.

The helmets that team members of the Flying Monkeys were wearing had the image of a tiny flying monkey on them while the helmets the team members of The Hammerheads were wearing had the image of a tiny, male Hammerhead. Theo had designed their padded uniforms on what he could remember from the games he'd watched with his uncle. The Flying Monkeys' uniforms were red and gold while the Hammerheads' uniforms were black and green.

One of the Flying Monkeys got the football and started to run across the field. He was tackled to the ground, however, and The Hammerheads started to form a body pile on top of the poor guy. Theo winced, having sympathy pains. This football game was turning out to be a lot more similar to a rugby game. Theo noted with a slight frown. He decided he might have to go over the rules with the two teams again later.

At halftime the cheerleaders started to perform - doing impressive cartwheels, pyramids, and complicated jumps and catches. Theo started to drool as the cheerleaders' breasts bounced up and down as they did their stunts.

"Theodore Gale! What _is_ the meaning of _this_?" a female voice demanded in a stern tone.

Theo flinched guiltily and glanced over his shoulder to see his mother, Janie Gale, otherwise known as the Sultry Sorceress, Ozlyn, approaching him in the stands. She appeared to be on the warpath, and Theo let out a little squeak. "Eek."

Ozlyn's thick, black and silver-streaked hair had been styled into an elaborate, Queenly updo. She was wearing a regal, green silk dress that was decorated with golden embroidery. A white porcelain mask with green accents covered her face, and was decorated with glittering gemstones and feathers.

Theo flushed out of embarrassment and groaned. "Mom, what are you doing here?"

Ozlyn placed her hands on her hips in an authoritative pose. "Did you really think I wouldn't find out about... _all this_?" Ozlyn waved her hand at the football field, and then shook her head in obvious disappointment. "I told you to be careful not to influence Oz's culture and traditions. And yet, you have the Ozians playing _football_ and drinking _beer_ and...are those Playboy Bunny Girls? _Theo!_ " Her tone of voice had turned scandalized.

"Cheerleaders, actually," Theo quickly corrected. "And I couldn't help myself from making a few changes to their uniforms. So, sue me. Any normal, hot-blooded American man would have done the same in my place."

Ozlyn brought her index fingers up to her temples and started to rub in slow circles. She could feel a headache coming on, and as she said his name again it was with obvious exasperation. "Theo."

The football game started up again and everyone in the stands started to cheer as the two teams made their way out onto the field. Ozlyn jerked in surprise, caught off guard by the crowd's fervor.

"Ozlyn, if I may," Anne began with an amused twinkle in her dark, intelligent eyes, "everyone in the Emerald City is really enjoying being exposed to this new game called 'football'. The people are happy, and have less idle time on their hands. It's all in good fun."

"And those cheerleaders don't bother you, Anne?" Ozlyn asked with a skeptical note to her voice.

Anne smiled serenely. "Theo is allowed to look. Not touch."

"Right on," Theo agreed heartily.

Ozlyn sighed. "Next thing I know you'll be planting _trees_ in the Emerald City."

Theo scratched his cheek in a befuddled manner. "What would be so horrible about that?"

Ozlyn unconsciously started to rub her arms that had become covered in goosebumps. "The trees in Oz are not to be trusted, Theo."

"Okayyyy," Theo said. Sometimes his mother really liked saying ominous things. "As for the football, things were getting really boring around here. It's not like anyone appeared to have anything else to do in this city besides shop for new clothes."

"The city is not boring," Ozlyn huffed, and bristled as she took offense. "It's at peace. Peace that has been hard won."

Theo mouthed to Anne: 'boring'.

At that moment, in a cloud of blue smoke, Noryn, the Good Wizard of the North, suddenly materialized in their midst. "Allow me to alleviate your boredom, Theodore Gale, Savior of Oz."

"Shit. Dude. Don't just pop up out of nowhere like that," Theo chided with a hand over his thundering heart. "You almost gave me a freakin heart attack. Damn wizards. What do you want?" The cowboy narrowed his eyes in suspicion at Noryn.

"I need your help," Noryn said without preamble, not one to beat around the bush. "An army of trolls marches upon the Northern Kingdom as we speak."

"Trolls? I don't really know anything about trolls," Theo said, while a visual image started to form in his mind of a plastic troll doll with a mohawk of bright pink hair. An amused smirk curled his lips. "But aren't they like three-inches-tall? They can't be giving you that much trouble."

Noryn tried not to be irritated with Theo's blasé manner. "For your information, the trolls in Oz are eight-feet-tall. And happen to be fierce warriors."

Theo blinked. "Eight-feet-tall! How many are there?" His brow furrowed.

"50,000," Noryn said.

"You expect me to defeat 50,000 trolls single-handedly?" Theo let out a disbelieving snort. "What have you been smoking? And can I have some?"

"Of course I don't expect you to defeat an army of trolls on your own, you imbecile," Noryn snapped. "I merely require your help in defeating their leader who happens to possess powerful magic."

"Oh. I get it now. Why you came to the Guardians of the Galaxy, I mean, Guardians of Oz for help." Theo chuckled at his own little inside joke. "I should definitely be able to handle taking care of _one_ wizard."

Anne shot her reckless boyfriend a worried look. "Theo..."

"Your friends can accompany you, of course," Noryn added smoothly, and there was a sly glint in his blue eyes. "If they would like."

"Where Theo goes, I go," Anne declared in an adamant tone.

"I may be of some help. Someone may need to be healed," Leona said shyly, tucking a strand of her golden hair behind her ear and causing one of her golden hoop earrings to gleam as it caught the light from the full moon overhead. Night had already fallen, but the stadium was well lit by artificial lights that Ozlyn still liked to claim were her magic.

"I shall accompany you all," Tina said in her usual calm, composed manner.

Theo shot the three girls an emotional look. "My angels! Now I know how Charlie felt." The cowboy placed a hand on his forehead and pretended to swoon.

Noryn lowered his head to hide the triumphant gleam in his eyes and held out his arm. "Take my arm."

"Theo..." Ozlyn started to object with obvious worry.

"Don't worry, Mom," Theo assured, flashing her a cocky grin. "I'll be back as soon as I've finished kicking some wizard's sparkly ass."

Theo and the three girls placed their hands on Noryn's arm, and the wizard teleported the group directly to his castle in the north. They materialized inside of the throne room. Theo let out a whistle as he looked around the impressive chamber. Its walls, ceiling, and floor appeared to be made entirely out of white and blue ice. Theo started to shiver and began to rub at his arms. "It's freezing in here. I can't feel my balls..."

Anne placed her hand against one of the ice walls curiously. "Wouldn't all this ice normally melt?"

"It's _enchanted_ ice," Noryn explained with a smug note to his voice.

"Ooo a throne," Leona said as she spotted the impressive throne towards the back of the chamber, and walked over to it. The throne appeared to be entirely made out of enchanted ice and was decorated with spikes that looked like icicles. Without asking for permission, Leona took a seat on the throne and giggled while pretending she was Queen of the North.

"Come. This way." Noryn stalked off, leading the group over to an impressive balcony, which overlooked the entire city. As Noryn walked away from them the white cape he was wearing billowed out, revealing its blue lining.

Theo finally noted Noryn's new outfit. He was wearing a blue and white suit, and cape with a high collar. Theo smirked. The last time he'd seen Noryn in his wizard's robes he couldn't help but tease the wizard for wearing a dress...and now he was wearing a suit. "Finally decided to stop wearing a dress?" Theo teased.

"Do shut up," Noryn groused, and raked his eyes critically over what Theo was wearing -his usual white and blue gingham shirt, jeans, boots, and cowboy hat. "I don't know why you pretend to know so much about fashion when you apparently only have _one outfit_."

"Hey!" Theo pouted. "You shouldn't mess with perfection."

"Behold, the northern city." The wizard waved his hand at the expanse before them.

The city was bathed in moonlight, and the blue buildings that had been made entirely out of enchanted ice seemed to sparkle. Walking along the sidewalks were humanoid beings with long pointed ears and sky-blue skin. "Whoa, your city is populated by Smurfs!" Theo blurted out.

Like the others, Noryn had also gotten used to Theo saying strange, nonsensical things and took it in stride. "My people are elves. Their skin turns blue so that the cold does not affect them."

"Blue-skinned elves..." Theo squinted down at the elves, taking a closer look. The elves were as otherworldly as Theo would have expected them to be, and most of them appeared to have long white hair and blue or gray eyes. The she-elves were wearing silk gowns that didn't appear to be providing much protection against the cold while the males were dressed in sharp suits.

The elves were unnaturally beautiful. Theo was starting to smile, but his smile faltered when he spotted the goblin slaves that were accompanying the elves. The goblins were dressed in thick fur coats and boots to protect them from the cold. The metal collars and manacles the goblins were wearing made their social status quite clear.

The sight of the goblin slaves unsettled Theo, and he immediately thought about his friend Jadyn who was half-goblin. Theo started to feel nauseous and strangely guilty. Was he really supposed to just stand here and accept that this city had slaves? _But it's not like I can do anything about it. It's not like I'm a King or anything. I'm just a reckless playboy cowboy from Kansas. Not a revolutionary._

Theo decided to focus his gaze on something less dangerous, and started to ogle one of the busty she-elves whose nipples were pressing against her flimsy silk dress in a delicious manner. Anne noticed him drooling and smacked the back of his head.

"Ow. What?" Theo gave Anne a sheepish look. Anne rolled her eyes at her pervy boyfriend and didn't dignify him with a response.

Noryn summoned a telescope from his pocket dimension, and handed it to Theo. "Here. Take a look. Straight ahead, in the distance..."

Theo put the telescope up to his right eye and peered through it. For a moment he was distracted by the improved view of the gorgeous, blue-skinned she-elves. But then Theo focused straight ahead, past the outer walls of the city, and then a few hundred yards until he spotted the army of 50,000 trolls approaching the city. "Holy shit!"

Just like Noryn had said the trolls were not three-inches-tall, but eight-feet-tall. Lending to their already fearsome appearance were their bulging muscles, horns curling out of the tops of their heads, and tusks. The trolls were only wearing animal skin loincloths around their waists, and didn't appear to be affected by the cold at all.

A few of the trolls were wearing crudely made battle armor. The trolls' weapons of choice appeared to be battleaxes, swords and hammers that were at least three times larger than what a human would wield. Theo was surprised to see that there were blue-skinned, purple-skinned, yellow-skinned and even pink-skinned trolls.

"That's a lot of trolls," Theo muttered. "I hope these elves know how to fight." He shot Noryn a questioning look.

"The elves in my city are pacifists," Noryn replied dryly.

"Pacifists?" Theo's jaw dropped open in disbelief before he firmly snapped it shut. "They're so fucked."

"Worry not. I have a plan." Noryn started to chant a spell. It was a long, complex incantation in a language Theo was unable to recognize. A few minutes later, the snow in front of the outer wall began to vibrate before it exploded upwards. The snow quickly started to clump together until eight-foot-tall humanoid snowmen had been created.

The snowmen had broad shoulders, and massive arms and hands that were perfect for attacking. "You just created an army of snowmen. Awesome, bro." Theo gave Noryn a thumbs-up. "They look a little familiar, _Elsa_." Theo couldn't help but tease, even if he knew that the pop culture reference would go completely over Noryn's head.

"Snowmen?" Noryn arched an eyebrow. "I call them snow golems."

Theo continued to peer into the telescope at the approaching army, and that's when he noticed the trolls move aside to allow a rider mounted on a large wolf make his way to the front of the army. The wolf was eight-feet-long and six hundred pounds. The rider was smaller than the trolls though, and appeared to only be about six-feet-tall. The mysterious rider was wearing a hooded fur-lined cloak. The hood was raised and shadowing the features of his face.

Theo was instantly curious about the identity of their leader. "Hey, I think the wizard you mentioned is approaching the front of the army."

"Let me see." Anne reached for the telescope.

"Allow me, milady." Noryn summoned a crystal ball that appeared sitting on the floor in front of them. The crystal ball was quite large and three-feet-wide. Noryn waved his hand over the crystal ball and chanted a spell.

"Show off..." Theo muttered to himself. He was so jealous of wizards and warlocks being able to use magic. Magic was _so_ cool. Secretly, he was still waiting for his Hogwarts letter.

Blue smoke swirled inside of the crystal ball before an image was revealed of the mysterious cloaked and hooded wolf rider. The image zoomed in on the figure, and the group watched as the wolf rider pulled back on the leather reins attached to a harness that was fitted around the wolf's head, and brought his mount to a halt.

He raised a fist over his head and the entire troll army came to an abrupt halt at his unspoken command. That's when the rider reached up and lowered his hood to reveal his face. Theo heard Tina gasp in surprise behind him.

It was Jadyn - the Wicked Warlock of the West!

Tina's heart fluttered at the unexpected sight of the wicked warlock. _Jadyn...! He became the leader of the trolls? But how? He must have defeated their king in single combat. How impressive._ Tina inwardly mused, but quickly amended her traitorous thoughts. _I mean, horrible. Absolutely horrible._

Jadyn whipped out a black onyx wand, placed it against his throat, and cast a spell to amplify the sound of his voice. "Greetings, Noryn. I can feel your eyes upon me. Are you surprised, Brother? Or did you suspect that it was I all along? I am the King of the Trolls now. Truly, the King of Monsters. With my new allies I will easily defeat your army of snow golems, and conquer your city. You will soon know the bitter taste of defeat at my hands, and you will despair. The Northern Kingdom shall be mine! Muahaha!" Jadyn started to laugh manically.

"Jadyn," Noryn spat venomously. "I should have known. He's up to his usual no-good tricks again, I see. I knew that he would eventually tire of playing the hero."

Tina felt a sinking feeling of disappointment inside of her chest. _So, Jadyn's charade has come to an end and he's showing his true colors._ Tina thought silently to herself. _He wants to take over the north. Well, that's...good. Fine. Perfect. It gives me a reason not to like him. Not that I do like him. I barely know him._

Bristling with irritation, Theo whirled on Noryn and glared at the wizard. "You knew all along, didn't you? You knew my friend Jadyn was leading the troll army!" he accused hotly.

A flash of surprise crossed Noryn's face. "Friend? Are you sure you can still call him that now that he's obviously done playing the part of the hero and has returned to being a villain. Jadyn is called the _Wicked_ Warlock of the West for a reason, Theo. He intends to defeat my army of golems and then slaughter the elves in my city. Now, the real question is this: will you let him? You're the only person powerful enough to defeat Jadyn with a single punch, Theo. The fate of the Northern Kingdom rests in your hands."

Theo clenched his hands into fists at his sides. _Powerful?_ Theo scoffed in his mind. _It's not even my own power...this stupid gauntlet that I can't even get off my right hand._

"You've tried to play me and set me against him before, Noryn," Theo reminded hotly. "But maybe you're right and he's showing his true colors, as you say. I'll...talk to him first though. And if I can't make him see reason then...I'll kick his ass."

"Kick his ass?" Noryn echoed. "Don't you mean _kill_?"

Theo narrowed his eyes at the so-called good wizard. "I won't kill him. But, I'll let you arrest him if it comes to that. You can throw his ass into the dungeons or something." The cowboy waved a careless hand through the air.

Noryn inclined his head in Theo's direction and smiled. "Very well. Arresting Jadyn and throwing him into the dungeons along with the other goblins would be sufficient punishment, I think."

"Other goblins..." Theo muttered darkly to himself.

The group's attention was once more drawn to the crystal ball as Jadyn yelled out a command: "Forward...march! Attack!"

Simultaneously, the trolls let out deep, guttural and fierce battle cries before charging forward across the snowy landscape and approaching Noryn's army of snowmen.

"If you'll excuse me..." Noryn said as he turned his complete attention to the two armies that were about to clash. "I must concentrate on this battle. I am controlling the snow golems like puppets with my will, you see."

"Yeah, yeah, don't worry about us, and do your thing, Frosty," Theo said as he backed away from Noryn and motioned for the girls to follow him back into the throne room

As soon as they were out of earshot, Anne spoke up: "What is it, Theo?"

"It's about Jadyn," Theo began. "I have a gut feeling that something's not right about all this. Something fishy is going on. I feel like Jadyn must have a good reason for why he's doing all this. And I need to find out what that reason is. I need to talk to him before Noryn does and the shit hits the fan. Leona, I want you to use your feminine wiles to keep Noryn distracted while Tina and I go and track Jadyn down. Do you think you can do that?"

Leona's cheeks turned pink. "A-Alright."

Anne elbowed Theo in his side. "And why can't I use _my_ feminine wiles?"

"Ow!" Theo rubbed his aching side and pouted. "Because...I don't like the idea of my girlfriend flirting with some other dude. And...in case things don't go as planned I'm sure that you can come up with some _other_ way to stall Noryn for as long as possible. I want to confront Jadyn without Noryn's interference to find out what is really going on."

There was a twinkle in Anne's dark eyes. "Just leave it to me."

Theo turned to Tina. "I want you to come with me, Tina."

Theo's sudden statement snapped Tina out of her conflicting thoughts about Jadyn. "Why me?"

"If I can't get through to Jadyn then maybe _you_ can," Theo declared.

"Me? But I mean nothing to him...and he means nothing to me," Tina argued. "Especially now that he's shown his true colors. He's a villain, Theo. We _must_ defeat him."

Theo gawked at Tina's tough girl act in surprise. "You like him. I _know_ you do. You can't really believe everything is as it seems. There's more going on here. I thought you of all people would see that...would want to believe in him." Disappointment shone in Theo's sky-blue eyes.

Tina felt a stab of guilt make her heart clench painfully inside of her chest. "You don't understand, Theo. It's better for me if he's decided to be wicked. It's better if he's our enemy. Because if he's not I don't think I can..." She bit her bottom lip to stop herself from revealing too much about her current emotional turmoil.

_Women._ Theo sighed mentally. They thought too much. Theo could tell that Tina had a lot on her mind, but it was still pretty obvious to him that she had the hots for Jadyn. "Tina, we don't have time for this. Think you can find the way down to the dungeons?"

Tina nodded. "It shouldn't be too hard."

"What should I tell Noryn when he asks where you guys went?" Anne asked.

Theo shrugged. "Just tell him we went to patrol or something."

"Let's go." Tina exited the throne room followed closely behind by Theo.

Theo watched as Tina activated her left cybernetic eye and how it began to glow with a neon-blue light. Using her x-ray vision, Tina looked around, through the walls and then down at her feet. She was able to see all the way down to the dungeons. "I know the way now. Follow me."

"I want a cybernetic eye." Theo pouted. The corner of Tina's mouth twitched up into an almost-smile. As they made their way down the corridor Theo admired the animal ice sculptures that decorated shadowed alcoves on either side of the hallway. "Think Noryn carved all these sculptures?"

"Perhaps," Tina said.

"Apparently, the Good Wizard of the North has a lot of time on his hands," Theo muttered.

Tina confidently led the way through the castle corridors until they reached a door that opened upon a stairway that led down into the dungeons. Theo and Tina began their descent, and the cowboy was intrigued to note that there were flickering torches on the walls on either side. The flames were blue and silvery though, and didn't appear to be producing any heat, only light. _Magic fire?_ Theo mused to himself.

An unexpected sight met them when they reached the bottom of the stairs. All of the barred cell doors had been flung open, and all of the goblin slaves that had previously been trapped inside of the cells were currently standing in the middle of the hallway, and appeared to be waiting for something.

At the far end of the hallway stood Jadyn, and behind the warlock was a large, swirling portal of blue energy. Jadyn had removed his fur-lined, hooded cloak to reveal that he was wearing a simple black suit underneath along with a black cape that had an emerald green lining.

Beneath his usual wide-brimmed, pointed hat, Jadyn's shoulder-length, black hair had been slicked back over his head. His green skin was boldly on display, but instead of its usual emerald green hue it was a sickly, yellow-green color. Jadyn didn't look too good, but Theo supposed he never looked good when he was performing a lot of magic all at once.

Jadyn was so intent on his task that he didn't notice Theo and Tina's arrival in the dungeons. "Hurry!" Jadyn urged as he waved the goblins through the portal. "Go!" There was a manic gleam in Jadyn's eyes, and he appeared to be short of breath.

Theo let out a relieved breath as the pieces of the puzzle slid into place. It was becoming clear now what Jadyn was _really_ up to. "Yo, Jadyn." Theo casually called out to the Wicked Warlock.

Jadyn flinched at the sound of Theo's voice, however, and unsheathed Marzanna before pointing it in the cowboy's direction in a threatening manner. The frightened goblins moved aside for Theo as he approached Jadyn with a casual stride.

"Have you come to try and stop me, Theodore Gale?" Jadyn snarled, bearing his teeth.

Theo lifted his shoulders in a lackadaisical shrug. "That depends. What are you up to exactly?"

Jadyn's sword was trembling slightly in his grasp. His nerves were frayed, and he didn't have time for Theo's games. "Isn't that obvious, you fool! I am liberating my people! It's too late to stop me! I have opened up similar portals throughout the city using my magic so that all of the goblin slaves can escape." There was a proud note to Jadyn's voice, but Theo could also tell how tired and desperate the warlock was.

Theo let out a thoughtful hum. "Hm. What about the elves?"

"What about them?" Jadyn snapped impatiently.

"Do you plan to have the trolls slaughter all of the elves?" Theo prodded.

A flash of anger and hurt crossed Jadyn's face, but his expression quickly turned condescending. "Kill a bunch of pacifists? Why would I waste my time doing something like that? The battle is merely a diversion to keep my brother Noryn occupied while I free my people. I wanted his full attention to be focused on controlling his snow golems."

"So as soon as all of the goblins have been evacuated, what do you plan to do?" Theo asked.

"Leave, of course!" Jadyn huffed out with an air of impatience. "And have my troll army retreat. Now, let's settle this once and for all, Theo!" The warlock charged towards Theo and swung his sword at the cowboy with murderous intent.

Theo dodged the sword swing. "Ack! Whoa! Wait!" The cowboy raised his hands up before him in a surrendering gesture. "I don't want to fight you. And I'm not here to stop you."

Jadyn stopped his sword swing and a perplexed look fell over his face. "You're not? You're not going to try and stop me from freeing all the slaves? I'm confused. Why are you even here then?"

"Yeah, about that...I'm against slavery. Where I come from slavery was abolished a long time ago. It's a free country. So, I won't stop you from freeing your people because I think that what you're doing is right." Theo grinned and gave Jadyn a thumbs-up.

Jadyn's jaw dropped open slightly, but he quickly snapped it shut before turning a harsh glare upon Tina. "What about you, Tin Woman? Will you try and stop me?"

"As someone who was practically enslaved to Dr. Doppelganger for a time...I don't condone slavery either," Tina said, her gray-blue eyes swirling with sympathy. "I know what it feels like to be at someone's mercy, Jadyn."

All of the anger seemed to leave Jadyn at her words and his harsh expression softened as he continued to regard Tina. "I see. Thank you, Tin Woman." The warlock returned his attention to the goblins. "Come on. Hurry up and get your lazy asses through that portal before my brother shows up!"

"Aye, Your Majesty," the goblins said before following Jadyn's instructions.

As the goblin slaves continued to make their escape through the portal Theo decided to try and lighten the mood. "You missed the football game."

"I've been a little busy lately," Jadyn drawled dryly.

"Yeah! How did you manage to become the Troll King?" Theo asked, his blue eyes sparkling with curiosity.

"Oh, just defeated their former king in single combat," Jadyn bragged, looking quite pleased with himself.

Theo raised an eyebrow as the warlock. "I thought you said you sucked at hand-to-hand combat. You're always refusing to spar with me."

"I have a few tricks up my sleeve that you don't know about," Jadyn said.

"He used his _magic_ to win," Tina said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"So you cheated?" Theo egged.

Jadyn immediately grew incensed. "My opponent was using magic too!"

"You killed him...didn't you?" Tina asked tentatively.

"A means to an end," Jadyn said in an all-too casual manner. Theo paled and felt queasy as he began to think about how his friend had killed some troll king. The warlock noticed Theo's bleak expression, however, and let out a heavy sigh. "If it makes you feel any better, Theo, apparently King Bellwort was a tyrant. His people were starving to death even though Troll Kingdom should be one of the richest due to its emerald mines. King Bellwort was taxing his people until they had nothing left for themselves. He was also forcing them to participate in the Trolls' Fighting Competition for his entertainment."

"That does make me feel better, actually," Theo admitted, the color returning to his cheeks. "Thanks, man."

"So, it's _okay_ to kill _evil_ people?" Tina asked sincerely.

"What? No..." Theo quickly amended. He kept forgetting Tina was a cyborg assassin who was trying to be a normal girl now. "It's just...different. I dunno..." The cowboy rubbed at the back of his neck nervously. "Don't kill people, Tina."

"I'll try," Tina said, a glimmer of amusement in her gray-blue eyes. "But you do realize that goes against my assassin training."

"You're not an assassin anymore though," Theo argued. "You could change professions. You could be...I dunno, a _housewife_ now or something." He glanced between Tina and Jadyn pointedly.

Jadyn shot Theo an incredulous look while Tina blushed. "A housewife? I don't even have a lover..." The cyborg tried really hard not to look in Jadyn's direction as she said this.

"I'm sure my buddy Jadyn here could do something about that," Theo suggested, placing his hands on Jadyn's shoulders and shoving him in Tina's direction. "Right, Jay?"

Jadyn stumbled forward a few steps, completely caught off guard by this strange and sudden turn of events. "Well, I...would not be adverse to the idea of courting-"

As Theo pushed Jadyn closer to her Tina's heart began to pound inside of her chest. She was starting to feel faint. _No!_ She couldn't listen to this! "No. I don't-"

Tina was unable to finish whatever she was going to say, however, because Noryn had arrived in the dungeons. "Jadyn!" Noryn yelled from the bottom of the stairs at the other side of the hallway.

"Cockblock," Theo coughed into his hand.

At the sudden appearance of his brother Jadyn glanced nervously at the remaining goblins. "Hurry! Leave!" The warlock let out a sigh of relief as the last goblin was able to make it through the portal. With a wave of his hand, Jadyn quickly let the portal fizzle out. Jadyn turned to face his brother, his expression smug. "You're too late, Noryn. I've already freed all of the goblin slaves in your entire Kingdom! Muahaha!" He spread his arms wide and started to cackle evilly.

"You... _what!_ " Noryn exclaimed, his voice laced with anger before his brow furrowed in confusion. "Wait. Do you mean all of this was just a ruse?" He flushed out of embarrassment. "And your true aim was to free your people?"

"Indeed." A slow smile spread across Jadyn's face. "I won this little game of ours."

"He totally fooled you." Theo chuckled.

Noryn's eyes snapped to Theo and his gaze narrowed. "Why didn't you stop him, Theo?"

Theo made a show of picking a bit of earwax out of his ear and flicking it off into the air. " _Huh?_ And why would I do that?" he asked in a petulant manner.

Noryn clenched his hands into fists as he tried to rein in his anger. "Because you are Oz's Foretold Savior, and you let those _evil_ monsters escape! Now they're out there running wild and doing God knows what!"

"Monsters, huh?" Theo said, and gave Noryn a bland look. "All I saw were some desperate, half-starved fleeing slaves. You know, I don't dig slavery. So not my bag, baby."

Noryn let out an exasperated sigh and his questioning gaze turned to Tina Woodcutter. The cyborg assassin turned hero had been awfully quiet. "And what about you? What's your excuse?"

"Former slave," Tina said simply.

"Well...alright fine. No matter," Noryn said with forced nonchalance. "Those slaves were a nuisance anyways. Anytime they got too cold they fell right to sleep. But, one good thing has come from all this. It looks like you've used up most of your magic. I have you now, Jadyn. There is no escape. Finish him off, Theodore!" The Good Wizard of the North waved his hand expectantly in Jadyn's direction as if expecting Theo to automatically rush forward and attack Jadyn at his mere command. Like a dog.

"Uh...what?" Theo asked, stumbling forward. "Why should I?"

"Why?" Noryn scoffed with an incredulous look on his face. "He's pure evil, that's why. Wicked. The trolls will kill everyone in the city. He must be stopped!"

"Ah, yes...thanks for reminding me, brother." Jadyn summoned a crystal ball to his hand and chanted a spell. Green smoke swirled inside of the crystal ball until the image revealed Prince Periwinkle and Princess Dahlia. The warlock shot Theo a wink before he started to speak into the crystal ball. "Hello, Prince Periwinkle, Princess Dahlia, can you hear me?"

Prince Periwinkle's yellow eyes widened and he looked around, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from. "King Jadyn? Where are you?"

"It must be a spell," Princess Dahlia said.

"They can hear you?" Theo asked, befuddled. The last time he'd seen Jadyn use this spell Jadyn had been quite clear about how no one within the crystal ball could hear them. "But I thought the spell didn't work that way."

"After your complaints I decided to improve the spell," Jadyn bragged. "One is now able to communicate with those one sees within the crystal ball."

"Awesome." Theo smirked and nodded in approval.

"King Jadyn, is the mission complete?" Princess Dahlia questioned loudly.

Jadyn smiled. "Yes. Mission complete. You may now make your retreat."

"Understood, Your Majesty," Princess Dahlia said before giving the order to retreat to the entire troll army.

"Hey Jadyn, who's the purple-skinned babe?" Theo teased, nudging his elbow into Jadyn's side. "She's got really big-"

Noryn smoothly interrupted Theo's perverted prattling. "I don't understand. You're withdrawing your army? What about conquering the city?"

Jadyn chuckled lowly. "I never had any intention of invading your city. My true aim all along was to free the goblin slaves. Nothing else. The rest was smoke and mirrors."

A dark shadow fell over Noryn's face. "You expect me to believe you _pretended_ to be the villain?" He shook his head in a show of denial. "No. This is just another one of your tricks. Another of your wicked lies. And even if that were true you're still half-goblin and therefore half-evil. You are the spawn of an unwanted union, Jadyn! Orabella - our mother - was raped by some disgusting goblin and had _you_!"

"Ouch." Theo winced at Noryn's harsh, unforgiving words. "Don't hold back or anything, Frosty. You want me to punch this guy, Jay? I think I'd have fun breaking his nose."

"No." Jadyn refused Theo's offer, but the corner of his mouth was twitching. "Let me handle this."

Noryn stared at the cowboy in disbelief. "You \- a hero - would fight for _him_? _Why?_ "

"He taught me how to make beer. Duh. That makes us best buds for life," Theo said seriously.

"Noryn, you're wrong about my father. He-" Jadyn started to explain.

"Of course you would take the side of the Goblin King!" Noryn swiftly interrupted and waved a trembling finger in Jadyn's direction. "That just proves that you're evil. _Wicked_. If Theodore Gale won't help me to defeat you I suppose I'll just have to do it myself!"

"Wow. Déjà vu. He's really not listening to you at all, Jay," Theo commented dryly. "You sure you don't want me to punch him?" The cowboy asked, cracking his knuckles.

"As tempting as that offer is...stay out of this, Theo," Jadyn said sternly. "If I can't get through to my brother using words, perhaps I can reach him another way." He narrowed his eyes on Noryn. "I suppose I'll have to beat some sense into you, Brother!"

"Die, King of Monsters!" Noryn raised his hand so that his palm was facing Jadyn, and from out of the palm of his hand five foot-long icicles shot out and flew towards Jadyn like bullets.

Jadyn raised his hand; palm upwards, and calmly conjured a ball of fire. He threw the fireball at the oncoming ice spikes. When the fireball hit the ice spikes they were melted instantly.

"Fire..." Noryn sneered with obvious disdain. "That's _Dark_ Magic."

Jadyn raised an eyebrow. "Why? Because it's _destructive_ magic? Your ice magic is just as deadly when you use it the way you just did. I don't see that much of a difference. All you 'Good Wizards' are a bunch of hypocrites. If you're evil - own it." Jadyn smirked.

Noryn bristled at the warlock's brazen attitude. "Shut up! You know nothing, you insolent worm. You're just a stupid monster!"

A flash of hurt crossed Jadyn's face. "You're right. I am a hideous monster." Jadyn unsheathed Marzanna and pointed it at Noryn. "But do you want to know who was an even greater monster? Your father King Caidyn!"

Noryn held out his right hand and using his magic he formed a sword made entirely out of enchanted ice. "Father?" Noryn scoffed. "What does he have to do with this?"

"Everything! You fool!" Jadyn snapped, rushing forward, and attacking Noryn with his sword.

Noryn raised his own sword and blocked Jadyn's first attack. "Why don't you enlighten me then, Jadyn?"

"You never noticed _the bruises_ on our mother's face?" Jadyn prompted as he continued to swing and slash his sword at Noryn. "I suppose you were too young. You must have been only four-years-old when Mom decided to run away from her abusive husband - King Caidyn."

Noryn's eyes flashed with anger at the insult to his father's honor. "How dare you make those lies!"

"Do you remember our mother as being...happy?" Jadyn pressed, and swung his sword horizontally towards Noryn.

Noryn raised his sword and easily blocked the attack. "Happy? Of course, she was happy..." Noryn's brow furrowed as he tried to recall the earliest memories he had of his mother Orabella.

Noryn's earliest memory ended up being of Orabella crying and hugging Noryn to her chest. The memory brought a frown to Noryn's face and he shook his head. _No. It can't be. Mother was happy with us, wasn't she?_ Noryn tried to recall a moment when his mother had ever laughed or smiled. But there was no such memory...

Jadyn watched as the blood started to drain out of Noryn's face. He was finally managing to reach his brother. "Our mother was gravely injured the day she apparently fled into the woods. The direwolves would have eaten her, but she was rescued by goblins and taken to the Goblin King, Irvine Verdant."

"Rescued?" Noryn couldn't help but scoff at the idea of a bunch of goblins saving a human woman. "They would have eaten her."

"But they didn't eat her, did they?" Jadyn raised his eyebrows expectantly. "Or else she never would have been able to return to the Northern Kingdom."

"That's...true," Noryn reluctantly agreed.

"Irvine cared for our mother and nursed her back to health," Jadyn recounted in a wistful tone. "They fell in love."

Noryn burst out laughing. "Now I know you jest, brother. Our mother was beautiful. How could she fall in love with an _ugly_ monster?"

Jadyn flinched even though the insult wasn't necessarily directed towards him. "Because our mother Orabella was kind above all else. She left the north so that she could live and love freely. She wanted to be able to choose whom she gave her heart to. Mom was able to look past Irvine's outer appearance and fall in love with the man he was on the inside. Irvine was just as surprised as you are that Orabella fell in love with a monster."

"How do you know all this?" Noryn asked, giving Jadyn an intent look. "You spoke to Irvine?"

Jadyn nodded stiffly. "On my eighteenth birthday King Caidyn finally decided to tell me the truth of my origins. His version of the truth anyways. He told me the Goblin King had raped our mother, and I was the spawn of that unwanted union. I immediately decided to go to the west to kill the Goblin King. And I did. But not before I learned the truth about how Orabella and Irvine had loved each other, and of how she'd run away from Caidyn and his drunken beatings. King Caidyn is the true villain of this story!"

Noryn lowered his sword, but shook his head in a show of disbelief. "How can this be true? How can I believe you?" He asked softly, his voice laced with despair.

Jadyn mirrored his brother's actions and lowered his sword. "Why don't you look inside my head and see my memories. Then you won't be able to deny the truth."

Noryn blinked. "You would trust me enough to allow me access to your mind? I could destroy it, if I so chose to do so."

"I'm...willing to take that risk," Jadyn said, raising his chin.

"No!" Theo suddenly objected. He stomped over to Jadyn, grabbed the mage by his shoulders, and shook him. "Dude! You can't seriously be thinking of letting him use his magic mumbo jumbo on your mind, can you?"

"If I don't let him do this now we'll be at each other's throats forever," Jadyn said grimly. "We'll be fighting this never-ending battle that we shouldn't even be fighting. This needs to end. I'm sick of us trying to kill each other on sight."

Theo searched Jadyn's gaze and saw the determination there. He let out a resigned huff. "Alright. Fine. If you really want to do this then...do it." Theo let go of Jadyn's shoulders and turned to regard Noryn. "If you hurt him...I'm going to beat your ass until you cry for your mommy." Theo punched his open left palm with his right fist.

"I believe you, Chain Breaker," Noryn said with a stiff nod and then returned his attention to his half-brother. "Very well, Jadyn. Let's see this truth you speak of." The Good Wizard willed his ice sword to disintegrate in his hand before he approached Jadyn and stopped only when he was standing a foot away from him. Noryn reached his hand out, prepared to place it on Jadyn's forehead, when-

A katana blade was suddenly at his throat.

Noryn turned wide blue eyes to Tina. "Yes?"

"If you hurt him..." Tina's voice was cold as ice. "I'll have your head."

Jadyn was strangely touched by both Theo and Tina's show of concern for his well being. "Tina..." he murmured softly.

"Awwww!" Theo said loudly. "You see, Jay? She really _does_ care." He waggled his eyebrows at the warlock.

Tina sputtered even as a blush rose to her pale cheeks. "I don't... _care_. It's just if the King of Monsters is killed...the monsters will become leaderless and are more likely to run amok and go on a killing spree." Tina met Jadyn's questioning gaze. "Plus Theo would be sad if you died, Mister Warlock. He'd probably cry like a baby for days." The corner of Tina's mouth twitched into a lopsided smile. "And I really don't want to have to deal with that."

"Hey!" Theo objected in a scandalized tone.

Noryn glanced between Theo and Tina intently. He was still surprised that these heroes seemed to be concerned for Jadyn. Maybe his brother _had_ changed. "I give you my word that no harm will come to him. You need not worry your pretty little head, Tina Woodcutter."

Tina removed the blade from Noryn's throat and took a step back. Noryn placed his hand on Jadyn's forehead, closed his eyes, and concentrated. He needed to focus on finding the memory that contained Jadyn's encounter with the Goblin King.

Noryn let his magic zero in on the memory, and then it started to play like a movie inside of his mind. Noryn watched as Jadyn tried to kill Irvine, and how the Goblin King started to suspect the real identity of the Wicked Warlock and lowered his guard. Noryn cringed as he watched Jadyn take advantage of that moment to stab Irvine through the heart. That's when Irvine started to tell Jadyn all about what really happened between him, Orabella and King Caidyn.

Stunned by the truths he was learning, tears started to stream down Noryn's face, and he pulled his hand away from Jadyn's forehead. He'd seen more than enough. He clenched his hands into fists at his sides. If his father, King Caidyn, weren't already dead - having been recently eaten by a dragon while on a quest - Noryn would have been tempted to seek out his father and exact retribution for his mother. "You were telling the truth," Noryn said with a mystified expression on his face.

"Indeed," Jadyn said.

"My father, King Caidyn, was a bastard," Noryn snarled.

"Oh, yes," Jadyn agreed.

"He tricked you into killing your own father," Noryn said, and his expression turned sympathetic and a little guilty. "I'm sorry."

Jadyn's eyes widened at the unexpected apology. "There's no reason for _you_ to apologize, Noryn."

"Yes, there is!" Noryn objected, slashing his hand through the air in an angry gesture. "The way I treated you all this time...is unforgivable. Father and Reginald influenced me, but that's no excuse. I looked up to Father. I wanted to be like him. I emulated him thinking that I was emulating a hero. I was unwittingly emulating a villain. I'm such a fool." The Good Wizard shook his head sadly and he hung his head in shame. "Some Good Wizard I turned out to be." When he looked up to meet Jadyn's startled gaze his eyes were haunted. "You were right. I'm nothing but a hypocrite."

Jadyn had to lower his head to conceal the startled expression that was on his face. Even in his wildest dreams he never expected Noryn to apologize to him like this. It was unreal. But looking at Noryn's guilty expression he had the sudden urge to comfort his half-brother. He and Noryn had something in common after all. They'd both loved their mother dearly. "No. You are a good wizard, Noryn. A great wizard even. I've always admired your skill in magic and swordsmanship, Brother."

"What is power without heart?" Noryn questioned more to himself than to Jadyn. "Evil. That's what. I...I need to reassess some things." He raked a shaky hand back through his short, white, wavy hair. "I need to think. I need...to go."

"Alright. I understand," Jadyn said, his voice laced with disappointment. This was the first time he and Noryn weren't at each other's throats and his brother was already distancing himself from him again.

"Hey, wait!" Theo called out to Noryn as he turned to go. "Before you go...I think you brothers should hug."

Jadyn and Noryn's expressions both grew horrified by the suggestion.

"What?" Jadyn muttered darkly.

"Inconceivable," Noryn added.

"I think it would do the both of you a lot of good." Theo was nodding to himself. "You're brothers and you've both forgiven each other. That's growth right there. Oh, come on, hug it out, you two."

Tina placed a hand on Theo's arm and leaned in to hiss in his ear, "Are you _trying_ to get yourself killed, Cowboy?"

Jadyn was backing away from the group. "I believe that's _my_ cue to leave. Farewell all." The warlock waved his hand in a twirling motion and teleported away back to his castle in a cloud of green smoke.

Theo pouted as Jadyn escaped. "Someone's afraid of their feelings." The cowboy shrugged carelessly. "Oh well. Whatever." Theo's attention turned to Noryn and Tina and he spread his arms wide. "Group hug?"

Tina rolled her eyes and that's when she noticed a small puddle of blood on the floor. She crouched before it, and inspected it. "When did you injure Jadyn, Good Wizard? I didn't think any of your attacks got past his defenses," she addressed Noryn.

Noryn frowned down at the puddle of blood in confusion. "They didn't. Perhaps, he coughed up that blood? He's always been sickly."

Theo folded his arms over his chest as he glared down at the blood. "Well, if he did we weren't around to see that. At any rate, I doubt it's anything too serious or else he would have asked us for our help, right?" Noryn and Tina's expressions were completely blank and Theo didn't find that to be very reassuring. "Er...moving on. What time is it?"

Noryn waved his hand through the air, and chanted the words of a spell. A golden clock appeared, floating in midair, and showed the time. "Ten o'clock."

"Oh crap!" Theo slid a hand down his face. "We need to get back to the Emerald City pronto. Leona's very first concert is scheduled to begin at ten. It's going to be smashing, baby."

"I'll teleport you all back to the Emerald City at once," Noryn offered in an amiable manner.

"I appreciate it. Thanks, bro." Theo shot the Good Wizard a cheeky grin. "It'll be nice to be back in the Emerald City. This place of yours gives a new meaning to the expression 'blue balls'." The cowboy cupped his crotch to make his point.

Noryn shook his head at Theo in disgust. "Are all _Americans_ as crude as you?"

"Not really. I'm just special," Theo bragged proudly.

"Foretold Savior of Oz, my ass..." Noryn muttered to himself and rubbed at his temples with his index fingers. "I can't believe I had a prophetic vision about this perverted imbecile saving the world."

Theo and Noryn were engrossed in their bantering, and failed to notice how Tina dipped her fingers into the puddle of blood that was on the floor. Worry swirled in her gray-blue eyes, and her lips dipped into a thoughtful frown. "Jadyn..."

To be continued in...Chapter 3:

### Chapter 3:

Theodore Gale was at a Pop Idol concert. The female singer was dressed in a tight, retro, pink and yellow, one-piece cat suit that left very little to the imagination. There was a thick belt with silver sequins on it around her waist that sparkled in the stage lights. Her long golden hair had temporary pink streaks in it, and her golden eyes were accentuated by pink eye shadow. Completing her glamorous look were a pair of silver platform shoes, and large silver hoop earrings.

The idol's microphone was covered in glittering, silver rhinestones. As she sang, the idol danced, and behind her was a group of background dancers. The backing dancers were wearing black cat suits decorated with silver rhinestones. Since they were dressed all in black they didn't overshadow the main singer. Fireworks and other special effects accompanied the idol's performance giving it some extra _pizazz_. The spectators seated in the stands were waving glowsticks from side to side.

And, no - Theo _wasn't_ back on Earth. He was _still_ in Oz. This was Leona's first big concert in the Emerald City. Theo wiped a tear from his eye in an overdramatic fashion. "Leona would make Beyoncé proud."

Anne, who was seated next to Theo, shot her boyfriend a questioning look. "Who is Beyoncé?"

"She is one of the greatest American Pop Idols ever known. Everyone's heard of Beyoncé, and listened to her songs at one point in their lives. She's a true star where I come from. But Leona would definitely give Beyoncé a run for her money." Theo's attention shifted back to Leona, who was dancing sexily up on stage. "Mmhm. Shake that booty, Lion Girl."

Anne's eye twitched in irritation. She was feeling strangely jealous as her attention returned to Leona too. Leona and Theo had slept together. Theo was _her_ boyfriend now, but when they'd first met Theo had warned her he wasn't a one-woman kind of man. She nibbled fretfully on her bottom lip. "Theo, do you think Leona is pretty?" Anne asked while trying to keep her tone casual.

Theo shot Anne a questioning look, and raised an eyebrow at her. Of course, he thought Leona was pretty. What kind of question was that? The lion girl was drop-dead gorgeous. "Of course, I think-" Theo was saying when he noticed the light in Anne's eyes dim. "I mean, she's pretty and all, but you're _beautiful_." He reached out, stroked her cheek, and flashed Anne a charming smile.

Anne's dark eyes lit up with hope. "Really?"

"Yeah, baby," Theo readily assured her. "Besides, I've always had a thing for redheads. The best heroes have a feisty redhead on their arm: Mary Jane Watson, Jean Grey, Black Widow, Pepper Potts, Mera..." Theo ticked the names off on his fingers one by one as he recalled the girlfriends that the most popular superheroes had off the top of his head. "They were all feisty redheads."

A lopsided smile formed on Anne's face. There Theo went with his pop culture references again that made entirely no sense to her, but Anne didn't really mind. She was more amused than irritated at this point. "Well, I'm glad I was born a redhead if you think that. At any rate, that was definitely the right answer, Cowboy. You deserve a prize." Anne leaned over and pressed her lips against Theo's.

Theo melted into the sweet kiss. _Safe!_ That had been close. He _really_ didn't want to screw up his relationship with Anne. He'd never met anyone quite like her before: kind, brave, and brilliant.

When Theo opened his eyes and glanced over Anne's shoulder he noticed that Tina was watching them kiss with a sad, wistful look on her face. Theo put his hands on Anne's shoulders and gently pushed her back. He shot the cyborg assassin an apologetic look. "Sorry for the P.D.A. Tina."

Tina arched an eyebrow coolly at Theo. "P.D.A?"

"Public Display of Affection," Theo clarified.

"Ah. No. I don't mind. It's nothing..." Tina trailed off, and started to nibble on her lower lip as she tried not to think about that puddle of blood that Jadyn had left behind at Noryn's castle.

Theo grew concerned about Tina, but Anne ended up distracting him. "We'll just have to continue this when we're alone and don't have an audience," Anne purred suggestively.

A wolfish grin spread across Theo's face at that brilliant suggestion. "Yeah, baby, yeah!" He chuckled when he realized he appeared to be channeling his inner Austin Powers again.

Ozlyn was seated to Tina's right, and spoke in a low voice so that only the cyborg would hear her next words. "Tina, I made you something." She handed Tina a device, which resembled a wristwatch.

Tina took the device and looked at it curiously. "What is it?"

"Put it on and see," Ozlyn instructed.

Tina strapped the device around her right wrist. Instantly, a digital readout was displayed on the tiny black screen, and the numbers were bright red. It was currently reading: 80.

"It's a heart rate monitor," Ozlyn started to explain. "It should help you to protect your artificial heart. You need to try and stay within 60 to 90 beats per minute. If you start to go above 90 you need to rein in your emotions. This device will help you to not accidentally overexert your cursed heart."

Tina ran a finger over the device's screen thoughtfully. "Thank you."

"I heard you encountered Jadyn in the north," Ozlyn commented in a nonchalant manner.

Tina's heart started to pound inside of her chest, and she watched as the numbers displayed on her heart rate monitor increased tellingly.

95...96...97...

"Our encounter was brief," Tina said in a droning tone. "And insignificant."

Ozlyn gazed into Tina's eyes searchingly, spotted her barely concealed emotions, and her expression turned stern. "Tina, you need to stay away from him. It's for your own good. If you fall in love with him, you'll-"

However, at that moment a loud and tremendous explosion rocked the entire concert hall. Theo wrapped his arms around Anne as he tried to instinctively shield her from the blast. Theo's gaze was immediately drawn to the large, gaping hole that had been blasted into the outer wall of the building.

The hole was big enough that Theo was able to see the green glass and steel skyscrapers that dominated the cityscape. Dust and smoke filled the air, making it hard to breathe, and to see what was really going on. Theo turned his full attention to his girlfriend. "Anne, are you alright?"

Anne was coughing softly, but she gave Theo a reassuring smile. "Yeah. Thanks for protecting me."

A breeze blew in from the outside clearing the dust and smoke from the air. Theo was now able to see what had happened to the seats directly next to them. Hundreds of tiered seats had simply been blown away, and the actual seats looked like they'd been melted and were still smoking. Theo's gut clenched when he realized that all of the people who'd been sitting there only seconds before...had been disintegrated.

There were splotches of blood that used to be human beings. "What the hell was that? What just happened?" Theo clenched his hands into fists out of anger. That had happened _right next to him_. Hundreds of people had been killed in the blink of an eye, and Theo had been unable to do anything to stop it. People were screaming and crying out in a mixture of fear and confusion all around them.

Theo's inner turmoil was disrupted by the booming sound of approaching footsteps. The heavy footfalls were so loud and thunderous that they caused the seat beneath Theo to vibrate. Then through the hole in the wall a giant, fifty-foot-tall robot started to enter the concert hall.

The robot had a feminine appearance due to the silver facemask it was wearing that had a dainty nose and full lips. The robot had a thin waist, ten-foot-long claws, and in the very center of its chest was a glowing, blue orb that looked strangely familiar to Theo. Etched onto its arms and legs were various glyphs and runes that were glowing and pulsing with a blue-tinged light. The sight of those runes caused Theo to frown and a chill of unease crawled up his spine. _Magic?_

The silver facemask was very similar to the one that Tina used to wear, except obviously much bigger. "Friend of yours, Tina?" Theo quipped.

Tina shook her head in denial. "No. But...it must be one of Dr. Doppelganger's creations."

"It looks like the love-child of the Iron Giant and The Destroyer," Theo muttered to himself.

Beneath the mask that Ozlyn was wearing the blood was draining out of her face as she gazed up at the giant robot. "Impossible. He made it. But how? No energy source exists that can power a robot that large. Unless..." Her eyes narrowed upon the glowing blue orb in the center of its chest. "Of course, dragon heart orbs. Why didn't I think of that?"

Theo shot the Sultry Sorceress of Oz a questioning look. "Hey, Mom, is that thing supposed to be the Peacekeeping Robot you and Dad were working on? Because it sure as hell doesn't seem to be very peaceful to me."

"Yes. That's my design," Ozlyn confirmed in a grim tone. "Dr. Doppelganger is definitely behind this attack."

"Well, it's got to have some kind of weakness, right?" Theo prompted.

Ozlyn shook her head helplessly. "It has no weakness. All we can do is run. You're no match for that thing, Theo."

Theo gawked at his mother in disbelief. "Run? But-!"

A woman's horrified scream filled the air and caught everyone's attention. Theo followed the sound of the scream and spotted a woman backing away from the approaching robot, her eyes wide in terror. "No! Stay away!" The robot reached out and wrapped its clawed hand around the woman. At first, Theo thought that perhaps the robot intended to take a hostage. But then-

The robot closed its hand into a tight fist.

And completely pulverized the woman.

Anne sucked in a shocked breath as blood sprayed out of the robot's metal hand in a gruesome fashion. Theo felt bile rise up his throat and swallowed it down. The robot had just killed that woman. His body began to shake in anger. "Why? Why would Dr. Doppelganger come here and just start killing innocent people! What the fuck?"

At this point, everyone inside of the concert hall was fleeing towards the nearest exits. The occasional scream rent the air as someone accidentally stepped on a puddle of blood that used to be a human being.

"How could Father build that thing?" Theo asked, his voice laced with hurt and disappointment.

The robot tilted its head in a creepy manner, and set its sights on another innocent civilian. This time, a young man. The robot reached its hand out towards the man as the young man turned around and started to run in the opposite direction. "Help!"

"I can't just stand around and watch this shit!" Theo exclaimed, as he stood up from his seat and took off running towards the robot.

"Theo!" Anne called after him concernedly as she watched Theo make his way down the narrow aisle between the tiered seats, and scramble over smoking debris and large pieces of cement that had been blown into the concert hall from the initial blast attack.

Theo was trying to climb a particularly large piece of debris to reach the young man when the robot's hand wrapped around him first. "No!" Theo yelled. "Don't do it!" The robot clenched its hand into a fist and pulverized the man.

Theo slammed his fist down onto the piece of cement out of frustration. "Dammit! I'll never forgive Father for this." Theo's eyes burned and he glared at the robot. "Stop! You monster! Argh!" Theo scrambled over the cement slab and ran towards the giant robot. As soon as he was close enough he sent a punch towards its leg with his gauntleted right hand.

The anti-magic gauntlet caused the magical energy shield that had been surrounding the robot to dissipate, but the robot kept moving with a whirring sound. It was now operating on electricity, and not magic. Theo's punch, which had been made with his full strength, had barely made a dent in the robot's gold titanium alloy exoskeleton.

The robot looked down, tilted its head, and focused on Theo before sending a backhanded slap Theo's way. The metal hand connected with Theo's body, and sent him flying through the air.

"Theo!" Anne called out again, and took off running towards her boyfriend. She was determined to help him in any way she could.

"Miss Scarecrow!" Tina called after Anne, her voice laced with disbelief. "Where are you going? It's too dangerous! Shit." The cyborg assassin took off after Anne, leaving Ozlyn behind.

Ozlyn stood up from her seat and stared around at the death, chaos, and destruction in horror. "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds. Oh, what have I done?" she moaned in despair.

"Hello, Janie, my love," a deep male voice whispered in her ear.

"Dex-!" Ozlyn spun around to confront him, but Dr. Doppelganger held a rag doused with chloroform to her nose and knocked her out cold. As her body slumped forward, Dr. Doppelganger caught her in his arms, and smiled triumphantly beneath his metal mask.

By this time, Anne had reached Theo and was helping him into a sitting position. "Ugh. She has a hell of a bitch slap," Theo joked weakly.

"Theo, we need to move-" Anne was saying, but faltered when she looked up to see that the giant robot was already directly in front of them and reaching one of its clawed hands out towards them.

_We're toast._ Theo thought.

At that moment, Tina appeared directly in front of them with her katana raised before her. She was using her samurai sword to block the hand and pushing it back. Unfortunately, the robot closed its hand around Tina's sword until the blade shattered.

Tina leapt backwards and stared down at what was left of her katana blade in shock. "My sword..."

"Dang, even Tina is no match for that thing!" Theo remarked.

Anne stood up, removed a potion vial from her utility belt, and threw it at the robot's hand. "Take this!"

The vial shattered and green liquid splashed over the metal hand. The acid immediately started to eat away at the robot's fingers. Theo felt a bubble of hope rise inside of his chest. Maybe they'd discovered the robot's weakness after all. However, right before their eyes the robot's hand began to regenerate the damage the acid had caused until its hand was solid once more.

"Holy shit. How is it doing that?" Theo muttered aloud.

"Nanomachines," Tina informed him. "Dr. Doppelganger must have perfected the technology he was working on. They have incredible regeneration abilities. We would need barrels of acid to be able to do any lasting damage to that robot."

Anne pouted. "Well, it was worth a shot. Anyone else have a bright idea?"

The robot grew distracted by the group of backing dancers that tried to run past and behind the robot as they made their way to the nearest exit. The robot abruptly spun around, reached out, and grabbed one of the dancers who let out an ear-piercing scream. The robot closed its hand into a fist and pulverized the dancer with an audible squish.

Theo cringed at the sound. For the first time since Theo had arrived in Oz he felt truly helpless. He'd gotten so used to winning fights with just one punch. But he was truly no match for a giant robot. It was just too big. And it was killing people. People were _dying_.

Until now, being in Oz had been like being in a happy-go-lucky fairytale. Theo came to a sudden realization. _I can't do this alone. I need help. Jadyn._

The Wicked Warlock of the West would know what to do. Theo turned to address his friends. "Anne, Tina, I want you both to go to my mom's throne room and use her portal device to travel to Jadyn's castle. Ask Jadyn for his help and bring him here. He's our only hope."

"Do you really think Jadyn will help us?" Anne asked in a skeptical tone.

"As long as Tina asks for his help...then yeah," Theo said casually. "Oh, and take Leona with you. I think Jadyn might be injured and need healing. I'm not sure. Stubborn bastard never asks anyone for help."

"Alright." Anne nodded reluctantly. She still found it hard to trust the warlock who'd terrorized her village for so many years, and who'd strung her up in the middle of a cornfield so that she'd be torn apart by crows. "What about you? What are you intending to do?"

Theo pushed himself up off the ground, and dusted himself off. "I'm going to keep that robot bitch busy for as long as I can."

"You're no match for it." Anne shook her head. "You should come with us."

"No. I won't let another person die at the hands of this thing," Theo said firmly, and gave Anne a lopsided smile. "Don't worry about me. I have a way with the ladies." The cowboy's expression turned serious again. "Jadyn is our only hope. He'll know what to do. And he's probably powerful enough to stop this thing on his own."

"Placing our hopes in the hands of a villain is crazy," Anne chided reproachfully. "But I believe in your judgment. You've never been wrong before with your crazy plans. Come on, Tina. Let's find Leona. She's got to be hiding around here somewhere."

Tina's left cybernetic eye glowed with a neon-blue light as she used her x-ray vision to search the surrounding area for any sign of Leona. Tina spotted the lion girl hiding behind some speakers and pointed at her. "She's over there. Behind those speakers."

Anne ran towards the speakers and made her way around them. "Leona, we need your help."

Leona straightened from her crouched position, and raised her chin even though her entire body was trembling out of fear. "Okay. What do I need to do?"

***

Jadyn felt like shit. The wound on his side that had been inflicted by King Bellwort's dagger wasn't healing no matter what Jadyn tried. He'd tried healing potions and various counter-spells, but neither method had worked. At this point, he knew without a doubt that the dagger had been cursed.

The curse was pretty straightforward, and basically ensured that Jadyn's wound didn't heal. This meant he was basically bleeding out, and that if he didn't find a way to break the curse soon he'd simply bleed to death.

Jadyn wondered if he was unable to break the curse because his healing magic was weak. Healing magic was Light Magic and Jadyn's affinity was Dark Magic. At any rate, he was out of healing potions that had at least been replenishing the blood he kept losing because of the ongoing curse.

The rest of his healing potions had been distributed to the troll army and the direwolves for the injuries they'd sustained while fighting Noryn's snow golems. Jadyn currently lacked the ingredients to brew more healing potion, and even if he did have the ingredients he lacked the strength to leave his bed at the moment, and try to brew a potion.

Jadyn knew that there were most likely two goblin guards posted at his bedroom door. He could call out and ask them for help. But in the end, what could they really do for him? If his own magic wasn't powerful enough to break the curse he doubted that any of the goblins or tolls would be able to help him.

Besides, he lacked the motivation to try and save himself. He'd done what he set out to do. He'd freed the goblin slaves in the north. Living had become a hassle. He didn't really have anything to live for. And life had become a struggle that he wasn't sure was worth fighting. The world would be better off without him, and no one would miss him or even notice he'd died anyways...

As Jadyn wallowed in self-pity, he wondered if Theo and his friends would even notice that he hadn't shown up to Leona's concert. He'd received the lion girl's invitation, and had been surprised by it. He'd planned on going, but in his current state he couldn't go even if he wanted to. Would Theo and his friends come looking for him after the concert? One touch from Theo's anti-magic gauntlet may be able to break the curse. Or Leona's enchanted singing could work just as well.

Oh, who the hell was he kidding? _No one will come. No one cares about me. No one will miss me when I'm gone._

Jadyn lay on his bed on his uninjured side, his body curled around a small potted marigold. The marigold was his best friend Marie. "I know _you_ care about me, Marie. You know...I got to see Tina again. She no longer wears that metal facemask. No longer hides her beautiful face." Jadyn pouted. "I don't think she likes me very much. She's always glaring at me. I wonder if she holds it against me that I've killed her sisters. She's so...powerful, deadly, and capable. A woman like that would never fall for a monster like me. What do you think, Marie?"

"..."

"You're a great listener," Jadyn said with a lopsided smile after a beat of silence. "What would I do without you, Marie?"

"Who's Marie?" a droning female voice reached Jadyn's ears.

Startled, Jadyn instinctively grabbed the potted marigold, sat up, and gawked at the three young women that were suddenly in his bedroom. "Tina!" Jadyn's expression turned aghast. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Since 'you're a great listener'," Tina said. Jadyn let out a sigh of relief and his shoulders sagged. "So, who's Marie?" The cyborg prompted insistently.

"That's a pretty flower," Leona said, eyeing the potted plant Jadyn was cradling to his chest in a rather protective manner. "Is that a marigold?"

Tina's eyes narrowed on the little yellow flower and her expression turned condescending. "Marigold? Oh, I see."

Jadyn knew that Tina was mocking him and flushed out of embarrassment. "What are you women even doing here in my room? It's inappropriate for a woman to be inside of a man's bedchamber like this without a proper chaperon," he scolded them.

Anne's sharp gaze was focused on the bloody white bandages that were wrapped around Jadyn's stomach. She clucked her tongue. "Theo was right. You _are_ injured. You idiot. You're up, Leona."

Leona blinked, and a flash of nervousness crossed her face before it settled into determination. The lion girl opened her mouth and began to sing while concentrating on willing Jadyn's wound to heal.

Jadyn gasped as he felt his flesh knitting back together. The wound was finally healing, and he let out a sigh of relief. He'd barely realized how much pain he'd been in until it suddenly faded. He looked down to see that the wound was glowing with a golden light that seeped past the bandages. When the light faded, Leona stopped singing.

With trembling hands, Jadyn removed the bandages from around his lower torso, and inspected his side. The angry black lines that had marred his flesh from infection were gone, and the wound was completely healed. Leona's enchanted singing was certainly powerful. He poked at his newly healed flesh. There was only a tiny, barely visible scar left behind. "Impressive, Lion Girl." He looked up, met Leona's nervous stare, and smiled at her.

Leona was having a hard time keeping a straight face since without the bandages wrapped around Jadyn's torso his bare chest was on display. "His nipples are green." She started to giggle.

Jadyn flushed and placed his hands over his nipples self-consciously. "Did you women come here just to ridicule me?" he snapped in a high-pitched voice.

Anne snorted as she tried to contain her laughter and Leona started to laugh even harder. Tina was having a very different reaction to Jadyn's nakedness than her friends, however. When Tina had first encountered Jadyn he'd been lanky, but now he was leanly muscled. Her heart was starting to beat madly inside of her chest as she ogled him. Obviously, he'd been concentrating on strength training, as of late, and with noticeable results.

Tina couldn't stop herself from raking her eyes over his six-pack abs, and a blush rose to her pale cheeks. Her heart rate monitor started to beep warningly at her. It now read: 110.

Jadyn glared suspiciously around the bedroom as he tried to figure out where that irritating beeping sound was coming from. "What is that infernal racket?"

Tina covered her heart rate monitor with her left hand. "N-Nothing."

Jadyn narrowed his eyes at her immediately. In order to hide her unease, Tina frowned and glared at Jadyn's nipples. Jadyn's expression fell at her disgusted expression. Did she find him so revolting?

"Jadyn, we need your help," Anne said with a note of impatience. "Theodore is in trouble. A giant robot is running amok at the concert hall and killing people indiscriminately."

Jadyn huffed and folded his arms in front of his chest. "Not my problem."

"Theodore is no match for it. He'll _die_ ," Anne stressed with an urgent look on her face. "In fact, he could already be dead..." She bit her lower lip at the thought and a tiny, red bead of blood formed there.

Jadyn cringed, but forced a sharp smile to spread across his face. "Good riddance. That cowboy was nothing but trouble. I'll finally be able to have some peace and quiet around here again."

"You don't really mean that," Leona said in a serene tone. "Theo was really worried about you. You guys are friends."

"Monsters don't have friends," Jadyn scoffed.

Anne let out an exasperated sound and threw her hands up into the air. She shot the cyborg an expectant look.

Tina stiffened at the look Anne was giving her, but took a deep breath and approached the bed. "Jadyn, please, help us. That robot even managed to break my sword's blade. We can't do this without you. You're our only hope." She shot Anne a questioning look.

Anne mouthed: 'Puppy dog eyes.'

Tina gave her an incredulous look, but Anne just mouthed the phrase again, and the cyborg let out a resigned sigh. _I can't believe I'm about to do this._ She turned back to Jadyn and let her eyes widen and her lower lip tremble.

Jadyn sat up a little straighter at the desperate, pleading look on Tina's face. " _You_ need _my_ help?" he said in disbelief. "Well, alright, fine. Since you _desperately_ need my help, and because I'm your _only_ hope. I suppose, I can lend you girls my assistance. Just this once," Jadyn grudgingly agreed with a scowl on his face.

"You _are_ our only hope," Leona said earnestly.

"Thank you, Wicked Warlock," Tina said with a small smile, and a twinkle in her gray-blue eyes.

Jadyn started to smile back at her before Anne rolled her eyes and muttered loudly: "Men. So predictable."

A vein at Jadyn's temple throbbed in irritation at Anne's comment, but he decided to get out of bed. While still holding his potted marigold, Jadyn summoned some clothes from his pocket dimension while visualizing them in his mind. His black, Victorian-style suit appeared on his body first, followed by his usual black, pointy, wide-brimmed hat, and high-collared cape with its green lining.

The suit was something Theodore Gale had designed for him, and even though Jadyn preferred his loose-fitting, black robes, Jadyn found he liked the posh suit. The main reason Jadyn was wearing it though was because Theo's words were ringing in his mind: _No woman can resist a man in a smart suit_. Jadyn wondered if Tina would think he looked...attractive. _A man can dream_ , Jadyn thought wistfully to himself.

The warlock kept his eyes on the floor as he approached the three unusual women, his cape billowing out behind him and showing off its deep, emerald-green lining. He heard one of the girls suck in an appreciative breath, and smirked to himself as he held out his arm. Maybe Theo had been right. "Grab on, ladies. I'll teleport us to the concert hall posthaste."

The three young women placed their hands on Jadyn's arm, and he teleported them to the concert hall in a cloud of green smoke. The group materialized on the stage just in time to see the robot smacking Theo with its enormous, clawed hand, and sending him flying through the air.

Theo spun through the air, head over heels, and landed on a pile of smoking debris and cement rubble before skidding across it. The group watched as Theo struggled to push himself up off the ground. He was in pretty bad shape. Cuts and bruises could be seen on his exposed flesh, and he swayed on his feet as he struggled to remain standing.

Anne frowned when she caught sight of his tattered shirt. "Another shirt I'll have to mend. And do you know how hard it is to get blood out of clothes?" When Theo turned his head to spit some blood onto the ground though, Anne blanched, and her irritated expression turned concerned. "Theo!"

Theo wiped his mouth with the back of his left hand, and his gaze pinned on his group of friends. His tired, bleak expression turned hopeful and relieved when he caught sight of Jadyn. "Oh, thank Jesus."

Jadyn stiffened, immediately feeling uncomfortable with that kind of hopeful look directed towards _him_ of all people. The warlock approached the edge of the stage and hopped down onto what used to be a section of tiered seats, but was now just a pile of rubble. "You look like shit, Cowboy," Jadyn drawled as he approached Theodore and the giant robot looming right behind him. "Allow me to handle it from here."

Jadyn's left hand was cradling his potted marigold to his chest, and so it was with his right hand that he conjured a fireball and threw it towards the robot.

The melon-sized fireball hit the back of the robot's leg and caused it to stumble forward, but other than that it appeared to have no effect. Although Jadyn had managed to successfully draw the robot's attention to him. The warlock stared up at the large, ten-foot-tall silver mask that reminded him of the mask Tina used to wear when she'd been in Dr. Doppelganger's employ.

"Hmm. No effect." Jadyn tapped his lower lip pensively. "Perhaps, a larger fireball will do the trick." He raised his right hand and summoned his magical power before concentrating on conjuring an enormous fireball. He held the fireball high above his head. It grew larger and larger as Jadyn poured his magic into it until it was five-feet-wide. "Farewell, Tin Monstrosity."

Jadyn launched the fireball in the direction of the robot. The fireball flew through the air and hit the robot's chest, and for a moment the robot appeared to be on fire. Jadyn smiled widely, showing off his teeth. "All too easy."

However, the flames were suddenly extinguished. "What...? How is that possible? The metal should have melted at that temperature. It must be impervious to fire. What kind of metal is that? Or is it protected by some magical charm?" Jadyn muttered darkly to himself.

A whirring sound filled the air as the robot started to gather its energy for an attack. The orb on its chest started to glow and pulse. The runes that were etched onto its exoskeleton glowed with a blue light too, and Jadyn narrowed his eyes at the magical symbols.

Abruptly, a single eye socket opened on the metal facemask, and Jadyn could see the swirling blue energy gathering behind the mask. The robot looked like a Cyclops now. The light grew brighter until the robot released an energy beam Jadyn's way.

Jadyn raised his right hand and quickly summoned an energy shield to protect his body. _An energy attack. I should have known._

The beam hit Jadyn's shield, but with enough force that the warlock was sent flying backwards. A startled cry was wrenched from Jadyn's lips as he fell back and hit the ground hard. He lost his grip on the potted plant he was carrying, and when the pot hit the ground it shattered.

"Marie!" Jadyn exclaimed, looking down at his poor marigold as it sat on the ground on a small pile of dirt with the broken shards of its pot scattered around it. The warlock shot a hateful glare the robot's way. "Oh, you'll pay for hurting my _best friend_!"

Theo pouted. "I thought _I_ was your best friend."

Jadyn stood up, raised his hand, and chanted the words of a spell. A gray cloud started to form above the robot. Thunder boomed in the cloud and then Jadyn slashed his hand down through the air. " _Fulmen Ignis_!" A bolt of lightning shot down from the cloud and hit the robot. As the robot started to spark Jadyn thought to himself: _This has to work_.

After the robot stopped sparking, however, it started to power up again, apparently gearing up for another attack. Jadyn's hopeful expression fell. _Impossible._ It had been completely unaffected by thousands of volts of electricity coursing through it. It should have caused a short-circuit at the very least. _That robot is a creation of magic and science. It is going to be tricky to defeat._

The large eye on the metal mask started to glow again and another energy beam was released Jadyn's way. Jadyn was about to dodge the attack when he remembered Marie. "Oh, shit. Marie." Jadyn crouched in front of the flower and shielded it with his arms. He also hastily threw up a magical energy shield to protect them both.

Theo's jaw dropped open when he saw what Jadyn was doing. "Jadyn! Get out of there, you moron! It's just a flower!"

"Marie is _not_ just a flower," Jadyn snapped back.

At that very moment, hundreds of vines shot up out of the ground and started to wrap themselves around the giant robot. Jadyn, Theo, and the others watched in awe as the vines coiled around the robot's legs, torso and finally its head.

Theo thought this attack looked promising until tiny yellow flowers bloomed all over the vines. The cowboy scrubbed a hand down his face, and groaned. "Oh my God..."

But then, a loud crunching sound filled the air, and the metal limbs of the robot began to bend and get crunched by the constricting vines. Lastly, the vines crunched the robot's head, which exploded in an impressive shower of sparks. That last attack had successfully destroyed the robot's brain chip. The robot started to topple over and crashed to the ground with a tremendous thud.

"Uh..." Theo scratched his cheek. "What just happened?"

Jadyn was staring down at his marigold in shock. He noticed how the marigold had sunk her roots down into the ground. He snorted. He'd wanted to protect Marie and yet Marie had ended up protecting him. His vision was getting blurry for some reason.

With a wave of his hand Jadyn used his magic to reassemble the broken pot. He scooped up some dirt and dumped it into the bottom of the pot. Marie seemed to sense when the pot was ready for her to return to it because the vines retreated back into the ground and got sucked back up into the tiny marigold flower. Jadyn carefully scooped up the flower and replanted her. "Thank you, Marie," he said in a husky voice thick with emotion.

"Marie?" Theo's voice was loud, disbelieving, and right next to his ear.

Jadyn jumped at the unexpected close proximity. "Ack!"

Theo raised an eyebrow at the potted plant Jadyn was cradling to his chest. "Don't tell me that daisy saved our asses?"

Jadyn scowled. "Marie is _not_ a daisy. She's a marigold. And since she saved your life I believe you should treat her with the proper respect."

"And how the hell do I do that?" Theo asked.

"Call her 'Miss Marie' and thank her for saving you, of course," Jadyn said dryly.

"I can't believe I'm about to do this..." Theo muttered to himself before turning and facing the flower. "Er...sorry. Thank you for saving my life, Miss Marie."

Jadyn shot Theo a bewildered look. He was actually surprised the cowboy had decided to play along.

"Can it...I mean, _she_ , talk?" Theo asked with an intent look on his face as he peered down at the tiny yellow flower.

Jadyn snorted. "Flowers can't talk, you fool."

"Hey!" Theo objected. "I've encountered trees here in Oz that can talk and even throw apples at you if you piss them off!"

Jadyn blinked. "Ah, yes...well, the ancient trees in Oz _are_ indeed able to talk. But they don't usually reveal this to just anyone. You must have really angered them." An amused smile curled Jadyn's lips. "All the plants in Oz are sentient and possess magic."

Theo let out a thoughtful hum. "So it's a _magical_ flower and not a mutant flower?"

"Mutant?" Jadyn questioned with a furrowed brow.

"I just thought it might be some kind of mutant plant which is why it had unusual, super-human strength that was able to destroy that robot," Theo explained, glancing at what was left of the robot.

"It is _magic_ which gives plants their unusual strength in Oz," Jadyn concurred.

Theo stroked his chin. "I wonder if _this_ is why Mom didn't allow any plants, trees, or flowers to be planted inside of the Emerald City."

"Ozlyn is being way too overprotective of the city," Jadyn huffed. "Sure, plants in Oz have a will of their own, and they _can_ be dangerous, but for the most part they are incredibly passive and peaceful."

Theo glanced between the robot and the marigold in an exaggerated fashion. "Peaceful, huh?"

Jadyn grew defensive. "Marie only did that to protect me. This was a highly unusual occurrence. Plants tend to stay out of 'human affairs'." The warlock looked down at his flower. "Isn't that right, Marie? You just wanted to protect me from that Tin Monstrosity," he cooed at the flower in what Theo was shocked to note was a baby voice.

Tina was watching Jadyn talk to the flower with raised eyebrows. She couldn't help but think it was rather cute that the warlock's best friend was a small yellow flower. _Jadyn is so sweet and caring. I mean, insane. Definitely, insane._ Tina gripped the sides of her head as she tried to get her thoughts under her control.

"Miss Marie sure is amazing," Leona commented brightly.

"And he's talking to the flower..." Theo muttered and shook his head. Would the wonders in Oz never cease?

Jadyn felt Tina's eyes upon him, and when he turned to her he noted that she was glaring at him again. "What?" he snapped in a defensive manner.

"N-Nothing," Tina quickly looked away, unable to meet Jadyn's piercing green stare.

"You think I'm crazy, don't you?" Jadyn snarled, his hackles rising due to his low self-esteem. "For being friends with a flower."

"Why should I care if your best friend is a flower?" Tina said carelessly.

Anne was nibbling on her lower lip as she glanced around the concert hall and took in the sight of the smoking rubble and debris. "Hey...where's Ozlyn? Did any of you see her escape?"

"I left Mom right up there..." Theo was saying as his gaze went to a section of tiered seats. A section of seats that was no longer there. Instead, all that was left were melted seats and puddles of blood. Theo paled and tried to remain calm, but he started to breathe irregularly. "You don't think she's...?" He swallowed a lump of rising panic. "Dead?" He'd fallen unconscious for a minute or two during his fight against the giant robot. Had his mother been killed during this time?

Jadyn noted that Theo was on the verge of a panic attack and placed a hand on the cowboy's shoulder in a reassuring gesture. "Do calm yourself, Theodore. I shall scry for her." With a wave of his hand, Jadyn summoned a large crystal ball that was three-feet-wide. The crystal ball materialized on the ground in front of them.

Jadyn waved his right hand over the crystal ball and chanted the words of a locator spell. The green smoke within the crystal ball swirled until an image formed of the inside of a laboratory. Strapped down to a metal examination table was Ozlyn. There was another examination table directly next to her and lying on it was a female-shaped robot body.

The group watched as Dr. Doppelganger appeared inside of the crystal ball and he approached Ozlyn. The mad scientist was wearing a white lab coat, black hooded cloak with a silver lining, and metal facemask.

"Why are you doing this?" Ozlyn demanded as Dr. Doppelganger came into her line of sight. "What do you want from me, Dex?" She struggled against her bonds, but her resistance was futile.

Dr. Doppelganger leaned over, reached out, and removed the white porcelain mask that had been concealing Ozlyn's face. The scientist started to stroke Ozlyn's bare cheek. "You're still so beautiful. But you _are_ aging." He brushed his thumb over the crow's feet around her blue eyes. "You have wrinkles now, and there is gray in your hair. Humanity's greatest flaw is their mortality. But I have discovered a solution for that." The scientist walked over to the robot body lying on the bed. "And that is something I like to call technolyzation."

"Technolyzation?" Ozlyn echoed in a hollow tone.

"It is the process of transplanting the human brain into a robot body, and then using magic to ensure your soul stays inside of your brain," Dr. Doppelganger revealed with a proud note to his voice. "Within your new undying body you will be immortal."

"You're going to kill me," Ozlyn gasped out in horror.

Dr. Doppelganger shook his head. "No. I'm not going to kill you. I'm going to save you."

"Why?" Ozlyn demanded.

"I've realized that I can't live without you, Janie," Dr. Doppelganger said. "I tried to...for so many years. But, no longer. I need you. I love you. And I will make you fall in love with me again once you're in your new body."

"That's never going to happen. Do you think I can forgive you for all you've done?" Ozlyn snapped.

"There will be nothing to forgive because you won't remember anything," Dr. Doppelganger informed her. "One loses their previous memories during the technolyzation process. It's a regrettable, but in this particular case it is actually a beneficial side effect of the procedure."

"Why a completely robotic body, though? You won't be able to make love to me in that body, Dex..." Ozlyn questioned, her scientific curiosity getting the better of her.

"I've learned a lot from my experiments on your clones," Dr. Doppelganger began. "As long as the clones could feel pain and pleasure with their bodies it affected their emotional state causing sadness or happiness, respectively. The conclusion I have come to is to get rid of pain and sadness...the body has to go."

"So you're alright with sacrificing pleasure and happiness?" Ozlyn said through gritted teeth.

"The closest thing to happiness is peace," Dr. Doppelganger declared. "And in your robot body you will no longer be able to feel physical pain. You won't get hungry. You won't get tired. You can exist peacefully without conflict. Let's face it, my dear, human emotion has always been a weakness that drives people to do illogical, destructive things. It was Tina who helped me to realize that. The only thing worth salvaging from the human body is the brain and the immortal soul within it."

"You're a monster," Ozlyn said with a tremor in her voice. Her gray-blue eyes started to fill with tears. "You're brilliant, and yet you understand nothing of the gift called life."

"It is _you_ who doesn't understand," Dr. Doppelganger snapped with obvious irritation. "I'm doing all this for the evolution of humanity, and more importantly the evolution of the soul. This body..." The mad scientist opened and closed his hand into a fist in a thoughtful manner. "Is merely a temporary vessel used for the evolution of the soul. Now, we will have more time to gain even more wisdom and experiences that will help our souls evolve to the _next level_."

"How dare you? You're playing God," Ozlyn shook her head in a reproachful manner. "Did you ever stop to think that there must be a good reason why we only get a century in these temporary human bodies to evolve our souls? We don't know what really happens once we transition from the physical plane to the spiritual one. Instead of advancing humanity and the soul's evolution you could just be hindering it."

"Perhaps," Dr. Doppelganger said airily. "But in the end...no one _wants_ to die. Even suicidal people don't want to die - they just want the _pain_ to stop. Humans fear death, and do you want to know why? It's because they lack faith in God and in an afterlife. They even question the existence of the soul. The fools!" The mad scientist chuckled darkly.

"We were ignorant fools too. Don't you remember?" Ozlyn said softly. "Before we came here, and magic opened our eyes to a whole new world we knew nothing about."

"Yes, yes," Dr. Doppelganger waved his hand through the air in a dismissive gesture. "But we are the enlightened ones now, my dear. Besides, I'm _glad_ that they are all foolish because it will make things easier for me. I will be able to use that fear to control them. Back on Earth, it will be very easy to convince everyone to become technolyzed in order to gain immortality - their only escape from death, at least, in their eyes. The allure of being immortal will be too much for them to resist! And as their savior I will become their Supreme Ruler. They'll treat me like a god. No. I will _become_ their god! A new age has come...the age of technolyzation!"

Ozlyn's lips dipped into a thoughtful frown. "What about all of our work on artificial intelligence? We used to think _that_ was the next phase of human evolution. We planned to digitize the human brain and to make ourselves immortal in cyberspace."

"That was before we confirmed the existence of the soul, my dear," Dr. Doppelganger said. "Digitization would not have been true immortality because the soul would have been lost. It simply would have created a soulless copy. The human brain is more complex than you can possibly imagine. It's simply perfect. None of the brain chips I created ever came close to such complexity. So much untapped potential. Right now, most humans are only using a small percent of their brain. But, in your new robotic body you will be able to tap into more of it. The possibilities are endless. I made a mistake when I replaced the organic brains of some of my cyborg assassins with brain chips. They were obedient, yes, but ultimately primitive. They were failures."

"Speaking of, where _are_ your cyborg assassins?" Ozlyn glanced around the laboratory curiously. Usually, Dr. Doppelganger was accompanied by at least two of them at all times.

"I disposed of them," Dr. Doppelganger revealed in a chilling tone. "I got all of the data I needed from my experiments on them, and so they were no longer needed. They have become obsolete."

Ozlyn sucked in a shocked breath. "You _killed_ them? _All_ of them?"

"Yes," Dr. Doppelganger confirmed without a shred of remorse. "All expect for one...that remains in the company of our son, Theodore. But her time will come soon enough. As will Theodore's."

"I won't let you lay a finger on _my_ son!" Ozlyn warned, and she renewed her struggles against her bonds until the metal cuffs around her wrists began to cut into her flesh.

"Ah, but soon you won't even remember him, my dear," Dr. Doppelganger reminded cruelly. "Perhaps, I'll have you kill him for me. He'll be no match for you in your new robotic body."

"No!" Ozlyn shrieked. "I'd never...! You can't!"

Dr. Doppelganger started to laugh manically. "Buwhaha! I can...and I will. Let's begin. Shall we?" He walked over to a stainless steel table, and picked up a small, electric handsaw. The mad scientist pressed a button on the metal handle, and the circular, serrated blade began to spin with a whirring sound. He turned and started to approach Ozlyn.

Ozlyn's eyes widened with fear and she started to shake her head in denial at what was about to happen to her. "No! Stay away! Help! Someone, help me!"

Theo couldn't take it anymore. "Jadyn! You have to do something! Save my mother! Please! I'll do anything!"

Jadyn frowned. "I...don't think there's anything I can do from here."

"What about some kind of shield spell?" Theo persisted.

"Shield spell...?" Jadyn stroked his chin in thought and nodded. "A stasis spell could work." The warlock started to chant the words of a spell and Ozlyn's body started to glow with a green and gold light. In seconds, an energy shield formed around her body like a cocoon. Ozlyn's eyes closed as she fell into suspended animation.

Oblivious to the spell that was now protecting Ozlyn, Dr. Doppelganger lowered the handsaw towards Ozlyn's forehead, but when he neared her flesh the saw hit the energy shield causing it to flare brightly and reveal itself.

A deep scowl formed on Dr. Doppelganger's face beneath his metal mask. "What's this?" He pressed the saw against the shield again, and caused golden sparks to fly into the air. "A stasis spell. Who...? The Wicked Warlock of the West, Jadyn! How dare he interfere! Where...?" The mad scientist started to look around the lab wildly.

Jadyn swiftly waved his hand over the crystal ball, canceling his scrying spell, and the image of the lab, Dr. Doppelganger, and Ozlyn disappeared.

"Thank you, Jadyn," Theo said, his hands clenching and unclenching into fists at his sides. "How long will the stasis spell last?"

"As long as I remain alive the spell will hold," Jadyn assured. "And the spell can only be broken by me."

"Then we have plenty of time to go and rescue her," Theo said brightly.

"We?" Jadyn drawled. "Trying to infiltrate the east would be folly. I'm not going."

Theo's hopeful expression turned stricken. "But you have to come with me. I can't do this alone. I need you."

"Theodore, I don't think you understand the situation your mother is in." Jadyn waved his hand over the crystal ball and the green smoke swirled until it revealed the Silver City, which was located in the Eastern Kingdom, and ruled by Dr. Doppelganger.

Silver City was entirely populated by 200,000 robots, and the humanoid-shaped Tin Men and Tin Women could be seen walking down the sidewalks. The cyborg assassins used to live there as well until Dr. Doppelganger disposed of them. The buildings were modern skyscrapers made of glass, steel, and cement.

Theo felt like he was watching a black and white movie as Jadyn's crystal ball showed different views of the city since it appeared to be void of color. There were no plants, trees, or flowers. It was worse than the Emerald City, which at least had colorful hologram plants, trees and flowers.

Dr Doppelganger's castle, which was a combination of modern and medieval architecture, stood in the center of the city, and was well protected. An enormous, hundred-foot-tall wall surrounded the city, and positioned outside the wall were one hundred giant robots that Dr. Doppelganger called his Tin Goliaths.

"As you can see, there are 200,000 six-foot-tall robots within the city, and outside the city there are 100 of those fifty-foot-tall giant robots," Jadyn started to explain grimly. "Dr. Doppelganger has been a busy bee. I'm sorry for giving you false hope. Your mother...is lost."

"How large is your goblin army now?" Theo asked.

"With the additional forces I collected in the north - 50,000," Jadyn said.

"And the trolls?" Theo asked.

"Another 50,000," Jadyn said, narrowing his eyes at the cowboy. "Theo, I know where you are going with this, but even with the combined forces of my goblins and trolls we'd still be outnumbered two to one. And that's not even counting the giant robots."

"Maybe Noryn would be willing to help us?" Theo mused aloud. "I wonder how many snow golems he can make..."

Jadyn started to laugh and kept on laughing. The idea of his brother helping them to rescue Theo's mother was ludicrous.

Theo sank to his knees in front of Jadyn and pressed the palms of his hands together as if in prayer. "Please. I'm on my knees here. Do you want me to grovel? Because I will. You're smart and powerful. I _know_ you could come up with a wicked master plan to defeat Dr. Doppelganger and his robot army. Do you want me to lick your boot? Because I will." Theo crawled forward across the ground and tried to lick Jadyn's boot.

Jadyn looked down at Theo with an appalled expression on his face. He quickly backed away from the cowboy before Theo's tongue could reach out and lap at the toe of his boot. "Will you stop that!"

Theo just looked up Jadyn with a pleading look on his face. "It's my _mom_. And I just got her back..."

The word 'mom' immediately conjured up memories of Orabella singing him to sleep. If Orabella was still alive and in trouble...Jadyn knew he'd do everything in his power to save her. It was too late for him to save his own mother, but it wasn't too late to save Theo's.

Jadyn sighed and rubbed his temples. He could feel a headache coming on. The warlock scowled down at the image of Silver City inside of the crystal ball. "There's just no way..." He couldn't help but note that just like in the Emerald City there were no plants. "Paranoid lunatic, as if the plants..." Jadyn's eyes widened as he trailed off. "Wait. That's it. I think I have an idea." A grin spread across Jadyn's face. "A wicked idea."

Theo smiled lopsided at the warlock. "Now we're talking."

To be continued in...Chapter 4:

### Chapter 4:

Reginald the Good Wizard of the South stood before a full-length, oval-shaped mirror with a gilt frame admiring his handsome reflection. His golden-blonde hair was loose, cascading around his shoulders in waves, giving his face with its straight, Roman nose and full lips an almost angelic appearance. He was wearing a white suit decorated with golden embroidery, a white lace cravat, gold waistcoat, and a white cape with a gold lining.

The white suit made Reginald look even taller than his impressive height at six-five. Like most wizards in Oz he was wearing a pointed hat, but his had a narrow brim when compared to Jadyn's. Even though he was fully clothed, it was obvious that beneath his suit Reginald had a muscular physique that exuded power and strength.

"Mirror, Mirror, on the wall, who in Oz is fairest of all?" Reginald questioned in his silky voice with a twinkle in his sharp, intelligent, ruby-red eyes.

The surface of the mirror rippled like a pond that had a rock thrown into it and stilled to reveal the image of a beautiful woman. She had a pale, oval-shaped face, and her black hair was styled up into a heart-shaped bun on the very top of her head. The woman was wearing a black and gold gown with the pattern of red hearts on it. "The most handsome man in all of Oz continues to be you, Good Wizard Reginald," the woman purred in a husky voice.

Reginald smirked. "But of course, Cordelia."

"Although..." Cordelia continued in a pensive tone. "Theodore Gale is quite handsome."

The Good Wizard visibly stiffened. "What? Who is this...Theodore Gale?"

"Surely you have heard of him, Your Majesty?" Cordelia's tone was slightly condescending. "The Foretold Savior of Oz. The Chain Breaker. Oz's _greatest_ hero..."

A vein at Reginald's temple throbbed in irritation. "Greatest hero? _I_ am Oz's greatest hero! I don't usually concern myself with the affairs of other men. You know that, Cordelia. I only concern myself with the affairs of beautiful women. All the women in Oz should love me and worship me as their hero."

"Theodore liberated Munchkin Village and Demi-Human Village from Dr. Doppelganger's tyranny," Cordelia started to explain. "And he even liberated Toy Village from the clutches of the Wicked Warlock of the West, Jadyn. After that, Theodore managed to convince Jadyn to help him protect the Emerald City from a surprise attack made by Dr. Doppelganger and his cyborg assassins. Theodore Gale is incredibly _charismatic_."

"Jadyn played the part of the hero?" Reginald scoffed while giving Cordelia an incredulous look. "My pathetic, useless, weakling brother?"

" _Half_ -brother," Cordelia smoothly corrected with a cunning glint in her dark eyes.

"What are you talking about?" Reginald narrowed his eyes at Cordelia.

"Jadyn has recently been seen walking around with green skin," Cordelia informed him. "There are rumors that Jadyn is half-goblin or even just a mere hobgoblin that has been masquerading as a human all this time."

"Then that would mean a goblin raped Mother and afterwards she decided to give birth to that devil's spawn," Reginald sneered, his lip curling in disgust. "Or I suppose it could also mean that Mother was a whore who had a thing for monsters." The wizard's shoulders lifted in a careless shrug. "No matter. I don't really give a damn which is true. I bet Jadyn looks hideous with his green skin now." The corners of Reginald's lips lifted into a happy smile. "That is most excellent. But it does bother me that he's trying to play hero. The title of Oz's greatest hero belongs to me! I believe it's high time I did a little rescuing, Cordelia."

"Since Jadyn became the King of Monsters things have been rather peaceful in Oz, as of late," Cordelia informed Reginald in an apologetic tone. "Villages are no longer being attacked by monsters, and so no one needs rescuing at the moment."

"I see..." Reginald said, grinding his back molars. "How unfortunate. If a threat doesn't exist...I suppose I'll just have to create one. Show me how my orcs are doing, Cordelia."

The surface of the magic mirror rippled and then stilled to reveal an underground fighting pit filled with two hundred orcs. The orcs in Oz were half-pig half-human monsters. Their heads resembled that of a pig and their bodies resembled that of a man.

Reginald had trapped over a thousand orcs in the fighting pit, and had left them on their own for thirty days without food or water. Now, only two hundred orcs remained. The orcs were still fighting each other in a desperate, ravenous frenzy. Reginald watched as an orc went down, and his opponent pounced and started to eat the fallen orc.

A triumphant and sinister smile curled Reginald's lips. His plan had worked perfectly. The orcs had gotten so desperate and mad with hunger that they'd become cannibals. "They're ready. I've successfully turned them into dangerous monsters. They'll do anything I say now as long as I promise them food. Now, where to begin?" The wizard rubbed his hands together gleefully as he started to come up with a rather devious plan that would cause pain and suffering to the Ozians, but ultimately make him look like a hero.

***

Meanwhile, Jadyn, Theo, Anne, Leona and Tina were currently traveling south towards Reginald's Kingdom, but also towards Dryad Forest. Jadyn had a plan to defeat Dr. Doppelganger and his robot army, and it had something to do with the dryads, but Jadyn wouldn't tell Theo anything else in case Dr. Doppelganger had spies watching them.

Even so, Theo was incredibly thankful for Jadyn's help in rescuing his mother, and had faith in any plan the warlock had come up with. He trusted Jadyn's judgment, and that he knew what he was doing.

Theo was currently mounted on Toto while Jadyn was mounted on a broom and flying beside him. The girls were riding horses that liked to change the color of their coats every few minutes. It was amusing to watch. "A horse of a different color..." Theo muttered to himself in amusement.

Toto let out a jealous snort at the attention Theo was paying the other horses. Theo patted Toto's neck and chuckled. "Gray is a perfectly respectable and handsome color, Toto."

An amused twinkle formed in Jadyn's eyes. "If you want I can change your horse's coat to pink?" He waggled his fingers in Toto's direction as if about to cast a spell.

"Don't you dare," Theo warned, and then his expression turned serious before he spoke to Jadyn in a low voice. "How can I ever repay you?"

Jadyn arched an eyebrow at Theo. "I haven't rescued your mother _yet_. And you have nothing I want, Cowboy."

Theo gave the warlock a searching look. "What _do_ you want?"

Jadyn couldn't stop himself from glancing at Tina before quickly looking away. "N-Nothing..."

Theo noticed, however, and a knowing grin spread across his face. "I should have asked ' _who_ ' do you want. You want Tina, don't you?" he whispered conspiratorially.

"That's preposterous," Jadyn sputtered, but his cheeks were starting to turn brown. "Besides, she doesn't appear to like me very much." He hung his head and his shoulders hunched in a dejected manner. "I think she's angry with me. She's always glaring at me..." A pensive frown formed on the warlock's face.

Theo waved his hand from side to side in front of him in a gesture of denial. "Naw, man. She's just an intense chick. I'm pretty sure she's into you. All you need to do is confess."

"Confess? To what crime?" Jadyn narrowed his eyes dangerously at Theo.

"No, man. That's not what I meant," Theo moaned in exasperation, and scrubbed a hand down his face before shooting Jadyn an irritated look. "I meant, confess your feelings of love to her." Theo's expression turned pensive and he tapped his chin. "You should definitely get her a bouquet of flowers before you do. Women love getting flowers. Too bad they don't sell heart-shaped boxes of chocolates around here. Though I suppose that'd be more for Valentine's Day. Also, dress sharply. That way she won't be able to resist you. Don't wear your dusty, wrinkled robes. Wear one of your new suits."

Jadyn's jaw had dropped open slightly and he was looking at Theo as if he'd grown a second head. Was Theodore Gale giving him romance advice? Did Jadyn really appear to be so clueless when it came to love? Well, Jadyn supposed he really _was_ clueless, and that he could use all the help he could get.

A gift of flowers. Dress nicely. Confess your feelings. That sounded like logical and sound advice. Jadyn decided that he'd confess his feelings to Tina that very night after they'd set up camp before he lost his nerve. "Alright. I'll do it. I'll confess. Tonight." Jadyn swallowed a lump of nervousness and shot Theo a questioning look. "Should I glamour my green skin away?"

"Naw, man," Theo said, and reached out to clap Jadyn on the shoulder in a reassuring manner. "Tina said before that she likes your green skin and that it makes you unique."

"Hmm," Jadyn hummed noncommittally. "If you say so..."

Leona's furry, cat-like ears were twitching on the top of her head. She'd heard the whole plan of Jadyn confessing his feelings to Tina, and ducked her head to hide a smile. _Aw, too cute!_ Leona glanced at Anne and Tina, but the two girls appeared to be oblivious to what was going to happen later. Leona decided to lend Jadyn a helping hand in case he needed it.

Just when the sun started to touch the horizon, Jadyn and the others stopped in order to make camp. It didn't take them long to have a nice fire going that they could use for cooking and which would provide them with warmth and light for the rest of the evening.

Jadyn was seated on a log close to the fire and trying to gather his courage to speak to Tina. He glanced over at her, opened his mouth, but then snapped it shut when he lost his nerve. "I...need a moment." Jadyn abruptly stood up and stalked off into the forest. He looked around to make sure he was alone before he took off his hat, revealing the small potted marigold plant that was sitting on the very top of his head.

Jadyn reached up, grabbed the pot, and brought it down in front of him. "I don't know if I can do this, Marie," the warlock lamented as he spoke to the tiny yellow flower. He was feeling incredibly nervous and his palms were disgustingly sweaty. "What if she rejects me? She'll break my heart. I'll break. No. I'm not weak. I can take her rejection if it comes to that. I'm the Wicked Warlock of the West! The mere mention of my name makes people tremble in fear! What? You'll be there for me, Marie?" Jadyn's expression softened as he looked down at the tiny yellow flower. "I knew I could count on you to give me strength. Thank you." The warlock returned the pot to the top of his head and placed his hat over it again in order to conceal Marie.

Jadyn crouched, placed his hand on the ground, and started to chant the words of a spell. The ground glowed with a green and gold light before thorny vines started to sprout from the earth. The vines grew until buds formed. Seconds later, the buds opened to reveal blue roses. They were the exact same color as Tina's lovely gray-blue eyes. Blue roses didn't exist naturally in nature and could only be created with magic.

Jadyn summoned a dagger to his right hand and used it to cut the roses. He arranged them into a bouquet and wrapped them in a piece of green silk. He'd never given a girl flowers before and he hoped this is what Theo meant. The warlock smiled softly as he looked down at the bouquet of roses in his hands. He hoped Tina liked them.

Jadyn waved a hand over himself as he summoned one of his new suits. He'd decided on a black one with dark green accents, a green cravat, and a grass-green vest that had the pattern of leaves embroidered into it with golden thread. His pointed, wide-brimmed hat was still on his head, and Jadyn debated whether or not his cape would be too much before ultimately deciding to summon his cape too. He was a warlock, after all.

"Jadyn?" Tina's voice reached his ears, and instantly heat rose to his cheeks.

Jadyn spun around to face the woman that he could sense was standing behind him. "Tina?"

"Leona said you might need some help gathering firewood or something-" Tina was saying, but her breath caught in her throat as Jadyn spun to face her. In the sharp, sophisticated, Victorian-style suit Jadyn was wearing he looked like some kind of Goth Prince. _He is a King._ Tina found herself remembering as her heart fluttered due to his unexpected handsomeness. She sometimes forgot that Jadyn was royalty, lived in a castle, possessed riches beyond imagination, and commanded an impressive army of trolls, direwolves and goblins.

In his hands was a bouquet of blue roses. They were magnificent. She felt an unexpected stab of jealousy as she wondered whom they could be for. They were probably for the gorgeous Leona who had several admirers back at the Emerald City.

"Hello, Tina..." Jadyn greeted as he strolled over to her. His back was straight and he had his chin raised in such a way that he exuded confidence. "These are for you." He handed her the bouquet of flowers in a suave manner.

"For me...?" Tina's heart began to beat madly inside of her chest as she accepted the flowers with a dazed look on her face. This couldn't be happening. Not to her. The number displayed on her heart rate monitor began to go up:

95...96...97...

"Why?" Tina asked with a furrowed brow.

Jadyn took a deep breath and stared directly into her eyes. The intense and passionate emotions that were swirling in his emerald green eyes caused Tina to suck in a shocked breath. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you. I've fallen in love with you, Tina Woodcutter. And I want you to become my Queen."

108...109...110...

Tina's heart rate monitor began to beep warningly at her. She wasn't surprised. She felt faint, and her heart was pounding wildly against her ribcage.

_I've fallen in love with you._ Jadyn's words echoed relentlessly inside of her head over and over again.

Jadyn...loved her? _He loves me? He wants me to be his queen? But then...that means he wants to marry me? A clone. An abomination. A monster. Me. He loves me! I'm so happy I...! I lo-!_

128...129...

Tina's vision darkened and she swayed on her feet. She placed a hand over her heart. Her heart _hurt_. It was beating way too fast. She felt dizzy and a wave of nausea washed over her.

_My heart...can't handle this._ Tina thought to herself grimly. _I'll die..._

Ozlyn had tried to warn her about this happening. A chill of fear crawled up her spine. _I don't want to die. Not yet. I can't allow myself to love him. I can't allow myself to feel anything for him. I need to bury my feelings deep and reject him..._

When Tina looked up at Jadyn, her blue eyes were cold and emotionless. She tilted her head and gave Jadyn her best condescending glare. "You love me? Don't make me laugh. You don't even know me. So what then could you possibly love about me? My pretty face? This body?" Tina ran her hands suggestively over her black leather bodysuit and Jadyn gulped. "All of the cyborg assassins had this face. This body. Did you love them too?"

Jadyn opened his mouth to respond, but Tina swiftly continued. "Oh. No. That's right...you _killed_ them. Slaughtered them. My sisters. You're a murderer. A monster. By the way..." Tina tossed the bouquet of flowers up into the air and pointed the palm of her left hand at it. She released a small energy blast the bouquet's way and the flowers were incinerated. "I hate flowers. And I hate you."

Murderer. Monster.

Jadyn's eyes burned as he watched a couple of blue rose petals float down through the air sadly. Her words were like daggers to his heart. He clenched his hands into fists as he tried to rein in his emotions. He didn't want to give Tina the satisfaction of seeing him break down and cry like the pathetic loser he was. "I see. I'm sorry to have bothered you. I'm glad you cleared that up. I was under the impression that you may like me. Please go ahead and forget this ever happened."

Jadyn spun on his heel, and marched off into the woods in order to be alone when he had his emotional breakdown. When Jadyn deemed the distance between him and Tina to be sufficient he let out a yell of frustration and punched the trunk of a nearby tree. "Dammit! I'm such a fool. Why did I believe Theodore? Why did I think even for one second a woman like that could love a monster like me?"

_Murderer. Monster. I hate you._ Tina's cruel voice mocked inside of his mind.

Jadyn punched the tree trunk until his knuckles started to bleed. He placed his bloody hand on the tree's trunk, hung his head, and panted for breath as hot tears streamed down his face.

"Well, what do we have here? A lone hobgoblin?" a female voice questioned.

There was a dark edge to the female's voice that immediately put Jadyn on guard. He scrubbed his tears away with his forearm before turning around to discover that he was completely surrounded by an elven scouting party. _Wood elves._ Jadyn thought as he took in their appearance. The elf males were dressed in green tunics, brown leather pants, and boots. There was only one she-elf with them, and she was dressed in a violet tunic, black leather pants, and boots. Her long, platinum-blonde hair cascaded down past her waist and shone gray in the moonlight.

All of the elves had arrows nocked to their bows that were aimed towards him. The she-elf was standing at the front of the squad and acting like their leader. A ray of moonlight caused something to glitter on the top of the she-elf's head, and Jadyn noticed that she was wearing a silver crown decorated with diamonds. This was no ordinary she-elf. She was obviously royalty. Due to her young age, Jadyn guessed she was an elf princess.

The impetuous she-elf unsheathed a thin sword strapped to her waist, and had it pointed at Jadyn's throat in seconds. "Tell me where the she-elves have been taken, goblin scum," she snarled, her pale, lavender-colored eyes flashing.

Jadyn's brow furrowed in confusion as the tip of her sword brushed against his Adam's apple. "She-elves? I have no idea what you're talking about."

"How dare you lie to me!" the she-elf snapped hotly and she was visibly trembling with anger. "I am Princess Alva of the Wood Elves. You'll regret not loosening your tongue sooner. I _will_ break you." Alva raised her right hand in front of her mouth and blew a cloud of sparkling dust right into Jadyn's face.

Jadyn breathed the dust into his lungs before he could properly react. _Curses!_ _Sleeping dust!_ This was Jadyn's last thought before he lost consciousness and slumped to the ground.

Eyes gleaming with hatred, Princess Alva glared down at Jadyn's fallen form. "We'll take him to the Ozanite mine, and there we will make him talk."

"Yes, Princess," the elf males said before two of them grabbed Jadyn by his arms and hoisted him up off the ground. Alva spun on her heel and started to lead the way through the forest to the Ozanite mine.

***

A few minutes earlier, Tina watched Jadyn walk away from her with a cold, emotionless look on her face. This façade shattered the moment he was out of sight and her expression turned stricken.

Tina hadn't wanted to hurt Jadyn, but it had been necessary. He needed to stay away from her because if he got close how was she supposed to resist him? She couldn't get the image of his hurt, betrayed expression out of her mind, however. His lovely emerald green eyes had been filled with so much sadness.

_Jadyn._ She thought wistfully and her heartbeat started to increase as she thought about him with longing. The number on her heart rate monitor read: 108.

The Wicked Warlock of the West continued to surprise Tina. He'd risked his life to free the goblin slaves in the north. The goblins were no longer slaves. They were free.

Jadyn had also become King of the Trolls. No easy feat. He was incredible. Tina also thought he tried to hide it but he was kind and noble. She didn't mind that he could be a little wicked at times, and appeared to have a penchant for causing trouble, breaking the rules, and instigating chaos.

Currently, Jadyn was helping Theo to rescue his mother Ozlyn from Dr. Doppelganger's clutches. Jadyn didn't appear to be intimidated by the overwhelming odds that were obviously stacked against them. That made him brave in Tina's eyes. And he was a true friend to Theo even if he had at first appeared reluctant to help. In the end, he was there for Theo, and sometimes actions spoke louder than words.

The prospect of having to go up against 200,000 Tin Men and 100 Tin Goliaths, didn't deter Jadyn from coming up with a plan to defeat this robot army. Jadyn was not only powerful magically speaking, he was also very smart. Tina was sure that Jadyn's plan was brilliant.

And when Jadyn looked at her she felt like he was really looking at her, and not through her. She felt like he saw the _real_ her...

Tina had lied.

She didn't hold it against Jadyn that he'd killed cyborg assassins in the past. He'd had to kill them in order to kill Dr. Doppelganger, even if he'd only managed to kill Dr. Doppelganger's clones.

Clones were...expendable. Worthless. Soulless.

Tina hugged herself and sank to her knees in despair. She was expendable, worthless, soulless...

_I've fallen in love with you. I want you to be my Queen._ Jadyn's kind words echoed in her mind painfully and she hugged herself tighter. Her heart was beating frantically inside of her chest, and the heart rate monitor was beeping loudly in warning. 129...130...

Tina started to cry, and placed a hand over her pounding heart. _It hurts, Jadyn. It hurts so much._ The cyborg inwardly moaned before she passed out.

***

Theo, Anne, and Leona were seated on logs that had been positioned around their campfire. The group was waiting for Tina and Jadyn to return before they started cooking dinner. Theo and Leona were both wearing cat's paw smiles on their faces. Theo started to laugh as if at some inside joke and Leona joined him.

Anne raised an inquisitive eyebrow at them. "What's so funny?"

"Tina and Jadyn haven't returned yet..." Theo said while trying to keep a straight face.

"I wonder what could be keeping them?" Leona mused aloud in a singsong voice.

"Someone's getting to third base, at least," Theo joked.

"Maybe even a Home Run," Leona added with a knowing nod.

Anne tilted her head as she regarded her friends in confusion. "Tina and Jadyn are playing baseball? At this hour?" Theo and Leona looked at each other before they both burst out laughing. Anne shot them an irritated look. "Oh, come on, guys, stop acting like five-year-olds and tell me what's really going on."

After Theo had finally managed to stop laughing he wiped a tear from his eye. "Jadyn is going to confess his feelings of love to Tina."

Anne blinked. "Just like that? Isn't that a little out of the blue?"

Theo gave Anne a disbelieving look. "It happened like that between us, Anne. There was just this _spark_ between us. I bet it's the same for Jadyn and Tina."

"A spark, huh?" Anne said dryly. "And here I thought I'd met this horny cowboy who kept getting confused boners for a life-sized doll, and who happened to have a big cock and was passable in the sack, so she decided to keep him around."

Theo's eyes widened and he placed a hand over his heart. "Oh, how you wound me!" he said dramatically. "I may have only felt _lust_ for you in the beginning, but it didn't take long for my feelings to deepen into _love_." Anne blushed at Theo's confession.

Leona's expression turned thoughtful. "A spark...?"

At that moment, several elves entered the clearing. Their bows were raised before them and nocked with arrows which they had aimed Theo, Anne and Leona's way.

"Who dares to trespass into Wood Elf territory?" a handsome male elf demanded in an imperious tone. He had short, snow-white hair and sharp, sapphire-colored eyes. Unlike the other elves that had pale skin this elf had sky-blue skin just like the elves Theo had seen in Noryn's Kingdom.

Theo's gaze was immediately drawn to the elf male's pointed ears. "Check it out! Elves! Real, pointy-eared elves! Anne, I've got this..." Theo stood up, took his cowboy hat off and executed a gallant bow.

Anne rolled her eyes at Theo. "Oh, brother, here we go..."

"It is I, Theodore Gale. The Savior of Oz. Chain Breaker. We're just passing through on official hero business. Very important saving the world stuff. You can thank me later by sending a fruit basket to my pad in the Emerald City." Theo struck a dramatic pose, clenching his gauntleted right hand into a fist, and holding it above his head.

With wide eyes the elves started to lower their weapons, and then began to speak amongst themselves excitedly. "Theodore Gale..." "The Savior of Oz..." "Do you think it's really him?" "Look at his strange clothes. He's definitely not from Oz." "And the funny way he speaks...it must be him." "The women are dressed strangely too." "I heard Theo travels with a cowardly lion girl."

The white-haired elf let out a resigned sigh and lowered his bow. "Welcome, Theodore Gale. My name is Prince Elric of the Ice Elves. I'm currently here visiting my fiancée, Princess Alva of the Wood Elves. You must forgive our earlier rudeness. We're on guard right now due to the recent attacks and kidnappings that have plagued Princess Alva's village as of late."

"We're hunting goblins," another elf male spoke up with a mean glint in his eyes.

Theo gulped. "Goblins? You don't say," he said, trying to keep his tone nonchalant.

"We discovered a hobgoblin in the woods not too far from here. Is he a friend of yours?" Elric asked casually.

"Well, ye-" Theo was saying when Anne elbowed him in his side and cut him off.

"Hobgoblin? We don't know of any hobgoblin," Anne said, letting her eyes widen in fear. "How scary. And he was close by, you say?" She hugged herself and shuddered.

Elric gave her a sympathetic look. "You need not worry, Milady. He's been taken prisoner in order to be interrogated about the whereabouts of the missing she-elves."

Anne let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness." Theo was giving Anne a disbelieving look. Anne noticed and swiftly stomped on Theo's foot. "One of our traveling companions has gone missing. Perhaps, you also encountered her in the woods? She has long black hair with blue highlights."

"Ah, yes...we encountered the cyborg assassin," Elric revealed. "She'd fainted and appeared to be in a lot of pain so we had her taken to our village so she could receive medical attention."

"Oh, wow. Thank you so much for all your help," Anne gushed, placing a hand on Elric's arm and smiling at him. "We were really worried about her. When can we see her?"

Leona noticed that a few of the elf males were checking her out. Probably due to the strange outfit she was wearing which consisted of a silk, leopard-print blouse, tight jeans, a belt with silver and gold rhinestones on it, and black ankle boots. The lion girl smiled shyly, and waved at the elf males causing them to blush.

Leona continued to smile at the handsome elf males until she suddenly noticed the scars on their cheeks. They appeared to be self-inflicted since all of the elf males had similar scars that were just a small, barely visible slash - one on each cheek. _I wonder why they did that to themselves?_ Leona mused, her lips dipping into a frown.

Elric glanced down at Anne's hand on his arm and smirked. "I can take you to see her now. The woods are not safe because of the goblins. We shall be your escort, Milady."

"Thank you. I feel so much safer knowing that...that a big strong elf like yourself is going to be with us," Anne said, stroking Elric's bicep and probably his ego right along with it.

Elric puffed up his chest with pride. "As you should. We will protect you. Elves, let's move out!"

The elf scouting party led Theo, Anne and Leona to Wood Elf Village. _'Village' is using the term loosely_ , Theo thought as he looked around at the teepees that had been set up in the spaces between trees. The elves were living at one with nature there instead of trying to control it.

Unlike the other villages that Theo had visited thus far there was no wall surrounding the entire village. In a clearing in the very center of the village was a large, blazing bonfire where several elves were dancing and singing. They had beautiful voices, though Leona could give them a run for their money. As soon as Theo, Anne, and Leona reached the village they dismounted from their horses. A group of elves approached and took the horses' reins.

"Your horses will be well-taken care of," Elric promised as he gave the young elf males some instructions before they started to lead the horses away to a nearby paddock. Color-changing horses were rare, even in Oz, and it didn't take long before several elf children had gathered around the horses and started to follow after them with obvious excitement.

"Your friend is with our healer. She's this way," Elric said as he led the way, strolling past several other teepees until he finally came to a stop in front of a teepee that had been made out of a white animal skin. Elric pulled aside a leather flap that served as a door, and ushered them inside with a wave of his hand.

As soon as Theo entered the teepee he caught sight of Tina, who was lying on the ground on a bed made out of moss, flowers, twigs and leaves. Tina appeared to be asleep and Theo had to bit his lower lip to stop himself from yelling out her name.

Kneeling next to Tina was an elderly she-elf that had wavy, white hair with scattered braids, and that had been decorated with flowers. The she-elf had few wrinkles on her face, but her sharp, gray eyes shone with ancient wisdom, which made it difficult for Theo to place her age. A necklace of acorns adorned her neck, and matched the brown leather dress she was wearing.

Theo noted that there was a small crystal ball on her lap, which she was gazing into until she noticed Theo's presence, and looked up. "Greetings, Theodore Gale, Anne Raggedy, and Leona Bravehart. I have been expecting you. My name is Elfrida. I am this village's healer and also a witch."

_A witch?_ Theo thought nervously, and his gaze went to the crystal ball on her lap. _Oh, crap. Did she see Jadyn with us earlier?_

Anne approached Elfrida and Tina, and knelt beside them. "What's wrong with Tina?" she questioned, getting down to business.

Elfrida reached out and patted Tina's head. "Poor child. She has a dark curse on her heart."

"A curse?" Theo blurted out in surprise. "Can _you_ break it?"

Elfrida shook her head with an apologetic expression on her face. "I am not powerful enough, but perhaps the Chain Breaker could do it," the elf witch suggested shrewdly.

Theo pointed at himself. "You want _me_ to try and break the curse?"

Elfrida nodded. "Yes. Just place the Ruby Gauntlet over her heart..."

Theo shrugged. "Well, okay. I'll give it a go." The cowboy crouched beside Tina and placed his gauntleted right hand over Tina's heart. A familiar _whooming_ sound filled the air before a swirling, black and red aura appeared around Tina's body for a few seconds before it dissipated.

Theo removed his hand and shot the elf witch a questioning look. "Did it work?"

Elfrida was frowning down at Tina. She sighed. "No. Apparently, the curse was cast using blood magic. That means only the caster of the curse can break it. I recognize this unique magical signature, however. This is most troubling..."

"You mean you know _who_ cast the curse?" Theo prompted.

"Yes. It was the Good Wizard of the South, Reginald," Elfrida revealed, shaking her head. "I don't understand why he would curse this young girl. He is Oz's greatest and most noble hero..."

"Maybe because he's really a dick..." Theo muttered to himself lowly. Jadyn had told him a few stories from his childhood, and how Reginald and Noryn had treated him. Reginald had been even worse than Noryn in his bullying.

Leona's feline ears twitched on the top of her head, and it was obvious that she'd heard what Theo had said, but she made no comment. "Can you wake Tina up?" Leona asked.

Elfrida nodded. "Yes. She's merely asleep. I'm sorry I couldn't be of more use to your friend." The elf witch waved her hand over Tina's face while murmuring a simple spell.

Tina gasped as she awakened, and she sat up before looking around at her surroundings. "Ugh, where am I?" Her gaze landed on Theo, Anne and Leona, and she frowned. Where's-?"

"Hey there, Tina!" Theo interrupted loudly. "Welcome to Wood Elf Village. Can you believe it - real elves? We're currently their guests. They brought us here for our own protection. Apparently, they've been suffering from _goblin attacks_ and there have been kidnappings too."

Tina's gray-blue eyes flared slightly. "Goblins? And these goblins were _seen_?" She directed this question to the two elves inside of the teepee.

It was Elric who responded with a somewhat sheepish look on his face. "Well, no. They made sure to leave no witnesses. The she-elves were simply missing. But we discovered evidence left behind by the goblins that makes it obvious they were behind the attack." Elric took out a necklace that was made out of painted wooden beads and small rodent and bird skulls.

"Are those... _skulls_?" Theo asked with a shudder.

Elric nodded. "Goblin shamans are known for wearing necklaces just like these. Although, I heard they usually make them out of human finger bones."

"Do they now?" Theo asked with a skeptical note to his voice. "And you just found that necklace lying on the ground?" Elric nodded.

"Who was kidnapped exactly?" Tina asked.

"A dozen she-elves have been taken so far." Elric's expression was grim. "It's been several days now. They're probably already dead. Eaten by the goblins. Goblins don't use females for sport very long before they tire of it and succumb to their hunger. We've been trying to find the goblins' lair, but have thus far been unsuccessful."

"When I attempt to scry for the goblin horde the crystal ball shows me nothing," Elfrida explained with a note of frustration in her voice.

_That's because goblins aren't behind this. Elfrida has been scrying for the wrong culprit, which is why her magic can't answer her request. Someone else is behind this._ Theo thought firmly to himself. He was convinced that someone was trying to frame the goblins for these attacks and kidnappings. But the question was - who? And why?

"If we're lucky the hobgoblin we captured earlier will give up their location. My fiancée, Princess Alva, is currently interrogating him. We should have their location soon," Elric said with a note of pride in his voice before he turned his attention to Theo. "How would you like to join us in glorious battle against the goblins, Theodore Gale?"

"Hobgoblin...?" Tina echoed softly.

Theo cringed at the hopeful look Elric was giving him. Why was everyone always trying to convince him to kill goblins? This was beginning to get old. "Uh...yeah. I'd love to join you in slaying goblins. I love goblin slaying. It's one of my favorite pastimes, actually." Theo let out a nervous laugh as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Elric raised an eyebrow at Theo, but looked pleased. "Quite. But enough about our problems. You all must be hungry. We would be honored if you would join us in feasting and dancing tonight, Chain Breaker."

An easy grin spread across Theo's face. "I never say 'no' to a party."

"Glad to hear it," Elric said, giving Theo a friendly smile. "Follow me." The elf prince led Theo and the others to the giant bonfire in the center of the village where most of the elves appeared to be gathered together.

"Prince Elric, may I ask a question?" Leona spoke in a tentative manner.

Elric raised an eyebrow at the beautiful lion girl. "Of course, Milady."

"What is the significance of the scars all of the elf males have on their faces?" Leona asked.

A dark shadow fell over Elric's face and he unconsciously ran his index finger over the slashing scar that marred his own right cheek. "The scars are a mark of our loyalty to the Good Wizard of the South, Reginald."

"Reginald makes you all scar yourselves...just to show your loyalty to him?" Theo asked and shook his head when Elric gave him a stiff nod. "That's messed up, man." The cowboy was going to ask _why_ Reginald made them do that when he grew distracted by the scent of cooking fish reaching his nose.

Freshly caught fish had been skewered on sticks that had been stuck into the ground around the bonfire. The elves were dancing around the fire and singing. Theo took a seat on a log close to the fire, and the girls joined him. As soon as they were seated they were approached by elves who generously started to hand them food and drinks.

As soon as Elric was sure that his guests were well taken care of, he left to speak to one of his scouts about how the interrogation on their prisoner was going.

As soon as Tina was sure that the elf prince was out of earshot she spoke to the others in a low voice. "What the hell is going on? Where's Jadyn?"

"Apparently, he was captured," Anne revealed while nibbling on a fish and keeping her gaze straight ahead. "It's pretty obvious that he's the 'hobgoblin' they mentioned earlier."

Tina's eyes flared in alarm. "Which means he's being interrogated for the whereabouts of the goblin horde, as we speak."

"They seem pretty sure that goblins are responsible for the disappearances of the she-elves," Leona said in a tentative manner, taking a sip of juice from a wooden cup she was holding in her hands.

"Which is bullshit," Theo said firmly.

"We have to do something..." Tina said. "Where was he taken?"

Anne shrugged. "They didn't mention where. We're going to have to find out before we can rescue him."

"If we're going to rescue Jadyn from these elves...we're going to need some kind of plan," Theo said, taking a big bite out of his cooked fish on a stick.

"Just give me a minute," Anne said with a smirk. "I'll think of something." The wheels in her brilliant mind began to turn.

***

Jadyn awoke to a bucket of ice-cold water being thrown in his face. He coughed and sputtered, and blinked water out of his eyes.

"Wakey-wakey!" a mocking female voice reached his ears. Princess Alva was standing directly in front of Jadyn with a furious look on her face. Jadyn's gaze went to the long black whip she was holding in her right hand and gulped.

Jadyn quickly took stock of his current situation. There were thick shackles around his wrists attached to chains that dangled from the ceiling and that were keeping Jadyn's arms spread and raised over his head.

Jadyn immediately tried to yank on the chains to test how securely they'd been attached to the cave's ceiling, but they didn't budge an inch. It probably didn't help that he felt weak. Weaker than usual.

Jadyn glanced around the cave suspiciously, and spotted the cause of his discomfort - red crystals known as Ozanite were sticking out from the cave's wall. Ozanite had the ability to drain magical energy. Wizards and warlocks were known to grow tired simply from being within close proximity to Ozanite crystals. And as luck would have it, Jadyn appeared to be in a cave that was full of the abominable stuff.

_So much for my ingenious escape plan of simply teleporting away._ Jadyn thought grimly. "How did you know I was a warlock?" he asked in a gruff voice. His throat felt as dry as sandpaper.

"The pointy hat on your head kind of gave you away," Princess Alva said dryly.

Jadyn gave the elf princess a grudging nod. "Indeed."

Princess Alva started to circle Jadyn, looking him over with a critical eye. Jadyn flushed when he realized that he'd been stripped down to his waist. Only his pointy hat, black pants and boots remained on his body. "I've never encountered a goblin wearing a suit before. You have surprisingly good fashion sense. With it on you looked _almost_ human. But you can't hide what you truly are - a monster. Still, you're obviously smarter than the run-of-the-mil goblin, so you must be their leader."

"Whose leader?" Jadyn questioned in a snarky tone.

"The goblins that have been terrorizing my people!" Alva snapped hotly. "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm referring to. Your people have been sneaking into the Wood Elf Village at night...killing males and kidnapping females."

Jadyn shook his head in denial of this accusation. "All of the goblins in Oz are currently in the west. There should be no goblins this far south..."

"Except for _you,_ of course...?" Alva said pointedly.

"Indeed. Except for me," Jadyn agreed with a casual air. "Now, I'd appreciate it if you unchained me. I really must be on my way. I have rather important matters to attend to."

A flash of anger crossed Alva's pretty face. "You think I'd just let you go? That I'd just _believe_ you? Trust you? A goblin. An _evil_ monster. I'm not that naïve. I'm certain you know where the goblin horde is hiding. And you're going to tell me where they are. Or else." Alva tightened her grip on the whip's handle.

Jadyn sighed. "I already told you the goblins are in the west-"

"Lies!" Alva shrieked, raised the whip, and with a flick of her wrist sent the whip flying into Jadyn's back.

Jadyn's whole body flinched in pain as the whip hit his bare back. The blow hurt and stung. "Dammit! I am telling you the truth, you infernal woman!"

"That was merely your punishment for daring to lie to me," Alva said, a glint in her lavender-colored eyes. "Now, this is your last chance. Be honest with me. Tell me the truth. Where is the goblin horde?"

"Whatever kidnapped the she-elves weren't goblins-" Jadyn started.

"More lies!" Alva snapped. "All you spout is lies. You'll have to be punished for those lies until you're more inclined to speak the truth." The elf princess approached Jadyn and stuffed a rag into his mouth. "I think twenty lashes should help to loosen your tongue."

Jadyn glared at Alva heatedly as she circled around him and stopped when she was standing directly behind him. Alva raised her whip and with a flick of her wrist sent the whip cracking into Jadyn's back. "That's one."

Jadyn winced at the pain and grit his teeth. The crazy she-elf continued to whip his back until the blisters that had started to form burst and began to bleed. When her whip connected with the oozing wounds the pain was excruciating, and Jadyn screamed through the gag in his mouth.

Princess Alva looked pleased with this reaction and stalked around to stand in front of him before yanking the gag out of his mouth. "Ready to talk, goblin scum?"

His eyes burning with unshed tears, Jadyn glared at the she-elf. "I _have_ been talking. But someone is too stubborn to listen. Goblins weren't behind the attacks on your village. Something _else_ was. I'm telling you the truth. You're wasting your time with me when you could be pursing the real culprit. You could be rescuing your fellow elves, but apparently you don't care much about them when you're wasting your time torturing me, you sadistic bitch!"

"How dare you speak about them!" Alva shrieked. "They were my friends!"

"Were?" Jadyn drawled. "You've already written them off. You've given up on them. You think they're dead. You should be out there looking for them, you little fool."

"How dare you lecture me when you're the one behind these attacks to begin with! My friends...because of you...my friends are...!" Alva let out a roar of outrage and stalked behind Jadyn again. "You will pay for hurting my friends!" She raised her whip and started to whip Jadyn's back again and again.

"You stupid she-elf. I'm telling you the truth!" Jadyn growled.

"Silence, goblin scum! Who would believe the word of a hideous monster! This is just what you deserve! To have the flesh whipped off your back until you bleed to death! This is justice for what you did to my friends!" Alva said as she continued to whip Jadyn's back. "I'm going to make you scream, monster!"

Jadyn ground is back molars and struggled not to scream as the pain continued to rain down on his back. He didn't want to give this crazy elf princess the satisfaction of hearing him scream again. With each lash of the whip Alva hurled another cruel insult at him, calling him a monster, goblin scum, and hideous.

Monster. Goblin scum. Hideous.

These words echoed mercilessly within Jadyn's mind. That's all anyone ever thought when they saw him with his green skin.

Jadyn started to laugh...

Alva paused in her whipping to shoot Jadyn a confused look. "What the hell? Why are you laughing? How dare you make light of this situation! There are lives at stake here!"

But Jadyn just laughed harder.

***

Theo was enthralled by the barefoot, pointy-eared she-elves that were dancing around the bonfire, and a dopey smile formed on his face. Their dancing was carefree, graceful and serene, and was very soothing to watch. _Real elves._ All of the she-elves had long, flowing hair the color of starlight or sunlight. They were wearing sheer, silk dresses that left little to the imagination. Wreaths made of fresh flowers decorated their heads. Their beauty was so intense it made them look otherworldly.

Anne elbowed Theo in his side to get his attention. "Theo, pull yourself together. Now is not the time to be drooling over a bunch of she-elves. Your friend needs your help."

Theo placed a hand behind his head in an abashed manner. "Sorry. It's just... _elves_ ," he said in an awed tone. "Real live elves."

Anne frowned. "Having sex with an elf was on your Sex Partner Bucket List, wasn't it?"

Theo blinked. "Ah...you remember that?" The cowboy started to laugh nervously. "Just so you know...you have nothing to worry about. I'm a one-woman man now, baby. I'd never cheat on you. Even if it meant getting to sleep with an elf."

"Why don't I find your words at all reassuring." Anne pouted.

A handsome elf male approached Tina and tried to ask her for a dance. "Hello, milady, perhaps you would like to-"

"No," Tina said stiffly before the elf male could finish.

"But I was just thinking-" the elf persisted.

"No," Tina said again.

"Not even one-"

"No."

The elf sighed, his shoulder slumped dejectedly, and he decided to try his luck on a she-elf instead.

"Hey, look, Elric is leaving the village..." Leona said, nodding in the direction Elric was headed.

"He must be going to see how his fiancée is handling Jadyn's interrogation," Tina said. "Let's follow them."

"Wait," Anne hissed. "We can't. We're being watched."

Theo looked around and sure enough several elf scouts were keeping a close eye on them. _Dammit!_ What they needed was a diversion. _A diversion, that's it!_ A sly smile curled Theo's lips. "I have an idea, girls," Theo said softly. "Leona, you're up. Execute the Shakira Contingency Plan."

Leona's golden eyes widened and she started to chew on her lower lip nervously. "Do you really think something like that will work on elves?"

"Hell yeah it will work. Luckily, all of the elf scouts are males. They've got dicks like any normal guy, right?" Theo asked.

Anne smacked the back of Theo's head. "Must you always be so crude?"

"Sorry, babe. It's kinda like my thing," Theo apologized.

Leona took a deep breath before getting up from her seat on the log by the fire. She walked closer to the bonfire then spun to face the crowd. She opened her mouth and began to sing. Immediately everyone's attention was drawn to Leona and her beautiful singing voice.

Unfortunately, the stubborn elf scouts were still keeping an eye on Theo, Anne and Tina. Theo let out a huff of frustration, shot Leona an expectant look, and winked at her. Leona nodded and started to belly dance. Instantly, the elf scouts' eyes became glued to Leona.

_That's more like it._ Theo thought to himself. He'd had fun teaching Anne, Leona and Tina different kinds of dances. Dancing in Oz was boring, tame, and not very erotic. It was pretty much all waltzes and quadrilles. But now the girls knew how to tango, belly dance, cha-cha, and perform other fun, modern dances.

Leona's sexy, sensual and erotic belly dancing was like nothing the elf males had ever seen before, and they'd quickly become captivated and enthralled by her unique performance.

"Come on, now's our chance to get the hell out of here," Theo hissed lowly as he stood up from his seat. The other girls followed suit and followed after Theo as he tracked Elric out of the village and into the nearby forest. They continued to follow Elric until he reached the entrance of a cave where two elf archers were standing guard.

"Has he talked?" Elric asked them without preamble.

The two guards shared a loaded look. "No," one of the guards said with a grim expression on his face. "She hasn't broken him yet."

_Broken?_ Theo thought, grinding his back teeth out of anger. _What the fuck?_ He clenched his hands into fists. Theo was sick and tired of all this sneaking around. He liked to confront problems head on. He was going to reveal himself and kick their-!

Before Theo could finish that thought Tina rushed forward, unsheathed her brand-new samurai sword, and attacked the elves. Three slashes of her sword was all it took for all three elves to collapse to the ground where they lay unmoving.

"Whoo," Theo let out an impressed whistle. "Dang, girl. You beat me too it. Are they dead?"

"No," Tina said as she sheathed her sword in a smooth, elegant motion. "I used the back of my blade to strike them. They should awaken in a few minutes. Unless you want me to finish them off?"

Theo raised his hands up before him and shook his head. "No! You did good, Tina."

Tina nodded before running into the cave. Theo and Anne shared a look. "She's all gung-ho, all of a sudden," Theo remarked.

"That's to be expected since the man she loves is in trouble." Anne smiled knowingly.

Theo's blue eyes twinkled in amusement. "Love, huh? She keeps denying she has feelings for him at all. Would you rush into danger to save me, babe?"

Anne shoved Theo's shoulder flirtatiously. "I already did that once, remember?"

"Oh, yeah..." Theo's teasing expression fell as he recalled the time Anne had shielded his body from a spray of bullets. He swallowed thickly. "We'd uh...better go after her." Theo ran into the cave, closely followed by Anne.

On their way through the cave they encountered more unconscious elves - Tina's handiwork no doubt. There was only one tunnel that branched off from the main cave and they started their way down it. Blazing torches had been hung on either side of the tunnel, illuminating the way. Halfway down the tunnel they started to hear crazed, psychotic laughter.

Theo frowned as he thought he recognized that voice. "Is that...Jadyn?"

"Yes," Anne said, worry swirling in her dark eyes. "That can't be good."

Theo, Anne and Tina ran the rest of the way until they entered a vast cavern at the same time. The cavern was filled with a strange, glittering red light that was caused by the torchlight reflecting off of the red crystals that were sticking out of the cave walls.

"Whoo," Theo whistled, his eyes turning into dollar signs. "Check out all the rubies."

"Actually, Theo, those aren't rubies," Anne said in a haughty tone. "They're Ozanite crystals. They have the ability to absorb magic."

"Ozanite?" Theo looked down at his gauntlet that was decorated with red crystals that he'd thought were rubies. "Huh..."

The trio followed the sound of Jadyn's bitter laughter and spotted him dangling from the ceiling in chains. His head was lowered and his hair was shielding his face.

Princess Alva was panting for breath, her eyes were wild, and her hand and arm were trembling. Her blows no longer had much strength behind them, but she hadn't stopped whipping Jadyn. Tears were streaming down her angry face. "You'll pay! I'll make you pay for what you did to my friends! Why are they? Why won't you tell me? Where are my friends, you monster! Did you eat them? Did you toy with them? I hate goblins! I hate monsters! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!"

The sight of the beautiful elf princess standing behind Jadyn with a bloody whip held in her hand was such a startling sight that Theo was unable to react right away. He'd always had this idea in his mind that elves were kind, graceful and noble creatures that were incapable of evil.

Luckily, Tina was there to react for him. "Jadyn!"

Alva was just raising her whip to send it towards Jadyn's back again when she heard Tina's cry and turned to face the tunnel entrance. The she-elf finally noticed the unexpected visitors and raised her eyebrows at them. "Looks like we have company, Monster."

Tina unsheathed her sword and pointed it in Alva's direction. "Get the hell away from Jadyn, you elf bitch!"

Alva tilted her head as she regarded Tina with obvious confusion. "You can't really be here to rescue this hobgoblin, can you? Goblins are evil monsters. Surely, you know that." Her tone was patronizing.

Tina's grip around her sword tightened until her knuckles turned white. "There are good and bad of every race in Oz, including goblins. You shouldn't just blindly believe all the stories you hear about them. There are good goblins and Jadyn is one of them."

"Jadyn..." Alva echoed, and her eyes widened when she suddenly recognized the name. "The Wicked Warlock of the West? I see. Perhaps, he _was_ telling the truth, after all. No." She shook her head and a crazed glint formed in her lavender-colored eyes. "Impossible. Goblins _can't_ be trusted..."

Tina started to stalk towards Alva with menacing steps. "Get out of my way, she-elf. I'm taking Jadyn with me."

Alva's eyes narrowed on the cyborg. "I'm afraid I can't let you do that. He's my only lead in finding the goblin horde and in saving my captured friends. If you want him, you'll have to go through me." Alva raised her bloody whip in challenge.

Tina smiled coldly. "Gladly."

"Don't kill her," Theo blurted out, glancing between Tina and Alva worriedly. "She's a _princess_."

"Oh, very well," Tina grudgingly agreed before rushing forward and swinging her katana at Alva. Alva gracefully sidestepped the attack, raised her whip, and with a flick of her wrist sent the whip slashing through the air towards Tina.

Tina ducked and the whip sailed over her head dangerously. The next whip attack had Tina sidestepping. Then, the cyborg executed a series of impressive back flips in order to avoid Alva's next attacks. When Tina landed on her feet she raised her katana just in time to block an attack, but the whip wrapped around Tina's blade.

Using all of her strength, Alva pulled back, and managed to disarm Tina. The katana flew through the air and Alva caught it with her left hand on its hilt. "I have you now, assassin!"

"Oh, really?" Tina said, raising her left hand with her palm facing Alva. "Think again." A whirring sound filled the air as energy began to gather in Tina's hand, and then the cyborg released an energy blast Alva's way.

"What?" Alva gawked at the blue-tinged ball of energy heading her way, and wasn't able to react in time. It hit her square in the chest and sent her flying backwards into the far wall. Her head hit the cave wall with a sickening crack, and she was knocked unconscious. Alva's limp body slid down the cave wall where it remained unmoving on the ground.

With that immediate threat taken care of, Tina ran over to Jadyn, who was still laughing. "Jadyn!" She called, but he continued to laugh brokenly. Tina frowned and slapped him hard across the face. "Snap out of it! You're stronger than this!"

Abruptly, Jadyn stopped laughing, and looked up at Tina. Tears were streaming down his face and there were haunting shadows in his green eyes. "Tina?" His vision was unfocused due to the pain he was currently feeling.

"Are you alright, Mister Warlock?" Tina asked, her voice soft and laced with concern.

She'd never used that tone of voice with him before and it set Jadyn on edge. He frowned and narrowed his eyes at her. "You don't have to pretend you care." Just snapping at her like that had taken a lot of energy and Jadyn suddenly felt faint. He'd lost a lot of blood. Too much.

Tina's heart fluttered. "But...I _do_ care."

"I thought I was nothing but a murderer," Jadyn said bitterly. "A monster that you hated."

Tina flinched guiltily as Jadyn threw back her own words like daggers. "I...I really...the truth is..." Tina's heart started to pound inside of her chest. Her heart rate monitor started to beep warningly at her. She glanced down at it. It read: 112. Tina let out a defeated sigh and looked up at Jadyn with a haggard expression on her face. "You're right. I hate you."

Jadyn smiled sharply, revealing his bloody teeth. "I'm well aware."

To be continued in...Chapter 5:

### Chapter 5:

Theo watched the exchange between Jadyn and Tina with his mouth hanging open slightly in shock.

I hate you.

I'm well aware.

"Say, what?" he muttered to himself, and Anne elbowed him in his side. She was also wearing a disbelieving look on her face, but just shrugged at Theo. Apparently, she didn't understand what the hell was going on either.

Tina's sword flashed through the air, and the chains that were keeping Jadyn upright and hanging from the ceiling shattered. Instead of catching him when he fell, Tina stepped back, and let Jadyn fall to the ground with a thud.

With a cool mask of indifference on her face as she stared down at Jadyn's fallen form she sheathed her sword with a click, turned on her heel, and started to walk towards the cavern's exit tunnel.

Theo and Anne rushed to Jadyn's side. As Theo passed Tina he shot her a disapproving glare. Anne crouched next to Jadyn and started to inspect the damage Princess Alva had done to his back with her whip. She sucked in a shocked breath. Jadyn's back was a mess. The welt marks had blistered, burst, and were bleeding. The pain must have been excruciating, but Jadyn just lay on the ground unmoving with this listless look on his face as though nothing no longer mattered.

With her arms folded in front of her Tina casually leaned back against the tunnel's wall just inside of the entrance, and glared in Jadyn's general direction with a shuttered look on her face.

Anne reached out and hesitated as she tried to find a spot on Jadyn's back that didn't look like it would cause him pain if she touched it. She settled for placing her hand on his upper shoulder in what she hoped was a comforting manner. "Hey, Leona isn't with us, so she can't heal your wounds using her enchanted singing. She had to stay behind and serve as a distraction so we could follow Prince Elric and find you. That means it's up to me to tend to your wounds. I have the healing potion you taught me how to make with me..."

Jadyn noted the uncertainty in Anne's voice and gathered his strength so he could look up at her. He held his hand out to Anne with an expectant look on his haggard face. "Well, then what you are waiting for? Give it here."

Anne's wary expression brightened and she removed a red vial from her utility belt. She uncorked it before handing it to Jadyn. Jadyn used the last of his strength to open his mouth and tip the vial's contents into his mouth. The red healing potion tingled as it slid down his throat.

Anne took the empty vial from Jadyn, returned it to her utility belt, and then held her breath as she watched Jadyn's back. Anne let out a breath of relief as the wounds on his back started to heal.

Jadyn grunted at the pain of his flesh knitting itself back together, and bit down on his lower lip so that he wouldn't scream.

Theo frowned as he watched Jadyn trying to act tough. "You know...you can scream if you want to. It's just us."

Jadyn shot a heated glare Theo's way. "Fuck you." His green gaze went to Tina and he flinched. She was glaring at him hatefully _again_...

Anne started to use a cloth to wipe the blood from Jadyn's back. She frowned when she noticed the scars that now marred his back. "I'm sorry. You'll have scars. My potion wasn't good enough."

Jadyn chuckled darkly as he placed his hands on the ground in front of him and pushed himself into a kneeling position. "I was already hideous to begin with, so what's a few ugly scars anyways?"

Anne removed a vial from her utility belt filled with a blue potion, and held it out to Jadyn. "Here. A magic restoration potion."

Jadyn took the vial and stood on shaky legs. "Thank you. But there's no point in taking this while I'm inside of this infernal cave." The warlock looked around at all the glowing red crystals sticking out from the cavern's walls and ceiling, and shuddered. "The Ozanite will just drain away my newly-restored magical energy."

"I thought these were rubies..." Theo said, frowning down at his Ruby Gauntlet with a pensive expression. "But they're Ozanite crystals, aren't they, Jay?"

Jadyn glanced askance at the cowboy, and appeared to be trying to avoid Theo's penetrating stare. "Indeed."

Jadyn's evasiveness only made Theo grow more suspicious. "Then when you hang out with me are my crystals draining your magic?"

Jadyn flinched guiltily. "The crystals are small. They barely affect me."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Theo demanded with his hands on his hips.

Jadyn lifted his shoulders in a lackadaisical shrug. "I didn't think it was of much importance. I didn't think you'd care..."

"Well, I _do_ care. You're my best friend, remember?" Theo said, giving Jadyn's shoulder a playful shove.

Jadyn stumbled forward a few steps and shot Theo an incredulous look. "I'm an injured man here!"

"We should go," Anne said, an amused smile playing on her lips. Theo always knew how to lighten the mood, and with his teasing Jadyn seemed to be acting more like his old self again. "We left Leona alone with a bunch of perverted elves."

The group followed the tunnel until they reached the cave that led to the outside. As soon as they were outside, Jadyn uncorked the vial of magic restoration potion, and chugged it back. A green and gold glow flared around his body as most of his magic was restored.

Jadyn smirked. He could feel his magic flowing through his veins again and it was comforting. "This was a well-made potion, Anne. I'm impressed."

Anne felt a blush rise to her cheeks. Jadyn had never praised her potion making skills before. "Thanks."

"Is Anne some kind of potions genius?" Theo asked keenly.

"Hm," Jadyn let out a thoughtful hum as he twirled his hand and summoned a change of clothes from his pocket dimension. A new black suit, shiny dress shoes, and a long black cape with a green lining appeared on his body. "Now, let's go retrieve your friend."

Theo slapped Jadyn on the back in an amiable gesture. "I think you mean _our_ friend."

Jadyn flinched and a shiver traveled up his spine. "You just slapped the back of a man who just had the flesh whipped off his back for the last couple of hours. What is _wrong_ with you?"

A horrified expression settled over Theo's face. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry. What was I thinking?"

"You obviously weren't," Jadyn drawled. "And I'm just 'messing with you'." He smirked with a mischievous twinkle in his green eyes.

Theo blinked and his jaw dropped open slightly when he realized what had just happened. "You totally had me for a minute there."

Anne led the way through the forest back to Wood Elf Village. Apparently, on their way to the cave Anne had left markers to let her know how to make their return by breaking a few branches here and there, and leaving marks on trees. Theo shook his head wondering what he'd do without her. _Probably get lost in the forest and end up at some gingerbread house..._

When they were halfway to the village the sound of steel clanging against steel and the whoosh of arrows flying through the air reached their ears. These sounds were followed by pained and horrified screams. These were the unmistakable sounds of battle. "The Wood Elf Village is under attack," Jadyn announced darkly.

"But why whom?" Theo asked.

"Not by goblins if that's what you're really asking," Jadyn snarled, glaring at the cowboy.

Theo put his hands up before him in a surrendering gesture. "Whoa. Touchy. Not what I meant. It's just you usually know what's going on. That's all."

Jadyn crossed his arms over his chest and let out a huff. "Well, this time I have no idea what is happening. Or why."

The group ran the rest of the way to the village. When they exited the edge of the forest they immediately saw that the elves were being attacked by seven-foot-tall creatures with tanned skin, glowing red eyes, and tusks. It took Theo a moment to process that the monsters appeared to have the head of a pig and the body of a man.

The armor the monsters were wearing was crudely made, rusted, and covered in blood. The weapons they were wielding were enormous - swords, hammers and battleaxes. The elves were grossly outnumbered and as a result were being slaughtered.

"Orcs," Jadyn snarled as he caught sight of the fearsome beasts.

"Orcs?" Theo echoed with a furrowed brow. These orcs looked different from the ones in _Lord of the Rings_ that had looked more like evil, zombie elves. These humanoid creatures were more animalistic and a lot creepier.

A scream drew Theo's attention and he watched as an elf male was stabbed through his chest with a giant rusty sword. The orc then descended upon the elf, ripping his arm off with his maw, and he started to eat the elf's arm with gusto. Appalled, bile rose up Theo's throat, but he managed to swallow it down. "What the fuck, man! He's eating him! Is that normal?" He shot Jadyn a questioning look.

There was a pensive frown on the warlock's face as he observed the orcs. _Normal behavior?_ Jadyn mused to himself and shook his head. _No._ This was definitely _not_ normal behavior for orcs. They tended to be bloodthirsty in battle, yes...but they weren't known for consuming their enemies.

"Hungry. So hungry," the orcs were moaning as they attacked the elves.

_Hungry?_ Jadyn's eyes narrowed at the orcs. These orcs had obviously been starved until they'd been driven insane. Jadyn found it interesting that although the orcs were attacking and consuming the elf males - they weren't targeting the she-elves. This meant they had to be acting on someone's orders. But whose? And why?

"They've been driven mad by hunger," Jadyn informed the others bleakly. "I have an idea." A cunning glint shone in the warlock's green eyes. "Theo, Anne, Tina, keep the orcs away from me while I cast a spell."

"Roger that," Theo said with a salute.

"Alright," Anne said while Tina nodded silently in agreement.

Jadyn summoned a dagger to his right hand and used it to slice the palm of his left hand. He clenched his left hand into a fist and drops of red blood fell onto the ground. Jadyn crouched before the puddle of blood, dipped his index finger into the blood, and started to draw a magical circle. He drew a pentagram, and other glyphs and runes of power within the circle.

The orcs sniffed the air and seemed to be attracted to the scent of Jadyn's spilt blood. They set their sights on Jadyn and started to approach. Theo stepped in front of Jadyn and raised his fists before him in a boxing stance. "Come on!" He dodged the swing of an axe and sent his fist flying into an orc's face with a satisfying crunch.

Another orc quickly took his fallen comrade's place, however, and attacked Theo with a giant hammer. Theo ducked the attack and then snuck past the orc's defenses to land a fierce uppercut to the bottom of the orc's jaw. As a couple more orcs moved in to attack Theo, Anne realized that she and Tina were being completely ignored.

"What the hell?" Anne complained, bristling with irritation. "They're ignoring us."

"Their mistake." Tina unsheathed her katana, rushed forward, and ran right past the orcs. Her sword had flashed through the air and Anne had barely been able to follow its movements. Tina was already sheathing her katana while the orcs' heads started to topple off their bodies.

Anne cringed as the headless bodies fell to the ground. Cyborg assassins sure didn't know how to hold back. "I won't be ignored either!" Anne declared, grabbed a potion vial off her utility belt, and threw it at one of the orcs. The vial shattered and the orc was doused with a green liquid. The orc writhed in pain as the acid started to eat away at its flesh, and then internal organs.

Theo shuddered at the gruesome sight. "Remind me to _never_ make you angry, babe." Anne gave him a grim smirk.

An orc was almost upon Jadyn when suddenly a sword blade emerged from the center of its chest. The orc looked down at its chest in confusion. "Huh? Uh?" Tina pulled her katana back before swinging it at the orc's neck and decapitating the monster.

Jadyn only spared Tina a brief glance before he placed his hand in the center of the magic circle, and started to chant the words of a spell in an ancient language. The magical circle began to glow with a green and gold light, and then expand in size. The circle grew rapidly until it encompassed the entire village. It was an impressive sight. "Become toys!" Jadyn said at last.

The magical circle glowed brighter and brighter until the entire village was filled with a green and gold light. Theo had to shield his eyes from the light that reminded him of an Aurora Borealis. When the light finally dimmed and everyone was able to see again, Theo noted that all of the elves had been turned into toys: stuffed animals, porcelain dolls, wooden puppets, and tin soldiers.

Theo looked down at his hands and realized he'd been turned into a toy too. Apparently, some kind of stuffed doll since his hands were now made out of cloth and stuffed with cotton. "Oh my God, I got turned into Woody!"

"Welcome to my world," Anne quipped. She'd been turned into her old Raggedy Anne doll self, and was once again wearing her blue dress with red polka dots, white frilly apron, red and white striped stockings, and black patent leather Mary Jane shoes.

This phenomenon made Theo wonder what kind of universal powers made Anne look the way she did when she was turned into a doll. Of course, if he looked like Woody then he probably should have fallen in love with a porcelain doll that looked like Bo Peep. Theo gripped his head. "And now my head hurts thinking about things like alternate dimensions." Theo glanced around and frowned when he didn't see any sign of Tina. "Hey, where's Tina?"

"I'm down here!" a small, droning voice called out.

Theo looked down and saw that Tina had been turned into a three-inch-tall tin soldier girl. He burst out laughing.

Tina glared up at Theo before a sudden idea occurred to her. "Well, now that you're a toy I suppose we don't have to worry about your womanizing." An innocent smile curled her lips.

"Say what now?" Theo said, reaching down and grabbing his crotch. His eyes widened in horror when his suspicions were confirmed. "Sweet Jesus, my cock is gone! I'm like a sexless Ken doll now! _Nooo!_ "

Jadyn was smiling and looking quite pleased with himself. The orcs were looking around the village of toys with confused and bewildered expressions on their ugly faces. They stopped attacking the toys and a few let go of the elves they'd been gnawing on.

"No meat. Need flesh. So hungry," the orcs moaned as they began to leave the village.

At that moment, a stuffed lion toy came running up to them. "Theo, Anne, Tina...is that you? It's me - Leona."

"Yeah, it's us. Jadyn turned us all into toys," Theo said, shooting the warlock an exasperated look. "But he'll be turning us all back to normal now that the crisis has been averted. Right?" Jadyn ignored Theo and started to head into the center of the village where all the toys were gathering. "Hey, Jadyn, I'm talking to you, man!"

Jadyn was the only one who had been unaffected by his curse. Jadyn's lofty smile widened as he took in the sight of all the toys gathering around him with questioning looks on their faces. Their fate was in his hands now. It was an incredible power trip.

Jadyn spread his arms wide in a dramatic fashion. "Your true hero has arrived! That's right...an evil goblin just saved all your pathetic, worthless lives! Despair! A hideous monster is your hero! Kneel before your hero. Yes, kneel before the one who saved your ungrateful hides!"

All the toys were looking at Jadyn with wide eyes filled with awe and admiration. "I said KNEEL!" Jadyn bellowed, spit flying out of his mouth. As one all of the toys knelt before Jadyn.

Jadyn blinked down at them. He was surprised they'd actually done that. He threw his head back and started to laugh manically. "Muahahaha!"

All the toys except for Theo, Anne, Leona, and Tina were kneeling before Jadyn. Theo exchanged a worried look with his friends when Jadyn started to laugh like a crazed supervillain. His laugh was edged with hysteria. "That can't be good. He's lost it."

At that moment, Prince Elric and two elf scouts pushed their way through the crowd. The elf prince and scouts hadn't been inside of the village when Jadyn's spell had activated and so hadn't been turned into toys. "What is the meaning of this?" Elric demanded as he looked at his people who'd been turned into toys. He shot Jadyn a wary and suspicious look. "What have you done to them?"

"I just saved your entire village from getting eaten by orcs by turning them all into toys," Jadyn explained, giving the elf prince a haughty look as he stared down his nose at him. "Your people are kneeling before me to show their gratitude. You should also kneel before me, Prince Elric."

"Is this true?" Elric asked the toys with a bewildered look on his face. "He _saved_ you?"

"It's true!" a porcelain doll piped up. She was wearing a bonnet and dress with puffed sleeves. Theo wondered where her parasol had come from. "He saved us. We would have been eaten by the orcs if he hadn't intervened with his magic."

Elric turned his attention back to Jadyn and gave the warlock a considering look. "Just who are you? You're no ordinary goblin."

"My name is Jadyn. And I'm the Wicked Warlock of the West."

"Wicked Warlock!" Elric blurted out and ran a shaky hand back through his white hair. "I get it now. We've made a grave mistake. On behalf of my people I wish to apologize for the abhorrent way we've treated you. I'm sorry. Please, forgive us." Elric dropped to his knees before Jadyn and the elf scouts with him followed suit.

"You're _sorry_ ," Jadyn scoffed, his voice dripping with venom. "Did you hear that, Theo? Elric says he's sorry! Princess Alva had fun whipping the flesh off my back for _hours_ , and he's _sorry_."

Elric grimaced at the visual image Jadyn's words were providing him with. "Princess Alva thought you were responsible for the disappearance of her friends. I'm sorry that she took her fear, anger, and hatred out on you. You didn't deserve that. I hope you will find it in your heart to forgive her..."

"Why are you asking for forgiveness in her place?" Jadyn snapped. "Does she think she's too good to apologize to me? She should get down off her high horse and apologize herself!"

A dark shadow fell over Elric's face. "Princess Alva was taken by the orcs. I was unable to stop them. I couldn't protect her." Elric clenched his trembling hands into fists at his sides out of frustration.

"Princess Alva was kidnapped?" Jadyn started to cackle evilly. "Divine justice comes swift at times, I'd say! That bitch got what she deserves after she had fun torturing me."

"You're wrong!" Elric blurted. "She didn't have fun as she interrogated you. It...was destroying her. Her friends are probably already dead, but she wished to save them. She never gave up hope they could still be alive. I was told that she was crying while she whipped you. She hurt you badly, but she was also hurting herself."

"She shed a few tears and that's supposed to make what she did to me _okay_?" Jadyn snarled. "I'm just supposed to forgive her out of the goodness of my heart?"

"No. You don't have to forgive her. Only, please, save her," Elric begged, giving Jadyn a beseeching look.

Jadyn's angry expression turned into one of incredulity. "What?" he muttered in a dull tone.

"You have shown us your power..." Elric continued, waving his hand at the kneeling toys. "The orcs are no match for you. Please. Use your magic to find Princess Alva and rescue her from the orcs before it's too late."

"You want me to rescue the woman who tortured me? Ha!" Jadyn chuckled darkly. "You must think me a masochist. Give me one good reason why I should agree to such madness?"

Elric raised his chin in a show of defiance. "I love her. I can't live without her."

"Not good enough," Jadyn said.

"Please. I'll give you anything you want if you rescue Princess Alva," Elric said desperately.

"Anything?" Jadyn purred silkily.

Elric nodded. "Yes. You have my word."

Jadyn tapped his chin as though considering the elf prince's offer. "Alright. I'll tell you what I want. I want to form an alliance with the Wood Elves. I want the elves to fight alongside my armies of trolls and goblins in the upcoming battle against Dr. Doppelganger and his robot army."

A flash of surprise crossed Elric's face. "You're planning to go to war against Dr. Doppelganger? But, why?"

"He's helping me save my-" Theo was saying before Jadyn quickly covered the cowboy's mouth with his hand.

"I have my reasons," the warlock drawled casually.

Elric glanced between Theo and Jadyn before smiling. "The Wood Elf Army would be honored to fight by your side, King Jadyn."

A spontaneous cheer rose up from the gathered toys. "Hazah! Hazah! Hazah!"

Jadyn stared at the cheering toys with a confused and conflicted expression. He hadn't been expecting this reaction at all. "Yes...well, that's good. Very good. When the time comes I shall contact you. Now, let's see where your princess has been taken, shall we?" Jadyn summoned his crystal ball from his pocket dimension and it appeared on the ground in front of him.

Jadyn waved his hand over the crystal ball and chanted the words of a locator spell. The green smoke swirled within the ball until an image was revealed of a prisoner transport wagon being pulled by two giant rats. Inside the crudely made wooden cage was Princess Alva along with a few other elf males and she-elves that had been taken during the attack.

The wagon was approaching the front gate of a village. "That must be Orc Village. Let's have a closer look to see what we're up against." Jadyn waved his hand and the image inside of the crystal ball zoomed in on the village. The dwellings looked like igloos made out of mud. Moss was growing on the roofs making it hard to tell where the ground ended and their houses began. Two hundred orcs were walking around the village though most of them appeared to be gathered in the center of the village.

The crystal ball zoomed in on the village square. Theo saw an elf male tied to a spit who was being roasted alive over a fire. As the flesh was being melted off his bones he let out a bloodcurdling scream. The screaming didn't seem to deter the orc standing beside him who was turning the crank of the spit and causing the elf to rotate. "Shit. We have to help him," Theo murmured, cringing at the barbaric sight.

Jadyn shook his head. "It's too late for him."

Another orc was stirring a gigantic cauldron of soup. Or at least, Theo thought it was supposed to be soup. But the liquid was purple and bubbling, and there were floating elf heads in it. Jadyn spotted some wooden cages and had the crystal ball zoom in for a closer look.

There were several primitively constructed, wooden cages inside of which were elf males and she-elves. The males had been separated from the females. The males appeared to be in worse condition than the females - their cheeks were hollow, expressions gaunt, and their ribs were showing.

The she-elves appeared to be in better condition, and Jadyn spotted a few pieces of fruit on the floor of their cages. Perhaps, the orcs wanted to make sure the she-elves stayed alive so they could be used for sport? The males were obviously just being used as food and cooking ingredients. A deep scowl formed on Jadyn's face.

Theo found it hard seeing the beautiful elves looking that way. Their clothes were in tatters, and dirt and grim covered their bodies. Some of the she-elves had obviously decided not to eat since there were pieces of rotting fruit on the floor of their cages. Theo didn't want to think about how the elves had decided death would be preferable to their current situation. At least, they were still alive. There was still hope.

"Oh, happy day. Your beloved princess is still alive," Jadyn said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Their village appears to be located somewhere in the Black Swamp. By my estimate there are around two hundred orcs there."

"Black Swamp? That's a cheery name," Theo remarked dryly.

Jadyn turned to address Theo, Anne, Leona and Tina. "After I have returned you four to your original states I'll teleport us directly to the village."

"I thought you couldn't teleport that many people," Theo pointed out as he recalled a time when he'd wanted the warlock to teleport him to Demi-Human Village when Leona had been kidnapped.

Jadyn smirked. "I've been working on my teleportation skills. It is still difficult to take that many people with me, and takes a toll. But it is doable now. And besides, we don't have a moment to waste. They could decide to eat the princess at any time..."

"I'm coming too!" Elric piped up.

"Teleporting that many people would be-" Jadyn started to object when Elric cut him off.

"Please. Princess Alva is my fiancée. I love her. I would die for her. I-" Elric was saying when Jadyn held up a hand to silence him.

"Enough. As long as you stop spouting that romantic nonsense I'll take you with us." Jadyn pointed his finger at Theo first and chanted the words of an incantation. A bolt of green and gold energy burst out of Jadyn's fingertip and hit Theo's body.

Theo's body began to transform back into its human form. As soon as Theo was human again he grabbed his crotch and let out a breath of relief. "Phew. I'm back, baby!" He waggled his eyebrows in Anne's direction. She just rolled her eyes at him.

Next, Jadyn returned Anne, Leona, and Tina to their original state using the same spell. Once everyone was ready the warlock held out his arm expectantly. "Grab on." Theo, Anne, Leona, Tina and Elric placed their hands on Jadyn's arm. The warlock closed his eyes and concentrated on teleporting them to the Black Swamp. The group disappeared in a cloud of green smoke and materialized at the outskirts of Orc Village.

Jadyn swayed on his feet as a wave of dizziness swept over him. He started to cough violently and when he brought his hand to his mouth he felt a glob of blood hit his hand. Blood trickled through his fingers and as he pulled his hand away blood dribbled down his chin. "Curse this sickly body of mine..." Jadyn wiped his bloody hand on his pant leg with a disgusted look on his face.

Jadyn looked up to note that everyone was looking at him with horrified expressions on their faces. He smiled sharply at them, revealing bloody teeth.

"Dude, you okay?" Theo asked tentatively. Jadyn looked rather frightening at the moment, and the phrase 'Wicked Warlock of the West' zipped through Theo's mind.

"After all the magic I've cast this is perfectly normal," Jadyn said in a blasé tone, and turned his attention to Anne. "You don't have any more magic restoration potions, do you?" Jadyn's magic had been grossly depleted, and this was putting added strain on his sickly body.

"You're in luck," Anne said, removing a blue vial from her utility belt and handing it to Jadyn. The warlock drank the potion quickly and tossed the empty vial to the ground where it shattered. A vein at Anne's temple throbbed in irk. "I could have reused that." She removed another vial from her belt and handed it to Jadyn. "Here. Maybe you should take this too."

Jadyn frowned down at the red healing potion. "I'm not injured."

"But you're coughing blood," Anne pointed out. "At the very least, the potion should help you replenish the blood you've lost."

"I didn't think of that." Jadyn grudgingly drank the healing potion, and then handed the empty vial back to Anne.

"Uh, you have a little something on your..." Theo trailed off, staring at the blood dripping down Jadyn's chin.

"Get down!" Jadyn snapped at the group and everyone quickly crouched down behind a row of thorny, black bushes. The warlock peaked over the hedge and watched as two orcs passed by on patrol.

"Um, what's the point in being stealthy when we're just going to charge in anyways," Theo asked, scratching his cheek with his index finger.

Jadyn shot Theo an incredulous look. "Do you really think I'd be able to handle two hundred orcs on my own?"

"Well..." Theo trailed off.

Jadyn scrubbed a hand down his face in a show of exasperation. "We'd be defeated in a few minutes. But that's why I have a plan."

"Oh, right. So what's the plan?" Theo asked brightly.

Jadyn had to resist the urge to strangle some sense into Theo. The warlock stood up and started to chant a spell. He waved his hand through the air in a circular motion and opened up a portal.

Theo peeked over Jadyn's shoulder and saw the courtyard of Jadyn's castle through the portal. Trolls, goblins and hobgoblins were sparring each other using a variety of weapons: swords, battleaxes and hammers.

"Periwinkle. Dahlia," Jadyn called into the portal.

Prince Periwinkle and Princess Dahlia spotted Jadyn standing on the other side of the portal, lowered their swords, and approached. "What is it, King Jadyn?" Dahlia asked, and her gaze raked over Jadyn in a scrutinizing fashion. Concern swirled in her yellow eyes when she saw the blood dripping down his chin. "What's wrong?"

"I need your help," Jadyn began and nodded in Theo's direction. "This fool got me roped into yet another rescue mission, and we're vastly outnumbered by our foes."

Theo pointed at himself. "Me?"

Jadyn whirled on Theo, placed his hands on his hips, and glared daggers at the cowboy. "Why _else_ would I be doing any of this? We need the elves as our allies if we're to defeat Dr. Doppelganger and save your mother. This is just a means to an end."

"Oh, yeah, right." Theo rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I thought you'd decided to forgive Princess Alva because she's hot."

"Idiot," Jadyn sneered, his lip curling. He spun to face the portal. "I want four hundred troops prepared to do battle. That should provide us with a sufficient advantage against the orcs. I want 200 of those troops to be trolls while the remaining 200 should be goblins. Their orders are to kill all of the orcs they encounter and to protect the elves."

"I will assemble your troops immediately, Your Majesty," Dahlia said with a bow.

"You can count on us," Periwinkle added with a wink.

Jadyn and the others watched as Dahlia and Periwinkle approached the trolls and goblins that were sparring in the courtyard, and began to give them orders. As soon as they had their orders the trolls and goblins ran off to procure suitable armor and weapons to do battle in.

It didn't take long for the trolls and goblins to prepare themselves, and then they returned to the courtyard and stood at attention before Periwinkle and Dahlia, awaiting further orders. Dahlia nodded and smiled at the gathered troops before stalking over to the portal to speak with Jadyn. "They're ready whenever you are, King Jadyn."

A pleased smile curled Jadyn's lips. His army was efficient. It had only taken them a few minutes to prepare four hundred troops for battle. "Excellent," Jadyn praised before stepping aside to allow his army to pass through the portal.

"Whoo." Theo let out an impressed whistle, as he had to crane his neck up to look at the eight-foot-tall trolls that started to pass through the portal. The trolls were wearing black steel armor that had green accents. _Jadyn's colors,_ Theo realized. And he was surprised to note that even the goblins had been outfitted in new, gleaming armor in Jadyn's colors. "I'm digging the new armor. It makes your army look very...professional."

"Professional?" Jadyn arched an elegant eyebrow at the cowboy.

Theo shrugged. "Deadly?"

"That's better," Jadyn said.

"Although they'd look even deadlier without those tall, fluffy black hats on their heads," Theo commented casually.

"I'll keep that in mind," Jadyn said. "Mr. Fashion Police."

"That was almost an American pop culture reference," Theo wiped a tear from his eye in a dramatic fashion. "I'm so proud."

Dahlia shot Jadyn a questioning look once the entire force had passed through the portal. "Go on ahead," Jadyn instructed her. "Give those orcs hell!"

Dahlia grinned, faced the army, and raised her voice. "Troops! Prepare for battle!" She unsheathed her sword and raised it high over her head before pointing it towards Orc Village. "Forward march!" The entire army started to head for Orc Village.

"My troops will handle the orcs while we concentrate on rescuing the elf prisoners," Jadyn informed the rescue party. "Wait for my signal." Everyone nodded in agreement.

The orcs must have heard the thundering sound of the approaching army because the front gate was opened and orcs began to pour out of the village onto the swamp.

"Attack!" Dahlia yelled as she charged forward to meet the orcs.

"Aye, Princess!" the trolls and goblins cried out as they too started to charge forward to engage the orcs.

The two armies clashed and the orcs were quickly being pushed back until the trolls and goblins were entering Orc Village. Jadyn waited until it sounded like the entire force of two hundred orcs was occupied fighting his army before he nodded at the rescue party. "It's time. The orcs are occupied. Let's get in there and rescue the elves."

Jadyn led the way to Orc Village and they managed to pass through the open gate unmolested. The sight that met them was - chaos. Trolls and goblins were engaged in battle with the deranged looking orcs, who were salivating as they eyed the goblins with a hungry gleam in their red eyes. A clanging sound filled the air as weapons clashed, and screams soon followed.

Jadyn and the others started to make their way through the village that had turned into a bloody battlefield. When an orc abruptly stepped in Jadyn's path and tried to bar his way, Jadyn simply conjured a fireball and threw it at the orc. The fireball hit the orc's chest and he was incinerated in seconds, leaving behind only a small pile of ash.

Elric started to loose arrows at any of the orcs that got too close to their party. Most of Elric's arrows were hitting the orcs right between their eyes. Apparently, he was an incredibly skilled archer.

"Not bad, Prince," Jadyn drawled. "It's nice to find out you're not deadweight."

Anne grabbed two vials from her utility belt and threw them on the ground directly in front of a group of approaching orcs. The orcs stepped into the puddle of purple goo, and found themselves stuck to the ground and unable to move.

Before anyone else could react, Leona was charging forward. She slashed her claws through the air and slit the orcs' throats.

Theo gawked at Leona. "Leona! What the hell?"

Leona smiled shyly. "Tina's been giving me assassin training."

Jadyn shuddered. He couldn't help but remember a nightmare he'd had once where Leona had been viciously killing goblins using her claws. He tried to hide his unease though. "You're finally living up to your namesake Leona Bravehart."

Tina unsheathed her sword and charged forward, intending to clear a path for their party. Her sword flashed through the air and orcs were decapitated left and right.

"I think someone wants a compliment too," Theo teased Jadyn as he watched Tina dispatch a group of ten orcs all on her own. Her swordsmanship skills were incredible.

Jadyn just shook his head at Theo. "You're delusional."

It didn't take long for the group to reach the cages. Elric spotted Alva trapped within one of the cages and ran over to her. "Alva! My love!"

Princess Alva stared at Elric in shock. "Elric, you came for me. But how did you even find this place?" She glanced over Elric's shoulder and spotted Jadyn. The blood started to drain out of her face. "You!" The elf princess pointed a trembling finger at the warlock in an accusing manner. "What are you doing here, goblin scum!"

Elric cringed and immediately looked embarrassed. "Alva, we were wrong about him. He saved our village from the orcs and brought me here so I could save you."

"What?" Alva's brow furrowed in confusion. "How?"

"He's no ordinary goblin," Elric started to explain. "He's the Wicked Warlock of the West, Jadyn. He used his magic to save the village, bring us here, and he even summoned an army to face the orcs for us."

"He's _helping_ us?" Alva said, blinking owlishly. "But why? Especially, after how I treated him..." She nibbled on her lower lip as she shot Jadyn a nervous look.

"Jadyn wishes to forge an alliance with us elves against Dr. Doppelganger," Elric informed her.

"I see. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, is it?" Alva said, giving Jadyn an appraising look. "Elric, hurry up and get me out of this cage! I feel ridiculous being trapped in here like this."

"Yes, my love." Elric nocked an arrow to his bow and just when Theo was about to tell him that there was no way that would work - the arrow hit the padlock on the cage door, and shattered it upon impact.

Meanwhile, Anne had grabbed a vial of acid from her utility belt and was using it to melt the other padlocks on the cage doors. As soon as the locks were destroyed she opened the cage doors and started to motion at the elves to get out of the cages. They appeared to be a little frightened and confused about what was going on, but were soon exiting the cages.

As soon as all of the elves had been freed Jadyn waved his hand in a circular motion through the air and chanted a spell. A portal of blue swirling energy appeared. "This portal leads directly to Wood Elf Village," Jadyn informed the elves that were giving him wary yet hopeful looks.

The warlock let out an exasperated sigh when none of the elves approached the portal right away. "Hurry up, you fools! I can't hold this portal open forever!" Jadyn growled out through gritted teeth. Sweat was beading on his brow as he struggled to keep the portal open for the elves to make their escape.

The elves seemed to snap out of their stupor and started to run through the portal. All of the elves made their escape until the only elves left were Elric and Alva.

"Thank you, Noble Warlock," Elric said with misty eyes.

"Just go!" Jadyn snapped, and Elric obediently ran through the portal.

Alva was about to run through the portal when she hesitated and turned to face Jadyn. "You...saved my friends. All of them. Thank you." Standing up on her tiptoes, Alva placed a kiss on Jadyn's cheek before he could properly react.

Jadyn's eyes widened like saucers. He never would have imagined even in his wildest dreams that an elf princess would ever give _him_ a kiss!

Princess Alva stepped back and smiled impishly at Jadyn. There was a mischievous twinkle in her lavender eyes and she seemed to be enjoying the shell-shocked expression on Jadyn's face. "And I lied earlier. You're not hideous. You're actually quite handsome. For a goblin." Alva spun around and skipped through the portal.

With a stunned expression on his face, Jadyn raised a hand to his cheek where Alva had kissed him.

"Jadyn, you dawg!" Theo teased, elbowing Jadyn in his side. "Someone's got game."

Jadyn shoved Theo away from him and shot the cowboy an irritated look. "We don't have time for jokes, Theodore. Get a move on and get through the portal!" He gave Theo one last hard shove, sending Theodore flying through the portal.

" _Mommy_!" Theo shrieked girlishly as he passed through the portal.

"Theo!" Anne shouted in concern and leapt through the portal after him.

Jadyn turned to regard Tina, who had a very strange look on her face. "Well, what are you waiting for, Tin Woman. Go!" Tina just stared at Jadyn with her mouth hanging open slightly. "Dammit..." Jadyn swore as he struggled to keep the flickering portal open. "I can't keep it open any longer..." The portal's energy abruptly dissipated.

Jadyn was panting for breath, but even so he raised his hand and tried to create another portal. Green and gold sparks shot out of the palm of his hand. "Shit. I've completely drained my magical core. And Anne...went through the portal. So much for replenishing my magic with one of her potions." Jadyn grew irritated by the blank stare Tina was still giving him. "Sorry. I know you'd rather not spend time alone with me..."

"Uh, I'm still here," Leona piped up at Jadyn's use of the word 'alone'.

Jadyn ignored Leona, and continued speaking to Tina as if she weren't there, causing the lion girl to pout. "But we have no choice but to wait here until my magic naturally replenishes itself. After that I can teleport us to the others. I'm going to go get a status report from my commanders. Come along, if you wish. Or not." Jadyn turned on his heel and stomped off.

Confused, Leona tilted her head, and watched Jadyn walk off in a huff. "Why is he acting so strangely?" She directed this question towards Tina and raised an eyebrow at the cyborg. "Did _something_ happen between you two?"

"Nothing happened," Tina said firmly.

"Hm. Then maybe something _should_ happen," Leona said, a cat's paw smile spreading across her face. "I see the way you look at him when you think no one is watching. You like him, Tina."

Tina couldn't stop the blush that rose to her pale cheeks. She shot the lion girl an irritated look. "I don't like him," she denied.

Leona raised an eyebrow at the cyborg assassin. "I don't understand what is going on with you two. You obviously both like each other, but you're both acting so weird. Wait, are you a virgin?"

Tina's flush deepened. "W-What? I...that's none of your business!"

Leona's eyebrows rose. "Wow. So you're not a virgin. I wonder who...Dr. Doppelganger? Yikes! I wonder if Jadyn is a virgin..." The lion girl tapped her chin in a speculative fashion.

Tina sputtered. "That's none of our business."

"It may not be any of _my_ business, but what about _yours_?" Leona prodded mercilessly.

"I don't care who he's slept with," Tina said through gritted teeth. "He can sleep with Princess Alva for all I care."

"So you're not the jealous type?" Leona asked, a mischievous glint forming in her golden eyes. "How would you feel if I decided to make a move on Jadyn then?"

Aghast, the blood started to drain out of Tina's face. "What? How? Why? You can't!"

A triumphant smile spread across Leona's face. "I can't, huh? I knew it! You _do_ like him. So what's the problem?"

Tina placed her face in her hands to conceal the myriad of conflicting emotions she was feeling in that moment. "You wouldn't understand. It's...complicated."

"Try me," Leona prompted.

"I'm...afraid," Tina admitted in a low voice. "Afraid of falling in love again. Afraid of getting my heart broken."

Leona nodded in understanding. "It's hard getting back in the saddle." She patted Tina's arm consolingly. "But what you need to do is decide if opening your heart to Jadyn is worth the risk."

"Worth the risk?" Tina echoed.

"You know, there's this saying: ' _it's better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all_ '. And I really believe that," Leona said, her golden eyes swirling with emotion. "We only get one life, Tina."

Tina's bleak expression turned pensive. Who would have thought the lion girl of all people would give her such sound advice.

Leona's attention was drawn to Prince Periwinkle and Princess Dahlia who were approaching Jadyn. Leona hadn't really taken the time to notice the troll prince until now, and she blushed when she noted that he was incredibly handsome.

Dahlia placed a fist over her chest. "The orcs have all been taken care of, Your Majesty. We await further orders."

"At ease, Commander," Jadyn said, giving Dahlia a pleased smile. "Well done. I'm afraid I can't send you all back to the castle immediately. I overexerted myself a bit and drained my magical core. As soon as my magic has replenished itself I will open a portal to send you all back to the west." The warlock's tone was apologetic.

"You used up all your magic?" Dahlia's prideful expression turned concerned. "Oh, you poor thing. You're just skin and bones. That's the real problem. Come over here and take a seat." The troll princess grabbed Jadyn's arm and started to drag him off with her.

Leona and Tina were both staring after Jadyn and Dahlia with wide eyes. Prince Periwinkle cleared his throat loudly to get their attention. "Greetings, ladies. My name is Prince Periwinkle. Please let me know if I can be of service to you in any way." He smiled broadly, showing off his tusks.

Tina ignored Prince Periwinkle, and stomped off after Jadyn and Dahlia. Prince Periwinkle's hopeful expression fell, and he pouted.

"You're a prince?" Leona asked with hearts in her eyes. "And you're named after a flower? I _love_ flowers." There was a giddy note to her voice.

Prince Periwinkle perked up, and his dour demeanor brightened. "I do too. They're very tasty. What is your name, Milady?" Periwinkle reached out, took Leona's hand and placed a gentle kiss upon it.

The lion girl blushed. "My name is Leona."

"What a lovely name," Prince Periwinkle complimented. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Leona. Jadyn has told me _so_ much about you."

Leona blinked. "He has?"

"Apparently, you have a lovely singing voice," Periwinkle said. "I would love to hear you sing sometime."

Leona giggled and blushed. "Really? I could sing for you right now..."

"Really? I'd be honored," Periwinkle said.

Leona opened her mouth and started to sing. Periwinkle joined her on the chorus after he learned it, and they started to sing the duet together with great enthusiasm.

Dahlia let go of Jadyn's arm so that she could pick up the dead body of an orc lying over a log. She tossed it aside one-handed, and dusted the top of the log off with her hand. Dahlia then placed her hands on Jadyn's shoulders and forcefully pushed him down so that he had no choice but to take a seat on the log. "Please take a seat, Your Majesty. You must be exhausted."

There was an empty spit above the campfire directly in front of him, and if Jadyn recalled correctly that was the same spit that had only moments before had an elf roasting on it. He gulped nervously. "Er, thank you, Dahlia."

"Are you hungry?" Dahlia questioned intently upon noticing him staring at the empty spit.

Jadyn opened his mouth to reply, but his stomach chose that exact moment to grumble loudly. "I..."

"I knew it! You must be positively famished," Dahlia declared. "You're way too skinny. My brother and I will go hunting in the swamp. Now, where is he...?" Dahlia looked around and spotted her brother singing and dancing with the lion girl. "I didn't know my brother could sing. Anyways, we'll be right back. Please, wait here, Your Majesty." Dahlia ran off to fetch her brother for a hunt.

Tina sat down on the log next to Jadyn casually. "Princess Dahlia seems to like you a lot."

Jadyn jumped at the unexpected appearance of the cyborg assassin. He didn't hear her approach at all. "I killed her father..." Jadyn found himself saying stupidly.

"I remember you telling Theo at Noryn's castle that he wasn't a very nice person," Tina reminded.

"He was a tyrant," Jadyn confirmed.

"What do you think of Princess Dahlia?" Tina questioned tentatively.

Jadyn gaped at Tina. "What do I....?" His brow furrowed in confusion. He had no idea why Tina might be asking him this. "She's very...strong. And...purple."

"Do you like the color purple?" Tina prodded.

"I suppose..." Jadyn agreed evasively.

"What's your _favorite_ color?"

"I don't know...blue?" Jadyn said, thinking of Tina's blue eyes.

Tina's eyes flared and a slight blush formed on her cheeks. "You _like_ Prince Periwinkle?"

"No!" Jadyn said, flushing. "I was referring to the color of _your_ eyes, Tin Woman."

Tina's blush deepened and her heart fluttered. "Oh. My favorite color is green."

Jadyn narrowed his eyes angrily at the cyborg. "Don't."

"Don't what?" Tina asked innocently.

"Don't give me reasons to hope when there is none," Jadyn sighed, gazing into the flickering flames of the campfire. "Don't force yourself to be nice to me. In fact, it would be easier if you were cruel. Giving me false hope only to crush it later is wicked. You know how I still feel about you. I love you, but you-"

"You know..." Tina interrupted smoothly. "I once heard a strange rumor about warlocks, witches and wizards. I heard that a warlock could regain his magic through physical contact with another person. Something about how a warlock can absorb another person's life energy. Is that rumor true?"

Jadyn shifted on the log uncomfortably. "Yes. If I were to touch someone I could absorb their life energy and it would aid in the replenishing of my magical core."

"Would a kiss work?" Tina asked, scooting closer to Jadyn.

Jadyn gulped when he felt Tina's thigh pressed up against his own. "Yes."

"Then...kiss me," Tina breathed, and her breath wafted over his ear so that he knew just how close she was in that moment.

Jadyn forced himself to remain very still. If he turned his head to look at her, their lips would brush. "Why would you want to kiss someone you hate?"

"For the good of the mission...?" Tina said in a nonchalant tone.

"A sacrifice, then?" Jadyn's voice was laced with bitterness.

"The ends justify the means." Tina closed her eyes. "Look at me."

Jadyn reluctantly turned to face her and it was just as he suspected. Their lips were a mere inch apart. Tina closed the distance between them and pressed her lips against Jadyn's.

Jadyn's eyes widened in shock, but he quickly closed his eyes. Tina wasn't pulling away so he started to kiss her back. Tina's lips were soft and sweet against his. Why was she kissing him? Didn't she hate him? _Oh, who the fuck cares!_ Jadyn thought venomously as he started to move his lips sensually against hers and with added pressure.

When Tina moaned against his mouth Jadyn decided to risk getting slapped and prodded at her lips with his tongue, seeking entrance. Tina surprised him yet again by opening her mouth and letting him inside. Their tongues danced and intertwined.

As Jadyn kissed her, Tina's lips were tingling. She realized he was probably absorbing her energy. Not that she really cared or minded. Jadyn was a good kisser. Much better than Dr. Doppelganger who'd been sloppy, rough, and had used his teeth.

Jadyn's kissing, on the other hand, was gentle, careful, and tentative. The reverent way he kissed her made her feel special. Like she was something precious that he was afraid of breaking if he were too rough.

When Jadyn reached up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, she shivered. Her heart was pounding inside of her chest, and as their kissing intensified her heart rate monitor started to beep at her in warning. Her heart ached...

Tina placed her hands on Jadyn's shoulders and shoved him back. "No. Stop." Tina said, panting breathlessly.

"Sorry," Jadyn immediately apologized, looking embarrassed. "I got a little carried away. Thank you. That...helped. Some of my magic has already been restored. I appreciate your sacrifice."

Tina lowered her head so that her bangs shielded her eyes. The cyborg was afraid that her eyes would reveal too much about what she was feeling for Jadyn in that moment. She took a few deep breaths as she tried to calm herself down, and get her rapidly beating heart under control. "There's no need to apologize. I'm glad that helped." Tina inwardly cursed herself for sounding so breathless and needy. She hoped Jadyn didn't notice.

Jadyn scowled when he noticed that strange beeping sound that seemed to pop up occasionally around Tina. "What is that infernal noise?"

Tina covered her heart rate monitor with her hand. "N-Nothing..."

Jadyn's eyes narrowed suspiciously at her and he was about to ask Tina about it again, when-

A loud thud drew their attention. Princess Dahlia had just dropped a giant, four-hundred-pound rat down on the ground in front of Jadyn. "We have returned! Who likes roasted rat?"

Leona raised her hand. "Oh, I do!"

"Me too!" Prince Periwinkle gave Leona an appreciative look.

"Roasted rat. Oh, goodie." Jadyn's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"Yay," Tina said dryly.

Jadyn watched as Dahlia started to tie the giant rat to the spit. A thoughtful frown formed on his face when he came to a sudden startling realization. Leona must have been there the entire time he was with Tina, which meant she'd watch them kiss. _Curse, my luck!_ He inwardly moaned, digging his nails into his scalp.

Dahlia noticed Jadyn's unease and quickly sought to soothe him. "Don't worry. This rat will cook in no time, King Jadyn!"

Jadyn just whimpered in response.

Princess Dahlia made a kebab with chunks of rat meat and once it was cooked she brought it over to Jadyn and sat next to him on the log. With a shy smile playing on her face she held the kebab out towards Jadyn's mouth. "This one is ready. Please, have a bite, Your Majesty."

Jadyn was horrified by the prospect of eating rat meat, but didn't want to be rude so decided to just grin and bear it. "How lovely. Thank you." Jadyn leaned forward and daintily took a bite of the kebab. He chewed and swallowed, and a thoughtful expression settled over his face. It wasn't as bad as he'd expected. "Heh. Tastes like chicken. Tina, you should really try this-" Jadyn was saying as he glanced over at Tina, who was glaring daggers at him. He flinched.

What could she be angry about now? Jadyn wondered, feeling a headache coming on. _She's giving me the assassin eyes. Is she disgusted that I was able to eat rat meat? It would have been rude to refuse it after Princess Dahlia went to the trouble of hunting and cooking it. And so once again I disgust Tina. What else is new?_

Meanwhile, Leona and Periwinkle were acting all lovey-dovey while the lion girl was feeding the troll prince by hand. "Open wide."

Periwinkle grinned at Leona before obligingly opening his mouth and letting Leona feed him a chunk of cooked rat meat.

Leona shivered when she felt Tina's glare on her next, but she didn't let it bother her. If Tina wanted to ignore her feelings and be dishonest with herself then that was her problem. It was pretty obvious to Leona that Tina was dying to get to feed Jadyn food by hand.

_How dare they act all lovey-dovey._ Tina thought bitterly. _Only married couples should be feeding each other by hand like that. This is completely inappropriate behavior. If anyone should be feeding Jadyn by hand it should be me. Not that I want to feed Jadyn by hand or anything._ A murderous aura flared up around Tina as she returned her attention to Princess Dahlia feeding Jadyn. _That tramp! I'm going to...!_ Tina blushed when she realized where her train of thought was leading. _I'm jealous. Oh, dear._

To be continued in...Chapter 6:

### Chapter 6:

Reginald stood in front of the magic mirror while admiring his reflection. He was wearing a gold suit with the pattern of red apples on it, a red cravat, a long gold cape with a red lining, and black boots. A gold pointed hat with a narrow brim sat on the top of his head. Reginald had a silver hairbrush in his hand that he was using on his shoulder-length, golden hair. After a few more strokes Reginald set the brush down on his dressing table, and smirked cockily at his appearance. "Perfection. Cordelia..."

The silvery surface of the mirror rippled until it stilled and revealed Cordelia's image. "Yes, Your Majesty?"

"The time has come for me to make my grand entrance," Reginald announced loftily. "It's always best for a hero to arrive just when all are about to lose hope. My timing needs to be perfect. If the orcs have carried out their orders successfully then that means they've slaughtered every male elf in Wood Elf Village, leaving only the she-elves behind. Princess Alva should have been taken to Orc Village where I shall now go and rescue her."

"It's a brilliant plan," Cordelia praised, smiling sweetly at the Good Wizard of the South. "If you go and rescue her from the clutches of those evil orcs you are sure to win her heart. Do you intend to make her one of your wives?"

Reginald nodded. "Yes. She will be a lovely addition to my harem."

"What about the other she-elves? Will you add them to your harem too?" Cordelia asked.

"The other she-elves will undoubtedly fall in love with me as well, but I only plan to make Princess Alva one of my wives." A lascivious smile spread across Reginald's face. "According to my spies, Princess Alva is still a virgin. I prefer my wives to have their innocence broken by me. That way they truly belong to me."

"I almost feel sorry for those other she-elves..." Cordelia mused aloud. "They will be left alone pining for you."

"Just because I don't intend to marry them doesn't mean I won't fuck them," Reginald corrected. "Their hearts and bodies belong to me now. I will make occasional visits to Wood Elf Village, and grace those lonely she-elves with my company. Eventually, the hearts of all the females in Oz will belong to me. Isn't that right, Cordelia?"

"Capturing hearts _is_ my specialty," Cordelia said, with a glint in her dark eyes. "I was once known as the Queen of Hearts before I became known as the Midnight Queen. With my help your dream _will_ come true."

"Dream? That's such a _weak_ word," Reginald drawled. "I prefer to think of this as my life's ambition. A man as handsome and perfect as I am deserves to be loved by all the women in the land. And we will make it so. All of the women in Oz will love me. All of them shall worship me like a god."

"You _are_ the fairest in all the land," Cordelia purred. "It shall be so."

Reginald preened under the compliment and smiled widely. "Show me Orc Village, Cordelia."

"Certainly, Your Majesty," Cordelia said. The surface of the enchanted mirror rippled until it stilled to reveal Orc Village, which was currently under attack by a small army of four hundred trolls and goblins.

Reginald's jaw dropped at the unexpected sight. "What? What is happening...?" The Good Wizard of the South watched in a mixture of disbelief and awe as the trolls and goblins fought against the orcs, but didn't appear to be targeting the elves. "Show me Princess Alva!"

The surface of the mirror rippled and stilled to show Prince Elric freeing Princess Alva from a cage while Theodore Gale, Jadyn, Tina, Leona and Anne freed the other elf prisoners. Reginald then watched Jadyn create a portal that the elves used to return to Wood Elf Village.

Reginald caught a glimpse of Wood Elf Village through the open portal and saw that all of the elves had been turned into toys. "Toys!" Turning humans into toys was the Wicked Warlock of the West's signature spell. Jadyn had once turned the entire populace of a village into fragile, porcelain dolls over some slight they'd caused him. The fact that the elves had been turned into toys to protect them from the orcs could only mean one thing - his half-brother Jadyn had decided to play hero again, and this time had saved Wood Elf Village.

Reginald's blood boiled and his body began to tremble out of rage. "How is this possible? How could things have turned out this way? I framed the goblins for the kidnappings of the she-elves. The elves should have killed Jadyn on sight. But instead he ended up saving them from the orcs. I miscalculated." The Good Wizard bit into his lower lip, and started to pace across his bedchamber.

"I...underestimated Jadyn," Reginald murmured and felt humbled. He _hated_ that feeling. "Jadyn was able to avoid my trap so easily. I'll need to take a more direct approach in dealing with him next time. Cordelia, where are Jadyn and his friends headed?"

"They appear to be headed to Dryad Forest." Cordelia's voice came from the mirror. "Jadyn wishes to speak to the dryads about something. I know not what."

Reginald tapped his lower lip. "I'll just have to go and speak with the dryads first. I simply must warn them about the evil goblin that is approaching and who plans to burn their beloved forest to the ground using Dark Magic." A sinister smile spread across Reginald's handsome face. "The Dryad Queen Acacia has always been rather fond of me. It shouldn't be too hard for me to convince her of this."

"Reginald, I believe there's something you should see," Cordelia said in a silky voice.

"Show me!" Reginald snapped.

The surface of the mirror rippled until it stilled to reveal Jadyn and the cyborg assassin seated on a log together, and _kissing_.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Jadyn...in love," Reginald sneered mockingly. "Thank you for showing me this, Cordelia. I now know Jadyn's greatest weakness. Hmm, she looks familiar." Reginald's red eyes widened in surprise. "She's the cyborg assassin whose life I helped Ozlyn to save! Oh, the irony. To think I placed a blood curse on the heart of the woman Jadyn loves! Their love is doomed. How wonderful. Buwhaha!" Reginald started to laugh cruelly.

After a few minutes of laughing, Reginald wiped a tear from his eye, and a malicious grin spread across his face. "Cordelia, be a dear and connect me to the mirror in Queen Acacia's bedchamber."

"Yes, Reginald," Cordelia's said. The surface of the mirror rippled and a few minutes later stilled to reveal the interior of the dryad queen's bedchamber along with the queen herself. The room Acacia was in was circular due to the fact that it was inside of a gigantic tree. All of the rustic furniture in the room was made out of wood, and her bed was made out of moss and sweetly smelling, fresh flowers.

"King Reginald, what a pleasant surprise," Acacia greeted him in a lilting voice. "I was just getting ready for bed." She clutched her silk robe closed over her cleavage as if to make her point.

Reginald's eyes raked hungrily over her pleasing form. Acacia was tall and willowy. She had long, pale green hair and sparkling, emerald-colored eyes. Her skin was so pale it was almost translucent. On the top of her head was a laurel wreath crown made of gold. The green and gold silk robe she was wearing clung to her curves and left very little to the imagination.

"How nice it is to see your handsome face. I'll be sure to dream of you tonight," Acacia purred flirtatiously.

"Why settle for a dream when you can have the real thing?" Reginald said in a low, husky voice. "I'm afraid I don't intend to let you get very much sleep tonight, my dear."

"I can always sleep during the day," Acacia said in a blasé manner.

Reginald frowned and gave her a concerned look. "That may not be safe, my darling. There is another reason why I contacted you so late. It has come to my attention that Dryad Forest is in grave danger."

"From what?" Acacia demanded, her eyes narrowing.

"An evil goblin warlock is on his way to your forest as we speak," Reginald said, his expression grim. "He intends to set Dryad Forest ablaze using his Dark Magic."

"He plans to set a fire in my forest?" Acacia tittered in amusement. "We dryads will easily combat the fire using our elemental water magic."

"If only it were that simple," Reginald said in an apologetic tone. "Unfortunately, this warlock is rather skilled. He intends to cast Black Fire. And as you know those flames cannot be quenched by mere water magic."

Acacia gasped in horror. "Black Fire! I will alert the forest guardians at once. They will kill this goblin menace-"

"No. Don't," Reginald smoothly cut in. "I want him brought to my castle. Alive. Him and his traveling companions. His companions are under his dark spell, you see. A form of hypnosis, I believe. I want them brought to my castle so I can break the goblin's hold upon them. Those poor unfortunate souls." The Good Wizard clucked his tongue and shook his head in a disapproving manner.

"Hypnosis?" Acacia murmured. "How dreadful. Don't worry. I'll have the guardians capture them all alive."

"Excellent," Reginald drawled.

"Ever the gallant hero. You're even worried about the goblin's cohorts," Acacia praised. "What do you intend to do with the goblin?"

"Oh, give him a chance to prove his innocence, of course," Reginald replied airily. "If he is found guilty, however, he shall be executed."

"How merciful of you," Acacia said, her emerald green eyes twinkling.

"Well, I am a _good_ wizard."

"A very good wizard," Acacia readily agreed.

"My _wand_ work is most impressive," Reginald bragged suggestively.

"Is it?" Acacia questioned in a playful manner. "How about you show me just how skilled with a wand you really are." She gave Reginald a sexy smile before undoing her sash belt and letting her robe fall open. Acacia reached up to push the robe off her shoulders and it fell to the floor where it pooled around her feet.

"Gladly, my dear," Reginald said in a deep, husky voice before taking a step forward and passing right through the mirror and entering Acacia's bedchamber.

***

Meanwhile, back at Wood Elf Village...the elves had given Theo and Anne their very own teepee to spend the night in. The couple was currently lying side by side on a soft bed of moss and flowers. "It's a little cramped in here," Anne complained as she tried to make herself comfortable on the lumpy moss.

"Oh, I think there's more than enough room in here..." Theo said before rolling on top of Anne and caging her with his body. He placed his hands on the ground on either side of her head and leaned forward until their faces were only inches apart. "You see?" He waggled his eyebrows at her.

"Pervy cowboy." Anne smiled up at Theo. She liked the way that he was on his hands and knees above her.

"On a bed of moss and flowers..." Theo began with a wistful note to his voice. "This is how I wanted to take you for our first time."

"Well, now's your chance," Anne said.

Theo grinned at Anne giving him the go-ahead, and started to undo the buttons of Anne's black and red plaid shirt. Theo started to struggle with the buttons, however, because he couldn't see very well in the dark. "Damn buttons..." he growled out in frustration.

"Don't you dare rip my shirt," Anne warned in a stern tone. "It's the only one I have with me."

"Now I just want to rip it open even more," Theo admitted brazenly. The thought of Anne having to walk around in nothing but a black bra, jean miniskirt, and cowboy boots was hot.

"Theo, I'm serious," Anne said.

Theo let out a resigned sigh. "Alright. You're the boss. I think one of the elves gave us a candle. Hang on a second, and I'll find it." Theo patted his hand around on the ground until he found the long, tallow candle. "Aha! Found it!" He slid his hand into his back jeans pocket and pulled out his trusty _Zippo_ lighter. Theo used the lighter to light the candle and stuck in into the ground. The space inside of the teepee was illuminated with a warm, golden glow. "There. Now I can see you better."

"Good," Anne purred. "Hurry up and take my shirt off."

Theo saluted her. "Yes, Ma'am."

Little did Theo and Anne realize but they were creating quite the commotion outside of their teepee.

Note: Teepees are _not_ soundproof.

Note: If you light a candle inside of your teepee at night people outside can see your shadow on the teepee's surface.

Elric and Alva had been walking through the village hand in hand when they came to a stop a couple of yards away from Theo and Anne's teepee when all of a sudden their shadows appeared on the exterior and revealed that Theo was currently on top of Anne. "What are they doing? Why does he have her pinned down to the ground like that?" Elric asked innocently.

"I believe they are about to...mate," Alva revealed, a mischievous glint in her lavender eyes.

Elric blushed furiously. "Shouldn't we tell them...?"

"Oh, I think not," Alva said as she watched Theo and Anne's shadows. "This could be very informative for us...for our upcoming wedding night."

Elric gulped. "Ah...yes. I suppose it could be...informative."

The elf couple watched as Theo unbuttoned and then removed Anne's shirt. Next, Theo reached out to undo Anne's bra, which he'd designed with a front clasp. One of Theo's one-night stands had left a lingerie magazine behind and Theo had taken full advantage of that fact to study the magazine intently. The bra Anne was wearing was modern and the latest fashion back in Kansas.

Note: Bras don't exist in Oz.

Theo unhooked the front clasp and Anne's breasts sprang free. "Whoo doggie, they just exploded didn't they?"

"Mmhm," Anne agreed with a hum.

"Why did her breasts just get bigger?" Elric asked softly.

"She must have been wearing some kind of binding around her breasts," Alva said knowledgably. "Female warriors bind their breasts so they're able to do archery."

Elric frowned. "I didn't think Anne was much of a warrior."

"Shhh!" Alva snapped.

"Is it cold inside of this tent or do I make you horny, baby?" Theo joked upon noticing Anne's peaked nipples.

"You make me very horny, Theo," Anne said, playing along.

"Your nipples look so delectable. I must have a taste." Theo leaned over and began to kiss and suck on Anne's nipples causing her to cry out in pleasure. "Oh, yes!"

"Why is he sucking on her nipples? It's not like milk will come out..." Elric said, his brow furrowed in confusion.

Alva shrugged. "Maybe he's thirsty."

Theo's hands slid down Anne's body until he reached the top button of her jean miniskirt. He undid the button, pulled down the zipper, and then slid the skirt off of her. Anne spread her legs so that Theo could have better access to her throbbing core.

Theo reached out and stroked his thumb over Anne's damp panties. "Mmm, you're wet. So ready for me, Anne."

"Oh my Goddess, did she _wet_ herself?" Alva questioned in a scandalized tone.

"I'm not sure..." Elric shifted uncomfortably. His brown leather pants were beginning to feel a bit too tight.

Theo ripped Anne's panties off and tossed them aside. The cowboy put his head between Anne's thighs and breathed in her scent. "You smell so good. Just like strawberries and honey. I _need_ to taste you, Anne."

"Oh my Goddess, he's going to eat her. Is he a cannibal?" Elric asked with an alarmed look on his face.

Alva smacked Elric's arm. "No, you idiot. That can't be it. I still don't really understand what he's doing though."

Theo licked Anne's pussy, and she shuddered beneath him. He then put his mouth and tongue to work on Anne's sex, licking and sucking and nibbling until he had Anne crying out his name. Anne dug her nails into Theo's scalp and pressed his face against her harder. "Oh, Theo, I'm so close! I'm going to....! Oh, yes, Theo! Yes!"

Theo pulled back with a smug expression on his face and licked his lips. It hadn't taken him very long to make Anne come. "Your sweet nectar is so delicious, Anne."

Anne giggled at his choice of words. "Why do you still have your clothes on...?"

"Oh, sorry." Theo quickly took off his shirt, boots, and pants. When he lastly removed his boxers his erection sprang free and slapped against his stomach.

Elric and Alva both gasped at the sight of Theo's impressive erection jutting out from his hips. The outline of his cock was very visible through the teepee. Elric and Alva shared a surprised look though since their gasp had sounded much louder than it should have.

The elf couple glanced over their shoulders, and they were surprised to see that a small crowd of toys had gathered behind them who were also watching the shadow show on Theo and Anne's teepee.

"That's quite a woody he has there!" a wooden puppet joked.

"Did you say something?" Theo asked Anne.

"No," Anne denied.

"Oh, yeah...condom." Theo grabbed his jeans and rummaged around in his pockets until he found a condom. He opened the tinfoil packet, and then slipped the condom down over his cock.

At this point, Elric, Alva, and all of the toys, which were watching, wore matching confused looks on their faces. "What did he just put on his-?" Elric asked.

Alva was frowning thoughtfully. "I have no idea."

"What is that thing for again?" Anne asked helpfully.

"It will stop you from getting pregnant," Theo explained.

"Ooo," everyone who was watching exclaimed in awe.

"You don't want me to be the mother of your child?" Anne asked with a pout.

"No, no, no..." Theo quickly denied. "That's not it, babe. It's just...I want to be able to go on a few more adventures with you before we have to, you know, settle down."

"Oh. That sounds logical," Anne reluctantly agreed.

"I'm almost out of these babies though, and then I don't know what we're going to do," Theo said.

"Try celibacy?" Anne suggested casually.

"Never!" Theo sounded aghast by the mere suggestion. "Maybe Jadyn could use his magic to replicate these condoms or something."

"Speaking of Jadyn, I wonder how the poor warlock is doing," Anne said, nibbling on her lower lip out of worry. "He used an awful lot of magic, which can be dangerous since he has such a sickly body due to being a half-breed. I hope he's okay."

Elric, Alva and the toys watched as Theo's erection started to flag. "Don't bring up some other dude when I'm about to fuck you, sweetheart," Theo complained before grabbing Anne's legs and spreading them wide. Anne squealed as Theo positioned himself right at her entrance. "You're _mine_!"

Anne cried out as Theo drove into her fully with one smooth, powerful thrust. Since Theo and Anne had an active sex life it didn't take Anne very long to adjust to Theo being inside of her, and Theo was able to start moving almost immediately. He pulled his cock halfway out of her before thrusting right back in. After that the cowboy adopted a fast rhythm as he started to pound into her.

Anne dug her nails into Theo's back and raised her hips to meet his possessive thrusts. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

Alva grew horrified by what she was seeing. "He's being _way_ too rough with her! There's no way that feels good. What a savage!"

"She sounds happy to me," Elric argued, his sapphire-blue eyes glued to the exterior of the teepee.

Alva slapped Elric's arm. "Don't you dare treat me like that on our wedding night!"

Elric pouted. "I won't, love."

Elric, Alva, and the toys watched as Theo made Anne come again, but noticed that Theo appeared to be far from done.

"You're _still_ going?" Anne asked breathlessly as Theo continued to surge over her. "When are you going to come?"

"I need to get my money's worth out of this condom," Theo said, his voice deep and husky and laced with lust. "I'm going to make you come at least three more times before I let myself come."

"You think you'll be able to last that long, Cowboy?" Anne challenged.

"You're right. I might not make it. Your ribbon..." Theo grunted.

"My what?" Anne asked.

"Your hair ribbon," Theo panted out. "Tie it around the base of my cock. Tightly."

Following Theo's instructions Anne removed one of the red ribbons that kept her braided pigtails together, and leaned forward as Theo sat up. She then tied the ribbon around the base of Theo's cock and tightened it until he shuddered.

"Too tight?" Anne questioned in a concerned tone.

"No. It has to be tight or else I'll come," Theo said through gritted teeth. "Don't free me until I've made you come at least three more times. Okay? Promise me."

"I promise," Anne purred.

"Now _that_ we _can_ try," Alva said, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Elric placed his hands over his crotch in a protective manner. "No way! Never! That's...torture!"

"Sweet torture," Alva argued, drawing circles on Elric's chest in a flirtatious manner. "With a reward at the end."

Alva, Elric and the toys watched as true to his word Theo managed to make Anne come three more times. The elves and toys were all nodding to themselves in approval, thoroughly impressed by Theo's sexual prowess. When Anne leaned forward to finally untie the ribbon around Theo's cock he came with a ragged shout.

Theo carefully pulled out of Anne, took off the condom, and held it up. "Yeehaw! I came a lot! Look at this. It looks like a freakin water balloon!" The cowboy bragged.

"What's a water balloon?" Anne asked.

"Yet another thing I need to teach you about." A wolfish grin curled Theo's lips. "I'll make sure you're wearing a white T-shirt when I do. No bra."

"You are insatiable, pervy cowboy," Anne scolded.

"Aw, baby, you know that's what you like about me," Theo teased.

The following morning when Theo and Anne exited their teepee they were met with loud, raucous applause and cheers. "Whoo! Yeah!"

Theo flushed and placed a hand behind his head in a sheepish gesture. "Uh...?"

Anne frowned at all the attention they were suddenly getting for no apparent reason. "What's going on?"

Princess Alva and Prince Elric approached them. Alva had an impish glint in her eyes while Elric was looking embarrassed and uncomfortable. "They are applauding your performance from last night," Alva revealed.

"My performance?" Theo echoed.

"Oh, yes. It was quite educational in learning about the mating habits of humans from Kansas," Alva said.

A bright red blush rose to Anne's cheeks when she realized what Alva must have been referring to. Theo slapped a hand to his forehead and groaned. "Fuck. I totally forgot about that whole Austin-Powers-two-people-inside-of-a-tent-at-night shtick. I'm such an idiot! Of course they could see our shadows on the teepee because I lit that damn candle!" Theo gulped when he suddenly felt someone's murderous aura being directed his way. He turned to face Anne and saw that she was glaring at him with a furious expression on her face. _Uh oh._ "Anne, baby, I'm so sorry-"

Anne was so angry she was trembling. She held up her hand in front of Theo's face. "Talk to the hand, Theo. Hmph!" Anne snorted before turning on her heel and stomping off.

Theo let out a groan. "I never should have taught her that. Hey, wait up, babe!" He called before chasing after her.

At that moment, a seven-foot-tall portal of shimmering blue energy appeared inside of the village, and Leona stepped through, followed by Tina, and lastly, Jadyn.

Jadyn frowned when he caught sight of Theo chasing after Anne with a desperate expression on his face. "Theodore, what have you done now?"

"Hey, Jay. Welcome back." Theo grinned at the warlock. "Anne and I just accidentally gave the elves a Porno Show last night."

Jadyn's frown deepened in bewilderment of yet another unknown term Theodore Gale was using. "Porno?"

Anne kicked Theo's ankle hard before he could answer. "Stop teaching people weird shit, Theo!"

"Ow!" Theo exclaimed, bending over to rub at his sore ankle. "That freakin hurt! You're not a doll stuffed with straw anymore!"

Anne shrugged with an unrepentant look on her face. "I know."

"God, you're always so mean to me..." Theo's expression turned teasing. "And it turns me on, baby."

Anne rolled her eyes. "Gah!" She threw her hands up into the air and stared up at the blue sky with its fluffy, white clouds. "Why do I even bother with this masochistic, pervy cowboy?"

Jadyn sidled up to Theo. "You find a woman being cruel to you to be...arousing? And this is normal?" He shot a sideways glance Tina's way.

Theo slung an arm around Jadyn's shoulders, and brought their heads closer so he could speak to the warlock in a conspiratorial manner, "Yeah, man. Dominant women...women that take control and know what they want and how they want it...isn't that hot, man?"

Jadyn pondered this for a moment. Tina was usually mean and aggressive towards him. She hated him, but she'd kissed him. "Yes. I'm going to have to agree with you. I believe that I am attracted to dominant women also."

Theo grinned and nodded to himself. "Where I come from they're called Dominatrixes."

"Dominatrix?" Jadyn questioned.

Anne's eyes widened at the unexpected words that were coming out of Jadyn's mouth. "Oh no. You're being a bad influence on poor Jadyn, Theo! Stop that! Jadyn, it's _not_ normal to like someone who is mean to you, okay? Your girlfriend should be _nice_ to you. _Kind_. And not, mmmph-!"

Leona covered Anne's mouth with her hand, and let out a nervous laugh when everyone shot her a questioning look. "We'll be right back." The lion girl started to drag Anne away from the rest of the group, and only paused once they were out of earshot from the others.

"Ah!" Anne shoved Leona off of her. "What the hell, Leona?"

"Back at Orc Village, I saw Jadyn and Tina kiss!" Leona squealed softly.

"No!" Anne rebuked in a disbelieving tone.

"Yes," Leona insisted, her golden eyes sparkling. "But afterwards Tina said she still hated Jadyn so don't say things that will _confuse_ him."

"Tina kissed him but hates him?" Anne said, frowning. "Now I'm the one who's confused."

"She's just playing hard to get," Leona said knowingly. "After everything that happened between her and Dr. Doppelganger Tina is afraid of getting hurt and of getting her heart broken. It will be hard for Tina to open her heart up to love again. So this is progress."

"Progress," Anne echoed with a skeptical note to her voice. "Okay. If you say so."

"There's something else I need to tell you about..." Leona started to fidget and a blush rose to her cheeks. "I met someone. And he's a prince. Eeee!" she squealed with obvious excitement.

"A prince?" Anne echoed, her voice laced with surprise. "Wow."

"He has the most gorgeous blue skin," Leona started to gush. "Did I ever tell you that blue is my favorite color?"

"Is he an Ice Elf?" Anne asked.

"No silly. He's a troll," Leona said. "His name is Prince Periwinkle. When we met there was this spark between us, and we totally hit it off. And we have so much in common. We both like flowers _and_ rat meat! Can you believe that? What are the chances?"

"A troll?" Anne echoed with a stupefied expression on her face. She gulped. "If he's a troll...wouldn't he be like eight-feet-tall?"

"Actually, he's a runt, so he's only seven-feet-tall," Leona said.

"Aren't all trolls, I dunno...?" Anne waved her hand through the air as she tried to choose the right word to describe what she thought about trolls. "Bloodthirsty? Are you sure you're okay with that?"

"Bloodthirsty?" Leona giggled. "Periwinkle is a pacifist. He is a kind and gentle soul. His favorite hobby is gardening. He and Jadyn surprisingly have that in common."

"An interest in botany?" Anne mused aloud while imagining Jadyn down in his dark and dreary potions lab, adding flowers to a cauldron that contained a sinister looking, bubbling, purple potion. "Right. Well, I'm happy for you, Leona." She patted Leona's arm and forced herself to smile despite her misgivings. She'd have to meet this troll and see for herself if he was good enough for Leona.

After Jadyn used his magic to restore the toys in Wood Elf Village to their original elven forms, the warlock, Theo, Anne, Tina and Leona set out from the village and started to head for Dryad Forest once again. Jadyn was mounted on his broom, Theo was riding Toto, and the girls were riding their color-changing horses.

After having been captured by elves so easily, Jadyn had been tempted to have Princess Dahlia and Prince Periwinkle tag along as his bodyguards. He ultimately decided against this and sent all of the goblins and trolls through a portal back to the west. The last thing he wanted was for the dryads to see a bunch of trolls and assume the worst.

When the group reached the outskirts of Dryad Forest they saw an enormous, golden-tinged energy dome that encompassed the entire forest. "And this..." Jadyn waved his hands at the energy shield. "Is the reason why I couldn't just teleport us all to Dryad Forest in the first place." He turned to Theo. "You're up, Cowboy. Do your thing and use the Ruby Gauntlet to destroy that magical shield."

"Alright, just leave it to me, man." Theo cracked his neck from side to side and squeezed his thighs around Toto to urge his horse to get closer to the shield. Once Theo was close enough he reached out, and placed his hand against the magical energy shield.

A _whooming_ sound filled the air as the Ruby Gauntlet destroyed the shield. Everyone watched as the dome of gold energy dissipated in an impressive fashion with little golden sparks flying up into the air and looking like fireflies.

"Good job, Theodore," Jadyn said with a pleased smile curling his lips. "Onward."

"How will we find the dryads?" Theo asked, admiring the giant redwood trees around them with a curious glint in his blue eyes. This forest reminded Theo of the Redwood National Park in California. However, whereas the largest tree there had been three-hundred-feet tall and thirty-feet-wide, the trees here appeared to be even larger. Theo spotted a tree that must have been five-hundred-feet-tall and fifty-feet-wide, and let out an impressed whistle. "Whoo."

"After what you just did to their magical energy dome the dryads will come and find us now," Jadyn said in a dry tone. The ferns that covered most of the forest floor started to grow taller and Jadyn pulled back on the handle of his broom to ascend over them. "We no longer need to go in search of them."

"So are you finally going to tell us what your big, bad master plan is, and how it involves the dryads?" Theo questioned.

"Patience, Theodore. My genius plan will be revealed shortly," Jadyn said smugly.

"Dryad Forest is an ancient forest," Anne was saying as she started to recall some facts about the forest from a book she'd filched from Jadyn's potions lab at Toy Village. "The redwood, spruce, hemlock and fir trees here are the oldest in Oz, and a lot of them have the ability to speak. The dryads make their homes inside of the trees since they can get so big."

"Is there anything you don't know, Hermione?" Theo joked, making a _Harry Potter_ reference.

"Probably not." Anne didn't even bat an eyelash since she was used to Theo giving everyone strange, nonsensical nicknames.

As the group traveled down a winding forest path Theo admired the moss that was growing on some of the trees that appeared to be glowing softly, and spotted a cluster of red mushrooms with white spots on them growing on the ground near the base of one of the larger trees. The misty forest was eerily quiet, however, and a chill of unease crawled up Theo's spine causing him to shiver. "I think we're being watched. My _Spidey sense_ just tingled." Tina placed a hand on the hilt of her sword.

"Very astute, Theodore," Jadyn drawled. "They have us surrounded."

Theo looked around wildly, but only saw trees and more trees. "Where are they?"

From out of the trees' trunks the dryads started to emerge. The tree spirits had tall, willowy bodies, and long hair that cascaded down their backs and almost reached their toes. Most of them had green-colored hair in varying shades, but Theo also caught sight of a few blonde dryads. The most common eye colors the dryads had were green and blue. They moved with a preternatural grace as they approached.

The dryad females were dressed in sheer, white, silk gowns while the males were dressed in gauzy, white, cotton pants. The males' muscular, bare chests were on display, and all of the dryads were barefoot. Theo thought they looked like a bunch of tree-hugging hippies, except, of course, for the sharp, wooden spears they were holding.

One of the dryad females stood out from the others due to her beauty, and the regal air about her. She had light green hair that cascaded down her back in waves, and her dark emerald-colored eyes were almost the same startling shade as Jadyn's. Theo could see the female's pink nipples through her sheer dress, and tried hard not to stare. Or drool. This woman was obviously royalty due to the golden crown of laurel leaves sitting on the top of her head, and he wanted to show her the proper respect. "I bet she's the Dryad Queen," Theo whispered loudly to Jadyn.

Jadyn scrubbed a hand down his face since Theo's whisper echoed loudly through the forest. "Yes, you impolite imbecile."

The Dryad Queen stepped forward to greet them: "I am Queen Acacia, and you are all under arrest."

"Hey! But we didn't do anything," Theo objected with a pout. _Did she catch me staring at her nipples? Shit._ He swore mentally.

Acacia arched a haughty eyebrow at Theo. "No? What do you call destroying our magical energy dome then? That was an act of war."

"Ah..." Theo murmured as a guilty look formed on his face. "Sorry about that."

"Queen Acacia, please forgive us for our heavy-handed methods," Jadyn smoothly apologized. "But we needed to get past the shield in order to speak with you on a matter of the utmost importance."

"Oh, really?" Acacia scoffed. "You needed to speak with me so badly you destroyed this forest's only protection against outside threats? I think not. I know why you are really here. You wish to destroy Dryad Forest!"

"That is _not_ our intent at all," Jadyn quickly denied, feeling confused and bewildered by this sudden accusation. "I am here because I wish to form a mutually beneficial alliance with the dryads. I want us to unite our forces against a common enemy: the Wicked Warlock of the East, Dr. Doppelganger."

"Lies! _He_ told me you would say that," Acacia said scathingly. "I know why you're really here, Wicked Warlock. You have come to use your Dark Magic to burn this forest to the ground. You intend to use Black Fire against us."

"He? Who?" Jadyn demanded hotly.

"The Good Wizard of the South, Reginald," Acacia revealed. "Who else? He told me all about your duplicitous nature, and warned me of your deceitful, silver tongue. He's the one who told me all about your nefarious plot!"

" _Reginald!_ " Jadyn spat the name out like a curse. _Damnation!_ _That bastard has already poisoned the Dryad Queen against me._ The warlock thought to himself. This fiasco was Wood Elf Village all over again. This thought gave Jadyn pause and the wheels in his sharp mind started to turn rapidly. _Coincidence? I think not._

Even Theo was starting to connect the dots and his gaze went to the scars that were on the cheeks of the dryad males that were a mark of their loyalty to Reginald.

Wood Elf Village, the starved orcs, the kidnappings, and how only the elf males had been killed. _Reginald...he was behind the whole thing! It all makes sense now._ Jadyn realized with a sinking feeling in his stomach.

His hypocritical, older brother had staged a tragedy in order to play the part of the gallant hero so that he could gain the love of the she-elves. Reginald's vanity and thirst for admiration knew no bounds. Jadyn clenched his hands into fists at his sides, and trembled with rage. "It is my brother who is false! Queen Acacia, please, hear me out-"

Acacia raised her hand imperiously. "Silence! I will hear no more of your lies. Reginald is a _Good_ Wizard, and is therefore trustworthy. He told me all about how your mother Orabella was raped by the Goblin King, Irvine Verdant. A child from an unwanted union can only turn out wicked. I need no more proof than that. Also, as a half-goblin _creature_ you are fundamentally evil."

Jadyn flinched at her cruel, hurtful words. "King Irvine Verdant did _not_ rape my mother. They were in love!"

The dryads all shared skeptical looks before they started laughing out of amusement. All except for one elderly male dryad. Jadyn's gaze shot to the old man curiously for a moment. The dryad male had a wrinkled face, long white hair, a white beard, and pale blue eyes that appeared to be blind. _He can't see my green skin and so doubts that I'm evil. If he could see he would be laughing just like the others._ Jadyn thought bitterly.

"Preposterous!" Acacia scoffed. "Orabella was renown for her ethereal beauty. Poems and sonnets have been composed in her honor. There's no way she fell in love with the Goblin King. A hideous monster!"

Jadyn felt a flush of embarrassment creep up the back of his neck. He couldn't meet his friends' inquisitive stares.

"My daughter," the old, blind dryad spoke up in a raspy voice. "Perhaps, you are being a bit hasty in your judgment of this young warlock."

"Silence, Father!" Acacia snapped in a haughty fashion. "You have no say in this matter. You are no longer king! I am Queen of the Dryads now, and my word is law. Now, guardians, you will arrest these evildoers immediately."

One of the dryad males crouched, placed his hand on the ground, summoned his magic and concentrated. Several vines burst out of the ground directly beneath Jadyn, who was hovering a few feet above the ground on his broom.

Sensing the attack, Jadyn took off on his broom, soaring up and out of the vines' reach. "Is that the best you've got, dryads? You'll have to do better than that if you want to catch me. Muahaha!" Jadyn cackled as he began to fly around the dryads in circles.

"Perhaps, we can't capture you...but what about your friends?" Acacia suggested coolly. "Do it! Capture them!"

Several dryad males crouched, placed their hands upon the ground, summoned their magic, and concentrated. Hundreds of vines burst out of the ground in front of the horses. The horses neighed and reared out of fear, throwing their riders. Theo, Anne, Leona and Tina ended up on the ground where the vines immediately attacked them.

Theo put his hands up before him in a surrendering gesture. "Hey! We're innocent! We're being framed. I'm Theodore Gale. The Foretold Savior of Oz. Chain Breaker. Why would I let Jadyn destroy your forest? I'm a hero!"

"King Reginald has informed me that Jadyn has you all under his spell..." Acacia explained in a condescending tone. "You're under some form of hypnosis. You don't know what you're saying or doing. That's why you shall be taken to Reginald's castle forthwith so that the Good Wizard can kindly undo the spell that has been placed upon you."

"Hypnosis? That's a bunch of bullshit!" Theo objected hotly. He tried to punch the vines, but they quickly managed to pin his arms to his sides and wrapped around his torso. With his Ruby Gauntlet pinned to his side there wasn't much Theo could do. Leona and Anne were restrained in a similar manner with their arms pinned to their sides.

Tina, however, didn't go down so easily. She'd unsheathed her katana and was using it to slice through the vines that attacked her. She was holding her ground until a few vines sprouted from the ground directly beneath her feet and wrapped around her ankles, managing to trip her up. As soon as she was on the ground the vines pinned her arms to her sides and constricted until Tina let out a cry of pain and let go of the grip she had on her katana.

"Tina!" Jadyn yelled out in concern.

Tina looked up and shot Jadyn an urgent look. "Jadyn! Go! Get out of here! Don't let them capture you too!"

A myriad of conflicting emotions warred on Jadyn's face. He hesitated on his next course of action, but...Tina was in trouble. She needed him. Jadyn swooped down on his broom, conjured a fireball in his right hand, and threw it at the vines retraining Tina. "Let her go, you bastards!"

The vines started to burn, but more vines quickly took their place. The dryads gasped in horror and fear, and all took a step back away from the fire. A few of the female dryads were cowering in fear from the mere sight of a few small flames.

"Now you show your true colors, Wicked Warlock," Queen Acacia said scathingly, stalking over to a tree and placing her hand against its trunk.

Jadyn was battling the vines below him and did not expect an attack from above. A huge tree branch swung into Jadyn, knocking him right off his broom.

Jadyn plummeted down through the air and landed on the ground with a hard thud. As soon as Jadyn's body touched the ground vines sprang up out of the ground and began to coil around the warlock's body.

Jadyn let out a loud roar of anger, frustration, and fear as he desperately tried to rip the vines off of him. "Get these infernal things off of me! How dare you? You fools! You blind fools!" A vine wrapped around Jadyn's throat and constricted so that what he was about to say next was cut off. He blacked out a few seconds later as the vine continued to constrict around his throat painfully.

To be continued in...Chapter 7:

### Chapter 7:

"Ugh..." Jadyn let out a groan as he regained consciousness due to his pounding headache.

"Good morning, Sleeping Handsome," Theo's voice reached his ears.

Jadyn struggled to open his eyes and when he finally managed it the sight that met him was Reginald's castle. The castle had been constructed out of white stone with veins of gold. Gargoyles carved out of white marble and shaped like beautiful angels with golden wings sat on window ledges peering down at them. At the tops of the castle's turrets golden pennants with Reginald's insignia, which was an apple tree, were flapping in the wind.

Jadyn squinted his eyes as the sunlight reflected off the white walls of the castle making it painful to look at. The gaudy castle suited Reginald perfectly in Jadyn's opinion. As Jadyn took stock of his current situation he noted that two dryads had been supporting him along with a hard grip on his upper arms while he'd been unconscious. As soon as they noticed that the warlock had regained consciousness, however, they let go of his arms, and shoved him forward.

"Walk on your own now, Wicked Warlock," one of the dryad forest guardians snarled with obvious venom in his tone.

Jadyn stumbled forward a few steps and struggled to regain his balance. It was hard since his arms were pinned to his sides by the vines that were wrapped around his upper torso. He noticed that Theo, Anne, Leona and Tina were similarly restrained.

Unfortunately, Jadyn had a little addition that the others didn't have, and those were the Ozanite manacles that were around his wrists. Discreetly, Jadyn tried to cast a small spell, but the Ozanite stones on the shackles glowed as they absorbed Jadyn's magic. _Damnation!_ He wouldn't be able to use his magic to get him out of this situation.

"Who the hell does this guy think he is?" Theo was muttering to himself as he looked up at the white and gold castle they were approaching. "A fairytale prince?"

When they entered the castle courtyard everyone's gaze was immediately drawn to the fifty-foot-tall golden statue of a man, or rather a wizard. The wizard was wearing flowing robes, a pointed hat, and held a magic wand aloft in a defensive posture. He had shoulder-length, wavy hair, and very handsome, regal facial features.

Jadyn bore a _slight_ resemblance to him though, and Theo smirked. "I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that's your brother Reginald."

"Let me guess, the pointy hat gave him away?" Jadyn said in a wry tone.

"Actually, it was his devilish good looks. He looks _just_ like you," Theo teased while Jadyn spluttered in disbelief. "Here sure likes gold. He reminds me of our President. I'm suddenly feeling homesick."

"Quiet, you!" one of the dryads snapped before slamming the butt end of his spear into Theo's lower back.

"Ow!" Theo complained as he stumbled forward. "These dryads have a lousy sense of humor."

There were two guards standing on either side of the front door to the castle. The guards were both dressed in golden armor, and had broadswords strapped to their sides. Theo noted that just like the male elves and male dryads these males also bore slashing scars on their cheeks, one on each cheek. Their expressions were vacant and remained that way as they opened the door and stepped aside to let the group pass through.

"Hey, Jay," Theo murmured as they were escorted down a castle corridor that had a red rug runner. "Why does Reginald make his male subjects scar themselves in order to show their loyalty to him?"

"Reginald...is incredibly vain," Jadyn started to explain with obvious disgust. "He has a magic mirror and every morning he wakes up and asks it a simple question: 'Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who in Oz is fairest of all?' Heaven forbid that mirror tells him that someone else is more handsome than he is because that man's days are numbered."

Theo's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "You're kidding, right? No one can be that self-absorbed."

Jadyn chuckled lowly. "Oh, Reginald is."

The group reached a pair of towering, golden double doors. The image of an apple tree had been engraved into each door with intricate detail. The two guards that had been posted at the doors opened them as soon as they saw the traveling party approaching.

Theo let out a whistle as he and the others entered the throne room. White marble columns with gold veins stood on either side of the center aisle. Between the columns were marble platforms on which stood marbles statues of beautiful, naked men and women. When Theo took a closer look at one of the statues, however, his eyes widened. "Hey, wait a minute! Isn't that Michelangelo's David?" There were other sculptures of Greek gods and goddesses that Theo thought he recognized too, and then he spotted a painting hanging on the wall. "And that's...the Mona Lisa!" He shot his friends an expectant look.

Jadyn gave Theo a bewildered look while Anne, Leona and Tina, who were used to Theo bringing up things that had to do with his home world, simply returned his look with a blank one. Theo let out a frustrated huff and turned his attention back to the pieces of art. _These sculptures and paintings are from Earth._ Theo thought, feeling unsettled. _Reginald must have stolen them or they could be replicas. Does that mean Reginald has been to Earth. But how? Does he have a way to travel between worlds?_

Someone cleared their throat loudly, and Theo's attention was drawn to the man seated on the massive, golden throne on the far side of the room. Theo recognized him as being the same man that the golden statue outside had been modeled after.

Theo thought that there wasn't that much of a difference between the man and the statue since Reginald's hair was a golden-blonde color, and his skin even had a golden hue to it. Theo would have considered the wizard's features to be angelic if it weren't for his demonic, glittering, ruby-red eyes.

Unlike the statue outside, however, Reginald was currently dressed in a gold silk suit with the design of red apples on it, a gold pointed hat, and a long, golden cape with a bright red lining. The suit was tightly fitted to his muscular body, and showed off his powerful form.

Theo was quickly distracted by the gaggle of beautiful women surrounding Reginald's throne, and who were dressed like belly dancing girls in red and gold silk. Two women were fanning Reginald with gigantic, white-feathered fans. One woman was holding a golden, serving platter with huge, juicy looking grapes on it, and was feeding Reginald grapes by hand. Another woman was refilling the golden, jewel-encrusted goblet he was holding with more wine.

Soft, lilting music was floating through the air, and Theo followed the sound of it to see a group of women seated on the floor and playing harps in varying sizes. Three women were dancing to this music and as they circled the throne they pulled long golden ribbons through the air behind them.

"Holy shit. He has a harem," Theo exclaimed as he gawked at the women dancing and shaking their cleavage in Reginald's direction. "I'm _so_ jealous right now."

"I thought you said you were a _one-woman_ man now, Theo," Anne piped up.

"I...I am!" Theo quickly reassured her. "I only have eyes for you, babe. Well, maybe not eyes...since they do tend to stray. But my heart definitely belongs to you and only you."

One of the dryads walked forward and knelt before Reginald. "King Reginald, we have successfully captured your brother, Jadyn, the Wicked Warlock of the West along with his companions, alive, as you requested."

Reginald smiled at the dryad, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Thank you. I can handle this from here." When the dryads looked unsure of what they were supposed to do next, Reginald waved his hand impatiently at him. "You are dismissed. Leave."

"Yes, Your Majesty," the dryads said as one before they turned and left the throne room.

"Alive, huh?" Jadyn drawled as soon as the double doors had closed behind the dryads. "Did you want the honor of killing me all for yourself? How selfish of you, Brother. I suppose you wish to kill me and avenge Mother..."

"Avenge Mother?" A dark chuckle slipped past Reginald's full lips. "I could care less whether or not that rumor about the Goblin King raping our mother is true or not. In fact, I was glad to hear of it since I prefer you looking this way, Jadyn. Absolutely hideous." A malevolent, gleeful smile spread across Reginald's face.

Jadyn grew confused. "If you aren't angry about Mother then why did you try to frame goblins for the orcs' deeds in Wood Elf Village? And why did you turn the dryads against me?"

"You were always weak, but I didn't think you were this stupid," Reginald sneered, his red eyes glittering with anger and malice. "You just had to play the hero, didn't you, Jadyn? You saved the Emerald City, freed the goblins in the north, and united all of the monsters. You've tamed them, and have stopped them from doing evil against humans. How am I supposed to be a beloved hero of Oz if there is nothing to save people from? I _needed_ the monsters to be evil. You ruined all that just like how you ruined my plot to save Wood Elf Village from the orcs. That was _my_ time to shine, Jadyn."

"You're angry with me because I cut in on your hero turf," Jadyn said in a disbelieving tone. "And I had a feeling you were behind the strange happenings in Wood Elf Village. It doesn't surprise me. It had your fingerprints all over it."

"I was waiting until _all_ the elf males had been eaten before I went to rescue Princess Alva and the other she-elves from the orcs," Reginald started to explain. "The she-elves would have been eternally grateful to me. Princess Alva would have fallen madly in love with me - her hero. Her knight in shinning armor. Her virginity would have been mine. I planed to make Princess Alva one of my wives, but you foiled my plot."

"Oh my God, this is all about your 'hero image'," Theo couldn't help but pipe up. "Because the monsters are under Jadyn's control there have been no more 'monster attacks'. Right now, there is no need for heroes in Oz. Then, Jadyn unintentionally saved Wood Elf Village, and got in your way of playing hero. But there's something I don't understand. Why have the elf males killed? I saw the self-inflicted scars on their faces. They were loyal to you."

"Not loyal enough..." Reginald muttered darkly. "And I grew jealous of them being with the lovely she-elves. Also, I was bored."

"You caused all that pain and suffering because you were jealous and bored?" Theo demanded hotly.

"Without monster attacks occurring Oz has grown too peaceful. And peace is boring," Reginald argued. "And really, I'd prefer it if no males existed in Oz at all. Besides myself, of course. I desire _all_ the attention from the females in Oz. I want _all_ of their love and caring. Their beautiful songs and dances also belong to _me_. Eventually, I will be the only man left in Oz..."

"Attention whore," Theo coughed.

"What was that?" Reginald snapped.

Theo met Reginald's fierce stare and repeated slowly: "Attention. Whore. You remind me of the celebrities back home that are obsessed with their fame and thrive on the attention their fans give them on social media. You're also an egomaniac and narcissist with an unhealthy obsession with gold. Are you sure your last name isn't Trump, by any chance? You two would really get along..."

"How dare you insult me!" Reginald growled, trembling with fury. "I shall turn you into a toad!" He raised his hand, pointed his index finger at Theo, and shot a bolt of golden-tinged magical energy Theo's way.

Thinking fast, Theo turned his body sideways so the bolt hit the Ruby Gauntlet, and was dissipated with a _whooming_ sound.

Reginald blinked in surprise before a sinister smile spread across his face. "I'd almost forgotten the Ruby Gauntlet was in your possession. I must have it!" The wizard abruptly stood up from his throne.

"It cannot be removed from his body," Jadyn said as he smoothly placed himself in front of Theo. "The gauntlet has become a part of him. And once removed it will no longer work."

"Hm," Reginald let out a hum and sat back down. He started to drum his fingers on the arm of his throne. "A pity. I could use something like that against Noryn, and finally conquer the Northern Kingdom. The Ice elf females would be mine."

"Sex maniac," Theo coughed. "By the way, you've been to Earth, haven't you? How?"

Reginald leaned forward with an intrigued expression on his face. "How do you know that?"

"I recognized some of the sculptures and paintings you're using to decorate your throne room," Theo revealed and tried to keep his tone nonchalant. "Are they the real deal or replicas?"

"Replicas?" Reginald chuckled darkly. "No. They are the 'real deal'. I replaced the real ones with replicas, however. And the Earthlings still haven't noticed. I've committed the 'perfect crime'."

"Yeah, that is impressive," Theo agreed. "So how'd you do it? Get to Earth, I mean. Some kind of magical portal?"

Reginald narrowed his eyes at Theo dangerously. "Has anyone ever told you - you have a big mouth?"

"All the time," Theo said with a nod.

"I suggest you shut it before I shut it for you," Reginald drawled with a dangerous edge to his voice. "Permanently." Theo felt Reginald's murderous aura wash over him and he shuddered.

Jadyn was growing impatient. "If you're going to kill us...why don't you just get it over with." Theo shot Jadyn an incredulous look and mouthed: 'what the fuck, man?'

Reginald stood up from his throne and approached Jadyn, his cape billowing out behind him and flashing its red lining. "Why would I kill you so soon? I'm bored, remember? It will be much more entertaining to make you suffer first." An evil glint shone in his red eyes.

Jadyn arched an eyebrow at his half-brother. "Torture?"

Reginald chuckled in amusement. "Nothing so crude." He stalked over to Tina, reached out, and fondled a lock of her black hair. Jadyn's eyebrows rose to his hairline. "I know how you feel about this woman," the wizard began. "You're in love with her."

Tina casually turned her head and tried to bite Reginald's fingers. Reginald pulled his hand back and chuckled. "Feisty. I like that. I will woo your woman, and steal her heart away from you."

"You bastard," Jadyn said through gritted teeth.

"Whatever you do...I won't fall in love with you, Reginald," Tina said in her droning tone.

"Oh, we'll see about that, my dear," Reginald said, a sly smile curling his lips. "No woman has been able to resist my charms, thus far. I can be very _persuasive_ when I want to be. By the time I am done courting you, you will willingly join my harem."

"What about Anne and Leona?" Theo asked uneasily.

Reginald arched an eyebrow at the cowboy. "Hm. Anne and Leona are special as renown heroines of Oz. I shall give them the honor of joining my harem."

"Like hell Anne will join your harem, you perverted bastard!" Theo shouted, stalking forward, and trying to flex his arms so that the vines would tear. "She's _my_ girl! If you lay one finger on her...I'll punch you below the belt using my gauntlet!" He lunged at Reginald.

Reginald calmly raised his right hand. "Guards, seize him, and take him to the dungeons. Along with my brother Jadyn."

Two guards lunged at Theo, grabbed his upper arms, and began to drag him away. "Dammit! Get off!" Theo growled.

"Why don't you unlock these Ozanite cuffs and fight me, Reginald?" Jadyn snarled.

Reginald inspected his nails, and decided they could use a little more filing. "Why would I free you when I've _already_ won? You're the loser here, and I'm the victor. Know your place, Brother. You will _always_ be a loser who loses everything dear to him. First, it was our mother, and now you will lose the woman you love. Buwhahaha!" The wizard started to laugh manically.

Two guards grabbed Jadyn and started to drag him away too. "You're nothing but a coward, Reginald!"

"Theo! Jadyn!" Anne and Leona called after them. Both girls flinched when the double doors were closed behind them with a loud slam.

Anne glared at Reginald, and raised her chin bravely. "I demand that you let us go at once. You're supposed to be the _Good_ Wizard of the South. Oz's number-one hero. How can you do this? How can you sleep at night? You're supposed to be _good_."

"Oh, but I am good," Reginald purred. "Or rather, I can be good to those who behave themselves in my presence. I have the power to grant your every desire, my lovely. What is it you desire: Pretty dresses? Jewelry? Power?"

"My love can't be bought," Anne scoffed with a disgusted look on her face. "Even if you offered me your entire castle and all your riches, I would never willingly be with a man like you."

Reginald's lips dipped into a frown and he turned his attention to Leona instead. "What about you, Kitten?"

Leona was trembling in fear, but she too raised her chin in a show of defiance. "My love can't be bought either! In fact, it already belongs to someone else." A blush rose to her cheeks as she thought about Prince Periwinkle.

"Oh?" Reginald said, his eyes narrowing. "And who has won your heart that you think is better than me?"

"Prince Periwinkle," Leona declared with a proud note to her voice.

"You...can't possibly mean the troll prince," Reginald said in an incredulous voice.

"That's _exactly_ who I mean," Leona confirmed.

"You must be joking," Reginald scoffed, a manic twinkle in his red eyes. "How could you possibly love him? A troll? A hideous monster?"

"I just do," Leona said.

Lastly, Reginald turned his attention to Tina. "And what about you, Tina Woodcutter?"

Tina stiffened as Reginald's scrutinizing gaze bore into her. "I don't love anyone. And I never will."

"I don't appreciate it when people lie to me, Tina," Reginald said in a warning tone. He was remembering the sight of her kissing Jadyn in the mirror. _I can understand how Anne is in love with the Savior Theodore Gale._ Reginald thought. _But Leona and Tina are in love with hideous monsters. I don't understand it. These females are odd._

"No matter. I will just have to win your love in some other way, ladies. No one ever said I had to play fair, now did they? Look into my eyes..." Reginald purred as his eyes glowed and swirled with a gold and black light. Like mice enthralled by a cobra's seductive dance, Anne, Leona, and Tina could not bring themselves to look away, and they became hypnotized. "You three will love me, and only me, is that understood?"

"We understand, Master," Anne, Leona and Tina replied at the same time.

Reginald smiled triumphantly. "You're all so obedient now. Good. But I want you to say 'my husband' instead of 'master'. I think I like the sound of that better."

"Yes, My Husband," the girls said.

***

With a guard on either side of him and gripping his upper arms in an iron hold Jadyn was dragged along through the dungeon corridor. Theo was being dragged along in a similar manner. The guards suddenly halted before one of the empty cells. One of the guards let go of Theo's arm, unlocked the cell door, and opened it wide. The remaining guard, who still had a hold of Theo's arm, unceremoniously shoved him into the cell. "Hey! Watch it! Not so rough," Theo complained over his shoulder as he stumbled forward into the cell.

The two guards that had a hold of Jadyn simultaneously pushed the warlock into the cell after Theo. Jadyn ended up slamming into Theo's back and two men ended up on the cold, stone floor in a heap.

Theo was sure the guards would laugh at their plight (he would have) but they didn't. The guards didn't make a sound or have any reaction to their prisoners falling on top of each other. They just shut and locked the cell door behind them.

"Get off. You're heavy," Theo complained with his face pressed against the grimy cell floor.

"My apologies..." Jadyn rolled off of Theo.

The vines that had been wrapped around Theo and Jadyn's torsos pinning their arms to their sides suddenly fell away. Theo used his newfound freedom of movement to quickly push himself up off the floor. He ran over to the barred cell door, grasped the bars, and peered out at the retreating guards' backs. "Hey! What's for dinner? I'm starved!"

Three of the guards kept walking, but one young man glanced back at Theo quizzically before he too continued his way. Theo pouted out of disappointment. "It's hard to get a rise out of those guys." He scratched the back of his neck. "Aren't prison guards supposed to laugh and ridicule you?"

Jadyn took a seat on the floor towards the back of the cell and rested his back against the wall. He let out a heavy sigh. "I wouldn't know. This is the first time I've ever been imprisoned before."

Theo walked over and took a seat on the floor a couple of feet away from Jadyn. "Don't you have dungeons at your castle?" He leaned his head back until it thunked softly against the cold stone wall.

The corner of Jadyn's mouth twitched. "I do, but I've never had to use them."

"You're a really strange Wicked Wizard," Theo mused aloud.

"I get that a lot," Jadyn said with a tinge of amusement to his voice.

Theo's joking expression turned serious. "So how do we escape?"

"Excuse me?" Jadyn shot the cowboy a questioning look.

"I bet you have some kind of plan," Theo said with a hopeful expression on his face. "Or maybe you can just teleport us both out of here..."

Jadyn raised his manacles. "If you haven't already noticed I'm wearing anti-magic shackles. I can't do magic while wearing these things. My magic just gets absorbed by the Ozanite crystals."

"No magic, huh?" Theo said, scratching his cheek with his index finger thoughtfully. "I guess we'll just have to bust out of here the old-fashioned way." The cowboy stood up, dusted himself off, and approached the barred cell door again.

Jadyn raised an eyebrow at Theodore. "Which is?"

"Help! Someone, please, help us!" Theo began to shout loudly.

Jadyn's curious expression turned aghast. "Will you shut up! The guards will return and beat you. Everyone inside this castle is loyal to Reginald."

"Shit." Theo raised his gauntleted right fist and sent it flying into the bars.

"That won't work," Jadyn drawled. "Idiot."

Ignoring the warlock, Theo kept on punching the bars again and again until his arm started to tremble and blood started to drip down his arm due to his knuckles being rubbed raw inside of the gauntlet.

Jadyn frowned at the blood he saw dripping out from the gauntlet. "Stop that! You're only managing to hurt yourself, fool. Just calm down."

Theo spun around, and his blue eyes were blazing. "Calm down? Calm down! How am I supposed to calm down when some perverted wizard wants to add _my girl_ to his harem!"

It was in that moment that Jadyn realized Theo was actually afraid. "Don't worry about Anne. Reginald has no interest in her. His interest will be in Tina because he wants to hurt me." Jadyn clenched his hands into fists on his lap at the unsettling thought.

Theo gaped at the warlock. "And that's supposed to make me feel better? That my best friend's girlfriend is in danger?"

"Best friend? Me?" Jadyn asked with a skeptical note to his voice.

"Yeah, man. You're locked up inside of this cell because of me. Because I asked for your help in saving my mom from Dr. Doppelganger. Only a true friend would have agreed to that insanity. And now Tina is in danger because of me." Theo stalked over to Jadyn, took a seat on the floor beside him, and hung his head dejectedly. "This is all my fault."

"Actually, it's _my_ fault Tina is in danger right now," Jadyn argued with haunting shadows in his emerald green eyes. "Reginald hates me. He always has. I've always been incredibly 'unbeautiful' - failing at magic and swordsmanship. Reginald only likes beautiful things and people. Well, as long as none of those things or people are more beautiful than him, at least. His behavior has always been a little contradictory."

"Your brother is a psycho," Theo grumbled as he pulled his knees up to his chest.

Jadyn chuckled lowly. "Quite."

"About Tina-" Theo began tentatively.

"Silence. I do not wish to speak about her," Jadyn snapped.

"But-" Theo said insistently.

"There's nothing we can do right now. Nothing. I don't want to think about it..." Jadyn placed his face in his trembling hands.

Theo glanced at Jadyn and noted that the warlock's body was shaking slightly. He wondered if Jadyn was crying. Theo sighed and scooted over until his shoulder was pressing against Jadyn's so that he could silently offer his friend comfort and support. Jadyn flinched at the unexpected touch, but didn't move away.

***

The following day...Reginald was bored. He was currently seated on his throne in the main audience chamber. He twirled his hand through the air, and summoned two crystal balls that were the size of large apples. "Time for some entertainment." He addressed one of his wives. "Natalie, bring Anne, Leona and Tina to me."

"Yes, My Husband," Natalie readily replied before leaving the throne room.

Reginald then addressed one of the guards that were simply standing by and awaiting orders. "Gunther, I want you to take this crystal ball down to the dungeons and show it to Theo and Jadyn. I want them to witness what happens here." He tossed the crystal ball at Gunther who caught it easily with one hand.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Gunther bowed, spun on his heel, and left the throne room.

A few minutes later, the double doors were opened, and Natalie ushered Tina, Anne, and Leona inside the throne room. A lascivious grin spread across Reginald's face as he admired their new outfits. The girls were wearing red, silk, bikini tops decorated with gold sequins and tiny bells, and sheer, red and gold, silk skirts.

"Well done dressing them, Natalie," Reginald praised.

Natalie smiled and blushed prettily. "You are too kind, My Husband."

Reginald then addressed Oz's three heroines. "You may approach..." The three girls approached the throne. Reginald held the crystal ball out in front of him so that he'd be giving Jadyn and Theo a good view of what was going on. "Now, what should I make you girls do first. Anne, I wish for you to dance for me."

"I would be honored to dance for you, My Husband," Anne purred with bright pink cheeks. Reginald snapped his fingers, and a band of female musicians started to play their violins and other string instruments. Then, Anne started to dance.

Reginald arched an eyebrow at the girl's performance. Anne's dancing was very...odd.

Anne was performing all the fun, silly dance moves Theo had taught her: The Robot, The Sprinkler, Night Fever (the Disco line dance), The Running Man, Gangnam Style, The Macarena...

Reginald grew horrified by The Macarena and its positive energy. He shuddered. "What _is_ this? Just stop...stop already. I can bear to see more. Watching this is torture. What a horrible way of dancing."

Reginald quickly composed himself, realizing Jadyn and Theo were watching, and probably enjoying his discomfort. His idea was backfiring, but not for long. "Tina, dance for me."

Tina hesitated. "Dance? Me?"

"Yes. Surely you know how to dance. Like Anne, but more graceful," Reginald prompted.

"I'll do my best, My Husband," Tina agreed nervously. When the cyborg assassin started to dance it ended up being a martial arts routine, otherwise known as a _kata_.

At first, Reginald grew irritated since this wasn't really dancing either, but Tina's movements _were_ graceful, skilled, and beautiful. He bit back his objection, leaned back on his throne in a languid pose, and admired Tina's _kata_ , which involved a series of punches, roundhouse kicks, flying sidekicks, high kicks, and back flips.

"Not exactly what I wanted, but a passable performance, my dear," Reginald drawled and turned his attention to Leona. "I have heard that you are a skilled singer, Leona. It would please me if you sang for me."

"I would love to sing for you, My Husband," Leona gushed, her golden eyes sparkling. The lion girl took a deep breath, opened her mouth, and began to sing.

A pleased smile curled Reginald's lips. Leona did indeed have a lovely singing voice. Perhaps, he'd keep her inside of a gilded cage, like a precious songbird, and bring her out when it was time to entertain his guests.

Tina continued to perform her _kata_ and the strangest thing happened as she started to listen to Leona's singing. Abruptly, the enchanted song broke the hypnotic trance Reginald had placed upon her.

Tina blinked as she regained her will and she quickly assessed the current situation. She was 'dancing' for Reginald while Leona was singing. Anne was standing off to the side and looking positively enamored with Reginald. Tina shuddered, hoping she didn't look like that while under Reginald's hypnosis.

How dare he make Anne look at him like that when she's in love with Theo! Tina thought angrily. And Leona...poor Leona...but Leona has saved us. I have to use this golden opportunity to assassinate Reginald. But how? I need a weapon...

Tina spotted a silver serving tray sitting on a nearby table. The cyborg casually executed a few back flips that brought her directly next to the table. Tina picked up the tray and started to dance with it as if it were a large, Asian fan. Abruptly, Tina launched the tray at Reginald like a Frisbee, aiming at his neck.

Reginald's eyes flared in alarm, and he tilted his head sideways by sheer instinct. The tray imbedded itself into the gilt wood throne with a thunk, and vibrated.

"Tch," Tina tsked. "I missed."

Tina wasn't the only one who'd been freed from Reginald's hypnosis by Leona's singing. The guards and Reginald's wives had also been freed, and they were now in a state of confused shock with what was currently happening.

"She tried to kill him..." one of the wives murmured in disbelief.

"She just tried to kill Reginald!" one of the guards exclaimed excitedly.

"You tried to assassinate me." Reginald's red eyes glittered with malice. "How is that even possible? You should be under my hypnosis..."

Leona was so shocked by Tina's sudden attack that she'd stopped singing. "Leona! Keep singing!" Tina snapped.

"R-Right!" Leona opened her mouth and continued to sing.

Tina rushed over to a table with a pile of plates on it. She picked up a plate, and sent it at Reginald like a shuriken.

Reginald rolled out of his throne, conjured his crystal wand to his right hand, and cast a shield spell as Tina launched another porcelain plate his way. The plate hit the protective, magical energy shield, and shattered. Reginald ground his back molars in anger.

Undaunted, Tina continued to spin and launch plate after plate at Reginald. But the plates continued to uselessly shatter against the shield.

Reginald shot an angry look at his guards. "Well, what are you doing just standing there? Subdue her!" he ordered, spit flying out of his mouth.

The guards looked at each other, smiled, and then dropped their weapons in an open show of defiance. Their swords clattered as they hit the marble floor.

A flash of shock crossed Reginald's face. "What? How can they defy me? Unless..." The wizard's keen gaze shot to Leona. _That girl's singing must be enchanted! She's more dangerous than I thought!_

At that moment, Tina ran out of plates. _Shit._ The cyborg ran across the throne room towards the weapons the guards had dropped. If she could just get her hands on one of those weapons she could kill that perverted, narcissistic wizard...!

As soon as Tina started running with a flick of his wand Reginald lowered his shield and then set his predatory sights on Leona. Leona felt a murderous aura directed her way all of a sudden and squeaked. The lion girl trembled in fear, but she did not stop singing. She knew that she had to buy Tina as much time as possible.

Reginald pointed his wand in Leona's direction and a sinister smile spread across his face. That's when Anne leapt up on Reginald's back from behind, and started to try and strangle him.

"How dare you attack me!" Reginald growled, grabbing Anne's arms and trying to pry them off of him. "You belong to me! You're nothing but a toy!" The wizard pointed his wand over his shoulder and zapped Anne with a quick transfiguration spell.

Anne cried out as she was blasted off Reginald's back and hit the floor. Then, her body started to transform until she was a doll made out of cloth and stuffed with straw once more. Anne looked down at her hands with a horrified expression on her face. "I'm a scarecrow again."

Reginald gave Anne a dismissive look before snapping his attention back to Leona. He raised his wand again. "How dare you break my hypnosis? Your voice is dangerous. Therefore, I will take it from you!"

Reginald chanted the words of an incantation and sent a bolt of magical energy towards Leona's mouth. " _Silentium immortalis!_ Golden thread appeared out of thin air, and sewed Leona's mouth shut.

Leona's eyes widened in shock as her lips were painfully sewn together with the enchanted thread. "Mmmph!"

"Die, Reginald!" Tina yelled, leaping through the air, and swinging her borrowed sword at Reginald's neck.

Reginald calmly turned his head to meet her fiery gaze. Reginald's eyes glowed with a golden light, and Tina's blade stopped less than a centimeter away from Reginald's throat.

Tina blinked, and a befuddled look settled over her face. She lowered her sword. "My Husband, what am I doing?" Tina's voice was laced with concern.

"Worry not, my dear," Reginald soothed in a silky voice. "I told you to show me your skill with a sword. You did not disappoint. The rumors of your skill as a cyborg assassin do not do you justice, Tina Woodcutter."

"Then...I have pleased you?" Tina questioned tentatively.

"Indeed, lovely Tina. Your skill with a sword is most impressive." Reginald smiled thinly at her. "You will make me a proficient bodyguard."

"I am glad." Tina gave Reginald an amorous look as she stared at his handsome face.

Reginald rubbed at his neck unconsciously. That had been close. Too close.

Tina Woodcutter had almost succeeded in assassinating him. Many had tried to assassinate him over the years, but all had thus far failed.

None had gotten as close as Tina had to killing him. She was not to be underestimated. These three unassuming women were in fact quite dangerous. He understood better now why they'd earned the reputation of being Oz's greatest heroines. He'd completely miscalculated, and had almost paid the price.

At least, all three were once again under his hypnosis, but it was best to be on the safe side. He would keep Anne in her doll form and Leona's lips would remain sewn shut. As for Tina...he would keep weapons away from her for the time being. He needed to find a way to win her heart so that she was enamored with him even when she wasn't under his hypnosis. It would be much safer that way. Only when she sincerely loved him would he trust her with a weapon.

***

Twenty minutes earlier...Gunther arrived in front of Theo and Jadyn's cell. The cowboy and warlock noticed the guard's presence, stood up, and approached their cell door. No one noticed that Jadyn's movements were sluggish when compared to Theo's.

"What's this all about?" Theo asked curiously. "Did you bring food?" He recognized the guard as the only one who'd reacted to Theo's instigating earlier. Gunther was a young man with shaggy brown hair and warm brown eyes. He would have been handsome if not for the scars that marred his face. Unlike the other guards, who only had two slashing scars on their cheeks, Gunther's face had several scars on it, and Theo wondered why. Had it been some sort of punishment?

Gunther held up the crystal ball in front of him. "King Reginald has a special show planned, and wants the two of you to watch it."

"Show?" Theo echoed with a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "What kind of show?"

"Just wait and see," Gunther said.

Red smoke swirled inside of the crystal ball, and then an image formed to reveal the interior of the throne room. Theo and Jadyn watched as the double doors opened, and Anne, Tina and Leona were ushered inside by one of Reginald's wives.

Theo took in the sight of the belly dancing outfits that the girls were now wearing, and frowned. "That pervert! He dressed them up like Arabian harem girls! And even if Anne does look incredibly hot...it's still wrong. Very wrong." Theo clenched his hands into fists and ground his back molars out of anger.

Jadyn was equally displeased. Tina had never been in such a revealing outfit before, and her left cybernetic arm was completely on display. Her body was beautiful, but covered in scars gained in battle...

Theo and Jadyn watched as Anne, Tina and Leona approached the throne, and how Reginald ordered Anne to dance.

Jadyn raised an eyebrow at Anne's odd dancing style. "What _is_ she doing?"

"I taught Anne how to dance and taught her all those moves," Theo said in a smug tone. "Isn't she awesome? Look, she's doing The Robot. Now, The Sprinkler. Oooo that's the disco Night Fever line dance! The Running Man. That's hip-hop. Gangnam Style. The Macarena. Yeah, baby!" Jadyn was looking at Theo as if he'd grown two heads.

Reginald stopped Anne from continuing to dance The Macarena before ordering Tina to dance. Tina started to perform her martial arts routine. Now, it was Theo's turn to be confused. "That's _not_ dancing. That's...?"

"Martial arts," Jadyn said, his voice laced with pride. "She's rather good, isn't she?"

"Sure, buddy," Theo said with a skeptical note to his voice. "That's kind of scary though...watching Tina killing invisible opponents. I feel sorry for the Invisible Man all of a sudden." Then Reginald asked Leona to sing for him.

Gunther started to listen to Leona's singing and his clouded brown eyes cleared when he was broken from his hypnotic trance. He looked around confusedly for a moment. "What...am I doing here?"

"You don't remember?" Theo asked, giving the guard a scrutinizing stare. "Reginald sent you down here so we could watch 'the show'." He made air quotes with his hands.

A dark shadow fell over Gunther's face. "Reginald? That's right...I tried to kill him. He kidnapped my wife, Natalie, and I came here to rescue her, and then...?" Gunther gripped his head in pain as he tried to remember what had happened after he'd reached Reginald's castle.

Theo shot Jadyn a confused look. "What's up with him, Jay?"

"Apparently, Reginald has everyone under some kind of hypnosis," Jadyn explained airily. "But Leona's enchanted singing broke everyone from their hypnotic trances."

"Wait, if the hypnosis has been broken then...holy shit!" Theo exclaimed as he watched Tina try to decapitate Reginald using a serving platter. "Whoa, dude, she almost killed him!" All three men's attention was now riveted upon the crystal ball to see what Tina would do next.

Tina started throwing plates at Reginald like shuriken, and the wizard blocked the attacks using an energy shield. Tina soon ran out of plates, and ran for one of the fallen swords. Reginald targeted Leona and Theo sucked in a breath when he saw that Anne was sneaking up on the wizard from behind. Anne leapt up on Reginald and started to strangle him. But then Anne got shot with a spell.

"Anne!" Theo shouted in a concerned voice.

"She's alright..." Jadyn quickly assured the cowboy. "She was just turned into a toy."

The trio watched with baited breath as Reginald launched a spell at Leona, and her lips were sewn shut. "That sick bastard!" Theo snarled. "How dare he do that to Leona! I'll-!"

" _I'll_ kill him," Jadyn smoothly cut in. "No reason for you to stain your hands with blood, hero. Not when I can do it for you."

Tina leapt up into the air and swung her sword. All three men sucked in a breath. But then Tina met Reginald's eyes and was hypnotized instantly.

"Dammit!" Theo swore. "She was so close!"

After that the three men watched as Reginald then walked around the throne room making sure to meet everyone's eyes, and hypnotized them again.

Gunther's eyes widened when he saw Natalie looking around the throne room frantically. "Gunther! Gunther, where are you?"

"Natalie, my dear, look into my eyes..." Reginald said as he approached her.

"But I have to find-" Natalie was saying before she looked into Reginald's eyes and became hypnotized once again.

"Natalie!" Gunther exclaimed. "Reginald, that bastard! He hypnotized my wife! I'll make him pay!" A determined expression settled over his face before he dropped the crystal ball and took off running down the corridor. He reached the bottom of the steps that would take him to the first floor of the castle, and started his way up.

"Hey! Wait!" Theo called after him. "Where are you going? Let us out first. Aw, shit!"

"He really _does_ have everyone here at the castle under his hypnosis," Jadyn said, stroking his chin in a pensive manner. "How fascinating."

"This is no time to be impressed!" Theo snapped irritably. "You do realize that we just missed our ticket out of here."

"He shall return, eventually..." Jadyn said absentmindedly. The wheels in his mind were starting to turn as a plan formed.

"Look! Inside the crystal ball," Theo said, pointing down at the crystal ball that was sitting on the floor in front of their cell. "It's Gunther! He made it to the throne room."

Theo and Jadyn watched as Gunther unsheathed his sword and charged towards Reginald. "Reginald!"

Reginald calmly turned to regard Gunther and his eyes glowed and swirled with a golden light. As soon as Gunther met his gaze he stopped in his tracks. The light in Gunther's eyes dimmed, and he lowered his sword.

"Return to your station," Reginald snapped.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Gunther said in a droning tone before he went to take his place, standing next to another guard.

Reginald shot a glare at the crystal ball that was sitting on his throne and waved his hand at it. The image inside of the crystal ball disappeared and swirling red smoke took its place. "Tough luck, Gunther," Theo murmured to himself, and let out a disappointed sigh.

"That outcome was only to be expected," Jadyn drawled. "The poor fool." At that moment, Jadyn started to cough violently and his back hunched. Jadyn raised a hand to his mouth and sank to his knees as he continued to cough. Blood started to drip through his fingers and hit the stone floor. With his magic being continuously drained by the Ozanite shackles, Jadyn had begun to feel ill and grow weaker.

Theo grew alarmed, and crouched by his side. "Jadyn! What the fuck, man?"

Jadyn pulled his bloody hand away from his mouth so that he could speak. Blood dribbled down his chin. "I'm dying."

Theo paled. "What? Why?"

"Because of these handcuffs..." Jadyn raised the cuffs to show them to Theo again. The red Ozanite crystals were glowing softly with stolen magical energy. "They've been draining my magic since they were put on me. My magical core has been completely drained, and as it tries to restore itself my magic keeps getting stolen by the cuffs. As a warlock my magic is an integral part of me. Not having access to my magic is like being deprived of one of the five senses. I have a sickly body to begin with and my magic helps to keep me alive. Without access to my magic...I'll die."

Theo started to panic. "We really need to get you out of here. We need to tell Reginald-"

"Reginald would only laugh at my plight," Jadyn sighed. "He might even enjoy it. Maybe he even planned it this way. I don't know. All I know for sure is that I'm dying, and we don't know when we'll be getting out of here. That's why there's something I need to tell you, Theo."

"If it's a love confession," Theo joked with a grim smile, "I don't want to hear it."

"This is serious, you imbecile," Jadyn snapped. "It's about your father and the _original_ Wicked Warlock of the East."

Theo shifted uncomfortably. "You mean the guy my dad dropped his research facility on?"

"Those stories are lies," Jadyn said. "The true identity of the Wicked Warlock of the East was only known to a select few. He was the dragon known as Fafnir."

"The Wicked Warlock of the East was a dragon?" Theo asked, his brow furrowing in confusion. "Well, so what? He's still dead. Right?"

"Wrong," Jadyn drawled. "When I saw your father's face...I learned the truth. Those black scales, that silver eye...his corrupted magical power. Fafnir's soul lives on inside of your father's body. I believe that when your father's research facility fell on Fafnir it did kill the dragon, but then in order to survive Fafnir transferred his soul to your father's body."

"What are you trying to say?" Theo asked with a mounting feeling of dread.

"Your father, Dexter Gale, may not be in complete control of his actions," Jadyn revealed. "Fafnir could be influencing him."

"So what you're saying is that my Dad might not be an evil megalomaniac?" Theo said, frowning. "Why are you telling me this?" He'd been prepared to defeat his father no matter what, but now...

"After I'm dead...I know you will still go to rescue your mother and face your father..." Jadyn said, as he recalled his regret in accidentally killing his father the Goblin King, Irvine Verdant. "But you shouldn't kill Dexter Gale. You should try to find a way to save your father."

"A way to save him?" Theo echoed in a hollow tone. "And how the hell am I supposed to do that without you? I don't know anything about magic! No. Just...no." Theo shook his head and gave Jadyn a fierce look. "I can't do this without you, Jay, so don't you dare die, and leave me behind in this shitstorm."

Jadyn smiled crookedly, revealing his bloody teeth. "I'll try my best not to."

To be continued in...Chapter 8:

### Chapter 8:

Tina blinked as she regained awareness, and wondered how she'd been freed from her hypnotic trance this time. The sight before her made Tina gasp despite herself. She was inside of Reginald's treasure chamber. It was filled with piles of gold coins, and scattered amidst the coins were weapons, golden, jeweled goblets, chalices, and jewelry.

"Impressive isn't it, my dear?" a deep male voice rumbled close to her ear.

Tina turned to look beside her. Standing right next to her was Reginald. Tina stiffened, immediately on her guard. "Reginald, why am I here?" The cyborg looked down and noticed her clothes had been changed without her permission. Again. She was wearing a blue gown decorated with the pattern of leaves in golden embroidery. "And dressed like this?" Tina demanded with obvious irritation.

"Why, indeed," Reginald said as he stroked his chin and gave Tina a thoughtful look. "I don't really understand what I'm doing myself. But...I've fallen in love with you, Tina Woodcutter." The wizard's confident expression turned almost sheepish.

"What?" Tina muttered in a dry, disbelieving tone.

"You're the only one who's come so close to killing me," Reginald informed her with a glint in his ruby-red eyes. "You've impressed me. And no one impresses me. No one holds my interest for very long, but you do. I'm interested in you, Tina. As you know, I have many wives. But I don't have a queen." Reginald waved his hand towards the treasure chamber and a delicate, golden crown lifted up off a pile of gold coins. The wizard crooked his finger, and the crown floated through the air towards Tina before settling on her head. "I want to do you the honor of making you my queen. Marry me, Tina Woodcutter."

Tina felt dizzy. First, Jadyn, and now Reginald had asked for her hand in marriage at this point. It was beyond belief that she'd managed to win the affections of these two brothers. "But, why would you want to make me your queen when you could just keep me under your hypnosis. I was already a part of your 'harem' and one of your 'wives'."

"Because you are special, Tina," Reginald purred. "Those other girls are a dime a dozen. I need a queen by my side who is _almost_ at my level. _Almost_ my equal. I can't stand it if anyone is more beautiful than I am, however. This is why I make those males loyal to me scar their faces. You were a very beautiful woman once, maybe even perfect, but you are flawed now because of your cybernetic arm. Beautiful yet scarred. To me, that is perfection in a woman."

Tina hugged her cybernetic arm to her chest self-consciously, and looked around for the closest weapon.

Reginald saw her looking at his treasure, misunderstood her interest, and smiled broadly. "Just think, Tina, all this treasure could be yours if you agree to marry me."

Tina gave Reginald a skeptical look. "You would give me all this?"

"Certainly, my dear," Reginald said.

"Just to have me be with you _willingly_?" Tina's brow furrowed with her befuddlement.

"It gets boring when a woman is _completely_ obedient," Reginald said, his voice laced with sinister intent. "I enjoy a little _resistance_. I know you don't love me, but you'll be with me in order to have all this gold. Over time, you will fall in love with me."

Tina pretended to consider his offer. "Those jewels over there really _are_ beautiful." The cyborg started to walk towards an open treasure chest filled with jewelry. She reached her hand out as if to pick up one of the necklaces, but her hand wrapped around the hilt of a sword instead. Tina spun, sword in hand, and attacked Reginald.

Reginald whipped out his crystal wand, and threw up a magical shield. Tina's sword impacted against the shield, throwing sparks up into the air. "This is my answer, Reginald. Just die. I will _never_ marry you. My love, like Anne's, can't be bought. Besides, I would never fall in love with a narcissistic egomaniac like you."

"So this is your answer to my generous offer. You try to kill me again. Ungrateful bitch," Reginald snarled, eyes flashing with anger. "You should be _honored_ that I want to make you my queen, and you should be _thankful_ for the offer of my treasure! How dare you reject me? Me! The Good Wizard of the South! Oz's greatest hero! I, who am too good for you!"

"You may be too good for me. But do you want to know what's more important?" Tina paused for dramatic effect. "You don't make my heart race."

"Oh? And who does?" Reginald's red eyes narrowed at her dangerously. "My brother? Jadyn? Are you in love with him?"

Tina flinched guiltily. "I...I'm not in love with anyone."

Reginald snorted at her pathetic evasion. "I thought Jadyn's love for you was unrequited, but apparently it's not. You love him. Even if you won't, or perhaps, _can't_ admit it. I was wrong to think I could woo you. You can't woo a girl who is already in love with someone else." A cruel glint formed in the wizard's eyes. "But I can make you mine in another way. I will take your body until it craves my magnificent cock. With the proper training your body will tremble at my touch, my scent, and the mere sound of my voice. Only then will I undo my hypnosis upon you, and at that point you _will_ love me. You will react to my words and touch, and you will be helpless to resist me. You _will_ fall!"

The blood slowly started to drain out of Tina's face and she started to tremble out of fear. But she raised her chin and clenched her hands into fists at her sides. "Even if you take my body by force...you will _never_ have my heart. Never!"

"We'll see about that, my dear," Reginald purred silkily. "We shall see."

***

The sound of approaching footsteps reached Theo and Jadyn's ears and moments later Reginald and Tina were standing in front of their cell door. Tina's arm was looped around Reginald's, and she had an enamored look on her face as she gazed up at the handsome wizard.

"Greetings, Brother," Reginald greeted Jadyn and nodded at Theo. "Theodore Gale."

Jadyn was sitting on the floor, feeling too weak to stand. "To what do we owe this honor, Reginald?"

Theo stood up, approached the cell door, and placed his hands on the bars. "Reginald, you have to take those handcuffs off of Jadyn. They're killing him!" He gave the wizard a beseeching look.

Reginald coolly regarded Jadyn. "Oh, really? That wasn't my intent, but there's no way I can remove those cuffs, Theodore. Jadyn is much too dangerous when he has access to his magic. I can't take that risk."

"But your brother will die..." Theodore argued pointedly.

"Jadyn's death in all this was inevitable," Reginald said coldly. "And I've grown bored with toying with him. I plan to burn Dryad Forest to the ground, and I will blame Jadyn for it. My original plan was for Jadyn to be executed for this crime." He shrugged. "I'll just have to tell the dryads that when I tried to take Jadyn to the execution grounds he resisted, and I was forced to kill him where he stood."

Theo grew aghast. "You're going to make Jadyn your scapegoat? And you plan to burn down Dryad Forest? But why? The dryads are loyal to you! I saw the self-inflicted scars on the males' faces."

"The dryad males have grown too powerful," Reginald revealed. "They are a threat to my reign. If they were to turn against me..." He shuddered at the thought. "I can't allow their continued existence. That's all."

"You're a coward, Reginald," Jadyn sneered, his lip curling in disdain.

"He speaks!" Reginald said mockingly. "Do try and stay alive just a little while longer, Jadyn. I have an interesting 'show' planned for tonight that I wouldn't want you to miss. It's called: 'The Deflowering of Tina Woodcutter'." An evil, lascivious smile spread across Reginald's face.

Jadyn's green eyes flashed with anger. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh, I dare," Reginald said in a haughty fashion.

"You're _supposed_ to be a noble hero," Jadyn snapped. "You're _supposed_ to be _good_! You can't...!" The warlock bit into his lower lip, unable to finish that sentence.

"Rape her?" Reginald said the word that Jadyn couldn't bear to. "Oh, but I can. And it's not really rape if she _enjoys_ it, right? Or if she wants it," Reginald turned his attention to Tina. "Do you wish to make love to me, my dear?"

"Oh, yes..." Tina breathed, a blush rising to her cheeks. "Please, take me. I'm yours, My Love."

"You see, she wants me," Reginald said in a smug voice. "And who am I to deny a lady's desires?" He chuckled darkly. "Here's a little preview of tonight's show..." The wizard cupped Tina's cheek, leaned down, and captured her lips with his own.

Jadyn sucked in a breath as he was forced to watch his brother kissing the woman he loved. He clenched his hands into fists until his nails dug into the palms of his hands causing them to bleed.

Reginald's kissing was rough and aggressive, but Tina didn't seem to mind, and was moaning against his mouth.

Jadyn gathered his strength, pushing himself up off the floor, and staggered over to the cell door before slamming his hands against the bars. "Stop touching her! Get your hands off of her!"

Reginald pulled away from Tina, and smiled viciously at the warlock. Tina's weak knees gave out beneath her, but Reginald smoothly placed an arm around her waist to help her to remain standing. He shot Tina an assessing look, and took in her flushed face and disheveled hair. "Oh, dear, I've made a mess of her already. Do you want me to stop touching you, Tina? Was I too rough?"

Tina shook her head, wide-eyed. "Oh, no. Please, don't stop touching me."

Reginald let out a hum. "Hm. I wish to make love to you on a soft bed, and not the cold, hard, stone floor. After all, I'm not some uncivilized beast. Come along, my dear. Let us return to my chambers."

"As you wish, My Husband," Tina giggled.

Reginald started to escort Tina away. "I'll kill you, Reginald!" Jadyn snarled after the couple. "You rapist pig! I'll come back from the grave and haunt you until I drive you mad and cause you to kill yourself!"

Reginald's dark, amused chuckle and Tina's giggling was the only response Jadyn received to his death threats.

"Argh!" Jadyn beat his fists futilely against the bars until his knuckles bled.

Theo grabbed his arm. "Hey, stop it."

Jadyn turned to glare at Theo, but tears were streaming down his face. "Tina...because of me she's going to be..." He shuddered. "It's all my fault. I couldn't protect her..." The warlock hung his head in a dejected manner.

"Chill, man." Theo patted his back. "Gunther should be coming back soon and I have a plan." He gave Jadyn a thumbs-up.

A few minutes later, the sound of approaching footsteps reached Theo and Jadyn's ears, and they spotted Gunther approaching their cell. The guard was holding a small crystal ball, and his eyes were clouded again.

Gunther stopped directly outside of their cell, and held up the crystal ball in front of them so that they could get a better look. The red smoke inside the crystal ball swirled until the image of Reginald's bedchamber was revealed.

The crystal ball zoomed in to show Tina reclining on the bed in a sexy pose. She was dressed in a short, blue, silk negligee that clung to her curves, and left very little to the imagination. Tina crooked her finger at Reginald, and the wizard crawled onto the bed while still fully dressed. He moved over her body, and started to kiss Tina passionately.

Jadyn growled low in his throat at the sight.

"Hey, Gunther, I can't really see what's happening," Theo began casually. "You need to get closer, dude."

"Of course, Sir," Gunther said stepping closer until he was standing directly in front of the cell door.

Theo stood in front of Gunther and pretended to be watching what was going on inside of the crystal ball intently. Then Theo reached through the bars and smacked Gunther in the forehead with the Ruby Gauntlet. A _whooming_ sound filled the air as Gunther was freed from his hypnotic trance.

"Uh..." Gunther was blinking rapidly. "What happened?"

"Yo." Theo raised a hand in greeting. "Don't run away like last time. You need to get us out of here first, so we can go kick Reginald's perverted ass! Oh, and get those handcuffs off Jadyn while you're at it. They're killing him."

Gunther looked at Theo, then Jadyn, and a determined expression settled over his face as his memories of what had happened earlier suddenly returned to him. "Yes, Sir!" He whipped out the ring of keys, unlocked the cell door, and opened it. He rushed over to Jadyn, selected the right key, and unlocked the handcuffs. The cuffs fell to the stone floor with a clatter.

Jadyn gasped as he felt his magic slowly starting to return to him. "Thank you, Gunther. I want you to take Theo to Anne and Leona. I'll go rescue Tina."

"But how will you find her?" Theo asked.

Jadyn rolled his eyes at Theo. "I'm a warlock, remember?' He reached out and snatched the crystal ball that Gunther was still carrying. "I'll use this to scry for her."

Theo hesitated since Jadyn needed his help, but he was really worried about Anne. "Thanks, man. We'll meet up with you as soon as we can. Lead the way, Gunther."

"Yes, Sir." Gunther took off down the dungeon corridor with Theo following close behind.

Jadyn waved a hand over the crystal ball and murmured the words of a spell. The image inside of the crystal ball changed to show the outside of Reginald's bedchamber, then changed to show the corridor that led there. The image in the crystal ball continued to change in this manner, and showed Jadyn the easiest route to Reginald's chamber from the dungeons.

Jadyn ran down the dungeon corridor until he reached the narrow steps that led to the first floor of the castle. Once on the first floor Jadyn ran down castle corridors and up two flights of stairs. He didn't take the time to admire the Persian runners, polished medieval armor, or paintings of wizards that were hanging on the walls on either side of him.

Jadyn came to an abrupt stop in front of a large, gilt wooden door with the image of an apple tree engraved into the wood. It was a beautiful door. A work of art. Jadyn didn't give a fuck. _No more Mr. Nice Guy._ Jadyn raised his right hand, conjured a fireball, and threw it at the door. It was blasted open. _I hope I'm not too late..._

Jadyn rushed into the bedroom to see a still fully clothed Reginald on top of Tina who was now naked beneath him. The wizard was kneading one of her breasts with his hand while his other hand was between her spread legs. Jadyn saw red.

"Get the hell off of her!" Jadyn conjured another fireball and launched it in Reginald's direction. The wizard swiftly rolled right off the bed in order to avoid the attack. Tina let out a squeal, and brought the covers up to her chest to hide her nakedness.

The fireball hit a tapestry instead of Reginald, and incinerated it instantly. Reginald stood up on the other side of the bed with his wand in hand. "Oh, dear." Reginald frowned at the pile of ashes on the floor. "I really liked that tapestry."

Jadyn conjured another fireball and threw it at Reginald. "Die!"

With a flick of his wand, Reginald conjured an energy shield, and it blocked the attack. "Look at you all gung ho to save the woman you love. But you went through all this trouble for nothing. She's not even a _virgin_ ," the wizard sneered in contempt.

"What are you talking about?" Jadyn snapped, and the blood began to drain out of his face. "How would you know that, unless...?"

Reginald raised his glistening fingers and waggled them at Jadyn crudely. "I checked. Tina Woodcutter is _no_ virgin."

Jadyn stumbled back a step in shock.

"You look surprised," Reginald commented, his voice tinged with amusement. "How much do you even know about this woman you claim to love? Do you know who took her virginity? No? You know, I'm just dying of curiosity. Let's find out, shall we?" While being bombarded with fireballs that hit his energy shield, Reginald strolled unconcernedly over to a full-length, oval-shaped mirror with a gilt frame.

Reginald stood in front of the mirror and waved his hand over it. "Mirror, Mirror, on the wall, show me Tina Woodcutter's past, and her deepest, darkest secrets."

FLASHBACK

When Tina opened her eyes for the very first time it was as an adult. Dr. Doppelganger had aged her body, so that she was physically and mentally eighteen-years-old. She was lying on an examination table wearing only a white cotton dress. The sound of a pen on paper drew Tina's attention, and she weakly turned her head to see a man seated in a chair.

The man was dressed in a white lab coat, and a black hooded cloak. Tina frowned at the metal mask he was wearing that concealed the features of his face, and wondered what the man looked like.

The scientist was currently writing something down on a piece of paper attached to a clipboard. "Clone #313 animation successful. No abnormalities," the man muttered to himself as he wrote something else down.

Tina sat up and stared at the scientist. "Where am I? Who are you?" Her brow pinched when a sudden thought occurred to her. "Who am I?"

Dr. Doppelganger glanced over at Clone #313, but then his eyes widened in astonishment when he saw her gray-blue eye color. Dr. Doppelganger sucked in a surprised breath, reached out, and grabbed the clone's chin. "Your eyes...! Janie...?" His rough, desperate voice was laced with longing.

Cyborg #313 blinked in confusion. "My name is Janie?"

Dr. Doppelganger flinched and let go of Tina's chin. He shook his head. "No. Your designation is going to be Tina Woodcutter. Your eyes...?" He trailed off.

"Yes?" Tina prompted.

"They're extraordinary," Dr. Doppelganger breathed, his voice laced with awe and pride. "All of the others have brown eyes, but you...you have blue eyes. Just like _her_. You're special, Tina. Very special. Unique."

Tina's heart fluttered at the man's kind, warm words. She was special? Unique? This made her feel...good. "Who are you?"

"You may call me Dr. Doppelganger."

"Doctor...dopp...ganger?" Tina stammered, having difficulty saying the complicated name.

Dr. Doppelganger reached out and patted Tina's head. "Because you are special...you may call me Dr. D."

"Dr. D," Tina repeated with a tremulous smile.

The scientist reached out and caressed Tina's cheek in a show of tenderness. "I brought you to life because I need your help, Tina. I have many powerful enemies that wish to get in the way of my dream."

"Your dream?" Tina asked.

"I want to guide humanity to the next level of evolution in order for it to reach its perfection," Dr. Doppelganger revealed.

_Humans._ Tina thought, and the statistic that 7 billion humans were currently living on a planet called Earth popped into Tina's mind. Although, for some reason Tina was aware of the fact that she wasn't currently on Earth, but in a world known as Oz. To guide 7 billion beings to their perfection seemed like an incredible dream. Tina was impressed.

"I need you to be my sword, Tina," Dr. Doppelganger continued in an urgent tone. "You will destroy my enemies for me. My body is weak. It's mostly machine now. I am powerful magically speaking, but I cannot fight for long periods of time. I need you, Tina. Will you help me?"

"I _want_ to help you, Dr. Doppelganger," Tina said readily. "But I don't know how to fight."

Dr. Doppelganger removed his silver facemask to smile warmly at Tina. "Don't worry. I will teach you."

***

Dr. Doppelganger personally trained Tina in the art of hand-to-hand combat, and in various forms of martial arts. When he was with Tina, Dr. Doppelganger didn't wear his metal facemask because he wanted to see Tina with his own eyes. He also wanted to enjoy staring into those blue-gray eyes that were so much like _hers_...

Tina was the only clone that he didn't order to wear a silver facemask. He enjoyed seeing her pretty face too much. Tina was a quick study and a natural with a sword. Dr. Doppelganger enjoyed teaching Tina _kendo_ \- the art of Japanese swordsmanship. He gifted Tina with a _katana_...just like the one his Japanese-American wife used to wield.

Most Japanese had dark eyes, but his Janie had been unique and special with her gray-blue eyes. He used to tease her and call her his ' _geisha_ ', referencing a popular book titled: _Memoirs of a Geisha_ , which was about a blue-eyed girl who became a geisha, and about the obstacles she had to overcome to finally find love.

Tina enjoyed her training sessions with Dr. Doppelganger as he taught her _kendo_. It took her almost a year, but during one of their sparring sessions Tina finally managed to disarm Dr. Doppelganger. That's when he announced that she was now ready to start sparring against the other cyborg assassins under his command.

As Tina started to spend more time with the other cyborg assassins that lived in Dr. Doppelganger's castle she immediately noticed that she was different from them emotionally. Tina tried to befriend the other assassins, but they scorned her attempts at friendship. They treated her cruelly, and appeared to lack empathy.

Tina tried to figure out why they were treating her this way, and came to realize that many of them were jealous over the fact that she hadn't been ordered to wear a mask. Tina also had more privileges than the other cyborgs, and was allowed to go about the castle as she pleased while the others had strict schedules they had to follow for training, chores, and missions.

Tina had never seen any of the other cyborgs without their facemask, and couldn't help but wonder what they looked like. She had the feeling they probably looked similar to her though since all of the cyborg assassins seemed to have a similar build, and the same long, thick, black hair. _Sisters?_ Was a word that came to Tina's mind, but it was more of a question. What were they to each other? Tina wondered on more than one occasion.

Tina started to get the feeling that she was the only cyborg assassin that Dr. Doppelganger spoke to without his mask on. None of them had mentioned the black scales on his face or his silver eye, and Tina decided to keep this secret to herself.

Dr. Doppelganger continued to give Tina special treatment, and occasionally even gifted her with new clothes. This only fanned the flames of the other cyborgs' jealousy and hatred towards Tina, however, and they started to bully her. When Dr. Doppelganger wasn't around the other cyborg assassins would insult Tina, tease her, treat her coldly, ignore her for days, and leave her out of the loop.

One night, Tina returned to her bedroom to find all of the clothes Dr. Doppelganger had gifted her with cut up into shreds. Another night, she woke up to find a live snake in her bed. Luckily, it hadn't been poisonous, and Tina had been able to capture it and release it out into the wild.

After the snake incident though, Tina asked Dr. Doppelganger for a new lock to be installed for her bedroom door, and he'd granted her with her very own fingerprint scanner door lock. Even clones possessed unique fingerprints.

Unfortunately, the bullying from the other cyborg assassins escalated until one fateful day Tina almost _died_ because of it. In the training room, Tina was having a sparring match against cyborg assassin #312 when the incident occurred. Dr. Doppelganger was closely supervising the match as usual. The two cyborgs were using real _katana_ that day which added a new element of danger to their sparring.

Tina attacked 312 with her _katana_ , and her opponent blocked the attack with her own _katana_. A deadly, graceful dance ensued between the two cyborg assassins as they parried and launched attacks.

Abruptly, Dr. Doppelganger stiffened, and left the training room at a swift pace, leaving Tina and 312 alone in the training room together. Tina shot a worried glance after the scientist, wondering what had happened to cause him unease.

_Now's my chance!_ 312 thought, a sinister smile curling her lips beneath her metal mask. "You really shouldn't take your pretty eyes off of your opponent, Tina! Ha!" The cyborg assassin launched a series of incredibly vicious sword swings and stabs Tina's way.

Tina struggled to block the attacks, and was just barely managing it. 312 had never attacked her with such speed and ferocity before now. "I'm sorry. You're right 312. My mistake. I was just worried about Dr. D..."

"Worried about the Master?" 312 sneered. "How presumptuous of you to think he needs _you_ to worry about him. Dr. Doppelganger is the most powerful warlock in all of Oz. Then again, you always were full of yourself. You think you're _so_ special because Dr. Doppelganger gives you special treatment. But you're just like the rest of us! The only thing that sets you apart from us is your blue eyes! I _hate_ your eyes. And I'm sick and tired of having to look at them! Ha!" 312's right hand snapped out and ripped Tina's left eye right out of its socket.

Tina cried out in a mixture of pain and horror. 312 smiled sharply beneath her metal mask, closed her hand into a fist, and destroyed Tina's eye with an audible _squish_. Tina's pained expression turned aghast.

"Only one eye left..." 312 said gleefully. "And then you'll be just like the rest of us! Perfectly _ordinary_."

With both hands trembling out of fear on the hilt of her sword, Tina backed away from 312. "Please, don't! Stay away! It _hurts_..." she whimpered.

" _It hurts_ ," 312 echoed in a mocking tone. "Oh, poor baby. My God, you're pathetic. How can Dr. Doppelganger like you so much? You're such a weakling. I'll blind you, and prove to Dr. D that _I_ am better than you. Superior. Special! Dr. Doppelganger is _mine_!"

_Hers?_ Tina thought dazedly. She came to a realization in that moment. All of the cyborg assassins were _in love_ with Dr. Doppelganger. And that's why they were so jealous of Tina's special treatment. _I've been so blind. All along they..._

Tina struggled to block 312's fierce attacks, but her depth perception was off. Also, there was a blind spot on Tina's left side now. 312 cunningly used this new weakness to her advantage and snuck past Tina's defenses before cutting her left arm off.

Tina cried out in pain, and sank to her knees. 312 let out a crazed laugh. "How marvelous. I've won! Die, Tina Woodcutter!" The cyborg swung her sword, aiming for Tina's neck.

Tina closed her eyes and waited for the blow that would decapitate her. But it never came. Instead the sound of steel clashing against steel reached her ears, and she opened her eyes to see that Dr. Doppelganger was standing directly in front of her with his own _katana_ raised before him.

"312, what is the meaning of this?" Dr. Doppelganger snarled angrily as he glared at the cyborg beneath his mask.

312 flinched at the angry tone of Dr. Doppelganger's voice, lowered her sword, and hung her head in a repentant manner. "Just a bit of fun really. You can replace her lost limb and eye with enhanced cybernetic ones anyways, right? So really I was doing her a favor. She'll be even more powerful than she was before."

"Tina was _not_ to be harmed!" Dr. Doppelganger growled. "You've marred her perfection." The mad scientist let out an irritated huff. "I'll deal with you later, 312." He sheathed his sword and spun to face the injured Tina.

"Dr. D, I'm sorry..." Tina moaned through the excruciating pain she was feeling. "I lost. I was weak."

"Shhhh," Dr. Doppelganger shushed her before swooping Tina up into his arms. He began to carry her out of the training room while speaking soothing words to her. "Don't worry, Tina. I'll save you. Just hang on."

Tina struggled to remain conscious, but it was a losing battle and soon darkness consumed her. When Tina awoke two hours later, she was inside of Dr. Doppelganger's lab and lying on an examination table. She glanced down at her left arm. It was now made of metal and complex circuitry. She blinked, and it hurt to do so, but she could see out of both eye sockets, which was reassuring at least.

Dr. D had saved her...

_He saved my life._ Tina thought, and her heart began to pound inside of her chest.

"Ah, you're awake," Dr. Doppelganger drawled. "How are you feeling, Tina?"

"I feel..." Tina opened and closed her left hand into a fist and then blinked her left eye a few times. "Fine. My left eye hurts a little bit though."

"Once you are fully healed the pain will go away," Dr. Doppelganger assured. "I can give you a painkiller if you would like." He reached out to stroke Tina's cheek in an affectionate manner.

Tina leaned into his touch; desperate for that little bit of rare affection he was showing her. _I...love him._ She suddenly realized with a start. "No. There's no need. There's something else I want..."

"Name it," Dr. Doppelganger said.

"I want you to kiss me," Tina said nervously.

Dr. Doppelganger had his facemask off and so Tina was able to see the slow smile that curled his lips. "Gladly." The mad scientist leaned over the examination table and kissed Tina sweetly and passionately.

A few minutes later, Dr. Doppelganger pulled back. Tina was flushed and panting for breath. The scientist turned to leave, but Tina reached out and grabbed his lab coat to stop him.

"Wait." Tina gave the doctor a beseeching look. "Please, don't go. I want... _more_."

"Tina, you need rest," Dr. Doppelganger chided sternly, "in order to recover faster."

"I'm fine, Dr. D," Tina insisted stubbornly. "I just realized that I love you. That's why I want to be near you right now. I want to be as close to you as possible. Teach me how..." Tina raised her arms, inviting him to come back to her, and to fall into her embrace.

Dr. Doppelganger smiled lopsidedly at Tina. "As you wish, Tina. I'll teach you how a man and a woman become so close that they become one. I'll make you a real woman. And then you'll be _my_ woman from now on."

"That sounds wonderful," Tina breathed. "Make me yours. I love you so much, Dr. D."

Dr. Doppelganger made love to Tina right there on the examination table. When he took her virginity it hurt, and yet it also felt good. It was a mixture of pain and pleasure that Tina would never forget. Dr. D would always be her first.

The only thing that marred that special moment was the name that Dr. Doppelganger ended up calling out as he reached orgasm: "Janie!"

_Who is Janie?_ Tina had wondered. This wasn't the first time Dr. D had accidentally called her by that name. The cyborg had noticed the plain gold ring on Dr. D's left hand. Was it a wedding ring? Was Dr. D married? Who was his wife? Was she still alive? Or was she dead?

Tina hadn't wanted to accept it at first, but she came to the sad realization that when Dr. D had made love to her he'd been imagining another woman. A woman who was his wife. A woman named Janie.

After that, Tina wondered how she could replace Janie in his heart. How could she make Dr. D fall in love with her? Tina decided that she needed to continue to be useful, be needed, and become indispensable to Dr. Doppelganger.

That's why from then on Tina trained harder, fought harder, and showed no mercy against the other cyborg assassins, who lost their limbs at Tina's hands during their sparring matches. Tina didn't care or worry about them though. Dr. Doppelganger would give them new limbs anyways.

As for cyborg #312...Dr. Doppelganger replaced her organic brain for a brain chip. 312 was now docile, obedient, and was no longer a threat.

The other cyborg assassins were less skilled with a sword than Tina, and she started to view them as 'expendable'. On the other hand, Tina was strong, and so she was indispensable. She also continued to be Dr. Doppelganger's favorite. But the bullying had stopped since all of the other cyborg assassins had become afraid of Tina. They also didn't want to end up like 312.

Tina became a living weapon. She killed people for Dr. Doppelganger when he ordered her to. She tortured people for information. Tina didn't care if those people were innocent or why Dr. Doppelganger was ordering her to do these things in the first place. As long as she was useful and needed by Dr. Doppelganger she would be his executioner. She loved him. And she was sure he would one day love her in return.

And yet...

Dr. Doppelganger continued to cry out the name 'Janie' when they made love. And Tina's unconditional love for Dr. Doppelganger began to change into something else - an emotion that Tina couldn't recognize. It confused her.

No longer blindly in love with Dr. Doppelganger, Tina started to concern herself with her surroundings again. She started to notice her fellow cyborg assassins and their sad plight. The way Dr. Doppelganger treated the other cyborg assassins had never really bothered her before, but now...it started to irritate her. 312 had been right. The only thing that made Tina different from the others was the color of her eyes.

Tina started to feel sorry for the other cyborg assassins, and felt guilty for how she'd treated them. She'd been unnecessarily cruel, and Dr. Doppelganger had allowed it simply because she was his 'favorite'. Tina regretted treating the other cyborgs like they were expendable, and for cutting their limbs off. Even if they did get replaced by cybernetic ones.

At this point, so many of the cyborg assassins had brain chips now, and were 100% loyal to Dr. Doppelganger. Their free will had been taken away from them. And Tina had stood by and watched while this had happened.

Tina started to better appreciate her free will. She could choose to love and trust Dr. Doppelganger, or she could choose to doubt or even hate him. It wasn't long before Tina realized that she doubted Dr. Doppelganger's decisions were the right ones, and that she'd slowly started to hate him for it.

Tina no longer found the experiments on the Munchkins to be entertaining and awe-inspiring. She now found them to be appalling. Tina was surprised by how much she'd let her love for Dr. Doppelganger blind her to the truth that he was doing horrible things.

But it was Dr. Doppelganger's experiments on Demi-Human Village that made Tina doubt whether or not the man she'd been pining after was even capable of love. The demi-humans had all been placed under Dr. Doppelganger's mind-control. And the mad scientist was choosing their mates in order for them to produce offspring with supernatural powers.

_What about love?_ Tina had wondered with a chill crawling up her spine. What did Dr. Doppelganger really think about love? Was 'love' going to be a part of this new, perfect world that he was trying to create?

If not...what use did she have in that world? Her entire existence had been centered on the fact that she was in love with Dr. Doppelganger. Without her feelings of love for the mad scientist, she felt empty, hollow.

_Who am I? What am I?_ These questions were too scary to contemplate. _I am Tina Woodcutter...the woman who is in love with Dr. Doppelganger. I am his sword._

Tina decided to try one more time to win Dr. Doppelganger's heart. She took the mission to infiltrate Theodore Gale's traveling party. She was to befriend them, spy on them, and use them to infiltrate the Emerald City where she'd have access to Ozlyn's computer and be able to bring down the energy dome that protected the entire city.

After that she'd steal the blueprints for a peacekeeping robot and artificial intelligence that was on Ozlyn's computer. Once she'd accomplished all of this, Dr. Doppelganger would finally see how amazing she was and love her back. He'd forget all about Janie.

This had been Tina's plan, but those plans had fallen through. Dr. Doppelganger had decided she was 'expendable' after all. That had _hurt_. He'd broken her heart, and then had _literally_ ripped her heart out of her chest. She would have died, but Jadyn had saved her by putting her under a stasis spell.

END OF FLASHBACK

When Reginald believed that they'd seen the most incriminating parts of Tina's past, he waved his hand over the mirror's surface to end the show. A dark chuckle slipped past his lips. "Well, well, well, Tina Woodcutter is certainly no lilywhite flower. She's a whore who was Dr. Doppelganger's lover. And she's a murderer. She acted as Dr. Doppelganger's torturer and executioner. She _killed_ for him. I wouldn't be surprised if she still has feelings for him. I thought she might be in love with you, but after having seen her past...I know to whom her heart truly belongs."

"Tina is _not_ a whore," Jadyn snapped. "She gave herself to the man she loved. There's nothing wrong with that."

"Hm," Reginald let out a thoughtful hum. "Perhaps. But that doesn't change the fact that she was a cold-blooded killer."

Jadyn stiffened and remained silent.

"You see, you can't deny it," Reginald said. "We saw the truth. Tina Woodcutter is a living weapon. Her hands are stained red with the blood of innocents. Can you still say you love her?"

Jadyn raised his chin in a show of defiance. "Yes. Yes, I can. I love Tina Woodcutter. The things that happened to Tina in her past helped to make her the person she is today, and I am in love with that person. Her current self. Besides, I'm the Wicked Warlock of the West. The King of Monsters. Did you really think a little darkness would scare me away from her? Think again."

"So you love her, and perhaps she loves you. It's a shame though that the two of you can never be together." Reginald smiled viciously. "The consequences would be...deadly."

Jadyn frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about Tina's cursed artificial heart, of course," Reginald drawled. Jadyn's green eyes swam with confusion. "What? She didn't tell you? When Ozlyn tried to save Tina by implanting an artificial heart inside her chest - it didn't work. Cordelia, my slave in the magic mirror, alerted me that there was a damsel in distress. One of my favorite pastimes is rescuing damsels in distress, you see, and so I couldn't ignore Tina's plight.

"I love the attention damsels give me after I've saved their life. They're usually _very_ grateful. I teleported myself to Ozlyn's laboratory and used my magic to save Tina's life. I got her heart to work under certain conditions. She must never lose her temper or fall in love. Her heart cannot handle such strong emotions like anger or love. If she fails to control her emotions, her heart will overheat, stop working, and she'll die. If she feels things too powerfully her heart could even explode."

Jadyn staggered backwards in shock as the truth hit him about why Tina had been acting so strangely around him this entire time. As Theodore Gale would say: 'Mind. Blown'.

Suddenly, all of Tina's contradictory words and behavior made sense. The way she'd glare at him hatefully, and then show concern over his well-being. How she'd be cold and cruel one minute only to be sweet and kind the next while helping him or trying to save his life.

It was so obvious now. Tina was trying desperately _not_ to fall for him because then she'd die.

Jadyn had unknowingly been trying to kill her in a way with how he'd been trying to make her fall in love with him. The warlock trembled with rage and clenched his hands into fists. "You cursed her heart? You bastard! Undo the curse at once!" He conjured a fireball to his right hand and threw it at Reginald.

Reginald's energy shield blocked the attack. "I don't think so," Reginald said in his singsong voice. "It's much more fun this way. And allow me to let you in on a little secret. I can cast Dark Magic too!" The wizard raised his right hand, conjured a fireball, and threw it at Jadyn.

Jadyn dodged the attack, and the fireball hit a vase, which shattered. The warlock and wizard started to fling spells at each other. Until Jadyn threw a lightning spell Reginald's way. It was powerful enough to shatter Reginald's energy shield, and then thousands of volts of electricity were sent coursing painfully through Reginald's veins.

Reginald screamed in pain, his body convulsing and twitching.

"Reginald!" a sultry female voice called out urgently, and the image of a beautiful woman started to form in the magic mirror. The woman had a perfect oval-shaped face, her skin was as pale as the moon, her eyes were dark and luminous, and she wore her black hair styled into a heart-shaped bun on the top of her head. She was wearing a black and gold Victorian gown with the pattern of red hearts on it. "Quick! Over here!"

The image in the mirror changed to reveal the inside of Queen Acacia's bedroom. Reginald stood up, smoothed his hands over his wrinkled suit, and started to walk backwards towards the mirror. "Say 'goodbye' to Dryad Forest, Jadyn. All of Oz will _hate_ you for the forest's destruction! Your days playing hero are over!"

"Hey!" Jadyn yelled. "Wait, you bastard!"

"And just to make things more entertaining...Tina would you be a dear and kill Jadyn for me? Thank you." Reginald blew a kiss in Tina's direction right before backing into the mirror and disappearing.

Jadyn spun around just in time to duck a sword swing. Tina was still under Reginald's hypnosis and had just been ordered to kill him. _Shit._ This was so not good. Where the fuck was Theo? One tap from Theo's gauntlet and Tina would be returned to normal! Or Leona could bring Tina out of her hypnotic trance with her singing too.

At least, Tina had had time to dress, apparently. The cyborg assassin was wearing a black leather bodysuit and boots. Jadyn's didn't know what he would have done if he had to fight Tina while she'd been naked.

Jadyn ducked and dodged sword swings and stabs. He tried to reason with Tina, but his words didn't appear to be getting through to her. He may as well have been talking to a brick wall.

"Tina, please. It's me - Jadyn. I don't want to fight you," Jadyn said, his voice tinged with desperation. "I don't want to hurt you." Tina just snarled at him, and attacked him even more viciously than before.

A strange beeping sound reached Jadyn's ears and he frowned. _There it is again. That same infernal racket. Where the hell is it coming from?_ Jadyn's gaze went to the heart rate monitor on Tina's wrist, and he finally understood what the device was. It was obviously a device that allowed Tina to monitor the rate of her heartbeat.

Right now the device read: 110. And that number was steadily rising, the angrier Tina became.

Jadyn grew worried. "Tina, please, calm down. Dammit, Theodore where the hell are you? Where is that fool of a cowboy when you need him?" A sudden thought occurred to Jadyn as he realized where Theo must have gone in order to find Anne and Leona. "He better not be flirting with the harem girls, or so help me! THEODORE!"

To be continued in...Chapter 9:

### Chapter 9:

Gunther led the way through Reginald's castle stalking down corridors with lush Persian rug runners, oil paintings hanging on the walls of Reginald's wizard ancestors, and polished, gleaming suits of armor until they reached a wooden door that had a flower design carved into it.

Gunther whipped out his ring of keys, found the right key, and unlocked the door to paradise. At least, it looked like paradise in Theo's humble opinion. The chamber was enormous and housed a sparkling, blue swimming pool. Arranged around the pool were comfortable looking lounge chairs, and large ceramic pots that were overflowing with ferns. Red and gold silk pillows with golden tassels decorated the lounge chairs.

Reginald's harem girls were currently reclining on the lounge chairs or swimming in the pool. Theo quickly scanned the chamber for any sign of Anne and Leona. He spotted Anne seated in a chair beneath an enormous potted mango tree calmly reading a book. She appeared to be unharmed although she was still in her doll form. "Anne!" Theo rushed over to her with a relieved look on his face.

Anne looked up from her book to give Theo a questioning stare. "Who are you?"

Theo winced. Even though he knew Anne was currently under Reginald's hypnosis the fact that she'd apparently forgotten him still hurt. A bubble of panic rose up inside of him. What if she never remembered him? Would that be the end of their relationship? "It's me, silly," Theo tapped her forehead lightly with the Ruby Gauntlet. "Theodore Gale, your boyfriend."

A _whooming_ sound filled the air as Anne's hypnotic trance was broken. Anne blinked, looked up at Theo, and firmly shut her book closed with an audible snap. "Theo!" She leapt out of her chair. "You came to rescue me!"

Theo smirked. "I always will. Rescuing damsels in distress...it's what heroes do." Theo spread his arms wide in an expectant manner, and Anne leapt into his arms before hugging him fiercely. She rested her cheek against his chest for a moment, and just listened to the comforting sound of his heartbeat. Theo stroked her yarn hair affectionately.

Anne looked up at Theo and he stared down into her painted eyes. "I'm going to kiss you."

"But...I'm a doll again. I'm not real," Anne said sadly.

"You're real to me, baby," Theo leaned over and pressed his lips against Anne's painted red ones. He stroked her yarn hair with his gauntleted right hand, and a _whooming_ sound filled the air as the Ruby Gauntlet broke the transfiguration spell on Anne.

Anne's body started to transform back into her human form. Theo felt warmth against his lips, and sighed in contentment. He was probably just hallucinating, but Anne felt real and alive in his arms. He reached down and squeezed her ass since Anne wouldn't feel it in her doll form.

Anne pulled back and slapped Theo hard across the face. "Perverted cowboy!"

Theo brought a hand up to his stinging cheek. "Ow. That hurt, babe. Wait a second...that hurt? Anne, you're back to normal!" he crowed.

Anne looked down at her fleshy hands in surprise. "You're right. The Ruby Gauntlet must have broken the spell. Since Reginald didn't use his blood to cast the curse the Ruby Gauntlet was able to break the curse this time around unlike when Jadyn cast it because he'd used his blood."

"Fascinating. But we don't have time for a magic lesson. We need to go meet up with Jadyn a-sap. Where's Leona?" Theo asked glancing around the chamber.

Anne frowned, and nibbled her lower lip. "Leona is..." She turned around and pointed upwards into the branches of the mango tree. "Up there."

Theo walked over to the mango tree, and stared up into its leafy branches. "Hey Leona, get down from there. Annnnd she's ignoring me." Theo pouted and rolled up his sleeves. "I guess I'll have to go up there and get her down. Why do cats always get stuck up trees?" Theo grabbed the lowest branch and swung himself up onto the branch. Then he began to climb the mango tree.

Theo didn't have to climb very far before he spotted Leona. She was seated on a branch with her back leaning against the tree's trunk and with her knees pulled up to her chest. Leona's head was hanging forward in a dejected manner, and her golden-blonde hair was shielding the features of her face.

Theo carefully made his way towards Leona, and once he was close enough reached out and touched her with the Ruby Gauntlet. A _whooming_ sound filled the air as Reginald's hypnosis was broken.

Leona's head snapped up and she stared down at Theo with wide, frightened eyes. Theo immediately fixated on the golden thread keeping her lips sewn together, and his blood boiled. _Reginald, that sadistic bastard!_ Theo snarled mentally _. How could he do that to kind, sweet Leona!_ Leona gave him a beseeching look. "Don't worry. I've got ya." Theo reached his right gauntleted hand out towards Leona's mouth and tapped it gently.

The enchanted threads disintegrated instantly with a _whooming_ sound. Leona's eyes widened, and she smiled carefully. "Theo! You did it! You saved me!" The lion girl leapt at him.

"Whoa!" Theo caught her in his arms, and held her close to his chest. His right arm was wrapped around her waist while his left hand was holding a tree branch. He patted her back consolingly. "Let's get down this tree. Anne is waiting for us."

Leona frowned as she started to remember the events that had occurred in the throne room, and Tina's thwarted assassination attempt. "What about Tina? Is she alright?"

"Jadyn went to rescue her from Reginald..." Theo explained, and trailed off thinking about what Reginald intended to do to poor Tina. He really hoped Jadyn had managed to get there in time.

"Oh! We'd better hurry so we can help too!" Leona exclaimed with a fierce, determined expression on her face.

It only took Theo and Leona a couple of minutes to climb down the mango tree. (Afterwards Theo had a great appreciation for firemen who got cats down from trees. It was a lot harder than it looked!)

"Leona!" Anne greeted her friend happily and pulled the lion girl into a hug. "I'm glad you're alright."

Leona started to purr as she nuzzled her nose against Anne's neck. "Thanks."

The sound of someone getting slapped reached their ears followed by a woman's shriek. "Eee! Get away from me! You're _not_ my husband! Reginald is! I don't _know_ you!" Natalie was screaming into poor Gunther's face.

Theo's sharp blue gaze went to Gunther and Natalie. "Ah. Hang on a sec. There's something I need to go do." The cowboy made his way over to the couple, and once he was close enough to Natalie he tapped her gently with the Ruby Gauntlet.

A _whooming_ sound filled the air as she was freed from her hypnotic trance. Natalie blinked, her brow furrowed, and then she spotted Gunther. "Gunther!" Her eyes flared in surprise, and started to well up with tears. "You came for me!"

Tears started to well up in Gunther's soft, brown eyes as he gazed at his wife with tenderness. "Of course I did, Nat. I'm sorry I wasn't able to save you sooner, before..."

Natalie reached out and placed her index finger against Gunther's lips. "It's all in the past. The nightmare I was trapped in is finally over. I'm yours...if you'll still have me? I would understand if you never wanted to be with me again after I've been with _him_ ," she said, her voice dripping with venom as she thought about Reginald.

"No!" Gunther blurted out. "Of course, I still want you. But what about you? You married the handsomest man in your village and now..." Gunther reached up to touch the self-inflicted scars on his face. "I'm scarred. I'll understand if you find my new appearance...frightening."

Natalie reached out and lightly touched one of the scars on Gunther's face. "You're still the man I fell in love with on the inside, and that's all that matters. I still love you, Gunther."

"And I love you, Natalie," Gunther said, before pulling Natalie into his arms and kissing her sweetly.

Theo flushed slightly and cleared his throat. "Ahem. Sorry to interrupt. But Gunther we really need you to take us to Reginald's bedchamber. Tina may still be in grave danger."

Gunther pulled away from his wife and gave Theo a nod. "Of course." A cunning glint came to Gunther's eyes. "But first, there's a request I'd like to make, Chain Breaker."

Theo shrugged. "Sure. What is it?"

"I want you to use your power to break Reginald's hypnosis on _all_ of the harem girls and guards," Gunther explained. "These women used to have families and husbands, but they've forgotten them. A lot of the male guards are the husbands who came here to try and rescue their wives from Reginald's perverted clutches and were ensnared by him too."

Theo glanced over at the fifty harem girls and sighed. "This might take a while." He cracked his knuckles. "Well, I'd better get started!" Using the Ruby Gauntlet Theo broke Reginald's hypnosis upon the harem girls and the guards. Everyone was incredibly thankful to Theo once they'd been freed from Reginald's hypnosis, and it became difficult to escape from all the hugging and well-wishing that ensued afterwards.

Theo was covered in lipstick kiss marks by the time he managed to escape the thankful girls and make his way over to Anne, Leona, and Gunther. Anne raised an eyebrow at him and Theo just gave her a droll look. "What?"

Gunther kissed Natalie goodbye and then led the way to Reginald's bedchamber. When they arrived they noted that the door had been blasted open. Theo and the others rushed inside and the first thing they saw was Tina attacking Jadyn viciously with her samurai sword. There was no sign of Reginald, but this didn't do anything to reassure Theo. That wizard was a sly, cunning bastard.

"Yo!" Theo called out casually.

Jadyn's green eyes snapped over to Theo. "Theodore!" he shouted, sounding slightly out of breath. "Why are you just standing there like an idiot? Use the Ruby Gauntlet on Tina!"

"Oh, yeah, right..." Theo said and a crooked smile formed on his face as he watched the warlock duck a sword swing. "It's just this is almost normal behavior for her, so I wasn't sure if she was _still_ under Reginald's hypnosis or not."

"Ha. Ha. Very funny," Jadyn said dryly.

Theo stealthily made his way closer to Tina while Jadyn kept her distracted, and as soon as he spotted an opening he tapped her shoulder with the Ruby Gauntlet. With a _whooming_ sound Tina was broken out of her hypnotic trance.

Tina's sword stopped a centimeter away from Jadyn's throat. The cyborg blinked, stared at Jadyn with a bewildered expression, and her eyes widened. "Jadyn, you came to rescue me from Reginald..."

"Of course, I did. I love you," Jadyn drawled in a nonchalant tone, but his cheeks were turning brown as he flushed.

Tina's gray-blue eyes filled with tears. "I remember that Reginald showed you my past in that magic mirror of his. How can you still say you love me after having seen my past? Reginald was right. I'm a whore and a murderer..."

"Don't," Jadyn snapped fiercely. "Don't speak about yourself like that. It hurts me. You were in love with Dr. Doppelganger..."

"Just because I was in love with Dr. Doppelganger that doesn't justify all of the horrible things I did," Tina argued with a haunted expression on her face. "I killed and tortured people in his name. And I didn't care."

"But you care now?" Jadyn asked pointedly.

"I regret my actions. Yes." Tina gave the warlock a solemn nod.

"Even if you're still in love with Dr. Doppelganger...I'll understand and support you. I'll help you try and save him," Jadyn said with a passionate look on his face.

A flash of surprise crossed Tina's gaze. "Jadyn, I'm not in love with Dr. Doppelganger. Not anymore. Right now, I'm in love with-"

Jadyn put a finger to Tina's lips, and glanced down at her heart rate monitor. "Don't. It's too dangerous."

Tina followed Jadyn's line of sight and her eyes widened when she realized he was watching her heart rate monitor. It was currently reading: 108.

"But I want to tell you the truth," Tina insisted, and her heart rate monitor started to beep warningly at her as it read: 110.

"No," Jadyn said firmly. "We don't have time for this. Reginald is planning to destroy Dryad Forest. We have to stop him."

"Yeah, where did that wizard go anyways?" Theo asked, glancing around the bedchamber warily. "Did he fly out the window?"

Jadyn waved his hand towards the magic mirror. "He used that mirror to travel to Dryad Forest."

"Cool. It's a portal. Can we use it?" Theo asked, his blue eyes sparkling with excitement.

Jadyn shook his head. "Its loyalty is to Reginald. It would be dangerous to try and use it as a portal. We could end up in some other land entirely. I believe Reginald has some kind of blood-pact with the mirror. Though that's neither here nor there." He ran a hand over the mirror's gilt frame. "This mirror is not from our world. It came here from another realm. Ow!" Jadyn looked down and saw a splinter in his finger. A single drop of his blood fell onto he frame and disappeared.

"Another realm?" Theo promoted.

"A realm known as Wonderland," Jadyn revealed, shaking his head as he thought about the realm he'd only read about in books. "They're all mad there. Theo, you destroyed the energy dome that surrounded Dryad Forest so I should be able to teleport us all there now." He held out his arm. "Come on! Hurry!"

Gunther grinned at the group and gave them a shy little wave. "I'm just going to go back to my wife..." He turned and left the bedchamber.

Theo, Anne, Tina, and Leona grabbed onto Jadyn's arm, and the warlock teleported them to Dryad Forest in a cloud of green smoke. The group materialized on the outskirts of the forest.

Jadyn looked up, saw rising smoke in the distance, and scowled. "Damnation! It's already begun. Reginald must have cast the Black Fire already. I saw him enter Queen Acacia's bedroom. I wonder if he killed her. Reginald plans to blame _me_ for this catastrophe."

"Use your crystal ball to find out if Acacia is still alive," Theo suggested.

"Good idea, Theodore." Jadyn summoned a small crystal ball to his left hand. He waved his right hand over the crystal ball and cast a locator spell. The green smoke inside swirled, and then an image formed showing the interior of Queen Acacia's bedroom.

The Queen of the Dryads was lying on the floor unconscious with a visible bump on her head. The rise and fall of her chest made it clear that she was still alive. Black flames surrounded her _but_ they hadn't reached her body yet.

"She's still alive," Jadyn said with obvious relief. "But she won't be for much longer..."

"Cast a stasis spell?" Theo suggested tentatively.

Jadyn shot Theo a surprised look. "Another excellent idea, Theodore. I'll do just that." The warlock waved his hand over the crystal ball and cast a stasis spell on Queen Acacia. A cocoon of green and gold energy formed around her, protecting her from the Black Fire. Jadyn willed his crystal ball to return to his pocket dimension and it disappeared with a _pop_. "Follow me."

Jadyn led the way through the forest, heading directly for the blaze while Theo and the girls followed close behind. The group caught sight of several trees that were already alight with black flames. And those sinister flames appeared to be spreading rapidly.

The closer they got to Queen Acacia's home the hotter it got. Jadyn and the others started to sweat. But heat had never bothered Jadyn, only cold. Queen Acacia had made her home out of a gigantic redwood that was 500-feet-tall and 50-feet-wide. The tree was hard to miss and it was completely engulfed in black flames.

Several dryads were gathered outside of the enormous tree, and looking at it with forlorn expressions on their faces. "Queen Acacia..." "Our beloved queen..." "She's dead." "Who could have done this?" The dryads moaned in despair.

Reginald stepped out from the shadows, and pointed at Jadyn just as he and the others arrived upon the scene. "He did this! I tried to stop him, but he escaped from the dungeons and came here. Jadyn, the Wicked Warlock of the West, set Queen Acacia's house on fire with Black Fire. He has killed her!"

All the dryads turned to look at Jadyn with appalled and contemptuous looks on their faces. "You're all a bunch of fools!" Jadyn snarled at them and glared daggers at his brother. "But you're the biggest fool of all!" The warlock ran right past Reginald and into the burning tree house.

The dryads gasped in surprise, and shot Reginald a questioning look. He was looking equally bewildered by his brother's unexpected actions, but quickly schooled his expression. "He's decided to kill himself rather than allow himself to get arrested and then executed for his crimes!" Reginald explained with a gleeful note to his voice. "The coward!"

"Come on, Jadyn, you can do it," Theo muttered softly to himself and crossed his fingers behind his back so that Reginald wouldn't see.

Meanwhile, Jadyn was now inside of the burning tree house. He whipped out a black onyx wand and used it to create an energy shield to protect himself from the Black Fire. It was hot. But heat wasn't his weakness. Still, his eyes stung with the smoke that was filling the air, and it was hard to breathe.

Jadyn headed for the spiral staircase that led up to Queen Acacia's bedroom, and started to ascend it. The stairs were starting to catch on fire and weren't very stable. The warlock ran up the stairs, and finally entered Queen Acacia's bedroom. He ran over to Acacia, and scooped her up into his arms. Sweat slid down Jadyn's face. Black Fire was running up the walls and across the ceiling. It was like being inside of an oven.

Jadyn spun and ran towards the staircase, but just as he was about to start his descent the entire staircase collapsed and fell into a the blazing, fiery inferno that the rest of the dwelling had become. "Curses!" Jadyn looked around wildly, and realized Queen Acacia's room had a balcony. The latticed door was in flames, however, and so Jadyn couldn't just kick the door open because he'd get Black Fire on him, and Black Fire was nearly impossible to put out. There was only one way to do this.

Jadyn summoned his broom and mounted it. He pulled Acacia onto the broom so that she was sitting upon it sidesaddle in front of him. Jadyn placed his left hand on the broom handle and used his left arm to support Acacia's weight.

The warlock pushed his feet against the ground causing the broom to hover above the floor. Jadyn leaned forward and flew towards the latticed door. Using his wand he launched a large, red and orange fireball the door's way, and it was blasted open. _Sometimes, you have to fight fire with fire._ Jadyn thought with a smirk.

With a wave of his wand Jadyn cast a shield spell to protect him and Acacia from the fire next as they exited the burning tree house. Jadyn flew down and landed in front of Theo and the girls, and he started to cough violently.

All of the dryads grew shocked and confused by this unexpected turn of events. "He rescued Queen Acacia?" one of the male dryads questioned tentatively.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Reginald snapped hotly. "He just went inside to retrieve her _corpse_! He probably plans to do something sinister with it!"

Leona approached Queen Acacia and stroked her light-green hair. "She's still alive." The lion girl sang softly, and the bruise on Queen Acacia's forehead disappeared. In a few more minutes, Acacia began to stir. She blinked owlishly, and then looked up at Jadyn.

Acacia's eyes widened as she took in the sight of the soot-covered Jadyn. "You...saved me." Then, most unexpectedly, Acacia's expression turned enamored. "Oh, brave warlock." The dryads, who were all watching their queen closely, gasped.

"Jadyn's got game," Theo murmured to Anne.

Anne swatted Theo's arm. "Oh, behave." But she was smiling.

Queen Acacia sat up straighter, looked around her immediate surroundings, and when she spotted Reginald her eyes narrowed into thin slits. "Reginald tried to kill me! And he cast the Black Fire on my house! _He_ did this! Guardians, arrest him immediately!"

A dark chuckle slipped past Reginald's lips. "Arrest me?" he said incredulously. "I think not. Once you are all under my hypnosis you'll forget all about this incident. All of you will worship me once more!"

"I don't think so, Buddy!" Theo crouched down, grabbed a handful of dirt, straightened, and threw the dirt right in Reginald's face.

The dirt got into Reginald's eyes, temporarily blinding him, and the wizard let out a roar of outrage. "Argh! How dare you, Cowboy? I'll incinerate you with Black Fire!" Reginald pointed his crystal wand roughly in Theo's direction.

The dryads gasped in horror at this admission from Reginald that he was able to perform Dark Magic. Jadyn raised his black onyx wand, and sent a bolt of magical energy towards Reginald's hand in order to disarm him. Reginald was disarmed and his crystal wand flew up into the air.

Jadyn cast another spell on the wand, and it floated over to the warlock who plucked it out of the air before pocketing it. Jadyn then dismounted his broom and helped Acacia to get off his broom. He stalked over to Reginald. "It's over, Reginald. You've lost."

Reginald followed the sound of Jadyn's voice, and turned to face his brother. He spread his arms wide in a mocking manner. "Do you intend to kill me, Brother? Your own flesh and blood? If you do...then you really are _wicked_."

Jadyn let out a thoughtful hum. "Hm. Actually, I have a better idea." The warlock removed his wide-brimmed, pointed hat to reveal the little potted marigold sitting on the top of his head. Jadyn grabbed the potted plant, and held it out before him. "Marie, restrain him."

Reginald frowned. "Marie? Who the hell is Marie?" The tiny marigold sprouted several vines all at once which shot towards Reginald and quickly started to wrap around him, pinning his arms to his sides. "What the hell _is_ this?" Reginald demanded as he struggled against the vines wrapping around him.

"Make sure to gag him too, Marie," Jadyn drawled coolly. "We wouldn't want him casting any more spells."

"You won't get away with this. I'll mmph-!" Marie waited for Reginald to open his mouth, and then gagged him with a vine. Once Reginald was successfully restrained Marie severed the vines from her tiny body, and the plant's appearance returned to normal - just a harmless yellow flower with two green leaves.

Reginald was screaming through his gag, and blinking the dirt out of his eyes. When his blurry vision cleared he saw Jadyn holding a potted plant. "Nnngh!"

A cocky smirk curled Theo's lips. "That's right, Buddy. You just got your ass handed to you by a daisy!"

"Marigold," Anne amended smartly.

Reginald's red eyes flashed with anger and humiliation.

Theo continued in a conversational tone. "So, what are you going to do with him, Jay?"

"I will banish him and his precious magic mirror to another realm," Jadyn said decidedly.

"Nice," Theo said.

Jadyn started to chant the words of a long and complex incantation. He felt his connection to the mirror, borrowed some of its power as a portal, and banished Reginald and the magic mirror to another realm. They disappeared in a cloud of green smoke.

One day Reginald would become known as 'The Evil King' in a land known as Fantasia, but that was a story for another time.

Jadyn wiped his hands off. "Now that Reginald has been taken care of...the forest needs to be evacuated."

Theo gaped at the warlock. "What about saving it with your magic?"

Jadyn shot Theo an irritated look. "I've already explained to you before that stopping Black Fire is nearly impossible."

Theo frowned thoughtfully and scratched his head. "Yeah. _Nearly_. Didn't you say something about how enchanted ice can be used against Black Fire?"

"I can't do ice magic," Jadyn drawled.

"But your brother Noryn can," Theo helpfully reminded.

Jadyn blinked at Theo in sheer disbelief. "You want me to go grovel in front of my brother Noryn and ask for his help?"

"Not grovel. Just ask nicely?" Theo gave Jadyn his best puppy dog eyes look.

Jadyn sighed, and rubbed his temples with his index fingers. "I'll never live this one down."

"Please? You said we needed the dryads' help. If you save their forest maybe they'll help you," Theo said slyly.

Jadyn huffed. "Alright. Fine. I'll be right back." The warlock twirled his hand and teleported to the North in a cloud of green smoke.

Jadyn materialized in Noryn's throne room. Noryn was seated on his throne reading a spell book. He glanced up from his reading, and raised an eyebrow at the harried looking Jadyn. "Hello, little brother, what brings you here? Just so you know, I'm out of goblin slaves for you to rescue."

Jadyn grinded his back molars. "I...need your help."

Noryn shut his book closed, and a pleased expression settled over his face. "Oh, really? You need _my_ help? I do like the sound of that. With what?"

"Dryad Forest...is currently in danger," Jadyn announced in a grim tone. "It is ablaze with Black Fire. Only enchanted ice can stop the blaze from spreading and consuming the entire forest now."

Noryn's blue eyes narrowed suspiciously at the King of Monsters. "Did _you_ cast the Black Fire?"

"No!" Jadyn snapped hotly. "It was Reginald!"

"Reginald?" Noryn frowned while giving Jadyn a skeptical look. "Why would he do something like that?"

"It's a long story," Jadyn said, raking a shaky hand back through his oily black hair. "Are you going to help save Dryad Forest or not? If not, I have to help the dryads evacuate to safety."

"First goblins...and now you're rescuing dryads?" Noryn remarked in a pensive tone. "I thought you didn't want to be in the hero business, Wicked Warlock of the West?"

"I don't." Jadyn bristled with irritation. "Things just sort of turned out this way. I blame Theodore Gale entirely."

Noryn stood up from his throne and approached Jadyn with swift, confident strides. "How shall we get there? The forest is surrounded by an energy dome."

"Not anymore," Jadyn said dryly. "Hurry. Grab on." He held out his arm and Noryn placed his hand on it. The two brothers teleported away to Dryad Forest in a cloud of green smoke.

Jadyn and Noryn materialized in Dryad Forest directly in front of Queen Acacia's tree house. Noryn looked at all the trees that were being consumed by the Black Fire and his expression turned horrified. "To stop this much Black Fire...you do realize I'm going to have to conjure a lot of ice."

Jadyn arched an eyebrow at his brother. "So? Do it."

"The temperature around here will decrease rapidly. Will you be alright?" Noryn asked tentatively.

Jadyn scoffed. "I'm not some run-of-the-mill goblin. I'll be fine. Do it."

"Alright. If you say so..." Noryn didn't sound too convinced, but he crouched and placed his hands on the ground in front of him anyways. He closed his eyes, summoned his magic, and concentrated. Noryn started to chant a spell, conjuring ice. Ice spread from Noryn's hands outwards across the ground in front of him until it hit the trees' trunks. Then the ice began to climb up the trees' trunks and quench the flames.

The dryads watched in awe as Noryn's enchanted ice began to quench the black flames, smoking rising into the air.

"It's working," Theo said in a giddy tone.

All the dryads started to cheer. Their forest would be saved...

In minutes, Dryad Forest became Winter Wonderland. Ice covered the ground and trees, and the temperature dropped dramatically.

Theo glanced over at Jadyn and frowned. "You're looking a little blue there, Loki Laufeyson. You okay?"

"I'm perfectly fine, I..." Jadyn's teeth started to chatter, and his eyelids felt heavy. _Shit._ He was going to go into hibernation. The warlock collapsed to the ground, and fell into a deep sleep.

***

When Jadyn awoke two hours later he was surprised to discover that he was warm. His face was pressed up against something warm and soft. "Mmm." What was it? A pillow? It was a little lumpy. Jadyn reached his hands up and squeezed the soft, warm _thing_ -

Jadyn opened his eyes and when he looked up he saw Tina staring down at him with an amused look on her face. "Oh, good, you're awake," she greeted in a droning tone.

Jadyn looked down at his hands, and realized he was kneading and squeezing Tina's bare breasts. "Ack!" He quickly let go of Tina's breasts, and scrambled out of the bed that was made out of moss and flowers. As he stood he realized he was buck-naked. His green eyes flared in alarm, and he quickly covered his crotch with both hands.

"Where the hell are we...?" Jadyn looked around the odd circular room with wooden walls. He realized they must be inside one of the tree dwellings in Dryad Forest.

"Dryad Forest," Tina confirmed his suspicions. Jadyn started to shiver violently from the cold. Tina noticed and lifted the blanket back invitingly. "Hurry up and get back in bed, silly, before you freeze to death."

Jadyn hesitated, staring at her breasts, but then scrambled back into the bed and under the warm cover. He reached out and raised the blanket to cover Tina's breasts. Confusion swam in his green eyes as he regarded her. "What are you doing here with me? In this bed? Naked...?"

Tina's amused expression turned serious. "When you fell into hibernation...Noryn said your heartbeat was slowing down dangerously, and that we needed to find a way to warm you up as soon as possible. Theo suggested I use the warmth of my naked body. I decided that was a perfectly sensible idea, and so I agreed."

"That pervert!" Jadyn said, a vein at his temple throbbing visibly. "I'm so sorry, Tina. You shouldn't have bothered listening to that cowboy and his nonsense."

Tina tilted her head as she stared at Jadyn. "You misunderstand. I _wanted_ to use my body to warm yours. You rescued me and I owed you one. It was pleasant having you near. And now that you're awake I can think of other ways to get you even more warmed up..." The cyborg's tone was suggestive, and she pushed Jadyn down on the bed before straddling him in one smooth motion.

Jadyn blinked up at Tina in shock as she sat on his stomach. "Tina! I don't think we should-" Tina leaned closer and pressed their lips together, cutting off Jadyn's protests. The sweet feeling of Tina's soft, warm lips against his was irresistible.

Jadyn couldn't help it. He closed his eyes and melted into the gentle kiss. _Maybe I can be a little selfish just this once._ He thought before kissing her back languidly.

Tina's heart started to pound inside of her chest, and her heart rate monitor read: 95.

Jadyn's hands ended up on her waist and he stroked her sides as they kissed. He didn't dare to touch Tina's breasts again without her permission.

Tina surprised him by grabbing his wrists and guiding his hands to her bare breasts. They both moaned as Jadyn's hands cupped her breasts and he instinctively started to knead them. He couldn't help it...

Jadyn could hardly believe it. He was getting to touch Tina's breasts. Tina's! The woman he loved. His cock started to harden and rise. Tina was just too sexy like this. His hips bucked of their own accord and his erection rubbed against her ass.

When Jadyn brushed his thumbs over Tina's swollen nipples she cried out and arched into his touch. Tina's heart was jack-rabbiting inside of her chest, and her heart rate monitor started to beep loudly in warning as it read: 110, and that number kept increasing.

That beeping sound snapped Jadyn back to his senses, and back to reality. He placed his hands on Tina's shoulders and pushed her back. "Tina, we must stop."

Tina pouted as she gazed at him with flushed cheeks. She was panting slightly and Jadyn found that to be incredibly alluring. "But why? I want you. And I can _feel_ you want me too." She scooted back so that her ass was purposefully rubbing against his erection.

Jadyn shuddered from the delightful friction on his cock. "You know why. Reginald told me everything about your cursed heart, Tina. It's too dangerous for you to do this. Your heart won't be able to handle it..."

"Jadyn, I was afraid before, but now I'm not," Tina said stubbornly. "I've decided that I want to be with you because...I love you."

Jadyn glanced down at her heart rate monitor and saw that it read: 120. "No! What are you saying? That you don't care whether you live or die!"

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Tina shot back. "I've decided it's worth it to have the chance to be with you. To be with the man I love at least once before I die..."

"How could you be so selfish?" Jadyn snarled angrily at her. "If we do this...if you die...it would be the same as if I'd killed you. Do you want to make me a murderer! Do you want to turn me into your killer! I don't want to hurt you. I love you too much."

"We're about to go off to battle to fight Dr. D and his army. We may die anyways. Please, Jadyn..." Tina pleaded, her blue-gray eyes swirling with emotion. "I know you love me, and I love you. I want you. We don't really know what will happen if we're together. My heart may be able to handle it."

Jadyn was tempted. So very tempted.

But when Tina's heart rate reached 129 she started to look in pain. She clutched at her chest, and gasped for breath.

Jadyn grew alarmed. "Tina!" He pushed her off of him, so that she was lying down beside him and _not_ on top of him. The warlock gave her an exasperated look. "You see! You can't even handle us kissing and touching. There's no way your heart could handle sex! I won't hurt you. I won't kill you. I can't lose you, Tina."

Tina was looking at Jadyn with teary eyes. "But, I love you..."

"Shhhh. Try to calm down. Think about...naked orcs," Jadyn quipped.

Tina made a moue of disgust. "Naked orcs? Why did you say that? Ugh..." Then Tina started to laugh softly.

Jadyn began to chuckle. Once Tina's heart rate had settled to 80, Jadyn pulled her into his arms and hugged her. "This is all I can give you, Tin Woman."

Tina pouted. "Stingy."

Jadyn stroked his hand down over Tina's thick, silky hair lovingly as she slept in his arms. He didn't want Tina to die...

_I must protect the woman I love. If I don't, what kind of man am I?_ Jadyn thought ruefully. He had to figure out a way to break the curse on Tina's heart. Worst-case scenario Jadyn had an idea of how he could possibly save Tina. He knew that Tina and his friends would hate him for it, and that's why he intended to keep it a secret from them until the end.

***

Once the temperature in Dryad Forest returned to normal and all of the ice had melted, Jadyn was invited to dine with Queen Acacia. When Jadyn arrived at the dining room he noted that Queen Acacia, the former king of the dryads, Drusus, the commander of the forest guardians, Grover, Theo, Anne, Leona and Tina were already seated at the round dining table waiting for him.

Jadyn lowered his head to hide the sly smirk that formed on his face. This was a convenient gathering of people. It was almost as if he'd summoned a war council meeting. He intended to take full advantage of this opportunity that had presented itself.

Theo was morosely poking his fork at a bowl of salad and acorns, and wondering where the meat was. "Tree spirits eating lettuce is wrong on so many levels," he muttered softly to himself.

"Jadyn!" Queen Acacia greeted enthusiastically. "Please, join us." She waved her hand at the empty chair that was directly beside her.

"Thank you, Queen Acacia," Jadyn said as he took a seat at the dining table.

"First off, I'd like to thank you for saving my life," Queen Acacia purred with an amorous look on her face as she stared into Jadyn's green eyes.

Jadyn shifted uncomfortably on his seat at the lustful look that was on Acacia's face. He had to resist the urge to look behind him to see who she was _really_ looking at, but since it was clear she was, in fact, addressing him he met her gaze. "You're very welcome."

"You came to Dryad Forest seeking an audience with me," Acacia said thoughtfully. "If I recall correctly you wanted to form an alliance of some sort?"

"Indeed. I wanted to form an alliance with the dryads for the upcoming battle against Dr. Doppelganger," Jadyn explained.

"Ah, yes...Dr. Doppelganger. Otherwise known as the Wicked Warlock of the East. His 'magic' is strange..." Queen Acacia mused aloud as she thought about the metal golems he appeared to be able to control.

"It's not magic," Jadyn corrected. "His power is called 'science'."

"Science," Acacia echoed. "But how can we be expected to fight against a force we do not understand?"

"I already have a plan," Jadyn said with a cunning glint in his eyes. "It's to use the dryads' connection with the Land of Oz. The dryads can use their power and their connection with Oz and its flowers, plants and trees to make Oz fight. I have witnessed one of Dr. Doppelganger's Tin Goliaths fall at the hands of magical vines and their incredible strength."

Queen Acacia grew intrigued. "So you wish for Oz herself to fight against Dr. Doppelganger?"

Jadyn nodded. "Yes. That's why I need the dryads' connection with Oz..."

"An interesting plan," Acacia agreed. "But without knowing the will of Oz herself I can allow no such thing. Oz has always been neutral in our wars."

"But the dryads have fought in wars in the past," Jadyn pointed out.

"And we lost many of our kind in those wars," Acacia said sadly. "Our numbers are dwindling. And after this latest blow to our home...I cannot send my people off to war to die. This isn't our fight. We personally have nothing against Dr. Doppelganger."

"Nothing against him?" Jadyn said in a disbelieving tone. "He intends to take over all of Oz and technolyze every living creature."

"We will be safe behind our energy dome," Acacia insisted.

Theo raised his hand. "Oh, you mean the shield dome thing I destroyed with just one touch?"

Acacia's eye twitched. "The energy dome will be re-cast by our mages."

"This Ruby Gauntlet was created by Dr. Doppelganger," Theo revealed. "Your shield dome thing will fall again."

"We shall perish then, when it happens," Acacia said solemnly. "But for now we wish only to live in peace and in harmony with nature and with Oz herself." The dryad queen gave Jadyn an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, but we cannot help you."

"You can't help us? Or rather you _won't_ help us. Even after I saved all your lives!" Jadyn slammed his hands down on the table angrily and stood up from his chair. "I can't believe this. I can't believe how ungrateful you are. I thought better of you, Queen Acacia. But you're nothing but a coward." The warlock stomped out of the dining room.

Jadyn exited the tree dwelling and made his way into the nearby forest. He stalked angrily through the forest and only stopped when he felt he was far enough away from prying eyes. He took his pointed hat off and reached up to take down his potted plant.

"Can you believe those foolish and ungrateful dryads, Marie?" Jadyn addressed the small yellow flower. "With their power they would be able to easily defeat Dr. Doppelganger's Tin Goliaths. I had the perfect plan. All they had to do was follow it, and victory would have been ours! But _nooo_ they're too scared to fight and die. I'm not afraid of death. Dammit! I can't believe this. Because of those dryads, I'll let Theo down. I'll be letting them _all_ down. I'll be letting Tina down too. I know she still has feelings for Dr. Doppelganger. But I can't try to save him until I've defeated him."

"Ohohoho! You're not afraid of death, Young Warlock?" a raspy, male voice questioned from nearby.

Jadyn spun around and came face to face with the ex-king of the dryads. "Drusus, what are you doing here? Did you follow me? I didn't hear your footsteps..."

Drusus chuckled in amusement. "I am a dryad. And this is Dryad Forest. I can simply dematerialize and travel through the trees."

Jadyn's interest was piqued. "Can all dryads do that?"

"Yes," Drusus said.

"If dryads can dematerialize what have they to fear?" Jadyn asked. "They can avoid pretty much any attack that way."

"If a dryad flees into a tree and that tree is hit with a magic spell or destroyed that dryad will be killed," Drusus explained. "Also, dryads are tree spirits. When we're born we have a special connection with one tree in particular. If that tree is cut down or destroyed...we die. In the last war we fought in our enemy discovered this secret, and started to target the trees in Dryad Forest instead of us. Many of us were killed as a result."

Jadyn's eyes widened. He was surprised and strangely touched that Drusus appeared to trust him enough to tell him such a dangerous secret. A sudden thought occurred to him. "Did Reginald's Black Fire attack kill anyone?"

"Twenty dryads were killed because their trees were destroyed," Drusus revealed sadly. "There are only sixty-five of us left now in all of Oz."

"I'm sorry," Jadyn said softly. "If I had gone to get Noryn sooner, perhaps..."

Drusus patted Jadyn's shoulder consolingly. "You did what you could. No use crying over spilled milk, as they say. Now, back to my earlier question: you do not fear death?"

"No." Jadyn shrugged. "Not really."

A creepy smile curled Drusus's lips. "Well, if that's the case then I could teach you a way to communicate with the Land of Oz. Just like a dryad."

Floored, Jadyn stumbled backwards a few steps. "I can learn how to communicate with the Land of Oz, and use that connection to control its flora?" The warlock frowned at Drusus's nod. "But I'm not a tree spirit. How can that be possible?"

"No, you're not a dryad," Drusus agreed with a twinkle in his blind eyes. " _But_ you are a warlock. And you already have an unusual connection with Mother Nature, I think." He nodded his head in Marie's direction.

Jadyn looked down at the potted plant in his hands, and a wave of embarrassment washed over him. He'd been caught talking to a flower! "You must think I'm odd...talking to a flower."

"Why would I think that?" Drusus raised his white, bushy eyebrows. "She _can_ hear you, make no mistake. And I believe you've seen how she responds in her own way...even if she is unable to use words."

Jadyn gave his marigold a fond look. "Indeed."

"The training won't be easy. It will be quite difficult," Drusus warned. "Chances are you won't be able to handle the stress that will be placed on your mind and body, and you'll go insane and die a slow, painful death."

"When do we start?" Jadyn smiled sharply.

To be continued in...Chapter 10:

### Chapter 10:

"First, I want to teach you about soul colors," Drusus began as he addressed Jadyn. "I am blind, but I am able to see the colors of people's souls. Your soul for example resembles a white flame with specks of red throughout. You are not entirely good, but you're not completely evil either. Your friend Theodore Gale's soul resembled a pure, white, powerful, brilliant flame. Reginald's soul resembled a red flame with black edges..."

Jadyn gawked at the dryad. "You mean you knew Reginald was evil all this time, but told no one?"

Drusus let out a heavy, weary sigh. "Reginald was a very powerful wizard. I stood no chance against him. He would have hypnotized me instantly should I have opposed him. Your friend Theodore had an ingenious way of preventing Reginald's hypnosis..." The old dryad chuckled as he recalled how Theodore had thrown dirt in Reginald's face. "I never would have thought of that."

"Indeed. A cowardly tactic," Jadyn drawled.

"But effective," Drusus argued.

"Wait a second...that means you also knew _I_ was innocent!" Jadyn snapped.

"I suspected Reginald could be lying about your intentions here," Drusus admitted. "But as I said, you are not completely good, and can be a tad wicked. I knew not what your true intentions were..."

Jadyn scrubbed a hand down his face in a gesture of frustration. "Oh, but now you know?"

"Actions speak louder than words, Young Warlock," Drusus said. "So yes, I do think I know your true intentions now. That is why I'm willing to train you, and teach you our most closely guarded secret technique - the communication and control over the Land of Oz. Now, I want you to crouch down and place your hand upon the earth..."

Jadyn did as he was told, crouched down, and placed his hand to the earth. "Good." Drusus said with a nod. "Open your mind. Take down all your mental barriers. Then reach out with your mind, senses, and magic. I want you to search and feel. What you're looking for is the energy that flows through the Land of Oz, and all its plants and trees. This energy is Oz's soul. The energy you're looking for should be a bluish-white color."

Jadyn took a deep breath and released it slowly. He took down his mental barriers, opened his mind, and reached out with his mind, senses and magic, searching for an energy source. _There!_ He could feel _her_. Oz.

Oz was incredible, and all around him. In the ground. In the trees. In every blade of grass. "I feel _her_. She's amazing. So much power...just sitting there and lying dormant," Jadyn said in an awed tone. And for a moment the temptation of being able to have access to so much power and using that power for self-gain was overwhelming to Jadyn. With access to so much power he really could conquer all of Oz single-handedly.

World Domination.

This is what Jadyn had pretended to want in the beginning when he'd planned on freeing the goblins from Noryn. It had been misdirection. Smoke and mirrors. Or...had it been? Deep down did Jadyn desire to dominate Oz? Yes. He was tempted. But in the end his thoughts went to his friends: Theodore, Tina, Anne, and Leona. All he really wanted was to be able to protect his new friends that had become like his family. Jadyn let out a shaky breath and a determined expression settled over his face.

"Good. Very good," Drusus said as he watched Jadyn closely. If Jadyn's intentions had been malevolent Oz would have probably killed Jadyn by destroying his mind. "Now, I want you to concentrate on Oz's connection with the plants and trees."

Jadyn followed the white tendrils of energy with his mind, and noted that Oz was connected to everything - all plants and trees.

"Concentrate on the tree to your right," Drusus instructed. Jadyn concentrated on the tree next to him. "Now, I want you to _will_ the tree to bow," the old dryad continued.

With sweat beading on Jadyn's brow he did as Drusus instructed and willed the tree to bow. And it did! The tree executed a very elegant and deep bow. Jadyn's eyes snapped open and he gawked at the tree as it straightened. "I did it!" he exclaimed, his voice tinged with surprise and glee.

"Yes. This is only the beginning, however, Young Warlock," Drusus said. "There is much to learn in how to control and command the plants and trees."

"There's something I don't understand..." Jadyn began tentatively. "If Oz has her own will then why isn't she fighting against my control?"

Drusus chuckled dryly. Nothing seemed to get past this young warlock. "That's because Oz trusts you. She likes you. If she didn't...she would have destroyed your mind. Did I forget to mention that was a risk you were taking?"

Jadyn paled, his skin turning a yellow-green color. "You tell me this now? Wonderful. I'm...glad she likes me."

"Next we're going to practice making the tree attack," Drusus announced.

Jadyn closed his eyes, and furrowed his brow in concentration. "Alright..." Jadyn pictured the tree in his mind and visualized it attacking.

"Hey, Jadyn, what are you guys up to, ahhhh-!" Theo's voice reached the warlock's ears a second too late.

A branch knocked into Theo's chest, and sent him flying back through the air. The cowboy landed on his backside with an 'Oof!'.

Jadyn's eyes snapped open; he straightened, and spun to face Theo. "Theodore, what are you doing here?"

Theo pushed himself up off the ground, and rubbed his sore behind. "Looking for you actually. What's up?"

Jadyn sighed. "I believe I have found a solution to our problem with the dryads not wanting to help us. Drusus is teaching me how to communicate with Oz, and how to control and command plants and trees just like a dryad."

"So...you plan to control the plants and trees and use them to take out the Tin Goliaths _all by yourself_?" Theo asked in a skeptical tone.

Jadyn puffed up his chest with pride. "Precisely."

"Will you even be able to do that?" Theo asked, worry swirling in his blue eyes.

"I should be able to with my magic," Jadyn said with an air of confidence.

"Your magic..." Theo echoed. "So this will be the same as you casting like a really big spell?"

"Indeed," Jadyn agreed in a casual tone.

Theo frowned. "But you always get sick after performing powerful magic, and you start coughing up blood."

Jadyn grimaced because what Theo was saying was unfortunately true. "I'll be perfectly fine. I _need_ to do this, Theo. There is no other way we'll be able to get past those giant robots. I won't let you down."

"I don't care if you do let me down," Theo muttered sullenly, and Jadyn arched an eyebrow at him. "I mean...sure, I _care_ , but shouldn't we just come up with a new, safer plan instead?"

"There's no time." Jadyn shook his head. "Dr. Doppelganger's army just keeps getting bigger and more powerful the more we procrastinate. The time to strike is now."

"Alright, fine. I get it," Theo reluctantly agreed, but then his eyes twinkled as a sudden idea occurred to him. "Hey, maybe _I_ should train too? Like learn a special move or something?" A boyish grin spread across his face.

"Theo, we're performing _magic_." Jadyn bristled with irritation. "And you don't possess magic. You only possess that infernal gauntlet of yours! And I have no idea whether or not you have tapped its full potential yet. I don't know a lot about science and advanced technology..." Jadyn stroked his chin in a pensive gesture. "You should go ask Tina. She may know something about your weapon that I do not. Or perhaps, she could even teach you a new fighting move."

"Speaking of Tina, I'm dying to know..." Theo started in a teasing tone. "Did you guys get it on last night?"

Jadyn flushed. "Get out of here already! Argh!" The warlock concentrated on having the tree attack Theo again.

Now that Theo was expecting the tree to attack he was able to duck and dodge the swinging branches. "Ah! It's the Whomping Willow!" The cowboy laughed at his own inside joke before running off.

Jadyn shook his head at the fleeing Theo. "Idiot. That's not a willow tree..."

"You aren't going to tell your friend the truth?" Drusus questioned in a pointed manner. "That controlling multiple plants and trees will put a great strain on your mind and body, and will probably kill you because you are _not_ a dryad, and therefore, do not have a natural affinity for earth magic?"

"There's no point in worrying him about that," Jadyn said, waving his hand dismissively through the air. "He has enough on his plate between saving his mother and defeating a mad scientist. When I die I plan to give my heart to Tina, so that she can live. That's why I don't mind dying if it will save the woman I love."

"I see," Drusus said, his voice laced with sadness. "That's why you don't mind that this venture is suicide."

"Don't get soft on me now, Drusus." Jadyn smiled sharply. "You still have a lot of things to teach me. I want more of your 'Spartan training'."

"Prepare yourself, Young Warlock," Drusus said with a twinkle in his white blind eyes. "Your training has only just begun. Now, where were we? Ah, yes...offensive attacks."

***

Theo went off in search of Tina. He found Tina in a nearby clearing practicing sword kata, and battling an invisible opponent. Sometimes, it was weird to look at Tina because she looked like a young, punky version of his mother with those dark blue highlights of hers, and black leather bodysuit. The obvious difference being, of course, that she was a cyborg, and her left arm and left eye were both cybernetic.

Tina battled her invisible opponent for a few more minutes before she spun and pointed her sword at Theo who'd been watching the cyborg surreptitiously from behind a tree. "Do you need something, Cowboy?"

Theo moved around the tree and revealed himself. He scratched the back of his neck in an awkward gesture, and let out a nervous laugh. "Wow...you like what? Sensed my presence? Is that some kind of ninja move?"

Tina arched an eyebrow at Theo. "Ninja? What is a ninja?"

Theo shrugged. "Never mind. So...I was just wondering what you could possibly tell me about _this_." The cowboy held up the Ruby Gauntlet.

"The Ruby Gauntlet?" Tina asked.

"Yeah," Theo confirmed. "Jadyn said you might know something about whether or not I've unlocked its full potential since you're familiar with science and advanced technology. Like maybe there's some sort of special move I don't know about that I haven't used yet?"

Tina blinked and eyed Theo in a disbelieving manner. "You _do_ know that the Ruby Gauntlet is a battlesuit, right?"

Theo gawked at her. "Battlesuit? How is that possible? The rest is like missing..." He waved his hands helplessly through the air.

Tina sighed, and rubbed her temples. "Theo, the Ruby Gauntlet was made using advanced nanomachine technology. It is composed of zillions of tiny nanomachines that each possess a complex A.I. They're able to replicate and repair themselves rapidly. I wondered why you never activated its full form."

Theo scowled at Tina's condescending tone. "Well, how _do_ I activate it?"

"You have to speak the special keywords. What is your mother's real name?" Tina asked pointedly.

"Janie Gale?" Theo replied.

" _Keyword phrase accepted. Battlesuit mode now activated,_ " a synthesized female voice intoned, coming strangely enough from the Ruby Gauntlet. The red Ozanite crystals on the gauntlet started to glow with a red light, and the gauntlet began to transform, covering Theo's upper arm, and then spreading out over his torso, covering his left arm and hand, traveling down his thighs, and lastly covering his feet. Until, in seconds, Theo's body had been completely covered in battle armor.

"Holy shit! It worked!" Theo crowed as he admired the medieval body armor that now covered his body. The armor was silver with red accents. "I'm freakin Iron Man! Fuck yeah!" Theo was jumping up and down out of excitement, and started to do a few kicks and punches experimentally. "It's surprisingly light and easy to move in..."

Tina smiled at Theo's boyish excitement. _Boys and their toys._ She thought in amusement. "That armor is made out of a gold-titanium alloy. It will protect you from any energy blasts Dr. D's robots send your way."

"Energy blasts, huh?" Theo said. "Too bad _I_ can't make energy blasts." He pouted.

"Oh, but you can," Tina said. "You just have to activate that feature."

"How do I do that?" Theo asked with obvious enthusiasm.

"First, you bring your hands out in front of you and cup the air..." Tina started to explain.

"Like this?" Theo asked, feeling a little silly as he cupped the air in front of him.

Tina nodded. "Yes. Now, move your hands as if you were molding a ball between your hands."

Theo started to move his hands and the Ozanite crystals began to glow brightly in response. Then, between Theo's gauntleted hands an energy ball began to form. Theo's eyes widened in surprise and he gaped down at the energy ball. "Holy shit. I'm doing it! I'm making an energy blast!"

"Good job," Tina praised. "Bring your hands to your right side and then push your hands forward in one smooth motion until your arms are fully extended. This motion will unleash the energy blast."

Theo blinked at the cyborg. "You're kidding, right?" The motion that she'd just described sounded oddly familiar to Theo and he couldn't help but remember a Saturday morning cartoon called _Dragon Ball Z_ , which he used to watch when he was a kid. Goku, who was one of the characters in the cartoon, used to release powerful energy blasts in a similar manner.

Tina frowned. "No. Why?"

Theo smirked. "Oh, boy. I've always wanted to say this. _Kamehameha!_ " He brought his hands to his side and then pushed forward swiftly, releasing the energy blast. A large boulder was hit by the blast and exploded in an impressive fashion, sending small rocks hurtling through the air. "Sweet," Theo said. "I just made a freakin _Kamehameha_!"

"What is a ' _Kamehameha_ '?" Tina asked with a curious tilt of her head.

"It's what I just freakin did," Theo said. "Booyah. This is awesome! I actually have a special move! So, where is all this power coming from anyways?"

"That energy was absorbed by the Ozanite crystals..." Tina explained. "Anytime you punched Jadyn you drained his magical core and stored his magic away inside of the Ozanite crystals."

Theo's elated expression fell. "You mean I _stole_ all this power from Jadyn?"

"I wouldn't worry about it..." Tina assured. "His magic recovers and replenishes on its own. And he's agreed to help you rescue your mother, and you'll be using that power to do so. I don't think he'd mind."

"Yeah...so...about you and Jadyn," Theo began casually. "What's up with that? Are you guys together or not?"

Tina blushed, immediately thinking about Jadyn, naked, beneath her while she kissed him and touched him. Her heart began to hammer inside of her chest. And the readout on her heart rate monitor began to increase: 90...91...92...

"I...love him," Tina admitted softly. "I want to be with him. But now, he won't let me."

"Why not?" Theo asked.

"It's my artificial heart," Tina said, placing a hand over her rapidly beating heart. Just thinking about Jadyn would make her heart start to pound against her ribs. "Reginald placed a blood curse on it. If I feel things too strongly, my heart will overheat, malfunction, and stop working. Maybe even explode. Emotions like anger are dangerous. Even more dangerous is love. If I'm with Jadyn intimately, my heart may not be able to take it, and I'll die."

"Reginald, that bastard!" Theo growled, kicking a rock and sending it soaring. "A blood curse, huh? So my gauntlet won't break the curse then. That sucks. If you fall in love...you'll die. If you make love with Jadyn...you could die. Well, shit. Of course, he won't let you near him now. He'd never want to hurt you, Tina." The cowboy gave her a stern look.

"You don't understand," Tina said and her gray-blue eyes were swirling with a myriad of emotions that Theo had never seen her express before: love, sorrow, and need. "I'm in love with him. I want to be with him...at least once. Life is so unpredictable. I live for today. Not tomorrow. Even if I might die, I don't care. I still want to be with him."

"That's incredibly selfish, Tina," Theo said, shaking his head. "How do you think Jadyn will feel if you died because you two were together? He'd blame himself. And he'd end up hating himself."

"It would be _my_ choice," Tina insisted. "This faulty heart won't last forever anyways..."

"Hey, don't talk like that." Theo walked over to place a gauntleted hand gently on Tina's arm. "After we've rescued my mom and defeated Dr. Doppelganger...we'll find a way to break the curse on your heart. Just be patient."

"Defeated Dr. D?" Tina raised her eyebrows. "Or after you've _killed_ Dr. D?"

Theo rubbed a hand over the stubble on his chin. "Look, I don't want to kill anyone. You know that. And if I can I will save Dr. D. But if I have to kill Dr. D to save my mom then...I will."

"I understand," Tina said softly. "And I won't stand in your way. At any rate, you'll need to defeat him first." The cyborg held her sword up before her in a two-handed grip. "Let's spar. You need training. Desperately. Attack me."

Theo smirked and raised his fists before him. "Alright. Now, we're talking. Special last-minute training before we save the world. God, I feel like a freaking superhero. Although, my armor would be more appropriate if it had a little blue on it..." He mused aloud.

As if listening to his request, the battlesuit suddenly changed color until it was silver, red, and blue. "Sweet!" Theo exclaimed as he looked down at the armor. "It's definitely more patriotic like this. Maybe I should come up with a cool superhero name like...Cowboy Patriot or something?"

"Perverted Cowboy suits you better," Tina teased, thinking of how Anne seemed to always be calling Theo that.

"Hey! That wasn't very nice!" Theo attacked Tina, launching a series of quick punches and kicks her way. Tina gracefully dodged and ducked all the attacks, and blocked a few with her sword.

Then, Tina moved onto the offensive, and it was Theo's turn to duck and dodge sword swings. He also learned how to use his armored forearms like shields to block Tina's sword.

Little did they know, but Anne and Leona, who were hiding behind a tree, were watching Tina and Theo spar. "Why are we hiding?" Leona asked Anne in a whisper.

"Because we don't want to disrupt Theo's training," Anne said, peeking around the tree and watching Theo block a sword swing with his forearm, and then send his foot flying towards Tina's head in a roundhouse kick. Tina blocked Theo's foot with her sword. "Isn't Theo amazing? He really is Oz's Foretold Savior. Oz's greatest hero. The Chain Breaker," Anne gushed, starry-eyed.

"Yeah. I knew that all along," Leona said serenely.

"He's working so hard. I wish there was something I could do to help. I'm not really a fighter or a martial artist," Anne lamented, nibbling on her lower lip in thought. "A potions master isn't much use on the battlefield."

"Theo doesn't care about things like that," Leona told her friend reassuringly. "Why don't you make him lunch? I bet he'll be hungry after sparring against Tina. He's definitely got to be working up an appetite, and I noticed him complaining about the salad earlier."

"That's a great idea, Leona," Anne said with a wide smile. "Let's go." She grabbed Leona's arm and pulled her off towards the tree dwelling the dryads had let them stay in for the past couple of days.

The tree dwelling wasn't very large, but had all the amenities of home. The small kitchen had plenty of ingredients available to cook with, and a hearth for cooking. Inside the hearth a small black cauldron was hanging over the fire, and waiting to be used.

Anne and Leona chopped up potatoes, carrots, green beans, onions and tomatoes, which they used to make a vegetable soup. Anne let the soup cook for an hour before tasting it with a spoon and deeming it ready. She put on a pair of oven mitts and grabbed the cauldron's handle to remove it from the fire. "Grab four bowls and spoons, Leona."

"Alright," Leona said, as she rummaged around in the tiny wooden cupboards until she managed to find four wooden bowls and four wooden spoons. Anne carried the cauldron full of soup into the forest, followed by Leona, who had the dishware.

Tina's blade stopped an inch from Theo's throat, and Theo's foot was an inch away from Tina's face. The cyborg smiled and lowered her sword. "Well done, Theo. Let's take a break."

"Phew. Thank God. I'm beat." Theo sat heavily on the ground and panted for breath. Anne and Leona chose that moment to emerge from the trees and approach.

"Hey, Theo," Anne called out, a shy look on her face. "We, um, brought you both some soup in case you're hungry."

Theo's blue eyes lit up with interest. "Soup? Woo doggie! That's great. I'm starving! Get your cute butt over here, babe."

Anne giggled and made her way over to Theo. She sat down on the ground beside him and started to serve soup into the wooden bowls as Leona handed them to her.

"Thanks, babe," Theo said, accepting a bowl of soup from Anne. He scooped up some soup with a wooden spoon, blew on it twice, and stuck it into his mouth. Theo chewed the pieces of vegetable thoughtfully, and swallowed. "Mmm!" Theo's eyes widened, and he grinned at Anne. "That's delish. I didn't know you were such a good cook."

Anne blushed. "Cooking is similar to potion making, so..."

"You'll make the perfect housewife one day," Theo declared, giving Anne a teasing wink.

Tina was watching Theo and Anne's lovey-dovey interaction closely as she ate her soup in silence. _So, men like a girl who can cook?_ Tina mused and stood up abruptly as a sudden idea came to her. "There's something I need to go do. Thank you for the soup, Anne."

Theo, Anne and Leona shared a confused look as they watched the cyborg run off. Theo scratched his cheek. "I hope we didn't scare her off with too much P.D.A."

"At least you weren't groping my ass..." Anne began with a mischievous glint in her dark eyes. " _This time_."

Leona was giggling and smiling to herself knowingly. _Tina is in love._ She thought.

***

Tina made her way through the forest and to the tree dwelling where she and Jadyn were currently staying. It made her cheeks heat up to think that the dryads thought that she and Jadyn were lovers, and had assigned them _one_ tree dwelling. Jadyn hadn't complained about having to sleep in the same bedroom as Tina, at least.

Tina entered the small round kitchen that was inside of the tree dwelling, and began to look around. She found a number of ingredients available for cooking and noted that all of the vegetables that Anne had used in her soup were there. Tina had never cooked before...but how hard could it be? She wasn't about to let her inexperience stop her from making a soup for Jadyn.

The cyborg wisely decided to try to keep her recipe as similar to Anne's as possible. She filled up the cauldron over the hearth with water, and started to toss in various ingredients: potatoes, carrots, green beans, and tomatoes. Unfortunately, Tina didn't peel or cut the potatoes or carrots, and the tomatoes she added to the soup were in fact red-hot chili peppers.

Tina cooked the soup for an hour until it had turned a nice, bright red color. The cyborg tilted her head and furrowed her brow as she looked at it. "Well, it _looks_ ready. I'll go bring it to Jadyn."

Tina brought the cauldron that was the size of a watermelon, and two wooden bowls with her to where Jadyn and Drusus were training together. Tina peeked out from behind a tree to check on Jadyn's progress. Jadyn was crouched with one hand on the ground and was controlling the movements of one of the trees.

Drusus was also in a crouched position with one hand on the ground. He was controlling the movements of the tree directly in front of Jadyn's. The two trees were attacking each other with their branches, and it was an impressive sight.

Jadyn's eyes glowed with a gold light, and suddenly several vines shot up out of the ground and started to wrap around his opponent's tree. The vines wound up the tree's trunk until they started to restrain its branches.

Once Drusus's tree was no longer able to move the old dryad straightened and smiled at Jadyn. "Well done. You bested me. I believe you are ready, Young Warlock."

Jadyn straightened and gave Drusus a crooked smile. "I had a good teacher."

Tina stepped out from behind the tree, and held up the small bubbling cauldron in a shy, hesitant manner. "I brought some soup in case you're both hungry."

A flash of surprise crossed Jadyn's face as he caught sight of the cyborg. " _You_ made it?"

"Yes. I did," Tina confirmed.

"Then I'd absolutely love some," Jadyn said smoothly.

A tremulous smile curled Tina's lips as she approached. They all took a seat on the ground while Tina served soup into two bowls. A sudden thought occurred to Jadyn as he remembered how Tina doubted that clones had souls. Now would be the perfect time to either confirm or deny this. "Drusus, what color is Tina's?" he asked casually.

Drusus narrowed his blind eyes in Tina's direction. "Her soul looks a lot like yours, actually. It resembles a white flame with specks of red throughout. She is not completely good or completely evil. I would say that the two of you are kindred spirits. Two halves of a whole, perhaps?" The old dryad's voice had taken on a teasing edge.

Tina's movements stilled as she took in Drusus's words. "My soul? Are you saying you can see my soul, Old Dryad?"

Drusus nodded. "Indeed, Tin Woman. I may be blind, but I am able to see the color of people's souls. It reveals if they are evil or good."

"I have a soul..." Tina breathed in awe and shot a thankful look Jadyn's way. She finished serving the soup, and handed a bowl to Jadyn and then to Drusus.

"Thank you. What about you?" Jadyn asked upon noticing that there were only two bowls.

"Oh, I already ate," Tina said with a wave of her hand. "Anne made me some soup earlier."

"Thank you, Tin Woman," Drusus said, inclining his head in her direction.

Jadyn and Drusus held up their bowls and clinked them together. They scooped up some soup with their spoons, placed it in their mouths, chewed, and swallowed at the exact same time, but both males had very different reactions to Tina's cooking. Drusus's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he passed out.

"Oh, that poor old dryad," Tina said. "He must have been really tired to just fall asleep like that."

Jadyn, in the meantime, was trying not to panic. His eyes had filled up with tears and his entire face was turning red from the spiciness of the soup. It was the spiciest thing Jadyn had ever eaten. It was horrible. He glanced down at Drusus, and saw that the old dryad was foaming at the mouth and twitching slightly. Was he dead? _Rest in peace, old man._ Jadyn thought solemnly.

For once in his life, Jadyn was glad that his skin was already as green as it was going to get. Was Tina trying to kill him out of anger for rejecting her earlier? Was this soup poisoned?

"How does it taste?" Tina asked innocently.

Jadyn tried to keep his expression impassive. Tina seemed oblivious that her soup was awful and appeared to be hopeful about his reaction to it. "It tastes...good," Jadyn managed to say in a throaty voice.

Tina let out a breath of relief. "Phew. Oh, good. I've never cooked anything for anyone before. You're my first."

_You're my first. You're my first. You're my first._ Tina's words echoed in Jadyn's mind.

"I'm your...first?" Jadyn echoed, gulping.

Tina nodded. "You've been training so hard...that's why I wanted to do something for you, and Anne gave me the idea of cooking something." Jadyn started to scarf the rest of the soup down as quickly as possible so he wouldn't taste it. Tina's nervous expression turned elated.

Jadyn finished the soup and covered his mouth with his hand, trying not to throw up. "That was...delicious, Tina. I really appreciate it. Now I'll have the energy to continue my training and to become even more adept at communicating with Oz."

Tina noted that Jadyn looked exhausted; there was sweat beading on his brow, and his eyes looked a little glassy. "Don't push yourself too hard," Tina said, her voice laced with concern.

"Don't worry about me," Jadyn said carelessly. "I know what I'm doing. Besides, I can't let Theodore down..."

"You value his friendship that much?" Tina asked intently.

"Theodore Gale was the first person who treated me like a regular ol' human being," Jadyn revealed. "He never discriminated against me for being the Wicked Warlock of the West, and not for my green skin either. He never belittled me, like my brother Reginald used to do. He was the first to say he wanted to be friends with a 'badass warlock'. That meant a lot to me."

Tina was in complete agreement. "Theo is amazing like that. He also didn't treat me differently for being a cyborg assassin. He befriended me and let me join his traveling party without hesitation. Even after I betrayed him, he forgave me. And he hasn't treated me differently after finding out I'm a clone of his mother. A monster..."

Jadyn reached out and cupped Tina's cheek. "You're no monster, Tina. You're an angel."

Tina's heart fluttered, and her heart rate started to increase: 98...99...100...

"You're someone worth dying for," Jadyn said softly right before he kissed her.

Tina melted into the kiss, and her heart started to pound madly inside of her chest.

101...102...103...104...

But then Jadyn pulled back before her heart rate monitor started to beep warningly at them. "I, the Wicked Warlock of the West, who thought love was a silly weakness fell in love with you. Have more pride in yourself. Never think of yourself as a monster. Hold your head up high and with pride because you are an incredible woman, Tina."

Tina blushed. "I...I'll try. Jadyn, I-"

Jadyn stood up, cracked his knuckles, and smiled sharply. "Back to training."

***

Later that evening, Jadyn materialized in the library of Noryn's castle in a cloud of green smoke. Noryn was seated at one of the tables with his nose buried in a book. Reading \- that was one thing Jadyn and his brother Noryn actually had in common.

The Good Wizard of the North looked up from his book, and adjusted the spectacle perched on the bridge of his nose. "Jadyn, I didn't expect to be seeing you again so soon."

Jadyn shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "I...need your help."

A pleased smile slowly spread across Noryn's face. "You're making this a habit. What is it _this_ time?" He steepled his fingers before him on the table in a pensive pose.

"It's about the Wicked Warlock of the East and his true identity," Jadyn began.

Noryn grew intrigued. "Go on."

"Did you know that the original Wicked Warlock of the East was a dragon named Fafnir?" Jadyn asked.

"I was aware of that. Yes," Noryn said carefully. "The ice dragon, Ladon, told me."

"When Dexter Gale's research facility fell on top of Fafnir and killed him...Fafnir didn't truly die. Fafnir transferred his soul into Doctor Dexter Gale's body..." Jadyn revealed.

A flash of surprise crossed Noryn's blue eyes. "How did you learn of this?"

"I saw Dr. Doppelganger without his metal facemask," Jadyn said. "Half of his face is covered in black dragon scales and his left eye has turned silver. I have reason to believe Dr. Gale is not 100% in control of his mind and body."

"An astute observation. And this certainly explains a few things...like why Dr. Doppelganger's idea of 'human evolution' has recently changed to technolyzation, which is basically killing off all of humanity and turning them into cyborgs without memories or feelings. They would possess zero empathy. This new scheme of his would, in truth, be the destruction of humanity, and not its evolution or salvation. But that makes sense because Fafnir hates humans. Yes, it all makes sense now. Dr. Doppelganger may not be in full control of his mind, but he must have come up with the idea of technolyzation. Fafnir only knew about magic, not science. This unholy alliance between magic and science has become most problematic. Now more than ever...Dr. Doppelganger must be killed."

Jadyn gulped at his brother's frosty expression. "I was hoping there would be a way to save him."

"Who? Fafnir?" Noryn asked in an irritated tone.

"No! Dr. Dexter Gale!" Jadyn snapped.

"Ah. You have become quite unpredictable, Brother." Noryn stroked his chin. "Hmm, yes, there may be a way." The Good Wizard stood up from his seat at the table, walked over to the bookshelves, and started to peruse the shelves. He ran his index finger along the book spines as he read their titles. His finger stopped on one title in particular.

"Here we are: _Secrets of the Human Soul_. I do believe what we're looking for is in here." Noryn pulled the large, dusty tome off the shelf and carried it over to the table. "I remember reading about a 'soul-bond' and how two souls could be united through magic. What you're looking for is a way to undo a soul-bond that came about under unforeseen circumstances."

When Noryn dropped the book onto the table a cloud of dust filled the air. He opened the book and began to flip through its pages, skimming the contents of each page with his sharp, blue eyes. He finally stopped and tapped his finger against a particular page. "Here it is. The incantation that will forcefully destroy an unwanted soul-bond."

Jadyn strolled over and peered over Noryn's shoulder at the page's contents. There it was - a spell to break a soul-bond. "With this spell I should be able to banish Fafnir's soul from Dr. Doppelganger's body!" Jadyn said in a triumphant tone.

Noryn frowned at his brother's elated expression. "It says here that when the spell is performed the _weaker_ soul will be cast out from the host body."

"But that body _belongs_ to Dr. Dexter Gale," Jadyn argued. "Fafnir's soul is the interloper."

"Is it? Dr. Doppelganger's body is mostly machine now, and you said you saw black scales on the scientist's face. That's not a good sign. That's a sign their souls are merging into one. They will eventually be one entity in both mind, body, and spirit."

"What are you trying to say?" Jadyn said with obvious irritation. "That the spell could possibly kill Dexter Gale?"

Noryn put his hands out before him in a helpless gesture. "It's hard to say what the outcome of the spell will be. You may be able to save Dexter Gale or...you could wind up killing him. Or perhaps, you will end up killing them both. Whatever the outcome this spell will greatly weaken Dr. Doppelganger, and you will be able to defeat him afterwards if that's still necessary."

Jadyn reached out, tore the page from the book, folded it, and stuck it into his pocket. "I will consider it a last resort. There is one more thing I need your help with, Brother. I heard of a spell that allows one to rip their own heart out in such a way that they can store it somewhere for safe keeping if one has many enemies, for example."

Noryn raised an eyebrow at Jadyn. "Yes...there _is_ such a spell. An evil sorceress known as Cordelia, the Queen of Hearts, was known for using the spell quite frequently. She used it to rip out people's hearts in order to control them and gain their loyalty. According to legend, her own son ripped her heart out at one point, and became known as the King of Hearts. Whose heart do you intend to rip out and control, Brother? Tina Woodcutter's? Do you want her to love you that badly?"

Jadyn grew incensed by Noryn's condescending tone. "The heart I intend to rip out is my own."

Noryn's haughty, amused expression turned baffled. "Why?"

"That's none of your business," Jadyn drawled coolly. "I just need to know how to do it."

Noryn sighed and walked back over to the bookshelves. He perused the shelves until he found the book he was looking for. It was a thin book with a red leather cover. The title had been embossed on the book in gold lettering, and read: _Heart Spells and Enchantments_. "Here. This is the one you need: _Heart Spells and Enchantments_." Noryn plucked the book from the shelf, carried it over to Jadyn, and handed it to him. "The spell you want to learn is in here. I don't know what you intend to do, but...good luck. Just a word of advice: you should read the entire book before performing any heart-related spells."

"Thank you, Brother." Jadyn's voice was thick with emotion. He never would have imagined the two of them getting along and working together on something like this. It was still unreal. And he owed that to Theodore Gale.

Noryn sighed. "I sometimes wonder why I hated you so much. I can see now why our mother loved you. She saw the good in you. I was a lousy older brother. For that I'm sorry."

A flash of surprise crossed Jadyn's face. "I forgive you."

"Jadyn, about the prophecy foretelling that Theodore Gale will be your doom-" Noryn was saying.

Jadyn raised his hand to stop his brother from continuing. "No. I rather not know the future. I'm simply going to do what must be done. Goodbye, Brother."

"Farewell," Noryn said softly.

With a twirl of his hand, Jadyn teleported away in a cloud of green smoke.

***

Queen Acacia had graciously given Jadyn permission to use the dining room in her new dwelling to hold a war council. Jadyn had converted the round dining room table into a terrain board that showed the Silver City and the surrounding lands and forests. Jadyn had created 100 tiny figurines that represented the 100 giant robots also known as Tin Goliaths that Dr. Doppelganger possessed, and which surrounded the city's circular wall.

He'd also created 50 goblin figurines, which represented the 50,000 goblin troops that were at Jadyn's disposal. 50 troll figurines represented the 50,000 trolls at Jadyn's command. And 50 wood elf figurines represented the 50,000 wood elves that would fight with them, and that would be led by Prince Elric. Jadyn had painstakingly and carefully arranged all of the figurines on the war board according to his battle strategy.

Currently seated at the round table were: Theo, Anne, Leona, Tina, Jadyn, Princess Dahlia, Prince Periwinkle, Princess Alva, Prince Elric, Drusus, and the goblin commander that Jadyn had appointed to his goblin troops.

Once everyone had arrived, Jadyn stood up from his seat at the table, and began his presentation. "These 100 models represent the 100 Tin Goliaths that Dr. Doppelganger commands. I will be taking care of those simultaneously with my newly acquired skill of communicating with the Land of Oz, and controlling the nearby trees and plants," Jadyn began to explain his battle plan.

Everyone stared at Jadyn with varying looks of disbelief on their faces. Prince Periwinkle's yellow eyes were sparkling with obvious admiration. "Jadyn is so cool!"

Jadyn smirked. "While I'm keeping the giant robots occupied, the gates of Dr. Doppelganger's city will open, and he'll let out his army of 200,000 robot soldiers, which he calls his 'Tin Men'. These Tin Men were created using a combination of science and advanced technology. The Tin Men shoot deadly lazers from their eyes and energy blasts from the palms of their hands."

"What is the best way to deal with the robots?" Princess Dahlia asked, punching her left open palm with her right fist. "Smash them?"

"They are relatively easy to defeat. If you cut off their head the body's connection to the brain chip is severed, and the robot will stop moving. You don't have to destroy the entire robot either. Destroying just its head would be sufficient," Jadyn explained. "A feat of strength such as this should be very easy for a troll to accomplish. That is why the 50,000 trolls will march and attack first. The trolls will be followed by the 50,000 goblins that will be mounted on direwolves. Once the battlefield has been sufficiently softened by those forces, I want the 50,000 Wood Elves to ride in on horseback to provide backup. While we're keeping Dr. Doppelganger's forces occupied Theo, Anne, Leona, and Tina will infiltrate the city via the front gate."

Leona raised her hand to interrupt. "Um, Jadyn, I want to fight by Prince Periwinkle's side. Is that okay?" The lion girl glanced over at the troll prince, who grinned at her.

Jadyn glanced back and forth between Prince Periwinkle and Leona, and wondered when the hell that had happened. He quickly schooled his flabbergasted expression into an impassive one. "Certainly, Leona."

"Thank you," Leona said, happily running her foot up Prince Periwinkle's leg under the table. Periwinkle shuddered at her attentions and tried to keep a straight face, but his cheeks were turning a magenta color as he blushed.

Tina cleared her throat. "I, too, have a request to make. I wish to fight by your side, Jadyn. I don't like the idea of you handling the 100 Tin Goliaths on your own."

A dark scowl formed on Jadyn's face. He didn't want Tina by his side because he was on a suicide mission, and if she figured that out she might try to stop him. "No, Tina. I need you to go with Theodore. He'll need backup, and no offence, Anne, but the Scarecrow can't really fight. Even if Anne does have a few interesting tricks up her sleeve. You also know how reckless and hotheaded Theodore can be. Someone needs to be there to keep him in check."

"Hey!" Theo objected.

Tina mulled this over for a moment, and then nodded. "You're right. Someone should keep an eye on Theodore."

"I'm right here," Theo said dryly.

"Also, this could be your last chance to speak with Dr. Doppelganger..." Jadyn said pointedly. A strange expression flickered over Tina's face at Jadyn's words, but she gave him a small nod.

Jadyn looked around at his impromptu war council and raised his eyebrows. "Any questions?"

"Will you really be able to handle the giant robots on your own?" Anne asked keenly. "Didn't your original plan include the help of _all_ the dryads?"

A vein at Jadyn's temple throbbed in irritation. "I am the most powerful warlock in all of Oz. With my magic, I should be able to handle it just fine."

"That's not what I meant," Anne said in an irritated tone. "I know you can do it if you say you can. What I'm asking is...won't that be dangerous? For you?"

"We're about to march into battle..." Jadyn began. "War is dangerous. Lives will be lost. All of us will be risking our lives out there. No exceptions. Any _other_ questions?"

"It appears you are giving my army the safest task..." Princess Alva pointed out. "While you put the monsters in greater danger by having them on the frontlines. I was sincere when I said I wish to form an alliance with you. We elves are willing to be placed in an equal amount of danger."

Jadyn smiled thinly at Princess Alva. "Thank you for your honorable sentiments, but that's not why I'm having the elves attack last. It is standard practice to have your foot soldiers and infantry troops go first, followed by the cavalry, or mounted troops. It is a common battle strategy. Elves are also excellent archers. Your archers will be able to finish off any twitching robots on the ground by sending an arrow into their heads."

Princess Alva blushed at Jadyn's praise. "Well, alright then. We'll do our best not to disappoint you and to meet your high expectations of us, King Jadyn."

"We trolls won't disappoint you either," Princess Dahlia smoothly cut in, giving the elf princess a challenging look. Lightning seemed to crackle between their gazes as they glared at each other, having realized that they both admired Jadyn.

Theo wasn't really paying attention to the meeting at this point, and had started to play with the figurines and models on the battle board. He was pretending that a robot was shooting a troll, and was making the appropriate accompanying sound effects. "Rat-tat-tat-tat...ahhhh! Nooo! Ughhh." Everyone turned to gawk and stare at Theo.

"Theodore!" Jadyn snapped, slapping a hand to his forehead in exasperation. "What _are_ you doing?"

Anne buried her burning face in her hands out of embarrassment. _That man playing with the figurines on the battle board and making ridiculous sound effects is my boyfriend and the man I love. May heaven help me._ She inwardly moaned.

Theodore placed a hand behind his head in a sheepish gesture. "Sorry. Your battle board reminded me of when I used to play with Legos."

"This is _not_ a game, Theodore," Jadyn rebuked in a grim voice. "This is real. Lives will be lost. People will die. Blood will be spilt on that battlefield very shortly."

Theo pouted. "Killjoy." He reluctantly placed the figurines back down in their proper places on the terrain board.

"Meeting adjourned," Jadyn said in a stern tone. "Before anyone else starts fooling around with the toys, I mean, figurines."

Theo pointed an index finger at Jadyn. "Aha! You just said 'toy', didn't you?"

"I absolutely did not," Jadyn denied, folding his arms in front of his chest.

"You did too. You also think they're like toys and you're probably going to play with them as soon as we're all gone. Admit it!" Theo pressed, grabbing Jadyn's shoulder, and shaking him.

"Get off of me, Cowboy," Jadyn huffed.

Tina was looking at the lone figurine that represented Jadyn, standing in front of the Tin Goliaths with a worried expression on her face. _I'll just have to believe in him._ She thought.

While everyone was preoccupied Leona grabbed the figurine that represented her, and the figurine that represented Prince Periwinkle, and pressed their faces together before making kissing sounds. At this point, Periwinkle's face looked like a beaten tomato.

"I'm surrounded by children," Anne moaned aloud.

To be continued in...Chapter 11:

### Chapter 11:

Dr. Doppelganger sat at one of the workbenches in his laboratory working on engraving runes and glyphs onto the exterior of one of his newer models of robots using a handheld lazer engraving tool. The magical runes would give his robots protective, magical energy shields, faster speed, and increased reflexes. A sinister smile was spread across his face beneath his metal mask. His enemies wouldn't know what hit them.

" _Proximity alert. Proximity alert,_ " a synthesized female voice boomed overhead, and the alarms started to blare loudly inside of the lab.

Dr. Doppelganger turned the engraving tool off, set it down on the tabletop and looked up. "Took you long enough, Theo." The scientist pushed his feet against the floor and his chair rolled backwards. Dr. Doppelganger spun around in his chair to face one of the supercomputers. "Let's see what Theo is up to." He cracked his fingers, placed them on the keyboard in front of him, and began to type away.

Dr. Doppelganger brought up the footage for all of the cameras that had been placed along the top of the outer city wall. The images that began to appear on screen showed that an entire army along with Theodore Gale was emerging from the forest.

Theodore was riding at the head of the army on his gray horse, Toto. Right behind him were Anne, Leona, and Tina who were mounted on color-changing horses. Jadyn, the Wicked Warlock of the West, was mounted on his broom, which was hovering a few feet above the ground as he stayed eyelevel with Theodore.

Dr. Doppelganger's eyebrows rose at the unexpected sight. "Well, well, well, what do we have here? Theo brought friends. That's quite the unusual alliance of monsters and elves! I never would have thought such an alliance were possible."

Studying the footage displayed on his computer screen the scientist began to make an estimate on how large the army was. "About 50,000 goblins, 50,000 trolls, and 50,000 wood elves. Well, Theo certainly isn't underestimating me. But that won't be enough to get past my 100 Tin Goliaths! Let's see how they fare against them!" The mad scientist let out a dark chuckle.

"I'll go on ahead," Jadyn said, flying forward on his broom, and coming to a stop once he was only a few yards away from the Tin Goliaths. The warlock dismounted his broom, crouched, and placed his hand on the ground. He closed his eyes, summoned his magic, and concentrated on forming a mental connection with the Land of Oz.

From there Jadyn reached out his mind, magic, and senses to all of the nearby trees and plants. A crooked smile formed on his face. He could feel them there - waiting for his commands. "Let's do this."

Abruptly, all around the entire city wall vines sprouted up and out of the ground, and started to wind themselves up the legs of the giant robots.

Dr. Doppelganger's jaw dropped as he watched what was happening. "What? What is the Wicked Warlock of the West _doing_? How is he even doing that? Computer, bring up all the footage from around the wall."

Even more footage from the wall cameras was put up on screen, and the images showed that magical vines were attacking all 100 Tin Goliaths simultaneously. The vines crept up those enormous metal bodies, and then started to constrict. With a nostalgic feeling Dr. Doppelganger was reminded of a car compactor as the robots started to get crunched.

The Tin Goliaths didn't just stand there, however, and began to fight back against the vines. The robots grabbed at the vines and tried to rip them off their metal bodies. The robots also targeted the vines with energy blasts that burst out of the palms of the robots' hands. Because the vines were 'magical' they were able to penetrate the magical shields the Tin Goliaths possessed due to the runes and glyphs that were engraved on their exteriors.

_Jadyn is communicating with the Land of Oz_. Fafnir explained in Dr. Doppelganger's mind. _And controlling the trees and plants using his magic and his mind. But, one man cannot do what he is doing for very long...his mind and body will break._

Fafnir sounded happy about Jadyn's inevitable doom. Dr. Doppelganger clapped his hands. "Well done, Wicked Warlock of the West, but to think my son would be able to convince you to go on a kamikaze mission. You _will_ destroy yourself. I need not lift a finger against you." The scientist's attention shifted to his son. "As for Theo and his army of monsters and elves. They're about to be in for a big surprise." He typed away at the keyboard and opened the front gate of the city. "Time to send out my new and improved Tin Men."

Dr. Doppelganger's fingers continued to fly across the keys as he sent the command to his army of 200,000 robots for them to march out of the city and to destroy the army that was outside. He started to laugh maniacally as he watched his impressive robot army march through the city and out the front gate.

***

The trolls had been marching forward towards Silver City, but they all came to a halt when Princess Dahlia raised her fist. The troll princess watched and waited until 50,000 robots had emerged from the city before she gave the signal for her troll army to start its attack. She slashed her hand down through the air. "Trolls, attack!"

The trolls raised their weapons and let out fierce battle cries before running forward across the battlefield to meet the first wave of robots. Princess Dahlia, Prince Periwinkle and Leona were at the head of this army as they charged forward. The trolls were on foot while Leona was on horseback.

A robot was charging towards Prince Periwinkle, but the troll swung his club at it and sent the robot flying. Princess Dahlia swung her sword at a robot, intending to decapitate it, but it was sent flying from the force of her blow, strangely with its neck intact. Dahlia frowned since her blow should have broken the robot's neck. _Odd._ The troll princess shrugged away her unease and continued to target the robots and send them flying.

The eight-foot-tall trolls and their tremendous strength pitted against the strength of the six-foot-tall robots was no contest. A club, hammer, or sword blow sent the robots flying through the air marvelously.

At first, it appeared as though the trolls had the upper hand, but Leona began to notice that the trolls' attacks didn't appear to be doing much damage to the robots that did indeed get sent flying, but then stood right back up again and kept marching forward.

A robot attacked Leona, and she slashed her claws at it. A blue-tinged energy shield flared to life around the robot. Leona's eyes widened with a sudden realization. These weren't ordinary, run-of-the-mill robots like the ones she'd encountered before in the Emerald City. These had been created using a combination of science and magic.

Leona noted the runes and glyphs that had been engraved into the robots' metal exoskeleton. The glowing orb in the center of the robot's chest was also obviously a dragon heart orb. These Tin Men were like the Tin Goliaths only on a much smaller scale.

Leona had managed to learn a few things about magic due to traveling with a warlock. Jadyn used to drone on and on about certain things related to magic and she'd learned that only magical attacks would be able to pierce through a magical shield. _Oh no...it's a trap!_ Leona thought in alarm.

The 50,000 goblins were about to charge forward on their direwolves to engage the robots. She had to warn them. Leona pulled on her horse's reins and turned her horse around before riding towards the goblins. "No! Stop! It's a trap!"

Unfortunately, the goblins were unable to hear Leona over the sounds of battle. The robots were making a loud, clanking sound as they marched forward, and every time a troll swung their weapon at a robot they were letting out an earsplitting roar.

The goblin commander's instructions from Jadyn had been to wait until 100,000 robots were out on the battlefield before attacking. That time was now. "Goblins, attack!" The goblin commander pointed his sword forward and squeezed his thighs around his direwolf causing the wolf to break into a run.

The goblins let out a war cry and charged forward with their spears, short swords, and daggers raised before them. As soon as the goblins reached the robots they started to attack them, and with each blow the blue-tinged energy shields that surrounded the robots flared to life.

That's when the robots started to go on the offensive. From out of their glowing, neon-blue eyes came deadly lazer beams that sliced through the goblins' limbs in a gruesome manner. From the palms of the robots' hands came energy blasts. Goblins cried out in pain as they were hit in their chests by energy blasts and sent flying.

Prince Elric's instructions had been to wait until Dr. Doppelganger's entire force was out on the battlefield before the wood elves attacked. Elric's sharp, sapphire-blue eyes scanned the battlefield and once he'd estimated that all 200,000 robots were outside of Silver City that was his cue. "Wood Elves, attack!" Prince Elric cried, pointing his sword forward.

"Aye, Prince Elric!" the elves shouted back before urging their horses into a gallop and riding across the battlefield. The elves were soon joining the fray, but it didn't take them long to realize that their arrows were just bouncing harmlessly off of the robots' magical energy shields.

Leona was watching the chaos and bloodshed unfold on the battlefield with a horrified look on her face. "Oh dear, what can we do? There must be something we can do to overcome this unexpected turn of events. What would Anne do? She'd come up with something brilliant. Come on, Leona, think!"

***

As Jadyn struggled to keep the 100 Tin Goliaths occupied he took stock of what was happening on the battlefield. So far, everything was going according to plan. The trolls were softening up the battlefield using their tremendous strength, and were sending robots literally flying through the air. Jadyn smiled smugly, assuming the robots had been destroyed to pieces by those powerful blows.

When the goblins advanced and started to engage the robots, however, that's when Jadyn began to realize that something was very wrong. The goblins were following Jadyn's instructions to the letter and attacking their heads and necks, but their blows appeared to be having no effect. Also, the robots that the trolls had sent flying were getting up off the ground and were continuing to march forward. The Tin Men appeared to be unaffected by most attacks.

_Magical energy shields!_ Jadyn realized with a sinking feeling in his gut. _Oh no._ He'd miscalculated. Only the Tin Goliaths were supposed to be equipped with magical shields.

The Tin Men were supposed to be regular robots - purely scientific creations. But Dr. Doppelganger had obviously made some upgrades. The robots had been built with a combination of science and magic. This meant that only magical attacks would be able to get past the robots' defenses.

Trolls were able to perform elemental earth magic, and so if they figured out what needed to be done they stood a chance. But most of the goblins didn't know how to do magic. They would be slaughtered.

The Wood Elves could perform earth and Light Magic spells, but how long would it take them to realize their initial attacks were having no effect on the robots.

Many would die, and it was Jadyn's fault for his miscalculation. _We're doomed._

***

With Dr. Doppelganger's army of robots fully occupied, Theo, Anne, and Tina rode hard across the battlefield and headed for the open front gate of Silver City. Theo glanced at the trolls and goblins that were engaged with the Tin Men as he rode past. Jadyn's plan was working perfectly, but it was almost suspicious how none of the robots appeared to even try to target them as they rode past. _Father._ Theo thought. _He must be letting us into the city._

The trio seemed to let out a breath of relief as they passed through the front gate and into the city. Dr. Doppelganger's castle could be seen in the distance and they headed in that direction. The mad scientist's castle was a mixture of medieval and modern architecture. Half of the castle was made out of black stone and had sinister gargoyles perched on window ledges. The other half was a large, modern skyscraper made of cement, black glass, and steel.

Again, Theo felt uneasy when he and the girls were able to arrive at the castle unhindered. The trio dismounted from their horses and Toto let out an unhappy whiney for being left behind. Theo reached out and patted Toto's nose reassuringly. "Don't worry, Toto. I'll be back soon, and with Mom." Toto let out a snort and pawed at the ground uneasily, but nodded.

The group entered the castle, and as they entered the foyer Theo realized he had no idea where to go. "Um, Tina, any ideas?"

"I know the way to Dr. D's lab," Tina declared. "Follow me."

"Nice," Theo said. "Jadyn was right that you'd come in handy on this rescue mission."

Tina led the way down castle corridors until they reached a door that opened upon a stairway that led down to Dr. Doppelganger's laboratory. They quietly made their way down the steps, and finally reached the lab. Theo looked around and confirmed this was the same lab he'd seen inside of Jadyn's crystal ball.

Dr. Doppelganger was standing next to the examination table that Ozlyn was on. A cocoon of golden-tinged energy surrounded Ozlyn's body, and Theo let out a breath of relief. From the looks of it, she was still safely trapped inside of the stasis spell Jadyn had cast upon her. The mad scientist had his mask off, and Theo could see the forlorn look on Dr. Doppelganger's face as he stared down at Janie's sleeping face.

Theo wasn't buying it for a second though. "Hey, Dad, sup?" The cowboy casually sauntered inside the lab.

Dr. Doppelganger glanced over at Theo. "Hello, son." His gaze went to Tina and his eyes widened in surprise. "Tina Woodcutter. You're alive!" he sounded strangely pleased with this discovery.

"No thanks to you, Dr. D," Tina said stiffly. "You ripped my heart out and crushed it in front of me, remember?"

"I...did do that, didn't I?" Dr. Doppelganger said aloud, frowning. "Why would I do something so horrible?"

_She betrayed you, remember?_ Fafnir spoke up in Dr. Doppelganger's mind. _She refused to kill Theodore Gale - the man destined to bring about your doom._

"Yes. She did betray me. Didn't she?" Dr. Doppelganger responded to Fafnir aloud. "And she refused to kill my son...and that's a bad thing?"

_Yes!_ Fafnir snapped hotly. _Theodore Gale...your son, is our enemy! He wants to stop you from technolyzing all of Oz. He wants to prevent the evolution of humanity! He wants to stop you from technolyzing Janie! He wants to keep you from her._

A conflicted expression settled over Dr. Doppelganger's face. "But Tina loved me. She was special."

_No!_ Fafnir growled. _She was merely Janie's clone. Janie's replacement. Nothing more! You never really had feelings for her. You never loved her. You only love Janie._

Dr. Doppelganger was gripping his throbbing head in pain. "Yes. You're right. I only love Janie. I never loved Tina. No, that's not true." The scientist shook his head. "That's a lie. I..."

_Janie!_ Fafnir shouted in his mind-voice. _Think of Janie! Your wife!_

"Yes, my wife. Janie. Only Janie matters," Dr. Doppelganger said in a hollow tone, a slightly crazed look in his eyes. "I must save her. I must technolyze her." The mad scientist turned a haunted look upon Theo. "Theo, don't you see? I must save your mother. Come over here, son."

"No, Theo, don't. It's a trap," Tina warned stiffly.

"Who has he been talking to this whole time?" Anne asked with a bewildered expression.

"Oh, some dragon named Fafnir," Theo said in a nonchalant tone. "Apparently, Fafnir's soul is inside my father's body. At least, according to Jadyn."

"Fafnir!" Anne exclaimed. There were many stories about the black dragon Fafnir and none of them were good. There were even rumors that Fafnir had been a Good Wizard once that had turned evil, and had transformed into a dragon. "That dragon is pure evil, Theo. He _hates_ humans."

_Fafnir's soul is inside of Dr. Doppelganger?_ Tina thought to herself, feeling dizzy. This was news to her. Dr. Doppelganger had just denied ever loving her, but he'd sounded conflicted. Was he truly battling against Fafnir's control? And if that were true...then did that mean she should be trying to save Dr. Doppelganger instead of trying to kill him?

Theo pointed his finger at Dr. Doppelganger. "I challenge you to a duel, Dad. Winner gets Mom."

Dr. Doppelganger grew intrigued by this unexpected challenge. "You want to fight me one-on-one? Interesting. I accept."

_Stop playing games._ Fafnir chided the scientist. _Just kill them all already!_

_Kill?_ Dr. Doppelganger thought uneasily.

_I mean, technolyze them, of course._ Fafnir quickly amended.

Dr. Doppelganger frowned, and decided to ignore the dragon for now. "This way. Follow me." The scientist led Theo, Tina, and Anne to the training room. Tina hesitated upon the threshold.

Dr. Doppelganger noticed. "You remember this place, Tina? It's where I taught you how to fight. It's also where you almost died once too..."

Tina unconsciously cradled her left arm to her chest. "You saved my life that day. That was the day I fell in love with you. I gave myself to you...but did that really mean nothing to you?" the cyborg demanded in a tortured voice. "Was I really just your wife's replacement? Did _I_ mean nothing to you? Did you never feel _anything_ for me? You said I was special. Was that just a lie?" The dam on Tina's emotions had broken, and her heart started to hammer angrily against her ribcage. Her heart rate monitor read: 107.

"No...it meant something," Dr. Doppelganger said in a rare moment of lucidity. "You mean something to me. I cared for you. You _are_ special. But...you _did_ betray me, Tina."

"Am I not allowed to have my own thoughts and feelings about things?" Tina challenged. "Theo, Anne, and Leona are my precious friends. I would _never_ kill them. Why can't you understand that? I didn't betray you...I was being true to my heart. If anything...you betrayed me. I loved you. I trusted you. Then, you tried to kill me! You hurt me. You _broke my heart_!" The cyborg's voice cracked as she said those last few words.

Dr. Doppelganger's eyes were glistening slightly. "Tina, I'm sorry, I..."

_Enough of this nonsense!_ Fafnir snarled in Dr. Doppelganger's mind. _Tina is nothing! She's a clone! She's expendable! You made her...and you can re-make her!_ _If you want another 'Tina' so badly we can make another. Another clone that loves you. Only you. And who doesn't have friends she puts before you! Now, concentrate on Janie. Your beloved wife. You must defeat Theodore and then technolyze Janie._

Dr. Doppelganger gripped his head as he tried to resist Fafnir's cruel mental influence, but the dragon's poisonous words infected his tortured mind. His hands fell away from his head and hung limply at his sides. "Yes...I can always make another 'Tina'. A _better_ Tina. I don't need you. You're faulty. Expendable. Replaceable." The scientist eyed the cyborg coldly.

Faulty. Expendable. Replaceable.

Tina sank to her knees. Dr. Doppelganger's words hurt more than any physical attack could have. _I thought I'd gotten over this. Over him._ The cyborg thought morosely.

Theo shot Tina a concerned look and then glared at his father. "What the hell is wrong with you, Dad? How can you speak to Tina that way? I don't know much about what happened between the two of you, but it's obvious you two were an item. She was your girlfriend. And a man who treats his girlfriend this way is trash. Looks like I need to beat some sense into you, Daddio. _Janie Gale_ ," Theo whispered to the Ruby Gauntlet.

In seconds, Theo's body was covered with armor. Dr. Doppelganger was impressed. "You figured out how to activate the battlesuit mode. Well done, son."

Theo put his fists up before him and beckoned Dr. Doppelganger with one hand. "Enough chit-chat. Let's rumble."

Theo and Dr. Doppelganger rushed towards each other, and began to exchange punches and kicks, blocks and blows. Theo threw a punch at Dr. Doppelganger and the scientist raised his forearm and blocked the punch. Dr. Doppelganger retaliated by conjuring a fireball and throwing it at Theo.

Theo raised his right forearm to block the attack and when the fireball hit, it dissipated with a whooming sound. Next, Theo sent a roundhouse kick towards his father's head. Dr. Doppelganger conjured an energy shield, and it blocked Theo's kick.

Theo quickly punched instead, and his gauntlet caused Dr. Doppelganger's energy shield to shatter. Theo then sent a straight right punch the scientist's way, but Dr. Doppelganger dodged the punch, and leapt backwards to put some distance between himself and Theo.

"Huh. Well done, son," Dr. Doppelganger praised, his voice laced with pride. "You've had some experience fighting against wizards, I see."

Theo smirked cockily. "I've tangoed with the Wicked Warlock of the West a few times now. I guess I've picked up a few things."

"You won't be able to beat me by just using physical attacks," Dr. Doppelganger said as Theo continued to send fast punches and kicks his way. The scientist continued to launch magical attacks at his son, but the Ruby Gauntlet canceled them out one by one.

"I know. That's why I've got an ace up my sleeve," Theo said with a glint in his blue eyes. "You remember that Japanese anime cartoon I used to watch called _Dragon Ball Z_?"

Dr. Doppelganger's brow furrowed, wondering where his son could possibly be going with this. "Yes..."

Theo's smirk widened. "Well, I'm freakin Goku, baby." He cupped his hands before him, moved his hands to his side and then flung his hands forward, launching the energy blast Dr. Doppelganger's way. " _Kamehameha!_ "

Dr. Doppelganger flicked his hand up and conjured an energy shield to block the attack. The attack hit the scientist's shield and with enough force to send Dr. Doppelganger flying backwards. He hit the far wall, and with such force it formed a human-shaped crater in the wall.

Dr. Doppelganger and small pieces of crumbling cement slid down the wall, and he started to laugh while blood dribbled down his chin. "To think you would use my own weapon against me like that."

Theo was starting to grow overconfident. "Booyah! I just so kicked your shiny, metal ass, Bender!"

"Ah, yes, but you're forgetting something important, Theo," Dr. Doppelganger drawled coolly. " _I_ created the Ruby Gauntlet. And so I also created a 'failsafe' in case the Ruby Gauntlet ever fell into the wrong hands. _Janie Gale loves Dexter Gale the most_ ," the mad scientist spoke the special keyword phrase. Abruptly, Theo's battlesuit retreated back into the Ruby Gauntlet.

Theo gawked down at the gauntlet with a betrayed look on his face. "No way."

Dr. Doppelganger pushed himself up off the floor and dusted himself off. "Now the Ruby Gauntlet is under _my_ control. Ruby Gauntlet, strangle Theodore Gale."

The Ruby Gauntlet rose, turned to face Theo, and wrapped its metal fingers around his neck. As the gauntlet started to strangle Theo it looked like he was strangling himself.

"Theo!" Anne called out in alarm.

Tina unsheathed her samurai sword and attacked Dr. Doppelganger. "Let him go!"

Dr. Doppelganger flicked his hand up and conjured an energy shield. Tina's _katana_ hit the shield and silvery sparks were thrown up into the air. Dr. Doppelganger gave the cyborg a pitying look. "Oh, Tina. Poor Tina. You seem to forget that I made you too. Keyword phrase: _Tina Woodcutter is very special_."

Tina's cybernetic arm suddenly sent thousands of volts of electricity coursing through her body and she cried out in pain. Tina collapsed to the floor where she glared up at Dr. Doppelganger fiercely even as her body continued to twitch. "Damn you, Dr. D." She struggled to remain conscious, but passed out from the pain.

Anne sneakily moved her hand towards her utility belt. But Dr. Doppelganger raised his hand threateningly in Anne's direction and wagged his finger at her. "Ah, ah, ah. I wouldn't try anything if I were you, dolly. Take off that utility belt and throw it to the floor. Now."

Anne gulped and did as she was told. She took off her utility belt and threw it to the floor.

Dr. Doppelganger smiled. "Good girl. Now that you're all my prisoners, I wonder which of you I should technolyze first..." He stroked his chin as he pondered his options.

"Jadyn will come for you," Theo managed to gasp out. "You're fucked."

Dr. Doppelganger threw his head back and laughed out of amusement. "The Wicked Warlock of the West? He's out there killing himself, as we speak. No one being can handle what he's doing all on his own. He's destroying himself. His mind and body _will_ break." The scientist noted the shock on Theo's face and smiled cruelly. "Oh, he didn't tell you? He's on a kamikaze suicide mission!"

The blood started to drain out of Theo's face. "No. That can't be true..."

"However did you manage to befriend the prickly King of Monsters, Theodore?" Dr. Doppelganger questioned with sincere curiosity. "He'll die for nothing. Soon his army will be defeated. These Tin Men are not like my usual ones. These robots have been created using a combination of magic and science. They possess magical shields and can produce magical energy blasts. Only magic can get past a magical shield. Those captured survivors will all be technolyzed by me, and then I will begin my conquest of Oz! You and your little friends have lost. So much for prophecies! Dr. Doppelganger will be victorious this day! Buwhahaha!" The mad scientist started to laugh manically.

_The prophecy._ Theo thought as a small bubble of hope formed inside of his chest. _Jadyn said that Noryn was never wrong._ _There's still hope. I can't give up yet._

***

Leona wracked her brain for a solution to their current plight. The trolls and elves were already rallying and casting small spells in order to be able to get past the magical shields that surrounded the robots.

But at this rate the goblins were going to be slaughtered. Leona recalled how Theo had been able to get past Jadyn's shield with just one punch. That had been because of the Ruby Gauntlet and its Ozanite crystals. _Ozanite crystals! That's it!_ _Anne would be so proud of me. I think I just came up with a brilliant idea._ Leona thought.

Leona rode across the battlefield while searching for Prince Periwinkle and Princess Dahlia. When she finally spotted them she rode over and pulled back on the reins so that she came to a halt directly in front of them. "Periwinkle, can you use your earth magic to create Ozanite crystals?"

Periwinkle's brow furrowed in bewilderment. "Sure. Why?"

"Just do it!" Leona exclaimed.

Periwinkle nodded, crouched, and placed his hand on the ground. He closed his eyes, summoned his innate troll magic, and concentrated on making Ozanite crystals pop out of the earth. The crystals emerged from the ground and bloomed into formations that resembled sea anemones.

The troll prince straightened and watched as a robot stepped on one of the crystals and how its energy shield was destroyed. Periwinkle's eyes widened at that. He then noted that as the robots walked past the Ozanite crystals their shields appeared to grow weaker as the crystals absorbed the magic. "Ozanite crystals. Of course," Perwinkle murmured and shook his head with a wry expression on his face. "Why didn't I think of that? Trolls! Use your earth magic to create as many Ozanite crystals as possible! Hurry!"

Leona took a deep breath and then raised her voice so that it carried across the entire battlefield: "Trolls! Elves! Use your earth magic to create Ozanite crystals! Goblins use the crystals to destroy the robots' energy shields!"

The trolls, goblins and elves shouted back at Leona: "Aye, Cowardly Lioness!"

Periwinkle chuckled and there was a twinkle in his eye as he glanced at Leona. "They're going to have to come up with a new nickname for you after this battle."

Leona grinned widely, showing off her pointed canines.

***

Jadyn swayed on his feet as a wave of dizziness swept over him. Black spots swam in his vision, and he felt bile rise up his throat. The warlock stubbornly swallowed it down, and blinked rapidly to clear his blurring vision. Sweat was beading on his brow from the physical exertion, and he could feel that his magical core was almost completely drained.

All he could do to continue his attacks against the Tin Goliaths would be to use his own 'life energy', which would be incredibly dangerous because once a person's life energy was depleted only their spirit energy was left putting a person's soul at risk of destruction.

A dark cloud fell over Jadyn's face. I can't let my friends down. This is it. This is the end. After I've defeated the robots I hope I'll have enough remaining strength to rip out my heart and give it to Tina before I die...

The sight of Jadyn controlling the vines to battle against the Tin Goliaths was an intimidating sight, but then the vines started to fall away from the robots. The warlock's magic had finally run out.

Jadyn reached deep inside of himself to find his 'life energy'. He heard Leona's voice shouting something about Ozanite crystals across the battlefield. Ozanite crystals. Well done, Leona. Jadyn smiled lopsidedly. He was a little surprised that the lion girl had been listening to all his lectures on magic.

Jadyn was just about to start using his life energy to control the vines when the sound of a horn being blown filled the air. I know that horn. Jadyn thought, recognizing the horn's particular timbre. He straightened, turned around, and his eyes widened. It can't be...

Emerging from the forest was an army of 50,000 blue-skinned elves that were riding polar bears. Leading this force was Noryn, who was also mounted on a polar bear. A crooked smile formed on Jadyn's face. He just had to play the hero. But Jadyn didn't feel bitter about this. All he felt was gratitude.

The Tin Goliaths had started to move forward again. It's time to end this. Jadyn crouched and placed his hand against the ground. But this time, something felt different. He wasn't alone. He furrowed his brow in bewilderment. Also, emerging from the trees were the dryads.

Drusus approached Jadyn and put a hand on his shoulder, urging the warlock to stand up. "That's enough, Young Warlock. We'll take it from here."

Confusion swam in Jadyn's green eyes. "I thought this wasn't your fight, and that Queen Acacia didn't want to risk the lives of the dryads?"

"Dr. Doppelganger's robots are setting the trees here on fire...and we felt it," Drusus explained. "You were right. This is our fight too. Oz is in danger, and we are a part of this world. And a little flower named Marie, may have told us that we needed to help you, or else." The old dryad winked.

Jadyn's eyes widened at this surprising revelation. Just before he'd left Dryad Forest, Jadyn had decided to plant Marie so that she could have roots. He hadn't planned on returning from this battle alive either and had wanted to make sure that Marie would be okay without him. "Marie..." Jadyn said, his voice thick with emotion, and his eyes glistened.

Drusus made a shooing motion towards Jadyn. "Run along, Young Warlock. Go help your friends."

"Thank you, Drusus." Jadyn turned to face the fifty dryads that had shown up to fight. "Everyone...thank you." The warlock scrubbed his forearm across his eyes to wipe away his tears and a determined expression settled over his face.

Jadyn held out his left hand and summoned his broom from his pocket dimension. He then mounted his broom and took off, heading for the front gate of Silver City. When Jadyn glanced over his shoulder an awe-inspiring sight met him.

The dryads were crouched with their hands on the ground, and thousands of vines burst out of the ground and started to attack the Tin Goliaths. And this time not only the vines were fighting but the nearby trees had started to attack the Tin Goliaths and any other robots that got close enough to their branches.

It was like the Land of Oz had decided to fight against Dr. Doppelganger's robot army. Since the trees were magical their attacks actually did damage to the robots. With more magical power flowing through the vines due to the dryads' combined forces the Tin Goliaths began to get crunched, and started to topple over.

Cheers rose up from the goblins, trolls, and elves as they watched the Tin Goliaths crashing to the ground and exploding. The tables had finally turned back in their favor.

A savage smile curled Jadyn's lips, and he urged his broom to fly faster by leaning forward slightly. The warlock flew through the open gate and headed towards Dr. Doppelganger's castle, which he could see in the distance. The castle was dark and foreboding, but Jadyn raised an eyebrow at its odd mixture of modern and medieval architecture.

Jadyn spotted Toto and the color-changing horses, and flew down to them. He gave Toto a quick pant on the nose. "Backup is here," he assured the horse before whipping out his wand and flinging a quick unlocking spell at the door to the castle. The door swung open and Jadyn flew inside.

Jadyn summoned a small crystal ball to his right hand and cast a locator spell. The green smoke inside the crystal ball swirled, and then an image was revealed of Dr. Doppelganger's laboratory. Theo, Anne, and Tina had apparently been defeated by the mad scientist, and were all strapped down to three separate examination tables.

Jadyn frowned when he noted that the stasis spell on Janie Gale appeared to have been broken. Dr. Doppelganger must have forced Theo to use his Ruby Gauntlet on the spell. Damnation! Luckily or unluckily, Jadyn wasn't so sure, Theo's mother appeared to still be unconscious.

"Now that the stasis spell on your mother has been broken I can finally technolyze her," Dr. Doppelganger was saying as she leaned over Janie and started to draw a dashed line across her forehead where he intended to cut through Janie's skull in order to remove her brain.

Theo was struggling violently against his bonds and freaking out. "Get away from her! Don't touch her!"

Dr. Doppelganger reached out and caressed Janie's cheek in a loving manner. "I'm giving your mother a gift, Theo. A clean slate and immortality." The scientist strolled over to a stainless steel table covered with an assortment of medical instruments. He picked up an electric handsaw that had a circular, rotating steel blade with serrated edges. He pressed a button on the handle and the blade began to spin with a whirring sound.

Dr. Doppelganger approached the unconscious Janie, and raised the saw. Shit! Jadyn thought. I won't get there in time!

"Wait!" Theo called out, looking pale. "If what you say is true and you consider what you're doing to be a gift...then how about you technolyze me first, Dad?"

Dr. Doppelganger pressed the button on the saw's handle, and the blade came to a stop. He turned to give Theo a searching look. "You wish to be technolyzed first?"

Theo gulped and nodded. "Sure."

"Theo! What the hell are you doing?" Anne hissed in a low voice from the examination table directly next to the cowboy's.

"Buying time," Theo whispered back. "My Spidey sense is tingling."

Spidey sense? Anne thought and her eyes widened in realization. Theo used to joke that anytime he found out Jadyn had been watching him secretly that the hair on the back of his neck had stood on end. He means Jadyn must be on his way here. We need to buy more time. Anne discreetly nodded at Theo.

Dr. Doppelganger was looking pleased. He grabbed a Sharpie, approached Theo, and began to draw a dashed line across Theo's forehead. "I'm glad you've seen the light, son. Technolyzation is the key to the evolution of humanity!"

"Um, pardon me, Dr. Doppelganger, but...don't you need to have Theo's new robotic body ready for the brain transplant?" Anne spoke up in a contemplative tone.

Dr. Doppelganger turned to face Anne. "An astute question, my dear. But I will cryogenically freeze Theo's brain and then build him his new body. I will be doing the same for you and Tina. Never fear."

"Is that so? How...fascinating," Anne said, forcing herself to smile. "Is the brain the only organic part you will salvage?"

"Yes. The complexity of the human brain is the one thing I wasn't fully able to replicate using science," Dr. Doppelganger admitted in a chagrined tone. "Also, with my exposure to magic I was able to discover that the human soul resides within the brain. So it only makes sense to make sure the soul and brain are salvaged together. Did you know most humans are only using about 10% of their brain at a given time?" The scientist clucked his tongue in disappointment.

"I didn't know that," Anne said, making sure to sound interested and impressed. "And will that change once a person is technolyzed?"

"Precisely," Dr. Doppelganger said, giving Anne a pleased look. "In a robotic body - one will be able to use 100% of their brain. Even I am not sure what will be the result, but I have theories. Abilities like telekinesis may manifest."

"100%," Anne echoed in an awed voice. "How fascinating. What about telepathy? Would that become possible too?"

Dr. Doppelganger nodded and there was an excited gleam in his bi-colored eyes. "Yes. It's possible telepathy could manifest also."

"If people start to communicate telepathically then the need for speech will become obsolete," Anne mused aloud. "It will become a very quiet world."

Dr. Doppelganger nodded vigorously. "Indeed. You have a brilliant mind, Anne. One that is definitely worth salvaging for immortality."

"You flatter me," Anne said flippantly, and wracked her brain for something else to talk to Dr. Doppelganger about. The scientist turned his attention back to Theo and turned the saw back on. "Oh, wait!" Anne called out. "What about song?"

Dr. Doppelganger pressed the button on the saw and turned it off again. "Song?"

"If humans stop speaking I suppose they'll stop singing too," Anne pointed out. "So, no more music. Right?"

Dr. Doppelganger stroked his chin thoughtfully as he pondered this. "Yes. I suppose there would be no more singing. But there could still be music. People could still compose music and play musical instruments. Robots do have the ability to hear, after all."

Anne nodded. "I see. I guess only the birds will be able to keep singing freely."

Dr. Doppelganger chuckled darkly. "The birds? Oh, I plan to technolyze every living creature in Oz as a new experiment. It will be interesting to see how much an animal's intelligence can increase if they have a robotic body and are able to use 100% of their brain."

"You're going to technolyze every living creature in Oz?" Anne asked as the blood slowly started to drain out of her face. "Wow. That's...impressive." She gulped.

"Thank you, my dear," Dr. Doppelganger said, before once again turning his attention back to Theo. "Sorry to keep you waiting, son. Your friend has a quick mind and it's entertaining to pit my wits against hers. Intelligent conversation is so hard to find these days."

Theo laughed nervously. "No big. And she's not just a friend. She's my girlfriend. Actually, I plan to marry her, if she'll have me."

Anne gasped. "Are you proposing to me, right now, Theo?"

Theo shrugged. "Sure. Why not? I'd better do it now before I forget you even exist. So, what's your answer, babe?"

"My answer is 'yes'," Anne replied with tears shimmering in her dark eyes. "Yes. I will marry you."

"Yeehaw!" Theo let out a happy exclamation.

Dr. Doppelganger's lips dipped into a thoughtful frown and his eyes grew misty. "I remember how I proposed to your mother. I took her to a fancy restaurant and had the chef put the ring in a piece of cake for dessert. Your mother bit right into the diamond and chipped her front tooth. It was a disaster! I had to rush her to the dentist..."

"But she must have said 'yes'," Theo said pointedly.

"Actually, your mother's exact words were: 'No way in hell'," Dr. Doppelganger said, and let out a wistful chuckle. "It took a few more proposals before Janie finally agreed to marry me." He shot a fond look in Janie's direction.

"You must have really loved her," Theo said softly.

"I did..." Dr. Doppelganger said, and his frown deepened. "I mean, I do."

"But love won't exist in your new perfect world, will it?" Anne questioned keenly.

"Human emotions are a weakness," Dr. Doppelganger began. "A flaw. A barrier to the evolution of humanity."

"I disagree," Theo said. "Sure, humans are flawed and make lots of mistakes, but they also do a lot of incredible and wonderful things too. They write songs, paint masterpieces, write books, and film movies. Being a creator is as close as we get to our God whom we consider to be a perfect being. Creation is the zenith of humanity. And human emotions are needed to create."

"Emotions are needed to create...?" Dr. Doppelganger echoed. He was hesitant to agree or disagree with what his son was saying.

"If you remove humanity's emotions...humanity will become stagnant," Theo argued. "There will be no drive, motivation, or ambition to improve oneself, to learn, or to create new things. Stagnation is not evolution. Don't you see, Dad? You're not saving humanity. You're destroying it!"

"Stagnation...?" Dr. Doppelganger echoed with a haggard expression on his face.

Don't listen to him, Dexter! Fafnir growled in his mind, sensing Dr. Gale's inner conflict. He's spouting those lies just to save himself!

Save himself? Dr. Doppelganger thought, a shadow falling over his face. Why would he need saving unless what we're doing is wrong?

Yes, of course, your son doesn't need saving. Fafnir quickly amended in the scientist's mind. What we're about to give him is a gift. Immortality. Peace. Humans are violent and selfish and greedy creatures. All they do is kill each other and destroy the little they create or possess. They are slaves to their base animal instincts. But if you take away their emotions...humans will finally have peace without conflict. Peace on Earth or in this case here in Oz...isn't that what the humans are always claiming they want?

Peace or is it really stagnation? Dr. Doppelganger shot back in his mind-voice. The Garden of Eden failed for a reason. Am I really bringing about the destruction of humanity? What am I doing? Why am I doing this again? I can't remember...

The scientist looked down at the handsaw in his hand and then at Theo. "Am I really about to kill my own son? What is wrong with me? No! I can't do this! I won't do this!"

Yes, you will! Fafnir growled in Dr. Doppelganger's mind. You will obey me! You will kill Theodore Gale! The one foretold to bring about our destruction. He must die! Fafnir concentrated on exerting his will over Dexter, and Dr. Doppelganger pressed the button on the handsaw again. The blade began to spin with a whirring sound. Fafnir concentrated on making Dr. Doppelganger bring the handsaw close to Theo's forehead.

Theo gulped as he stared up into his father's face with a pleading expression. "Dad, please, don't do this..."

"No! I won't!" Dr. Doppelganger said before his left hand shot out and wrapped around his own right wrist, stopping Fafnir from cutting Theo's skull open. Fafnir and Dexter began to fight for control over the body they shared.

Fafnir continued to try and exert his will over Dexter to make the man bring the handsaw closer to Theo's forehead while Dexter resisted and concentrated on keeping the saw away from Theo.

It ended up being a macabre game of tug-o-war as the saw neared Theo's forehead only to be pulled back again. "Dad," Theo murmured as he watched his father at war with himself. A glimmer of hope formed in Theo's blue eyes. Maybe his father, Dexter Gale, really was still alive somewhere in the body that had become known as Dr. Doppelganger. Come on, Dad, fight!

To be continued in...Chapter 12:

### Chapter 12:

All of a sudden, the door to the lab was blasted open and Jadyn burst in riding on his broom. The warlock spotted Dr. Doppelganger and the whirring handsaw in his hand. Using his black onyx wand he sent a bolt of magical energy towards the saw's handle and knocked it out of Dr. Doppelganger's hand.

Anne and Tina shouted 'Jadyn' at the sight of him while Theo shouted 'Jay!'

Dr. Doppelganger turned to regard Jadyn, and his eyes were glowing with an eerie silvery light. When the scientist spoke his voice was deep and gravely. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the Wicked Warlock of the West, Jadyn. You should be dead. Controlling that many plants and trees on your own should have broken your mind and body."

"It almost _did_ break me..." Jadyn admitted grimly. "But then reinforcements arrived. Take a look for yourself, Fafnir. The tables on this war have been turned!"

Fafnir glanced at the images of the battle being displayed on the screens around the lab, and his eyes widened. The Tin Goliaths were falling, and were being defeated by the dryads one by one. It looked like the Land of Oz had come alive and was fighting against Dr. Doppelganger's robot army.

Large vines sprang out of the earth and attacked the robots looking like vicious whips or live snakes with their serpentine movements. Trees swung their branches at Tin Men sending them flying while other robots got crushed and battered into the ground by tree branches.

The Ice Elves had joined the fray too. They used ice magic against the robots and in this manner managed to get past the robots' magical shields. Jadyn briefly wondered how Noryn had managed to convince the pacifist elves to actually fight.

Jadyn was smirking as he watched the shock register on Dr. Doppelganger's face. "Incredible, isn't it? It looks like the Land of Oz has awoken, and is fighting against your robot army. Trolls, goblins, and elves have united against a common enemy - you, the dragon Fafnir."

"You knew my true identity all along, didn't you?" Fafnir accused with a snarl.

Jadyn lifted his shoulders in a casual shrug. "I had my suspicions. Your soul possessed the body of Dexter Gale."

"Indeed. Dexter Gale is still in here." Fafnir placed a hand over his chest. "If you kill me...you will also be killing Dexter Gale. Are you really going to kill your best friend's father?" A sinister smile curled the dragon's lips. "You obviously value Theodore Gale's friendship if you were willing to sacrifice your life for his cause and to stop my Tin Goliaths."

Jadyn shot Theo a questioning look. Theo's expression was grim, but determined. "Jadyn, please, kill my father." The cowboy watched as shock flitted across Jadyn's face. "I can't bear to see him like this anymore. My father was a _good_ man. If he were in his right mind he never would have done all the cruel experiments he's done as Dr. Doppelganger. My father has gone insane. He's like a rabid dog that needs to be put down. Please, put him out of his misery."

Jadyn forced a wicked smile to spread across his face. He needed to look the part for what he was about to do next - a villainous act. "Well, there you have it, Fafnir. I have my best friend's permission to kill you now. Time to say goodbye." Jadyn raised his onyx wand and pointed it at Fafnir.

Fafnir was furious and trembling with rage. "You think you have what it takes to kill me, Young Warlock?" The dragon sneered, his lip curling in disdain. "You barely have any magic left!"

"We shall see." Jadyn confidently sent a bolt of energy Fafnir's way. Fafnir flicked his hand and conjured an energy shield to block the attack. But the bolt of energy did not hit Fafnir's energy shield. Instead, it hit one of the metal restraints keeping Theo's right wrist pinned to the metal examination table. "Theo, use the gauntlet to free yourself and the others," Jadyn shouted. "I have a plan!"

"Rock on!" Theo grabbed the metal restraint that was around his left wrist, squeezed his gauntleted hand into a fist, and crushed the restraint. He ripped it off and tossed it aside. In a similar manner Theo made quick work of the metal restraints that were around his ankles next.

Meanwhile, Jadyn was keeping Fafnir distracted. The warlock conjured a fireball that appeared at the tip of his wand. He sent the fireball flying towards Fafnir. The fireball hit the shield Fafnir had conjured.

Fafnir growled low in his throat and retaliated. He raised his hand, conjured a fireball, which hovered over the palm of his hand, and threw it at Jadyn.

Jadyn waved his wand and conjured a shield to block the attack. The fireball hit Jadyn's shield and was blocked. However, the shield shattered from the force of Fafnir's powerful magic, and Jadyn was sent flying backwards across the lab.

Jadyn knocked into a worktable that was covered with robotic parts, and the table was knocked over, robot parts falling onto the floor with a clatter.

Dizzy-eyed, Jadyn pushed himself up off the floor. "Damnation." He barely had any magical power left. But somehow he needed to cast _one_ more spell.

Jadyn straightened and sent a bolt of energy Fafnir's way. It hit Fafnir's shield and bounced off harmlessly. Fafnir sent another fireball at Jadyn and the warlock chose to dodge the attack instead of trying to use his magic to block it.

By this time, Theo had managed to free Anne and Tina from the examination tables. _Excellent._ Jadyn thought to himself before calling out to Theo: "Theo, switch! Buy me some time while I cast a spell!"

"You got it!" Theo spoke to his gauntlet in a low voice. "Janie Gale." In seconds, the gauntlet had transformed into battle armor, which covered Theo's entire body. The cowboy charged towards Fafnir and started sending fierce kicks and punches his way.

"You fool! All I need-" Fafnir was saying before he was forced to dodge a quick punch. A vein at Fafnir's temple throbbed in irritation as he tried to speak again. "Is say..." Fafnir leapt backwards to avoid a roundhouse kick. "The special keyword phrase."

"Way ahead of you, buddy," Theo shot back in a snarky manner. "There's no way I'm letting you say that special phrase!" The cowboy turned his attention to his girlfriend. "Anne, do you have any more magic restoration potions left? If so, Jadyn needs one."

"Yeah." Anne removed a stoppered vial from her utility belt and tossed it towards Jadyn. "Catch, Jadyn!"

Jadyn caught the vial, uncorked it, and chugged back the potion before tossing the empty vial to the floor where it shattered. The warlock took a deep breath, and began to chant the words of the incantation he'd memorized from the spell book Noryn had given him that would destroy the soul-bond between Fafnir and Dexter Gale.

Fafnir was sending a barrage of spells Theo's way while the cowboy was using the Ruby Gauntlet to cancel the magical attacks. When this appeared to be going nowhere, Fafnir decided to try and reason with Theo. "Theodore, you're not a killer. If you let Jadyn kill me...it's the same as killing me yourself. Are you really going to let him kill your _father_?"

"You're _not_ my father!" Theo snapped, tears burning in his blue eyes. "My father was a good, kind man! Kamehameha!" The cowboy sent a large, swirling energy blast Fafnir's way.

The attack hit and Fafnir was sent flying across the room where he collided with a worktable covered by computers that exploded upon impact. Fafnir lay on the floor surrounded by broken electronics with a dazed look on his face.

"Now's your chance," Theo called out. "Do it, Jadyn!"

With a powerful aura of green and gold magic flaring up around Jadyn like flames, he turned to face Fafnir, raised his wand, and pointed it at the dragon. This was it. He just had to say the final word of the spell. But then, he hesitated. How could he kill his best friend's father...? The loss of his own father still haunted him. How could he put Theo through all that pain?

Fafnir appeared to be having some kind of internal struggle as he gripped the sides of his head with his hands, and when the scientist spoke it was in Dexter Gale's southern drawl: "Do it. Kill me. I don't want to be the monster that kills his own wife and son. _Please_."

" _Sectis Animus!_ " Jadyn's eyes were burning as he spoke the last words of the incantation, and a bolt of green and gold energy exploded out of his wand. It flew through the air towards Fafnir and hit his body.

Dr. Doppelganger and Fafnir both cried out in pain as the spell hit them. Seconds later, Fafnir's soul was pushed out of Dexter's body. Fafnir's soul took on the form of a black, shadow shaped like a dragon. It exited from Dexter's chest with an outraged roar, then flew up towards the ceiling, passed through it, and disappeared.

The soul of the dragon Fafnir had been successfully exorcised. Jadyn felt a wave of relief crash over him and he sank to his knees. He was exhausted and felt drained quite literally since that spell had taken up his remaining magic.

"What the hell kind of spell was that?" Theo demanded with a bewildered expression on his face. "What did that just do?"

"That was a spell to break the soul-bond between Fafnir and Dexter," Jadyn explained. "Fafnir's soul has been exorcised from your father's body..."

"Then does that mean my father is still alive?" Theo murmured aloud before rushing over to Dexter's side and crouching down beside him. The scientist didn't appear to be breathing, however. Theo placed his ear to Dexter's chest and listened for a heartbeat. There was none. "No heartbeat..." Theo said softly.

Jadyn winced guiltily. "The stress of the exorcism was too much for his body to handle. I'm sorry. I thought possibly..."

But Theo was barely listening to Jadyn at that point, and was looking around the lab wildly. When he spotted the device that he was looking for he ran over to it, and rolled it over to his father's lifeless body. Theo then ripped his father's lab coat open, turned on the device, and rubbed the defibrillator paddles together before placing them against his father's chest. The paddles sent an energy shock to Dexter's heart.

Theo waited for a response. There was none. Theo placed the paddles on his father's chest again. "Come on, Dad, live so I can chew you out for all the shit you've pulled!" Another shock of energy was delivered to Dexter's heart. This time, Dexter gasped and sat up with wide eyes.

Jadyn gaped at Theo in amazement. "You saved him. You brought him back to life. How did you do that? I thought you couldn't perform magic, Theodore?"

"This wasn't magic." Theo chuckled and waved a hand at the automated external defibrillator. "This was science."

"I...I'm still alive..." Dexter breathed, his voice tinged with awe.

"Yeah, Dad, you are," Theo said in a hoarse voice.

Tears filled Dexter's eyes as he gazed back at his son. Dexter's eyes were both blue and the black scales had disappeared from his face. "Theo, I'm so sorry for everything..."

"You'd better be sorry," Theo snapped. "If you want to earn my forgiveness you need to start by making things right. First off, I think you owe Tina Woodcutter an apology."

Dexter's gaze searched out Tina, and landed on her. Tina shifted awkwardly on her feet as Dexter's penetrating stare was suddenly upon her. Dexter's expression softened as he continued to look at her. He noted that the cyborg wouldn't meet his gaze. "Tina, my treatment of you has been abysmal. I truly am sorry."

Tina raised her head and she shot the scientist a surprised, emotional look. "Dr. Doppelganger..."

Dexter shook his head. "No. I am Dr. Doppelganger no longer. Just call me Dexter. Dr. Doppelganger is dead. I'm done with being an evil mad scientist hell-bent on taking over the world." A bitter chuckle slipped past his lips. "Now, I just want to be a man." He looked at Theo. "A father." His gaze turned to Janie, who was still lying on the examination table. "And a husband...if Janie will forgive me." The scientist's expression turned fond and longing as he gazed at the unconscious form of his wife.

Tina's heart clenched painfully inside of her chest. Dexter Gale only really ever had eyes for one woman: Janie Gale. "I'm sure she'll forgive you because I already have..." Tina murmured, and her blue-gray eyes filled with tears. In order to hide her tears from the scientist she fled from the lab. Jadyn watched her go with a concerned look on his face.

"What are you waiting for, Jay?" Theo said placing a hand on Jadyn's shoulder. "This is the time when you're supposed to go after the girl."

Jadyn pushed himself up to his feet, dusted himself off, and nodded. "I shall..." The warlock ran out of the lab in search of Tina, and followed the sound of her crying. He found Tina in the training room with her back to Jadyn. She was pretending to admire the weapons that were displayed on one of the walls.

"This is where Dr. Doppelganger trained me how to fight. How to be an assassin," Tina said softly as she ran her finger along the blade of a sword.

Jadyn strolled into the training room and over to Tina. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and rested his chin on the top of her head.

"I really _did_ love him..." Tina admitted, her voice cracking.

"I know," Jadyn said.

"It's sad, but my feelings for him are different now. When I think of Dr. D I feel mostly regret, sadness, pain and heartache. Dr. D never really loved me. He only ever loved Janie Gale. My love was one-sided. I put him up on this pedestal in my mind, and made him into something he was not. In the end, Dexter Gale is just a flawed, imperfect _man_. I was in love with love." Tina spun around to face Jadyn and their faces were only inches apart. "It was you who showed me what real love is. True love is putting the one you love before yourself. Real love is trust and sacrifice. Real love is how much I love you..." Tina stood up on her tiptoes and tentatively pressed her lips against Jadyn's in a gentle kiss.

Jadyn tilted his head down to give Tina better access to his mouth. He raised his hand and couldn't resist digging it into her silky hair. Jadyn cupped the back of her head and ran his tongue along Tina's lower lip, demanding entrance. Tina gasped and Jadyn plunged his tongue into her mouth.

_Waited so long for this._ Jadyn thought as he swirled his tongue around her own. The dam on Jadyn's emotions had finally broken, and he kissed Tina desperately. Tina melted into the warlock's fierce kiss and pressed her body eagerly against his. She could feel the hard, lean muscles of his chest through the black suit he was wearing.

Tina's knees started to grow weak and she reached up to wrap her arms around Jadyn's neck. As the minutes ticked by, their kissing grew more heated, and Tina felt a hardness pressing against her stomach. She realized that it was Jadyn's erection, and felt elated. He wanted her. He loved her. Her heart swelled with the feeling of being needed.

Tina's heart started to beat madly inside of her chest. Her heart rate monitor read: 99...100...101...

A few minutes later, they pulled away from each other so they could catch their breath. Tina looked up at Jadyn with hooded, lust-filled eyes. "Jadyn, make love to me."

Jadyn stared down into Tina's hungry gray-blue eyes for several seconds, and Tina worried that he was going to refuse her, but then he finally responded: "If that is your wish."

Tina beamed at him even though she could see the sadness swimming in his beautiful emerald green eyes. "It is. Life is fleeting, Jadyn. I wish to share this moment with you while I still can."

"I understand, but it will have to be gentle," Jadyn said in a deep, husky voice. "Very gentle. We don't want to put too much stress on your heart."

Tina swallowed at the thought that they were about to make love. "Okay."

Jadyn scooped Tina up into his arms, carried her over to a padded training mat, and lay her down upon it. He moved over her body, straddling her, and their eyes met as he leaned over to kiss her again. Tina's eyes shut when Jadyn's lips met hers, and she gave herself up to the sensation of the warlock finally kissing and touching her.

She felt his hands stroke her sides before going up to briefly cup her breasts for just a moment before he returned to stroking just her sides again. Tina shivered at his gentle touches and her heart raced with anticipation.

Jadyn gulped as he reached out to grab the zipper that was on the front of her black leather bodysuit and that went down all the way to her navel. His hand was trembling slightly as he started to lower the zipper and a nice view of her cleavage was revealed. Jadyn leaned over and placed a kiss between her breasts. Then as he continued to pull down the zipper he placed a kiss on every inch of pale flesh that was revealed to him.

Tina moaned and writhed beneath him as Jadyn placed a blazing trail of kisses from her cleavage all the way down to her navel. The warlock's kisses were feathery light. She wanted more. More pressure. More heat. Just... _more_. She squirmed beneath him and arched her back, pressing her body against Jadyn's hot, wet mouth.

The sight of Tina wantonly arching into his touch roused a primal urge in Jadyn and he grabbed the front of her bodysuit and pulled it open, exposing her pert breasts with their pink, pearled nipples to him completely.

He leaned over, and captured one of her nipples in his mouth. Jadyn proceeded to lick and suck at her nipple until Tina was mewling beneath him. She raised her hips in order to grind her crotch against Jadyn's and felt his hardness.

Tina's heart rate monitor started to beep warningly at her as her heart rate reached 110. Her heart was hammering inside of her chest, her heartbeat increasing in speed with the tidal wave of lust and desire that was crashing through her.

Jadyn heard the beeping and pulled away from Tina. There was a wicked glint in his eyes, and he captured her lips again and stopped touching her body. Tina whined in protest at the lack of touching, but Jadyn ignored her and continued to kiss her languidly as he waited for her heart rate to slow down. He glanced at her heart rate monitor and saw that it had lowered to 100.

Once it was back down to 90 Jadyn slid the top of her bodysuit down so that she was naked from the waist up. Jadyn scooted back so that he had the room to remove his cape, suit jacket, and shirt. He never took his eyes off of Tina and her bare breasts as he removed his clothing, folded the articles of clothing carefully, and set them aside.

Tina watched Jadyn stripping for her with a hungry, heated look on her face. The warlock's chest was leanly muscled; his skin a dark emerald green, and his nipples were an even darker green. Unable to resist the urge she reached out and placed her hands eagerly on his pecs, caressing his hard flesh. He felt powerful beneath her touch, and his musky scent was incredibly male.

Jadyn shuddered as the cool palms of her hands brushed over his nipples. The warlock was happy to allow Tina to explore and study his body to her heart's content. She ran her hands all over his chest, exploring the rises and dips and ridges of his muscles, and paying extra attention to his six-pack abs. Jadyn was quite proud that he'd managed to gain a six-pack, and his expression turned smug at the admiring look on Tina's face.

"You're much more muscular than you look with your clothes on..." Tina complimented with a crooked smile.

"Is that your way of saying I look good naked?" Jadyn arched a teasing eyebrow at her.

"You look _very_ good naked. Too good. I don't want any other girls to see you this way. Ever. I'll get jealous, and then I'll have to kill them," Tina joked morbidly.

"Only you will ever see me this way, Tina. Only you." Jadyn assured before he leaned over her to capture her lips again, and this time his warm chest pressed against her cool breasts. As their nipples brushed against each other they both shuddered and moaned.

Jadyn placed his hands on the mat on either side of Tina's head and didn't touch her. He only allowed their bare chests to be pressed together as they kissed.

Tina writhed beneath him, raising her hips in a show of impatience, and grinding herself against Jadyn's erection that could be felt through his black silk pants. Unfortunately, because her bodysuit was made out of leather she could barely feel his erection against her core, and pouted. The cyborg shoved Jadyn back with a huff. "Take off the rest of my bodysuit. Hurry!"

"Hm," Jadyn made a noncommittal sound before he scooted back so that he could start unbuckling the leather straps on Tina's leather boots first. He pulled off one of her boots, set the boot aside, and then raised her foot to his mouth before placing a kiss on the bottom arch of her foot. Tina shivered. For some reason that kiss made her core throb with want. Jadyn removed her other boot, and placed a kiss on the arch of her other foot next.

Jadyn was watching Tina intently as he sucked on her toe, and Tina huffed. "You really are wicked," she complained, trembling with pent-up desire.

Jadyn chuckled lowly before he started to slide Tina's bodysuit down over her hips. The warlock groaned at the sight of the green silk panties that Tina was wearing. "Green?" he asked in a gravely voice.

"I chose green because...my womanhood belongs to you, Jadyn," Tina boldly revealed.

Jadyn's cock twitched in his pants in response. He removed her bodysuit and took his time folding it before setting it aside. Jadyn spread her legs, and buried his face between her legs, rubbing his long nose up and down her silk-covered mound until the tip of his nose brushed against her clit.

Tina keened and raised her hips, eager for more. Jadyn licked at her sex through the green silk panties until they started to grow moist with her desire for him. The cyborg writhed beneath him, arching her back and raising her hips to grind her sex against his face in a wanton display. "More, Jadyn, I need more."

Tina's heart rate was increasing again: 99...100...

Jadyn pulled back and somewhat reluctantly removed the green silk panties. They were so sexy. He would burn the memory of Tina wearing those panties into his mind, and take that precious memory with him to the afterlife. He folded the panties, set them aside, and only then did he allow himself to gaze upon her bared sex.

Jadyn groaned at the sight of it. She was so pink, glistening, inviting. He tentatively reached out with his index finger and caressed her sex. He found her clit and pressed at it experimentally. Tina cried out as her swollen bud was stimulated. Jadyn enjoyed her reaction immensely and so he pressed at it again.

Jadyn carefully slipped a finger inside of her, and marveled at her slick, warm sheath that clenched around his finger. Soon his cock would be buried inside of her to the hilt. But it still seemed much too tight for him to fit inside of her just yet. She would need more stimulation in order for her body to relax and to be able to accommodate him more easily.

Jadyn spread Tina's legs and buried his face between her legs again. This time when he licked and nipped at her sex there was no barrier of silk barring his way.

Tina's eyes widened and she gasped at the sensation of Jadyn's mouth on her. "Yes. Oh, yes, just like that, Jadyn." She buried her fingers in his greasy, black hair, and dug her nails into his scalp as she greedily pressed his face closer to her throbbing sex.

Jadyn brought Tina's clit into his mouth, sucked, and nibbled at it gently. This action pushed Tina over the edge and she came against him, crying out his name. "Jadyn!"

Jadyn eagerly lapped up all of her sweet nectar, and continued to lick her sex until her body finally stopped trembling.

Her heart rate monitor was beeping warningly at them, and her heart rate was continuing to increase: 110...111...112...113...

Jadyn removed his mouth from her sex and stared down at Tina. Tina's cheeks were flushed and she was panting for breath. Her chest was rising and falling rapidly with each breath. Her usually straight hair had become wavy and chaotic. Jadyn smirked at her debauched appearance. He'd done that to her, he thought smugly.

Jadyn stood up, removed his pants, folded them, and set them aside. He glanced down at Tina and saw that she was watching him intently as he started to slide his boxers down over his hips. His erection slapped against his stomach as it was freed, and Tina licked her lips suggestively at the sight of it. Jadyn gulped nervously, and his cock throbbed, a drop of precome forming on its tip. He removed his boxers completely, folded them, and set them aside.

Jadyn walked over and lay down on his side next to Tina. While admiring her beautiful naked body he lazily stroked his aching cock and waited for her heartbeat to slow down. Tina turned on her side, and looked down so that she could watch Jadyn masturbate.

His cock had turned a dark green color with his increased arousal. He was big. Tina nibbled on her lower lip, as she suddenly felt nervous and a little bit unsure. Would he really be able to fit inside of her? He was much bigger than Dr. Doppelganger had been...

Was it a goblin thing? She wondered. Monsters had monster cocks, maybe?

Jadyn's green eyes raked over Tina's flushed body. "You're so beautiful, Tina." Jadyn's voice came out sounding as rough as sandpaper.

"Reginald told me that my beauty is flawed because of _this_." Tina raised her left cybernetic arm, and opened and closed her hand into a fist so that a mechanical sound filled the air.

Jadyn shook his head at her. "To me, you're perfect."

Tina decided that she couldn't wait another second. She needed Jadyn inside of her. She turned over onto her back, spread her legs, and gave Jadyn a desperate, needy look. "Jadyn, hurry, please. I need you inside of me. Now."

Warily, Jadyn glanced down at Tina's heart rate monitor. It was currently reading: 100. "Not yet..." he said with a small frown on his face.

Tina spread her legs wider, arched her back, raised her hips, and whined: " _Jadyn_. I need you _now_."

Only once Tina's heart rate had gone down to 84 did Jadyn move over her body. He leaned over her and stared down into her gray-blue eyes. "I'm going to make love to you now, Tina."

"Do it. Take me. Claim me. Make me yours," Tina urged in a sultry voice.

Jadyn rocked his hips forward until he could feel the head of his penis brushing against her entrance. He rubbed his cock against her until the tip slid easily inside. They both groaned at the sensation of him entering her. Jadyn captured her lips in a heated kiss in order to distract Tina before he thrust all the way inside of her with one hard, forceful thrust.

"Mmph!" Tina cried out against his lips at being so stretched and full so suddenly.

Jadyn grunted. _Damn._ She was still so tight. The warlock could feel her inner walls fluttering around his length. He removed his lips from her mouth and glanced down so that he could check on her heart rate monitor. It read: 110, and had just started to beep again in warning.

Sweat beaded on Jadyn's brow and his limbs started to tremble as he resisted his need to move. Tina needed to adjust to his size anyways so waiting wasn't a bad idea. "I'm inside you, Tina," Jadyn told her possessively.

"Hm, we're one," Tina agreed and a mischievous glint formed in her eyes. "I can't believe we're _finally_ having sex."

When Jadyn felt Tina relax around him and her heart rate had gone down to 90, he started to surge over her. He adopted a slow, torturous rhythm as he slid his cock halfway out of her and thrust back in, over and over again.

Tina wriggled her hips against Jadyn's in a show of impatience. "Jadyn. Harder. Faster," she pleaded beseechingly.

Jadyn's emerald green eyes were blazing. "No." He watched as her heart rate started to increase: 105...106...110...

Jadyn halted his movements when that infernal beeping started to fill the air again.

"Don't you dare stop." Tina wrapped her legs around Jadyn, pressing the heels of her feet into his ass so that he stayed deep inside of her. "Keep going. I want you to come inside of me."

Jadyn trembled with the effort it was taking him to hold himself back when all he wanted to do was thrust in and out of Tina, hard and fast. If he were too rough with her though he knew that the speed of her heartbeat would increase too much...

They were dancing together on the knife's edge as they made love. It was thrilling and terrifying and wonderful all at the same time. With an intense look on his face, Jadyn stared down into her eyes. "I love you, Tina." He started to increase the speed and force of his thrusts.

"Yes! Oh, yes!" Tina praised, raising her hips to meet Jadyn's thrusts eagerly, and letting him in deep. _He's hitting it._

Jadyn could feel that he was close to his orgasm as heat pooled in his lower abdomen and his balls started to draw up tight to his body. He wondered if it would be safer to let Tina come first or if he should come first. He decided it would be safer to come first because he could always pull out quickly if something went awry. With one last deep thrust he let himself go. "Nnghh. Tina."

Tina shuddered at the feeling of Jadyn's hot seed filling her insides. His semen was overly hot compared to Dr. Doppelganger's. She wondered if that was another 'monster thing'. The sensation was too much and she came against Jadyn with a cry. "Jadyn!" Fireworks burst behind her eyelids in a rainbow of colors, and she trembled against her half-goblin lover.

Tina's heart was hammering against her ribs, and her heart rate monitor was beeping in warning. Her heart rate was continuing to increase: 120...121...125.

Tina's heart started to hurt. She let out a groan of pain and she clutched at her chest.

129.

Jadyn pulled back at looked at Tina in alarm to see that she was clutching at her chest and gasping in pain. "Tina!"

"My heart...it hurts...!" Tina moaned as she arched her back, but this time not in pleasure, but in pain.

"I'm sorry, Tina. This is all my fault," Jadyn said in a hollow voice.

Tina reached up and caressed Jadyn's cheek. "No. I wanted this. Drusus was right about us. We're kindred spirits. You're the missing part of me that I have been unknowingly seeking all my life. There's something I've wanted to tell you. It's okay to be a monster because...I'm one too. It's why I fell in love with you. We're both wicked." She gave Jadyn a tremulous smile.

139.

Jadyn looked into Tina's gray-blue eyes that were shimmering with tears and gave her a pleading look. "No. Stay with me, Tina."

"I wish..." Tina panted. "I'm sorry. Farewell, my love."

"I'm sorry too, Tina, because I won't let you die," Jadyn declared firmly, a determined expression settling over his beleaguered face.

Confusion swirled in Tina's eyes. "W-What?" Her eyes widened as she started to realize that Jadyn intended to do something crazy, no doubt. "Jadyn, no!"

"Everything's going to be okay, Tina. Don't worry. I have a plan." Jadyn chanted the words of a spell. Then he reached into his chest and ripped out his heart. His heart was glowing with a red light that was marred by only a little bit of darkness.

Jadyn's enchanted heart beat in the palm of his hand. "You see, Tina, I found a way to save you. I can give you my own heart using magic and you'll continue to live."

Tina's eyes flared in alarm and she shook her head in objection. "Jadyn, your heart...! No. I can't live without you."

"You _must_ ," Jadyn said fiercely.

"I won't! Share...!" Tina gasped with an urgent look on her face.

Jadyn's brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what the cyborg was trying to say. "What?"

"Share your heart with me. Break it in two. Give me one half, and give yourself the other half. Two halves of a whole, remember? We're kindred spirits. Soul mates." Tina smiled weakly at him.

"But that will only work if this is 'true love' between us..." Jadyn trailed off.

"This _is_ true love. Even monsters like us can find true love, Jadyn. Please. Trust me. Believe in us," Tina gasped and then her heart stopped beating.

Jadyn grew alarmed when Tina went limp in his arms. "Tina!" The time to save her was now. He looked at his glowing red heart and debated whether or not he should do as she'd suggested. Should he break his heart in two and share it with Tina? If this 'thing' between them wasn't 'true love' then they would both die.

Was he willing to risk Tina's life on a _maybe_?

Then he recalled Tina's words about love being about trust and sacrifice.

A grimly determined expression settled over his face and he broke his heart in two. Jadyn cast a spell, reached into Tina's chest, removed the cursed artificial heart, and tossed it aside. Then he pushed half of his heart into Tina's body. There was no response.

Jadyn pushed the remaining half of his heart into his own body, and gasped. The warlock collapsed on top of Tina's body as darkness consumed him.

***

Jadyn awoke to the feeling of someone combing her fingers through his hair.

Tina's sweet voice reached his ears: "Your hair is greasy."

Jadyn opened his eyes, turned to see Tina curled up next to him, and smiled lopsidedly. "I just saved your life and you're already insulting me, Tin Woman? How typical."

Tina hummed. "Oh, I wasn't insulting you. I was complimenting you. I like your slicked-back, greasy, villainous hair. I think it's sexy."

"You have very _strange_ taste." A smug smirk curled Jadyn's lips. "Thank God for that."

"Once you try green, you don't go back," Tina quipped. "I fell in love with a monster. The _King_ of Monsters. With his huge, monster cock-"

Jadyn flushed, and covered her mouth with his hand. "Shhh! What if someone hears you, you lewd woman! And I prefer the title: The Wicked Warlock of the West. Thank you very much."

"Well, you are _wicked_ ," Tina purred suggestively.

"How about I show you just how wicked I can be?" Jadyn offered with a sly glint in his eyes.

"Why do you think I woke you up?" Tina said, drawing circles on the warlock's bare chest. "We need to celebrate you saving the world."

Abruptly, a dark scowl formed on Jadyn's face. " _I_ saved the world? Wasn't Theodore Gale supposed to? _He's_ the Foretold Savior of Oz."

"Well, he asked for your help. You never would have done it otherwise. That's why he gets all the credit," Tina explained in a blasé tone while trying to keep a straight face.

"What!" Jadyn burst out, clearly incensed. "That's-!"

Tina pulled Jadyn in for a kiss, and as their lips met he completely forgot what he'd been so angry about. As Jadyn eagerly kissed Tina back and their kiss became wet and biting and passionate, he thought: _It really does feel good to be wicked._

THE END

###

Final note:

Other works by the author:

GENDERBENT FAIRYTALES COLLECTION

Handsome and the Yeti

Handsome and the Yeti (audiobook now available)

Petra Pan

Petra Pan (audiobook now available)

Alister in Wonderland

Alister in Wonderland (audiobook now available)

King of Hearts: A Wonderland Story

King of Hearts (audiobook now available)

Theodore Gale in Oz

Theodore Gale in Oz (audiobook now available)

Wicked Warlock of Oz

Wicked Warlock of Oz (audiobook now available)

Ashe and the Glass Sword

Ashe and the Glass Sword (audiobook coming soon!)

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