Oz

Zayn never liked waking up alone in general. Not since he and Evangeline began sleeping in the same bed together. It felt big and cold and empty without her and in the dawn when he was just waking up he truly missed her more than any other emotion. More than wanting power or feeling angry at the residents of Oz. He felt love and yearning for her. That particular morning it felt even more off and, for a split, heart-wrenching moment, he thought something bad had happened to her on her mission to Glinda’s castle. As he woke more he realized that couldn’t be it – he would feel it down to his core.

He found out the real reason that morning was terrible – his prisoners had escaped during the night. He had been working very hard on conjuring up something special for Evangeline’s return and fell asleep quite early due to the amount of energy it had taken from him. As he walked down the stairs to where his guards were standing, face down and looking ashamed, he knew what had happened and the purple, magically illuminated glass dragon shattered to bits in his rage of them losing his prisoners. He pushed past them, down the corridors and into the dungeons where the cell sat empty.

He magically bent the bars until they were crooked and then melted into the cell itself. “I want to know everything.” He demanded coolly. He spun on his heel smoothly to face the guards that were on duty.

“We’re not certain, sir. It seems as though those moments of time have escaped us just as the prisoners had. We do not remember seeing anyone else come or anyone go.” The first one replied, looking to the second one for help but he remained completely silent.

Zayn slowly approached the guard that spoke until they were standing eye to eye. “It escaped you?” The guard nodded once in response. “Isn’t that odd, Hilt?” He asked the other one, his eyes moving to the chest of the guard in front of him. “Escaped you …” He muttered, pushing his pointer finger right over his heart.

The guard first began to choke as all the air began to leave his body. He clutched at his neck, eyes bulging out of his head in shock and fear. Then all of the veins in his body pushed to the surface and he bled out within seconds and fell to a heap on the floor before Zayn made him disappear completely along with the mess he had made with the blood. He turned sharply to Hilt. “Sir.” He addressed formally, his eyes moving back to Zayn’s from where the body vanished.

“Did it escape you, Hilt?”

“I believe I saw a group running out and the prisoners may have gone with them. I cannot be certain, but they all appeared to be young and ran towards the east.”

“And you did not run after them?”

“I came to alert you immediately.” He answered, the fear still evident in his voice that he would suffer the exact same fate as his partner.

Zayn considered it for a moment but he had been killing a lot of his guards lately and, at this rate, he’d run out before Evangeline got home and he’d have no one to protect her. And, well, she’d be quite angry if he had killed their whole staff while she was gone. Again. Instead, he flicked his hand dismissing the guard who took off in a sprint out of the dungeons. Zayn passed much slower in front of his other prisoners, ignoring their calls and death glares. He needed to find those prisoners. He knew that they were trouble and that they could possibly bring about his downfall and they had to be taken out.



Evangeline could sense trouble the second she stepped back into the Emerald City and wasted no time making her way into the castle. She threw open the large doors and took one long look at the shattered crystal in the foyer and knew she had been right that something was very, very wrong. “Zayn?” She called, making her way up the grand staircase, halting her guards with a move of her hands.

“Miss North, something could be wrong.”

“I can handle it.” She replied firmly and finished her trek up to the second floor. She gracefully made her way down the hall listening for any sign of Zayn until she halted at the door to the library. She didn’t hear a single thing but she knew he had to be in there. She pushed open the door and sure enough he was standing at the window with his hands braced on both sides, head bent towards the ground. “My love?”

He didn’t move an inch so she took another step inside. “Hello, my darling.” He responded, his voice empty and deceptively soft.

“What is it? Has something terrible happened?” She asked, putting her hand between his shoulder blades as she often did to soothe him and she felt him noticeably relax. “Tell me.” She coaxed, leaning further into his frame.

“We had prisoners. New prisoners that came from the land of Dorothy.” He heard her gasp and lifted his head to look at her. “They’ve escaped. They’re loose in Oz and I have reason to believe they are here for the same purpose as she was, and as the wizard before her from the same place. Nothing good ever comes from this Kansas … not for people like you or people like me. I fear they will harm you, or worse. Just as they did your ancestor, Evanora.”

“How did they come to be here?”

“I do not know. I know I must find them and bring them back. I must destroy them before they can destroy us.”

She wanted to ask that could there be a chance they weren’t here for that? Their arrival, just as the ones before them, could have been purely accidental but that didn’t mean they would destroy anything. She wanted to, but she knew she couldn’t. Zayn wouldn’t hear it, he was determined and she could see that just by looking in his eyes. “If you think that’s what is best. I support you.”

“I know you do.” He turned and enveloped her in a hug. “I missed you while you were away, my love.” He pulled back and tucked a dark strand of hair behind her ear. “I should stop sending you away.” He bent to kiss her lips gently. “Did you find what you we are searching for? The wand?”

She knew its precise location was in her bag. She knew he needed this – he needed the power or he didn’t feel like himself. She knew she should hand it over to him to cheer him up out of this funk but something was stopping her, holding her back. Without even really thinking about it, she shook her head slowly. “I’m sorry.” She said. “I couldn’t find it anywhere.”