"Think what you want," Charming said. "But they're going home today, safe and sound. Right after they vote for me, of course. And Nottingham, the next time you call the woman I love a trollop, you'll find an arrow in your throat."
Nottingham scowled and stormed out of the room. Charming handed the bow and arrow to the man in the green suit. "Thank you, Robin," he said.
"He saved us," Sabrina said.
"Ending his career in the process, I fear," Granny Relda replied. "Look at the crowd. He just lost this election."
"Why would he do that?"
Granny pointed at the mayor. He and Snow White were kissing passionately as if they were the only two people on the planet.
"Love can make a hero out of anyone," Granny replied.
"I knew he was one of the good guys," Daphne said.
"Well, people, don't let this obvious attempt to disrupt the election stop you from casting your ballots," the queen said. "This is exactly the kind of nonsense that needs to change in Ferryport Landing."
"You want a change?" Uncle Jake shouted. "I'll give you a change!" He spun around, grabbed the Blue Fairy around the neck, and held the Vorpal blade to her throat.
"Jake, what are you doing?" Granny cried. "There's more to fix!" Uncle Jake shouted. "And the Blue Fairy is going to help me."
"What do you want?" the Blue Fairy asked softly. "Is it true that if I wish for something you have to fulfill it?" The radiant fairy nodded. "Then I want a wish," Uncle Jake said.
"Uncle Jake!" Sabrina cried. "What are you thinking? She helped us."
"She's going to help us a lot more! What's it going to be, Blue?" Jake demanded.
The Blue Fairy looked Jake in the eye. "I hope your wish gives you what you need. You have your wish."
"I wish I had all of your power!" Uncle Jake said.
The Blue Fairy smiled and nodded as if what he was asking for was simple. A swirl of light and mist encircled her, then turned into a pulsating orb as big as a baseball. It flew at Uncle Jake, hitting him hard in the chest, and then there was a tremendous explosion that knocked everyone off their feet. When Sabrina stood up again, she saw the Blue Fairy lying on the floor nearby. Her magic was gone and she had changed back into Farrah the waitress.
"Hey, 'Brina," Uncle Jake said behind her. She spun around to face him. Two pink-streaked wings suddenly popped out of his back. He turned his head to look at them. They flapped and lifted him off the ground, allowing him to hover above the crowd. He laughed like a child on Christmas morning.
"Can you believe this?" he said overjoyed.
Sabrina looked to her grandmother. Granny Relda was full of despair. "Jake, what have you done?"
"It's not what I've done, Mom," he said as he floated back down to the ground and kissed her on the cheek. "It's what I'm going to do! You wouldn't believe the power! It's like a waterfall, like the sun. I'm bigger than life, bigger than even the most powerful Everafter. I'm the kind of thing they write stories about!"
He looked out over the crowd of Everafters and his face grew serious. "But I need more."
He raised his hands and a bright blue ball appeared in them. The ball shot electrical charges through the crowd, hitting every Everafter squarely in the chest. Mr. Canis fell to his knees. Snow White collapsed on Charming, who fell himself. The White Rabbit tumbled to the ground and was squished by Beauty and her beastly husband. Ogres, cyclopses, trolls, witches, and even fairy godmothers collapsed under their own weight.
"What are you doing to them?" Sabrina begged.
"I'm taking the magic that makes them immortal. I need it," he shouted as the energy surged through him. His eyes disappeared and were replaced with a fiery light. Cracks appeared all over his body as if it were just a useless shell and then a light flashed through the gymnasium so brightly Sabrina had to close her eyes. Uncle Jake rocketed off the ground, through the roof, and into the sky. Rubble and debris fell from the ceiling. Sabrina grabbed her grandmother and sister and pulled them to safety.
"What's he doing?" Daphne asked, but Granny didn't answer. She stared at the hole in the roof. Sabrina had her eyes elsewhere. The Everafters lying scattered around the gym were growing older at an alarming rate. Prince Charming's youthful, handsome face began to sag. His eyes took on a slightly yellow tint and his hair started falling out. He was becoming an old man right before her eyes. He reached out for her with a bony, frail hand.
Mr. Canis morphed into the Wolf but the beast wasn't his intimidating, deadly self. He struggled with age as his dark brown coat turned white and his eyes grew cloudy with blindness.
"Look!" Daphne said as she pointed to the ceiling. Uncle Jake was back.
He descended like an angel enveloped in a light so bright the girls had to look away. When he landed on the ground, he smiled at his family and the light faded. The Uncle Jake that Sabrina knew was gone, replaced with someone completely new who seemed to be made of diamonds. The only thing left, she noticed, was his quirky, mischievous grin. He stepped forward to hug the two sisters but they stepped back in fear.