The Savior

"The Savior" is the 112th episode of Once Upon a Time, as well its sixth season's premiere.

Summary
As our heroes set out to stop Mr. Hyde, who's turning Storybrooke into a haven for refugees from the Land of Untold Stories, Emma develops a mysterious side-effect, at the same time that Regina and Zelena embrace their newfound sisterhood by becoming roommates. Meanwhile, Rumple continues trying to free Belle from her sleeping curse with the help of a stranger and, in Agrabah of the past, Jafar confronts an afflicted Aladdin, unveiling a secret about "the savior" in the process.

Teaser
Many years ago... We are taken across the hills of a desert land as a man, Emir, hurriedly rides his horse in the hopes of finding refuge from whatever it is that's chasing him. A red blast of lightning is then fired at the ground, missing Emir and his horse by only a hair's breadth, and Emir looks behind himself before doing his best to gather speed, at the same time narrowly avoiding yet another blast of right lightning. His attacker then comes into view: a man on a flying carpet, surfing his way through the air in an attempt to subdue his prey. Emir's horse rides like the wind while the assailant on his tail rides the wind in a more literal fashion, firing yet another jet of red magic his way from the eyes of his serpent staff. Finally, after a few more tawdry gallops across this nigh-barren realm, Emir makes it to what appears to be some kind of safe-haven. A very small temple of sorts that is fenced off, save for the passageway that allows entry for Emir and his horse. He calls for help inside as we are taken in there ourselves, and a rather rundown looking gentleman is seen sitting there with his head bowed, appearing desolate as he hears Emir outside screaming that "he's coming" and that he needs help. As Emir finally enters the room, a young nurse gets up from tending to the rundown man, and then their refugee begs the gentleman's attention, eventually stating, "We need the savior." The apparent savior, however, can't stop shaking as his hands clasp themselves around a cup, and the young nurse apologizes to Emir, having to inform him that the savior isn't seeing anyone today. Emir wants to know what's wrong with him, at which point a wind sweeps under his feet as the flying carpet prepares to land outside. Indeed, we see it heading towards the hut with its rider on top, and Emir appears more than a little afraid as Jafar enters the room, clutching that famed serpent staff of his. Emir addresses him by name, begging for mercy, only for the notorious villain to choke him with his magic. The savior does nothing, continuing to sit there as, eventually, the man who came to him for help is reduced to nothing but a pile of dust by the evil magician in his wake. "Pathetic," Jafar assesses, "The great savior, hiding. This is a sad day indeed." The young nurse asks that Jafar not hurt the savior, only for him to then wave his hand and cause her to pass out uselessly in the corner. The savior crawls his way to the side as Jafar says that he heard word and then had to come see for himself: "Look at the great Aladdin now. And to think, you could have escaped this fate." Aladdin looks up at his nemesis and finally makes it to his feet, albeit with great difficulty. He tells Jafar that if he's going to kill him then he should just get it over with, but Jafar refuses, for he wants to savor this moment. "Do you remember when we first met? You were nothing but a common thief. But you had honor, despite what you did to me. The irony is delicious. It took becoming a hero for you to completely come apart." As Jafar says this, he begins circling Aladdin, intimidating him. "But that's what always happens to saviors, isn't it? That's the fate of saviors. You give, and give, and give, and for what?" He's now right in Aladdin's face as he adds, "They pick the fruit, they cut the branches, and all that's left is this shaky stump. That's why you never ever hear these words about a savior: 'They lived happily ever after.'" Jafar takes such joy in this, passing a red bird in a cage on his way out of the hut. His parting words to Aladdin are "do take care", which seems to anger the savior very much. And then the shaking resumes, with him raising his hand to the light as an unknown side-effect influences him in a very damaging way. As he grows weaker, our view of him grows fainter, and then... ONCE UPON A TIME

Act I
Emma's car is seen parked outside her house as the noise of two people kissing passionately is heard emanating from inside. Indeed, following their very recent declaration of love, Hook and Emma are now attempting to fornicate on the latter's couch, with her then interrupting the process to ask about the whereabouts of her son. After all, neither of them would want this moment interrupted, but Hook assures that Henry is with Regina, meaning that they be as disruptive as they so desire as they fall back onto the couch. As Emma's back hits the cushions, however, she once again interrupts the kissing to ask about her parents, only for Hook - who's very eager to continue - to assure that they have no interest in walking in on this, "Believe me." More kissing, and then Emma struggles in an attempt to remove her jacket. To her surprise, Hook seems more than fine with her leaving it on, with him declaring that he likes it, and she laughs as the two of them continue to try and become lovers. And then the shaking starts, with the table vibrating thanks to some sort of disturbance outside and the glass resting on top of it making a large amount of noise. Hook is the first to notice this, with Emma then turning her head in confusion as well. She wonders what the hell is going on and so Hook gets to his feet and helps her to hers also, at which she notices the chandelier to be rattling on top of everything else. The couple then hightail it outside to see what's causing all this racket and their view is almost immediately drawn to the skies as a large shadow passes over them. It appears that some sort of airship is soaring through the air far overhead, heading for the woods, making itself very obvious to the people of Storybrooke as it hovers its way over the whole of the town. With the airship near the end of its descent, a mass of townspeople are seen arriving at a large grassy clearing in the forest, led by the usual of Storybrooke's resident heroes. It appears they've followed it all the way there, incredibly curious about what's happening, and, as everyone looks up at it as it prepares to make a landing somewhere nearby, David is the first to vocalize what everyone is thinking by asking just what the hell it is. Dr. Jekyll recognizes it as being a dirigible from the Land of Untold Stories, and so Snow wonders what it's doing in their town. "I believe you mean my town," says Mr. Hyde, emerging from the trees, and the heroes turn to him in anger. Snow, clutching her bow, makes clear that this is not his town, only for him to respond that she should try telling that to the Dark One - after all, it was he who gave it to him. Regina appears highly indignant at this while Hyde excuses himself to prepare for his friends' arrival, implying that they are the dirigible's passengers. Emma then gains Regina's attention with a whisper, signifying that she wants to combine powers to take this guy down, but Regina whispers in reply that she got rid of her evil half and thus doesn't know how strong she is anymore. The savior assures that evil did not make her strong and then says, "Let's do this." She then commands Hyde's attention by yelling and addressing him as "mutton chops", right before she and Regina fire two rather hefty blasts of magic in his direction. He appears to stumble as the white and red beams hit him at full force, with the townspeople stepping back to avoid any collateral from this powerful display of mystical energies. However, despite Emma and Regina pouring their very best into this attack, and despite the sounds of Hyde struggling against them, he soon starts giggling manically and forces them to realize that their magic in fact has no effect on him. He is impervious to it, able to stand straight in its path and even duck out the way so that the only damage it actually does is to a rock that used to be behind him. He then offers the people of Storybrooke some words of advice: "Do be careful. Nothing more dangerous than an untold story. And the people who don't want them told." The heroes then grows distracted by the noise of the dirigible finally crashing into the woods, and then it disappears from view. Emma and the others are soon seen making their way to the site of the dirigible's crash, careful not to step on any of the many defects that fell from the airship as it made its rather ineffectual landing. The blimp used to carry it has now been torn asunder by the trees, while the ship itself appears deserted, as is confirmed when Emma pokes her head inside the entrance and begins calling out for people. She garners no response, and soon declares to a nearby David that there's nobody inside, causing him to turn around in confusion and ask where the hell everybody is. Snow, as she inspects the tracks left behind from the people of the Land of Untold Stories, explains that they ran into the forest; it's difficult to tell exactly how many people there are but by the spacing of their steps she can deduce they were in quite the hurry - now they're out there, scattered. She wonders what Hyde wants with them but Jekyll says that it's hard to tell for, depending on who he brought with him, these stories playing out could create chaos. "That's helpful..." Regina sighs, with Jekyll then assuring that all may not be lost, asking if Hook and the Charmings recall the orderly's baton that Snow used to subdue Hyde in their realm (see "An Untold Story") ; he explains that that same technology made the dirigible and so, with the crash site at hand, he may be able to scavenge enough to make a weapon that will work on Hyde, considering that's the only thing he's ever seen that can bring him down. David proclaims that they should get to salvaging, with everyone then starting to pick up whatever scraps from the wreckage that they think might be useful. Henry rifles through some boards while David picks up a large metal plate, deeming it useless and throwing it to one side. Due it to landing against something else metal, a large clink is heard, and this triggers something deep within Emma... The clinking of blades. Suddenly, we are taken to a misty night within Emma's vision as she sees herself battling against an unknown assailant. The sounds of their swords bashing together are the reminiscent of the sound heard by Emma just now, hence the sudden appearance of this odd hallucination. Within it, Emma appears to be struggling in her fight against some sort of cloaked figure, but we're only shown a very brief segment of a much larger conflict. Emma is shaking now, back at the cash site, with the image of her swashbuckling a mysterious fiend having filled her mind. She then shoots up, attempting to right herself, but this rather off moment fails to go unnoticed by those around her. Snow asks her daughter if she's okay, only for Hook to then needlessly step out in front of her and ask essentially the same thing, wanting to know what just happened. After hesitating, Emma replies, "Nothing," then saying that they should keep going. Hook is perturbed by her behavior, continuing to watch as she makes her way further into the woods so as to be alone for a moment. With no one around her, her hand suddenly begins to shake again, and she tries to contain it with her other hand. Of course, we've seen this symptom before - in Aladdin - but Emma is entirely unaware of what's happening to her, and this makes the savior scared.

Act II
We are taken through the mists of another realm before being taken down to Mr. Gold as he strolls through a forest below, appearing rather determined as he begins to think back to his earlier conversation... "Alright, Mr. Hyde," we hear him saying in the past, "You have the keys to Storybrooke, now tell me what I want to know. How can I wake Belle?" Still in the present, Gold walks several feet through the forest before going into his inside pocket and taking out a folded-up piece of parchment. After he unfurls it, we see that it's a map, and he's looking at it rather intently. "There is a place called the Temple of Morpheus," we see Hyde saying to Rumple in the past, back when they made their deal (see "An Untold Story"). He adds that, in it, the Dark One will find sands that will allow him to walk in Belle's dreams. Then, he'll be able to wake her. Coinciding with what we hear from Hyde, we are shown that the map is leading the way to the Temple of Morpheus, which Rumple then actually spots across all the mountains and such in his path. After folding the map away and placing it back in his pocket, Rumple proceeds to disappear in his usual flurry of red smoke, reappearing inside the temple itself several miles away. A platformed mattress awaits at the top of a grand staircase, which he has just bypassed the effort of climbing, and finally he is able to take out Pandora's Box and use his magic to open it on up. The red crystal embedded into the lid glows and lifts up, unleashing a far brighter red mist which soon takes the form of Belle. Thanks to the sleeping curse she's under, she remains unconscious, but nice and cozy atop the aforementioned mattress that's been conveniently provided. Rumple takes a look at his spellbound wife, with her being free at last, before turning his attention to a nearby urn and removing it from its pedestal; he pours some of the contents - magical sands - out into his palm, then returning it to its rightful place and sprinkling said sands over Belle's sleeping body. As the magic of the sands is worked, the scenery changes around Rumple as he suddenly finds himself transported into his true love's dreamworld. It appears just like the Enchanted Forest, only covered in a thick veil of mist, and the Dark One turns around in confusion as he notices a strange man emerging from nearby. "Who are you?" Rumple asks, and the stranger introduces himself as Morpheus. He then welcomes Rumple to Belle's dreamworld and asks if he'd like to wake her up, which he is of course interested in. Back in Storybrooke, Regina approaches her house and is surprised to find, upon entry, that a whole load of boxes are currently filling the place, as well as the cries of a baby. "Zelena?" the former Queen calls out as she makes her way through the foyer, then hearing a noise from the room next door and growing cautious; however, Zelena soon makes herself known, little Robin in tow, and jokingly welcomes her sister to the "madhouse". Regina demands to know what is going on, referring to all the mess currently in her home, and Zelena explains that she's just unpacking, before asking what's happening out in the town. Stressed from her earlier encounter with Mr. Hyde, Regina reveals that Rumple handed the place over to the evil warden, and Zelena excitedly says to her daughter that it sounds as though it's time for a showdown. "Doesn't it, sweetness?" Making sure to retain a motherly warmth to her voice, she places Robin down in her crib and instructs her to have a nice nap while her mummy helps barbecue "mean old Mr. Hyde", but Regina suggests that her sister actually remain in the house. Zelena doesn't like this idea, and then she's told that Hyde is impervious to whatever Regina throws at him which means they have to play defense. Still not liking it, the formerly Wicked Witch scoffs that Regina's kept her in worse prisons, at which Regina reminds her that she said she was sorry about previously keeping her sister locked up. "I'm joking!" Zelena assures, "Seriously, you opened up your home to us, so, as long as we're here, I'm... I'm so grateful." Regina nods, believing that it will be good for the two of them, and suddenly Zelena remembers that she's got something to give her. She tells Regina that Roland gave her something of Robin's that he wanted to give to her (see "Only You"), which Regina seems touched and excited by, and Zelena elaborates that it was a feather from one of Robin's arrows. However, judging by the fact that she's looking all over the place for it, it appears that the feather is lost, and Zelena, having just commented on how sweet Roland's gesture was, tries avoiding blame by pretending that she just remembered that she put it away somewhere extra specially safe. At this, Regina tries her best to act nonchalant, telling her sister not to even worry about it. She then gestures the mess and says that a little chaos is normal, adding that she's just going to put a protection spell over the house and around the vault; "And you can... find the feather?" Zelena promises that she will find it, and Regina smiles unconvincingly. Her sister asks her if she's angry, but Regina shakes her head and says, "Of course not." Contrary to what's just been stated, Regina can be see rather clearly letting out her rage as she aggressively applies the protection spell to the entrance of her vault, thrice in succession. With it staying strong, she begins to lower her arms, just as Snow approaches from behind and comments that it looks safe and sound to her. Regina makes clear that there is no way Hyde is getting into her vault, but Snow says that they might not have to worry about him anymore since Jekyll finished his weapon. The former Queen seems pleased with the doctor's handiwork, determining that he's eager to defeat his bitter half, and Snow confirms this, then asking how Regina is dealing with having done the same thing. "I'm fine," Regina shrugs, "I'm better than fine even, it's... did I mention I'm fine?" Snow finds it obvious that something is bothering her though and Regina finally admits to it, saying that something is gnawing at her: something with red hair and a fondness for pointy hats. Snow realizes that Regina is talking about her sister and Regina acknowledges that the source of her anger may sound petty, but Roland gave Zelena something of Robin's to give to her and she already lost it. A feather from his arrow. Snow seems surprised by this, saying that she knows Regina and that this isn't about a feather, at which Regina responds that she doesn't know what it's about. "Well, whatever it is, just talk to her about it!" Snow encourages, "Put it out in the open, deal with your pain." "Maybe..." Regina utters, and Snow gives her a look. Right now, the former Queen would rather focus on getting Hyde the hell out of town, and so she sets off for the ambush. Snow begs her not to avoid this but Regina insists that she isn't; after all, Snow of all people should know that heroism comes first. The heroes can be seen staking out town hall, where apparently Hyde has taken up residence, and Regina soon approaches Emma alongside Jekyll and asks her if she's ready. Emma, who's crouched down in hiding behind the bushes with the newly constructed weapon in tow, assures that she is, although she doesn't look it, while Regina and Jekyll proceed to get into position for what's about to go down. The former Queen drags the doctor across the town hall paving, making it look as though he's her prisoner, and calls out for Mr. Hyde, requesting that he come out and take what he really wants - lest he would like for her to deprive him of the pleasure and kill Jekyll herself. Hyde then comes bursting from the entrance way, greeting Regina with a smile, and Emma gets herself into a better standpoint to shoot Hyde with the weapon as Regina tells him that if he leaves town then his "good" half is all his. However, Hyde points out a problem with her proposal: that his work is there, in Storybrooke, and it's only just beginning. As such, he'd like to alter the deal so that he takes Jekyll and keeps Storybrooke while Regina gets to avoid embarrassing herself because, while everyone was afraid of the Queen, she isn't so scary. "No deal," Regina states, having let Jekyll go, and then she summons a fireball into her hand and throws it at the warden. It does nothing, of course, but it does distract him, giving Emma the perfect moment to strike with the electronic firer. However, she grows suddenly incapable thanks to... Another vision of the same fight; Emma in a black tank top, wielding a sword. She shakes in the present, clutching the weapon, her eyes going out of focus as her hands tremor. More flashes of the battle, the clinking of blades, and soon enough Emma is going back and forth from this foresight and what's happening in front of her right now. Because of this, she fails to fire on time, meaning Regina has to call out for her. During this time, Hyde clutches the Mayor by the throat and begins to lift her up, strangling her, and Emma just stares at the tool she's supposed to be using, still trembling like crazy. Another shot of the sword-fight, so fast pace, against this unknown, cloaked, hooded and gloved enemy that Emma is trying so hard to defeat. "Emma!" Regina is able to choke out as Hyde's grip on her throat tightens, and finally the warden turns to see the savior and is caught off-guard by the powerful weapon she's toting. Clashing swords. Emma stumbling. The cloaked figure striking down at her with his blade. It's taking place somewhere familiar. Regina once again calling her name springs Emma back to action, and she flicks the switch on the device and blasts Hyde backwards with a hefty dose of lightning. He literally goes flying, smashing through the windshield of the car parked nearby, and quickly the other heroes rush to subdue him. Jekyll slaps him with a pair of shackles, explaining that they're specially made so that the warden can't break out of them, while David drags him away and begins hauling his ass off to prison. Emma, meanwhile, approaches Regina sorrowfully, asking if she's okay, and Regina, rubbing her throat, assures that she is, though she'd like to know what's wrong with the blonde. "Why did you hesitate?" she demands, but Emma insists that nothing's wrong and that she's fine. She approaches Hyde as Hook and David steady him by either arm, and he asks Emma if she's really a savior. She tells him to shut up because he's their prisoner now, and Snow adds that she should ignore him. "Yes, ignore me, just like your tremors," Hyde adds as he's dragged away, and Emma begins chasing after him, needing to hear what it is that he knows. "More than you. If you wish to know what's happening to you, you know where to find me," he manages to say before David stuffs him into the back of the sheriff's car, and Emma seems to be genuinely considering the option of speaking to him about her sudden affliction, desperately needing to know what it's all about.

Act III
Emma returns to the site of the crashed dirigible in the forest and, as she inspects the wreckage, feels her hand start to tremor once more. She tries her best to tame it, and eventually succeeds, then being greeted by a familiar dalmatian and its owner. The savior greets Archie, who brings with him two cups of coffee, and Pongo as well, whom she gives some fuss. She then asks what the two of them are doing there and Archie says how he heard she was out looking for new arrivals and so he thought maybe she'd want some coffee. Seeing through this attempt at an excuse, Emma rightfully deduces that her parents sent him, and the therapist wastes no time in admitting it. He tells her that they're a little worried about her, due to the off moments she's been having, and they thought it might be easier for her to talk to... "A cricket?" Emma questions, seeming annoyed, and then she apologizes, making clear that she didn't mean that like she was "anti-cricket", it's just that she's not really in the mood for therapy right now. In Archie's experience, that is usually when people need it the most, and Emma fails to respond. The conscience adds that she's been fighting bad guys for years without a break, then recalling that when he met her all that time ago she had nothing but walls around her to protect her, but since then - with Henry and her family and Hook - those walls are down. Emma asks if that's not a good thing and Archie assures her that of course it is, but it also let in all the collateral damage of all that fighting she does. Finally accepting the coffee on offer, Emma requests to know how she's supposed to fix that, and Archie says, "With time. And, and some hard work." She wonders if he can't give her a pill or something, but he tells her that when it comes to fixing our biggest problems... there are no shortcuts. The savior doesn't appear happy with this declaration, but then she gets a contradictory idea. The wheel on the outside of a large metal door spins around frantically as it is unlocked, and we soon see Emma entering one of the cells in the basement of the hospital. The door closes behind her, thanks to her magic, and Mr. Hyde - who's been relocated here - realizes that she's taken him up on his offer and calls her a smart girl for doing so. Emma tells him to keep calling her "girl" and see how that works out for him, while he gestures the shackles on his wrists, which have now been attached via a chain to the wall, and requests that she take them off and see how that works out for her. He has yet to make eye contact, just staring out the grated window, and Emma finally comes forward to remind the warden that he said he knew what was wrong with her, and now she needs him to prove it. Hyde then looks at her, turning and smiling and taking a casual attitude to the whole thing, and he reminds her that she was a prisoner once and should therefore know how this works. Surprised by his apparent knowledge, Emma asks what makes him think she was in prison, at which he reminds her that he was a warden and he knows that "caged look" which never quite fades. As such, she must know that prisoners respond to carrots and sticks and she brought neither, and so he suggests that next time she try a bottle of Syrah and two glasses. Emma realizes that he has no idea how to help her, moving to exit the cell, but he exclaims that he knows about the battle in her mind's eye, and he slowly sits down on the bed as she stops in her tracks. She turns back to him, needing to know more, only for him to point out that he thought she was just leaving. After taking a moment, Emma approaches him coldly, telling him that he's right and sitting down on the bed next to him. "I was in prison," she admits, "The worst part about it was the loneliness. It sucked. Especially for a guy like you who likes to talk so much. So, you can either tell me what you know... or I'll walk out of here, and I will not come back with wine. I just won't come back. Nobody will." Mr. Hyde indeed looks a tad desolate at this, failing to respond in any way, shape or form, and so Emma stands up and re-approaches the door. She reiterates her point, saying that he can just sit there in silence or he can rot, and finally he replies that she did come with a stick after all. "That's very impressive, savior, except for one small thing..." he adds as he too gets up from the bed - and then he lunges for her, his arms poised to strangle, only for the chain to stop short of allowing him to clasp his hands around her throat. Emma stands there, back against the closed door, looking terrified, and Hyde notices her hand trembling yet again. She makes a fist to stop it, and he points out, managing to touch her chin with his finger, that she is afraid of him. "Aren't you?" Then he tells her not to worry because he brought someone that can help fix her problem and if she wants to find them then she need only follow the red bird. Emma questions this, but Hyde says that the true question is whether or not she's ready to face her own story. After calling her "savior" one more time, he suddenly retreats, making her jump, and she's left staring at him for a moment.

Trivia

 * The title card of this episode features Jafar flying on his magic carpet.
 * Although credited as co-starring, Peter Marcin (Chief) and Ingrid Torrance (Nurse Ratched) are absent from this episode
 * However, they are both featured in promotional stills for the episode, meaning their scenes were most likely cut for time.

Production

 * The title of this episode was officially confirmed by executive producer/co-creator Adam Horowitz, via his Twitter account, on June 25, 2016.
 * This episode marks the thirtieth writing credit for the series' co-creators Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz.

Gallery
Gallery of photographic stills released to promote the episode.