Operation Mongoose, Part 2

"Operation Mongoose, Part 2" is the 88th episode of Once Upon a Time, as well as the second part of its fourth season's finale.

Summary
With the Author having proven himself to be a formidable wild card in his alliance with Gold, the tables remain turned on heroes and villains alike, and the prospect of any happy outcome appears worlds away. Henry continues to learn that he has big shoes to fill as he steps up to save his family before the story's final page is turned. It's a race to the finish, and everything culminates with a shocking twist that will leave the residents of Storybrooke reeling.

Teaser
Atop his noble white steed, Rumplestiltskin rides through the Enchanted Forest kitted out in his golden armor. A brave and valiant knight if there ever were one, he rides past some children who are using wooden swords to pretend to do battle. They stop when they see the Ogre Slayer galloping by, and soon all of the children in the area come running, wanting to sneak a peek at this land's most renowned hero. When we next see Rumple, he is helmet-less as he steps into his small, wooden cottage - the same hovel he used to live in with his son (see "Desperate Souls", et al.) - and calling out for his wife Belle. Immediately, she approaches and greets him with a kiss, but becomes distracted by the sound of a baby gurgling. Neal is beginning to wake up in his cot, and Belle comments that it appears as though someone else wishes to celebrate her husband's return. This pleases Rumple, who closes the door and moves around the cot along with Belle, asking as he does so how the newest member of their family is doing. "With any luck, he'll grow up to be just like dear old dad," says Isaac, who's revealed to be sitting in the back room with a cup of water. Rumple is surprised, for Belle didn't tell him they had a visitor, and the former Author stands up to introduce himself by name, explaining that he was travelling through their village when he was invited inside by the Ogre Slayer's wife to slate his thirst. He sips his cup of water, but tells Belle that it tastes a little murky, and so she offers to go get some that's fresh from the well.

She leaves, and Rumple walks toward Isaac, knowing almost instantly that he didn't come there for the water. Isaac comments that he's perceptive in all worlds, putting the cup down as Rumple approaches his baby, telling the Light One that he came there to warn him that his happiness is in danger. "From what?" Rumple questions, to which Isaac replies, "A boy. He's on a mission to help the bandit, Regina. If he succeeds, everything you have will be destroyed. Not to mention what I have..." "Ha!" the knight interjects, calling Isaac out on his utter nonsense because he doesn't understand how some stranger's actions can affect his life. "Because your happiness, your entire life, it's not real!" Isaac explains, "I know because I'm the one who created it! With magic! And, it is all about to crumble. Regina's true love is about to marry another; she's going to try and stop the wedding. You cannot let her succeed. You have to kill her." Rumple draws his sword suddenly, aiming it at Isaac as he comes to the conclusion that he's been sent there to try to corrupt him, but Isaac assures that the Light One has already been corrupted, and before all of this he was a villain - maybe the worst one of all - which is why he had him use magic to rewrite his story.

He insists that he can prove it to him, knowing things such as the secrets he's kept from Belle: the ones about his first son, Baelfire. Shocked, Rumple lowers his sword and calmly demands to know where Isaac heard that name, but all the former Author does is recall that, in this story, he was killed in the Ogre Wars despite his father's heroic efforts. But, in reality, he died because of his father's cowardice (see "Quiet Minds"). Rumple refuses to believe this, knowing to have protected his son and done the best he could - he was honorable. Isaac says otherwise, however, and makes clear that Baelfire died because of Rumple. "Liar!" the Ogre Slayer declares, again raising his sword, "Get out of here, now." Isaac agrees to go, being swayed towards the door, but adds that deep down Rumple knows he's right. He's not really a hero, and if he doesn't kill Regina and keep her from her happy ending then everyone, including Belle, will know too. Before Isaac finally leaves, he tells the defensive Rumple that he knows he'll make the right choice... he always does. The Light One is deeply perturbed by the former Author's words. ONCE UPON A TIME

Act I
"Ahoy!" Henry shouts over at the docks as he makes his way aboard the Jolly Roger, hoping to find someone there who's willing to help him. Suddenly, Killian Jones steps out and tells the boy to be careful, for no one steps aboard the Jolly Roger's decks without an invitation from its captain first. Walking up the stairs to be on the same platform as Hook, Henry wonders if the "captain" plans to make him walk the plank, to which Hook says that it depends on why Henry is there. The boy states that he needs a ship to take him to the Bottomless Sea, and Hook knows these to be treacherous waters, presuming that there must be something of great value there to take such a risk. "Someone," Henry makes clear, handing the pirate the map he was earlier able to snag from the burning book as he explains that this person's name is Emma, and she was imprisoned there by the Queen. Hook says that he's sorry for the young man, but he couldn't help him even if he wanted to. He tries handing back the singed map, much to Henry's confusion; he points out that Hook is captain, so he should be able to take his ship wherever he wants... but this is met by laughs from behind, as Black Beard comes aboard. He questions if Killian has been calling himself a captain, for he thought he had told him to be done scrubbing the decks by the time he returned, and Hook immediately finds himself exclaiming, "I'm sorry, Captain Black Beard!"

Clearly he fears this man, and Henry just grows even more confused. Black Beard confirms for him that he is indeed the captain, unless his deck boy wants to keep playing pretend. "What do you say, Hook? Beat me, and the Jolly Roger is yours! (see "The Jolly Roger") Or are you still a one-handed coward?" Black Beard draws his sword as he says this last part, ready to duel, and Hook finds himself running to find his cleaning equipment so that he may scrub the decks. Henry demands to know what the brave pirate he's come to know is doing, demanding that he stand up to his captain because he can beat him. Hook insists that Henry clearly isn't that familiar with him, apologizing because he can't help him in any way. He begins scrubbing and an entertained Black Beard puts away his sword, leading Henry to draw one for himself as he comments that it looks like he's going to have to help Hook instead. He slashes through a nearby rope and it causes a metal ship-part to come flying at Black Beard's head, smacking him right in the face and causing him to pass out. "What the bloody hell are you doing?!" Hook enquires, to which Henry says, "Getting you your ship back! Come on, let's dump Black Beard and go!" Hook asks if he thinks it's that easy, because he can't sail the Jolly Roger alone, but Henry assures that he can help. The pansy pirate wonders how the boy knows how to sail a ship, and Henry reveals that he had a great teacher... "You." (see "It's Not Easy Being Green") Hook is surprised to hear this, watching as the young man approaches the wheel.

The Jolly Roger is next seen sailing its way toward the Bottomless Sea, and, as Hook is busy steering the ship, Henry tells him to look, for through his telescope he's spotted the tall and supposedly impenetrable tower in which the savior is locked away. A Black Knight can be seen standing guard, before heading inside, and Hook wonders how they're supposed to get past them. Henry points out that there's only one, so they can take him out, but Hook points out in turn that he's a deckhand, not a soldier. "Then maybe we don't need to fight..." Henry hypothesizes, getting a new idea. With the ship having been docked outside the island prison, Hook is seen leading Henry through the entrance to the tower - the latter has his hands tied together by rope and a sack covering his head, so as to look like a prisoner himself. They approach the Black Knight, who goes to draw their sword, but Hook assures that he's there on official business for the Queen to deliver this dangerous prisoner from the kingdom of "Kashyyyk". The Black Knight removes the sack from over the boy's head, taking a good look at him, but Henry suddenly grabs Hook's sword and uses its handle to ram the guard in the face, thus knocking them out.

As he re-sheathes the blade, Hook commends the lad on a job well done, and Henry assures that the "Wookiee prisoner gag" always work. "The what?" asks Hook, but Henry tells him to never mind, grabbing the keys from the Knight's belt and ordering his nerdy pirate comrade to lock the guard in the stow - he'll be back with his mom as soon as he can. Hook appears uneasy with the task he's been set, but Henry doesn't care; instead, he just proceeds through the prison tower with the keys in tow, eventually making it to the room in which Emma is locked away. She remains on the floor, chained there by her wrists, and she's still very much a tattered mess. Slowly, however, she looks up at the boy who's come to her rescue, and he says, "Hi, my name is..." "Henry..." she finishes for him. "Mom?" he questions, and Emma manages to get to her feet as she tearfully exclaims, "Henry!" He realizes that she remembers him, and she comments joyously that she knew he'd find her. They share a hug (as best they can due to the shackles), and, for the moment, all's well.

Act II
Henry leans out from embracing his imprisoned mother, telling her as he uses the keys he stole to unlock her shackles that he doesn't understand; how does she remember but no one else does? Emma has arrived at the conclusion that it was part of Gold's plan - her punishment in this world is that she knows the truth but is powerless to do anything about it, which means she's no longer the savior because she's got no magic. Henry says that that's alright because he thinks he knows what to do; "Now come on." With Emma free, she and Henry are next seen making their way back through the tower, where the former literally runs into Hook. She is happy to see him, especially in such close quarters, and Henry introduces her to the pirate as his mother. Killian certainly takes a fancy to her but her no idea how to express it, instead just holding out his one good hand as a form of greeting. She shakes it, awkwardly, before deciding that they need to get going, for they have a wedding to stop. Hook senses this awkwardness and appears confused, before simply following Emma and Henry out of the tower.

Soon, all three of them are aboard the Jolly Roger and sailing away from the not-so-impenetrable island prison, and Emma is talking to Killian as he steers the ship. He comments that he's pleased she regained her freedom, as is she, but unfortunately it's not going to last unless he puts some distance between that tower and them before the guard wakes up. Back inside the tower, we see the Black Knight that Henry knocked out stir before sitting up, now awake. "Why?" Hook asks, back aboard the ship, to which Emma replies, "Because that was not any ordinary Black Knight..." She adds: "Her name is Lily; she's dangerous."

- Emma Swan

As Emma says this, we see the Black Knight remove their helmet: it's this world's version of Lily Page, and her eyes glow yellow as she begins to undergo the transition from human to dragon form.

Hook still doesn't understand what the problem with this Lily is... and then a massive dragon bursts through the tower walls. Emma warns Henry to get below deck and he obliges while Lily gravitates toward the prison roof. She roars, and Emma tells a frightened Hook that she needs him to load the cannon with a chain-shot, which becomes more crucial when the dragon takes flight and begins circling the air near them. Emma runs for the chain-attached cannonball and Hook helps her manage it, loading it into the actual cannon and readying to light it. He holds out, however, because Emma orders that he hold his fire until she tells him, for they only have one shot. The dragon circles the tower some more, and Emma beckons her by name, waving her arms in desperation to have her dealt with quickly. Lily sees her and Emma continues to aggravate the dragon, which is now most assuredly soaring her way. "Now!" Emma orders, and the cannon is lit. The cannonball hits the dragon square in the chest just as she's breathing a jet of flames their way. Instead, the chains wrap around her neck and she is knocked into the sea, causing a massive splash as she does so. Emma smiles, victorious, and Hook comments on how close that was, retrieving a flask from his pocket in order to celebrate. Emma takes it from him once he's had a swig but is disgusted by the contents, wondering what's inside. He tells her it's goat's milk, which leads her to wonder what happened to his rum. "I'm allergic, never touched the stuff," he assures, to which she says, "Of course you are..." He then wants to ask her a question, knowing that she trusted him with his life just now but wondering why. She tentatively reveals that it's complicated, and might take a while, but he points out that his schedule's pretty clear. "Okay, let's first work on your fighting skills. And then we gotta help Regina stop that wedding."

We are treated to an establishing shot of the Dark Palace, before the camera zooms in and we're taken into the council room of the Evil Queen Snow White. Five of the dark dwarfs, as well as a wicked version of Granny, are sat around a black roundtable, reminiscent of the one usually seen in Prince Charming's castle (see "Pilot", et al.). Snow White herself soon enters with her huntsman not far in tow. She delicately places her gloved hands onto the edge of the table as she asks in a contradictory gentle manner, "Where is Regina's heart?" Her council declines to provide an answer, to her chagrin, and so she instead asks about the child, for surely these imbeciles aren't all stupid enough to report back there empty-handed. Charming weighs in, assuring his Queen that they are exactly that stupid, and Grumpy defends himself by saying that they would have caught the bandit were it not for Blue and her "gang of uglies" laying a trap of dark fairy dust, paralyzing their axes. An angered Granny points out how he's always blaming the fairies, suggesting that the dwarf instead takes some responsibility once in a while. Grumpy threatens her in return, but Snow White orders silence, clearly tired out by her less than stellar lackeys. Maintaining a calm persona, she tells her council that they aren't there to fight - they're a team.

Grumpy asks if she's not mad, and Snow, acting almost shocked, says that of course she isn't, beginning to move around the table. "It's not your fault," she assures, and the dwarfs and Granny are all visibly discomforted, "It's mine. You see, I'm the leader, and I have to lead by example. We have to extreme lengths to succeed, and to do that... I have to show you how." She comes to a stopping point, and begins moving back round the table from the opposite direction, adding, "I have to motivate you." She stops when behind Doc and, following her declaration, she plunges her hand into his back, to his great pain, and rips out his heart. His face smacks down on the table, and the Evil Queen proceeds to crush it to dust, killing him instantaneously. "Well, now you're down to six," she tells the frightened dwarfs, leaning in close to a wide-eyed Grumpy and asking, "Do you want to make it five?" He shakes his head, and so she suggests they get to work at finding Regina and the boy and killing them. As she vacates the room with her huntsman, Doc's dead body slides off the table and onto the floor, leaving nothing but a pair of broken glasses in his wake.

At the docks back on land, Hook is adjusting his sword within its scabbard, having just been told by Emma - who's changed her outfit - that in this other reality he's an expert with such a weapon. She refers to him as "a regular Jack Sparrow", but he has no way of knowing if that's good or not. She suggests that he let her show him how to use it, moving in from behind and placing her hands on either one of his arms, making him draw his blade. Using her hand to wield his sword-baring wrist, she relays to him the saying that once you become an expert, your subconscious takes over. Back in her world, it's referred to as muscle memory. They are very close to one another, closer still once she helps him put the sword away, and he requests that she tell him more about this reality she wants to return to. Them, for example, since he senses that they may be close. "Very," she assures, to his joy, and he comments that he's starting to get jealous of the other him (see "Snow Drifts").

Emma now wishes to see what food Henry's managed to scrounge because she's starving, but, as she starts to walk away, a human Lily can be seen turning a corner as she exclaims, "There they are! As I told you, my Queen." Emma and Hook are shocked, especially when Snow White and Charming follow the loyal Black Knight, and she adds that the one-handed pirate was helping them, as well as a boy. Some dwarfs converge on the scene also, along with a few other members of the Black Guard, and Grumpy steps forth to order Emma and Hook to tell them where the child is hiding. He approaches Hook with his sword, knocking the pirate's out of his hand, but Emma tells the dwarf to back off, pushing him to the ground with her hands and commenting that they may have to change his name to Stumpy. "I know you..." the Evil Queen realizes, "You're... Emma. The mad hag who was locked in the tower; I almost didn't recognize you without your chains." Emma says in turn that she's hard to recognize also, as is her huntsman, for this isn't who they are.

Snow asks to know who Emma thinks they're supposed to be, and the magic-less savior reveals that they're her parents. She's the product of their true love. They taught her how to be a hero; they taught her how to believe in hope... and she does. And now she needs them to believe in it too. As she says this, Killian picks up his sword behind her, and Snow appears taken aback by her daughter's words. "You're right..." she whispers, "Emma... hope is a very powerful thing..." but then she shatters the illusion by adding, "Which is why I'm going to have to snuff it out of you and that awful son of yours. Kill them." Before her knights can act, however, Charming tells them to wait - he's spotted Henry, returning to the dock with some armfuls of bread in tow. The huntsman points this out to his Queen, who is pleased, and she comments that she is going to enjoy watching him die in front of his mother. Hook tells Emma to save Henry and return things to how they were meant to be, and if they succeed then what happens to him here won't matter. Emma is surprised, again being told to save her boy, and she runs away while Killian readies his weapon.

He kicks a wooden pillar, causing an outdoor shelf full of sacks to tumble down on the knights - including Lily - and making it so that the face off is just between he and Charming. He holds his sword awkwardly, and Charming asks the pirate if Emma is worth his life. He says that he's willing to find out, and, after a pause, the huntsman knocks Hook's sword with his, half knocking him off his balance. Hook looks uneasy, knowing he can't take on such a skilled fighter, and then the battle truly begins. The blades clash continuously, with Hook only acting defensively. He manages to dodge several of Charming's attacks, only just, but his reflexes soon become practically expert. When Charming prepares to slice his head in two, Killian blocks his sword with both his own blade and his hook, managing to push against his force enough to disarm him completely. He then elbows the huntsman in the face, causing him to fall to the ground, and aims his weapon at him from above. "What do you know..." the pirate utters, "I'm a natural!" He smiles, and Emma and Henry watch worriedly.

The Queen steps onto the scene, but she surrenders her arms when Hook points his sword at her instead. She begins stepping sideways, making it so that Hook has to turn on his heels to maintain an eye on her, and he begins to ask, "What about you, your majesty? Should I make quick work of -" Suddenly, Charming uses one of his daggers to stab Hook from behind, inflicting a fatal injury. Emma screams, and as Hook dies in the arms of the huntsman, his killer leans in close and whispers in his ear that he never did like pirates. Killian's sword is dropped, for good, and Emma wants to step in an help somehow... but she can't. Henry beckons his mother, while all she can do as watch as her boyfriend's stab wound is made deeper, and his corpse drops to the ground. Henry insists on fleeing the scene, but the death of Hook shakes Emma to her very core. She calls out for him but it's no use. Meanwhile, Snow White flares up a fireball in her hand. Emma and Henry run away round the corner, making it so that the Queen's attack misses them by a hair's breadth. Hook continues to lie dead on the floor.

Act III
Belle is seen sipping some tea from one of her teacups as she watches over her baby, putting the cup down when he whines and gently rocking his cradle. Rumplestiltskin then enters the cottage - dressed in the kind of leather usually seen on Prince Charming in the fairytale land that was - but his silence alerts his wife that something's wrong. Pulling up a chair, he tells her that he's just learned of a threat to their realm; if left unchecked, it'll destroy all that they've built together - all their happiness. This confuses Belle, who points out that her husband is the Light One, so whatever this force is he'll overcome it. He assures her that it's more complicated than that, because eliminating this threat means he has to make a difficult choice, and he could make the wrong one. At this, Belle gently places her hand on his and promises that he won't, as he never does. "You're a hero, Rumple," she adds, to which he replies, "Yeah but what if I'm not?" In response, Belle decides to grab one of her teacups and saucers, handing it to the Ogre Slayer and telling him that things never seem quite as bleak after a cup of tea. Rumple takes the tea, but almost immediately drops it onto the floor, spilling the contents everywhere. He picks it up, apologizing, but Belle says that it's alright, pointing out that it's just chipped (see "Skin Deep"). "We can fix it," she guarantees, but Rumple tells her, "I'm not so sure it's as simple as that..."

Trivia

 * The title card of this episode features a swan, in reference to the surname of the series' main protagonist.
 * This title card is only present in the version of the episode which also includes "Operation Mongoose, Part 1".
 * The same title card is featured in the non-syndicated version of "There's No Place Like Home".
 * The way in which the letters form to make the main logo is different than in other episodes, as is the musical accompaniment.


 * When this episode is aired in syndication without "Operation Mongoose, Part 1", it has the exact same title card as the latter.

Production

 * The title of this episode was implicitly confirmed by executive producer/co-creator Adam Horowitz, via the release of the previous episode's title on his Twitter account, on March 13, 2015. It was officially confirmed on March 18, 2015.

Ratings
The episode, along with "Operation Mongoose, Part 1", continued to remain flat from the previous episode with a 1.7/6 among 18-49s but saw 5.42 million viewers tuning in, a 1.2% increase. However, the numbers were down from the previous season's finale, which had a 2.3 rating.

Gallery
Gallery of photographic stills released to promote the episode.