This is my first Merlin themed story, it's set after the events of the 5th season and is canon compliant up to episode 8 (I haven't seen the latest one yet). To all those that follow my other story, I haven't forgotten it, I just had to get this one out of the way before I could go back to it. I'm planning another chapter for this story eventually, it might be awhile before I write it though. Enjoy!
...
Merlin sighed as he followed Arthur's horse. They had been riding the whole day and his rear end was starting to protest against the leather saddle. It had also been raining steadily for the last few days, not only was he soaked through but he was covered in splattered mud. Arthur glanced around and smirked at him. "Cheer up Merlin! Soon we won't be able to tell the difference between you and your horse!"
"Ha ha, very funny my Lord," muttered Merlin. The other knights started joking about Merlin's sour face which only served to worsen his mood. "How much further do we have to go to see this blasted thing?"
"Language, Merlin," cautioned Arthur, "I told you this morning that is would be a day's ride to the landslide."
"Yes, you did and it has been a day's ride already! We have to be getting close."
"Calm down Merlin," said Gwaine, riding up beside him, "If we don't find it soon, we can just set up camp and you can cook us all some nice soup, that should make you happier!" He ducked the swipe that Merlin made at him and laughed as he rode on ahead.
Merlin scowled after the knight as he pondered the circumstances that had led to him being so wet and miserable. A rider had come in the night before from an outlying village to report that there had been a large landslide. The landslide itself hadn't caused too many troubles, but it had uncovered a set of dark caves. Some of the local men had gone in to explore the caves, but they had not come back. The messenger had asked if the King would come and find the missing men. Arthur had agreed at once, despite Merlin advising him not to go. What is the point in being an adviser to the King if he would never listen to that advice? Merlin thought to himself. Merlin knew that Arthur's enthusiasm wasn't just about him wanting to be a good leader to his people. Gwen had never fully recovered from her ordeal and she had been distant with everyone lately. Arthur would never let on how much it had hurt him that Gwen flinched at the very sight of him, he refused to even admit it to himself. He now took every opportunity to be away from the castle, though Merlin was not quite sure whether it was to ease Gwen's suffering or his own.
"The landslide is just through those trees," the messenger said to Arthur and the knights.
"Thank you Alven, you can go back to your village now. We will send word if we find anything." Arthur said. The messenger bowed in his saddle and rode away. Merlin frowned, he seemed to be in a great rush to leave. He didn't have long to think about it though as Arthur had already started riding towards the trees. Merlin hurriedly kicked his horse forward and followed him.
There was a clearing on the other side of the trees that backed onto what once must have been a large rocky mound. The hill wall looked like it had been blasted away, pieces of rock were scattered all around the clearing. A gaping hole in the wall contrasted menacingly against the pale rock. Merlin shuddered, there was a strange feeling emanating from the cave.
Sir Leon was the first to speak up. "Sire, this doesn't look like a landslide."
Arthur was silent as he stared at the cave. Finally, he nodded. "No, it doesn't look like a landslide at all."
Merlin dismounted from his horse and walked over towards the mound. He ran his hand over the wall next to the cave entrance. There were strange markings there that may have once been writing that had faded over the years. "What does it say Merlin?" asked Percival.
"I don't know, but it looks very old."
"Well, why don't we go and find out what is in there?" Arthur said as he walked towards the cave.
"Arthur, I think we should leave this place alone. Whatever is in there shouldn't be disturbed," Merlin cautioned.
"Come on Merlin, you're always saying that and nothing bad has ever happened. Anyway, it's our duty to find out what happened to those men."
Merlin looked at Arthur incredulously. Before he could point all the times that bad things had happened when Arthur didn't listen to him, Arthur had lit a torch and entered the cave. Merlin and the knights hurried to follow. "Don't you think it was slightly suspicious the way Alven left so quickly?" asked Merlin.
"He probably just wanted to go home to his family or something."
"He never even told us where his village is," Merlin pointed out.
"Well, it has to be around here somewhere doesn't it? It shouldn't be hard to find, and besides, those men should be able to find their way home."
Merlin looked skeptical, "That relies on us actually finding them, alive."
"Look, would you just be quiet, I think I can hear something." Arthur motioned to his men to stop. Faint movements of air could be heard, as if there was something breathing slowly in and out. Everyone slowly and quietly unsheathed their swords. As they moved forwards, something glinted in the torch light. Gwaine stepped forwards and then jumped back. His torch showed the skeletons of half a dozen men lying on the ground. "I think I found those villagers," he said.
Arthur crouched down to examine the bones. "I don't think so Gwaine, look at this." He held up a Roman helmet. "This would have to be at least one hundred years old, if not older." He straightened up and kept walking. The others dodged around the bones and followed on.
Eventually, they entered a large room that had been carved out of the rock. They spread out and kept moving forwards, the light from their torches flickering as a breeze followed them up from the tunnel. In the middle of the room there was a slab of stone. As they got closer, they could make at the form of someone lying on the stone.
"This place is a tomb," said Leon.
Arthur nodded before motioning to the knights to keep moving onwards. As they spread out and looked around the room, Merlin approached the figure on the stone. The torch light made it look like the young woman lying there only slept. As he looked closer, he saw that her hands and feet were bound in chains to the stone. There was even a collar around her neck, fixing her to the hard rock. He glanced around with a puzzled look, the others were to busy searching the rest of the room to have noticed anything odd about the girl. A slight movement caught the corner of his eye, he could have sworn he saw her chest moving slightly. Merlin shook his head, he was being silly, it must have been a trick of the light.
"What is it Merlin?" Arthur asked as he came over, "You look worried. Don't tell me that your getting the spooks about everything again."
"It's nothing, just my eyes playing tricks."
Arthur looked curiously at him, "What did you see?"
Merlin laughed nervously, "Oh, I just thought for a moment that she had moved."
Arthur peered at the woman. "Merlin, you astound me. There is no way that she could be moving, she has to have been here for a very long time."
"It's strange though, why is she chained there?"
"I don't know Merlin! It was probably some bizarre ritual or something." He straightened up and called his knights over, "There's not sign of the missing villagers, I think we should leave here and try and block that tunnel back up again." Everyone nodded and they started to leave.
Gwaine walked over to where Merlin was still looking at the dead woman. "Come on Merlin, no need to pine over some long gone bird! We might be able to find you a nice live one in the village." Merlin glared at him and Gwaine laughed before slapping him on the back. Merlin stumbled forwards and fell onto the stone. The others turned and started laughing as Gwaine started to joke about how poor Merlin was so desperate he had to try and woo the dead.
Merlin hurried to stand up straight, the strange feeling he had had when he entered the caves was even stronger now. He looked down and saw that the woman's eyes were open and staring at him. He jumped back with a yell that reverberated around the room. Everyone stopped and turned to stare at him. Arthur started forwards, "Bloody hell Merlin, what's got you so worked..."
He was stopped by the girl who had started struggling against the chains that kept her on her stone resting place. She looked around wildly, her mouth open in a silent scream. Gwaine jumped and started swearing, many of the other knights followed suit. Arthur stared for a moment before he signalled to the men to leave.
"What are you doing Arthur? We have to help her!" cried Merlin.
Arthur looked stern, "No Merlin. We should go."
"She needs help, we can't just leave her here!"
"Merlin, it's obvious there is sorcery at work here. Who knows what will happen if we let her go? We are leaving, now." Merlin opened his mouth, but Arthur cut him off, "No Merlin, and that's final."
Merlin looked back at the girl who was still fighting. She looked at him with desperate, fearful eyes. He closed his eyes, turned away and followed the knights out of the room. So preoccupied with the dilemma, he ran into Percival who had stopped suddenly. Merlin looked around the bulk of Percival and saw that the tunnel had been blocked by a group of mercenaries. They grinned evilly at the King and his knights. Arthur lowered his sword and his men followed suit.
"Very good, Your Majesty," said one of the bigger mercenaries, "Now why don't you all turn around and head back into that room so that we have a little elbow room." They walked back and Merlin noticed that the girl had stopped struggling, though he could not tell if she was awake or not.
The mercenaries quickly stripped them of their weapons and bound their hands before forcing them to sit in a group by the wall. Gwaine grumbled about the indignity as the bandits rifled through their belongings. A low chuckle brought their attention to the room's entrance.
Morgana stood there, menacing in her dark robe. She smiled at the mercenaries as she approached. "Well down Ivor, you shall be well rewarded for this." She stopped in front of Arthur and smirked down at him. "Brother dearest, you seem to be in a spot of bother. What a shame."
"What do you want Morgana?" Arthur demanded.
"What do I want?" She laughed a little, "The same thing that I have wanted for years now, your death and my rightful place on the throne. And now I shall get both."
"Why don't you just kill me now and get it over with then?"
"And spoil my fun? No, you have been a pest in my plans for so long now brother, I want you to suffer in return." She crouched down in front of him and stroked his face. "Do not worry, it will all be over for you soon enough." She straightened and walked over to the stone in the middle of the room. "Do you know the legends associated with this place Arthur?" she asked. When he didn't answer her, she smiled slightly. "Of course not, you are not the type to do your research before embarking on a quest. You just like to rush headlong into whatever it might be. I really didn't think you would fall for this one, there isn't even a village close by here. Maybe if you had looked at a map, you might not be in this situation."
"Are you going to talk us to death Morgana?" Gwaine asked, "Because if you are, I would rather you just got your tame animals over there to save you the trouble."
Morgana ignored him as she circled the stone. "The stories say that this is the prison of a fearsome monster. The Romans battled it when they conquered these lands and when they could not kill it, they imprisoned it deep under ground so that it could not harm any more men. It is said that the monster was unforgiving in its quest for revenge against all who wronged it and that whoever wakes it from its slumber will die horribly."
She stopped circling and picked up a dust covered key from the end of the slab. "I must say, I was expecting something more fearsome than a little girl, but I suppose it won't hurt to see if the legends are true." She stretched her hand out to Arthur, who was lifted up into the air. He floated over and dropped with a clatter at Morgana's feet. She signalled for two of her men to come over. They freed his hands but kept their swords at his back. Arthur rubbed his wrists as he looked at Morgana. She held the key out to him, smiling wickedly. "Go on brother, why don't you release the poor thing?"
He took the key and Morgana backed away. The men at his back prodded him until he moved towards the girl. Quickly, he unlocked all the chains then stepped away. Everyone waited with baited breath, but the girl didn't move. "Don't forget the one around her neck brother," called Morgana, "You have to unlock all of them." Arthur grimaced and hesitated until the men prodded him forwards again. When he unlocked the collar, the girl's eyes opened once more.
Arthur and the mercenaries backed away. The young woman slowly raised herself and looked around. Morgana smirked as she slid off the stone and landed shakily on the ground.
Merlin quickly looked around, no one was watching him, all eyes were on the strange girl. He readied himself for her attack.
But no attack came. She stood there, swaying slowly. Morgana sighed, "That was a bit of a let down, I was expecting something more ferocious. I suppose I will have to have my fun another way then." She walked over and put the collar back on the girl's neck. The effect was almost instantaneous, she spun around wildly, screaming silently again. Morgana stepped back before the girl could touch her. "Ivor, I think this one is for you and your men."
Ivor walked over smiling and picked the girl up, ignoring her flying fists. "Thank you my Lady, this will be much appreciated."
Morgana nodded before looking back at Arthur and his knights. Arthur was once more bound and flanked by the two mercenaries. "Keep them here, alive, until morning. I will return then." Morgana said to Ivor. Her eyes flashed gold and Arthur was thrown back into the wall. He landed on the ground, hard. Morgana stalked out of the room and the mercenaries began to set up a couple of campfires on the other side of the room to the prisoners.
Arthur struggled up to a seated position with a wince. "I think she broke a rib or two," he said in reply to the questioning look Merlin gave him. He sighed, "We may as well get comfortable then."
…
They huddled in the cold breeze from the tunnel, the room was large enough that the warmth from the small fires did not reach them. All of them tried to sleep as they struggled to ignore what was happening near the fires. Even with their efforts, they still knew, and they shared feelings of guilt and helplessness. The girl had stopped struggling awhile ago and many of the mercenaries had grown bored. They turned their attentions towards their group of captives, calling out threats and jokes.
Merlin was doing his best to ignore them when his eyes met the girl's. She stared back with glazed eyes and he shivered. There was something about her that unnerved him. Ivor noticed him staring and the drunk man rose unsteadily to his feet.
"Look at this! The boy has a thing for the whore!" The other mercenaries laughed heartily as Merlin glared at them.
Ivor staggered over and lifted Merlin up. "Why don't we have some fun men? Let's give the boy a chance to enjoy his last night." He dragged Merlin over towards the fires.
One of the other men scowled at Ivor. "That's not going to be any fun, the whore can't even fight any more."
"We will have to liven her up a little then, won't we?" Ivor grinned. He took the key and gave it to Merlin. "Go on then, wake the little bitch up, maybe now that we've warmed her up she'll be a bit more interesting."
Merlin hesitated. A mercenary growled and pushed him so that he landed close to the girl. She stared at him, eyes wide. The dirt on her cheeks couldn't hide the bruises that stood out darkly underneath. She blinked and then slowly nodded to him, eyes pleading.
His bindings made it difficult to unlock the collar, but he eventually succeeded. He watched as a fire flared in her eyes and quickly scooted away. Before the drunk men could react, she had stood and grabbed the nearest one's dagger. She stabbed him in the chest and turned away from him as he fell, moving towards the next man. He fumbled with his sword, but he wasn't quick enough. She kicked him in the groin and smashed his nose when he bent over. Drawing his sword, she ran another man through. Two men attacked her together, she ducked under the swing of one but wasn't quick enough to avoid the other's sword. It cut along her stomach as she tried to turn away. He gave a cry of triumph which quickly turned to horror as she attacked him with her sword. She disarmed him a quick move before cutting his throat. His friend backed away hastily. She went to follow and then stopped.
Ivor had grabbed Merlin now held a blade to his throat. The remaining mercenaries stood over the other prisoners, weapons ready to kill them at the first notice.
"Don't come any closer or I'll kill him!" Ivor shouted at her. She shifted out of her fighting stance and gazed at him coldly. While he watched, the wound on her abdomen healed slowly. He backed away, dragging Merlin roughly with him. "Don't kill me, he was the one who freed you, kill him," he rambled. The girl didn't say anything, she just continued to stare at him. Scared, he glanced at the other men and nodded at them. Before they could kill the knights, they all collapsed to the ground, stone dead. Ivor looked around at the girl, terror in his eyes. She took a step towards him and his nerve broke. He dropped Merlin and stabbed him in the gut. He started running before he too collapsed, screaming in agony as he died.
Arthur got up and ran to Merlin who was lying in a growing pool of blood. "Just hold on Merlin, we can fix this, just don't go anywhere."
Merlin tried to grin, but the pain was too much. "I didn't know you cared Arthur." Arthur opened his mouth to reply, but was distracted as the woman came over towards him. "Leave him alone!" he shouted at her, "Haven't you killed enough men today?"
She looked at him blankly and he fell silent. Carefully, she knelt down beside Merlin and put her hands on the wound. They were quickly covered in the blood that was flowing swiftly from him. Merlin looked into her now kind eyes as he felt himself slipping away.
…
Arthur watched as his friend's eyes closed. He looked up, intending to shout at the girl again when he noticed her hands glowing. Slowly, the gaping hole closed and the colour returned to Merlin's cheeks. The girl drew away and walked away from them. Arthur saw Merlin's chest moving steadily up and down and was swamped with relief, he knew his closest friend would live.
The other knights had been busy freeing themselves with the fallen bandits weapons. Sir Leon and Sir Percival came over and bore Merlin over to one of the fires. After collecting their supplies and weapons, they turned to watch the strange girl. She was moving to each of the dead men, when she touched them they sank into the ground quietly until not a trace of them was left. When she had finished, she went over to the opposite side of the room to the knights and sat.
Arthur and his men were disconcerted, they had never seen anything like it before. She paid them no attention and they returned the favour. They quickly banked the fires and finished off the food leftover by the mercenaries. Arthur kept a close eye on Merlin and when the young man began to stir, he hurried quickly to his side.
Merlin opened his eyes and saw the worried look on Arthur's face. He groaned and sat up, his head was pounding a steady beat.
"Are you alright Merlin?" asked Arthur.
"I'm fine, bit of a headache is all. Could someone tell me what on earth happened?" They gave him a run through of the events and he nodded his head. "I remember all that, but I thought I was dying. Not that I'm complaining, but I didn't really expect to be waking up again."
"She saved you," said Arthur.
"Really?" Merlin glanced over at the huddled figure across the room, "Why?"
"No idea, why would any one want to save the worst servant I've ever had?"
"Aww, come on Arthur, admit it, you were worried about me," teased Merlin.
"I was not," said Arthur stubbornly, "You're imagining things again Merlin."
Merlin looked at the girl again. "Has she had anything to eat?" he asked.
"No, after she finished with you she went over there and has been ignoring us ever since," said Leon.
Taking some of the bread, Merlin stood. "What are you doing?" hissed Arthur.
"She's probably hungry, I was going to see if she wanted anything."
"Are you stupid? She will kill you, or turn you into a toad or something," said Leon.
Merlin laughed at this, "I would like to see her try! Anyway, she did just save my life, all of our lives actually. The least I can do is offer her some food." He walked over towards her. She watched him fearfully as he approached. He stopped and crouched down a little distance from where she was curled into a tight ball. He held out the bread, "Would you like something to eat?" he asked.
She continued to stare at him, she gave no indication that she had heard him speak.
"It's alright, I'm not going to hurt you," he said soothingly, "I just wanted to say thank you for saving me."
Slowly she uncurled enough to reach out to take the bread. She bowed her head in thanks as she took it.
"Why don't you come over and sit by the fire?"
She continued to look at him, uncomprehendingly. He repeated himself, adding hand gestures to indicate that she could go over to the fires. When she understood, she glanced at Arthur and his knights sitting there and shivered.
"They won't hurt you either, it's alright, I promise."
Moments passed as she considered his proposal, eventually she nodded again and stood up. She stumbled as she began to walk and Merlin hurried to steady her. She flinched back from him before collecting herself and taking hold of the offered hand. Her hand was like ice as he led her over to the warmth of the fires. She sat down carefully and avoided the looks that the men gave her by staring into the fire hungrily. Merlin sat down across from her and caught her eye. He indicated that she should eat the bread he'd given her. She looked surprised, as if she had forgotten the food in her hand, and she began to nibble on the bread. Silently, Merlin offered her a wineskin which she accepted with a nod of thanks.
"Do you have a name?" Arthur asked. She started at the sound but gave no answer. Merlin looked over at Arthur, "I don't think she can understand us."
"What?"
"She doesn't seem to understand it when you ask her things, maybe she doesn't know our language." said Merlin. He turned to the girl and gestured to himself. "Merlin," he said. He pointed to each of the men in turn and said their names before looking at her again. She stared back for a moment before pointing to herself. Her mouth opened but no sound came out. She looked puzzled and tried again, but only managed to produce a rasping noise. With a look of frustration, she shook her head.
"So, she can't speak, she doesn't understand what we say, how the hell do we ask her if she is going to kill us in our sleep?" said Gwaine.
Arthur shifted and winced in pain. "I doubt she will do that, she's had plenty of opportunities so far."
"Here, let me have a look at that" said Merlin.
"Its fine, I think they are just cracked, I'll just be careful for a few days." He stopped talking the girl held her hand out to him. With a glance at Merlin, who nodded, he took hold of the offered hand. She closed her eyes and Merlin could feel that she was doing something with magic. Arthur gave a slight gasp and the knights started to get up, drawing their swords. She drew back from him, watching the knights carefully.
"Sire, are you alright?" asked Leon.
Arthur nodded, amazement on his face. "Yes, yes, I'm alright."
"What happened?"
"She fixed my ribs, it was, the strangest feeling..." he trailed off as he looked at her. "Thank you," he said.
She bowed her head in reply before turning to look into the fire again.
"Fine, she isn't going to kill us right now, but what about Morgana? She said she would be back in the morning." said Gwaine.
Arthur sighed, "We can't leave now, it's too dark. We will just have to wait until sunrise and see how far we can get before she finds us. I suggest that we try to get some sleep and worry about her in the morning."
The men nodded their agreement and settled down to sleep. Merlin gestured to the girl that she should sleep too, she waited until everyone else was lying down before she joined them. Soon, they were all fast asleep.
…
Merlin was the first to wake up. He quickly went over to the tunnel entrance and noticed that the distant exit was growing lighter. He woke up each of the knights and Arthur before he turned to the strange girl. She appeared to be having a nightmare of some sort. Merlin carefully touched her shoulder and jumped back as she sat up quickly. She looked confused for a moment before seeming to remember where she was. She nodded at Merlin and then looked at the other men.
"What are we going to do with her?" asked Sir Leon as he packed.
Arthur sighed, "We had better take her with us, we can't just leave her to face Morgana."
"Pity," said Gwaine, "I think she could take Morgana in a fight."
Percival chuckled as he headed towards the tunnel. "I'll go see if our horses are still there."
Merlin crouched down by the girl and offered her a drink. She took a quick sip before returning it to him. "Do you want to come with us?" he asked, using basic hand gestures to help convey the question. She looked at him carefully and then shrugged. He offered her his hand as he stood up. She took it and he helped her get to her feet. They all then gathered their things and left the cave.
Sir Percival was waiting outside with their horses and the mercenaries horses. "Do you want us to bring these with us Arthur?"
"They may slow us down, let's just choose one for her and leave the rest," he replied.
They quickly mounted their horses and watched as the girl approached one of the horses. It nuzzled against her before she easily swung herself into the saddle. She nodded at Merlin and Arthur motioned that they should set off. They started off at a canter along the path they had followed there. Merlin looked around and saw the girl click her tongue at the other horses which hurried to follow her. He realised he was staring at her so he kicked his own horse forward and brought up the rear of the group.
They had been riding for an hour when they heard furious wing beats above them. Arthur looked up and saw a white dragon swooping down. He shouted out to everyone to get under the cover of the trees; the dragon had to break off its attack to avoid crashing. They rode at a gallop now, moving quickly through the forest. Suddenly, they found themselves in an open field. Arthur swore and kept his horse moving, hoping to reach the cover of the forest again before the dragon could come back. He heard Merlin give a shout, he looked over his shoulder to see that the strange girl had jumped off her horse and was running towards the dragon as it moved in to swoop down on them again. Merlin swung his horse around to go after her. Arthur followed suit, drawing his sword and readying himself to do battle with the white dragon. The riderless horses ran past them into the shelter of the forest. Before they could reach the girl, Morgana suddenly appeared in front of them, a smirk spread across her face. She raised her hands to hex them when the girl leapt into the air at the dragon, only it wasn't a girl any more, a great red dragon had taken her place. Morgana whipped around as the two dragons collided, the air was filled with terrible shrieks as each dragon tried to rip the other to pieces.
"Aithusa!" Morgana screamed. She forgot about Arthur as she ran to help her dragon, she was stopped from going to far by an invisible wall. Morgana beat her fists against it as she screamed out her dragon's name; the men just sat on top of their horses, completely stunned at what they had seen.
At first, it looked like the white dragon was winning the battle. Merlin could see that its deformities were slowing it down but it was larger than the red dragon. The white dragon clawed at the red one's belly, it broke off with a screech before flying around to come at Aithusa from above. The red dragon landed on the white one's back and they crashed to the ground, a bundle or red and white scales. The dragons broke apart and circled each other, both were covered in superficial scratches and bites. The peace didn't last long, they lunged at each other with a crash and the fight continued.
On the ground, the red dragon had the advantage as it could move quicker than Aithusa, who was hampered by its twisted limbs. Aithusa let loose a great stream of fire which the red dragon casually avoided. It ran at the white one and jumped into the air. Before Aithusa could turn around, the red dragon landed on her back with a sickening crunch. Aithusa toppled to the ground as the red dragon clamped down on the back of her neck with its strong jaws. Morgana let out a piercing shriek and broke through the force field that held her back. The red dragon which had to leap off Aithusa to avoid the magic that streamed from Morgana. She kept running as she screamed out the words of a spell, when she touched the white dragon they both vanished into thin air, narrowly avoiding the stream of fire that the red dragon had sent at them.
The red dragon shrieked in frustration as it stamped around the place where Morgana had vanished. When it found nothing there, it looked over at Arthur and his men. They rearranged themselves into an attack formation as the dragon came towards them. It stopped and turned its head to the side to look at them.
"Arthur, put your sword away," Merlin said softly.
"Are you crazy? That thing will attack us next!"
"It will if you don't put your sword away."
"Don't be stupid Merlin!" said Leon, "We need to kill this dragon or it will wreck havoc across the kingdom!"
The red dragon hissed at this comment, its tail swung back and forth angrily.
"Just do it!" said Merlin, "Trust me, she isn't going to hurt us as long as we don't hurt her."
"How on earth do you know that Merlin?" said Arthur angrily.
"Because if she wanted to attack us she would have done so already."
Arthur looked at Merlin carefully. Merlin looked at him desperately, "Please Arthur, just trust me on this."
Arthur nodded and sheathed his sword. Gwaine hesitated for a moment before he too put his sword away. The other knights followed suit, thought they kept their hands on the hilts, just in case.
The red dragon started slowly walking towards them. Merlin held his hand out to it and the dragon extended its neck until its nose rested against Merlin's palm. His horse fidgeted, it was clear that it didn't like being this close to the great lizard.
"Merlin?" said Arthur, "What's happening?"
Merlin hushed him and focused on the dragon. He could hear her voice in his head.
"Thank you Merlin," she said, "I owe you and your friends a great debt."
"I didn't do anything," he replied.
"You freed me from my prison and for that I am eternally grateful. If you ever need anything, do not hesitate to call me."
"How do I do that? I don't even know your name."
"My name is Caia, but do not worry, I will know when you need me."
"But who are you? Where are you from?"
"That is a tale for another time. I will see you again Merlin."
She backed away from them, nodded to Arthur who watched, amazed, as she took off into the air and flew away.
As one, the knights turned to Merlin. "What just happened?" asked Gwaine.
"I don't know," said Merlin, "I could hear her talking in my head when she touched me."
Arthur was stunned. "It can talk?" he asked.
"She's not an it, she's the same girl that was in the cave, just in a different shape now," explained Merlin.
"But how come she talked to you now?"
"I don't know, I didn't ask her."
"What did she say then?"
"Not much, just that she was thankful for us freeing her and to call her if we ever need anything."
"That's it? She didn't say anything else?"
"No, that was all she said."
Arthur looked thoughtful for a moment before he shook himself out of his reverie. "Well, we may as well keep going before Morgana comes back. We can worry about strange women who turn into dragons after we've had a proper meal and a bath."
"And a drink," said Gwaine. "I definitely need a drink."
…
It took the rest of the day to get back to Camelot, they trotted into the courtyard and dismounted as stablehands ran up to take their horses. Merlin looked up to see Gaius walking quickly down the stairs towards them.
"Gaius? What's wrong?" asked Arthur.
"I think you had better come and see Sire. Quickly."
Arthur and Merlin hurried to follow him as he led them to Arthur's chambers. They entered to find Gwen standing at the open window. She turned and smiled at Arthur, holding her arms out to him. He ran over to her and engulfed her in a hug, he hadn't seen her smile like that in a very long time. She hugged him back, tears running down her face. He pulled back and wiped them away, "What is it Gwen? Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, fantastic actually," she said.
Arthur looked at Gaius. "What happened?"
"I was bringing the Queen a sleeping draught when someone knocked on the door," said the physician. "I opened the door to find a young woman. She said she could help the Queen."
"Who was this girl?" asked Arthur.
"She said her name was Caia and that she owed you a favour Arthur."
Arthur looked at Merlin, who said, "That's what the dragon-lady said her name was."
"What did she do?" Arthur questioned.
Gwen took hold of his hands, "Please don't be angry Arthur, I was the one who said she could try if she thought that it might help."
"The girl removed the lingering effects of Morgana's curse," said Gaius.
"She took all the bad memories away," said Gwen.
"How did she do that?"
"I don't know, she just touched my hand and I felt her in my mind. She did something and next thing, I felt better than I have for ages."
Arthur looked worried, "What has she done Gaius? Has she enchanted Gwen?"
"I don't think so Arthur," Gaius said soothingly. "I believe she has completely cured Gwen of her troubles."
"What did she do then?" asked Merlin.
"She opened the window, turned into a bird and flew away," Gwen said.
"What?" said Arthur, incredulous.
"I know, I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it with my own eyes."
"But why did she do that? Not that I'm trying to be ungrateful, it's fantastic news that you're feeling better Gwen, I just don't understand why she came all this way to heal you."
"I think she is trying to repay us for freeing her," explained Merlin.
Gwen looked puzzled, "Maybe you should tell us what happened to you while you were away."
They sat down and told them their story. When they had finished, Gaius looked thoughtful.
"Do you know who she is?" Arthur asked.
"No Sire, but I have heard of the legend that Morgana spoke of. I never would have guessed that the great beast that the Romans captured was a dragon though."
"I've never heard of dragons being able to turn into people before," said Arthur.
"Neither have I," said Gaius. "While there are sorcerers that are shape-shifters, I've never encountered one that could turn into a creature of magic."
"What should we do?" asked Arthur.
"Why, nothing," said Gaius, surprised. "Just be thankful that you have this woman's loyalty rather than her hatred."
Arthur grinned slyly, "Oh, I don't think it's me that she is loyal too, she seemed to be quite taken with Merlin here." Merlin flushed and started to stammer out a denial. Arthur continued to talk over the top of him, "No idea why she would feel that way though, Merlin here doesn't have much going for him." Gwen started to scold him for being mean to his servants, Arthur silenced her with a kiss. Merlin and Gaius quickly left the two to their reunion.
When they got back to their room, Merlin turned to Gaius. "Who do you think she was?"
"I have no idea," Gaius admitted.
"Do you think Kilgharrah will know?"
"Perhaps." Gaius pushed a bowl of broth across the table towards Merlin. "Though personally, I'd like to hear more about why this woman was so interested in you," he said teasingly.
Merlin choked on his mouthful of food and started to splutter as Gaius chuckled.