Morgana lay curled up on her bed, fresh tears threatening to spill as she was overpowered by memories of her sister's death. After escaping from Camelot in a fury, she had taken Morgause back to what had become her home in the woods, clinging to the hope that there was some way to save her. Even with all the magic that Morgana controlled, there had been no way to save her beloved sister and that was the most painful part.
She could rip down buildings, twist someone's mind to do whatever she pleased, rain death down upon her enemies, but the one thing she wished her magic to do more than anything could not be achieved. Morgause had told her this but she had refused to listen, searching desperately through what books she did have in search of a cure, anything that would not rip the only person she loved from this world.
In the end she had collapsed down onto the bed at her sister's side, tears brimming in her eyes as she looked upon what had become of her sister. Morgause was barely able to move, expending some of her dwindling energy to lift a shaking hand to her sister's cheek, telling her not to fear death. She had accepted her fate and knew that any efforts were in vain, she was not long for this world.
With her last breath she had wished Morgana to continue without her, to claim her rightful place to the throne even without her sister's guidance. She had slipped away moments later, the world becoming a far colder and gloomier place to Morgana without her presence. She felt empty, everything that she knew of magic had been learnt from Morgause, she had opened up a new world to her sister as High Priestess of the Triple Goddess and it seemed that Morgana was now the last of her kind.
After some time of just staring down at her sister in disbelief Morgana finally lifted the still body into her arms, riding to where she knew a crypt was hidden in the deepest depths of the forest, barely touched by mortals. In this sacred place she lay Morgause down on a stone slab, placing a hand on her arm as she recited an enchantment that would protect her body from decay, for now at least. With her sister well protected she set out with only one mission in mind, to bring her back from the dead.
Morgana returned to her shelter in the woods, pacing the small area back and forth as she desperately sought out answers. Who could possibly know of a way to bring Morgause back? A solution came to her after many hours of consideration. There was a druid, Ariean, who had been known to have left behind his previous good intentions and become swayed into darker magic as a result of Uther's treatment of his people. He was separated from the Druids, who had not agreed with his plans of revenge and power.
He was known only to a few, not wishing his ill intentions to be discovered by any with allegiance to Camelot. Morgause had only mentioned his name once, telling of an older man who now lived a reclusive life in the Kingdom of Escetir. It would be something of a risk to find him after Cenred's death at Morgause's hand but surely it was worth the risk. King Lot now ruled over the land and was no friend of Camelot, but the King's death was far from being forgotten and Morgana would not receive a warm welcome if caught. The King had a liking for displaying the heads of his enemies on his walls and Morgana would ensure that hers wasn't one of them. No matter what the risk, it would be worth it to find a way to bring back her sister.
With not a moment to waste, she gathered some food together for the journey and summoned her white stallion, securing the bag to its side before leaping onto its back. Pulling up her hood to conceal her features, she pressed her heels into the horse and was soon tearing through the trees, cloak billowing out at her back in the breeze. It would take at least a few days to get to the Kingdom and that was before even finding the druid.
The journey was fairly uneventful; days spent riding until the light began to disappear when Morgana would allow the horse to rest before the next day. Only when she got into what was once Cenred's kingdom did she take more care over the path taken, ensuring that she was not caught out by any patrols, or unwittingly ride through highly populated villages that might house troops.
She made some enquiries along the way, speaking to those that possessed magic and would understand her need to find the man. It soo became clear that were few even aware of his existence but by chance someone mentioned that he had been rumoured to be hiding in the Forest of Merendra and so that is where Morgana went.
It was only by luck that she finally encountered the man. Only after many hours of riding through the forest without success did she come across a well disguised hut situated under the shade of the looming trees. Morgana dismounted with barely a sound, her boots virtually silent as she warily approached the hut. If rumours were true, this druid was not someone you wanted to get on the wrong side of, he held powerful magic but it was doubtful that even he would test his luck against a high priestess.
The door was almost falling off the hinges when Morgana pulled it open, casting her gaze quickly around the dimly lit interior before stepping carefully inside. It was far larger than her residence in the forest, the bed pushed against the far wall to make space for the many books that were piled up on shelves, placed in an intricate order that only the owner would understand.
Her gaze flicked to where a pendant hung on the far side of the room, only noticed when the dancing flames from the fire were reflected on the smooth surface. It held a mysterious beauty, captivating all of Morgana's attention as she crossed the room to inspect it closer. Reaching a hand up to touch the object, her head twisted sharply when the door creaked open and an elderly man entered, clutching a staff in one hand which must have attained some kind of power.
Their eyes met the instant the man stepped inside and there were a few painful moments of silence in which they waited to see who would make the first move.
'I wouldn't touch that if I were you,' he warned, noticing how Morgana's hand hovered over the eye-catching pendant. His words did not come across as threatening and so Morgana slowly dropped her hand, turning to face the man. His hair was almost to his shoulders, a deep red hue from what she assumed had been dyed with some kind of berry. His gloved hand gripped a staff tightly, the wood having been crafted beautifully with curves and ridges decorating the entire length. The most prominent feature was the startling brightness of his eyes, an unknown region between blue and grey which made it rather unsettling to be scrutinized by the man.
He went to move closer and Morgana raised her hand on instinct, ready to throw a stunning enchantment in defense, the man remaining still at the action.
'There is no need for that Morgana la Fay, I wish you no harm.'
His words held unmistakable honesty and she let her arm fall to her side, watching cautiously as the man moved over to the fire pit, leaning the staff against the wall so that he could warm his hands.
'My name is Ariean, as you already know,' he commented, clearly the inquiries into the man had not gone unnoticed.
'I have come to request your help,' Morgana explained, after such a long journey to find him she was not in the mood to waste words on small talk.
'I assumed as much. So what is it that you want from me?' he inquired, turning his unnatural gaze to where the woman stood by the wall.
'My sister, Morgause, she was killed in Camelot. You are a man of great magic and no friend of the King; I require your knowledge to bring her back.'
Ariean considered her words, turning back to look into the simmering flames as Morgana waited anxiously for his reply. It was very possible that he would refuse to even attempt such a thing, it had only known to be possible with the cup of life but that was no longer an option. Whether the power existed was yet to be seen, but he was the most promising option.
'You make it sound so simple,' he mused, 'bringing someone back from death is no easy task.'
Morgana was growing tired of his calm demeanor, this was a matter of great urgency to her and yet he stood there calmly warming his hands like he had all the time in the world.
'I did not ask for your concerns, can you help me?' she asked tightly, taking a step towards the flaming pit as her annoyance grew. If this man wasn't an integral part of reviving Morgause then nothing would have stopped her from taking a knife to his throat, fortunately for him more tactful methods were required to ensure his cooperation.
'Your anger will do you no good Morgana, you ask for my help but yet you refuse to restrain your emotion.'
Morgana could hardly believe that she had traveled so far to be lectured by an old man, not yet having seen any proof of his alleged power and it was only by sheer will of force that she refrained from sending a wave of magic at the fool.
'I see my journey has been a waste, this wittering is getting us nowhere,' she spat furiously, glaring daggers at the man before sweeping across the hut, intent on leaving to find a new ally.
'It is a near impossible request, but there is a way,' Ariean spoke out before the witch had even reached the door. Morgana moved slowly back to the fire and remained silent as she waited for him to continue, now he had her full attention. 'There is a pendant, much like the one you were so captivated by, it holds the solution to your problem.'
Hope blossomed in Morgana's chest at the news, this was the information she had been so desperate to find.
'Tell me what must be done,' she said, willing to do anything to see her sister returned. The man inclined his head slightly before instructing her on the quest that would have to be undertaken. At the next full moon she was to leave Camelot and journey to Mercia to retrieve this pendant before continuing on to the Perilous Lands to perform the correct enchantment. It was hardly the destination that had been hoped for but it would have to do, no matter what danger waited there.
Ariean moved over to one of his many shelves and pulled free a small leather bound book from the stack, returning to the fire where he pressed it into Morgana's grip. He showed her the spell that she would need to use and made it clear that without the book none of this would be possible.
'Do you understand what must be done?' he asked, assured when the woman nodded confidently. She had not missed a word of what had been said and every detail, no matter how small, had been memorized without fail.
'Thank you Ariean, I will not forget this,' she thanked the man, eager to make the return journey to Camelot and begin planning at once.
'One more thing Morgana,' he added as she went to leave the hut. Turning back to look at him with curiosity, she wondered what he had left out of the instructions. 'There is someone who must accompany you.'
Morgana was impatient to get going and did not like the idea of bringing anyone else along, they would merely slow her down.
'Who must this person be?' she inquired reluctantly, having hoped to make the journey alone. The man took a moment to respond and she instantly got a bad feeling about what was to come.
'His name is Merlin.'
Morgana almost laughed at the revelation; surely he was not talking about Arthur's foolish serving boy?
'A servant? Why would I wish to drag him along with me?'
'His purpose will become clear on your journey but without him your sister will not be saved,' the man said gravely, turning his back on her to convey that the discussion was at an end. There were many more questions that Morgana wished to have answered concerning the pendant and Merlin's involvement in the whole expedition but she bit her tongue, the man was clearly done talking. She left him by the fire, pulling her hood up once more before leaping onto her horse and starting the seemingly endless journey back to Camelot, her mind racing with unanswered questions of what was to come.
Merlin let out a groan when a sharp rap on the door pulled him back from a restless sleep, Gaius's voice faintly calling instructions to get up from the other side of the door. It took Merlin a moment to get out of bed, still feeling uneasy as he left the memory of dark dreams behind. There had been no real meaning to them, just dark figures, shadows really, their forms intertwining as his mind tried to make sense of their chaotic movements. Shaking his head free of the haunting images, Merlin pulled himself out of bed and got dressed into his usual clothes, intent on going about normal duties without pondering on the matter any longer.
It did indeed work and for the next few days he went about daily tasks as he always had but he was soon beginning to question the reason for the uneasiness that had been felt, it had been a strong sensation and not one that could pass unnoticed.
'Merlin!'
Merlin jumped when Arthur shouted his name from the far end of the corridor and he almost dropped the fresh clothes clutched in his hands before sprinting the rest of the way to see what the king required.
'Sire?' he questioned breathlessly after bursting into Arthurs chambers, immediately looking for any sign of danger that he would need to protect the King from. Instead the servant found him glaring down at his boots with unconcealed disgust.
'I asked you to wash these yesterday, what have you been doing all this time?' he complained, scrunching up his face at the dirt covering his best pair of boots.
'I was about to do that but I needed to get your shirts first and then-'
'Enough of your excuses Merlin, have you been in the tavern again?'
He looked up at his servant suspiciously, watching for any signs of intoxication. Arthur had given Merlin so many tasks to do it was no wonder that one had slipped his mind. Now the King assumed that he was in the tavern all the time thanks to Gaius and his unfortunate choice of cover stories.
'No, I have not been in the tavern,' Merlin insisted, shaking his head in mock disappointment that the King would even think such a thing. Arthur continued to watch the servant closely as he stepped around him, grabbing a fresh shirt from the pile to change into.
'I'd understand if you were ill Merlin, you've been somewhat distracted recently,' he commented as he pulled on the clean shirt, grabbing his belt from the nearest chair.
'I'm not ill,' Merlin assured him, putting the remaining shirts away before helping Arthur into his jacket.
'Good,' he stated, readjusting the material over his shoulders. 'There's plenty more work to be done, my boots clearly need cleaning, twice, and then you can go and muck out the stables.'
He continued to call out instructions as he left the room and strode down the corridor, his voice growing ever more faint until it was lost entirely. With a deep sigh Merlin bent to collect the dirty boots, it looked like he had a lot of work to be getting on with.
The next day it was a change to hear no complaints from Arthur as he assessed the quality of the boots.
'You've done a good job Merlin,' he praised, instantly making the servant suspicious when a knowing smile appeared on his face. 'Right on time, we're going on a hunting trip today.'
Merlin groaned inwardly at the thought, though his expression must have given away his true feelings of contempt and Arthur patted him heartily on the back as he passed, assuring his servant that the sport would grow on him one day. It seemed unlikely. This trip would without doubt cover the recently cleaned boots and armor with dirt from the woods, though of course this didn't have any implications for his Royal Highness and Merlin grumbled to himself about the pointless sport as he readied the selection of weapons. It was going to be a long day.
Morgana left her hut early in the morning to gather some more food; she had been running low recently but had been more preoccupied with plotting to notice. She grabbed a basket in which to carry the food in and slipped outside, not bothering with a cloak. The sun had only just begun to rise though Morgana hardly noticed as she contemplated the journey that would soon have to be undertaken to obtain this mysterious pendant.
With a jolt she realised, after almost an hour of striding through the forest, that she had wandered much closer to Camelot than would ever have been possible had she not been so distracted. A moment later she noticed what had startled her out of heavy thoughts, the sound of several footfalls approaching through the trees.
On instinct she drew back against the nearest tree, the thick trunk effectively blocking her figure from those passing by. Her breath caught when she recognized the quiet voices, barely exchanging a few words as they prowled through the undergrowth, though it was all that Morgana needed to recognize her brothers voice. It would appear that she had unknowingly stumbled across the royal hunting trip.
Only when their footsteps had receded into the distance did Morgana peer out from the hiding place and glimpse the group creeping slowly through the far trees. A wicked smile lifted her lips at the perfect timing, the manservant was lugging Arthur's crossbow like the loyal friend he was and in that instant Morgana knew exactly what she was going to do.
Discarding her basket for later use, Morgana hurried through the trees along a path that would take her around the group of soldiers without being seen. They were moving at a slow speed so she had a good chance of cutting them off without much difficulty and her knowledge of the forests layout came in extremely useful at this time. Morgana soon found herself on a rise to the left of where the King was leading his party through the trees in her direction, their attention firmly placed on the deer tracks that they had followed from the castle.
Morgana spied the animal even before they did, a male buck stepping lightly through the undergrowth, unaware that his life was soon to come to an end. His huge antlers would provide quite a danger to anyone that got too close, and it gave Morgana the perfect idea.
'Akwele seo Arthur,' she murmured quietly, her eyes glowing a deep gold as the animals head snapped in her direction, frozen for a moment before it resumed its gentle walk right towards the waiting soldiers. Morgana smirked at the prospect of what was to come, for once Arthur was not her priority, but anything that came of this would be an extra bonus.
From her elevated position she could watch the soldiers freely without fear of being seen. After a long moment Arthur finally caught sight of the buck and motioned for his knights to follow his lead. Predictably it was Merlin who unwittingly snapped a twig under his boot, earning a dark glare from Arthur and a few muttered words that couldn't be overheard from such a distance. They crept closer towards the buck, unaware that it was not the animal in danger but their own lives.
Arthur motioned for his servant to pass over the crossbow and focused the cross hairs on the approaching beast. Pausing for a few moments to ensure he had a clear shot, Arthur finally loosed the arrow, unaware that the shot would never hit its intended target.
With a slight flick of Morgana's wrist, the arrow adjusted its course mid-flight a fraction to the left, missing the buck completely but alerting it to their presence. Arthur and his knights looked on in disbelief as the buck fixed its furious gaze on them and proceeded to charge with pounding hooves and murderous intent.
Arthur jumped into action immediately, dropping the crossbow to reach for his sword, leaping to his feet to confront the oncoming animal.
'On me!' the King shouted, the knights shuffling nervously as the angry beast neared. Arthur swung his sword in a deadly arc when the animal came within range, but it darted aside at the last minute, knocking it's hefty weight into one of the closest knights who fell with a thump to the ground. Morgana reveled in the panic that ensued as the remaining knights pulled their friend upright, hooking a supporting arm around his waist to pull him to safety.
'Retreat! I must reclaim the crossbow,' the King ordered, his knights hesitating as the buck circled in the distance to come in for another attack. Morgana heard the servant protest at once, offering himself to go and retrieve the weapon instead, darting off before Arthur could begin to refuse. With few options left, the knights retreated with their friend as Arthur watched their backs, ready to face the buck's next charge if necessary.
Morgana was curious to see how this would played out, it would be such a tragedy if the King were to be mortally wounded by the animal but right now her focus had to be on the manservant who was darting through the trees to where the crossbow had been dropped earlier. It brought him close to her position on the rise and with one final glance to confirm that the King was edging out of view, with eyes only for the buck, Morgana was satisfied that this was the time to strike.
She began to descend the slope, her footfalls at first going unheard by the servant who stooped to pick up the crossbow, his gaze falling upon the witch as he straightened a second later. A mixture of surprise and anger crossed his expression and Morgana was in no hurry to close the distance between them when he brought the crossbow up in one sudden movement, clearly intending to put a bolt through her chest.
'Is that any way to greet an old friend?' she teased mockingly, knowing full well that Merlin did not have it in him to shoot someone who had once been a good friend. It seemed they were both surprised when he pressed the lever and released a bolt aimed at Morgana's heart.
'arwe aetstande!'
The bolt stopped inches away from her chest, held frozen mid-air by magic. Morgana cocked her head to one side as she observed the bolt, somewhat surprised that Merlin had openly chosen to attack her. It would seem that she was not the only one who had changed. She gestured with one hand and the bolt fell harmlessly to the ground, her eyes locking with Merlin's as he realized that his chance of escape was close to non-existant.
Despite his hopeless situation he set off at a sprint in the opposite direction and Morgana was almost disappointed by his futile effort. There was no way he was escaping from this and they both knew it.
'Hleap on bæc.'
Her eyes glowed a deep gold as she cast the spell, a wave of magic closing the distance between them to send Merlin flying through the air, hitting the ground with a force that knocked him unconscious. His breath stirred the leaves as the witch strode over to his still form, flipping him onto his back to ensure that he would not be pulling any more unwelcome stunts. She down smirked at his crumpled figure, pleased with her success, this was about to get interesting.