Chapter 1

Everywhere he looked, he could only see chaos. The air echoed with the screams of both camps, and was charged with smoke rising from burning houses and torches that had fallen on the floor. He could hardly tell whether those fighters were friends or foes. After hours of holding it, it seemed like the weight of the sword in his hand was over a ton. The arm that held his shield was numb after taking in dozens and dozens of shots, but he couldn't lower it for the good reason that the minute he did, a sword would try to slay him.

He looked desperately on all sides, looking for those he cared about, to see if they were still alive.

"Gareth! Behind you!"

He turned around just in time to see a soldier about to strike him down. He didn't have time to think of lifting his sword to defend himself; the magic inside him flew and ran in his body, and before he could think about it his eyes turned gold and his enemy was thrown backwards.

He turned around to see the person who had warned him running to him.

"You're all right?" she asked, out of breathe.

He nodded.

"Thanks."

Just like him, she was panting and wore traces of the fight: blood was dripping from a wound on the arm and from her sword; she had a small cut of an eyebrow and her walk was unbalanced, as if she was trying not to stand too hard on a twisted ankle.

"Do you want me to heal you?" Gareth asked, pointing at her wounded arm.

"If you don't mind. I didn't have much time to worry about it, I was looking for you."

Gareth placed a hand above the wound and muttered, "Yahaele". His eyes turned bright gold and the wound closed.

"Your ankle?"

"I'm fine", she said. "I just tripped, it's not twisted. Have you seen the others?"

He shook his head. Her blue eyes shined with fear, but there was no sign of it when she spoke.

"The last time I saw Percival and Leon, they were in the courtyard." Gareth remained silent. She carried on. "I've seen Gwaine about ten minutes ago; he was dragging a wounded man away from the fight. Could have been Elyan, I'm not sure."

"We need to get back to the citadel", Gareth finally said. It was the only hope. If the others weren't there-

But they had just taken a few steps when a shout echoed in the lower town: "RETREAT! THEY'VE TAKEN THE CITADEL! RUN!"

The boy and the girl exchanged a desperate look.

"Watch out, Elaine!" Gareth screamed when he saw an arrow appear at the corner of his eyes.

He jumped forward and pushed Elaine on the floor. They both heard the arrow cross the air right where the young girl was standing a second earlier.

They quickly got on their feet and looked around only to see more and more figures running in the dark. The attack had started just before nightfall and carried on for several hours. If it hadn't been for adrenaline, Gareth couldn't have stood on his feet.

"We've got to find Arthur", he said.

"Gareth, if they've taken the citadel, then he must have been…"

She didn't need to finish the sentence.

"What about Erec?" Elaine asked. "Did you see him?"

"He didn't get out of the castle."

Gareth was beginning to hope it was a nightmare and he was going to wake up. They ran to an empty house to keep away from the waves of fighters that kept aiming at them and locked themselves in.

"What do we do?" Elaine asked.

"We can't leave them."

"Gareth, it'll take us hours to reach the castle if we do it right now. There are too many soldiers; it would take too much time."

"If you've got a better idea, I'd love to hear it."

A burning torch flew through an open window and landed in the room. Gareth and Elaine jumped on their feet and were left with no choice but to run out again and try to make their way to the castle. About ten Southrons walked towards them, forming an ambush. Gareth and Elaine exchanged a quick look before their eyes turned gold in perfect unison. The ten men were thrown backwards. The warlock and the witch ran past the training field and managed to reach the gates.

In the courtyard, the knights of Camelot were being forced to draw back. Elaine let out a piercing scream and seized Gareth's arm.

"What?"

She pointed at the bodies lying near the well. Among them were Leon, Percival and Gwaine. Gareth had to find the urge to vomit.

They couldn't see any of the king's close circle's members –Elyan, Erec, Gwen. The knights of Camelot were now fighting by one to four. About a dozen foes surrounded the two young fighters the minute they stepped in the courtyard.

"Gareth, there's too many of them, we have to go", Elaine said.

"Excellent idea!" he shouted.

He grabbed the young girl's wrist. He whispered "Astyre me thaonweard!" and his eyes turned gold just before they disappeared in a silver wind.

Gareth and Elaine landed in a clear. After the chaos, the clashing swords and the screams of the battle, the peaceful woods, the cloudless sky and the bright moon seemed unreal.

"Why here?" Elaine asked.

Gareth shrugged.

"First place I could think of."

"What do we do now? Call Kilgharrah?"

Still panting, Gareth nodded. The two teens raised their head and called the dragon in the language only he understood.

A minute later, a large figure shaped in the sky, clouding the moon, and Kilgharrah landed in front of them. It respectfully bowed its head in front of them.

"Are you OK?" Gareth asked.

"My strength is returning", Kilgharrah answered, its large golden eyes staring at the humans. "But I still am not able to fight by your side."

"Did you fly above Camelot?"

"Yes".

"What did you see?" Elaine asked, not sure whether she wanted to know.

The dragon sighed.

"The gates of the castle were closed when I passed by", it answered. "The knights of the Round Table are dead."

These words felt like a shot in the heart for Gareth and Elaine.

"What about Erec? And Arthur?" Gareth asked.

Kilgharrah's eyes filled with sorrow.

"Young warlock…the Pendragons are no more."

Gareth's eyes widened and his mouth fell open. Elaine's eyes filled with tears. The boy collapsed on the grass and buried his face in his hands. The dragon's voice seemed to come from very far. "I am sorry."

"It's over", Elaine whispered with such a shaking voice he almost didn't hear. "Everything's over. They've won."

"There has to be something…" Gareth said in a breath. "Something we can do…"

He blinked to chase the moisture in his eyes. Kilgharrah, Gareth and Elaine remained quiet for a moment, as though paying tribute to their lost ones.

After a moment, the dragon broke the silence.

"Maybe all is not lost, young Dragonlords."

Elaine and Gareth raised their heads at the same time.

"What do you mean?"

"There is still a way", Kilgharrah said. "A way to rebuild everything that has been destructed, to do everything that has been undone, to repair the damages. To change what has happened."

"How?" Gareth asked.

The dragon stared intensely at them.

"By going back where everything that has taken place can still be avoided and prevented from happening."

There were a few silent seconds. Gareth was the first one to understand what the dragon meant.

"You want us to go back in time?"

Elaine opened shocked eyes.

"We are running out of time, young Dragonlords", the dragon said gravely. "We need to act now while we still can. If we do not, then Albion will fall along with destiny."

"Destiny?" Elaine almost shouted. "It failed us already! It died with our father. Have you forgotten?"

Gareth looked down. He wanted nothing more than to fall on the fresh grass and cry. What more could be taken from them? His father, his friends, his home…

"It is the only way", Kilgharrah insisted.

"Wait, wait", Elaine said firmly, but Gareth could hear the tears she was holding back. "Gareth and I have lost our father. The king and his son are dead. You were wounded so badly it's a miracle you're alive. All our friends have been killed or will probably be soon enough, since they're stuck in the citadel. And you just want us to go back in time when we never did this, and don't even how to? Let alone the fact we don't know what we'll do once we're back in time?"

"If you go back, there is still a chance you will keep alive those that have fallen", the dragon insisted. "If you do not, then Albion is doomed."

"Arthur and my father were supposed to bring about the time of Albion! They're both dead now. What difference does it make? Their destiny is lost!"

"Perhaps it is the destiny of the children to save the fathers' one."

When Elaine spoke again, her voice was broken.

"What if we can't stop the future from happening?"

The dragon's voice softened. This time Gareth heard the compassion.

"I am sorry to place such a burden on your shoulders, young Dragonlords. But we do not have a choice."

"He's right." Gareth looked at Elaine. "If there's even one chance we can save the situation, we have to take it. I mean…What have we got to lose? If we're lucky, we could bring back everyone that had died. If we're not…well, the situation can't be worse, can it?"

Elaine bit her lips, tears shining in her eyes. She took a deep breath.

"Very well. How do we do that? We don't know the spell."

"Take hands", Kilgharrah ordered.

Gareth took Elaine's hands in his.

"Before you go", the dragon warned, "I must remind you to focus on your task. You do not know when or where you will be going back. Whatever happens, don't do more than just what is needed to fulfill your goal. If you should reveal too much about you and the time you come from, it could alter the future in a wrong way. The least everybody knows about you, the better it will be."

"We'll have to get in touch with the young Merlin, won't we?" Gareth pointed out.

"Which means we're gonna have to tell him the truth about us? Do you really think we could hide that from him?" Elaine added.

The two golden eyes stared down at the both of them.

"Unless you are really forced to, do not tell Merlin that you are his son and daughter."

Gareth and Elaine glanced at each other.

"But if we have to use our Dragonlord power, he'll know", Gareth said.

"Yes. But do the best you can to hide it from him. The more he will find out about the future, the quicker he will want to make things happen. Your goal is to stop Morgana and Mordred from killing the Pendragon dynasty and take over Camelot, and to bring back Albion. Keep that in mind."

Gareth looked at his sister.

"You're ready?"

"When you are."

"Close your eyes." Kilgharrah demanded.

They obeyed.

The dragon arched his neck and let out a long breath. As he did, Gareth and Elaine felt a new, fresh wave of energy and power envelop them and run through every fiber of their being. It felt like the magic in them was blooming, or bursting into warming flames. When they opened their eyes, their pupils turned briefly gold.

"Thank you", Gareth said.

"And now, be on your way, and remember my words: the least Merlin knows about you, the better it is."

Gareth and Elaine took a deep breath and started speaking the enchantment. Somehow they didn't need to think about the words, they just streamed down their lips like the water of a river. They had never used the spell in their life, but they knew. Slowly, all around them, the clear, the dragon, the sky, the stars, colors, sounds, everything started to fade and blurred, as though looked through half-shut eyelids. Coming from somewhere very far away, Kilgharrah's voice echoed in the fog: Unless you have no choice, don't tell Merlin who you are…Your task is to save Albion and its builders…Never lose sight of your goal…As much as you can, don't tell Merlin who you are…

Slowly, very slowly, the dark blur of colors and sounds was replaced by a white light that wrapped them, erasing everything around them, blinding them so hard they had to shut their eyes-

Whispers, screams, laughs, cries echoed in their ear-

Until finally, gone were the noises and everything became quiet around them.

Gareth and Elaine opened their eyes and looked where they were.