Title: A Better Future
Rating: T, possible M as story progresses.
Pairings: Merlin/Morgana, implied A/G, possible others as story progresses
Warnings: Divergance-AU, Mild Violence, Language, Sexual Tension and Potential Resolution for any Sexual Tension that may crop up
Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, and make no money for this is done purely out of the fangirlyness of my heart.
Flames licked the ground and sky. Parapets crumbled as weakened walls gave way beneath. Lifeless bodies were strewn about the worn stone of the castle courtyard like a macabre playground abandoned by children who left their broken toys littering the ground. Most were faceless, no names or significance attached to the empty stares. Blood pooled in puddles the same color as the sticky mouths of little children grinning in pleasure over a sugared treat, perhaps the same children who had left their toys behind. Such a cheerful color, such contrast to the death it signified. Impassive green eyes watched a tower collapsed in the distance. Clouds of dust erupted across the sky, pale grey blending with the black smoke that roiled through the flames. A deep breath in, you could practically taste the desperation on the air, feel the terror and grim determination permeating the darkened battle ground that had once been the proud and gleaming castle of Camelot.
Morgana walked forward tugged along by the screams that rose into the air. Kid slippers that would be quiet at the best of times were silent beneath the sound of combat. A feeble hand rose, clutching the hem of her gown. Her lips turned down when her gaze landed upon the filthy hand smearing blood over white satin. A golden flash and the hand fell limp to the ground. She fussed with her skirts until they settled then continued toward the great hall of the castle where the traitors were making their stand. She stepped through the heavy doors and regarded the scene before her. More lifeless bodies littered the ground, knights fallen to defend a king who did not deserve their loyalty.
And there standing in battle with Uther's favored spawn was Merlin.
He had changed very little from the first time she had laid eyes on him. He wore his hair in the same simple short cut that he had always favored. He remained tall and skinny despite the way his shoulders had filled out and the muscle he had gained in the past few years. His face had matured a bit, but he still had smooth skin and a boyish look about him. His eyes, a painfully familiar blue, darted between her and the battle that was taking place across the hall. Finally his attention fixed on her, and the dark knights who clanked into the room behind her.
"Morgana."
'Finish off Arthur. I'll deal with his pet monkey.' The knights stalked toward the golden king she had, foolishly, once considered family.
Wild energy swirled through the air around Merlin. His eyes turned molten and he stepped toward her. She could feel the heat of his gaze from where she stood. A wind spiraled through the room from nowhere, whipping her dress about her knees, clawing at the heavy cloak that was now trying to choke her. Fear trailed icy fingers down her spine until it melted beneath the flood of rage that flowed through her. He did this. He was the reason Mordred was dead. Merlin was the one who led the knights to the druids. He was the one who refused to tell her the truth even though he knew how terrified and alone she was. Merlin was the one who protected Uther when he should have died. He was the one who had poisoned her, the one who had killed her sister. It was all Merlin. He'd had the power to prevent so much suffering, but he had failed. Merlin had failed them all. He deserved to die. Her own magic poured from her body, thrashing against the wall of Merlin's raw power.
She raised her hand at the same instant he did, her own hatred, her own rage spilling out, all of her might focused. There were no words spoken, no enchantments or elaborate gestures. There was simply raw magic power pitted against raw magical power. An invisible force pressed against her body, a crushing weight. His power, it… No! She was not going to bow before the strength of his magic. She shaped her own power into a single spell. His lips were moving. If he was speaking she couldn't hear it above the angry thrumming of her own heart in her ears, but she knew what she had cast was a death spell, capable of killing on contact. Of course the instant before death would be filled with agony that would last a mere breath, but would feel like an eternity to the victim. The spell flew from her fingers just as his magic bore down on her completely. She felt her body being pressed while stretching everywhere; eternity fell open like a treasure chest and spilled over her until that which was called Morgana ceased to exist.
Morgana shot upright in her bed. One pale hand clutched her chest. Deep frantic breaths, she simply concentrated on dragging air into the lungs that now existed. She gasped and choked in terror. Warm arms wrapped around her, and she sank into the embrace not noticing the hot tears were leaking from her eyes, or the sobs wracking her body.
"Shh, shhh, it's okay. Morgana, I'm here. Its okay, I'm here. It was a dream, just a dream." Gentle hands that roughened with calluses caught on the delicate material of her nightgown as soothing circles were rubbed into her back. Morgana grabbed at the body offering a familiar comfort for all that she hadn't experienced it in years, the scent of flowers and the lingering trace of the forge. That wasn't possible. She died months ago and she'd been the queen that everyone had loved until her infidelity had been discovered. No she was her maid, and she had helped Morgana ready for bed the night before hadn't she? Was it all just one of her horrific dream visions?
Morgana inhaled the scent of her, rubbing her cheek against the rough cotton material. "My Lady, it's okay. Shhh." She knew that worried tone, that kind voice. It couldn't be possible, and yet it was.
"Gwen?" she asked.
"I'm here. It was a dream, just a dream." One hand stroked the back of her hair, cradling her head.
No it wasn't. It was a future, one that she would have to prevent at all costs. She would be worse than Uther could ever hope to be if she couldn't find a way to prevent her hate and pain and fear from consuming her. She had seen hours mastering her seer ability, learning how to kill at her sister's side, reveling in the power and destruction it wrought to those who had oppressed her kind for far too long. She had seen everything she had ever loved laid to waste and that she had been largely responsible no matter how much she may have blamed the man she knew as Merlin. Merlin- like it or not he was the center of their little universe, so if she had any hope of saving her families from the fates in store then he would be the one she needed at her side.
"Do you need me to get Gaius to come here?" Gwen eventually offered when Morgana had calmed and was now settled against her own pillows, once more in her bedroom in Camelot.
"No. Thank you, but I'm sure it has passed."
Soon Morgana's bath was prepared, a linen wrap left for her to dry off with, and her blue dress draped over the freshly made bed were ready in case Morgana decided to get out before Gwen returned from fetching flowers for her room. With one last gentle smile Gwen ducked out of Morgana's chambers. Morgana's matching smile fell away the second that she was alone.
Turning to the candle that rested beside her breakfast, she raised her right hand.
"Berne."
The candle now burned, as Camelot would if she couldn't find a way to keep from becoming what she saw herself as in the future.
End Notes: Just playing with the idea that everything that happened in the series was actually an extremely detailed vision of the future to Morgana, hence the classification as a divergance-AU rather than a simple AU.