Lady A: Bit of randomness in the Merlin universe at last! Welcome to Rise of the Dragonwitch! This story will take place before the Purge, but there will be appearances made by Nimueh, Hunith, Uther, Balinor, maybe Gaius (still working on that one), and the Great Dragon of course. There might be other appearances along the way. There is a lot of OCs that will come and go, some might stick for bit and become major players. Now remember, the Purge happened 20 years before the series so it will be a while before the story reaches the series.

Oh and one more thing: The spells used in the story are in fact Old English with slight modifications for gender and the like so it isn't entirely accurate. Also, it was done one word at a time because I couldn't find a translator that did whole sentences. You'll find the English translations in the ending Author's Note after the chapter.

Alright, now this is the last thing: Make certain to check out my two Doctor Who stories. Phoenix Saga: Origin, with the jumper time stream and Guardian Saga: Seeker, with the linear time stream. Okay, I think that's it now. Whew!

Now on with the show!

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin or anything I make references to. I only own my OCs and plot line. This disclaimer will only appear in the first chapter.

Chapter One: Blood and Magic

Artimes Blaine, a young woman with crimson red hair and eyes of liquid sapphire, raced through the darkened forest blindly, her clothes catching on the branches and bushes as she ran. She wore a long sleeved v neck, dark red shirt, a dark crimson leather jacket, and a matching skirt that ended at her mid thigh. The boots she wore were brown and ended just below her knees. Her hair was weaved into a single braid down her back, stopping just at her lower back.

As for the reason why she was fleeing through a forest in the middle of the night, she was being chased by her ex boyfriend and his two friends. They had taken her to a party earlier that night to celebrate the release of her newest book. When they had become a bit too drunk and started feeling her up, she demanded to be taken home and that idea led to her current predicament.

Artimes did everything in her power to avoid them, but they eventually caught her. They each took turns using her body like she some cheap whore, but they made certain her clothes stayed intact. They didn't want any unwanted attention when they returned her to her flat later as it would appear suspicious if they returned without her. Through the entire ordeal, she was screaming; even though she knew no one would hear her. While she was catching her breath in between screams, she thought she heard the sound of something beating against the air like wings, but she wasn't entirely certain due to the amount of pain she was feeling.

Her eyes widened as a stream of fire shot through the air and just above them, scaring the drunken males off.

'Run.' A voice rumbled in her addled mind.

She pulled herself up from the ground, her vision blurring as she ignored the pain lancing through her tired body and ran deeper into the woods. She found what looked to be a cave hidden partially by dense foliage. Strange wind chimes and disks covered in runes adorned the entrance as well as the path. She felt a strange sense of peace coming from the cave, calming her frazzled mind and allowing her the chance to slow her heart rate.

She walked into the cave, careful not to disturb the ornaments and chimes. She felt the need to respect the odd decorations and not disturb the resting places. As she neared a large cavern, she heard her name being called from behind her. It felt like the blood in her veins had turned to ice when she heard the ornaments being ripped and tossed aside by the men following her. They had found her again and they were going to hurt her again if she didn't do something to stop them.

She staggered forward, trying to make as little sound as possible. Her legs slipped slightly from the blood flowing from her nether regions. She just had to be a virgin when they raped her, didn't she? She kept moving through the dark path until she reached the cavern. As she continued forward, she tripped over some sort of root or stone and she fell onto the hard surface of the cavern. She couldn't contain the cry of pain that escaped her mouth upon impact. She flipped over just as her ex and his friends entered the cavern, their eyes shining with lust.

'Call forth the power from within.' The rumbling voice from before stated in her mind.

They took a step towards her and her terror increased tenfold. She couldn't think, she couldn't move, and she wasn't even sure that she was breathing. All she could feel was terror and pain. They inched closer and closer like predators and she dug deep within herself to find something…anything to fight with.

She gasped as warmth exploded throughout her body. It calmed her mind, eased her pain, and melted away the terror. Unknown to her, her eyes flashed gold and the three men were blasted backwards by an invisible force. As each one hit the cave wall, a sickening crack echoed throughout the cavern. The slumped to the ground and did not move again. She collapsed onto her back, tears streaming down her face.

"Please help me, please help me." She whispered sobbing quietly.

'It is time, dear one. Time to return from whence you came. Hold fast to your beliefs, for you and you alone can control the hands of fate. Go now and change destiny.' The rumbling voice replied.

She didn't know what to do. She just wanted the pain to stop and go to sleep. She was so tired and very much alone…with a strange voice echoing inside her head. Has she gone mad? She had trusted the voice before and she was able to save herself from her pursuers, though she wasn't entirely sure how. Maybe she should trust the voice again. He was the only thing that was making sense at the moment.

"How?" She asked her voice barely audible and hoarse from her previous screaming.

'The power is within you. Let it guide you to where you are meant to be. Trust it and it will never fail you.' He answered.

She laid there, breathing deeply and thinking over the voice's words. She had to try, because there was no other way for her to move at the moment and maybe this so called power would take her to someone who could help her. She closed her eyes and focused on the warmth that was still flowing inside her, steady and strong. She allowed herself to be submerged in that warmth and let it take over her completely. Her eyes flew open, flashing gold as her power rose to the surface.

"Geryman se dors of tima, be se onweald of se Heah Sacerdess, ac feccan mec to min metod!" She chanted her voice reverberating with power.

Upon completion, she was engulfed in a bright golden light.

'I wish you luck, Kirakai and may the Goddess watch over you.' The rumbling voice stated as the light vanished, the crimson haired woman gone as if she had never been there in the first place.

Author's Note:

'Geryman se dors of tima, be se onweald of se Heah Sacerdess, ac feccan to min metod' meaning 'Open the gates of time, by the power of the High Priestess, and take me to my fate (destiny)'

They didn't actually have a word for destiny so I substituted Fate for Destiny.

Lady A: And there you have it! Chapter 1: Blood and Magic is complete! Next up is Chapter 2: Dark Guardian which will be the introduction of our second main character though you won't actually know who the person is until Chapter 3. Probably should mention that this is an OC/OC pairing though at some point, Merlin will have his own love interest and I am still deciding on what to do with Arthur. Does he get Gwen or does he get an OC while I try to figure out a way to bring Lancelot back? Why don't you guys tell me what you might want and I'll see if I can swing it, kay? Anyways, leave tons and tons of reviews! Stay tuned!