Merlin raced through the halls of Camelot, panting heavily. There had been a sudden surge of magic emanating from the great hall, where Iseldir and the druids were having talks with Arthur about a treaty to keep druids safe within the borders of Camelot. Merlin would have been in the great hall with them, but he had needed to finish mucking out the stables on Arthur's command. So, when he had felt Iseldir's panic, he had dropped everything and run. He burst through the doors of the great hall, and drew to a sudden stop as if hitting a brick wall. This was not how he was wanting his day to go. Lined up and bound, Arthur and the Knights were on their knees in front of the throne. Beside them, Gwen and Gaius looked to Merlin fearfully. Opposite of them, on Arthur's left side, Iseldir and the druids in his party looked at Merlin calmly as he burst through the doors like a madman. In front of the all, stood Morgana, looking ethereally insane. Traces of her former beauty could still be seen, beneath scraggly hair and a torn dress. She looked as insane as she was, and it was hard to associate the beautiful Lady Morgana with the witch that stood before him.
"Ah, Merlin. I was rather hoping you would show. You see, I've come to a bit of an epiphany. Through all these years, there was one person who I never considered could possibly be Emrys. After all, he was a useless servant. But, when dear Guinevere," she glared disdainfully at the Queen of Camelot, "became Queen after being a mere maidservant, I decided to consider even those born inferior. So, Emrys, I have come to Camelot to claim my kingdom, for I am the rightful heir to the throne of Camelot. Today, you and Arthur will die, and I will be crowned Queen. After all, the great King Arthur cannot be protected if his dear Emrys is dead."
At this, Merlin's eyes widened. "Morgana, I beg of you, don't. Please, don't do this." The heads of everyone in the great hall whipped around. "Morgana, please. If you do this, you will not survive this."
As Morgana opened her mouth to reply, she was cut off tersely.
"Merlin, you idiot, what is she talking about?" Merlin's gaze whipped around to the shocked face of Arthur. Merlin open his mouth to reply, then closed it again with an audible snap. Instead, he whipped back around to face Morgana.
"Morgana, please. Don't. You will not survive this if you do not walk away now. Do you not remember what happened to Nimueh? She was a High Priestess, and she lives to more. Who do you think killed her?" Merlin's tone was pleading, begging Morgana to leave them be, and live to fight another day.
"Oh, you? You truly believe that you will be able to defeat me? I could squish you like a bug, and I shall!"
"Morgana, don't!" Merlin's yell cut across the hall, and with a wordless roar, Morgana sent a bolt of energy hurtling towards Merlin. His right arm flew up, as if to protect his face from a blow, and a shimmering, translucent shield sprang up in front of him. As the bolt hit his shield, the energy dissipated. On and on the two fought, until Morgana turned, and with a yell, sent a ball of flames hurtling towards Arthur and the knights. Merlin whipped around to conjure a shield to save the knights, turning his back to the witch in the process. The flames dissolved against his shield, and he turned back around to face Morgana, only to have his face met with fire. The warlock was sent hurtling backwards, eventually coming to a stop twenty feet from where he originally stood. Once he hit the ground for the final time, he laid there, unmoving. Morgana's eyes widened in shock, and with a wordless twitch of her fingers, Merlin's body was lifted into the air and shaken about. His head lolled and his limbs flailed, but he didn't wake. Morgana abruptly cut the enchantment holding him in the air, and Merlin fell to the ground, lifeless. Yells filled the hall, the most pronounced of which coming from the knights. Noticeably silent, however, was Gaius. Arthur turned to him, expecting the physician to be crying like the others in the hall. Gaius looked up towards Morgana, and in a quiet tone, asked one simple question of the High Priestess.
"Oh, Morgana. You never learn. Don't you know what Emrys means?" Morgana's eyes widened, and she uttered a single word. "Immortal,". As she spoke, there was a huge surge of power, and a blinding light filled the room. When the light faded, all eyes were drawn the the center of the room, where a figure stood, cloaked in a veil of pure power. There, Merlin stood, eyes glowing a unearthly gold. He raised both hands in front of him, and with barely a twitch of his fingers, Morgana flew back and was pinned to Arthur's throne, held there by invisible restraints.
"Very good, Morgana. I am Merlin Emrys, the prophesized immortal. And you, Morgana Pendragon, have crossed a line." Merlin's voice rang with an undertone of power, one that promised severe consequences if you crossed him. And Morgana had crossed him, in the worst way possible. "I have been lenient in the past, hoping that you would see reason, but now I see that it was folly to do so. You have incurred my wrath, and now you shall suffer the consequences of your actions." Merlin held his hand out towards the knights, swiftly advancing towards the throne. Morgana's eyes widened, and she began struggling anew. Excalibur flew to the warlock's hand, and as his hand enclosed itself around the hilt of the sword, he brought his left hand up to rest beneath the right. In a fluid movement, he brought the legendary blade forward, and thrust the sword harshly into the witch's beating heart. The sword continued through muscle and sinew, impaling itself to the hilt in the witch's breast.
Morgana's eyes widened in disbelief as her tattered, forest green dress slowly turned burgundy with blood. Merlin released the hilt of the sword and turned back around towards Arthur and the knights, the gold slowly fading from his eyes. He noticed that the druids had teleported away in the chaos of his return to life, and filed that bit of information away for later. With a wave of his hand and a flash of golden eyes, all of the hostages' bindings were undone. He turned to face Arthur fully. Merlin's signature lopsided grin crossed his face, and with a smile, he spoke.
"Well? What now?"
Fin