Water
Merlin watched Arthur as he paced back and forth. "How could I have been so bloody blind!" he shouted. Merlin wisely kept silent as his Prince stalked around the stone room. They had been hunting in the woods when Arthur had thought he had seen a white stag. They had followed it, only to find Morgause's men lying in wait for them. When they had woken up, they had found themselves in a dark dungeon.
A sudden noise at the door made them jump. They looked towards it, readying themselves as two armed men with their swords drawn entered, followed by Morgause. She had a triumphant smile on her face as she gazed at her captives, as a spider would a fly.
"Welcome my dear Prince. I do hope you have enjoyed your stay here so far."
"What do you want Morgause?" Arthur growled.
"Everything. But first, I would like a little information from you."
"I won't tell you anything, witch," he said defiantly.
Her smile spread, "I was hoping you would say that Arthur." She turned around and called out the door, "Bring her in."
They stared as two more men entered the room, they dragged a third figure between them. They dropped her over by the far wall before returning to stand behind Morgause.
"Who is that?" asked Arthur.
"Someone who is going to give me all of your secrets," Morgause said. "I will check back tomorrow to see if you have been more talkative." The door slammed behind her.
Arthur and Merlin exchanged a look before they turned their attention to the new addition to their cell. The slight girl appeared to be asleep, her pale hair spread about her. Merlin thought it must have been the poor light in the room that gave her hair it's greenish tinge. Arthur beckoned Merlin over to the other side of the cell and whispered in his ear. "Be careful what you say around her, we don't want Morgause to find out anything at all." Merlin nodded and they both sat down to think of a way to escape.
…
Time passed, but it was hard to tell how much. Their room had no windows except for a barred hole in the door, the only light came from the torches in the corridor beyond it. A rattling of keys alerted the young men to the guards entering the room. They hurried to their feet as armed men entered once more. Morgause wasn't with them this time, instead a burly guard with a nasty grin walked slowly in. He carried a tray with two cups and two bowls. He placed in front of Arthur with a bow, "Only the best for his Highness," he said mockingly.
"What are you waiting for?" asked Arthur when none of the men gave any inclination to leaving the room.
"Oh believe me, I have better things to do then to watch two prisoners eat their supper. But orders are orders."
"Why? Afraid we'll escape using our food as a cunning weapon?" said Merlin sarcastically.
They laughed at him. "Don't you worry about escaping here, it's impossible," said the burly one. "We're under orders to make sure that only you two eat, we've got to make sure you don't share it with your new friend here." He indicated the girl. She had woken with the commotion and was watching it all with guarded eyes.
"What will happen if we did give her some?" asked Arthur.
The burly man grinned evilly, "Let's just say that you wouldn't like what happened very much. Now eat up, if you don't hurry I'll take it away and you can just go hungry."
Merlin reached out and handed Arthur a cup and a bowl before taking his own. They hastily gulped down the thin gruel and the water. As soon as they were finished, their things were snatched away and they were left alone again.
The girl sat up slowly, keeping a watchful eye on the two young men. Merlin and Arthur returned her stares, readying themselves in case she attacked them now. When she only shifted into a more comfortable position against the wall, they relaxed a little.
Arthur broke the silence. "What are you going to do?" he asked.
The girl gave him a hostile glare, "Why do you want to know?"
Arthur was taken aback, "Morgause said you were going to get information from us. Forgive me, but I would like to know exactly how you plan to do that."
"If you don't want her knowing everything, then you shouldn't be talking to me."
"Why?"
"Just take my advice, don't touch me, don't talk to me, don't even look at me, and you'll be fine." She turned away from them as Arthur shot Merlin a bemused look. Silence settled in the room again.
…
The door opening startled them into wakefulness. Morgause and her guards entered, she came over to stand in front of Arthur. "Did you have a pleasant night your Highness? I hope my dear Fiara was very, friendly, towards you."
Arthur said nothing, he just stared steadily into her eyes. She smirked and walked over to the girl, who glared up at Morgause.
"Well Fiara? What have you got for me?"
"She didn't learn anything from us Morgause, you don't need to waste your time," said Arthur.
Morgause looked at him scornfully. "You should learn not to speak about things you don't understand my Prince. Fiara here doesn't need you to talk, she knows everything you've been thinking." Arthur blanched as Morgause crouched down and laid a hand on Fiara's flinching cheek, speaking the words of a spell.
Merlin held his breath as Morgause stood as still as a statue for what seemed like an age. He tried not to think about his secret, if she learnt what he was now then it would all be over.
"Stupid girl!" snapped Morgause as she slapped the girl. "I don't care about useless escape plans!"
Merlin was relieved, obviously she hadn't found out the truth. He looked on as Morgause beckoned to the guards; they came and roughly hauled Fiara out of the room. Morgause followed them out with out a glance to her other captives. The door slammed closed.
Before Merlin could comment, Arthur held up a hand, "Not now Merlin. We need to think of a way to get out of here and fast before they come back." They talked in hushed tones, but they could think of nothing remotely plausible. They had fallen into hopeless silence, each desperately trying to think of something when Morgause returned. The guards tossed Fiara into the cell and Morgause murmured a spell that held the girl up against the stone wall. Her face was badly bruised, she winced as she was pushed against the unforgiving surface.
"You will do things properly this time," ordered Morgause. She murmured something that the men couldn't make out and her eyes glowed briefly. Morgause turned towards Arthur and Fiara slid down the wall to collapse on the ground. "Don't think you'll be so lucky again Arthur," hissed Morgause, "there's no escaping it this time. I've made sure that she will get every single thing you know from you and then you will die, slowly and painfully. Be sure of that your Highness." She stalked out of the room.
Merlin went to stand but Arthur pulled him back down. "Are you crazy? She could kill you!" he whispered.
"She needs help Arthur! If she wanted to hurt us she would have already."
"She's working for Morgause, you have no idea what she could do."
"No, Morgause is forcing her to do her dirty work, she doesn't have a choice."
"Exactly. No matter what you do for her, she will still have to be our enemy. Anyway, she must be a witch if she can read minds, we can't trust her."
"Listen to him Merlin," the girl said, her voice raw. "It would be better if you didn't come near me, I might not be able to stop myself."
"See?" said Arthur. Merlin scowled at him as he settled back against the wall. There was a moment of quiet before Merlin spoke again. "What does Morgause want you to do?"
"She wants me to look into your memories and learn if there are any ways into your castle." She avoided their gaze. "Please, don't talk to me any more, the more you talk, the more I can see."
"Isn't there something we can do?" asked Merlin.
"Just, leave me alone," she said with a shiver. Merlin stood up and went to hand her his jacket but she backed away from him frantically. "No, stay away, stay away!" she shrieked.
He stopped, puzzled. "I'm not going to hurt you, I promise."
She shuddered. Her arm moved as if to reach out to him before she tore it back. They heard her muttering to herself, "No, don't do it, you can't do it, she'll win, don't do it."
"What's wrong?" asked Arthur.
"If you touch me, I'll know everything," she said, teeth gritted. "That's what Morgause ordered me to do, so please, stay away." She crawled over to the furthest corner and turned away from them.
Merlin sat back down with Arthur and they watched her carefully as the time went by. The shudders got worse, it looked like she was fighting off an invisible enemy as she struggled against herself. Eventually, she shakily got to her feet and glared across at them. They quickly got to their feet and moved away as she came towards them.
Her eyes were bloodshot, she stared at them crazily. "I'm sorry, I can't stop it," she whispered. She lunged at Arthur, he dodged out of the way but she quickly turned and came at him again, arms reaching, fingers clawing at the air.
She cornered them and approached swiftly. Merlin didn't stop to think, he pushed Arthur out of the way as she made a wild grab. Her hand touched his wrist and he felt like something had sucked his brain out of his ear. He lurched and crashed into the wall before his knees buckled. Fiara stood there, shocked before her hands came up to her mouth. She backed away from them, eyes wide as she stared at Merlin.
"Merlin!" shouted Arthur. He rushed to Merlin's side, "Are you alright? What did she do?"
Merlin's head buzzed as he sat up. "I'm fine, I think, I'm not sure," he slurred.
Fiara shrank back as Arthur glared at her, "Are you going to do the same to me now witch?"
She shook her head frantically, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't want to!"
"It doesn't matter if you wanted to or not! What have you found out? What are you going to tell Morgause? How to get into Camelot? How to destroy my father's kingdom?"
She held her head in her hands, "Please, I don't want to, please don't hurt me, it's stopped now."
He glared at her again before turning his attention back to Merlin. "I owe you for that Merlin, at least you don't have any secrets in that head of yours that could bring down the kingdom.
Merlin tried to smile, but he couldn't. He looked over at Fiara, she stared back at him with a horrified expression before hanging her head. His stomach sank, she knew everything. Once Morgause came back, his secret would be out, they would all know that he was a sorcerer.
Keys jangled as the door opened. Merlin braced himself for the worst, but it was only the burly guard with their food. He sneered at them as he handed them each a bowl and a cup before he went to stand by the open door with the other guards.
Merlin thought quickly, this was the only chance he was going to get. His eyes glowed and something clanged harshly in the corridor. The guards all turned to look and he seized the moment. He threw his cup at Fiara and watched as the water flew out. It formed an arc in the air before it fell, splashing over her.
She stared at him shocked. Arthur did the same. "What on earth are you doing Merlin?" he asked. Merlin shushed him and pointed back at Fiara. She was smiling now, she shimmered as she stood up and held out a hand towards the guards as they turned back from the distraction. Their blank expressions turned to horror when they noticed her. They began to gurgle and choke before they fell to the ground, hands at their throats. Merlin and Arthur couldn't move as they looked on as water began to pour out of the guards mouths and noses; Fiara was smiling unpleasantly as she watched them drown. She beckoned with a hand and the water streamed towards her. She lifted her head with pleasure as it whirled around her body before vanishing.
Arthur hurried to close his mouth, he couldn't remember when it had fallen open. "Uh, don't be offended or anything, but what just happened?"
Fiara ignored him, "Thank you Merlin, that was just what I needed. Now, shall we?" she asked as she gestured towards the open door. They carefully followed her out, stepping over the shrivelled remains that lay in the doorway. She led the way through the corridors as they walked quickly behind her.
"What did you do Merlin?" hissed Arthur.
"I just remembered that they said that we couldn't give her our food and water, so I figured that it wouldn't hurt to find out why."
"She could kill us at any moment! Look what she did to them!"
"She is helping us escape, you could be a little more grateful."
Arthur was stopped from replying as they came across two more guards. They stared for a moment before turning to run away, they only managed two steps before they fell to the ground. Arthur looked away and saw an open storeroom to the side. He entered and saw their belongings spread out on a low table. They quickly scooped everything up and Fiara poked her head around the door. "Are you coming or not?" she said. When she saw the looks they were giving her, she laughed. "Don't look so scared, I'm not going to hurt you! I owe you both my life, come on, I know how you can get out of here without alerting anyone." She darted away and they ran to follow her. She led them through the twisting maze of corridors until they eventually came out at the stables. While she dealt with the men that were there, Merlin and Arthur saddled their horses. They walked over to the doors before they were stopped by Fiara. Merlin noticed for the first time that her eyes were a stormy grey that seemed to shift to a pale blue before becoming grey again. He shook his head, it must be a trick of the light that made it look as if they were glowing slightly.
"Where are you going?" she asked. "If you go out the main doors you'll have to fight off all of her guards before you even get close to the gate."
"Well, you could just drown them all and save us the trouble," grumbled Arthur. She smiled wickedly at them.
"I don't think you want to see what I want to do to them," she said. "Besides, if you go out a back way, you'll have a better chance of making it back to your kingdom in one piece." She went over to a bare patch of wall and pushed one of the wooden panels. A hidden door swung back, it revealed a dark passage that was wide enough to fit the horses.
"Could you give us a little light to see with?" asked Arthur.
Fiara grinned and shook her head, "Fire isn't really my thing."
"Aren't you coming with us?" asked Merlin when she didn't move to follow them.
She shook her head again, "I don't think that would be a good idea, I know too much. Don't worry about me, I'll make sure you have enough time to get away. Now, go, they're going to notice you're gone soon." As she spoke, a great bell rang out. Arthur nodded to her in thanks before he led his horse into the darkness. Merlin went to follow him, but was stopped when he felt a presence in his mind.
"Thank you, Emrys. I won't forget this."
He looked around, but she was gone, running back up the stairs that they had come from.
"Come on Merlin!" called Arthur, "We haven't got all day!"
They walked along in the darkness until they saw a distant light. They hurried towards it and saw that it was daylight outside. They quickly ran under the cover of the trees in case any sentries were looking their way before they stopped and looked back at the slender figure running along the wall. Arthur and Merlin watched as the figure climbed up on the wall as a great funnel of fire raced towards her from another figure in the distance. Fiara jumped before the fire could reach her, Merlin heard a furious shout from Morgause as the girl plummeted towards the ground.
They watched, shocked, as she seemed to dissolve into water droplets before she hit the ground. A great thunder clap rang out and it began to pour with rain. They hurried to mount their horses and rode away, the rain washing their tracks away.
…
When they made it back to Camelot, Merlin hurried to order a warm bath and some hot food for Arthur. They were both soaked to the bone, the King had ordered that they go and get dry before they explained to him why they had been missing for so long.
Dry, warm and fed, Arthur led the way to his father's rooms where they found Uther and Gaius conversing quietly. Arthur quickly explained all that had happened as Uther sat with a grim expression on his face. Once he had finished, Uther looked at Gaius. "What was the creature that they saw?"
Gaius leant forwards, hands clasped in front of him. "I believe Sire, that she was some kind of water spirit. It would certainly explain the, uh, unusual way in which the guards were killed."
Uther gave Arthur a stern glare. "Then you were very lucky that you escaped with your life."
Arthur nodded and Uther dismissed them. As Merlin and Gaius returned to their rooms, Gaius gave Merlin a sideways glance. "How your secret is still safe is beyond my knowing. You should count yourself lucky that whoever that girl was, she didn't want to tell Morgause, or Arthur, what you can do."
Merlin grinned and held his arms out, "What can I say, I'm a lucky person!" Gaius chuckled in response.
…
"Arthur is back in Camelot," Morgana hissed.
"I'm sorry sister, he escaped me."
"How?" Morgana shrieked her voice echoing through the forest, "How does he do it?"
"Calm yourself sister, all is not lost."
"How can you say that? Not only did he and his servant escape, you lost the water elemental! What are you going to do without it?"
"There are still three more left Morgana, do not worry. I am sure they will have their uses before long." She smiled thinly and Morgana smirked in reply.
...
Merlin's thoughts were plagued by nightmares, he was so cold, the Dorocha had drained him of everything. He felt his body touch the ground as Lancelot laid him down. The water seemed to be calling to him, he stretched out a hand and felt warmth flow up it.
"Hello Emrys," he heard a voice say in his head. "It is time for me to repay my debt to you. These spirits will heal you of the Dorocha's touch, just relax and all will be well."
"Thank you," he said. He felt her smile before he fell into sleep.