"We are One"
Prologue
A magnificent sunrise illuminated overhead as the Kingdom of Camelot greeted a new day. The people were buzzing with excitement, for King Uther Pendragon and his wife, Queen Ygraine were about to introduce their newborn son, Prince Arthur.
The Great Dragon, Kilgharah, stood on the palace balcony as the crowd made its way to the center of the courtyard. Gaius, the court physician and advisor to King Uther, led the royal family to the balcony. At once, the people bowed in respect.
Queen Ygraine handed the small bundle she carried to the Great Dragon. He raised the infant to the sky and gave the child his blessing.
"I present to you, Prince Arthur Pendragon: the Once and Future King!"
The crowd cheered.
Prince Arthur wiggled playfully in Kilgharah's grasp. The young monarch gazed at the people below with his wide blue eyes. After a few minutes, Kilgharah lowered the little prince and returned him to Ygraine's waiting arms.
Sirs Lancelot and Gwaine, two of Uther's most loyal knights and Ygraine's childhood friends stood nearby.
"Ah, Lancelot," Gwaine sighed, "look at the little one. A chip off the old block-and you got to know who's going to raise her?"
"Her parents?" Lancelot replied, not really sure where his friend was going with this.
Gwaine paused for a minute.
"Ok, sure: get technical! But who's going to teach her the really important stuff? Like how to belch," he burped, "And use a sword?"
He put an arm around his friend's shoulder.
"I'm telling you, buddy, it's going to be just like old times! You, me, and the little girl…"
The Great Dragon, who had heard the entire exchange chuckled.
"It is a boy."
"Boy," Gwaine repeated nonchalantly.
"BOY?" the two knights exclaimed in unison.
Later, in the caves beneath Camelot…
Kilgharah worked on his new drawing on the cave wall. All of the Great Dragons before him had come here to commemorate the birth of a new prince or princess of Camelot. The paintings dated back to at least four centuries. Kilgharah himself had painted the images of Uther, his father, and now, Uther's son, Arthur.
As he finished the new prince's image, which was right beside Uther's, Kilgharah couldn't help but laugh to himself.
"Ah, Arthur…"
The Great Dragon added the ceremonial mark to the forehead of Arthur's image.
Suddenly, a strong wind blew, signaling the arrival of Balinor, the last Great Dragon.
"Ooh, Balinor!" Kilgharah exclaimed, "what a day it has been! Prince Arthur's birth….another generation of Pendragons is complete, and the kingdom of Camelot is once again secure."
The wind was blowing even harder now, knocking over Kilgharah's paints and supplies.
"Ah! Stop it! Stop it! Balinor, look at the mess you've made! Why do you-"
He paused for a moment, finally understanding what Balinor's message was telling him.
"Ooh…there is trouble in Camelot. There is another boy? Hmm…where could this be?"
The realization hit him like a ton of bricks.
"In Cenred's kingdom…"
Kilgharah cast a worried look at the entrance to the cave.
"But, that is where Uther banished Cenred's followers. Including his most loyal…Nimue.
Meanwhile, in Cenred's Kingdom…
A young boy with messy, black hair and mysterious blue eyes was chasing a turquoise butterfly through the ruins of his homeland.
The youth was only a year old, but already his power was starting to grow.
With an almost inhuman ability, the child leapt into the air and snatched the butterfly out of the sky.
"Gotcha!"
The butterfly tried as hard as it could to get out of the boy's small hands. The boy gave a small chuckle, smirked, and opened his grasp to let the creature go.
"MERLIN!"
Uh, oh!
A beautiful woman with dark brown hair stormed over to the child. She held the terrified butterfly in the palm of her hand.
"Don't let it go! What's the matter with you?"
The woman, Nimue, mercilessly crushed the delicate insect without blinking.
"But, Mother,", cried Merlin, "it wasn't hurting anyone-"
"There is no room for weakness here, my son," Nimue replied coldly. "Remember…Cenred took you in and accepted you as his own son."
Merlin sighed.
"But, he wasn't my father."
Nimue pulled her son close to her.
"No, but he chose you to become the next king. When you rule, we shall no longer be forced to live in these barren ruins!"
"Mother! Mother! Mother!"
Nimue looked toward the source of the interruption. Her other son, Mordred, and her only daughter, Morgana, rushed to meet her and Merlin. They both seemed eager to be the first to share whatever news that had brought with them.
Mordred, who was 6 years of age, and Morgana, who was 9, began to talk over each other.
"We were there- in Camelot! We saw the whole thing!" Mordred began.
"At the castle! We saw everything!", Morgana chimed in.
"We saw Uther's child!", they shouted together.
Nimue was furious at what she was hearing.
"WHAT? Morgana- what did you see?"
"Uther's new child is a boy!"
"A boy? This could ruin everything! Cenred, my beloved….did you hear that? This is going to be more difficult than we expected!"
Mordred turned to stare at his sister.
"Who's she talking to?"
"Shh! Cenred."
Mordred gasped.
"Where? Where?"
Morgana rolled her eyes.
"Cenred's dead, genius."
Nimue grinned.
"Yes! Because of Uther…if not for him, Cenred would still be king. And I, Nimue, his loving, devoted queen!"
Mordred saw his chance to speak up.
"You know, speaking of kings…I was thinking, since I'm the oldest son…maybe I should be king! Huh?"
"Uh? Don't be a fool, Mordred." Nimue said in disgust.
"Heh heh. Just a thought." Mordred whispered.
"Merlin is the chosen one. We must fulfill Cenred's dying wish and train Merlin to be king."
"Oh, yeah! Yeah! I can do that!" squealed Mordred.
Nimue walked to the top of a small hill. Her children followed her. The group gazed at the sight of Camelot glistening in the distance.
"Look…at Camelot, my pets.", growled Nimue. "So beautiful…so inviting. That is our home…that is where we belong. And soon, my beloved Cenred…we shall reclaim your kingdom."