Hello everyone. Here's chapter 4. Sorry, it's taken me a little longer than usual to get this chapter posted. I hope this chapters clear up things for everyone.
Date: 03/10/17 - 05/10/17
Time: 2:20 pm - 10:35 pm
"Merlina did something to the heart," Knuckles answered when it was clear Galahad couldn't tell Lancelot what Merlina had done. Knuckles found his dislike of Merlina growing the more he listened to the things she had done. He almost called her "The Sorceress'. Lancelot cursed, running a hand over his face. He had known it would only be a matter of time before she figured out how to get the Heart to do what she wanted, how she had managed that was a mystery.
"Lovely, what else did the Witch do?" Lancelot asked even though he had a fairly good idea it had some to do with Sonic and his friends being here. Lancelot was glad Galahad managed to get through to them likely with the help of Iblis, who seemly had a soft spot for Galahad and helped him whenever he got the chance. It was a little strange seeing the physical personification of time.
"The Witch stopped us from leaving the castle when you were attacked, she told Sonic you were attacked by Mullegoness," Galahad answered finally able to say something, Lancelot stared at him for a few seconds before slumping into the pillows. This was going to be fun he just knew it. Merlina apparently hadn't understood what he was talking about.
"When the shadow monsters first appeared they didn't attack. It was only when the barrier changed did they start attacking. While Gawain and Percival were busy I followed the only properly formed one," Lancelot explained trying to make sense of what happened, things were still hazy, there was something very familiar about the shadow monsters he had followed but he didn't know why.
"What's the barrier?" Blaze asked they kept using the terms 'Heart' and 'Barrier' interchangeably. It was starting to make her head hurt. Lancelot smiled a little and laughed when Silver, Blaze, Knuckles, Tails and Amy stared at him. Lancelot knew Shadow didn't smile much from the multiple stories Sonic had told them about the back and red hedgehog over the ten years he had stayed in Camelot.
"The barrier is what we called the Heart's defences. it's nice to finally meet the people Sonic told us so many stories about," Lancelot replied, a mischievous light in his eyes Knuckles got the impression some of the stories Sonic had told the Knights didn't exactly paint them or more specifically Amy in the best light. He had no idea why he suddenly felt so nervous about what Sonic had told Lancelot and the Knights. Normally he wouldn't care.
"What kind of stories? Nothing bad I hope?" Amy asked with a raised eyebrow at Sonic who just stared at her impassively. That look had, at one time, scared him but had lost it effect after he had met Morgana. That woman was amazing but terrifying at the same time. Lancelot stared at Amy with a sly look in his eyes, he wanted to see if Sonic's stories about the pink hedgehog were true or not.
"Nothing you need to worry your pretty little head over. Why are you worried? Have you done something bad you don't want us to know about?" Lancelot answered with his own questions knowing full well Amy was worried what stories Sonic had told her about. None of them painted her in a good light and she knew it. Knuckles relaxed knowing most of the bad stories would have been about Amy.
In the ten years, Sonic had stayed in Camelot he had told them countless stories about the way Amy treated him and the way she behaved, saying on multiple occasions he would rather spend time with Nimue than Amy as she actually listened to him and never yelled at him or being late as she understood he had other things he needed to do and was just glad she took the time to hear him.
"Are the stories true?" Tails questioned making Lancelot, Gawain, Galahad and Sonic laughed, the way Lancelot's lit up midways cold and e he seems younger and much kinder which was strange and unfamiliar to Silver, Blaze, Tails, Knuckles and Amy. Shadow almost never laughed, when he did, it was never this carefree. Shadow was made it seem like it was only working with them because the world was in danger and not because he actually wanted to.
"Of cause they're true. Guaranteed some of the facts might be wrong or just purely made up but they are, for the most part true," Galahad countered as he leaned against Lancelot's shoulder, it was strange seeing someone who looked like Shadow allowing another hedgehog touch and not immediately shrugging off or snapping at him. Shadow never liked being touched, when it was, it was only tolerated.
Shadow very rarely let anyone other than Sonic or Silver.
"Is the part about you having several relationships with women true or is that Percival?" Amy asked snidely glaring at Galahad who sat up and stared at her, his mouth hanging open, how could she be so rude and disrespectful. She barely knew anything about them, Amy was, as far as Galahad was concerned was worse than Sonic's stories made her out to be. He was starting to hate her.
"What on earth did you get from? Perci would have my head a long time ago and would have most certainly not said yes if that were true. Which is isn't," Galahad snapped glaring at Amy wishing very much Percival was awake and able to tell Amy what she thought. Percival had asked that exact question not long after they started dating. He'd told her nothing had happened and he had just pretended to be dating them as he was helping them with something.
"Oh finally. It only took 15 years," Sonic muttered ignored and shocked look on Amy was giving Galahad, she clearly hadn't expected a response like that from Galahad as SIlver often very quiet and usually never did anything to defend himself when he was getting yelled at by Amy. It wasn't useless to even try defending yourself. It only made the yelling things worse and the shouting lasted longer.
"Amy! Don't be so rude. There are no such stories," Knuckles snapped unable to believe the pink hedgehog. Knuckles had known Amy wasn't the most agreeable hedgehog but he never thought she would attack Galahad when he was sitting right next to his father. Knuckles only knew Galahad was Lancelot's son because he had done something research on the Knights after Sonic had mentioned them and he had gotten curious.
"Oh, shut up. What would you know? You spend half your time being anti-social and stuck on that floating rock of useless books you call a library, honestly, they should be burned, they hold no purpose those then to collect dust," Amy ranted not seeing the look she was getting from Lancelot or Knuckles. Some of the books on Angel Isle were very rare and hundreds of year old and in some cases the only existing copy.
"You, girly are not only rude and disrespectful but very shallow and vain. You know nothing about my son or any of us for that matter and clearly haven't taken the time to learn anything about us. If you really were Sonic's girlfriend than that's exactly what you would have done," Lancelot growled at Amy somehow managing to look intimidating even though he was sitting in a bed over covered in blood-soaked bandages. Amy stared at Lancelot in muted shock.
Shadow had never spoken to her like that. Lancelot clearly didn't have the same restraint. Shadow sighed and shifted closer to the wall forcing Silver to move closer to the fireplace, Amy was going to learn why their Arthurian counterparts weren't going to be anywhere near as tolerant of her behaviour as they were and wouldn't sit quietly while being yelled at. There was plenty he could say to Amy but couldn't be bothered as it wouldn't make any difference.
Sonic stared at Amy. Had she always been like this or was being there effecting her self-control or what little self-control she had, she had never said something like that as she knew there was a line she wasn't too cross. Apparently, that line didn't exist anymore. Sonic knew whatever she went off at any of them there was always something she wasn't saying. Amy had no idea what impression she was Lancelot wasn't exactly good and very much like the way she behaved in Sonic's stories.
He was much Shadow in that regard.
Silver covered his ears, trying to block out Amy's thoughts but being unable to as they were so loud. He would normally be able to block Amy's thought out but this time was much different. Shadow looked down at Silver unsure of what to do, Silver's cuffs were glowing light green. Shadow was at a loss of what to do. Lancelot stared at Silver and Shadow out of the corner of his eye trying to figure out what to do without drawing attention to them.
"Get Silver to focus on something else and what the Shrew is saying. Ask him for information about me, Gawain and Galahad," Lancelot told Shadow using the fact Shadow and Silver was standing near the wall in the shadow of the fireplace. Shadow nodded and proceed to ask Silver just that, a little curious as to what Silver had noticed about the Knights. Silver saw things they didn't.
"Lancelot, Gawain and Galahad hate Merlina for what her and her mother Maranda did to Arthur. He was sick quite often, resulting in Merlin creating the 'Black Knight' for Arthur to control when he was sick so no one would notice," Silver explained trying to make sense of why exactly Lancelot, Gawain and Galahad hated Merlina so much. Silver would have thought the Knights hate of Merlina would have been stronger as it been ten years since the incident with the Black Knight.
It seemed the hate and mistrust Lancelot and Gawain harboured for Merlina was quite kind but was different than the kind of instinctual mistrust and keep seated fear Galahad had for the powerful witch. Merlina knew very well she wasn't trusted by Lancelot. Gawain and Galahad heard her but he didn't really know to what extent. Neither Shadow or Silver realised Knuckles, Tails, Galahad, Gawain, Lancelot and Sonic turn to look at them. Even Amy had stopped ranting.
"Arthur often got sick at irregular intervals, Merlina and Maranda who was the healer were magically poisoning him, I don't know how they did it but Arthur managed to survive. Just before they were banished the first time Merlina and Maranda tried to kill him but it didn't work. That was the final tipping point and Arthur banished the two of them saying they weren't allowed within Camelot's wall until they had learned," Silver continued, not really understanding why Merlina or Maranda had done it.
The fact they had been banished once before was more than a little startling. Silver looked over at Lancelot and was confused when he saw the pained look in the Knights eyes. There was more to the story as to why Arthur decided to banish the two witches not only for trying to kill Arthur but for something else that had nothing to do with Arthur getting sick so frequently, it was the tipping point.
"Things were better for around 10 or so years. It took a while for the poison to disappear from Arthur's system completely. While he was sick he got Merlin to create a very lifelike illusion so it would appear like he was well. As there would be unrest and he may be challenged if it was found he was sick. Merlina and Maranda returned to Camelot after around 12 years, promising they had learnt their lessons," Silver stated, knew he wasn't really making sense but it was the only way he could link the events together and explain it.
"It started slowly but Arthur started to get sick again forcing him to use the Black Knight as he had dubbed the illusion more, because of how frequently he used the Black Knight began to develop a personality of his own one very similar to Arthur's," Silver continued marvelling at how strong Arthur must have been and how often he would have had to have used the Black Knight for the illusion to become sentient and develop a personality.
Shadow tilted his head in thought, the Black Knight would have had to have been linked to Arthur's chaos energy for it to maintain its power, Arthur would have likely had to use it for nearly two decades before it becomes sentient and starts to develop a personality. It should have been impossible but then again if Arthur was anything like Sonic he made the impossible happen with alarming regularity.
From what Shadow had gathered when reading about the Black Knight in Sonic's copy of the book which seemed to have more information then some of the other books about the Black Knights who had eventually become someone other than Lancelot Arthur could ask for a second opinion, it was a testament to just how strong both Merlin and Arthur had been to create something like the Black Knight.
Apparently, no one could tell the Black Knight and Arthur. Not even the Knights until Arthur had told them. Merlin had clearly spent a lot of time and energy creating the Black Knight so he appeared exactly like Arthur and no could tell the difference between Arthur and the Black Knight even if they were standing right next to the Black Knight. Shadow would have loved to meet the Black Knight just too see how similar they actually were.
"Because they couldn't tell kill Arthur they banished him from Camelot instead. Arthur of cause knew what they were planning as by the time both Lancelot and a young Galahad knew about it and had told Arthur who in turn told the Black Knight to look after Camelot and protect it from Merlina and Maranda," Silver mused not knowing where this information was coming from but he wasn't worried.
"The Black Knight pretended he was Arthur for a while until Merlina started to get frustrated at her plan not working, that's when he changed his appearance and started to 'attack' and 'terrorise' Camelot because he knew if Merlina felt threatened then she would call someone to 'defeat' him. When Merlina called Sonic the Black Knight had kept his promise to Sonic," Silver answered Shadow's unasked question. It was quite confusing, he found it a little hard to wrap his head around everything Merlina had caused.
"Even though she had been stopped by Sonic, Merlina how had the problem of Sonic staying in Camelot and starting to 'change' things. Merlina and Maranda tried to poison Sonic but it didn't work as Sonic can't die," Sonic explained as he studied the designs on the fireplace unable to believe the extent Merlina and Maranda had done to. Shadow nodded. He guested Merlina and Maranda had gotten sick of Sonic and had brought Arthur back thinking it would be better to have the king back then Sonic who kept changing things.
"Even though she had been stopped by Sonic, Merlina now had to deal with Sonic staying in Camelot and 'changing' things. Merlina and Maranda tried to poison him, but it didn't work because he can't die," Silver finished as he studied the designs on the fireplace unable to believe the extent Merlina and Maranda had gone to. Shadow nodded. He had figured Merlina and Maranda were responsible for Sonic returning to the future.
They had brought Arthur back thinking it would be better to have the King back, hopefully, he wouldn't keep changing things. Sonic was too smart for Maranda's liking and likely didn't bet on Sonic's friendship with the Knights or Arthur liking the changes Sonic had made in the ten years he had been in Camelot. He had greatly improved life in Camelot.
"Mm, that sounds about right," Sonic muttered making Shadow flinch and Sonic laughed, Silver likely had no idea he had been broadcasting his explanation to everyone. He would have to ask Galahad if he could help Silver with his telepathy later as he had been struggling with the sudden enhancement of some of his powers due to the large amount of chaos energy and the fact he was unknowingly absorbing it.
"What does?"
There done. This chapter was being difficult but managed. I hope I explained why Galahad, Gawain and Lancelot don't like Merlina, it's more of a quite hate than anything else. Merlina knows the Knights don't trust her at all as they play nice when she's around. Silver being affected by Amy's thoughts was a way for me to explain why the Knights hated Merlina as there would be no way I could fit it in without it seeming forced and strange.
You may or may not have realised I don't particularly like Amy that much. As she almost always yells at Sonic for the smallest things and insists he is her boyfriend. I don't ship Sonic x Amy as you can tell. If anyone has any ideas why the Knights hate Merlina or her mother than feel free to comment and tell me what you think. Maranda may or may not make an appearance I'm not really sure what her role in the story will be as more ideas are coming to me as I write the chapters.
Galahad likes Percival, they had been dating for five years before the events of the Black Knight. Percival had heard about Galahad sleeping with several women when she asked Galahad about it he just laughed. Somehow the story had changed from Galahad protecting a group of ten women while travelling to another kingdom nothing happened, though Galahad has his suspicions one of the guards with them saw how friendly he was with the women and spread the rumour.
If you have read the version of this story on FFN then you will likely notice there are some differences. Once I've copied all of the chapters onto here I will go over them again and edit them to make sure they match up before posting them on FFN.