"Ugh.. what happened?" moaned Randolf.
"I'm not too sure myself," Llew replied.
With Marron's assistance, the rest of the team had been quickly and easily found. Now all that remained was Morgana.
As Randolf started to make sense of his surroundings, he exclaimed, "Marron!"
"Hey, Randolf," she smiled.
"You know her?" Llew questioned in surprise.
"Of course I know her!" Randolf declared. "The two of us were friends in.. wait, did you say her?"
Marron rolled her eyes as Llew stared at them with a look of incomprehension.
"Llew.." Randolf began with a sigh. "Marron's a guy."
A brief silence permeated the forest.
"WHAT?!" blurted Llew so loudly that a flock of sparrows sent themselves spiralling out of the undergrowth.
His voice had even managed to stir Epona and the High Dogs who were still resting on the steeds.
"It's fine. I get that a lot," Marron muttered.
"Are you sure you're a guy?" Llew demanded in disbelief.
"Completely sure," she, no, he replied. "Want me to show you some proof?"
"N-nevermind."
Randolf couldn't help but laugh at their exchange. "Just like old times, eh?"
Annoyed, Marron punched him lightly on the arm. "Enough, Randolf. We should get moving. We still have to find.. um.. what's her name again?"
"Morgana," Llew reminded. "The Knight of Roses, Morgana."
…
Morgana was lost. She had been exploring the vast confines of her prison for some time but the entire place seemed to be a massive labyrinth with no exit in sight.
Iron-cast doors were etched occasionally into the dark stone walls but they had all either been locked or led her to rooms with nothing of interest.
To make matters worse, Nemain's skull-headed servants were patrolling the corridors diligently, slowing her down considerably as she was forced to maneuvre around the walls with caution.
As she turned down yet another corner, she was suddenly ambushed by a looming figure from the shadows.
A skulled swordsman lunged towards her with a ghastly hiss, brandishing a cutlass layered with a dark liquid.
Gritting her teeth, Morgana deflected the blow with a twist of her blade, but a drop of the substance landed on her skin, burning as it touched. Poison.
The knight tried to back off but the mindless creature refused to give her any quarter and launched an overhead strike.
Morgana darted to the left.
The monster swung.
She parried.
It faltered.
She struck.
But it blocked the blow at the last minute.
Morgana panted. She couldn't sustain this for much longer. She was already drained from the effort of navigating through the building.
Her concentration slipped for the slightest moment. But that moment was enough.
A powerful slash caught her off guard, pushing her back towards the wall.
CLICK!
For an instant, everything was a turbulent blur as Morgana felt herself lose balance then drop to the floor.
She swiftly regained her footing.
But the monster was gone. The corridor was gone.
She was now in a room filled with all manner of mysterious artefacts with no exit in sight.
And amidst a pile of crowns and coins lay a shining sword.
The Blaster Blade.