A/N: I have returned. And it's good to be back! :D
Sorry for hanging you guys for far too long. It had been a difficult five months for me because I was in a period of grief after my mother's passing last November. I know you would understand how difficult it is to write under such circumstance.
But still, life must go on. That's why I'm here again to continue with my story.
I couldn't have made it this far without God's help, my family and friends for their love and support, and of course to you - the readers, those who reviewed and who added my story to their Story Alerts and Favorite Stories list, even if I haven't updated for months. You inspire me to continue on. Thanks so much.
I hope you will enjoy reading this. Please let me know if you like it by sending me a review. It will really make my day if you do. ;)
Disclaimer: BBC and Shine own the rights to Merlin and the characters of the show. I don't get paid for writing this. I only write for fun.
CHAPTER 11
THE MOUTH OF THE DRAGON
Part 1
The long and winding tunnel seemed to stretch endlessly. It was like a maze of twists and turns and numerous entry points that could even make a seasoned explorer go astray, but Merlin was fortunate. For some strange reason a guide was laid out before him, a trail of fire in the form of lit torches. Merlin was thankful that at least he wouldn't be wandering around the tunnels all blind and lost like a wildren. He just hoped he doesn't bump into one of those 'giant baby rats', as Arthur called them.
The torches were aligned along the rough rocky walls of the tunnel. They were spaced about ten feet from each other. Merlin instinctively followed them even if he wasn't sure where the torches were leading him. He figured if he followed the line of torches they might lead him to his next test, or better yet, a way out of the tunnels. When Merlin came to a junction in the tunnel, where he had to choose between multiple entrances, the torches had already made the choice for him. One of the entrances had torches aligned on its walls while the other entrances were completely dark. A very obvious sign in fact and Merlin was no idiot to not know that.
The tunnel was dim, creepy and infested with spider webs. At some point Merlin had to shove the thick cobwebs that blocked his way. The webs would stick to his hair and clothes making him grunt in utter disgust. Merlin hated spider webs, particularly the ones that made them.
The darkness was suffocating and the tunnel itself appeared to be closing in on him. Being underground for far too long made Merlin miss the sun and the outside world so much. Though there were torches to light his way it still couldn't compare to the comfort and warmth the sun could give him. And being down underground Merlin had no idea what time of the day it was. He assumed it could be nightfall since he was getting rather sleepy.
The young warlock felt like he was walking for miles that he was beginning to feel worn-out. He had to stop to take a break for his legs were beckoning him to rest. Once he found a nice spot Merlin slump his bottom on the ground, stretched his long legs forward and leaned his back and head against the cool stone wall. He reached into his backpack, pulled out a water flask and took a long swig. He also took out a piece of crusty dry bread he fished from Gaius' cupboards. He broke the small bread in two and put the other half back into his pack to save for his next meal. After eating his humble supper he fixed his eyes on the ceiling as he gathered his thoughts.
Merlin wondered about what his next ordeal would be. Not that he was excited to know, he felt a sense of dread just by thinking about a test that may or may not end his life. Certainly the test wasn't going to be easy, especially if it involved playing around with his emotions and his weaknesses. He had proven that with his previous test where his greatest fears were revealed. But whatever test he would go through he should be ready for it. He had done remarkably well in his first test knowing that other sorcerers who also went through the same had mortally failed. He guessed he owed it to Kilgharrah for waking him up from his nightmare.
And this brought Merlin to another train of thought that he realized just then. How did the dragon know he was in danger? Was there some sort of magical connection between them? Was it because Merlin was a Dragonlord? Or what if the dragon's voice was a figurative expression of himself, the voice inside him, telling him to come to his senses and snap out of the nightmare? The thought was quite baffling that it gave Merlin a dizzy spell just by thinking about it. But whoever or whatever it was, be it Kilgharrah or his sub-consciousness, Merlin was truly grateful that he had help. He prayed he could have the same help in his next test.
His thoughts went to the people he cared about back in Camelot, particularly Hunith and Gaius and if they were still doing their job in hiding his absence from Arthur. Merlin suddenly felt doubtful that their pretenses would hold on for long. Merlin hoped he could finish his rite of passage before Arthur starts to suspect that he's gone - assuming that he would still be alive that is. Gees, he thought he was turning into a pessimist.
Merlin's mind slowly drifted as his eyelids grew heavier and heavier. He fought back to stay awake, he still had a long trek ahead. But the toil of the previous test and his journey through the tunnels had pushed his body to the limit. Soon he gave up the fight. His head dangled on one side, closed his eyes and snored softly.
Gaius gasped after hearing his sister's confession, "Hunith, how could you? What have you done?"
Hunith knew that telling Gaius about her conversation with Arthur will lead to this confrontation. But she would have to tell her brother eventually. So when the physician came back to his chambers after his rounds Hunith told him the truth of what she had done. And as she expected her brother wasn't too pleased about it.
Hunith was quiet, pensively gazing on a window that over looked the city and the surrounding forest. It was evening and the city glittered by small lights of candles and oil lamps coming from within households and establishments. It was like the night sky fell down to earth and covered the landscape with stars. It made the city looked breathtakingly beautiful. But the beauty of Camelot didn't do much to console Hunith's worry for her son. Her heart ached for his return.
She turned to Gaius, her eyes were pleading for him to understand. "I'm sorry Gaius. I had to tell Arthur. He's the only one who could bring Merlin back."
"Have you ever thought of the repercussions of telling Arthur of Merlin's whereabouts?" he said with pent-up frustration.
"I have thought about that but –"
"But you still went through it because you thought it was right." Gaius continued Hunith's sentence after which he blew out a gust of air to release some of his bottled tension. A few moments passed and his expression softened. He looked at his sister endearingly and sighed. "Now I know where your son got that personality of his."
Hunith smiled, "Isn't it so obvious?"
"Clearly it is," said Gaius. "But seriously, you shouldn't have told Arthur."
"I believed I had to," Hunith said with confidence.
Gaius lowered his voice, "But Merlin has magic. You among all people should know that he can take care of himself."
"And that's exactly why I had to tell Arthur," said Hunith, "I know my son better than anyone. And I know he'll need Arthur's help. And besides, I don't know who to turn to other than the prince. Merlin's been gone for quite a while now and it worries me."
The physician exhaled sharply, "I'm also worried for Merlin. But I'm afraid that if his magic is the reason for his disappearance and Arthur finds out about it, then it might cause some . . . complications in their relationship."
Hunith fell into a musing silence. She shifted her gaze back to the window and spoke, "If Arthur really is a true friend to Merlin then he should accept my son for who he truly is."
"We couldn't be certain of that," Gaius said, "Arthur grew up in his father's teachings, that those who practice magic are evil. If that's the case, he might despise Merlin if he ever finds out."
Again Hunith became quiet. She was thoughtful for a while as she tried to see reason why she trusted the prince so much in spite of his beliefs about magic. Then she remembered what she told her son a few years back in Ealdor.
"Two years ago, when he and his friends went to the village to save us from the bandits, I told Merlin that he and Arthur need each other. They were like, well, two sides of the same coin. They may not admit it but they do care about each other. They protect each other in more ways than one. I've heard a lot of your stories of how the two went of into somewhere dangerous but they both eventually came back alive. That's because they're together, they keep each other safe. I guess that's the reason why I had to tell Arthur where Merlin is. Without Arthur, Merlin will not succeed. And without Merlin, Arthur will not survive."
Hunith sternly looked back at her brother raising her chin, "I trust Arthur, Gaius. I trust him with my son's life." She finally said.
And with that the argument was over. Gaius had to agree with Hunith. Merlin and Arthur's destinies were intertwined, and without the other their destinies would falter.
The physician stared at his sister and nodded, "Let's just hope that Arthur's not too late to bring Merlin back safe and sound."
Early morning the next day, before the crack of dawn, Prince Arthur rode out to the forest.
Merlin woke up with a start and he sat up quickly. He winched when his head spun from his sudden jolt. He couldn't believe he'd fallen asleep. He only meant to sit and rest, but his body had other ideas and he drifted to a slumber. How long he had slept he didn't know. He groaned under his breath, he felt he was wasting valuable time and he still had a long way to go. He should get up and start walking.
Still in a sleepy daze he managed to push himself up from the ground. He stood up and gave himself a good stretch. He flogged his trouser and blue jacket to get rid of the dirt and of what was left of the cobwebs that clung to his clothes. He slung his backpack around his shoulders and puffed a gust of air before proceeding in following the line of torches.
After an hour of walking, Merlin came to another junction in the tunnel. He stood in the middle of the crossroads and looked at every direction. He could have chosen to turn to his left or go straight forward if he wanted to. Yet again the torches had already made that choice for him. The torches were arraying to the right. Apparently, that's the direction he should go. Trusting his guide of fire the young warlock turned to the right.
Merlin noticed from a distance that the tunnel he turned to was heading for a dead end. But there was something at the end of the tunnel. Merlin couldn't identify what it was because of the dimness of his surrounding. He was so eager to know what it was that he hurriedly trotted towards it.
Merlin stood in front of another wide wooden door. It was as big as the two panel doors of the council chambers. It also had an ancient stone arch over it with engraved rune symbols. The door looked aged and worn, like it hadn't been opened for hundreds of years.
As if the door was calling him to come closer, Merlin walked towards it. His curiosity got the better of him when he wondered what could be in the other side of the door. Without an inkling of hesitation he placed his hands on the panel and pushed it with some exertion. The door was heavy and creaked ominously. But to Merlin's surprise it moved. This encouraged him to continue pushing the door wider until a gap was made that his thin frame can slip right through. He peeked into the gap, there was a chamber at the other side of the door. But it was too dark for him to see the chamber clearly. Merlin took a torch from tunnel wall before carefully sliding himself through the opening.
His footsteps echoed as he entered the chamber. It was very dark. Merlin's torch couldn't seem to give off much brightness to light the place. He could barely make out what he was seeing in his surroundings. But if his torch couldn't light the whole place up that means the place could be enormous. He could be inside of another cavern of some sorts. Yet Merlin felt something peculiar about the place. There's magic inside the chamber, and this made him wary.
When he turned his head to his right he noticed an unlit torch on the wall. Merlin figured there could be other torches scattered around the place. He lifted his freehand to wield his magic and after he muttered a spell and his eyes flashed the torches simultaneously ignited.
The whole chamber was illuminated, and what Merlin saw caused his eyes to widen and his jaw to drop to the ground.
"What is this place?" He said in awe.
It was another cavern alright but it wasn't the same as the previous one he had fallen into. This one looked like the inside of an ancient temple within a cave. The ceiling was very high and the granite floor was very wide. It had an architectural design that reminisced of the old religion. Everything had a monotone light brown color. Four large pillars carved into columns supported the high ceilings of the chamber. Ornately carved designs of Celtic origins graced the stone walls. And across the chamber was a flight of stairs about twenty steps high leading to a platform that led to a doorway.
The chamber looked spectacular that Merlin couldn't stop marveling. He had never seen anything quite like this in his life. But the place looked neglected and abandoned. Most of the stone carvings were cracked and dilapidated crumbling into dust. Thick cobwebs hung everywhere. And the place smelled like the inside of a catacomb. Judging by the looks of the chamber no one had ever set foot in there for centuries. Nonetheless Merlin couldn't deny that magic was still residing there. A stream of free flowing power hung densely in the air.
After admiring the chamber Merlin took notice on the door above the stairway. And once again curiosity crept into him. Could the door be a possible exit? There's only one way to find out.
Merlin walked cautiously towards the stairs, still baring the lit torch in his hand. He scaled the stone steps carefully. After climbing twenty steps Merlin reached a platform. He sauntered slowly towards the doorway and stopped when he was about five feet away. The doorway was a simple rectangular hole on the wall with a white stone slab over it carved with ancient rune symbols.
Again Merlin silently thanked Gaius for teaching him to read rune. Merlin tilted his head and carefully read each symbol trying to decipher the old text.
"Woddor . . . sylfum . . . se draca." He said each syllable slowly and out load. Then Merlin jerked his head and his eyebrows shot up when he understood what the symbols meant.
"The Mouth of the Dragon?" He muttered the translation incredulously, "Hmm, what an odd name for a doorway."
Without moving out of his spot Merlin examined the doorway. There were no door panels over it. And beyond the doorway was another dark tunnel. Merlin remembered the Great Dragon with its mouth bearing rows of sharp pointy teeth and a long slithering tongue. The tunnel didn't look like that. So why was it given such a name?
As Merlin visually inspected the doorway he noticed something at the end of the tunnel, something shimmered. Merlin's eyes had grown used to the darkness that he had some difficulty adjusting to light. He had to squint to regain their focus. And when his eyes adjusted and saw what it was Merlin's heart pounded with excitement and his face was a portrait of delight.
The light at the tunnel's end was indeed a way out. The exit was thinly covered with vines and leaves allowing light to penetrate through the tunnel. When the wind shook the plants it gave an illusion of shimmer. The exit was about thirty feet from the doorway.
Merlin couldn't believe it. The tunnel was his passage way out. At last he was going to see the sun again. At last he was going to be free. To his excitement Merlin immediately trotted to the doorway, but before he could even step into the tunnel something startling happened.
Without warning the tunnel suddenly burst into flames shooting a ball of fire outward from the doorway that sent Merlin jumping backward several feet. He fell on his back, he almost went over the edge of the platform. If he had jumped too far he might had fallen and rolled down the stone stairs. And having broken bones was the last thing Merlin needed.
The warlock sat up as he shielded his face with the sleeve of his jacket. Even if he was at a safe distance from the burning doorway he still could feel the excruciating heat. It was more than a hundred times hotter than the oven in the palace kitchens in Camelot, and greatly hotter than the fires that burned in a blacksmith's hearth that could turn hard metal into red molten steel.
Then it occurred to Merlin why the tunnel was called 'The Mouth of the Dragon.' The intense heat of the fire reminded him of a dragon's firry breath.
Merlin had his share of encounters with the Great Dragon when its mouth became a flame thrower, especially during the time when the enraged magical creature almost obliterated Camelot with fire. Merlin knew very well what it felt like to be in the receiving end of a dragon's flaming fury. If it wasn't for his magic to protect him - and his sheer dumb luck - he could have been a roasted warlock. And it looked like his dumb luck had saved him once again and he didn't get burned. Well, almost.
When Merlin recovered from the shock of the fire blast he smelled something really, really bad.
Like burnt hair.
Merlin hastily touched his raven locks and ran his fingers. Alas, his fears were confirmed. The fireball had scorched his jet-black hair. He could feel the coarseness at the edges of his hair. He groaned sadly at the thought that he would definitely need a haircut, a very short haircut.
But his hair was the least of his troubles. He was in a much greater dilemma. The tunnel that should have been his only way out had turned into a blazing furnace. How will he get pass the flames without getting burned? Merlin stood up as he shielded his face from the heat and narrowed his eyes to protect them from the brightness. He tried to extinguish the fire with his magic. But when he used his magic the flames became more intense, like a bucket of lamp oil was poured over the blaze. He had to step backward to keep his distance from the increasing heat. The magic behind the fire was too powerful for him to control.
Merlin sighed in frustration. Certainly this was another test. But what was he going to do? Surely he couldn't go back in the tunnels to look for another way out, he'll get lost. This was the place that he was led to. But why was he brought there, even guided to go there, only to crush his hopes for freedom? He couldn't possibly walk through the flames; he'll be reduced to ashes if he dared to.
He gazed solemnly at the roaring fire, his shoulders slouched in defeat. There's nothing he could do. He was trapped underground forever. His hope for freedom was crushed.
Then suddenly, amidst of the turmoil, Merlin heard a voice inside his head.
"Merlin."
The young warlock paused. The voice seemed familiar and yet a stranger at the same time. At first he thought he was hallucinating, but the voice called again.
"Son, don't be afraid. I am here for you."
Merlin made an audible gasp when he realized who the voice belonged to.
"Father?"
