Chapter 12: In which Merlin saves the day

The protective amulet, thought Gaius as the red light that was surrounding him like a shield faded away.

He had expected to find himself face to face with Morgana, but instead it was Merlin who was standing before him with his left hand gesturing for him to get back. Gaius also saw from the corner of his eye the outline of a knight. The tall man was holding a sword but he also looked slightly shaken. How could Merlin and Gwaine possibly have gotten this far so fast?

"I won't let you hurt him," Merlin said defiantly.

"That's very brave, Merlin," snorted Morgana, "but as far as I know, Gaius is the sorcerer, not you." She twisted the staff in her hand, aiming it at Merlin.

"Morgana!" cried out Gaius in a desperate attempt to catch her attention. "It's me you want! Leave him out of this!"

But as he was shouting, he could already see the resolution in her eyes.

"I should have done this a long time ago," she said under her breath.

Swinging the staff, she sent another bolt of red light in the direction of Gaius and Merlin. The old physician did the only thing that he could think of in a split second: he jumped forward, grabbed Merlin's collar and pulled him backwards and unto the ground. Merlin rolled on his side as the streak of red light went crashing into a nearby tree. It could have hit Gwaine but the knight had moved out of the way as well and he was now crouching behind a large boulder. But in her haste, Morgana had almost hit the cart containing Morgause. The tree beside it was burning and she rushed to move the cart, thus giving her targets a short moment to recover their senses.

Gaius was now lying flat on the ground and staring into Merlin's face.

"You mustn't spill Morgana's or Morgause's blood," the physician said rapidly.

"I'm kind of worried about mine actually," said Merlin with a smirk.

"How's your shoulder?" inquired Gaius.

"Healed."

Before Gaius could ask anything else, the young warlock had jumped unto his feet. He was now gazing at the trees and muttering a complicated incantation under his breath. As Gaius struggled to his feet more slowly, he saw the branches in the trees surrounding the cart start to move unnaturally as though they had suddenly been given a life of their own. The branches were stretching down like claws and beginning to grab Morgana under the armpits and around her neck and waist. There was tugging and pulling, grabbing and scratching, until Morgana began to scream. One of the branches had also caught the magical staff. As it fell from her hand, Merlin muttered a single word that made the powerful weapon break in half.

She glanced around with a fierce look on her face. Suddenly and without a word, her eyes flashed gold and Merlin crash-landed straight into Gaius and they both crumbled down on the ground again.

Then another scream filled the air and to his dismay Gaius realised that it was Gwaine who was running towards Morgana with his sword in his hand.

"No, Gwaine, don't!" yelled Merlin.

But it was too late. Morgana had heard the shouting. She wheeled around and as her flashed gold again a wall of fire rose in front of the knight, so close that it almost touched Gwaine's nose. The flames were thick enough to shield Morgana and Morgause from view. The burning veil roared high into the sky, as high as the trees, and crawled on the ground, making its way around the clearing like a slithering snake. In a matter of seconds, the Four Elemental Stones and Morgause had been placed into a protective circle of fire that would require a lot of Morgana's energy just to keep under control. But the fact that she had to maintain such a powerful display meant that she would have to move Morgause in the center of the clearing using only normal means.

"I didn't see that coming," said Gwaine as he was running towards Merlin and Gaius.

The knight passed a hand on his head to wipe the ashes out of his hair.

"She's grown very powerful," Merlin breathed out. "She's so full of rage."

"Merlin, you shouldn't even be here," Gaius scolded him. "I told you to stay with Arthur. How did you get here so fast?"

"We flew," Gwaine let out with a grin. He then turned to Merlin, "You think you can take her?"

"I have to," he said with a surprising level of conviction. "This place feels different then when I was younger though. I don't know why…"

"It is you who is different," Gaius said calmly. If ever Merlin needed his council, it would be now. "You're more aware of your powers. The Four Elements are just another form of magic. You can control them. Merlin," – he wheeled the young warlock around by the shoulders so that they could be face to face –, "you can control this. You can wield the power of the Stones."

Merlin had gone very white. He was looking intently at Gwaine for support.

"How many times have you done things like this in secret?" the knight asked with a smirk. "If Gaius says that you can, then I'm behind you."

Merlin let out a long sigh as though he was gathering his strength. Gwaine gave him a pat on the back and said, "Good luck, mate. I don't want to be in your shoes right now," in his usual casual manner. And then Merlin began to walk towards the wall of fire.

Gaius only saw him from the back, but he was very proud of the way Merlin seemed determined to undo Morgana's dark magic. The young warlock raised both his hands towards the sky and started to speak words of the Old Religion that Gaius had never heard before. Suddenly, there was a clash like thunder and a heavy rain started to fall from the sky. The water started to fill Gaius' eyes. Gwaine and he became soaked in a matter of seconds. The wall of fire seemed to shrink and it was soon replaced by a white vapour, which Merlin washed away by conjuring a gush of wind that nearly made Gaius loose balance.

Morgana could now be seen in the middle of a circle of ashes, standing next to Morgause's cart which she had managed to move to the center. Her black hair was dripping and lying flat on her face and she threw Merlin one murderous look. Now she knew who had thwarted her every plan.

The words that escaped her mouth made Gaius' heart sink. "It doesn't matter. You've already lost."

A dagger was gleaming in her hand, and at the tip of it, Gaius could see a filament of red blood.

Merlin's reaction was so fast that it caught Gaius off guard. The young warlock's eyes flashed gold and the Lady Morgana rose into the air as though the earth beneath her feet had spat her out. She rose higher and in the direction of the trees where the branches were alive once more and waiting to take hold of her. This time, there were more than a few branches. It was as if the whole clearing had come to life. The witch was sinking into the darkness of the forest when suddenly, in a scream of anger and perhaps a desperate attempt, she threw the dagger. Merlin was forced to release his hold on her, using his magic to catch the weapon in midair.

Gaius heard the Lady Morgana crash into the trees but something else had caught Merlin's attention. The old physician followed his gaze and saw right away where the danger was. Morgana had cut Morgause on the skin of her shoulder to take her blood and now the exposed wound was threatening to spill onto the ground.

Gaius, Gwaine and Merlin all ran towards the cart at once. Merlin pulled the dagger towards him with an invisible thread of magic as he ran. He caught the weapon safely in his right hand with a triumphant grin, but it was Gwaine who stopped the blood from flowing from Morgause's shoulder. Before Merlin or Gaius had even reached the cart, Gwaine had already tied a white handkerchief on the deep cut. The bandaged became instantly stained with red blood, but there was definitely not enough to spill unto the ground.

"I have a lovely maiden to thank for that," said the knight breathlessly as he leaned against the cart.

"Please don't tell me it's Gwen," said Merlin.

The young warlock was panting as well, but most likely it was from the powerful magic he had just performed.

"Are you kidding? Gwen is off limit. Arthur will put me in the stocks if I go near her. Not that you'd care. Rumour has it that you've got someone in mind by the name of Freya."

When Merlin shot him an inquiring look, Gwaine simply replied, "You talk in your sleep."

Gaius meant to ask about the name, but just as he was about to, they heard the sounds of horse hooves and raised voices.

"Arthur," said Merlin as an answer to their surprised glances.

"How can you be sure?" asked Gwaine.

"I can sort of feel him," Merlin said in a timid and slightly embarrassed voice. "I always know when he's around. We're sort of connected, magically speaking. Is that weird?"

Gwaine shot him a look that made Merlin blush. "That's the weirdest thing so far, Merlin, but I suppose I can live with it," he said cheeringly.

Gaius opened his mouth to add something, something important specifically about that connection to Arthur, but the potential for eavesdropping made him rethink about the circumstances in which he wanted to reveal that information. Not yet, but Merlin will have to be told soon… he thought bitterly.

"Well, I better tell the princess to look for the Lady Morgana in those woods. He'll probably make you a knight for catching her all on your own."

Merlin scoffed but Gaius suspected it to be only a way to hide how honoured he felt that Gwaine thought that way. "I think I prefer being a physician's apprentice," he replied quite humbly.

"Suit yourself," said Gwaine, and then he was off.

Arthur did indeed show up a few seconds later riding his white horse. Lancelot, Elyan, Percival and Sir Leon were following his lead. Gaius' glance met Merlin's and he knew right away that they were thinking the same thing.

"Move the cart?" said Merlin.

"Better not take any chances," replied the old man.

Without much consorting, they both took a side of the cart and began to push it towards the opening of the path where Gaius had first arrived. As he glanced at Merlin's face, he thought that he saw a shadow behind the young warlock's eyes. The old man was thinking it as well: with Morgause and Morgana in custody, Arthur's choices were about to get a whole lot harder.

But at least now with the threat of Morgana gone, Merlin would have more time to finish his training and prepare for his new duties.

It was Arthur's voice, rising all-of-a-sudden from the other end of the clearing, which brought the physician back to reality.

"What do you mean by 'you flew'? Am I supposed to understand that? What the Hell happened here? Don't tell me it was Merlin! What did you do to my uncle? Merlin! MERLIN!"

Gaius turned his head to glance at Merlin but what he saw knocked the breath out of him.

Merlin's eyes were closed and his face was contorted in pain. Morgause's body fell sideways with a thud and the dagger slipped from her twitching hand. It fell on the grass before anyone could stop it.

Merlin's hand grabbed the side of the cart and his fingers were wet with red blood. It was trickling down from his fingertips and unto the ground.

Merlin's blood.

Trickling down.

The end of all magic.

"