Guys, look! It's an actual chapter! That actually has to do with the ongoing plot!

(Though I should note: The interlude will have some significance on this and future chapters, so try not to skip it. Also, it has a great recap of past events in the story.)

It's taken me half of April to get this chapter to the place I wanted it to be, having revised it once in the fall and disliking the result, so I hope you all enjoy :)

Part 12: The Duel

Miles stared down his former history teacher, his battle cry still resonating in the cavernous space.

You fight me first.

Why had he said it? Even he wasn't sure. His common sense certainly wasn't happy. He was an honors student – he didn't pick fights. He fought to defend himself if he had to, and even then he preferred to use biting sarcasm over brute force.

Was it the way his friends were just hanging there, helpless? Was it that stupid smirk on Mordred's face?

Or was it something deeper, a protective instinct inherited from the man who stood behind him?

.

Moore's eyes narrowed. "Fight me, Mr. Ambrosi? You mean, you wish to duel me?"

Miles sighed, and set his jaw. "I guess I do."

Allie pulled at the chains, stretching toward him."What are you doing?" she hissed.

"I'm not sure. But I think I'm making a bargain," he replied, eyes still fixed on Mordred.

"What are your terms?" Mordred asked, raising an eyebrow.

Miles tried to think over the sound of his pounding heart. "If I win, you let us all go. And Dave gets his ring back."

At the mention of his name, Becky glanced up at Dave, beside her. But the man in question didn't react, staring at Miles's back like it was a complex physics problem.

"And should I win?" Mordred asked, a glint in his eye.

"You keep the ring, and... you take me."

Allie's stomach plummeted. "Miles, no!"

"You can't!" Will strained at the bindings, which seemed to only clamp tighter.

"So either way, your friends go free?" Mordred snarled. "Awfully convenient."

A smirk tugged the edge of his lip. "Don't tell me you're scared of getting beaten by a teenager. Again."

Marco grinned. "Ooh, burn."

Allie glared down at him, trying to kick his head. "Could you not encourage him to do something stupid?"

Marco craned his neck up at her. "Hey, if he's gonna do it, we might as well cheer him on."

Allie's eyes trailed to Miles. "But – he can't – "

"Allie," he cut in, voice firm. "You can't stop him. You're not gonna change his mind. Besides, he's Merlin, remember? He can handle this."

.

"Omigod, he's Merlin."

Miles groaned at the sound of Dave's strained voice. "Aaaaand now it's sinking in."

Dave clutched his head in his hands, his gaze jumping from Miles, to Merlin, and back again. "Oh my god, there's TWO of you!"

Will and Marco shared a look. Miles had told them earlier of Dave's sensitive temperament, but witnessing it was a whole other experience.

Miles, keeping his staff trained on Moore, peered over his shoulder. With a forced calm, he said, "I know this is a shock and you're upset. But I'm kind of in the middle of a life-or-death situation, so please – please – take a deep breath and don't pull a David Stutler?"

"Pull a what now?" Becky murmured.

"But-but-but I don't understand!" Dave stuttered, eyes still darting between the two. "You two are nothing alike!"

This gained him two identical expressions of incredulity.

Dave held up his hands. "O-okay, you kind of are. But-but not enough for you to be him! Or him to be you? Or...or...?" He covered his eyes. "Gah, my head hurts."

"How do you think I've been feeling?" Miles said, almost shouting, as he gestured at Merlin. "Every time I look at him my head hurts."

Merlin, seeing that both boys were staring at him, abruptly shut his still-open jaw. "Um...sorry?"

.

Dave turned to Merlin, unbelieving. "Are you seriously not freaking out right now? I mean, this is mind-shattering, reality-altering stuff here."

Merlin went blank. "Ummmm..." He scratched his head, trying to sort through the tremendous rush of feelings in the past five minutes. "I mean... it's definitely a shock? And I'm more confused than I've ever been in my life? Particularly about her." He pointed to Allie.

Allie frowned, unsure how to feel about this.

"But other than that, I'm... not really upset at all, actually," he continued, quite caught off guard by the thought.

"You're not?!" Dave squeaked.

"You're not?" Miles asked softly, eyes wide.

"No." He shrugged. "To be fair, I'm so used to betrayals, this is harmless in comparison."

Miles remembered some of Merlin's stories and cringed. "Gee, thanks."

"But perhaps..." The warlock trailed off, meeting the wizard's eyes as dozens of little things, little observances about Miles, flashed through his mind. All his reservations, his dedication to his friends, his knowledge of what it meant to have a destiny. There were times when Miles knew Merlin as well as he knew himself. He thought that was just because of their similar outcast backgrounds, but now, he had to say, "...Perhaps deep down I sensed it."

Miles met his steady blue gaze, and swore he could feel something resonate between them, like a static charge. "I know I did."

.

Dave threw up his arms. "Well I didn't! And I'd really like some answers – !"

"You'd like answers?!"

Everyone in the room turned to look at Becky, who seemed surprised at the sound of her own voice, after being quiet for so long. But she jutted her chin out and continued, "Dave, I was kidnapped by a twelve-year-old with glowing eyes! I was floating, and-and paralyzed from the neck down for ages! I didn't even know magic was real, and now there's evil sorcerers and reincarnated knights and two Merlins, and you – " She threw her hands down, heaving a sigh. "Well you seem to know an awful lot about this for a physics student."

Dave faltered, his heart dropping into his stomach. "B-Becky, I – "

BANG BANG.

Their heads swivelled around to see Horvath, as the sound of his cane rapping the marble floor echoed through the room. "As much as I enjoy watching you squirm, perhaps we could get back to the bargain? I'd rather like to see how this goes. Unless you'd like me to just kill you now." He lifted his cane, where the dragon ring glowed a sharp, sickly green.

Dave felt as though he would ooze into a puddle on the floor right there. He shared a wide-eyed glance with Becky, who nodded rapidly. So Dave gulped, then said, "Right. Yes. Carry on."

.

Meanwhile, Moore hummed, twirling his new staff in his hand. "You know, Miles, Horvath has a point. Why shouldn't we just strike you down, take your friends and the ring, no fuss no muss?" The jewel of his staff glowed at the words.

Miles bit his lip, drumming his fingers on his own staff as the silence thickened. Then, glancing down at the ancient wooden stick, the sparks of an idea formed in his mind. In a swift motion, he took the staff into both hands, and thrust it down toward his knee.

Merlin gasped.

"NO!" Mordred shouted, launching forward, arm outstretched –

Miles stopped it an inch above his raised knee. "I'll break it. You duel me, or I'll break it."

Mordred froze, hungrily eyeing the staff.

Horvath stepped forward, arms crossed. "You're bluffing."

"Am I?" Miles said coolly. "You just want to sacrifice me to Morgana anyway. Why should I let you get this too?" He held the teacher's gaze once again. "Come on, Mr. Moore. If you duel me and you win, it's all yours. If not?" He shrugged. "All that history. All that power. Gone forever."

Moore's nostrils flared. "Fine, I – "

But Horvath grabbed his arm. "What are you doing?"

"I can't let him destroy that staff," Mordred growled back. "Do you know how long it took me to find it? Besides," he stole a glance at Miles, "it's a marvellous opportunity to put that shadow of a sorcerer in his place. I know the boy, I know his weaknesses."

"Yes, but I knew Merlin," Horvath countered. "Much longer than you did. You can't underestimate him, even like this."

.

As the Morganians bickered, Miles felt tingling down his back. He frowned, absently scratching at it, but the feeling persisted. Almost as if...

He turned to Merlin, who jumped. "If you could quit staring at me, it's a little distracting," he whispered.

Merlin opened and closed his mouth a few times. "Sorry, I-I was just trying to sense..."

Miles raised an eyebrow. "Sense what?"

The powerful warlock sheepishly shuffled his feet. "Sense if I was possessing you."

Miles did a double-take. "What?! No!" he cried, still hushed.

Dave swung around to Merlin, eyebrow raised. "Where did you get that idea?"

Merlin held up his hands in defense. "The only time I've seen a sorcerer return from the dead, he possessed someone to do it."

Miles huffed. "Well, that's not what happened."

He pursed his lips. "Well. Good. That didn't sound like something I would do." He paused. "I'm still confused though."

Miles frowned, eyes lowered. "Look, the reincarnation thing? I don't understand all of it myself. Especially since you showed up. But I think..." He trailed off, raising his free hand. With a flash of his eyes, he drew smoke from the fireplace behind them, and much like Merlin had done so many times, he gave it shape. Specifically, the shape of a silhouetted Merlin. "So imagine your life. Imagine your memories, your powers, your body, were all gone." He squeezed, his fist, dissipating the figure.

Dave caught Becky staring at the display, eyes wide with wonder, and felt a flicker of hope - maybe Becky wouldn't be scared of his magic after all this.

But the smoke coalesced above his fist, into a ball. "Now imagine what's left – your soul, or whatever you want to call it – was reborn in a child. You'd grow up in another place, another family, another time. You'd be the same at the core, but those new experiences would shape you into someone different. So you become..." Miles opened his hand, and the ball of smoke swirled and spun, until it formed into, "...me. No possession. Just a second chance." Hesitantly, he met the eyes of Dave and Merlin. "Does that make sense?"

Dave glanced from Miles to Merlin and back again (again). But this time, he wasn't as caught up in their differences – their magics, their demeanor, their wisdom. Instead, he remembered how easily the old magic came to Miles, and those times he and Merlin seemed to act in sync. The way he reacted to new information about Merlin, as though it were personal to him. "Actually, yeah, that explains a lot," he admitted, scratching his head. "Still weird as hell though."

Merlin slowly turned to Miles, crossing his arms. "But, does that mean you don't actually remember being me? Is that why you had so many questions?"

The teenager's eyes drifted toward the ground. "I remember spells when I need them. And there have been some flashes of memory here and there. But other than that?" He shook his head. "I didn't even know what I looked like, until you told us your name."

Merlin frowned, a dull ache forming in his gut. When he'd told them all those things about his past with Arthur and the ban on magic, it was with the assumption it wouldn't affect anything since it was so long ago. But if Miles was Merlin, without the burden of all those sacrifices and deaths and betrayals...

He reached out and placed a hand on Miles's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Miles stilled at his touched, a shudder rippling through him. What could he be sorry for?

.

But before he could ask, a blast went off just inches from his feet.

"MILES!" his friends exclaimed as he started to topple over.

Merlin's eyes glowed, catching Miles mid-fall.

Miles regained his footing, pressing a hand against his chest to catch his breath. He swung around to face the Morganians. "What was that for?!"

"You were taking too long with the heart-to-heart," Mr. Moore said. "I'd rather get this duel underway."

Miles stepped forward. "So you accept then?"

Horvath stepped forward as well, his eyes like steel. "If we're going to indulge this, then I'd like to add some terms of my own."

Miles met Horvath's gaze, raising his chin. "Go on?"

"If you cheat and try to get them out," he glared daggers at Merlin, "or if anyone outside the duel interferes, you forfeit and come with us."

Miles hesitated. Then, he gave a solemn nod to the Morganian. "Deal." He held up a cautionary finger. "But the same goes for you. If you cheat for Mordred, or you hurt anyone herebefore the duel is done, you both forfeit and let us go."

Horvath's dark eyes glimmered. "Fine." They shook on it, Horvath's grip viselike around the boy's hand. It occurred to Miles, then, that although Moore had tried to kill him and his friends, Horvath was the Morganian to keep an eye on.

Mordred was ravenous, fiery, and brutal – Horvath was all those things, plus the patience of centuries.

.

With a last smirk, Horvath broke his grip and strode to the center of the room. "Let the duel... begin." He thrust his cane down. It struck the floor, and a ring of fire sprung up around Miles and Mordred. Becky leapt back, Dave shielding her. But the fire quickly abated, revealing a simple circle cut into the floor.

Dave huffed. "What is it with the scary fire circles? Why can't they emerge more gently?"

"Well, it wards off the unprepared. We don't want the bystanders getting caught up in all this," Horvath explained, haughty. He leveled a particular look at Dave. "You'd know about that, wouldn't you?"

Dave went rigid, causing Becky to peer up at his face. She squeezed his hand, and he snapped back to himself. "You okay?" Becky asked.

Dave nodded gently. "Yeah, yeah. Just... bad memories."

Horvath addressed the crowd. "None but the duelers may enter, and none may intercede until a champion is found."

As Miles stepped into the circle, opposite Mordred, Merlin's voice called out in his mind: 'You know they'll never let us go, don't you?'

Miles bit his lip. 'Yeah. I know.'

'You have a plan?'

'Working on it.' Miles closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then he raised his staff and faced Mordred across the ring.

The sorcerers slowly circled around each other. From Mordred's calculating stare, Miles knew he was going to strike first. So, when the blow came speeding towards him, a whiplash of energy and heat, he was quick to conjure a shield to protect himself.

But the force of the spell sent shockwaves up his arm so strong he almost dropped his guard.

His magic felt strained – he'd already expended enough fighting Abigail. He took a steadying breath, his heartbeat loud in his ears. Then, he reached out to Merlin. 'I'm gonna need some help...'

.

Dave watched Miles cringe from Mordred's lancing attack. Although the younger boy straightened up quickly, Dave had to bite his fist. Another spell came streaking toward Miles, and another, and another.

'Where the heck is Balthazar when you need him?' Dave thought, though he wasn't sure if even Balthazar could help them now. His anxious mind wound tighter and tighter, conjuring images of Balthazar locked in some terrible trap, Miles sacrificed to Morgana, Becky flambéed by evil sorcerers risen from the dead.

He felt the weight of the ring on his finger, even as it sat on Horvath's cane.

Just then, a strange sort of buzzing seeped into his mind. He almost chalked it up to a lack of coffee, but it felt more like someone was...

'...Dave? Dave, can you hear me?'

Dave frowned at Merlin. "Yeah," he whispered, "why wouldn't I – ?"

Merlin smirked, lips firmly closed. 'Hullo.'

Dave's jaw dropped, but he promptly closed it, to avoid Horvath's attention. 'Ah, since-since when can you do this?'
Merlin shrugged. 'Since about fifteen minutes ago.'

Miles's voice leaked in now: 'You got him?' At the same time, Miles threw a quick plasma bolt at Mordred, which he barely managed to dodge.

'Okay, I've had enough surprises for tonight. What's going on?' Dave asked.

'We're getting everyone out,' Miles replied, 'And I need your help to do it.'

'But what am I supposed to do?' Dave clenched his hands. 'My magic is gone.' The word "gone" dropped like a stone in his stomach. For so long, Dave had denied his magic. Now not only did he desperately need it – he missed it.

He felt a warm hand on his shoulder. Looking up, Merlin's sad smile greeted him. 'Dave, your magic isn't gone. Just the means to channel it.'

Dave hunched his shoulders, glaring at the ground. 'Same difference.'

'Don't worry,' Miles jumped in. 'The plan doesn't involve you casting spells.'

'And what exactly is the plan?'

Miles stole a glance at Allie, hanging above, her eyes fixed on the duel below. 'Allie needs to get her hands on a sword.'

Merlin's eyebrows shot up. 'That's it?'

'Yeah, even if we can get her hands free, how's a sword gonna help?' Dave questioned.

Miles sent a gust of wind toward Moore, but he easily swept it aside. He sucked in a breath. 'It's taking all my energy to keep this up and talk to you guys. So I can't go into all of it. But I need you to trust me.'

Dave squirmed, crossing his arms. 'Miles, if they catch us breaking the deal, we could all get fried.'

'Then we don't get caught,' Merlin replied.

Dave rolled his eyes at him. 'Really? That's what you're going with?'

Merlin shrugged. 'It's worked for me all these years.'

'Dave, look what we've pulled off when we've pooled our powers together before.' Miles added. With a swift motion, he swept the staff down, the wind slashing the air like a massive sword. It caught Mordred in the chest and knocked him to the ground with a loud thud. Miles exhaled a long-held breath, heady satisfaction and draining fatigue filling him. 'We can do this. We have to. But we can't do it without you.'

Dave felt his fear coil in his chest again. Balthazar was nowhere in sight. Merlin could disappear back to the past at any time. And the enemies had everything they needed for total world domination. He could see no way out of this.

But perhaps Miles could.

Merlin, Miles, and Dave. Warlock, Wizard, and Sorcerer. Emrys, reincarnation, and heir. The ring had brought them together for a reason. So together, maybe they really could save everyone.

Dave straightened. 'Well, I've only got one thing to say.'

Merlin tilted his head, expectantly.

With a subtle fist pump, Dave declared: 'Go Team Magical Stuff!'

.

.

Attack – block. Attack – block. The two sorcerers circled around and around, each pulling their punches, biding their time.

But while the magic was subdued, the verbal sparring absolutely seethed.

"Y'know, Mr. Moore, I love how you thought you had it all figured out with that prophecy," Miles taunted. "You had everyone's roles pinned down ready to play out your tragic drama. But not only did you get Arthur wrong and not destroy us, but you actually brought us all closer together. Ironic, isn't it?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I managed to spot you correctly. I knew you were Merlin ages before you did."

"A lot of good that did you." Miles waved his staff to conjure an array of sparks, which spat at Mordred's face. "I mean, you used my own staff against me and thought you could get away with it?"

His lip curled as he shooed the sparks away. "Well, I won't make that mistake twice. This time, Morgana shall have her way with you."

Miles tightened his grip, magic thrumming under his fingers. "Don't count on it."

.

Meanwhile, Merlin and Dave assessed the situation. A quick skim of the room revealed a prop sword, undoubtedly used for a blade box routine by (the late) Drake Stone, hidden off in a corner. Merlin had enough experience sneaking magic past the guards of Camelot that he felt confident sneaking a sword past Horvath... as long as he was distracted by the dueling, that is.

But actually getting the sword in Allie's hand? That was more complicated.

'Any spells coming to mind?' Dave asked, eyeing the metal shackles enclosing Allie's wrists and hands.

'One,' Merlin replied, a certain spell used to free a certain dragon playing out in his mind, 'but it's too flashy. This has to be subtle.'

'Because breaking metal is always so subtle,' Dave grumbled. He closed his eyes, wondering, What would Balthazar do? He was always so good at sneaky solutions.

.

"You know, I can see why they had a hard time believing you were Merlin," Moore chided. "It took a while to recognize you myself." He tilted his head. "Let's compare, shall we? Merlin: wise, humble, selfless, powerful, and always in the vicinity of his friends."

Miles flicked a plasma bolt at Moore, which he easily side-stepped.

"And then, there was you," he continued. "Smart, but not wise. Getting your assignments done early to prove you were better. No power, certainly. And not a single friend in sight."

Miles tried not to listen. He knew what Moore was trying to do. But how could he help it? He'd been drawing the same comparisons in his head since he'd met Merlin.

.

Dave pounded his forehead. 'Think, think, think. Come on, Dave, you're a physics whiz. Like Balthazar said, sorcery is magic andscience, so you should be able to ... ' He stopped. 'Balthazar said...'

Merlin's eyes swerved to the college student. 'Dave?'

Dave reached back in his memory, to the night Balthazar came back into his life and explained magic to him. Balthazar had said: "Everything we see is in a constant state of vibration, thus the illusion of solidity. But how do we take that which appears solid and have it burst into flames? We will the vibrations to go faster."

Dave gasped. "That's it." He met Merlin's gaze, eyes bright. 'We need to vibrate the cuff.'

Merlin looked skeptical. 'Vibrate it?'

'Like, vibrate it fast. So fast it's humming. The molecules will become unstable, and the cuff will just fall off.'

Merlin blinked. 'Molecules?'

Dave shrugged.'It's complicated. Look, Miles asked us to trust him. Now I'm asking you to trust me.'

Merlin sighed. 'Okay. What do I need to do?'

.

"He's wrong, Miles. Don't let him get in your head!" Allie exclaimed. Marco and Will cheered along with her.

Moore rolled his eyes and pointed his staff at her. "That's enough from the peanut gallery."

Allie shouted again, but this time her voice, along with the other prisoners', fell completely silent.

Miles gritted his teeth. "No attacking them during the duel, remember?"

"I wasn't attacking, simply removing distractions," Moore defended. "That was not stipulated in our agreement."

Miles groaned, but spat out, "Fine." He hoped the guys were close to a solution.

.

Merlin breathed in, then let the air out slowly. His magic locked on as he envisioned the unseen elements of the metal shaking.

All matter, Dave had told him, from air to wood to water, was made of the same tiny particles, smaller than dust mites. And just as Merlin could affect barrels and wind and cups of water with his magic, he could affect these tiny particles as well. While he couldn't create an incantation for such a task, for there were no words the Old Religion could provide, it wasn't necessary.

Dave laid a hand on his ancestor's shoulder. Warmth flooded Dave's body as his magic bubbled to the surface. It was still there. It had always been there, under his skin, waiting for a way out.

Where his ring had been the channel before, now Merlin himself focused Dave's magic. A creature of old magic, he drew on the energy around him as well as inside him. His descendant, his heir, was as good a source as any.

With magic, old and new, flowing through him like intertwined ribbons, Merlin kept a steady hold.

And the cuff, almost imperceptibly, began to tremble.

.

"Eventually I recognized the signs of the seer's gift in you," Moore continued. "And I knew if Arthur was to return among the students of Avalon High, then Merlin had to be trailing behind. Like a little lost puppy."

Miles lashed out with a jab of magic from his staff, but Mordred simply waved it away, like a bothersome fly.

Merlin flinched. 'Lost puppy my arse,' he thought darkly.

Horvath suddenly looked their way, making Dave almost trip over himself as he withdrew his hand from Merlin's shoulder.

As Horvath's gaze trailed back to the duel, Dave let out a shuddering breath. 'We need to focus, Merlin,' Dave urged. 'You can kick his butt for that later. Technically, you already are.'

Merlin couldn't help but steal a glance at Miles. He seemed too young to be Merlin's "older" self. Certainly too young to be handling this fight alone. But then, hadn't Merlin been young himself, when he began? Merlin shook his head. Miles could handle it.

.

But Mordred was certainly not making it easy. "But now, I think I know why you're so different."

"I don't particularly care," Miles spat out, even as he wondered the same thing.

Mordred went ahead and told him anyway. "Part of it is, you were starved for attention. Spent your formative years hiding the very thing that made you special, in both lives. You played pretend so long that you lost yourself in Arthur's so-called greatness."

Even as she wondered what Mordred meant, Allie's gut clenched with that familiar sense of guilt, centered around Miles and Merlin.

Merlin felt his mind pull away from the spell, as a voice echoed in his mind."You've been hiding so long you've forgotten..."

Gilli. He'd just had this conversation with Gilli, the young sorcerer who was so rash, so like him before Camelot. Even though the boy was wrong for trying to kill Uther during the tournament, his words still stung deeper than expected.

"So in this life," Mordred said, "without Arthur, without magic, you would excel with the one power you had left – your mind. In this life, you could get an education and shine in the academic sphere." A shadow crossed his face and, almost gently, he said, "For all that talk of being the dedicated servant, deep down you wanted to be seen, didn't you Merlin?"

Miles growled, his magic building like caged lightning in his chest. But as fast as he whipped up a plasma bolt, he felt his body seize, arm frozen at his side. Mordred had his arm raised in a Force-choke grip, his smile sadistic. Allie, Will, and Marco could only cry out silently, unheard.

"But that's not all, is it?" he hissed, eyes wild as he sauntered closer to the frozen Miles. He found Merlin out of the corner of his eye. "Because that wouldn't be enough for you, of all people, to be so averse to friendship. No." He leaned in close to the boy's face and said in a low voice, still loud enough for Merlin to hear: "It's because you couldn't bear losing them all over again."

.

The cuff around Allie's hand stilled.

Becky gasped softly, covering her mouth.

Dave felt the blood drain from his face. "Oh man." He moved to face Merlin, who'd gone rigid. He shook Merlin's shoulder. 'Merlin? Earth to Merlin! MERLIN.'

Merlin could only shake his head as the room started spinning. The Morganian had to be lying, would do anything to get to Miles.'The spell. I need... I need to do the spell.' He lifted his hands half-heartedly, struggling to refocus. But instead, Moore's voice wormed into his head, dark and slithering like a serpent:

"You were the last of the Round Table to perish, you know. Horvath told me himself."

Horvath, who'd patiently, silently watched the duel, let a sneer creep onto his face.

"You watched your friends die one by one, including the man you swore to protect."

Allie and Will stared, wide-eyed, down at Marco, who returned a grim look.

"All those sacrifices, all that suffering in silence and you still lost them all in the end." Mordred gave a mock sigh. "And I'm afraid by the end of tonight, history will repeat itself." He waved his staff.

Miles felt a blow to the stomach, his breath knocked clear out of him as he sailed across the circle and slammed into the ground. The plasma bolt, half-formed in his hand, burst out, ricocheting off the walls.

The staff slipped from his hand, as he gasped on the cold stone floor.

Mordred saw his opening, darting for it.

Merlin trembled in Dave's grasp. Miles couldn't move, couldn't even see straight.

Their magic wasn't enough. They were not enough.

.

'No.'

The two jolted as Dave's voice burst into their minds, more forceful than they'd ever heard it. Merlin looked into Dave's face, who looked to him as steadfast as any knight of Camelot.

'Last night, I almost gave up on magic. And on myself. But you guys wouldn't let me. So I'm not letting you give up now. You're stronger than this.' He grabbed Merlin's hands. 'We're stronger.'

Dave clenched his eyes shut, pushing as much magic through their connection as he could muster.

Merlin's breath hitched as the magic, like fire, flooded his senses. Across their connection, the energy seeped into Miles, lending him a second wind.

As Mordred reached down for the staff, Miles pulled himself forward and wrapped his fingers around it. The spell came easily to his mind: "Leoht Maxima!"

At the same moment, Merlin felt everything fall away – his doubts, his exhaustion, his confusion – and took aim. 'For the love of Camelot.'

A strong white light flashed from the jewel at the staff's tip right into Mordred's eyes, and he staggered back, throwing up an arm with a cry. Miles took the opportunity to throw his spell right back at him.

Horvath shielded his eyes. "You idiot!"

And, with Mordred and Horvath distracted, no one noticed the cuff vibrating faster and faster, faster even than a hummingbird's wings, until it phased right through Allie's hand.

Merlin whispered a quick spell, stopping the cuff just before it could clatter to the floor.

'Nicely done,' Dave said, beaming proudly.

Merlin half-smiled. 'Thanks. Not so bad yourself.' He gazed across the room. 'Now for the sword...'

.

Allie wriggled her fingers, bewildered. Somehow, she was free!

'Well... partially,' she thought, the other chains still weighing on her left wrist and ankles. If Miles hadn't been fighting, she would have thought he'd freed her. But if not him...

Her eyes drifted to Merlin. He appeared to be facing the battle, but ever so slightly, he glanced her way.

He winked. He tilted his chin up.

So she looked up to see, floating down toward her –

A sword.

And Allie grinned a very Arthur-like grin.

.

Meanwhile, in the ring, Mordred recovered his breath, a chortle escaping his lips. "What was that, a paltry distraction? Is that really the best you can do? Or is your new self just not brave enough to strike me down?"

Miles stood up straight. "Maybe I don't feel the need to strike you down."

"Really? And why is that?"

A small smile began to form. "Because I think there's someone better for the job."

He rolled his eyes. "And who, pray tell, is that?"

Miles adopted a pensive look, tapping his chin. "Hmm, now let's think: who's the best person qualified to kick your butt?" He snapped his fingers. "Oh, that's right!" He pointed over Mordred's shoulder. "She is."

Moore whirled around to see Allie, hand free, reach the hilt of the sword. He blanched. "No – NO!"

.

As her fingers locked on, the tip of the sword flashed blue-white.

The light traveled along the sword's length, and everyone stared, transfixed. The sword was changing, becoming brighter, sharper. It seemed to sing, a shrill but gentle hum filling the air.

"No way!" Dave whispered, eyes wide.

Will's face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Yes!"

"Hell yes!" cried his brother, grinning a Gwaine-like grin.

When the light reached the sword's hilt, the chains still binding Allie shattered, and she dropped to the floor in a crouched position, sword still in hand. Except now, it glowed with a light of its own, the hilt inlaid with gold.

Merlin's mouth dropped open as he realized, "I-I know that sword."

Becky stared from Merlin to the sword. "You mean that's – "

" – Excalibur." Allie got to her feet and lifted the sword with both hands, her blue eyes blazing. Then she smirked at her former history teacher and quoted his own gloat:

"Ta-da! Surprise ending."

In the Avalon High film, when Mr. Moore reveals he's Mordred, he says, "Ta-da! Surprise ending." So I had to make that Allie's last line here XD. You'll be getting more of her and her Arthur-ness coming up.

This chapter was particularly hellish due to the fact I had to juggle SO MANY CHARACTERS. And coming up with actions that weren't repetitive. And getting the reveal reaction just right. And this is actually the first half of a MUCH longer chapter, originally, so... yeah. Fun times.

Also again, I need to iterate: This is story is NOT very compliant with Merlin canon past Season/Series 3. So though I say Arthur dies before Merlin, it doesn't mean it happens the same way as in Season/Series 5. And Mordred is based off of the character as of Season/Series 3, not 5 (since I don't know him well enough and it would screw with my previous plans). But bits and pieces of canon from later seasons might come up.

Please let me know what you think! So glad a lot of you are still around following this epic tale. Thanks to everyone who commented on Part 11, the Update, and the Interlude - I'm glad it's as fun for you to read as it is to write :) (And XphiaDP - glad you found this again! Welcome back!)

And thanks to Merlyn Pyndragon for revising this chapter TWICE, and MuzicDreamz for putting up with my ramblings.

~Astraea*