Chapter 25

The night air ravaged Carmen bare arms as his sleeveless tunic failed to protect his skin from outside intrusion. The moonlight shone mystically over the land, enveloping it in a warm, pulsating cloak of white. The dandelions stood swaying in the many fields that surrounded them. The smell of salt rich in the air as the roar of crashing waves came into perception. The glow of the moon reflected and refracted across the waters surface causing the waves to look like walls of liquid silver falling on to a beach of grains of gold. Carmen and Merlin stood upon a hill overlooking the sea to his right and the lands beyond to his left. Merlin stood motionless upon the hill opposite Carmen his hands at his sides, his eyes shining in the darkness, glinting like sapphires encased deep within the earth, his hair fluttering around his face, whipping about his ears and moth like a wild animal, unruly and untamed. He spoke slightly louder to overcome the roar of the sea.

"You may have wondered why I have brought you here. There are many reasons for the location alone. Firstly, it is a calm and peaceful place in which you can venture into your self which usually is not possible due to distractions. Secondly, it is secluded and no one will see what is about to transpire here. Lastly, it is relaxing for me"

Carmen's impatience had run its course. He needed to know why? Just why.

"Why am I here? What's wrong with me?" he voice rose over everything, dominant and scared.

"You have magic Carmen"

Carmen's heart skipped a beat.

"What?"

"Ever since I first met you I realised it. I realised you were special. The only reason you can understand me it because we have a mental bond, conceived by magic. Although our minds are more open than others, yours is broadcasting a signal in a sense. I then sensed you minds beacon and sensed that it had no defence and therefore I could enter and evoke my own thoughts within you. My mind then translated what I wished to say and caused your brain to send impulses down to your eyes therefore determining what my mouth should look like when speaking these words. If I did not have this connection, you would not understand me. Gaius also permitted me access and allowed me to converse with him. He is a very well trained man and will teach me well…"

"Who's Gaius?" said Carmen defensively.

"I know you were there. I could feel the failed Suppression you were attempting. I could literally feel the waves of mental influence coming form you. You must learn to control this as Gaius clearly realised this too but I assume he did not choose to say anything. Let me make one thing clear. I do not use this for personal gain. I cannot just venture in and out of others minds whenever I feel like it. It is immoral and disrespectful. It is the biggest breach of privacy to have someone in you head and for them to know everything that they are thinking or doing. I must apologise to you for doing so as I had no choice. I had to talk to someone. Please understand"

"I do. You had to to survive. Thank you for choosing me. As long as you don't do more than you need to I'm ok with it. Are you doing it now?"

"Yes I am, why do you ask?"

"Stop it. I want to know what you sound like"

"As you wish"

Nothing happened. They just looked at each other. Then Merlin opened his mouth to speak but instead of words there came shrieks and cries. There where some words however they were either inaudible, unclear or foreign. Carmen hoped his face did not reflect what shock and fear he felt. Suddenly the headache came back again, this time ever so lightly.

"Do you understand" said Merlin, now fully speaking and understandable.

"What are you? What language was that?"

"I will not say now. Maybe another time. Now, let get on with it shall we?"

"Wait, just what else have you done? What else do we not know about?"

Merlin's face became serious.

"I suppose that if you are to trust me then I must hide no secrets. Very well then, I shall tell you. You obviously know about how you survived I the mountains. I manipulated the air particles from below and held it in a concentrated bubble upon the mountain in order for me to survive. This allowed for breathing, fire and survival. I created the herbs to allow myself to heal and it just so happens that by coincidence, you needed the very same herb. There are reasons I was tired when you met me however I cannot divulge every secret to you. Some thing you must only know when I trust you completely. Let just settle on magic. I used it a lot and therefore I was exhausted, according to Gaius' information, I am lucky to be alive. Any questions so far?"

"It all a little hard to take in. I'm sure it will absorb sooner or later. Please continue"

"Please you must focus. When you where in the woods before I met you on the road I sensed that your mental pressure was tightening. I knew you where in danger and so I intervened. Most you did yourselves. Only when they chose to attack you in vast numbers did I choose to help. A little fire never hurt anyone. It took a while casting that. It seemed I completed it just in time. However I did not guide Bella's last arrow nor did I light the fire at the camp. That was you. Random outbursts of mental energy caused by your body in need causes your mind to subconsciously save yourself. It was part of the survival instinct of humans"

Carmen could not comprehend what had been said. He had guided Bella's arrow. He had started the campfire. Suddenly it hit him. The headaches. Whenever his body was provoked by magic, his head started to hurt. The pain varies on the strength of the spell. At least he now had warning. However it wasn't enough. He needed to control himself. He was dangerous to everyone, including Bella. He could never forgive himself if he ever hurt her or so much as allowed her to be hurt. He would get stronger. If not for himself, then for her.

"Ok, I'm ready. I want to become stronger. Stronger than anyone has ever become before. I need to become stronger. Then I can save everyone. I will not allow anyone to feel the pain that I once felt"

"Very well. I make you stronger. However be aware that magic does not solve everything. Let begin"

Merlin calmly outstretched his arm so the palm faced Carmen. Suddenly Merlin's hand exploded in red as Carmen felt his feet lift from the floor and his body fall…