Kayleigh's voice rang out over Camelot, followed by a split second of silence. She heard a horse whinny and the sound of steel clanging on steel. An arm wrapped around her shoulders, and she reflexively elbowed her assailant in the side. He doubled over with a cry of pain, and she pushed him from the wagon. It was at this moment that her eyes adjusted and she realized the chaos around her. The rain was forgotten entirely.
All around, the knights and guards were fighting in vain to counter the invincible hands of steel that fought indiscriminately and carved a bloody path through those who got within their range. One of the monstrosities burst through the top of one of the rear wagons, seated atop one of the equally fearsome transformed horses. The unholy, mangled abomination galloped forward, spattering mud with every stride. It poised its lance arm to take out a squire who struggled valiantly against one of the untransformed men. The squire died before Kayleigh could even move.
"Mother!" Kayleigh screeched as she leapt from the wagon, "I must help the king!" She dashed forward into the fracas as the lance-armed beast galloped by the woman, aiming for one of the older knights the woman did not recognize. She managed to get a hold on the horse and pulled herself up. She jumped from the horse's back onto the rider, managing to pull the lance just far enough from its target that the knight was unharmed. The rider turned its head to the woman, raising its arm. With a flick, it sent her flying.
She skidded and looked over her shoulder. The huge, iridescent warhorse turned, and through the downpour, Kayleigh saw the new target in the shining face of the rider. She scrambled to her feet and tried to run as the living steel began to hurtle towards her. She managed a short distance on the slick ground before the percussive clanking was right behind her. She closed her eyes and curled in on herself, sliding along the ground as the sound passed over her, its rhythm changing as the tonnage threw its weight back to stop and try at her again. She rolled onto her back and sat up, watching as a man broke his sword trying to drive it into the rider's neck. The massive horse bucked into the air, and the rider threw off the man as if her were no more than a pesky bug.
A shout from behind prompted Kayleigh to duck as a volley of arrows rained forward. Kayleigh slithered out of the way, her task both aided and hindered by the slippery ground below. One of the archers, as he fitted a new arrow, gestured for her to make her way behind them. The arrows were proving useless, bouncing off horse and rider like pebbles. Beside the company of archers, barrels of flammable oils sat, of equal use in this horrid massacre. She pulled herself off the ground by the stables, looking around frantically.
The wall was empty, and one tower had been destroyed. Kayleigh gasped in fear, then realized that there was repair scaffolding in place. That was how she would get to the king. She set off through the destruction, running at a pace that would never be fast enough for her. Every step either slid from under her or sank into the soft earth underfoot. As she neared the wall, her heart thudded in terror; many of the guards lay either still or writhing in pain, covered in wounds that could only have been inflicted by one creature.
More shouts from the castle sank the woman's terror even deeper: Nearly a dozen of Camelot's men lay, unmoving and bloody, on the steps to the main castle, and the massive door swung all too freely on its hinges. Several of the monstrosities took their place in front of the door. There would be no breaking through that way. She steeled her nerve and climbed up the scaffolding, her muscles beginning to ache with every step of her ascent, the wind whipping around her and pulling her in every direction but up. She screamed as sharp talons dug into her arms and pulled her from the scaffolding. She helplessly looked up at the bloodied mass of fur and feathers as the griffon pulled her higher. And higher. And higher.
There was a screech, and Kayleigh could see that an arrow had found its way into the one of the griffon's forelegs. Kayleigh looked at the castle, but could not see whichever archer had hit his mark. The creature leaned to the side, and Kayleigh caught a glimpse of the ground below... Far. Below. Her body froze, and she felt the talons begin to loosen. Another surge of fear spread to every part of her body. She watched the Griffon circle around to the castle once more as she resigned herself to her fate. Camelot was doomed. The boys were doomed. Her mother was doomed. It was all over, she knew. Something warm cradled her like an infant, and she opened her eyes, expecting to see her father's spirit escorting her to the afterlife.
She did not expect to find herself staring into the scarred and blind eyes she thought had left her life forever.
"Hold onto me!" Garrett shouted as they continued their heart-stopping descent. Kayleigh did not need to be told a second time. They slowed as they neared the ground, and Garrett allowed Kayleigh to stand on her own feet as the movement grew smoother.
"We're going up again!" Cornwall shouted.
"You're flying!" Kayleigh exclaimed.
"Brace yourselves!" Devon added. Kayleigh flattened herself against the shared back, holding onto the dragons as Garrett did the same. The dragons' legs grazed the rocks below. Kayleigh heard the wings flap in unison, and almost lost her hold as the reptiles shot almost straight up along the castle wall. The wings beat several more times, and Kayleigh thought she heard the scraping of claws against the wall before they landed on the battlements.
Kayleigh slid from the dragons' back, helping Garrett onto the solid stone path. He pitched slightly forward, and the woman caught him in her arms. He lingered there for a moment. "I'm sorry," he breathed into her ear.
"I forgive you," Kayleigh quickly interrupted, "But Ruber's breached the castle and the king's trapped inside." She glanced at the entrance, where the metal guards still gave no quarter to any who tried to enter the castle, "There's no way in!"
Garrett's face grew dark, but Kayleigh could see an idea forming, "Through the-"
A screech from above interrupted him, and the dragons let out a hiss, taking off to counter the griffon in midair. Kayleigh took Garrett's hand and began to run towards the tower as the dragons spiraled upwards, savagely attacking the creature that had tormented them so many times. The griffon countered, butting into them and knocking their wings out of time. Kayleigh thought the dragons might lose. Suddenly, the twin wings unfolded and shot upwards again. Kayleigh slid to a stop as one of Ruber's indomitable warriors shot a bolt in her direction. She ducked, pulling Garrett to the ground with her.
There was a cart below, and with a shout of warning, Kayleigh jumped for it, tightening her hold on Garrett's hand. She miscalculated the jump, landing in the soft hay while Garrett somehow fell onto the driver's bench, startling the horse. Before Kayleigh knew what was happening, the cart was flying through the battle. All around, swords clanged and broke against magical steel. There was a scream from somewhere, and Kayleigh watched as a knight dove for a young child, knocking her out of harm's way in time to counter one of the monsters' blows. As the creature raised its arm to swing again, the knight charged forward, managing to unbalance his opponent.
There was a crash, and half of the cart splintered and broke away. The rest of it began to catch fire, and Kayleigh realized that they had just hit a barrel of the flammable oil- lit in a desperate attempt to find some way to fight against the invaders despite the rain. She clawed her way forward as the horse panicked further, taking the cart on an even more erratic path. Wrapping her arms around Garrett, she pushed away from the cart and rolled along the ground. She picked her head up just in time to watch the horse turn too sharply, losing its grip on the ground and skidding with the cart against one of the metallic assailants. The impact freed the creature from its lethal burden, and it reared, dashing away from the chaos.
She pulled herself to her feet and frantically scanned the chaos for Garrett. A hand touched her shoulder, and she flailed, turning around with a squeak. Garrett gestured to be quiet and led her into the structure behind them. Once inside, he felt along an engraved sign on the wall, tracing each letter with his calloused fingers, "These are the knights' stables, aren't they?"
Kayleigh squinted at the writing, her view of it partially obscured by his hand. She stepped forward, instantly recognizing the lettering, "Yes."
A deafening explosion caused her to turn around. A fair distance away from the stable entrance, a tall man cloaked in wizard's robes stood in front of a fallen knight. Though his back was turned, Kayleigh could see that one hand was outstretched, and his voice somehow rose above the din, speaking ancient words that sent a frozen chill down Kayleigh's spine. His outstretched hand rose above his head and his feet partially slid, widening his stance as a shining dome formed around him and the fallen knight. The unforgiving steel hands of the magician's adversary swung at the dome as the magician- no, Kayleigh realized- as Merlin knelt by the fallen knight and incanted what must have been a healing spell. The knight rose to his feet and stared at the iron assailant behind Merlin. The wizard muttered something, and the knight charged forward, somehow managing to dispatch the formerly invincible opponent.
Merlin glanced in Kayleigh's direction, and though he did not appear even to bother raising his voice, she heard it ring in her ears, "Your destiny and duty call. You must answer. Go now."
Kayleigh felt herself nod as if in a trance. The magician turned around and disappeared into the battle. She turned to look at Garrett, but he had already started towards the back of the stable. His steps were fast, but as confident as they had been in the Forbidden Forest, "This is the way." Kayleigh stepped towards him, watching as he entered an empty stall and brushed aside a pile of straw, revealing a small door that would be just large enough if they crawled through one at a time. He opened the door and slid into the darkness behind it. His voice came from the blackness though he was fully obscured, "These tunnels lead straight to the Round Table."
Kayleigh piled some of the hay in front of the entrance before she crawled through. She stood as the tunnel widened with the small steps below the door. In the dim light that filtered through the opening, she could see how decrepit the tunnels were; it was likely they hadn't been used since the day her father had died. She turned around and shut the door, barring it. She immediately regretted it. "Garrett," she whispered, fumbling around in the all-consuming darkness, "I can't see a thing."
A hand took hers and turned her around, "It's alright. I'll be your eyes." A tug on her hand told her to start walking. She followed his every push and pull, her heart thudding in her ears. She feared that she might stumble at any moment, or that she would take a step and the ground would not be there. Somewhere in the tunnel, a rat squeaked, and she flinched.
The constant clicking of Garrett's staff stopped, and his voice whispered, "It's nowhere near us, Kayleigh. We must hurry now."
Kayleigh started forward again, "I'm scared, Garrett." She felt like such a child, completely at the mercy of circumstances beyond her control- and unable once again even to cease the frightened rambling she knew would happen.
His hand tightened, and his pace slowed almost imperceptibly, "I know." He paused as if he were going to say something more, then started forward again, helping Kayleigh down a set of steps. Finally, he spoke again, "We're almost there." Kayleigh paused. She could hear the battle going on above, the voices unintelligible in their words, but it was unmistakeable what was happening: Ruber and Arthur were locked in a battle to the end.
Garrett heard it as well, Kayleigh knew, because immediately, his hold tightened and he dashed ahead. Kayleigh stumbled at first, but found her stride, following him until a sliver of light above became visible. She dashed up to the steps that led to a door in the ceiling, the sounds coming into horrifying clarity. She pushed against the heavy stone trapdoor, struggling against the weight of it.
From the room above, there was a scream that could only have been the king. Another body pressed against hers and helped her lift the trapdoor. She poked her head up just in time to hear the traitor knight shout, "Intemperance in ruling has dethroned many kings before you, tyrant!"
Author's notes:
I hope Merlin's role wasn't too trite. I tried. I really tried to find some other way to work him in where Kayleigh would notice him, but he's not the kind of character you see out of the corner of your eye and move on.
I would like to thank everyone who advised me regarding that last line. I really didn't like Ruber's equivalent line in the movie and was glad to find that people seemed to like my idea to change it. If there's any last-minute thing you'd like me to work in (unless it's a confrontation between father and son, because that IS happening), let me know either in your review or a PM.
Next week's chapter may be a problem. On one hand, today starts my Spring Break. On the other hand, I have a lot of things to do, such as overhauling my personal schedule and preparing for both my band's spring concert and my drama class's semester play. I promise you again, I will not leave this story incomplete, but I may need a week or so before I can figure out what to do with the next chapter. I also promise you that for every week I go without a chapter here, I'll upload one or two of the pages in my sketchbook, since I initially plan my chapters with sketches. The sketches will be uploaded to gallery.
As usual, thank you guys for sticking with me for so many chapters!
Flautist4ever
P.S. medievalist1, I have received word from the college that they are preparing and finalizing their decisions. I will get their answer on Tuesday. Thank you for your constant support and wishes of good luck.