Alaia Skyhawk: And here's what I know you've been waiting for. The magic tournament! :D
Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.
Music: N/A
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Chapter 34: A Chain of Hatred Breaks ~Part 3~
The people lucky enough to get to the arena before space ran out in the public tiers, crowded into their seats chattering excitedly, while in the Royal Box six monarchs gazed out across the sands which would soon be witness to a tournament the likes of which had not been known in Camelot for over thirty years.
Arthur glanced at Fyren, his tone amused.
"So, did Sir Kieren volunteer for the tournament? I've not seen him in a mage fight since the tournament held for your wedding."
Fyren smiled.
"He did, and he's almost certain to win. Among my Aering Knights, he's the best."
Odin frowned now, noticing the absence of two significant individuals.
"Where are your Court Sorcerers? Are they taking part?"
Arthur shook his head.
"No, both are far above the strength of the sorcerers among the Aering Knights. There would be no contest. They will instead partake in a demonstration fight after the tournament concludes."
"Is that so?" Odin turned his attention back to the sands. "It will be interesting to see how your sorcerer fares against King Fyrendir's sorceress. She does, after all, have years more experience."
It took every ounce of control for Arthur and Fyren not to snort at that, but to give them credit both kept a straight face as trumpets sounded and the four competitors walked out into the arena.
Once they were in place and waiting, Arthur then rose to his feet to address the crowd.
"Today we hold Camelot's first magic tournament for over thirty years, in celebration of of the treaty with our esteemed guest, King Odin. To the competitors, I wish you the best of luck in your endeavour. The rules of this tournament are simple. No magical weapons or tools are allowed. No lethal magic is permitted to be directed at your opponent, although directing it at any magical constructs is allowed. Large-scale fire is also against the rules, although smaller controlled bolts are permitted. Spells aimed at breaking your opponent's mind are also strictly banned. Anything else is permitted... Let the tournament begin!"
Two of the knights left the sands, leaving Sir Kieren and the other to take up positions opposite each other. Both men faced each other, tense and ready, until Arthur raised his hand and brought it down to start the fight.
In a heartbeat, Kieren sent a blast of force along the ground, kicking up a cloud of sand to blind his opponent. In the same second, a ball of flame burst through that veil of dirt, missing him and instead striking the invisible barrier that had been placed around the arena floor.
While that ripple spread across the barrier and made it shimmer, Kieren then threw a cloud of sand up around himself.
His opponent shouted something, and every grain of dust in the air plummeted down. But once the air was cleared, no sign of Sir Kieren could be seen. The arena seemed empty but for his opponent, who looked around constantly searching. It seemed he knew this this trick of Kiran's, but didn't know how to counter it save by trying to spot him before he struck.
The knight moved cautiously and slowly, while the crowd when silent in anticipation. They were not disappointed, when the sand shifted behind the searching knight, and Kieren appeared as if from thin air and kicked his feet from under him.
Pinned face-down on the arena floor, his opponent grimaced.
"I yield."
The crowd erupted into cheers and applause, as Sir Kieren helped his opponent back to their feet and then bowed to the monarchs in the Royal Box. In the following fight, with any initial uncertainties among the crowd now long gone to excitement at the spectacle, the cheers were even louder when the fight ended. And now came the final between Sir Kieren and the winner of the other fight, and again the arena fell silent in anticipation as the two men faced each other ready to begin.
Kiran's opponent was the one to make the first move, by shouting a spell that triggered a very brief downpour of rain. He then smiled at him across the now damp sands.
"Can't use your vanishing trick now, Dust Weaver."
Kieren returned that taunt with a smile.
"And you forget, Sir Broen, that earth spells are not my only speciality. Ic friese se asigen ren."
He crouched and touched his hand to the sand, whereupon it sprouted frost which spread outwards from him in an eye-blink. Sir Broen tried to jump before it reached him, but failed to time it right and ended up ankle-deep in sand frozen as solid as stone.
He directed a hand at his feet, intending to summon a wash of warmth to melt the ice, but was forced to conjure a shield in stead when Kieren shattered a patch of frozen sand and flung the resulting shards at him. Several more times, in the gaps between attacks, Broen tried to free his feet, but each time he was forced to block before he could do so. It was a stalemate.
Broen placed a hand to his check and bowed his head to Keiran, in what was the more dignified way for a sorcerer to signal that they yielded.
Fyren rose to his feet in applause, followed a moment later by Arthur and Gwen, and he called out to his knights.
"Well done, both of you! You have done Escetia proud!"
Kieren freed Broen by melting all the ice, and both men backed towards the arena edge but did not leave it. The other two competitors quickly joined them, and then at last the Court Sorcerers of Escetia and Camelot made their appearance.
Merlin and Iunia stood facing the Royal Box, and once the cheers had died back, Arthur addressed them.
"We have witnessed today the skills of four of Escetia's proud Aering Knights, and seen their strength. Now it is the wish of Iunia Telgrin and Merlin Garrah, to entertain us with a demonstration of their magic in a single match, as both agreed that their strength meant to compete in the tournament would not have been fair to the knights. The rules for this battle will be the same as for the others, with one difference. In the interests of giving Iunia a fair chance to win, this will be a match of Camelot's Court Sorcerer versus Escetia's Court Sorceress and the four Aering Knights stood with her."
The crowd gasped as Merlin took up position opposite Iunia and the knights that had moved to join her, while in the Royal Box, King Odin exclaimed.
"Five against one? King Arthur, surely there is no possible way your Court Sorcerer can win."
While Arthur raised his hand ready to signal the start of the fight, Fyren answered in his stead.
"Merlin has already fought Iunia in a past match, and defeated her with ease. King Arthur merely wishes for his Court Sorcerer to have more of a challenge in this, which is his first match before the common-folk of Camelot."
Before more could be said, Arthur dropped his hand and shouted out across the arena.
"Begin!"
The four knights scattered to the sides to circle around Merlin, while at the front Iunia flung a bolt of power at him with the intention of immobilising him. But Merlin merely smiled.
"Gescildan! Adaele!"
The power struck the shield he'd conjured, but instead of being a flat barrier, he'd created a pointed wedge that split the bolt in two to streak either side of him. The deflected power struck Kieren and Broen, and both dropped to the sand with a startled cry to then lay there conscious but unable to move.
Iunia frowned and cast the counter-spell, freeing the knights while the crowd cheered in approval of Camelot's Court Sorcerer. Meanwhile the two men who had not been downed, attempted to knock Merlin to the ground with a joint attack to divide his attention, but unlike when he'd faced Iunia in Escetia, Merlin wasn't going to hold back and allow himself to be thrown around.
He flicked a hand each in their directions, as casually as if he were swatting a fly, and both were flung away from him to tumble across the sands. In the same movement he then knocked the feet out from under Kieren and Broen as they had just regained their feet, and blocked another spell from Iunia.
Merlin then pointed at the ground.
"Arisan ond asaele!"
To his sides and behind him, the sand swelled up like a rising tide and swept outwards over legs and torsos of the four downed knights. Once it had covered them, it then stopped and set as hard as stone, not frozen as Kieren had done, but still immovable, and after several moments of failed courter-spells, all four men visibly gave up. The difference in power was too great for them to be able to break Merlin's spell.
Merlin kept one hand controlling it, deliberately handicapping himself by forcing that division in his attention. But Iunia didn't smile at the chance for victory that it gave her, for she knew it was no real chance at all. In a tournament setting, where magic was limited to non-lethal force, Merlin could play games like this all day and still not be out-of-breath.
Her frown deepened and she conjured sand dogs as she had in their first fight, before speaking loud enough to be heard above the crowd.
"It has been an honour to face you again, Lord Merlin, and I have looked forward to it. You have not disappointed me." She pointed at him. "Agrete!"
Her constructs raced towards Merlin, much as they had done back then, and just as back then he struck silently with lightning. For the watching crowd, all they saw was a bright flare that made them cover their eyes, a crash of thunder that made them cover their ears... And then the dust began to settle upon the scene of Iunia's constructs reduced to blobs of molten glass near the arena edges, and Merlin stood behind her with a fingertip held to the back of her neck.
She turned to face him, and bowed her head.
"I yield to you, Lord Merlin. You win."
The silence that followed seemed unending, until it was broken by the people roaring their approval. Their Court Sorcerer had won, and they celebrated that fact with cheers and applause greater than any yet shown on this day.
Merlin turned to face them, smiling as he raised his hand in victory, and then he walked towards the Royal Box and bowed deeply to the King he had given his loyalty.
Arthur nodded in acceptance of that show of respect, while behind him Fyren murmured quietly to Odin.
"And now you see the respect that Lord Merlin holds among those with magic, and a fragment of the strength he wields. Wherever he goes, and whoever he supports, those of magic will follow him. And the one who he will forever follow, is King Arthur."
Odin, looking a little shaken, turned back to where Merlin now shook hands with Iunia and the four knights. It was then he knew how close to destruction his anger at Arthur had brought him, and how fortunate he was that his terrifyingly powerful Court Sorcerer had seen fit to advise Arthur to spare his life. If he had chosen war, there would have been no hope if his kingdom winning it, and that was something that Odin would never ever forget.
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Alaia Skyhawk: Yep, I let Merlin look totally badass in front of the people of Camelot. He's going to be a lot more popular from now on, thanks to the glory of wining such an epic 5-on-1 fight in the arena. There are times when Arthur's ideas really are very good hehehehehe! :D