They rode at a breakneck pace through the dying day. Such was their haste that many things were left back in the inn. Veronica didn't really mind leaving her white blanchet gown behind, she had outgrown it and could only fit in it with the help of magic these days. This wasn't what she was thinking about though.
She had thought Balthazar would be tired before, he had been on the road for weeks. Now the idea of him being tired seemed the most unlikely thing on earth. There was an indistinguishable, all-consuming fire that burned in his eyes and made him look like the most alert person alive.
When night came they didn't even stop. Balthazar conjured some magical torches to help guide them, enhanced so they wouldn't blow out. He hadn't said anything, not even slowing as he conjured them and tossed one to Veronica. She caught it with ease and she saw his eyes flicker over to her to double check that it had made it. After that he turned his eyes back to the road before them.
His silence worried her. Veronica saw the fierce anger and determination on Balthazar's face. She felt like she should tell him something to take away the burden that he was bearing. True enough, they had both known Horvath since they were children. However; he had been closer to Horvath than she, his betrayal cut him the deepest. She doubted that there was anything that she could say that would allay this blow.
Beneath them she felt their horses starting to tire. A stop was still out of the question though, the urgency in Balthazar's eyes plainly said that he would rather the horses died beneath them than lose even a minute. She started to cast small spells on their steeds in an attempt to keep them energized, but no matter what she did they were slowing down.
When they finally made it to the Keep hours later they knew something was wrong. Dead soldiers lay scattered in the courtyard. Without a word they drew their swords and moved forwards throughout the sea of bodies. Everyone had been killed, thrust aside or into walls. Veronica saw charred corpses that made her want to free her stomach of everything she had ever eaten.
Once inside the scene wasn't much better, in some ways it was actually more gruesome. Servants were lying dead in the halls as well as the soldiers who had rushed to their defense. No matter what she had thought about the soldiers, what they had both thought, they had died trying to protect those within the Keep.
She saw the anger and disgust grow in Balthazar's eyes. Instinctively one of her hands left her sword and reached for his. He squeezed hers back as they moved forwards. They both knew that whatever waited them ahead would be unpleasant if the halls and courtyard of their home were desecrated in such a way. Together they turned and started heading towards the practice room; if Merlin was anywhere he would be there.
A small coughing noise from her left made her turn around. A boy, no more than twelve, was lying near the wall. He was bleeding horribly from a stomach wound, but she could see that he was not beyond repair. Balthazar looked at her. He was near hopeless when it came to healing, but she wasn't. While she hated to leave Balthazar to face whatever awaited them alone for a little bit, she couldn't let the boy die. She clenched his hand a little more tightly before letting it go.
"I'll catch up with you," she said, "This won't take a minute."
He nodded moved on as Veronica knelt next to the boy. His eyes grew wide and fearful at her approach
"What's your name?" she asked soothingly, trying to get the full extent of his injuries and to calm him.
"Thomas…but…everyone…everyone just…just calls me Tom," he said, still coughing and struggling for breath in between words, "Tom Mallory miss…I'm…the…a page to…to…Sir…Justin…"
"Well then Tom," she said kindly, putting her sword down, "This may feel a little funny, but it will be over soon."
Taking great care she moved her hands over his wounds and started to heal them. Tom gritted his teeth but the look of death that he bore left his eyes. He started shivering wildly; the shock from the magic and the cold night air a little much. Without even thinking about it Veronica pulled her cloak off of her and wrapped it around his shoulders. Something told her that she wouldn't need it for much longer.
"Now Tom," she said, "You need to go back to Camelot and go and tell King Gareth what happened. Tell him that Veronica Hunt sent you; soldiers need to be sent immediately to Merlin's Keep as well as any sorcerers in the area. It's an emergency."
Tom nodded and struggled to his feet.
"Of course," he said, and she saw the determination in his eyes, "I'll go on foot if necessary."
"I believe you," she said, giving him a wry smile and getting to her feet, "But you don't have to. There are two horses tied in the courtyard. I recommend the white mare; she's more docile and won't panic at a strange rider. Now go, quickly."
Tom nodded before he hurried out of the hall. Veronica looked briefly down at her sword before deciding to leave it. Where she was going she knew it would no longer be of any use and would only serve to weigh her down. Then she picked up her skirts and started run towards the practice room.
She couldn't have been delayed for more than a few minutes, she could make it before much else happened. Still, she wouldn't waste the extra seconds it would take to go around up the stairs and then down again. When she came to the wall that made up the southern end of the practice room she concentrated and melted through it.
The scene before her flooded her soul to its very recesses. Merlin was lying several feet away from her, bleeding from his stomach. Even though his chest still rose, it was in an erratic way. He was dying, too far gone for any healing spell. An ache appeared in her heart but she refused to stop looking, something told her that there was more to see.
His Incantus was resting on a stand, one of its pages torn. She didn't know which one, but she knew it couldn't be good. A small sense in the back of her head went off, recognizing magic and alerting her that Horvath had been there at one point. Since he wasn't there now though, she really wasn't concerned with him.
What she was concerned with was Morgana. She was standing in the middle of the room and laughing horribly. Balthazar was struggling to get up in front of her, evidently in a great deal of pain. She didn't know what had happened, but she could see from the remaining anger and determination in his eyes that he was very far from death. Veronica sighed in relief.
As he struggled Morgana started to summon up a plasma bolt in her hands. The movement was casual and leisurely, like she knew that she had a good deal of time to do it. It was more powerful and brighter than anything Veronica had conjured up in the past, and she knew without a doubt that it would kill him.
Veronica took it in in seconds. She made her decision just as quickly as well. Realistically she knew she was no match for Morgana. Anything she did would most likely serve only as a brief distraction before Morgana finished both her and Balthazar off. If the three apprentices had worked together then it might've been possible to take her on. That possibility no longer existed though. Still, she wasn't entirely powerless. There was one thing she could do; one thing that she had never before practiced but knew she was capable of.
Her hands stretched out and she concentrated. She started making a pulling motion with them and her ring glowed brightly. Morgana stopped her conjuring and contorted a little. Veronica continued pulling, tugging like she would on a rope. Briefly she caught sight of Balthazar staring at her in horror; he had heard of this spell but probably never seen it successfully performed. He probably didn't even know she knew how to do it.
After that Morgana started fighting back and Veronica knew that she had to start concentrating harder. To anyone outside of this it would've happened quickly, but to Veronica it seemed as if the spell was lasting for hours and hours. Morgana was fighting back hard, her soul clinging to her body.
She didn't have a chance though. Veronica had studied this spell since she was a girl of nine, locked in a cellar and reading it by the light that filtered through the floorboards. Nor was she fighting for herself like Morgana was. She was fighting for the man on the floor who was all that she had now, the only thing she cared about and couldn't stand to see lose. In that moment she didn't care if she was sacrificing herself, only if he lived.
Then, suddenly, the Arcana Nineve made sense. She was making a sacrifice now, but one of herself. The sacrifice wasn't going to be Balthazar at all, and that thought gave Veronica the strength to complete the spell. That part of the Arcana had never been circled, it had always been definite. No matter what happened, she was going to sacrifice herself right then and there.
With an odd sensation Veronica finally sucked Morgana's soul into her own. For a second she felt fine, and then it felt as though she were being ripped in two. Falling to her knees she struggled to take in breath, feeling something dark stirring in her veins. It was a pain beyond anything she had ever experienced before.
Gasping she wrapped her arms around her stomach for a minute. Morgana's soul would settle; it had to if she was to save him. Nothing in the scroll had mentioned this about the spell, only that it would be difficult to perform and that it should be used with caution. Just when she was beginning to think that everything was fine an earth-shattering scream pierced her mind;
"LET ME OUT!"
"No, never," Veronica thought back fiercely, "You've taken everyone else from me; my second mother, my Master, my friend, YOU'LL NOT TAKE HIM TOO!"
The pain intensified and Veronica fell towards the floor, using her hands to stop herself from falling over. It felt as though Morgana was forcing herself up her throat, trying to somehow take over her. The thought of Morgana attacking Balthazar with her body horrified her and she fought back.
However, she couldn't use magic, not in the state that she was. She looked up to see Balthazar staring at her with a broken expression on his face. Pleading with her eyes she tried to let him understand that she wasn't completely in control, that Morgana was stronger than her inside of her own body, that he needed to stay away.
"I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL DO IT IF YOU DON'T LET ME OUT THIS INSTANT YOU FILTHY EXCUSE FOR A SORCERESS!"
"NO!" Veronica screamed back.
Knowing that the fight would soon be over Veronica fought back, making a temporary shield of memories. She was five and running into her mother's arms, then nine and seeing her murdered. Merlin was travelling with her on the road and she met Morgause for the first time. Then there was her first glimpse of the boys she would share her life with. They were the boys who would become the men who would love her. There they were, the one who would lead her world to destruction and another who would take her into the greatest joy that she had ever known.
One minute she was dancing in her first ball, thrilled and uncertain by the feeling of Balthazar's skin. Blood from the manticore spurted into the air and the blood from Mary's delivery intermingled. Veronica picked up a daffodil and explained to Morgause that she was allowing Balthazar to court her. Then she was alone in Balthazar's room with him, trying her best to comfort him for his loss.
They were triumphant; her necklace broke into a million irreparable pieces. She kissed Balthazar for the first time and leaned into his touch in his attempt to comfort her for Morgause's death. Only hours ago she remembered wishing that she was his wife and fighting off Horvath. She could still feel that longing for a future she felt would never be now. All of the memories tumbled around in confusion, but they did the trick, holding off Morgana for a few more precious seconds.
Balthazar picked up something from the table. He looked at it in revulsion before turning to her with desperation in his eyes. Looking at it closely Veronica could see that it was the Grimhold. Once more she tried to communicate with her eyes, being in too much pain to tell him with words, to do it, to put her in it. They both knew that he knew how.
"NO! NOT IN THERE!" Morgana howled.
Fingers trembling Balthazar opened the Grimhold. It started to pull Veronica in; she could feel herself fading from the physical realm. She cast one last look at Balthazar and tried to tell him that she'd done this for him, that he was doing the right thing, and how much she loved him. Just before she was taken in completely by the Grimhold she saw his expression. As always, he understood her.