Chapter 30

"I won't be able to teach you everything there is to know about fighting with a sword, but you can learn the basics: the stance, how to parry a blow, how to land your own. On my count! One! Two! Three! Four! Now, you may have to watch for the feint. So, keep your feet moving, and only stay in range long enough to land your blow. And again. One! Two! Three! Four!"

Arthur teaches the village men the basics of sword fighting. Gwen and Morgana sharpen swords while I forage around for anything we could use to help.

"One! Two! Three! Four" Arthur commands, the men going back and forth with the taught movements, using wooden sticks as swords. Watching them makes my heart yearn for Leon, imagining him training with an actual sword, dressed in his chainmail. I can't believe that I'm friends with knights. Hell- I've kissed a knight, twice! I feel guilty knowing that I didn't get a chance to tell him where I went and that they might have no idea I'm with Arthur and Merlin. Although Gwen and Morgana are here as well so they may put two and two together. I'm proud of him.

"There is no way they're going to be able to hold Kanen off," Morgana says, looking at the village people with doubt.

"Men aren't the only ones who can fight," Gwen replies.

"Wait. Was Arthur expecting us to hang back?" I question rhetorically, smirking at the two girls.

I open a barrel a liquid substance in it. I dip my fingers in, immediately retracting them as I feel the familiar gooeyness of oil. We could use this.

"Hey, Arthur!" I call out. He leaves the men to practice their routine, jogging over to me. "Check this out," I instruct, holding out my fingers where the oil still sticks too.

"Oil?"

"Soak sticks in it and it will go up like that," I exclaim, emphasising my words with my mouth making a popping sound.

"Good thinking. We could encircle them, scare their horses," he thinks aloud, scratching his chin. "I'll leave you in charge of that."

Arthur spends the rest of the day training his men while I collect anything that could be burned easily, using a borrowed apron, putting them into a pile near Hunith's house and Gwen and Morgana make do with the materials they have to make enough swords for the people. I watch them from afar, and to be honest, they are worse than a beginner knight but they have courage and determination which can take down foes those who are unprepared for it. Once night falls, I have enough material to encircle the inner part of the village and I settle down next to Merlin near a fire pit.

"Maybe we should have bought a few knights, ones that weren't dressed in their cloaks to help," I murmur, thinking about the people back in Camelot.

"I couldn't ask more people to risk their lives," Merlin replies, looking at his hands. Merlin had informed me that his mother had come to Camelot to plead to Uther for assistance but he refused under the reasoning that Ealdor lies in Cenred's land and to send knights would be an act of war. And for once, I agreed that Uther had made the right decision, however hard it must be for Ealdor. But I am even happier to be here, my fear of travelling gone. I hadn't even thought about it, too focused on the current events.

"They would have come if Arthur had asked them to, under the guise of normal men. It's what they do. But the King is their leader."

"I'm glad you're here," he says, looking at me, the fire casting dancing shadows over his face.

"I'm glad I'm here too."

"We're not going to be able to defend Ealdor with sword and sinew alone. We're going to need a plan. We need to find some way of limiting their mobility and drawing them into a trap. If we fight them on their terms, then we have no chance," Arthur says, speaking to a group of us.

"I have the oil and sticks. Just give me a day and I can create a ring but we need to get them into it first-" I'm cut off by a woman's screams. We sprint outside, readying to draw weapons. However, there is no enemy, only a man lying dead over a horse, an arrow in his back.

"Get him down from there!" Arthur commands. The villagers take Matthew down and we see a paper connected to the arrow. Arthur tears it off, reading it to himself.

"What does it say?" Merlin inquires.

"Make the most of this day, it will be your last."

"Dramatic," I mutter. "And cliché."

Matthew's finance cries out, hugging the body to her chest. I don't even try to imagine myself in her situation.

"You did this! Look what you've done!" Will shrieks, pointing to the dead man. I hold back a groan, sick of his whinging. "You've killed him."

"No! Kanen killed him, just like he will kill you. Only this man died fighting for what he believed in but you will die a coward!" I scream at him, my face burning in anger and spit flew from my mouth. "I am sick and tired of you bagging out Arthur when he is doing everything he can for you. He disobeyed his father – the King to help his friend and this village. You think they don't have a chance? They didn't have a chance to survive through next winter till we arrived!" I breathe heavily, standing right in front of the boy who seethes.

I don't think he will react for a moment but his hand flies backwards, and then comes forward, punching me square in the jaw. Not expecting the hit, my face flies to the side, the force sending me to the ground. I spit out the dirt I just swallowed, pushing myself up from the ground before anybody can touch me. Arthur moves to stand in front of me, pushing the boy away. Will storms off, Merlin giving me an apologetic look before following his friend. My hand cups my jaw, touching it to test where it's sore. The whole thing is tender, a certain bruise already forming.

"Are you alright?" Arthur asks, turning around, crouching down to my height.

"I'm fine," I spit, standing back up. "Boy's got a mean punch. We could use that."

"We could," he agrees, reaching out to inspect my jaw himself. "That'll hurt for a while but considering you are still speaking you'll be fine."

"I wish that happened in a bar," I grunt, walking away to get a shovel.

"Why's that?" the Prince asks, following me.

"Because then I would have a bar fight story. Now it's just a village boy." Arthur laughs, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Only you Elena. Only you."

I spend the day digging a small moat, talking with the other villagers or are building a makeshift draw bridge. I spent an hour or so, dipping the sticks in the oil the spreading them through the moat, leading to a hidden garden where it could be lit from safety. Night comes quickly again, Arthur calling a meeting for everybody.

"Tomorrow morning, the women and children shoulder gather what belongings they can carry and go to the woods."

"We're not going anywhere," Gwen counters.

"I know you want to help. The women can't stay here. It's too dangerous."

"At this point, they have just as much training as the men here," I add.

"They have as much right to fight for their lives as the men do!" Gwen continues. "The more of us there are, the better chance we stand."

The women of the village stand forward and their courage makes me proud to be a woman. They have strength, one I wasn't sure women of this time would ever display but they continue to prove me wrong. Prove to me that I wasn't born different to them, they just had never been given the chances I have to show it.

"This is your home. If you want to fight to defend it, that's your choice. I'd be honoured to stand alongside you. Kanen attacks tomorrow. Kanen's brutal. He fights only to kill, which is why he will never defeat us. Look around. In this circle, we're all equals. You're not fighting because someone's ordering you to, you're fighting for so much more than that. You fight for your homes. You fight for your family. You fight for your friends. You fight for the right to grow crops in peace. And if you fall, you fall fighting for the noblest of causes: fighting for your very right to survive! And when you're old and grey, you'll look back on this day, and you'll know you earned the right to live every day in between! So you fight! For your family! For your friends! For Ealdor!"

The villagers raise their swords, chanting for their home. I hear Merlin next to me, one of the loudest.

"For Ealdor!" I chant louder than him. He smiles at me, chanting even louder and we go back and forth outdoing each other, my jaw hurting but I embrace the pain.

I go back to Hunith's intending to sleep. Merlin sits down next to me where he sleeps in-between Arthur and me.

"I don't think your friend likes me," I muse, fingers drifting over my jaw.

"He doesn't like you either," he laughs. "He couldn't believe I could be friends with such a 'stuck up bootlicker', as he called you."

"Bootlicker!" I exclaim. "Alright, that's it," I say, playfully getting up as though I am going after him. Merlin laughs, grabbing onto my hand before I can move past him, pulling me back down to the ground. I land perpendicular to him, my head resting on his stomach giggling.

"I am sorry about him. He's always been a trouble maker," the warlock says, sobering up, a hand brushing through my hair. I yawn, the movement sending me to sleep.

"It's ok. I deserved it but he needed to hear what I said. It was a mutual engagement."

"If you say so," he chortles. I stare at the roof, avoiding thinking about tomorrow.

"I miss him," I mumble, head turning to look at Merlin who has his head propped up on a bag.

"Leon?"

"Yeah." I sigh. "But also Torj, Gaius, that one courtier that hates me. I miss the daily insults," I ramble.

"What about that other knight you're always with?"

"Castor? Nah, I don't miss him. He talks so much I can practically hear him right now. It's like having my own personal mini Castor in my head."

We settle down, not talking as I begin to fall asleep, not bothered enough to move back to my spot. Arthur comes in shortly.

"Move your feet," he says, kicking them lightly. I pull them towards me but as soon as Arthur lies back down, I spread them back out, over his thighs. "Really?" he deadpans.

"Really," I whisper back, already half asleep and sure that Merlin is dead to the world already. Gwen had warned me but I am not prepared for Arthur's snores. The past two nights had been fine, but tonight it is like sleeping next to a constant alarm clock that nobody would buy.

I wake up to having my feet shoved backwards by Arthur, nearly hitting Merlin in the face.

"Sorry, "I grumble to the warlock, wiping my eyes. My neck has a kink in it and I bend my head trying to get rid of it but I end up just irritating my jaw which is slowly pulsing. "Ow."

"Rough night?" Merlin asks, teasing about my choice of sleeping arrangement.

"You're all skin a bone so yes." He gives me a stink eye but he doesn't argue with my assessment. "Come on, you two should get ready and in your armour," I tell him, patting his knee.

"You don't have any armour?" Merlin asks with a hint of concern.

"Neither do half the people here," I counter, pulling on my shoes and stuffing the dagger in them. "Besides, I'm using my bow and hopefully I won't need to be up close."

"Is the fire pit all set up?" Arthur asks, picking up his sword, swinging it around in the air.

"Yeah. Morgana is going to be in position to light it."

"Where will you be?"

"Hidden on the roof," I smirk, picking up my bow. One side of Arthur's mouth tweaks up and I can tell that even though he doesn't completely agree with the women joining, he's glad to have them by his side and the majority of people supporting him. To say I am nervous would be a slight understatement. My hands jitter and my feet can't stay still, constantly wiggling my toes. Tightening my leather belt and pulling my hair into a ponytail I'm already ready for the day, nothing else to do but sit and wait.

I meet Morgana and Gwen, passing our good lucks to each other and double-check everything is in order. The drawbridge is covered enough and the ropes are tied securely. I make sure that Morgana has the flint to light it up.

The villagers hustle around, even more nervous than me. It dawns on me that today could be my death and that I might never see my friends again. Laughing faces of the knights pass by my eyes, even those of the people here with me. Some of the people are not going to be alive.

Letting out a shuddering breath, I hug Merlin who is dressed in chainmail that looks odd on him after seeing it on the knights. Arthur pats my shoulder and I nod to the both of them silently, holding my bow tight to my chest.

Some men, including Merlin and Gwen, line up behind a house, a lookout alerting the village that Kanen is near. Using some barrels, I climb onto a straw roof up to its peak. The straw is hard to grip but provides enough friction that I don't slide. I lay against it, loading my bow to be prepared. From my viewpoint, when I sit up I can see directly where Kanen's crew will be encircled, giving me a clear advantaged. I would have to move once the villagers come out, not wanting to risk hitting them.

Kanen's men come into view from out of the forest. More than he had on the day we met him. His number outweighs our own but we had the strategic advantage and the element of surprise. The men ride into the village, looking around at the empty place.

"Come out, come out wherever you are," he taunts. They look around, still mounted with their weapons ready. I move up a little pulling my bow over the ridge of the roof but hold my shot until everything is in place.

The drawbridge is pulled up by Gwen and another villager and Morgana should light the oil moat any second. The men realise something is up and become ferocious in their search. Morgana still hasn't lit the fire and I realise something must be wrong.

"There's one. Get him!" Kanen yells, pointing to someone running behind some houses. I recognise it as Merlin, one of the only people in chainmail. One of the riders shoots an arrow at him but he narrowly doges it. I pull back the drawstring, aiming at the rider with a crossbow. The rider shoots another arrow at Merlin, only missing by a few inches. I desperately want to let my own arrow go but I know I have to wait until that fire is lit.

My mark burns, the warmth flooding it and I know Merlin has lit the fire. As predicted, a fire encircles the men who are forced to remain in the village centre. I let my arrow fly, hitting my target dead-on, who falls to the ground.

"Now!" I hear Arthur command, the village people giving a battle cry as they appear from their hiding spots. I nock another arrow, shooting at a man who is about to attack an unsuspecting Arthur before the scene is a mix of people. The only way I can identify who is who from here is that Kanen's men mostly remain on their horses but they won't for long. Jumping onto the other side of the ridge I prepare another arrow and slide down the roof feet first. Just before I reach the bottom I aim at another barbarian, hitting his back then I fall off the side of the roof, tumbling as I reach the ground.

I pull my dagger out with my free hand, aiming for the men who aren't looking at me but are attacking other women. I am not fighting for honour, I'm fighting for my life and I have no intentions to avoid playing dirty. No point being clean if it means you're in the dirt anyways.

I sword comes directly at me, sweeping sideways. I duck under it, stabbing the person in the foot. The man cries out, falling to the ground to clutch his foot. A wound in the foot could send pain all the way up to the hip.

My mark burns for a second time, a tug at my body as the energy flows through it. It's more intense than I've ever felt so far. Again, it's not painful but I can only describe it as getting shocked without the pain. You feel the current going through you. I look around for Merlin, seeing him stand with Will. A large wind storm forms and begins to move through the village.

Taking advantage of my distracted nature, a man comes forth, swinging his sword down at me head. I see it in the corner of my eye and lean backwards. The blade catches my skin on my face, starting at my forehead, over the top part of my nose and onto my right cheek. It stings but I can't focus on it, the man bringing up his sword to swing again.

The wind comes our way, my hair blowing around as the man is sucked up by it, thrown away into a cart effectively knocking him out. It circles throughout the area, scaring Kanens men who back up. Unlike his followers, Kanen only becomes more enraged, aiming for Arthur.

They fight like a dance, going back and forth between offence and defence. At one point, the Prince manages to knock away Kanen's sword but he pulls another from a dead man's body. I debate just shooting the man but with their moves, he could easily sidestep and have Arthur take the hit, intentionally or not. Arthur wins, striking his to his knees.

I let out a gasp of relief, knowing I could live to see another day. Blood drips down my face but it makes me feel battle-worn, a scar I have earned.

"Who did that?" Arthur cries out, pointing to both Will and Merlin.

"What?" Merlin asks incredulously.

"Wind like that doesn't just appear from nowhere," he accuses. "I know magic when I see it. One of you made that happen."

"Arthur…" Merlin begins.

"No!" I cry stepping forward. I couldn't let him take the blame. Arthur would banish him at best. Although the Prince is growing he is still buried in the prejudice his father fed him and that's something that can be almost impossible to overcome in one's lifetime, let alone the barely year Merlin and Arthur have known each other.

"Look out!" Will cries, stepping forward, shoving Arthur out of the way. An arrow lodges in his chest, right above his heart. I nock an arrow, shooting at Kanen who had come into contact with a crossbow. My arrow lands in his head, killing him in the barbaric way he lived.

"Will!" Merlin calls, landing on his knees in front of him.

"You just saved my life," Arthur says, not quite believing the moment.

"Yeah," the boy grunts. "Don't know what I was thinking."

"Come on! Get him inside."

A sombre turn to a victorious day. A handful of men bring the boy inside, laying him on a table. I and everyone knew that there is no chance in saving the boy, he would die in minutes but at least he knows he will die a hero, even if he didn't want to in the beginning.

"That's twice I've saved you," he says to the Prince.

"Twice?"

"Yeah, it was me. I'm the one that used the magic." It is now that I truly appreciate what a good friend he is to Merlin, just like me he is willing to do anything for him. And as rude as it sounds, may as well take the blame now that he's on his death bed.

"Will, don't" Merlin tries to warn.

"It's alright, Merlin. I won't be alive long enough for anyone to do anything to me. I did it. I saw how desperate things were becoming and I had to do something."

"You're a sorcerer?"

"Yeah," he grunts. "What are you gonna do? Kill me?"

"No. Of course not. Do what you can for him." Merlin nods, Arthur, giving Will one last acknowledgment leaves him to rest. I take this at my moment to speak to the boy one last time.

"So, I'm a bootlicker hey?" I joke, giving him a kind smile. "I'm sorry Will. I was wrong about you." Will gives a strained smile, even managing a small laugh.

"I'm sorry too. Arthur… he's a good man, and you helped me see that" he says. "Even if you still are a bootlicker," he taunts. If he weren't about to die I would be punching him right now, but I laugh instead, nodding in agreement. I squeeze his shoulders, leaving him with Merlin for his final moments.

We leave this afternoon, Merlin deciding to re-join us back in Camelot, a decision that made me immensely glad as I don't know how I could physically handle being separated just yet. On the ride back I think about how we can train this and a few ideas form, but I will wait till Merlin and I are alone or with Gaius to discuss it. Gwen cleaned my face, telling me it would need stitches, but it would have to wait till Gaius.

"It's going to scar," she says, wincing at it. I laugh, shaking my head.

"I hope so. My first battle wound," I chortle. "You got any battle wounds, Arthur?"

"Do I have any battle wounds?" he scoffs. I spend the next hour sitting next to him by a fire as he describes a detailed story between every single scar he has. When he finally shut-ups (Okay, his stories are actually interesting) and the girls are asleep I sit near Merlin.

"I'm glad you're coming home," I hush to him.

"I'm glad too. I'm going to miss her but Camelot is where I belong."

I lean my head on his shoulder, his arm going around mine, leaning back against a fallen log and staring into the fire.

Warning that the next few chapters after this are going to be a bit loose in writing style. I trouble writing