Disclaimer - I don't own Merlin, the BBC does.
My thanks to all the readers of my other Merlin one-shots, but this story is the beginning of a new line of short stories of what-ifs about Merlin's life. Let me know what you think, and please feel free to drop helpful ideas.
Merlin Myriads: Camelot's Rose.
"Please tell me you're not serious," Merlin hated how close to begging he sounded, but he could not help it after he had just received the worst news he could have expected. "Are you absolutely serious?"
Alator and two other members of the Catha glanced at each other and then back at Merlin, their expressions grave. "Its true, Merlin," Alator replied, "it's taken some doing, especially after you reached the Isle of the Blessed to go through the archives to find all Emrys references which managed to survive the Great Purge, but thanks to the work and your own studies, we've discovered the Once and Future King is one Arthur Pendragon. There's been a shift in the Old Religion."
A shift?
Merlin closed his eyes and looked down at his feet, working out what had caused such a change in the prophecy. "Why is it him? I assumed as Emrys it was my decision and mine alone to choose the Once and Future King."
"That was before the Great Purge," one of the Catha priests explained grimly, "Uther Pendragon launched a campaign of genocide, a massacre which lasts to this day. The Old Religion is in a rage as it tries to maintain the balance of peace in this world."
Merlin had been with the Catha priests as well as the druids ever since his parents were murdered by Camelot knights when Uther discovered through his spies the last dragonlord in existence was living in Ealdor long enough to understand the point and understand what the priests were telling him. Thinking of his parents reminded him of one of the biggest reasons he despised Camelot so much; the moment his parents discovered the presence of the Camelot knights, they had immediately told him to escape, and he had. His mother, who didn't even possess magic despite living with two sorcerers, was murdered while his father was somehow able to disguise death long enough to tell Merlin to seek out the druids and the Catha, and learn magic from them.
It was on that day Merlin became a dragonlord.
It wasn't the best gift to receive if the price was your parents.
"Uther initiates the Great Purge, killing countless sorcerers, including innocent children, desecrating magical sites, destroys knowledge and declares it evil, bringing dozens of magical species close to extinction or does drive them to extinction, and the Old Religion takes the decision out of my hands…so Uther's son is chosen to make up for the damage his bastard father caused," Merlin worked it out in his mind.
"That's the sum of it," Alator nodded, ignoring Merlin's bad language since it was an opinion shared by many sorcerers throughout the Five Kingdoms.
Well, that explains the shift, Merlin sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, remembering everything he had picked up about Uther, and his Purge.
Uther Pendragon was not the first king to launch an all out attack against magic and many doubted he would be the last, but Uther was not like any of his magic-despising predecessors. He had launched his rampage of murder very delicately, planning every single strategy he could, even bringing in knowledgeable sorcerers onto his side with tales which were nothing but packs of lies designed to get them to work with him; with their help, the knights of Camelot were able to decimate dozens of magical creatures before Uther ordered the sorcerers killed before they had the chance to fight back.
Uther might have been a murderer, but he was no fool; he knew his knights might have been good, but they were no match against some magic.
What was worse was how Uther had persuaded another group of sorcerers he'd captured to help him wipe out the dragons. And they had succeeded, although Merlin hoped they hadn't known what it was Uther had wanted, and knowing what he knew, Merlin knew what had likely happened to them.
Merlin's father, who was a Dragonlord, had told his son about what Pendragon had done, and how he had eventually tricked Balinor himself to summon the Great Dragon, a dragon of enormous power and strength, under the guise of negotiation. Merlin had never discovered exactly how Balinor was persuaded to allow Pendragon to chain the Dragon up, but the Great Dragon had been imprisoned underneath Camelot's castle as an example.
With the final death of his father, Merlin was now the last Dragonlord in existence. One of his longterm plans was to find the last dragon, and free him from Camelot and damn the consequences; he knew thanks to his father's stories about dragons that dragons did not take attacks against their kind lightly.
It would be the most fitting act of revenge for Camelot to be burnt to the ground, and Uther and his people to pay the price. Merlin did not like murder, nor did he like death, but if there was one thing he had learnt over the years since his parents were murdered by Camelot's knights, it was if you wanted something to stop, you made it stop. Merlin had vowed to find a way to stop Camelot in its relentless persecution of magic long ago, but now it looked like he would need to find an alternative plan.
Goddess, when I went to the Isle of the Blessed and had to meet Nimueh to gain access to the archives which weren't touched by the Purge after the Catha told me there was very little out there relating to the prophecy of Emrys and the Once and Future King, I hadn't expected this!
Merlin had known about his destiny for a long time. When he had been travelling with the druids on his way to the Catha order's stronghold, who'd taught him some valuable healing spells to add to his repertoire of spells, they had taught him some of the legends and prophecy of the Old Religion, and while he hadn't been there long he had picked up a great deal. Merlin liked being unique, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to spend a large chunk of his life guiding some royal into a position of power.
Unfortunately, when the Great Purge had swept across the land, and some other kingdoms had also caused problems for sorcerers out there although they hadn't taken it to the same extremes as Uther had, the Camelot knights had destroyed so much magical knowledge, but in truth there was very little out there relating to the prophecy of Emrys; just a few references here and there, and that was it.
In the end the Catha had advised him to head for the Isle of the Blessed, the heart of magic in the five kingdoms. Nestled near the Valley of the Fallen Kings, the Isle of the Blessed was a legendary place, and before the Great Purge, magical travellers ventured there as did apprentices and their teachers in order to study the arts of magic, and to further their own understanding of the craft. It was hard to believe so much had occurred within the last fifty years the Isle of the Blessed had brimmed with all kinds of magic. And it wasn't just sorcerers who ventured there, the Isle was a beacon for hope for those which wished to seek magical guidance, or to be healed.
And then the Purge.
When Merlin had ventured to the Isle of the Blessed, his nature had given him a unique insight into the state of magic there; to a normal sorcerer, the place brimmed with magic still but to Merlin, the Isle felt like a living thing feeling its own decay. Uther Pendragon had known from the moment he had come up with the planning behind the genocide he wanted to unleash on magic, and the Old Religion, he would need to go for the heart. He had been thorough; Merlin had no idea how Pendragon had managed to conquer the Isle, but he could see the aftermath. The magic of the Isle had helped guide him around the place, and he had discovered the archives as well as Nimueh, who had told him about the Purge and her role in it.
To think Ygraine Pendragon's death would be the call to so much death and pain… While Merlin could understand, from a certain point of view, the deeper ambitions of the High Priestess who had wanted to become Uther's next Queen, he could not understand why she thought Uther was suddenly going to fall in love, but he guessed back then things had been different. Nimueh had been surprised when he had arrived, but as they were both sorcerers and they'd never fought before, the High Priestess had seen no reason why he couldn't stay for a little bit, and she had not only helped him reach the archives she had helped him develop his spell repertoire. At the time, Merlin had picked up the lessons of the Catha priests as well as the sorcerers he had met after Ealdor, but Nimueh reinforced a lesson he had long since learnt; the more powerful and experienced a sorcerer, the more difficult they were to deal with, even with his instinctive skills and his power.
Nimueh had certainly broadened his horizons; while the Catha priests were powerful and experienced in their own right, some of them just did not reach a reasonable power level, but the High Priestess was someone different. She had not only been powerful, she had been cunning. By the time Merlin had left the Isle of the Blessed, he had taken with him a number books and scrolls relating to Emrys (Nimueh had been surprised when she had realised who he was, even if he didn't tell her; as soon as she realised who he was, Nimueh had stepped up her training with him, so there were advantages although she had no idea who the Once and Future King was), and then he had returned to the Catha with a much richer knowledge of magic than he had before he'd set off.
When he had left the Isle of the Blessed with the scrolls and texts relating to his destiny, Merlin had hoped at least to have some idea of what to look for in the Once and Future King, he had not expected the Old Religion to take the choice out of his hands.
"I'll give the Old Religion credit, Alator; it has an incredible sense of irony, although I'm not sure if its got a perverse sense of humour as well," Merlin sighed and thought about what he could do about this mess. "Nimueh is not likely to like this."
"What do you mean?"
"When I was with her, she deduced I was Emrys when I went looking through the scrolls and texts relating to the prophecies of my destiny. I didn't tell her about it, but she's smart. I can't imagine what she'll say or even do when she discovers my destiny is now tied with the son of a man like Uther Pendragon. She has plans to destroy Camelot and I can't say I blame her; she wants to make up for everything she did, which resulted in the Great Purge, and now she can't without putting Arthur Pendragon at risk. I'm going to have to tell her that, although I'm not sure how she's going to take it! What a mess!"
Alator nodded his head in agreement. "It is, Merlin," he agreed in his accented voice. "But perhaps this is an advantage-."
"Tell that to the people of Ealdor, and the druids, or to the unicorn I stopped Arthur Pendragon from killing when I was passing near the kingdom of Camelot, Alator," Merlin interrupted, his blue eyes which were usually full of compassion and kindness despite how seriously he took his magic and his abilities were now hard, "I was there when Arthur Pendragon massacred so many of them. He personally led the attacks; if I have to transform him into the Once and Future King, I will need to do a great deal to make him into a king who will be a better man, and not just another Uther. It won't be easy; Uther has likely poisoned that man's mind and turned him into a copy."
"Merlin you have no idea if that's the case; you don't even know Arthur Pendragon. He might not be like Uther, and besides that there is nothing you can do but to obey the will of the Old Religion," Alator said, although he knew it was an empty hope.
"He's right, Merlin," one of the other Catha sorcerers folded his arms, "I personally went to Camelot itself under disguise so none of the soldiers would notice my entry, and I was there long enough to learn Arthur Pendragon is a completely different man to his father."
Now that was an excuse if ever Merlin had heard one, and he made sure the priest understood that.
"That does not justify what he did with the druids, and before you say it, the excuse I was following orders has been used many times over the years; he had a choice. He decided to massacre innocent people his father condemned for being evil simply because a few of them practice magic when the others only brew potions," Merlin argued before he looked down at his feet. "What else did you find out about Camelot?"
The Catha priests were silent for a moment and Merlin had the view they were either looking at each other or wondering if he was just being stubborn out of a childish need to be obstinate. Perhaps they were right, but at the same time he didn't care.
"They've suffered a few magical attacks over the years."
Oh, I wonder why, Merlin thought to himself sarcastically. The Old Religion was likely so furious with the people of Camelot and Uther's nonstop destruction and desecration of magical sites, it was sending more and more dangerous creatures into the kingdom to show the arrogant monarch his desire to stamp magic out was not going to be as simple as he might have thought.
"And yet…," Merlin stiffened when he heard the sorcerer pause hesitantly, as if he couldn't believe what was about to come out of his mouth, "there are signs a sorcerer is preventing the more extreme attacks from taking place, although both Uther and Arthur have suffered a few injuries."
A sorcerer? Protecting a kingdom where they'd be killed without hesitation with those stupid laws in effect? Good grief, they must be either brave or they have a death wish.
"What?"
Alator nodded grimly. "There is, Merlin. We've heard stories of how Arthur Pendragon was nearly killed by a vengeful sorceress because her son was killed only a few days before. And that's not the only thing that's happened; a druid boy escaped with a story of how he had been rescued and smuggled out of the citadel by a kindly sorceress; he didn't get her name, but he described her as very powerful. There was another story, of a girl a bounty hunter had captured and imprisoned in a cage to receive payment from Uther, another druid, who was cursed by a witch because she had murdered her son in an accident, who was freed but died because she was cornered by the Camelot knights. That story is grim, but the fact someone broke her out speaks volumes."
Merlin shuddered at the thought of being captured by bounty hunters. It reminded him of the time he had been pursued across half of Cenred's kingdom all the way to Caerleon's kingdom, and he was eventually forced to burn them alive after they'd gotten too close. That was what happened when you cornered someone more powerful than you. Uther Pendragon was one of many kings and rulers within the Five kingdoms who paid a hefty reward for any sorcerers and druids caught alive. In his mind bounty hunters and witchfinders were the worst sort of scum imaginable, and Merlin had discovered the best way to stop them bothering you was to burn them alive excruciatingly slowly after showing them what they were up against. It was always amusing to watch the arrogance dribble out of them and be replaced by fear as they realised they were completely out of their league when facing a sorcerer who was just unafraid of fighting back when they were like a cornered wolf.
Sometimes Merlin wondered why no other sorcerer fought back, but he had been fighting back after seeing how a little druid girl was killed by a knight when he was younger.
He didn't like killing anybody, but sometimes it had to be done.
But thinking about witchfinders and bounty hunters made him suddenly get a nasty thought. "Does Uther suspect there's a sorcerer in the city?"
"We don't know. But we do know something important is happening."
"What?" Merlin didn't like the sound of that.
"We know a sorceress is planning to summon a spirit; when we realised the Once and Future King was Arthur Pendragon, we focused our sight on the city of Camelot to determine if there was anything happening, and there is. A spirit is being summoned, but at the same time we have discovered the sorceress is already using her magic to bend the spirit to her will for a brief time."
Merlin had been listening with growing concern until he was now seriously worried. "A spirit?" He repeated, remembering his tuition under Nimueh; he knew the High Priestesses were capable of such a feat of magic, but it was rare for them to do it; at the same time what worried him the most was how this sorceress was planning on bending the spirit to her will even for a short time. In short he knew spirits and bending it to your will, don't do it.
For Merlin who was always uncomfortable with something like necromancy because it disturbed the dead and the balance of the Old Religion, the idea of a sorceress performing such a feat suggested they did not care what lengths they needed to fall to. "Do we know who?"
"It's hard to be sure, but we believe it to be the spirit of Ygraine Pendragon," Alator's voice was grim and uncertain; whatever the Catha had discovered, it had been hard for them to determine if it was true.
"Ygraine Pendragon?" Merlin closed his eyes, getting a good idea of what the sorceress had in mind although he was a long way from knowing if he was right; all he knew was whatever this sorceress had in mind, it was nothing good. "I've got to get to Camelot; I need to find out what this sorceress has in mind and if I can stop her before she makes things worse."
"We'll get everything ready, Merlin," Alator promised.
Merlin smiled. He hadn't thought much about the Catha's way of doing things when he had first arrived, their rigid discipline going hand in hand with their almost monk-like mentality which bordered on an almost assassin-like credo, but he had grown to trust them. He only hoped some of them did not make some stupid mistake later on. He needed all the allies he could get, especially if he needed to work on the younger Pendragon. A murderous sorcerer was not going to make things better.
"Thank you, Alator," he said, making the older sorcerer/priest incline his head in a respectful bow.
"Merlin, do you have any other plans in mind for the Great Dragon now you know of this?" One of the other Catha priests asked.
"I will try to free him, but I will need to ensure he doesn't attack the city; it will go against his need for revenge. My father told me dragons will always seek retribution against those who do them harm, and lets face it; the Great Dragon has good reason to burn that kingdom to the ground. If I released the Great Dragon without my Dragonlord powers, then he would attack the city. But because the Pendragons just cannot leave anything alone, I didn't care if the kingdom of Camelot was wiped out. I was even thinking of making him lash out against the other kingdoms, especially those who hadn't threatened him, as a warning to the next few generations that magical purges come with too high a price, but now that's impossible," Merlin replied.
"It sounds like you were looking forward to watching Camelot burn, Merlin."
Merlin looked down at his hands. "I was. I don't like killing or destruction, and I knew there would likely be consequences if I ordered the Great Dragon to go on rampage, but I was tired of it. I was so sick and tired of monarchs, kingdoms, towns and villages attacking those with magic. I was tired of being pushed, tired of being a nomad frightened of looking back or looking forwards; I know it would likely make things worse, but at the time I was so angry with how our kind is treated."
None of the Catha priests were condemning Merlin for his opinion. It was one shared by many sorcerers; ever since the Great Purge had begun, many of them had lost friends and family to the Purge, and if that wasn't bad enough some of the other Kingdoms were issuing laws which made the populace frown on magic. It didn't surprise them in the least someone as powerful as Merlin would want to make the kingdom of Camelot pay for what they had done, the crimes they'd committed over the last twenty years. While they knew full well there were sorcerers and beings out there who would wish for nothing more than to see the whole of Camelot pay the price, they knew Merlin would have had the means of doing it.
Merlin was a powerful sorcerer. He had spent the last few years learning and training to be powerful, he had been taught by his father as one, and he had learnt many things from his brief time with the druids, to say nothing of what he'd learnt from Nimueh. The most remarkable thing about Merlin and his abilities were that most of them he had learnt by himself; when he had been younger, he had only needed to think of something and it would happen with his magic.
He was definitely Emrys, but they hoped he would have the means of getting through to Arthur Pendragon.
If ever there was a time for Albion to be born, it was now.
X
As he stood about a mile from Camelot in the middle of the night, the white light of the moon reflecting off of the surface of the white-stone walls of the city which gave the magnificent city an almost ethereal glow, Merlin wondered just what was going on. He had spent the last few days gathering information about the events going on inside the kingdom, and word had already spread of a woman named Morgause who had challenged five knights and killed them in combat before challenging Arthur Pendragon to a duel. Arthur had apparently lost the fight but nobody knew why the woman had wanted to challenge him in the first place. There was no doubt in his mind Morgause and the sorceress who was apparently bending the spirit of Ygraine Pendragon to her will was one in the same; it would be too much of a coincidence otherwise.
Entering the city wasn't that difficult - mastering invisibility or making people believe you weren't there had taken time for him to master properly without the worst side effects, but he had mastered it with some time and effort to say nothing of hours of practice - and after he got through the main gates, Merlin reached in to the pocket of his cloak and he pulled out a small gem. He'd had the Catha look for something that would help him to find any other sorcerer of power within half a mile of him.
As soon as he chanted the incantation to activate the spell imbued into the gem, it began to glow. Merlin was tempted to walk around the city to find out if the sorcerer was one of the common people, but he decided against it; he needed to get into the castle so he could meet Arthur and find out for himself what Morgause wanted from him, and to forge a plan from there. Still holding onto the gem to narrow down the list of choices for the sorcerer in the city, Merlin walked slowly through the streets towards the castle, and as soon as he passed the gates, the glow intensified. Whoever the sorcerer was, they were in the castle.
Merlin looked down at the gem thoughtfully, torn between the immediate priority of meeting Arthur Pendragon and finding the sorcerer… but in the end he decided to look for the sorcerer. Using the gem, Merlin came to a part of the castle easily enough, and aside from hiding behind a few pillar whenever he heard somebody coming his way. The glowing gem eventually led him to a door, and as soon as he held the gem up the glow grew. Whoever they were, they were important in the city's hierarchy.
Merlin quietly pressed his ear to the wood, listening as best as he could and he heard the gentle sound of somebody sleeping inside the room. For a moment Merlin wondered if meeting the sorcerer sleeping inside the room was a wise move, but he had come this far and besides from what he had heard already, this sorcerer was someone who had done great good. But while he was aware the sorcerer inside the room might not be the one who had helped the druid boy and freed the girl who'd been captured by the bounty hunter, Merlin didn't have the time to check the rest of the city for a different candidate.
In the end Merlin sighed and decided to take a risk. He waved his hand over the door and it opened up, and he stepped into the room. Everything was pitch dark, but thanks to the soft moonlight shining outside through the window, he quickly found the bed. Merlin walked over softly and held up the gem as he came to the shadowy silhouette of a young woman.
And then the gem glowed again, but this time there was a dark spot in the light. Merlin frowned as he examined it, his mind going back over what the Catha had told him about the gem and its properties. The gem would only glow whenever there was a sorcerer, and it could be set to determine their general power levels, but it could also determine if there was something contaminating them. A subtle but powerful enchantment would do just the trick.
Merlin looked down at the woman, unsure of what it was that was enchanting her, but considering how sorcerers were viewed with suspicion nowadays, he knew it could not be good. Merlin sighed as he looked down at the sleeping woman, she seemed so peaceful and it was a sin to wake her up, but he knew he had little choice if he was to break the enchantment on her and at the same time he needed to find out if she was the sorcerer he had heard of.
He waved a hand over her to wake her up. The woman moaned in her sleep, and Merlin couldn't help but smile as he listened to the lilt of her voice. Slowly the woman woke up.
"Wh- what's happening?"
"A thousand pardons," Merlin said quietly, hoping she didn't yell out in alarm to his presence although she would not be surprised.
The woman sat up quickly, and the candles flashed alight, momentarily startling Merlin before he saw the look on her own face. The woman looked terrified, and then Merlin took in her features. She was probably the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life, with long glossy wavy hair, pale skin and emerald green eyes. But she was looking between him and the candles out of fear.
"Nothing happened to the candles!" She gasped.
Suddenly Merlin understood why she was terrified. "There's no need to be afraid," he said, holding up his own hand and let a subtle ball of light form in his palm. The woman gasped and looked up at him with amazement replacing the terror.
"You're a sorcerer."
"Yes," Merlin replied simply.
The woman threw off her bedsheets with an urgency that spoke of terror while Merlin tried and failed to interrupt her. "What are you doing here in Camelot? Why are you in my bedroom? Actually that doesn't matter, you need to leave-."
"I can't," Merlin managed to interrupt after finding a good opportunity. "I'm here to protect Arthur Pendragon."
The woman looked at him in astonishment. "Arthur? Why? Is it because of what Morgause wanted from him and why Uther has him locked up in his chamber?"
Merlin was interested in what Morgause wanted but he decided he could find out later. "It's a lot more complicated than that, but what I'm interested in is what you did when I woke you up."
The woman swallowed, looking at him with a frightened expression. "It… it was nothing," she tried to say, fear warring with her own natural self confidence, but Merlin shook his head.
"You used magic," he stated simply. "I partly came to Camelot to meet a sorcerer who's been protecting the city from the worst magical attacks caused by Uther Pendragon's never-ending massacre through the lands. Is that you?"
Merlin had known her reaction to the question would be volatile at best, but he didn't have any other way of asking besides a blunt question. The woman licked her lips in fear but he noticed the curiosity in her eyes, even as he found the way she licked her lips alluring. "Why did you want to meet me?" She asked quietly.
Pleased he had found the sorcerer whom he had been looking for because he had been hopeful he might be able to find a good ally in the kingdom, Merlin smiled as reassuringly as he could while he tried to figure out the best way to explain it to her. He wasn't sure if he should tell her about the Emrys prophecy since he didn't know how she should react. But if he told her of the importance of Arthur Pendragon maybe it would give him the help he needed.
While he pondered on what to tell her, he remembered the enchantment on her.
"Before I tell you, did you have a meeting with Morgause?" Merlin asked.
The woman was startled by the change in subject. "What's it got to do with you?"
"A strange woman challenging the Camelot knights, killing five of them and challenging the prince of the kingdom to a duel, wanting him to come to her which has got the tyrant prat," Merlin smiled inwardly when, against her self control, the beautiful woman hid a chuckle at the insulting name for Uther; it was clear to him while she found it funny, there was a lot of grief between this woman and the king, "locking him up in his chambers. In any case, you've been enchanted by her. I used this," Merlin lifted up the gem, which glowed brightly as it was held between the two magicians, "to determine if you were a sorcerer; when I came to this city, I knew there was one nearby, but I never imagined you'd be hiding under Uther's nose. But at the same time, its picking up an enchantment on you. Look, look at the dark spot on the gem."
"That could be anything; I don't know you, for all I know you might be a sorcerer who planned to come here to kill me-."
Merlin cut her off by transmitting his memories to her. He had learnt the art of telepathy from his father, who had touched his mind and showed him the memories of his own childhood, where he had gone with his father, Merlin's grandfather, to the dragons. Merlin had come to prefer telepathic teaching because it was so quick and effortless since sometimes words could not always necessarily provide the right descriptions for an event.
Balinor had taught Merlin a great deal about magic, but he had also taught him how to transfer memories and images to the minds of others in a connection where the recipient would realise they were not being lied to. But while Balinor's skills had been good, Merlin had encountered those who were better. The druids were joined together by telepathy, they were able to calm their younglings down by feeding them images of peace and songs which gently soothed the mind.
He didn't use the opportunity to look into her own mind. For him it would be the worst kind of invasion of privacy, but he gently but firmly pushed his memories into her mind. He showed her moments of his childhood; he showed her the times where he had used magic without a spell; where his father took him into the forest, meeting with druids who had taught him skills with potions his parents could not provide; his father teaching him spells in order to provide a well rounded education; the rage he had felt burning within along with the pain of loss as he watched as the Camelot knights, learning there was a Dragonlord in Ealdor which had made Uther resume his desire to wipe out the entire Dragonlord group, and he had no qualms showing her his desire to make Camelot pay the price; he showed her his memories of being with the druids, travelling with various groups and learning from them; stopping Arthur from killing the Unicorn in the forest and unleashing its curse on Camelot although he knew it would be a fitting punishment for the kingdom on the whole, but he hadn't wanted to witness the senseless murder of an intelligent, pure magical being; being chased by bounty hunters until he had become so tired of them he had wiped them out; his meeting with the Catha who had guided him, provided him with teachers in order to master his magic; the memory of how he had felt when he'd discovered his destiny as Emrys, the most powerful and greatest sorcerer in the world who was destined to guide the Once and Future King on a path of prosperity.
He shared with her the memories of his encounters with Nimueh, the High Priestess of the Old Religion, who had quickly trained him in advanced magics and letting him into the archives of the Isle of the Blessed which had miraculously survived the purge. Merlin gently showed her everything that he knew of the Once and Future King prophecy of Emrys, and what the future would bring to the lands for centuries to come, and how important it was for him to be there, to protect and guide the Once and Future King; Merlin made it a point to make it clear to the young woman that he had been looking for the right candidate for some time, since he had assumed he would have the daunting task of choosing the candidate, only to discover, in a fit of irony and a desire for the Pendragon family to make amends to the damage wrought against magic, the Old Religion had taken the decision away from him, and now Arthur Pendragon was the Once and Future King who was destined to become the one who would unite the land of Albion.
Merlin pulled away when he was confident the young woman had gotten the message. The young woman was blinking rapidly as she tried to clear her mind after the brief, but intense bout of telepathy. This is one of the reasons I don't like telepathy, Merlin thought to himself while he studied the young woman, it might be good for transferring memories and passing along information, but it can leave people overwhelmed and shaken.
"I'm sorry. Telepathy can be intense…," he apologised slowly, eyeing her.
The young woman looked at him with pity and annoyance, but he got the impression she was annoyed with more than once reason than simply having her brain hacked and a load of thoughts and memories not her own passing into her mind. "Intense is an understatement, Merlin," she rubbed her temples gently before she sighed and looked at him sharply while he was momentarily surprised she knew his name, but Merlin quickly realised the sorceress had gleaned it from the telepathic contact. "So Morgause did enchant me," she muttered, looking at the necklace she was wearing and even holding it up, gazing at it with distaste.
Merlin gently took it, using his own magic to protect his mind so the enchantment did not affect him. "It's a subtle enchantment. If left alone for a long period, the necklace would have slowly turned you against Camelot."
He knew he wasn't being entirely sure, but considering what he knew of Morgauses' reputation, it would fit soundly that she would want somebody on the inside.
The woman glared at him fiercely, looking at him with more than a little fear in her eyes. "I have spent nearly two years protecting Camelot, I am not going to destroy it now."
Merlin looked at her curiously and he took a seat. "How did it start?"
The young woman sighed and pulled her knees up to her chin to lean on. "All my life…I've had strange dreams," she whispered, her voice haunted as she clearly remembered bad times, "that seemed to tell the future; two years ago, I saw an elderly sorceress who was the mother of another sorcerer who was publicly executed for using magic disguise herself with magic after threatening Arthur's life in return. I tried to put the nightmare out of my mind, but on the night it happened… the sorceress used her magic to send people to sleep, and she tried to kill Arthur… .everyone, but me. I stopped her and I managed to hide what I'd done. I had stopped her with magic!" She finished, gazing at Merlin with awe and amazement.
And fear.
Merlin knew how she felt. Using magic for the first time was euphoric, and he could tell for this woman she had been frightened of her powers, and for good reason considering what Uther had been doing.
"And you've been using magic ever since to protect the kingdom?"
"Yes," she looked down at her hands. "I focused much of my attention on the people; they didn't deserve to be punished for living in Camelot, a kingdom where magic is seen as pure evil by a bloodthirsty tyrant. But occasionally I had no choice but to save Uther and Arthur; I didn't mind Arthur, I just found how he constantly sought to gain Uther's approval to be problematic, even though he does occasionally question Uther's decisions and ideals about magic."
"You mean he believes magic is evil?" This was not a good mindset for the Once and Future King in Merlin's mind. When he had heard Arthur did occasionally question Uther's ideals, Merlin had been delighted since it would give him something to work with.
But now…
"I don't know," she replied. "You'd have to find out from him, but personally I think he's uncertain. He has seen magic be used for evil, there's no denying that, but overall he seems doubtful of some of it. And there's only one sure way we can do that."
"We?"
"Yes," the woman said resolutely as she sat up (Merlin had to gulp at the sight of the woman's nightdress, and how it showed off a lot of her beauty), "I want to know what Morgause wanted to do with Arthur. I also want to know what she has in mind."
Merlin saw nothing wrong with the idea. If he were to stay around Camelot, then it would be a good thing to have somebody to help him defend the city against Arthur's enemies. "Are you sure you want to do this?" He clarified.
The woman nodded. "I do," she said in an obstinate way that said it all for Merlin, really.
Merlin sighed and nodded. "You'd better get dressed," he advised her, "and you had better leave a note for Uther; the less he believes you want to go with Arthur, the better."
"I'll think of something," she smirked.
X
As she walked through the corridors of the castle, Morgana thought of how everything that was happening now would affect her long-term plans for the future. Defending Camelot had become a full-time job, especially after the whole mess with Mary Collins, and she hadn't reacted with any kind of skill; she had just used her magic to lash out at the elder sorceress, and while it had saved Arthur's life, a part of her had wondered if the Five Kingdoms and the people within those lands would have been better off without the Pendragons, but by the time she had finished, it was too late.
And after that, things hadn't stopped.
Valiant. Sophia. The troll stepmother…. All of it had been difficult to deal with, especially the troll since it had ensnared Uther so thoroughly it had been incredibly difficult to break; she still had no idea who that telepathic voice telling her the only way to break such an enchantment was to make Uther cry tears of true remorse, it had been an ancient, masculine voice full of wisdom, pain, regret, anger, but above all purpose.
And yet it was also filled with distrust, as if the owner of the voice was only communicating with her as a last resort.
And it had happened several times before.
It had taken Morgana a while to come to Gaius with the knowledge; she had heard rumours the old court physician had allowed many of his friends to die in the Great Purge, so she'd needed to be careful in case he asked too many questions, and guessed she was the sorceress protecting Camelot. While she had always liked Gaius, she couldn't risk such exposure.
Morgana broke out of her thoughts when she and Merlin came to the part of the castle where Arthur's rooms were; she wasn't entirely certain about Merlin, but there was something about him that made her trust him. He wasn't boldly handsome, but there was something magnetic about him despite what some might think about his appearance. At the same time, she was both awed and worried about his powers; Morgana had been practicing her magic for a year and a half, but her abilities were limited because she had needed to frequently break into Gaius' chambers and copy spells from a spell book she had found, but she had been afraid if she had taken the spell book Gaius might raise the alarm, although she wasn't sure if he was keeping the books on Uther's knowledge and awareness; if he was, then he would raise the alarm and Uther would tear the kingdom to pieces to find the forbidden knowledge and kill whomever was responsible for taking it.
On the other hand, if he did hide the books away from Uther, then the old physician would do nothing without compromising himself, then Morgana would be safe, but she had ultimately decided just to copy as much as she could from the book and leave it at that, while she practiced the magic on her own; as a lady of the court, she could make the time to conduct such studies. Sometimes Uther's affection for her really was an advantage, but it was always something she had long since needed to be cautious using.
Fortunately, her role gave her numerous opportunities to practice magic. But she guessed her proficiency was no match for Merlin, who seemed able to command something otherworldly with his powers.
As she and Merlin turned the corner, they both spotted the two guards standing outside Arthur's chambers. The two sorcerers pulled back.
"He's really not taking any chances," Morgana commented, wondering what it was about Morgause that worried Uther to this degree. But whatever it was, she got the impression Morgause knew something relating to Arthur that Uther did not want his precious heir to ever discover. And whatever it was, it was big.
"This will be easy," Merlin answered her, and before Morgana could even ask him what he meant by that, the enigmatic sorcerer stuck his head around the corner, and she heard the distinctive metallic chinking sounds of pieces of metal bumping into other bits of metal. When she stepped around the corner with Merlin, Morgana's eyes widened when she saw the guards.
Both of them were clearly unconscious as they'd been put to sleep; they'd clearly bumped into each other and fallen to the ground as the spell took effect.
Morgana turned to Merlin. "A sleeping spell?"
Merlin nodded. "A powerful one. They'll be alright, they'll just be asleep for hours, and it will also mean Uther won't punish them for sleeping on their duty."
Morgana followed Merlin to the door, thankful and relieved he had saved the two guards from a fate worse than death. Uther was not renowned for rewarding failure. In fact, if he were here now he would be exploding with rage a sorcerer was aiding another sorcerer coerce his son. She shook her head at the thought of Uther's paranoia, and once again she was curious about what would make her guardian do something like this.
With a flick of his hand, Merlin opened the door, but Morgana did not need to look too close to see the amber-gold glow in his eyes as the spell took hold before the pair of them walked into the room. They found Arthur sitting on the edge of his bed, his blond hair mussed up. He'd clearly been running his hands through it several times to make messy. His whole demeanour screamed he was bored, tired, and frustrated and concerned at the same time.
But he was alert. He had clearly heard the sounds of the guards collapsing to the ground, but his eyes widened in surprise when they caught sight of Merlin and Morgana.
"Morgana?" Arthur whispered in shock. "Wha-? Who the hell are you?" He demanded of Merlin, reflexively holding up the sword.
Merlin ignored the weapon, but he tensed nonetheless; if the prince tried anything, he would quickly learn to regret it. "I am Merlin."
Arthur turned to Morgana, dismissing the sorcerer, which made the witch tense. "What are you doing here?"
"We're here to take you to Morgause," Merlin spoke for the pair of them, his expression hard as he sneered at the prince. "We both want to know the answers to our questions."
"What questions?"
"Don't insult my intelligence," Merlin spat out, losing his patience, holding up a hand. "You want to know how Morgause knows about Ygraine Pendragon. I want to know why a fully trained, powerful sorceress of her level would even do this. I want to know what she knows."
"Why should you care?" Arthur demanded.
Merlin took a deep breath. "Because it was the death of Ygraine Pendragon which started off the Great Purge."
Arthur stiffened visibly at the news. "R-really?" He whispered, amazement and horror on his face as he was visibly shaken by the news. "You're sure of this?"
"I am. Not many people know of the circumstances, but Morgause had been a child at the time the Purge began, so while its possible she would know some of it, she wouldn't know all of it."
"Do you know what the reasons are?" Arthur asked.
Merlin took a deep breath. "I do. But at the same time, I want us to meet with Morgause."
"Why, what's the point if you already know the truth?" Arthur demanded.
Merlin sighed. He hoped he didn't have to deal with Arthur demanding and asking stupid questions and making idiotic decisions over the time they'd have to work together. "I have questions I want answered. They've been circling my mind ever since I found out what she was doing. Why is she coming forward now with this knowledge of Ygraine Pendragon when she could simply have come forward years ago? Why did she make such a spectacle in Camelot when she could have done something so much simpler? And what does she have in mind for the Pendragon family? What are her plans long term? Questions like those."
He didn't add he wanted and needed a clearer answer about what Morgause was doing. He knew she was using her magic for something serious, and he had no idea what it was, and it worried him a great deal.
Arthur was looking at Merlin suspiciously. "Why do you even care?" Suddenly he answered his own question when a suspicion visibly popped into his mind. He didn't know why he hadn't thought of it before now, but it answered a great deal. How this Merlin knew so much about Morgause, how he was able to walk through the castle without being challenged…. He had no idea where Morgana fitted into this, but he would find out.
"You're a sorcerer, aren't you?"
"Oh good, you've figured it out," Merlin clapped sarcastically, making Morgana roll her eyes but look at Arthur worriedly, knowing the reaction was going to be serious.
Arthur wasn't listening; he leapt over to the table where his sword was resting in its scabbard. He had just taken it out of its scabbard, the metal edge of the blade scraping over the leather…
Merlin's eyes flashed and the sword flew over to him. The sorcerer levitated the blade over to him, his hand lifted as he guided the weapon over to him far out of the frightened Arthur's reach while Morgana looked on in awe, amazed at the power of the sorcerer in front of them. Merlin, however, was looking at the sword in disgust. He wondered to himself how many of his brethren had been felled by this weapon, and in a fit of magical rage he threw it against the wall, which it hit with a clang.
Arthur stiffened and gasped in awe but fear, and he was looking at Merlin truly frightened. Merlin took in the fear, and for a terrible moment he was tempted to do the same to the young Pendragon to teach him his place in the world, and to deliver several years of pain and grief. But he didn't. He managed to restrain himself with some degree of effort, and he calmed down.
But he had to deliver a message. So he came to a risky decision.
He decided to make Arthur understand his grief.
"A few years ago, you led an attack on Ealdor. It was right in Cenred's kingdom; he didn't care about the border villages much, and I have no idea what he did after… because I had escaped the massacre you led on the village. My father was a Dragonlord," he added, seeing Arthur's eyes widen a little but there was also shock there; clearly he had not known the details behind the assault on Ealdor, just there was a suspected sorcerer who had caused some grievance with Uther over the years, "he had magic as well, and when I was young, I learnt from him to control some of my powers while he taught me the finer details of magic itself.
"My mother wasn't a sorceress. She was a good woman. Kind, and loving… she was even thinking about having another child in the family, perhaps a daughter," Merlin's voice was low solemn but Morgana and Arthur could both hear the pain vibrating in every single word spoken from his mouth, "and yet, your soldiers killed her in cold blood, just like they wiped out the whole village and enjoyed every minute of it. All because of your bastard tyrannical father's pointless vendetta against magic. Have you never wondered why sorcerers continually attack your city? You've given them more than enough reason to want your kingdom destroyed."
Arthur was about to speak up in automatic defence towards his father, but Morgana gently but firmly touched his shoulder. He looked at her, and the prince saw the look in her eyes. Morgana had never been able to control her emotions where Uther was concerned; she despised his father for going out of his way to massacre people, and she was of the opinion the more people he hunted and executed, the more enemies he would garner as a result.
Arthur could see her point, and looking into Merlin's eyes, he realised here, in front of him, right now, there was a sorcerer with the means of making Uther pay for everything he had done.
"I managed to escape, alone but alive. I met with the druids. They taught me philosophy, healing arts, potions, but they showed me so much. They told me not to waste my time with destroying Camelot," Merlin added, making both Camelot's crown prince and King's ward stiffen. "So I didn't. But your father's vendetta has poisoned the minds of hundreds and now there are bounty hunters, killers, who will gladly take a sorcerer to Uther, chained up, ready for one of those trials of his. And then I decided I was going to ignore advice. And for a long time I had the perfect plan to do it. I was going to kill you, Arthur Pendragon. Right in front of Uther, so then he would realise the depth of his mistake, and he would see that his seed was being erased from the world, for good and then I would kill him painfully.
"But then I discovered something else. To the druids and to many sorcerers, I am known as Emrys, a prophesied sorcerer, the greatest to ever walk the Earth, who's tasked with protecting and guiding the Once and Future King who will unite the land of Albion. I was going to deal with the threat Camelot posed to the whole of magic, and then I was going to find this King… unfortunately, in a show of cruel irony, I found you were the Once and Future King, so you could make up for the crimes Camelot has committed against my kind. But let me make this immeasurably clear to you.
"I don't care if you're the Once and Future King. My job is now to protect and guide you, and I will do that. But I will fight you if you cross a line I will draw, and if I believe you are becoming a danger to any sorcerer, man, woman or child… you will regret it. I've just proven to you that I am not afraid of using magic against you; don't push me. Now come along, we need to get to Morgause."
X
"Arthur, stop!" Morgana yelled as the horses she and Merlin were using chased after the prince of Camelot, who was riding far ahead. But Arthur was not listening to her calls, and she exchanged a look with Merlin in frustration.
The ride to Morgause's little dwelling was uneventful, and Morgana had been frightened Merlin and Arthur would be at odds, especially after how the Crown Prince of Camelot was riding with a powerful sorcerer who was now protecting him even though in the past he wouldn't have cared much about not seeing him die.
Morgana had been chilled herself, but she could understand where Merlin was coming from. She had spent years pounding it into the thick skulls of Arthur and Uther, the more sorcerers they killed, the more chance of some of their friends and family willing to come back and getting revenge. And here Merlin was proving her points!
But he was not the only one; Mary Collins, Edwin, so many others. Merlin had pretty much told them how he had lost his family, including any chance of having siblings due to Uther's bloodthirsty desire to massacre sorcerers. And since Merlin was not only powerful, but a Dragonlord… who knew what he could have done to the city. Morgana had spent the past two years protecting the people of Camelot against magical attacks, but Merlin clearly had the power to lay waste to the city.
And who could blame him?
From what she had been hearing, Arthur was responsible for the death of Merlin's family - he might not have personally killed them, but he had led the attack, and Merlin clearly held Arthur and Uther responsible, and she couldn't blame him for that. Nor could she blame the other sorcerer for his anger, and his desire to destroy Camelot; she would have felt the same way had her own parents been murdered by Camelot's knights.
Morgana had no idea what Merlin would have done and she had the feeling, compared to sorcerers like Edwin and Morgause, Merlin was the one who could truly destroy Camelot or smash it wide open.
It took a moment for the witch to recognise the vicious impatience and frustration on Merlin's face - and then she saw the sorcerer lift his hand, his eyes flashing gold.
Arthur screamed in sudden shock as he was thrown off of his horse, and he was sent flying through the air before he suddenly slowed down and he was lowered to the ground into a nearby ditch while the horse was restrained with magic and calmed down. Morgana glanced at her fellow sorcerer, and she wondered for a moment just how powerful he was if he could do something like this…
The Prince of Camelot struggled to his feet while Merlin slowed his horse down to a trot. "Oh no, don't get up," Merlin lifted his hand and Arthur went back down into the water. "You are going to calm down. Now!"
Arthur struggled to his feet but it was clear his equilibrium was off because of his surprise at being thrown off of his horse and then being thrown back into the ditch. "Do you have to do that?"
"Do what?" Merlin cocked his head.
"Throw me into a ditch."
"You looked like you needed to cool off, and besides considering what you Pendragons have done to our kind in a fit of temper, what did you expect? Humility is one of the things your messed up family lacks," Merlin lifted his hand threateningly to remind Arthur of what would happen should he say anything even remotely stupid. "What did Morgause do?"
Bristling at the threat although he had to think about his actions and those of his father and the things they had done, Arthur closed his eyes. "She showed me my mother's ghost."
Merlin exchanged a look with Morgana, who had come alongside the male sorcerer. They both knew, thanks to the night they'd spent at the fire at the camp they'd set up before their meeting with Morgause, how much Arthur would love to know even the slightest thing of the parent whom he had lost as a child. As for Merlin, well he knew Morgause had been doing something with Ygraine Pendragon's spirit, well he knew he was about to find out what it was.
In their time in her dwelling where he was closer to Morgause than he was before, Merlin had gotten the impression despite the strength of her magic, Morgause's work was incredibly subtle. More than he had expected. But what had she done?
"My mother told me the brief moments I was in her arms… were the most precious in her life…," Arthur whispered, looking down at his reflection in the water, seeing his blond hair and his blue eyes and he didn't see Merlin exchange another look with Morgana. "I apologised for being responsible for her death…"
"You weren't responsible, Arthur," Merlin said softly. "Dying in childbirth is an occupational hazard. It happens. You were not to blame."
Arthur looked up at him, surprised by the reassurance he could hear in the sorcerer's voice, and looked down again. "Still doesn't make it easier, Merlin. Mother's ghost told me it was my father's fault for her death…."
Merlin stiffened and Morgana noticed it, and she looked at him questioningly.
Arthur went on, oblivious to the exchange. "I was desperate to know what she was talking about, and it took some doing, but she told me father was so desperate for an heir he turned to magic for help," the prince shook his head in disbelief. "He went to Nimueh, a sorceress and asked for her help. I'm born of magic. It came with a price my father was all too willing to pay…!" The young man's voice was shaking. "She said…to create a life, a life must be taken…"
"And your father even had somebody selected," Merlin interrupted, making Morgana and Arthur look at him in shock. "Nimueh gave me some training in magic; she told me about the Purge, and her role in it. Nimueh's been so immersed in her own grief and regret over what happened getting the whole truth untainted by the filthy lies of your father, and his propaganda was not difficult."
"You knew?" Arthur gaped at him like his whole world was about to fall apart.
Merlin sighed. "I do. Nimueh told me the story. I could take you both to her if you want, and you can hear things from her."
"Are you sure this isn't some sick trick?" Arthur pleaded.
"I'm afraid not. Nimueh shared the truth with me with magical telepathy and I knew from experience with the druids and with other sorcerers that she was telling the truth," Merlin tilted his head and he mentally pushed his magic towards Arthur and he shared it with Morgana as well. He showed them everything he had learnt from Nimueh about the early days before the Purge, how some sorcerers were insane with a desire for power but unlike with what Uther and the other councillors and nobles of Camelot claimed, it was not as insane or as chaotic as was believed. In actual fact, many of those sorcerers were dealt with by others in order to stop them from killing others.
At the same time, he showed Arthur and Morgana the magical community was not the evil, soulless community where sorcerers plotted and killed everyone around them, murdering innocent and powerless people who were no match for them without a care in the world.
He showed them the memories his father had given him of the days where the Dragonlords had once existed and he showed them that dragons were intelligent, sentient beings who'd deserved more dignity than what Uther had shown them.
At last, Merlin showed the two the downfall of magic; the meetings between Uther and Nimueh; how Nimueh had at first refused since her knowledge of magic made it clear such an act would demand a steep price, and she had made sure to tell Uther this along with what would be expected. But Uther had not listened to it, and he had made plans for a criminal, one who was already scheduled for execution, to be the one to pay the price. But he had been dismissive and he had given the impression that he hadn't really cared who died, so long as he got an heir. To him anyone could have been the sacrifice.
Even his wife although he hadn't known it at the time.
But Merlin decided to show them how Nimueh made her big mistake, how she had assumed she could assume the Queen's role in Ygraine's place and help raise Arthur in order to make amends; Merlin thought this was a betrayal of Nimueh's confidence but both of them needed to know there was blame on both sides, but he was careful to make it clear in case Arthur decided to lose his temper, and go on a rampage to kill the High Priestess. He was very careful to make it clear to them Nimueh had sensed an opportunity to elevate her position and make the Old Religion stronger. In that regard she was no different from another queen or member of royalty.
Except it has blown up in her face.
Uther had gone on a rampage following Ygraine's death. He had plotted the Great Purge with great care, even going so far as to hire other sorcerers to help him under the guise of a secret cabal of sorcerers whom he had heard plotting against him. Only for them to be betrayed when they realised he wanted their abilities to make it easier to hunt and slay their own people, and to destroy the Isle of the Blessed.
Merlin felt Morgana and Arthur's horror and anger, in the witch's case, as he showed them both how Uther had once again used magic to weaken the power of magical beings like dragons, simultaneously slaughtering them and the Dragonlords while hunting down and wiping out whole swathes of druids, conducting personal raids on camps and desecrating temples and shrines as he cut a path of murder through the lands.
Finally Arthur shook his head, unable to bear it anymore; his ears and his mind was now ringing with the sound of people screaming while they were being led to their deaths, and he felt ill that not only was all of this down to him, but because of his father's cruelty.
"Enough! Stop it!" He gasped.
Merlin did so, gladly and he pushed aside the horrible images as well.
Arthur looked down at his hands, and Morgana looked at him sympathetically; while she was glad the man who was like a brother to her was finally seeing the Purge which hadn't ended despite what some believed for what it was - murder, brutal and evil and senseless murder of having even the smallest amount of magic to them - she wished he hadn't learnt the truth, not like this. Arthur was broken now, and she had no idea if he'd ever recover.
Arthur had his head bowed while he was being watched carefully by the two sorcerers, and suddenly he began to shake with emotion. "I can't let him get away with this. He has to stop-!"
Merlin stiffened. "Arthur," he began seeing what he had in mind; while he had no love for Uther and would gladly join the number of people who celebrated his death, he knew it couldn't happen. "You can't-."
"Don't presume to tell me what to do-!"
Merlin's eyes flashed and Arthur suddenly yelped as he was magically picked up off of the ground. "No, you listen to me," Merlin shouted fiercely, his magic whipping around him dramatically in such a way Morgana knew it was primarily for show. "You can't kill your father; Uther deserves it, but think. What will happen if you kill him? Do you seriously think you would be crowned king for that without people thinking of you as a tyrant in turn?"
Morgana gasped as she realised the truth behind Merlin's words; while some would follow Arthur, many would consider him a tyrant just for assassinating his own father in cold blood. The kingdom would be thrown into chaos, and it would likely take years or never just to restore some semblance of order.
While Morgana hated Uther for his cruelty and his arrogance - now she hated him for his brutality - she knew if he was assassinated by his own heir, it would destroy everything.
"No amount of explanation would stop your kingdom from being torn to shreds, and that's what Morgause wanted; I've known for a while she was playing some sort of game with your mother's spirit, now I know what it was. Morgause wanted your mother to tell you the truth of what happened to her, but Morgause wants you to kill your father and plunge the kingdom into chaos. Don't give into her, Arthur, you are needed to change things and make things right," Merlin implored the young prince.
Morgana, meanwhile, was studying Merlin with some surprise. She knew the other sorcerer had been planning on destroying Camelot for some time, and she knew if Merlin had known this plan was in place, he would likely have let it carry itself forward before hearing of the prophecy of Emrys joining him to Arthur.
But at the same time she could see that Merlin's plan could have taken place at the same time, which was a terrifying thought in itself. Merlin, as a Dragonlord, and a powerful sorcerer, could have released the Great Dragon and commanded it to destroy Camelot all the while the kingdom was fractured because the Crown Prince had murdered his own father, the King.
So with an assassinated king and a prince behind it causing the kingdom to fracture on one side, and a dragon devastating the kingdom in its entirety, Morgana knew Camelot would have been destroyed with no hope of recovery ever.
"Personally, Nimueh is certain Uther had no idea Ygraine might have been the one to pay the price in the first place, now calm down," Merlin lowered the prince gently to the ground. Arthur didn't move, he just started to cry.
Morgana turned to Merlin and the two sorcerers wondered what the future would bring now Arthur knew the truth. She only hoped something good came out of it.