Janadream: Thank you! Very nice of you to comment. I'm glad you like it. There will definitely be more chapters...and more stories, as well. I just need to recover a bit after this very stressful period.

P.S. Were you the mysterious reviewer?

Merlile Marc: Thank you, Merille Marc! I'm happy you find it interesting. I'm giving my best to make it even more intriguing and captivating. It's nice of you to write a few words. You'll find more about Merlin's legacy in the future chapters. But I guess the answer is yes. He is both Dragon Lord and a royalty. And he belongs to a very old and important bloodline.

I admit I expected you to ask about the girl from the crypts as she looks a lot like Morgana. May it be Merlin's imagination?

The frogs were inspired by a story my father told me. Crobours is a name invented by me when I was around 13 years old to scary a cousin of mine, but somehow she knew it wasn't a real creature (I suspect she asked someone. probably her grandparents or her father). And the story about how Drakar people used those creatures to win the war was inspired by the way Persian Empire won the war against Egyptians by throwing cats on the battlefield. The Egyptians venerated cats and they tried their best not to harm them.

Now back to Morgana. Five days before the events from the previous chapter.

Past and possible future

Five days ago

Morgana fell asleep late after turning and tossing endlessly. Aithusa cuddled next to her. The dragon had grown considerably, but she still had enough space in the bed. The little dragon couldn't fall asleep, either. She had a plan, but she feared it wasn't a good idea. Merlin would be very mad with her if he were to find out. Yet he didn't need to know, did he?

As soon as the witch fell asleep she had a curious dream. It was something about Merlin, but he wasn't alone. Aithusa, a much younger version of her dragon, and a huge dragon were staying next to him. Aithusa was on his lap and there was no doubt she enjoyed his company. The golden dragon watched them from afar.

"She doesn't listen." The huge dragon complained. "She plays all day long and never pays attention to what I teach her. Yesterday, she almost got lost in the forest. You must order her to be good."

"She's still young, Kilgharrah. Though, he's right." Merlin addressed Aithusa, "you must be careful. Will you promise me you'll be good?"

The little dragon let out some cries, trying to express her disagreement. Merlin laughed. The little dragon brought him a lot of joy.

"Aithusa" the little dragon said as she watched Merlin in the eyes. It was the first word she'd learned and she was very proud of her achievement. So, she used it no matter the occasion.

"You've grown a lot." Merlin praised her. The little dragon spread her wings to look even bigger and, she hoped, scary. "But you're still my baby. My little baby dragon."

"She's as stubborn as you." Kilgharrah exclaimed. "She even dared to challenge me about the witch. It's your fault, Merlin. You shouldn't have spoken to her about the witch." Kilgharrah snapped angrily "The girl you used to know is gone, but you still refuse to let go of her. There was nothing you could have done to prevent it. You should have killed her. I warned you about her long ago."He scolded the warlock indignantly. It was clear it wasn't the first time they had a conflict on this subject.

Aithusa cried again as if trying to defend Morgana.

"Great. You've turned Aithusa against me, too." The dragon uttered coldly. "She's young, Merlin. She doesn't know how cruel the world is. Considering the way you've spoken about Morgana, there's no wonder she thinks the best about the witch. She's dangerous. " Kigharrah warnned him for the unepteeth time. "What if Aithusa goes to her because of your nice stories and the witch captures her? That's what you want for Aithusa? Do you have any idea how painful it is to spend years chained in a dark cave, dreaming about the blue sky and have no idea if you'd ever see it again?"

"That's not going to happen. You'd take care of her, wouldn't you?"

"I can't if you don't walk in step with me. Have you forgotten the damage Morgana caused?" The dragon couldn't miss the opportunity of reminding him.

"Of course not. Yet she doesn't deserve what I've done to her. She trusted me to protect her and I...I swore to keep her away from any harm and yet I was the one to harm her." Aithusa cuddled to his chest and watched him with big eyes. "She had no idea Morgause was using her."

"Such a spell couldn't have been worked without the witch's approval. She was the one who betrayed you first. She'd put all her friends' lives and the lives of many innocent people to Morgause mercy just to save herself from Uther's punishment were he to find about her. She only cared about herself." The Great Dragon retorted.

"Yes, but..."

"She wasn't surprised about Morgause's attack, was she?" The dragon continued.

"Yes, but she was too afraid to admit her mistake. I don't think she meant to harm Arthur or the people." Aithusa nodded to his remark. The dragon noticed her, but ignored the baby dragon.

"Yet she'd rather sacrifice everyone else than admit her mistake. Isn't it clear she valued her own life above everyone's?" Kilgharrah pointed out.

"Though, she didn't deserve that," Merlin answered, tired.

"There was no other way."

"I haven't tried to find another way." The Dragon Lord cried.

"And risk Arthur and thousands of people's lives! For someone destined to become evil! You couldn't have prevented her from turning against Camelot. Maybe, postpone the moment, but eventually, she would have chosen the same path."

"You don't know that. The future isn't written in stone."

"Maybe, but you didn't have the power to prevent it. She considered you just a servant and nothing more. Do not lie to yourself thinking you could have convinced her to try another way. She would have always chosen Morgause over you."

"Don't you think I know that?" Merlin cried pathetically. "But Arthur could have changed her mind."

"Could he? Uther would have never changed his view and Arthur would have needed time far from his father's influence to see magic differently. She has always been reckless. Like her father. How long do you think she would have waited? Now, due to her actions, it will be very difficult to make Arthur and the people see magic isn't evil. You should have never allowed something like that to happen."

"I know. But I miss her." Tears were already running down his cheeks and he didn't bother to stop them.

"I'm sorry, young warlock. I really am, but you have a duty to us. As long as she would keep hurting innocent people, Arthur would never change his mind regarding magic. The more damage she will cause, the more he will harden his view towards us. The witch must die even if it will break your heart in thousands of pieces. You can't allow her to continue." The dragon insisted before he flew away.

Morgana woke up more confused and distressed than before. It was so unusual. She supposed her imagination was playing tricks on her because, deep down, she missed her old life. Deep down, she'd wished there was someone else to blame for everything. Any scapegoat would have helped. Even a bloody dragon would have served the purpose. Anyone, but Merlin.

She wanted nothing more, but to be able to run to Merlin's chambers and tell him how scared she was. And he would stumble upon words, but eventually he would come up with a solution. Maybe, a stupid one, but he would do his best to make her imagine that everything would be alright.

But there was none to blame. Merlin wasn't her friend anymore. He wouldn't care if she were to go to him. In fact, he would take her directly to Arthur. He wouldn't care if she would be executed for fighting for what she thought to be right.

Yet she couldn't ignore how real the dream felt. Aithusa was also awake.

"I can't sleep. Do you want to walk a bit in the cold air? It will do good for us." The dragon nodded. She should give Morgana time to think. Meanwhile, she should find a way to meet Merlin. There was no way she would allow Morgana to marry that idiot. She knew he would come soon in the town. Well, not willingly, but… she hoped he would be able to understand her. And she would have to talk with him before Kilgharrah will.

They were walking when they heard two people speaking in the hall. Morgana didn't intend to eavesdrop, but she recognised one of the voices as being Sarah's and she seemed desperate.

"Please. You must be careful." The woman begged him between tears. "It was horrible. It was a prophetic dream. I know it. " Morgana felt sad for the young girl. She knew, after all, how Sarah must have felt.

"Sarah. You must calm down." The man spoke gently. He was a young soldier. "Let's hope he will be a better king. Eugene will ruin this country." Morgana couldn't help thinking how careless and idiot he was to speak like that about the prince. Yet he wasn't the first she'd heard speaking bad about Eugene. The High Priestess wondered how many people hated him.

"Lucky me," she thought. "And I was so stupid to think he is a great man."

"What about you?" Sarah continued. "What if he's as bad as Eugene?"

"What exactly did happen in your nightmare?"

"He was strong, very strong...and furious." Sarah started.

"Eugene's cousin?" Sarah nodded. "Go on."

"He was furious. Eugene killed someone he cared about. He was blind by fury. Removed soldiers from his way as if they were simple toys. There was fire everywhere. Fire and blood. No door could stay in his way. And then he was in the throne room with Eugene and…. He gave Eugene his golden crown back. He put it on his head, but...he melted it then, torturing Eugene to death. But...there was so much loneliness in his blue eyes. I felt pity for him. I don't know what to think. He was cruel indeed, but...he'd been through a lot." She finished her short story. It was difficult to say what she felt about the man from her nightmare.

"What do you intend to do? Do not lie to me. I know you can't stay and wait." The young man asked.

"I want to meet him. Maybe, if I can prevent Eugene by killing that special person...but I have the slightest idea where to find him. I don't even know his name." Sarah said with determination.

"But you said it yourself, he is strong and cruel. What if…"

"Have you heard about someone as strong as him?" Sarah asked. The young man shook his head. "Someone with his power, would have long ago tried to conquer the world if that was what he wanted, wouldn't he? He was furious. Eugene is the only one to blame. I'm sure he will do something stupid. He shouldn't have killed that person. The young dragon must love that person a lot. She was next to him and he liked her, too." Sarah added. She wasn't convinced by what she said. She still had doubts about the mysterious sorcerer, but her heart said she should trust him.

"In fact, he intends to do something very stupid." The man stated.

"What?" Sarah asked as she felt the world falling apart. The soldier lowered his voice for fear he should be heard.

"He wants to send people to find …." Morgana didn't hear who Eugene wanted to find as a soldier noticed her and came to the place where Morgana and the little dragon were standing. Sarah and her friend instantly changed the subject as they heard noises.

"My Lady, may I help you?" The soldier addressed her.

"I...I couldn't sleep and I thought cold air would do me good...but I started to feel ill and I ...needed to...I stood a bit here, hoping to recover my strength. I would appreciate it if you could help me return to my chambers." The witch said and she added a weak smile.

"Of course, My Lady."