"It's time," Nimueh said, and Morgana started.
"Time? But we don't even have a plan. Do you expect to just march in there and-"
"Yes." The other witch blinked slowly, lazily.
"Maybe if Merlin wasn't there, but-"
"He won't be." Nimueh peered into her fount, brushing away an imagined smudge on her ivory cheeks and fussing with her hair. "Likmus has made certain of that."
Siege preparations were underway at the castle. Food and water had been stockpiled, and most unnecessary fabrics had been converted to bandages. Blacksmiths worked tirelessly making they were going, people walked fast, with their heads down and their voices low. Attack felt imminent.
Arthur and his knights rarely left the Round Table. Merlin joined them that day, the Triple Goddess texts tucked under one arm.
"What do we know about Nimueh's army?" Arthur said, fully outfitted in his battle gear despite the probable discomfort. His crown glinted harshly from where it was nested in his hair. Merlin paused before answering, his gaze lingering on Gwaine's empty seat. The look was not lost on Percival.
"Right, well. Near as I can tell, they're shades. The magic is way beyond me, and it should be way beyond Nimueh, too." He opened the book, flipping to a dogeared page. On it was a chilling illustration of a creature colored in a deep blue ink. The proportions seemed to be roughly that of a child, but the head was visibly detached and dangling by inky strings. The eyes were wells of black.
"So Nimueh was brought back to life by the Triple Goddess, along with a horde of... these things?" Sir Blaise, a new addition to the table, waved his hand at the grotesque drawing. "Why?"
"Well, I think we should focus on finding a way to stop them." Merlin sounded evasive, and Arthur leaned forward, his eyes narrowed.
"Merlin."
"Granted, I haven't figured that out yet, but-"
"Merlin."
"I think.." The sorcerer bit his lip, drumming his fingers on the table. "I think it's my fault."
"How could it possibly-"
"I wasn't supposed to save you. She sent Mordred to punish you for persecuting her people. People like me. And now the Old Religion isn't banned anymore..."
"But I'm still here," Arthur finished quietly.
None of us can choose our destiny, and none of us can escape it, Kilgarrah had said. Only they had, and now they would pay the price.
"I have an idea," Percival said suddenly, and several knights took the welcome opportunity to make a few jokes. "The Disir."
"He's right." Merlin, who had until then been slouching terribly, seemed to bolt upright. "If we can convince them that Camelot's been changed, we could have a chance."
Preparations were made immediately. They took a small party- only Percival, Arthur, and Merlin. In case of failure, it seemed wise to leave as many knights guarding the castle as possible.
The air was crisp, and filled with fog when they departed that morning. The only sounds were their horses' hooves on the cobblestones, and this faded upon crossing over to the muted forest floor. None of the men said so aloud, but all three were constantly scanning the woods ahead of them, imagining each shrub or crooked trunk to be one of the shades. Merlin was especially alert, listening intensely and scenting the air often. They were alone, but that only made him more worried. He could't hear a single bird in at least a mile radius, and he wondered if they sensed the trouble that lay in the west.
"What are we going to do if they won't listen?" Arthur said quietly.
"They will listen." Merlin refused to entertain the possibility that they would not, because although he had beaten fate once, he couldn't imagine surviving a second time. "Even if you have to get on your knees and beg. I only wish the rest of the knights could see."
The snarky comment, clumsily tacked on at the last moment, did little to assuage the king's distress, and so they lapsed into silence. The White Mountains loomed ahead of them, and even the midday sun couldn't break through the fog. They would reach the cave of the Disir by nightfall.
A/N: I've received a lot of reviews from guest readers lately. While I can't PM you personally, I still really appreciate each and every one. X