Thanks for the reviews…

Magpie-Detonation: A new reviewer, yay! Glad you like it. Hope I don't disappoint you as it goes on. Let me know…

LANCELOTTRISTANBABY: Here you go…

Alatarial Elf: I'm glad it's interesting again. Hope I can keep it that way.

Still don't own them, damn!

The knights rode back through the gate. They were bloodied; not with their own blood, but with the blood of the Woads that had attacked the Bishop's caravan. Arthur had a determined look on his face. They had all spoke of the truce and that Merlin had broken his word. Arthur had reminded them that he had not promised not to attack Romans, only the fortress. But the others thought he was bandying words and were very vocal with each other so he could hear. None spoke it directly to him though, and for that he was glad. He did not like to disagree with any of them, much less all of them.

The usual greeting was waiting as they rode into the courtyard. Vanora ran up to Bors and gave him the usual slap and kiss to show how much she loved him and worried about him when he was gone. Lancelot smiled as he passed them looking for Laney. Maybe she was having another bout of sickness and was lying down. He headed toward his room intent on hugging her close. Today had been the first time the thought of dying made him fear. He wanted to hold her and relish in the feel of her love for him. He needed the comfort only she could provide.

He opened the door and stepped lightly inside so as not to wake her if she were sleeping. He found the bed empty, which could have meant that she was somewhere else in the fort. But the trunk that she kept her clothes in was open and when he looked inside he saw riding clothes were gone. He turned and ran back toward the stables. Someone would know where she had gone so he could follow her. As he ran into the courtyard, he saw Arthur talking to the Bishop. "Arthur, Laney's gone!" he shouted. Arthur stopped talking to the Bishop and turned toward his friend. "What did you say, Lancelot? How can she be gone?" Arthur asked. The Bishop seemed intent on hearing what was said, but Arthur turned toward him. "Bishop, my quarters have been made available for you. I'm sure you'd like to rest and refresh yourself."

The Bishop didn't seem pleased at being dismissed, but tried to cover it up, "Yes, yes, I must rest." Then he followed Jols toward Arthur's quarters. Arthur immediately turned back to Lancelot. "Where has Laney gone?" Lancelot's impatience at having to wait for the Bishop to leave caused his voice to sound cold, "I don't' bloody know where she's gone. I just know she is. Her riding clothes are gone." Arthur studied what he'd heard for a moment, "maybe she's just gone for a ride. She'll be back soon." He tried to reassure Lancelot.

"I don't like it. Merlin attacked the caravan after swearing he would not and now Laney's out there somewhere. What if he realized he needed to take her because she would have to die to do whatever he wants her to do? He wouldn't hesitate to hurt her if accomplished what he wanted." He knew he sounded desperate, but he didn't care. Arthur turned and shouted, "Knights, we must meet at the Round Table." He turned without waiting for them to respond. He had called them, they would come.

Laney had ridden for several hours before she stopped to rest. Most of the trip so far had been open spaces where she could ride with a measurable amount of speed. She wanted to get to the coast line as quickly as possible so she could get back to Lancelot. She knew he would worry and the thought brought guilt. But she also knew he would not come looking for her. He had no idea which direction she was going in.

She sat under the tree and ate the hard cheese and bread she had packed. She knew the Saxons had landed on the northeastern shore. How she knew she didn't understand. She also knew they were the evil men she had seen in her dream. They would be responsible for the deaths of at least three of the people she loved. Lancelot included. She had to reach them and stop the invasion before they had a chance to kill too many of the inhabitants of this island. This was her destiny. Her duty.

She had always heard that the Saxons could not be reasoned with. They had no compassion for the people they conquered and would more than likely kill every living thing that crossed their path unless it was needed to help their cause. The only thing that could defeat them would be the power of love. And only she could wield that power as the weapon against evil. The thought brought a sense of power to her. She didn't need another weapon. No sword. Nor axe. Nor bow. Just love. It was mightier than the sword. It was mightier than any sword.

The second day of riding was painful. She wasn't used to sitting the saddle for such extended periods of time, but she wouldn't slow down or stop to rest until she absolutely had to. As she traveled north, the air became colder and the weather was wetter slowly turning to snow. She had only packed her cloak to wear over the old faded jeans she had pulled out of her trunk. She wrapped it as tight as she could and still handle the reins. She came upon an estate and stopped to change into clothes that were more suited to this time. When she finished she headed toward the gate. She could get more rations here and rest and groom her horse. She had carried her master for many miles with only short periods of rest and only the grass they could find to eat. This had been sparse since the weather had changed. What grass Laney could find was beginning to ice over making it unsuitable for the horse to eat.

The guards at the top of the wall called down to her as she stopped, "State your name and business here." She thought this odd since the people were still working the fields surrounding the gate, but guessed the were just following the orders of the master of the estate. If she hadn't been so tired and pained from all the riding, she would have realized that the people looked starved and frightened. Later, she would think back and remember how they had barely raised their heads as she came riding up. It seemed their will to live was being slowly taken from them. She would come to wish she had just turned and ridden away as fast as she could. But she didn't, she just blindly walked into the hell that only Marius Honorius could conjure.

When all of the knights had taken their usual places Arthur brought their attention to what Lancelot had told him. Lancelot's face showed them all just how upset he was at what was going on. He had a scowl that spoke of murder and the way he was drumming his fingertips on the table top let them know how impatient he was with the whole meeting. Finally, he'd had enough. "Arthur, I'm going to find Laney. She could be hurt and I can't just sit here and wait." He made to stand up and before Arthur could speak, Jols opened the door to the chamber and the Bishop's companion stepped in. He proceeded to announce the Bishop like he was royalty and the Bishop came into the room with a flourish speaking of many such entries.

Arthur stood up quickly because he saw that Lancelot would gladly run the man through with only a little encouragement. He whispered to his friend, "Lancelot, wait until we're given our papers and I'll go with you." Lancelot looked at Arthur, then letting his anger show, plopped back into the chair. The other knights were more than willing to help Lancelot, but right now they were eyeing the wooden box that Horton was carrying. They had waited too long for this day and knew that the few minutes that it would take to receive their papers couldn't make that much difference in Laney's whereabouts.

Bishop Germanius made a big show of thanking the Knights for all they had done over the last fifteen years, then adding sadness to his voice, he started talking about the Romans leaving Britain and the Saxons taking over the occupation. At first the knights weren't paying any attention to what the Bishop had to say, but when he mentioned the Saxons, they all sat forward, listening intently to what was said. Lancelot made to stand up once or twice as the Bishop was speaking, but Arthur, ever watchful, motioned him to stay seated and Lancelot did as Arthur bid. When the Bishop asked them all to leave so he could speak with Arthur, it was more than Lancelot could take.

The words had barely left the Bishop's mouth when Lancelot jumped up and headed for the door. Arthur never had time to say anything to him, but he did pull Dagonet to the side and ask him to delay Lancelot as long as possible without having to physically tie him down. Dagonet only nodded his acceptance and headed through the door after Lancelot. The other knights followed suit and knew what Arthur had said to Dag. They would help as much as possible but deep down they all knew they should be leaving with him instead of trying to prevent him leaving. Because, if anything happened to Laney or their son, it would send Lancelot over the edge and there would be nothing any of them could do to stop it.

The master of the estate appeared to be kind and considerate, but after only a few minutes Laney began to feel uneasy with him. He smiled way too much and the smile never reached his eyes. She had felt relief when his wife, Fulcinia joined them, offering something to eat and drink. The way she was treated by her husband made Laney want to throw up. She saw the bruises and knew that she had been hit, more than once. If this man would do something like that to his wife, he was capable of anything and right then he was giving her 'the' look. She decided then that she would not stay here. She would eat and tend her horse, then she would be leaving. It would be easier to deal with the Saxons than put up with what she knew would come sooner or later.

It came sooner. She had no sooner finished eating the elaborate dinner that was set before them, than Marius proceeded to show her to a room where she could refresh herself before she left. She tried to back out and say she really didn't have time, but he just kept steering her toward the room. Once she had walked into the room, he went in behind her and shut the door. Laney raised an eyebrow in question to his actions. She saw him move toward her. Before she could say anything he grabbed her roughly and pulled her against his wide stomach. When he tried to kiss her, she turned her head and began kicking him.

He became very angry and pushed her backwards causing her to fall down onto the floor. She tried to scoot away from him so she could get back up but he was kicking her. His kicks were so hard that she knew he was trying to hurt her for the rejection. By the time he had calmed down enough that he stopped kicking she had rolled herself into a ball so she could protect her unborn child. He stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. She heard him speak to someone just outside the door and he told them, "Don't let her out and let no one in there." She didn't hear what the other person said, but she was sure if she opened the door, someone would be out there standing guard.

Slowly, she got up and made it to the bed to sit down. She knew she would have bruises on her back and arms. She could already feel the throbbing from his kicks. Just as she was about to stand up and go to the pitcher and bowl to see if there was water so she could wipe her face when the door opened and Marius walked back in with another, mousy looking man. They stood looking at her for a moment, then the 'priest' began saying things in a language she did not understand. When he finished, she was taken away from the main house. She never saw Marius again. All she saw was the dead and dying bodies chained to the wall or locked in the many cages. Laney had started gagging from the smell and before she was thrown into the small cell, she lost the food she had eaten earlier.

The cell she was in was just barely large enough for her to lay in. She had to keep her knees pulled up to her chest and lay on her side. She recognized that this would be her burial chamber once she died. The panic she felt made her feel sick again but she took deep breaths until she could calm down enough to think about the situation. First she had to berate herself for being so foolish as to leave the fort without Lancelot to accompany her. Now she was in more trouble than she thought she could get out of and he didn't even know which way she had gone. She felt the hot tears slowly begin to slip down her cheeks. 'Oh, Lancelot, I'm so sorry.' She silently told him, then she said, 'Dear God, please don't let my foolishness cause the death of my child. He is innocent and his father needs him so.' The tears were unstoppable now and she cried until she started snubbing. Unable to cry any more.

Suddenly, from the cell next to hers, she heard a weak voice. "Don't let them see you cry. They find pleasure in that. Be strong. We will survive Delaney Sullivan." Laney was so shocked that someone here knew her name that she tried to sit up. When she found that all she could do was turn her body like the hand of a clock, slowly around until she was facing the other cell. "How do you know my name? Have we met before now?" she whispered fiercely. "I am Guinnevere, daughter of Merlin. I have seen you when you meet with my father." The other voice whispered back. "How have you come to this place? Is any of the knights with you?"

Laney didn't want to give the other woman false hope, but she couldn't bring herself to tell her that there was no hope. "No, I'm alone. But they will be here eventually. We just have to hold out until they get here." She hadn't really lied. They would be here eventually, if they could figure out where 'here' was. She knew Lancelot would look for her when he found out that she was not with Merlin's people. But she didn't think he would think to look north of the wall. More than likely, he would think Merlin was lying to him and there would be more trouble between the knights and the Woads. She deeply regretted this, for she thought that if nothing else, her appearance had brought the two peoples closer to peace than they had ever been. When Guinnevere said nothing else, she remained quiet too, and lay there thinking about the things that had happened since she had arrived. Slowly, she felt herself drifting off to sleep.