A/N: Next chapter! I hope you like it. It's a bit shorter, but it was the best place to split it up. Thanks for the reviews!

Chapter Six: Destiny of Monsters

Merlin threw his head back and yelled up into the sky, "O Draca, eom, ala, sece findan metan, teosu hus anbid!"

(Oh Dragon, like burning fire, I try to find and meet you. Don't keep one of your own kin suffering!)

The marshlands still surrounded him and by now thick fog had replaced the rain. Merlin shuddered involuntarily and pulled his thin jacket around himself. He felt agitation wash over him as he scanned the grey sky. He wouldn't be able to see the dragon coming. Visibility was too poor for it. Merlin wasn't sure he wanted to meet Kilgharrah, but he honestly didn't know how to get out of here otherwise. His fingers nervously ran over one of the slabs that made up the stone circle. The circle provided solid ground, but the moment Merlin stepped out of it, his legs would sink knee-deep into the bog.

He didn't have to wait long. Half an hour after his call, Merlin could hear deep thumps disturbing the marshes' silence. In regular intervals they rang through the fog, growing ever louder. Then a dark mass glided overhead and Merlin watched as the dragon gracefully landed. At least, it would've been graceful if he hadn't slipped in the mud. Kilgharrah's claws sank into the bog and the dragon released a disgusted hiss. His tail whipped around in displeasure and he pulled one claw from the mud, shaking it slightly. He only managed to have the other three sink even deeper. Kilgharrah looked at the mud clinging to his sharp talons with a disapproving frown. Then he glowered at Merlin as if it was his fault. In a way, it kind of was. Merlin couldn't help that grin from curling his mouth.

"Young warlock," Kilgharrah said in his deep voice. "You called me?"

…and I really wish you hadn't, went unsaid. Merlin couldn't help but chuckle at the dragon's expense. Golden eyes narrowed at him and he tried to pull a serious face at him.

"Yeah," Merlin cleared his throat. "I kinda did. I'm… you know, a little lost here."

The Great Dragon rolled his eyes. Thick sarcasm in his voice, he supplied, "That doesn't sound like you at all."

Merlin rolled his eyes and sassed right back, "Before you start, it's really not my fault."

"I'm sure it's not," came the dry reply.

Then Kilgharrah looked around. Sure enough, his gaze became stuck on the stone circle. Merlin couldn't really claim surprise as he saw that suspicious glint burning up in the dragon's golden eyes. Kilgharrah turned his heavy gaze back to Merlin.

"You're quite a bit away from the citadel," the dragon noted dubiously. "Pray tell, what are you doing here?"

Merlin couldn't help but fidget nervously. He reached for one of the huge stones and let his fingers run over the rough surface. Magic bristled under his touch.

"Er…" Merlin mumbled. "As I said. I got lost?"

"Is that so?" Kilgharrah hummed. "You called me to do what exactly? Bring you back to the citadel?"

The warlock couldn't meet the dragon's eyes. He plucked a piece of lichen off the stone. His voice barely more than a whisper, he said,

"How about… you bring me to Mercia instead? That… that would be helpful. Or just, you know… away from Camelot would be great."

The suspicion burned up and Kilgharrah drew closer to Merlin. His large head was in front of him and golden eyes pierced right into him. Kilgharrah sniffed him and even pushed with his snout against him. Tightly, the dragon inquired,

"What did you do?"

Merlin pushed the snout away from him. He turned his head, not looking at the dragon, and said, "Nothing."

"A likely story."

Through the corners of his eyes, Merlin peered at Kilgharrah. At least the dragon had moved a bit away again. Not by much, though. He still eyed Merlin demandingly. The warlock threw his arms up in exasperation.

"Fine!" he cried. "But it is not my fault."

"Tell me," the dragon ordered sternly.

In his frustration Merlin started to pace to and fro as the events of the last three days rushed through his head.

"Okay, so, it started with that crazy sorceress attacking Arthur," Merlin jumped into his explanation.

From then the words just gushed from him. The more he talked, the more his agitation was mirrored in the dragon's demeanour as well. Merlin raked his fingers through his black hair and stared up at Kilgharrah.

"They were trying to shoot me. I mean, Arthur's men seriously tried to shoot me." He gesticulated wildly. "So, I didn't have much of a choice, I ran into the marshes. They didn't follow. But I stumbled upon this, then."

Merlin threw a thumb at the circle of stones behind him. He arched a questioning eyebrow at Kilgharrah. "You don't know what it is, per chance?"

"I do," the dragon rumbled. "A place of prayer built a long time ago."

"…for the Triple Goddess?" Merlin asked carefully.

Kilgharrah nodded, gaze wandering over Merlin searchingly. "Indeed. It was used by the High Priestesses to converse with the Goddess."

Merlin groaned and ripped at his hair. "Of course it is." Sarcasm entered his voice, "And of course, I need to stumble right into it. I mean, these marshes are so small, right? It's basically impossible to miss it."

The warlock sat down on the grass beside one of the stones and glowered in front of him. He could basically feel Kilgharrah's gaze boring holes into the side of his face. Merlin hid his face in his hands, trepidation building up. Through his fingers, he mumbled,

"So… you remember that ancient prophecy? The one with Emrys and the Once and Future King?"

"Yes…?" the dragon said, already suspicion to his tone.

"Yeah. So…" Merlin breathed in deeply. "I might've had a talk with the Triple Goddess. And she, kind of… er… rescinded that prophecy?"

No reply. Merlin could feel his heart racing in his chest. Carefully, he peered at the dragon through his fingers. Kilgharrah's body was frozen over and he stared at Merlin with wide golden eyes. He had never seen that look of shock on the dragon's face. Nice, Merlin sighed. Now I've broken a dragon.

"What…?!" Kilgharrah hissed tonelessly.

Merlin's hands slipped from his face and he peered up at the dragon. A bit helplessly, he scratched the back of his head.

"I don't know what else to tell you," he mumbled. "She said I'm no longer bound to Arthur. Then she just left."

He shrugged and blinked up at the dragon, feeling lost. A fire started to burn in the dragon's eyes and his voice was a low hiss as he demanded to know,

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I…" Merlin gulped, trepidation washing over him. "Er… Arthur doesn't have her… erm… blessing anymore, is what she said."

A deep growl rumbled form the dragon, angry and dangerous. His eyes pierced into Merlin and he bit out lethally, "You mean to tell me that the prophecy is gone? She took it back?!"

"Erm." Merlin nervously twisted his hands. "Yes."

The dragon threw his head back and roared. Merlin flinched as Kilgharrah released a surge of flames that raged up into the sky. He put his arm up to shield his eyes from the immense heat. An animalistic growl ripped from Kilgharrah's throat. He took a step forwards and swiped down a claw at Merlin. The warlock yelped as he soon found himself on his back while the dragon's sharp talons imprisoned his body. Murderous look on his face, the dragon bent down to him. Merlin gulped as Kilgharrah flashed his sharp teeth in a snarl,

"You destroyed the prophecy?!"

Merlin had frozen over and stared at the furious dragon. Gingerly, he tried to reach him, "I wasn't trying to. The Goddess just decided she would. She didn't ask me or anything."

The claws tightened around him and Merlin nervously eyed their sharp edges. Kilgharrah growled furiously, "Do you even understand what this means?! All is lost! Magic is lost forever! And that is your fault!"

"I- I-"

Merlin looked at the dragon's fury and he didn't know what to say. Kilgharrah was right. It was his fault. He had been too careless. Merlin had been foolish and had allowed Arthur to see his magic. If only he'd displayed a bit more stealth, all of this could've been avoided. Merlin pressed his lips into a thin line as guilt harshly coiled around him.

"I know," he said quietly.

He turned his head to the side, no longer wanting to see the disappointment in the dragon. Kilgharrah released another irate growl. Then Merlin felt himself being released. The dragon took a step back from the warlock. Merlin sat up and carefully scanned the dragon. Fury still twisted his face and Merlin could feel the irate magic emanating from him.

"Kilgharrah?" he whispered. "I know I messed up. I do. I wanted to talk with Arthur after he found out about my magic, but… he didn't listen. Agravaine had just died and Arthur was so angry with me. Then he threw me in the dungeons. So I fled Camelot. Maybe if I'd stayed, I would've found a chance to talk with him." He knew he was rambling now. A harsh laugh left Merlin. "Then again, maybe Arthur would've just broken my other arm as well. Sooner or later, he'd have calmed down again, though. Right? And then I cou-"

"What are you talking about?" Kilgharrah cut over him.

Merlin stiffened and looked up at the dragon. Golden eyes once again burned into him and Merlin shifted nervously.

"I just," he whispered. "I wasn't sure I could convince Arthur to talk with me. That's why I fl-"

"No," the dragon interrupted him again. "What do you mean the king broke your arm?"

"Oh." Merlin's hand subconsciously rubbed over his left forearm. "I told you, he was angry when he saw me performing magic and… after I killed Agravaine..."

"Yes," Kilgharrah said, eyes narrowing in suspicion. "He was angry because you killed the traitor and he threw you in the dungeons. Did he do anything else?"

Merlin shifted uncomfortably. Earlier, he had glossed over the events that took place in the throne room right after Merlin had attacked Agravaine. It wasn't something he liked to think about.

"Merlin?" Kilgharrah prodded.

Reluctantly, the warlock looked up at the dragon. The anger hadn't completely left the dragon's face as he eyed Merlin searchingly.

"What did Arthur do to you?"

Merlin took in a sharp breath of air. He could feel tears welling up and quickly bent his head. Kilgharrah didn't push him again and Merlin rubbed suddenly sweaty palms over his trousers. He still didn't know how to handle this.

"He attacked me," Merlin whispered, still not meeting the dragon's eyes. "He said I was evil and that I betrayed him. I didn't think he would… attack me."

Merlin pulled his knees up to his chest, draping his arms around his legs, and laid his forehead on them. He felt pathetic as tears brimmed over and he curled up even tighter.

"They threw me in the dungeons. I must've passed out for some time. I don't remember much. Gwaine snuck down to see me. And he…"

Merlin pressed his eyes tightly shut. More tears rolled down his cheeks and he felt ashamed. He really needed to get a grip on himself.

"Gwaine?" Kilgharrah asked, voice strangely soft.

"He told me-" Merlin's throat suddenly felt raw. "And then I saw for myself. There was a pyre in the court yard. It was for me."

The dragon didn't reply, though Merlin could hear him shuffling closer to him. He swallowed around the lump in his throat and slowly raised his head. He knew his tears still shamefully glistened on his cheeks. Kilgharrah's golden eyes gazed down at him.

"I was scared," Merlin had to admit. "Not of the fire, but that Arthur…"

His fingers tightened around the fabric of his trousers. Thankfully, Kilgharrah didn't interrupt him because Merlin wasn't sure he'd be able to continue otherwise.

"It's not just the prophecy," he said, desperation wrapped around his voice. "It's Arthur. He… hurt me."

Kilgharrah's eyes burned with a new wave of rage. Merlin still didn't flinch away as the dragon stepped closer. Surprisingly gingerly for something of the dragon's size, Kilgharrah curled his huge body around Merlin's form. Carefully, the dragon avoided the stones from the circle and raised one of his wings as if to shield Merlin from the world. The warlock sagged back against the dragon's side. The thick scales were warm against him, driving away the cold that had chilled Merlin to the bone. Kilgharrah protectively pulled one of his claws towards Merlin.

"What do you want to do now?" the dragon's deep voice eventually spoke up again.

Merlin blinked his eye open again. He reached out and ran his fingers over the hard scales at the dragon's claw. A soft laugh fell from his lips.

"That's the first time you ask me that. Don't you have a cryptic suggestion I need to unravel?"

A deep chuckle rumbled through the dragon. "Not at this point, young warlock."

A small grin curled Merlin's lips. He let his head sag back against the dragon. He was so tired. He didn't want to think about kings, angry Goddesses, and destinies anymore.

"Can you take me away?" he asked the dragon. "Far away. Somewhere where I'm not a monster."

.+.