Krysia had been in no particular hurry. She had finished the bulk of her morning chores in record time and was only to gather a bit of water for her own washing before she oversaw the preparation of the King's midday meal when she stumbled across Merlin at the well. She'd not even had the chance to greet him when he frowned at something over her shoulder.

"Mother?" he said.

"Merlin!"

Krysia turned to see a woman with clothes dirty from travelling and a tired smile. She approached her son, attempting to embrace him, but while Krysia waited to be introduced, both she and Merlin noticed a sizable bruise on his mother. Merlin demanded answers, and with some nervousness, his mother began to tell her tale of the bullies who were draining their village of food.

"Something must be done," Merlin said.

"I'll get you an audience," Krysia promised.

It did not take long to arrange. Krysia went to Leon, who was discussing the day for the knights with Arthur at the time.

"Krysia," both men said, smiling to see her, although their smiles faded when the saw her urgency.

"Leon, is there space for someone to petition the king today?" Krysia said. "It's urgent."

"What's happened?" Arthur said.

"Merlin's mother has arrived in town on urgent business. Her village is being terrorized and she begs for assistance."

Leon looked to Arthur, but neither man hesitated. They assured her there would be room made for Hunith to petition Uther as soon as the king was ready to hear pleas.

Hunith stood before Uther and the court with a remarkable blend of humility and confidence. Krysia hoped that Merlin might learn something from this posture, but she suspected he was too concerned with his mother's predicament to notice.

"The winters are harsh in Ealdor, and there are many children," Hunith explained. "Some of them just won't be strong enough to survive. We barely have enough food as it is, and if Kanen takes our harvest, our children won't live to see another summer. Please, we need your help."

Uther was moved by her plea, Krysia could tell, but she knew what his answer would be before he opened his mouth.

"Ealdor's in Cenred's kingdom," he said. "Your safety is his responsibility."

"We've appealed to our King, but he cares little for the outlying regions. You're our only hope."

"I have the deepest sympathy for you and would have this barbarian wiped off the face of the earth."

"You'll help us?"

"I wish I could," Uther said, with true regret.

Krysia looked across the room to Leon, who was watching her. She wondered why, and before she could tilt her head in question, he looked down, then toward the King. Perhaps she'd imagined it.

"Surely we can spare a few men?" Arthur suggested.

"Resources are not the problem," Uther said.

Morgana, clearly frustrated by his lack of response, said, "Then what is?"

"Ealdor lies beyond the ridge of Essetir. For an army of Camelot to enter it would be an act of war."

Hunith, managing still to have confidence and strength, dropped to her knees. Krysia had a flash of herself as a small child, covered in dirt, barely with a chance to be looked over by Gaius before she was brought before the king, too weak to stand. She shivered, and realized Leon was watching her again. Again, he looked away.

"I know you're a good king," Hunith said, "a caring man. I'm begging you, help us, please."

He was those things, in his way, but Hunith was not counting the parts Krysia had seen, the things she knew. He was a good king, a caring man, and he was also a hard man and uncompromising. He did not surprise Krysia today.

"The accord we've struck with Cenred was years in the making," he said. "I cannot risk hundreds of lives for the sake of one village. I'm afraid Camelot cannot help."

When it became clear that Uther would hear no more from Hunith, Morgana stood and helped Hunith up, leading her out of the hall. She turned and spared a glare for Uther, and Krysia lingered as the courtiers filtered out to be about their business. She examined the state of the floor to determine the need for cleaning, as she did after every session of public supplication. Before she left to call for a maid to sweep, Uther said her name.

She turned to see him staring at her from his throne. For one wild moment, she thought he was going to recognize her again, even for a moment, and she stood very still.

"Arthur tells me you arranged the plea," he said.

"Yes, sire."

"You did nothing wrong, Krysia, in bringing in someone in distress. I do hope, however, that you understand why it was not possible to aid her."

Krysia hesitated. She did understand the lack of sending an army, but what she didn't understand was the lack of creative thinking to support a village in need. But then, Uther was not known for creative thinking, but rather strong conventional responses.

"I do not begrudge you the decisions of kingdom politics, sire," she said. "I understand the difference between a result I do not like and a result that should not have been."

Uther nodded, dismissing her, but she could tell the decision didn't sit well with him. Perhaps he was hoping she would absolve his choice, although she knew no matter what regrets he had, he would not change his mind. For better or worse, his script was set in stone.

Krysia was surprised when Morgana caught her arm that afternoon, dragging her toward the stair.

"Where are we going?" Krysia said, nervous.

"Gwen's house."

"I'm sorry, the lower town? Why are you going to the lower town?"

"I'm not," Morgana said brightly, "We are."

"That's not answering the question."

"Arthur tells me Merlin is going to help his mother, and they'll need support. If we can't send knights, we can go ourselves. You and I can fight as well as any knight."

Krysia wasn't sure she disagreed with that statement, but she knew better than to argue with Morgana when she was in this frame of mind, and Gaius would certainly send her anyway.

"I have duties—"

"I've already seen to it, Krysia, now come along."

The walk to Gwen's house was halting, with Morgana leading Krysia at such a pace that walking wasn't especially comfortable. They arrived before Merlin, and Gwen nodded to a back room, where she'd laid out some things for them. Krysia hesitated while Morgana began to change.

"You can't fight in those clothes," Morgana said.

"I beg to differ," Krysia said. The two women smiled at each other, but Krysia relented, removing her dress. She could hear Merlin arriving in the smithy, talking to Gwen. Krysia helped Morgana with the stays on her tunic before putting up her own hair again.

Gwen, knowing their preferences, had already laid out swords, and a knife for Krysia. They were light, well-balanced, and Krysia wished she had a reason other than this to use such a blade.

"We're ready," Morgana whispered. Krysia nodded.

"I've packed some armor for you," Gwen was saying to Merlin.

"I won't be able to carry all that," Merlin said.

Morgana opened the door, revealing the two women to a stunned Merlin.

"You won't have to," Morgana said. "We're coming with you."

"Close your mouth, Merlin," Krysia said. "You'll hurt your jaw."

Morgana hadn't said anything about Gwen coming along. It was, of course, Gwen's choice, but Krysia had never seen anything that suggested that Gwen knew how to wield a weapon.

"You're going to need all the help you can get," Gwen said. "I can mend armor and sharpen swords."

"And Krysia and I can fight," Morgana said.

Merlin, nervous and startled, said, "But y-y-you can't. I mean, why would you?"

He had been expecting to use magic, and the more of them there, the harder it would be to hide. Krysia would have to help him be careful, but thankfully he'd had a great deal of practice using magic under watchful eyes. And he wasn't dead yet.

"If it was the other way around, you'd help us. You already have. You saved my life."

"And you helped us get the druid boy out of Camelot," Morgana said, ignoring that it was Merlin's fault the boy was her response in the first place. "We owe it to you. Both of us."

Merlin turned to Krysia, who shrugged and said, "I hadn't planned on this, but I suppose Gaius would kill me if you came to harm, so I may as well go and stop you stabbing yourself in the foot."

The ride to Ealdor was not short, and when the foursome and Hunith made camp, Krysia volunteered first watch, mostly because she wanted to have the freedom to use magic if needed without the unsuspecting still awake. Merlin wouldn't be able to sleep, but that didn't mean he'd be able to sit watch.

As she expected, he sat up with his mother at the campfire and spoke to her for some time. Krysia knew Hunith was concerned about a small band of women coming to fight their bullies, and she didn't fully disagree with the sentiment, but Hunith had no way of knowing just how strong of a little group they made.

Not long after Merlin and Hunith laid down to sleep, Krysia heard a horse nearby. She crept into the woods to find the sound, confident that she could use magic if it were strangers, and that she could sweettalk the guards if Uther had sent knights after them. Probably. No need to wake the others.

She was mildly surprised to feel a sword on her back, and before the man could say a word, she had out her knife, had knocked away the sword, and was pressing her knife at the neck of the man before she realized who it was.

"Arthur!" she said, nervous.

"Could you put that away before you hurt us both?" he said.

Krysia sheathed the dagger and took a step back.

"Leon sends his best," Arthur said. "He wanted to come along, but he's agreed to stay behind and cover my absence."

"Good of him."

Merlin must have heard the horse as well, because when they returned to the camp, he was sitting up by the campfire, surprised to see Krysia leading Arthur. Krysia stoked the fire up, and Arthur rested with Merlin.

"You should get some sleep," Arthur said to her.

"I'm not tired," Krysia insisted.

"Who was first watch?"

"This is first watch."

Arthur snorted, and she could tell he wanted to argue. Instead, he turned his attention to Merlin.

"How much further is the ride?"

"Maybe a few hours," Merlin said.

"How many men does Kanen have?"

Merlin looked to Krysia who shrugged.

"From Hunith's recounting, I would say thirty, forty. No more. Certainly more than we have."

Arthur nodded, then said, "You should both get some rest. It's going to be a long day tomorrow."

Merlin thanked Arthur, and Arthur repeated that they should both sleep. He stared at Krysia over the fire for a moment before she relented and curled up in her blanket.

It would have been nice to have the extra man, but it was probably for the best that Leon was staying to cover for them. Especially as she didn't know precisely what Morgana meant when she said she'd taken care of it.

When they arrived in Ealdor, a man trying to reason with a bandit was in a precarious position with an ax poised against him. Arthur, being Arthur, decided to throw a sword into a post behind the bandit, Kanen, and Krysia would have rolled her eyes in other circumstances. Why he bothered to throw a sword when she could have thrown a knife and killed the man in one go, she'd never know.

When Arthur and Merlin dismounted, Kanen called for his men to kill them, and Krysia dismounted quickly.

The fight was thick and fast, but Krysia saw the other women arrive and Morgana join the fray, saving Arthur from a sneak attack. Krysia was dealing with a particularly large man, and she stuck her knife in his throat. Even Merlin managed to kill a bandit, although she suspected magic was involved.

When Kanen mounted his horse, he called out, "You'll pay for this with your lives, all of you!"

A young man greeted Merlin, and Krysia froze, wondering if she'd had childhood friends who had died on her behalf. She had only thought about her family but burning down the keep must have caused more deaths than just the Lord's family. The weight on her shoulders felt heavier.

Arthur called for Merlin to gather the villagers, cutting short the conversation, and Krysia waited for the villagers to not be impressed. Or not all of them.

"I know Kanen's kind," Arthur said to the gathered women and men. "He'll be back. And when he is, you must be ready for him. First of all, we have to prepare for—"

Merlin's friend, annoyed, called out, "Am I the only one wondering who the hell this is?"

"I'm Prince Arthur of Camelot."

And there it was, the unimpressed face and sound of Merlin's friend. He said, "Yeah, and, er, I'm Prince William of Ealdor."

"Keep quiet," Hunith said, "he's here to help us."

"But he's made things worse," William said. "Kanen will be back, and when he is, he'll be looking for revenge. You've just signed our death warrants."

"He's saved Matthew's life!"

"Hunith," Krysia said softly but sternly, "he has a right to a say. This is his home, not ours. What would be your approach?" she added to William.

He looked at her for a long moment before he said, "We can't fight Kanen. He has too many men."

Arthur held out his hand and said, "What's the alternative?"

"Give him what he wants."

The villagers didn't like this solution. Many of them shook their heads, and Krysia realized that while some might agree they didn't want to fight, most understood what Hunith understood. Kanen was going to bleed their resources until they were all dead anyway.

"Then what?" Arthur prompted. "Those of you who don't starve to death will face him again next harvest! And the harvest after that."

"We'll manage," William said. "We'll survive."

"How?" a villager demanded.

"The only way he can be stopped is if you stand up to him," Arthur said.

"No." William was clearly passed reason. "You just want the honor and glory of battle! That's what drives men like you! Look, if you want to fight, then go home and risk the lives of your own people, not ours!"

"Will," Merlin said.

But the villagers did not listen to will. When Hunith and Matthew announced that they would follow Arthur, that they wanted to fight back, the other villagers began declaring their intention to do the same, and Krysia and Arthur and Morgana began to prepare the people.

Before bed that knight, Arthur found Krysia sharpening her knife. It had taken some time to get the blood off, but Gwen had done a good job. Arthur sat beside her, watching her work.

"Where's Merlin?" Arthur asked.

"He's talking to his friend," Krysia said.

"His friend doesn't like me much."

Krysia tried not to smile before she said, "You have to remember, Arthur, people who live in places like this, they don't see their kings and princes, even when things go wrong. To them, you live a life of telling people what to do, stirring things up, and returning to your castle to collect taxes. Hunith already told us Cenred has no interest in their plight. That's not unusual. That's one thing I respect about your father, how much he cares for every village in his kingdom."

Arthur said nothing for a long time, just watching her sharpen the blade. She was about to test it against her thumb, but Arthur stopped her.

"Don't risk infection," he said. "I need you in top shape, and we haven't got Gaius."

She hummed, sheathing it. He smiled weakly.

"Who would have thought," he said softly, "that the skinny, scrawny little girl who used to fight dirty is out here killing bandits at my side."

"I would never have thought," Krysia said. "I wouldn't be here at all if Morgana hadn't told me I was coming."

"Not even to help Merlin?"

Krysia rolled her eyes and said, "Especially not to help Merlin. His mother, maybe."

Arthur laughed, touched her shoulder, and said, "Be careful when he comes back, alright? I promised Leon you would come back in one piece, and I don't intend to explain to my father why his favorite servant is dead."

"Likewise," she whispered, and instead of insisting he'd be fine, he just smiled.

The next day, Arthur set about training the men while Krysia, Gwen, and Morgana gathered and sharpened as many weapons as they could find. Krysia tried not to watch the training, but the other two women couldn't seem to stop.

"There's no way they're going to be able to hold Kanen off," Morgana said.

"Men aren't the only ones who can fight," Gwen suggested.

"Arthur won't agree to it," Krysia reminded her. "He doesn't even want us fighting, but we're the only trained fighters he's got."

Arthur finished a conversation with Matthew and stopped for a bit of water.

"Looks like the battle's already fought and lost," Morgana said.

"They'll toughen up," Arthur said.

"They need to," Gwen said.

"How are we doing for weapons?"

"There isn't much," Morgana said, "but we should be able to scrape together what you need."

Gwen, not backing down, said, "It's not the weapons that worry us. It's having enough people to use them. We think the women should fight."

"Not just us," Krysia clarified.

"You haven't enough men," Morgana said. "If they were trained soldiers, maybe you'd stand a chance, but they're not.

"It's too dangerous," Arthur said, and before any of them could counter, he returned to the resting men to get them back to work.

Morgana shook her head and said, "It's a mistake. It's a mistake and he knows it."

"We'll figure it out," Krysia said, "but you know him well enough to know he'd never give ground."

Morgana hummed, and Krysia went back to her work, not daring to look at the pitiful training.