Author's Note: This story is dedicated to Jillcb, who requested a positive Mordred story in a holiday wishlist. It is a sequel to The Well, which is an AU of 5x05.
...
"What on Earth is that?" Arthur, sword in hand, stepped carefully around the moss-covered boulder, before peering in closer to examine the unidentified object lying partially concealed beneath it.
"I don't know, Sire. I've never seen its like before. I'm afraid this is one for the blue squad," Sir Leon, his most senior knight, replied.
Arthur sighed, knowing the knight was probably right. He'd been afraid the whole excursion would turn out to be another wild goose chase, having placed little credence in the reports of strange noises and flashing lights emanating from the depths of the forest. There had been far too many of these reports of late, and every time a party from Camelot had arrived to investigate, they had found nothing but a furtive fox and a sleepy dormouse. But this time, they had found something and had no idea what it was or what they were dealing with. The only thing they could be sure of was that it looked very small and seemed to be stuck beneath the boulder. He decided that in this case of the mysterious artefact, the participation of the blue squad was essential. Flashing lights and unprecedented noises should be right up their street, and not the domain of the prosaic, more worldly knights.
The king of Camelot turned towards the party behind him, and at a prearranged gesture, two figures dismounted and came towards him. His recently formed 'Department of Magic' (nicknamed The Blue Squad by Gwaine after the colour of their cloaks) had swept all before them, astonishing the court and the populace with their loyalty, wisdom and efficiency. Arthur had patiently explained to a disbelieving and disapproving audience that in order to combat the threat of hostile sorcerers, it made perfect sense for him to have sorcerers fighting on his own side. And furthermore, that any act of sorcery was to be judged in the same way as any other act. Only sorcery which caused harm would be punished, whereas any magical act which was of benefit to the community would be welcomed. There were naysayers, of course, those brave or foolhardy enough to question the king's decision, but they fell silent before the determination of Merlin, transformed from bumbling servant to majestic court sorcerer, with an authority to almost match Arthur's own. In public, at least. And then there was Mordred, whose determination was no less, but tempered with a self-effacing charm, as if he still couldn't quite believe what had happened. Honoured to have become a knight in the first place , and now second in command to Merlin in the new department, he had been overwhelmed by the trust Arthur had placed in him, by sending him as envoy to negotiate a treaty with the Druid people.
"It should be Merlin," he had protested initially. "He has more power," but Arthur had overruled the objection.
"They are your people, Mordred," he had said. "You understand how they think, and you know their hopes and dreams. You alone can do this. Extend the hand of friendship towards them, and bring me an alliance."
And Mordred had done as requested, and more than that. He had returned not only with a signed treaty, but with two young men that had been inspired by his enthusiasm for the cause, and were eager to join the Department of Magic. Arthur had agreed to the arrangement, aware of the burden he had placed on the two sorcerers, but was secretly amused to see them with their own assistants. Word had soon spread, and other young men and women possessed of magical talents had arrived at the gates of Camelot to offer their services. Things were certainly moving fast, the king reflected, perhaps too fast. He just hoped that Merlin and Mordred could remain in control of their new recruits. Neither had any experience of leadership, after all. The men in question, meanwhile, seemed unperturbed by their new responsibilities. They approached the boulder, and while Merlin crouched down immediately to inspect the object, Mordred inclined his head respectfully towards the king.
"How can we help, Sire?"
Arthur was spared the necessity of answering by Merlin, who sprang to his feet and took a step backwards. "You should withdraw the knights to a safe distance, Sire. This may be a magical object. Mordred and I will take care of it."
"Merlin, I am not afraid of a magical object, particularly not one as puny looking as this. We could crush it in the palm of our hands."
"I wouldn't advise trying that, Sire. Its size is no indication of its potential for danger. And it was described to us as enormous."
"Very well, have it your way. You have half an hour." He turned to Leon. Let's go."
Merlin seemed lost in thought while Arthur and Leon rejoined the others and retreated out of sight, before summoning their two assistants, Lucas and Robert, that had remained behind. "Bring the box," he called. "We're going to need to contain it."
"What do you think it is?" Mordred asked, a perplexed expression on his face as he glanced once more at the unidentified object.
"Honestly? I've no idea. I'm not even sure it is magical," Merlin replied with a shake of the head.
"What else could it be?"
"Well, that's what we have to find out, isn't it? Let's get it to safety, and then we can take our time with it. The most important thing is to find out if it's hostile."
"It doesn't look dangerous," Mordred said cautiously. Could something so tiny really be responsible for all the mayhem they had heard about? Intermittent bursts of light and a strange, metallic sound unlike anything that had been heard before. From up high. And that was the other thing. How come something described as "hovering in the sky like a saucer-shaped cloud" had suddenly fallen to earth, and had seemingly shrunk in the process. None of it made any sense. It was probably just the fertile imagination of the locals, or the effects of a tankard too many of mead. But then again, several of them had corroborated the story.
"Let's not take any chances," Merlin replied. "We'll come at it from opposite sides." Slowly they sank down and extended their hands towards the object. Merlin touched it first, and his eyes glowed gold as he carefully extracted it from under the boulder. He could see it was white, smooth, and shaped like a disc, with indecipherable dark lettering around the rim. He placed it in the palm of his hand, holding it up towards Mordred, so they could scrutinize it together. Without warning, he felt a sensation of immense energy burning through his palm, and the object lifted off into the air, illuminated by what seemed a million flashing lights. It emitted a noise that he wouldn't describe as musical, but nonetheless had some kind of rhythm. The object expanded and rose higher, hovering above their heads, before suddenly darting towards the east. The sorcerers stood dumbfounded for a moment, before giving chase. But just as they thought the pursuit was futile, the object spiralled and dived silently towards earth, contracting as it fell. It landed with a tiny thump and the lights spluttered out.
"Well," they said simultaneously, and then laughed, releasing the tension. The four of them approached with caution, and this time, Merlin was careful to immobilize the object with a spell before placing it in the special box they would use to transport it to Camelot. The special box, upon which both he and Mordred had laid so many enchantments that he was almost sure that the object would be successfully confined. Almost...
They rejoined Arthur and the knights, all impatient at the delay, and eager to get back to Camelot.
"We have the object in our possession, Sire," Mordred reported, "and we will know more when we've had a chance to examine it properly."
"Very well, let's go," Arthur replied, giving the signal for departure. The knights remounted at once and fell into line. The blue squad brought up the rear. Merlin and Mordred continued to discuss the provenance of the object, but after they had exhausted the more extreme possibilities, Mordred suddenly seemed to lose interest in the matter, and dismissed it with a wave of the hand. "And anyway, I don't want to talk about that."
"Oh, what do you want to talk about?" As if he didn't know. Merlin didn't know how much longer he could keep stalling Mordred about what he privately thought of as 'Project...
"Morgana. You know that. You can't keep on ignoring me like this. When will you give me your decision, Merlin? Or should I take my idea straight to Arthur?"
"Now, let's not be hasty," Merlin countered, playing for time. "It's a complex decision." At all costs he must dissuade Mordred from approaching Arthur with this crazy idea.
"Hasty! What do you mean? I asked you weeks ago, and all the time her powers grow stronger, and her hatred deeper. I can help her, Merlin. Bring her back to how she used to be. I have a connection with her. I know I can do it, if you will let me."
Merlin took a deep breath and steeled himself to be blunt. It was time to put an end to this naïve folly. Under no circumstances should Mordred place himself in Morgana's path. Her revenge would be terrifying. "You had a connection with her," he said. "Until you quite literally stabbed her in the back. Do you think she will forgive that betrayal?"
Mordred raised his eyes, and glared at the warlock, temporarily speechless. Then a tear rolled slowly down his cheek. "Sometimes I still hate you, Merlin. How could you remind me of that, a moment I have tortured myself with a million times? If only I could have that moment again!" he cried in anguish.
"And what would you do? Would you do it differently?"
"Yes! No! Yes! I panicked at the time, and I could have found a better way to change things. I love them both," he said in despair. "You wouldn't understand."
Merlin leant over and placed a hand on Mordred's reins, bringing his horse to a halt. Then he put an arm around the young man's shoulder and pulled him closer.
"I'm sorry, Mordred," he said, a note of sadness in his voice, "but they are enemies. You cannot serve them both. And I do understand. I was once forced to make a similar decision, for the survival of Arthur and Camelot, and Morgana has never forgiven me."
"That's you, Merlin. She will listen to me, and I think she will forgive me. At least let me try. For the good of the kingdom. Please," he entreated.
Merlin could see that Mordred wasn't going to let this go, and was quite likely to approach the king directly if he refused. "Very well," he said with a heavy heart. "We will take this to Arthur upon our return." He would spend the rest of the journey considering how best to dissuade them both.
...
"Bring it in here, Rob, would you, and put it in the corner over there," Merlin asked, indicating where his assistant should leave the box. Rob deposited the box in the corner of the physician's chambers as requested, straightened up, and looked enquiringly at Merlin.
"Will that be all, Sir?"
Merlin smiled. "Yes, thank you, that's all for today. You and Lucas can take the rest of the day off." If only Arthur had ever been so accommodating, he thought to himself wryly, witnessing the expression of gratitude on his assistant's countenance. Not that he didn't have an ulterior motive, of course. He wanted the coast clear so he could consult Gaius about the suspicious object without interruption. As the door closed behind Rob, he turned quickly towards his former mentor.
"We've got it, Gaius. It's here in the box," he said, trying hard to maintain a calm exterior.
"So it wasn't a wild-goose chase after all?" The physician raised an eyebrow.
Not at all," the warlock replied. "It was definitely worth the effort of the journey."
"Merlin, you look as excited as a six-year old."
"Wait until you see it. Then you'll understand why." He described what had happened when they found it in the field. "I want to see whether you have the same opinion as I do."
The physician smiled. It was rare these days to see Merlin with the enthusiasm and earnestness that had characterized his youth, burdened as he now was with so many responsibilities. "Go on then," he said. "Show me."
The warlock lost no time in crossing the room and extracting the object. He held it in the palm of his hand almost reverently as lifted it up for Gaius' attention."
The physician took a preliminary glance at the object; his eyes met Merlin's in a startled expression, before he bent his head again to examine it closer.
"Well, what do you think?" the warlock asked. He could barely contain his impatience.
"Give me a moment to gather my thoughts, Merlin. This is a bit of a shock." That was an understatement, if ever there was one, he reflected. He had heard of such things, of course, but had dismissed them as mere fairy tales.
"It's not magical, is it?"
"I don't think so, no."
"So?"
"So." There was a note of wonder in Gaius' voice, "I have never seen its like before." He turned to wave a hand around the room, "And in all these books, both scientific and magical, there is not one mention of such an object." He lowered his voice. "Although I can hardly believe it, I think what we have here is not of this world."
"Yes!" the warlock exulted, delighted to have his suspicion confirmed.
"You are of the same opinion, I take it?"
"I am, yes. I can feel no magic in the sense we are used to, and yet, there is within it such enormous power that is way beyond our experience." He paused for a moment. "The question is, what do we do with it?"
"I think that is not the only question, Merlin. We need to find out more about it before we can take any action."
"Well, where can we find out more?"
"You know there's only one place to start."
The warlock sighed. After a hard day's ride, another excursion into the dark forest at night was beckoning. He couldn't wait until tomorrow to discover more. Still, at least he'd make sure he had a good hot meal inside him first.
…
The dragon touched ground, settled himself into a comfortable position, and beamed at Merlin.
"Well, young warlock, what can I do for you? What is the emergency today?" he asked, with a twinkle in his eye.
"No emergency. At least I don't think so," the warlock responded with a smile. "I have something to show you instead."
"Intriguing," he said, waiting while Merlin extracted the object from the box and presented it to him to examine." The dragon studied it intently for a while, before his body convulsed as he swung his neck violently from side to side, while releasing a primeval roar. Merlin stepped back in astonishment, only having seen Kilgharrah behave this way once before, the day he had liberated him from his chains of captivity.
"Are you alright?" he asked with concern.
The dragon steadied himself before replying. "I am fine," he assured Merlin, "and I apologise, young warlock. You took me unawares. The power in this vessel is beyond anything I have come across before."
"Do you know what it is?" ventured the warlock.
The dragon sighed, and looked towards the heavens and the stars above. "I know that it is not of this world," he replied. "It comes from somewhere else."
The warlock looked a little downcast. This didn't get him any further forward in his quest. "Is this all that you can tell me?" he asked plaintively. "What on earth should I do with it?"
The dragon paused, and his expression softened. "You need a seer with a very particular skill. There are those, young warlock, that can determine an object's provenance and entire history, just by virtue of holding it in their hands."
"And where can I find someone with such a talent? Do you know of such a one?"
The dragon seemed to wrestle within himself before he replied. "I know of only one at present. The witch, the lady Morgana is possessed of such a skill."
Merlin took a deep breath. As if he didn't have enough problems already. This was all he needed. "Are you sure there's no one else? No one at all?"
"I'm afraid not, young warlock. It is either the lady Morgana, or this object will remain a mystery."
Great. Just great. Well, that's that then, he thought, before saying goodbye to Kilgharrah, and returning to the castle in a despondent mood.
...
Arthur raised an eyebrow as the sorcerers entered his chambers. "Will you never learn to knock, Merlin?" he sighed.
The warlock smiled at Guinevere. I apologise for the intrusion, my lady. "I would not have disturbed your dinner, but the matter is of some importance."
"You've identified the mysterious object, have you?" Is it dangerous?" the king asked, leaning back in his chair, and looking like he hadn't a care in the world.
"Actually, no Sire, we're still working on that." He coughed. "The matter is a different one. Mordred here has a proposal that he wishes to put to you. I have tried to persuade him that it is an insane idea, but he will not be satisfied until you hear it."
You've almost convinced me that it must be a brilliant idea, Merlin," the king grinned. "After all, if you are against it..."
"Very funny," the warlock muttered. He turned to his partner. "Go on, Mordred. You'd better tell him."
Mordred again laid out his proposal to approach Morgana with an offer of reconciliation, to heal the wounds of the past and to ensure peace in the future. He emphasized his belief in his ability to get through to her, and to restore her to her former self. Arthur and Gwen looked stunned, both torn between memories of Morgana's cruel outrages, and of the kind, caring person she used to be. They conversed between themselves, seemed to come at last to an agreement, and Arthur addressed Mordred again.
"And what can we offer her anyway?" She wants to be queen of Camelot, and that's never going to happen. Not as long as I live and breathe, anyway. That position is Guinevere's."
"She does want that, Sire, but I believe there is something else she desires even more."
"And what's that?"
"For magic to be free, Sire..."
"I've already done that," Arthur objected.
"She will want you to go further. For the Old Religion to be venerated once more, for the Goddess to be freely worshipped, and the temples restored to their former grandeur."
"What is it to her, exactly? What will she get out of it?"
"She is the sole surviving priestess of the Old Religion, Sire. As you are High King, so she would be High Priestess of all Britain."
"And we would all have to kneel at her feet," Merlin murmured, as the thought occurred to him. "I bet she'd love that."
"You expect me to kneel to her?" Arthur demanded of Mordred. "After everything she's done? You must be mad!"
"Not to her, Sire. To the Goddess...in her guise, of course."
Arthur stared at Mordred for a long while, and no one spoke as he came to a decision."Do it," he said.
"Sire?"
"Go to her and make the offer. We must take any chance we can of peace."
Mordred let out a long sigh of relief. "Thank you, Sire. I will leave within the hour. You won't regret this, I promise you."
He turned to go, but Merlin stepped forward and blocked his path. "No."
"No?"
"I can't let you go. There's something else."
"What now, Merlin? Can't you just let me be?"
"In the first place, you underestimate Morgana as I told you before, and she will very likely kill you in revenge. And if she doesn't, she will use you to kill Arthur instead. She has tried the tactic of forcing others to do her dirty work many times."
"Kill Arthur? You think...You know I would never...How dare you!"He clenched his fists, and shoved at Merlin, who remained calm and impassive.
"You would have no choice in the matter, Mordred. You said yourself her powers have grown. She turns people into weapons in the blink of an eye. And you have left me no choice either, but to tell you of the prophecy."
At this, Mordred raised his head again."Prophecy? What prophecy?"
"It is foretold that you will be the cause of Arthur's death."
"No!" Mordred exclaimed, an expression of utter horror on his face.
"I am sorry, but it is true," Merlin said sadly.
"I refuse to believe it," Arthur said.
"Who told you, and why have you never told me this before?" He had a million other questions, but they could wait.
"I heard it first from Kilgharrah, and I didn't want to upset you unnecessarily. In my judgement, there is no danger now. But if you place yourself within Morgana's orbit, that could change."
"So you have no faith in me."
"On the contrary, I do. So much so, that I have worked with you as a partner, at Arthur's side, despite having been warned not to do so by the dragon, and having seen the vision for myself."
"Gaius has always said that there are many possible versions of the future," Arthur reminded the warlock. "Many different realities, that we can influence by our own choices. So this one has no more likelihood than any of the others." He paused to see what reception his words were having on the warlock, and saw that he was not convinced. "But anyway, there is a simple solution to all this, Merlin," the king said. "If you are so worried about Morgana's influence, you can go together." He raised an eyebrow. "I presume that her powers will not be capable of overcoming you both simultaneously?"
"Er no, probably not," Merlin admitted reluctantly, as he could feel the ground being cut from under his feet.
"Great. Off you go, then. I'll leave the details to you, but just bring my sister back here in a good mood."
"The good mood may be beyond our capabilities, Sire."
Arthur paused, an arrested look on his face. "Wait, can't you just...?" He waved a hand airily, in an attempt to replicate a magical gesture.
Merlin seemed troubled by the suggestion. "That would hardly be ethical..."
"It would," Mordred disagreed. "I think I can convince her without any need of magic, but we would only be reversing Morgause's enchantment, after all."
Everyone gasped, and you could have heard a pin drop before Arthur spoke. "How do you know that Morgause cast a spell on Morgana?"
"It's obvious to those of us with experience of such things. I have seen it done several times, Sire. There are many ways of persuading people to act against their own interests. Morgause could not bear to share Morgana's affections with anyone, least of all a Pendragon, so she turned your sister against you."
"Arthur, that makes sense," Gwen said fervently. "It explains so much about how Morgana changed, and why she turned against us. I've always understood her hatred for Uther, but never for you...How have we never thought of this before?"
"When I asked her what had happened to her, she just said she'd grown up, and nothing else occurred to me," Arthur answered. "But we should have thought of it." He glanced at the warlock. "Merlin?"
The warlock swallowed, and fought back tears. Only absolute honesty would serve him now. He had promised the king no less, the day he had told him everything, and they had agreed there must be no more secrets in the future. "I think Mordred is right, Sire, now I consider it, but I was blinded by my own guilt from seeing it before. I'm sorry."
"You did what you had to at the time, and you are not to blame," Arthur assured him. A silent message seemed to pass between them, and the warlock looked more cheerful. "And in any case, it's not too late. The situation is retrievable, and I have faith in you both."
Gwen came forward to hug them. "Good luck; I know you can do this."
Thus encouraged by the king and queen, Merlin and Mordred made their farewells and departed.