Hi! Today I bring Chapter 27. Hilda's and then Merlin's perspective. Merlin-Sigan conversation finally! You will see what happens with all this. I hope you like it!

I'm not own from Merlin.

After reading the "Eject a Shadow" section, Hilda quickly headed to her bedside table, where in the last drawer, hidden like almost everything useful she had, she grabbed a silver bracelet in which a yellowed stone was embedded in its center. She gripped it tightly in her fist as she watched it with a smile of satisfaction.

"I've waited a long time for this moment," she whispered to the bracelet as if it had live.

She clung it tightly as she lengthened her arm and carefully put it on her wrist. She smiled even more at noticing that power emanating from the bracelet, moving from her left arm to the whole body like arteries in blood. She hasn't noticed that magic in her in a long time.

The time had finally come.

She ran as she could down the main street. She could guess the sun's rays among the clouds falling through the sky, making it clear that noon was giving way the afternoon. She had to hurry or else she'd be late, and she couldn't let that happen.

She knew where to find what she was looking for: Merlin. She simply felt a connection with him, in addition to knowing those tunnels she had explored a long time ago, after Telvar and Sigan's death. She had found strange and dark places in them. She knew many secrets from the depths of the village, but at the same time she knew it was a small part of what that place revealed.

Besides, if she didn't feel that strange feeling of knowing where Merlin was, she could always get where she knew he was going. She knew the place and what that meant.

It was when she arrived at the place she had always called for herself "The Crypt of the Stone Statues", which stopped from braking. Stone statues, as always, were observed every day in a different position. They had scary, monstrous faces, but that's not why she stopped.

It was that woman. What was her name? Morana, Mogriana, Mograna? Morgana! Yes, it was Morgana, Merlin's friend. Without any doubt, in personality, they looked very similar, and in their decision and courage, then what was Morgana supposed to do there? What was she supposed to do there in the depths of town?

But it wasn't exactly what made her stop, but Morgana was reaching out to the statue, and most frighteningly, the statue seemed to take on something of its usual color. She could see the eyes of the statue of the manticore moving towards her. What was she doing? Was she coming back to life? Impossible, she couldn't...

She could see Morgana back off in fear, and it was her time to cover her mouth so she wouldn't scream because God knew what she could do with it.

Morgana turned around and she could see in her eyes some yellow glow.

Morgana wasn't a normal person either, and something had to have lured her there, where Merlin was.

All the filaments of darkness and gloom were aligned and linked to form a kind of inconsistent body, full of shadow, which seemed to cover all mastaba with darkness and fear. The candles and torches did not seem so luminous and seemed to give a lukewarm and inconsistent light.

Merlin went back one step, somewhat frightened by what had just originated out of nowhere. That was the man he'd been really looking for all his life. He felt it. He was his destiny. He did what he supposed to do: he crouched down and lowered his head in a gesture of honor.

After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence only cut by the mystical and dark crackle of the figure that loathed in front of Merlin, the Shadow began to speak in a voice that Merlin linked in a voice from the world of the dead, as if he did not really speak in his presence, in that very room, but in the other world.

"Good to see you in body and blood, Merlin Emrys."

Merlin raised his head, his eyes oozing in a red fire that burned the sight. Not knowing what to answer, he simply nodded faintly.

"I see that you have finally accepted your destiny. Good, good. You were right to come to me. If you join me, Emrys, I'll help you complete your destiny. I'll let everyone know who you are and your power. Join me, Emrys, and I'll get you up. I will let your name and glory know, let it be known about your exploits in the future. Come to me, Merlin Emrys.

Merlin lowered his head, not knowing what to think exactly. At the time, his head was having a serious conflict, in which his being was at stake.

"Do you really want this?" commented on a voice within him very similar to the humble and modest servant.

"Yes, power gives everything, or don't you understand? "He answered another serious and rude voice, similar to the one he had seen in his father's memories. "Imagine what I could get, everything that would be mine. Everyone would know about my power. Arthur would know of my power; Uther would know of my power. And they'd both kneel in front of me."

"And where is your humility, your modesty, that expected nothing in return for what you did? You didn't need someone to reward you or kneel in front of you. You just did it for the good of others, without expecting anything in return."

"That's the problem! They still think I'm a useless, clumsy servant who knows nothing but to create trouble. Everybody looks at me for what I'm not. I, Emrys, the Born of Magic, must live knowing that everyone thinks I'm just anyone when I'm not like that. I am a sorcerer, and a truly powerful one, who aims to help a useless prince who supposedly will let the magic return to Camelot, while he does not seem to make any changes."

"When he is king, there will be changes. He'll join Albion, and he won't be able to do it without your help. Don't listen to that shadow, he just wants to make you full of hate. Full of hate and vengeance, like Uther, remember the king who kills people of your kind. He's not that different than Uther. Imagine your friends, everyone you would have given your life for. Imagine them, knowing the truth, knowing that you betrayed them, that you were never a real friend. Imagine their faces, wounded, and with looks of betrayal and pity for what you have become. Come back, Merlin. Listen to me."

"No! It's my time! I make the decisions! I am Emrys! I decide what to do with my destiny! And I choose to listen to the shadow, who will lead me to victory, to my true self!"

"As you wish."

And since then, the voice of the real Merlin, the compassionate and cheerful Merlin, did not come out again.

Merlin raised his head, really determined of what he knew he should do.

"I choose to join you, Sigan," he said, clenching his jaw and spitting out the words as if he had a hard time letting them go.

If he had had a face and an expression, Merlin would have said that the Shadow was smiling, or, if possible, laughing.

"That's how I like it, Emrys, choosing well. Soon everyone will know of your greatness and power."

There was a silence in which the Shadow apparently waited for an answer, but when there was no such answer, he spoke again with a voice like a devilish whisper.

"You remind me of your father. So passionate and determined."

Merlin raised his head with some mistrust, as if the Shadow was lying to him to gain his trust, but also with curiosity when he heard his father's name. Again, as always when he heard his father's name, he tensed and felt a fire burning inside him, giving him the gift of impatience.

"My father?"

"Yes. He came one day here like you too. You look very similar"

At that time, Merlin knew nothing more than to give up due to impatience and desire to put aside all the things that happened, only for his father. He felt like he should know it, and this was the moment.

"What do you know about him?"

Oh oh. What will happen? Will Sigan tell him something? And Hilda and Morgana? Where are they? You will know in the next chapters.

Well, what do you think? I really enjoyed writing the internal fight in Merlin's head. I really hope you liked that part as much as I liked. For me, that internal fight is really important, and I always thought in the series that Merlin would have lots.

Also, I really hope the story is going and taking form. What would you say if tell you I only wanted to do fifteen or twenty chapters in the first one, but now I calculate like fifty or more XD?!

Thank you to: The Sorrowful Deity; weirdhead; PadrePedro; and Merille Marc (answering to your review: yes, Merlin will be a Dragonlord. About the other things, they will be revealed!). Thank so much you for your reviews!

Thank you to everyone!

LegolasHV