Chapter 41

So It Begins

It was time. The final battle was here. Thousands of Camelots knights drew their swords to fight a war that could not be won. It was a futile action, Morgana knew that, but she was going to bet that Arthur didn't care.

Arthur still thought Merlin would save him, like he always did. Pathetic, Morgana spat. little did Arthur know that Merlin was gone. He was hers to command and Arthur was alone, he just didn't know it yet.

The quiet engulfed them in a tomb-like silence as Sorcerer and knight waited on some sort of unspoken signal.

Morgana sat atop her dark mare on a small hill in the center of her army. She admired her surroundings. Everyone was still and quiet, as if in a trance. This was the calm before the storm. Morgana smiled. She could hardly wait to see the look on Arthur's face when she won the kingdom from him. Morgana searched all the sorcerers for Merlin. She was pleased to see each sorcerer had taken her advice and partnered with a warrior with a sword. All but Emrys however. He stood a few yards from her. He carried a pair of short swords to defend himself. He glared mercilessly at something she couldn't see. He seemed to be fighting some eternal battle.

"Smile, Emrys. You look miserable." Morgana chuckled.

Merlin kept his eyes forward locked on the kingdom he had once protected, bled for and killed for. How could he destroy it? How was he going to do this? For a long quiet moment he said noting. Then he turned a hard glare on Morgana.

His eyes were lighter than Morgana had ever seen them. They blazed a tropic blue that made his pale skin glow. Her breath caught in her throat. He was eerie beautiful. Otherworldly. The scar on his face that slashed down across his eye and stopped a the corner of his mouth. It shined a slight iridescent silver and added a unique wildness to him. He reminded her of a Faerie King. Majestic and untouchable. But he wasn't untouchable. He was completely within reach, and hers.

"The only way I will smile for you, Morgana," Merlin said flatly. "Is if you cut me from ear to ear."

Morgana frowned down at him. "Well," She tisked. "That's offensive. I'm proud of you." she declared.

Merlin grit his teeth and turned back to the army between them and Camelot. Morgana hid a smile. She too turned back to the task at hand.

"Have you sent scouts?" Morgana asked. Merlin ignored her.

"Emrys," Morgana hissed. Merlins head snapped towards her. The compulsion to obey was unnecessarily overwhelming. "Scouts. Did you send them?"

Merlin shook his head mutely, eyes blazing. He looked back to Camelots wall.

"Damn it, Merlin. Do not ruin this for me or else-"

"Or else what? What are you going to me?" Merlin scoffed. He was stalling yes, but she knew he would. He would always fight her. In any way he could.

"Not to you, darling." Morgana hissed. Merlin looked up at Morgana. She towered over him on top her mare. She bent down to him to hiss in his face. Her noes was red from the cold and white breath seethed from her. Flecks of gold sparked to life in the depths of her irises. "I'll do more than just kill Arthur. I'll erase you from his memory before I kill him. Even if he somehow comes back, he wont know who you are, what you have done for him or that you tried to save him."

Merlin narrowed his eyes at her. He shivered slightly from the cold. He was able to regulate his body temperature enough not to die. After he nearly froze and Cedric had to save him it became essential to know how too keep warm.

"You wouldn't dare." Merlin hissed.

Morgana glared and pressed her lips together. She sat back in her saddle and looked him up and down. He looked fierce in armor. Even more so with the twin short swords strapped across his back in a leather harness, but what gave her pause was the aura of power and danger that surrounded him. It was mad, chaotic and unbridled. "There is very little I wouldn't do, Merlin. " Morgana warned.

Merlin transferred his glare to Camelots wall. He took a deep unsteady breath and steeled himself against the inevitable. Merlin thought he could deal with Arthurs death if he knew he would see him again. But not if Morgana erased Merlin from Arthurs memory.

"If you do that," Merlin started slowly and low. "I would stop at nothing to make sure you paid for your transgressions."

"''Transgressions.''" Morgana laughed mockingly. "After today you wont want to disobey me. All that you have done. All that you have fought for..." Morgana shook her head in disgust. "You have achieved nothing, altered nothing. And they will die for nothing."

Merlin glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes. Just looking at her made Merlins rage boil but Emrys' need to obey blocked it out. Her compulsion was strong. He removed his glare and looked back to the armed men that stood between them and Camelot. They were all ready to fight, and most likely die, to defend their home.

Merlins heart started to race, pounding in his chest like a thundering war drum only he could hear. A steady count down to the beginning of the end. And he knew it was ending. But just because it was ending didn't mean he should stop fighting. He just didn't think he could for much longer. What was the point if fate always got her way?

Merlin ran his hand through his hair. The sword harness creaked with his movements and dug into his shoulder reminding him that he was there to conquer. To kill. He was an assassin. Her assassin. "I never thought I'd end up here," Merlin sighed.

"No one ever does." Morgana scoffed. "Especially the hero." she smirked.

There it was. The gloating. Not that he expected any different from her after all they have been through, but he had hoped she wouldn't rub it in anymore than she needed to. Merlin felt Morgana inside him, invading every part of him, reaching and grasping for the parts of him that shied away from her.

"Quit resisting me and take down Camelots walls."

"What. Why?" Merlin grit past the choke hold she had on his mind. The pressure in his head went down, but she was still fully immersed in him.

"A detraction." Morgana stated simply. "I want to see the ants scatter."

"But," Merlin looked back and forth between Morgana and back to Camelot, the people inside protected by her walls and the men who guarded them.

"Dammit, Emrys." Morgana cursed. She reached further inside him, deeper and deeper she dove into his mind to where he tried to bury the bond and felt for the magical cord that tied them together and tugged. Hard. Like he would a runaway cavalry.

Merlin jerked straight. His shoulders went ridged and his hands clenched at his side. He twisted his head to glare at her, but she wouldn't allow it. "Just. Do. It." she hissed.

Merlin couldn't help but obey. He analyzed the wall. Searched for weaknesses in its defense, but he found little. He was surprised to find the stone was so strong, and shocked to find that Camelot was protected by magical wards. And by magic that wasn't his. Merlin felt a flare of pride. Arthur had accepted magic. That was great, but too little to late, and it only served to piss Morgana off, and secondarily, Emrys.

Merlin ran magical fingers over the wards, testing the strength of magic and the user who cast it. He stopped when he felt what he was looking for. He followed the connection and saw seven sorcerers down on a far hill away from Camelot and the fight. They stood in a line all facing Camelot. Two others were behind the sorcerers. They stood protectively on either side of Camelots king.

It briefly registered that that it was Arthur. He was okay and alive. But Morgana was able to override Merlin as easily as ever taking his mind away from Arthur. When Merlin looked back at Arthur his hesitation was gone and he only saw opportunity.

Merlin fingered the magic in the wall, felt for the weaker of the magicians. He felt Ranoue and James, but they were too strong. They had combined their magic and now carried most of the power. The others tried to cast on their own. It made them easy and distracted targets. Merlin latched on to the feeble aura of an old man hoping to weaken the group enough to get to Ranoue and James. If he was able to get him to disengage from the spell it would save a whole lot of time. The ricochet was dangerous, but worth the risk if it worked. H

Merlin reached further and grasped onto the four others auras. They were young and inexperienced. Merlin didn't want to hurt them, but he couldn't help it. With a single callous thought he broke their legs. One by one they snapped as easily as branches under his boots. The sound went through him on a wave of chills. It did strange things to his insides. He didn't know if it was good or bad, but he knew it didn't feel right.

Merlin shied away from them no wanting to deal with what he just did, and in front of Arthur. The King rushed forward the fallen, the two others followed on his heels. Cedric? Omari?

Merlin frowned. He transferred his gaze to Ranoue and James. They seemed to be holding the sudden shift in power well enough. They were strong. Good, Merlin thought. They would need to be for what was coming next. He hoped that they were prepared. Merlin wavered. He couldn't kill them like he was supposed to. That hesitation got him into trouble.

A vicious dark storm descended into his fractured mind. "If you wont do it, I will." Morgana whispered in his mind. There was a slight edge to her last words, warning him. She would erase him. "Arthur will never remember you."

Merlins heard fluttered and his guts twisted. His throat tightened and a slight tremor went though him. Still, he refused to do her dirty work.

"Oh, for fucks sake." She growled out loud, reminding him that he still had a body. He could be hurt.

In anger Morgana reached through him and took control of his movements, of his voice, hijacked his magic. His will evaporated. Through Merlin she grabbed hold of the sorcerers in a tight grip.

Merlin mind froze a second. He was terrified by the loss of control. He didn't like having her this close. Revulsion swelled inside him and he couldn't hide it. It only seemed to anger Morgana.

But he couldn't help his feeling any more than she could and having her touching his mind the way she was... She was leaving black gooey tare allover his soul.

Morganas anger reached new heights, if that was even possible. Several resounding cracks sounded like the popping of a fire. It startled Merlin. Painful chills raced down his body covering him in goosebumps. She was gone from his mind before their deaths even registered.

Stunned, Merlin pulled back from the dead sorcerers. He stood there a second, taking in the chaos from a far. The sudden deaths of so many people while he was still connected to them was traumatic to say the least. He had still been inside their minds when they died and that would twist him in ways he didn't even know in the time to come.

Morganas army moved forward on some silent signal. A single living being sharing one mind they marched forward. The crunch of thousands of boots made an eerie rhythm that added an odd melody to the pounding drum beat of his heart. Their war cries rose up. They got louder and louder until it was a defining roar.

In a great display of power the two armies collided. To Merlin it reminded him of the ocean waves colliding with the rocky shore: only this wave plowed through the "rock" like a hot knife through butter.

"Don't just stand there, Emrys." Morgana shouted above the roar of battle. Her horse dance and bucked. She wasn't happy. She was bread for battle and she was ready to join in. She jumped to the side and pawed the ground. She snorted and white puffs jetted from her noes. Morgana kicked her and tugged on the reigns. She didn't calm. Merlin reached out to the animal and calm her before Morgana did any damage to her. Morgana glared at Merlin. She wanted his attention. All of it.

Merlin took his attention from the horse and back to Morgana. "What next milady?" Merlin asked.

She was silent a moment, then she growled. "Destroy it. Destroy it all."

Merlin nodded. With a grimace on his handsome face he turned to the wall and opened his arms wide. His eyes burned a fierce gold and his lips started to move but no sound emerged. Still the magic crept forth. Merlin attacked the wards and those who powered them. A slow rumble began to rise. It started low and then it grew and grew into a aching bellow.

And it begins.