Then
Em bid farewell to his new friends—at least, he was starting to consider them his friends—and continued his stroll around the palace grounds with his small pack of dogs. He wandered near the royal stables and henhouses, as he wanted to expose Sionnach to other animals. After about an hour of aimless wandering, he left Pike and Trout in the capable hands of Holt and Beckett. Sionnach whined as they left her new friends behind. Em laughed, telling her, We will see them tomorrow, little fox.
When he arrived back at Gaius's chambers, he found his uncle poring over a dusty leather tome. Gaius scribbled on a sheet of parchment already covered in his illegible handwriting. On a slab of wood placed over two sawhorses lay the naked body of the dead woman. Em stopped dead in his tracks; he had seen dead bodies before, sure, but it was another thing to see a body at a funeral. It was another thing to see the dead body of someone you killed in your own home. "What's she doing here, Uncle?" he said in a strangled voice.
"The king ordered me to do an autopsy. I did not cut the body open, as it is clear she died from getting crushed by the chandelier. However, I noticed the most peculiar tattoo…" Gaius got up and gestured for his nephew to follow. Em obliged, and together they peered at a tattoo on the woman's right hip. Em recognized the triskele immediately; the intricate wolf pattern it formed, however, was an arrangement he had never seen before. He had never heard of the Lupus Order before, either. He relayed this information to his uncle, who sighed heavily.
"I was hoping you would know," he muttered. "Em, do you know the implications of this tattoo?"
Perplexed, Em shook his head.
"The triskele is a known Druidic symbol. The king has always suspected that the Druids are working against him, which led him to order the raiding of your people's camps and the subsequent slaughter of many Druids. However, this fervor has lessened over the years. His knights no longer actively hunt down Druids. However, if I showed this symbol to Uther, he would launch a campaign against the Druids again."
Em went still. "Don't show him, Uncle. That is no Druidic symbol. My people are not behind this; my grandmother is one of the elders, and she has never mentioned an assassination plot against Uther. That is not our way," he pleaded.
Gaius held up a hand. "I will not show this to Uther. However, I need you to find out anything you can about this tattoo. Will you speak your relatives and see what they know?"
Em nodded fervently.
"You go do that. I will start supper. Shoo."
Em raced up the small staircase. He pried up the floorboard he had hidden his scrying mirror in. He whispered the password. A few minutes later, a familiar face appeared. Em grinned widely. "Freya!" he exclaimed.
"Are you alright, Emmy?" she said frantically.
"I'm fine," Em assured her, grateful for the chance to speak Druidic. "Is my uncle there? How are things back home?"
Freya launched into a two-minute rant. Astryd seemed to be getting bigger and bigger every day, Daegel started sword training a few days ago, Declan and Finnlagh went on a romantic picnic and ended up killing a deer instead, Aglain's daughter was pregnant, Iseldir's visions predicted a plentiful harvest, et cetera. Em showed her Sionnach and told her about Arthur. Freya promised to kick Arthur's ass if the prince did not stop being a "dratted bully" to Em. Finally, Em asked Freya to get his uncle, father, or grandmother. "It's important I speak to them," he explained.
She nodded and disappeared for a few minutes. Finally, he saw his father and grandmother's faces in the mirror. Em endured another round of questions, updates, and stories. He gave them his own update. It was basically what he had already told Freya, just with less swear words. They congratulated him on defeating the sorceress. Em's heart swelled when he saw the pride in his father's dark eyes.
"Why did you scry?" Balinor asked finally.
"Have either of you ever heard of the Lupus Order?" Em quickly told them about the sorceress's strange tattoo. Emery's eyes widened.
"They exist only in legend," she told her grandson. "At least, I thought they did."
"Tell me about them, Móraí," Em implored her.
"Bí foighneach(Be patient), Emrys," Emery said fondly. "The tale is more of a cautionary one. It goes back to the ancient times, when the Druids still had their own nation and the banríons (queens) still reigned. A group of belligerent Druids who disagreed with the banríon's peaceful ways broke off and headed to the land of the Saxons. They proclaimed themselves the Lupus Order, after the beasts that prowled the cold wastelands they choseto dwell in. The Lupus Order's stronghold was in a series of caverns in a mountain. They wore blue cloaks and marked themselves with the wolf triskele in the manner of Druids. The order never existed, Em; it is simply a tale told to children to warn them of what befalls warlike Druids."
"What happened to them, in the old tales?"
Balinor spoke this time. "The Lupus Order attacked the Saxon villages at the base of the mountain. The survivors begged the banríon for help, as their own king was a selfish man who refused to help them. He feared magic. The banríon sent the last elemental mage in existence, a capable woman named Maud, and a small band of Druids to defeat the Lupus Order. After a series of battles, Maud defeated the leader of the Lupus Order. The Order scattered and its members were never seen again. However, Maud succumbed to the wounds she sustained in battle and died shortly after."
"Is that who you name Aunt Maud after, Móraí?" Em grinned.
Emery smiled. "I did indeed." Her grin faltered. "Does this information help, Em? Did the sorceress wear a blue cloak?"
"Her magic was a dark and corrupt one," Em said slowly. "She never wore a blue cloak…" Suddenly, his hands started shaking and he dropped the mirror. It mirror clattered to the floor; thankfully, it was spelled against breaking. Em's breath came out in heaving gasps and his vision started to blur.
As Emery and Balinor called Em's name, Gaius raced up the stairs when he heard the noise the mirror made. He found Em sitting on the floor hugging his knees and trembling. The dogs were working themselves into a frenzy. Crouching down next to his nephew, Gaius picked up the mirror and saw a familiar face.
"Balinor!" he exclaimed, his terror over the state his nephew was in overriding his joy about speaking to his long-lost friend again. "What is going on with Em?"
"He's having an anxiety attack, Gaius. He's been getting them ever since… Never mind. I don't know what caused it… I asked him if the sorceress was wearing a blue cloak—"
"She wasn't—" Em gasped out, his chest heaving. Gaius wrapped an arm loosely around him, and was shocked when Em buried his face his chest. Em finally hiccupped, "He was."
"Who is he, Em?" Gaius said gently.
"He had a blue cloak," Em said miserably. "That mage. Jarl and his men spoke the Saxon tongue, too, Da. They kept me and Lina in a cave. It was so cold." He shuddered.
"You think Thorn was a member of this modern-day Lupus Order?" Gaius could hear the heartbreak in the old woman's voice. He assumed she was Balinor's mother and Em's grandmother. "Oh, Emmy."
"Who are Jarl and Thorn?" Gaius demanded, running a soothing hand through Em's dark locks. "Are they Druids?"
"Hardly," Balinor spat out. "They're part of a group that captured Em and his sister. They tortured them for information about Em's Dragonlord mentor."
Bandit nudged Em with his nose. The boy left his uncle's embrace and wrapped his arm around his dog. Whining, Sionnach crawled into his lap. Slowly, the tension left his body and his rapid breathing slowed down. Balinor said something in the Druidic tongue, and Em responded shakily in the same language.
"Em said it's fine if we go off and talk in private for a bit. The dogs will help calm him down," Balinor said.
Gaius protested, "I don't think it's best to leave him—"
"Please, Uncle," Em muttered. "I'd prefer some space, if that's okay with you."
"Okay, son." Gaius squeezed his nephew's shoulder before he left the room, still holding the spelled mirror. He went down the staircase, bolted the door to his chambers, and sat down on his narrow bed. "Tortured, Balinor?" His heart broke for the nephew he still barely knew but was beginning to love dearly.
"They had them for around two and a half weeks. Em and Adelina were probably only conscious for about nine or ten days of it. It was hard for them to keep track," Emery explained.
"Adelina is the girl you adopted, Balinor?" Em had been telling Gaius about his siblings and extended family in the Druid camp. The fifteen-year-old steadfastly refused to reveal the location of it. Nevertheless, Gaius still enjoyed his nephew's stories about his Druidic upbringing. Outside of Balinor, he had not interacted with many Druids in his life. Em offered a unique perspective into a culture people rarely acknowledged or talked about in Albion.
"She is. Her damn parents fear her fire magic and sent her off to study with a Dragonlord. When he had to return to the Keep two years ago, they refused to take her back. She's been in my care ever since." Balinor hesitated. "She… Nine months after Jarl let her and Em go, she became a mother. She was only sixteen."
"Did one of them violate her…?" Gaius felt sick.
"We love her daughter Astryd, but Adelina has never been quite the same. Em, either. Have you seen his scars?" Balinor inquired. When Gaius shook his head, Balinor went on, "They whipped him and carved him up with knives. It left behind some brutal scarring. He tends to be very private about it. If you see them, don't acknowledge them. It makes him feel less self-conscious. If you can, avoid his missing finger—"
"I asked him about it, and he said an accident caused it. Was it that Jarl bastard?" Gaius asked, his voice rising.
"Yes. I find it deeply concerning that this 'Lupus Order' has made itself known in Camelot so soon after Em's arrival, especially since Jarl may be involved with them. What I always found the most disturbing about Em and Lina's ordeal was that Jarl simply let them go after he tortured the information out of them. He said he wanted them to 'live in fear for a while.' He even gave them directions and rations for the return trip." Emery shuddered.
"Do you think they intend to harm Em?" Gaius frowned.
"We can only assume." Emery wrung her hands. "I will get in touch with other Druid camps and get in contact with the elders. They may have additional information or books about the Order. Balinor, have Aisling examine Iseldir's dream journal in light of this new discovery—"
Balinor took the mirror from his mother. "What she's saying, Gaius, is that there is much to do. Do you mind if we go…?"
"Not at all!" Gaius assured him. "I want to go check on Em, anyway."
"Leave him. Bandit knows how to deal with these situations." Gaius wanted to laugh, as Emery spoke about the dog as if he were a human; however, his laughter died in his throat when he saw the seriousness in her emerald orbs. Her eyes were truly remarkable.
"Gaius," Balinor said before he ended the scrying spell. "At sunrise tomorrow, have Emrys scry us. I know Hunith would love the chance to speak with you." As Gaius's heart leapt with joy at the thought of getting to see his sister for the first time in years, his friend's face faded and the mirror appeared to be just an ordinary mirror again.
Em eventually wandered into the main room. He ate a quick dinner, washed the dishes, and went back to bed. He felt physically drained. He meditated, simply spending time in the presence of his magic. It was a habit he had acquired from Ruadan, and he still did it five years later. Finally, he flopped down on his bed, eager for sleep. Sionnach slept at his feet, while Bandit curled up on his blanket on the floor.
Just when he was on the brink of consciousness, he heard a voice whispering, Emrysssss. Emryssss. He jolted awake in bed. Who in Nature's name had the level of power to break through his mental shields and detect his magic? That was the only way another sorcerer could speak mentally to him, and that was nearly impossible. Em had spent years honing his shields. Tentatively, Em called out, Who are you?
No one ever said the strongest sorcerer born in a generation was an eloquent speaker.
All he heard was a voice whispering, Emryssss.
He felt a strong tug, the call of an ancient magic singing to him. Em sprang to his feet immediately. He did not know who or what was calling to him. All he knew was that it felt right; he needed to answer this call.
Em and Bandit prowled the corridors of the castle. The dog had refused to leave Em's side, so Em reluctantly let him come. He had used a spell to ease Sionnach into a deeper sleep, though. He did not need to drag a tiny puppy into a potentially dangerous situation. The boy and the dog had no trouble sneaking past Gaius and out the door; the man slept like the dead. Em let the tug of the ancient magic guide his footsteps. He dodged the palace guards easily enough, ducking into alcoves and side hallways and behind columns. He even hid Bandit behind a curtain at one point. Finally, they ended up at a dark staircase, the entrance of it yawning open like a dark, hungry mouth. Morris and Gwen had told Em about an extensive system of catacombs ran underneath the palace; he assumed the creepy staircase led to it. He snatched a torch off the wall and descended into the catacombs, Bandit right by his side as always.
The pull of the magic made Em's fear melt away. He eventually strode into a stone tunnel. He and Bandit walked down that for several hundred feet. They reached a dark opening. When Em held the torch out, the flames revealed a narrow ledge. It opened up to a huge cavern that seemed endless. Em could not see much in the gloom. He did not leave the tunnel. He lingered at the edge, not wanting to step onto the ledge.
Emrys, the voice said. Suddenly, the beating of wings could be heard. Em saw something shimmering in the dark and he remembered what Gaius had said about the dragon locked under the palace…
"I am a Dragonlord Initiate, Great One," he cried out in Dragonic.
A beautiful golden dragon entered the range of the torchlight. It settled onto a crag, balancing delicately. Bandit cowered behind Em's legs; his master murmured reassuring words to the frightened dog. Em's triumphant grin faded when he saw the thick chain and shackle around the dragon's hind leg. "What has Uther done to you, Great One?" he lamented.
Stop this 'Great One' nonsense. It's a habit you picked up from your father, I'm sure, the dragon snapped. His wide amber eyes focused in on the boy and his dog. You are small for one with such a great destiny. The Unwritten Vision promises that you and Arthur will accomplish great things together.
"You believe Arthur is the Once and Future King? My uncle was right?" Em's eyes widened.
The one who is the king's healer or the one who I see walking in the dream realm?
"The one in the dream realm. His name is Iseldir; he is a Vates," Em said. "You said you knew my father? How?"
Many moons ago, I did. Have patience, young one. The dragon almost seemed amused. You should heed both of your uncles' wise words. Fate has placed them in your life for a reason.
"How can Arthur be the Once and Future King?" Em blurted. "He's an ass."
Do not dismiss him so lightly, young warlock.
"How can a Pendragon be the one who frees my people from oppression? How can he save the Druids?"
The Unwritten Vision is only a small part of a much greater prophecy: that 'ass' you speak of is the ruler who will unite all of Albion. It can only be accomplished with your help, though.
"My help? All I do for him is pick up after him, walk his dogs, and spar with him!" Em protested. "Surely you've got the wrong Prince Arthur. He doesn't… He can't be the King in the prophecy."
I tire of all these questions. I've forgotten how impatient you Initiates are. The dragon began to flap his wings.
"Don't go, I have so many questions—"
Even the most powerful warlock to ever walk the earth cannot escape destiny, Emrys. You are to shape Arthur into the Once and Future King. With that, the dragon disappeared into the depths of the cavern. The clattering of his chains faded, and Em was left shouting in the dark.
After a couple minutes, Em gave up on hoping the dragon would return. He looked down at Bandit and sighed. "What the hell am I supposed to do now?" he asked the dog.
Em ended up doing nothing. His uncle was already too involved in this whole magic situation already, and his Druid side of the family had forbidden him from going near the dragon. Em wondered why they wanted to keep a Dragonlord Initiate away from a dragon, especially one who had never gotten the chance to travel to the Keep and see a dragon before.
Instead of scrying his family or talking to Gaius about it, he woke up at dawn and walked the prince's hounds and his own dogs. When he dropped off Pike and Trout, Holt said he could leave his dogs at the kennels during the day. Sionnach could play with the hound pups, and Bandit could be turned out in Pike and Trout's run. Em, who knew his uncle got frustrated with dealing with Sionnach's antics during the day before, thanked the younger boy profusely. Holt waved it off.
He got the prince's breakfast from the palace kitchens. He knocked once on the door before entering. Arthur was still snoring and tangled up in his bedsheets. Em went over to the red velvet draperies and yanked them open, letting the sunlight pour in. He hid a vindictive grin when Arthur groaned and buried his face into a down pillow. "Rise and shine, sire," Em said cheerfully as he lay the prince's breakfast out at the table. His stomach grumbled at the sight of the sausage, cheese, fruit, and warm bread. He had eaten a thin gruel to break his fast that morning.
"What are you doing here? Where's Morris?" Arthur said blearily as he eased himself out of bed. He lumbered over to the table, sitting down heavily.
"Your father hired me as your manservant, remember?" Em figured the prince was too sleepy to notice his cheekiness.
"It's too early to be dealing with this," Arthur muttered. "Go lay out my clothes for the day. I need one for training this morning and another for my council meeting later." Em complied and began to rummage through the prince's wardrobe for suitable outfits. Arthur ate his breakfast quickly. He criticized Em's choices when the manservant held them up for Arthur to examine—
"That shirt does not match those trousers whatsoever. I know you only wear the same trousers, jacket, and shirt every day, Merlin, but some of us have options."
"I have options!" Em protested. "I have two shirts, a red one and a blue one. I also have two neckerchiefs. Sometimes I don't even wear a neckerchief."
Arthur rolled his eyes. "Sure, Merlin. You ready to go spar?"
Em scratched the back of his neck. "I'm kinda sore from yesterday, sire, maybe Sir Leon or Sir Magnus would join you? Or we could take a day off"
"The tournament is tomorrow! Stop being such a girl. Let's go to the armory, so you can dress me in my armor. Have you found a suitable practice sword yet?"
"No, sire. They're all too heavy." Em's hand drifted to the empty place on his belt where he usually strapped his sword scabbard. That sword was perfectly balanced and the right weight for him.
"Perhaps your arms are too weak?" Arthur's tone was more teasing than sardonic.
"Perhaps I just need to look more," Em said mildly, clearing away the breakfast dishes.
Arthur looked at Em thoughtfully. "If you can't find one, we'll need to see if Tom the blacksmith has an old sword he can dull for you."
Em just nodded.
After another whirlwind day of sparring, endless chores, and learning tournament etiquette, Em looked forward to walking the dogs. He picked the four of them up from the royal kennels. Just as he did the day before, he met up with Morris and Gwen in the courtyard. A few of the younger children began playing with the dogs, which tired them out even more than a walk did.
An hour later, he handed Pike and Trout's leashes to Beckett and headed back to his own chambers. He ate a watery stew Gaius prepared, washed the dinner dishes, and read up on tournament etiquette.
"These nobles are ridiculous. Why must Arthur risk his life to beat up a few inbred knights to prove that he is worthy of the throne?" Em groaned, putting the book down.
"Inbred?" Gaius arched a brow.
"These noble bloodlines seem to mix in with each other a great deal. Queen Ygraine was the king's third cousin…"
"How on earth do you know that?"
Em got up and plucked a book called The Noble Genealogies of Camelot off one of the bookshelves. "I read this last night. A bit boring, but at least I have a better idea of who the top dogs in the palace are now. This said that the Lady Morgana's mother was a baroness named Vivienne, and her father was a knight called Gorlois. How did she end up in Uther's care?"
"Her father was slain in battle when Morgana was ten; he was a close friend of Uther's, so he took her in as a ward. Lady Vivienne died of childbed fever not long after she prematurely gave birth to a daughter when Morgana was two," Gaius answered. "Why do you ask?"
"You saw my grandmother in the mirror, right? The green eyes and black hair? It's creepy, how similar they are."
"I'm sure it's just a coincidence. Many people have green eyes and black hair, Em."
"Only Druid queens had such green eyes," Em insisted.
Gaius ruffled his nephew's hair. "She may be a king's ward, but she is not a princess or a Druid, Em. Your imagination is running wild."
Em shrugged and stood up. "I'm going to go prepare the prince's armor for the tournament tomorrow, Uncle. Don't wait up on me."
Gaius yawned loudly. "I might just go to bed early. Minding a teenage boy is more exhausting than I thought it would be. I can't imagine how your mother takes care of eight children."
"She's a sorceress in her own right; it takes a special kind of magic to have as much patience as she does," Em said with a laugh. He gave the dogs a quick pat and headed out the door.
Em was polishing the prince's gauntlets in a secluded corner of the armory, wedged between a rack of wooden staves and the wall. He hummed the tune of an old Druidic song, his thoughts drifting back to Jarl and Thorn and the sorceress and the Lupus Order. He knew deep within his bones that they were connected. Yet he still doubted his gut. Plenty of people wore blue cloaks, he reasoned. Thorn might not have any connections to the mysterious order. What if the old woman was a Druidic lore enthusiast and decided to tattoo herself with the symbol of the Lupus Order just for the heck of it? He was probably being silly. Probably…
Ruadan always insisted that there was no such thing as coincidences. Em was inclined to agree with his old mentor.
Where did that leave him, though? Truthfully, all the young warlock had to go off was an ancient and confusing prophecy, his grandmother's old tales, a weird tattoo, and a couple of conspiracy theories.
Em pushed those thoughts aside and focused on his work. He let himself drift into the comfort of his magic, that inner fire that soothed him and felt like home. He opened himself up to the magic around him, letting his shields drop momentarily. He wanted to feel the magic of the dragon that roamed beneath the palace…
His magic recoiled when it brushed up against a dark, disgusting presence. Em's eyes snapped open. "What the hell?" he muttered. He put Arthur's armor back and began to search for something that would create such a dark presence.
The knights who had come from all over the realm to compete stored their own gear in the armory. Em peered at swords with jeweled pommels, battered armor, sound leather boots, and shields. He dared not touch any of them; he just looked.
He was looking over a shield embossed with three intertwining green snakes. He was thinking about how creepy it would be to have snakes as your coat of arms when he saw the painted red eyes on one of the snakes blink. He bit back a Druidic curse and kept staring at the shield. The snake blinked again. Em's jaw dropped.
A voice boomed behind him, "What do you think you're doing, boy?"
A/N: Hi! I'm worried this chapter isn't the "rollercoaster" I said it was going to be in my Chapter 17 Author's Note, but I introduced Kilgharrah and set up the Valiant arc so hopefully you enjoyed that. I am doing my best to make this story more exciting and as true to the spirit of the show as I can make it, but it's SO AU that I have to do a ton of world-building that might take away from the "action" some people like. Let me know what you think in the reviews; as always, constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.
Also, if you have constructive criticism, especially if you are a guest reviewer, I would greatly appreciate it if you left it in the comments of Ao3 (I cross-post all my works) so that I can reply to you directly!
I have a few questions and it would make me so happy if you guys answered them: do you want me to work through each individual episode (I would make it unique and not just seem like a boring rewrite of the show)? If you think that would start to make this story too long, what are your favorite episodes that you want me to include in the story?
As always, thank you to everyone who continues to read and support this story, it means the world to me :) Much love~