A/N: I am so, so sorry. My computer decided it was an excellent time to stop switching on, and was on a strike for the last week or two … so I couldn't even type this up -.

Thanks to those who put up with me and even left a review ^-^. You guys really make my day.

I apologize in advance if this chapter seems rushed through, which it probably is. I will most likely re-edit it later, but for now I just wanted people to know that I'm not dead yet.

I wonder if anyone guessed what is about to come next… I couldn't just let the boys easily find the sword, could I? ;) Their lives can never be that simple.

Now, on with the story!

The atmosphere was quite tense as they checked the detailed map of the United Kingdom the same way again. They had to find a precise point where to teleport, after all, in order to not startle some of the locals with the sudden appearance of three guys in the blue light and to shorten the time the search would take. Merlin asked about the contemporary magic, got a few terse answers, out of which he concluded that it was pretty much the same in general, and then was silent again, methodically exploring the map with the crystal.

Thankfully, he didn't have to wait for a long time.

"So, it's night now in England, isn't it?" – Chris asked, sounding more like thinking aloud rather than asking an actual question. His jacket travelled through the air in his direction, and he threw it casually over his shoulders, not actually putting his arms through the sleeves yet.

Merlin frowned at him, confused, slightly irked that it was yet another thing that he didn't understand.

"Time difference, - Wyatt explained shortly. – Happens on round planets."

Merlin resisted the urge to shake his head. If anything, the explanation left him even more baffled than before. Wyatt grabbed his jacket too and smiled slightly, a tiny condescending note barely noticeable in it.

"I'll explain you later, I promise."

Merlin only sighed mentally. Here he was, treated like he was a child, by someone who was barely older than him. The fact that Merlin, by the looks of things, was an established celebrity here, made the situation no better and probably even more unpleasant, since even his status was not enough to affect the way these two acted.

In a funny way, there was something familiar and oddly endearing about it, too; it was both irritating and comforting. It probably had to do with the fact that despite his constant struggle and fierce desire to be accepted and acknowledged back at Camelot, Merlin was pretty used to be treated like he was a nuisance at home – simply because he didn't make a particularly powerful and intimidating impression, and he knew it.

But there was something else in there, something he didn't feel like considering right now because he wanted to do it in a calmer place and time, when he'd be alone and not rushed...

That, only if he managed to keep his memory intact by that point.

Another mental sigh, and then he experienced the most unusual feeling he had ever before, and his head spun and his stomach sank and knees buckled as soon as his feet touched the ground.

(---)

Wyatt and Chris instinctively reached out to steady the swaying sorcerer who stood between the two of them.

"Wow," – was the only thing he said, breathless, his long thin fingers curling into Chris's jacket as he tried to regain his balance.

Chris smiled apologetically:

"Sorry. We tend to forget to warn people about it… It's always like that the first time. It will be better."

If Chris was really honest with himself, he'd probably have to face the fact that he was quite sloppy with the details in his plans. The only thing that made him feel slightly better was that Wyatt, great, powerful and invincible, seemed to have the same fault about his own schemes, and that his strength and, consequently, overconfidence made it even worse and more frequent.

But for Chris, this was no excuse, considering that he had nothing to make up for the possible defects in his otherwise well-thought schemes, and the mistakes could possibly result in an utter failure and thus serious consequences.

If Wyatt could hear his thoughts, he'd probably make a remark about his subtle inferiority complex or something.

It was a good thing that empathy wasn't one of his numerous cool abilities.

Chris mentally pinched the bridge of his nose. Here we go again. He didn't need it right now.

Merlin shook their hands off.

"It's fine, I guess. It's just that… it was quite a breathtaking experience."

"Is it supposed to be so misty here?" – Wyatt wondered aloud, eyeing the impenetrable curtain of grayish milk that surrounded them, so close it was almost tangible.

"Well, it is England, isn't it?" – Chris commented, dryly.

Wyatt chose to ignore the comment.

"Something is not right here," – he almost whispered, insistently, his quiet voice sounding even softer, as if absorbed by the mist.

Chris rolled his eyed:

"Yeah, and you just had to say it. Can't you pretend everything's okay, just once? Honestly, you…"

Wyatt quickly silenced him with a short 'Shh" that sounded almost vicious.

Ignoring the two of them, as if led by some unseen power – which was probably the case, - Merlin moved forward, his by no means quiet steps silenced by the slightly wet ground and a thick cloud of dirty white.

Chris and Wyatt exchanged short glances before following.

The world around them seemed almost surreal, vague shadows of trees appearing out of nowhere and disappearing back into nowhere before they could get a chance to even distinguish them properly. Sometimes the outlines of the supposed-to be trees didn't resemble trees at all, but pausing and having a look would most surely mean getting lost, since Merlin most likely wasn't about to stop. They followed him, not saying a word as if afraid to be heard, though the humid heavy silence unnerved them. For some reason losing their way in this place made them feel very uneasy, despite their ability to teleport away any second they wished, so their eyes bore into the sorcerer's back with desperate intensity.

At some point, Chris could have sworn that the cloud around them was luminous.

'Damn Wyatt and his premonitions', - he thought fervently.

Then an indistinct shadow emerged out of the mist, slowly coming into focus to become a spreading tree of an unknown origin – too dark to see which exactly it was. It was wide and very old, and about a third of its branches seemed dead, judging by the absence of leaves and their overall sharp, stiff, hardened form.

There was a dark hollow about a man's height in the trunk, and Merlin entered without hesitation. Wyatt and Chris weren't far behind, and for some reason it didn't cross their mind that there shouldn't be enough space for three people to fit into the trunk.

But somehow, the hollow turned out to be spacious in the inside, though it shouldn't have been physically possible.

There was a faint glowing light that seemed to come out of nowhere in particular.

Merlin stood unmoving, inhumanly still, in front of a big transparent crystal of bluish glass.

Puzzled, Chris took a closer look. The glass was unclear and hazy and it his eyed needed some time to focus properly, but when they did, he gasped in shock, Merlin's reaction suddenly painfully clear.

Near him, he heard a choked 'O My God".

Encased in translucent crystal, appearing to be deeply asleep, there was an older, more tired, bordering on exhausted, emaciated version of the boy they had accidentally called from the past.