"How about here?" asked Tawny as Tom pulled the car to a halt by the edge of the forest of Dean. Merlin looked at the trees and shadows they provided and slowly nodded.
"How large is it?" he asked looking at her.
"Huge, you can walk around in there for a day and not see another soul" Tom admitted. Slowly Merlin nodded again and opened the car door, stepping out into the light rain that was falling. Behind him he heard two more thuds as Tom and Tawny closed their doors, stepping up behind him.
"You don't have to do this you know" Merlin told them.
"No we don't, but we want to" Tawny replied. Merlin smiled at her then led the way into the forest.
Simon, a reedy man in a white suit slowly replaced the telephone receiver onto its cradle and leant back in his chair, steepleing his fingers as he did so. Slowly he stood and moved to the door. Opening it he peered out to the gum chewing red haired woman sitting at a desk typing. She looked up at him, over the rim of her sever glasses that did nothing to hide her permanent scowl.
"Job?" she asked, her American accent drawling out the word. The truth was Simon despised the woman, but there was no denying she was good at her work.
"Get me something on a kid named Merlin" Simon replied.
"Merlin? That's what I call my cat" she replied, "So what's the snitch?"
"New player in town, has McRealy all kinds of paranoid, wants him found"
"This a take out?" she asked. "you know I don't get involved in them" she said.
"No, just a simple observation, we find him we report to McRealy" Simon told her. The woman rolled her eyes in a 'yeah, right' gesture, then picked up the phone. Satisfied that he would have somewhere to start within the hour Simon returned to his office and sat down.
"Wait, one second" Merlin said suddenly stepping forwards. The others did so, watching as he moved several paces ahead, before he knelt down, placing his hand on the ground.
"What's he doing?" asked Tawny softly. Beside her Tom shook his head and shrugged.
It was all around him here, he could feel it. Pervading the air like a perfume, at least to his magical senses.
"Oh Arthur" he whispered, slowly he looked up at the large trees, their thick trunks attesting to the amount of time they had stood for. These threes had been just small saplings back then, barely seven feet tall. But all of them had bore witness to the events that Merlin himself had never seen. He could feel without a shadow of a doubt that this spot was where Arthur had faced his final battle. And died. Feeling the anger and sorrow welling up within him, he suddenly let it loose in an agonised scream. A moment later Tom and Tawny were next to him, Tawny holding him as he cried.
"Merlin?" she asked gently.
"He died here, I can feel it" Merlin said. "Arthur. This was where he died" he said. "I was meant to protect him, to be there for him, and I failed" Merlin said. Tawny hugged him tightly, looking at Tom who was looking around the small clearing.
"Merlin, you didn't fail him, if you had there would be no legends, nothing to carry his achievements forwards so people like us all know of him" Tom said.
"What good are memories when that's all you have left?" Merlin demanded. "I hate this place, this time. I don't belong here Tom!" he yelled.
"I know kid, I know" Tom said. Merlin suddenly blinked and shook his head.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout"
"It's okay, look you'll find your Dragon, you will, and you'll get home" Tawny told him. Merlin looked at her.
"The Dragon" he repeated. Slowly he stood, Tawny with him. "I'm sorry, I just…"
"It's okay, lets just do this yeah, then we can work on the rest of the plan" Tom said breaking into his thoughts. Merlin slowly nodded and took a deep breath, looking around.
"I suppose here is as good as anywhere" he finally admitted. "You two should step back" he added. Tom and Tawny doing so.
"O Drakon, est la mesta ka, sertes nort trush moa lor tanis" he called out. Behind him Tom and Tawny looked around and into the air, watching, seeing nothing.
"Did it work?" Tom finally asked. Merlin was looking around as well, then suddenly smiled as the loud beating of wings filled the air and a great White Dragon landed before the group.
"I always knew you would call me again one day" Aithusa said, her voice soft and gentle, yet sounding as wise as Kilgharrah's had.
"You've grown" Merlin stated as he looked up at the Dragon he had brought into the world.
"You've changed your hair" Aithusa noted.
"I had to fit in" Merlin explained.
"Indeed. I don't like it" she replied. Behind Merlin Tom and Tawny both chuckled, drawing Aithusa's gaze towards them.
"I see your allies are present, step forwards, you need not fear me" she said gently. Slowly Tom and Tawny did so, the Dragon watching them.
"We have much to discuss, and little time to do so" Aithusa explained as they stopped next to Merlin.
"Before we do, I think you should know Kilgharrah is dead" Merlin said. "I'm sorry" he added.
"I know, I felt his passing, as I also feel the depths of your sorrow now. Do not blame yourself for his passing, that responsibility lies at the feet of McRealy" Aithusa told him.
"He want's you, now the other Dragon is dead" Tom said.
"I know, as I also know that you will do all in your power to prevent that" Aithusa replied. "But that is the smaller matter in the main problem" Aithusa carried on.
"Which is?" asked Merlin.
"Morgana"
"She's working with McRealy" Tawny stated.
"No, she is using him, as she uses all her allies. But nevertheless, the pair of them must be stopped, however herein lies the difficulty, especially for you Merlin. You see when you wove your spell all those centuries ago you had no idea of what would happen, yet you still protected Morgana, you still hope to one day redeem her"
"I always hoped she could be saved"
"I know. That is why I saved her once" Aithusa agreed. "But that is not a discussion for now. For now you must realize that whether you can redeem her or not is not the true aim. You wish to return to Camelot yes?"
"I do" Merlin said.
"The magic required to do so is beyond anything you can manage alone Merlin. You see, it is in this that your difficulty presents itself. You must work with Morgana"
"Great" muttered Tom.
"How do I convince her of that?" Merlin asked.
"That will reveal itself to you in time, suffice to say however, you will see Camelot before you return there, but only if Morgana aids you" Aithusa said.
"That's it?" asked Merlin. "I just need to convince Morgana?" he added.
"No, you will also face many enemies, both old and new, divided you will fall, but if the three of you stand together, there will be no foe's you cannot overcome" Aithusa told them.
"So how do we begin?" asked Merlin.
"You must find the fourteen scepters of Camelot, together they shall lead you there in this time" Aithusa explained.
"Where the hell do we look for them?" asked Tom.
"They are scattered far and wide, some in plain sight, others hidden behind lies and deceit"
"What about Morgana and McRealy?" asked Tawny.
"Under no circumstances must they gain possession of the scepters, which is the third part of the problem"
"Tell me when there's good news" Tom muttered.
"McRealy already holds one of the scepters, he does not know it for what it is, Morgana however will if she sees it. You must recover it. Now I must go"
"Wait, there's so much I need to ask you!" Merlin said.
"You have all you need for the moment Merlin, any more will cloud your mind. Focus on this and when we next speak I shall reveal more"
"Like what?" Merlin asked as he and the other's watched the Dragon lift into the air.
"All in good time Merlin, all in good time" it said as it flew off.
"Well that was… an experience" Tom said finally. Merlin looked at him, then shrugged.
"So what now?" asked Tawny.
"Now," Merlin said. "Now we get a scepter"
"Here" said Simon's secretary as she entered his office. Simon looked up at her as she walked to the desk holding a slip of paper. Simon took it, read it over twice, then neatly folded it and placed it in his coat pocket.
"that will be all" he told her. The woman raised her eyebrows, but remained silent as she turned away and walked out, practically slamming the door. Slowly Simon closed his eyes. If only she wasn't so damned good at her job. Quietly he stood and went to the window and looked out across the city, at the cars and people going about their business, and, off in the distance, the industrial plant that belonged to Mr. McRealy. He clicked his fingers together, and turned, leaving the office, passing his secretary without a word as she typed away.
Outside in the street Simon took a left and walked around to the side of the building where he kept his car. Getting in and starting the engine he pulled out into the street, following the flow of traffic towards his goal. A little house on Leston Street. Finding a spot he parked up and waited.
About forty minuets later another car pulled onto the street, pulling to a stop on the curb by a small set of steps that led to a rather unspectacular door. Still, he didn't expect it to look any different, people in this neighborhood weren't flash with the cash so to speak. Turning his attention to the car that had pulled up he watched as a man and woman got out, followed a moment later by a younger looking man. There was nothing noteworthy about either the first man or the woman, the second man however carried himself with a gait that suggest he was uncomfortable, be it with his clothing or something else, there was simply something about the third young man that begged Simons attention. Simon watched as the three of them climbed the stairs and entered the flat. Slowly Simon smiled to himself and pulled the paper from his pocket, looking at it once again. Satisfied he had already found the mysterious Merlin that had McRealy so worried he started the car and drove away.
"I could have sworn he was watching us" Merlin said as he watched the car drive off up the road.
"Paranoia, it'll get you every time" Tom said as he ruffled through some documents on the shelves.
"What you looking for?" Tawny asked.
"The plans for the plant, remember I told you I'd seen the plans, I have a copy here somewhere" Tom replied.
"You have those? Whatever for?" Merlin asked.
"New government health and safety crap, employees blah blah, in case of emergency blah blah.. ahh here we go" he explained pulling out a large document. He went to the table, Merlin and Tawny moving next to him. Slowly Tom looked at them both.
"Personal space?" Tom said.
"oh sorry" Merlin replied moving away, Tawny doing the same. Tom sighed and opened the map of the plant and began studying it. Slowly he pointed out several features on it.
"Here is the lift we took last night" he said, then pointed to another spot. "That's the entrance to the industrial conveyor, where they smelt and crush the metal that can't be used. Over here we have the cafeteria, the toilets, and up here the office complex" he said.
"What's that consist of?" Merlin asked.
"Offices" Tom replied.
"That's not helpful, you do know that" Merlin said pointing at him. Tom chuckled and nodded.
"Sorry, there's a boardroom on at the rear, McRealy's office is here, just next to it, above that is the admin section" Tom said.
"Any idea where he would keep the Scepter?" Merlin asked. Tom shook his head.
"If it is at the plant, then I would say in the boardroom, I never seen anything like a scepter in his office" Tom admitted.
"How do we get in there?" asked Tawny.
"there's a master key, but McRealy keeps it on himself, the bodyguard has a key as well, and the foreman I think" Tom admitted.
"So we get a key from one of them" Merlin said. "Simple" he added.
"Yeah you might have the hocus Pocus, but Tawny and I don't have squat" Tom said. Slowly Merlin smiled.
"You got me" he said.
"Very good Simon" McRealy said as he spoke into the phone, Morgana watching him as he did so. "No, I don't want them hit, I want to deal with this myself. Your payment is on the way" he added. Slowly he hung the phone up and leant back in his chair.
"Well?" asked Morgana.
"I think, my dear we should pay my absent employee a little visit" McRealy told her. Morgana slowly nodded and then followed David out of the room.
Darkness had fallen across the city when Merlin noticed lights outside the window. Slowly he pulled the net over a fraction and peered out.
"Tom" he whispered. Tom looked over at him, frowning moving over as Merlin moved aside. He squinted out then cursed.
"It's McRealy" he said. Merlin nodded at him, and they moved away from the curtain.
"What do we do?" asked Tawny.
"We need to get to the plant" Merlin said.
"Yeah, maybe we can ask McRealy for a lift" Tom said.
"Look I'll distract them, you get the wagon, and we go from there" Merlin said.
"That's your plan?" asked Tawny.
"You have a better one?" Merlin asked her. Tawny shrugged. "As spur of the moment things go, it's not bad" she said.
"Oh brother" Tom grumbled. "Come on if we're doing this, we'd better start now" he added.
Outside in the street, The door to the car opened and McRealy stepped out, followed a moment later by Morgana and his bodyguard. Morgana slowly looked around and smiled.
"He's here" she said.
"You're sure?" McRealy asked. Morgana turned a dry glance on him, but remained silent. A second later the street light suddenly went out.. followed quickly by the others along the road.
"Very" Morgana said walking forwards, McRealy and the bodyguard behind her. They had made it perhaps three feet when a sudden wind whipped up and blew them all back towards the car. A moment later Morgana raised her own hands which began to glow. The wind subsided some, but not completely.
"Give it up Morgana!" Merlin's voice carried from the darkness nearby.
"I don't think so Merlin, You know I'll never let you live"
"You can't beat me, you'll never be able to"
"Really? Your tone of voice says otherwise" she called back as she looked around the darkness, which was so utter that she could only just make out the outline of McRealy, the bodyguard and the car. A simple illusion spell, nothing she couldn't handle.
"Illumitus" she intoned, her eyes glowing gold. Immediately the darkness lifted, just in time to see a car further down start up and pull away. There was a loud bang behind her and she jumped, turning to see McRealy holding the gun, the barrel of it smoking. The shot however missed the car, instead lodging into the pavement.
"Get after them!" McRealy said jumping into his own car, Morgana following. The Bodyguard started the engine up and they pulled away fast.
"Nice trick" Tawny said as she sat in the back of the car, looking out the back window.
"It won't stop her for long" Merlin said.
"No offence kid, but why didn't you know… blast them or something?" Tom asked.
"I never kill if I can help it" Merlin said. "Besides the Dragon said we need her… I need her to get home" he added.
"I was talking about McRealy" Tom muttered.
"Tom…" Tawny suddenly said. Tom looked into the rearview. Seeing McRealy's car hurtling around the corner.
"Can this thing go faster?" asked Merlin.
"You'd better pray it does" Tom said as there was a spark off the side of the car. A bullet bouncing from the metal.
"What was that?" Merlin asked.
"He's got a gun" Tawny said.
"No shit" Tom replied.
"Was that a gun or shit?" Merlin asked, honestly confused.
"Can you just try to slow them down?" Tom asked him.
"I'll try" Merlin replied, squeezing through to the backseat next to Tawny. Slowly he held up his hands.
"Colussus enti garoubus kalam salor, Tryst malaks skree Tavor" he whispered.
"What the hell is this?" McRealy demanded as a sudden thick fog rolled in on either side of the street. Morgana glared at him, and held up her own hands.
"Just drive" she sneered. "Tocus Salamendu Karasus" she said. her own eyes glowing gold, the fog immediately thinning, only to reappear a moment later, thicker than before, before she repeated the incantation. The fog rolling away, before it came back again.
"Anything you can do I can do better" the bodyguard slowly sang.
"Shut up" McRealy hissed at him. A moment later he put his foot to the pedal and the car began to accelerate.
"It's not working" Tawny said as McRealy's car appeared out of the fog. Mcrealy, one hand on te wheel leaning out the window and aiming the gun. He fired off a shot, the glass next to Merlin shattering Tawny screamed as the car suddenly screeched around a corner.
"Sorry bout that" Tom said by way of apology. A second later McRealy's own can came around as well.
"Merlin, maybe now would be a good time to make with the big magic?" Tom suggested.
"Hang on" Merlin said and held up his hands.
"Got you now" McRealy said as he aimed the gun at the car in front, a moment later the back windows of Tom's car shattered as a huge fireball leapt from it. McRealy skidded his own car out of the way, glaring at Merlin. A moment later another fireball launched forwards and caught the side of his car knocking it skidding into a lamp post. The engine spluttered a few more moments then died, leaving McRealy, Morgana and the bodyguard watching the retreating car. A moment later Morgana got out and held her hands out.
"CONFLAURIE!" She screamed. A huge fireball lurched from her and she stumbled to the ground, watching as Tom's own car went around the corner the fireball slamming into the side of another parked car. It exploded sending a plume of fire into the air. With a snarl she rounded on McRealy.
"Find them. Now" she commanded.