A/N: Still don't own anyone you recognize. All mistakes are mine and make me cringe when I see them. Enjoy!

Chapter 4

"Merlin, I love you with all that I am and all that I will ever be but by the Goddess Herself if you tell me to calm myself one more time I will set you afire where you stand," Morgana's voice could have cut stone as she whirled in her pacing to pierce her husband with a glare that would have sent a lesser man running for safety. Her spring green eyes glowed gold briefly and a small gust of icy wind moved out from her, rustling the heavy tapestries that lined the high stone walls and knocking over several empty pewter goblets that were sitting forgotten amongst the remnants of the day's luncheon.

Several of the lower ranking knights that were in the dining hall were, in fact, lesser men. Opting to remove themselves from the mercurial Seer's proximity so as not to take collateral damage in the event that she followed through with her threat. Quietly muttering about urgent business that had to be attended to immediately they scrambled to their feet they made their way out of the large doors at the end of the cavernous hall as quickly and quietly as fully grown men wearing fifty pounds of steel chain-mail and plate on their bodies could.

Undaunted by his wife and mildly amused at the exodus, the Warlock to whom the threat was aimed merely folded his arms over his chest, tilted his head to the side, and raised a single black eyebrow. "We will find him. Twelve of the fifteen groups of men we sent out have reported back. There will be some sign of him. He will find a way to get word to us. You have to trust him, Morgana. He isn't a little boy anymore. He is a man fully grown, an Elite Knight, and the leader of the Spellswords of Camelot."

The strength seemed to seep from Morgana and she collapsed onto the nearest bench. She pulled her feet up and looped her arms around her knees as she drew them up to her chest. She seemed to shrink into a tiny ball of misery swathed in iridescent green silk. Looking up at her husband, she whispered, "Merlin, what if the reason we haven't been able to find him is that he isn't there to find?"

He knelt beside her and gently laid a hand on her arm. His deep blue eyed held her fixated as he asked, "If that is what you fear, why have you not looked to the spirit realm for your answer? You know well the spells to speak with the departed." Merlin pushed her, his tone even and confident but in no way placating or sympathetic. She didn't need softness right now or she would fall into it. She needed to be reminded of her own strength.

"Because I fear what I will learn, and you well know it!" She admitted bitterly as she stood up and resumed her pacing. With each whirling turn her hair would escape more of the morning's sloppy confinement, swirling around her shoulders in a dark waterfall interspersed with small braids that had lost their ribbons and chimes days ago. "This limbo without knowing means that there is still the possibility of finding him and bringing him home. But to learn for certain he has passed would mean having to deal with that as fact. I will gladly take this uncertainty where hope yet remains rather than risk a certainty with none at all."

"And what would you have us do that we have not already done?" He asked in that same even tone. Giving no indication of his mounting irritation despite feeling much the same as his wife. But they could only afford for one of them to give in to emotions and she had more than earned the right with the love she had lavished on the missing man many years ago when he had been just a scared little boy. "We have sent ravens to all of our allies and their responses showed that they had no knowledge of his whereabouts. We have sent groups of men to search the countryside and into the neighboring kingdoms. Nearly all of them have returned with no news. You have spent nearly every waking moment of this past week scrying. What would you have us do that we have not already done?"

"I don't know!" She exploded in frustration as heated tears threatened to fall. Angrily she dashed them away. Her hands shook so hard that the rings and bracelets she hadn't bothered to remove in the past few days chimed in discordant merriment. A jarring counterpoint to the tomb-like silence in the empty hall. She pulled a lock of hair over her shoulder and began nervously braiding it with jerky, graceless movements of her usually nimble fingers. "There must be something more we can do. Some way to amplify my scrying abilities..."

Merlin nodded in agreement as he resumed his own pacing, long pale fingers stroking his neatly trimmed inky beard in deep thought. They had spoken with the great seer and leader of their allies the Atzinganoi, Vadoma, days ago and she had been happy to lend her considerable skills to the effort. Sadly, with the same lack of results. Even linked, the two seers had not been able to sense even the slightest hint of Mordred's whereabouts. And so Morgana was limited to her small scyring crystal when she was awake. And her prescient dreams never had been something she could control. He could see no way to help her focus her dreams. If only he could get her a bigger... Merlin stopped his pacing and paused as an idea came to him. He turned to his wife with a more animated expression on his face than she had seen since they learned of Mordred's disappearance. "Morgana! Do you remember last winter when we needed to contact Vadoma and didn't have the time to travel to her encampment?"

Morgana's eyes narrowed briefly as she recalled their struggle to reach the Crystal Caves through the unusually deep snows that had blanketed the forest last winter. Merlin's fear for her even entering the caves with their countless glittering crystals embedded in the walls. Each shard reflecting a possible future. Fear that she would be transfixed by the visions and that her mind would be lost to them for all time. She remembered Taliesin leading them to the massive crystal that Merlin had used to communicate with Vadoma. Her eyes widened in understanding and she beamed in pride and gratitude at Merlin. It just might work! It was certainly preferable to at least try rather than to simply repeat the same efforts that had yielded no results.

In two quick strides she was in front of him. She launched herself into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. Winding her arms tightly around his neck she hugged him close and claimed his lips with her own in a deep kiss that quickly morphed from a spontaneous expression of gratitude and joy into something that burned with far more heat. Forgetting where they were and even their missing friend for a few short minutes, the lovers lost themselves in the scorching kiss. Licking into each others mouths and nipping gently on each others lips, they feasted on one another. For a small moment leaving their fear and worry behind and reveling in the swirling lust rising between them.

They didn't hear the door open or the muffled gasp followed by a groan of disgust. They didn't hear the whispered incredulous muttering that followed. They didn't hear the clearing of a throat that echoed in the large dining hall. They did, however, hear the irritated, "Oh come off it you two! This is neither the time nor the place for a revolting display of this sort! Merlin put my sister down this instant! Have you no sense of decorum? No shame? Stop that immediately!"

They slowly broke the kiss and stared into each other's eyes in perfect accord for the space of a few thundering heartbeats as Morgana unhooked her legs from Merlin's waist and slowly slid down his body, the friction causing new gooseflesh to rise on her skin and pulling a deep grunt from Merlin. They would revisit this as quickly as could be allowed.

Morgana held onto Merlin's arms and peeked around him to the source of the voice spewing derision at them. "Big brother!" She called brightly. Her voice clear of pain and doubt for the first time since they had learned of their friend's disappearance. "Merlin's had a brilliant idea and we will be gone for a few days! I think we may have a way to find Mordred!"

Instantly Arthur's feigned disgust fled his features and all joking was put aside. He stood taller, squared his broad shoulders, and the playful big brother morphed back into the King. "Tell me immediately. What do you need from me to make this happen?"

"My lady! My lady please stop! This came for you," the courier panted as he raced across the training yard. The poor young man with the too large feet and the too small eyes was so focused on reaching the young priestess quickly that in his haste he tripped over one of Percival's large boots that had been carelessly dropped on the ground and barely caught himself before he fell. He awkwardly flailed his arms and stumbled the last few feet before skidding to a halt by Percival and Leheya as they sparred.

Hearing the commotion, Leheya immediately pulled back before her kick could connect with the hay filled target Percival was holding for her. While she trained daily to hone her magical skills, Percival had stressed to her the importance of maintaining her martial skills as well. There were ways to cut people off from their magic and he was determined that she not rely too heavily on a power that could be taken from her. Likewise while she still trained with a bow and with a set of short swords, she trained hardest with no weapon at all. It was still a dangerous world and she would be a fool to believe the current peace would last. Percival was vigilant in her training and she knew that he would be mildly irritated at this awkward interruption for all that he would never show it to anyone but her. Sharing a bemused look with him, she spun around and took the scroll from the courier's outstretched hand.

She didn't bother correcting the heavily panting young man's incorrectly addressing her as a lady. In the months since leaving her Druid clan and coming to live at Camelot as a Priestess of the Triple Goddess she had grown accustomed to being treated with deference and Morgana had firmly instructed her not to correct people. She was a trained High Priestess, afterall. She would be in charge of running the temple complex and the town on the Isle of the Blessed. She was acting in every capacity that a high born lady would when charged with running a keep. More than most, in fact. As she would be leading prayer services and personally blessing the crops. Never again would she be the wild young girl racing through the forests with twigs and leaves tangled hopelessly in her red curls as she searched for the end of a rainbow.

She inspected the scroll in her hand. Her name was written in sloppy script that was barely legible but the hastily pressed seal was unmistakably an oak leaf. It was from the Isle. Quickly she broke the green wax and unrolled the scroll to read the message that had been written either with great haste or by someone who was barely literate.

High Priestess,

There is an illness that has come to the Isle in these past weeks that none of our healers can cure. The affected came down ill at roughly the same time. They would lose the contents of their stomachs and be unable to eat more than bread and water. Then came the feeling of bugs crawling all over their bodies when clearly none could be seen. Then came the convulsions. My lady we have had several people die! I beseech you to come as quickly as possible and to interceded to the Triple Goddess on our behalf for none of our prayers have worked.

Your humble Steward,

Uveryl

She read the short message twice before handing it to Percival with a concerned look on her face. She closed her brown eyes to formulate a preliminary plan of action. Briefly she considered sending for Morgana but her mentor was so distraught over Mordred's disappearance that Leheya didn't feel right bringing yet another crisis to her attention. And in any event, Leheya was for all practical purposes finished with her training. The only thing holding her back from traveling to the Isle to take her place as High Priestess was fear. And she couldn't afford fear when her people needed her. First things first she would need to consult with the experts on illness. She opened her eyes and nodded to herself. She turned to the courier who was giving her a look of obvious curiosity, thanked him gently for delivering the message in such a swift manner, and politely ordered him to fetch Gaius and Alice from the school and to have them meet her in their rooms immediately.

Percival had finished reading the short message and handed it back to her with a somber expression. "I'll pack our things and arrange for horses. What is your plan?"

"I'm coming with you," Arthur announced. He was standing in the field just south of the city where Kilgharrah and Aithusa felt most comfortable landing with Merlin, Morgana, and the quickly collected Vadoma as they waited for the dragons to arrive. The wide area was noticeably without the leaves that were beginning to blanket the grounds as the weather turned cooler. "Mordred is my Knight and my friend. I'll not be left behind while the two of you go running off."

Vadoma pulled her satchel tightly against her side and moved slightly away from the King, the Warlock, and the Seer. This was between the three of them and she'd not intrude.

"And what if word comes of Mordred's whereabouts while you're away from the city?" Merlin asked pointedly. As much as he loved his friend and wanted him to accompany them, he was the King and as such had duties that couldn't be left.

Arthur scoffed and waved his hand to dismiss his friend's argument. "Gwen is fully capable of running this kingdom without me and has, in fact, done just that on more than one occasion." His teasing tone fled and the light in his eyes dimmed as he continued somberly, "If you find any hint of his whereabouts I want to be there. I have to be there. I need to know."

He looked at his sister and her husband, unsure why he was asking their permission. He was their King and had every right to give them orders. But since witnessing the raw power they held both during the battle against Elolam and again when they rebuilt the entire Isle and temple complex he had come to respect the two of them as more than family or friends, but as incredibly powerful magic users that deserved to be recognized as such. Not that he would ever actually vocalize that to anyone but Gwen. He had too many years of habit to fall back on for that to ever really happen. But none the less this was a matter of high magic and thus they were the final decision makers.

Morgana looked as though she was wavering. She reached out and put a hand on his arm. "If you want to come with us then you're welcome to, of course." Arthur's victorious grin had barely spread across his handsome features before it slid away as she continued. "I'm certain that the additional delay of gathering your belongings and calling a round table meeting to notify the court of your absence, give instructions on who is to take on which responsibilities in your absence, and convince Gwen to let you leave on a potentially dangerous mission while she is pregnant won't have any negative consequences."

Sometimes he really hated his sister and wondered why he had welcomed her back to Camelot at all.

He shook her hand off of his arm and pointed a stern finger at both his sister and brother-in-law. "Fine," he relented without even the slightest hint of grace. "You've made your point, damn you. But you find a way to come back quickly, safely, and with good news. That's a direct order from your King. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," they spoke together as they inclined their heads and tapped their staves on the ground simultaneously. There was a feeling of warmth over his body and he couldn't help but wonder what exactly they had done to him.

Unfortunately, two large dragons landed heavily on the ground and trumpeted greetings to their humans before he could question them further. The three mages paused and looked to him for his final blessing for their mission. "Yes yes, you go with the blessings of Camelot and all that rot. Just hurry home!" he warned as the three moved towards the dragons and climbed on their backs. Morgana on her beloved white Authusa while Merlin and Vadoma rode on the larger Kilgharrah.

Within moments they were airborne and little more than specks in the sky as they flew towards the Crystal Caves. Arthur turned and trudged back to the city, glad that he hadn't brought any knights with him to witness the suspicious wetness in his eyes. Damn spring wildflowers always made his eyes itch.

Percival mentally checked this last item off of his list as he handed the last of the satchels to the stablemaster with a warning that the contents were quite fragile and thanked him again for arranging for four horses so quickly. He left with a promise to return in all haste and began swiftly walking across the courtyard and back into the castle. Leheya had doubtless already spoken with Gaius and Alice but they would probably need another set of hands to carry things. He was happy to help in any way that expedited their leaving.

So deep in thought was he as he reviewed what he would need to do once they arrived on the Isle that he very nearly walked right into the Queen who was on one of her daily walks that Alice had recommended. "Good day to you, Sir Percival!" Gwen said with a warm laugh as she nimbly stepped aside to prevent a collision. Her wide smile dropped as she took in the knight's somber expression. "What has happened and what do you need from me?" She asked with no preamble. There was no need for flowery words between friends and clearly there was something seriously amiss for the genial giant to have such stormclouds on his normally placid face.

"We've just received word that there is an illness on the Isle. Leheya is gathering Alice and Gaius and sharing what little information we have as we speak. We're leaving as soon as possible." He wasted no words and offered his arm to his Queen. He didn't need to ask if she would want to accompany him. Even heavy with pregnancy Gwen was a force to be reckoned with and she would doubtless have wise counsel.

The Queen took his arm and the two swiftly made their to the rooms Gaius and Alice shared. As they entered the rooms they were briefly taken aback by the flurry of activity as the two elderly but spry physicians packed countless vials, paper-wrapped packages, scrolls, and books into satchels. Gwen dropped Percival's arm and ignoring the chaos around her, picked up an empty satchel before moving to the heavy wardrobe along one wall and packing clothes for the two physicians. She had known Gaius for far too long to believe that he would consider such a minor thing as his own wardrobe while there was a medical crisis. But there was no way of knowing how long they would be gone and he couldn't very well wear the same clothes for weeks on end. The weather was only getting colder as Samhain approached and the heatwave of the last week was only a fond memory now.

Leheya caught Percival's eyes and gave him a look of approval and gratitude for bringing the Queen. He flushed and shrugged his shoulders. He hadn't done anything extraordinary. He moved over to the tiny bird-like frame of his lady and leaned down to whisper to her, "Do they have any ideas, little sparrow?"

She shook her head and whispered back, "Not that I can tell. They each read the message and immediately began discussing it but I can only catch one word in five. I have no idea what they're really talking about. But they immediately agreed to accompany us for which I'm grateful. Did you ask the stablemaster for four horses?" At Percival's nod she continued, "Excellent thinking bringing Her Majesty along, by the way. She's already thought of something I hadn't."

Percival shook his head. "It was a chance meeting but fortuitous. She can notify the rest of the court what has happened and where we've gone. Our things are being loaded right now and I stopped by the tower to grab your formal robes and supplies in the event that magic is needed. The only thing left is to grab provisions for the four of us."

He smiled when Leheya shook her head and said, "I took care of that on my way here. The kitchens are sending ample travel rations for the four of us to the stables. The cook gave me the oddest look and made me repeat that there were four of us three times. Regardless we should be able to leave as soon as Gaius and Alice are ready."

She was interrupted by Gwen handing the large satchel she'd filled to Percival and joining the conversation. "I assume you've taken care of your own supplies and provisions already. Is there anything that I can do to help?"

Percival looked to Leheya. This was her decision. The Priestess smiled nervously at the Queen of Camelot and shook her head. She was still in awe of the woman. "I can't think of anything else. Gaius and Alice are the experts and they seem to have be nearly finished with gathering their supplies. Thank you ever so much for thinking to gather clothing for them. I feel certain that we would all have forgotten until we had gone too far to return."

Gwen laughed gently. "You're likely exactly right. Gaius is like a small dog with a large bone when he has a mystery to solve but he had a tendency to forget the small things like eating and sleeping. From what I've seen Alice is just like him. You'll have to keep a sharp eye on them both."

Leheya knew an order when she heard one. Even framed gently and delivered with laughter. She nodded firmly, "Yes, Your Majesty. I understand and I'll see them returned to you safely."

Gwen cocked her head to one side and narrowed her eyes slightly, "Every bit as perceptive as he is, aren't you? It would seem that what Morgana has told me is true. The two of you are well matched."

Percival grinned and wrapped an arm around Leheya's tiny waist, pulling her to his side in a brief hug. He couldn't agree more. He was prevented from commenting, however, by Gaius and Alice suddenly falling silent. The three turned and saw the two physicians with identical expectant expressions on their weathered faces.

"We are ready to leave immediately," Gaius announced.

Gwen turned to Leheya one last time, "Go. I will pray to Her for swift and safe travels for you all and a quick end to this illness. And of course I will tell Arthur, Morgana, and Merlin where you are. Now go!" She shooed the four travelers out the door. Percival quickly asked her to give the court their regrets for leaving without notice but Gwen waved his concerns away and promised to spread the news.

Alice stopped on her way through the door and turned back to the Queen. She pointedly looked at Gwen's growing stomach and looked at the Queen, silently asking for permission. When Gwen nodded Alice's eyes glowed gold and a warmth enveloped Gwen's whole body. Alice nodded firmly to herself. "I will return for the birth, My Lady. You have my word," she promised before she too turned and left. Leaving Gwen alone.

"Arthur?" Gwen called as she entered the throne room. She had looked all over for her husband and been unable to find him. Generally at this time of day he could be found in the dining hall having a late luncheon but he hadn't been there. Nor had he been in the council chambers, their suite, nor even the kitchens.

"Gwen there you are!" his voice sounded behind her. "I've been searching for you for ages!"

Gwen's brow wrinkled in concern. "Is something amiss?" She asked with a vague feeling of foreboding.

Arthur's face split in a wide smile, "Not even in the slightest! In fact, Merlin has come up with an idea that he thinks will allow Morgana to find Mordred. They left just a short while ago for the Crystal Caves, in fact. Morgana wanted me to give you her apologies for leaving so swiftly but of course you understand their urgency."

Gwen's face dropped as she took in his words. That meant….

Arthur put a hand on her cheek in concern, "Gwen why aren't you smiling? This is the first new idea anyone has had in days. I would have thought you would share our excitement and hope."

Gwen put her hand over her husband's and smiled sadly. "Yes of course. But I need to let you know, Gaius and Alice have just left with Percival and Leheya for the Isle. They received word of a terrible illness and immediately went to help. Percival wanted me to give you his apologies for leaving so swiftly but of course you understand their urgency."

She saw the moment the implications of what she had said sunk in. "We've let all of the magic users on the Round Table Council leave within an hour of each other. There's nobody but some half trained spellswords left to defend Camelot from magical threats. We can only pray that She is watching over us and protecting us well in their absence.