AN: Another one down. Soon it will all end. Enough with the theatrics, on we go.

Chapter 14

The castle was as barren and empty as any other ruin they had come across and it solidified the belief that Nimueh really used it only to hide her real dealings. Slightly out of breath he and Arthur managed to get their friends inside and away from the awful weather.

The somber mood continued and he didn't know how to fix what was going on. They didn't manage to get absolutely anything and it left them in the state of complete numbness. A form of a detachment, going through the motion Merlin concluded as he lit up a fire, that simple spell almost knocking the wind out of him but he refused to show it. Lancelot could be dead and here he couldn't even stand on his feet after a simple spell.

He heard rattling not far behind him and noticed Arthur tossing everything that was on the table that resided on the opposite side in his agitated state. He flinched at the loud noise, but Gwaine and Morgana seemed out of it or just too tired to notice. Yes, it was a hard battle and they had prevailed.

"Damn it all!"

He turned to Arthur, who for being calm most of the time just couldn't control his temper any longer apparently. The hurt in his voice was obvious and it brought a wave of despair in Merlin as well.

"Arthur, calm down."

Arthur turned his gaze towards him and the same crazed look from before was in his eyes now. He had to tread lightly or it could cause problems.

"Don't tell me to calm down, Merlin! Don't you see how all of this has gone wrong? Nothing we do matters."

It would appear that he was right the one time Merlin needed him to be wrong, for all their sakes.

"You are right Arthur. Nothing mattered maybe to the land of Albion. But to us, it meant something. We have built a family, a group of friends out of nothing and no one can deny that even now in our darkest moments."

He stumped towards Arthur until he was in front of him, a clear intent on his face.

"So don't tell me it was all for nothing Arthur. You have no right to."

His friend hung his head for a moment before muttering, despair clear in his voice, "But Lancelot was in peril and we weren't there Merlin. We failed."

That little sentence there rang true and it left him hurt and tired of it all, too tired to argue so he walked away from his friend and made his way to small makeshift bed where Morgana was and just watched her in her sleeping state finding comfort there. It was all spinning out of control around him.

He didn't get to dwell on it much longer as he was startled by the noise coming from the entrance, his hand moving away from her silky hair. Before he had a chance to compose himself he saw Arthur being knocked to the ground as the same druids from earlier appeared in his line of vision.

"Now you will not run escape Emrys."

Merlin tried to get up and defend his friends but he was too drained to do anything.

"Time for you to bow to the future queen of Albion."

As he tried to gather his spell, the piercing gaze of the youngest one had him on his knees and unconscious in complete darkness before he got a chance to say anything at all.

-oo-

Slowly the fog was lifting from his mind allowing his to distinguish his surroundings. Tilting his head back a little he could feel the onslaught of a headache coming to him. He really needed to stop getting knocked out. It was growing bothersome.

Quickly he looked around to see where his friends were. Again no sign of Arthur or Gwaine, but Morgana was there. He went to her side and saw that she was slowly coming to.

"Uh what?"

He supported her as she moved to sit and stroked her hand in comfort.

"Shh, just take it slow."

She relaxed a bit when she heard him and after a moment her eyes swiped over the same cage in search of their friends. The lack of the familiar faces and the obvious change of scenery had her confused.

"Nimueh?" she asked as if the name alone could explain what was happening here. He only shook his head in answer before explaining further.

"No, Arthur managed to defeat her."

Her eyebrows rose in surprise and he couldn't help but see a sense of pride at Arthur's victory.

"Long story. The important part is that afterwards the druids came at us and we had no strength left to defend ourselves."

He wiped his forehead as the sweat gathered from the small dusty space and humidity that somehow just clung to his frame. Her hand was comforting in his and he felt the calm just wash over him. It still amazed him that she was able to have such a strong effect on him with just a simple touch. It was never that simple between them he knew but still.

"It's okay Merlin. I know you did your best."

He loved this side of her. Sure she could be strong willed, stubborn and fierce but this more open and sincere side that she only showed to him always managed to warm his heart.

"It didn't matter, we still didn't manage to find out what happened to Lancelot in the end."

He saw her frown and grit her teeth at the news before she stood up and used her magic to blast through the cage door. Not surprisingly, nothing happened. She tried again with the same result.

The footsteps could be heard before the same boy from before came down the steps. He only looked at him for a moment before shifting his gaze towards Morgana.

"Your attempts are futile. I put you in this cage for a reason. It is meant to neutralize all magic, even yours Emrys."

Merlin inwardly groaned because he guessed almost from the moment he woke up that the cage had some special treat to it. He wasn't disappointed.

"We'll see about that."

The moment he said that he saw the boy smile humorlessly at his comment. He knew that it was probably true but Merlin just couldn't give him the satisfaction of the complete defeat. They will find another way out of this place.

"I am Mordred."

Merlin only stood silently. He didn't care for his name, because he knew the boy was a threat from the start and his name didn't change a thing. Morgana on the other hand came towards the outer cage before saying, "Listen to me, you little shrimp. Either you let us out of here now or suffer the embarrassment of losing later. I don't mind what you decide but you will see the tip of my blade soon enough."

Mordred didn't show that her threat affected him in any way, except for a small twitch of his shoulder. He was obviously surprised and he expected that behavior from Merlin but not from Morgana. He didn't know her and somehow Merlin was pleased they managed to keep him guessing.

"You sister will be glad that you are in good spirits."

Morgana only slammed her hand on the cage before turning away and returning to Merlin's side. He could see the scoff she wore, reminding him once more that they came from different worlds, as much as he didn't want to admit it.

"I will show her good spirits, when I have her sitting here instead of us, waiting for judgement."

He couldn't have said it better himself. Mordred was not amused by her hostile behavior.

"I do not understand that you, of all people Morgana, couldn't understand the value of finally letting magic step out into the front after being sidelined for so long, used as the tools for rulers to do their bidding."

The flinch was noticeable and he glanced towards her but she still held her head high.

"If you have nothing of use to say to me, you might as well run along Mordred."

"Yes it would appear my attempts to show you the right path are for naught, for now. Soon you will see things our way. I promise you that."

With that he turned away and disappeared up the stairs.

"Why that little bastard..."

Merlin kind of expected things to go this way, but really did they have to be in life threatening situation every other moment.

"I know."

Morgana turned towards him, lost in her little tirade before puffing out the hair from her face and looking expectantly at him.

"Now how about we figure out how to escape this place?"

He saw the devious smile and was once more reminded that she could play the villain as good as anyone. Better not get on her wrong side.

"Sure we can do that. It is not like I thought about it since the moment I came to in this cage."

She only gave him an irritated look.

"Not with the way you act now, you won't."

Scolding him at a time like this in this small stuffy cage was just a perfect ending to this crappy day. Damn it all, he loved the woman but sometimes she could just be so infuriating. And he had no chance of walking away.

"Also, you have me now. We both know that without me you are hopeless."

"If you say so Morgana."

"What was that?"

"I was just saying how we will need something other than magic to get through."

Another irritated look and he was simply charmed. He loved her anger. He was weird.

"You don't say."

He should just be silent. Still, he couldn't help but give her a quick peck on the lips before asking her for the idea.

"And what is your brilliant idea oh wise one?"

She only tilted her head at his antics before joining in.

"Well, I being wise implies I will easily come to a solution. And I have. I use your head to bash the door open."

"Aren't you a cheeky one today?"

Even as he said it the more somber thoughts came to and he couldn't help but see Arthur's face before all this went down, all that he said, that he believed, how it was all for nothing and it can't be helped…

"Maybe if we tried combining our magic and concentrating it to a specific spot or if we had a knife or something to get to the lock, even a pin would do to maybe-"

As he ranted on Morgana already took a pin out of her hair and gave it to him.

"Here you go master thief."

He looked at her in surprise.

"Why do you think I can do it?" he teased because in spite of it all he liked their simple and carefree banter if only to distract them from the current peril. He took the pin from her and tried to see how he would go about it. He pulled his hand through the bars and tried to make the pin do the work.

He could see Morgana holding her breath as he struggled to guess his hands movement to open to lock. After some time has passed and he was not moving anywhere with his lock picking skills he grew angry. The cage was humid and hot. His cloths and hair were plastered on him and it just made him more annoyed than before.

"Come on."

He heard Morgana mutter and in that precise moment the pin fell from his fingertips and away from them. White hot rage came to him as his hand formed a small blast and it blew the pin even further away.

It didn't matter because they instantly understood what it meant. The barrier was weaker outside the cage and if he could concentrate well enough they could break the lock.

"Help me."

He motioned for Morgana who also came to the same conclusion.

"You break the lock and I will overcharge the barrier so you have some magic to channel though."

She nodded quickly and got ready. He took a moment to concentrate before focusing his magic to the lock.

"Now Morgana!"

She also focused her energy and with all her might cast it towards the lock. In the next moment there was a small blast and the door slowly screeched open. Wasting no more time they were out and up the stairs before they knew it.

They hugged the walls trying to stay away from anyone who might be patrolling the grounds. Morgana in the meantime beamed with happiness.

"See, told you we can do it."

He smirked in return.

"We do work well together."

She winked at him before going down the corridor.

"Among other things."

He couldn't help but laugh at her antics. But before they could leave the corridor Mordred spotted them and in a quick manner attacked them.

"Look out!"

He placed a barrier while Morgana launched her own spells at him. Still he proved to be quite a difficult one as he easily dodged her effort and launched a quick counter. Merlin tried to balance his barrier as much as he could but he felt that they were in a sort of a stalemate, mostly because of the place where they were fighting. The corridor just didn't leave much room for quick and agile movement.

"You won't be getting away from here."

Mordred seemed tireless, which was odd but they would endure. Morgana was at her full power and it won't be long before she broke through. He just had to hold on. Suddenly he was knocked down and when he looked to the other side he saw it was Morgause herself.

"Nice of you to try sister, but without Emrys you are no match for me or Mordred."

Merlin felt his vision blur as her magic proceeded to suck the air out of him. This turned bad real fast and he turned towards Morgana as she struggled with what to do.

"Let him go Morgause!"

The shout was filled with anger as she blasted her spells at her, ignoring Mordred who used this opening to launch his own attack. ln a matter of moments Morgana was tossed towards the nearby wall, where she collapsed.

"Morgana!"

He heard his own voice crack, as she tried to pick herself up and he felt his magic engulf him with enough power to break free from Morgause's hold, after Morgana managed to distract her with her actions.

Morgause was quickly thrown back but before he could get on his feet Mordred had a sword to Morgana's neck. Funny how quickly he reverted from magic to the sword. He could see by his stance that he wasn't used to fighting with steel. Merlin hoped he could exploit that little fact.

He found it odd that Morgana wasn't her usual mass of shouts and angry rhetoric and as he locked her gaze he understood why. It would appear he wasn't the only one who noticed Mordred's lack of skill with the sword.

Her eyes were glossy and showed a determination that he didn't have but as she gave him a slight nod he swallowed the knot that had settled in his throat and said, "You don't have to do this Mordred."

The boy didn't show any signs of relenting.

"No you didn't have to do this Emrys. We offered you a place at our side, when magic would come to lead the world and you, both of you, refused. Now it is time to face the consequences."

He pressed the blade closer to Morgana and he could see a small cut forming on her delicate neck. The anger and despair he felt was all-consuming. He felt like he was underwater and just couldn't focus on anything but her.

"It will be alright Merlin."

Her words rang hollow as his hand outstretched towards Mordred and his eyes shone in their gold fury. In response Mordred pulled Morgana in front of him to shield himself from Merlin. That was his mistake, because that small movement allowed Morgana to twist out of his grip and as he swung towards her and sliced her arm, Merlin felt like he lost the ability to control anything, but greeted his teeth to not let his spell go for fear of striking Morgana.

But Morgana held her own, muttering a spell to apply some protection against the blade and using the momentum of her spiral to guide his own sword into his body. The relief he felt was immense.

Not many could have the presence of the mind to achieve such a thing, Merlin included, but in this moment he was glad she did. Morgana turned with a smile towards him, not sparing the fallen boy a glance.

"How about that-" she started, a satisfied smile on her face but was unable to finish her thought as Mordred tried to stand and get to her. Before he got a chance to do any more harm Merlin used his magic that was just itching to be released and pinned him to ground.

"You are not going anywhere Mordred. You took the wrong side and now it is time for you to face the consequences."

Morgana placed a comforting hand as he rendered Mordred unconscious.

"That is enough Merlin, I need to heal him."

He looked at her in surprise.

"No, I know what you are going to say, but he can't be let off that easily. He needs to be trialed for his deeds. People need to have their vote in the kingdom again, not just the law of its ruler."

He looked at her for a moment, before she gave him a reassuring smile.

"Let me do this."

He looked back at Mordred who was oblivious to the little act before him and lowered his hand and let his magic lift from him. He wasn't glad, but as she turned him towards her to give him a loving kiss, he couldn't find it in him to care. She let go of him with a warm gaze.

"Thank you."

With that she moved to help Mordred. He turned towards Morgause, to see her trying to catch her breath as Arthur stood before her with a sword pointing at her throat.

"Arthur!" Merlin exclaimed, happy at his friends return. Arthur only glanced at him before looking back towards Morgause. It would appear he had it under control. He turned toward Morgana who had just finished healing Mordred.

"A couple of potions and he will be ready to stand trial."

She looked towards him and over her shoulder to notice Arthur there.

"Good to see you dear brother."

He laughed at their banter. He could see the sheer happiness on Morgana's face, but soon it turned pale and frantic.

"Wh...?"

He wanted to ask but a sudden blinding pain stopped him. He looked to his side and Arthur was supporting him by the shoulder. Morgause appeared to have got him.

"Merlin!"

A desperate cry from Morgana confused him as he turned towards her to see tears streaming down her face. He wanted to tell her it was Arthur they should worry about. He had taken the brunt of the spell, but something didn't seem right.

"Get away from him Arthur!"

He looked at Arthur, his vision blurring and he shook his head to clear it up to no avail. A violent cough came from him as his lips stained red. He looked at his hands, coated in blood and finally his gaze caught the silver glow.

The tip of the sword pointing away from him, but the weird thing was that it went through. He finally understood that Arthur wasn't supporting him, but holding him in place as he pierced him with his sword.

"But why?"

In the next moment Arthur pulled out his sword and the pain brought Merlin to his knees. What he heard was the thing he feared the most.

"Because you're dear friend is under my control."

Morgause's voice resounded the small corridor as Morgana leapt to his side to grab him as he stared to fall to the ground.

"No, no, no. This can't be happening."

She laid him on his back and as her tears fell, she hels her hands over the wound and started to heal him, but before she could Morgause ordered Arthur to point the sword at himself. Morgana stopped at this action as her sister wore a dark smile on her face the entire time.

"Now my dear sister. Who will you choose?"

Arthur's hand had already started to drag the sword to his chest. It was slowly moving towards his heart. Merlin could hear no more as another strangled cough painted him red.

"Morgana- it's okay."

She looked down at him.

"What?"

He felt his life slipping away from him. Shame, he really wanted to have a life with her, to understand and love every little moment she could offer with their friends at their side and a small place they could call their own.

"Arthur needs to live."

She only cradled his face in return and placed small kisses all over it.

"No, no, no. You're going to be okay. You have to be okay."

"Morgana, you are running out of time."

She snapped her gaze to her brother, the panic evident on her face. The despair he so badly wanted to take away from her.

"Morgana... I..."

Another cough followed and his vision blurred even more. At this moment he felt numb. She almost seemed like a statue a ghost lost in her own mind. Eyes looking into nothingness. Her hands still covered in his blood.

Mogause only taunted her further.

"Any moment now it will be too late."

Arthur groaned as the tip of the sword started to pierce his skin and Merlin couldn't hear anything but a deafening sound of silence.

"Arthur or Merlin?"

An inhuman cry pierced the silence and then- then there was nothing.

One day you are going to be a great wizard Merlin. I will help you along the way.

I, the future sir Lancelot, will be proud to have known you and called you my friend.

Merlin I refuse to let anything bad happen to us. It can't, because I love you and you and I are going to find a place where we can be in piece.

Rest now Merlin.