Lots of action in this chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, only my OCs and this storyline.

Hope you enjoy.

Liberation

Jasper never saw the ax fall for two reasons: one, because he was blindfolded, and two, because the ax never fell. He was left in silence, wondering why they were taking so long. It wasn't until the screams started that he knew something was happening. He heard the sound of metal against metal. There was a fight and there were shouts as spells were cast.

The sudden attack surprised the executioner, freezing him in place with the ax raised above his head. He hated magic with his entire soul. That's why he was so willing to do this job. Seeing that their attackers had magic he was filled with fury. He was not about to allow them to save this boy from his sentence. They had magic and deserved to die. So he prepared to let the ax fall.

There was a young man in the crowd. He didn't have magic like his comrades but he still fought as the knights came out to meet them. A couple days ago he had sent word out to every member of the Black Feather he could find. They had waited long enough for this day. The plan wasn't to take down Camelot but to spite them by freeing the prisoners. He'd never forget the look on Uther's face when they came bursting into the courtyard. The king was caught off guard. Their timing was perfect as they came in the middle of an execution.

"Crow!" He heard someone yell beside him. He looked over to see Olwen pointing at the platform. Holt turned just in time to see what the executioner was planning. He was the closest.

He didn't recognize the sorcerer with his head on the block at first, but as he got closer it clicked. His eyes widened. The executioner let the ax fall. Holt wasn't going to make it.

"Jasper!" Holt yelled. No, he wasn't going to give up that easily. He took a dagger from under his jacket and threw it with all he had. The dagger flew through the air, imbedding itself in the handle of the ax. It had enough force behind it to push the ax to the side, causing the executioner to stumble. Holt jumped up onto the platform, sword in hand.

The executioner growled when he saw him and lunged. He swiped at Holt with his ax. Holt ducked and the ax cut through the air over his head. His feet were much faster then the large executioner as he darted around his attacks. The man with the ax swung again. Holt had to get him away from Jasper.

The executioner wasn't stupid. He knew this miscreant was trying to save the sorcerer. He grinned and turned in the middle of his ax and swung at Jasper.

"No!" Holt yelled and threw himself at the executioner, body checking him to the side and away from Jasper, successfully knocking the large man off the platform. Holt looked warily over the edge and saw him unconscious on the ground.

Jasper's heart was pounding. He was frozen as he tried to understand what was happening. Suddenly he felt someone grabbing him from behind and pulling him to his feet. Whoever it was pulled off his blindfold. The light blinded him. He had to blink a few times for everything to come into focus, and then he was being pulled down off the platform. His feet stumbled across the cobblestones. He was being led away from the fight and toward an ally.

A knight came rushing at them with his sword held high and he was yelling, but someone got in his way. Her hands glowed as she punched him in the face, knocking him out cold.

"Go!" She yelled. "I'll cover you."

As soon as they were away from the battle Jasper felt himself being pulled into a hug. "We thought we might be too late."

"Holt." Jasper returned the embrace.

"Crow." Olwen was standing guard at the entrance to the ally. "We have to help the others." She stood tall with a staff in her hand. She looked like quite the warrior. "We have to get back to Fionn and Magnus."

"I know." Holt said, turning back to Jasper. "Do you think you can lead us to the dungeon Jasper?"

"Uh…" He was still quite out of it. Everything had happened so quickly.

"Jasper." Olwen came over, looking over her shoulder several times. "We don't have much time. We can't keep this up forever."

"Yes, I think so." He hadn't been blindfolded when they took him from his cell, and from Aida.

"We must hurry." Holt could see that Jasper was weak. He tried to hide the look of concern for his friend on his face. "I'll help you."

Just like that, the three of them were back out running across the battlefield, dodging fights. Holt spotted Fionn fighting a knight coming up on their left, but there was no sign of Magnus. She took down the knight easily. Holt grabbed her by the hand as they passed. She was only startled for a second.

"We're going to the dungeons." Holt told her. She nodded and followed.

"Jasper!" She grinned when she saw him. But the smile soon disappeared when a knight charged them. She flipped the man over her shoulder and Olwen knocked him out with her staff.

"This way." Jasper led them through a door and down the stairs to the cells.

"Jasper, where's Aida?" He knew that they were going to ask the question sooner or later. He looked back over his shoulder, a sad look in his eye. He didn't need to say anything.

"No." Olwen almost stopped in her tracks but kept going. "She can't be."

The proof was right in front of their eyes when they reached the cells. They took the guards down quickly. Olwen fought with newfound fury and she made short work of the locks on the cells.

"Jasper?" Clary and Charlie came out of the cell warily. Aubrey didn't leave the side of their fallen friend.

"The Black Feather has come to free us." Jasper told them. "These are friends." He gestured to Holt, Fionn, and Olwen.

Olwen pushed her way past them into the cell and toward her friend's still form. Jasper couldn't bring himself to go into that cell again. He turned away, not wanting to see her so motionless, the life gone from her eyes. Olwen cradled Aida in her arms and cried. Holt and Fionn helped the others from their cells. A few more members of the Black Feather appeared to help them.

"Olwen we can't stay." Fionn told her sister.

"We can't leave her." Olwen cried.

"We won't." Fionn came to her sister's side. She gestured to some of the others to help them. They lifted Aida and took her from the cell.

Jasper couldn't take it any longer and looked. He reached out for Aida's limp hand but soon let it slip from his as they took her away. Her body was not the only one that had to be carried from the dungeon. There were others. It broke their hearts to see them.

"If only we had come sooner." Olwen came up beside Jasper. "We could have saved her."

"It's not your fault." Jasper told her, but still he wondered what if.

They followed the others back out into the courtyard where the battle still raged. They needed to lead the newly liberated prisoners safely from the city. Jasper made to follow them but something caught his eye. He looked up toward the balcony and his heart almost stopped. There was a fight going on up there.

"Arthur." He broke away from the rest of them and used what strength he had left to run.

"Jasper!" Holt called behind him. He soon saw what his friend saw. They both watched as a sorcerer grabbed the prince and jumped from the balcony, using his magic to land safely on the ground. Arthur screamed.

"That wasn't a part of the plan." Holt shouted. The two of them ran as fast as they could towards the kidnapping in progress. But they weren't running fast enough and the sorcerer was getting away with the prince. They couldn't let this happen. They needed to keep the prince safe or destiny would fall right there and then that day.

"Arthur!" Jasper yelled and he felt his magic surge through him. He held his hands out in front of him and let his magic go. It burst through his fingertips and flew towards the captor, knocking him off his feet. Arthur scrambled out of the man's arms. In his anger the sorcerer cast a spell towards the young prince before passing out.

"No!" The spell had taken the last of Jasper's strength. But Holt still had enough to get him across the courtyard to the prince. He grabbed Arthur and pulled him out of the way of the curse. Jasper sighed with relief at the sight of the prince safe. With the last of his strength gone his legs gave out under him. He tried to blink black dots from his eyes, but they were getting bigger, blurring his vision. He shook his head and managed to get the dots to disappear.

Jasper saw Holt push Arthur through one of the doors to the castle, telling him to hide and keep safe. Holt then ran over to Jasper and helped him to his feet. There was no sign of the prisoners so they must have gotten them all safely away. Holt saw this too and whistled really loudly. The members of the Black Feather heard and began their retreat, fighting their way out.

"Do not let them escape!" They heard Uther bellow from the balcony.

Olwen and Fionn must have been waiting for them because they came up to run with them. The knights had caught on to what they were doing and began to close the gate to the city to lock them inside. They ran faster but the gates were closing quickly. Jasper stumbled. He was so close to his breaking point where his body would completely shut down if he did not rest. But there was no time for rest.

Olwen blasted a path through for them and they just managed to slip through the gate. But not everyone was that lucky. They looked back in time to see some of their comrades turn from the gate, seeing that it was too late. They saluted and lunged at the knights, fighting their last fight. Archers fired from the walls, not letting them stop.

But Olwen stopped, rage written across her face. "Olwen we have to go." Fionn tried to pull her sister after her.

"No." Olwen pulled away.

"Olwen please." Fionn implored her sister.

"I'll make them suffer!" Lighting flashed across Olwen's eyes and she started to glow.

"Olwen, no!" Fionn stood in front of her sister, placing her hands on her shoulders and looking her in the eye.

"They disserve it for what they've done!" Olwen's power was palpable.

"I know we've lost a lot of good people today." Fionn began with tears in her eyes. "But I don't want to lose anymore. Don't be like them Olwen. I can't loose you too." Hearing her sister's words the glow in Olwen's eyes began to die, replaced with tears. Fionn held her and lead her towards the cover of the forest.

But Jasper fell behind and he could not push back the darkness any longer. He collapsed and the last thing he remembered was a knight running towards him.

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