Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin
A Camelot Courtship
Arthur grunted on the bed as the curtains were dragged open, and he turned his face away from the light so rudely disturbing him and pressed his face into Gwen's neck, who also gave a grunt and bowed her head around his to hide her from the suns glare. They could hear the servant bustling about, setting their breakfast on the table and humming to themselves, and frankly, Arthur found that happy morning attitude annoying in anyone, but that was Merlin's thing, and frankly, as far as he was concerned no one else but him had any business doing it. Besides, no one else other than Merlin would be happy with the prospect of waking up the king and queen, especially when the two of them were a little overly fond of the comfy bed. Arthur had always been like that but Gwen had been getting into bad habits recently too. But a servant whistling happily when the king was uncomfortable due to his sisters sabotage, that could be seen as bad for their health.
"Please don't let it be George." He whispered into Gwen's ear miserably.
"He has a girlfriend now apparently." She muttered sleepily.
"Great. Some poor girl he can bore to death with long winded talks about brass and polishing. He'll bore the poor thing to death." He groaned, and she sniggered slightly.
"He isn't that bad. And you said yourself, he cleans your armour and shoes better than Merlin does." She pointed out in a whisper.
Yeah, George did clean better than Merlin did. But, he wasn't Merlin. Not being able to clean to save himself was one of (not that he planned to tell him that) Merlin's most amusing features. While he was probably one of the worst servants in the castle, he was his servant, his best friend, and the most loyal friend you could ever ask for. It was Merlin who had been with him through thick and thin, when he hadn't needed to be there, recklessly risking his life time and again and had stood beside him against every threat that had threatened Camelot since he had arrived, something none of his knights could even claim. And Merlin's cleaning work was alright, it just wasn't brilliant. Besides, it gave them something to bicker about, which last time had resulted (in no small part due to Gwaine taking Merlin's side and helping him outwit his master) in Arthur cleaning all the knights' boots to prove a point, and he only realised much later that his servant had conned him into doing them.
"Yeah, so what? Merlin can't clean for toffee, but he's my best friend, and I'd much rather have him here than George. Merlin isn't a bootlicker, and he keeps me going straight even if I don't listen to him as much as I should, and I sort of like having him around." He admitted, and Gwen smiled, her eyes basically saying 'then why the hell don't you tell him that'.
"Aww, I didn't know you cared!" said a cheerful voice from beside the bed, and Gwen darted her head up, crashing it into Arthur's jaw in the process. He rolled with the momentum onto his back and looked up to see Merlin, clad in blue with his green scarf Morgana had made for him, grinning down at him.
"Merlin!" Arthur exclaimed in delighted shock, while Gwen climbed over Arthur, making him even more uncomfortable as she did so and enveloping Merlin in a hug.
"How much of that did you hear?" Arthur demanded as he climbed out of bed, wincing as he did so.
"All of it." He said with a grin.
Arthur glowered at him.
"I should hit you for eavesdropping on the king. But I won't." He said, and with a grin hugged Merlin too, delighted to see his friend, until he heard a sharp intake of breath.
"Oh sorry." Arthur said lamely as Merlin clutched his side, wincing in pain.
"You shouldn't be back at work if you're hurting." Gwen said reprovingly, and Merlin grinned.
"I had to promise Gaius I wouldn't do a lot of bending or heavy lifting but he said I could come back if I took it easy. Good thing too." He said with his usual smile, eyeing the clothes the two of them had dropped the night before, before Gwen had remembered her husband was a no-go area.
"You sure you're ok?" Arthur asked, scanning his friend as he held his side, and he nodded.
"Yeah you just put pressure on it, I didn't think it would hurt as bad as that did. Rumour has it you aren't ok either? You been doing things you ought not to be doing?" he asked in a teasing voice and Arthur gave a scowl, secretly to hide his smile, and threw the covers on top of Merlin.
"He looks better like that don't you think?" he asked Gwen with a smile as they watched Merlin struggle to get out from under the covers.
"I'm just glad he's back. Maybe now you'll stop moping." She said gleefully, and her glared at her.
"I was not moping." He said tartly, and she just smiled.
"Aww, were you worried about me?" Merlin asked as he got himself out of the covers.
"Of course I wasn't. Why would I be, you only got stabbed?" he said, determinedly not looking Merlin in the eye. However that didn't mean he missed Merlin's self-satisfied grin.
"Right, I'm going through for a bath before you get in and infect it." She said teasingly, kissing him and Merlin on the cheek before going into the next room.
"Merlin-" Arthur said.
"Arthur-" Merlin said at exactly the same time.
They grinned at each other, then Arthur sat down, wincing uncomfortably as he did so.
"Merlin, I'm sorry. You needed my help, and you didn't get it, and then you got hurt, because of me. I never meant for any of that to happen." Arthur said softly, his eyes scouring his friend's face for forgiveness.
"Arthur..." Merlin moaned in exasperation, sitting down tenderly.
"It wasn't your fault. You did what a king would do." Merlin said simply, but Arthur shook his head.
"Yeah. But not what your friend would do. And that's why I'm sorry." He said, and Merlin gave a small smile.
"It's ok. I suppose I was pretty worked up."
"Yeah, and you were right to be. We think you're right, Madvedor is up to something. So, I should have listened to you. Go on, just this once I'll let you say it, you deserve to." Arthur said, smiling a little and looking away from Merlin.
Merlin grinned and nudged him with his shoulder.
"I won't do that. And, what I said about you being my best friend, I didn't mean that. I'm sorry." He said meekly, and Arthur clapped Merlin's shoulder.
"I know you didn't. But I did sort of deserve it." He admitted, and Merlin grinned.
"So you reckon Madvedor is up to something?" Merlin asked, trying and failing not to sound smug.
Arthur shot him a dirty look because of the tone of his voice, but answered anyway.
"Yeah, not helped by the fact that I think he was trying to kill you." Arthur said grimly, and Merlin's hand subconsciously went to his wounded side.
"Yeah, he did." Merlin muttered, and Arthur frowned.
"I know he was the one who stabbed you. Problem is we can't prove it, otherwise he'd be dead already. What I meant was he tried to finish the job. He tried to poison you too." Arthur said, a little trace of fear in his voice.
"Nice. So how do we get rid of him?" Merlin asked, looking at Arthur curiously.
"You implicating him will only make matters worse, Carrigan would probably launch a coup if I arrested him on your word. That's not to say I don't believe you," he assured Merlin, who was sending him a sceptical glance, "but after I put the council in their place the other day Carrigan will be looking for me to mess up so he can get back at me. So, we wait. Madvedor leaves the day after tomorrow anyway, so provided he doesn't try anything with Morgana or try to finish you off, we should be fine. And if he does try anything, then we can get rid of him for good." He said with a tight smile.
Merlin smiled. So, all they had to do was hope that he didn't attack Morgana or try to kill him, and then take over Camelot. Nothing new there then. Getting gingerly to his feet, Merlin picked up some of the clothes draped around the room, and was surprised when Arthur picked up the ones on the floor for him, even helpfully putting them into the basket.
"Wow, you are house trained. Gwen and I are good." He said with a smile, and ducked when Arthur threw some underwear at him.
Sticking his tongue out, Merlin headed for the door.
"Merlin-" Arthur called.
Merlin turned around, fearful of having more underwear thrown at him.
"I'm glad you're back." He said with a smile, and threw the underwear into the basket.
"Yeah, me too." Merlin said, and left the king smiling in his room, while Gwen sang to herself in the bathtub.
XX
"Merlin!" Morgana cried happily, wrapping him in a hug, and Merlin grinned into her shoulder as he saw the furious expression on Madvedor's face.
"Ow." Merlin squeaked a little as he pulled away from her at an awkward angle.
"You shouldn't be back at work." She said, sounding much more scornful and condemning than Gwen had, and he smiled weakly.
"What and leave Arthur to his own devices for another day? I was out a day and there were clothes all over the floor. He obviously can't look after himself, and he's having a bad influence on Gwen too." He said, and she smiled.
"True. I'm glad you're alright. Aren't you glad he's alright Lord Madvedor?" Morgana asked, smiling at Merlin.
"Ecstatic." Madvedor muttered, forcing his face into a painful smile.
"We're going hunting. Take it easy." She said, kissing his cheek and following after Madvedor, who looked even madder than he had a minute ago.
Merlin grinned. But, he couldn't help but shake the fact that while Madvedor had lost a round, he wasn't quite ready to concede the war quite yet. The sooner he left the better. Then Morgana would be fine, Camelot would be safe and everything could go back to normal again. But for now, he needed to help Gaius and Gwen find out exactly what Madvedor was up to.
Merlin pondered as he headed back to Gaius' chambers. This time had been close. Not since he had been poisoned by Nimueh had he come so close to dying. He'd be lying if he said it hadn't shaken him. How had Madvedor blocked his powers? Not since the Dorocha had he been rendered so powerless. But, now at least he supposed, they were forewarned. Morgana turning back to good had destabilised magic, sending that and destiny out of control. And that was something worth worrying about. Merlin frowned. Perhaps it was because he now knew about it, but he could feel something coming, an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach, a sense of approaching doom. Something would soon happen, he was sure. Perhaps he was just imagining it, but he didn't think so. Something dark was coming. Darkness would soon descend on Camelot. Shivering at the thought of that point in the future, Merlin headed to Gaius' chambers. Whatever was coming would come. He would deal with it when it did. But for now, they had to deal with Madvedor.
Grinning at the image of fury Morgana had put on his face, and also at the fact that she had kissed him on the cheek, he bounced into the room.
XX
Carrigan frowned. The annoying brat had survived Madvedor's stabbing, and the incompetent visitor had failed to silence him for good. Which meant the king would still benefit from his advice, and the king wouldn't be devastated by the loss of his best friend. As such, the council would continue to go about in their reduced state and not be able to take advantage of a weakened Arthur. However it was no great loss. Anyway, it would perhaps be best if he distanced himself from their esteemed visitor for a while. Now that Merlin was awake, he was sure Arthur and his band of merry men would go about trying to get rid of Madvedor. And if Carrigan, who Arthur was known to loathe, was found to be in any way linked to the one who had tried to kill his best friend, then he too could be in the firing line.
Yes, Arthur knocking back the council was a nuisance, however it was not the end of the world. True, Arthur was now running things more fully than he had done, and he had firmly whacked the council on the head. But, eventually things would turn back to his advantage. And once they did, Carrigan would once again fill the void left absent by a king not performing his duties. Yes, no situation lasted forever. Not even Merlin and Arthur's friendship could. And when it did falter, Carrigan would be there for his king...in order to take advantage of his devastation.
Smiling tightly to himself, he deliberately changed direction, away from Madvedor's two thugs who were strolling towards him, looking eager to speak to him. Yes, the sooner they were gone the better. And perhaps, helping the king may have some advantages. Smiling to himself, he pondered how he could possibly incriminate Madvedor and get him out of here all the quicker.
XX
"What's he doing with this orb thing though?" Gwen asked, looking at the books the three of them were studying.
"I think he might be trying to view the overall state of magic. However, as we saw loads of different colours in it, I think we can assume all is not well with magic. Which would make sense if Merlin's right, and he's here to steal Morgana's powers." Gaius reasoned, peering at a book worriedly.
"Begging the question, how does he plan to steal Morgana's powers? He can steal them from her temporarily, but the way he was talking he seemed to want to do it permanently." Merlin said, flinching as he stretched too far and had to stop for a second before he could pick up the book he was after.
"There are ways, but none that I can think of Madvedor having access to." Gaius said, frowning.
Gwen shot Merlin a concerned glance, which he waved off, and she turned to Gaius.
"But what's the point in taking Morgana's powers?" she asked, flicking through the book as if the answer would just leap out at her.
Merlin suppressed a moan as he turned to face her. Maybe he should still be taking it easy.
"He reckons magic is out of control. Which means that the stronger you are, the less likely you are to get bit on the behind by it." He explained, and she frowned in thought, then started flicking back through the book.
"I saw something in here..." she said ponderingly, flicking furiously through the pages.
"What about the crest? Can we get anything out of that?" Merlin asked, and Gaius stroked his chin in annoyance.
"It looks vaguely familiar, but I can't place it." He said irritably.
"Could he be using this?" Gwen asked, turning the book towards them.
"The Jewel of Tempestra?" Merlin asked curiously, and Gaius frowned.
"The Jewel of Tempestra was created by the High Priestesses of the Old Religion, designed after one of their own went rogue. She caused all sorts of damage before the dragons helped kill her, so they made this to prevent it ever happening again, one zap and your powers were gone, enclosed within the jewel, and then, once the threat was done, the victor would take in the loser's powers. It could be the jewel, but I don't see how. It was stolen not long before the purge, I'll need to check up on the information, but when it was stolen it was never seen again."
"Could Carrigan have it?" Merlin asked, and Gaius pondered.
"Doubtful, but you never can tell. It would certainly explain how he thinks he will be able to deal with what's coming."
"See, this is the one time I actually miss Uther. He'd have had him killed days ago. And I would rather get him out of Camelot before he causes any more damage." Gwen said, and Merlin rolled his eyes in exasperation as he saw the worried look she gave him.
"Yeah but we're trying to make Arthur go forwards, not back. And anyway, he leaves the day after tomorrow, what more harm can he do?" Merlin asked, knowing he was being far too optimistic.
"If we're right about Morgana's powers, a lot." Gwen said miserably.
Merlin frowned. All they had to do was get through the next couple of days, and then Madvedor would have to go. But he couldn't help but shake the feeling that Madvedor hadn't even begun to make his move yet. Stabbing him had been to get him out of the way, to act as a distraction for Arthur and the others. Which meant, his overall aim was still to be achieved. Which, as Gwen probably rightly believed, wasn't good.
XX
Amazingly, the rest of the day passed without incident. Madvedor perhaps could have told that the entire high table was watching him, and that the knights were on alert for any mischief on the part of his thugs. But he just went on ignoring it, and he was even minding his tongue when speaking to Merlin (probably fearing what was rumoured to have happened to Arthur would happen to him too). But, far from reassuring him, it just made Merlin more suspicious. What was he up to? He seemed supremely unconcerned that virtually the entire leadership of Camelot were treating him with suspicion, and he hadn't seemed to notice the fact that Merlin was virtually flanked everywhere he went by at least two knights (whether or not Arthur was behind it he couldn't tell). So either, he was totally oblivious, he didn't think it was worth his attention, or he knew something they didn't, and he had a horrible feeling it was the latter.
To add to the mystery, Tristan hadn't been seen all day. Arthur had told him that he had upped and left, apparently to try and discover something about Madvedor, and he hadn't been seen since. What was he up to? What did it have to do with Madvedor? However, other than Tristan being in absentia, and the entire court being wary of Madvedor things continued much as they had done. Merlin was watching him, his interactions with Morgana. On the outside he remained as charming towards her as he had ever been. What exactly was he up to? Did he have the jewel thing? And when would he make his move?
Until he did, all they could do was watch.
XX
It had taken Tristan the better part of the day to travel around all the taverns. While such an undertaking would usually be performed by Gwaine, who would drink them try on route, Tristan wasn't there for drinking, but for information. However, other than the news that Madvedor would be visiting Camelot, he had heard nothing of interest. Still no indication as to why Madvedor would be so interested in courting Morgana, unless of course Gaius was right.
He may now be a knight of Camelot, but he still knew where to get information. And that was what had brought him here. The tavern that Gwaine fondly recalled first meeting Merlin and Arthur in. It was on the border of Lot's kingdom, a sort of halfway house between the two. And being on the border, it was where one often struck gold when looking for information. Today was no exception.
He had entered the tavern, to find Mary, the buxom bar tender, throwing out some revellers, and her face broke into a smile when she saw him.
"Tristan, welcome back! It's been a while, I heard what happened to poor Isolde, I am sorry." She said sadly, beckoning him inside and giving him a flagon of mead.
"Thanks Mary. It's good to see you." He said, glossing over the mention of his beloved Isolde. The memory of what had happened to her and ended their happiness still hurt far too much.
"Well, look at you, a knight now. The only other one of you lot I see is Gwaine when he appears to drink me dry. Pity. I liked the one who came with the prince when he was here." She said wistfully, polishing a glass.
"The one with the prince? A knight aside from Gwaine?" Tristan asked in confusion.
"Oh I don't think he was a knight, too thin and reedy poor little thing. I think he might have been a servant though." She said musingly.
"Ah you mean Merlin. Sorry Merlin, his heart belongs to someone else." Tristan said with a slight smile, and also resolved not to tell her Merlin had recently been stabbed.
"Pity, he looks like he could do with a good woman." She said to herself, and he smiled.
"Nah, I reckon he might like a little bit of danger." Tristan said with a smile.
"It's always the quite ones," she lamented, filled up his flagon, then gave him a smile, "so what brings you back then Tristan?"
"What else but information Mary? You always were one of my best." He said with a grin, and she leaned in conspirationally.
"What can I help you with?" she asked.
"Lord Madvedor. Heard of him?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Yeah, he died a couple of months back, why?" she asked interestedly, then noticed he wasn't drinking.
"Died? Are you sure?" he demanded. After all, Madvedor was living and breathing and trying to kill one of his friends, how could be dead? But Mary had never been wrong before.
"Yes, he was taxing his people too much and they revolted, burnt him at the stake. I did wonder when I heard a Madvedor was courting the princess." She said musingly.
"Madvedor, tallish guy, grooves cut into his hair?" Tristan asked urgently, and she shook her head.
"Oh no, he had long hair. The guy we had in here, a member of the militia, said they could smell the oils he put on it burning. You look white as a ghost." She said in concern.
"You're sure about this Mary?" Tristan asked hurriedly, and she nodded.
"Yep, the guy told me it all. Madvedor's dead."
Tristan slammed his flagon down in exasperation.
"No wonder Camelot keeps getting conquered! We routinely let enemies inside the walls! For God sake!" he said, rushing for the door.
"Good luck, be safe and come back soon!" she called after him as he dashed for his horse.
Tristan waved to her in thanks. If Madvedor was dead as Mary thought (and he never had any reason to doubt her before), then Gaius was almost certainly right. Whoever was posing as Madvedor wasn't actually Madvedor. And he was after Morgana's powers, which could only mean one thing: he wanted Camelot.
Leaping onto his horse, he lashed the reins and the horse bolted, bound for Camelot, hoping he wasn't too late.
XX
Merlin was worried. Gaius hadn't been in his chambers all night, and while the knights and the others were on alert, that didn't mean Madvedor couldn't have done something to him. The fear he had felt after Agravaine had accused Gaius of treachery while he had been kidnapped by Alator was coming back in full force. He had nearly lost Gaius then, and if Madvedor had done something...
He was just about to go to Arthur and tell him that Gaius was missing when Elyan entered the room, grinning.
"Have you seen Gaius?" Merlin asked him before he could get a word out.
"Yeah, that's why I came to find you. You need to see this." Elyan said with a small smile, and led Merlin to the library, ignoring Geoffrey, who was asleep at his desk, and heading to a small table beside the window.
Gaius was there, snoring loudly, his face pressed into one book among the many that were spread out over the table. Merlin grinned and poked him awake, making Gaius jump up, looking at Merlin blearily, the ink having marked imprinted on his face.
"Merlin!"
"You've been here all night?" he asked, and after a look with Elyan decided not to tell Gaius about the writing on his face.
"Yes, I know I'm close to figuring out that crest, it's in one of these books...but I fell asleep before I found it." He finished lamely, and Merlin grinned.
"Great. Why not go home Gaius, and work from there? Before you fall asleep again." He said with a grin and Gaius shot him a dirty look, but consented, and bustled out of the library gingerly.
"Well he'll be feeling that for the rest of the day." Elyan said sympathetically.
"Silly old goat, I thought he'd been kidnapped again." Merlin grumbled, and Elyan smiled.
"You should be so lucky. Never mind though eh? Madvedor leaves in the morning." Elyan said brightly.
Merlin narrowed his eyes. He knew the thought of Madvedor leaving should be one to make him happy, however it was only filling him with a sense of trepidation. Madvedor had spent a week here, had nearly killed Merlin and was clearly trying to steal Morgana's powers. As he hadn't made his move yet, he had to make it today. And that was what was worrying him. He had to have something up his sleeve. The question was what?
"Yeah I know. Meaning that whatever he's up to will happen today." Merlin said grimly, while Elyan looked at his friend fearfully.
XX
Mordred snarled as he used magic to break the neck of the remaining wyvern. They had come out of nowhere, the three of them swooping down on him, talons glinting. He had barely survived, and had had to use a tempest to hold them back while he killed them individually. But now that they were gone, he could see clearly where he was meant to be going. The fog, which had followed him ever since it had first appeared, had now cleared, and was overlooking an island, populated by a ruined castle in the middle of the lake.
The Isle of the Blessed.
Mordred smiled evilly and headed on towards his destiny.
XX
Tristan was riding hard and fast, when suddenly an arrow lanced out of nowhere, landing right in front of the horse. The horse gave a whinny and reared on it's hind legs, knocking Tristan off before he could stop it, and before he could get a grip on the reins, it bolted into the trees. Cursing, Tristan got to his feet and drew his sword, focused on the spot in the trees where the arrow had come from. He had a suspicion of who was attacking him, which meant that Madvedor had to be about to make his move. Clutching his sword tightly, Tristan heard the noise, and span just in time to block one of Madvedor's thugs cutting down at him from behind him. Tristan blocked the heavy attack, twirling away from the strike and brought the flat of his blade down on the thug's shoulder, making him howl in pain.
"So, I wondered if you would notice I had left. What, you think to ambush me and prevent Arthur from finding out? Word of advice...if you're trying to take over Camelot, don't attract the king's attention by being thugs and an even better idea, don't try to kill his best friend." Tristan snarled, blocking the thug's swing, and he lunged forward, nicking the other's leg.
"You don't know what's coming. Any of you. Magic is returning, stronger than ever. Camelot will burn, and your king will die." The thug spat, lunging at Tristan, but he was already turning away from the attack.
"Idiot, we're on to you. We know Madvedor's after Morgana's powers, and we'll stop him."
And to Tristan's great surprise, his opponent laughed.
"You're the fool. You think I don't know what's coming? Madvedor's just trying desperately to save his own skin. There's much more dangerous and powerful beings out there, more powerful than you can possibly imagine. Madvedor's deluded, thinking he can escape what is to come. There's no stopping it. Magic is returning, and you can't stop it! None of you can! And what will become of your friends then?" he demanded, shunting his blade towards Tristan.
Tristan blocked the attack, shoving him away with his shield, before kicking the thug in the chest and darting forward, slicing a chunk out of his foe's side. The thug gave a wounded bellow and hammered his sword down at Tristan, but Tristan was already on the move, climbing up the embankment and into the tree line. The thug turned to face him, and Tristan sprang at him, his heavy blows coming from above the thug's height, forcing the heavier set man back. Tristan grinned, sensing victory, and pushed onwards, his sword work pushing the man back and with a feint to the side, he brought his sword flying up, cutting through sinew and bone, right under the armpit, and slicing right through the man's heart. Tristan sighed in relief as the man gave a wet gurgle and collapsed to the floor, blood pooling from his mouth.
"Great. So Madvedor's a small fry? Just what we need." He grumbled, sheathing his sword.
Firstly, he had to find his horse. Then, get back to Camelot and tell Arthur about Madvedor, ideally before he tried to take Morgana's powers. And then they could focus on whatever the future would bring. Grumbling bitterly about his horse, he went to find the silly animal, hoping that by the time he got home he wasn't too late.
XX
"I want nothing more to do with you." Carrigan said levelly as he and Madvedor strolled down the corridor.
"You forget yourself my lord. I am a guest here." Madvedor sneered angrily, glowering at the lord. After all, it was Carrigan who had come to him and had told him Merlin had somehow survived his attack, and that if he wanted to do them both a favour he should finish the job.
Carrigan scanned the corridor, then shoved Madvedor up against the wall, his dagger flashing into his hand and pointing at Madvedor's throat.
"Not for much longer. Everyone knows it was you who tried to kill the boy, and the fact that you bungled the thing twice has made them very suspicious of you, and only because you are from another kingdom are you still walking around freely. The king suspects you of sorcery, which has a death sentence here. So you would do well to keep your head down. If you had killed the boy, fair enough. But you failed to do so, and I have lost too much to your ilk to risk consorting with you now." He snarled.
Madvedor glowered at him as Carrigan released his throat.
"You would do well my lord to remember that there are many infinitely more powerful than you." Madvedor sneered.
Carrigan inclined his head mockingly.
"Indeed there are. But here, they don't last very long. Powerful beings stupid enough to draw attention to their magic last longer than they did under Uther, but still die. Especially when they attack someone the king is very fond of, for reasons best known to himself. Good day my lord." Carrigan said, smiling smugly, and turned away heading away from the seething noble.
Carrigan smiled to himself. Yes Merlin was alive and would continue to advise the king. But no situation would last forever. And the council's reduced state also wouldn't last, he would see to that. After all there were many paths to power. He just had to find the right one.
XX
Madvedor was fuming. One of his guards had gone after the knight who had disappeared, and had not returned, which could only mean that the fool had bungled the entire affair. And now Carrigan, the arrogant, power hungry fool, wanted nothing more to do with him. Madvedor sneered. He would dearly love to be rid of them all now, but he daren't risk it. After all, all the other sorcerers he had consumed with the jewel didn't afford him nearly enough power to hold them all off, undoubtedly someone would get through. However, once he had the power of Morgana, he would be all but unstoppable. After all, she was the strongest magic user in the land. His own powers weren't inconsiderable, and he had the other powers he had drained. Only a few hours more and then all of them, the butcher's son, the blacksmith's daughter, the bumbling servant and the bitter princess would all be brought to heel. Madvedor smiled as he opened the cabinet, revealing the Jewel of Tempestra.
In the final days before the purge, when he had warned the high priestesses that something was coming for them and they had refused to believe him, the night he had chosen to leave he had taken the jewel to prevent any of his cohorts being sent to hunt him down. Ever since then, and Uther's purge of the rest of his kind, he had been milling around the lands, getting close to magic users, and when he was in their confidence, he would drain them of their powers and kill them. However, this time was different. While Uther had been on the throne there had been no way to amass enough power to get revenge on the one who had decimated magic, as all the truly powerful magic users had been killed or had gone so deep into hiding no one would ever find them. However, in the latter years of Uther's reign, when his powers had been slipping, and the high priestesses had come out of the woodwork, setting themselves against Camelot, the time had finally come. Sadly, by the time he felt confident enough to try anything, it was too late, as Uther had died. However, he could avenge himself on the butcher's son, then destroy everything Uther had built.
Soon now, it would be time. But first...
"You sent for me my lord?" his remaining bodyguard asked as he entered the room behind him.
"Yes. You've been a faithful servant, and I promised to see you through the troubling times to come." He said softly, and picked up the jewel.
"Yes you did master." The man said excitedly.
"Sadly though, I lied." He said, turned, and muttering a word that made his eyes flash amber, a burst of purple energy leapt from the jewel and collided with the man.
The man shot him a look of horrified dismay, and then his body started to decay rapidly as the life force of the man was sucked into the jewel. His body slouched and shrank, his skin wasted and withered back, while his eyes melted and he gave a weak groan, before his shrivelled corpse fell to the ground and dissolved into dust. Madvedor snorted in disgust. The amount of magic in the man was negligible to say the least, hence the jewel had just sucked his life force instead. Not to worry. It gave him a longer life, barring mishap, and it was a little bit of a power boost. Madvedor smiled and put the jewel away. Soon now, he would take Camelot. He only had to play the charade for a little while longer.
XX
"Will you relax Merlin? It's not as if you can do much if he tries anything anyway." Arthur said patiently.
Merlin glowered at him. If Madvedor tried anything, he would be the only one who could do anything if he got Morgana. And if that was the case he wasn't entirely sure he would win anyway, especially since he couldn't move much without hurting himself.
"I don't like sitting here just waiting for him to make a move. Can't we do anything about him now? We know he tried to kill me, twice according to you, and we know he's a sorcerer and that he means to hurt Morgana. Why can't we do anything now?" he asked, and Arthur sighed.
"I know it stinks Merlin, I don't like it either. But you, Gwen and Morgana all want to stop me being like my father, which means we actually need to prove he's a sorcerer before we move against him. And besides, he's a visiting dignitary, and if we attack and kill him without proof that he's actually done the things we know he has, it could lead to complications, if not war. And I know he's the one who attacked you," he said soothingly, patting the air to calm the furious expression on Merlin's face, "but another kingdom won't accept the word of a servant. Even if I will." He finished softly, and Merlin did smile a little at that.
"Aww now you're just grovelling to get back in my good books because you didn't believe me in the first place." Merlin said, grinning widely.
Arthur ignored him and looked down at the document he was reading.
"Am not." Arthur muttered defensively, and Merlin grinned as he forced the armour back into the cupboard again.
"Are so." Merlin teased, shunting the armour in with his shoulder.
"Am not." Arthur said, more loudly.
"Are so!" Merlin called back, and Arthur cleared his throat, making Merlin turn to look at him.
"I am the king and I say I'm not, so there." He said with an air of finality, but he was smiling.
"And I'm your servant and I rarely listen to you anyway so I say you are." He said, and had to duck as Arthur threw a cushion at him.
"It's just weird sitting here when we know he's up to no good." Merlin complained, throwing it back to Arthur.
"It's a strategy of war. You leave yourself open to attack and hope to hell you can meet it when it comes along, else you're in trouble." Arthur explained.
"Does it work?" Merlin asked sceptically.
"It will this time. Don't worry, we won't let him get her. We've gone through too much to get her back to where she belongs to lose her again." Arthur said reassuringly.
Merlin frowned, pondering the situation. And while he did so, Arthur was surveying his friend, and he had to admit he was just as worried. It was obvious Madvedor wasn't going to leave, so they would need to confront him, but he didn't particularly like the thought of everyone he cared about being here just because they couldn't prove he was up to something. But he was also certain he wasn't going to lose his sister. They'd lost too much because of Uther and Morgause, he wasn't going to lose her again, not without a fight. And, smiling slightly, he figured Merlin wouldn't let that happen either. And that was a problem for another day.
XX
She collapsed into her stone chair, panting with the effort. But now, all was in readiness. The two teachers for the boy were ready, even if one was very unwilling, and her most recent resurrection was on the stone altar, frozen in time ready for them to adjust so as to fit in with the tales Davros was now peddling around Essetir.
"I warned you. Just because magic is out of control and is getting worse by the day, do not assume you can rewrite its rules." Her companion warned.
She hissed slightly as she sat up straight.
"The rules are rewritten! Morgana has seen to that. And with us resurrecting Agravaine and the others, magic is further out of control, and with them in the world magic will continue to spiral further out of control. In the original destiny, the great evil has turned, leaving the other half of the great threat abandoned. Now there are two high priestesses at one time which is sending things further out of control, if our information is right Emrys is in love with what should be his arch enemy and she is the same with him, and to top it all off, I'm resurrecting people and taking advantage of the disruption, and because I haven't paid for the ones I've resurrected, magic is further destabilised. Rewriting the rules isn't the problem, the problem is because Merlin and Morgana are both good and both so powerful, the world is out of balance in the wrong way, I can't use the dark magic aspects as well as I would like to. Once the boy joins us it will be fine but until then, I'm at a disadvantage. However, it won't be long now. The boy will arrive soon?" she asked, and he nodded, looking distasteful.
"Either late tonight or early tomorrow if he stops. I wish we hadn't sent my pets to test the boy though. He was quite rough with them." He grumbled, and she rolled her eyes.
"You can create as many as you wish, you are their progenitor after all. Besides, there's still at least a dozen in the highest battlements." She said tartly.
"That isn't the point. I have need of them for what I plan to do later." He said, and she raised an eyebrow at him.
"Ah, the testing of Emrys. Well make some more until then. After all, he has his hands full with Madvedor at the moment. I thought he had died during the purge." She moaned, and he looked at her sceptically.
"I take it that means he can't be of use then?"
She frowned.
"Not really. He always was rather self absorbed, even for a member of the Catha. The main problem is that he has the Jewel of Tempestra, I thought that had been destroyed. It certainly explains how he isn't long dead. The only way he can be of any use is if Merlin kills him and destroys the Jewel. But I won't deny it isn't good having him distracting Merlin from what is going on with magic." She said with a smile, and he nodded.
"Very well. I trust we are past the straining of your capabilities? You're no good to me dead."
She glowered at the dismissive tone in his voice.
"Thank you for your concern. Yes I have everyone I need. My spy in Camelot is foolishly keeping me abreast of developments, and very soon I will have him eating out of the palm of my hand. Everyone is resurrected. Merlin and his little friends are distracted. Davros is making headway in Essetir. Our power grows daily, and Agravaine has already sounded out potential support. And the last piece of the puzzle, the boy, arrives soon to begin his training. Yes, all is going exactly to plan. Soon now, Camelot will fall."
The plot thickens!
Mordred is getting closer to these dark beings on the Isle of the Blessed, but who are they? Who is the spy in Camelot?
So, Madvedor isnt Madvedor! He is however bad news. Will Morgana escape with her powers intact? Arthur is playing a risky game indeed with this, will it all transpire?
Read on for the final battle, a duel or two, a revelation and answers!