A/N: Thank you PadrePedro, Buckhunter, SnidgetHex, and GuestM Live for reviewing the last fic! Eight chapters to this one.
Chapter 1
Arthur walked along the castle rampart under a shining dome shield that covered the entire city. Five years after finding the Crystal of Neahtid and installing it in the highest tower, Camelot was flourishing. People no longer lived in fear of the Wraiths that roamed in the ever present darkness outside the dome. And with the Lightspinners' powers having evolved from touching the crystal, they were able to do so much more.
They'd learned to modulate their light spinning in order to facilitate growth of fruits and vegetables to keep themselves fed. They'd also converted some of the houses in the lower town into rabbit warrens, and they were able to keep small bands of livestock. Hunting parties would still go out occasionally, but they weren't desperate and facing starvation like they used to be. The only thing the Crystal of Neahtid didn't do was sprout spirit seeds, but the people no longer conducted Seeding Pilgrimages into the wild. Instead, those who already possessed light spinning powers had honed their magic, and refugees sometimes arrived, which bolstered their numbers.
Arthur made another circuit over the wall before turning to head down to the lower town, having worked up his nerve at last. He went to the old blacksmith shop that Gwen and Elyan's father had once owned and that they now worked in forging weapons made of solid light so those without magic could fight the Wraiths. Gwen was currently bent over the anvil, spinning a sheath to fit over a regular blade. Arthur stopped in the doorway to watch, still fascinated by the process. Or perhaps it was the smithy he was taken with.
Gwen was careful and methodical with her measurements and the mold so the sheath of light would fit the intended sword securely yet also be easily removed if needed. The shining light reflected in her eyes and cast a silver hue over her dark curls. She happened to glance up and startled.
"Arthur! How long have you been standing there?"
"Not long. Sorry, I didn't want to interrupt."
Gwen settled the malleable light into its mold, then stepped away. "Do you need something?"
"Do you have a moment?" he asked. "There's something I'd like to speak with you about."
"All right."
He stepped back outside and she followed, but now Arthur was beginning to lose his nerve again. After several moments walking down the street in silence, Gwen quirked a questioning look at him.
"The kingdom is doing well now," he started. "Things are stable."
"Yes…" Gwen agreed.
"So…now it seems I can afford to devote my time to other matters…"
"Other matters?"
"Of- of the heart." His face warmed and he barreled on before she could say anything that might deter him. "I've always cared for you, Guinevere. I admire your resilience and kind heart, your wisdom. I don't know if you feel the same, but what I want to say is I would like to formally declare my intentions to court you."
He took a breath and finally looked at her. She seemed surprised, and Arthur braced himself for her answer.
"I care a great deal for you too," she replied with a touch of shyness that merely emphasized her sincerity, and Arthur was relieved.
"Will you have supper with me tonight?" he asked.
She smiled. "I would like that."
Arthur beamed. "Great. I'll see you then."
Her grin widened as she went back to her work.
Arthur left feeling like he was walking on air.
Merlin walked with a spring in his step down the hall. Spun balls of light sat in the wall sconces that used to hold torches, keeping everything lit in a pleasantly bright glow. When he reached Freya's chambers, he drew to a stop and rapped his knuckles on the door. It opened quickly as Freya peeked out.
"Merlin."
"Morning," he greeted, presenting her with a bouquet of flowers he'd picked from the garden. He'd also added a little flourish with some tiny beads of sparkling light dotting the petals like dew.
"Oh," she breathed in surprise. "Thank you."
He smiled wide and rocked on the balls of his feet. Freya hesitated before opening the door wider and admitting him. He stepped inside and surreptitiously roved his gaze around the room as she went to search for a vase. At a loss to find one, she ended up dumping the flowers in the water pitcher. Merlin bit back a smile.
"My fault," he said. "I should have brought a vase."
Freya pinked in embarrassment.
"Do you like them?" he prompted.
She relaxed a fraction. "Yes, thank you. They're very lovely."
He waited a few beats in awkward silence.
"Merlin," Freya spoke up first, seeming nervous. "I want to find a way to contribute here."
He frowned. "What do you mean? You contribute."
She worried at her lip. "All of you have your own special thing. Gwen and Elyan work in the forge. You work in the gardens. Lancelot adjusts the shield."
"What about helping Percival with the animals?"
Freya grimaced. "The animals don't like me. I think they can sense the bastet." Her expression fell. "I can't even help with the mundane stuff, like spinning and sewing, cooking, or looking after the younger children, because I don't know how to do any of that."
"Well, you did spend most of your life in a cage," Merlin said gently. "So it's understandable why you're not yet skilled in those things. You just need to learn."
"I've tried to," she pressed. "But everyone loses patience with me when I still don't get it after several tries." She wrung her hands together. "There's something wrong with me."
"There is nothing wrong with you," Merlin said firmly. "Come work with me in the gardens. I'll teach you."
Freya bit her lip again. "You're the kindest person to me, Merlin, besides my brother. I don't want to make you lose patience with me too."
"I won't," he promised. "We'll find something you're good at, no matter how long it takes."
He held his arm out to her in invitation, waiting the extra beat it took for her to finally accept. They went down to the gardens together. Since everyone lived in the castle, they'd converted the plots of the houses in the lower town into various garden patches. They'd also built awnings to cover them and block out the intense light from the shield so they could control the exposure better.
"We all had to learn from the older generation about the path of the sun before our time," Merlin explained as he showed Freya the bulbs of magically spun light affixed to strings hanging over the garden patches. "That affected growing seasons. We're not mimicking that, necessarily, but we start with low light in the morning, adjust it mid afternoon, and then dim it again for overnight."
He reached up to touch one of the strings of light and shifted the bulbs' intensity.
"But that's just the light spinning part. There's watering and weeding, checking for destructive insects and rot."
Freya was beginning to get a frightened deer look, so Merlin checked himself.
"Let's start with weeds and how to identify them," he said, guiding her over to one of the plots and getting down on the ground. He pointed out which stems were their intended flora and which were invasive.
Freya was unsure and hesitant, even when he told her which weeds to pull. He was gentle and patient with her, as he'd promised. She had been through a lot in her life, and Merlin wanted to help her regain her autonomy and spirit, especially now that they all had the freedom to pursue such things.
Lancelot crept through the dark woods, arrow fitted to his bow and the barest tension on the string as he kept his eyes peeled for game. Percival and Elyan kept pace alongside him. They shared a look, and then a white glow rippled off them as their animals spirits emerged. The lion and wolf loped off into the forest to skirt around and herd prey back toward them.
Lancelot always felt a minor pang of regret when they used their light animals. Elyan had gotten his two years ago, which made Lancelot the only one left among their original group who still didn't have one. He didn't understand why. It apparently had nothing to do with how long one had been a Lightspinner. But there didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to when they did appear. All he knew was he was the odd man out in that regard.
The faintest crunch of mulch had Percival raising a fist to stop them. They crouched low in the foliage as a deer trotted into view, flicking its ears back and angling its gaze toward where the light animals were lurking. The three of them pulled back their bowstrings and released at the same time. The arrows struck their mark, bringing down their catch in one strike.
They hurried over, reaching the downed deer as Percival's and Elyan's animal spirits returned to them. Lancelot and Elyan stood guard while Percival took some rope and began trussing the carcass up.
A Wraith shriek rent the air, followed by a brilliant flash of light through the trees. The three of them exchanged a swift look before taking off toward the commotion. They found a young lad fighting off a Wraith with an amorphous light snake, but the phantom wasn't being deterred as it craned and twisted trying to get around the light animal.
Lancelot skidded to a stop and spun an arrow made of light, which he notched to his hunting bow and pulled back to shoot. The arrow zinged through the air and struck the Wraith. It jerked back with a scream, cast one featureless glare at them, and then fled, spilling a trail of ash and light dust in its wake.
The boy whipped his head around in shock, a mop of mousy brown curls bouncing as a result. He then immediately crouched into a defensive stance.
"Whoa there," Elyan said. "We mean you no harm."
"Roamers always mean harm," he spat.
"We're not Roamers," Lancelot replied.
"We were out hunting for food," Percival added. "We left our kill back there when we heard someone being attacked."
The boy continued to eye them mistrustfully.
"I'm Lancelot. This is Percival and Elyan."
"My name is Mordred," the lad said carefully. His brows furrowed. "How did you do that with the light arrow? It should have gone through the Wraith."
"We're able to spin solid objects of light," Elyan answered.
"How?"
"It's a rather long story," Lancelot said. "But we have a sanctuary nearby and you're welcome to come with us."
Mordred rose slowly but followed them back to first retrieve the deer, then on to Camelot. As the dome shield came into view, his eyes widened in amazement.
"How?" he breathed again.
The three Lightspinners shared a grin; it was pretty magnificent.
They walked to the very edge of the shield, and Elyan reached up to press a palm to it, using his power to thin a solid section into pure light they could simply walk through. Once they were through, he made it solid again.
Lancelot pointed to the central tower. "There's a crystal that provides the shield," he told Mordred. "And gave us the ability to spin more than just auras."
"Don't worry," Percival put in. "You're completely safe here."
They led the newcomer through the lower town and up to the castle where they asked the first person they saw where Arthur was. The answer was his council chambers, so they escorted Mordred up to there. Gaius and Leon were with him, and Lancelot provided introductions for all of them.
"We found him in the woods," Lancelot finished.
Arthur nodded to Mordred. "How old are you?"
"Fifteen."
"How long have you been a Lightspinner?"
"As long as I can remember."
"Well, welcome to Camelot," Arthur said. "You're welcome to stay, if you wish."
Mordred's eyes were alight with wonder as he looked out the window to the blazing exterior. "Yes please."
