I'm so sorry; I'm a terrible updater. I got distracted then was creatively blocked then forgot, and just so many excuses. But better late than never, I guess.
By now, Morgana had learned just how much Merlin liked telling stories. Thinking about it, so did she. Really, everybody probably liked telling stories. So Merlin began.
"It started when I got to Avalon. I was greeted and welcomed and it was all well and good, but all I could do was watch all of you live your lives. And I wanted to be part of them again. Even more so when I learned that Morgana was pregnant. There was no way that I was going to leave my baby without a father.
"That was when I realized that I couldn't just keep watching. I had to do something. I was reassuring Morgana that I'd be back, but I still didn't have a way. So I did what I always did: I talked to Kilgharrah. Which is easier said than done. Because he'd gone deep into hiding on Avalon, far from the humans.
"I started this quest out with my father. He was the only one who knew where the dragons were hiding. They liked him. At first he was reluctant because rules of the universe and all. He didn't want them to be broken again. People in Avalon are pretty big on that. But he wanted what was best for me. Which was life on Earth. With my child.
"He led me to the home of the dragons. There were thousands of them, and at their center: Kilgharrah. He greeted me warmly. Or: as warmly as he was capable of. I told him what I was doing there, but he already knew. He knew everything. And he did not tell me no. That was surprising. To say the least. He wasn't much help either, though. He insisted that I must find my way back without him or it would not work.
"So I returned to watching you and searching for answers. About two months ago, Gaius told me that he'd found something: a way back. Reincarnation. Which I told him was stupid. Because I'm having a baby. I don't want to be one. However, he explained to me how it works and how it could benefit me.
"When someone is reincarnated, a door is opened between Avalon and the earthly world. A spirit uses this as gate to step through and into a newborn baby. The spirit starts new in the child, and the gate is promptly shut. However, if you're in just the right spot at just the right time: the gate can remain open just long enough for something else to slip through. And once the gate is closed, all spirits on the mortal side become corporeal.
"That was my plan, but a few pieces were still missing. Mordred who had overheard approached me a few days later. He wanted to help. He wanted to be reincarnated, said he was in need of a second chance. He seemed to really mean it, and I had no reason not to trust him. So together, we began the second part of our adventure.
"According to Gaius, to be reincarnated, one must journey to the Periculi Fields to face 3 difficult tasks and be judged by a council of high priests and priestesses. Mordred agreed to this, so we left for the fields. It was a week's travel until we reached the first task.
"An ocean with no end. We had to cross it to return to the field for the second task. This was a practical test, a test of magic. Mordred easily shrunk the ocean and we were able to cross without much delay.
"We set off for the second task which we reached after only 2 days. As we walked, we found ourselves in the midst of a battle. Both sides raged on, and I was struck by extreme de-ja-vous. It was all so familiar, but Mordred was swept away from me in the crowd. It took me a day of searching to find him, locked in battle with what looked like Arthur. His face was stained with tears as he held a sword to his former king's heart. This vision of Arthur did nothing to fight back. Mordred was working himself up to killing him, seemingly insane. He had been manipulated by something while I was away, but I still do not know what. At the last second he pulled away. He could not kill Arthur. The vision disappeared.
"It was a test to see if he regretted the decisions in his former life. And he did. We talked as we sought out the next challenge. We spoke of nothing serious but of possibilities for our next obstacle and things that we enjoyed of life. But many things remained unsaid, hung heavy between us. We traveled a month and nothing. No third task. No council.
"Our conversations become more serious. I told him about us and you, Morgana. About how you were doing. He was pleased that you would be having a baby. He said you would make a great mother. And he told me about his love from before. How she was in Avalon now too. And we got to talking about the last task.
"I asked him why he didn't kill Arthur and he told me it is because he had been so kind to him once. A little kindness never goes unremembered. He said he wished he had never killed Arthur in the first place, but he was young and radical and in love. He said he was sorry.
"And I realized that I was too. Because I had done everything wrong by him. Like I had by you. I could have helped him, but instead my distrust ruined us all. And I knew it was not all my fault and it was not all his fault and it was not all fate's fault. And I forgave him.
"Suddenly we found ourselves in a great castle surrounded by people. The last challenge ge had been mine. They knew what Mordred and I were planning and were only willing to accept us if I forgave him. The success if our future depended on it, they claimed. And they filled me in on the rest of the plan.
"The only way to keep the past from repeating itself was to raise Mordred differently this time, to raise him ourselves. The only way to save the future was for Mordred to be reincarnated into our son. Which seemed fitting because you loved him like a son anyway. So we agreed, and they opened the portal that Mordred and I stepped through.
"I would have been here sooner, but I ended up in the middle of the lake of Avalon, and I had to summon Aithusa to bring me home for some dry clothes. Then I took a cab to the hospital, and here I am. Right where I need to be."
Morgana smiled to herself and to the baby in her arms. Merlin was right. It was fitting.
I got the idea for this when my uncle mentioned that in some versions of the King Arthur story, Mordred is actually the son of Merlin and Morgana. And he looks so much like them... Make sure to follow if you're new. And review with any thoughts or comments or theories or ideas for the next adventure or if there are any villains you'd like to see return.