Two Weeks Later

Artemis stood there panting. Amadeus was in front of her with a smirk.

"Give up?" he asked.

"No," she panted. She stood up straight. She went at him one more time. She tried to kick him, and he ducked before attempting to jab her in the ribs. She moved in time and tried to elbow him in the face. She missed as he moved before Amadeus grabbed her and roughly threw her to the ground. "Ow," she muttered.

"Your speed is still off," he replied helping her up. "Bad in the battlefield and bedroom." Artemis punched him in the arm.

"Ow," he muttered rubbing his arm. "You'll be fine. Give it another week. How's the talking with Erus going?"

"Good," she replied. "Things are… interesting in a good way. Change is good."

"Typical Blue," he said ruffling her hair.

"Shut up, Amadeus," she said smacking his hand away.

"I mean it all in good humor, Amber."

"Please don't call me Amber or Ambrosine. Just call me Artemis," she told him.

"Oh? Are you ashamed of your name?"

"No… that's just it. It's the opposite. I like who I am. I'll stick with the name my mother gave me," she told him.

"I see… so that's the name your knight moans in your ear every night."

"Shut up, Amadeus."

"You know if you telling me to shut up was drinking game, I would be falling over right now."

"Well, it would be an improvement to the non-inebriated you," Artemis retourted.

"You know that really hurts, Artemis. In all seriousness, though do you know one of the things that make a Red is love and respect of themselves? You have that Artemis. You have the people's love and respect as well as your own. Sometimes I wonder why you weren't placed in my fraction."

"Cause the Gods aren't that cruel," she replied with a grin.

"Go bed someone, you harlot," he said harshly, but she knew you was joking. He laughed as they parted ways.

"Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I'll get you!" she yelled down the hall at him. He waved a hand at her unconcerned. He didn't find her a threat. He was stronger than her. She still had a long ways to go before she out did him.

"Afternoon," Jack said as she turned around. He, coincidently, appeared as Amadeus departed. His arm wrapped around her shoulder.

"Stop," she told him shrugging his arm off.

"Have you seen Cassandra?"

"Meditating," she told him.

"Ah. How have you been?"

"Annoyed with Amadeus. He irritates me."

"Yeah, I know. A week left of your sentence."

"Indeed."

"Are you worried?" Jack asked.

"For?" Artemis asked.

"Camelot."

"No, but I pine for it. I love Camelot."

"I'm glad," he breathed though he didn't sound glad.

"You are liar."

"I am what you say I am."

"I love him, Jack. That won't change, so please as my friend stop."

"Things change."

"This won't."

"Is it because he's a prince?"

"No."

"Is it because he's a knight? Brave, strong, and the like?"

"No."

"Then why?"

"Because when I look at him everything's perfect even when it is disaster. Because I have never met a man like him, who looks at me like he does, who understands me like he does, who loves me like he does, who would fight for me like he does. It just is. I can't truly explain. He's an arrogant prat sometimes, but I love him."

"I will never understand."

"No. Not until you truly in love." Jack sighed. It sounded like out of frustration.

"Sometimes you stomp on pride without any consideration."

"I'm sorry," she said to him quietly.

"It's fine, Artemis. I still don't like him."

"You're bias."

"I know," he replied. "I have to go see Cassandra. I'll see you later."

"Indeed," she replied. Jack left her. She watched him go. She sighed.

1 Week Later

Tomorrow. Tomorrow. Tomorrow. Artemis tossed and turned in her bed. Tomorrow, she would be back in Camelot, but she couldn't sleep. Something was wrong.

'Artemis,' she heard gently.

"You're just imagining it," she told herself.

'Artemis.'

"It's nothing. The wind," she muttered tossing and ignoring it.

'ARTEMIS!' Merlin's voice rang through her head.

"Merlin!" she yelled sitting up. Artemis threw the blankets off her. She pulled on trousers and boots and grabbed her rucksack before running out of her room with her hair disheveled and her clothes in disarray. She ran out the hideout and to the portal.

The portal transported her two days ride from Camelot. Artemis, from her rucksack, pulled out a candle. She lit it with magic before thinking of Merlin.

"Emrys," she whispered. The setting in front of her melted away like candle wax before it reformed into a dark forest. The candle was nothing more than a stub. She threw it into her pocket before continuing on toward the light of a campfire. She was quiet and careful not to make noise.

Artemis pulled herself into a tree to get a better view. She could see Merlin tied in chains around a tree. She saw Arthur and Gwaine tied up as well.

"What are we waiting for?" a voice asked. They were Masters of the World in the black cloaks.

"We wait for Ambrose," another said.

"I say we just slit their throats now."

"We wait." They left and Artemis slipped out of the tree. She went behind the tree Merlin was tied to. She popped out. He looked shocked.

"You called?" she asked.

"Artemis," Merlin whispered ecstatic to see her.

"What are you doing here?" Arthur asked.

"Intuition," she replied simply. "Gwaine," she said nodding to him.

"My lady, lovelier than ever."

"Let me get your chains off," she whispered to Merlin. Artemis whispered a spell. The lock clicked open, and she started to help remove her chains before she was blasted off her feet to the ground.

"Artemis!" Merlin yelled in panic. Artemis pulled an old relic coin from her pocket and threw it at them. They froze what they were doing.

"That is incredibly useful," Artemis said with a nod seeing the Masters in frozen motions. "Cassandra gave it to me. She said it would be useful. She is always right, that girl."

"Artemis," Merlin reminded her.

"What? Oh, right," she said realizing that she should be helping them get untied. She helped remove the chains from all three of them. "So boys, what's with the capture? What are doing out here?"

"Returning to Camelot after a failed quest," Arthur grumbled.

"Oh? What were you doing?"

"Retrieving the Cup of Life," Merlin said. Artemis snapped her attention to him.

"And you failed?"

"Cenred's men got it," Arthur explained.

"Cenred's men?" Artemis questioned. "Are all men incompetent! How could you let Cenred get his hands on the Cup of Life!"

"Arthur was injured," Merlin said making a gesture to Arthur's leg.

"There are two of you besides Arthur! One of you could have gone after it!" They were silent under Artemis's scrutiny. Artemis pulled out a small sheet of parchment before quickly scrawling.

'Cup of Life in Cenred's hands. Masters of the World in league with Morgause.' Artemis tossed the paper in the fire with a whisper of a spell. It burnt purple as the flames licked the paper.

"And how did you get captured by these idiots," she asked gesturing to the Masters of the World still frozen.

"We were coming back from Camelot. There was a slaughter," Arthur explained. She frowned. "They were there waiting for us."

"We must hurry," she said looking toward Camelot. "The others are in danger."

"What about these two?"

"The Servants will deal with them when they arrive. Do not worry they will remain froze until someone releases them. The four of them ran off. They came across another outpost slaughter. Again there was no enemy bodies. Artemis was in a rush and a worry. They entered the city. It was ransacked. "I am going to the castle to look for Amice, Ava, and Everett. Go to Gwen's. See if you can find her and Rhian."

"We are safer together," Arthur said.

"Perhaps safer but slower. Time is the enemy," she told him before running off. Artemis dodged out of sight from enemy knights. They had broken through the citadel, and they were now raiding the castle.

A piercing scream echoed through the night. Artemis knew the voice to be Rhian's. She ran toward it. Rhian was cornered by a mix of Masters of the World and Cenred's knights in an empty stable. Amice's bloody body laid on the ground at Rhian's feet. "Gehaeftan!" Artemis yelled. Vines sprang from the grounds tying them up. Artemis ran to Rhian.

"What about Amice?" She asked. Artemis picked up Amice's body and dragged her out. The Masters of the World set the vines alit. Artemis slammed the door of stables. "Ic thin sawol her beluce!" The door sealed shut. Artemis was sure they wouldn't be able to get out anytime soon. She set down Amice's body. Artemis checked her pulse. She was breathing.

Artemis dug in her pocket for the stub of the candle. She gave the candle as well as striking stones to Rhian.

"Light the candle. It will only take you to the edge of the forest. Wait for me or Arthur or Merlin or the like to get there. Understand? Try to heal Amice's wounds." Rhian nodded and took the candle.

"Be careful," Rhian said as she continued on toward the castle.

"I will." At the corner of her eye, Artemis saw a flash as Rhian and Amice disappeared. Artemis ran up the steps of the castle. The south west side of the castle was the farthest from her. However, it was were Ava and Everett where likely to be as this was where Everett and his family stayed.

Artemis was careful not to draw attention to herself as she ran toward the other side of the castle. She found her way to Everett's room. It was silent in there, and suddenly there was a war cry, and Everett nearly took Artemis's head off.

"Take it easy," she muttered grabbing his sword and throwing it toward the ground. He set it down.

"I'm sorry," he muttered. Ava was behind him. She looked nervous and scared.

"You must get out of here. Go to the forest. You'll find Rhian and Amice already there. I will meet you there in a moment."

"Why not now?" Ava asked. "Come with us." Artemis shook her head.

"I must see something for myself," Artemis replied. Ava nodded. They went there separate ways. She went to the throne room. She looked in from a balcony. Arthur and Merlin were sprawled out on the floor already. Artemis was just in time to watch Arthur and Uther's shocked face as Morgana proclaimed herself Uther's daughter and took the throne. Her betray was complete.