Chapter Eight:
Stuff. Lots of Stuff.
I am talking to Gaius about poison antidotes, while Em sniffs around to find cereal -I mean literally sniffing. Bloody weird- and Merlin rushes into the room (well I say rushes... at least he's trying to rush...) dragging an unconscious man. I run forward and help him lift the figure I know to be Lancelot onto the table just as Gaius sweeps the books and candleholders (why are there so many of them? Is he trying to gather an army?) away to make room. I know Lancelot will be fine, but nonetheless help Gaius tend to his wounds. I leave after G-man (fine, I'll use his real name. "Gaius") proclaims Lancey will be okay. I know the next scene already. I go to the room where Eliz is now. She should still be comatose. When I open the door, I findEliz (wearing the ring) sitting up and talking to Kay. When Kay sees me, she curtsies (once more despite my protests) and exits the room. Eliz watches me from her bed warily.
"Look," I say, breaking the tense silence. "I'm not going to reveal your secret or anything."
"What secret?" She pretends not to know what I'm talking about, but her eyes widen in fear.
"Your ring fell off while you were fighting. Luckily you were wearing a helmet. I slipped the ring on you before anyone saw. Three people including myself know."
"But-"
"We'll keep silent. Personally, I think it would be great if you managed to become a knight. Like a hidden punch in the face to all those nobles who look down on females." I think back to Lord Jerkpants as I say this, and grin.
"Okay then." Eliz says, apparently at a loss for words. I suppose I was very straightforward just then...
"They'll have tryouts again in a month. There are some today, but your in no condition to-" I stop, seeing Eliz stopped listening at "there are some today." "It's probably not a great idea..." I try to tell her.
"Too bad. I'm not missing a chance like this." She stands (still in medieval pajamas) and begins to leave.
"Wait a sec!" I call after her, hoping she hears me.
"You won't be able to convince me not to go."
"I won't try. What's your real name?" I see her hesitate at my question, probably not sure if I'll just use it as evidence against her or something.
"Elyss." She finally says.
"Cool. I'll show you to the armory. They won't let you try out looking like that."
"Cool?" Elyss asks, speaking for the first time since we started walking to the aurmory.
"it's an expression. Like "neat."" Hopefully they know the word "neat" in Camelot...
"Ah."
When we reach the "Room Full of Shiny Things That You REALLY Shouldn't Let Me use" as I call it, I help her suit up in chain-mail and gauntlets. Luckily the pajamas of this time are similar to day clothes...
When we finally find a good sword (half of them still have blood on them or are weighted incorrectly. The Camelot blacksmith must be terrible. I hadn't noticed this before, but then again, I hadn't spent much time in the armory) we hurry to the training grounds, and apparently Lancelot hasn't come around yet. I grin as "Eliz" approaches Arthur. He looks at her thoughtfully for a few seconds before nodding and saying something. It wasn't this easy for Lancelot to try out... then again, Elyss fought in a tournament as a knight already, and Merlin was rooting for Lancelot.
At first, the pair simply circle each other warily. Arthur it the first to make a move. He feints, and Elyss nearly falls off balance. Something in her stance changes. She preforms a series of quick jabbing feints, attempting to strike after the first five. Arthur blocks her. He attacks, and Elyss dodges again and again. As the last grains of sand fall from the timekeeper's hourglass, Elyss manages to strike Arthur over the head with the pommel of her sword. HE appears slightly dazed, but luckily he had been wearing a helmet. Elyss helps Arthur to his feet. They shake hands.
The knighting ceremony takes place five minutes later. Apparently the beast's attacks on the outlying villages made obtaining knights a top priority. thankfully, Elyss doesn't have to present a seal of nobility due to the fact that she had been in the tournament. I wonder why it isn't a problem that she would theoretically already be a knight (only knights were in the tournament), but I shall never understand how humans can forget things like that.
Merlin grins, telling me of the "nobleman" who saved his life, and how said nobleman is attempting to become a knight. I nearly tell him about Elyss, but I don't want to burst his bubble of joy by one-upping him. We head to Gaius's chambers, meeting Em along the way. Before any of us can knock on the door, Gaius throws it open.
"Merlin!" Gaius practically screeches. Apparently he still hasn't given up on the whole "magic cannot be used unless it is absolutely necessary and even then you can't use it, regardless of your noble intentions" thing. He'd been a bit more understanding in the show.
"Hello Gaius..." Merlin says, and I can tell he is alerting Gaius to our presence before the Physician begins yelling about magic. Gaius apparently doesn't catch on.
"What on earth were you thinking? Using your abilities so flippantly, and to fool the king-" G-man pauses, finally noticing the two other people standing awkwardly in the doorway. "Ah."
Merlin quickly turns to us. "Basically, I'm a brilliant artist. So I forged a document that says Lancelot is the fifth son of some lord, and now he can try out for knighthood. Eventually."
"And Gaius is mad at you because...?" Em prompts, eager to watch Merlin scramble to invent his story further.
"Uther has a grudge on good artists. If he finds out the document is a forgery, and who was skilled enough to create it, I will be in the dungeons for years, if not executed."
"Oi, you shouldn't be that mad at him," Em smiles at Gaius, and at first I am grateful towards her for trying to smooth things over. "After all, he isn't the one who helped a wounded female sorceress infiltrate Arthur's knights." Emphasis on the "at first" part of my last thought.
"And who did this?" Gaius says, giving me the eyebrow.
"Weeeeell..." I look around, hoping for inspiration of some kind. After a few tense seconds, an (admittedly terrible) idea strikes me. "THE BUTLER DID IT!" I yell, grabbing Merlin's hand and running down the corridor, leaving a bemused Gaius and smirking Em. We finally stop running upon reaching the courtyard, where we run in to a dung-covered Lancelot.
"Hello Merlin!" He calls, trudging towards us.
"Hi!" Merlin grins, then remembers that I supposedly have no idea who the man is. "Calli, this is Lancelot. Lancelot, this is Calli."
"Hello there." I wave slightly, practically jumping up and down (two words: THEY HAVE COFFEE HERE! Okay, that wasn't two words...). Lancelot chivalrously bends and kisses my hand, and I stick my tongue out cheekily at Merlin. The Warlock clears his throat awkwardly. "New to Camelot, then? Merlin was telling me about his "artistry skills" and how you want to be a knight."
"Ah, yes. I'm from one of the small villages. Even I forgot what it was called, and I lived there for the better part of my childhood." I smirk at the soon-to-be (well, in a couple of seasons, anyway...) knight's joke.
"We've got to get you to Arthur, I've a feeling that your knighthood will be moved forward." I say cryptically, dragging Merlin and Lancelot each by a hand. Lancelot stops and says he still has chores, and I grin. "Sword sharpening?"
"Actually, yes." He raises an eyebrow and shrugs. Merlin looks at me with a mix of confusion, resignation, and surprise (because he's awesome enough to convey that many emotions at once).
"Good," I stand off to the side next to Merlin, and watch as Arthur and Lancelot have a broom duel. It's awesome, and yes, I do use that word too much.
After aiding Merlin and Gaius with the survivors of the most recent attack (while trying to keep Gaius busy enough not to ask about the whole "infiltrating the knights with a female sorceress" thing) I pretty much pass out from exhaustion. Tomorrow Lancey gets knighted... I think blearily, allowing my eyes to flutter shut.
The sun shines brightly through the open curtains. I probably missed the Knighting ceremony. Oh well. It'll happen again. soon enough. Ish. Not really soon, but... eventually. I jump out of bed and look out the window. It's later than I thought. The feast-y thing is today... oops. I try to get ready as quickly as possible, and three minutes later I'm at the doors of the Hall of Ceremonies. Luckily, no one notices my (very late) entrance. Except Merlin. And Gwen. And Arthur. And Lancelot. And quite a few random people that I don't know. Basically, everyone but Em. I grin sheepishly. "Sorry about that..." the doors slam shut behind me, and I jump. The nobles slowly return to their conversations glancing at me once in a while. I approach Merlin and Gwen, noting that they were probably just talking about Lancelot. "Has Em shown up?" I ask.
"No, she hasn't." Merlin frowns (adorably) and Gwen shakes her head. I look around again, and she isn't at the food table. She isn't anywhere. This is strange, to say the least. Em wouldn't normally miss out on a buffet. I glance at Merlin, and he looks as worried as I am. Gwen just looks confused.
"I'll go look for her. If she shows up, make sure she isn't dead." Merlin raises an eyebrow, and Gwen blinks. Before they say anything I'm out the door, ignoring the disgruntled mutterings of some of the more "proper," "on time," or "focused" nobles.
She isn't in her room. She's not in the kitchens, the library, the armory, or the north wing. I run up to the battlements, but someone else has gotten there first. Sort-of someone. The gryphon turns it's head to look at me, and I see two figures on it's back. One just happens to be an unconscious Em. The other is "Ed". He smirks, and before I can say anything the gryphon jumps from the wall. When I look down, they're gone. Footsteps sound behind me, and I grab the nearest object (I don't know how it got there, but it did...) to defend myself. A shadowy figure runs onto the battlements...
Merlin blinks slowly at the ladle currently resting against his throat. I lower it slowly, and he grins shakily.
"Sorry about that. I thought you were... never mind. Em's been taken." I drag him to the edge and look down again. This time I see something stuck to a wall sconce about a hundred feet below us, but still high enough off the ground to present trouble. Without thinking, I run back inside and nearly fall down the stairs.
Merlin finally catches up, and stares at the wall beside me. I look over at him. We don't have time to get a ladder or a grappling hook. The package (whatever it is) is somehow nowhere near a window. "Any ideas?" I ask him. We look at each-other, and he raises his hand to the wall. His eyes flash gold. The parcel rises up for a moment, and then begins to plummet down. I catch it. Merlin looks surprised (probably having expected me to scream, or show some sign of fear) but says nothing. We run back inside, nearly colliding with Kay.
"Calli! One of the knights. They saw." She glances at Merlin, and my heart fills with dread. I don't comment on her immediate acceptance of Merlin's wizardness.
"Which one?" I keep walking quickly, and Kay falls in stride.
"Sir Edward. He might be persuaded to keep quiet, if you hurry." She begins to run, and Merlin and I follow suit. We find the Knight standing in the middle of a corridor, looking worriedly at a wall.
"Lady Calli. This man-" He glances apprehensively at Merlin.
"Yes, I know. We have bigger things to worry about right now. Em has been taken. Will you help us find her?" I figure that it's better to have him with us, since then he won't be able to tell Uther.
"Yes, milady." He joins us, and for some reason doesn't question my decision. I like this guy. Before we leave the castle (the four of us seem to have made a silent decision to go questing) we make a stop by the armory. Elyss is there, along with Lancelot.
"Em. Kidnapped." Merlin says, and they nod. These people are so hard to surprise...
"I'll cover for you." Lancelot tells Merlin, who nods gratefully. Arthur won't be pleased by his disappearance... or Sir Edward's... we each grab a weapon (or in my case, four) and don minimal armor. Leather shin guards, gauntlets, and a chain-mail tunic for Kay. Sir Edward is already prepared. Elyss walks up to me as I'm helping Kay strap on a quiver full of arrows.
"I would like to accompany you. I owe the two of you a debt, and four is a number of death."
"Alright then. You and Merlin, go get provisions. Kay can nick some blankets, and I should probably explain a few things to Sir Edward." She nods. They're actually listening to me... cool. Sir Edward approaches me hesitantly. I decide to be blunt. "Yes, Merlin has magic. He doesn't know much about it yet, but he is the legendary Emrys of prophecy. He is destined to bring peace to Albion at Arthur's side, uniting magic with the land once more, a bunch of doom stuff, basically, he isn't meant to be discovered yet."
"O-okay then." he sets his jaw firmly, and I pat him on the back.
"Could you go ask Gaius for some healing herbs, strengthening plants, whatever he's got. Maybe he even has a guide on edible berries or something?" Edward nods, and two seconds later he's gone. Lancelot glances at me.
"So. I couldn't help but overhear."
"Oops..."
"It's fine. I had my suspicions. How did you find out?"
"I've... I guessed a long time ago."
"And when are you going to tell him where you're really from?" His gaze seems to bore into my skull.
"When I have to. What tipped you off?"
"Intuition. I wasn't sure until now. Let me guess: you're from the future, where this is all some kind of legend?"
"Yes. This version is technically a television show." Lancelot looks at me expectantly. "It's... kind of like a play. But not."
"Ah. And Merlin doesn't know?"
"No. I've changed things from how they're supposed to be. I shouldn't interfere anymore." Lancelot looks at the doorway, and I follow his eyes. Kay walks in, and Lancelot and I each take a few blankets. The three of us head to the stables. Hopefully the others will guess where we are... we load the horses with blankets, adding the rest of the supplies as they come. Ten minutes later, Lancelot waves to us from the distance. His figure slowly recedes until we can no longer see him. Somehow in the preparation, I'd forgotten the parcel. When we stop for the night, the five of us gather around the fire in a circle. "You do the honors," I say, and Merlin tentatively rips open the plain wrapping. Inside we find a compass and a piece of parchment.
Follow the needle to play the game,
Keep your mission, do not stray.
Focus on the path ahead,
Look to the side and you'll be dead.
And to the destiniless one,
Don't you try to flee or run.
Remember what they have to do,
And know I'm really after you.
"What the hell does that mean?" Elyss asks, voicing what we've all been wondering.
"We probably have to follow the compass. It must be magic, since it's not pointing north." Kay explains, and I begin to decipher the bit about the "destiniless one." Someone's after me.
"Alright. We leave at dawn. I'll take first watch." I turn away from the fire, and Merlin moves to sit next to me.
"So."
"So."
"You aren't bothered by the whole warlock thing?" He asks, and I see a bit of hope in his expression.
"Of course not. Merlin, I should probably tell you something-" I'm about to explain that I'm from the future/another dimension/a parallel universe, but I'm interrupted by a loud shriek. "The gryphon! Everyone, get up! Now! Grab a torch! If it corners you, hold out your weapons and spin!" Hopefully it works. I turn to Merlin before he gets a torch. "Merlin, the spell. It's Bregdan Anweald Gafeluec. You were supposed to learn it already, but timing didn't work out." Thankfully, he doesn't question me yet. We hear a sudden shout from the woods. Arthur rushes in, and his battle-cry resounds through the camp. Lancelot, Leon, and a few other knights follow him. They surround the Gryphon, and one by one are defeated. Lancelot backs up to make a final charge. "Now." I say, and two voices begin to chant the spell.
"Bregdan Anweald Gafeluec." It takes me a moment, but I notice that one of the voices is my own. "Bregdan Anweald Gafeluec." What if we fail? He was supposed to have practiced, to know what it does- "Bregdan Anweald Gafeluec." Lancelot's spear begins to glow a moment before it impales the gryphon. I look at Merlin, and see his eyes glowing with a bright gold. They widen in surprise, and I know that mine must be as well. We slowly let go of each-other's hands (I hadn't noticed that...) and run to Lancelot. He's bleeding. The gryphon slashed him across the chest. Merlin runs to get Gaius's herbs, and I lean over at Lancelot's request.
"They're after you."
"Who?"
"They have Em. Don't tell anyone else- where you're from. They might- targets." His breathing is becoming labored. Merlin comes with bandages and supplies.
"Don't talk. I'm going to have to stitch you up a bit." I try to quiet him, but he keeps speaking as Merlin cleans his wounds.
"The gryphon- I'm not going to make it. Take care of the others." Lancelot glances at Arthur and the rest of the knights, who are currently being tended to by Kay.
"They're fine. Hold still." He finally does, and I pull out the bone needle and thread. Lancelot winces as it pierces his skin. Ouch. I keep going, back and forth, binding the flesh, and the wound is slowly closed. He isn't bleeding as much, but I'm not sure if that's because of my efforts or just blood loss.
Diary Entry, one week later
For some reason, Uther doesn't question why five people were camping in the woods. He arrests Lancelot when we arrive, and it takes Gaius four hours to convince him to allow the prisoner to be treated. When Arthur becomes conscious, he tells his father of the gryphon's defeat. Luckily he didn't see the spell. Uther grudgingly banishes Lancelot. Gaius is permitted to keep Lancelot in his care until he can travel. It doesn't look like that's going to happen for a while. Merlin and I haven't talked about magic since we defeated the gryphon. Em is still missing, but hopefully she can take care of herself until I figure out what's going on. Uther has sent a search party, and if they fail he will permit Arthur to look for her. I've decided to tag along (regardless of what Arthur thinks), and hopefully the original group will be able to come as well. If they want to. The arranged day of the search party's return just happens to coincide with the approximate day Gaius said he would release Lancelot. I'm finally starting to get how absurd all of this is. Em could die, and we're sitting here waiting for a bunch of red-cloaked idiots who barely achieved knighthood to finish camping so that we can save our friend from the future. I need to do something. Edwin Muriden was caught lurking suspiciously in an alley (I may have set Sir Edward on his trail) so screw the timeline. Uther luckily doesn't allow prisoners to send flowers to his wards. I've started my lessons in swordplay with Morgana, in the hopes of being able to find Em soon. The timeline seems to be speeding up; Morgana's dreams of Arthur's death at the hands of Sophie have started. The events of "The Gates of Avalon" are soon to begin.
Silence is a difficult thing to keep, especially when you know something's going to happen. I've spent two days sitting next to an evil Sidhe during meals, Sophie having decided to take Em's place at the table. Tonight she's going to abduct Arthur. Merlin and I plan to follow them to the lake. Well, we will plan to. Eventually. I haven't told him. I knock on Gaius's door, and Merlin answers.
"They're taking Arthur tonight. You won't be able to convince him not to go, but we should try anyway." I turn to walk away. Merlin follows me out into the corridor (as I knew he would), and raises an eyebrow.
"How do you always know what's going on?"
"Intuition," I reply, and the two of us walk silently to Arthur's chambers.
"Ah. And would this "intuition" be the product of prophetic dreams of any kind?" Merlin stops walking as he breaks the silence.
"No. It's... I'll tell you eventually. But right now we have other problems." He seems to accept my answer, albeit with reluctance. A minute later, we reach Arthur's room.
"Wait outside," He says, and I don't argue. I have to let him try. When I hear something hit the wall, I hide in a conveniently placed alcove (it's like they want people to spy on Arthur...). Arthur, Sophia, and her father walk out. As soon as they turn the corner, I run into Arthur's room.
"Merlin!" I shout, shoving some of Em's smelling salts (she doesn't need them right now...) in his face.
"Oh. Hello there." He grins up at me from the floor, and I manage to forget Em's disappearance for a moment. Then his eyes cloud with worry, and the moment passes. "How long have they been gone?"
"Just left. Come on." I drag him to his feet by the hand, and we run out of the castle and through the lower town, finally reaching the gates. Luckily they're open (or unluckily, it's technically a bad thing for Camelot's security). Apparently we've caught up with the two outcast Sidhe. I pull Merlin behind a cart of straw (there always seems to be one around when Merlin needs it...) and we let them get ahead of us. When they reach the edge of the forest we follow them again.
When we reach the lake, Aulfric has begun the incantation. I raise my hand and summon Sophia's staff forward. after three seconds, the two Sidhe are dead. I help Merlin drag Arthur from the water.
Merlin's POV
Calli sits next to me at Arthur's bedside. I've been thinking over her story for a few minutes, and there's definitely something wrong. Her kingdom sounds like a place that would be targeted by Camelot, since she's told me magic was legal there. However, no one here had heard of a "Sesquipedalia" until Calli and Em turned up. And she accepted my magic without question, convincing Kay and Sir Edward not to tell anyone. It was like she knew. She always knows. I'd say it's creepy, but it's really kind of sad. She could know that something terrible happens, but not be able to do anything because it's inevitable. I wouldn't be able to live with that, would I? My thoughts are interrupted by a groan from Arthur, and moments later Gaius runs through the door.
"Merlin! Where have you been?" He nearly shouts, and I grin at Arthur's expression. It's never nice to awake to an enraged Gaius.
"Calli and I went on a rescue mission. Arthur, er, he-" I stop, not wanting Arthur to know what really happened. Calli turns to Arthur, and smirks.
"You eloped, mate. That Sophie girl had you wrapped around her finger."
"What?" Arthur stares at her, and I catch on.
"I tried to talk you out of it, but..." I grin. Arthur raises an hand to feel his head. "I couldn't persuade you to return."
"You were beyond reason." Now Calli's finishing my sentences.
"So I had to make you!" I jump in the air and clap my hands. Luckily, Arthur is too exhausted to notice my very undignified action.
"You managed to knock me out?" Arthur looks confused, which is normal for him.
"Yep. With a lump of wood." Calli improvises, and my grin widens. This is fun.
"No one can know about this. No one. Understood?" Arthur is probably afraid of his reputation. Like it would hurt it, after Calli beat him in a sword match. Calli nods, and I follow suit. Arthur falls back onto his pillows and instantly begins to snore.
"Merlin, we need to talk." Gaius says grimly, and he starts to drag me from the room by my sleeve. I reach for Calli's, and soon enough we're being pulled through the hallways.
"Great, Merlin. Now I have to get the eyebrow too," Calli grumbles, but I can tell she doesn't mean it.
"Yep. You're all for equality, aren't you?" Our banter stops when Gaius halts and turns to face us. We're in a deserted wing of the castle. If he were planning on killing us, this would be the place to go.
"Does she know?" Gaius asks me. I nod. "Alright then. Calli, it may have been different in your kingdom, but here, if anyone found out-"
"I'm not going to tell anyone. Do you think I'm an idiot? I don't want Merlin to die." Calli's eyes darken at the last word, and I shudder involuntarily. She knows something. "Or worse. And anyway, I'm not exactly a muggle myself."
"Muggle?" Gaius's eyebrow is reaching dangerous heights.
"Where I'm from, that's what we call people without magic."
"Ah. So Arthur's a... muggle?" I stifle a laugh, and my guardian turns the eyebrow towards me.
"Are you saying you have magic?" Gaius asks curiously.
"Basically. Apparently. Yeah. I just found out recently-ish."
"She defeated the Sidhe outcasts! It was great!" I nearly jump in the air again, but this time manage to stop myself. "And the time with the gryphon, she helped."
"And you trust her?"
"With my life." Calli's eyes widen at my words. Why is she surprised?
Calli's POV
So, he trusts me. that's… nice, somehow. I find my thoughts going back to the picnic we had planned. That's not going to happen for a while.
A/N: I's sorry, I'm so sorry. Seriously. There was school, then six weeks of "math camp" (which was basically school with longer lunch breaks) and the entire time I was trying to write some originalsauce and overcome writer's block whole watching Supernatural, Hetalia, and Attack on Titan (simultaneously forgetting how to spell divide seven times while writing a paper for "camp") and I forgot and if you gave up on this story or anything I completely understand and I'm not entirely happy with how fastslow it's going but it's better than nothing maybe? or not. I don't know. If there are any errors or it seems like bits were skipped, TELL MEH. Copy/Paste is evil and I skimmed over it on here but I could've missed stuffs. That happened last chapter and thankfully RowanAsterCode noticed so I fixed it and I think that was last chapter but timelines... meh.
-Ravenclaw's head