Amazing thanks to Nance for smoothing out my words and grammar! And, special thanks to Matthew72 for helping me tackle Percival's hidden past. (I would thank sarajm...but, a history of him as a Pomeranian trainer just wasn't what I was looking for. The idea that Poms can be trained is too far fetched, even for this story.)

Nance: omg you're gonna kill me with the puns! (Let's not get over our heads in this, again. LOL)

Linbates: I'm glad to hear that! Thank you! I had fun writing those last chapters, with all the action.

AWanderersHaven: You'll find out a hint of their fate in this chapter, but it will be explained more in the next one.

Squawking and flapping overhead made Percival shake his own head. After nearly a year, he had grown used to the oddities in the Torchwood Hub, even if he still didn't quite understand most of them. The pterodactyl flying around near the top of the fifty foot ceiling, was only one of them.

When he had first come to Torchwood, he had thought it was a dragon of some kind. It had taken weeks of the others explaining to him what a dinosaur was, and how something that was supposed to have been extinct long before even his time, had ended up as a resident 'pet' for the Torchwood team.

The 'Hub', as it was fondly known, sat below Roald Dahl Plass in the city of Cardiff. The main floor of the Hub was actually a few stories below ground level. Percival had chuckled when he had discovered that there seemed to be a modern, widespread idea of housing secret government bases in man-made caves underground. Gwaine worked in the Cheyenne Mountain Complex, and Merlin had spoken of his work, also inside Snowdon Mountain in the north.

Down below the main floor were cells, near the sewer tunnels for Cardiff, where creatures called Weevils lived. They were odd humanoid beasts that sometimes escaped through the Rift in space-time, and ran amok in Cardiff. Part of Torchwood's job was to keep an eye on these creatures, and capture them if they started to become a nuisance. Percival figured there was more to the story, but he had other things to be concerned with. So, he just followed Jack's orders where they were concerned.

He'd learned how to handle a computer fairly well, with Mickey's help. He was fairly proficient in handling a vehicle when the need arose, though his driving skills were still very basic. The guns and weapons...he'd been able to learn easily. Being similar to the crossbows he'd used in his previous life in Camelot, it was simple transition...once he got used to the sound of the modern firearms.

Learning how to handle various aspects of Leon's ship, had added another element that the knight never expected to learn in his previous life. Under his friend's tutelage, like with the land-bound vehicles of Earth, he was able to pilot it, if needed.

'Previous life,' he thought with a chuckle. It wasn't as if he was like Mickey, and had actually lived and died in some historic time. However, his life in Camelot and his current life now were so completely different. It almost seemed like a dream at times.

"Thinking about Camelot?" A soft voice asked.

Percival's eyes shifted from the computer screen to the ghost of a man standing next to it. He smiled at Lancelot and nodded. He'd become increasingly used to his friend's sudden appearances.

"You know, there is nothing to stop you from being happy here, my friend. Nothing but yourself, it would appear."

"I am happy." The large knight said with a smile. "I have my friends here."

"What about a girl?"

He snorted quietly. "You know, I have never been with a woman. All the times I would go with Gwaine to a brothel...I'd just sit and watch him make a fool of himself."

Soft laughter floated down from the catwalk outside the office of Jack Harkness. Ianto and Jack stood up there, flirting. Percival cast a glance in their direction, before turning back to the computer screen.

"I see." The Ascended knight whispered, following his friend's gaze. "This world is quite different from the one you left, maybe you should take advantage of it."

"It's not that." Shifting uncomfortably, the large man shook his head.

Lancelot watched his friend for a moment. Even when he had first found Percival, after his family was killed, Percival had never opened up much about himself or his past. Changing the subject, Lancelot asked, "Have you made any progress in your search?"

Percival tapped on the keys in front of him and shook his head. "No. Jack allowed me to access some of his data from the future. Yet, even there I can't seem to find the references I need."

"Perhaps,the future is not where you should be looking."

Percival's eyes narrowed in confusion. "If not the future, then...the past?"

"The answer may be hidden in plain sight...much like the druids used to be around Camelot."

"The only way to tell a druid, was the mark..." He stated thoughtfully. Percival knew this from his childhood. Growing up near the borders of Cenred's kingdom and Camelot, he had seen many druids had flee from the latter during the years of after the Great Purge. There was one clan in particular that he knew rather well. His mother and others in his village traded with the druids, and Percival had become close to one youth, close to his own age.

The large knight had never found out if his friend was a boy or a girl. Caron, a name that simply meant 'to love,' and Percival had loved his friend. At times, Caron was very much a male; short hair and a square face, with a bit of hair on his upper lip. Then, at others, his friend seemed much more feminine, her voice never deepening. Neither Caron, nor anyone in the druid tribe, ever gave a hint to the teen's gender. Percival didn't care. He knew the soul that was inside. At fifteen-years-old, he had finally worked up the nerve to proclaim his feelings for Caron.

They were walking back to town, after having spent the day practicing their tracking skills, talking and joking about a variety of things. He was just about to confess, when dark smoke on the horizon put a damper on their jovial mood.

Cenred's men had attacked the town.

Word had come that the dragon, who King Uther had kept prisoner for decades, had escaped, and was raining terror down on the great city. It seemed as though one of Cenred's spies had overheard the name of Percival's hometown, Enged, as a possible hiding place for the last Dragon Lord. Cenred had been determined to find, and either destroy or capture the Dragon Lord first; leaving Uther and Camelot to be decimated by the beast.

Caron had turned to run back to the druid encampment to tell his people, while Percival ran into the town. The few people still alive in the village told the tale of horror. Young men were conscripted into service. Women had been raped or taken as slaves. Percival's entire family had been killed, except his younger brother, who he assumed was now fodder for King Cenred's army.

He had spun around and raced out of town, tears blurring his vision, as he headed toward the only person he had left. He had tripped during his flight, just off of a road that ran between the kingdoms. On his knees, and he had let his grief overcome him. That was how Lancelot had found him.

The older man had listened to the teen, and offered comfort in his own story, very similar to Percival's. He promised to help Percival find his friend, and together they searched through the forest. Sadly, however, they had been unable to find the druid encampment.

He never saw, nor heard from Caron again. Part of him blamed his friend, even though he knew deep down, that it had probably been the elders of the tribe who had made the decision to move on, before they found themselves caught in the ongoing war between Uther and Cenred.

The next few years were spent at Lancelot's side, for the most part. The older man, determined to someday become a knight, would go off occasionally to try and win some coins from competitions as a sell-sword, but they always managed to come back together.

Percival's heart had skipped a beat, when he saw a dove with a note on its leg, waiting on a tree branch ahead of them. He knew that the druids had ways of speaking with animals, and deep down, he prayed that it was Caron searching for him.

He kept his confusion to himself, when he found that the note contained a plea for help for Camelot, and did not come from a druid. Instead, it was from the manservant of the prince, and was addressed to Lancelot.

His questions were pushed to the background when he was told that it was Cenred's men, under the banner of Lady Morgana, who they were fighting. The chance at revenge against the men who had slain his family, and the possibility of perhaps finding his brother, had him pledging his allegiance to Arthur.

If his brother had been among the immortal men, he never found out. During the heat of battle, every enemy warrior suddenly exploded into dust, leaving the knights of Camelot confused, but relieved.

He looked up to where Lancelot had been standing, and wasn't surprised to find his friend had already vanished. The message had been delivered.

It wasn't until after Elyan had been possessed, and Arthur had made a proclamation of peace with the druids, that Caron had finally made contact with him.

In the years before Morgana had made her presence known again, Percival would find himself in the woods occasionally, walking with his old friend. Caron had become a seer for the tribe, and had taken a vow of celibacy. The knight had never found out, even then, if his friend was a man or a woman. Still...in his love for his friend, he had silently proclaimed that for as long as Caron was alive, he would never love another.

Then, Morgana had returned, and the peace that had been obtained was gone. Camelot was at war. He'd gone to see Caron one night, and had told his friend about changes in Camelot, including the former druid boy, Mordred. He explained how Mordred had been made a knight, and then how he had nearly died because of the Disir.

Caron's face had turned pale. "It has begun. I'm so sorry, my friend. I wish you the best." The seer walked off into the shadows and disappeared.

Shaking the tension out of his arms, Percival took a deep breath and pushed his emotions back. Caron had been gone for nearly fifteen hundred years. That night was the last time Percival had seen his friend.

Focusing back on the computer to distract himself, he brought up a list of the planets that he'd been given that had possible correlation to their search. He looked again at the flagged marks on the screen, and realization dawned across his face.

"Oy, Mickey!" The tall knight called across the room. "Can you come help me with something?"

"Sure." The other man had been chatting with Gwen Cooper about a recent Weevil outbreak. He made his way across the Hub to Percival's station. "What's up?"

"I need to pull up a picture of a triskelion, and I want to place it over these three stars."

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Loud music poured out of the speakers, assaulting Arthur's ears. He did his best to ignore it, as he held the sandbag steady for his friend.

"You know, killing this punching bag isn't going to help." He said with a roll of his eyes, and felt himself shift from a jarring blow.

"Maybe not, but it gives me something to do while I think."

Arthur was about to suggest a more productive release of energy, when Merlin decided to continue the rant he'd been on since they had arrived back at the manor.

"Two planets destroyed, and for what? A fracking ship!" He continued pounding his fists agains the bag. "That the Ori still have control over. Millions of people, Arthur...millions...are dead! I could stop this! I know it! But, no! First, the Jaffa had to use a weapon they had no business using. Just when I think I had gotten through to her. She knew I was there, Arthur. She heard me!"

"I know! I was there, Merlin. I saw it, too."

"Then...and then, the stupid idiots decide to try and salvage the ship. I'm glad Adria is still alive. It means that there is still hope, but because of it, Dakara was destroyed."

After the Ancient weapon had been used, and the members of SG-1 were beamed off the planet's surface in the nick of time, it had been discovered that the Ori ship that remained, was unmanned. Under orders, SG-1...without Merlin and Arthur...had attempted to claim the ship. Unfortunately, three Ha'tak ships arrived, and Odyssey was forced to pull back out of range.

Radio contact was lost with Mitchell and the others, when the shields of the Ori vessel suddenly came back online.

The ship had lifted off the ground and entered hyperspace on a course directly for the Free Jaffa homeworld. By the time the Odyssey had reached the planet, things had gone from bad to worse. The Jaffa were preparing to fire the Ancient weapon at the Ori ship, knowing full well, they would be sacrificing their own people on Dakara in the process.

They had watched helplessly, as the Ancient weapon was activated, and then another burst of energy was sent from the Ori ship. Between the two weapons, Dakara...and all the life on the planet...had been destroyed.

Odyssey had managed to extract SG-1 and jump into hyperspace, just milliseconds before the wavefront from the Ancient weapon engulfed the Ori ship.

On the return trip to Earth, Merlin had listened as Jackson and the others described the events that had transpired on the ship. Protected by a personal shield, Adria had survived the wave from the Ancient weapon. She had been the one controlling the ship, as Dakara was destroyed. She had proclaimed that the bulk of the Ori fleet would arrive soon, and in less than a year they would control the entire Milky Way.

Vala had sat quietly, guilt evident on her face. As Adria's birth mother, she took much of the blame on herself, despite the assurances of the others that there was no way she could be held responsible for a child who had been genetically grown to full adulthood in under a few months.

Merlin had felt a measure of relief that Adria was still alive, but the possibility of being able to find her and reach her again was slim. She was still his best chance at finding Aithusa, though he neglected to mention anything of the sort during the debriefing.

Jackson continued to fill in the story. Adria had proclaimed that while she planned to eventually convince her mother to accept the ways of Origin, the Ori also had a special plan for Jackson specifically. What that was...none of them could even begin to guess.

It was with a heavy heart, and the knowledge that five more planets had fallen to the Ori, that Arthur and Merlin were taken back home.

"We'll find her again, Merlin."

"Yeah...but, what if we're too late?"

The music from the stereo system cut out. Merlin's heavy breathing was suddenly the only sound in the home gym.

Arthur glanced toward the door and gave a friendly smile. "I'm going to go check on Guinevere." He said and patted Merlin on the shoulder as he passed.

Turning around and watching his friend, he saw Martha standing near the doorway. She spoke quietly to Arthur, before making her way over to her husband.

His black hair was dripping with sweat, and his shirt clung to his chest; every fiber drenched from his workout. She didn't need to ask if he was alright. She could see the emotions glistening in his eyes. "Percival and Mickey are here. They think they have some information on the location of Moros' Weapon."

"That's great." Merlin nodded his head, and began unwinding the boxing hand wraps. "...Lot of good that'll do us, without Leon's ship, though."

"Well, that's the other news I came down here to tell you." She reached out and took his hands, helping him out of the wraps. "I went out to the Crystal Cave this morning, and decided to try and contact them again."

"...And?" He finally had to ask, when she didn't elaborate right away.

"Leave it to a woman to finally answer a ringing phone."

He exhaled in relief. "Laney? She's alright, then? She's safe?"

Martha nodded, "Yes,and no. She's safe...but, it seems Gwaine got himself in a pickle, and now Leon is trying to save him." Taking the wraps over next to a wall, she dropped them into a laundry hamper for cleaning.

Merlin chuckled. Somehow, her news of their friends, wasn't all that surprising. It may not have been the best news, but at least it was something. He grabbed a bottle of water from a nearby shelf.

"I told her, I would find Percival. He might be able to talk her through some of the ship's systems, in case she needs to try and get it back to Earth by herself."

"Hopefully, it won't come to that." His brow pinched with worry, not only for Laney attempting to fly the vessel solo, but what it would mean for Leon and Gwaine if their only means of escape was suddenly gone.

"Mmm. Hopefully, but if you all need to go and save 'Space Boy and Buckaroo Banzai'... Her words, not mine." Martha held up her hands innocently.

The bottle was at his lips, but thankfully he had yet to actually take a drink. She smiled at the look on her husband's face as he froze, processing the new nicknames.

"Not sure about the 'Space Boy'...but 'Buckaroo Banzai' is oddly fitting for Gwaine. Well, maybe not the brain surgeon part, or the bowtie."[1]

"Why don't you go get cleaned up? See what Percival and Mickey brought. Then, you boys head to out to your 'man-cave,'" she said, referring to the Crystal Cave with a twinkle in her eyes. "...and try to figure out how to get them home."

"Aw, I thought you liked me all sweaty." He teased.

Martha bit her lip, as her eyes moved over his body. "Well, yes, but usually it's from other activities."

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Arthur had wanted to saddle up some horses for the ride to the cave, but in the interest of time...not to mention there were no proper stables near the Valley of Fallen Kings...the four men ended up taking two ATVs. They resembled beefed-up golfcarts, but were made specifically for traversing rugged terrain with tighter spaces, where a standard off-road vehicle couldn't go. It made the journey to the cave much quicker.

Percival and Mickey were contemplating different ways to determine where Leon's ship was. They had yet to use the Stargate in the Crystal Cave, as Merlin was still reluctant about letting anyone know of its existence. An outgoing wormhole might not have been detected...getting back was a different story. The Gate at the SGC was programmed to take precedence over all incoming travel. However, if they could come out at a Gate close enough to Leon's ship, they could beam aboard and fly home.

It was a sound plan, but thankfully, as Percival went to the controls to send a hail to Laney, another voice responded. Leon sounded tired as he informed Percival to sit tight. They were on their way home, but he asked if Martha could be standing by with some medical equipment. It seemed Gwaine did not come through the encounter with Ba'al unscathed.

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The door slid open with a mechanical hiss, and Leon turned his head to see Laney coming through. Although, he had kissed her before sending her to the ship, he now began to question if it had been the right thing to do. It was impetuous, with no thought beyond his own turbulent emotions. The fact that she had responded could have been nothing more than gratitude and relief at being saved.

"How's your brother?" He asked, pretending to check various status gauges through his ship's control panel.

"He's resting, and the swelling in his face has gone down a bit." She sighed and moved up next to the console. "Listen, Leon, I..."

At the same time, he started to say, "Elaine, we need to talk." He smiled, and waved his hand in her direction. "You go first."

Twisting her hands, she began to pace. After a few short laps, she finally stopped and took a breath. "Thank you. I really don't know how else to say it. I don't think I've ever had anyone, other than my brother, who would come to my rescue. These last couple of years have been hell. From my ex leaving, to Gwaine coming back from the dark ages; Boyd dying, moving twice, god...you name it. It has been hell. Getting kidnapped by some crazed alien has just been icing on the fracking cake...And you. I didn't know what the frack to do when you told me about what happened to you guys. It scared the living shit out of me. In the barn that night...I don't know...I just lost it."

He initially had been watching her, but as she had begun listing off all the hardships, his eyes drifted to his hands, folded in his lap. She had needed something from him...a simple release of tension..and here he was, wanting to complicate it with emotions. Leon started to pull himself back in; ready to bury what he felt, back behind the wall he'd spent centuries erecting.

The ring he'd worn on the chain around his neck for so long, was in his pocket. His mind drifted to the memories attached to it. Initially, it had been his great-grandmother's...spoils of war...a gift from her Roman husband. After that, it had been passed from mother to son, to give to the woman he marries, until it came to him and he had given it to Bridget.

While Laney had been taking care of Gwaine, and finally taking a few moments to clean herself up, he'd taken it off the chain with the thought of giving it to her. Perhaps, not as a token of marriage, but as a gift of his growing feelings for her. He began to revisit that decision.

"...Are you even listening to me?"

"Yes, I am." He responded softly. "I'm sorry for causing you so much strife. I should have been more careful and not gotten involved. Ba'al would have never kidnapped you, if not for our relations."

"Oh, to hell with all that. To paraphrase something you told me once: something like this can make a person re-evaluate her life, ya know?" She was standing next to him, looking down at him in the chair.

He nodded and kept his gaze low, denying the rejection he felt he would see in her eyes. Her worn fingers grasped his chin and forced him to look up.

"You saved me Leon...and I don't just mean from that Ba'alogna alien freak." She sat down in Leon's lap and met his eyes. "You gave me hope - something I haven't had in a long time, Leon. A long time. These last couple weeks, I've had more than enough time to think, and I prayed to God thatI hadn't fracking blown it. I was scared you wouldn't come because I had been such a bitch...but, you did. Like a hero out of a fracking romance novel, you came for me."

Leon felt a stirring in his heart as he listened to her words, and watched her deep brown eyes. She leaned in closer and gave him a light kiss. He pulled back. His voice came out as a choked whisper. "What about our agreement?"

"Frack the fracking agreement. I don't want to be the one you save, and then watch you ride off into the sunset on another adventure. I want to be the one you come back for...who you come home to."

He hadn't even realized when the tears had started falling from his eyes. "I'm not going to age." He said, in a last ditch effort to dissuade her. Leon didn't know why he was suddenly fighting against his feelings, except that he wanted to be certain she knew the score.

"I don't care, because I'm pretty sure I've fallen in love with you, already knowing that." She waited, and watched his blue eyes absorbing her words. A hint of a smile began to form at the corner of his mouth. "...And besides, how could I pass up the opportunity to be the old, cougar granny, pushed around in her wheelchair by some hot, young stud."

Leon burst out laughing. He wrapped his hand around the back of her neck and pulled her into a deep kiss.

"One request," she said, leaning back and giving him a serious look. "One of these days, I really want to see you in the full, shining armor get up."

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[1] For anyone who is into the cheesy 80's sci-fi movies, I highly suggest checking out "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension" Stupid? Yes. Funny as hell? Most definitely. Matt Smith, step aside for the real bow-tie wearing space hero. :P