Hunter had stalled, but pressure from Shimazu and Kai made him step forwards, lurching a single step, then another as Aswon and Marius piled through the gap in the archway – before they too stopped in amazement.
They weren't in a courtyard or reception area. They weren't encircled by walls, and there was no fortified house standing before them. There weren't even any clouds overhead, and the rain had stopped.
Hunter remained motionless, and the others pushed out to the sides, peering around his bulk to see what had made him stop so abruptly like that – and then they too stopped dead, gazing over at the throng of cowled figures that stood watching them.
The figures seemed equally surprised to see them, too – and that gave them a second to glance around and to try and determine exactly where they were and possibly even what had happened.
They were inside a giant ring of stones, each one standing over four metres high, grey and smooth stone monoliths, more than two metres wide and half a metre deep that must have weighed several thousand kilograms each. Each stone stood upright, with a gap between them and the next one of a metre, and the stone ran around in a circle that was easily eighty metres across. The eighty-three vertical stones were linked by keystones or lintels that were hewn at the same scale, made of the same dark grey stone that looked to have been carved and shaped by hand.
Inside the circle was a second, smaller circle made up of more vertical stones – but there were half as wide and deep, and made of a different stone with a much bluer colour, forming a tighter circle in the centre of the outer ring. Other stones seemed to be placed between the two circles, only a metre high, but planted in a geometric pattern that repeated itself around the space.
They could see the rays of sunshine drifting between stones a quarter of the way around the circle, golden light spilling in from the summer evening as the sun dipped towards the horizon, casting a warm light into the circle that alternated with deepening shadows. Overhead the night sky was clear, with the stars just starting to become visible in the deepening night. Aswon glanced behind him, and saw, instead of the gateway that they had run through only a few seconds before, there was the same one metre gap between stones as elsewhere in the circle, and outside a calm, peaceful and tranquil pastoral scene of the rolling English countryside, green fields basking in the evening sun – with not a trace of the violent storm, Wild Hunt or their crashed aircraft to be seen…
Marius glanced up at the stars and gasped involuntarily as he saw the constellations – but instead of their normal form, they seemed slightly squished and distorted. The pole star wasn't quite in the right place in relation to others, and he realised he was looking at a scene that was offset from their own by a few thousand years – though whether that was the past or the future, he couldn't say.
Tads dropped into astral and gave a shudder as the background magic of the area battered her soul. Mana coursed through her – it felt like she'd gone to stand under a waterfall and was being relentlessly battered by the water, with no respite. The whole area glowed with magic, woven into a strange pattern that wrapped around and over here, constricting and constraining her.
"It's a power site, a strong one – aspected towards some kind of nature. Not for me, though." As she tried to tap into the power, it resisted her, fought against her efforts, the power forming a barrier around her rather than letting her tap into it to draw what she needed.
The mass of hooded figures had overcome their own surprise at the sudden intrusion, and Kai, Tads, Shimazu and Aswon felt questing fingers of power battering at their auras as scores and scores of people assensed them, battering against their mental shields. Each of them felt many or even most of the attempts fail – but some got through. Hunter and Marius felt nothing – but they were surely also subjected to intense scrutiny.
As he felt his masking not just pierced, but rent open, Shimazu concentrated on his own aura, trying to get a read on the energies involved and to see what, if anything, he could determine about the strangers.
"There's some in there more powerful than us. Stronger than me!" he warned as he gauged the power of the probes and realised just why many of the attempts felt like clumsy wild swings of a club, others were more like the slice of a sword – and the ones that pierced his masking had all the hallmarks of an expertly-placed stiletto sliding through his defences.
Kai had no time for any of the physical signs or curiosities of the circle – his attention was focussed entirely upon the people within it. There were a lot of them – at least a hundred and fifty at a quick guess, maybe more – with the inner circle of blue stones disrupting his vision of the far side of the circle, it was hard to tell. All of them wore robes with large hoods pulled up over their heads – made out of some heavy material, perhaps even a natural fibre like wool, they were an off-white colour, or a very pale grey. As his eyes swept over them he picked up on some subtle variations amongst them – some differences in the edging strips around the hoods seemed to indicate a rank structure, with scores of lower grade or rank people narrowing into a classic pyramid structure.
The moment of surprise ended and all around the team there was the flash of magic as mana flickered and sparked. Bodies were encased in fiery auras or shimmering lightning, spell shields flashed into life and entire groups of people were encased in ethereal blue armour, conforming to their shapes of their bodies. The air around them shimmered with the gross expenditure of magic as scores and scores of quickened spells kicked into life, or the druids prepared to launch a magical assault at the intruders that had breached their domain.
"I offer my deepest apologies for intruding!" Kai called out, his voice carrying across the circle clearly. He took a step forward and then bowed his head, and stretched out his arms in front of him, showing his hands to be empty. It was a somewhat symbolic move though, as Hunter was stood just to his side with his assault cannon clutched tightly in his hands. Tads looked at the ranks of druids and quickly manipulated her defences, encompassing the entire group with her magical shielding. She had no idea what kind of magic they could throw at her, but with her shields up, she hoped she could deflect the vast majority of attacks.
"Who dares enter this sacred circle? Who dares disrupt our task? Heathens? Despoilers?" One of the cowled figures took a step towards them, raising its right hand to point at them somewhat theatrically. Kai saw that this was one of the figures he had pegged as being of high rank – or at least some kind of rare rank... "Or is this a sign, a blessing. Have we been provided blood to spill, power to fuel our rituals and preserve our land, our hopes, our dreams?" The speech seemed addressed as much to the other figures gathered around them, as it was towards the team.
"My apologies your worship, merely visitors who stumbled here, we mean no offence." Kai looked up at the figure, trying to make eye contact but just seeing a darkened shadow inside the deep hood. He concentrated for a moment and then dropped his own defences, revealing his aura for everyone to see, hoping the show of faith or openness would be taken positively.
"Silence! Foul-tongued worm, whisperer of evil. You speak with lies in your heart, your soul blackened and shrivelled with deception." The hand curled apart from the first finger, which pointed unerringly at Kai's face. The voice, definitely male now, seemed to be angry and upset, as though his words had greatly offended the figure. "It is as though Mordred the unworthy has walked amongst us, tainting this place with his jealous heart!" Kai blinked a few times, a little taken aback. He'd never encountered such abrupt hostility to a friendly greeting! His mind flashed back to the moment in the mountains in the TCL, when he'd accidently used the wrong phrase in Russian and they'd been shot at with the missile launcher, and he hastily amended his thoughts – he'd never encountered such hostility when he was speaking a language he was pretty confident in, and definitely hadn't made rude aspersions about the legitimacy of birth and the resemblance of parental figures to certain parts of the anatomy!
Hunter had been slowly twisting round, moving millimetre by millimetre to bring the cannon to bear on the nearest group of the enemy. He was pretty sure this was all going to kick off any moment now, and he wanted to be ready to lay waste to some people. He felt a nudge from behind him, in his ribs. Someone was poking him – gently at first, then harder and harder. Poking him with the pommel of a sword, from the feel of things. He ignored the poking, and sent a mental command to the assault cannon, disengaging the safety and checking the chamber – making sure that the high-explosive round loaded inside was ready to go.
The poking continued. He didn't know who it was – but it didn't make sense. He'd left his sword behind on the aircraft in their mad scramble to get out following the crash, concentrating instead on his longer-ranged weapons. The Ares Monosword was a nice weapon, but it wasn't what he was really skilled with, and he much preferred not to get within arm's reach of the enemy if he could. And Shimazu wasn't going to give up his sword to Hunter – at least not for any reason that made any sense to him! He got poked again, then again, then a third time more, hard enough now that it was going to really distract him if he was trying to shoot anyone. He turned just far enough to snarl at Shimazu, or whoever it was – and then stopped dead in his tracks.
The woman standing behind him wasn't Tads. Wasn't anyone he'd ever seen before. Slender and with elf-like features, she had a very weird sense to her. Black hair cascaded down from her narrow face, while her dark eyes were fixed upon his – pupils so dark they appeared like tiny voids in the centre of her face, pulling him in to her gaze. Pale skin that looked like alabaster was barely a shade lighter than the simple linen shroud she wore, and in her hand was a sword. Her hands raised towards him and she offered him the sword, thrusting the handle towards him with an insistence that tugged at his psyche. He didn't know who or what she was, but he could sense that she REALLY wanted him to take the weapon. His left hand released the assault cannon, and his right arm quivered, the bicep flexing as he struggled to hold up the massive firearm one-handed. A brief tingle ran through his hand as he grasped the sword, a static shock that ran all the way up to his shoulder.
Hunter turned back to the front, checking out the druids and making sure they weren't just about to launch their assault. Nobody had moved, so he pulled his left arm forward, glancing quickly at the weapon to see what he had.
The sword was about a metre long, with a sharp point quickly swelling out to a 40mm wide 'weak' – the part of the blade closest to the tip, slowly rising along the 'strong' – the main portion of the blade to around 60mm by the quillons or cross guard. The fuller – what many referred to as the 'blood groove' - running down the centre was unusual, having a slightly serpentine structure, and the cross guard wasn't the normal straight affair, but had a sweeping design that rose to points facing towards the body of the sword. The blade was double-edged, and looked to be steel, while the cross guard was a gold colour, covered in Celtic knotwork. A double-handed hilt swelled out to a rounded pommel that had been shaped on one side to look like a stag. The design was a strange mix – not fitting in with the traditional design for a typical longsword, nor broadsword from his knowledge of things, but was well weighted and looked functional.
The rest of the team saw Hunter twist around, then return to facing forward, pulling out the sword and holding it in front of him, blinking and examining it – and they looked around with confusion. It wasn't his sword, and none of them had seen where he'd picked it up from…
"Perhaps we just got off on the wrong foot…" Kai tried again, one eye watching Hunter to see what was going on.
"SILENCE! Worm of Mordred, deceiver. We hear your lies but will have no countenance with them! If you try to peddle your lies again, we shall cut out your tongue!"
Tads looked over at the sword, and felt something nagging at her… dropping into astral, she tried to get a read on the sword, wondering if Hunter had picked up one of the druid's weapons from somewhere. It was somewhat harder than normal to get a read – the mana aspects of the stone circle made it difficult to do anything here, but the power of the sword leaked through regardless. There was something about it… something familiar, but distinct. She could feel the power emanating out of it, and it was definitely some kind of enchanted weapon, with elements that made it similar to Shimazu's. But then she realised what the other feeling was – a sense of ancientness and history about it. A concentration of experiences, bound into the blade by time, thousands of years of history that had been witnessed by the blade, the thoughts and deeds of people across history, leeching into the core of the weapon. It was a spiritual brother to Aswon's spear, a weapon so old that it certainly pre-dated written history.
She thought for a moment about trying to explain that, and realised that she didn't have the time to do it – not with how these people were looking and sounding whenever Kai spoke. Then she thought about putting up a mind-link between them all, so they could share their ideas and plans – but her memory of how strongly the mana was aspected against her put paid to that as an idea. Instead she settled for the simplest and least descriptive, but most helpful thing she could manage.
"Magic sword, like the spear, very powerful and old." Hunter raised an eyebrow at her and then held it aloft, waving it about to see if it would summon fireballs, lightning strikes or perhaps a flock of killer geese. Nothing happened though.
At least, nothing flashy and magical. He flourished it, and then tried pointing it at the hooded figure still pointing an accusing finger at Kai. He noticed that a couple of the druids were now whispering to each other, and pointing at him. The whispers spread, rippling through the crowd wider and wider, and now all attention had swapped from Kai, to him.
"You are NOT fit to wield that blade!" A second figure pointed, this time at Hunter, the voice rising in pitch and distorted with rage. "You filthy subhuman!" The hand that had pointed at Hunter reached back and pulled down the hood, revealing a middle-aged man, brown hair thinning on top and with deep worry lines showing on the forehead. Their lips were pulled back, and their voice was loaded with emotion. "How DARE you! Your kind should stick to the sewers!" The hand dropped to the belt and pulled loose a large sickle, raising it up to shoulder height where it trembled slightly in response to their angry twitching.
Kai glanced over at Hunter, wondering what he'd done to irritate this new man so much, then did a double take as Hunter twirled the sword and he saw the detail.
"What the frak? Where did you get that? That's a replica of Excalibur!"
"No, it's not…" muttered Tads.
"Some bint gave it to me." Hunter explained, with a raised eyebrow as he examined the sword again with interest.
"SHUT YOU MOUTH YOU FILTHY DEGENERATE!" The reference to 'bint' drove the new man into an apoplectic rage, with bubbles of spit flying out of the corner of his mouth.
"Sheathe. Your. Weapon." Kai's carefully modulated tone rang out across the stone circle, and the druid found his body obeying before he could consciously stop it. "With your permission, of course." Kai turned his attention back to the first druid – who he now suspected as being the head of the proceedings – which would make the angry one his second in command or executioner or something…
What Kai hadn't counted on, though, was recognition of what he'd done. As he used his own somatic control to modulate his voice, his aura rippled and flexed, showing magical activity. All around the circle druids saw this show of power, and their mutterings and intense scrutiny of Hunter stopped, switching back to Kai, and they started to advance upon him with a crushing sense of inevitability. All around the circle weapons were raised – most of them were sickles, but there were a number of people wielding massive two-handed hammers, and some with swords. Interestingly enough, all of those with different weapons seemed to belong to the same sect or sub-group, based on the markings on their robes. Part of Kai's subconscious marvelled at the strange things the brain picked up on during times of stress, while most of it panicked a little, wondering how they were going to get out of this one. Fifty to one odds didn't sound good – especially not when every single one of your opponents also seemed magically talented.
"Stop! Do you think if we WERE Mordred's minions, that he could wield that weapon?" Kai tried a new tack. He had only vague ideas about the culture or legends around Excalibur, and no real idea who Mordred was – but from the context he, she or it seemed to be not well regarded."
"No – no minion of Mordred could. So that proves that he is not – but says nothing as to your provenance." The head druid pointed at Hunter first, but then at Kai; but the other druids at least paused in their advance as their leader spoke, waiting for his pronouncement.
"But he cannot be of the noble line – he is a filthy tusker, stupid and unworthy!"
"Hold. Your. Tongue." Kai tried again to exert dominance – but the second druid seemed ready for it this time, holding up a hand with palm extended as if to ward off his commands.
"And you were told to be silent, spawn of Mordred!" The palm dropped, and a bolt of magical power exploded into Kai – slicing through Tad's efforts to shield him and striking him in the chest. His armour was irrelevant, the powerful mana strike hitting his flesh and sending ripples of destruction racing through his body. Kai coughed, and a spray of blood erupted from his mouth, sending him staggering back a step and clutching at his ribs as pain lanced through him.
There was a swish of steel as Shimazu's sword flicked up into a guard position, and Marius scrabbled to pull out his pistol, Hunter gave a great heave and bought the assault cannon to bear one-handed. He wasn't sure if he could fire it like this, but he'd give it at least a try… Tads looked around and licked her lips nervously, while Aswon adjusted the grip on his spear. Neither of them wanted to start an attack, but the druids looked to be done with negotiations, and had clearly launched an attack – and while they didn't want to fight, both were determined that they wouldn't just give up.
"Hunter, you appear to be important to these people…" Aswon muttered
"You! Come here!" Hunter heard Aswon's words and decided to at least try something. It wasn't as if it was going to cost him anything but breath. To make things clear he pointed the sword directly at the druid that had attacked Kai.
"I don't take orders from you, you piece of drek!" Scorn and derision dripped from his reply, and Hunter shrugged. It wasn't as if he'd expected anything different – but then he stopped moving and blinked as the head druid raised his sickle to the second druid's throat and spoke quietly, the words barely audible to them.
"Speak with respect to the wielder of the blade, or face the consequence. Regardless of his appearance, he has come to us now, on this night, for a reason. This cannot be by chance."
"But he is a monster, a filthy scum, pox-ridden and…"
"I said be quiet, hold your tongue or you will lose it!" The anger from the head druid could now be easily heard in his voice, and there was a sense that some bitter rivalry between the two was coming to a head, triggered by the unusual circumstances. While the head druid clearly had no time for Kai, he seemed to think that Hunter was someone very important and worthwhile, and certainly did not approve of anyone speaking ill of him.
"Hunter, look heroic." Tads whispered between her teeth as she walked past him so close her clothes brushed up against his arm. She turned to face him once she was in front, and then slowly knelt and lowered her head in an obvious sign of fealty.
Everything seemed to pause for a moment, every set of eyes upon Hunter. He let the cannon in his right hand droop, resting the end of the barrel on the ground, and then raised his left arm high above him, holding the sword aloft. As he did, a ray of sunshine struck the blade, reflecting off and making the sword sparkle and shimmer.
A druid nearest to him, with the same kind of edge trim as the head druid knelt, bowing his head, too.
A second passed.
Two more joined the first, bowing their heads in subservience to at least the blade, if not the man.
The ripple spread.
More and more figures knelt, starting a cascade of reactions. Kai and Marius in particular watched the crowd, spotting who did and did not kneel at first, and noticed a distinct pattern. The head druid had the most followers with the same markings, and it was those that were the first to kneel. The smaller groups with hammers and swords followed along soon enough, and it was the group that seemed to share markings with the second in command that were last to kneel – though by then the peer pressure must have been overwhelming. The second in command was the last to kneel, his motions stiff and reluctant.
"Again, our apologies for the intrusion – and we mean no disrespect. But we seek your counsel, wise druids." Kai tried again, hoping to capitalise on the shift in mood.
Before anyone could answer, though, there was a sound like a quiet gunshot or hammer blow. From the other side of the circle, a figure appeared through the gap between two of the massive stones, clad in rich blue robes, a white beard reaching down as far as their belt. In their right hand was a large wooden staff, and with every step they took, the staff struck the ground, the metal-shod end ringing out onto the stone slabs set into the ground. The top part of the staff seemed to be larger, easily the same size as a lantern, though carved out of the same wood in a spiral flute. Inside there seemed to be trapped a pixie or some other kind of fey creature, radiating light as it tried to escape from the wooden prison.
"Merlin!" The head druid exclaimed loudly. A hand swept back his own hood, revealing his face for the first time, and he stood and then bowed his head respectfully to the newcomer.
"Oh drek. That is the Minister for Thaumaturgy – Benjamin Paxton. High ranking member of the government." Marius whispered, recognising the face from the briefing material Hunter had found on the matrix.
All around the circle, other druids lowered their hoods, revealing their faces. Marius spotted several more people from the dossier, and managed to put a name to the druid that had struck Kai – Alick Porter, the Shadow Minister.
"Merlin – your appearance is timely indeed. An imposter stands before us, brandishing a weapon that cannot be!"
The newcomer took one more step and then stopped, letting the staff strike the stones below him one more time with great force, sending another blast of sound around the circle, far louder than it should have been.
"Is it not written in the texts that when Arthur became captivated by Lady Guinevere, that with the help of a certain wizard, that he did masquerade as a gardener, working in the grounds of Cameliard Castle, seeking to win her affection?" He gazed around the circle, making eye contact with person after person, letting the question hang in the air. "Is that not the case? He took two more quick steps, bringing him close to a young-looking man with very few rank markings upon his robe.
"I think you will find it is written, exactly like that, isn't it? And how do I know that? Speak up! How do I know that?"
"Um… because you were there?" The voice was somewhat reedy and nervous, probably higher-pitched and considerably less certain than the speaker would have preferred. A sigh of relief was audible as Merlin nodded decisively.
"Exactly. And Later, when King Ryence threatened King Leodegrance, and demanded that instead the Duke of the North was to marry Guinevere, who arrived back at the castle in the form of a peasant, carrying out the lowliest of tasks and behaving with utmost humility and humbleness, before revealing himself and becoming Guinevere's champion? Hmm?"
"King Arthur?" The answer came quicker this time, but still with a note of questioning on the end, and the druid looked as nervous as a child singled out by the teacher for an unexpected test.
"Indeed. So is it so hard to believe that the heir to the King Arthur should appear before you, in this form? Has he issued an unjust order? Has he laid claim to power? Has he in any way acted rashly or with impudence? Or does he stand there, not claiming to be special at all? Is it possible in fact that he just wants to do what is right? Hmmm?" Merlin suddenly changed focus, his gaze flitting around the circle, spearing one druid after another with his gimlet eyes.
Around the circle there was a general shuffling of feet and much looking down at the ground, up at the monoliths or at other points of interest - anywhere in fact other than at Merlin. Nobody wanted to be singled out for the next question, it seemed.
"I say to you, turn now to the Sunstone, as the last rays of day strike, turn your face to the past and examine what you know. Think upon the myths and legends, the tales passed to you, down generations of druids, from one learned scholar to another. Think on what is, what was, and what shall be, and search for the truth!" He twisted the staff and pointed towards the opposite side of the circle to the setting sun and nearly everyone in the circle turned to see what he was pointing at, watching as the last rays of sunshine struck the stone, illuminating some ancient text with fiery light.
Aswon kept his gaze upon 'Merlin' though. He had a suspicion that there was a certain amount of showmanship going on here, and studied the newcomer carefully. As a result, he was the only one to see the sudden ripple in the illusion or barrier that seemed to be protecting the circle. The idyllic countryside outside vanished, replaced with the torrential rain and lightning strikes the team had run through. A plume of smoke rose up from the crash site, down the hill behind them, and overhead, the roiling clouds flashed with pale light as the Wild Hunt circled overhead, horses chomping at the bits and hounds sniffing at the barrier, trying to find a way through to get at their prey.
And Merlin? His beard vanished, his face distorted, and the robe faded away – to be replaced with a Russian army uniform instead. Not high ranking, it seemed instead to belong to some kind of administrative clerk, bereft of medals or rank. But the face was immediately obvious to him – the old man from the mountains, that they had met carrying water. Or the man who had met them near the steelworks in Turkey. He gazed directly at Aswon, and gave a slight wink, before the vision rippled and vanished, returning to his appearance as Merlin, the outside illusion of green and pleasant fields snapping back into place, banishing the sight of the spectral hunters.
"We need to stall. The hunt is still going on outside." Aswon murmured, trying to keep his face neutral and his voice quiet.
"Come, my King. We have much to discuss. You and your knights have a difficult task ahead of you, and time waits for no man, no king – not even a wizard." He gave a little chuckle, then started to walk towards the centre of the circle, also waving the head druid over as well.
"Well, let's go, I suppose." Hunter tried to subvocalise. It took a moment before he realised he wasn't getting any response from his radio, and then he quickly checked his other systems. Anything that seemed to rely on an external signal or electronic emission was dead – his GPS receiver was working for instance, but reported no signals, as if the entire constellation of satellites far above had been snuffed out of existence. His gas spectrometer was working, reporting on the chemicals released from the crushed grass beneath their feet – but his Smartlink refused to get a lock on any target, even if they were standing right in front of him. "Let's go." he tried again, speaking out loud this time.
As he walked forwards the closest druids fell back, forming a ceremonial tunnel for him and the team to stride down, bowing their heads to him as they passed. The sudden appearance and words of 'Merlin' appeared to have solidified support for at least him, and the mention of the rest of the team as his 'knights' seemed to have granted them some kind of leeway as well.
As they reached the centre of the circle, along with Merlin and the Minister, the other druids fell back a little, spreading around the circle to watch and listen – including with great reluctance the second in command. His expression was grim, and grew worse when Merlin bowed deeply to Hunter, looking as if an entire lemon had made its way into his mouth.
"This is an auspicious night, my liege. It is good to see you again, even if these are troubling times." Merlin turned to address the Minister now. "The King has indeed returned, but his visit will be fleeting. The enemy are abroad, their plans underway and the King has a mighty quest to fulfil. He has returned as it was foretold, at a time of need. England is threatened by the minions of evil, and war is brewing. Once more, the King has need of his Knights, the support of the people and the land."
"I presume you're talking about the Horrors?" Hunter guessed, seeing Aswon and Tads nodding in agreement. Merlin made a face and raised his staff, tracing a rune in the air, the light of the trapped pixie leaving a trail very briefly in the gathering darkness.
"My King, please. Speak not the name of the enemy here, lest it draw their attention. But yes. We speak of the denizens of evil."
Tads examined Merlin with some suspicion, squinting at him as she tried to work out what was going on. It made no difference, but she pushed out her shields to encompass him too after a moment of consideration. He turned to look at her momentarily and smiled at her in a slightly patronising fashion, then patted her on the shoulder.
"Um… any chance of some medical attention, please?" Kai wiped away a fresh trickle of blood from his lips, and looked around hopefully. "It really is quite painful, you know…"
Merlin looked over at Kai, quickly assessing his wounds.
"Brave sir knight, that is barely a flesh wound. Walk it off… My magic is reserved for wounds of a more serious nature." For the briefest of moments, he glanced over at Shimazu, before returning his attention to Hunter. "I am sure that others will help, though."
"You there." Hunter pointed at the assistant head druid. "Seeing as you caused this wound, it's fitting that you should be the one to repair it." He stared at the man as did Kai, and about half of the druids gathered in the circle. To say that Hunter was not normally the most diplomatic would be a gross understatement, but his normal laconic sneer was gone, and his voice seemed just a touch deeper and more fully formed than normal. Maybe the sword was doing something to him – or maybe it was just him leaning into the role that had been laid out before him. Either way, the request seemed reasonable and well-formed.
After a moment of silence, the robed figure stepped forward, approaching the team. His face was still twisted into a scowl and he looked rebellious – but he saw no support from either the Minister or Merlin, and nobody else was going to support him, it seemed – at least not publicly. But instead of Kai, he approached Marius, extending a hand to the wounded pilot's arm, before summoning power to him and healing his wounds. The golden light was intense, far brighter and stronger than they'd seen before – but then they'd never been in a site like this before, either. Once Marius was healed, only then did he turn to Kai and repeat the process, regenerating the damage caused by his powerbolt.
Kai waited until he was done, and then gave a little half-bow, not saying anything but letting a vague hint of a smile pluck at the corners of his mouth. He knew he'd won, so there didn't seem to be any point in rubbing it in – at least not too much. But as he made eye contact with Shadow Minister Porter, that quick glance conveyed all the information that was needed. They both knew who had won, and who had lost – but Kai also suspected that they'd made a life-long enemy…
"Now, let us perhaps sit and listen to a tale." Merlin found a low stone to rest upon, pulling down his hood and arranging his staff across his lap, then launching into a story of King Arthur and his court, a description of how he and his knights went to defeat an ancient evil that was stirring on the borders of England, their mighty struggles against not only the foe, but also doubt, fear and betrayal. Merlin was a good speaker, telling the tale smoothly and clearly, and the metaphors were not hidden at all – nor did he seem to even try. There were clear parallels between the tale and the current situation, but it was told in a matter that made it seem prophetic rather than a historical recounting, and the team could see a number of the rank and file members were considering the words carefully.
The team, however, picked up on a number of different key aspects of the story – the fact that the quest took years to complete and involved significant hardship and loss, pain and suffering.
"I recognise the roots of this story. It is a very old tale, one that predates the more popular tales written by Geoffrey of Monmouth, and I think is even pre-Galfridian." Marius saw blank looks on their faces and shook his head. "Uncultured barbarians, all of you. This is classic literature! But it means this tale is over a thousand years old. Very much distorted by time and, no doubt, linguistic and cultural drift."
"And now – I suggest that you go back about your work. The night wanes, and there is still much to be done!" Merlin spoke loudly and clearly, rising from his seat and slowly spinning around to address the audience. "I know you all had a purpose here tonight, and that must not fall by the wayside. Though the King is here to defend the land in its time of need, so are you – and your work is equally important. So, continue your rituals, and prepare the materials. The King will need your support, and the support of the people."
The druids took his words to heart and returned to their groups, spreading around the stone circle in smaller groups, pulling out supplies and materials and prepared to work their magics upon them. Kai noticed that in every group there was at least one of the orders that carried the massive two handed hammers, and at least one with a sword, while the rest were mixed between the different groups.
Marius, Shimazu, Kai and Tads stepped away, moving clear of Hunter and Merlin to go stand near the entrance to the circle. As they looked out of the gap they could see the dark countryside, quiet and peaceful with no sign of the storm, the Wild Hunt or their aircraft. Examining the stones, they saw no sign of an illusion or barrier – but they were certain one was there.
Aswon, meanwhile, stayed with Hunter, Merlin and Benjamin Paxton settling down again to discuss matters. He had seen the 'real' face of Merlin, and wanted to find out what was going on for starters, as well as being very curious about the sword, if it was as old and mysterious as his spear.
"The King is back, because the land is in danger. But he is not back to stay – he and his knights, his fellow travellers must leave this place, and go about their quest. So, he has returned spiritually, but must leave physically. In this he needs your help, Benjamin. Their transport was destroyed by the enemy, bringing them down from the sky and forcing them to crash. You saw the wound their pilot had sustained. But now they are stranded, unable to move quickly when they need it most. Need I remind you of the tale of Ankalin and the lamed horse?"
"No, Merlin, of course not. I see." He looked around the circle for a moment, then back at Merlin. "I can make arrangements. It should not be too difficult. But what of the quest – how can we aid him?"
"Spread word of his return, and his undertaking. Fate has a way of taking care of the rest… But understand that you must continue your work here. The King will be away fighting the eternal enemy, but he must have a castle to return to, or all will be for naught. You must continue your work, keeping the land secure." Hunter nodded as if he understood what was going on. He felt horribly out of his depth, and had no idea what Merlin was babbling on about – though from his first experience with astral gateways and magical quests still not that far behind them, he had a horrible premonition on what was to come. Still, they had to get away from the here and now, and that was the pressing situation. He tried to act in what he hoped was a 'kingly' fashion, and made a good old-fashioned attempt to bullshit his way through the situation.
"I think we should maybe get Marius over here, if we're discussing transport. He's the expert on the vehicle." He turned and waved at the other four, beckoning them back over. When Marius and the others arrived, Benjamin looked over to him.
"So, what are you flying or what where you flying, if we're being accurate. I know better than to ask how you came to be here! I know I either won't like, or won't believe the answer..."
Marius set to describing the tilt-wing as accurately as he could. It wasn't like the theft of the craft from Aztechnology would bother a cabinet minister for the UK, and revealing their general level of capability was pretty much a moot point by now. But there seemed to be a glimmer of hope for getting their vehicle repaired, so the better job he did for describing what the craft could do, the more likely it hopefully was that they wouldn't end having to make do with limited facilities or a shoddy set of work. Somewhat to his surprise, Hunter chipped in several times, explaining just how valuable and important the tilt-wing was to their work and how much sentimental value it had.
The minister made notes on his tablet computer, produced from somewhere inside his robes, listening as Marius explained all of the aspects of their craft. Page after page filled with detailed notes, with the Benjamin asking questions from time to time, or clarifying technical details. He didn't seem to know much about aircraft in general, but was clearly an educated and intelligent man and was able to comprehend important details or specifications when Marius explained them.
Somewhat bored of the technical discussions, Tads turned around and watched to see what the druids were doing. It was hard to make out, as most of them were clustered together around the lower stones set in-between the inner and outer circles, using the low monoliths as tables for their work. They were clearly not enchanting the items directly – she knew and understood that process very well, and the construction of a magical item took a lunar month – no more, no less. But they seemed to be binding or imbuing the items, whatever they were, with some magical aspects – making use of the ridiculous amounts of power that was being focussed and concentrated by the circle of standing stones.
She saw them hold aloft the small metal rings from time to time, manipulating them as they poured magical power into them, and was impressed with their ambitions. Whatever the things were, they were complex bits of machinery, made out of high-tech materials and machined with intricate details – and the processes that made them would absolutely wreck their innate link to the natural world. Materials such as bone, wood and fur were easy to enchant, but suffered from being natural and very easy to damage, decaying easily and suffering from the ravages of time. The more high-tech and processed a material was, the easier it was to protect it – but the harder it was to enchant it. And modern materials, made with nano-machines and in massive computer vats were so far removed from nature that the materials were almost impossible to enchant. But that appeared to be exactly what the druids were doing – or had done. No doubt working in groups like this they had access to more power and better resources than she did, but it was still a very impressive feat. But for all that, she still didn't know exactly what they were doing – other than the magic seeming to have a flavour or tang of illusion about it.
Back at the centre of the circle, Marius had finished pouring out his knowledge about the tilt-wing and its systems, and Benjamin had completed his note-taking exercise.
"Oh – one other question I have," Hunter asked. "When I felt something behind me, I turned around and saw a woman, young. Long dark hair." He went through the description again, trying to describe the fey-like creature that had presented him with the sword.
"The Lady Vivian… well, that seals the issue then. If the Lady did present you with the sword, then it is beyond contestation. You will receive our help. No matter what some of my subordinates think."
"So you're going to help us get our aircraft fixed?"
"I will see what I can do. This may prove somewhat difficult – but you have assured me of how important this task is, and I will do all that I can to make arrangements." Benjamin addressed Hunter and Merlin in equal measure, and they both nodded at him. "But I need to go and check on the work. I will make arrangements soon – there is a limited amount I can do right now anyway, while we are all in here. But as soon as we have finished… well, let's see." He bowed his head respectfully to Merlin, then gave a deeper bow to Hunter, before excusing himself to go and check on the groups of druids scattered around.
"Alright – what is going on, then?" Hunter addressed Merlin as soon as Benjamin had gotten out of earshot and was working with the first group of druids.
"Well, nothing I have said is untrue. You are, very distantly, a blood descendant of King Arthur, son of Uther Pendragon, King of the Britons. You are his heir. That is a fact."
"I find that kinda hard to believe."
"It matters not what you believe – that does not affect the truth. You are of the line of Arthur, no matter how much that line twists and turns through the centuries. And that is why you are able to hold and wield the blade, and why these people will help you."
"If he is the heir, does that mean we need to be careful? Does he need to have children of his own?" Tads asked, wandering over in time to hear the pronouncement.
"No, that is not something you need to worry about. He is an heir, not the heir. But what matters is he is THE heir that is here now, even though not all of them were thrilled with the idea."
"What is going on there anyway?" Kai asked. "I could see that there's a whole rank structure thing going on – but also different groups or markings spread throughout them as well?"
"Benjamin Paxton is the Grand Druid, the head of all Druidism in the country. But he is part of a cabal known as the 'White Flame' – those that follow the texts most closely, seeing the earlier works as much as prophecy for the future as they are tales from history. They are the largest group here, and their prestige is much boosted by the Grand Druid being in their order, though being a group that values honour, loyalty and protection also helps a great deal, of course."
"Alick Porter, though, belongs to the Dark-Branch cabal, a much more… closed group, shall we say. They focus more on the darker aspects of their craft, and often work in the shadows and behind the scenes, pulling strings and making arrangements. They are the second most numerous order, but thanks to their nature have as much power, if not more than the White Flames, focusing on the use of political means to advance their power.
"Over there, that man with the hammer," Merlin pointed, "is a member of the Forge Fathers Cabal. They embody aspects of the ancient blacksmiths, the creators of powerful artefacts and items of legend. You have no doubt noticed that there is at least one of them in every group, leading the ritual to bind the spells into their creations. They emphasise duty, strength and skill, and are courted by both of the larger groups to help with their creations and rituals, and often find themselves deciding the balance of power."
"The smaller group with scrolls worked into the edge strip are the Loremasters – though I am sure you can determine what role they fulfil from that name, and what aspects they espouse. The last main group are the Huntsmasters – those are the ones carrying swords rather than sickles. They are the martial order of the druids, those focussed less on magical power and more on attack and killing. They are still powerful mages, but not in the same way as the other orders. If the druids require someone dead, it is a Huntsman that is despatched to effect that decree."
"Interesting. So there's got to be a lot of byplay between them, then?" Kai looked around, sizing up the numbers in each group again and evaluating their position.
"The Dark-Branch will hate Hunter because of what he is – you cannot have an important Ork. It upsets the order of things in their eyes. Man comes first, followed by the other races. It is a sad indictment on their thinking, but they are entrenched in that position, and to admit they were wrong would cause such strife and chaos in their eyes as to be unthinkable. They want you gone because of the danger you represent to the status-quo. The White Flame, however, would welcome you with open arms, and that could lead to conflict if not open war between them. But with the knowledge that you have a quest to undertake to keep the land and the people safe – they will be glad to send you on your way and to support your journey, knowing that they are contributing to your success."
"So as long as we leave, then both big groups are happy. And I guess the others fall into line with the big ones, for most things?" Kai saw Merlin nodded, and pieces of jigsaw slotted together in his head. "So regardless of what we were doing next, you're going to tell them we're off on a holy quest, but away from here – as it's the only thing they're going to find common ground on."
"That is one way to look at things." Merlin sounded non-committal, and his poker face did him proud, revealing nothing about his inner thoughts.
"And what do we do about the sword?" Aswon asked, nodding his head towards the ancient relic. He moved his spear forward a little and rested the butt of the spear on his foot, moving his arm so that the spear was directly between them. "Know a little bit about dealing with ancient weapons, you see. And some of the strange things that go on around them…"
"I wouldn't concern myself too much about the sword. It has a way of taking care of itself."
"But we need to know tha…"
"You need not concern yourself with the sword. Do not worry about it. There is nothing more to say on the matter."
"Fine, whatever." Aswon took a deep breath and tried not to feel frustrated. "What about this mention of a quest then. Is that something we have to do? Are we going on an astral quest, or is this something we have to do physically? Or is this all part of whatever arrangements you made with us back on the mountain?"
"Yes."
Aswon gave him a dirty look, but realised he was probably not going to get a straight answer out of the enigmatic spirit.
"Alright – different question then. Should we sell those shares?" Shimazu butted in, asking Merlin but staring at Kai.
"I think only you can decide that." Shimazu waited to see if there was any more, but it appeared not, and he joined with Aswon in the 'looking unimpressed' club.
"Well, next time you want us to do something, how about you call us instead? No need to let us get shot down to address you." Aswon said, causing Marius to suddenly turn his head and stare at Merlin with open hostility. "There are better ways, ok? Now… can we leave here… what about the Wild Hunt. Can we get past them? And in fact, why are they after us?"
"You have a destiny. It is no accident that they found you this night."
"So what can we do about them? If we find them in the future, I mean."
"You can either fight, or run. Nothing in-between. But whatever you decide, commit yourself to that course of action fully." That at least seemed to be a straight-forward and reasonable answer, rather than another maddeningly vague hint.
"Well, I think we need to ask you for some payment then, if we're doing this quest for you. If he's the King especially, and we're doing you a favour…" The rest of the team turned and looked at Kai, slightly shocked. Now, of all the times to actually decide to try and negotiate pay or a deal? "So, if we're going on a quest, we get to ask you for something in return right. Something we want?"
"You can ask. You can want, whatever you like. That is your right, and your ability. You can want all you like." He didn't say as much, but it seemed obvious that he was saying that the team weren't going to get anything at all.
"But he's carrying a burden for you? Isn't it fair that there should be some kind of recompense?" Aswon had initially been shocked by Kai's approach, but the weird answer from Merlin had irritated him. They still had no idea who it was they were dealing with, and he kept showing up and interfering with them and their lives – without giving them any real idea of what he was after.
"No. He is carrying a burden for you. All of you." Merlin stared at Aswon, and his voice carried a flat edge to it, a warning not to push the issue. But more than that, it carried the same certainty and sense of absolute truth as when he'd declared that Hunter did have some kind of link to Arthur. "Now, I must go. Other tasks await me." Merlin stood and grabbed his staff, shaking it slightly and sending the trapped pixie into a new flurry of activity, light shining out of the body. He headed off towards the same side of the circle that he had entered through, and stepped through the pillars, disappearing from view as he passed the barrier.
The team waited at the centre, watching as the druids continued their rituals, and overhead the stars rotated, swinging through the skies as the world turned underneath them, heralding a new dawn. As each of the druid teams finished their magical activities, it seemed as though the high-tech components that Tads had seen were gone, though she did catch strong traces of magic around each of the groups.
Finally, as dawn broke, the magic over the henge flickered and faltered. The dome above them faded away, and the stars reappeared through the breaking clouds, now returned to their normal positions. Instead of the picture perfect scene of medieval England, they could now see the countryside as it was – including the huge rent in the fields and hedgerows from their crash and a pyre of smoke drifting in the breeze.
"Thank you for your protection." Tads laid a hand on the stone pillar at the exact centre of the circle, palm flat down on the ancient stone. She didn't know if there was anything listening, but regardless of how or why they'd ended up here, they had made it through the night without being taken by the Hunt.
"Follow me. I have a vehicle waiting." Benjamin gestured to one side, and as they walked with him, they could see all of the other druids started to flow out of the circle as well, their groups dissolving and then reforming, each of the cabals seeming now to gather together into like-minded groups.
Once they were out of the circle itself, they could see the crash site more clearly, and their hearts fell. The aircraft was destroyed – a twisted and blackened wreck. At some point after they had left it, fuel must have caught fire, no doubt triggered by the sparking cables caused during the impact, and the resulting conflagration had destroyed the craft utterly. Blackened and twisted spars and structural members stuck out in various directions, and they could see a couple of figures poking around near it, taking photos from what they could see. One thing was certain though – it was not going to be repaired.
Benjamin led them to a stretched limousine waiting in the neatly-appointed carpark that lay at the termination of the gravel track leading from the stone circle, and a chauffeur held open the doors for them to climb in. Small versions of the UK flag on each wing of the car fluttered in the moderate breeze, and overhead the clouds scurried across the sky, revealing more and more blue sky as the last dregs of the storm dissipated. Once they were all seated and the doors closed, the windows tinted, making it almost impossible to see out, and the car pulled away, driving out onto the road leading out from the car park. They could make out the faint flashing of lights ahead of them through the polarised glass as the police motorbikes led the way, clearing traffic ahead of them and securing the junctions, allowing them to make consistent progress through the countryside.
The narrow and twisting roads, though, kept their average speed down, and it was nearly two hours before they reached their destination. During the journey Benjamin seemed to be entirely absorbed by work on his computer, not glancing at them once – but they were acutely aware that he was there, and listening. They didn't even fall back upon their comms, fearing that a limo such as this was bound to have either a jammer or snooping devices more than capable of making communications pointless. So, instead they mostly sat in silence, staring ahead of them and waiting to see what fate was going to serve them.
"Ahh, here we are." Benjamin broke the silence and looked up as an alert flashed on his screen, and with a touch of a command, the glass lightened, allowing them to see outside. The road was narrow, a single lane in either direction, and they were narrow enough, too – with a dense hedge running down one side until the road curved out of sight. On the other side, though, was an imposing metal fence, three metres high in a continuous straight line, topped with multiple rows of razor wire. Set back inside were sensor pods on poles, spread out every twenty metres or so, following the line of the fence. As they took in the sight, a military transport flew past the front of the car, almost skimming the hedge and fence, to set down on the runway concealed just beyond them, the howl of the engines making it through the sound-proofing of the car with ease at this range.
The car turned into an access road that led to a heavily-defended gate, pillboxes on either side of the road liberally festooned with sensors while deep slits in the sturdy structures concealed the weapons located inside. Signs were everywhere proclaiming that RAF Brize Norton was a restricted site, and subject to military law. They didn't stop at the gate, though, which was retracted and they rolled inward, straight through the double layer security without any checks. A few armed guards glanced at the car, but their weapons were raised tight to their chest, and they mostly were looking back at the road, watching the entranceway.
Once clear of the gate, they drove along an access road, giving them unrestricted views across the huge expanse of open space. Acres of grass stretched out, interposed with taxi-ways and runways, large standing pads and waiting areas and large man-made ponds. The gate they had used seemed to be the most remote from the base itself, but in the distance they could make out rows of aircraft ready for action, and the hustle and bustle of an operational airport carrying on around them.
Their vehicle, though, headed for the nearest patch of stand, a large expanse of cerma-crete, two hundred metres to a side, perfectly level and square. When the limo drove onto it though, they could feel the very faint bumping and rumbling of the wheels as they ran over the tight grooves carved into the surface to ensure water didn't pool on it, and large bands of coloured paint led to the nearest taxiway, while around the perimeter were small light pods and beacons. Waiting just on the side of the pad was a small jeep, and a single man in uniform waiting for them. The uniform had a fair amount of gold thread and insignia on it, which seemed to indicate a reasonable rank, and the limo pulled up just next to him. As the doors were opened, the Minister climbed out first, followed by the team.
"Good morning, Minister."
"Good morning, Group Captain."
Aswon caught a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye and turned his head, watching as Hunter looked around him in confusion, then headed back over to the limo. While the Minister and the officer exchanged a few banal pleasantries, he hustled over to Hunter, spotting him climbing back into the back of the car and continuing to search for something. Then he realised that he couldn't see the sword…
"Don't tell me you've lost it!"
"I swear I had it with me, and now I can't see it! Don't piss around, look for it!"
Aswon dropped into astral, and caught a faint tang of magic, rapidly fading, right from where Hunter had been sitting with the sword resting up against him.
"I think it's gone. Same way it arrived, probably…" They shared a look, then backed out of the car and started to walk towards the rest of the team. Aswon glanced up into the sky and saw a crow flitting across the taxi-way, swooping down towards some spotted morsel on the floor – and then it rippled, bending for a split second in an odd direction, seeming to fold almost at ninety degrees. He stared in that direction, puzzled, and then with deepening suspicion really examined the area. In the far distance, a fuel tanker was driving in front of a hanger, and as it passed a certain point, it too seemed to ripple for just a moment…
"There's something there" – he gestured onto the pad. "Something big, but hidden..." Neither the Group Captain nor the Minister seemed surprised, though the rest of the team turned to look, trying to spot what he was talking about.
"Minister, I must protest once more in the strongest possible terms about this whole endeavour."
"I'm sorry, Group Captain. Did I not make myself perfectly clear. Was there perhaps room for interpretation in your orders?"
"No Minister, they were quite clear, but to hand this over, to these people, whoever they are."
"Group Captain. Let me try to put this another way. Did I frakkin' stutter?" Benjamin's voice sounded odd cursing, out of character for what they knew about him – but the Group Captain's mouth closed with a snap, and he reached into a pocket without another word, pulling out a small remote key. He slid open a plastic shield, then gave a double press of the button on one side of the device.
The air on the pad rippled, and the image of the airfield faded, replaced with a large aircraft, painted with an oddly disturbing grainy grey paint. It was twenty five metres or so from nose to tail, and had four wings, each about ten metres long, ending in a moveable pod. Unlike the tilt-wing that had been destroyed through, these pods lacked rotors – instead having the internal turbine blades inside the cowling of a traditional jet engine. A long-barrelled cannon of some kind projected out of the underside of the nose in a low profile turret, matched by one at the rear, and like their old aircraft, there were signs of a seam running around the rear that indicated a tail ramp. The officer hit a second button on the remote, and a small passenger door opened just in front of the forward wing, folding down towards the ground and revealing a staircase formed from the inner side.
"Gentlemen, Ladies – this is… well, she hasn't been formally commissioned, so she doesn't have a name. But this is an Avro Broadsword. And she is, by all accounts, yours." With reluctance, the officer handed over the controller to Marius, who took it silently, his eyes fixed upon the aircraft.
"Excuse my manners. Thank you, sir." Marius still seemed enraptured by the aircraft in front of him. "May I request access to one of your technical sergeants? Or whatever rank performs maintenance on such a craft?"
"I'm afraid I am not authorised to allow personnel for detatched duty!" The Group Captain responded sternly.
"Nein, that is not what I meant to imply. I wish to receive a technical briefing on capabilities and operations before I attempt to operate the aircraft."
"Ah, I see. That I can arrange, with pleasure." The officer's face softened a little as he looked at Marius, swayed somewhat by his professional approach to a completely unknown vehicle, but also possibly on seeing the effect the aircraft had on him. "She's a beauty, isn't she?"
"Ja."
"Well, all seems to be in order here. I need to get back to Westminster, I'm afraid. I trust you and your people will be ok from here." Benjamin didn't wait for a response, but swept back to the limo, climbing into the back without any further ado. Moments later, the car started up and pulled around back onto the approach road and started to head back towards the gate.
"I'll get someone to come over shortly to give you the dash-one and a briefing. Until then, why not go check her out?"
Marius snapped his eyes away from the aircraft, and extended a hand towards the officer, shaking it firmly.
"I think we will do just that. Thank you."
