All characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyrighted to Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company. I've taken the idea for the Unseelie Court from the TGS. No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder. All original characters are the property of SN.
Note: I'm disregarding the events of the "Goliath Chronicles", with the exception of "The Journey" because I do not wish to use the rest of the "Goliath Chronicles" as canon to my story. This story takes place two days after "Lessons".
Battle of the Wolves
By SN/TVfan
Email: Sam_Nary
Mansion
Arthur sat quietly thinking over the current situation he found himself in. He knew that he couldn't outright fight the Illuminati over the issue, yet at the same time the fact that the werewolf that had attacked Rachel Winters was an Illuminati agent, and that he had performed his attack to get him out of London to be killed, made the 'Once and Future King' believe that there was something that they knew that he didn't.
"Troubled about something?" a voice asked from behind him.
He turned to see Rachel standing behind him in the special jumpsuit that Merlin had created during the nights when she would transform.
"Hm?" Arthur asked back.
"You looked like you were deep in thought about something," Rachel answered, "Is something troubling you?"
"Only the Illuminati and their current involvement in my life," Arthur answered, "They have to know something. Why else would they bother to do what they've done?"
"You think they're an enemy?" Rachel asked.
"More like a puzzle," Arthur explained, "I can't figure out why they sent a werewolf up to York to get me to go there. If I'm such a threat to them, why didn't they just attack me here? Why all the elaboration? Why did they have to involve you?"
Rachel sat down next to him.
"You're not feeling guilty about all this are you?" Rachel asked, "I didn't even know you or Merlin till my overly, and probably justly, concerned sister brought you to my door."
"I promised to protect Britain when I took the throne," Arthur answered, "All of this has simply raised questions as to whether that vow was the right one to make. I couldn't insure Britain's safety in the Middle Ages. The Romans had gone to try and save their Empire, and I only managed to keep the Saxons at bay. Eventually my kingdom fell to them."
"Remember that most modern English men have more ancestry from the Angles and Saxons then from the Britons or from the few Roman nobles who remained in Britain," Rachel interrupted.
"And the Normans as well," Arthur nodded, "But they came much later, while I was asleep. The problem is that changes in power are never painless, especially when one side is conquered. I couldn't protect Britain from suffering that pain then."
Arthur looked down for a moment, "And now it appears that I might not be able to do what Merlin has told me that I have fated to do."
"You'll do it," Rachel encouraged, "You, Merlin, and your comrades have all bent over backwards to try and help me, surely you can stop whatever evil is coming."
"We need to figure out what it is first," Arthur answered, "And I will not break the law just to find out."
"Worry about it when it comes then," Rachel commented, "Don't worry about what will come before it comes."
Arthur nodded. The two sat quietly for a few moments before Arthur spoke again.
"So, how did your lesson go?" Arthur asking, trying to change the subject slightly.
Rachel only sighed, "Fine, I guess. I could get my body temperature to rise, but nothing else. I think I wore Merlin out."
"It'll take time," Arthur commented.
"I know," Rachel answered, "But I don't want this. I'll accept it if it means I can prevent someone from being hurt by a crook, should I come across it, but that doesn't change the fact that I didn't want this in first place."
"Understandable," Arthur answered.
"But, if I'm to help someone, I need to be able to transform at will, which I need to learn anyway to make sure I don't get angry at something and turn into a seven foot tall wolf creature in the middle of work," Rachel answered, "It's frustrating that I couldn't do anything."
"I'm sure you'll master it all in time," Arthur commented.
"I'd like to master it now," Rachel answered, "Then I can know what I'm going to do with it."
Merlin quietly walked by, letting Arthur and Rachel talk with each other. He had thought that Rachel had actually made more progress than the woman gave herself credit for. They had decided to use the full moon as the transformation trigger. Rachel had tried thinking about it, but could only manage to get her body temperature to raise a few degrees. It showed progress, and was a very good first try, but from what Merlin had read and learned from actually meeting with other weres and from his knowledge of magic, simply thinking about the full moon would get her to change.
Most weres that Merlin had met prior to the present mentioned that they had to not only think about, but visualize their individual triggers and almost desire to change. Merlin had learned much the same with his magic. Saying the right words wouldn't cast a spell. Even for a full blooded fey. Intense focus and concentration were required. Some spells also required physical movements, but they were secondary. Once Rachel got the hang of it, Merlin was confident that she would find the process easier and easier the more she practiced. Now, if she only transformed when the full moon was out, she might not, but gaining basic control would at least prevent her from changing in front of someone who wouldn't keep her secret.
Merlin pondered over how to try and continue Rachel's training as he quietly walked up the stairs to the second floor of the mansion. He hoped he could find an answer.
Elsewhere
Jeremy Irons stood quietly in front of Agent Anglo explained the latest orders that had been given to him. The scruffy looking man stood behind Jeremy, looking very nervous. The fact that there were two guards armed with guns loaded with silver bullets didn't make him feel at all comfortable.
"Merlin has begun training the Winters woman to control her curse?" Anglo asked.
"You didn't expect him to?" Jeremy asked curiously.
"I expected it," Anglo answered, "But not this soon and not to the extent that it has been done."
"And you want her removed?" the scruffy looking man asked, almost eagerly.
"She will have to be eventually," Anglo answered, "And if she masters her abilities, it will be difficult to do so. I will remind you that you were never to pass your 'curse' on to others."
The scruffy looking man ducked behind Jeremy.
"Should I assemble the police to assault the mansion?" Jeremy asked.
"No," Anglo answered, "Their investigation of Arthur has only just begun. Of course they're all on trumped up charges and many don't want to arrest a 'knight', but they working. Our furry friend here is to get another chance."
"Me, sir?" the scruffy looking man asked from behind Jeremy.
"Yes you," Anglo answered firmly, "Ms. Winters has taken to taking walks around London, including visits to a shop in Soho."
"The one that Morrigan burned down?" Jeremy asked.
Anglo nodded, and then addressed the scruffy looking man, "This time when you attack her make sure she's dead!"
The scruffy looking man smiled, "Can do."
"What about Arthur and his companions?" Jeremy asked.
"For now, they are still to be monitored," Anglo answered, "But we must remove the Winters woman from the picture. With her gone, our previous mistake has been corrected and we can return our focus to Arthur. He might even be driven to make a mistake after learning that the woman has died."
"I will continue my monitoring then," Jeremy nodded.
Jeremy then departed the room, leaving the nervous scruffy looking man facing the Illuminati agent. The man gulped nervously.
"Now, you and I, are going to discuss how you're going to deal with all this," Agent Anglo said in a firm voice.
Mansion
Dusk came and went and the London Clan threw off their stone shells to greet the new night. Griff was quick to head downstairs to see if Arthur needed him for anything. Octavia trotted after him, while Chloe went off in search of Macbeth. Lancelot, Gawain, and Guinevere were content to follow Julia, Leo, and Una to the kitchen to get a breakfast.
Griff found Arthur actually preparing to go out for the night. Surprisingly Rachel stood next to him.
"Big night, tonight, your majesty?" Griff asked.
"Merely going for a walk," Arthur answered, "No clients have come in recently so I've been stuck here. I thought I'd join Rachel on one of her walks and get some exercise."
"So we just have our patrols, then, eh?" Griff answered with a chuckle.
Arthur nodded, "Just be on your guard. The Illuminati probably know of our alliance and will probably try to monitor you."
"They could never catch us," Griff answered.
"I don't think that 'catching' you is their goal," Arthur retorted, "I believe it is me that they are interested in."
"We will keep an eye out," Octavia spoke up, "If they have a spy, we will try to get him to talk. Perhaps we could get some answers."
Arthur nodded and slowly began to walk off with Rachel for some exercise while Griff and Octavia turned back into the mansion.
"Hopefully Merlin is able to discover when this island's greatest hour of peril is soon," Octavia commented quietly as they began to head toward the kitchen, "I fear that we will be unable to stop whatever it is when it arrives if we don't know what it is."
"You're not selling us short are you?" Griff asked.
"No," Octavia answered, "You are quite brave, and your training has been going along quite well. Arthur and Macbeth are also very capable fighters, and Merlin and Una are strong in magic. But look at the lessons of history. Nations rose and fell based on the knowledge of their enemies. Rome grew because it had some understanding of the Celts and how they fought, and they designed their army to fight in a more organized manner. Rome fell because they didn't know the Germans and the Huns who came in with new tactics that they couldn't match. Britain and the United States knew how to deal with Nazi Germany and then the Soviet Union because they knew how those states operated and knew how to oppose them. All we know right now is that we are to face opposition in the future, but if we don't know who it is, or how this enemy will operate, we will be in trouble."
"I think we'll be ready," Griff said confidently, "There's nothing Merlin can't find out. Have some faith."
"One can not live on blind faith," Octavia retorted, "Knowledge, skill, and ability must also be applied. If not, the Children's Crusade would have been successful."
The two kept on walking quietly.
Meanwhile, in his study Merlin sat quietly reading various ancient texts and some newer ones. The newer books were mostly lists of other ancient texts, and Merlin had been using them as a reference. The older ones were mostly texts that he had acquired over the years. Some were prophesy books while others were merely references to things that were considered myth by the rest of the world. Few of the books he was looking through were actually available to the public, since the authors had written long before the printing press and no historian had discovered the text.
"Why does every magician who possessed 'foresight' see the World Wars and not anything else?" Merlin wondered silently to himself until he flipped the page and gasped, "What in the world?"
He looked closer at the text, trying to get some sort of answer from it.
"Arthur and Macbeth will need to know about this," Merlin muttered.
City Park
Arthur and Rachel's walk had taken them into a quiet park in London. The Once and Future King tried his best to keep the woman's mood upbeat and keep her mind off her condition by answering various questions that she still had about his past.
"I will say you seem to be very curious about all this," Arthur commented.
"I'm sorry if I'm annoying you," Rachel replied, "It's just that I've been thrown into a world that no one would even believe. I mean, my mother would never believe that I'm actually walking through London with Arthur PENDRAGON. Of course, she wouldn't believe that I'm a werewolf either..."
The woman paused for a moment before continuing.
"And well, learning about all the great days of 'Camelot' is a way to simply understand more about these weird sorts of things," Rachel continued, "Unless you know a few things about being a werewolf."
"That, my lady, I do not know," Arthur sighed, "That is Merlin's department."
"Have you seen 'Monty Python'?" Rachel asked, "Just curious."
"Una and Leo had copies of their movies in their old shop," Arthur answered, "Griff got curious and we ended up watching about all of them."
Rachel gave a slight chuckle, "So what did you think of 'the Holy Grail'?"
"Fairly humorous, if not accurate," Arthur answered, "The ending confused me though."
"Confused you?" Rachel smirked back.
"Well, why do 'I' end up arrested at the end of the movie, and the search for the Grail and the battle against the 'French' never gets resolved?"
"They probably just ran out of time to film that part," Rachel answered, muffling some laughter, "They were always funny, sometimes in a weird way. Resolving everything would not have fit the way they did things."
The two continued on quietly for a few moments before Rachel brought up a new question.
"Do you know what happened to your knights and such after you went to Avalon?" Rachel asked.
"Most died in the battle that required me to go to Avalon," Arthur answered, "I've never asked Merlin about the fate of those who lived, mostly because of the fact that they are dead now anyway. I didn't feel it was a question worth asking."
"Oh," Rachel said simply.
A few yards away, concealed within bushes, the scruffy looking man quietly watched the two walk down the path. He enjoyed using his abilities and loved the fact that he had been given an opportunity to correct his 'mistake'. Although, now he didn't necessarily want to kill the woman. He knew she was a were, like himself, and his heightened senses could smell her scent, even from the bushes. She carried the same scent that every were carried. Not bad, and not all that different from the usual scent that humans carried, but it did give away what she could become. After learning that she had come to London, he had various thoughts about getting her to join him, but he also knew that his masters were to be obeyed, and they wanted her dead. The fact that Pendragon was with her was a surprise, but if he killed him as well, it would mean he pleased his masters.
He began to creep forward as he felt his fingernails lengthen into claws.
Elsewhere
Lancelot glided low over the rooftops of several buildings while hastily scanning the ground for any possible signs of crime.
"You'd best glide slower and glide higher," Julia commented from above him.
The young Avalon gargoyle looked up to see Julia, Guinevere, and Gawain gliding above him.
"This is fun though," Lancelot argued, "and this way I can be the first to save someone if we spot foul activity."
"You're hanging around Griff too much, or you're taking Arthur's stories too seriously," Guinevere commented, "This isn't the Middle Ages we're in now. Remember what Goliath's clan taught us about this time."
"On top of that, you're not likely to see much at the speed you're going," Julia added, "Especially in an urban landscape. And at that height, it will be easier for humans to spot you."
"Kill joy," Lancelot muttered, but he did listen to the two females, "How can I do something heroic if I can't get there first?"
"How can the rest of us help anyone if you do everything?" Gawain commented from behind him.
"The both of you have good ideals for the task that must be done," Julia cautioned, "But remember that we protect because it is what must be done, not only to insure order, but also to maintain justice. You're not going to get special honors for saving people."
"Arthur might make us knights, though," Lancelot pointed out.
"Again, you've been hanging around Griff too much," Guinevere said firmly.
Lancelot was about to answer when he noticed a group of people standing on top of a nearby roof. He didn't pay close attention to them at first, but after a few seconds, one of them raised a blaster and aimed it at them.
"Uh-oh!" Lancelot gulped as one of the people fired.
"Attackers," Julia growled and began to dive toward group of people after the shot flew harmlessly between all the gargoyles in the group.
Lancelot, Gawain, and Guinevere were quick to follow. All of the men were dressed in black with the exception of a small pin on their collar. It also became quickly clear that these men were not entirely skilled fighters. Julia quickly knocked out the first man, and had seized the second. Lancelot and Gawain tackled another two, while the last man fled down the stairs, away from Guinevere.
"That was easy," Gawain commented.
Julia removed the pin from the collar of man she had grabbed and studied it closely.
"Too easy," the Roman gargoyle answered, and then turned to question the man himself, "What is your plan?"
"What?" the man asked, feigning ignorance.
"Why did you attack us?" Guinevere rephrased the question.
"Do I need a reason?" the man asked back.
"Illuminatus, most humans in Europe do not know that gargoyles live in Europe," Julia explained, "They believe that they are an American 'problem'. Do not try to act like you're simply another racist. Especially considering the pins that you and comrades are wearing. You have to have set orders, and I want to know what they are."
Julia then held the man over the edge of the building.
"Or I could drop you," Julia threatened.
The man quickly gulped, "We were ordered to observe Pendragon's allies for the Council. We only figured that if we defeated some of his allies, it would be easier to defeat Pendragon."
Julia then threw the man down amongst the other Illuminati agents.
"Tie them up and leave them here," Julia ordered, "We'll leave them for their masters to deal with."
Lancelot and Gawain nodded and began looking for something they could use to tie them up with. Guinevere meanwhile approached Julia.
"You wouldn't have actually dropped him, would you?" Guinevere asked.
"No," Julia answered, "He was beaten. To drop him would have been dishonorable. At the same time, dropping him would not have helped us get the answers we need, so it would have been poor tactics to drop him. But sometimes, the mere threat of an action is enough to achieve the goals that must be met."
The Park
Arthur and Rachel were preparing to head back toward the mansion when Rachel suddenly heard something creeping through the bushes behind them.
"Do you hear that?" Rachel asked.
"Hear what?" Arthur asked back.
"It's a soft rustling sound," Rachel answered, "Like someone is very carefully walking across slightly moist leaves."
"I don't hear anything," Arthur responded.
A new voice then cut in before Rachel could answer.
"Of course you can't!" a large grey werewolf growled as it leapt from the bushes and knocked Arthur back with one swing of its large fist.
Rachel turned around to face it in horror.
"Unlike you and me, my dear, he only has a human's hearing," the werewolf gave a toothy grin.
"You!" Rachel gasped.
"Yes, me," the werewolf smiled and began to advance toward her, "I have orders to correct an earlier mistake."
"Merlin imprisoned you!" Arthur exclaimed as he pulled himself up and drew Excalibur, "How could you have escaped?"
"With a little help from my friends," the werewolf laughed, "You're not the only one who associates with magicians."
Arthur began to advance on the werewolf, Excalibur ready. He didn't know if he could be fast enough to kill the offending were, but he hoped that the werewolf would consider him to be the greater threat, since Rachel wasn't likely to attack him, especially as she was still in her human form.
"You won't harm her," Arthur said firmly, pointing Excalibur at the werewolf.
"You can't stop me, and I'm betting she doesn't have the control right now to fight me herself," the werewolf smiled back.
Arthur raised Excalibur to strike, only to be punched again by the werewolf.
"And now for you," the werewolf snarled at Rachel, who was still backing away.
Rachel was frightened beyond belief. The were that had attacked her was back again and before her in its wolf form, and preparing to kill her. And she knew that he was right, she hadn't learned to fully control her curse yet and could only get her body temperature to rise, but couldn't fully trigger the change. At the same time, she hated the were with a passion for what he had done to her. She continued to back away, not noticing that she was starting to feel warmer.
"You know, to an extent, I wish I didn't have to kill you," the werewolf spoke to Rachel, "but orders are orders. I have to follow them, but maybe you could help me out."
The werewolf smiled as he saw Rachel's eyes change from brown to golden.
"If I could frighten you into changing," the werewolf continued, "and make this all look like a fight, I would feel better."
"Leave me alone!" Rachel yelled back, and suddenly brought her hands over her mouth.
Her voice had sounded rougher, almost having a growling tone to it. She then looked at her hands. Her fingernails were starting to grow longer, and she could already see the beginnings of a coat of brown fur growing on the back of her hands. She could hear the werewolf laughing as her shoes began to feel tight around her feet.
"Leave her alone!" Arthur ordered as he returned to the area and slashed at the werewolf with Excalibur.
The werewolf leaped back to avoid taking a serious injury from the blade, but couldn't get far enough away to avoid taking the very tip of the sword across his arm. The werewolf screamed with pain as the tip of Excalibur drew blood, but he easily recovered.
"I guess I should kill you first," the werewolf growled and turned to face Arthur, totally forgetting Rachel.
Rachel was horrified as she watched the werewolf turn to fight Arthur. She could feel her teeth starting to lengthen into fangs and her clothes were beginning to feel tight as she grew larger. Her feet had already grown through her shoes and she was already rising up onto the balls of her feet. Pain gripped her as her clothes ripped as her growing size began to be too much for them. Her own mind was frightened by the fact that she could now hear herself growling and snarling as her transformation advanced. Her ears were moving and growing pointed.
Arthur dove to a side as the werewolf lunged at him, and barely avoided being clawed by the beast. He slashed his sword again at the werewolf, this time leaving a deeper wound along its side. Again, the were screamed in pain, but this time, since the wound was more serious, it allowed Arthur to get up and kick the creature in the head, knocking it over. The werewolf slowly raised himself, growling viciously.
Rachel began to scream as she felt her face grow out into a muzzle, her teeth growing larger to fit it properly. Once her muzzle was fully grown, she felt increased pressure on the base of her spine. Her tail was beginning to grow out and as it grew out, Rachel found herself unable to resist howling.
The werewolf paused its attack when it heard Rachel's howl.
"Ah, she's finished," the werewolf laughed and grabbed Arthur by the shirt and threw him back into the bushes.
The werewolf turned, only to be tackled by Rachel as the female were drove him to the ground.
"Leave us alone!" Rachel growled, baring her own fangs.
The male were, however, flipped under her and kicked her into the same bushes he had thrown Arthur earlier.
"You okay?" Arthur asked from his position as Rachel tried to right herself.
"I'm not hurt," Rachel sighed, "but I could have had a better night. He didn't claw you did he?"
"So far, no," Arthur answered.
Both were forced to dodge as the werewolf leapt between then, tried to claw at Arthur and snapped its jaws at Rachel. It missed, but drove both of its enemies back. Rachel only raised her own clawed hands and snarled at the attacking were, while Arthur raised Excalibur to strike the werewolf if he tried anything.
"You can't beat me," the werewolf nearly laughed back, "Your gargoyle friend isn't here and that sword isn't made of silver. At the same time your girlfriend here doesn't know how to fight. She's only angry."
Rachel lunged at the were, and managed to slash at his back with her claws. The werewolf however managed to throw her off of him and into Arthur.
"See?" the werewolf smiled confidently.
A new voice then cut in before the were could advance on them.
"No, care to try again?" came Macbeth's voice from above them.
The werewolf looked up to see the immortal Scottish king on a hoversled with an electric blaster ready. Macbeth then fired his electric blaster at the were, before the werewolf could do anything. The blast caused were pain and threw him against a tree, but did no damage that he couldn't heal from.
"Now, Chloe!" Macbeth spoke out.
Arthur and Rachel exchanged glances as the forest green female gargoyle appeared behind the male werewolf and grabbed him in a full nelson. The werewolf struggled, but the gargoyle managed to hold him down. Rachel then snarled at the werewolf and advanced on him.
"We can't kill him!" Chloe protested as Rachel came closer.
Rachel raised a fist and then punched the werewolf between the eyes. The blow ended up knocking both Chloe and the werewolf to the ground, but the gargoyle was surprised to find that the male werewolf was out cold.
"You have my thanks," Arthur spoke to Macbeth as he landed his hoversled, "but what brings you out here?"
"Merlin has found something," Macbeth answered, "And he wouldn't say what it is until you returned."
"We need to get back then," Arthur said, "If Merlin's found something it has to be important."
"I'll carry this lump back," Chloe commented, "Merlin can imprison him again in the mansion somewhere."
The gargoyle leaped against a tree branch and took off into the night sky. Arthur meanwhile joined Macbeth on the hoversled.
"Let me get what remains of my normal clothes," Rachel spoke up as she trotted out to where she had transformed.
Elsewhere
"You did not have authorization to attack them," Anglo scolded the Illuminati agent that had snuck into his office, all his bravery scared out of him.
"I'm sorry, but we thought..." the agent began to stammer.
"You're not supposed to think either," Anglo growled, "Your orders were to observe the allies not attack them. If you were to fight them, we would have told you to fight them."
"I'm sorry sir," the agent whimpered.
Anglo sighed, "Not to worry. More than likely they only learned that we're observing them, which they should already know considering the failed York mission."
The door then opened, and Anglo looked up to see Jeremy Irons walk into the office room looking rather nervous.
"What is it?" Anglo asked.
"I'm afraid I have bad news, sir," Jeremy reported, "There were failed again, sir. Apparently the woman he bit has either gained control over her transformations, or he scared her enough that the sheer terror of seeing him caused her to change."
"A newly created werewolf can not defeat one with some combat experience," Anglo commented, not believing a word of what had been said.
"She can when aided by two of the greatest warriors of the Middle Ages and a female gargoyle," Jeremy answered, "A reconnaissance team reported to me that she was with Pendragon when he attacked and that Macbeth and forest green gargoyle late intervened to defeat our were."
Anglo put his face in his hands and muttered, "Perfect."
The Mansion
"What is it you found, Merlin?" Arthur asked as he walked into Merlin's study. Macbeth and Rachel followed close behind. Rachel was glad that she was still wearing the special suit Merlin had conjured up for her wolf form as she lost her ability to retain her wolf form after she had calmed down.
"It's not much, but I've finally found something that gives us a clue as to what this 'greatest hour of need' will be," Merlin answered, "It's in a book of prophesies written by a minor sorcerer, who was actually from what is now Holland, shortly after you went to Avalon, Arthur."
"What does it say?" Macbeth questioned.
"He first mentions a great war occurring in the east," Merlin explained while running his finger down the lines of a book, "And then mentions men 'falling' from the sky and the death of the island monarchy."
"The man is predicting paratroopers?" Macbeth asked.
"I doubt that," Merlin answered, "Germany's only major offensive involving paratroopers against an island, was against Crete, not England. And the monarchy wasn't destroyed by the war. I think the term 'falling' is representing something else. It could mean paratroopers, but it could also mean something else."
"Like what?" Arthur asked.
"Various things," Merlin sighed, "It could be a reference to gargoyles, since their wings allow them to glide. It could be a fey invasion, which is probably unlikely with the defeat of the Unseelie Court. It could even mean extraterrestrials."
"Aliens?" Rachel asked, somewhat shocked.
"There are many planets out there in the universe, and scientists here have already come to believe that there are some planets or moons within our solar system that with some modification could easily support human life," Merlin explained, "so with a universe as large as ours, it's not improbable that there isn't another planet that has life on it, sentient or otherwise."
"What about this war in the east?" Arthur asked.
"That's actually the tricky part," Merlin sighed, "It can depend on your definition of 'east'. Does it mean direction or does it refer to a general area. Take World War II for an example. In the Pacific, the American advance against the Japanese was from the east heading west. But the region they were attacking toward is commonly called the Far East. Is that what they mean? Or does it mean that it will occur east of some place, and if so, what is the place we need to start from?"
"Does the book say anything about that?" Macbeth asked.
"No," Merlin sighed, "It says... 'A great war shall begin in the east and involve much of the world.' That's about as far as the text goes. It doesn't go much into the war's details itself."
"Is there any sort of reference to other sorcerers or sign of correspondence with others?" Macbeth asked.
"He does have a diary in the book as well," Merlin answered, "But he doesn't list any other sorcerers at the time that might help, and unfortunately this is the last book of my collection."
"Did you recheck the others to see if they have anything about this particular sorcerer?" Arthur asked.
"I did a linking spell," Merlin answered, "It should bring any book in my collection that talked about similar subjects to me. The only thing I got was a small book that I had written to serve as a catalogue for the books in the collection."
"You might have to travel the world after all," Macbeth sighed, "See if anyone else has a similar collection."
Merlin nodded, but still sounded defeated when he spoke, "That will still be difficult. Many of the sorcerers of the Ancient World and the Middle Ages are unknown in either the historical record or in myth. Some, like myself and Nostradamus are mentioned, but many aren't. No one knows of the Archmage or the Magus from Scotland. No one knows about the Mage."
"Fewer probably know that the Mage was actually Remus," Macbeth commented, remembering the clan's final battle against the man.
"So that's who he was," Merlin muttered to himself, "You'll have tell me more about that after we've finished dealing with this problem."
"So what are you going to do now?" Rachel asked.
"You and I, Ms. Winters will have to go on a little journey while I complete my research," Merlin answered, "You will need to come with me so that I can continue training you."
Rachel only groaned, "I was afraid of that."
To be Continued...