Somewhere in medieval Britain
November, 506 AD
The 'Valley of the Fallen Kings' was a fascinating sight, to say the least. Fog danced around the ages-old trees that towered above the damp ground, and several large statues depicting – you guessed it – kings from the past stood around, partly reclaimed by nature with vines and plants that sprouted from cracks in the stone.
Lancelot and I took turns in leading Falcon while Merlin constantly complained that he could 'do it' and tried to persuade us to turn back. But he couldn't even direct his horse at an easy walk, let alone endure the long gallop that we would have to do if we wanted to catch up to Arthur and the team! Besides, he was still pale and shivering.
He desperately needs proper medical attention whether he admits it or not.
Night inevitably fell upon us and we were forced to find a place to camp and rest. We came across a small clearing near a river and I took care of untacking the horses while Lancelot carried my best friend to lay him near the water so that he could drink some. Once I was done, I rubbed Dallas's forehead and kissed his muzzle before walking over to the two males, wishing to drink some water, too.
I watched in awe as Merlin's hand began to glow under the water, then I shared a curious look with Lancelot.
"Lancelot, Astraea," a whispered female voice sounded, making me jump and scramble away from the river.
Lancelot's jaw dropped and we shared a wary look.
A couple of water drops began floating upwards and turned into bubbles. I recoiled when they showed a faint image. The face of an indistinct woman.
"What the duck?!" I screeched and I reached for Merlin so that I could pull him away from the strange apparitions.
"We bear you no harm. We wish only to help," the voice said.
"And we should believe you because..." I raised my eyebrows at the floating face. This can't be happening! I'm talking to bubbles! Bubbles!
"What are you?" Lancelot asked as he glanced around, appearing much calmer than I felt.
"We are Vilia, spirits of the brooks and streams," the voice replied. More bubbles formed in the air. "The tear in the veil has upset the balance of the world. Good spirits as well as bad roam freely. But this perilous state cannot continue for long."
"Prince Arthur is riding to the Isle of the Blessed. He intends to heal the veil," Lancelot informed them.
"He will need help. From the three of you," the leader bubble replied.
"But my brother's sick. We're takin' him back to Camelot," I stated while my gaze darted towards my best friend. My eyes widened when I found that some colour had returned to his face as his hand continued to glow underwater.
"Merlin is stronger than you give him credit for," the voice replied. I narrowed my eyes at the accusation. I know that he's way stronger than he looks, but he was a complete popsicle not twenty-four hours ago! "The young warlock has great power and a future that has been written since the dawn of time. Do not worry. Even now, my sisters begin to heal him."
That's stupid. How can a future be written since the dawn of time? Did a poetic Australopithecus take time off from its busy day of scratching its butt and carve out a comic book of Merlin's life on a stone tablet?
I turned to look at my best friend again and saw that his entire body was now glowing with a blue hue. I couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as a smile formed on my lips. I guess the magic bubble lady isn't too crazy.
Lancelot and I shared a grin.
"You are tired. You must rest," the bubble told us.
Lancelot nodded and turned to me, "We need to find shelter."
I went to reply, but was cut off by the bubble as it assured us, "You are safe here."
"The Dorocha?" Lancelot inquired.
Ah, right. That's the official name of the banshee-ghosts.
"We will stay with you and protect you through the night," the bubble responded.
More bubbles rose up and they turned into glowing balls of blue light that surrounded the three of us, almost like magical protective fireflies.
"That's some trippy stuff," I mumbled to myself.
Lancelot let out a joyous chuckle as he plopped down beside Merlin while staring up at the magical lights, looking like a kid visiting Disneyland for the first time.
I smiled a little at the sight, happy to see him happy after so many days spent in dread.
As strangely comforting as the glowing bubbles were, I found myself unable to sleep, for my mind decided that worrying about Arthur and the rest of the knights was way more entertaining than travelling to dreamland. So I eventually gave up trying and moved to sit with my back leaning against a tree. I pulled out my phone and earbuds from the pocket in my riding leggings and I played some music before hiding the device in the interior of my black bomber jacket.
I'm not really against Lancelot finding out the truth about me, considering how well he's handled knowing about Merlin's magic, but this is definitely not the time to be revealing big secrets.
'Fireflies' by Owl City began to play and, funny enough, I began to drift off into sleep. Just for a little bit because, just as I was about to succumb to Morpheus's callings, I heard some shuffling that caused my eyes to open.
I quickly removed the one earbud I'd put in and glanced towards my companions to find Merlin sitting up while looking around, seeming slightly disoriented. His skin colour had returned to normal pale – as opposed to deathly pale – and his eyes were no longer dull.
"Merls," I said as I rushed over to him, tackling him in a hug. He gasped in surprise and then returned the embrace tightly. I pulled away and looked him up and down again, wanting to ensure that he truly was all right. "You're okay," I affirmed.
"I am, Astra," he assured me.
I let out a sigh of relief and let myself fall against him, hugging him again.
"Are you hungry?" he asked after a few moments.
"Starvin'," I replied with a small grin.
He went to pick up something from the ground. A long stick. And then he waved me over towards the stream.
The clear water allowed me to see some fish swimming below the surface. My stomach churned as I realised what Merlin was planning. I don't want to kill any fish! Let alone eat them! I've always found that disgusting.
"Yeah, on second thought, I'll just stick to Oreos," I murmured before turning right around and going over to my duffel bag to retrieve a packet of cookies.
I watched from a distance as Merlin played fisherman, grimacing when he pulled out a fish that had blood trailing down its side.
Lancelot started shifting. Then he sat up quickly. "Merlin?!" he called out.
"Shh!" my best friend scolded.
Merlin caught yet another fish and smiled in triumph as he turned to the knight. "Breakfast!" he chirped.
Lancelot stumbled slightly as he stood up, his mouth agape with disbelief. "Merlin, what... Why are you?..." He trailed off while sending me a questioning look. I simply grinned.
"What?" Merlin questioned, a smirk playing on his lips as he tilted his head.
"You are meant to be... dying," the knight responded softly as he blinked rapidly.
"Sorry," my best friend replied, causing me to giggle. "Here," said while handing Lancelot his spear.
The knight frowned as he grabbed it. "What for?"
"You look like you are going to fall over," Merlin teased. Lancelot snorted and swung the stick at him, but he quickly jumped out of the way with a small chuckle. "Yeah, not as quick as Arthur."
"Oh yeah?" Lancelot challenged with a grin.
Merlin took one quick glance at the grazing horses and his smile faded. "Come on. We need to catch up with the others," he said decisively and he strode over to the fallen tree that was serving as a saddle rack.
I grinned and skipped over to him, grabbing a brush so that I could give the equines a quick rub down.
"No. We are going back to Camelot," Lancelot protested.
"You might be," Merlin shot back.
"Merlin–"
"Say 'hello' to Gaius for me," my best friend added.
"Merlin!"
Merlin stopped his movements and he sighed as he turned to face Lancelot. "Arthur cannot finish this without us."
"Arthur is right about you. You do not ever do as you are told," the knight stated. "Neither of you."
My brother and I shared a quick smirk. "Nope," he stated.
"Lucky for him, 'cause he'd be dead," I muttered and grimaced at my own words.
Lancelot let out a resigned sigh and finally moved to saddle Tolkien.
We rode for the entire day, not stopping once. By the time the sun began to set, the horses were sweaty and tired – just like we were. So we thought it proper to begin seeking shelter so that we could all get some much-needed rest.
Shelter came in the form of a small wooden lodge that we happened to come across. Green grass grew outside and there was a creek not far away, from which I was able to bring a couple of buckets full of water for the horses to drink. Then I joined the boys inside and instantly recoiled at the horrible smell that filled my nostrils.
I gulped when I saw the dozens of dead animals that hung from the ceiling. Squirrels, rabbits, birds, racoons... Then my eyes found a rocking chair that carried a figure that was covered by a sheet. My eyes widened at the realisation that it was a dead person and I turned to the boys with raised eyebrows as my stomach grew queasy.
"It is either this or camping outside where the Dorocha can find us," Lancelot stated with a shrug.
I huffed, but dropped all the silent complaints and plopped down on a chair at the dining table, sitting between the two boys.
Merlin spoke a quick spell that started a fire in the fireplace. Lancelot turned to him with a surprised look. "I am not entirely useless, you know," my brother joked, earning a grin.
Silence fell upon us after that and, as you might expect, I quickly grew bored. Then I remembered that I'd packed something special to aid with that particular malady and, with a grin, I skipped over to where I'd laid my duffel bag and pulled out a small cardboard box.
"Anyone up for a game of Uno?" I asked as I returned to the table and let the cards fall on it. Merlin grinned and instantly reached to help me shuffle them while Lancelot eyed us with a questioning look. I grabbed the rules manual and handed it to him. "It's fun, I promise."
Once the knight familiarised himself with the rules, Merlin dealt the cards and the game began. I won the first three rounds, then my brother snuck in a victory while Lancelot remained a loser. But, to be fair, Merlin and I are seasoned players, in contrast with the knight's amateur status. Also, it didn't help that we constantly teamed up against him by piling '2' cards on him. He's too good-natured to say something mean to us, and a small part of me wanted to push until he cracked, just for fun.
Eventually, we grew tired of the game and packed it away. I curled up on my chair with my Avengers blanket and rested my head on my knees as I watched the flames dance in the fireplace.
"You do not have to continue on this journey with us, you know," Merlin told Lancelot after a few silent minutes.
The knight chuckled and replied, "Try and stop me," while raising a challenging eyebrow.
"Why? Because you are a knight and you feel honour-bound?" my brother questioned.
Lancelot frowned. "No – because you are my friends. You two, and Arthur, and the knights."
"Thanks, Lancey. I love ya'," I told him with a little smile.
His eyes widened and he shifted in his spot, as if ants were suddenly crawling all over him, which was a puzzling reaction.
"She means as a friend," Merlin rapidly said.
Oh!
I giggled a little as I remembered that Merlin reacted in a similar way the first time I told him that I love him.
"Right, of course," Lancelot said as he let out a sigh of relief and he reached over the table to pat my arm.
I broke down laughing at his awkwardness.
I was abruptly awakened by Merlin yelling my and Lancelot's names. I shot up on my sleeping bag and I noticed that our fire had almost gone out completely.
An eardrum-shattering shriek let me know that the ghost-banshees found us.
I gathered my stuff quickly and Merlin poured a mug of some alcoholic drink onto the fireplace, reigniting the minuscule flame that remained just as one of the blurs entered through a window. Us three humans rapidly left the small building.
We sprinted through the woods, away from another blurred figure that chased us, and I noticed that the three horses were galloping right behind us, which was certainly relieving. The sorcerer yelled an unintelligible phrase as we ran. I was confused for a second when nothing happened... Then a blast of fire suddenly got rid of the ghost-banshee. My eyes widened when I spotted Kilgharrah flying above us.
"Yeah, buddy!" I cheered as a small grin formed on my lips.
Another ghost approached as we reached a clearing, but the great dragon took care of that one, too, before lowering himself onto the ground.
I steadied myself against Dallas's shoulder as we all skidded to a stop and I let out a long exhale.
I couldn't help but giggle when I saw the expression on Lancelot's face – he seemed both amazed and terrified as he regarded Kilgharrah. He drew his sword and I jumped to catch his arm.
"It's all right!" Merlin said.
"He's our friend," I added with a sheepish grin.
"What?!" the knight questioned.
I waved him off. "Long story."
"Thank you," Merlin told Kilgharrah.
"Who is your friend?" the dragon demanded as he narrowed his eyes.
"I am Lancelot," Lancelot responded.
"Of course. Sir Lancelot," Kilgharrah said. "The bravest and most noble of them all."
"I am not sure that is true," the knight replied while shooting a hesitant glance towards Merlin.
"We shall see. For now, there are more pressing things at hand," Kilgharrah stated before turning to the sorcerer. "The Dorocha cannot be allowed to remain in this world. The sundered veil must be restored."
"We are on our way to the Isle of the Blessed to help Arthur heal it," Lancelot promptly responded.
"Indeed… But at what price?"
Merlin shot me a wary glance before dropping his gaze and letting out a long exhale.
Almost as if he knows the price…
But I don't think he's gonna say it aloud.
What is so bad that we can't know? That I can't know? Arthur knows, right?
Obviously, the ghosts don't care for gold or other worldly goods…
My brain thought back to 'Spooky Buddies' and I felt myself tense up. In the movie, the evil wizard needs souls to open the portal between worlds…
What if the price to close it in real life is also a soul?!
It would explain why Arthur was acting so strangely on the night he, Merlin and I got trapped in the ruined castle… Why he evaded the promise that he'd be back safely… And why my best friend is so intent on catching up with the team on time.…
Oh, f*ck!
F*ck f*ck f*ck!
Arthur is planning to sacrifice himself and my best friend wants to beat him to the punch!
This is absolutely insane!
Now, I can either freak out and confront Merlin... Or I can play the long game and save them both…
Well, that's an easy decision.
I promptly swallowed my emotions and painted a grin over the inner earthquake I was experiencing.
"Artie's rich, we'll pay whatever price the ghosts demand," I replied to Kilgharrah and gave a nonchalant shrug. He gave me a small smile that seemed almost sympathetic before moving his eyes onto Merlin with a wary look. The boy simply nodded at him and they seemed to have a momentary silent conversation before the dragon flew away.
I couldn't breathe quite right as I rode a fair distance ahead of my two chatting friends, my brain too plagued by endless catastrophic thoughts to be able to withstand a casual conversation. Not the cool wind hitting my face, nor the beautiful sight of the foggy forest, nor my horse's smooth and powerful movements below me could ease my mind this time.
Had I known that the end of the line is approaching, I would've made some different choices during the past few weeks. I would've said 'yes' to Arthur. I would've told Gwaine the secret he so desperately wishes to find out. I would've spent less time goofing off and more time treasuring my loved ones. But I guess that's life. And at least I'm gonna go out saving Camelo. Almost like a superhero!
My thoughts were interrupted when Merlin and Lancelot caught up to me. I let out a sigh and put on a grin, doing my best to make it seem genuine. Merlin can't know that I know, or he'll spoil everything.
Now side-by-side-by-side, we galloped up a hill and stopped at the top, looking down at yet another rundown castle in the distance that had smoke rising out of it. I narrowed my eyes at the sight and tilted my head.
"Looks like someone beat us to it," Lancelot noted, his voice monotonous.
I wonder if he figured it out, too… Or if Merlin told him… Or is it possible that everyone knew from the start, except for me? That would be kinda cruel…
"Bandits?" Merlin wondered.
"Or the team?" I whispered.
Lancelot shrugged in response. He's definitely acting more serious than he'd been just an hour ago.
"Think we will make it before nightfall?" Merlin inquired.
"Well, I dunno 'bout you two, but Dal n' I can do it," I replied with a smirk before prompting my Thoroughbred into a full blown gallop.
The feeling I love most in the entire universe engulfed me: a sort of peaceful adrenaline that only ever comes from being in perfect harmony with my horse. Reality paused and it was only Dallas and I against the world. The way it should be. And I felt immortal. With this memory engraved in my soul, I'm ready to go.
I only slowed down my horse when I found that I could barely make out Tolkien and Falcon's respective grey and dark brown figures in the distance behind me. They were galloping with all their mights as the sun threatened to hide away. Then I looked ahead. We're not far at all, now. We'll make it in time.
I let go of the neck-rope and leaned forwards to rest my upper body on my horse's withers, breathing in his calming scent as he munched on the vibrant green grass below us, resting for a bit until my friends caught up.
Eventually, they did catch up and we continued moving at a working trot until we finally reached the fortress.
Sure enough, Tequila, Fallyn, Faye, Scherezade and Promesse stood outside, grazing peacefully. Dallas nickered happily and I rubbed his neck lovingly before hopping off and untacking him quickly so that he could greet his friends.
Lancelot, Merlin and I moved towards the room from where the smoke seemed to be rising, knowing that that's where we would find our team.
Suddenly, a fun thought crossed my mind and my hands reached out to stop both boys, just before the archway into the chamber.
"Wait," I whispered. They shared a confused glance before frowning down at me. "You two up for a prank?"
Lancelot gave me a pointed look, but that did not stop a smile from growing on his face. Merlin grinned, too. So I quickly explained my idea.
I need to have fun while I'm still here, y'know?
Putting on our best sad looks, Lancelot and I entered the room with our arms linked together. I was only slightly taken aback to find the knights and the Prince lined up with their swords drawn.
"Astra," Arthur breathed out as a smile formed on his lips and he dropped his sword. He ran towards me and I met him halfway. He picked me up and spun me around while holding me tightly. I wrapped my arms around his neck and sighed in relief, grateful that he's alive and well.
"Hi, Prince Charming," I whispered when he finally set me down, only to have him lean down to press a gentle kiss to my lips. He kept me anchored firmly against his side after pulling away.
"How is Merlin?" he then asked while glancing between Lancelot and I. I looked down in pretend sadness and bit my lip to restrain a smile.
"Bad news," Lancelot said. Arthur's face fell while gasps and faint 'no's from the knights echoed the room. "He is still alive!"
I doubled over laughing as Merlin strolled into the room with a playful smile.
A bunch of excited 'Merlin!'s sounded as the knights quickly ran to greet my brother.
Arthur sighed in relief and looked down at me with a questioning look. "We had to. Wouldn't be us, otherwise," I excused with a small grin. He scoffed and shook his head, then he kissed my forehead.
Gwaine forced me away from the Prince by grabbing my arm and pulling me into a tight hug. "You are a sight for sore eyes, Trae."
"Wish I could say the same, Gwainester," I replied with a smirk, causing him to let out a hearty chuckle.
While the celebration around our return continued, I dropped my duffel bag on the ground and retrieved the pack of Uno cards.
"Who's up for a game?!"