Arthur Pendragon and the Philosopher's Sword Part 6
MASTERPOST, PART ONE, PART TWO, PART THREE, PART FOUR
PART FIVE
Part Six
Arthur's first examination was a simple herb-mixing one supervised by Gaius. He had to select four herbs from a large choice, and make a remedy. He didn't need to use much magic, just a little to make the remedy more effective. Merlin had shown him how to do it several times but Arthur still felt nervous. Most herbs looked all the same to him, just variations of green leaves and twigs.
Merlin was sat at the back of the room, out of Arthur's direct sight. He wouldn't be able to see what was going on as Arthur had his back to him. It was to prevent Merlin giving him any help. Merlin's role was simply to be there so Arthur could focus his magic.
Selecting the herbs took quite awhile. Arthur wanted to be sure he got them right. He knew if he got one wrong he'd fail before he even tried magic. He wavered over a couple, unsure which was the correct one.
“Take your time,” Gaius said.
Arthur nodded and turned his attention to the herbs before him. Finally he selected his four and placed them into the mortar before carefully grinding them up with the pestle. He took his time applying pressure to them to make sure the resulting mixture was nice and thick. Soon he had formed a green paste.
Now came the hard bit: using magic. Taking a calming breath, Arthur held his hand out over the mortar. In his mind, he pictured bandages, potions, images of healing. Closing his eyes he felt ready to try it, feeling the tingling of his magic at the ends of his fingertips.
“Gemengan,” he said, quietly.
He opened his eyes to see the paste bubbling a little.
“Well done, Arthur,” Gaius said, smiling. “You've passed.”
Arthur turned around to see Merlin grinning at him. He'd done it; he'd passed his first examination, although it was one of the easier ones. Still, a pass was a small victory, and Arthur felt much happier. As he walked by Merlin he heard him whisper.
“I knew you could do it.”
“Good luck,” Arthur whispered back.
He hung around outside the door to Gaius's rooms waiting for Merlin. Merlin's test would be a lot more gruelling, and Arthur wasn't allowed to watch. Whatever it was, it sounded serious, and Arthur resisted the urge to listen at the door. He could still hear what sounded like explosions coming from inside the room.
It seemed an age before Merlin emerged with a triumphant grin.
“You passed then?” Arthur asked.
“Of course I passed,” Merlin replied. “I couldn't fail my own uncle’s exam, could I?”
Arthur laughed and gave Merlin a hug. “If you'd failed, Gaius would have disowned you.”
“Or worse, made me label his potion bottles for a whole year.”
The next exam was with Professor Mandrake. This was a very simple exam. All Arthur had to do was identify three magical beasts from some odd pictures, write out the names of several others and their favoured habitat in runes, and then select the right foodstuff to give to a griffin, a unicorn and a fairy. As a first year he didn't even have to face a magical creature and, as there was technically no magic involved, Merlin waited outside the door.
“Well?” he asked, when Arthur emerged. “Did you remember unicorns don’t eat people?”
“Yes, Merlin,” Arthur said. “I passed.”
That was the last of the examinations for the day and in the afternoon they sat out in the courtyard comparing notes on their various examinations with Elena and Gilli.
“It was much easier than I thought it would be,” Elena said, referring to Gaius's test. “Even though wasn't sure if we should be using lavender or not.”
“I had the same trouble,” Gilli said.
Arthur breathed a sigh of relief. “Me too,” he said. “At least Gaius doesn't rush you.”
“What was your exam like, Merlin?” Elena asked.
Merlin shrugged. “Nothing special. Just potion brewing,” he said.
Just potion brewing probably meant Merlin had to use a far more complex recipe, and heat up the individual ingredients with magic. He'd not told Arthur the exact details but Arthur had worked it out from the pages of the book he seen Merlin studying.
“And of course he passed with flying colours,” Arthur said.
“Why don't they let you move up a year or two?” Gilli asked.
There was a small smile from Merlin. “It's not my destiny,” he said, looking at Arthur. “I like it this way, and Arthur would be lost without me.”
“And Merlin would be lost in a mess in our chambers without me,” Arthur pointed out.
“I'm glad you're in our year, Merlin,” Gilli said.
“Me too,” Elena added. “And you, Arthur, of course.”
“It's gone by so fast,” Arthur said. “Doesn't seem five minutes since I blew up my father's glass. Now I'm doing magic.”
“And most importantly you met me,” Merlin said.
“Yes, Merlin, and I got a boyfriend.”
Elena had that 'awww' look about her again.
“What are your plans for the spring holidays?” Merlin asked.
“I'm going camping with my father. We're going to the forest of Balor,” Elena said.
“Aren't there cockatrices there?” Arthur asked. He vaguely remembered that being mentioned by Professor Mandrake, shortly after the incident with Professor Muirden.
“Yes, but we'll be using protection charms.”
“What about you, Gilli?” Merlin asked.
“There's a chess tournament in WillowWood. I thought I might try my luck. Camelot's chess team hasn't managed any tournaments this year since Professor Sidhe got crushed by a rook and a bishop before Christmas.”
“That can happen to fairies,” Merlin said, solemnly.
“What about you?” Elena asked. “Is Arthur whisking you away on a romantic break?”
“No, he's not,” Arthur said. “We're staying here in case something happens.”
There wasn't any need to say what the something was.
“How will you know?” Elena asked.
“If only we had some sort of warning,” Merlin said, quietly.
“Morgana!” Arthur said. “She's a seer!”
He hadn't spoken to Morgana much the last couple of months, just the odd meeting here and there to discuss their father. At Camelot, she had her own life, her own friends, and her own hobbies. None of which coincided with Arthur's. It was strange, but it had been exactly the same in the non-magical world. She was his sister and he loved her, but even with magic in common they didn't spend much time together.
“Why didn't we think of her before?” Merlin asked. “We should talk to her, see if she's seen anything.”
Arthur got up from the stone bench he was sitting on. Merlin stood up as well.
“We'll stay here,” Elena said, making no move to get up. “We don't want to scare your sister by mobbing her.”
That was a good idea. Morgana seemed to like Arthur's friends, but there was no sense all of them descending on her asking for information. Arthur wasn't even sure where Morgana was. He and Merlin set off down toward the Great Hall, more out of hope than anything else. It was sheer luck that they saw a familiar figure ahead of them.
“Morgana!” Arthur said, calling down the corridor. He hurried up to reach her.
Morgana turned; she looked a little stressed, as if something was wrong. “Arthur,” she said, sounding relieved.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
She gave a thin smile. “I'm fine.”
“No, you're not,” Arthur said, reaching out to give her a hug. Morgana flinched.
“What's wrong?” Merlin asked, having caught up. “Have you Seen something?”
Morgana nodded. “After Christmas, when I came back to Camelot, I had a nightmare. I saw Arthur, and you, and a sword. There was blood, a lot of blood, and flames. That's all I remember. Morgause gave me this to help.”
She held up her wrist and Arthur saw she was wearing a thick bracelet, like an amulet of silver with gold detail.
“A blocking amulet,” Merlin said, taking a closer look. “It stops visions whilst you sleep,” he explained to Arthur.
“Go on,” Arthur encouraged.
Morgana held the bracelet and turned it slightly on her wrist. “It was working,” she said. “I didn't have another nightmare. Until yesterday.”
“What was it about?” Arthur asked.
“I don't know. It was just images. I saw someone in a cloak, there was a sword in a stone and then you were lying on the floor.”
“Do you think it was a vision?” Arthur asked. “Do you think you saw the future?”
Hesitantly, Morgana nodded. “Morgause said I shouldn’t worry about it, but I can't help it. I can't stand to see anything happen to you if I can prevent it,” Morgana said, sounding like the protective elder sister despite her fear.
“Listen, Morgana,” Arthur said, gently hugging her. “There's something going on. We think the sword in the stone is in the dungeons, and we think someone is going to try and steal it.”
Pulling back Arthur saw Morgana looked shocked. “Who?”
“Him,” Merlin said.
“But he's...”
“Not dead enough,” Arthur said, quietly. “We might need your help, Morgana. Can we count on you?”
“Of course.” She gave Arthur a hug.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
Hearing about Morgana's visions was unsettling, but at least they were forewarned. Something was going to happen, and judging by the fact nothing had been able to block the vision, it seemed whatever it was was going to happen soon. Arthur hoped the warning would be enough.
*****************************************************************************
Four more days passed and more examinations were taken. Arthur passed all of them with relative ease. Merlin passed his with what Arthur suspected was a little more ease. Despite this there was no sign of Morgana's vision coming to pass, and there was also no sign of Professor Muirden attempting anything. Arthur wasn't sure if he should be relieved or not.
Arthur was just grateful that first year students were not set examinations in dark magic. It was a dangerous discipline and even the theory took two years to master. As a result he didn't have to face Professor Muirden with the added pressure of an exam.
Finally, on the sixth day of examinations came Arthur’s ultimate test - his Elemental Magic examination. Everything else had been building up to it. It was hardest and most complex magic Arthur could perform. It made selecting herbs and identifying magical creatures seem simple.
Merlin accompanied Arthur into Professor Nimueh's rooms. Merlin was again allowed to be in the same room, but he wasn't allowed to touch Arthur, although he could watch. He took a seat at the back.
“Good luck,” Merlin whispered, giving Arthur's hand a quick squeeze.
Leaving Merlin to watch, Arthur walked to the front of the room where Nimueh was waiting for him. She gave him a smile, which made her seem a lot less intimidating than she usually did. He could see the bench behind her had various items on it, presumably they were all part of the test.
“All right, Arthur, I'm going to ask you to perform a serious of tasks using magic relating to the element of fire. Failing any of them means you fail the examination. Do you understand?”
Arthur nodded. “I do.”
Nimueh moved back and allowed Arthur to approach the bench. “Then let's begin. On the bench in front of you is a piece of wood. I'd like you create a flame on it. The flame must not be extinguished until the tests are complete. You may begin.”
Over the last few months Arthur had got much better at conjuring fire. He still couldn’t think about the process directly but as he held out his hand he could feel the tingle of magic at his fingertips. Closing his eyes he thought about a warm summer's day as he whispered the spell.
“Forbærnen.”
Before he had even opened his eyes, he knew there was a flame dancing in front of him. He'd felt his magic swirl out of him and act upon the wood.
“Good,” Nimueh said. “Now grow the flame.”
Closing his eyes again Arthur pictured a winter's evening by a fireplace. “Forþgelæde.”
As he opened them, he saw the flame had more than doubled in size. He hoped he hadn't overdone it.
Nimueh didn't comment. “Move the flame onto the pile of earth on the other side of the bench,” she said.
Moving the flame wasn't difficult, it was keeping it alight on the earth that would be the tricky part. On the earth Arthur would have to fuel the flame mainly using magic. It required concentration, and Arthur tried to focus. He pictured warm winds and flexed his fingers, letting his magic flow out of him to pick up, and carry, the flame to the earth.
“Ic drífe. ”
He felt it touch the earth and pictured lava in his mind. He felt the flame anchor itself to the magic he was feeding through the earth.
“Now raise it up,” Nimueh said.
Arthur imagined a plant pushing up through the ground as he used the magic like a stem, with the flame as a flower. It was hard work and the tips of his fingers began to burn. He could feel sweat on his forehead. He didn't look, fearing it would break his concentration.
“Blow the flame out,” Nimueh said.
As Arthur imagined the flower opening he felt a sudden heat and then there was a bang, as if a firework had gone off. He opened one eye carefully to see a shower of sparks falling onto the bench.
Nimueh smiled. “Well done, Arthur, you've passed.”
Turning around Arthur could see Merlin at the back of the room, beaming. “I knew you could do it!” Merlin practically yelled.
“I do owe some of this to my tutor.”
There was another sly smile from Nimueh. “I knew pairing the two you up was a good idea. I'm sure Merlin will be very helpful when we tackle the element of water next year.”
“I'm sure he will.”
“Your mother would be proud of you,” Nimueh said, wistfully.
As they left Nimueh's room, Arthur whispered, “So, how are you going to help with me with water?”
“I was thinking we could go swimming,” Merlin said. “And forget to bring our swimming trunks.”
Arthur really hoped Nimueh's hearing wasn't magical. He was blushing as they headed back to their chambers.
*****************************************************************************
With the examinations over a lot of students were packing to head home for a couple of weeks before the Beltane celebration. Merlin had invited his parents to the celebration, but he had agreed with Arthur that they should stay at Camelot. Arthur had decided it was a perfect opportunity for some spring cleaning. Their chambers had started to get a little messy the last couple of months.
“Your parents won’t mind?” Arthur asked, as he went through the wardrobe, wondering how it was his and Merlin's clothes were all mixed up.
“I think my mother thinks we're staying here because we can have sex without worrying about disturbing anyone.”
Arthur nearly dropped the shirt he was carrying to his bed. “Please tell me she didn't put that in her letter.”
“Not those exact words,” Merlin said, piling his books up on the floor.
“Good because your mother...” Arthur didn't want to finish that thought. He put his shirt down, and rummaged in his rucksack for his spare pair of underpants. What he found was the glass ball that Morgana had given him the night he'd been whisked away from home.
“Oh, a memory ball,” Merlin said, coming over to take a look. “I've not seen one of those for years.”
“A gift from Morgana,” Arthur said, turning it over in his hands. “Although I have no idea what it does.”
“It shows you memories,” Merlin said.
“I worked that out from the name.”
“Yeah, but memories from the past, present, and future. Seers use them to find out when their dreams come from.”
“How can you have vision from the past?” Arthur asked. “What would be the point?”
“Things that happened in the past can affect the present. Like where someone hid something, or someone killing another person.”
“Why would Morgana give me this?” Arthur asked, tossing it up and catching it.
“Because your past is important,” Merlin said. “You've not used it?”
“I didn't know what it was, Merlin. How do I use it?”
“Hold in your palm,” Merlin said, holding his palm out and demonstrating with an empty hand. “Then let a little magic flow into it.”
That seemed simple enough. Arthur held the ball as Merlin had demonstrated. The ball began to feel warm in his hand as his hand tingled with the familiar feeling of magic. Nothing else seemed to be happening but, after a moment, an odd grey mist began to form inside the ball. As Arthur watched, it began to swirl and darken.
Unable to take his eyes away, he watched he saw images start to appear in the mist. He saw a sword a the stone, then a cloaked figure approaching it. The figure was about to turn around when suddenly the mists became even darker and the images vanished. The mists swirled before become greyer, and lighter, and then receding like clouds after a storm.
“Arthur?”
“You said this can show the present?
“It can, yes. What did you see, Arthur?”
“I think Professor Muirden's gone to get the sword,” Arthur said. “We need to tell someone. Where's Gaius?”
“It's the spring holidays, he's gone herb collecting, remember? And Nimueh's gone to the Isle of the Blessed with some post grads.”
No wonder Professor Muirden had waited until now. “Then it's up to us.”
“Not just us,” Merlin said. “We need help.”
Arthur agreed. There could be another cockatrice waiting for them. “Let's get everyone together.”
They stumbled out of their chambers into the path of Elena and Gilli, complete with their trunks. They were heading off for Spring break.
“Don't go!” Merlin said, stepping in front of them. “We need your help.”
“What's wrong?” Elena asked.
“It's happening,” Arthur said. “Now. I've seen it.” He held up the memory ball.
“What do you want us to do?” Elena asked.
“We need help,” Merlin said. “The more of us there are, the better chance we've got.”
“We'll help you,” Gilli said.
“Can you find the knights?” Arthur asked.
“Gilli nodded. “Of course.”
“Tell them to meet us at the entrance to the dungeons and tell them to come armed.”
“We'll be as fast as we can,” Elena said, taking Gilli's hand and pulling him along the hallway.
“Should we find Morgana?” Merlin asked.
“It can't hurt to have someone with us who can see the future,” Arthur said. He stuffed the ball in his pocket. It was a tight fit, but he thought perhaps it would be useful.
They didn't have to look far for Morgana. As soon as they stepped out of the College and into the main part of the castle they saw Morgana heading toward them, Gwen was at her side. Morgana looked worried.
“Did you see it?” she asked.
“If you mean a cloaked figure near the sword in the stone, yes,” Arthur replied. “We were just coming to find you.”
“It's now, Arthur,” Morgana said. “We need to be careful.”
“We will be,” Merlin said.
“Yes, are you sure you want to come?”
“You’ll have more of a chance if we come with you,” Gwen said.
“Come on then,” Arthur said.
Together they headed to the dungeons. When they got there they found the knights, Elena, and Gilli, all waiting for them. There was an air of expectancy among them.
“We told them about what we know,” Elena said.
“You think someone is trying to steal the sword in the stone?” Lancelot asked.
“Yes, and right now. We've seen it.” Arthur glanced at Morgana who nodded.
“Good enough for me,” Gwaine said. “You'll need this.”
He handed Arthur his sword. Arthur took it gratefully. Just the feel of it in his hands made him feel better.
“All right, everyone, we're about to break University rules, we're about to possibly face danger. If anyone wants to stay behind I won't think any less of them.”
No-one moved. “We're coming with you,” Merlin said. “You need us.”
“I do,” Arthur said. “Right, are we all ready?”
“Ready,” everyone chorused. Except one person.
“Merlin?”
“I'm not really ready,” he said. “But you are, so let's go.”
Arthur put an arm around Merlin and kissed his cheek. “We'll be fine,” he said.
Merlin nodded.
“Okay, Percival,” Arthur said. “Open the gate.”
The large iron gate that had been installed to stop students going down to the dungeons looked heavy, and even Percival struggled to open it. The thing seemed almost magically sealed shut. In fact, thinking about it, it probably was. There was no lock on it after all.
“Merlin?” Arthur asked.
Obviously thinking the same thing Merlin stepped forward, raising his hand up. “Onlúcan,” he said, firmly.
There was a ripple of gold magic across the whole gate, and then Merlin lowered his hand and stepped back. “Try it now,” he said.
Percival stepped forward and this time the gates gave way with little effort. So much so, it seemed as if Percival was going to fall forward before Leon and Elyan caught him. The gates swung open in front of them.
“Right, let's go,” Arthur said. He was feeling nervous, but he was also determined. He was not going to let the sword fall into the hands of the man who had murdered his mother. Besides, he had the best back up he could wish for.
Merlin was at his side as they ventured through the gate. It was dark and Merlin lit the torches that lined the wall, so they could to see where they were going. As they went down the staircase Arthur gripped his sword tightly. He studied the shadows on the walls, waiting for something to leap out at them.
Nothing did, and they reached the bottom without any mishap. Oddly the dungeons seemed to have changed since Arthur and Merlin had last ventured down. In front of them was a large wooden door. It looked old, as if it had been there for years, but Arthur knew it hadn’t been there several months ago. It was very strange.
“Let's be careful,” Arthur said, loud enough for everyone to hear.
The knights all had their swords drawn and ready.
“Can you open the door from here?” Arthur asked Merlin.
“Yes,” Merlin said. With a flick of his wrist and a muttered spell the door swung open.
Peering into the gloom, Arthur could see very little. There was no torchlight, no nothing; they would be going into the pitch black. Before he could ask someone to grab a torch, he saw Morgana, Gwen, Elena and Gilli, head back up the stairs, and then return with four torches.
Gilli came and stood in front of them, holding the torch slightly inside the room. It didn't show them much. The other torch-bearers came forward and illuminated the room as best they could from the doorway. It was dangerous for them to go in first, unarmed, but it was also dangerous for the knights to go in without being able to see.
“Let me,” Merlin said. He quickly conjured a ball of light and let it drift into the room. It didn't light the whole room up, but provided enough light for the knights and Arthur to step in without worrying it was an ambush.
Once they were inside, their friends followed with the torches. When the torches were inside, Merlin let his ball of light die down. Everyone moved about, examining the place, but the room appeared to be just a room. The torchlight danced off stone walls and stone flags of the floor. It seemed unremarkable.
“How do we get out of here?” Arthur asked.
“There's a door over there,” Elena said, pointing.
The door was identical to the one they had entered the room through.
“It's too easy,” Merlin said.
“You can say that again,” Gwaine added.
Arthur felt the same. There was a feeling of something in the air, some form of foreboding. But what it was, he didn't know. “Let’s take this slowly,” he said.
He saw Lancelot nodding.
Stepping forward with his sword Arthur was about to reach the door when suddenly he sensed something nearby. He couldn’t make out what it was, but he instinctively moved his sword to block it. As he did so he heard someone scream. His sword sliced through something, and the room began to rumble.
Within seconds large vines erupted from the floor and began to surround them menacingly. Arthur swiped at a few with his sword, carefully dodging them as they got close. He saw the knights trying to do the same. Cutting off one vine didn't help, however, as more seemed to grow in its place.
He could see Merlin, Elena, Gilli, and Morgana trying to throw fireballs at the vines, but they seemed to be having about as much success as Arthur and the knights, which was little. Gwen had a dagger and was cutting the vines that came near her, but she too was struggling.
“What are we going to do?” Morgana asked. “There's too many.”
Arthur noticed the vines were concentrating on where they were standing. They were surrounding Arthur and the others, but there was a gap not far from the door.
“If enough of us distract them we can make it to the door,” Arthur said.
Merlin looked over and nodded. “Arthur's right.”
“We'll keep fighting, the rest of you go on,” Gwaine said, slicing a particularly vicious vine that attempted to wrap itself around his leg.
“You don't want me to stay?” Arthur asked, slicing two vines that were attempting to grab his arm.
“Arthur, this is not your destiny,” Lancelot said, moving to stand next to Gwaine.
Gwaine agreed. “He's right, Arthur, whatever is ahead you’re the one who has to face it.”
“Good luck!” Leon said.
The knights began to swipe harder at the vines, encouraging them to attack them. This thinned the vines around the others. They all manoeuvred themselves for a clear run to the door.
“On three,” Arthur said. “One, two, three!”
As he yelled he leapt over where the vines were thinnest, Merlin alongside him. They were followed by Morgana and Gwen, waving torches at the vines, and then finally Gilli and Elena. Arthur heard a yelp, and Elena's ankle seemed to catch in the vines.
He was about to go back and help when he saw Gilli stamp on the vine, causing it to release Elena. He gave her a hand and pulled her toward the door. By the time they got there Merlin had it open, and all of them tumbled through.
They had to close to the door as the vines had begun to follow them. Arthur could see the knights still fighting in a circle, surrounded by the vines. Gwaine briefly turned to them and Arthur was sure he saw him wink before the door was closed.
Now they took stock of their new surroundings. They seemed to be in an identical room with another identical door facing them.
“Come on,” Arthur said.
They gingerly walked across the room, looking down at the floor. Arthur was half expecting something to leap out in front of them. Nothing actually happened though, and they successfully reached the door. Arthur felt a surge of relief. He still kept his sword ready, however, as he took hold of the handle and tried to turn it. It wouldn't budge.
“It's locked,” he said, trying it again. He turned to Merlin. “Can you open it?”
Merlin raised his hand and said the spell. Nothing happened, so he tried again, saying it louder. By the fourth attempt he had closed his eyes and was yelling. “I can't do it,” he said, with a sigh.
It was no good any of the rest of them trying. Merlin was the most powerful sorcerer among them. If his magic couldn't do it none of the rest of them would be able to manage it.
“There's a keyhole,” Arthur said. “So there has to be a key. Everyone look round.”
They split up and to cover the room looking in every corner, near the walls, on the floor. There was nothing else in the room. There were no stones a key could be under, or any containers it could be in. The walls didn’t appear to have any cubby holes, or hiding places.
They were about to give up, when they heard something that sounded like thunder. The room seemed to have expanded around them in all directions. A dark shape was moving toward them, accompanied by a large sound. Gradually the shape became clearer.
Arthur squinted. “Are those horses?”
The horses slowed from a gallop before trotting past them. The horses weaved between them, coming close enough to touch.
“Look, they've got keys on them,” Gwen said.
Sure enough each horse wore a bridle, and dangling from each bridle was a key. One horse walked up and stopped in front of them. It had no key, but it did have a saddle along with its bridle; it looked ready to be ridden.
“Don't tell me, someone has to ride after the horses to get the key?” Arthur groaned.
“These are all tests, spells to protect the sword,” Merlin said.
“How do we know which is the right key?” Arthur asked.
“The lock looks old,” Merlin said, peering at it. “The key will probably look old as well.”
“There,” Morgana said. “The small brown horse.”
It took a moment for Arthur to pick out which one was the brown horse but, as he did so he saw that a large, old, rusty-looking key was dangling from the horses bridle, in sharp contrast to the bright golden keys that were on the bridles of the other horses.
“How do we get it?”
“That's easy,” Elena said, approaching the horse that had stopped before them. “We ride for it.”
She put her torch down, and mounted the horse with practised ease.
“Are you sure you can do it?” Arthur asked, watching as Elena adjusted the stirrups.
“Who's the best rider here?” she asked.
“You are,” Gilli said.
“Exactly. I'll ride close to the horse and get the key.”
“Then what?” Arthur asked.
“I'll throw it to you.” Elena said, eyeing the crowd of horses still trotting around the room.
“All right, but be careful.”
“Yes,” Gilli added. “We don’t want anything to happen to you.”
Elena offered Gilli a smile before kicking her horse into a trot. As soon as her horse began moving the other horses started to pick up the pace, and began weaving between each other as they galloped around the room. Arthur found it hard to pick out the horse carrying the correct key.
It seemed Elena was having a little bit of difficulty herself as she increased her pace and caught up with the herd. The room seemed to get larger and then smaller as the pace of the horses sped up, and then decreased. Elena was doing well, but she was looking around for the horse with the right key.
“There!” Merlin said, as the horse in question came past him.
Now she had a fix on her target Elena wheeled around and headed toward it. Her face was set with determination as she raced past Arthur, and caught up with the horse carrying the key. As if it sensed it was nearly caught the horse swerved to one side but Elena kept up.
Leaning across, she plucked the key from the bridle of the horse and held it aloft.
“Got it!” she yelled.
The horses began to close in on Elena, as if they were trying to force her to give up the key. It was clear, however, that Elena was not going to be beaten. She managed a small burst of speed, and pulled away enough for her to make a clear throw to Merlin who was waiting by the door.
“Catch!” she said, throwing the key.
Merlin managed to catch it without fumbling. He put the key into the lock and turned it. The horses then turned and headed toward him, and Arthur ran to Merlin's aid. He was not going to watch Merlin be flattened by horses.
Merlin didn’t seem worried, however, and as the lock clicked open, the horses suddenly disappeared, all except the one Elena was mounted on. It was with relief that Arthur reached the door to find Merlin still in one piece. He patted him on the back as the others came to stand near the door, ready to move on.
Elena pulled her horse up and halted it. She made a movement to get down, and then stopped.
“What's wrong?” Gilli asked.
“I can't get down; I'm stuck,” she replied, trying to pull herself up and off the saddle.
Merlin went over and touched the saddle. The stirrups and saddle are spelled with a sticking enchantment. I could break the spell but it would take time,” he said.
“Time we don't have,” Elena said. “You carry on without me.”
It was Gilli who came to stand near her. “Are you sure? I could stay with you,” he offered.
Elena smiled, but shook her head. “That's very sweet but they might need you further on. I'll be fine,” she said.
Arthur noticed she leaned down as best she could and squeezed Gilli's hand. “We'll come back for you,” Gilli said.
“Right, let's go then” Arthur said. Merlin nodded, and came to stand at his side. He was ready. Looking at the others, Arthur received other affirmative nods.
“Open the door,” he said to Merlin.
Merlin opened the door and they stepped through. As they left poor Elena Arthur turned to her. “Thank you,” he said.
“Just do what you need to,” Elena said.
Th next room was, once again, identical to the previous two. The group was still cautious as they made their way across it, though. From vines to horses, there was no pattern to indicate what might appear. There was also, predictably, another door. It was also locked but there was something different about it. There was no keyhole and it wouldn't open by pushing it.
“Do you think this another test?” Merlin asked.
“I think, Merlin, given that the door ahead doesn't have a keyhole, that yes, this a test,” Arthur said.
“We could try and get it open with magic,” Merlin suggested. “Onlúcan.”
The door still remained fast.
“That's not working,” Arthur said. It would save a lot of time and effort if Merlin could have opened it with magic, but that seemed impossible.
Morgana pointed to the door. “Look, there's an indentation near the top.”
“What is that?” Arthur asked. The shape looked a little odd.
“A horseshoe,” Gwen said. “People hang them that way up on their doors as a sign of luck.”
“We're not having any luck.” Arthur was getting frustrated. How many more rooms would they have to go through? How many more before they reached the sword in the stone?
“We need a horseshoe,” Merlin said.
“And where are we going to get a horseshoe from? I don’t think that horse Elena’s stuck on is going to help.”
There was another rumble, almost as if something or someone had heard Arthur. Steeling themselves for anything from giant killer plants to a herd of elephants, they looked around.
“In the corner,” Gilli said.
Something seemed to be forming in the far right corner, almost as if it was coming up from the ground. Morphing like clay, the odd shape slowly took on a more solid, squared off form. It began to look familiar.
“Is that?” Arthur asked.
“It's a forge,” Gwen said. She began to walk over to it. The others followed.
As they got closer they could see an anvil, hammer, tongs, all the tools of the blacksmith's trade. The fire was going and the coals were hot. Gwen had put her torch down and was already examining some metal glowing red-hot in the coals.
“I can make a horseshoe,” she said. “One that will fit on that door.”
Arthur didn't ask how long it would take; he thought it would be rude. Morgana had already glared at him as if she expected him to make some sort of remark. Arthur didn't have a chance, even if he'd wanted to, for Gwen was already hard at work. She was lifting the hot metal out of the fire, picking up the hammer and beginning to change its shape as she placed it on the anvil.
Arthur and the others watched as Gwen worked tirelessly. She took the metal to the fire, heated it up and brought it back out, hammering it into shape before she needed to reheat. The heat of the coals made Arthur feel warm from where he was standing, but it didn't seem to bother Gwen.
Eventually she stood up in triumph and showed them the horseshoe, still glowing red hot. She plunged it into a bucket of water in a hiss of steam, before bringing it out. The metal now looked cool. It was a dull grey, as opposed to the red of earlier. Gwen placed it on the anvil with the tongs before picking it up with her hand. It was safe enough to touch.
“It's ready,” she said.
They walked back to the door, Gwen carrying the horseshoe. Arthur had no idea how she could have made it to fit the shape in the door exactly, but then she was a talented magical blacksmith. They all stood back as Gwen approached the door with the horseshoe, carefully raising it to put into place.
For a terrible moment, Arthur thought it was too big, but thankfully it seemed it was just his perspective. As Gwen touched it to the door, it began to glow almost immediately; Arthur closed his eyes as it emitted a bright light.
Arthur opened his eyes slowly to see that the horseshoe was stuck to the door and that the door itself was unlocked and open slightly. It seemed the test had been passed and they could continue. He turned to Gwen to give her his thanks, when he noticed she looked uncomfortable.
“Gwen, are you all right?” Morgana asked, concerned.
Gwen gave her a smile. “Yes, I'm fine. I'm just stuck to the floor.”
“Not again. What sort of tests are these?” Arthur asked. It was getting more than a little frustrating to have each of his friends help him, and then get stuck for their trouble.
“Ones that know us,” Morgana whispered.
“Go, on. I'll be fine,” Gwen said, pushing Morgana a little to encourage her.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, Morgana. The door's open, go on.”
“Thank you, Gwen,” Morgana said, giving her friend a quick hug.
“Yes, thank you,” Arthur added.
Gwen gave them a smile as they left her and went into the next room. At first it seemed to be identical to the others. They were down to two torches now and the rooms weren't getting any lighter. At least that was what they thought until the odd rumbling sound began again.
Once more, dark shapes began to form, but this time they were everywhere - in front, behind, and to the sides of them. It seemed as if a forest was springing up around them.
“Now what?” Arthur asked. “Are we going to be attacked again?”
The shapes were menacing. Even with limited light, they couldn’t make out quite what they were. Some of them looked like people, almost giants. Others looked like they might be buildings. Arthur wished they could have a better look. Perhaps he should have been careful what he wished for.
Torches lining the walls burst with flames and lit up the room. What had been a dark room blazed with light, and it quickly became obvious where they were standing.
“We're on a chessboard,” Merlin said, looking down at the large black and white tiles that made up the floor.
“So what do we do? I can't see another door.” Arthur said. The opposite wall was just a blank wall.
“We probably have to play the chess game first,” Merlin said.
Given their tests so far Arthur suspected Merlin was right. “I don't play chess.”
Gilli stepped forward. “I do. Let me try something.”
“Go ahead,” Arthur said. Apparently Gilli was good at chess, although Arthur had never seen him play. He regretted that.
“A two pawn to A five,” Gilli said.
To Arthur's astonishment the pawn, which resembled a small solider, got up, walked forward two spaces, and then sat down. “That pawn just moved,” he whispered.
“Of course he did,” Merlin replied.”Keep watching.”
One of the other pawns, from the black side, moved forward. Arthur had no idea which square was which. He did have a basic understanding of chess however, and he knew that if Gilli didn't move their pawn it would be taken in the next move.
“H two pawn to H four,” Gilli said.
A pawn at the other end of the board got up, walked forward, and then sat down. Arthur didn't know why Gilli had done that. It seemed to have left his other pawn completely vulnerable. He watched as the opposing pawn that had moved ready to take the first pawn now moved again.
It walked up to Gilli's pawn and stabbed it with a long spear. The pawn seemed to cry out and then shattered, sending debris flying across the board.
“What was that?”
“That's the magical version of chess, Arthur,” Merlin said,
Gilli was paced the board, looking as if he was working out his next move.
“The pieces literally destroy each other,” Arthur said, shocked. He doubted his own sword would be much use against them. They seemed to be made of rock.
“They do. Well, until checkmate.”
“That’s not reassuring Merlin. We’re surrounded by chess pieces that could kill us.” Most were carrying some sort of weapon. Even the bishops had daggers. The rooks were unarmed, but they were castles, and Arthur remembered one had crushed Professor Sidhe.
“Not if we win. Gilli can beat them.”
Gilli looked deep in thought. If he'd made the chess team, he had to be good. Arthur watched as Gilli considered his position, and then ordered one of the rooks to move.
It was hard to follow the game exactly. Arthur could tell Gilli was thinking several moves ahead, trying to anticipate his opponent, What was unnerving was that an opponent didn't seem to exist; there was no way of knowing who or what their opponent was. Merlin said he thought it was a complicated spell, designed to react to the other player.
“Like a computer?” Arthur asked.
Merlin frowned. “What's a computer?”
“Never mind,” Arthur said, and went back to watching.
Gilli's rook did some damage, before it was taken by a bishop and shattered into several hundred pieces. Gilli tried to eliminate the bishops with his knights. He managed to take one, before his knight was taken by a rook. One of his pawns was taken by the opposing queen.
It went on. Pieces fell, their remains scattered across the board, the other pieces stepping over their fallen comrades. Arthur watched Gilli lose a few more pawns and a bishop. The other side lost their rooks. The queens came into play, dancing around each other. As long as they were both in play it seemed the game wouldn't end.
Finally, Gilli's strategy paid off. He sacrificed a rook and trapped the other queen, taking her with a lowly pawn. The pawn was immediately taken in the next move, but it had done it work. Now Gilli set up the final moves. Arthur had to admit he was very impressed.
With a rook, a bishop, and his queen, Gilli made a final move with a pawn and the other side was in checkmate.
“That's the game over,” Gilli said.
Arthur breathed a sigh of relief, but then the remaining enemy pieces all shattered at once and the board became a dangerous place to be with debris flying everywhere. Arthur ducked and hoped nothing would hit him.
As the dust cleared, Arthur checked around. Merlin stood up next to him brushing off his clothes. He was a little dirty, but otherwise okay. Morgana looked a little shocked, but she too was unhurt. Not so Gilli, who was lying in the middle of the board with a trickle of blood spilling down his forehead.
“Gilli!”
They ran forward. At first Arthur was worried Gilli was dead, but he was breathing and, after a few long moments, his eyes fluttered open. “Did we do it?”
“We won,” Arthur reassured him. “Thanks to you.”
“The door?” Gilli asked before gasping in pain.
Looking at the far wall Arthur saw a door shimmer into existence. “It's there,” Arthur said.
“Go on, then,” Gilli replied.
Morgana was kneeling next to him pressing a handkerchief to the nasty cut Gilli had on his forehead.
“We can't leave you here injured,” Arthur said.
“I'll get him back to the castle,” Morgana said, “And I'll make sure the others get help as well.”
“You're not coming with us?”
Morgana looked at him and touched his face tenderly. “This is something you and Merlin have to do, together. We were just here to help you get there. Go.”
“Morgana, thank you. You're the best sister I've ever had,” Arthur said, grasping her hand and giving it a squeeze.
“And you're the only brother I've had,” she said, taking her hand away. “Do what you have to do.” She turned to Merlin. “Merlin? Take care of him.”
“I will.”
Leaving Morgana behind to tend to the wounded Gilli, Arthur and Merlin headed on through what Arthur hoped would be the final door. As they passed through it, they found the room they stepped into lit up with torches but empty.
“What do we do now?” Arthur asked. "Where's the sword in the stone?”
“I don't know,” Merlin said, turning around. There was nothing but the torches in the room. The floor was sand, but that was all it contained. “Maybe you should use the ball again. You might see something.”
Arthur took the ball out with his free hand and looked into it, hoping to see something, some clue as to what they had to do next. The grey mists swirled in front of him again, and this time the images came and went quickly. He saw the sword in the stone they had come to seek. Arthur saw himself pulling it out, and then he saw a golden light. Finally, there was an image of him wearing what looked like a crown, but it passed by so quickly he couldn’t be sure.
“What did you see?” Merlin asked.
Arthur shook his head as the mist cleared. “It was weird. I was pulling the sword out of the stone but then later I think I was wearing a crown.”
“Arthur, you know what that means?” Merlin asked, excitedly.
“I'm not the heir, Merlin. How can I be?”
“You're good with a sword,” Merlin said. “Better than anyone I've seen. Why shouldn’t it be you?”
“It also showed me pulling the sword out of the stone and there isn't a stone or a sword here.”
At those words, the rumbling began again; Arthur couldn't believe his eyes. The sand whipped up into what looked like a small tornado. The wind blew around them, and Arthur shielded his eyes from the sand.
The wind died down as suddenly as it began, cut off as if flipping a switch. Arthur lowered his arm to see a stone before them, and sticking out of the stone was the hilt of a sword. It was exactly as he had seen in his visions.
“The sword in the stone,” he whispered.
“Well, go and pull it out,” Merlin said, giving Arthur a gentle push.
“What makes you think I can pull it out?”
“I believe in your destiny,” Merlin said.
It seemed that Merlin didn't want to elaborate on that. Destiny, such an odd word, Arthur thought, but if Merlin believed in it then perhaps he should, too. He put his sword down and went up to the stone. Well, stone might be too mild a word; it was, in fact, a large rock that looked as if it had been hewn from something much larger, long ago.
Taking a deep breath, he grasped the hilt of the sword. His fingers and hand tingled with magic. The tingle travelled up his arm and he could feel his magic pulling at the sword before he'd even made an effort. Focussing on his magic, he pulled, and slowly felt the sword give and begin to lift out of the stone.
Arthur wasn't sure his arms would reach high enough, there seemed to be no end to the sword. Finally, the tip came free and he had the whole thing in his hands. He could hardly believe it. The sword was unlike anything he had ever seen before.
It gleamed in the torchlight, the bright silver joined by a golden hue. The centre of the sword was inlaid with a gold coloured metal, and on it were engraved runes. Arthur couldn’t read them, but as he turned the sword over he saw they were different on each side. The sword made his magic sing. He could feel it practically bursting out of him.
“You did it. You pulled the sword out of the stone,” Merlin said, laughing in joy.
“I did,” Arthur said, smiling.
They were so caught up in their excitement they had failed to noticed another figure enter the room.
“Yes, I'm grateful you did that, Arthur Pendragon,” a voice said.
Arthur turned to see a figure in a brown cloak approaching. The figure paused and lowered his hood.
“Professor Muirden,” Arthur said, grasping the sword tightly.
The Professor held out his hand. “Give me the sword.”
Arthur raised it ready to strike the man down. “No.”
“It will be easier if you just give me the sword. He won't be angry then.”
“Who? Who is behind this? The man who killed my mother?” Arthur asked, raising his voice.
The Professor smiled. It was a sick, twisted smile. “He was no man, Arthur. He was a great wizard who wanted the best for sorcerers. He wanted to weed out the weak, those that would dilute the power of magic.”
“He murdered people in cold blood,” Merlin said, stepping forward to stand at Arthur's side. “That's not the power of magic.”
“Give me the sword. I won't ask again,” Professor Muirden said. Then he twitched and his head jerked slightly.
“He's being controlled,” Merlin said, grimly. “That's not Professor Muirden speaking.”
Arthur frowned, watching as the Professor’s body started shaking uncontrollably. “What?”
Professor Muirden fell to the ground, his body writhing in agony. He made odd, pained sounds before he gave out one long scream and then lay still. Arthur knew the professor was dead.
Another figure, a smaller one in a dark green cloak, stepped forward. “Well, Emrys, you worked it out then?”
Arthur recognised the voice. “Mordred?”
Mordred hadn't bothered with the hood of his cloak. He stepped out of the shadows and toward Arthur. “One of my names, yes.”
“Mordred is an anagram, Arthur.” Arthur did not need to ask what the anagram was of. He knew it was Mr Odder.
“I was surprised it took you this long. All those headaches in Professor Muirden's class,” Mordred smiled. “He was the only teacher not blocking me. I stopped you doing magic in Nimueh's lesson but that was all I managed. I was frustrated at first, but then I realised I had an advantage. You would think it was Professor Muirden.”
“It was you all along?”
Mordred gave another smile. “Of course it was.” He looked down at the body of Professor Muirden. "A pity he started doubting things after the cockatrice. He tried to fight me just now. I couldn’t let him do that. He will serve another purpose, though. He'll take the blame for your deaths.”
“No!” Merlin rushed forward before Arthur could stop him.
With a flick of his wrist, Mordred sent Merlin flying back to land with a sickening crunch against the wall. “Merlin!” Arthur yelled. He couldn't see if Merlin was breathing. He wanted to race over to his side, but found he couldn't move.
“An interesting spell, don’t you think?” Mordred asked.
Arthur struggled, trying to break free to get to Merlin, but he couldn't. “If you've killed him....”
“Don't worry, you'll join your precious boyfriend soon,” Mordred said.
He looked older than he should, Arthur realised. Like a man in a child's body. “What do you want?”
“Revenge. Your mother robbed me of my life. When she resisted me, when she took the curse on herself, it rebounded and killed my body. It was years before I could reincarnate. A lonely girl who never knew who I was gave me life once more. I remembered when I was three years old and watched our house burn down. The druids took me in, it was so easy.”
“And what, you think we'll stand aside and let you murder people?”
Mordred laughed: a youthful, but cold, sound. “With the sword, of course they will. They'll see me as the true heir of Riothamus and they'll welcome me.”
Gripping the sword, Arthur faced his enemy. “You are not getting the sword. I'll die before I let you have it.”
“You're so like your mother,” Mordred said. “But like her, you'll fail.”
As Mordred began to advance on Arthur, Arthur took hold of the sword hilt with both hands and pointed it toward his enemy. This child was the one who had robbed him of a mother, a mother who loved him enough to sacrifice herself for him. Arthur thought about that, thought about the love she’d had for him, thought about the love he'd had for her, the mother he had never known. His magic came to life and the sword began to glow.
That stopped Mordred in his tracks. “What are you doing?” he asked.
Arthur didn't know. He concentrated on the feelings of love. Whatever it was, it was working. He heard Merlin moan and open his eyes. Merlin. He loved Merlin too. He let his love for Merlin wash over him. As it had helped him with his magic many times before, so it helped him now. The sword began to glow brighter.
Merlin got to his feet and staggered over to where Arthur stood holding the glowing sword. He was keeping Mordred at bay, but he hadn't defeated him. Then Merlin leaned against Arthur, and Arthur began to feel something flow from Merlin and he realised what it was: Merlin's magic, Merlin's love. Arthur felt his necklace glow with warmth.
The two of them together seemed to increase the power of the sword. It glowed almost white, and Mordred began to look fearful. It seemed he was rooted to the spot; he couldn't move. With a final push from both Arthur and Merlin, Arthur felt their combined magic, their love, push through the sword. In a bright flash like lightning, it struck Mordred, who vanished in a bright burst of light.
Arthur's eyes burned and his arms ached. The sword was dulled, no longer shining brightly. It felt heavy in his hands, very heavy, and his whole body felt exhausted.
“Tired,” he mumbled.
Merlin said nothing, just leaned against Arthur as the two of them dropped to the floor. Arthur let his eyes close, and with Merlin's weight on top of him he gave into his exhaustion and fell into a deep sleep.
PART SEVEN - last part
PART FIVE
Part Six
Arthur's first examination was a simple herb-mixing one supervised by Gaius. He had to select four herbs from a large choice, and make a remedy. He didn't need to use much magic, just a little to make the remedy more effective. Merlin had shown him how to do it several times but Arthur still felt nervous. Most herbs looked all the same to him, just variations of green leaves and twigs.
Merlin was sat at the back of the room, out of Arthur's direct sight. He wouldn't be able to see what was going on as Arthur had his back to him. It was to prevent Merlin giving him any help. Merlin's role was simply to be there so Arthur could focus his magic.
Selecting the herbs took quite awhile. Arthur wanted to be sure he got them right. He knew if he got one wrong he'd fail before he even tried magic. He wavered over a couple, unsure which was the correct one.
“Take your time,” Gaius said.
Arthur nodded and turned his attention to the herbs before him. Finally he selected his four and placed them into the mortar before carefully grinding them up with the pestle. He took his time applying pressure to them to make sure the resulting mixture was nice and thick. Soon he had formed a green paste.
Now came the hard bit: using magic. Taking a calming breath, Arthur held his hand out over the mortar. In his mind, he pictured bandages, potions, images of healing. Closing his eyes he felt ready to try it, feeling the tingling of his magic at the ends of his fingertips.
“Gemengan,” he said, quietly.
He opened his eyes to see the paste bubbling a little.
“Well done, Arthur,” Gaius said, smiling. “You've passed.”
Arthur turned around to see Merlin grinning at him. He'd done it; he'd passed his first examination, although it was one of the easier ones. Still, a pass was a small victory, and Arthur felt much happier. As he walked by Merlin he heard him whisper.
“I knew you could do it.”
“Good luck,” Arthur whispered back.
He hung around outside the door to Gaius's rooms waiting for Merlin. Merlin's test would be a lot more gruelling, and Arthur wasn't allowed to watch. Whatever it was, it sounded serious, and Arthur resisted the urge to listen at the door. He could still hear what sounded like explosions coming from inside the room.
It seemed an age before Merlin emerged with a triumphant grin.
“You passed then?” Arthur asked.
“Of course I passed,” Merlin replied. “I couldn't fail my own uncle’s exam, could I?”
Arthur laughed and gave Merlin a hug. “If you'd failed, Gaius would have disowned you.”
“Or worse, made me label his potion bottles for a whole year.”
The next exam was with Professor Mandrake. This was a very simple exam. All Arthur had to do was identify three magical beasts from some odd pictures, write out the names of several others and their favoured habitat in runes, and then select the right foodstuff to give to a griffin, a unicorn and a fairy. As a first year he didn't even have to face a magical creature and, as there was technically no magic involved, Merlin waited outside the door.
“Well?” he asked, when Arthur emerged. “Did you remember unicorns don’t eat people?”
“Yes, Merlin,” Arthur said. “I passed.”
That was the last of the examinations for the day and in the afternoon they sat out in the courtyard comparing notes on their various examinations with Elena and Gilli.
“It was much easier than I thought it would be,” Elena said, referring to Gaius's test. “Even though wasn't sure if we should be using lavender or not.”
“I had the same trouble,” Gilli said.
Arthur breathed a sigh of relief. “Me too,” he said. “At least Gaius doesn't rush you.”
“What was your exam like, Merlin?” Elena asked.
Merlin shrugged. “Nothing special. Just potion brewing,” he said.
Just potion brewing probably meant Merlin had to use a far more complex recipe, and heat up the individual ingredients with magic. He'd not told Arthur the exact details but Arthur had worked it out from the pages of the book he seen Merlin studying.
“And of course he passed with flying colours,” Arthur said.
“Why don't they let you move up a year or two?” Gilli asked.
There was a small smile from Merlin. “It's not my destiny,” he said, looking at Arthur. “I like it this way, and Arthur would be lost without me.”
“And Merlin would be lost in a mess in our chambers without me,” Arthur pointed out.
“I'm glad you're in our year, Merlin,” Gilli said.
“Me too,” Elena added. “And you, Arthur, of course.”
“It's gone by so fast,” Arthur said. “Doesn't seem five minutes since I blew up my father's glass. Now I'm doing magic.”
“And most importantly you met me,” Merlin said.
“Yes, Merlin, and I got a boyfriend.”
Elena had that 'awww' look about her again.
“What are your plans for the spring holidays?” Merlin asked.
“I'm going camping with my father. We're going to the forest of Balor,” Elena said.
“Aren't there cockatrices there?” Arthur asked. He vaguely remembered that being mentioned by Professor Mandrake, shortly after the incident with Professor Muirden.
“Yes, but we'll be using protection charms.”
“What about you, Gilli?” Merlin asked.
“There's a chess tournament in WillowWood. I thought I might try my luck. Camelot's chess team hasn't managed any tournaments this year since Professor Sidhe got crushed by a rook and a bishop before Christmas.”
“That can happen to fairies,” Merlin said, solemnly.
“What about you?” Elena asked. “Is Arthur whisking you away on a romantic break?”
“No, he's not,” Arthur said. “We're staying here in case something happens.”
There wasn't any need to say what the something was.
“How will you know?” Elena asked.
“If only we had some sort of warning,” Merlin said, quietly.
“Morgana!” Arthur said. “She's a seer!”
He hadn't spoken to Morgana much the last couple of months, just the odd meeting here and there to discuss their father. At Camelot, she had her own life, her own friends, and her own hobbies. None of which coincided with Arthur's. It was strange, but it had been exactly the same in the non-magical world. She was his sister and he loved her, but even with magic in common they didn't spend much time together.
“Why didn't we think of her before?” Merlin asked. “We should talk to her, see if she's seen anything.”
Arthur got up from the stone bench he was sitting on. Merlin stood up as well.
“We'll stay here,” Elena said, making no move to get up. “We don't want to scare your sister by mobbing her.”
That was a good idea. Morgana seemed to like Arthur's friends, but there was no sense all of them descending on her asking for information. Arthur wasn't even sure where Morgana was. He and Merlin set off down toward the Great Hall, more out of hope than anything else. It was sheer luck that they saw a familiar figure ahead of them.
“Morgana!” Arthur said, calling down the corridor. He hurried up to reach her.
Morgana turned; she looked a little stressed, as if something was wrong. “Arthur,” she said, sounding relieved.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
She gave a thin smile. “I'm fine.”
“No, you're not,” Arthur said, reaching out to give her a hug. Morgana flinched.
“What's wrong?” Merlin asked, having caught up. “Have you Seen something?”
Morgana nodded. “After Christmas, when I came back to Camelot, I had a nightmare. I saw Arthur, and you, and a sword. There was blood, a lot of blood, and flames. That's all I remember. Morgause gave me this to help.”
She held up her wrist and Arthur saw she was wearing a thick bracelet, like an amulet of silver with gold detail.
“A blocking amulet,” Merlin said, taking a closer look. “It stops visions whilst you sleep,” he explained to Arthur.
“Go on,” Arthur encouraged.
Morgana held the bracelet and turned it slightly on her wrist. “It was working,” she said. “I didn't have another nightmare. Until yesterday.”
“What was it about?” Arthur asked.
“I don't know. It was just images. I saw someone in a cloak, there was a sword in a stone and then you were lying on the floor.”
“Do you think it was a vision?” Arthur asked. “Do you think you saw the future?”
Hesitantly, Morgana nodded. “Morgause said I shouldn’t worry about it, but I can't help it. I can't stand to see anything happen to you if I can prevent it,” Morgana said, sounding like the protective elder sister despite her fear.
“Listen, Morgana,” Arthur said, gently hugging her. “There's something going on. We think the sword in the stone is in the dungeons, and we think someone is going to try and steal it.”
Pulling back Arthur saw Morgana looked shocked. “Who?”
“Him,” Merlin said.
“But he's...”
“Not dead enough,” Arthur said, quietly. “We might need your help, Morgana. Can we count on you?”
“Of course.” She gave Arthur a hug.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
Hearing about Morgana's visions was unsettling, but at least they were forewarned. Something was going to happen, and judging by the fact nothing had been able to block the vision, it seemed whatever it was was going to happen soon. Arthur hoped the warning would be enough.
*****************************************************************************
Four more days passed and more examinations were taken. Arthur passed all of them with relative ease. Merlin passed his with what Arthur suspected was a little more ease. Despite this there was no sign of Morgana's vision coming to pass, and there was also no sign of Professor Muirden attempting anything. Arthur wasn't sure if he should be relieved or not.
Arthur was just grateful that first year students were not set examinations in dark magic. It was a dangerous discipline and even the theory took two years to master. As a result he didn't have to face Professor Muirden with the added pressure of an exam.
Finally, on the sixth day of examinations came Arthur’s ultimate test - his Elemental Magic examination. Everything else had been building up to it. It was hardest and most complex magic Arthur could perform. It made selecting herbs and identifying magical creatures seem simple.
Merlin accompanied Arthur into Professor Nimueh's rooms. Merlin was again allowed to be in the same room, but he wasn't allowed to touch Arthur, although he could watch. He took a seat at the back.
“Good luck,” Merlin whispered, giving Arthur's hand a quick squeeze.
Leaving Merlin to watch, Arthur walked to the front of the room where Nimueh was waiting for him. She gave him a smile, which made her seem a lot less intimidating than she usually did. He could see the bench behind her had various items on it, presumably they were all part of the test.
“All right, Arthur, I'm going to ask you to perform a serious of tasks using magic relating to the element of fire. Failing any of them means you fail the examination. Do you understand?”
Arthur nodded. “I do.”
Nimueh moved back and allowed Arthur to approach the bench. “Then let's begin. On the bench in front of you is a piece of wood. I'd like you create a flame on it. The flame must not be extinguished until the tests are complete. You may begin.”
Over the last few months Arthur had got much better at conjuring fire. He still couldn’t think about the process directly but as he held out his hand he could feel the tingle of magic at his fingertips. Closing his eyes he thought about a warm summer's day as he whispered the spell.
“Forbærnen.”
Before he had even opened his eyes, he knew there was a flame dancing in front of him. He'd felt his magic swirl out of him and act upon the wood.
“Good,” Nimueh said. “Now grow the flame.”
Closing his eyes again Arthur pictured a winter's evening by a fireplace. “Forþgelæde.”
As he opened them, he saw the flame had more than doubled in size. He hoped he hadn't overdone it.
Nimueh didn't comment. “Move the flame onto the pile of earth on the other side of the bench,” she said.
Moving the flame wasn't difficult, it was keeping it alight on the earth that would be the tricky part. On the earth Arthur would have to fuel the flame mainly using magic. It required concentration, and Arthur tried to focus. He pictured warm winds and flexed his fingers, letting his magic flow out of him to pick up, and carry, the flame to the earth.
“Ic drífe. ”
He felt it touch the earth and pictured lava in his mind. He felt the flame anchor itself to the magic he was feeding through the earth.
“Now raise it up,” Nimueh said.
Arthur imagined a plant pushing up through the ground as he used the magic like a stem, with the flame as a flower. It was hard work and the tips of his fingers began to burn. He could feel sweat on his forehead. He didn't look, fearing it would break his concentration.
“Blow the flame out,” Nimueh said.
As Arthur imagined the flower opening he felt a sudden heat and then there was a bang, as if a firework had gone off. He opened one eye carefully to see a shower of sparks falling onto the bench.
Nimueh smiled. “Well done, Arthur, you've passed.”
Turning around Arthur could see Merlin at the back of the room, beaming. “I knew you could do it!” Merlin practically yelled.
“I do owe some of this to my tutor.”
There was another sly smile from Nimueh. “I knew pairing the two you up was a good idea. I'm sure Merlin will be very helpful when we tackle the element of water next year.”
“I'm sure he will.”
“Your mother would be proud of you,” Nimueh said, wistfully.
As they left Nimueh's room, Arthur whispered, “So, how are you going to help with me with water?”
“I was thinking we could go swimming,” Merlin said. “And forget to bring our swimming trunks.”
Arthur really hoped Nimueh's hearing wasn't magical. He was blushing as they headed back to their chambers.
*****************************************************************************
With the examinations over a lot of students were packing to head home for a couple of weeks before the Beltane celebration. Merlin had invited his parents to the celebration, but he had agreed with Arthur that they should stay at Camelot. Arthur had decided it was a perfect opportunity for some spring cleaning. Their chambers had started to get a little messy the last couple of months.
“Your parents won’t mind?” Arthur asked, as he went through the wardrobe, wondering how it was his and Merlin's clothes were all mixed up.
“I think my mother thinks we're staying here because we can have sex without worrying about disturbing anyone.”
Arthur nearly dropped the shirt he was carrying to his bed. “Please tell me she didn't put that in her letter.”
“Not those exact words,” Merlin said, piling his books up on the floor.
“Good because your mother...” Arthur didn't want to finish that thought. He put his shirt down, and rummaged in his rucksack for his spare pair of underpants. What he found was the glass ball that Morgana had given him the night he'd been whisked away from home.
“Oh, a memory ball,” Merlin said, coming over to take a look. “I've not seen one of those for years.”
“A gift from Morgana,” Arthur said, turning it over in his hands. “Although I have no idea what it does.”
“It shows you memories,” Merlin said.
“I worked that out from the name.”
“Yeah, but memories from the past, present, and future. Seers use them to find out when their dreams come from.”
“How can you have vision from the past?” Arthur asked. “What would be the point?”
“Things that happened in the past can affect the present. Like where someone hid something, or someone killing another person.”
“Why would Morgana give me this?” Arthur asked, tossing it up and catching it.
“Because your past is important,” Merlin said. “You've not used it?”
“I didn't know what it was, Merlin. How do I use it?”
“Hold in your palm,” Merlin said, holding his palm out and demonstrating with an empty hand. “Then let a little magic flow into it.”
That seemed simple enough. Arthur held the ball as Merlin had demonstrated. The ball began to feel warm in his hand as his hand tingled with the familiar feeling of magic. Nothing else seemed to be happening but, after a moment, an odd grey mist began to form inside the ball. As Arthur watched, it began to swirl and darken.
Unable to take his eyes away, he watched he saw images start to appear in the mist. He saw a sword a the stone, then a cloaked figure approaching it. The figure was about to turn around when suddenly the mists became even darker and the images vanished. The mists swirled before become greyer, and lighter, and then receding like clouds after a storm.
“Arthur?”
“You said this can show the present?
“It can, yes. What did you see, Arthur?”
“I think Professor Muirden's gone to get the sword,” Arthur said. “We need to tell someone. Where's Gaius?”
“It's the spring holidays, he's gone herb collecting, remember? And Nimueh's gone to the Isle of the Blessed with some post grads.”
No wonder Professor Muirden had waited until now. “Then it's up to us.”
“Not just us,” Merlin said. “We need help.”
Arthur agreed. There could be another cockatrice waiting for them. “Let's get everyone together.”
They stumbled out of their chambers into the path of Elena and Gilli, complete with their trunks. They were heading off for Spring break.
“Don't go!” Merlin said, stepping in front of them. “We need your help.”
“What's wrong?” Elena asked.
“It's happening,” Arthur said. “Now. I've seen it.” He held up the memory ball.
“What do you want us to do?” Elena asked.
“We need help,” Merlin said. “The more of us there are, the better chance we've got.”
“We'll help you,” Gilli said.
“Can you find the knights?” Arthur asked.
“Gilli nodded. “Of course.”
“Tell them to meet us at the entrance to the dungeons and tell them to come armed.”
“We'll be as fast as we can,” Elena said, taking Gilli's hand and pulling him along the hallway.
“Should we find Morgana?” Merlin asked.
“It can't hurt to have someone with us who can see the future,” Arthur said. He stuffed the ball in his pocket. It was a tight fit, but he thought perhaps it would be useful.
They didn't have to look far for Morgana. As soon as they stepped out of the College and into the main part of the castle they saw Morgana heading toward them, Gwen was at her side. Morgana looked worried.
“Did you see it?” she asked.
“If you mean a cloaked figure near the sword in the stone, yes,” Arthur replied. “We were just coming to find you.”
“It's now, Arthur,” Morgana said. “We need to be careful.”
“We will be,” Merlin said.
“Yes, are you sure you want to come?”
“You’ll have more of a chance if we come with you,” Gwen said.
“Come on then,” Arthur said.
Together they headed to the dungeons. When they got there they found the knights, Elena, and Gilli, all waiting for them. There was an air of expectancy among them.
“We told them about what we know,” Elena said.
“You think someone is trying to steal the sword in the stone?” Lancelot asked.
“Yes, and right now. We've seen it.” Arthur glanced at Morgana who nodded.
“Good enough for me,” Gwaine said. “You'll need this.”
He handed Arthur his sword. Arthur took it gratefully. Just the feel of it in his hands made him feel better.
“All right, everyone, we're about to break University rules, we're about to possibly face danger. If anyone wants to stay behind I won't think any less of them.”
No-one moved. “We're coming with you,” Merlin said. “You need us.”
“I do,” Arthur said. “Right, are we all ready?”
“Ready,” everyone chorused. Except one person.
“Merlin?”
“I'm not really ready,” he said. “But you are, so let's go.”
Arthur put an arm around Merlin and kissed his cheek. “We'll be fine,” he said.
Merlin nodded.
“Okay, Percival,” Arthur said. “Open the gate.”
The large iron gate that had been installed to stop students going down to the dungeons looked heavy, and even Percival struggled to open it. The thing seemed almost magically sealed shut. In fact, thinking about it, it probably was. There was no lock on it after all.
“Merlin?” Arthur asked.
Obviously thinking the same thing Merlin stepped forward, raising his hand up. “Onlúcan,” he said, firmly.
There was a ripple of gold magic across the whole gate, and then Merlin lowered his hand and stepped back. “Try it now,” he said.
Percival stepped forward and this time the gates gave way with little effort. So much so, it seemed as if Percival was going to fall forward before Leon and Elyan caught him. The gates swung open in front of them.
“Right, let's go,” Arthur said. He was feeling nervous, but he was also determined. He was not going to let the sword fall into the hands of the man who had murdered his mother. Besides, he had the best back up he could wish for.
Merlin was at his side as they ventured through the gate. It was dark and Merlin lit the torches that lined the wall, so they could to see where they were going. As they went down the staircase Arthur gripped his sword tightly. He studied the shadows on the walls, waiting for something to leap out at them.
Nothing did, and they reached the bottom without any mishap. Oddly the dungeons seemed to have changed since Arthur and Merlin had last ventured down. In front of them was a large wooden door. It looked old, as if it had been there for years, but Arthur knew it hadn’t been there several months ago. It was very strange.
“Let's be careful,” Arthur said, loud enough for everyone to hear.
The knights all had their swords drawn and ready.
“Can you open the door from here?” Arthur asked Merlin.
“Yes,” Merlin said. With a flick of his wrist and a muttered spell the door swung open.
Peering into the gloom, Arthur could see very little. There was no torchlight, no nothing; they would be going into the pitch black. Before he could ask someone to grab a torch, he saw Morgana, Gwen, Elena and Gilli, head back up the stairs, and then return with four torches.
Gilli came and stood in front of them, holding the torch slightly inside the room. It didn't show them much. The other torch-bearers came forward and illuminated the room as best they could from the doorway. It was dangerous for them to go in first, unarmed, but it was also dangerous for the knights to go in without being able to see.
“Let me,” Merlin said. He quickly conjured a ball of light and let it drift into the room. It didn't light the whole room up, but provided enough light for the knights and Arthur to step in without worrying it was an ambush.
Once they were inside, their friends followed with the torches. When the torches were inside, Merlin let his ball of light die down. Everyone moved about, examining the place, but the room appeared to be just a room. The torchlight danced off stone walls and stone flags of the floor. It seemed unremarkable.
“How do we get out of here?” Arthur asked.
“There's a door over there,” Elena said, pointing.
The door was identical to the one they had entered the room through.
“It's too easy,” Merlin said.
“You can say that again,” Gwaine added.
Arthur felt the same. There was a feeling of something in the air, some form of foreboding. But what it was, he didn't know. “Let’s take this slowly,” he said.
He saw Lancelot nodding.
Stepping forward with his sword Arthur was about to reach the door when suddenly he sensed something nearby. He couldn’t make out what it was, but he instinctively moved his sword to block it. As he did so he heard someone scream. His sword sliced through something, and the room began to rumble.
Within seconds large vines erupted from the floor and began to surround them menacingly. Arthur swiped at a few with his sword, carefully dodging them as they got close. He saw the knights trying to do the same. Cutting off one vine didn't help, however, as more seemed to grow in its place.
He could see Merlin, Elena, Gilli, and Morgana trying to throw fireballs at the vines, but they seemed to be having about as much success as Arthur and the knights, which was little. Gwen had a dagger and was cutting the vines that came near her, but she too was struggling.
“What are we going to do?” Morgana asked. “There's too many.”
Arthur noticed the vines were concentrating on where they were standing. They were surrounding Arthur and the others, but there was a gap not far from the door.
“If enough of us distract them we can make it to the door,” Arthur said.
Merlin looked over and nodded. “Arthur's right.”
“We'll keep fighting, the rest of you go on,” Gwaine said, slicing a particularly vicious vine that attempted to wrap itself around his leg.
“You don't want me to stay?” Arthur asked, slicing two vines that were attempting to grab his arm.
“Arthur, this is not your destiny,” Lancelot said, moving to stand next to Gwaine.
Gwaine agreed. “He's right, Arthur, whatever is ahead you’re the one who has to face it.”
“Good luck!” Leon said.
The knights began to swipe harder at the vines, encouraging them to attack them. This thinned the vines around the others. They all manoeuvred themselves for a clear run to the door.
“On three,” Arthur said. “One, two, three!”
As he yelled he leapt over where the vines were thinnest, Merlin alongside him. They were followed by Morgana and Gwen, waving torches at the vines, and then finally Gilli and Elena. Arthur heard a yelp, and Elena's ankle seemed to catch in the vines.
He was about to go back and help when he saw Gilli stamp on the vine, causing it to release Elena. He gave her a hand and pulled her toward the door. By the time they got there Merlin had it open, and all of them tumbled through.
They had to close to the door as the vines had begun to follow them. Arthur could see the knights still fighting in a circle, surrounded by the vines. Gwaine briefly turned to them and Arthur was sure he saw him wink before the door was closed.
Now they took stock of their new surroundings. They seemed to be in an identical room with another identical door facing them.
“Come on,” Arthur said.
They gingerly walked across the room, looking down at the floor. Arthur was half expecting something to leap out in front of them. Nothing actually happened though, and they successfully reached the door. Arthur felt a surge of relief. He still kept his sword ready, however, as he took hold of the handle and tried to turn it. It wouldn't budge.
“It's locked,” he said, trying it again. He turned to Merlin. “Can you open it?”
Merlin raised his hand and said the spell. Nothing happened, so he tried again, saying it louder. By the fourth attempt he had closed his eyes and was yelling. “I can't do it,” he said, with a sigh.
It was no good any of the rest of them trying. Merlin was the most powerful sorcerer among them. If his magic couldn't do it none of the rest of them would be able to manage it.
“There's a keyhole,” Arthur said. “So there has to be a key. Everyone look round.”
They split up and to cover the room looking in every corner, near the walls, on the floor. There was nothing else in the room. There were no stones a key could be under, or any containers it could be in. The walls didn’t appear to have any cubby holes, or hiding places.
They were about to give up, when they heard something that sounded like thunder. The room seemed to have expanded around them in all directions. A dark shape was moving toward them, accompanied by a large sound. Gradually the shape became clearer.
Arthur squinted. “Are those horses?”
The horses slowed from a gallop before trotting past them. The horses weaved between them, coming close enough to touch.
“Look, they've got keys on them,” Gwen said.
Sure enough each horse wore a bridle, and dangling from each bridle was a key. One horse walked up and stopped in front of them. It had no key, but it did have a saddle along with its bridle; it looked ready to be ridden.
“Don't tell me, someone has to ride after the horses to get the key?” Arthur groaned.
“These are all tests, spells to protect the sword,” Merlin said.
“How do we know which is the right key?” Arthur asked.
“The lock looks old,” Merlin said, peering at it. “The key will probably look old as well.”
“There,” Morgana said. “The small brown horse.”
It took a moment for Arthur to pick out which one was the brown horse but, as he did so he saw that a large, old, rusty-looking key was dangling from the horses bridle, in sharp contrast to the bright golden keys that were on the bridles of the other horses.
“How do we get it?”
“That's easy,” Elena said, approaching the horse that had stopped before them. “We ride for it.”
She put her torch down, and mounted the horse with practised ease.
“Are you sure you can do it?” Arthur asked, watching as Elena adjusted the stirrups.
“Who's the best rider here?” she asked.
“You are,” Gilli said.
“Exactly. I'll ride close to the horse and get the key.”
“Then what?” Arthur asked.
“I'll throw it to you.” Elena said, eyeing the crowd of horses still trotting around the room.
“All right, but be careful.”
“Yes,” Gilli added. “We don’t want anything to happen to you.”
Elena offered Gilli a smile before kicking her horse into a trot. As soon as her horse began moving the other horses started to pick up the pace, and began weaving between each other as they galloped around the room. Arthur found it hard to pick out the horse carrying the correct key.
It seemed Elena was having a little bit of difficulty herself as she increased her pace and caught up with the herd. The room seemed to get larger and then smaller as the pace of the horses sped up, and then decreased. Elena was doing well, but she was looking around for the horse with the right key.
“There!” Merlin said, as the horse in question came past him.
Now she had a fix on her target Elena wheeled around and headed toward it. Her face was set with determination as she raced past Arthur, and caught up with the horse carrying the key. As if it sensed it was nearly caught the horse swerved to one side but Elena kept up.
Leaning across, she plucked the key from the bridle of the horse and held it aloft.
“Got it!” she yelled.
The horses began to close in on Elena, as if they were trying to force her to give up the key. It was clear, however, that Elena was not going to be beaten. She managed a small burst of speed, and pulled away enough for her to make a clear throw to Merlin who was waiting by the door.
“Catch!” she said, throwing the key.
Merlin managed to catch it without fumbling. He put the key into the lock and turned it. The horses then turned and headed toward him, and Arthur ran to Merlin's aid. He was not going to watch Merlin be flattened by horses.
Merlin didn’t seem worried, however, and as the lock clicked open, the horses suddenly disappeared, all except the one Elena was mounted on. It was with relief that Arthur reached the door to find Merlin still in one piece. He patted him on the back as the others came to stand near the door, ready to move on.
Elena pulled her horse up and halted it. She made a movement to get down, and then stopped.
“What's wrong?” Gilli asked.
“I can't get down; I'm stuck,” she replied, trying to pull herself up and off the saddle.
Merlin went over and touched the saddle. The stirrups and saddle are spelled with a sticking enchantment. I could break the spell but it would take time,” he said.
“Time we don't have,” Elena said. “You carry on without me.”
It was Gilli who came to stand near her. “Are you sure? I could stay with you,” he offered.
Elena smiled, but shook her head. “That's very sweet but they might need you further on. I'll be fine,” she said.
Arthur noticed she leaned down as best she could and squeezed Gilli's hand. “We'll come back for you,” Gilli said.
“Right, let's go then” Arthur said. Merlin nodded, and came to stand at his side. He was ready. Looking at the others, Arthur received other affirmative nods.
“Open the door,” he said to Merlin.
Merlin opened the door and they stepped through. As they left poor Elena Arthur turned to her. “Thank you,” he said.
“Just do what you need to,” Elena said.
Th next room was, once again, identical to the previous two. The group was still cautious as they made their way across it, though. From vines to horses, there was no pattern to indicate what might appear. There was also, predictably, another door. It was also locked but there was something different about it. There was no keyhole and it wouldn't open by pushing it.
“Do you think this another test?” Merlin asked.
“I think, Merlin, given that the door ahead doesn't have a keyhole, that yes, this a test,” Arthur said.
“We could try and get it open with magic,” Merlin suggested. “Onlúcan.”
The door still remained fast.
“That's not working,” Arthur said. It would save a lot of time and effort if Merlin could have opened it with magic, but that seemed impossible.
Morgana pointed to the door. “Look, there's an indentation near the top.”
“What is that?” Arthur asked. The shape looked a little odd.
“A horseshoe,” Gwen said. “People hang them that way up on their doors as a sign of luck.”
“We're not having any luck.” Arthur was getting frustrated. How many more rooms would they have to go through? How many more before they reached the sword in the stone?
“We need a horseshoe,” Merlin said.
“And where are we going to get a horseshoe from? I don’t think that horse Elena’s stuck on is going to help.”
There was another rumble, almost as if something or someone had heard Arthur. Steeling themselves for anything from giant killer plants to a herd of elephants, they looked around.
“In the corner,” Gilli said.
Something seemed to be forming in the far right corner, almost as if it was coming up from the ground. Morphing like clay, the odd shape slowly took on a more solid, squared off form. It began to look familiar.
“Is that?” Arthur asked.
“It's a forge,” Gwen said. She began to walk over to it. The others followed.
As they got closer they could see an anvil, hammer, tongs, all the tools of the blacksmith's trade. The fire was going and the coals were hot. Gwen had put her torch down and was already examining some metal glowing red-hot in the coals.
“I can make a horseshoe,” she said. “One that will fit on that door.”
Arthur didn't ask how long it would take; he thought it would be rude. Morgana had already glared at him as if she expected him to make some sort of remark. Arthur didn't have a chance, even if he'd wanted to, for Gwen was already hard at work. She was lifting the hot metal out of the fire, picking up the hammer and beginning to change its shape as she placed it on the anvil.
Arthur and the others watched as Gwen worked tirelessly. She took the metal to the fire, heated it up and brought it back out, hammering it into shape before she needed to reheat. The heat of the coals made Arthur feel warm from where he was standing, but it didn't seem to bother Gwen.
Eventually she stood up in triumph and showed them the horseshoe, still glowing red hot. She plunged it into a bucket of water in a hiss of steam, before bringing it out. The metal now looked cool. It was a dull grey, as opposed to the red of earlier. Gwen placed it on the anvil with the tongs before picking it up with her hand. It was safe enough to touch.
“It's ready,” she said.
They walked back to the door, Gwen carrying the horseshoe. Arthur had no idea how she could have made it to fit the shape in the door exactly, but then she was a talented magical blacksmith. They all stood back as Gwen approached the door with the horseshoe, carefully raising it to put into place.
For a terrible moment, Arthur thought it was too big, but thankfully it seemed it was just his perspective. As Gwen touched it to the door, it began to glow almost immediately; Arthur closed his eyes as it emitted a bright light.
Arthur opened his eyes slowly to see that the horseshoe was stuck to the door and that the door itself was unlocked and open slightly. It seemed the test had been passed and they could continue. He turned to Gwen to give her his thanks, when he noticed she looked uncomfortable.
“Gwen, are you all right?” Morgana asked, concerned.
Gwen gave her a smile. “Yes, I'm fine. I'm just stuck to the floor.”
“Not again. What sort of tests are these?” Arthur asked. It was getting more than a little frustrating to have each of his friends help him, and then get stuck for their trouble.
“Ones that know us,” Morgana whispered.
“Go, on. I'll be fine,” Gwen said, pushing Morgana a little to encourage her.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, Morgana. The door's open, go on.”
“Thank you, Gwen,” Morgana said, giving her friend a quick hug.
“Yes, thank you,” Arthur added.
Gwen gave them a smile as they left her and went into the next room. At first it seemed to be identical to the others. They were down to two torches now and the rooms weren't getting any lighter. At least that was what they thought until the odd rumbling sound began again.
Once more, dark shapes began to form, but this time they were everywhere - in front, behind, and to the sides of them. It seemed as if a forest was springing up around them.
“Now what?” Arthur asked. “Are we going to be attacked again?”
The shapes were menacing. Even with limited light, they couldn’t make out quite what they were. Some of them looked like people, almost giants. Others looked like they might be buildings. Arthur wished they could have a better look. Perhaps he should have been careful what he wished for.
Torches lining the walls burst with flames and lit up the room. What had been a dark room blazed with light, and it quickly became obvious where they were standing.
“We're on a chessboard,” Merlin said, looking down at the large black and white tiles that made up the floor.
“So what do we do? I can't see another door.” Arthur said. The opposite wall was just a blank wall.
“We probably have to play the chess game first,” Merlin said.
Given their tests so far Arthur suspected Merlin was right. “I don't play chess.”
Gilli stepped forward. “I do. Let me try something.”
“Go ahead,” Arthur said. Apparently Gilli was good at chess, although Arthur had never seen him play. He regretted that.
“A two pawn to A five,” Gilli said.
To Arthur's astonishment the pawn, which resembled a small solider, got up, walked forward two spaces, and then sat down. “That pawn just moved,” he whispered.
“Of course he did,” Merlin replied.”Keep watching.”
One of the other pawns, from the black side, moved forward. Arthur had no idea which square was which. He did have a basic understanding of chess however, and he knew that if Gilli didn't move their pawn it would be taken in the next move.
“H two pawn to H four,” Gilli said.
A pawn at the other end of the board got up, walked forward, and then sat down. Arthur didn't know why Gilli had done that. It seemed to have left his other pawn completely vulnerable. He watched as the opposing pawn that had moved ready to take the first pawn now moved again.
It walked up to Gilli's pawn and stabbed it with a long spear. The pawn seemed to cry out and then shattered, sending debris flying across the board.
“What was that?”
“That's the magical version of chess, Arthur,” Merlin said,
Gilli was paced the board, looking as if he was working out his next move.
“The pieces literally destroy each other,” Arthur said, shocked. He doubted his own sword would be much use against them. They seemed to be made of rock.
“They do. Well, until checkmate.”
“That’s not reassuring Merlin. We’re surrounded by chess pieces that could kill us.” Most were carrying some sort of weapon. Even the bishops had daggers. The rooks were unarmed, but they were castles, and Arthur remembered one had crushed Professor Sidhe.
“Not if we win. Gilli can beat them.”
Gilli looked deep in thought. If he'd made the chess team, he had to be good. Arthur watched as Gilli considered his position, and then ordered one of the rooks to move.
It was hard to follow the game exactly. Arthur could tell Gilli was thinking several moves ahead, trying to anticipate his opponent, What was unnerving was that an opponent didn't seem to exist; there was no way of knowing who or what their opponent was. Merlin said he thought it was a complicated spell, designed to react to the other player.
“Like a computer?” Arthur asked.
Merlin frowned. “What's a computer?”
“Never mind,” Arthur said, and went back to watching.
Gilli's rook did some damage, before it was taken by a bishop and shattered into several hundred pieces. Gilli tried to eliminate the bishops with his knights. He managed to take one, before his knight was taken by a rook. One of his pawns was taken by the opposing queen.
It went on. Pieces fell, their remains scattered across the board, the other pieces stepping over their fallen comrades. Arthur watched Gilli lose a few more pawns and a bishop. The other side lost their rooks. The queens came into play, dancing around each other. As long as they were both in play it seemed the game wouldn't end.
Finally, Gilli's strategy paid off. He sacrificed a rook and trapped the other queen, taking her with a lowly pawn. The pawn was immediately taken in the next move, but it had done it work. Now Gilli set up the final moves. Arthur had to admit he was very impressed.
With a rook, a bishop, and his queen, Gilli made a final move with a pawn and the other side was in checkmate.
“That's the game over,” Gilli said.
Arthur breathed a sigh of relief, but then the remaining enemy pieces all shattered at once and the board became a dangerous place to be with debris flying everywhere. Arthur ducked and hoped nothing would hit him.
As the dust cleared, Arthur checked around. Merlin stood up next to him brushing off his clothes. He was a little dirty, but otherwise okay. Morgana looked a little shocked, but she too was unhurt. Not so Gilli, who was lying in the middle of the board with a trickle of blood spilling down his forehead.
“Gilli!”
They ran forward. At first Arthur was worried Gilli was dead, but he was breathing and, after a few long moments, his eyes fluttered open. “Did we do it?”
“We won,” Arthur reassured him. “Thanks to you.”
“The door?” Gilli asked before gasping in pain.
Looking at the far wall Arthur saw a door shimmer into existence. “It's there,” Arthur said.
“Go on, then,” Gilli replied.
Morgana was kneeling next to him pressing a handkerchief to the nasty cut Gilli had on his forehead.
“We can't leave you here injured,” Arthur said.
“I'll get him back to the castle,” Morgana said, “And I'll make sure the others get help as well.”
“You're not coming with us?”
Morgana looked at him and touched his face tenderly. “This is something you and Merlin have to do, together. We were just here to help you get there. Go.”
“Morgana, thank you. You're the best sister I've ever had,” Arthur said, grasping her hand and giving it a squeeze.
“And you're the only brother I've had,” she said, taking her hand away. “Do what you have to do.” She turned to Merlin. “Merlin? Take care of him.”
“I will.”
Leaving Morgana behind to tend to the wounded Gilli, Arthur and Merlin headed on through what Arthur hoped would be the final door. As they passed through it, they found the room they stepped into lit up with torches but empty.
“What do we do now?” Arthur asked. "Where's the sword in the stone?”
“I don't know,” Merlin said, turning around. There was nothing but the torches in the room. The floor was sand, but that was all it contained. “Maybe you should use the ball again. You might see something.”
Arthur took the ball out with his free hand and looked into it, hoping to see something, some clue as to what they had to do next. The grey mists swirled in front of him again, and this time the images came and went quickly. He saw the sword in the stone they had come to seek. Arthur saw himself pulling it out, and then he saw a golden light. Finally, there was an image of him wearing what looked like a crown, but it passed by so quickly he couldn’t be sure.
“What did you see?” Merlin asked.
Arthur shook his head as the mist cleared. “It was weird. I was pulling the sword out of the stone but then later I think I was wearing a crown.”
“Arthur, you know what that means?” Merlin asked, excitedly.
“I'm not the heir, Merlin. How can I be?”
“You're good with a sword,” Merlin said. “Better than anyone I've seen. Why shouldn’t it be you?”
“It also showed me pulling the sword out of the stone and there isn't a stone or a sword here.”
At those words, the rumbling began again; Arthur couldn't believe his eyes. The sand whipped up into what looked like a small tornado. The wind blew around them, and Arthur shielded his eyes from the sand.
The wind died down as suddenly as it began, cut off as if flipping a switch. Arthur lowered his arm to see a stone before them, and sticking out of the stone was the hilt of a sword. It was exactly as he had seen in his visions.
“The sword in the stone,” he whispered.
“Well, go and pull it out,” Merlin said, giving Arthur a gentle push.
“What makes you think I can pull it out?”
“I believe in your destiny,” Merlin said.
It seemed that Merlin didn't want to elaborate on that. Destiny, such an odd word, Arthur thought, but if Merlin believed in it then perhaps he should, too. He put his sword down and went up to the stone. Well, stone might be too mild a word; it was, in fact, a large rock that looked as if it had been hewn from something much larger, long ago.
Taking a deep breath, he grasped the hilt of the sword. His fingers and hand tingled with magic. The tingle travelled up his arm and he could feel his magic pulling at the sword before he'd even made an effort. Focussing on his magic, he pulled, and slowly felt the sword give and begin to lift out of the stone.
Arthur wasn't sure his arms would reach high enough, there seemed to be no end to the sword. Finally, the tip came free and he had the whole thing in his hands. He could hardly believe it. The sword was unlike anything he had ever seen before.
It gleamed in the torchlight, the bright silver joined by a golden hue. The centre of the sword was inlaid with a gold coloured metal, and on it were engraved runes. Arthur couldn’t read them, but as he turned the sword over he saw they were different on each side. The sword made his magic sing. He could feel it practically bursting out of him.
“You did it. You pulled the sword out of the stone,” Merlin said, laughing in joy.
“I did,” Arthur said, smiling.
They were so caught up in their excitement they had failed to noticed another figure enter the room.
“Yes, I'm grateful you did that, Arthur Pendragon,” a voice said.
Arthur turned to see a figure in a brown cloak approaching. The figure paused and lowered his hood.
“Professor Muirden,” Arthur said, grasping the sword tightly.
The Professor held out his hand. “Give me the sword.”
Arthur raised it ready to strike the man down. “No.”
“It will be easier if you just give me the sword. He won't be angry then.”
“Who? Who is behind this? The man who killed my mother?” Arthur asked, raising his voice.
The Professor smiled. It was a sick, twisted smile. “He was no man, Arthur. He was a great wizard who wanted the best for sorcerers. He wanted to weed out the weak, those that would dilute the power of magic.”
“He murdered people in cold blood,” Merlin said, stepping forward to stand at Arthur's side. “That's not the power of magic.”
“Give me the sword. I won't ask again,” Professor Muirden said. Then he twitched and his head jerked slightly.
“He's being controlled,” Merlin said, grimly. “That's not Professor Muirden speaking.”
Arthur frowned, watching as the Professor’s body started shaking uncontrollably. “What?”
Professor Muirden fell to the ground, his body writhing in agony. He made odd, pained sounds before he gave out one long scream and then lay still. Arthur knew the professor was dead.
Another figure, a smaller one in a dark green cloak, stepped forward. “Well, Emrys, you worked it out then?”
Arthur recognised the voice. “Mordred?”
Mordred hadn't bothered with the hood of his cloak. He stepped out of the shadows and toward Arthur. “One of my names, yes.”
“Mordred is an anagram, Arthur.” Arthur did not need to ask what the anagram was of. He knew it was Mr Odder.
“I was surprised it took you this long. All those headaches in Professor Muirden's class,” Mordred smiled. “He was the only teacher not blocking me. I stopped you doing magic in Nimueh's lesson but that was all I managed. I was frustrated at first, but then I realised I had an advantage. You would think it was Professor Muirden.”
“It was you all along?”
Mordred gave another smile. “Of course it was.” He looked down at the body of Professor Muirden. "A pity he started doubting things after the cockatrice. He tried to fight me just now. I couldn’t let him do that. He will serve another purpose, though. He'll take the blame for your deaths.”
“No!” Merlin rushed forward before Arthur could stop him.
With a flick of his wrist, Mordred sent Merlin flying back to land with a sickening crunch against the wall. “Merlin!” Arthur yelled. He couldn't see if Merlin was breathing. He wanted to race over to his side, but found he couldn't move.
“An interesting spell, don’t you think?” Mordred asked.
Arthur struggled, trying to break free to get to Merlin, but he couldn't. “If you've killed him....”
“Don't worry, you'll join your precious boyfriend soon,” Mordred said.
He looked older than he should, Arthur realised. Like a man in a child's body. “What do you want?”
“Revenge. Your mother robbed me of my life. When she resisted me, when she took the curse on herself, it rebounded and killed my body. It was years before I could reincarnate. A lonely girl who never knew who I was gave me life once more. I remembered when I was three years old and watched our house burn down. The druids took me in, it was so easy.”
“And what, you think we'll stand aside and let you murder people?”
Mordred laughed: a youthful, but cold, sound. “With the sword, of course they will. They'll see me as the true heir of Riothamus and they'll welcome me.”
Gripping the sword, Arthur faced his enemy. “You are not getting the sword. I'll die before I let you have it.”
“You're so like your mother,” Mordred said. “But like her, you'll fail.”
As Mordred began to advance on Arthur, Arthur took hold of the sword hilt with both hands and pointed it toward his enemy. This child was the one who had robbed him of a mother, a mother who loved him enough to sacrifice herself for him. Arthur thought about that, thought about the love she’d had for him, thought about the love he'd had for her, the mother he had never known. His magic came to life and the sword began to glow.
That stopped Mordred in his tracks. “What are you doing?” he asked.
Arthur didn't know. He concentrated on the feelings of love. Whatever it was, it was working. He heard Merlin moan and open his eyes. Merlin. He loved Merlin too. He let his love for Merlin wash over him. As it had helped him with his magic many times before, so it helped him now. The sword began to glow brighter.
Merlin got to his feet and staggered over to where Arthur stood holding the glowing sword. He was keeping Mordred at bay, but he hadn't defeated him. Then Merlin leaned against Arthur, and Arthur began to feel something flow from Merlin and he realised what it was: Merlin's magic, Merlin's love. Arthur felt his necklace glow with warmth.
The two of them together seemed to increase the power of the sword. It glowed almost white, and Mordred began to look fearful. It seemed he was rooted to the spot; he couldn't move. With a final push from both Arthur and Merlin, Arthur felt their combined magic, their love, push through the sword. In a bright flash like lightning, it struck Mordred, who vanished in a bright burst of light.
Arthur's eyes burned and his arms ached. The sword was dulled, no longer shining brightly. It felt heavy in his hands, very heavy, and his whole body felt exhausted.
“Tired,” he mumbled.
Merlin said nothing, just leaned against Arthur as the two of them dropped to the floor. Arthur let his eyes close, and with Merlin's weight on top of him he gave into his exhaustion and fell into a deep sleep.
PART SEVEN - last part