Chapter 2: The Orders of a King

Merlin was on a plateau, higher than anyone else on the soon-to-be-battlefield. He watched as the Celts prepared for the march to battle. They were all outfitted in thin chain mail, and carried swords and longbows, and a quiver from which to take arrows for the bow. The Saxons were much more well suited for the coming war; they were dressed in full armor, held not only superior swords, bows, and arrows, but also war-axes and throwing knives. They had horses enough for every man to ride three, all wearing armor and all pure-bred stallions.

The Saxons outnumbered the Celts, an astonishing twenty-five thousand to a mere five thousand. To top it all off, there was a white dragon leading the Saxon forces.The Celts would surely be conquered.

Merlin watched in both horror and fascination as the two armies collided, the Saxon cavalry sending Celtic swordsmen scurrying for cover behind small canvas tents. Merlin was shocked as the mercilessness of the Saxon invaders. They drove right through the defenders, forcing them back all the while. Didn't they feel pain when they killed others? That's how Merlin felt when he hunted. Didn't they know they shouldn't be squabbling among themselves, but rather trying to make peace with one another? And if they did, why did they continue to fight?

Over the horizon, a small red dot was steadily getting larger, until finally, Merlin could distinguish the distinct shape of a dragon. The dragon of the Celtic army. Perhaps the Celts could win this battle! Maybe it wasn't so hopeless after all!

Merlin was wrong. The Celtic dragon engaged the Saxon dragon, keeping the white dragon from preying on the Celts. The skirmish was in the favor of the Celtic dragon for the first few minutes, but the larger Saxon dragon soon overpowered the red dragon. The white dragon tore at the red dragon, ripping flesh and muscle and revaling bone.

The Celtic dragon dropped from the sky after many bites, gashes, and torn limbs. He fell, and the battle was no more. The Saxons had won.

Merlin was sitting bolt upright in bed. He had had a terrible dream, on that he knew would become a reality if he didn't do anything about it. He knew he had to warn the Celtic king of the coming invasion.

Merlin quietly seeped out of his tent that he shared with Shiroix, and headed for Nasuada's tent. He knew he what he needed: Nasuada's wand. Although he didn't know how to use magic, he assumed it wasn't too hard. All you had to do was pick up a stick and say a few words and presto! Spell cast. The hard part was finding the words, but Merlin had been studying Nasuada's lists of words in the Speech of Gramarye. He knew the words he wanted to say were Ensans Nueva Hevre Gijfon: To Castle Of King. Merlin decided these words were best while he borrowed Nasusda's wand.

As soon as Merlin had the wand, he muttered those words softly, not wnting to wake anyone. The magic took immediately, for as soon as Merlin finished his last word, he was looking at the foundation of what would become a great fortress. It spanned for miles, ending only where Mt. Snowdon began. Yet, Merlin saw no builders. He looked around for an answer and saw there were tents encompassing the work site. The workers must be sleeping. After all, it was late.

Merlin didn't feel the ground rumble beneath his feet, for he was entranced with the size of the massive fort. Had he heard the rumbling, he might have saved himself from a dangerous adventure that would take place throughout the next few days. But he didn't, and was scrambling for cover from the falling stones of the fortress. The dust cleared before too long, revealing two sentries running towards Merlin. They wore a red vest over chain mail and carried with them a pike sharp enough to inflict damage rival to that of a sword. On their red vests was a line of diamonds going around their chests, a line of emeralds around their waists, and a line of gold between the two other lines. The sentries took Merlin none too gently by the wrists and led him to the king's tent.

"I want him slain," the king boomed as he stormed into the tent, "and then I want my magicians to ressurect him so I can use him as a target for my archers! And then I want him ressurected again so he can die again and again and again, each death being more painful than the last! I want-" The king stopped as he saw Merlin. The king, Merlin noticed, was wearing only thin robe and the golden circlet that showed he was king. He had many wrinkles on his face, belieing that he was fairly old, despite how young his voice may seem when he was in a fury. His gray eyes told he had only been on the throne for a few years, although he had witnessed the rise and fall of many reigns of many kings. Merlin thought he must be somewhere in his fifties, due to his graying hair.

"This is just a boy," the king continued in a much softer tone, "A boy this age couldn't have destroyed my fortress. I demand to see the real criminal now!" His adivisor, apparently used to such outbursts, calmly explained to the king why Merlin was there.

"I know that this boy did not commit the crime, but I know he can stop the crime from happening. Like your magicians said, in order to stop the destruction of your fortress, the blood of a fatherless child is needed upon the foundations. I believe this is just the boy you need."

"You're right. This boy is to be slain at dawn tomorrow. If he is slain even a second late, then the head of the person responsible is mine. Throw the prisoner in the stables for the night."

"Wait King Vortigern!" shouted Merlin after the leaving king.

Startled that the boy knew his name, the king turned around. "I know why your fortress is falling each night," continued Merlin, "There are two dragons under where you are building. Each night they wake and fight each other, causing the ground to shake and your fortress to fall. The two dragons are red and white; the red one is the Celtic dragon, your dragon, and the white dragon is the Saxon dragon. They fight because war is coming between these two people. I know, I saw it in a dream."

"You foolish little boy. The Saxons are not my enemies, rather they are my allies. I have invited them to prosper in this land. They will not betray me, nor shall I change my mind about your slaying. I will see you tomorrow."

Merlin was shocked. He knew his dream was real. Why didn't the king believe him? wNo need to worry about that, Merlin told himself, I'm going to die!