Grumbling, Merlin sat up on his bed. It had been such a wonderful night compared to the long nights he'd had sleeping on a sheet on cold, hard ground. Reluctant, Merlin climbed down off the bed and dressed, Uther leaning against the door of the room with his arms crossed all the while.
"Here yeh go kid; Reli wants you dressed nicely when yeh leave. He had his weavers work on it all through the night. I don't know why he insists on making such a fuss about having a wizard in his court. I mean look at Vortigern; he has hundreds of magicians serving him and so will Reli when the fat goose takes flight." Uther kept talking about magicians and how they could help the king significantly, but Merlin heard no more, for he was gazing his eyes upon the most beautiful robe he had seen. Even Vortigern's robes were scraps in comparison. The robe was an deep emerald green, the same shade as Merlin's eyes. The edges were lined with golden silk so soft, it felt like the fleece of the sheep of the gods. The upper torso of the robe just below the neck was expertly lined with jewels, gems, and precious metals of all sorts. It even had a pocket on the left side that had a steel interior. Merlin thought it was supposed to be a sewn-in scabbard.
"It's beautiful. How do people make such beauty?"
"What, the dress? That's nothing; yeh should see them when they have weeks to work on these things. Now that's a sight to behold. Well, we ought to be going now. Reli wants to see yeh off."
Down the spiral stairs they trekked. Aurelianus was waiting.
"Ah, there you are. Tell me, do you like the robe? I had my best weavers working on it all night."
"It's magnificent! It's even better than Vortigern's! Your weavers must be very talented." praised Merlin
"Well, maybe we can't defeat Vortigern in war quite yet, but we sure can beat him at weaving. If only this war were so easy. I was up all night organizing the war effort. If ever there was a good time to strike at that fat toad, it's now. He's being corrupted from within, we have our Saxon allies on the way, and my army is ready to march. While we're on the subject of war, there's something that's been pestering me all night; you're going back to your own people, and I was wondering, could you maybe convince your people to send, say, a thousand troops my way?" asked Aurelianus hopefully.
"I'm not certain; I could ask though. You've been so very kind to me, and I'll try to repay you by sending those troops."
"Oh, thank you Merlin! Thank you! You don't know how much this will help our efforts to win the war."
"Anytime. I hope to see you soon."
"As do I. Have a safe trip."
With that being said, Merlin and Uther rode off to the forest, Merlin riding a snow white stallion, and Uther a jet-black one.
"Want me to make our travels easier?" asked Merlin.
"What do yeh mean?"
"I can use magic to get us to the Bridge."
"Why didn't yeh say so? I could've taken yeh to Atlantis and been back by now!" exclaimed Uther.
"Yes, but then you wouldn't have had time to see the beauty of Atlantis. Now you can spend some time in Atlantis. Aurelianus doesn't expect you back for a few months."
"I guess yeh right. Go ahead, say the spell. We want to be in Atlantis, right?"
"Just let me think of the right words. . . Ah, now I remember! Ensans Atlantica."
With those words, Merlin brought the pair to the coast of Gaul. Everything was quiet and peaceful. The waves were lapping at the shore. The seagulls were muttering their soft cry. The breeze carried a sense of peace. Everything was as it should be.
As Uther recovered from the shock of traveling through the works of a spell, Merlin reached behind a bush. From behind the bush, he pulled a perfectly circular disc. Etched upon it was strange symbol. Merlin took his wand and placed it in the small ditch in the center of the disc. Moments later, a white granite bridge rose out of the water.
"Well are you coming?" yelled Merlin to an awed Uther.
"Yes, yes." Uther replied, never taking his eyes off the bridge.
* * *
"Here we are: Atlantis." Merlin said, his outstretched hand pointing in the general direction of the city Ala Bora. Ala Bora was a coastal town and the only entrance to Atlantis from the outside world. Being the only entrance, giant marble towers stood watching the entrance, connected by arched walls. Each tower had at least a dozen bow men patrolling and two dozen swords men guarding. Beyond the wall was an astonishing sight. The city had three story buildings, all ornately built and detailed. The edges of the crowded streets were lined with pure gold. People were all around, some on the beach playing with the sea creatures, others in the air, flying with dragons, phoenixes and gryffins. Some even rode centaurs, or clung to the back a giant. And humans weren't the only ones living in the city; fifteen other species also took up residence in the fair city, all being armed with a weapon of some sort. The elves had bows and swords of their own make, the dwarves had their axes and hammers, and the wizards had their wands and maybe a dagger or two.
"I'm home," said Merlin, a broad grin coming across his face as he watched the glee on the faces of the people, "I'm home."
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