Vortimer

Merlin sat barely three hundred yards from the walls of Deganwy Castle. It had been a long walk to the castle, and had decided to take a short rest. The rest had served two purposes, them being that Merlin could rest, and the second being that he could watch Vortigern's army. It wouldn't be easy to get in, but it was midday and the troops were getting restless. All Merlin had to do was wait for an opening.


 
There! On his feet in seconds, Merlin ran through a narrow opening in the army, and was now in between the army and the castle. Merlin took a second to make sure he hadn't been seen, and looked around, trying to find the War tent. That was where Vortigern would be.


 
Not seeing it nearby, Merlin began to walk. He had no idea where the tent would be, or what would make it stand out from every other tent. Yet, Merlin knew that as he walked, he was getting closer to the tent. He could feel it in the pit of his stomach, and odd feeling of intuition.


 
Lost in his thoughts, Merlin nearly ran into one of the guards just outside a tent he hadn't noticed up until now. The tent was considerably larger than the other tents and the only one that had guards posted outside of it. Made out of red felt, the tent was much more decorated than the other plain, virtually colorless tents. It would make sense to assume this was Vortigern's tent. Granted, it was very different from the last tent that Vortigern had used, but that night had been one of urgency. This was probably Vortigern's personal tent for his own private use.


 
Merlin quietly snuck into the tent under the opening flaps. He was never noticed by the guards.


 
"… push back the Saxons to Thanet, back to whence they came," said a young man in his twenties. He had blonde hair and eyes of which their color changed with the reflection of light. He had a grim look on his face, pouring over a poorly drawn map of the area. Upon his head rested a golden circlet similar to Vortigern's, the only difference being it was slightly smaller. This young man was obviously king of something… But of what? Vortigern was the king here, not this man, whoever he should be,


 
In the corner sat a small man with small circular spectacles. He appeared a very bookish person, with a long nose and small brown eyes peering through glasses that kept sliding down his nose. As if to look even more the picture of a bookworm, he wore a long robe and carried a book under his right arm, and stumbled on his sentences as he spoke quickly, as if he were unsure of himself.


 
"Yes sire, of course, whatever you say must be done is surely such," said the small man quickly, furiously scribbling notes in a journal on a table next to him.


 
The young man's face drew an exasperated look on his face. "How many times have I told you, Pascent, to call me Vortimer? I am not our father and as such want to be treated otherwise, and I am also your brother. You owe me no allegiance, despite my being the elder and my ascendancy to the throne. Do we understand each other Pascent?"


 
The small man nodded furiously and scribbled down some notes.


 
"Oh for heaven's sake, stop that!" exclaimed the man Merlin took to be Vortimer.


 
The other person, the small bookish man, Pascent, threw the note book to the side and put one leg over the other while lacing his hands and putting them in his lap, as if nothing had happened. A comical moment, Pascent's face had a fake pleasant smile plastered to it.


 
Vortimer rolled his eyes and shook his head. To think this clown was his advisor… Very sad indeed.


 
Going back to what he had previously been speaking of, Vortimer began talking once more, keeping a careful eye on Pascent to make sure he didn't write down notes. "The Saxons are our enemy, but thankfully we have found a base of theirs here, at a remote outpost in Wales. Now we must drive them out, and hope that a victory here will bring the Saxons to their senses and they won't dare to fight me much longer thereafter. Meanwhile, my forces are engaging other Saxon forces across all of Britannia. Soon the war will be over. But first, our troops must gather at Epsford, where we will rest before marching to attack Hengist and Horsa at Hraefn's ate."


 
Merlin had heard all he needed to hear, and left the tent. Who were Hengist and Horsa? Where were Epsford and Hraefn's ate? Why did Vortimer think that Deganwy was under Saxon control? Did Vortimer even really know what was going on?


 
Outside, Merlin saw that the sun was much lower in the sky than he had expected it would be. He estimated about two to three hours before sunset. Two to three hours before battle. Merlin would be hard pressed to…. To do what?


 
Suddenly Merlin realized that he had no idea what to do. Should he go back and tell Blaise? Or should he tell Aurelianus that reinforcement had come? Should he try to kill Vortimer? What should he do? He didn't know, and found himself wandering. He just walked, hotly debating with himself what he should do. Merlin had not come to a decision when Vortimer walked out of his tent, closely followed by Pascent.


 
As Vortimer walked, the army around him quieted and looked over at their leader. Merlin could see that they held Vortimer in great respect, much greater than they had with Vortigern. A born leader, these men were Vortimer's to command. His voice strong and powerful, it carried with little effort on his part as he spoke.


 
"Men, we have been laying siege to the enemy castle for several months now. They are on the verge of starvation, and surrendering their castle to us, giving us a bloodless victory. But these cowards are too good for a bloodless defeat! For months they have stood behind their walls, hoping we would flee, just as they would have in our position! But we are the stronger men, and we will give the cowards behind their walls what they deserve! Tonight, we will attack! Your orders are simple: leave no man, woman, or child alive to see another day. Take no prisoners; we have no need for them. Any man who spares another will not be spared themselves. Now, prepare men. We attack within the hour."

Update

After some time with writer's block, I've picked up Merlin's Story again and am working at a good pace. As you can see by the new ticker, I have set my deadline for November 1, 2011. At first, does not seem very far in the future. Look again. That's one and a two thirds years from now. That gives me more than enough time to finish if I'm not lazy and encounter few problems to finish writing. I do not plan on being finished revising by then. If I am, I will be genuinely impressed by myself. If I do not reach my deadline, then I will simply set a new one for myself. Kind of defeats the purpose of the deadline, but I'm not just going to throw away Merlin's Story if I don't make it on time.

Below is the next chapter in Merlin's Story. Enjoy! Note: in the final document, Ambro's name has been changed to Ambrose, more reflecting his personality.

Deganwy Castle

"Alright men! Move out!" shouted Blaise as the fist rays of light came. As one, the army sat up and packed their things away, and was marching off as Merlin was still waking up. As Merlin scrambled to pack up his things, Caedmon and Blaise walked over.

   

"Merlin, you're going to have to be faster if you're going to fight with the army," Blaise said, "I'll give you a break today, but be wary in the future. Understand Merlin?"

 

Merlin hastily nodded his head. After several nods, Blaise walked off to join the army.

 

"Are you ready to ride Merlin?" asked Caedmon in Merlin's head.

 

In response, Merlin swung his legs over Caedmon's body and sat down, not bothering to place a saddle on Caedmon. As soon as Merlin was sitting on Caedmon's back, Caedmon took off from a stand-still to a lightning sprint. Merlin clutched Caedmon's mane in his hands and held on for dear life, watching the trees fly by, hoping Caedmon wouldn't run into any of them.

 

"Are you having fun Merlin?" asked Caedmon. Merlin could have sworn that Caedmon had an amused tone in his voice.

 

Within seconds, Caedmon had caught up to the army, but he didn't stop. He sped up if anything, and quickly bypassed the riding army, shooting out far in front of them. It was almost as if Caedmon was being playful with the other horses, egging them on to run with him.

 

After a while, Caedmon stopped sprinting and slowed to a trot, and joined the rest of the army. Meanwhile, Merlin's heart was pounding from the thrill of the ride. It had been scary, but fun too.

 

Several minutes later, Shiroix led Thunder up beside Caedmon. "Nice of you to join us Merlin."

 

"I can't control Caedmon Shiroix," said Merlin with a thin smile.

 

"Sure you can Merlin! The only difference between a horse and a unicorn is the horn. They both listen the same, you just have to break him. Mind if I take a shot at it?"

 

"Yes, Merlin, why don't you let him? He could be taught a lesson in unicorns," said Caedmon in Merlin's head with an angry tone.

 

Merlin had no idea how Caedmon spoke inside his mind, but Caedmon's words brought many pictures of his defeats at Shiroix's hand at just about anything. No matter what Merlin did, Shiroix always seemed to be better. In magic, in archery, in riding, in axe throwing, in dueling, even in eating. Merlin had never once beaten Shiroix, not once had he performed as well as Shiroix had, ever.

 

"You have a rivalry with him?" asked Caedmon.

 

Surprised at Caedmon's question, Merlin wondered how Caedmon had known what he had been thinking of.

 

"I heard you Merlin. If you think a thought, I will hear it. It is part of the bond that we have now and always will have until our dying days."

 

Basing his next move off this new found knowledge, Merlin thought of him getting off Caedmon and letting Shiroix get on, and Caedmon bucking Shiroix off.

 

"I have something better planned Merlin," said Caedmon with an eager tone.

 

"Alright Shiroix. He's all yours," Merlin said with a faint smile, and slid off Caedmon. Shiroix didn't waste any time and slid on to Caedmon from Thunder, his feet not even touching the ground.

 

As soon as Shiroix was on his back, Caedmon raced forward. Shiroix, being as good as everything as he was, was not easily thrown off. While it had taken Merlin two hands to hold on at the speed Caedmon was going, it only took Shiroix one, with the other held high in the air.

 

In response to Shiroix's expert riding, Caedmon suddenly turned to the left, but he kept skidding forward due to the speed he had gathered, and could not turn. However, Caedmon hadn't wanted to turn. As he had moved his body to the left, he jumped, creating a massive force that hit Shiroix full, knocking him off Caedmon's right. Yet, Shiroix still held on to Caedmon's mane, thus he absorbed all the shock when Caedmon landed, allowing Caedmon to sprint off in the direction that he had turned before jumping, and dragged Shiroix along with him. After some time, Caedmon did a complete one hundred eighty degree turn. Shiroix lost his grip on Caedmon's mane, and with all the momentum Caedmon had had, flew twenty feet across the forest and straight into a giant tree, which of course, had to be between Shiroix's legs.

 

For several minutes, Shiroix just lay there while Merlin and Blaise came over to him, moaning in pain.

 

Blaise spoke first. "No one ever told you not to insult a unicorn did they Shiroix?"

 

"No," Shiroix squeaked softly.

 

"Well now you know not to. Might want to keep that for future reference."

 

"Will do."

 

As Shiroix painfully got up, he steered clear of Caedmon and mounted Thunder with a great deal of moaning and whining. Quite unusual for Shiroix, but then again, he'd never been thrown by a unicorn.

 

Merlin looked over at Caedmon and thought good thoughts of his congratulations before mounting Caedmon. For once, Shiroix had been shown his place.

 

After several hours, the sun was finally visible in the sky. At this point, Blaise turned around on his horse to address the army.

 

"Attention men! Now that it is daylight, it is time that we use our magic to cut our journey shorter than it would normally be. All of you are to participate in this spell, it will take a great deal of power to transport more than two hundred men and women across an ocean to a land several thousand kilometers from here. On the ready men!"

 

As Blaise spoke these words, the army halted, the people which made it up summoning the power they would need from within them. Merlin could feel a great deal of powering coming to the area, fueling the spell that was about to be performed. Some provided a great deal, others provided a lesser amount. Yet, all contributed.

 

Merlin felt the presence of strong magic in the area, much stronger than everyone else combined, emitting from only a few sources, three that Merlin could count. One of the sources was Blaise. Blaise was emitting a powerful magic, much more powerful than Merlin would have ever imagined anyone capable of. Yet, what shocked Merlin was how weak Blaise's power was comparably to the others.

Blaise's was weak enough that Merlin could pick out where it was coming from, as he could everyone else as well. The only sources he couldn't define were those that were much more powerful than Blaise. One of them seemed to come from some faraway place, being very faint and hard to find. The last of the sources seemed darker somehow, a dark spot in the midst of a light collection of magic. The darkness almost completely covered the army, it's power overshadowing the presence of the other lighter magics that Merlin sensed. It still grew, growing ever more powerful by the second, as if it were drawing power from the sources around it and making it its own, dark power.

 

Then the spreading darkness quickly began to recede, to go back to its point of origin as a bright magic, a clean, white magic appeared and overpowered the dark magic, forcing it back. No matter how hard the dark magic tried, it could not penetrate the white magic and foul it. The white magic was using very little of its power to force the dark magic back to its place. The white magic was unstoppable, a great and powerful force that only wanted peace, whereas the dark magic wanted to have everything for itself, absorbing into the lesser, weaker magics.

 

Merlin closed his eyes, and felt the presence of the white magic everywhere, all around him, providing more than enough power to fuel the spell for everyone. Unlike the dark magic, it left the others magics alone, instead only adding its own power to the spell. The dark magic had tried to fuel the spell itself by consuming all others. It had wanted the glory of fulfilling the requirements of the spell without help, and it had failed, giving birth to the white magic.

 

For several moments, the world sat still. All was quiet, the white magic's disembodied presence floating in the air. Nothing moved, nothing breathed, nothing was anything. It was all one, it was all itself, one unified body of many things that came together to be one.

 

The silence was broken when Blaise shouted the words of the spell to the heavens, taking the army to Wales. When Merlin opened his eyes, he saw Deganwy Castle in the distance. The army could easily arrive within the hour.

 

People in the army began to mutter. They weren't supposed to have landed here! They were supposed to have landed kilometers away, they were supposed to have had a great distance to cover before coming within sight of Deganwy Castle, yet, here they were, Deganwy Castle looming in front of them.

 

None in the army had seen Deganwy before, aside from Uther and Merlin. The last time Merlin had seen Deganwy had been in the dark, and thus Merlin hadn't been able to see Deganwy very well. Here now in the early morning light, Deganwy was a spectacular site. Like many things, the first impressions were unreliable. The land Deganwy sat on was the neck of a peninsula, both ends of which ended in two hills, a slight dip between them like an 'm' shape, which was where a large gate lay. Merlin estimated that Deganwy was about a kilometer and a half wide, from end to end. Its towers had been built higher since Merlin had last seen the castle, and it appeared far stronger than before.

 

In front of Deganwy Castle was a giant, awe inspiring army. Every man just stood still, unmoving, waiting. The men were obviously well trained, and would be a worthy adversary, especially considering the navy that was blockading escape from Deganwy out the back entrance. It would be a hard fought battle for the sea fortress.

 

Blaise turned his brown and black spotted mare around to face the army.

 

"Men, in front of us lies Deganwy Castle, currently under siege by the followers of Vortigern. Tonight, we will break that siege. Meanwhile, the War Council will gather and develop a strategy for tonight's battle. The rest of you can rest up. I don't want worthless soldiers fighting tonight. Execute."

 

The well trained army broke apart upon Blaise saying 'execute'. Everyone went every which way, going to go find means of relaxation. Some men sparred with sticks to sharpen themselves for the night's battle, others pulled out a blanket and made a hammock between two branches to lay down on. A few pulled out their wands and used simple magic to set up a sea of tents for the men. Within minutes, the nearby area looked fittingly like a military camp.

 

Merlin dismounted Caedmon, giving him a cracker before he left, and walked up a small hill for a better view of Deganwy. Deganwy was a beautiful castle, very mystic, especially considering the army camping outside its walls. Merlin found it hard to believe that such a great place could possibly be defeated, but then again, the battle hadn't been won yet. The War Council was determining the course of action as Merlin looked over at Deganwy.

 

The War Council. What were they going to do tonight? Two and two formed in Merlin's mind to become four. What if he spied on the War Council? He'd know exactly what they planned tonight. He could help them without them ever knowing he had been there listening!

 

Quickly and quietly, Merlin moved over to the War Council's tent. No one saw him, no one stopped him. No one questioned him. He was free to go and listen in on classified strategy.

 

"There you are Merlin," said Shiroix from no more than a foot behind Merlin, scaring the living daylights out of him, "I've been looking for you. So how long have you been considering spying on the War Council?"

 

Merlin turned to look at Shiroix with a pained face. It figured. Shiroix knew exactly what Merlin had been planning. As always, Shiroix was better than Merlin. Doubtlessly, Shiroix would want to repay Merlin for the riding incident earlier in the day, and here Merlin was, providing him with the perfect opportunity to get even and more.

 

"Relax Merlin, I'm not going to tattle on you. No, rather the opposite. I myself was going to spy on the Council because I could, much like you are. However, I'd rather not be discovered, and so I have a proposition for you."

 

The word 'proposition' caught Merlin's attention. "What do you want Shiroix?" Merlin asked with a suspicious tone.

 

"I won't tell Blaise that you were planning on spying on him if you go in for me and report to me everything that was said. Everything. I'll put an invisibility spell on you so that you won't be caught quite so easily. Do we have a deal here?"

 

Merlin considered Shiroix for a minute. He gets to go undercover with an invisibility spell performed on him. He gets the information that he wants, and all he has to do is tell Shiroix just what has happened in the Council. It sounded great, except for one thing, but that could be easily changed without hassle.

 

"Alright Shiroix, I'll do it. But I'll cast my own spell."

 

Shiroix snickered. "You? Perform an invisibility spell? I doubt that you can perform one. Alright, let's see it then."

 

Taking a deep breath, Merlin whispered several words while watching Shiroix. After Merlin completed the spell, Shiroix's eyes grew wide, and his jaw dropped ever so slightly. Obviously, Merlin had successfully completed the spell and was now invisible. To test it, Merlin walked over to the right, and then jumped to the left. Shiroix's eyes stayed where Merlin had been.

 

"I told you so," said Merlin as he walked carefully away, unable to resist teasing Shiroix.

 

Quickly and quietly, Merlin walked to the tent of the War Council. In less than a minute, Merlin was listening by the entrance to the tent, not spotted, no one knowing he was around. Then he realized he was invisible and could actually go into the tent without trouble. Naturally, Merlin did such.

 

"… as if there was a surge of power coming from somewhere in the army," said Envok in his deep sing-song voice, standing up in a corner of the tent while everyone else sat in magically conjured chairs around a table with a three dimensional map of the area demonstrating the geography and altitudes of Deganwy.

 

Blaise spoke next. "Yes, we all felt that power. Even Uther here, and if a mortal has sensed it, then it was very powerful indeed. Far more powerful than the magic of anyone else thus far that the Light has encountered, save for a few."

 

"What gets meh is taht this is the fi'st time this has happ'nd in liv'n mem'ry," Anthon pondered aloud in his deep accented voice.

 
"No, Anthon, not the first time in living memory. There are some who still remember the last time it happened. Granted, it was very, very long ago, and there are few still alive who were such back then, most of which are veterans of the Wars who want nothing more than to forget the horrors of war. The only others who aren't such are either in exile, or else are of one of the other races. I can only think of three others who are among society that remember, and at this time, none will be of any use."


 
"Alright now, yeh lost meh; so apparently there has been this kind of power before?" asked Uther, holding his hands up in a stopping motion.


 
"Yes, Uther, but this is far more powerful than the last time, and at the time this last happened, the wizards who had caused this surge were the most powerful in the land, and look at what they accomplished. Now imagine that on a much greater scale…" Blaise explained calmly to Uther, trailing off in the end.


 
"Blaise," said Envok calmly, breaking Blaise out of his thoughts and back to reality, "The last time a surge like what happened back in the forest happened, great change happened. What's to say that won't happen again? We could be facing another war, and this time, there will be no mercy, no tricks, no hiding places. We'd have to fight our own against an invincible enemy, and we all know that the war would be far greater than the last time. After all, if the surge was so much more powerful, then what's to say that the war won't also be such?"


 
Blaise stroked his chin thoughtfully. "That is precisely what I was thinking."


 
For the first time, Geoffrey spoke. "But there were four major factions in the surge Blaise. One was yourself, we could all tell it was you, there was just something like you in it. Then there was the magic that someone was performing from afar, adding to the spell. We don't know who that was, for all we know it could have been a Dark wizard leading us to a trap. This could all be an illusion for all we know! And then there was the darker magic, something we've never seen before. Magic is magic, it's always been that way. Then there comes this magic, the magic that felt darker and almost overtook the army, taking everything for itself. Then the white magic, a pure aura of magic, again, something never seen before, magic is magic, which pushed back the darker magic and added its power to everyone's, though it could have fueled the spell itself."


 
"Geoffrey, I can tell you that the magician from afar is an ally," Blaise said, his half moon glasses half down the bridge of his nose, "I remember feeling his magic once before. It has never been something I could forget. After all, you hardly feel the aura of someone's magic, let alone feel such a unique one."


 
"A'right tehn, what 'bout the oth'rs?" asked Anthon, clearly very interested, as demonstrated by his wide eyes.


 
"Well, my magic had very little to do with anything. The far magician powered much of the spell. As for the darker magic and the white magic, we can only guess who they are, but we do know they came from within the army, so that leaves about two hundred possibilities," Blaise said, a far off look appearing in his eyes, "Yet, tomorrow we will have even less to consider. The two magicians are destined to fight one another late in life, and they will not die tomorrow. One will die at the other's hand, and the one who stands will die from heartbreak more than any other cause. Why these great friends will turn against each other and fight to the death, no one knows. Only time will tell." The misty look left Blaise's eyes, and his shoulders slumped.


 
"Did you…?" asked Envok almost with some emotion.


 
"Yes, Envok. I saw them battling on a hill not far from here. They have inexplicable link between them that they are discovering at the end of their lives, as they duel each other above a battle that will decide the fate of all of us, far off into the future. Yet, the battle won't decide the fate of the world, but rather the two magicians high above. I didn't see much, but I know that the magicians I saw are much older, too old to be anyone currently in the army. We have long before this battle, and maybe we can avert it."


 
Uther decided to speak up after waking up from a five minute nap, or rather the one he had tried to take. "Didn't we come here to plan this war, not one to come?"


 
Blaise nodded his head several times, as did the others in the tent. "Yes, yes we did, so let's take a look at what is happening," Blaise said, moving his hand, palm down, over the table in a sweeping motion. Magically, little figures and boats popped out of the map, and the water and trees began to move. Merlin figured that this was what was happening outside on the night's battlefield.


 
"As you see, for any normal army, there would be no way to get to Deganwy and no way to let them know that tonight we fight. Yet, we are not that normal army. We are an army of wizards and magicians, and so we can send a message to Ambrosius inside. As for tonight, well, we can have several wizards perform fire spells to break up Vortigern's tightly packed army, and a few water spells too. This will create a path for us to get through and separate the army in an effort to even the odds. Then, if all goes well, Ambrosius will see the fighting outside, and send his army to surround Vortigern's, us on one side, and Ambrosius on the other. Completely surrounded, the men will panic, and from there, it ought to be easy to finish the battle and claim victory here at Deganwy. Where the war takes us after tonight, well, that's a story that will tell itself."


 
Merlin sensed the council was over and left the tent. His mind swarmed with the new found facts and strategy he had stumbled upon. About a hundred yards away, Merlin saw Shiroix, waiting for Merlin to come and tell him what he had found. Merlin also saw Deganwy, not more than a kilometer away.


 
"We can send a message to Ambrosius on the inside," Blaise had said. What if Merlin did it himself? He could even spy on the enemy while he was there, pick up on things that would greatly help Ambrosius and Uther win the battle, and maybe the war.


 
Thinking thoughts of glory and greatness and helping his friends, Merlin set off to Deganwy Castle. He was going to spy on Vortigern without his ever knowing.

A Cry in the Dark

The adults looked at one another before looking at Uther.

 

"Don't look at me," Uther said, surprised they would volunteer him, "Yeh two are his family."

 

Blaise let out a deep sigh before looking at Aithne out of the corner of his eye. Nodding his head once, he said "Uther is right. It's our responsibility."

 

"Merlin," Aithne began, but at that precise moment, the messenger decided he would butt in, take his chance.

 

"A royal message from the recently returned heir to the throne, Aurelianus Ambrosius, seeks help from the great wizard Merlin. Would you like to hear his message?"

 

Not waiting for an answer, the messenger barged on.

 

" Merlin, you must come to help. Deganwy Castle is under siege, and if you leave immediately, we will only be able to hold out for maybe another week. Though I am heir to the throne, more are loyal to Vortigern than to I, as he has been on the throne for years, and few remember I. Please come, I need your help. If Deganwy is taken, then all is lost. Please come, and bring Uther with you. End of message sire," said the messenger, bowing to Merlin and scuttling out of the way, still bowing.

 

Merlin, for one, was stunned. Aurelianus was asking him for help? He barely even knew Aurelianus, and Aurelianus barely knew him.

 

Blaise put his half-eaten apple on the counter and walked over to Merlin.

 

"Don't worry about it Merlin. You're not going, you're needed here," said Blaise, putting a hand on Merlin's back. "It's getting late. You ought to be getting to bed now, shouldn't you?"

 

 

Before Merlin could answer, Blaise was shoving him towards his bedroom, Shiroix being treated to the same.

 

"Goodnight!" Blaise said, spewing more of the apple he had just picked up again, and closed the door on Merlin. While the door had no lock, Merlin had no doubt Blaise had put some sort of spell on it or another, as that was how Blaise did things.

 

Merlin reluctantly walked slowly over to his bed and sat on it. When he looked over to Shiroix's side of the room, he found that Shiroix was swinging a bag he had bought from a local merchant over his shoulder. To someone who didn't know Shiroix, it would seem as if his bag were empty. But Merlin knew better. Shiroix somehow managed to keep all of his belongings in the tiny bag, and him draping the bag over his shoulder only ever meant one thing: he was going somewhere.

 

"So where are you off to?" Merlin asked, as could only be expected of him.

"Deganwy Castle," replied Shiroix, opening the window in their room.

 

"But Blaise said we can't go."

 

"Blaise said you can't go. He didn't say anything about me, so I am neither able to go and not able to go, and able to make my own decision for the matter. And I choose to go. As we both know, I am the better wizard and warrior."

 

Shiroix did have a point. While most children in Atlantis couldn't do magic at the age Merlin and Shiroix currently were at, Merlin and Shiroix could perform small types of magic, nothing like lifting a boulder or defeating an army. Yet, they could do things like change the pictures on a wall, temporarily cast an image over an object so as to make it appear different, and levitate objects no bigger than the hand. Occasionally, they had competitions and Shiroix always won. Never once did Merlin win.

 

"I'm going with you," said Merlin after a Shiroix who had one leg outside and one in.

 

"Well, two are better than one, even if one of them is second rate, ahem, Merlin," replied Shiroix, coughing the last part.

 

"Speak for yourself," said Merlin with a mostly straight face.

 

"You're getting better at comebacks, but keep working."

 

When both were outside, they began to creep along the wall of the house, ducking under the main room window where Blaise, Aithne, and Uther were. It was not long before the twosome managed to get past the house and on the road. The challenge now was to make it outside the city gates without being noticed, which presented a slight problem considering that coastal cities such as Ala Bora employed a guard that consisted of half the men over age twenty-five in the city.

 

"What are yeh two doin'? Yeh two are supposed to be in yeh rooms!" said Uther, who had somehow managed to sneak up on Merlin and Shiroix.

 

"W-w-we-e-e were j-j-ust-" started Merlin, only to be finished by Shiroix.

 

"We are going to help your brother, the sire Ambrosius."

 

"Well I guess we'll be keepin' each other company then," said Uther, a fierce look in his eye.

 

Uther waited as the words sunk into the twos' heads.

 

"Wait, you mean you're coming with us?" asked Merlin.

 

"No, actually, yeh're coming with me," Uther said in an unarguable tone, "I decided I was going to go help me brother, for after all, he is me brother, and he was calling for help. Then I heard yeh two climbing out as I was leavin', and here we are now."

 

Thus it was, and the threesome set out. With Uther with them, Merlin and Shiroix had no need to worry about the guards, for Uther was a greatly respected man amongst the wizards.

 

Before too long, they were back on the mainland and finding a place to camp. Eventually, they settle upon a clearing in the forest about a kilometer from the coast. The fire lit the entire clearing, and nothing would be able to approach unnoticed.

 

"Merlin, come here, I need your help," called Shiroix as he finished setting up what he called 'precautions', which looked to be all sorts of devilish traps.

 

"You asking me for help? Me, the inferior little boy that is a burden to the great master's work? Why, it will be a pleasure!" over-exaggerated Merlin in a sarcastic tone.

 

"Even the greatest need support, as you have yet to learn, Merlin. As you know, I lived solitary for as long as I can remember before I met you. I think I know a little more about setting up camp than you."

 

As if to prove his point, Shiroix cut a string with his fingernail. Almost immediately following, a net appeared out from under a pile of leaves, and caught Merlin, who was not pleased.

 

"See?" said Shiroix, a devilish grin on his face.

 

"Put me down Shiroix," said Merlin, who was swaying slightly upside down in the net while rotating. Not at all a pleasant experience.

 

With another movement, Shiroix sliced another string, and Merlin fell on his head

 

"Wasn't that lovely," muttered Merlin under his breath, rubbing his now sore head.

 

"Havin' fun, eh Merlin?" asked Uther who had been watching Merlin and Shiroix with mild interest.

 

"Oh yes, this has just been a bundle of fun!" replied Merlin with a grimace.

 

Uther chuckled. "Well yeh two ought to get some rest. I'll take the first watch."

 

Neither Merlin nor Shiroix argued. They both almost happily walked over to the fire and lay down on the ground. From his small bag, Shiroix pulled out two thin cots and blankets, both of which should not have fit in the bag. Merlin just shook his head and forgot about it. Shiroix never told him how he managed to fit so much stuff. Merlin suspected it was magic, but Shiroix would not confirm it. Typical.

 

"Sleep tight Merlin, let the bed bugs bite. We all know that'll be a benefit," said Shiroix with a smile on his face, passing Merlin a cot and then a blanket.

 

"You too Shiroix."

***

 

"Merlin! Merlin! Wake up! It's yer turn for watch!" whispered Uther as he gently shook Merlin awake.

 

Merlin felt as though he had only gotten five minutes of sleep, though he knew it had really been several hours. Reluctantly, Merlin sat up and rubbed his weary eyes.

 

"Your watch is over when the moon is above that tree," Uther told Merlin, pointing to a tree about two thirds of the way across the clearing from where the moon currently was. Merlin estimated he'd be on watch for about three, maybe four hours.

 

Merlin walked over to the bush where Uther had been keeping watch and looked around. There wasn't much to see, except Uther lying down on Merlin's cot and falling asleep. The next few hours were to be boring ones.

 

Through the night, Merlin developed a routine. For a hundred foot taps he would look one direction, then he would turn to his right. Then another hundred taps and he would turn again. This pattern was repeated until he had gone in a complete circle, and then he would start again.

 

Coming to the end of his third rotation, Merlin turned to face away from camp. He saw nothing, nothing but darkness.

"Now you're dead," said Blaise behind Merlin loudly.

 

Surprised to hear his uncle's voice, Merlin turned quickly on his heels to face Blaise.

 

"I thought I had told you to stay at home Merlin. Or was that my imagination?" asked Blaise, his arms folded over his chest, his half moon glasses half way down the bridge of his nose.

 

"You did tell me Uncle," said Merlin, looking down sheepishly at his feet.

 

"And so why did you leave, if I may ask?" asked Blaise, who obviously already knew the answer.

 

"What goin' on Merlin?" asked Uther groggily.

 

"You are all dead now Uther," said Blaise turning to look at Uther.

 

Uther, for one, did not want to look Blaise in the eye, and turned away from him.

 

Blaise sighed and rolled his eyes. "Alright, look, this one time, I'm not going to be mad at any of you. You had the right idea. But next time, tell me when you're going somewhere against my wishes. Now, Merlin, this was your first lesson in war. Always be sharp during your watch, and don't ever feel like something is secure or fine, because things have a habit to go wrong when you think like that. And don't do what you did tonight in watch tomorrow, because look what happened. I managed to get an entire army behind and around you."

 

"What army?" asked Uther, not certain if he should believe Blaise or laugh at him.

 

"Why, once I knew that you had left, I figured I'd bring some reinforcements," said Blaise in a matter of fact tone, "Three adventurers and an old man are not enough to even the odds against a siege. No, not at all. So I rallied together some old time friends, and brought them here to help. We have about two hundred men and women at the ready, completely surrounding us."

 

As if that had been their cue, about two hundred fighters emerged from the woods into the clearing, their faces grim and dark. Amongst the fighters Merlin saw dwarves, elves, and wizards. Many faces he recognized.

 

Three people stepped forth from the fighters. These three were Envok, Geoffrey, and Anthon. Not surprisingly, Geoffrey was between Envok and Anthon.

 

Blaise looked over at Uther expectantly. "So you see Uther, here is my army, or should I say, our army. You, me, Envok, Geoffrey, and Anthon will form the War Council for as long as we stay and fight with you. Tomorrow night, we will gather and discuss how to break the siege at Deganwy. Tonight, we sleep, but first, I must show you your mounts."

 

With that, Blaise walked over to the edge of the forest and reemerged several minutes later leading four steeds, whom he kept in the shadows.

 

"Shiroix! You first!"

 

Shiroix eagerly got up and trotted over to Blaise.

 

Blaise took the reins of one steed and passed them to Shiroix. Shiroix naturally led the steed out of the shadows to where he could see his horse. As it would turn out, Blaise had given Shiroix a black stallion.

 

"His name is Thunder Shiroix. Be sure to take care of him," Blaise said with a slight smile.

"Of course sire."

 

"That's all that is asked. Uther, here's your horse. You left him in the stables in Ala Bora."

 

Uther graciously got up to reclaim his horse, a brown mare. Uther reached into the saddle and pulled a small cracker, which he fed to his horse.

 

"That's a good girl Beauty, that's a good girl," said Uther, rubbing Beauty's back.

 

"Alright Merlin. That leaves you. Come on up."

 

Merlin hesitantly got up. He'd never learned to ride. He'd always walked, always trusted his own two feet, and now here he was, a horse being offered to him.

 

"Uncle, I don't really want a horse," said Merlin quietly when he came up to Blaise to receive his steed.

 

"Well then my boy, you don't have to worry, because this is no horse," whispered Blaise back, a wide grin on his face. Not even a second later, a equine creature emerged from the shadows. Merlin had heard of such creatures, but never seen one. With the single horn in the center of its forehead, the creature was a unicorn.

 

The unicorn was majestic and beautiful. It had a slender muscular body, covered with moderate length snow white hair that was softer than anything Merlin could have ever imagined. The unicorn's mane was long, and hung several inches below its neck. The unicorn had brilliant sapphire blue eyes that reflected a caring nature. Its horn looked like it was made of a shining white ivory, which glistened with all the colors of the rainbow in the light of the camp fire. The unicorn was undoubtedly one of the most beautiful things that had ever been.

 

"His name is Caedmon," said Blaise, seeing Merlin's gaze of awe and admiration, "He's a strong one. Normally unicorns are solitary creatures, but Caedmon is different. I met him a few years back, and he was cared for in Ala Bora by the stable boys up until today when I asked him if she would like to have a rider. He said yes, and well, here we are now."

 

"Caedmon… that's a fitting name isn't it boy?" asked Merlin of the unicorn.

 

To his amazement, Merlin heard a reply in his head. "It is, isn't it Merlin?"

 

Shocked, Merlin looked to Blaise. "I just heard him in my head!"

 

Blaise chuckled. "Ah, yes, that would be right. You see, unicorns are very beautiful and intelligent creatures, and rarely stray to civilization. Thus the unicorn rarely forms a bond with the rider, but when they do, it is a great thing indeed. The bond lasts a lifetime, both mutually serving the other. It is a great honor Merlin to be this unicorn's rider."

 

"Blaise is right Merlin. You are indeed lucky to be my rider, and I am fortunate to be the steed of such a great man."

 

Quietly, the unicorn walked away. "Goodnight Merlin. We ride for the first tomorrow." With that, Caedmon found a tree, and laid down next to it, folding her legs under her much like a dog.

 

Blaise clapped his hands together and turned to face the army. "Alright everyone, get some shut eye. We got a long day of traveling tomorrow, and I want to set out early and get to Deganwy by nightfall. In the morning we will use our magic to get to Britain, but that can only take us so far with so many, and thus much of our journey will be walking. Execute."

Upon hearing execute, the army walked over to their horses and assorted steeds and pulled something to lay on from the saddle pack. Within less than a minute, everyone was on the ground sleeping. Merlin took it that execute meant do it, and so he lied down on the cold ground and fell asleep quickly.

Training

"Merlin! Wake up, yeh! I need to go run some errands for yeh uncle, and yeh need to come with me!" yelled Uther, tossing a tunic at Merlin. It had been almost a year since Merlin had arrived in Atlantis, and he had grown used to his uneventful life.

 

Groggily, Merlin turned around, burying his head under the covers. Seconds later, he was drying off with a towel, while Uther was laughing on the floor so hard, Merlin thought he might burst a kidney.

 

"It's not that funny!" Merlin said defiantly, albeit with a smile on his face.

 

Uther managed to get few words out in between the tears of laughter, those being, "You shoulda seen the look on yeh face!" followed by more laughter.

 

Merlin swung his tunic at Uther, then grudgingly put it on, gathered his things, and began to head out with a recovering Uther, and a grinning Shiroix. As Merlin found out upon his coming to Atlantis, Shiroix had become a part of the family, yet, no one knew how. It was almost as if he had been meant to be with Merlin, Aithne, and Blaise.

 

"You shut up," Merlin said to Shiroix, pointing a finger at him.

 

When Uther had finally managed to calm down sufficiently enough, he started to read the list.

 

"Alright, so Blaise wants me to go find him some books and animal parts, while yeh two work on something much more valuable.

 

"What is that?" Merlin and Shiroix asked simultaneously.

 

"Yeh two are gonna go to the training grounds."

 

Both of them complained, but when Uther bent down to scoop up some of the water from the ocean beside them in his bucket, their mouth magically stopped running.

 

Within twenty minutes, the trio was at the training grounds, and Uther was talking to someone.

 

"So Blaise told me that he wanted me to take these two to the training grounds for a couple of hours while I run his errands. He told me to put these two in the care of someone called Geoffrey. Do yeh know him?"

 

The man Uther was speaking to, a clean shaven man with red hair wearing full armor over a purple robe, replied to Uther slowly as he turned around to face Uther. "Yes, I think I might know him. How may I help you?"

 

It took a few minutes for Uther to register that this was the man he was looking for, and when he did, he violently grasped the man's small hand, and pumped it up and down quite rapidly.

 

"I'm Uther, third born son of King Constantine II of Britannia, brother to the true heir of the realm, Aurelianus Ambrosius," Uther introduced himself.

 

"Quite the name you have," said the small man, rubbing his arm, "I'm Geoffrey of Monmouth Shire, one of the three Council members."

 

"Council?" said Uther inquiringly.

 

Geoffrey put on a pained smile before answering. "The Council is the governing body of the political network that sustains the delicate structure of the Wizards of Atlantis."

 

Seeing the uncomprehending look on Uther's face, Geoffrey simplified his definition. "The three people who are the kings that the people choose."

 

Uther understood that much, as was clarified by his, "Ah."

 

"Well then," continued Geoffrey, "Since you two are here to train, I will show you each to your instructors. We will be seeing you, Uther."

 

Uther tried to persist, but lost quickly with a quick wave of Geoffrey's hand. Neither Merlin nor Shiroix know how Geoffrey did it.

 

Geoffrey began introductions. "Let's get to know one another, shall we? Indeed, let's. I am Geoffrey. And you two are…?" said Geoffrey, leaving Merlin and Shiroix to finish.

 

"Shiroix," said Shiroix.

 

"Merlin," said Merlin.

 

"Alright boys," said Geoffrey, placing a hand on each of the boys' backs, "Here in the training grounds we have several methods of training, which are swordplay, archery, axe throwing, and spell casting. You two are too young for spell casting, so you will be instructed in the other three, each with an expert in the craft."

 

"Who are the experts?" Merlin asked.

 

"You'll see," was Geoffrey's smiling reply. Merlin had a feeling he would regret this training.

 

After some walking, Geoffrey stopped with Merlin and Shiroix at the swordplay area of the training grounds. Then he picked up a sword and told Merlin and Shiroix to do likewise.

 

"You will both attack me," instructed Geoffrey, "and you will have no mercy. I am a Dark wizard, and you must slay me."

 

Without warning, Geoffrey struck at Merlin with lightning speed, who was able to successfully block the blow, paying for it with the loss of his balance. He toppled over, and was at Geoffrey's mercy.

 

"If I had been a Dark wizard, you would've been dead by now. Work on your swordsmanship. Now it's your turn Shiroix."

 

Shiroix did not waste any time. He immediately struck Geoffrey, who blocked the over hand blow, only to find it was a feint, and Shiroix was actually attacking his left side. Geoffrey quickly moved his sword to block Shiroix's blade, only to find that when Shiroix's sword struck his own, his went flying due to the angle of which it was hit.

 

"Impressive boy. Keep working and perhaps we'll have to send you to the military."

 

Shiroix sent Merlin a smug look. Before Merlin could reply, Geoffrey was up again and taking them to the next division of the training grounds, the archery range.

 

Waiting for them at the archery range was an elf. He stood tall, about six and a half feet, with his hands laced behind his back and a smile that said, "Welcome. I will crush you like a bug if you don't work hard."

 

"Hello, King Envok!" said Geoffrey, holding out his hand to the elf.

 

The elf took notice of the hand and gripped it firmly. He shook it up and down twice, and released his grasp.

 

Geoffrey pulled his hand away hastily and rubbed it gently. Then, noticing others were watching, he quit nursing himself and introduced Merlin and Shiroix to Envok.

 

"Sire, this is Merlin and this is Shiroix. They are here to learn from four masters, of which you are the second."

 

A mischievous gleam came into Envok's eyes. "Whom was the first master? Surely not you; you can barely withstand a handshake!"

 

Geoffrey's face turned a bright red, followed by stomping off and muttering to himself.

 

Envok laughed. "Ah, I always love to do that. I'm sure he'll try to come up with something tonight that I'll see right through and only embarrass himself further. Anyhow, I will be your archery instructor for the next few years, and if you do good enough we may even have one on one sessions and I may teach you in other arts as well. Come along now."

 

Envok waked hastily to an open target, and handed Merlin and Shiroix each a bow and a quiver of twenty arrows.

 

"Your goal," said Envok, "Is to get every last one of your arrows through any sign of danger. If there is none, you will aim for the centre of the target. Go."

 

Merlin barely had time to string his bow before seven wooden figures sprung up. He madly strung the bow and began aiming at each of the targets. He hit two in the head, which fell down, hit three where the heart would've been, and missed one. Of course, that still left one, which was shot down by Shiroix.

 

Merlin surveyed what Shiroix had accomplished with his targets. Every figure had been hit, right between the eyes just above the bridge of the nose. Shiroix had also hit a robber who had thought it would be safe enough to run past the entrance to the archery range, hit Merlin's last target, and shot the rest of his arrows into the centre of his target.

 

"Very good," said Envok, "You both did very well. Shiroix, you managed to hit all the targets and a few bonus. Merlin, you only managed to hit five, all in varying places. So overall, you did better."

 

"What?" asked Merlin and Shiroix simultaneously.

 

"Yes, Merlin did better," confirmed Envok, then explained, "You see, Shiroix, while you hit all the targets, you did not innovate, you only hit the targets. You also hit two objects which you were not instructed to do so, which more often loses a battle than wins it. Merlin, however, you shot two arrows into each target, slightly apart from each other, and you did not hit all the targets. Therefore, you have room for improvement, which is always a good thing."

 

Needless to say, both Merlin and Shiroix were surprised at Envok's answer.

 

"Moving on," shouted Envok, walking hastily away towards the ax-throwing range. Merlin and Shiroix had to run to keep up.

 

When Merlin and Shiroix saw Envok again, they noticed he was talking to a dwarf of small stature. Well, all dwarves have small stature, but this one was smaller than the rest. He had a red hair, and full beard, which was typical of a dwarf.

 

The dwarf threw his hands up in the air and stomped towards Merlin and Shiroix. "Never seek help from an elf," said the dwarf in a very deep voice, much the kind one would expect a dwarf to have, "Yer only will embarrass yer self."

 

Merlin and Shiroix looked at each other curiously, both knowing what the other was thinking. Then the dwarf spoke. "So yer two must be Merlin and Shiroix, no need to tell meh who's who, I alre'dy know. Now, I here am Prince Anthon II of th' Sev'nth Royal Dwarf Family."

 

"Um…" Merlin and Shiroix both mumbled simultaneously. They both found it very hard to understand the dwarf, who's accent was even thicker than Uther's.

 

Prince Anthon calmly explained. "Yer see here, there are sev'n dwarf families who cun ascend teh th' throne. I b'long teh one of them. Compendo?"

 

Both Merlin and Shiroix nodded their heads while they mentally deciphered what Anthon had just said.

 

"Ah'right now, so I'll beh teachin' yer how teh axe throw. Very usefel. So get teh it!"

 

"How do we do it?" asked Merlin.

 

"What? Yer don't know how to throw an axe?"

 

"No…" said Shiroix slowly.

 

"Well it's very simple. Yer hold the hand'l, yer bring it back, yer bring it for'd, and yer let 'er go. Now start throwin'!"

 

Hesitantly, Merlin and Shiroix started throwing axes at a square target several yards away, taking them from a rack on the wall. Meanwhile, Anthon leaned on his axe, watching Merlin and Shiroix. Once the rack was empty, he started laughing.

 

"What's so funny?" asked Shiroix, his face turning red.

 

"Yer two throw like elves!" said Anthon, quaking with laughter.

 

Calming down, Anthon explained further. "It's somethin' only a dwarf would u'derstand. Yer see, we dwarves and them elves has some riv'ry, and dwarves pride thems self on bein' better axe throwers."

 

"I see," said Shiroix, his arched eyebrows showing he really didn't.

 

"So an'how, yer two are done trainin' for the day, yer free to go, blah, blah, blah, no 'un cares, get a move on, I'll see yer two termorrow."

 

Merlin and Shiroix began walking hesitantly, then faster when Anthon picked up an axe.

 

Unsure where they should go, they started moving towards home. It was only midday, and Uther hadn't been given specific instructions by Blaise. At least, none that Uther had told Merlin and Shiroix.

 

"It's him!", "Merlin!", "The Victor!", were only a few of the things that Merlin and Shiroix heard as they walked down the streets. Usually the people shut their mouths when Merlin looked around, making him think he was hearing things.

 

"Shiroix?" started Merlin.

 

"Yes, I hear them too," Shiroix said as if he had read Merlin's mind. Sometimes Merlin wondered if Shiroix could. It most certainly would explain a great deal. "Perhaps if we ignore them they'll go away."

 

As Merlin and Shiroix soon found out, Shiroix's theory was flawed. Ignoring them only made them more aware of their presence, which was quite odd.

 

"Excuse me sire," said a little boy, tugging on Merlin's shirt, "How did you kill Vortigern?"

 

Merlin, naturally, was stunned. For years his life had been a solitary, quiet life. He and his mother had rarely spoken to one another, and there had been no one else to talk to. Now here he was as some sort of idol to these people.

 

"Um, well actually, I didn't kill Vortigern," confessed Merlin. The onlookers' expressions immediately changed to one of disbelief and disappointment.

 

"You didn't!" whined one boy, his eyes so believing and innocent.

 

"No, I didn't. I only fought him, and he got away," said Merlin, turning in a small circle to find to his surprise that he was encircled, not only by children, but also adults.

 

"Yes dearies, Vortigern got away, but Merlin will get him next time," said one of the mothers in the audience to her children.

 

"No, no, you don't understand," started Merlin.

 

"Tell us how you showed old Vortigern Merlin!" screamed a little girl in the outer audience.

 

The scream became a chant, and Merlin looked for Shiroix for help.

 

"Don't look at me," Shiroix said in a matter of fact tone, a grin spreading across his smug face, "I never get tired of this tale. How the great Merlin got himself locked in a dungeon for a night, and what's more, was nearly executed."

 

Merlin had no choice but to give in.

 

"Alright, alright, settle down. I'll tell you the story," Merlin said, his hands raised in surrender. The response was a cheer from the little ones.

 

"So here goes…"

 

***

 

Merlin's story took a while, as many questions were asked, but eventually he was through. By the time he was done, it was almost supper time.

 

"Since when did you single handedly kill a hundred men?" asked Shiroix casually on the walk home, "That's a part I haven't heard before."

 

"Oh like you wouldn't exaggerate it," replied a grinning Merlin.

 

Shiroix appeared to think about this one. "You know, you have a point."

 

Before too long, the twosome reached Blaise's house. Inside, a messenger was arguing with Blaise, who was sitting on his counter eating and apple. Beside him was Uther and on his other side was Aithne.

 

"No, he is not going, and that is final! Now be gone with you!" said Blaise, giving the messenger a face full of chewed apple.

 

"Who's not going where?" asked Merlin out of curiosity.