Merlin's Choice (Stand Tall 2)

Part Fourteen: Visions

"You're going to let me kill Arthur?" Braith asked, surprised, and slightly confused. She didn't think he was fighting in the jousting tournament, for swordsmanship seemed to be his forte. Well, and mace, according to Merlin.

"No, but I am going to need you to clear the path, so to speak. What have you promised the young king thus far?" Morgana asked the Dane who stood in front of her. Fog was beginning to drift in from the west as the night wore on.

"He asked for reinforcements," Braith tilted her head back gravely, then smiled. "He's going to need them."

"Send for your troops from the north lands. Arthur does not suspect of your new allegiance, so he will permit your army to enter Camelot without any idea what is coming. You can attack from the inside."

"An infiltration in broad daylight," the Dane girl said, impressed. "Clever, but how do I know my army will obey me once we're in Camelot? If they believe we have come to help Arthur, they may not turn on him when I ask. "

"You are a strong leader, Braith. If they have sworn an oath to serve you, do not let them go back on their word. The army of Danes will answer to you alone," Morgana assured her.

"Right," the young witch began to smile. "And when the knights have been taken care of, no one stands between you, and Arthur's demise. You shall take the crown, as the eldest child of Uther Pendragon."

"Exactly. Ah," a thought popped into her head. "I nearly forgot. You will be needing this," the rogue Pendragon brought forth a lance from where it had been strapped to her horse.

"What is it?"

"Your key to winning. You will soon realize how it works, but be careful."

"Thank you," the Dane took her lance gingerly, not knowing what to expect. Then she turned to her comrade. "You are like the sister I never had, Morgana."

"And you are like mine, Braith. Go and get some rest. You will need all your strength for the tournament tomorrow."

---

Under the veil of darkness, the castle was deathly quiet. A deep velvet cloak almost floated over the stone floor as the Queen of Danes stole up to her chambers. She kept her head down, to avoid being recognized, but as she began up the stairwell, a voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Lady Braith," a young man spoke. She turned her head, looking over the rail of the spiral stair, for she had gotten to about the fifth step. Merlin stood just below in the foyer, looking up at her with a basket of laundry in his arms. "A bit late for a walk in the woods, isn't it?"

The girl took a moment before responding, looking down her nose at him as she pushed back her hood. He'd noticed who she was with it on, anyway. "The night is far more peaceful than the day, at least in Camelot. It helps me clear my head. Goodnight, Merlin," she said curtly, continuing up the stairs before he could talk back. As she left, the young servant had a sudden thought - that's exactly how Morgana seemed, when she began to turn dark.

Braith threw her cloak over the dressing screen in her room, and flopped down on her bed to take off her boots. She'd already stashed Morgana's lance in the armory, a task which proved easier said than done. The young queen chucked her shoes across the room in a "good riddance" fashion and sighed with contentment as she lay down in her soft bed. Her eyes had just begun to flicker shut, when she heard whispers. The Dane sat up wearily. "Hello?" she gave a hoarse whisper into the near darkness. The whispers she'd heard before swelled in volume, but she could not make out any words, in either English or Danish anyway. Suddenly, she could see Arthur, standing at the foot of her bed, transparent like a ghost. Braith didn't know what she was seeing, and stayed silent, wrapt by the vision. In his hand he held a long-bladed axe. Slowly, with all the weight of death itself, he walked around to the side of her bed. They held each others gaze, resolved on his end, and terrified on hers. The girl was paralyzed. The vision of Arthur raised his axe above his head, and brought it down on her neck. Braith screamed. Although it wasn't real she could feel a tingly sensation where the axe blade had struck her. The vision faded, and the young queen of Danes pulled the covers up over her head with fear. Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep.