Shadows: BBC Merlin fan fiction

Prologue

  ~20 years ago~

  Uther stared down at his newborn son, who stretched slightly and scrunched up his nose. A single tear slid down Uther's cheek as he thought about his wife and how she would never get to hold her son. He could barely cast a glance at her lifeless body laying in their bed. At first he was merely heartbroken, but then he was angry, terribly angry. That woman. It was all her fault. Not just hers, but the fault of magic in general. It was evil, and now he was sure of it.

  "This is an affront to nature Uther Pendragon." A calm yet unsettling voice said. Uther almost jumped in shock when he looked up and saw a tall and beautiful dark haired woman stand over his wife's body. The woman had a sad expression on her face, yet her eyes were like black holes, sucking up all the light and depositing it into the deep abyss never to return. Her skin was deathly pale and she wore an odd black dress that revealed far too much skin for a woman of the time. But perhaps the most striking thing about the woman was the large scythe that she cradled in one arm.

  "Who the hell are you?! How do you know my name?" Uther demanded. The woman merely looked up at Uther with an unreadable expression. "I'm known by many names, but you may call me Darcy if it's easy enough for you." She replied. Her voice sounded so soft and far away that it was almost haunting. Darcy looked back down at the dead woman and sighed. "This is all wrong. How unfortunate." She reached out to touch the woman's face.

  "Don't you dare lay a hand on her! Guards!" Uther bellowed, making the young infant in his arms cry loudly. Guards burst into the room, swords drawn on the mysterious woman. "It's time for you to leave." One of the guards ordered. Darcy scoffed. "Don't you dare assume that your poultry human weapons can harm me. I could kill you all without even breaking a sweat." She threatened. When the guards refused to back down, she merely waved her hand at them and caused the whole group to collapse lifelessly to the ground.

  Uther looked shocked at the sight of his dead men, then he looked back up at Darcy in pure terror. "Stay back!" He ordered as Darcy moved closer. "Relax, I won't hurt you yet. But we do need to have a talk." Uther paled slightly. "About what?" Darcy gestured to the infant and to Uther's dead wife. "About what you have done here tonight. This is all wrong." She stated. Uther looked at her incredulously. "What I've done? This is all Nimueh's fault. No, this is all magic's fault!" He declared like an impetuous child who was unwilling to admit a mistake. Darcy rolled her eyes. "This is not only Nimueh's fault. You had a hand in this as well. Your desperation for an heir led you to hire her. For both of you to go against the natural order of the universe for a child, has unintended consequences." Darcy said as she looked back at Uther's wife. Uther looked at his wife sadly.

  "This situation needs to be put right. I can return your wife to you, but in return your son will be unborn. And once he is, you and your wife will never be able to have a child of your own. But at least you would have many happy years with her." Darcy offered. Uther's eyes widened and he looked longingly at his wife for a moment, before he cast his eyes down at his son. He wasn't even 3 hours old and his life was already being threatened. At that moment, Uther made up his mind. "You will not lay a hand on my son. This kingdom needs an heir. He will be a great king. And I will make sure that magic will NEVER hurt us again. I will ban it from the kingdom." Darcy shook her head disappointedly. "Do not stay this course Uther Pendragon. There will be repercussions." She warned. But Uther had already made up his mind. "You are no longer welcome in my kingdom." Uther declared haughtily.

  Darcy shot him a glare that made him freeze in place. "I will come and go as I please. Listen well Uther Pendragon. The consequences of your actions tonight will be tremendous. The balance of the universe is at stake. From now on any threats of magic against your kingdom will be of your own reckoning. Your son will live, but there will always be a shadow of death looming over him. The darkness in your heart will only spread. And one day, when the time is right, I will claim your soul. But you will not be reunited with your wife. You have damned your soul and condemned your son. This I swear." She threatened in a booming voice. Then in the blink of an eye, she was gone.