The Third Sister

36 - Camelot's Greatest Secret

Breathless, Taylor stopped running. She has been running for half an hour now, and she couldn't do it anymore. She stopped and looked around her, trying to breathe normally. Great. She was totally lost now. She slowly walked through the forest, when she suddenly saw something flying through the trees. It was a tiny thing, glowing in a blue light. It reminds Taylor something. When she was a little girl, right after she arrived at Snow White and Prince David's castle, Granny liked to read her some stories before she went to sleep. And this little thing reminded her one of these stories. The legend of the wisps. They were magical entities that could lead you wherever you want to go. But first, you had to catch one. With that, Taylor started to run after the wisp.

"Morgan" Arthur said.
With an evil smirk, Morgan sat up, and pushed the sword Lily was holding away.
"What do you want ?"
"Oh come on Arthur. I think you can do better than that." Morgan exclaimed as she was standing up.
"You want to stop us from destroying the darkness"
"Very good" Morgan said with a laugh.
"Where is my sister?" Regina asked threateningly.
"The pretty blonde woman I knocked out in the meadow?" Morgan asked. "Well she's alive, if it's what you want to know. But I can't assure you it will last"
"What do you want in exchange?" Zelena asked.
"Simple" Morgan said. "I want you to lead me to Merlin, and I want Excalibur."

Taylor continued to run after the wisp, when suddenly someone else arrived and grabbed it. Quickly, the woman put the wisp in her satchel and started to run away.
"Hey I need that!" Taylor screamed desperately.
Afraid to lost the last chance she had to find her family, she extended her hand and used her magic to stop the woman. The woman fell on the ground, and quickly stood up. Her hood fell from her head, revealing her face and her big curled red hair. She didn't wait a second and took her bow and an arrow, and aimed at Taylor.
"Back off witch! My aim is true. Don't test me." The woman said threateningly, with her Scottish accent.
Taylor opened her eyes wide in surprise.
"Wait. I'm not a witch!"
"I met my share of witches. And I know one when I see one. You're one of Morgan's sidekicks aren't you?"
"No I'm not!" Taylor exclaimed.
"You were using dark magic" the woman said.
Taylor shook her head no.
"No it was light magic."
Taylor slowly raised a hand, carefully, and a white light started to glow in her palm.
"See ? It's not darkness."
But the woman wasn't convinced, and she kept her bow aimed at Taylor.
"Look I'm really sorry I used my magic to stop you. But I've been kidnapped, and I escaped. Now I'm looking for my family and my friends, and this" she pointed to the woman's satchel, where a blue light was glowing "is the only thing that can lead me to them."
"Too bad" the woman said. "I need the wisp too. For my kingdom and my family."
"Because of Morgan?" Taylor asked.
The woman quickly nodded.
"She's drawing her power from a strange darkness. Now my kingdom is in danger, and I have to save it."
Taylor sighed. She now understood what was going on.
"And you want to find Merlin, don't you?"
The woman frowned.
"How do you know that?"
"Because the source of the darkness, the Dark One, is in my world. And we have to stop it now before it destroys everything."
The woman slowly lowered her bow.
"Where do you come from?" She asked suspiciously.
"The Enchanted Forest."
The woman raised an eyebrow.
"But it has been cursed"
"Yes, it brought us to a world without magic." Taylor quickly explained. "And now there is magic in the town that has been created by the curse. The town where we live."
"And you came here to find Merlin because that Dark One is there."
Taylor nodded.
"Well a lot of stuffs happened but it will take too long to tell you everything."
A little smile appeared on the woman's face.
"Well I guess you can tell me everything on our way"
Taylor frowned.
"Our way?"
"Here's an idea. I keep the wisp, and it leads us to your friends. And then it will lead us to Merlin."
"That seems good" Taylor said with a smile. "I'm Taylor by the way"
She looked at the woman, waiting for her to introduce herself, even if she perfectly knew who she was.
"I'm Merida."

"You will never have Excalibur. And we will certainly not loosing the only way we have to same our world" Regina said.
"Then I'm afraid you won't see your sister again" Morgan said in a shrug. "But I have to admit, I'm surprised you decided to trust him" she said looking at Arthur.
"What that's supposed to mean?" David asked.
"Nothing" Arthur said. "Don't listen to her. She's just a liar."
"I'm a liar?" Morgan asked. "If I'm a liar, then you won't have a problem to show them your precious sword."
As Arthur stayed quiet, Morgan started to laugh.
"Let me tell you a story. There was, once, a man who was destined to remove Excalibur from the stone, and then reunify the broken kingdom of Camelot and become the King. But there was a problem. Excalibur, the magical sword, was broken."
There were a deep silence, and Arthur was glaring at Morgan.
"What an irony" Morgan continued. "A broken sword to fix a broken kingdom."
"Don't listen to her" Arthur said.
"Oh why not?" Morgan exclaimed. "There is only one way to see if I'm telling the truth or not."
She took a step forward, and Arthur took a step backwards.
"Don't come any closer"
"That's enough!" Killian suddenly said.
"You heard him ?" Arthur asked Morgan.
"No." Killian said. "I'm talking to you"
"Killian" Emma said, trying to stop him.
"I find it strange," Killian continued, ignoring his girlfriend. "That we never saw that sword. You never remove the scabbard. Even when we're attacked, you prefer to choose an ordinary sword than your magical one. Why ? If you have nothing to hide, Your Majesty, then show us that bloody sword."
"Ok. Fine." Arthur said.
He slowly took the sword from his waist, and removed the scabbard. Then he showed it to everyone. It was a wonderful sword. Half of the blade was wavy, and there were some black drawings on it. And as Morgan has said, the end of the sword was missing.
"The drawings" Regina said. "There are the same than the Dark One's dagger"
"It's because the Dark One's dagger has been made with the missing part of Excalibur" Arthur explained, ashamed.
"You used us" Regina said. "You used us just to have the dagger"
"No I didn't" Arthur explained calmly. "I knew since the beginning about that, Merlin always told me. But the Dark One is destroying my kingdom, just like it's destroying your town. And I thought that, if I help you, then we will able to defeat the Dark One, and I could take the dagger and make Excalibur whole again."
"It's a good plan" Regina said. "But there is one problem."
"What problem?" Arthur asked.
"You can't be trusted anymore."

Merida stopped her horse, and looked forward.
"We have to walk now, Angus can go this way with us on his back."
Taylor get off of the horse, and so did Merida.
"Can't we stop and make camp ?" Taylor asked. "It's getting really late."
"I don't have time for this."
Merida started to walk quickly, using her sword to cut the plants and clear the way.
"Do we really need to go to that Hill of Stones?" Taylor asked grabbing Angus' reins, and she started to follow Merida.
"Aye" she responded. "It's the only place where we can ask something to a wisp."
Merida quickly walked, and Taylor had some difficulties to follow her.
"What exactly is your hurry?" Taylor asked. "There is more than Morgan, right?"
"My brothers" Merida responded, still quickly walking, her sword on her hand and cutting the plants. "They were kidnapped by the united clans of my country. Just three wee, innocent boys. Savages." She said cutting violently a plant. "Because of me. My father is ...was the King. And when he passed, the clans no longer approved of me being queen."
"And what does Morgan has to do with that ?" Taylor asked in a compassionate voice.
"She made a deal with the clans." Merida explained. "I don't know what she promised, but they like it."
They stayed quiet for a moment.
"In my land," Merida continued. "People ... well, men don't think a woman can lead."
"Oh, not just in your land." Taylor said in a chuckle.
"Well, I'm gonna show them." Merida stopped walking and turned around to face Taylor. "If it's the war the clans want, it's the war they'll get."
She turned around to continue to walked, but she didn't see the little rock on the ground. She tripped over and fell on the ground.
"You won't help your brothers if you're that exhausted." Taylor said, extending an helpful hand to her.
Merida grabbed it and Taylor helped her to stand up.
"When's the last time you slept?" Taylor asked.
"What month is it?" Merida quickly asked.
Taylor frowned at her new friend with a smirk.
"Fine" Merida said, rolling her eyes. "We can make camp. But just until the first light."