Between the Storms

Chapter Forty

40. Who Can Say No To This Face

Magdelena stared at where the knights were training, Leon was there acting as if he hadn't been almost dead not two days ago. Magdelena could remember his arrival very clearly, she had been in her chambers having finished her chores, she was holding the ring with his gypsy name on it as she thought of their time in the town together. The door opened and she figured it was just Merlin or some patient of Gaius's but when the person walked up to her did she turn to look at them.

She was met with the smiling face of Leon making her let the ring go allowing it to fall back on the silver chain it hung around her neck on. When she tried to hug him she was burnt and forced to release him, then he explained the Cup of Life the Druids had him drink from. She was the opposite of the cup, meaning she may never be able to hug her friend once again. Her thoughts were broken by a knight suddenly entering the training grounds and summoning Arthur to his father. 

Magdelena watched for a moment before turning back as Leon took over the training session, she quickly turned and made her way toward the council chambers where she assumed Arthur would be speaking with Uther. He exited shocked to find her standing against the wall across from the wooden doors. Her knee bent her foot boringly placed against the wall as she leaned back against the stones. 

"Father had sent me to find you saying he wished to speak with you," he tells her as she pushes her self off the wall smirking at him.

"I figured as much," she says strolling into the chambers as the doors close behind her, she sees no guards, no council members, no one but her and Uther, "I take it this has to do about the Cup of Life."

"How did you know about that? Only Gaius and I know," he says and she raises an eyebrow at him.

"Leon is my friend. When I hugged him I was burnt," she says hoping he got the correlation but he seemed to go in one ear and out the other, "Life and Death are opposites."

He shakes his head, "I want you to go with Arthur to find the Cup," he tells her, "Keep him safe and out of trouble."

"Do I have to be Magdelena?" she asks confusing the King further, "Can I go as Death? He has seen her a few times."

"Whatever you have to do," he snaps, "You head out when he does. Now go." She waves off his snappy tone but takes her leave as asked heading to the chambers to find Merlin packing.

"I see the Prince is bringing you along on his mission," she says making Merlin look at her his eye wide in slight fear.

"How did you-"

"How do you think?" she says, "Saturn shall be joining you on the journey, I shall meet you in the forest. Feel free to come up with a way we know each other or not. We can be strangers."

"Uther agreed to let you go as Death?" Merlin asks slightly shocked.

"Yes," her eyes lit up in happiness, "Gilthunder can be an alicorn for this trip! Death can ride what she wants!" Magdelena jumps up and down happily before saying goodbye to Merlin before running to the stables taking Gilthunder while explaining what was happening. Once she arrived at the forest both her and GIlthunder slipped into something more fitting for Death and Death's Mount.

Magdelena was sitting there on her horse waiting for the two people to arrive, she was dressed in black leather pants though one side was cut off into shorts with a red sock showing from under her black boots on the left side which was shorts. It was a sleeveless top black wrap with some red material wrapping from her left side across to her right, the sides with a brown piece of leather buckled around her right side. Some patterned tan material layered her right side going down to almost touching the floor. With the jacket which had some black leather armor on the shoulders with each side matching the red or tan material which was seen on the same side along the outfit. The red sleeve only reaches a bit past her elbow and on each side was a gauntlet with the tan material under it. 

The seemed to have decided to leave early the next morning as night fell and while Gilthunder went to sleep she climbed a tree and got rather comfortable while waiting for Merlin and Arthur. They soon came to the entrance seeing the abandoned horse who had just woken up, "You two take forever to start a journey," she says jumping down making Arthur draw his sword in fright.

Merlin was slightly taken back at the sight of how his sister looked, the amount of skin she was showing, and her long black hair which was pulled back into a very long ponytail with some pieces out to frame her face. Her lips a deep maroon and her eyes were black with gold flecks at the inner corner, "Who are you?" she fake pouts at him her hands going into fists and pressing against her cheeks as she pursed her lips.

"Prince Arthur doesn't remember me? I saved your life and your fathers for that matter," she says changing into the two outfits he had seen her in as Death and recognition was clear in his eyes, "There we are."

"How do you know we are on a journey?" Arthur asks staring at the girl who climbs onto her horse.

"Try not to underestimate my involvement in Camelot or my knowledge of the on the goings-on in the city," she says turning Gilthunder to look at the two males, "Now either I ride with you or I ride in the background possibly drawing more attention to your little crusade to find the Cup."

"Would you be quiet! The entire forest is going to hear you," snaps Merlin taking the Prince by surprise at his servant's boldness toward the woman he was sure he had never met before.

"Very well," she says zipping her lips, "Now which are you choosing?"

"Ride with us," Arthur says putting his sword away, "Merlin here is useless in a fight and another person capable of fighting will be nice."

"There you go underestimating people again," she says pulling up to be on the other side of Merlin as the made their way into the forest heading off toward where she was sure Uther thought the Cup was.

"We're going to Cenred's kingdom, aren't we?" Merlin asks the Prince, Magdelena looks over at her brother realizing he doesn't know where they were going.

"What makes you say that?"

"Er, we're in the Forest of Essetir and we're not stopping," he says sparing a look at Magdelena who sends him a small wink.

"You can think what you like, Merlin." 

"Oh, come on. You might as well tell me," Merlin says trying to persuade him into telling him their destination. 

"Then I'd have to kill you, I told you that," at the Prince's words Magdelena snorts earning a small glare from Merlin.

"Go ahead. I mean, I'm probably going to die anyway," he says, "Look at what happened to the patrol that came here! Dead, the lot of them!"

"Sir Leon survived," Magdelena was slightly saddened by the sound of her friend's name, remembering their predicament.

"whEn yOU gEt thE cUp Of lIfE, If yOU wErE tO dEstrOy It sOmE wAy," the dark voice says making her head hurt and her body turn ice cold, "yOU wOUld bE All pOwErfUll."

'Leave me alone. I don't want to be all powerful,' she says in her head not wanting to draw attention to herself by talking to herself. 

"whAtEvEr yOU sAy," the voice went silent after that but she noticed so did the conversation, before she felt a small prick in the back of her neck and she felt herself fall from her horse Gilthunder calling out for her. Her vision went blurry as a pair of worn boots came into her vision before it all went black.

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