Merlyn

Chapter One

Excalibur flies up into the night sky.

The king of Camelot, Uther Pendragon, falls to his knee.

His son, Arthur, hidden in a boat at the end of the dock gazes upon his father.

They stare at each other as the sword spins in the sky before plunging into the kings body. 

"Uther" Merlyn awaking from her slumber. She could feel the atmosphere shifting. The cottage she sleeps in creaks as the wind blows violently before everything falls still.

She knew it was no mere dream she had awaken from but a vision, a vision of the present from a far away land. 

The king is dead. 

She hangs her head knowing that the visions warning her of the future are bound to come true now that Excalibur is embedded in stone at the bottom of the water. She knew a purge was going to follow. It had already begun but now without Uther there would be no stopping his brother and Mordred from wiping her and her people from existence.

"Arthur" She whispers quickly standing from her bed. Arthur Pendragon, the one who would pull the sword from the stone when Camelot would need him most. However, the boy would have to live long enough for this to happen.

She slips into a warm dress and clasps her cloak around her shoulder. She walks up to her staff and slams the base against the dirt floor. After the third time it collapses, allowing her to conceal it easily.

She raises the hood of her cloak and leaves the cottage swiftly. She stands in the middle of a field and whistles. She waits another moment before a large black Friesian breaks through the treeline.

"Hello, old friend" Merlyn whispers rubbing his neck. He shakes his mane and paws at the ground. "We have a long journey ahead and not much time, we must make haste" She says grabbing his mane. The large horse kneels down allowing Merlyn to climb onto his back easier.

The moment she is on his bareback Arion stands, turns west and takes off. She grips his mane and holds on. Before the sunrises Merlyn approaches the city of Londinium.

"Easy" Merlyn whispers to Arion as they venture into the city. Arion prances slightly. Neither of them felt comfortable within the city but it had to be done. Merlyn had an ally within the city that she knew she could trust with this task.

Without any trouble Merlyn stops outside a brothel. She slides off of Arion and massages his withers before entering. She instantly has eyes on her but she pays them no mind. She looks for the one she came here for but doesn't find her.

"I'm looking for Rue" Merlyn says to one of the females relaxing in the corner.

"She's with someone," The girl tells her. "Anything I can help you with, love?" 

"You can tell me which room she's in, it's of dire importance" Merlyn insists. The young girl eyes Merlyn but slowly nods while standing up.

"Follow me," Merlyn does as told wordlessly. "She's in that room" The woman nods towards the closed door. Merlyn thanks her quietly before approaching the room. She withdraws her staff and twirls it between her fingers. In an instant, it extends to a length taller than her.

She uses the staff to knock on the door three times, there's a pause before she knocks again. She can hear shuffling around the room. A man complains before the door opens. He glares at Merlyn before moving on.

"Merlyn" Rue whispers greeting Merlyn at the door. "What are you doing here? It's not safe," She lightly scolds her mentor while closing the door to give them privacy. Merlyn lowers her hood and looks to her old friend in sorrow.