by LH Nicole
The valiant knights fearlessly charged the black knights’ line. They cut and slashed at their enemies quickly, breaking the enemy’s formation. With their armor, it was impossible to distinguish between King Arthur’s eight men except for the different emblems on their shields. Aliana watched as, one by one, they slew their enemies only to be surrounded by more and more.
“The Knights of the Round Table were feared by all the realms. Their individual strength was unmatched, and together, nothing but the strongest magic and trickery could defeat them,” the woman explained.
Walking along the wall, Aliana followed the knights’ progress. Leading the charge was a knight carrying an elaborate shield bearing a golden Dragon. At his back was another man holding a simple circle shield bearing only the image of a sword. The two fought in perfect synchronization as they defeated a whole battalion of black knights. Not far from them was another of their friends. His shield was covered by three intertwining rings. This knight plus a fourth with a burning sun on his shield joined the first two as they raced off to fight an unseen enemy.
The four remaining men continued to battle the growing number of black knights. No matter how many they cut down, more enemy knights continued to come at them. But the four Knights of the Round Table never faltered. They stood their ground and fought the evil knights as they advanced, not letting a single one pass to follow their friends.
“So few against so many…” Aliana breathed. “Who are those black knights?”
“They are tortured souls called from the underworld and given armored bodies that are bound to the one who called them. Mordrid knew he could not defeat Arthur without magic and deceit, so his ally, the sorceress Morgana le Fay, conjured the army to serve him. When a black knight was cut down, another would take its place. Morgana used all her power, along with that stolen from the fire birds, to create their hellacious army. The tortured souls would not rest and could not be fully defeated until either their purpose was fulfilled or their master destroyed.”
Aliana gasped as she watched the first of Arthur’s knights die. She swore she could hear the outraged cries of the other knights. One by one, she watched Arthur’s men fall, feeling each death like the cut of a knife against her own heart until the last of the four fell to the ground.
From the surrounding forest carved into the wall came an army of perfect soldiers armed with swords and bows, their numbers as great as those of the black knights. This new army pushed the black knights back, holding them at bay.
“Why didn’t they fight with the knights from the start?” Aliana cried.
“Mordrid had sent the Sidhe army to delay the Fae, giving his black knights time to fulfill their evil purpose.” The woman’s voice was calm and indifferent, like she was talking about the weather and not the lives of men who mattered.
8
Fury twists through my gut. I loathe this magic keeping me from my king’s side and from Lady Aliana. Watching her in that canyon—helpless to aid her—was torture. And now I am again unable to protect her and see that my king, my friend, is indeed safe. If this old woman is who Lord Daggerhorne and I think she is, Lady Aliana could be in even more danger than before. I swear I will not allow this again!
~Galahad
ALIANA LOOKED PAST THE FALLEN KNIGHTS in the wall drawings to follow the other four men farther down. Three of them were busy cutting through more black knights and smaller creatures that seemed to be a hybrid version of a troll and a pig. Behind the line of enemies stood a lone, dark figure. He watched the carnage with a sinister smile on his lips. That has to be Mordrid!
The fourth of Arthur’s knights had sheathed his sword and was throwing balls of liquid fire at the enemy. Bolts of lightning struck down several of the evil creatures, leaving only ash behind. The lightning strikes created an opening for the man bearing the gold and red Dragon shield.
“Merlin and King Arthur! That has to be them.” Aliana moved her attention to the knight with the sword-covered shield as he ruthlessly cut down enemy knights and Goblin-like creatures. His moves were confident, fierce, and powerful, fueled by cold determination.
“Galahad,” Aliana breathed his name. She watched him take a blow from one of the black knights. “No!” But he didn’t fall. He used his shield to simultaneously knock the sword from the black knight’s hand and cut off the knight’s head. Aliana looked away from the merciless kill and found the last of Arthur’s men. He was quick, striking the enemies and getting out of their range before they could strike back. She studied his shield, hoping to piece together the identity of the last knight. Maybe Lancelot?
She looked to King Arthur, who now fought furiously with Mordrid. They seemed to be evenly matched, exchanging blows one after the other until Arthur finally knocked the sword from Mordrid’s hand. Moving quickly, Arthur had Mordrid on his back, Excalibur pointed at his throat. Aliana let out her breath. He got him!
Mordrid shot a blast of magic toward Arthur, forcing him to stumble back. The sorcerer got to his feet, throwing wave after wave of magic. Arthur deflected the magic with his shield, but the strikes were so rapid he couldn’t get in a counter-attack. He finally found an opening, cutting at Mordrid, but the evil sorcerer was no longer there. Arthur swung around, quickly finding his enemy and slashing his sword, but Mordrid disappeared a second time. Aliana’s heart pounded as she searched along with Arthur for the sorcerer. Suddenly, he reappeared behind Arthur, driving a dagger deep into the king’s side.
Aliana’s eyes misted as she watched Mordrid withdraw the blade only to plunge it in again and again before he let Arthur’s body fall to the ground. Galahad and the unidentified knight rushed to the king’s side. With a raging cry, the mystery knight charged at Mordrid but was thrown back by another strike of magic. Galahad lunged to attack but didn’t get the chance because Merlin trapped Mordrid in a ring of roaring fire as he called down more lightning. Mordrid shielded himself, but he was unable to break away from the fire’s grip. Frantically, the sorcerer sent his power at the flame, but his dark magic was consumed, the fire blazing higher and closing in around him.
Mordrid made one last attempt at freedom. A large, dark cloud formed overhead, bearing down toward the trapped wizard, but Merlin’s magic proved faster. He let loose a blast that collided violently with Mordrid’s cloud. Aliana shielded her eyes against the light that shot out from the wall, bathing the cave with a blinding glare.
When the light faded, she looked back at the drawings. Mordrid was gone. Galahad and the mystery knight supported Arthur’s limp body as Merlin opened a swirling, silver portal. With a glance back to the battlefield and their fallen comrades, the four entered the portal and disappeared from sight.
“What happened?” Aliana demanded. “How was Arthur still alive? Who was that other knight?”
“Merlin, Sir Galahad, and Sir Lancelot brought King Arthur to Avalon. The king was on the brink of death. Merlin was sure that though he had stopped Mordrid, the sorcerer was not defeated. Only Excalibur can kill Mordrid, and only a Pendragon can wield it. To defeat Mordrid, they needed Arthur alive. They brought him here to Avalon hoping to find salvation, and they did so at Queen Titania’s hands. But everything has a price.”
Aliana’s heart pounded loudly in her chest, threatening to break free. “Why does that not sound good?”
“Queen Titania saved Arthur’s life, placing him in his enchanted sleep. Those who brought him had to swear to guard the king in a hidden resting place until the Destined One came to awaken him. Their lives are bound to King Arthur until the quest is complete.” The woman’s shadowed gaze bored into Aliana as she spoke her next words.
“Before the darkest hour strikes, the Destined One shall come forth.
Avalon’s lost daughter must thrice and alone prove her worth,
Then can she fully possess the power to awaken the king.
It shall become her destiny to reunite the Round Table,
Unearth and reclaim their lost relics,
Become the key to undoing the evil Mordrid has wrought.
Only with her can the once and future king prevail.”
“You can’t be serious!”
“You wanted to know what has been foretold, and now you have what you desired. Does this knowledge now displease you?”
Aliana bit her tongue before she said something to upset this undoubtedly dangerous woman. But how the heck was she supposed to help save the world against Mordrid? And why hadn’t Deidre or Dagg told her this little tidbit? Probably because I would’ve left. But this was too much to try to process right now. She needed to focus on something easier first.
“If Merlin and Lancelot all made the same vow as Galahad, where are they? Why aren’t they here with us?” A cold gust blew through the cave, howling as it passed.
For the first time, the woman’s voice rose in anger. “All four men entered the bargain of their own free will. They made their choices knowing the cost if they broke their vows.”
Dread nipped at Aliana. Was it possible that Merlin and Lancelot had abandoned King Arthur? “But they all lost so much,” she whispered, gazing back at the now motionless drawings.
“Merlin and Lancelot chose to follow other paths. They left Arthur’s side, abandoning Galahad in order to return to the mortal world. They had to pay the price for their betrayal.”
“And what about Galahad?” Her voice wobbled. “What did he do to deserve imprisonment by the Sidhe?”
“He failed to stop them, and he failed to protect the Grail of Power. Magic always has a cost.”
Aliana let out a frustrated cry. “Of course. Is that another part of your stupid Law of Avalon? Does your law say that brave men have to suffer such tragedies?” She glared at the woman who seemed to care so little for the suffering of others.
“You have known your own losses, your own tragedy.” The woman’s honey voice drew Aliana back.
With a flick of the mystery woman’s wrist, the cave plunged into darkness. Aliana bit back a cry, determined to not give in to the cruel woman’s trick. After an endless moment of darkness, new light flowed into the cave from above. Aliana looked up, finding a small window cut into the side of the mountain. Beams of light fell, shining upon a stone shrine on the other side of the cave.
“How…” Aliana’s voice drifted. Lying upon the cold, ivy-covered stone was the man she had been dreaming about since she was six years old—King Arthur.
“Now begins your final test, child.”
Aliana blinked as the mystery woman returned to her side, forcing her gaze from the king. “Are you going to tell me who you are first?”
“You wish to be beside the king,” the woman stated, completely ignoring Aliana’s question. “But to do that you must first cross the bottomless grotto.”
Aliana followed the woman’s gaze to a thin bridge of stone which stretched across the cave to Arthur.
“Doesn’t look too hard,” she said, swallowing. She stepped onto the bridge, peering into the darkness below. There was no bottom in sight, and the only thing she could hear was the faint, constant howl of stale, cold air. Before she lost her nerve, she raised her gaze to Arthur, moving further onto the walkway. The ground shook beneath her feet, and she scrambled backward and off of the bridge, falling onto her butt. The bridge’s center crumbled, leaving a large gap in the walkway. All that was left of the bridge at Arthur’s end was a small nub of rock jutting out. She couldn’t even hear any sign that the fallen rocks had hit the bottom of the chasm.
“How am I supposed to get across now?”
“I’d think that would be obvious.”
Aliana pushed up from the ground, slapping away the dirt on her jeans and glaring at the old woman. “You can’t seriously tell me that I have to jump across that gap. Who do you think I am? Indiana Jones with my trusty little whip and bad taste in hats?”
“There is always another option, my dear.”
“I thought so.”
“You can take what I am willing to offer and walk away from all of this.” The woman’s smoky voice made Aliana uncertain. “What if I could give you what your heart craves the most? What if I told you I could give you back your parents? What if you all could be a family again?”
Aliana’s soul trembled at that bombshell. She wanted her parents back more than anything else she could ever remember wanting in her life. She wanted it more than she had ever wanted to find Avalon. It wouldn’t matter anymore that they’d lied to her about her real parents. She could ask them about it herself, get the answers to all the questions that had been haunting her.
“You can’t bring back the dead,” she whispered, fearing to hope.
“No, only the Underlord can restore a life. But I can turn back time, save your parents from their fiery death.” The woman circled her hand, creating a ring of mist. Aliana watched as her parents’ faces filled the empty space. They were side by side, her father’s arm wrapped around her mother’s shoulder, both holding out a hand to her. Their smiles made her heart swell in happiness.
“Oh, my sweet girl,” her mother said. “I have missed you so much.”
“We’ve both missed you, little star,” her father said. “Please come back to us. We love you so much.”
“Mama, Papa,” Aliana whispered, raising her hand to touch them as tears stung her eyes. Her fingers met her mother’s, feeling the gentleness flowing from her touch, but the image shimmered and disappeared.
Aliana’s frantic, tear-filled eyes found the mystery woman. “Bring them back!”
“Are you choosing them, then? Choosing your parents over the path set before you?”
Aliana hesitated. She looked back as her parents’ image returned. The image had changed. She was in their arms, hugging them as they stood on the beach, bathed in the setting sun. They sat down at their picnic table, laughing and enjoying dinner together, like they always had during their summers at home in South Carolina.
She smiled, prepared to tell the woman to return her to her family, but a thought stopped her. What would become of all the people and creatures she’d met since entering Avalon? The Sidhe had already killed seven humans. Belle was nearly a Goblin sacrifice, and that poor little TreTale had been poisoned. What about Deidre and J’alel? They had shown such faith in her. A band tightened around her heart as she felt Galahad’s worry for her and his hope of being reunited with his king. The veil of bliss faded as she remembered all that had happened in just one day and thought of the knight and Dragon who were counting on her.
“No one would think less of you for choosing your family,” the woman’s voice whispered in her ear. “Merlin chose to abandon the king and return to the mortal realm. Even the noble Lancelot turned his back on Arthur and Galahad for his beloved Guinevere.”
“What will happen to King Arthur, Galahad, and Dagg if I choose my parents? Can I come back to awaken the king after I have my parents back?”
The woman’s head tilted slightly, her smile cold. “You will have no memory of any of this if you choose to return. By choosing your family, you give up the right to claim the title of the Destined One, and things will return to the way they were before you arrived.”
“What about Mordrid? Will he still be a danger?”
“You will be happy with your family.”
Aliana looked at her parents again. They’d always taught her to stand up for what she felt was right, no matter how hard that might be or how much it might hurt. If she turned her back on Galahad and Dagg, they would go back to being trapped by the Sidhe, and Arthur would continue to sleep. Their lives and so many more would suffer because of her selfish desire. Aliana looked away from her parents’ smiling faces and over to the sleeping king.
She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t sentence them to an eternity of imprisonment.
“No,” she whispered, brushing away her tears and raising her chin. “I won’t abandon Galahad and Arthur. My parents wouldn’t want that.” What little of her heart remained whole shattered to pieces. But she
couldn’t make any other choice.
The woman’s smile turned friendly for the first time. “Then all you must do is make your way to the king. Your final test is a test of your faith. You must believe in yourself and the decision you’ve made. Once you cross that bridge, you will claim your destiny.”
“Faith…right.” Aliana rolled her still wet eyes. “Have faith that I’m not going to fall to my death and let down the world at the same time. No pressure there.”
Sighing, she took one step onto the bridge. It was barely wide enough for her to stand with her feet side by side. When nothing happened, she took another step, then another, until she stood just a few feet from the gap. It seemed like maybe four yards to the other side. If she got a running start, she might be able to make the jump.
Backing up, Aliana took a breath. “Have faith,” she reminded herself. Rocking back and forth, she steeled her nerves. “One…two…three!” She took off, focusing only on Arthur and reaching the other side. Her foot hit the crumbled ledge, and she pushed herself forward, soaring over the gap. A faint trail of glittering pink light guided her path across the abyss. As the other side got closer and closer, she felt herself start to fall. For a brief second she thought she wouldn’t make it, but the pink lights gave her faith.
She hit the ground hard, her own momentum sending her rolling as her arms twisted and scraped against the hard earth. She finally stopped, hitting a rock and knocking what little breath she had left from her lungs. With her heart thudding hard in her chest, she glanced up, trying to get her heartbeat under control.