The Wizard Merlin: Second Edition Read online

  THE WIZARD MERLIN

  CHAPTER ONE

  Gareth tackled the man to the ground and held him there.

  Tristan glared at him. "Who are you? Why are you walking through this forest?"

  The man grunted and spat out dirt in his mouth. "I am just going back to my farm, nothing more."

  Tristan shook his head. "I don't believe you. And that sword on your hip says otherwise. Were you sent here to kill our charge?"

  "I don't know what you're talking about. I've never killed anyone before."

  Tristan advanced on the man and stood over him with his sword raised. "That's the wrong answer."

  A weak, gloved hand grabbed Tristan's shoulder. "Stop, he's telling the truth."

  Tristan lowered his sword and turned toward the man. "But sire, he's wandering in a Forbidden Forest."

  Merlin coughed and braced himself against Tristan's body. "I know that...but maybe he's lost?"

  The man on the ground sighed. "I use this forest as a shortcut home. I'm sorry if I've offended you in some way, but I only wanted to get back home faster."

  Merlin shuffled past Tristan's protesting form and kneeled down beside the man. "It's ok, but in the future you might not get so lucky." He stopped and coughed into his gloved hand. "This forest is the path on the way to the Dark Lord's dominion. Others might think you're in league with him."

  The man shook his head. "I would never. I don't serve anyone who butchers innocent people."

  Merlin smiled and reached down to brush the tree leaves off the man's back. "That's good to hear. Tell me, are you good with a sword? Or do you just carry it around to scare people away?"

  Gareth sighed at Merlin's signal and let the man go.

  The man got to his feet and brushed the dust off his clothes. He reached down and picked up his packages.

  Merlin's eyebrow rose. "Am I not worthy of your response?"

  The man glanced down at Merlin, brown eyes taking in the smaller man's form. "You are, but I haven't one. I assume you're asking me such a question because you want me to join you. And I can't. My family needs me."

  Merlin frowned as he brushed a dark lock of hair out of his face. "I see. Well, I can't force you to join us, but we could always use another sword."

  Tristan stepped forward. "Sire, I have to disagree. We don't know anything about this man."

  Merlin chuckled. "I knew you were going to say that, but you forget I can see into his mind. His words are true and just. It's not often that I run into someone with an honest heart."

  The man stared at Merlin. "You can see my thoughts?"

  Merlin nodded. "To an extent. I can't tell you everything you're thinking at this exact moment, just if it's lined with deception."

  The man nodded. "I see. Well, I best be off then. I will remember not to use this forest again."

  Tristan snorted and let the man pass. "Wise move."

  Merlin turned around and called out. "Wait! I never got your name."

  The man stopped and sighed. "That's because I never said it."

  Merlin chuckled. "Yes, that is true. Though if I run into you again, I would rather address you by name instead of that guy my companions tackled to the ground."

  The man laughed despite himself. "Fair enough, it's Lance."

  Merlin nodded. "Thank you, Lance. May our paths cross again in the future."

  Lance snorted and called over his shoulder. "I doubt that!"

  Merlin grinned. "I wouldn't be so sure."

  ***

  Merlin coughed and shifted in the patch of grass the others had laid out for him.

  Tristan sighed at his post and got up to walk over to him. "You're getting weaker each day. I can help you with that, if you let me."

  Merlin shook his head and coughed again. "No, I won't take your energy for my own purposes. I will need it later when the time is right."

  "Yes, but if you're too weak to get to the set location I would never forgive myself."

  Merlin snorted and rolled on his back to glance up at Tristan. "I wouldn't doubt that, you're always watching over me like a mother. I would have expected that from Hector, not you."

  Tristan snorted and crouched beside Merlin's bed. "He must be rubbing off on me." He reached out to brush a piece of hair out of Merlin's eyes. "I guess there could be worse people to model after."

  Merlin sighed. "Indeed. You are a dear friend, who has seen the best and worst of my life. I wouldn't have it any other way."

  Tristan grinned. "Neither would I. Now go to sleep before I have to get Hector to do it."

  Merlin grinned back and nodded. "I will, I will. Good night, Tristan."

  "Good night, sire."

  Merlin's eyes drifted shut, exhaustion finally taking over.

  Tristan waited a few minutes before laying his hand on Merlin's bare arm. Energy and life surged out of Tristan's body into Merlin's tired form. He sighed and gave Merlin only enough of energy for the following day. Too much would alert Merlin to what he was doing every night.

  He removed his hand and replaced the covers over the top of Merlin's body. "Rest well, my friend."

  ***

  Bushes shook nearby and Tristan stilled their movement. He strained his ears to hear anything out of the ordinary.

  Merlin grinned. "Told you we'd meet again."

  Hector frowned at Merlin. "Sire? I don't understand what you mean."

  Merlin patted Hector on the shoulder and smiled. "It's Lance again. I can feel him and I assume he's chasing those who set fire to his farm."

  Tristan turned back and gaped at Merlin. "You...you used your sight on him?"

  Merlin nodded. "Yes, I'm afraid I did. I wasn't trying to, mind you, it just happened."

  Tristan put up his hand to silence them and looked to the trees.

  A half second later two men dressed in black barreled through the forest right for Merlin's position. Tristan and Gareth readied their swords and stood their ground.

  The two skidded to a halt and fell forward on the grass.

  Tristan snorted. "Stay there. We have plans for you."

  Gareth watched over the two while Tristan waited for any more to come through.

  A minute passed before Lance raced out of the forest with his sword raised in anger.

  Merlin chuckled. "Good to see you again, Lance."

  Lance stopped short and gaped at Merlin. "What...Who....what are you doing here?"

  Tristan rolled his eyes. "That's none of your concern. Though these two, I assume, are yours?"

  Lance glanced down at the two men under Gareth's blade protesting. He gritted his teeth and turned to Tristan. "Yes, those bastards set fire to my lands. My family has perished!"

  Merlin sighed. "Yes, I know. I wish I hadn't known, but I do."

  Anger blazed in Lance’s eyes. "You knew? You knew that these bastards would kill my family?"

  "Yes, I did. There would be nothing that you could have done to prevent it; fate was already sealed. I see what's to come, not what might come."

  Lance advanced on Merlin and Tristan stood in front of him.

  Tristan glared at him. "Don't even think about it. I am sworn to protect him to the death. Do you care to wager against me?"

  Hector walked over to stand beside Lance. "Venting at him will not bring them back. I know from experience when my family was slaughtered before my eyes by the Dark Lord's minions. The sire knew it would happen and he never told me. I was angry at him for a time, but then I realized that he's just a messenger not the cause."

  The anger sighed out of Lance’s body. "Why me? What have I done for God to forsake me?"

  Merlin shook his head. "You've done nothing wrong, Lance. This is not punishment
for your actions or theirs. God has chosen you to join us, and you couldn't without your family living. As is the same for all of us. We've all lost something dear to us before starting this quest."

  Gareth snorted. "Sire, I don't think you're helping matters. He needs time to grieve before he can join us, just like we all did."

  Merlin frowned and nodded. "Yes, yes you're right." He turned to Lance. "I'm sorry for your loss. If I could have, I would have changed fate for you, to spare you this pain." He bit his lip. "But I'm only one man and there are limits to my powers."

  The two men chose that exact moment to wiggle out of Gareth's watch. Merlin turned and raised his arm. They fell to the ground and withered in pain.

  Merlin shook his head and walked to the men. "Oh no, you don't. Lance, do you want something done with these two? Or can I have their energy?"

  Lance stared at Merlin in disbelief. "But...but you were weak and frail....I don't...."

  Tristan chuckled. "Sire's strength is within and he'll use it when necessary, despite my protests."

  Merlin rolled his eyes. "And you would rather Lance not have the chance to avenge his loss? That doesn't sound like you, Tristan."

  Tristan snorted. "Not at the risk of weakening you, no."

  Lance walked over to Merlin and looked down at them. "How do you....how do you take their energy? Can you still do it if I injure them?"

  Merlin nodded. "Oh yes, I can." He turned around and pointed to the other three. "That's what they do. They injure the intruders enough to drag them to me. Then I drain them and store the energy for my fight against the Dark Lord."

  Lance stared at him. "Just like that? Doesn't it...change you when you do it?"

  Merlin smiled and patted Lance on the arm. "It can over time if I let it. I don't kill people just to become powerful like he does. I only kill those who would harm me, nothing more."

  "But these two did you no harm."

  Tristan snorted. "Actually they were coming straight for the sire when they exited the woods. The Dark Lord knows the sire is coming for him. I'm sure he's told his minions to try and kill my charge at any cost."

  Lance nodded and moved away, eyes staring at the fallen men. "You can have them."

  Merlin frowned. "Are you sure?"

  Lance sighed and shuffled past Merlin to stand beside a tree. "Yes, I...I don't know if I can take a life so easily."

  Merlin nodded and readied his powers. He turned to glance at Lance one more time before draining the two men in an instant. Their bodies shook, energy pulling out of them piece by piece until nothing remained.

  Lance looked away, eyes unwilling to watch life being drained so easily.

  Merlin nodded to Tristan and moved to stand beside Lance. His gloved hand hesitated in mid air at first, and then rested on Lance’s shoulder, gripping it tight. "In time, you will have to. Maybe not today or tomorrow, maybe months down the line, but you will have to take someone's life on this journey. That much is true."

  Lance frowned and watched them bury the bodies under fallen leaves. He sighed and wished he'd never met these men.

  ***

  Four of the five men sat around the campfire in silence. Gareth was out taking the first watch for enemies.

  Lance glanced around the solemn group and wondered about them. He'd only been with them for a few days and he knew next to nothing about them other than they were protecting Merlin from harm. He cleared his throat and turned to Merlin. "Um, how did you all meet?"

  Tristan and Hector looked up from their simple meals with eyebrows raised.

  Merlin chuckled and finished his food. "It's a long story."

  Lance stared at the crackling fire. "Well, I assume this mission to the Dark Lord's tower isn't going to be a fast one. It's something to pass the time."

  Merlin put his plate aside and sighed. "It's a long and painful story, Lance. Other than the fact that we're alive, the rest is filled with loss and death."

  Lance nodded. "I figured that. I just...well, if I'm going to travel with you, I might as well know about you."

  Merlin smiled and nodded. "Have it your way. Where do you want me to begin?"

  "The beginning?"

  Tristan snorted and rolled his eyes. "Then you're going to be here for a while."

  Lance grabbed a nearby blanket and settled in. "I don't have anywhere to go."

  Merlin cocked his head to the side. "Good point."

  ***

  Merlin sighed. "Well, I guess it all started when I was fifteen years old. I lived in a simple town far from here. Life was good for the most part, a girlfriend and a best friend. That's all I really needed."

  Hector grabbed another blanket and put it over Tristan's shivering form. He ignored the rolled eyes he got as thanks and laid his head on Tristan's shoulder.

  "I'd been dating my girlfriend Morgana for a year or so. We would sit by the lake and watch the sun rise or set, talking about dreams and such. I still think of her from time to time, wondering what she's doing."

  Lance swallowed the lump in his throat. "So you parted?"

  Merlin chuckled. "You could say that. One night I decided to kiss her and that was the last time I ever did." He stared down at the fire and frowned. "She was in a deep sleep for almost a week. Everyone blamed me, but my father knew then that his son was destined for greater things."

  Tristan snorted. "Too bad his father didn't bother to tell me what the sire was destined for. They disappeared from town shortly after Morgana woke up."

  Lance glanced over at Tristan. "You two knew each other?"

  Merlin nodded. "Yes, Tristan was my best friend growing up. Our parents were good friends as well. I wasn't allowed to tell him where I was going, for I didn't even know where I was going. We just left in the middle of the night without a word."

  Lance frowned. "Where did you go?"

  "My parents took me to the nearest mage town, a one day trip by horse. I was still feeling guilty about hurting Morgana that I didn't understand what the big deal was. The scholars explained to me that I was destined to kill the Dark Lord, should he arise. He hadn't at that point, but there were whispers of him growing an army."

  Tristan sighed. "No one would tell me where he was; only that he wouldn't return home. I couldn't accept that and confronted my father about it."

  Lance waited for Tristan to continue before saying something. "Did you run away?"

  Tristan shook his head. "No, I was told the truth about myself instead. My family had been a long line of guardians."

  "Guardians?"

  Tristan nodded. "Yes, to mages. Specifically to blue mages. It was then that my father ordered me to seek him out at the mage town, that it was my destiny to accompany him on his journey. I tried to ask my father about the journey, but he wouldn't tell me anything."

  Merlin stared at Tristan. "I never knew this. Is that what Gareth's father saw when he asked if I was a blue mage?"

  Tristan sighed. "Yes, he saw my mark." He pulled up his right sleeve to reveal a dark oval birthmark on his forearm. "All of my ancestors have this mark, according to my father. It's the sign of a mage guardian."

  "I'd always wondered why he suddenly asked me that question. Now I know. I guess we're all learning something new tonight."

  Lance nodded. "So, you two met up?"

  Merlin took a sip of water from his canteen. "Yes, a couple weeks after I left Tristan arrived. I'd been deep into study when they told me I had a visitor. When I saw Tristan standing there, I was overjoyed to see a familiar face."

  Tristan chuckled. "He tackled me to the ground. The scholars standing around us were horrified at the sire's behavior. Though, he'd never been one to conform to anything."

  "You make me sound like a deviant."

  Tristan laughed at the mage. "And you're not? You challenged every one of those scholars and mages at every step of your training. Most would not."

  Merlin sighed. "Yes, that's true. It was only that I wanted more information about what I needed to do. Most
would only teach me the basics and by pressuring them, I learned a lot more. Every one of the marks on my chest is another mastery."

  Lance frowned. "Marks on your chest?"

  Merlin nodded and opened his shirt a little bit to show a few of them to Lance. "Yes, they get engraved into your skin when you master another part of your powers. Don't ask me how it's done; they just appear when you've completed something important."

  Lance grimaced and snuggled further into his blanket. "I don't think I'd want to be a mage."

  Merlin laughed and patted Lance on the arm. "It only happens for some mages like myself. Others just master their talents and no marks appear."

  Lance swallowed hard. "So, you're more special than all mages?"

  Merlin nodded. "Indeed. My kind isn't born that often and all of us are trained to defeat the Dark Lord. Only one has succeeded - Theodore. He was the blue mage who banished the Dark Lord from these lands in the earlier days."

  "But how did you know the Dark Lord had come back again?"

  Merlin sighed and frowned. "When he sent his minions to destroy my old village. We received word of it after two years of training in the mage town."

  Hector frowned and glanced up at Tristan. "What did you do for two years? I assume the sire was learning spells, but you're a guardian."

  Tristan smiled down at Hector. "I trained as well. Once the scholars realized what my line was, they sent for a trainer to guide me on weapons and tracking. My mentor was hard on me, never letting me have a moment's peace. I give thanks to him every day for it."

  Merlin snorted and turned back to Lance. "We left the mage town immediately when we heard the news. I don't know how we did it, but we arrived there in half the time. Fate was on our side, it seems."

  Tristan frowned. "But not on our family's side."

  Merlin mirrored Tristan's frown. "Yes. The village was destroyed - burned to the ground. I didn't know what to do anymore. My family was dead and gone. And then, she arrived."

  Tristan sighed and closed his eyes.

  Merlin swallowed hard. "She was out gathering herbs and vegetables from the town over. Imagine her surprise to see her town destroyed. I'll never.....I'll never forget how her face twisted in hate when she spotted Tristan and me"

  Tristan mumbled. "She came at the sire, screaming at him for destroying the village. That he was a freak who didn't deserve to live."