Sword of Darkness

Chapter 16



Kerrigan lay on his pallet made of sharp rocks, staring up at the black ceiling. His entire body ached and burned as if it were on fire. Morgen had been beating him for days now. He could no longer even recall a time when his body hadn't hurt. And he would give anything to have one day without Morgen's relentless humiliation and torture.

But through the misery came an image of a tender face. Closing his eyes, he conjured the memory of Seren in his arms. The softness of her hand against his flesh. The smell of her hair…

Even now it was soothing.

"Kerrigan."

Even though it hurt, he smiled at the sound of her voice. "Aye, Lady Mouse?"

Suddenly, he felt the presence of someone beside him. He opened his eyes, expecting it to be Morgen. Instead he saw the plain, yet beautiful face of his little mouse. Happiness burned through him with such force that it brought tears to his eyes.

His bloodied and bruised hand trembling, he reached to touch the velvet softness of her cheek.

But there was no warmth there. It was cold, and in that moment he knew.

"Morgen," he snarled, dropping his hand away.

She laughed evilly at him. "You didn't really think that your whore would come for you, did you?"

"She's not a whore." But even as he moved against Morgen, she threw him back to the floor. She put her foot to his throat and pressed the whole of her weight against it.

Kerrigan gasped as his throat closed, choking off all the air from his lungs. He tried to push her foot away, but she kept it there, biting into his throat even more.

"You pathetic oaf. I can't believe I ever took something as worthless as you into my bed. I thought you had more strength than this. But no matter." She stepped back. "Maddor," she called, summoning the mandrake leader to her.

Kerrigan coughed as he drew ragged, wheezing breaths through his bruised esophagus.

Maddor appeared instantly. With long dark hair and equally dark eyes, he was dressed in a black tunic and breeches. "Aye, my queen?"

"Drag this wretch to the hall. I have something fun planned for him."

Maddor inclined his head to Morgen before he reached for Kerrigan and pulled him up from the floor by his hair.

Kerrigan shoved the mandrake back, only to have him backhand him so hard that the blow loosened several teeth. Spitting his blood out on the floor, he glared at the beast.

Maddor seized him again and this time managed to subdue him. Kerrigan snarled as he was unceremoniously dragged from Morgen's chambers into the crowded hall where Morgen's court was busy with yet another orgy.

As he was kicked to the floor, Morgen appeared in the center of the hall, where a light shone on her, highlighting her red gown and fair skin. She stood with her hands on her hips and a nasty smirk on her deceptively angelic face.

"Good Adoni, mandrakes, and knights of my table," she called, gaining the notice of the revelers who stopped their hedonism to give their queen their undivided attention. "'Tis time to crown the next king of Camelot. Tell me, who among you has the courage to battle Kerrigan now?"

Kerrigan sucked his breath in sharply as virtually every male there stepped forward. The taste of defeat choked him. There was no way in his current condition that he could win a sword fight with even a maid, never mind a man full-grown.

Morgen laughed at her soldiers. "Good. For once there are many takers." She looked at Kerrigan and smiled. "The king will soon be dead. Long live the new one."

Merlin's heart ached in sympathy as she faced Seren in her hall. She looked past the young woman to see Blaise, whose face showed his own sadness that there was nothing to be done for Kerrigan. "I can't go after him, Seren."

"Why not?"

"Because I am the Penmerlin. If I voluntarily enter Camelot, Morgen will have the power to destroy the entire world. It's the same reason why your child cannot be born there, and why once your child is born, we must make certain that she never ventures to Camelot."

Instead of deterring her, that only seemed to strengthen Seren's resolve. "Then give me some of your knights. We can—"

"Can do what?" Merlin asked in an exasperated tone. "Storm the castle? Fight a thousand knights, demons, dragons, minions, and gargoyles? Morgen would kill all of them and take you prisoner until the baby is born, and then she'll kill you, too."

"We could all sneak into—"

"Nay, you can't," Merlin said, her voice filled with sympathy. "If any more than four magical beings travel through the portal together, it'll alert her instantly to your presence. And she will be able to draw her army straight to you to fight. Why do you think Kerrigan took you into the future to begin with? He knew that Morgen would be limited to how many could open the portal at a time and step through it to fight. Not to mention, the future negates the dragons and gargoyles, who tend to set off military alarms."

Seren raked her hands through her hair. Her frustration reached out to Merlin, but there really was nothing she could do to help either of them.

Her eyes burned as she met Merlin's gaze. "Then what would you have me do?"

If Merlin had her way, she would save Kerrigan. However, that wasn't an option. "Do as Kerrigan wanted. Stay here, marry one of our knights, and raise your child."

Seren's eyes flashed bloodred. But it lasted only a heartbeat before they returned to green.

Before her eyes, Seren seemed to calm down and come to terms with her decision. "Fine then. If that's they way it's to be…"

"It is," Merlin said sternly.

She watched as Seren turned her back and left with Blaise in tow, but even as the woman walked from the hall, Merlin knew that Seren hadn't given up.

"She's going to try and rescue him alone."

Merlin glanced over to Elaine, who was standing just inside the back doorway in the shadows. Elaine's red hair was pulled back into a severe braid. True to form, she wore the armor of a knight, but instead of carrying a sword, Elaine carried a small bow.

"I know."

Elaine stepped forward into the room. "Are you not going to stop her?"

"I can't stop her," Merlin said as she walked over to the table where she'd left her cup of wine after Seren had barged into the room. "She has the power of two Merlins and the resolve of a woman who wants only to protect what she loves."

Elaine scowled. "If Morgen captures her—"

"Nothing in life comes without risk."

Elaine's eyes snapped with inner fire. "This is more than a risk. She gambles with the entire fate of us all."

"Relax, Elaine. She might very well succeed. After all, Seren has already done the impossible. She's done what even I couldn't do."

"And that is?"

Merlin smiled at the older woman. "She's returned Caliburn to us. More than that, she's turned Kerrigan away from the blackness that has consumed him for all these centuries."

Elaine sneered. "It was his choice that he serve Morgen."

Merlin swirled the wine in her golden cup. What Elaine didn't know was that she could see the future in the dark liquid. She saw it plainly. "Yes and no. I made a mistake when I sent you and Galahad to him after he found the sword and activated it. I was young then. Too young perhaps to understand that I chose poorly."

She looked up to meet Elaine's angry glare. "Given the way his choices were presented to him, I can't really fault Kerrigan for his decision. I would have chosen Morgen myself."

Elaine huffed at that. "You're making excuses for him."

"Perhaps. But if you're so concerned that I'm making a mistake now, then go with her."

Elaine narrowed her eyes as she took the cup from Merlin's hand and returned it to the table. "I will. But I'm only going for one reason."

"And that is?"

"If Morgen goes to capture her, I'm going to kill Seren myself."

While Blaise stood behind her with a disapproving scowl, Seren could feel the feral demon within as it clawed and demanded freedom. For once she didn't try to restrain it. She would need it if she were to succeed in this.

Dressed in the red tunic she'd made for Kerrigan, which was covered by a black jerkin and black leather breeches, she pulled Caliburn from the wall and strapped the sword to her hips.

"Garafyn!" she called, summoning the gargoyle to her side. "If you can hear me, then I would ask you for a favor on Kerrigan's behalf."

"He won't come," Blaise said. "We'll have to steal your medallion back from Merlin to summon him."

She snarled at him. "We wouldn't have to steal it back if someone "—she gave him a pointed look—"hadn't given it over to her." She moved away from him. "Garafyn!"

She was just about to believe Blaise when the air around her stirred.

Two seconds later, Garafyn and Anir appeared before her.

"What is your damage?" Garafyn asked irritably. "Did it not occur to you that we might be occupied? You know, it is possible for even masonry to have some fun from time to time. God forbid."

Seren frowned at his odd clothing. He wore some type of red and black form-fitting material, the likes of which she'd never seen before. Cocking her head, she reached to touch the shiny cloth. "What is that?"

Anir answered. "Star Trek costume. We've finally found our niche—twentieth-century science fiction conventions. We not only blend, but we keep winning the costume competitions. Talk about getting booty…and I mean that in more ways than one."

Seren gave him an arch look. Was that even English he spoke? Unwilling to waste time asking about it, Seren chose to ignore it.

"Why did you call us?" Garafyn asked.

"I need you. Kerrigan is in trouble and I need to return to Camelot to—"

"Whoa!" they said in unison.

Garafyn shook his head. "You can forget it. I'm not ever returning there again. Ever…ever…ever."

"Please," she begged. "Kerrigan needs you.I need you."

Garafyn narrowed his eyes. "And I don't care."

"Aye, you do."

Seren turned at the new voice to see Elaine nearing them. She'd met the woman only a time or two, but she knew from experience that Elaine was standoffish. She had an intensity that was sometimes hard for the men to take. She also expected only the best from people and tended to be a bit unforgiving.

"Greetings, Garafyn," Elaine said in a cool tone as she joined their small group. She looked him up and down. "My how you've changed."

Garafyn curled his lip. "Don't start on me, Elaine. A lot more than my appearance has changed. I no longer feel any kinship with you or the others."

"Really?" Her voice was thick with sarcasm. "I would never have guessed it, given how all of you turned on us."

Garafyn rolled his eyes as he sneered at her. "Yeah,we turned onyou …" He narrowed his gaze menacingly. "Use your head, woman…and I use that term loosely. Who's the friggin' gargoyle here and who isn't? Don't you think that if we turned on you, Morgen would have rewarded us with something more than this damned curse?"

Elaine's expression didn't change. "Given that it's Morgen…No."

Anir scratched his head with one claw. "She has a point there."

"Shut up, Anir," Garafyn snapped.

"Sorry, but she does."

"And I don't care," Seren said between clenched teeth as she added her own glare to theirs. "Right now, the only thing that matters to me is the fact that Kerrigan is suffering because he helped us. Now, who is decent and caring enough to help me rescue him?"

Garafyn let out a snide laugh. "For the record, that's not particularly motivating to those of us who pride themselves on being indecent and indifferent. Just FYI."

Seren clenched her fists and made a sound of disgust. "I don't understand half of what you said, but I don't care. Give me your key to open a portal to Camelot and I'll go alone."

"I don't—"

"Give me the key," she said, letting her demon show.

"Wow," Garafyn said at the sound of her demonic voice. "That's pretty damned scary. Good tone, and the red irises are a particularly nice effect."

He held the medallion out to her.

Before she could take it, Blaise did.

Seren growled at him.

Blaise stared her down. "Don't give that Kerrigan look to me, young lady. You don't know your way around Camelot. I do, and I'm not about to let you go alone."

"I'm with you," Elaine said, much to her surprise. Elaine didn't strike her as the type of woman to do something so foolish.

But in truth, Seren was glad not to be going alone.

They all looked at the gargoyles.

"Only four can go without warning Morgen," Elaine reminded them.

Garafyn let out an agitated breath. "I might as well be the idiot. This kind of noble stupidity is what got me cursed to begin with. Maybe I'll get lucky and Morgen will actually kill me this time."

"I would argue," Anir said, "but I'm still young and that really attractive redhead at the Star Trek party was making eyes at me." He clapped Garafyn on the back. "I've too much to live for. Good luck."

"I really hate gargoyles," Garafyn growled. He turned toward Seren. "All right, princess. Let's go die."

"Let's not," Elaine said. "But if we do get into trouble, I say we sacrifice the gargoyle."

Seren thought Garafyn might have made a face at her, but with a gargoyle one was never sure if it was a face or just his natural countenance.

Blaise held his hand out. The medallion was wrapped around it. Seren covered his hand with hers, then Elaine and finally Garafyn, who still looked as if he didn't really want to do this.

They faded from Avalon, then appeared in a small, empty room in Camelot.

Elaine grimaced at the black and gray color scheme of the spartan place. There were no chairs or bed. It looked like an empty storage room.

"First time back?" Garafyn asked Elaine.

She nodded. "Can't say I like what Morgen's done to the place."

"Can't say I like what Morgen did with my face, either…"

For the first time, Seren saw pity in Elaine's eyes as she looked at Garafyn. "I don't know," Elaine said charitably. "You look pretty good as far as gargoyles go."

"Yeah, right. I make a pass at you…"

"And I start chiseling off vital parts of your anatomy."

"Exactly."

Lifting the cowl of his black tunic, Blaise cracked open the door to look out into the hallway. "All right, children," he whispered over his shoulder. "Let's stay together and try to remain inconspicious."

Seren lifted the cowl to her cloak at the same time Elaine did. They made sure to keep their faces lowered and hidden by the hood.

They looked at Garafyn, who stared back unblinkingly. He'd dissolved his clothes so that now all he wore was a small gray loincloth. "What?"

"Are you going to walk around like that?" Elaine asked.

"Oh yeah, like a gargoyle in a cloak wouldn't stand out in this place. Trust me, no one's going to look at me. Hell, Morgen can't even tell us apart." As if to prove his point, he ambled out of the room first. "Besides, I'm not walking around in an ensign's Star Trek uniform. Those guys always get killed."

Shaking her head at the surly beast, Seren followed with Elaine and Blaise just behind her.

The castle was eerily quiet. No one was about. It was as if the entire place had been deserted for some reason.

"Is this normal?" Elaine asked.

Garafyn snorted. "The creepy factor, aye. The quiet part, no." He glanced about nervously. "Where is everyone?"

No sooner had he spoken than a loud roar went up at the end of the hallway.

"Something's happening in the great hall." Blaise led them toward the noise. When they reached the end of the hallway, he opened the large oak door a tiny degree before he squeezed through it.

One by one, they followed suit until they were all inside the great hall where they could see a large crowd, staring at the center of the room.

Seren couldn't see much due to her short height and the fact that she didn't dare lift her head for fear of losing her cowl. But as they made their way through the crowd, she realized that she could probably be naked and no one would notice her. Everyone's attention was focused on whatever was happening in the center area.

"What's going on?" she whispered to Blaise.

"I'm not sure." He continued to move through the mass that was busy shouting unintelligible words.

All of a sudden, Blaise stopped short. Seren collided with him. She looked up to see his face drained of color while he stared over the heads of the onlookers.

Standing up on her tiptoes, she turned to see what held him captivated and felt her own heart sink at what she saw.

At first she didn't recognize the body on the floor. Wearing only a pair of ragged and torn black breeches, the poor soul had been beaten and whipped until he barely appeared human. Swollen welts and bruises distorted every part of him. But as he lifted his head, she recognized Kerrigan even though both of his eyes appeared to be swollen shut.

Even Elaine cursed under her breath.

"Get up!" Morgen shouted at him before she kicked him in the ribs. "Fight, you worthless dog."

Seren saw red as her powers flowed through her. Infuriated, she pushed her way through the crowd, even though Blaise was trying to hold her back.

Unable to take it, she paused at the edge of the crowd with Blaise still attempting to pull her back out of sight. She shrugged off his grip and pushed him away.

Morgen shook her head at the sight of Kerrigan before she turned away from him and manifested a sword in her hand. "Masden?" she said to one of her demon knights. "Care to be the once and future king?"

With an evil laugh, he took the sword from Morgen's hand.

Kerrigan forced himself to his feet even though his arm was broken from Maddor's "gentle" touch. Every part of his body ached, but he refused to die on the ground like a beggar. Morgen might have returned him to the life of a slave, but he wasn't going to die like one.

He held his broken arm to his side as he faced the knight who'd once been human. Now there was no humanity to be found in the beast that faced him. Masden was all too eager to end his life.

Morgen sneered at Kerrigan. "Look, the slave is trying to be kingly." She moved to stand before him. "But once rubbish, always rubbish."

Kerrigan snarled at her. "F*ck you."

She backhanded him.

Kerrigan laughed at the blow he couldn't even feel over the rest of the pain of his body.

Hissing, Morgen drew back and turned to face Masden. "Kill him."

Kerrigan held his ground as the man came forward with his sword raised. If he had a sword, he'd at least make the bastard pay somewhat for his death. As it was, there was nothing he could do except run, and he wasn't about to give Morgen and the others the satisfaction of laughing at his cowardice.

There for a time he had been a king. He would die with his honor intact.

He braced himself for the fatal sword strike.

Just as Masden reached him, Kerrigan saw a flash an instant before the killing blow was deflected from his body. Out of nowhere, another figure wrapped in a black cloak appeared with a sword.

With the skill of a trained knight, the small form twisted around and forced Masden back with attack after attack.

Who would dare defend him?

Stunned, Kerrigan couldn't understand what was happening until the cowl fell back from the combatant and he saw the long blond braid. Saw the determined face of what to him was the most beautiful woman in the world. Love and joy welled up inside him as he looked upon the impossible.

"Seren?"

She didn't respond as she drove the knight back toward Morgen, who was now laughing.

"Oh, this is rich," Morgen snarled. "Look what has returned of her own free will to our company." Her eyes were light with triumph. "Big mistake, little girl.Big mistake."

With one fell swing, Seren killed her challenger, then turned on Morgen with a glare. "Shut up, bitch. I've had enough of you."

Morgen gaped an instant before she shrieked. Throwing her hands out, she shot a blast at Seren, which his little mouse deflected without effort. The blast headed into the wall, above the hearth, where it left a large, black, smoldering hole.

That only increased Morgen's anger.

One minute she was before Seren and in the next, she was directly behind Kerrigan.

Seren turned about to see where Morgen had gone. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw the dagger in Morgen's hand.

"You want him, whore? You can have him…dead." Quicker than anyone could move, Morgen cut his throat and shoved him away from her.

Kerrigan fell straight to the floor.

Everything seemed to slow down as Seren flashed herself to Kerrigan's side. He lay on the floor with one hand against the vicious cut on his neck that had come close to decapitating him as blood rushed from the wound, over his hand.

"God's mercy," she whispered as tears filled her eyes. "Nay!"

Morgen reached for her. The instant she did, Seren threw the evil queen back against the wall as the demon took over her body entirely. There was nothing human left inside. Nothing even humane.

A wave burst through the room, knocking everyone, even Morgen, off their feet.

Her heart breaking, Seren fell to her knees beside Kerrigan, whose face was pale.

"Kerrigan," she whispered, her voice its normal tone.

He couldn't speak from the damage done to his throat. He reached his bloodied hand toward her face, then fell back as his eyes turned dull.

Kerrigan was dead.

Seren screamed out in pain as her grief shook her to the core of her soul. The demon cried out in anger, demanding vengeance. And the two coalesced into a swirling maelstrom reminiscent of a tornado as it ripped through the room. Demons, gargoyles, and Adoni went flying.

"Seren! Stop!" She recognized Blaise's voice, but it did nothing to lessen her pain or her resolve.

Throwing her head back, Seren called out to the darkest powers for something she knew she had no right to ask.

Yet it was something she had to do.

She would not let Morgen win. Not this time. The bitch had done enough harm in her lifetime. For once the good side would win.

Her eyes rolled back in her head as ancient, forbidden power roiled through her. Primordial and cold, it chilled her through and through as she gathered Kerrigan into her arms and placed Caliburn over him.

"Atiera gara tuawaha ethra verus tiera." She didn't know where the words or power came from, but she whispered them over and over again as dragon's breath swept through the room and covered them all.

She cupped Kerrigan's cold cheek in her hand. "In the whisper of the ancient stone and in the mist that belongs to the dragons, my breath is your breath. My heart is your heart and my life is your life."

With those words spoken, she leaned over him and gently placed her lips to his. As soon as they touched, she felt the tremor of power pass from her to Kerrigan's lifeless body.

With her tears falling down her cheeks, she pulled back expectantly.

Only to be disappointed as nothing happened.

"Nay!" she screamed as more power surged through her. She wanted him back.

Then slowly…painfully slowly, she watched as Kerrigan's lips returned to their normal hue. The color continued on from his mouth, over the rest of him, healing each injury as it passed until he was once again the handsome man who had given her his life.

Still, he didn't move.

"Kerrigan?" she choked, cupping his face in both of her hands. "Come back to me."

Suddenly, he drew a deep breath before he opened his eyes to look up at her. Instead of their normal black hue, they were a bright, crystal blue—the same color they had been when he was human.

Seren choked on her happiness as she let out a small cry. Thunder and lightning crackled and boomed through the room. Thrilled that he was alive, she threw herself over him and held him tight.

Kerrigan was dazed. He couldn't move for several heartbeats as he held Seren in his arms. Over and over he saw in his mind Morgen killing him.

He felt the stinging bite of the knife….

But there was no pain in him now. He could feel nothing more than Seren holding him close. Feel her hot tears on his skin as his love for her coursed through him.

Stunned, he looked about the hall that was no longer in black and gray. There was color now, along with lightning.

"Little mouse?"

She pulled back to kiss him soundly. He'd never tasted anything better than her lips. Her passion set fire to him as she pulled back with a delighted laugh.

And it was then he knew he wasn't what he'd been before. He felt hungry, and not just for the woman who'd saved him. He wanted food. Real food.

He was human again…

But he could still feel his Merlin's powers. They hadn't been taken from him.

"You're warm," Seren said as she laid her hand to his lips. A slow smile spread across her face.

Before he could respond, the color faded from the room as a shriek rang out.

Morgen came to her feet, her eyes glowing red. "Do you think you can compete with me?"

Manifesting his armor back onto his body, Kerrigan came to his feet barely before Morgen began raining lightning on top of them. He deflected her blows.

To his complete shock, Elaine jumped out of the crowd to fire two arrows at Morgen, who caught them in her hand before she tossed them back at Elaine. Elaine dodged one, but just as the other was about to embed itself in her heart, a blast averted it harmlessly away.

Her features startled, Elaine looked to see Kerrigan holding the arrow. She inclined her head to him in gratitude.

Kerrigan dropped the arrow to the floor as he faced the queen of the fey. "You can't defeat us, Morgen," he said between clenched teeth.

"Oh, but I can. The minute the three of you try to leave here…you're mine. I'll be able to kill you."

Seren sent a blast toward Morgen. She deflected it.

"How do we end this?" Seren asked him.

It was Morgen who answered. "We end this when you drop that brat, then I will have the power I need to kill you both."

"She's right," Kerrigan said under his breath.

Seren looked up at Kerrigan. "Is there really nothing we can do?"

"I'm working on it, but I haven't any unique ideas at the moment."

Suddenly a loud, thunderous clap started. It sounded like a thousand wings flapping. The shutters flew open as gargoyle after gargoyle flew into the room to circle it.

Kerrigan and Seren braced themselves to fight as Blaise and Elaine joined them. Back to back they stood, prepared to defend against the stone invaders.

However, they didn't attack. Instead the gargoyles surrounded Morgen, who blasted three of them to gravel before she was overwhelmed by them.

"What are you doing?" she screamed.

"We are protecting you, my queen."

Seren gaped at the sound of Garafyn's voice. He flew away from Morgen to land beside them. Winking at her, he looked back at his men. "Whatever you do, legion, don't let anyone blast Morgen. You must protect our queen from the evil Lords of Avalon. Help her."

Morgen cursed. "Get away from me. Damn you! Off," she screamed out. "Adoni, get the gargoyles off me."

Her court ran to help their queen.

Garafyn gathered their group together. "Okay, Blaise, now would be a damned good time to get us out of here before the Adoni attack us, too."

"What about the other gargoyles?" Elaine asked.

"Those are the real gargoyles. My legion isn't here. I'm not that vicious. Let her destroy the boxes of rocks. But we gotta go. C'mon, there's only two more weeks left on my Greyhound pass. I gots to get out of here."

The Adoni and Morgen were blasting through the gargoyles.

"Maddor!" Morgen screamed. "Grab the Merlin."

Seren looked up as the mandrake moved toward them with determined strides.

She felt his hand on her arm, pulling at her…

Blaise held his hand out and again they laid theirs over his before they vanished.

For a second, Seren was relieved, until she realized that Maddor had traveled through the portal with them. He grabbed her about the waist and pulled her away from the others.

Kerrigan launched himself at the mandrake, knocking him away from her.

Maddor crouched low as if he were about to attack.

Before he had the chance, Kerrigan blasted him. Maddor turned with a hiss as if to attack, but before he could, Kerrigan blasted him again.

Seren gaped as the mandrake vanished. "Did you kill him?"

"Nay. I gave him something much worse than that. I sent him back to Camelot."

Elaine rubbed her neck as if she had an ache in it. "That is truly the worst punishment I can think of."

"You are so unimaginative," Garafyn said snidely.

Elaine curled her lip at him. "Shut up before I sendyou back there."

Garafyn snatched his medallion from Blaise's hand. "G'head. I gots a key, babe."

While the two of them fought, Seren walked into Kerrigan's arms and threw her arms around his neck.

Kerrigan couldn't breathe as the scent of her hair filled his head and he finally held her again. Closing his eyes, he reveled in the sensation of her body nestled against his.

But before he could get too comfortable, a battalion of knights on horseback came riding up in front of them. The standard of Avalon rippled in the breeze as the horses snorted and pranced in expectation of battle.

Kerrigan let go of Seren. He put himself between her and the others as he prepared himself for the coming fight.

"What is the meaning of this?" Seren asked from behind him.

Agravain rode his horse forward. "Kerrigan is a threat to all of us."

Seren opened her mouth to refute him, but before she could speak, Elaine moved to stand beside Agravain. "And so's your incompetent brother. Yet we let him live…and in the castle, no less."

Agravain grimaced at her. "You would side with our enemy?"

Elaine looked at Kerrigan before she turned back toward Agravain. "He saved my life from Morgen and I saw how much he suffered to protect Seren. You throw him out and I go with him."

"As do I," Seren said.

Blaise moved to stand by their side. "And I."

Garafyn snorted. "Like I have any choice, huh?"

Agravain looked disgusted, but before he could argue, Merlin appeared between their two groups. Without paying any attention to the Lords of Avalon, she turned toward Seren and Kerrigan.

Kerrigan was prepared to battle as the Penmerlin approached him. But her face remained open and friendly.

She extended her hand out to him. "Welcome home, Kerrigan."

He looked about suspiciously, unable to believe that they would let bygones be bygones. There was too much history between them. "Is this a trick?"

"Nay. I would never play with anyone so cruelly. I'm not Morgen."

Agravain made a sound of detestation. "You're not just going to forgive him for all he's done to us over the centuries, are you, Merlin?"

Merlin gave Agravain a pointed stare over her shoulder. "We've all made mistakes, haven't we?"

Agravain looked away shamefaced, making Seren wonder what he'd done in the past.

Merlin offered Kerrigan a kind smile. "I somehow think that Kerrigan has had enough of Morgen's rule."

Kerrigan finally took her hand. "You've no idea."

She clasped his hand in both of hers. "Then welcome to Avalon. I'm sure Seren will be most delighted to show you to your rooms."

Seren grinned wickedly at the prospect. "Absolutely."

Merlin inclined her head to them, before she turned toward the castle. She paused beside the army and shook her head. "Go home, guys."

Elaine stepped forward and offered her hand to Kerrigan. "Thank you for what you did."

"Anytime."

Smiling, Elaine left them and hurried after Merlin while the rest of the knights broke rank and followed suit. All but Agravain, who continued to glare at Kerrigan as he sat on the back of his white horse.

"I still don't trust you, demon. I'll be keeping my eye out for you."

As he turned to join the others, Kerrigan let fly a bolt from his hand to knock Agravain off his horse. Agravain shot up and pulled his sword out.

"What?" Kerrigan asked in feigned innocence.

"You attacked me," Agravain sputtered as he rose from the beach with sand coating his entire body and face.

"I didn't do anything. You said you were going to watch me. I can't be held accountable for what nature does."

"You lying—"

"Vain!" Elaine shouted. "Get over here with the rest of us, or I'm going to embarrass you by beating you before your friends."

If looks could kill, Kerrigan would have been sliced in twain by Agravain's glare.

For an instant, Seren thought he'd attack anyway. But after three heartbeats, he sheathed his sword, dusted the sand from his body, then remounted his horse.

Seren shook her head at Kerrigan. "I can't believe you did that."

"Me? I can't believe the lot of you came back for me."

"Why not?" Blaise asked. "After all, we're family."

Kerrigan couldn't speak as unnamed emotions tore through him.

Family. It was something he'd never thought to have.

"Yeah, well, while this is getting really mushy, the stone feels the deep need to cut out. I'm going to find Anir and return to our con. There's a full moon tonight, which means Mr. Rock here gets to be human for a couple of hours, and I've got a date with the newly crowned Miss Klingon Empire." He wagged his eyebrows at them.

Seren shook her head as Garafyn took flight. "I only understand about ten percent of what he says."

"You're not the only one," Kerrigan said as he offered her a charming grin.

Blaise held his arm out to Kerrigan. "Welcome back, my friend."

Kerrigan shook his arm. "Thank you, Blaise."

He inclined his head. "You two have some catching up to do. I'll see you later."

Seren watched as he faded away and left them alone.

Kerrigan kissed her gently. "I can't believe this is real. I keep expecting to wake up and find Morgen over me again."

"There's no Morgen here. But I…I have my own torture for you, my lord."

He looked baffled by her words. "What?"

"You, evil man, made me a promise that you have yet to fulfill."

He actually looked worried by that. "And that is?"

"To give my baby a name."

Relief spread across his face as Kerrigan took her hand into his and placed a gentle kiss to her palm. "That is one promise I fully intend to keep."

"Good, because I want to make an honest man of you."

He laughed at that. "I wouldn't go quite that far, Lady Mouse. There's only so much changing a man can do."

"We shall see, my lord. We shall see."