CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
LE MORTE D'ARTHUR ( i. )

1 MONTH AGO
CAMELOT

The ride back to Camelot is quiet.

Calliope's mind races as she tries to process everything that has happened. Dying and coming back, facing Sepharin and sparing him, and finally, learning her mother was sold to a slaver eight years ago.

It's hard for Calliope to grasp that she finally has her freedom after all these years of having a dark presence following her everywhere she went. She has to pinch her arm in order to show herself that she really is alive; that the dagger really did bring her back.

The blood wraiths are gone, but her work will not be finished until her mother is safe and sound. Once she recovers, she will put all her effort into tracking down Drak. She knows this man will be able to lead her in the right direction. He may even still have her mother, but slavers always seek out whatever can make them the most money, and it's possible her mother has gone through several masters over the years. She could be halfway across the world by now.

As they ride through the gates, night still hovering over the city, Calliope can't help but glance at Prince Arthur. What will he tell his father? Will he reveal her true identity?

Ever since she shook him awake after leaving Sepharin, he hasn't spoken to her much. He finally knows every terrible truth including that she planned on killing him, at least for a time. He has to believe she would never go through with it; that things changed. Calliope can't read his vacant expression as she walks into the castle behind him with Merlin at her side.

The sorcerer shoves her arm lightly, drawing her attention, "He won't tell the King."

"And you know that how?" She mutters, their footsteps echoing through the empty corridors.

Through a quick breath, Merlin shrugs, "Arthur cares about you."

"That was before he knew I stayed in Camelot to kill him."

"But you didn't kill him," Merlin points out.

"I'm not sure that detail matters right now," her eyes stare into the back of his head as they turn a corner, a few steps away from the entrance to the Throne Room.

Merlin can't say that she's wrong. He just twiddles his thumbs nervously as the doors are pulled open, and hangs back by the entrance, hoping that when his friend comes back, she isn't being escorted out by guards to the dungeons below.

The blonde takes a deep breath as she walks inside, getting ready to face Uther, who stops pacing as soon as his eyes land on the pair. Relief floods his face as he strides up to his son, embracing him tightly. Calliope gathers that Arthur didn't give Uther a heads up about his little expedition.

If he's going to expose her, he needs to hurry up and do it. The suspense is killing her as nerves bundle in her chest.

When Arthur pulls away from his father, he shoots a quick glance over his shoulder at Calliope.

"What happened?" Uther asks, scanning his son for injuries. "Did you retrieve the dagger?"

This is it. Calliope braces herself, "No," Arthur turns facing the blonde, "We found the Red Dragon."

Their eyes lock. Don't do it, please, she begs silently, "And?"

A beat of silence passes.

"And, he's dead," Arthur lets out, turning back to his father. "The rumors about the Red Dragon being a woman were false. He was a man called Sepharin, and Calliope saved my life. She got to the dagger and killed him, and then the dagger disappeared."

A long breath of relief leaves her lips. King Uther pats his son on the back before stepping passed him, his eyes landing on the blonde. He offers her a subtle nod, "You have done Camelot a great service. I owe you a debt for ridding the world of this monster and saving Arthur."

She shrugs, "It was the right thing to do."

"I admit, I have had my doubts about you, Calliope," More than just doubts. She always believed the King hated her guts. "But you have proven that you are loyal to this kingdom and my son. You are a brave fighter, and you will be treated as such from this day forward."

"Thank you, Sire."

"And, you shall be given your own room in the castle," Uther's words shock her as she raises her eyebrows. "As a reward for your service." Maybe Calliope really did die on the alter and has entered some strange parallel universe where Uther doesn't absolutely despise the sight of her. "Arthur will show you to your new chambers."

Offering the King a few last words of thanks, Calliope is still trying to comprehend his sudden gratitude for her. Thinking she killed the Red Dragon is a big deal, but she never imagined it would cause him to change his perspective.

She is still deep in thought as Arthur stops by a wooden door, two hallways away from his own room.

Calliope turns, facing the Prince. He is looking anywhere but her face, and she doesn't know what to say to him. She could apologize, but 'I'm sorry' doesn't feel right. Two words can't fix this. Even one thousand apologies might not even suffice. This new reality they must face—her being the Red Dragon and him knowing it—is like walking across a bridge of glass with multitudes of cracks that may never mend and could collapse at any moment.

Will her next sentence be the final crack that shatters the bridge completely?

Calliope's chest feels tight as she clears her throat, motioning to the door, "So, this is it?"

Arthur nods, lacing his hands together behind his back, "I'll have Merlin bring your belongings from your room in Gaius's chambers."

"I'm sure he'll love that," she says in a joking voice, but he doesn't match her smile.

Not once does he look in her eyes, "See you later."

"Arthur," she grabs his arm before he can go. "Can we please just talk? I can explain everything—"

"How much of it was a lie?" He asks in a louder voice as he turns back to her, his eyes searching her own. "How many times were you only getting close to me so you could kill me?"

"If I wanted to kill you, you would have been dead months ago," she fires back.

Another step, but his eyes are full of betrayal and hurt, "That doesn't answer my question." She breaks his gaze, her lips closing in a hard line, and Arthur shakes his head at her. "I spent so long trying to figure you out, but I'm done. All you've ever given me is deception and lies."

"That's not true—"

"I don't care," he snaps. "I don't care to hear you spin another lie together for me, so just stop," Calliope bites her cheek as her eyes burn. "The one truth I know for sure is that you're an assassin, and you can't be trusted, and my father giving you this fancy room changes nothing between us."

She feels it again—the knife puncturing her heart and twisting, twisting to puncture the most delicate and vulnerable parts. Staring into his angry, broken gaze is enough to destroy her. The glass bridge shatters so hard not even one piece survives, and she feels every shard nicking her skin.

When he turns to leave, she calls out to him, "If that's how you feel, then why didn't you tell your father the truth about me?"

He doesn't answer, and that tells her that he doesn't even know himself. Instead, the Prince walks away, and Calliope leans back against the door, her legs giving out as she crumples to the floor.

She buries her head in her knees, and she just cries. She cries until no tears are left.

And then she enters her new chambers, and even through all the ornate decorations and the fancy bed and the window that overlooks the city, she doesn't think a room has ever felt so empty.

PRESENT DAY
CAMELOT

The sound of horses' hooves thundering against the ground filters through the dewy, morning air. Echoes of laughter and taunting mix with the birdsongs that rise from towering trees. Calliope urges her horse to gallop faster, glancing over her shoulder at her pursuer with a smirk. She's going to get that gold they bet on who could reach the castle gates first. She knows her horse is faster, so she gladly took up the opportunity.

However, when she sees the gates in the distance, Calliope curses under her breath. She grips the reigns as her horse slows down to a trot. The sound of her foots thudding against cobblestone carries in the air. A servant takes the two horses away from the courtyard, and Calliope swiftly turns to her riding companion, eyes narrowing.

She points harshly at his chest, "You cheated."

Sir Leon looks down at the angry blonde, eyebrows raising, "You do know it's bad manners to accuse a knight of such things."

"And you know I don't give a fuck about manners," she retaliates, earning a clever grin from the knight. Without warning, she punches his arm.

"Ow!"

"Admit you cheated!"

He crosses his arms over his chest, "I had no idea you were such a sore loser, Cal." Holding out his palm, his motions for her to pay up. "I believe we had an arrangement." Grumbling, she pulls some gold pieces out of her pocket and sets them down on his palm roughly. Then, he smirks as he puts them away. "Although, my secret shortcut did make beating you a whole lot easier."

Gasping, she shoves him to the side, "I knew it. What will the King say when he finds out one of his knights is so dishonorable?"

Leon leans a bit closer to whisper, "Probably the same thing he would say if he found out you're a wanted assassin."

Her friendship with Sir Leon was definitely unexpected. Once everything between her and Arthur fell apart, she spent more time with the knights outside training to add another distraction from her feelings for him. Some of them didn't bother to get to know her. They still couldn't get over their prejudices about women, but others were more open-minded, Sir Leon being the most adamant about treating everyone with equality. He held no animosity for her, even though he was one of the knights she beat during her duels. In fact, he trained extra hours with her to learn her clever fighting style.

Those training sessions kindled a close friendship that led to trips to the tavern where competitive drinking games occurred to frequent morning patrols together to her confiding in him about everything that happened with Arthur, and eventually, about a week ago, she revealed the worst truth of them all, with the help of some ale of course. The words kind of just slipped out, and then, she couldn't take them back. But, before judging, he let her explain the entire story from start to finish, and he believed her when she said she had left that life behind.

Now, after an entire month, she's grateful he came into her life. She wouldn't have been able to drag herself out of the pit of sadness without him.

Giving him another playful jab, she turns to the stairs that lead to the castle, but Leon lingers in the courtyard, "You aren't coming on this hunt with Arthur?"

Calliope turns from the middle of the stairs, "I hate hunting."

Leon laughs in disbelief, "You are one big oxymoron, Cal."

"Don't miss me too much," she calls over her shoulder before entering the castle.

♛ ♛ ♛

Calliope's midday nap is interrupted by being summoned to the Throne Room with all the knights and the entire royal court. She grumbles as she pulls herself out of bed and makes her way through the busy corridors, munching on a ruby red apple.

When she arrives, she offers Merlin a friendly wave as she goes to stand beside him and Gaius. Over the past month, she has had dinner with them almost every night even though she could get something from the palace kitchens. Uther considered her part of the royal household now, but she was barely a step up from a servant. Regardless, she enjoyed not having him sneering at her all the time. Instead, she gets a simple side-eye, which is a major improvement. His gratitude for saving Arthur outweighs his disdain for the fiesty blonde.

It took Arthur a while to forgive Merlin for hiding Calliope's secret from him, but he seemed to get over it eventually. All his hurt and anger is directed entirely at her, and she shouldn't have expected any different. For a time, she did plan on killing him, and she did lie to him a lot. Maybe this is just the way things have to be, and she's slowly adjusting. Not talking to him every day has been weird and his cold shoulder every morning at training still stings, but she can handle it.

"The creature you describe has all the characteristics of the questing beast," Gaius explains after Arthur told him about the creature they encountered during their hunt that killed several guards.

As Arthur looks over a map with his father, he turns to Gaius, "Surely that's a myth," Calliope rolls her eyes. Why does no one ever listen to Gaius?

"According to the old books, the appearance of the questing beast is supposed to foreshadow a time of great upheaval."

"Gaius," the Kings says in a warning tone, "that's an old wives' tale."

His blindness and stupidity will never change, "Look, whatever it is, it's spreading panic. The people fear it will enter the city."

Uther looks to his son, "Then we must kill it. Arthur, gather the guard together. You ride at dawn."

With that, the court disperses and Calliope walks with Merlin out of the Throne Room. They wind through the castle until they come back to the physician's chambers for dinner. Calliope enjoys eating with them so they can stay close, but also, when she's alone, flashes from the night she died and fought Sepharin terrorize her thoughts. She prefers to distract herself and not have to face those things.

However, she can't stop them from entering her nightmares. That's another battle though.

Merlin grabs his sword, feeling the balance as he points it around, earning a soft chuckle from the blonde. She mocks him as Gaius enters the room.

He grabs a book and begins flipping through the pages intently, "This is no ordinary beast, Merlin."

"Don't worry," he replies as he sets down the sword. Calliope immediately grabs it and whacks his leg. "Ow, damn it, Cal! Why'd you do that?"

"Because it's funny, wizard boy."

Gaius gives them an agitated look, "You need to listen to me, you don't understand. Uther may not respect the old religion, but it is very real. To face a beast such as this, you must understand where it came from."

"What do you mean?" he asks.

"At the very heart of the old religion lies the magic of life and death itself. For example, the magic in Deathbane—the dagger that brought Calliope back," Merlin and Calliope's expression shift to seriousness as they listen more carefully. "The questing beast carries that power. One bite, you die, and there is no cure."

The young sorcerer glances over at his friend, "Looks like we're in for another day of saving Arthur's ass."

She breaks his gaze, swinging her legs over the bench so her back is to him, "I'm not going."

"What?" he exclaims. "But, it's dangerous, and you're one of Camelot's best warriors."

"Arthur doesn't want me there," she says, trying to hide the hurt in her voice.

"You don't know that."

"I do," she insists. "I'm sure everything will be fine. You can just use a spell or two and save the day, like always."

The blonde can feel Merlin and Gaius looking at her with concerned expressions. They know how delicate the topic of Prince Arthur is, and they rarely bring up his name around her. So, instead of trying to convince her to change her mind, they just nod, and Gaius goes to start making dinner.

Merlin sits across from Calliope at the table as she tries to shake away thoughts of the Prince. He believes they will be able to work through this, and that things can be normal again, but Calliope knows, deep down, that things will never go back to the way they were. Arthur may have been able to forgive Merlin for keeping the truth from him, but Calliope is the center of the betrayal. Who knows how long it will take for him to even speak to her again. Weeks, months...years?

It doesn't matter. The most important thing to her right now is finding her mother. Her first lead had a dead end. The slaver Drak is good at covering his tracks, and now, all she can do is wait until another lead is found. Gaius has been asking around and trying to dig up any records of the man, but it seems like Drak is not his birth name. There is no trace of him ever existing at all, but she shouldn't expect any less from a man involved with Sepharin in any way.

In the meantime, she will continue helping train the knights and going on patrols with Leon, and then spending some nights in the tavern beating all of them at whatever drinking game they come up with.

This is her new normal, and slowly, she is starting to accept it.

♛ ♛ ♛

The next morning, Calliope wakes early. She stares out her window at the courtyard below watching as members of the guard gather as Arthur and Merlin stand by the staircase. She clenches her jaw, a small voice telling her she needs to change her mind and go with them no matter what Arthur would think about it, but she shoves that voice away.

She needs to clear her head. Calliope throws on a tunic and some leather pants, and then she grabs her belt, securing her sheath on it, and the blonde heads into the corridors. But, her plans to go beat up some training dummy are interrupted when she spots Morgana in her night robes frantically running towards her with terror in her emerald eyes.

Calliope meets her halfway, the brunette crashing into her. She holds Morgana steady, searching her bewildered eyes for a clue as to what has her so alarmed.

Breathing heavily, Morgana finally speaks, "We have to stop him."

"Stop who?" Calliope asks, holding onto her arms.

"Arthur," she answers like it should be common knowledge. "We can't let him go!"

Without warning, she lets go of Calliope and starts running towards the courtyard, "Morgana, wait!" Calliope calls after her as her jog turns into a sprint.

She runs through the doors just as Morgana is making her way down the steps towards Arthur, just before he mounts his horse, "Arthur!" she yells, causing the prince to turn.

His eyebrows furrow, "Morgana, what are you doing?"

"You cannot face it!" Calliope hurries down to the stairs, going to her side and trying to pull her away.

"Morgana, go back to bed," Arthur insists. "There is nothing to be afraid of."

Tears run down her cheeks, "I have seen terrible things," Calliope gently strokes her hair, trying to calm her down as Arthur looks at her with confusion and concern. "You cannot go!"

Merlin leans forward from beside Arthur, "She's probably had a bad dream, Sire. Cal should take her to Gaius."

Refusing to let go of the prince, Morgana violently shakes her head, "No! I will not let you go!"

"Come on, Morgana," Calliope urges her to follow, but she trashes against her.

"No! No!"

Arthur meets Calliope's gaze, giving her a small nod of thanks, but he doesn't speak to her. She sees it as a good sign that he may slowly be inching towards forgiveness.

Once Calliope has a good grip on Morgana, she glances at Merlin, "Be careful out there."

"We will," Merlin replies. "See you soon."

As the group going to face the questing beast leaves the courtyard, Morgana keeps crying and trashing against the assassin's grip, completely hysterical. It's a struggle to get her to Gaius's chambers, but she lets out of a breath if relief when Morgana finally settles down once Gaius gets her seated at his workbench.

Calliope leans back against the wall, wiping sweat off her forehead. This is not how she envisioned her morning starting.

The brunette stares at the wall as Gaius looks through his supplies for something that will calm her down. The look in her eyes is still plagued with true fear, and Calliope wonders what could have been in her dream to cause such a reaction. She knows her dreams have come true in the past, but there have been others that have simply been nightmares.

She pushes herself off the wall and pulls a chair to sit beside Morgana. The blonde puts a comforting hand on her shoulder, and Morgana releases a shaky breath.

Gaius comes forward with a vial of blue liquid. He hands it to Morgana, and she thanks him quietly, "What was in this nightmare, Morgana?"

"It was Arthur," she says, trying to keep her voice steady. "There was a monster in a cave, and Arthur...he was...he was," she chokes on her words, and Calliope gathers what she was about to say.

Looking over her shoulder at the physician with concern etched on her face, Calliope helps the brunette to her feet, "Do you want me to walk you back to your room?" She asks.

Morgana shakes her head, "No, I'll be okay. Thank you, Cal."

As she leaves and the door clicks shut, Calliope turns to Gaius, "Should we be worried?"

"Morgana has nightmares all the time."

"But sometimes, they come true," she points out.

Gaius nods, "The pattern is random. There's no way to tell which ones are premonitions, and which ones are simply dreams."

The flicker of worry for the prince doesn't fade, but she tries to accept Gaius's words. Morgana knew Arthur was facing a dangerous beast today, so it likely was just a dream. Merlin is with Arthur, and he can use his magic to make sure nothing bad happens. Calliope tries to convince herself of all of this, but she fails miserably.

For the rest of the day, even as she slices through several practice dummies, she cannot shake this horrible feeling inside of her that Arthur is in danger. It isn't until her body is completely exhausted and caked in sweat that she leaves the training field, leaving dismembered dummies scattered everywhere. Usually, training will make her feel better, but not today. If anything, it only makes her feel worse.

She enters the castle, planning on expressing these feelings to Gaius, and maybe riding out after the hunting party. She should have gone, and the fact she didn't eats away at her. Instead, she let her emotions cloud her judgement. It doesn't matter that she and Arthur aren't on good terms right now, she should have put his safety before anything else. Cursing under her breath, she turns a sharp corner nearly at the physician's chambers.

Stopping, she listens as she hears frantic shouting. She's not able to understand what the voices are saying, so she picks up her footsteps and pushes the cracked door open.

Calliope halts, her entire body going cold. There, on a cleared off table, lies Arthur. Above him stands Gaius and Merlin and the two guards that carried him in.

Rushing over to the table, she notices how slow his breathing is, and she shakes her head, tears welling in her eyes, "What happened?" She asks loudly in a frantic voice.

"He was bitten," Gaius says, examining his shoulder.

"No," she's barely able to say. "No, he can't—he can't," she won't even let herself finish that sentence. She won't even face the possibility of losing him.

"I tried to save him," Merlin has guilt all over his face.

Calliope brushes back his hair from his forehead as Gaius instructs the guards to get the King. No, this can't be happening.

She turns to Gaius, "You have to save him!"

"I wish I could."

Merlin hurries to grab his book of spells, "I'll find a cure."

"Merlin—"

"Trust me!"

When Merlin returns from his room, he sets the book down and begins flipping through the pages, but Calliope keeps her focus on Arthur, both her hands around his head as she prays to whatever force is listening to save him.

"The King will be here at any moment."

"He can't die. It's my destiny to protect him," Merlin answers, his voice full of conviction. "We haven't done all the things we're meant to do."

Calliope looks up, "Let him try, Gaius. He has to at least try."

Nodding, Gaius steps away, and Merlin closes his eyes as the book flies open and pages turn quickly until it lands on one possibility. The sorcerer extends his hand.

"Gestathole!" Nothing. Merlin turns back to the book until he lands on another spell. "Thurhhaele!" Still nothing. Arthur remains unconscious, barely breathing. "Maybe the spells need time to take effect."

As Calliope refuses to move her hands away from him, Gaius looks to Merlin, "The bite of the questing beast is a death sentence—"

"He won't die, Gaius," Calliope interrupts in a strong voice. Her eyes turn back to his face, tears blurring her vision. "I won't let you die, you idiot. You hear me?"

Then, from the hallway, the King's voice echoes through the air, "Where is my son?" He comes running into the room, his eyes only on Arthur. Calliope steps back as the King leans over him. "Arthur!" he grabs onto his shirt in desperation. "Do something, Gaius!"

"I am trying, Your Majesty."

Merlin steps forward, "Gaius will find a cure. He will not let him die."

Giving Merlin a look, Gaius turns to the King, "I will do everything in my power."

Throwing Arthur's arm over his shoulder, Uther takes his son into his arms, "I will bear him to his chamber."

Calliope joins Merlin and Gaius as they follow the King. her heart is pounding as they enter the courtyard, only thinking of Arthur and saving him. However, Uther only makes it halfway to the castle's entrance before he stops and falls to his knees, leaning over his dying son and letting out a low sob.

The knights, including Sir Leon, rush forward to take the prince, and Calliope covers her mouth with her hand to stifle her own sob as she watches them carry him away.

♛ ♛ ♛

hey everyone! i just want to say that i have started back to school, so it's possible that my updates could slow down a lot soon. this first week is just syllabus week, so nothing too crazy, but once i start having exams, idk how active i will be.
but i'm confident that i can finish season one in the next few days!
remember to vote and leave your thoughts in the comments :)