Magic Revealed

Lyra Heldin

Merlin tried to stay close to Arthur as the king charged forward. He could feel the dragons nearby but didn't want to call them unless absolutely necessary in case they were put in danger. They were still children after all.

The woman, Heldin's daughter apparently, disarmed the first knights to reach her with a practiced ease

Arthur began slowly making his way towards her while Merlin busied himself trying to sheild their knights from any magical attacks. On the other side of the camp he could feel Morgana doing the same.

"We won't be able to get to Heldin without going through her." Arthur called to him when the warlock caught up.

"I know." Merlin said, "But look. She's not even out of breath."

"She doesn't appear to be hurting anyone though." Arthur muttered.

Merlin blinked and then studied the chaos around the young woman."But why?" He wondered as she tossed a knight away from her with magic.

Arthur shrugged, "Is she using much magic?"

"Not a lot but it's clear she's powerful." Merlin muttered and then threw a hand up to block an arrow that flew towards a nearby knight.

The two slowly fought their way towards the woman but by the time they got to the small space where she stood she'd backed up and forced them between two rock outcrops that made it easier for her to defend.

"What's your name?" Merlin asked.

"Lyra Heldin." She responded, "If you really want to know." She pointed her sword at them, "I'm not going to surrender. So either walk away or fight."

"You haven't seriously injured a single person." Merlin stated, "Why?"

Something like sorrow flickered across the woman's face. "I refuse to kill without reason. No one here will die by my hand unless they kill one of my own."

"And what does your father think of this?" Arthur asked, sword at the ready. Next to him Merlin's eyes flicked around, watching the battle for any immediate danger to them.

"He is less than pleased. But I pointed out that he wanted to remove the Pendragon's from power for killing without reason."

"So what's your reason now? Arthur is not his father." Merlin questioned.

She paused sword lowering not even an inch as she studied them. "I can not stop my father. I already lost my mother to a Pendragon. I'm not loosing my father to another. Even if I don't agree with what he's doing."

"But he just wants power." Merlin protested. "He's not trying to help people. He just wants the power that Camelot has."

She grimaced, "And I don't intend to stand by and see the only people that have cared for me die."

"Lyra." Arthur said quietly, "Your father is not doing anyone any favors." Next to him Merlin pushed an attacker from behind into a tree, sending him slumping to the ground. "You follow him because you don't want to loose him. But right now he hasn't done anything for us to have reason to kill him. You can both walk away from this."

She gritted her teeth, "I tried." She spat out. "I tried telling him that Uther was gone. That my mother was dead and there wasn't anything he could do about it. I tried saying that he had two daughters who could live the lives without any more of this conflict, with a new king on the throne. But I have a little sister who already lost her mother. I don't want her to loose her father because I stood by and let him die. She's the only reason I'm standing here. I want her to have a family."

"And is having a father who only hungers for power and a sister who does his every bidding really a family?" Arthur said quietly. "My sister, she grew up not knowing that we had the same father. Believed that her family was dead. She openly disagreed with my father's veiws on magic. Learned it herself. Tried to make me see that my father was wrong. And I dismissed it for so long. I let my father decide everything for me. Are you going to do the same thing?"

She looked torn, "I will try to talk to my father." She finally whispered. "But I make no promises." And with that she disappeared into the camp. Merlin and Arthur did not follow.

The king looked over at the warlock, "Was she telling the truth?"

He nodded slowly, "I think so."

Is everything okay? Morgana's voice echoed in Merlin's head.

Lyra Heldin is trying to stay her father

Morgana's surprise rippled through the connection but she didn't ask any more questions.

Merlin and Arthur returned to the fighting to see how things were going. The knights we're holding their own against the magicians with a great deal of effort. Occasionally they'd have to retreat a slight distance to escape a magical attack but even then they pushed forward when they had the opportunity to.

"I think they will be fine if we go searching for Heldin." Arthur said quietly.

Merlin nodded and they went back into the camp, heading down the same path that Lyra had earlier.

When they rounded a corner they found a tent that was slightly larger then the rest. Two voices could be heard from inside.

"But father you know-"

"That's enough Lyra!" Merlin recognized Heldin's voice as he silenced his daughter. "I am taking Camelot. I will not be swayed by your weak willed ideals."

Arthur glanced at Merlin who nodded. The two of them pushed aside the enterance to the tent and found Heldin and Lyra standing a few feet apart. They both whirled around to look at them.

Lyra's eyes widened, "Father please! You shouldn't-"

Heldin raised a hand and spoke in the magic language but Merlin was faster and stopped a spell before it could do any damage. Heldin ground his teeth and opened his mouth to try again but was interrupted.

"What is your full name?" Arthur asked, "Heldin is obviously the family name."

The man scowled, "You were the ones who put these ideas in my daughter's head."

"No she already had them." Merlin muttered.

Lyra held up her hands, "Please, we don't need to fight. Just talk to them father."

Heldin glared at his daughter, "They couldn't fight me if they tried. My sheild is impervious to-"

Arthur's sword sliced the air an inch before the man's chest, and a crack seemed to appear in the air where the magical barrier should have been. "Are you sure about that?" Arthur asked quietly.

Merlin's hand gently settled at the center of the king's back, "Heldin, we don't want to hurt you. None of this has to happen. We just want Camelot safe. So could we please sit down and talk about this whole situation like civil human beings?"

All eyes were on Heldin as they waited for an answer. His eyes were fixed on Excalibur where the tip hovered in front of him.

He looked up at Arthur resolve in his face as he opened his mouth to answer.

"No."

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A/N: Hey everyone! I'm going to be gone for the next two weeks so don't expect an update until August.

Thank you to everyone who has read this far! I promise I'll try to make the next chapter a little longer. I wrote this one pretty quickly cause it's what I had planned already, Im leaving in a few hours, and it sets up a longer chapter (hopefully).

I hope all of you have a wonderful last few weeks of summer.

~Lowkey