As the battle came to an end in a flash of red light from Mordred's noble phantasm, silence instantly fell on us. The once chaotic, ruined castle was now eerily still. No winds, no sounds, just… nothing.
Still, inside the protective barrier of Avalon, there had not been any winds or blast waves. In there, it had been peaceful ever since the light of utopia covered us.
With a small sigh, I returned Avalon to my soul and stepped forward, quickly making my way down to the grounds outside the castle through the massive hole in the side. Though calling it a hole was really underselling it.
The fight had more or less completely destroyed the castle; what remained was but a ruin.
Mordred stood there, unmoving and quiet, blood slowly dripping down Clarent's edge. Her eyes locked onto the body on the ground.
I moved to her side, joining her in looking at Morgana's body. In death, she looked like any other woman, even if her face was twisted into a hateful grimace.
"I… I expected something more, like… I don't know, just felt too easy." Mordred finally said.
"I understand what you mean, despite not being my sister, anyone daring enough to claim to be her should be more than this, harder to kill." Morgana had been strong, that much I could admit.
A few of my knights might have really struggled against her; not everyone was as strong as Mordred. Yet, she had still died after such a short battle; it felt incomplete.
We both felt like she should come back alive and laugh at us, mocking us for thinking she would die that easily, and pull off some crazy stunt. Something worthy of a final boss, yet she was dead.
"Yeah, or at least try to escape, Mother… she would never have allowed herself to be cornered, she would pull some trick." Mordred said and kicked her dead body, as if testing if it was real.
"It wasn't like she didn't want to escape, but that she couldn't." I said and looked up at the sky.
There was nothing, at least nothing visible to the naked eye.
But to my Fae Eyes, the sky was filled with magic, the entire castle and the surrounding grounds were sealed inside some massive barrier, and in fact, had been placed inside the mirror dimension.
It was well done; even I had barely noticed it, only my nature as the Goddess Rhongomyniad allowed me to notice the shift.
I can only imagine that Morgana tried to leave, but realized she was trapped, which led her to unleash that final spell.
It was powerful, and I was sure it wasn't the depth of her arsenal, merely what she could pull off at short notice.
"Couldn't? Did something happen?" Mordred asked as she looked in the same direction I did, but saw nothing.
"Indeed, it seemed someone stopped her from leaving, but they won't be foolish enough to stop us, will they?" I asked aloud, my voice booming.
For a moment, nothing answered. The ruins remained silent. The sky above was blank.
And then the world moved.
The horizon twisted, folding in on itself like paper. Ruins bent upward, staircases flattened into walls, shattered spires curled inward like claws. The whole of the mirror world collapsed, page by page, until only one figure remained upon the warped canvas.
A figure carried forward by the folding terrain, her presence as calm as it was absolute.
Mordred tensed, Clarent raised, crimson sparks dancing at her feet.
I placed a hand on her shoulder, steadying her. "Stand down."
The bald head gleamed faintly in the broken light. The yellow robes shifted as though stirred by wind no longer present.
The Ancient One had arrived.
"On behalf of the entire world, and the countless people lost to her evil, I thank you both for ending the dark tumour that was Morgana." She said and bowed low, placating Mordred further.
Mordred's jaw clenched, her grip on Clarent not loosening an inch. "Tch. Flattery won't save you if you're here to lecture us," she muttered, the red glow of her sword still simmering.
The Ancient One straightened, her gaze sweeping over the ruined battlefield, over the phantoms dispersing into nothing, over Morgana's corpse still sprawled like discarded venom. "I offer no lecture, only truth. Without your strength, she would have remained at large and continued her reign of evil."
I said nothing at first, simply watching her. The air around her bent with subtle magic, as if the Mirror Dimension itself bowed to her presence. She had been the one to hold Morgana here.
She had watched, silent as we fought. A mere observer, unwilling to take the stage herself. I truly couldn't understand her.
For someone able to see the future, she really didn't like acting on that knowledge; it was baffling how she let certain things happen when she could easily stop them. Like the whole plot of Dr Strange.
Or the future invasion of New York, we could easily step in before it happened, she could also still ensure heroes like the Avengers were born without the risks, yet she seemed to do nothing.
"Indeed, which begs the question, why have you let her run wild for so long?" I asked, knowing well she wouldn't answer.
And indeed, The Ancient One merely shook her head, offering no defence for herself.
"Tch, acting all mysterious, makes me want to smash your face in." Mordred clearly wasn't a fan of her all-knowing, mysterious attitude.
"Peace, I didn't come here to cause trouble, merely to help. Morgana would likely have attempted to flee without my intervention, forcing you to put in far more effort to deal with her, so let's not come to blows." She raised her hands in surrender.
"We didn't need your help, Father and I could have dealt with her on our own just fine."
"I don't doubt it, your… father is mighty indeed, but a bit of help is always welcome, isn't it? Or are you saying this witch was worthy of your father acting personally?" The Ancient One clearly knew how to deal with Mordred.
Her words indeed left Mordred without a proper answer. She just huffed angrily and looked away, unwilling to engage her further.
"Since you are here, I trust you will deal with the cleanup. Surely, that is the least you can do after we helped you with a problem that is yours to deal with, oh sorcerer supreme." I was glad she was here because it meant I wouldn't have to deal with anything else.
This place was no doubt filled with curses and other things that normal people shouldn't interact with, not to mention evil tomes that could cause new evil witches and warlocks to rise to replace her.
"Hey! The loot is mine, I killed her!" Mordred was quick to jump in.
The Ancient One gave me a look, clearly pleased that Mordred was ruining my plan to escape responsibility for this mess.
"Mordred, this is one of those too wise for worldly wealth types. Just look at her. She's been in charge for hundreds of years, and barely any treasures on her. Clearly, she doesn't care, so why not let her find everything of value and send it to you? That way you don't have to work for it, just sit back and watch the loot roll in." I, too, knew how to deal with Mordred.
And indeed, she was quick to inspect the Ancient One, seeing only the Eye of Agamotto, which wasn't shiny enough for her standards. Mordred clearly agreed with me. "Sure, might as well let this loser do all the hard work, I can't wait to get back home and tell the others about this, they will be so jealous I got to kill this witch with you."
I sent The Ancient One a look that very much said, "Your move."
The Ancient One chuckled softly, the sound like dry leaves scattering in the wind. "I see now how you rule your knights — stern hand, soft word, and a little cunning. Albion prospers not merely because of your blade."
I couldn't help but smile. She clearly didn't have a way out of this thankless task, and well, it was indeed her job to do anyway. The evil artifacts Morgana might have hidden away very much fell under her responsibility.
"Damn, the castle is about to fall apart," Fantomex said as he staggered down, half-dragging the twins. The floor groaned beneath us, whole chunks of stone sliding into smoking pits where Morgana's magic had burned through the foundations.
"Let it," Mordred muttered, kicking a loose slab aside. "Witch's place deserves to sink into the ground."
Maxime still looked pale, his steps unsteady. His eyes lingered on me, then on Mordred, then on the corpse we'd left behind. "So… this is it? She's really dead?"
"Dead as dirt," Mordred said cheerfully, resting Clarent across her shoulders like it weighed nothing. "And guess who gets bragging rights." She jabbed a thumb at her chest.
"Guess you'll be insufferable about this back home," I said dryly.
"You know it, Father." Mordred grinned, wolfish. Then she glanced back at the twins, who still clung to each other nervously. "Oi. Don't make that face. We're done here. You survived. That's something to brag about too, yeah?"
Manon straightened, forcing a smile. "I… suppose."
Maxime didn't answer. His gaze lingered on Mordred longer than was comfortable, his jaw tight. He opened his mouth, closed it again, and finally said, "And after this? You just… leave?"
"We've got Camelot to return to," I said firmly.
"Yeah," Mordred added, spinning Clarent once before dismissing it in a flare of light. "But hey — it's not like you can't visit. Camelot's open to friends of Albion. You two ever feel like dropping by, just ask for me. I'll show you around, make sure no one gives you trouble."
Maxime blinked, clearly flustered, while Manon gave him a sidelong look sharp enough to draw blood. "We'll… keep that in mind," she said smoothly, covering for him.
Fantomex groaned, leaning on a half-collapsed pillar. "Oui, oui, field trip to Camelot, très bien. But perhaps after I sleep for a week."
"Sleep when you're dead," Mordred shot back, but her grin softened as she turned toward me. "So, Father. Shall we?"
I gave The Ancient One another dry look, and she sighed in defeat and waved her hand, causing a portal to appear, leading right back to Camelot. "To think after all this time, I have been reduced to giving rides to people," she muttered.
"Cheer up," Mordred said, slapping her on the shoulder as she walked past her. "It means you are still useful despite being a bald old hag!" she said, and quickly escaped through the portal before The Ancient One could retaliate for her words.
Instead, I was left with the angry ancient sorcerer who clearly wished she could punish Mordred.
I just sighed and stepped up, slapping her other shoulder. "Don't worry, once you are ready to retire as Sorcerer Supreme, you can get a job with me, working full-time at opening portals for me." I, too, made a quick escape.
The portal slammed shut behind me, as did the adventure in France.
Morgana was gone, and one of Camelot's greatest enemies lay dead in the mud, but I knew that it was only a matter of time before enemies would come, and they would arrive from the stars to lay waste to not only Camelot but the entire world.
"Welcome back, your majesty." The voice of Sir Agravain welcomed me mere moments after setting foot back in my home.
"It's good to be back. I trust everything has been good while I was gone."
"Indeed, well, except that hateful Asgardian you sent my way, and talking about sending things, I have some work that needs your attention." He said with a smile, yet it didn't reach his eyes.
Clearly, he wasn't too happy about me first leaving him to handle things, taking only Mordred and Lancelot with me, and then sending Amora his way.
"Fine, I guess I deserve that." I could only sigh in defeat, almost wishing I had stayed in France to dig for loot with Mordred.
(End of chapter)
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