Chapter 14: PC Final: Consequence of Defying Fate

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Now on with the chapter.

Warning: Lemon in chapter.

Northern Scotland, 573 A.D., two days before Samhain

It was times like this that Slade wondered why people had children.

"Gawain! Lancelot! Get your little butts back here now!" screamed Slade as he chased after his sons. They were playing their favorite game of 'Knights' and were now running from the 'big, bad dragon' which just so happened to be Slade himself. Unfortunately, Slade hadn't been asked if he wanted to play and so he was now trying to chase them in order to give them their baths.

Needless to say, the five year olds didn't want to take a bath and were now running from the 'big, bad dragon'.

The years had been good to Slade. He looked almost exactly the same as 40 years ago except he was slightly more muscular and his eyes shone with wisdom much like his apprentice's. His hair still had the silver lines along the side of his head much like his adoptive father and as time passed, he had grown to resemble his adoptive father more and more such as face shape and hair style. While still wild, his hair was more of a styled wildness. Selene had actually shuddered when he told her how it used to be.

Slade still laughed when he remembered Selene's reaction to his story. She said she felt bad enough that she was dating someone so much older than her and the fact he technically only grown 8 years made it worse. The fact that Slade's magic was so strong that at 59 he didn't look a day over 30 when she looked to be in her mid-30s was the icing on the cake. Slade sometimes teased her about liking older men since he was technically 80059 years old.

Slade stopped teasing her after she threatened to neuter him.

After the death of Morwen and half the council, the magical world had been thrown into disarray. While no one knew for sure Circe's fate (since they never found her body), the fact she hadn't made an appearance led credence to the belief that she was dead as well.

In the mayhem, Slade had been given the duty of carrying out the Vishanti's will and clean up the mess. He and Selene had spent 30 years killing dark magicals who planned on following in Morwen's footsteps and securing the various points on Earth that were connected to the godly dimensions. The latter was so even if someone cast the same spell as Morwen, they wouldn't be able to affect the gods' power on Earth.

Slade had formed a sort of God squad of strong gods to help him in his duty as well as help him establish good relations with all the various pantheons. The members of the group had been Slade, Selene the Greek goddesses Athena, Artemis and Hestia as well as Eris and Nemesis. From the Norse came Thor, Loki, Hela, Brunnhilde and her apprentice Sif, the Titans Themis and Hecate. Susanoo and Amaterasu from the Shinto region, Morrigan of the Celtic pantheon and the Egyptian's Isis, Nephthys and Bast. It had been hard to get so many different and sometimes hostile personalities to work together but the threat of losing their believers was a strong motivator. The fact that their kings also commanded it also helped.

During the course of their duties, they met someone who would become an unofficial final member of the group. A woman named Remus.

Flashback start (10 years since death of Morwen)

Slade and Selene were standing on a cliff on Circe's island overlooking the sea during one of their breaks from their duties. The rest of the squad had gone to report back to their respective pantheons their progress so far and they were left waiting until they returned.

Slade sighed and sat on the edge of the cliff. Selene sat beside him and laid her head on his shoulder. They stayed like that for a while before Slade let out a frustrated sigh.

"We have to do something, Selene," said Slade angrily. "We're doing good things with the others. God only knows that we need to make sure that the gods and the Vishanti can't be in danger of being cut off from Earth again but it's not enough."

Selene knew what Slade was talking about but wanted him to elaborate. "What do you mean, beloved?"

Slade got up and started to pace. "What I mean is that having the Vishanti in contact isn't enough to create peace. You, Circe and Morwen may have controlled the magical world but according to you there were hundreds if not more sorcerers helping. As long as they're still around they'll just continue the cycle of magical killing magical and they'll never be peace."

Selene nodded in agreement. While it was true that she, Morwen and Circe had controlled the magical world from the shadows, they hadn't done it alone. After all, they were only three people no matter how powerful they were. The way they had maintained control is that each controlled a certain aspect of the world. Morwen controlled the flow of power between magicals as well as the military and was basically the muscle of the group, Circe had controlled the economy and controlled their spy network while Selene controlled the political side and through that, how magical society evolved. Selene, as the politician of the group, knew almost everything about the other two's activities and those associated with them. This was what made her the leader of the group despite Morwen being stronger magically. The other two had no skill for political games which were Selene's specialty.

Selene sighed. "There's not much we can do as long as the others are around. They refuse to get involved and kill humans due to either their honor or because their kings tell them not to. And as long as their around they won't allow us to either. We can do it when they're not here but we need someone to be our eyes and ears when the others are around or we risk not hearing about something important."

"Then perhaps we can help each other."

Slade and Selene looked unsurprised at the sound of the voice and slowly turned towards the source.

Dropping to the floor from the branches was a woman. The woman had long red hair that almost reached her ankles, red eyes and had a black painted mask on her face. She had a skin-tight yellow shirt that hugged her considerable bust and tight black pants that ended above the ankle so there was no risk of it getting caught on something. She had wooden sandals similar to those used in Japan which was emphasized by the jokoto hanging horizontally on the small of her back. Slade could see that despite looking like just another beauty at first glance, there was muscle on her body similar to Slade. This meant she was built for speed and precision rather than physical strength.

Slade cocked an eyebrow at the woman. "So you're the one we've sensed following us since the other left."

The woman looked slightly surprised. "You knew I was following you?"

Selene nodded. "Yes. I am telepathic, you know. You're good at hiding your thoughts but the fact that you are actively hiding them sort of puts a beacon on you. The fact you never attacked us even when we seemed to drop our guard made us conclude you weren't following us for malicious purposes. So what do you want?"

The woman looked impressed and bowed slightly. "I apologize for following you but I think we can help each other. My name is Remus, as in from the Roman legend 'Romulus and... My brother Romulus was an associate under your former friend Circe. He was in charge of securing money and other resources for her and in return she would help him in certain endeavors. One of these endeavors was, as legend says, when Romulus and I fought for control of what would be known as Rome. Circe taught him certain psionic abilities that he previously lacked. For this reason, he beat me in combat and went on to found Rome in his own image."

Selene eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "If your brother is the same one who worked under Circe, then he must have been around far before Rome was founded. Circe said that her second-in-command, as I imagine your brother is, was as old as she was if not older."

Remus nodded. "Yes. My brother and I were born around the same time as you, Selene. I have noticed that those of our generation seemed to have all been immortal in some way but whether this is coincidence or design I cannot say."

Remus took a breath and continued. "As to why my brother started Rome so late in life... he did it because at the time, he was approached by someone besides Circe. I have no idea who since my brother and I had parted before then but whoever it was offered him something in exchange for him providing the perfect general for that person's army. That's the only thing I know. Who and what army I do not."

"In his need for a perfect general, Romulus founded Rome based on warfare and perfection as he sees it. I fought him, wanting to base Rome on the principals of freedom and justice but with the psionic powers Circe had gifted him... I lost. Ever since then I have been trying to stop my brother's plans. In his search for the perfect general he has committed atrocities that still give me nightmares. I won't rest until he's dead though I fear I lack the power to kill him."

Slade slowly nodded. "So you want us to help you kill him, is that it?"

Remus nodded. "Yes. In return, I am willing to help you eliminate those you say need to die. I can be your eyes and ears when you're otherwise unavailable and hunt down your targets. All I ask is that you help me kill Romulus or at the very least, set back his plans of finding his perfect general for a long, long time. What say you?"

Slade and Selene looked at each other, a telepathic conversation going on silently. They finally nodded and turned to Remus.

"Very well, we accept your terms."

Remus cocked an eyebrow slightly. "Just like that? You trust me already?"

Slade's face turned stony. "No, not just like that. We accept your help, however, I'll be keeping an eye on you. Selene tells me she senses only sincerity from you so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. If you prove yourself then we'll talk about killing your brother. Not before."

Remus thought it over before nodding. "Okay then. I can live with that."

Flashback end

Since then, Remus, Selene and Slade would hunt down everyone that had been willingly associated with Selene, Morwen and Circe's group during their reign. It hadn't been easy but thanks to Remus's help, they managed to destroy the entire operation that had been taken over by Romulus after Morwen and Circe's death. They didn't manage to kill Romulus himself but Slade had used Líthi to badly wound him before he escaped. Remus theorized that even with his advanced healing, it would take Romulus over a thousand years to properly heal from his injuries thanks to the properties of Slade's blade.

During the years spent fighting alongside each other, Slade and Remus had become close. This was due to Slade training with Remus in teaching each other their respective style of swordsmanship while Selene was searching for info on their next target. Eventually, Slade and Remus had, with Selene's blessing, become lovers although they broke up and stayed friends when they finished taking down Romulus's organization. Remus said that she wasn't one to get married and settle down so Slade had given her Yamato as a parting gift and taught her how to use some of its abilities.

Rumors of their actions were still whispered amongst magicals but nothing was ever actually confirmed. For example, Slade and Remus spent five years murdering almost a hundred dark sorcerers in Japan while Selene was with the rest of the God squad doing other important errands. The sorcerers were doing everything from raping virgins for fun to summoning demons that could destroy the countryside. Slade and Remus's actions were thought to be the acts of one person and started the rumors of the legendary swordsman Sasaki Kojirou but since they was never actually seen (by anyone living anyway), it was dismissed as a myth.

While seemingly ineffectual at first glance, the repercussions of their actions would be felt when the surviving White Council members agreed to Merlin's idea of separating from the non-magical world to form their own government under the Sorcerer Supreme's leadership.

Slade and the God squad had managed to finish their job about 10 years ago (2 years after Slade and Remus took down Romulus's organization) and the group parted amicably soon after. Slade had learned a lot from the various pantheons and had several godly patrons now. He was on good terms with all of them despite the fact that some of them, such as the Tuatha de Danaan and the Asgardians, were hostile to each other.

Slade and Selene had retired to a small, self-built house (built with magic of course) in Northern Scotland next to the Lake where the Lady of the Lake resided. Their house and the clearing it resided in had wards around it to prevent any attacks, magical or otherwise, and they were on good terms with the local centaur herd and usually traded with them for goods. The centaurs would help them get food and other necessities while they would enchant and ward their weapons and homes. The fact that the clearing was a nexus point where several ley lines intersected was just a bonus.

All in all, it was a good arrangement.

Slade sighed as cursed the fact that he was persuaded by Selene to give the boys their baths today. She was currently relaxing after a hard day of, as she said it, 'picking up after her messy husband and children' and like a good husband, Slade was going along with it. He did not want to sleep on the couch tonight.

Slade rolled his eyes as he gave up chasing the hyperactive boys and magically summoned to him. Slade couldn't help but smile as he heard their giggling as they flew towards him.

Lancelot was the first to come into Slade's eyesight. Slade and Selene had taken him in when they found his mother, Elaine, crying over her husband, King Ban's, dying body. They tried to save him but the wounds inflicted on him were made by dark magic and they were too late to do anything. Elaine had been in similar straits plus dying from dehydration and hunger and had thought that infant Lancelot would die in the wilderness either at the hands of the Picts or by wild animals.

She had made them take Lancelot and swear to raise him as their own and they had agreed. She died not long after and they buried them not far from their house where Lancelot could visit their graves. Slade had tried to find any relatives of Lancelot's but failed even when the Lady of the Lake said she would help.

Lancelot had black hair that had a purple tint in the sunlight and grey eyes. He was strong of build even being only five years old and like Gawain, loved sword fighting. The two had taken to Slade's teachings like ducks to water and had formed a friendly rivalry with each other. Lancelot was currently in the lead but not by much as Gawain constantly pointed out.

Slade's smile grew when he saw his other son fly through the air as well, giggling all the way. Gawain was Slade and Selene's son by blood and Slade had to admit that they spoiled him slightly. He had inherited his maternal grandmother's dark brown hair, Slade's amber eyes and Selene's ability of pyrokinesis. The latter ability had only manifested two weeks ago and Selene had been beyond ecstatic that he had inherited that and not her 'cursed' ability.

Slade caught both children in his arms and used one arm to carry each before carrying them towards the bathroom. They playfully pretended to try and escape the entire way, laughing and playfully calling their mother for help. On the way to the bath, Selene came out of their room wearing a red robe that stopped just above her knee and a smile on her face.

Selene had only gotten more beautiful since she had Gawain, at least in Slade's eyes. For a long time they had been afraid that she couldn't have children and was barren. However, they had eventually figured out that her vampire-like ability basically froze her in time. If she stopped 'feeding' then she would once again start aging normally and be able to have children. Gawain was their first and only child so far and every day was a blessing with him in their lives. Selene had basically told Slade point-blank that she would have another child only when Slade went through the pain of birthing one as well.

Needless to say, Slade quickly decided to stop at only one child.

Selene's eyes twinkled in mirth as the sight. "Oh, dear. It looks like a bad man has taken my children captive and is planning to take advantage of me. Whatever should I do?"

Slade gently put Gawain and Lancelot on the floor before walking over to Selene and placing kisses along her neck. "You should let me show you how a real man pleasures a woman and forget your loser of a husband."

Selene moaned slightly at his kisses. "I don't know. My husband is a magnificent lover. I doubt you could top him."

Slade nipped at her neck, drawing another low moan from her. "Well, we won't know until we try."

The two started to kiss heatedly and only the sound of 'Ew!' from their children stopped them. Selene gave Slade a heated glance before giving him another kiss. "You better finish what you started later." she whispered huskily.

Slade gave her a roguish smile. "I plan to." Slade rubbed his stubble cheeks for a second before speaking. "You know, I'd look more roguish with a beard. Maybe I should-"

Selene interrupted him. "If you grow a beard I swear I'll burn it off."

Slade pouted at that. They had had this conversation a few times and Selene steadfastly refused to let him grow a full beard. She said that if she wanted to marry a vagabond she would have married one centuries ago.

Slade heard Gawain and Lancelot snigger at him and he turned on them with a false angry look. "Come here you little gremlins." After successfully catching them again, he started to carry them to the bathroom. "For that, I'm going to make the bath last twice as long."

Selene laughed as the children yelled 'No!' and try twice as hard to escape. Selene shook her head at their antics before walking toward the kitchen to start dinner.

As Selene started the meal, she reflected on how she had changed. If anyone had told her 50 years ago that she would someday be nothing more than a simple housewife taking care of her husband and children, she would have probably killed them slowly for what she thought was an insult. But here she was, having retired from 'active duty' as Slade called it, almost a decade ago. She still trained to keep herself sharp (she learned from her fight with Circe) but the most action she'd seen in the last decade had been when a rabid werewolf had wandered too close to their home and tried to attack the children.

She showed the werewolf why she was called The Black Queen by the gods and still feared even now. While she may act like a housewife most of the time, when it came to protecting her family she reverted to the old, cruel Selene. Anyone who threatened them died without exception.

Selene was so lost in cooking dinner and her thoughts that she almost didn't sense Slade walk up behind her. Selene smiled as he hugged her from behind and leaned into him.

Slade kissed her neck before speaking. "What are you making, love?"

Selene pushed him with her hip slightly in response. "Samhain is in two days and I'm preparing food for when Nimueh, the Summer Queen and the Winter Queen arrive. You know how picky the last two are and the last thing we need is for them to start a fight in our house. It seems like they'll look for any reason to quarrel."

Samhain was the current time's parallel to Halloween. It was the time when the wall between the dimensions was thinnest as even souls of the deceased could cross. Nimueh a.k.a. The Lady of the Lake, always came to visit during this time since it was one of the few times she could walk amongst mortals without problems. She often brought along the queens of the two fairy kingdoms, the Winter Queen Mab and the Summer Queen Titania. Like Selene said, they were very picky and unless Slade wanted to watch Selene beat up one of the fairy queens (which Selene was certainly powerful enough to do) and cause an inter-dimensional incident, it was best to avoid problems.

Slade shrugged. "They're opposites. Asking them to get along is like asking for summer and winter to coexist. Impossible. We're just lucky they're willing to call a truce in our house during Samhain."

Selene rolled her eyes. "More like we're lucky that Nimueh, as goddess of all fairies, can keep them on a firm leash. I swear those too bicker like sisters at times."

Slade chuckled at that. "That's true. Who else is coming?"

Selene gave him a sly smile before answering. "Susanoo can't make it, Loki, Sif and Thor are busy but Remus, Athena and the rest are coming. They can't wait to see you again. Do I have to soundproof our bedroom again?"

Slade blushed slightly as Selene chuckled. During the 30 year job with his squad, they had all become close friends. However, Slade's relationship with the female members of the group was quite close, Brunnhilde had been especially so. During the celebration for their last mission, Selene had decided to reward Slade for so many years of faithfulness to her while being surrounded by beautiful women.

The reward had been a night with all of them. Needless to say, that night topped as number three in his 'greatest nights of my life' list with number two being the birth of Gawain and number one being his entire official honeymoon with Selene. Selene had been adamant in beating Circe in the bedroom and Slade had all too willing to go along with it.

Slade felt himself become aroused at the memory and a sly smile crossed his face. He started laying kisses down Selene's neck which slowly revved up Selene's engine. Moans left Selene's lips as she forgot what she was doing and started to grind back into Slade's arousal.

Slade laid a kiss on Selene's ear and whispered. "Only if you're there as well. They might be goddesses but their beauty still pales in comparison to yours."

Selene moaned at his words and turned around in order to give him a scorching kiss. The two continued to kiss heatedly before Selene broke the kiss. "We can't. I need to cook, beloved."

Slade waved his hand towards where Selene had been preparing the meal and the utensils started to move on their own, cooking the meal without any supervision.

Selene moaned as Slade once again licked her ears, which happened to be very sensitive. "B-But... The children, Slade. They'll hear us!"

Slade waved a hand at the door and squelching sound followed by it glowing white showed it had been locked and silenced so no one could enter and noise wouldn't go out. "There. No more excuses. It's been far too long since I slept with my wife. One would say that you're neglecting me. You're even throwing me at other women. For shame!"

Selene gave him a playful glare. "We had sex this morning! For three hours!"

Slade shook his head in false sadness. "I know. Far too long ago."

Any other words were muffled when Slade gave Selene a scorching kiss that revved up her engine too much to ignore. After that, the only noises that came from their mouths were moan, groans and declarations of love.

Lancelot and Gawain had finished getting dressed after their bath and were now lazing around in the living room. The door to the kitchen was magically locked and they knew that meant their parents were busy kissing or worse.

Lancelot was playing with a walnut he found, trying to practice his hand-eye coordination by doing tricks with it. Gawain watched for a while before his eyes wandered to watch the rest of the room before inevitably landing where they always did when in the living room.

The house was fairly big with 5 bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room, a dining room, a large bathroom and a garden in the back. The living room was where Slade and Selene put up their trophies of their various adventures as Gawain called it.

On top of a table in the corner was a glass case with dragon teeth and claws on display from a time they killed a Monstrous class Dragon Kind in Northern Gaul. There were various staffs and wands along the walls from dead dark sorcerers who crossed them as well as an angelic katana that they said belonged to a Fallen before Dad killed him. Above the door to the dining room was his father's old shield with the five dragons on it along with his old gladius sheathed inside of it.

On the wall above the fireplace, the family emblem was hanging. The family emblem was a gold pentagram on a red background. His dad told him it represented the five virtues of a true knight and man: noble generosity, fellowship, purity, courtesy, and compassion. His mother told him that the gold represented the wisdom a knight had to have in order to live justly and the red symbolized courage. Dad said that if he managed to become a knight then he would be worthy to wear the emblem on his shield as long as he followed those virtues.

Beneath the emblem on top of the fireplace were his parents' swords hanging horizontally on the wall: his mother's jokoto, Nightweaver and his father's sword, Líthi.

The latter sword was what drew Gawain's eye. Despite its seeming simplicity, it exuded power and nobility just by its very presence. Gawain remembered very well the only time he'd seen his father use it. It had been against a group of bandits that had a sorcerer strong enough to bypass the wards surrounding the clearing temporarily. His father had destroyed them with a single slash of his sword that left not even ashes behind.

His mother had complained about him ruining the countryside just to show off.

His father had promised both him and Lancelot that someday they would receive swords almost as magnificent as his. They couldn't use his since he was the only one that could but he had commissioned the Lady of the Lake's fairies to make them two swords when they came of age. Gawain couldn't wait for the day.

Lancelot sighed explosively and got up from where he was lying on the floor. "I'm bored and hungry. What do you want to do?"

Gawain was brought out of his thoughts by the question and shrugged. "I don't know. We can't spar with our practice swords or mom will kill us. You know how she gets about us being dirty at the dinner table."

Lancelot rolled his eyes and put on a stern expression, trying to imitate Selene. "'You are the sons of the Sorcerer Supreme and should always look your best so as to not bring shame to him.' I swear, I like etiquette and tradition, those things are cool at times, but she does this even when we don't have any guests."

Gawain shrugged. "It's like Dad says, 'Women are beyond the comprehension of any man, mortal or not.'"

"I can certainly agree with that sentiment."

Gawain and Lancelot jumped at the sound of the voice and turned around to see who it was.

Standing in the doorway was a man who didn't look a day over 30 with black, wild hair and hazel eyes. He also had a beard that was scruffy and unkempt which matched his unkempt persona. He was dressed in the quintessential wizard clothing, pointed hat and all, and had a staff in his hand. He was looking at the two boys with twinkling eyes and a smile on his face.

"Uncle Merlin!" both boys yelled out and ran to give the man as hug.

The man now identified as Merlin chuckled as he returned both boys' hugs. "Look at you two! You've gotten so big since I last saw you! I trust you two have been behaving yourselves?"

Gawain nodded quickly. "Of course we have, Uncle Merlin. Mom would kill us if we didn't."

Merlin smirked at that and looked around for the woman in question. "And where is your mother? With master somewhere?"

Lancelot stuck out his tongue in disgust. "They're locked in the kitchen probably kissing."

Merlin got a perverted look on his face as he imagined Selene naked. "Really now? Maybe we should enter and tell them I'm here. You know, so they know to make food for me too."

"That won't be necessary." said a slightly irritated Slade who had just entered the room. "I knew you were here the moment you arrived. We stopped when we realized that. I wish you had arrived an hour later." the last part was said under his breath but the mage heard him.

Merlin giggled in a way that even the children knew was perverted. "Come on, master, I'm your favorite apprentice-"

"You're my only apprentice," interrupted Slade in a deadpan tone. "And a lazier or less motivated one I've never met. You'd think being taken as the apprentice of the Sorcerer Supreme would garner more respect but noooooo..."

"-you can tell me anything," continued Merlin as if he hadn't spoken. "So tell me... is she a moaner or a screamer?"

Suddenly, the atmosphere turned oppressive and dark as a sweetly smiling Selene entered the room. That smile terrified every male in the room for one simple reason.

Selene never smiles sweetly. Ever.

Selene continued to smile sweetly as she turned to a rapidly paling Merlin. "You know, Merlin. I've been hearing some interesting rumors from the passing Picts that sometimes stop by. Do you know what they're telling me?"

Merlin gulped and looked around for support only to see that Slade and the children had disappeared, leaving him alone with Selene. 'Traitors!' thought a panicking Merlin. "Um...no. What are they saying?"

Selene took out a butcher knife from behind her back and started to clean her nails with casual ease. The fact that she was cleaning her nails WITH A BUTCHER KNIFE and not cutting herself scared the everlasting shit out of Merlin. "Weeeellll, they're telling me that there's this good-for-nothing man dressed like a wizard going around sleeping with their women and even going so far as stealing their wives' underwear. You wouldn't happen to know who this person is, do you."

Merlin gulped as he realized he was dressed like a wizard and tried to discreetly hide the women's underwear that was sticking out of his back pocket. "Ummm... No, I don't. But don't worry, I'll dedicate myself to catching this perpetrator and bringing him to justice." He then tried to casually walk past Selene to the dining room only for her to catch him by the neck and start to squeeze, choking him.

Selene's smile turned vicious as the atmosphere turned even darker. "Don't worry. I already have."

Back in the dining room, Slade and the boys winced when they heard Merlin's screams start. Gawain turned to his father with a questioning look. "Dad? Didn't you say knights are supposed to be courageous? Why are we out here and abandoning Uncle Merlin to Mom's nonexistent mercy?"

Slade just patted Gawain's shoulder consolingly. "Son, someday you will learn there is a fine but clear line separating courage and stupidity." There was a crashing sound heard from the living room and cries of 'Not the face! Not the face!' "And crossing your mother lies firmly in the stupidity side of the line."

Merlin's screams of pain turned suspiciously high-pitched as he started screaming. "I changed my mind! Hit the face, please hit the face!"

An hour later, dining room

Merlin drank his wine with poise, completely ignoring the fact that he had a black eye and the boys' sniggers at his state.

Beside Slade, Selene smiled serenely with hidden glee as she watched Merlin eat with grace for fear of attracting her wrath again. Slade was trying to hide his snickers without much success at how happy Selene seemed after administering Merlin a beating.

Slade shook his head at his apprentice. "You know, I don't know how you turned out this way. When I met you, you spent your days ignoring my orders to train and spent your time staring at the clouds while calling everything 'Troublesome'. Now you're a raging womanizer, prankster and pervert. Oh, where did I go wrong?"

Merlin gave him a deadpan look. "Maybe it was when you dragged an impressionable 14 year old boy around the world and didn't silence your room every night when you guys were having-" Whatever else he was going to say was cut off by the boiling hot water thrown at his face by a completely unashamed Selene. "Ah! Hot, hot, hot, hot!"

The males in the room guffawed as Merlin ran out of the house and threw himself in the cold lake only to then scream 'Cold!' and run back into the house and park himself in front of the fireplace, shivering.

Selene shook her head with a small smile as she watched the men laugh at Merlin's misfortune. She turned to Slade with an exasperated look. "Are you sure it has to be him? Isn't there anyone else that can take the position?"

Slade gave her an apologetic look and shook his head. "Sorry, love, but there's no one else strong enough for the position. Even if there was, everyone else is either corrupt or wants to leave things as they are. Merlin's the only one who has a firm dream of bettering the magical world and with his skills plus the Sorcerer Supreme position he will make it reality."

Selene huffed and turned to Merlin who was still heating himself up by the fire. "Bum! Make yourself useful and clean the dishes!"

Merlin waved her off carelessly. "Don't wanna. I'm cold."

Selene glowered at him. "Even if you are an unmitigated bum, at least try to act like a normal civilized person while you're a guest in my house will you?"

Merlin gulped at the sight of her glare and nodded his head frantically. "Yes, ma'am!" With that, he quickly picked up the dirty dishes and went to wash them.

"And no magic!" yelled Selene at the man's retreating back.

"Awww!"

A few hours later, night had fallen and Slade could be found sitting in a chair looking over the garden

The garden had been a labor of love between Slade and Selene before Gawain was born and Lancelot entered their lives. It was divided between plants for potions, plants for food and plants just for aesthetic purposes. Slade had frozen Ashwinder eggs inside lanterns that were permanently hovering around the garden so that it would give the garden an ethereal setting at night.

Slade let the sounds of nature wash over him and ease his troubled thoughts. With all that's happened, he's learned to enjoy nature in all of its splendid beauty; the tweets of the birds, the clouds in the sky, and the crisp breeze blowing through the air. Slade had purposefully decided to retire somewhere in the wilderness instead of in 'civilization' for this very reason. In places like Constantinople the sounds never completely ceased and the feeling was quite different.

Here in the wild, there was a feeling of untamed energy combined with the slightest hint of danger that, as crazy as it sounds, relaxed him. It was quite sad to know that within two millennia these places would become quite scarce as humans forgot their roots and spread across the world like locusts.

It had taken much to convince the Picts of this kingdom to allow them to settle here, even with the Lady of the Lake's blessing. They didn't trust outsiders and rightly so. Too many people from 'civilization' looked down on their way of life simply because they didn't have fancy clothing or houses. However, they managed to win them over and they were allowed to live here in the heart of Pictland or Uerturio as they called it. Slade remembered reading about the land being where the king of the Picts usually ruled from but had yet to confirm it himself. While cordial, their relationship with the Picts wasn't such that they told him stuff like that.

Slade's eyes turned to the forest and he waved when he saw a patrolling centaur not far from the edge of the forest. The centaur waved back before returning to his patrol.

Their relationship with the centaurs was much better, with them trading with them regularly. In fact, Slade had to remember to trade with them come Samhain in order to get the spices that Selene so loves to put in her food. Slade could probably find it himself but it would be simpler and less insulting to the centaurs to simply trade with them. Of course, that was after he managed to get their minds back to earth. Slade swore he'd never met a more frustrating species than the centaurs. They constantly spoke in riddles about the future that frustrated the hell out of him.

Still, Slade had to admire the centaurs for surviving in the forest. While the forest was protected by the Lady of the Lake, that didn't stop creatures such as trolls, werewolves and three-headed dogs from entering. The centaurs often had to protect the forest from these creatures when they went out of control. The wild werewolves, especially, needed to be put down because they were people who had surrendered to the inner wolf and couldn't return to their human form and lost their intelligence. This was becoming more and more often as the generations separating them from the original golden werewolf increased.

However, there were also more docile creatures in the forest such as unicorns, pegasi, hippogriff, threstrals and bowtruckles. Selene often entered the forest with Lancelot to gather ingredients from these creatures. The fact that the unicorns allowed Lancelot to touch them always baffled and amazed them to no end. They hoped he always retained that purity. Though he ruined it by asking if he could adopt a baby Cerberus as a pet.

A smile crossed Slade's face as a familiar weight landed on his shoulder. A crow appeared over Slade's shoulder before speaking.

'Hello, Slade. You seem troubled today.' said Dust. 'Is something the matter?'

Slade had been given Dust as a gift by Death in the clearing when they first started to build the house. Dust was a pure black crow with golden eyes. She had a wingspan of 85 cm long and weighed about 170 grams. Slade had spoken to her and offered to let her live with them as his familiar.

In return, she would help guard the house when he wasn't there and protect the children if they wandered off as they were prone to. It was a beneficial relationship for both and eventually they became friends.

Slade sighed. "I'm worried, Dust. The centaurs have become more and more skittish every time I visit as if expecting something to happen. They also keep looking at me as if it was the last time they expected to see me but they refuse to tell me why. I know they can read the stars to have a vague idea of the future so this disturbs me."

Dust cawed into his ear for a second before answering. "Perhaps they know something is coming. You know how those stubborn mules are like. They refuse to interfere with what they think is foretold. They forget that if something is truly unavoidable then trying to change it would do nothing. However, the attempt to stop disasters is a sentiment that should never be lost."

Slade smiled sadly. "When did you get so philosophical?"

Dust rolled her eyes, even though that should be impossible for a snake. "When I made friends with the Madman of the Forest."

Slade laughed at the name the locals had given him. It amused Slade that they were so scared of him that they called him a madman. Heck, even Merlin had taken to disguising himself as a madman in order to make the rumors spread.

Slade stopped laughing and sighed morosely. "I just wish I knew what was coming. I have a bad feeling about this and this isn't like before. Now I have a wife and children to think about. I can't risk facing the unknown with them in tow."

"Then perhaps you should heed my advice and go back to your own time."

Slade's eyes narrowed at the sound of the voice. He didn't need to ask who it was. He was intimately familiar with the speaker... unfortunately. Dust knew as well and slithered away to avoid being caught in the middle of the confrontation to come.

"Agamotto," said Slade in a deadpan voice. "Fancy seeing you here."

Agamotto had appeared out of the forest edge as an ethereal blue tiger. He casually walked through the garden without disturbing so much as a single leaf before sitting on his haunches before Slade.

"Are you finally willing to listen to reason? This is not your time, Slade. You have done all you had to do in this time and you must return to your own."

Slade sneered at his words. Agamotto had been telling him to pass on the Sorcerer Supreme title to Merlin and return to his time ever since Gawain was born. Apparently, now that he had helped birth Gawain and saved Lancelot from dying in the forest, his job was done and he expected Slade to abandon his wife and children and return to his time.

Not bloody likely.

"And I've told you, you overgrown housecat, that I will not abandon my family," retorted Slade angrily. "My place is with my wife here raising our children."

Agamotto growled angrily. "You have no idea what you risk with your presence. The longer you stay, the more you risk completely unraveling the timeline. Lancelot is meant to be raised by the Lady of the Lake just like Gawain is meant to be raised by Morgause."

"And as their parents, Selene and I don't have the right to raise them ourselves?!" yelled Slade angrily. "Now that we've been good little minions and done everything according to your instructions, you expect us to just abandon our children?! What are we to you? Breeders for your little kingdom?"

"Do not put words in my mouth!" yelled Agamotto angrily. "I am simply telling you facts! I tried to get you to leave Gawain with Morgause before you grew too attached to him so it would be easier! The same thing was for Lancelot! But you insisted on raising them yourselves despite knowing it is not supposed to be that way!"

"We are their parents," said Slade stubbornly. "We are supposed to raise them and that's the way things are supposed to be."

"Agh, you are impossible to reason with!" exclaimed Agamotto furiously. The ethereal blue tiger started to pace in front of Slade. "I am not happy nor proud to have to do this! But the problem is that the legends of Gawain and Lancelot cause ripples beyond this multiverse! Their legend extends to the entire Omniverse! A single change in their legend or behavior will send ripples across the entire Omniverse and who knows what can be destroyed by the waves those ripples create?! Beings like Pandora use these ripples to their benefit!"

Slade frowned. "I know enough about Space-Time to know that when a variation or change in the past, such as the one I'm making, occurs an alternate universe is created. That doesn't make much difference and doesn't risk the Omniverse so why does this put you in such a bind?"

Agamotto bared his teeth angrily. "Because, as I said, the legends of Gawain and Lancelot and their relation to King Arthur affects the entire Omniverse! Every single multiverse cluster has a legend of them in their past. And in every one, the legend is much the same with only a few variations. But what you risk doing will smack in the face of every single one of those legends! The consequence will be that every single multiverse will have rewrite its history and basically change according to how the changes you make in the past affect the present. However, not all universes will be able to adapt! That means that in order to maintain the stability of the Omniverse, entire universes and maybe even entire multiverse clusters will be deleted. A near infinite amount of lives will be lost and the stability of the Omniverse may become compromised! And all that for what?! You do not even know what kind of future your actions will create?!"

"I do know what they'll create," said Slade firmly. "A better life for my children than what they got and that's all that matters. This is my time now and as much as I miss my father and the people of that time, I am happy here, Agamotto. You are the one who brought me to this time. I didn't make a mistake all those years ago. You dragged me here and now you expect me to just abandon the life I've built here and go back? After everything I have suffered, after everything I have sacrificed, don't I deserve to be happy?" The last part was said with naked desperation in his voice.

Agamotto's form drooped and he sighed. "Yes, Slade. Of all the people I've met, you deserve your happiness the most. Unfortunately, it is not that simple. You have destiny in the future just like your children have a destiny here and the choice of whether you stay here or not is not up to me."

"No," agreed Slade. "It's up to me and I've made my choice. I will stay to live with my wife and grow old with my children. Screw my destiny. All it ever brought me was heartache."

Agamotto sighed but couldn't help but give one final warning. "Very well, Slade. However, I give you this warning. The Omniverse is alive to a certain extent. It may rebel against your perceived attack on it and I have no doubt that people you love will be caught in the crossfire. Are you willing to take that risk?"

Slade looked worried but nodded.

Agamotto sighed and changed the subject, his warning given. "Well, you called me here tonight. Does that mean you are finally passing on you position as Sorcerer Supreme?"

Slade slowly nodded. "Yes, it's time. Merlin is ready at long last. The magical world is ready for the vision Merlin has for it and there's no better time for it. Though I wish he would be more serious about it."

Agamotto's form rolled its eyes. "I am not pleased about this as well. I would prefer to keep you than some rookie who has no idea what to do. Thankfully, Dormammu and the others have been sealed away for half a century thanks to you. That should be long enough for Merlin to come into himself and be able to handle them." Agamotto groaned as if in actual physical pain. "If only he wasn't such a damn pervert. I just know he's going to be locked away because of it. I just know it."

Slade couldn't help but smile. "He can be serious when he has to be as he's proven. Plus, maybe some of his light-heartedness will rub off on you and take that stick out of your ass."

Agamotto growled. "Watch it."

Slade just laughed at his response. It was to this sight that Merlin exited the house. Slade laughing and looking unconcerned despite the fact there was a blue, glowing tiger looking quite angry not five feet from him.

Fortunately, Merlin had seen Agamotto take this form various times so he knew who it was. Merlin walked forward to stand beside his master and bowed to the being. "Agamotto? It is an honor to see you. Why are you here?"

Agamotto stopped growling and sighed before turning to Merlin. "I am here because your master is going to pass on the position of Sorcerer Supreme."

Merlin seemed surprised for a second before turning to Slade in concern. "Are you sick, master? Is there anything I can do?"

Slade waved him off. "No, Merlin, I'm fine. I've simply decided that it's time to pass the position to someone who will use it with wisdom and who is actually active in the magical world. This person has a clear vision of what he wants for the future and I'm giving him the position to support him."

Merlin looked confused and slightly annoyed that someone else would get the position that in his mind, firmly belonged to his master. "Who is it?"

Slade looked amused at Merlin's annoyance since knew the reason behind it. "You, of course."

Merlin blinked as if not understanding before it slowly dawned on him. "W-What?! Me!? B-b-but you can't be serious, master! I'm a pervert and unreliable and-"

Slade raised his hand to silence him. "You may be a pervert but you're anything but unreliable. Every time I've truly needed you you've always come through. You've grown under my teachings. Grudgingly, yes but you still grew. You changed from the small 14 year old boy who was still recovering from his recent jaunt through time to a strong 40 year old sorcerer that has mastered the First Miracle and is wise enough to look to the future of both magical and non-magical worlds."

Merlin looked lost, no longer the shameless pervert or prankster but a man who was being told by the only father he had ever known that it was time for him to leave the nest. "B-But... I'm too young! What if I make a mistake?"

Slade laid a hand gently on his shoulder and smiled. "I have no doubt you will. We're only human and we'll make mistakes. The important thing is when we trip, to be strong enough to pick ourselves back up."

Merlin looked at Slade while biting his bottom lip before nodding hesitantly. "Do you really think so?"

Slade smiled widely. "I know so. You, Merlin, are selfless, heroic, protective, honorable, brave, caring, optimistic, compassionate, and wise. Even if you impart only a few of these traits onto the next generation, the world will be a better place."

Merlin's eyes watered at his master's honest faith in him and he nodded. Agamotto saw that they were done and spoke. "It is time, Slade. And I must say...it was an honor to have you as Sorcerer Supreme. None will remember your sacrifices but I swear to you that I will never forget."

Slade nodded and closed his eyes. Suddenly, the Cloak of Levitation appeared around him and he started to glow an ethereal white. Slade opened his eyes and his eyes were now shining like stars and his voice took on a double-timbre, as two people were speaking. "Myraddin of Ruta, do you accept the position of Sorcerer Supreme and swear to protect this realm from all harm, internal and external until such time that you pass on the title to another?"

Merlin gulped but stood up straight with his staff in hand. "I do so swear."

Slade closed his eyes and the glow surrounding him started to travel to Merlin. "Then by the power vested in me by the Vishanti, I, Slade Strange, do name you this dimension's new Sorcerer Supreme!"

The dark clouds that had been gathering rumbled and the earth shook slightly as Slade stopped glowing and the Cloak of Levitation disappeared from his shoulders to appear on Merlin's. Merlin glowed an ethereal white and the Cloak of Levitation changed to mimic the wizarding wear he always wore. Agamotto gave Slade one last meaningful look and disappeared.

Merlin stumbled slightly and Slade helped steady him until he regained his balance. Merlin shook his head and looked at Slade in wonder. "Is this how you felt all the time? I feel so much stronger! It's like the difference between a caterpillar and a bear!"

Slade smiled slightly and put his hands in his pockets. "More or less. But remember, with this power comes the responsibility to use it wisely. Remember all that I've taught you and you will do well."

Merlin became serious and nodded. "I will, master... father." The last word was said in a low tone but Slade still heard it and smiled.

The master and apprentice embraced for a second before separating. Both tried to discreetly wipe their eyes so the other wouldn't see.

After gathering himself, Merlin gave Slade a questioning look. "What will you do now, master?"

Slade smiled softly. "I'm gonna stay here and raise my family. If you ever need anything, don't be afraid to call but I'm sure you can stand on your own now."

Merlin nodded slowly and a concerned look came over his face. "And what about what Agamotto said? Are you sure you'll be okay?"

Slade smirked. "I thought I heard you listening to us. Don't worry about that overgrown caterpillar. I can take care of myself."

Merlin still looked concerned but accepted his master's words. "Very well then, master. I'll be off then. Selene still won't allow me to sleep over after what happened last time."

Slade gave him a slight glare. "That's because you tried to see her naked by turning invisible and hiding in the bathroom. You dirty pervert. You're gonna get killed for that one of these days."

Merlin just waggled his eyebrows. "But what a way to go." With a crack! Merlin disappeared before Slade could retort.

Slade shook his head and chuckled slightly. "Oh Merlin, don't ever change." The man who was once Sorcerer Supreme then turned around and walked into his home to sleep beside his loving wife.

Island of Ruta, Same time

A cloaked figure walked amongst the shadows of the temple to the Tuatha de Danaan. A passing candle illuminated the face under the hood for a second showing a half-burned face of a woman that looked more like a hag than a woman. The few people out this late at night took no notice of her as she hid in the shadows and they continued to walk towards their homes to sleep. Once, the figure had been welcome here and she had had no need to hide. However, the keepers of the temple had found out about her... less than acceptable practices in magic and had banished her from setting foot here. This did little to deter the goddess-level sorceress though. It just made it slightly more difficult to get in and out without attracting attention.

The figure checked if the coast was clear before it sneaked into a home that looked like every other, the only difference being that a candle was still lit inside and the curtains were drawn. The figure silently walked to the living room of the home where a woman waited for her.

The waiting woman was beautiful by anyone's standards. She had long blonde hair that looked to be spun out of gold, beautiful golden eyes that seemed to pierce the soul and a body that most women would kill for.

Her beauty was such that it attracted her future husband, Duke Gorlois of Cornwall, 20 years ago despite her still being part of the Old Religion. He married soon after and they had two children, Morgause, who had married Lot the future king of Orkney 3 years ago, and her son, Cador. Her beauty was such that a fairy crossed over on Samhain night 6 years ago and took the form of her husband in order to bed her. From this union came her youngest daughter, Morgana, but thankfully, her husband did not blame her or Morgana and loved Morgana as if she was his own.

Few who saw her would believe she was actually 40 years old instead of the 20 years old she appeared. Less still would believe that the ugly hag that was currently visiting was her mother yet it was also true.

The cloaked woman lowered her hood, revealing the still burned face of Circe. Time had not been kind to Circe. Her once beautiful red hair that shined in the sun had turned dull and unkempt due to neglect. Her figure that once made men drool in lust now had curves in all the wrong places and the fact that her teeth were slightly yellowing did not help overmuch. All in all, Circe looked the part of her new title of Hag of the Forest.

Igraine's eyes softened as she beheld her mother and she ignored her looks and wrapped her in a hug. Circe showed surprising gentleness and hugged her back just as lovingly.

"Hello, mother," said Igraine softly. "Are you hungry? The trip here must have been long."

Circe gave her a small smile that looked more like a grimace on her half-burned face. "Please and thank you. It is getting harder and harder to enter unseen. It seems as if the guards are getting better at protecting this place which is ironic considering everyone knows it will sink within the decade."

Igraine said nothing as she prepared a plate for her mother although she personally thought that it wasn't that the guards were getting better but that her mother's magic was getting weaker. Magic came from within but the condition of the body decided how much magic one could channel at a time. Immortal in that she could not die of old age her mother may be, but she was no longer what she once was.

Of course, Circe wouldn't hear of it and insisted that her magic was just as strong if not stronger than ever. Igraine disagreed.

Her magic wasn't stronger, just darker.

None of this was shown on Igraine's face as she lovingly placed a plate of food in front of her mother who had sat in the dining room table. Circe gave her a smile of thanks and ate gracefully. Despite her looks, Circe still moved quite gracefully and she had passed on that and her magical skills to her daughter.

The two made small talk and inquired into each other's lives. Circe made a face of disgust when Igraine mentioned either her husband Gorlois or her son, Cador. Circe's hate of men had only grown worse through the years and it extended even to her own grandson. However, Igraine was used to this and simply ignored it.

After Circe finished her meal, she turned to the reason for arranging this meeting. After all, Igraine was supposed to be in Cornwall with her husband right now. She only managed to be here due to using Samhain as an excuse to visit.

Circe's eyes took on an eager gleam as she spoke. "I'm finally ready, Igraine. After all these years, I'm finally ready to get revenge on that bastard Sladian for what he did to us."

Igraine's face was impassive as she spoke although one could see the apprehension in her eyes. "You found him then? I thought rumors said he had died."

"Bah!" dismissed Circe. "As if anything but a goddess-level sorcerer could kill him. I watched him cut through and completely destroy one of the most powerful of the Fallen myself. And that was after he killed various council members and another Fallen. I doubt anything in this world but I could match anymore. He did go out of his way to kill anyone of note."

At this, Igraine could not stay silent. "Not everyone. By all accounts, the magicals he killed were all dark or corrupt in some way."

Circe fixed Igraine with a stern glare. "Don't let the rumors he started get to you! He's a ruthless monster who cut Morwen down like a coward and burned my face after getting me pregnant! There's not a good bone in his body. I was lucky to escape with my life!"

Igraine looked skeptical but said nothing. "Very well, you've found him. What are you going to do?"

Circe looked at Igraine as if it should be obvious. "Why... kill him of course! I've got it all planned out. He lives alone far from civilization with that whore, Selene and two boys. They'll be easy pickings. I'll use the same trap he used against Morwen and me. I'll wait till he's gone from the house and kill everyone inside before concentrating on him. He'll be so caught off-guard and weak from inaction that it'll be easy."

Igraine, however, focused on something else. "Two boys? He has children?" There was hint of longing and jealousy in her tone. Jealous that he had other children who got to know their father unlike her.

Circe didn't catch her tone and just waved it off. "Yes, yes. One is his and Selene's kid and the other is some brat he adopted. Probably trained them to be a killers like him."

Igraine fell silent as she lost herself in thought.

Her entire life, Circe had told her that her father was an evil cruel man that burned her after finding out she was pregnant. At first, Igraine believed her and hated her father. However, as she grew older things didn't start to add up. By all accounts her father was a good man who only killed evil and corrupt magicals. He asked for no fame or glory and found no joy in his duty. His apprentice, Merlin, was also another well-known figure and while known as unsalvageable pervert, he was also known for his kindness and wisdom.

By the time Igraine was 19 she started to doubt her mother's words and began to construct a more or less accurate picture of truly happened.

Her mother had often boasted to have once been so beautiful that she could seduce any man. She had once let slip that she even managed to trick and seduce the Sorcerer Supreme himself. Since the only Sorcerer Supreme she could have known was Sladian himself, that said he hadn't raped like she said but rather that she seduced him.

Another thing that made her suspicious was the way she spoke of Morwen. Circe often portrayed Morwen as a tragic figure who tried to bring order to a chaotic world. However, everyone Igraine asked said Morwen's name with fear and hatred. Her name alone was enough to terrify most magicals even now, 40 years later. When her mother had been banished for practicing dark magic, this had only cemented Igraine's belief that her father had not been the guilty party.

Circe didn't notice Igraine's expression and continued to speak. "First, I'll need you to bypass the wards around the clearing and household so I can enter without alerting anyone inside. Once I've taken care of everyone inside we'll go after Sladian. We'll kill him together, as mother and daughter."

Circe had placed a hand on Igraine's at the last statement and Igraine delicately pulled her hand from Circe's grip. "And what about the children? Will you kill them as well?"

Circe looked perplexed the question. "But of course! They're just men and deserve nothing less!"

Igraine's face became hard as stone and her emerald eyes flashed in anger. "There are not men. They are boys. Children just like my son Cador. Would you kill Cador in your hatred of men as well?"

Igraine's heart dropped and tears came to her eyes as she saw the truth in her mother's eyes. She had tried to believe that deep down she truly loved her grandson and was just being stubborn. However, Igraine could now see that she would feel nothing at Cador's death and she could no longer lie to herself any longer. Her mother was a monster.

Igraine stood up and turned to her mother with an angry expression. "I think it's time for you to leave, mother. I will not be party to the murder of innocent children, no matter their gender. I won't say that men are not without their faults for they are, but children are innocent. I won't blame children for the sins of a few bad men."

Circe stood up with a thunderous expression and was just about to shout when they heard footsteps walking down the hall. They turned and saw 5 year old Morgana rubbing her eyes sleepily and looking at them in confusion. "Grandma Cissy? What are you doing here so late?"

Circe smiled lovingly at her granddaughter and gently picked her up and placed her on her hip much like she did to Igraine when she was Morgana's age. "Nothing, dear. We were just talking about something. Why don't you go to bed?"

Morgana looked up at Circe with wide, innocent eyes. "Will you read me a bedtime story?"

Circe smiled gently and turned to Igraine who reluctantly shook her head. Circe's smile dropped slightly before she turned to Morgana. "Sorry, dear but your grandmother has to go. I'll tell you a story when I come back."

Morgana pouted. "Promise?"

Circe smiled. "Promise. Look," Circe reached into her cloak and pulled out an Adamantine dagger. Igraine was about to interject but Circe spoke first. "You hold on to this until I come back. This is very special to me since it's the only one of its kind. That way you're sure I'll come back and tell you a bedtime story."

Morgana happily grabbed the golden dagger by the hilt. "Thank you, grandma. I promise to keep it safe till you come back."

Circe just smiled. "I know you will." She laid a kiss on Morgana's forehead and placed her on the floor where Morgana said goodnight and ran to her room.

Alone again, Igraine turned back to Circe. "Will you still do this?"

"Yes." said Circe firmly with hardened eyes. "I will do it tomorrow before the Lady of the Lake visit him for Samhain. He'll have lowered his guard tomorrow since Samhain is so close. He needs to pay for what he's done. Will you attempt to stop me?"

Igraine's eyes closed in pain at her mother's words before she let loose a sigh. "No. I may not agree with your decision but... you are still my mother and I love you."

Circe's eyes softened and she laid a kiss on Igraine's forehead much like she had to Morgana. "And I love you my beautiful daughter."

With that, Circe left the house to get ready for the next day.

The next day, Slade and Selene's house

The morning sun poured in through the windows, dragging Slade from the depths of his slumber. He yawned and stretched his sleep-stiff limbs, careful not to disturb the sleeping woman at his side. Selene faced away from him, her breaths shallow, the gentle rise and fall of her chest steady. He curled around her, pressing his chest against her bare back and throwing a possessive arm around her waist. She made a noise, a gentle purr of contentment in the back of her throat and slept on.

Slade loved these mornings, when he woke early out of habit and had the privilege of watching Selene sleep, vulnerable and unguarded in the soft morning light. Sometimes she would crack a tired eye and tell him to stop being weird and watch her while she slept. Sometimes she would huff and curse and tell him to be useful and go start breakfast. But sometimes she was like this, languishing in the hazy world between sleep and consciousness, warm and pliable, receptive to the kinds of tender caresses that she would have rebuked in waking hours.

This was the first of what was hopefully many mornings where Slade was no longer Sorcerer Supreme. No more having to disappear to deal with problems on the other side of the world. No more coming back at odd hours or not coming back for days. Now he could truly enjoy his life with his family.

"Wake up, love," he whispered, dropping his head to lay a dry kiss on her shoulder. His fingers drew patterns over the soft skin of her stomach, ghosted over the curve of her breasts, dipped down to stroke the coarse patch of hair between her legs. His cock, half-hard from a barely remembered dream brushed against her arse.

The noise she made this time was less than content, a pitiful grumble of annoyance. "Sleeping," she mumbled, tugging uselessly at the sheet tangled and curling into herself. The movement put a new space between them, but allowed Slade a teasing glimpse between her splayed legs.

Lemon start

Slade couldn't resist the temptation and reached for his heavy prick, giving it a few firm strokes as he drank in the sight of her, remembering how he'd been there just a few hours before, his face buried in the warmth of her cunt, drinking down her pungent taste as her thighs squeezed the sides of his head like a vice. Selene had been beyond happy the first time he ate her out and enjoyed it immensely ever since. Slade himself didn't mind since she often returned the favor.

He pulled her back towards him so she could feel the weight of his arousal pressed against her. He angled his cock so that it settled in the crack between her arse cheeks and moved, just a gentle cant of his hips. "Wake up, love," he whispered again.

She said nothing and gave no indication that she'd heard him at all. Her breathing remained steady, her body relaxed. Slade rested his weight on one arm while his free hand found its way to her hip. He held her against him as he began to move, the subtle friction of dry skin on dry skin making up for the painfully slow pace of his rutting. Pre-cum oozed from his reddening head and left a sticky trail across her ivory skin. It wasn't enough to get him off, but it set his skin on fire, every nerve in his body awakening with a screaming need.

Slade released his light grip on her hip and let his hand travel down. She was wet, whether from dreams of her own or an unconscious response to his touch, Slade didn't know. It didn't matter either, all that mattered was the slick feel of her cunt, the soft, velvet heat underneath his fingertips that he would give anything to sink into. His fingers sought her clit as his eyes watched her face, waiting patiently for the moment when she would throw off those last vestiges of sleep and join him.

It didn't come. Selene made a mewling sound, but her eyes remained shut and a peaceful smile spread across her face. Her legs closed tight, trapping his hand between her thighs. At first Slade worried it was an act of self-defense, an attempt to deny him access to those bits of her he wanted to touch so badly. But then she began to rock, her arse pressing up against his groin as her hips moved, grinding herself between the hand caught between her legs and the cock trapped between the curve of her arse and his stomach.

It was intoxicating, watching Selene writhe, knowing there was nothing contrived or even conscious in the way she move. Maybe she was trapped in that shallow dreamscape before waking, when the world of the living was able to break through the thin layer of sleep and influence foggy dreams. He wondered if she was dreaming of him, dreaming of this.

But he couldn't relax, couldn't let go, because it felt too good, yet not good enough. It would be better, so much better, if he could push himself inside, feel the warmth of her cunt wrapped around him as she moved. "Selene, please," he said quietly. "Please wake up. I need you."

She must have heard him, or maybe she heard the Slade in her dreams speak, because she let out a little whimper. Her slide of her body became less gentle, more insistent, and she pressed back with more pressure, grinding her arse against him with desperate little swivels of her hips. Slade tried to pull his hand free, but her legs squeezed tighter, holding it in place. "No," she grumbled, her voice thick with sleep and a childlike sternness. "Stay."

Slade's heart began to pound as the need to bury himself inside her tried to overwhelm him. He couldn't pull his arm away, but he could shimmy a few inches down the bed. He pulled his own hips back, trying desperately to free his cock – now fully erect and weeping from the slit – so he could angle, angle down, angle just there.

The head of his cock slipped against her wet folds and he hissed as the sensation shot through his body, his nerves exploding like a series of firecrackers. He pushed forward, his cock slipping between the swollen lips of her cunt. It was glorious, so warm and smooth and wet. But it wasn't tight passage he wanted; he wasn't inside.

"Selene," he whimpered, not caring that his voice was high and pleading. "Fuck, Selene." His cock ached to be inside her, to feel the tight walls of her cunt pulsing around him.

She continued to rock, rubbing herself shamelessly against his hand. And then it happened, Slade felt the crown of his cockhead catch on the rim of her passage. He let out a sob of joy and wrenched his hand free, grabbing onto her hip before she could protest. He held her still as he pushed his hips forward, sinking inch after inch into that blinding wet heat in one steady thrust.

Selene gasped, and then suddenly her hand was on top of his on her hip, the nails of her fingers digging into the top of his hand. He pulled his hand away and reached down, grasping blindly for her leg so he could lift it, open her up, push in deeper. "By the Creator," she exhaled, her voice aware but still heavy with sleep. She groaned, a deep sound within her chest. "Goddammit, Slade."

Slade couldn't bear to pull out too far and was more than happy to hold her against him, moving his hips in shallow, measured thrusts. He let go of her leg, but she maintained the position and moaned as he began to explore the front of her body, his calloused fingers mapping her curves and causing a line of gooseflesh to break out wherever he touched. Her muscles clenched around him when he pinched her nipples, her body going taut in surprise and pleasure.

Selene pulled his hand away from her breasts and guided it down, back to the junction between her legs. His fingers slipped between her fleshy lips and found her clit once more. She whimpered, small, begging sounds escaping the back of her throat as he began to rub small, tight circles that didn't match the leisurely pace of their fucking. She reached behind her, slipping her hand into his hair, and tugged – hard – just as she clenched her muscles tight, holding him inside, refusing to let him go.

"You're trying to kill me," Slade gasped as he pushed against her. Her cunt was tight, the walls gripping hard onto his oversensitive cock so that every fractional movement sent a shock of crippling pleasure spiraling through his body. He could feel her working her muscles, tensing and relaxing, tensing and relaxing, tensing and relaxing, as though she were trying to milk his orgasm from him with her cunt.

"That's what you get," she moaned as she circled her hips, "for waking me up so damn early."

His mind was useless, but his body moved on autopilot, stored muscle memory from the countless other times they'd fucked like this, slow and deep, almost torturous in its tender brutality. He hissed as he pushed into the tight grip and his hand continued to work. When he pinched her clit, rolling the distended nub between his fingers, she cried out. Her thighs began to shake and the muscles in her cunt spasmed. "Fuck, fuck, fuck," she chanted.

Her line of her body went rigid, every muscle held taut for just a moment, before she deflated with a worn-out sigh.

"You bastard," she said with a throaty chuckle.

Slade laughed and kissed her sweat-soaked black hair. He lifted her leg again, higher this time, and she let him. Her limbs were a heavy, dead weight, but he didn't care. He didn't need much, just a few earnest thrusts, and few clumsy pistons of his hips and then his balls were drawing up, his cock was pulsing, and he was emptying himself inside her coveted heat.

Lemon end

He pulled out slowly, then collapsed into the soft embrace of the mattress. Selene rolled over, draping herself across him. He laughed again and slipped his arms around her shoulders, trying to haul her up to him, but found he hadn't the strength. Sighing, he abandoned his endeavor, choosing instead to relax into his post-orgasmic bliss.

"Good morning, beloved," she chirped. She kissed his chest, then bit down softly, nipping him with more affection than malice.

"Shh," Slade said, as his eyes fell closed. "I'm sleeping."

The last thing he heard before slipping back into unconsciousness was another throaty chuckle and a threat to how he should expect to be woken up.

Slade woke up once more about an hour later. The sun was already fully up and his bed was empty. The smell and sounds coming from the kitchen told him Selene was cooking breakfast and Lancelot and Gawain were already awake.

With a smile on his face, Slade got up and got dressed for the day. He would be going to meet the centaurs before noon in order to trade for the spices Selene needs for the dinner she was going to make for tomorrow. The boys had made him promise to take them along the next time he went to meet the centaurs so they would be coming as well. Slade couldn't wait to see the looks of disappointment on their faces when the 'cool centaurs' turned out to be frustrating stargazers that spoke in riddles.

Slade saw a medium-sized chest laying on the floor next to the dresser. Sealed inside it was the gifts from the Asgardians, Olympians, Shinto and Egyptians for all his help and good work. It was a small but noticeable amount of Uru and Adamantine as well as a doze of other materials. At the time Slade asked for it, he had planned on forging weapons out of it. However, now that he had retired from his Sorcerer Supreme duties maybe he should trade it back to the Olympians in return for them blessing the children. Slade certainly didn't need it and any extra protection on the kids would be appreciated.

Deciding on doing just that, Slade shrunk the chest with a wave of his hand and pocketed it. After he comes back with the kids from trading with the centaurs he'll go to Olympus and Asgard to ask for the trade.

Slade walked out and kissed Selene good morning before smiling at Lancelot and Gawain's bickering. This time it was over who would track the centaurs faster. Rolling his eyes and stopping the argument, Slade sat down and ate his breakfast along with Selene.

After he finished, he sighed and turned to the children. "Well, get dressed boys. We're going to see the centaurs now. It's easier to track them early in the morning than it is in the afternoon. Ruddy stargazers start obsessing not even two hours after noon."

Selene smiled as the children cheered and went to get changed. She turned to Slade with a teasing smirk. "You sure you know what spices to get?"

Slade rolled his eyes and smirked right back. "Yes, love, I know what spices to ask for. I can't believe the once prim and proper Senator Gallio is now roughing it in the outdoors and even knows what spices to use in the food that she cooks."

Selene scoffed at Slade. "Please. This might as well be the pinnacle of civilization compared to Constantinople. At least here I don't have to be afraid of some idiotic senator getting offended because I won't spread my legs for him and then finding some false charges to get me arrested. Egotistical pigs."

Slade chuckled and gave Selene a short kiss. "Good riddance to bad rubbish."

Selene smiled lovingly up at her husband. "Plus... I would live anywhere as long as I'm with you."

Slade returned the smile before shaking his head self-deprecatingly. "What did I ever do to deserve you? You gave up everything you know for me and followed me through hell and even gave me a family. Heck, I think you're the only wife in the world that actually encourages her husband to sleep with other women."

Selene just gave him a naughty smile. "And who said I'm not just using you so that I can have sex with those women as well?" Selene laughed at the glazed look in her husband's eyes and playfully smacked his arm to get him out of it.

Slade came back from his happy place and gave his wife a lustful smile. "You're mean. Now I'm all hot and bothered. What are you going to do about it?"

Selene rolled her eyes at her husband's libido. "You're incorrigible! We just had sex this morning. You woke me up for that if you remember. Something I still have to get you back for." Selene turned slightly serious. "But to be truthful, I let you sleep with other women because I know you love me. I'm no longer afraid of you leaving me for another woman."

Slade frowned slightly. "You got really upset when I slept with Circe."

"That was different," hissed Selene angrily. "That... whore was just using you. If she had actually cared for you... okay, I still wouldn't have liked it but it would have been easier to understand. She only slept with you to cause me pain and to kill you afterwards. You were nothing but an expendable toy to her and that angered me. Especially since I knew you well enough by then that I knew you would grow attached to her. It's impossible for you not to feel something for the women you've been with. That's why I hated Circe so much. I knew she was going to hurt you."

Slade gave her a sort of half-confused, half-understanding look. "So... you don't mind me sleeping with other women as long as you approve of them?"

Selene winked at him. "Exactly."

Slade chuckled and kissed Selene deeply before breaking the kiss and looking at her lovingly. "What did I ever do to deserve you?"

Selene smirked. "You believed that a woman who had done unknowable evil could become better and was worthy of redemption."

Slade chuckled and turned when he heard the children thundering down the halls toward them. Gawain and Lancelot entered the room at the same time, each one declaring themselves the winner of their little impromptu race.

Slade outright laughed when Lancelot said he won because he was older much to Gawain's anger. He put a hand on each boy's shoulder when it looked like it was going to become physical. "No fighting. You two are brothers and while you can get angry at each other, brothers should never try to hurt the other. Understand?"

Both boys looked down in shame and nodded their heads in understanding. Slade smiled down at both boys and ruffled their hair playfully. "Anyway, it was a tie. That means that as long as you both are unharmed, you both won. Now, go outside and wait for me while I say goodbye to your mother."

Both boys stuck out their tongue at what that meant before running outside to wait for him.

Slade turned back to Selene and gave her another kiss. "We'll be back in about two hours, okay?"

Selene nodded before frowning as she remembered something. "By the way, I heard raised voices last night. Did something happen?"

Slade scowled slightly in remembered anger. "Just arguing with Agamotto again. No big deal."

Selene's eyes flashed in rage at Agamotto's name. She had been beyond angry when he had first told Slade to basically abandon her and their children. The idea that he considered her nothing more than a baby factory filled her with uncontrollable anger. Since then, she couldn't be in the same room as Agamotto without them arguing and in order to stop Selene from trying (and failing) to hurt Agamotto, Slade simply made sure they weren't in the same room anymore.

Selene scowled as well. "You told him where he could shove his whole 'destiny and necessity' crap, right?"

Slade chuckled and nodded his head. "Yes, dear. I told him that I'm not going anywhere and now that Merlin's the Sorcerer Supreme I don't have to talk to him anymore."

"Good," said Selene stiffly. She softened slightly and kissed Slade once more. "Be careful out there, those damn centaurs are getting on my nerves with their cryptic warnings. You know how they are. If they believe something is pre-destined not only do they not do anything to stop it, but they actually try to stop others from stopping it."

Slade frowned and nodded before grabbing the bag to carry the spices in as well as what he was offering to trade them for. "Don't worry, I will. See you soon, love."

With that, Slade walked outside to take the boys to meet the centaurs.

Forest edge, an hour later

Circe scowled as she reached out with her magical senses. The good news was that Sladian wasn't at home. However, neither were his children as well, only Selene. She wanted to kill both Selene and the children together in order to shatter Sladian but killing Selene would have to do. She would take care of the brats at a later time.

Circe started to chant in an old, guttural language. Before her magical senses, she felt the wards start to react to her spell. Circe had always been a master of transfiguration. She had been able to do complex transfigurations when she was barely 12. However, she had grown lazy ever since she became immortal and this was what led to her being defeated by Selene all those years ago.

Since her defeat and disfigurement, Circe had returned to her roots and once again pioneered several branches of transfiguration. One of these was the spell she was using now.

Wards usually could only be either broken through brute strength, unraveled if one knew enough about ward structure or bypassed if one knew a loophole in the ward scheme. However, the first was dangerous because one of the wards could be traps and kill the one trying to break through, the second took too long and alerted the ones inside and the last wasn't always possible.

Circe, however, found another way. Instead of doing anything like that, she literally changed the basic structure of the ward scheme itself. It took highly advanced magical senses and centuries of skill in the art of transfiguration, but by doing this, not only was Circe able to enter without alerting the inhabitants, but she could literally change the wards to accept her as the primary controller of the wards. Doing this wouldn't alert the inhabitants unless you were the primary controller of the wards since nothing actually changed in their scheme. Even then, the primary would only be alerted once he entered the wards themselves and since Sladian wasn't here, he wouldn't know until it was too late.

Circe gave a smirk of triumph as she felt the wards pass to her control. She had to give Sladian some respect as she felt the power of the wards as well as the drain they gave her. He had to have some serious magical power to be able to shrug off the drain so readily.

Circe cast an invisibility spell on herself and stalked toward her prey.

Inside the house, Selene was cleaning up the kitchen when she stiffened. Her instincts were telling her that something was off but she didn't know what. It took her a minute but she finally realized what it was.

The forest was silent.

There was usually the normal sounds of animals and birds but now, it was completely silent. Like the way animals went silent when a predator was around.

It was only thanks to Selene's instincts that she managed to dodge the first spell aimed at her back. Without looking, Selene banished everything in the kitchen toward her attacker only to curse when she saw the dishes and other stuff be either vanished or turned into transfigured animals.

Selene ran into the living room and grabbed Nightweaver and barely had time to dodge another spell. Ripping her dress along the side to giver herself some more mobility, Selene cast a wide-area cancelation charm to reveal her opponent.

Selene's eyes narrowed as she saw a cloaked figure fade into view as the person's invisibility spell wore off. Selene could tell that the person was female by the way they stood but little else. The cloak they wore covered their body completely and they had their hood up which cast their face into shadow. Despite this, there was something... familiar about the attacker. As if something from a long time ago.

Selene scowled at her attacker. "Who are you and why are you attacking me?"

The figure chuckled in false mirth. "Oh, I'm hurt, Selene. Don't you remember your old friend? I'm certain your husband does. He was such a good lay. If he hadn't burned my face, I would have even deigned to make him my lover."

Selene narrowed her eyes in thought as an idea of who the attacker was started to surface. "No... It can't be. She's dead."

The figure reached up and pulled back her hood, causing Selene to gasp as she saw the person's face.

The entire left side of the person's face was twisted in barely healed burns. The burns extended down the side of the head, making that side bare of any hair. Their left eye was barely seen through her drooping eyelid. The eyelid itself was injured as well. From what Selene could see, it was just as burned as the rest of that side of her face and she probably kept it as closed as possible to keep it from hurting too much. The left side of their mouth was twisted from the burns, giving her a sort of permanent grimace.

Despite this, Selene recognized the woman. She had worked alongside her for millennia, after all.

"Circe," gasped out Selene in shock. "B-But... how? I thought you died."

Circe gave her a twisted smile. "You always did give me too little credit, Selene. I'm a survivor. I survived all this time because I knew when to press the advantage and when to fall back. That night, I had a space-time emergency transport on me. I activated it when your bastard of a husband burned my face and I managed to escape."

"For 40 years, I planned my revenge. I cursed as you destroyed my resources but in the end you underestimated me. You destroyed them thinking I was dead and never thought I'd build new contacts and acquire new resources. Now, after so long, I have you right where I want you and you're going to be the first to die. Then, your children ending with your husband."

Selene's eyes narrowed at the threat to her family. "You've forgotten that you're in my home. You're the one who's in trouble."

Circe smirked and waved her hand. Suddenly, Selene dropped to her knees as she felt her magic be bound by the wards. Selene was so caught off guard that the wards obeyed her that she couldn't react in time to stop Circe from ripping her sword from her hand and stabbing her though the stomach with it.

Circe smiled evilly as she watched Selene's look of pain at being stabbed. She originally wanted to make this long a drawn out but she couldn't risk Sladian coming back early and stopping her. She learned from their last encounter to not underestimate the man.

Suddenly, Circe shrieked as a pure black Crow with gold eyes struck and clawed the arm holding the sword with a caw of rage.

'You shall not harm the mistress anymore! Die, witch!' Cawed Dust angrily.

Circe stepped back as Dust tried to claw her again, holding her right arm close to her as she hissed in pain. With a roar of rage, Circe telekinetically grabbed Dust and through her a wall and out into the clearing outside.

Dust's distraction had given Selene time to grit her teeth at the pain and wrench the sword from her gut. While Circe was off-guard Selene used the last of her failing strength to slash at Circe. Circe dodged both blades but was caught off-guard when Selene put all her strength into a kick that pushed Circe though another wall and back outside, breaking Circe's nose in the process.

Selene fell in a heap and admonished herself for letting herself be caught off-guard. However, it was understandable. Selene hadn't expected Circe to take control of the wards, much less be able to use the magic negation aspect of it to such a degree. It had been Slade's idea in case they had to invite someone of dubious loyalties and they turned out to be hostile. They would strip the person of the ability to wield their magic before capturing them. Who knew that someday it would be used against them?

Selene's eyes widened in fear as she suddenly felt Circe attack the house's support beams from the outside, trying to bury Selene inside. Knowing that in her weakened state she wouldn't be able to survive that, Selene walked over to the fireplace and smeared blood over the mantelpiece.

With a slight rumble and a glow of a rune activating, the unlit fireplace rolled back into the wall, revealing a staircase into a secret basement.

The basement had been a hobby of Selene's whenever Slade was out on Sorcerer Supreme business. She wanted a sort of safe haven for the children in case they were ever attacked and so secretly built this place for them to hide. It was only halfway done and she was going to tell Slade about it now that he was no longer Sorcerer Supreme and had time to help her finish. Now it looked like it would be seeing use sooner than expected. However, even halfway done, the room was strong enough to withstand even a barrage of hellfire from ten Fallen.

Selene started to walk down the stairs when she heard the sound of something shattering. Selene turned and saw green fire racing towards her.

"Greek fire," muttered Selene, partially in fear.

Unlike normal fire, which Selene could control, Greek fire was magical in nature and therefore, couldn't be controlled by her. It also spread rapidly and burned everything that wasn't extremely powerfully magical in nature. This included people and with Selene's power still bound, she wouldn't survive if it reached her.

Holding a hand to her wound, Selene pushed herself down the stairs to escape the fire's reach for a moment. Getting up as quick as she could with her wound, Selene ran down the passageway with the fire not far behind her. Reaching the door to her haven, Selene wrenched it open and barely closed it in time.

Taking a breath in relief, Selene saw her world start to blur and barely had time to activate the haven's security features to maximum before passing out.

With Slade, same time

Slade inwardly groaned in frustration as he continued to barter with the centaurs. He had been at this for over an hour and it would have been done in five minutes if they had simply talk like normal people.

Unfortunately, centaurs liked to talk in vague terms that would give even the most skilled politician a migraine to try and decipher. Slade couldn't help but feel as if they were trying to stall for some reason. They had always been annoying trade with but never to this extent. It was like they were doing this on purpose...

Slade stiffened and narrowed his eyes as he discreetly looked around. He noticed that while seemingly relaxed, the centaurs has stood in a way that he was cut off from his path back home. He hadn't noticed because he wasn't technically surrounded. He still had an escape route available... just in the direction toward his house.

Slade turned to where the boys were bothering some centaurs about how it felt to run like a horse with a stern look. "Gawain! Lancelot! Come here!"

Gawain had a rebellious look on his face. "But Dad! Can't we stay a little while longer? There's nothing to do since Mom won't let us spar today."

A centaur with a gray coat and Caucasian skin spoke up. "Yes. We don't mind talking to the little ones. You can stay as long as you want."

That set off alarm bells in Slade's head and he automatically started gathering his magic. Centaurs never liked talking to humans, even children. They considered humans barbarians at best and monsters at worst. While they wouldn't hurt a child, they certainly wouldn't willingly spend time with one.

Slade glared at his sons, causing them to freeze in fear. "Come here NOW!"

The boys were almost instantly at his side, realizing that their father was serious. Lancelot was looking around for whatever had his adoptive father on guard while Gawain was now watching the centaurs with suspicious eyes.

Slade stiffly turned to the leader of the centaurs who he had been bartering with and was now tense much like his fellows. "What are you hiding, Cale? You've never been this cryptic before. Why are you stalling me?"

A remorseful look crossed Cale's face before he spoke. "You cannot stop what is meant to be, Slade. To do so invites disaster. I'm sorry."

Slade looked around him before freezing when he caught sight of something in the air in the direction of his home.

Smoke.

Black smoke.

Slade's mind froze as the implications hit him and rage filled him as he realized what the centaurs had allowed to happen. With a roar of rage, Slade let loose a shockwave of power that threw the centaurs flying almost a dozen feet back and land in a heap.

"MERLIN!"

With a pop of displaced air, Merlin appeared at his side, staff alight with magic and ready to fight. Merlin looked around in slight confusion before turning to his master. "Master! What's wrong? Did something happen?"

Slade turned to Merlin with eyes blazing with magic, making his eyes look like emerald flames. "Merlin, stay with the children and protect them at all costs. Don't let these mules," Slade gave the groaning centaurs a disdainful look, "touch them or near them no matter what. I have to go see what happened at home."

With that, Slade disappeared in a swirl that originated from his back, leaving Merlin alone with the boys.

Merlin was confused at his master's words until he looked in the direction of Slade's home and saw the smoke. He paled before turning red in anger. Merlin turned tot he still groaning centaurs with rage in his eyes. "Hope that Lady Selene is fine for if not... Hell will seem like sweet release compared to what I will do to you."

With that said, Merlin pulled the children close and consoled them that everything would be alright. However, deep in Merlin's heart, he felt as if something terrible was going to happen.

Just outside Slade's clearing, one minute later

Slade appeared in a swirl of color just outside the clearing. At first, he was confused why he appeared outside of the wards when he was aiming for outside the house. However, he eventually felt the reason why.

The wards were under someone else's control and they had used the ward to prevent Space-Time travel through them. This caused Slade to start to panic. He knew the many wards he's put up and if someone else was in control of them, that meant that Selene was basically defenseless since there was a ward that also inhibited mutant powers.

Thankfully, Slade had put in a backdoor for the wards and he now reached out to activate it. The backdoor itself only responded to his magic alone and anyone else attempting to change or use it in anyway would cause the person to be killed. Slade reached out and activated the backdoor, causing the wards to collapse instantly. Better for them to be down than to be used against him.

Slade started to run toward the house that was now burning in green flames that were frighteningly familiar.

Greek fire.

Slade stopped, however, when he heard a caw of pain nearby. Slade turned and tears came to his eyes as he saw the broken body of his familiar, Dust, lying a few feet from him.

Dust saw Slade and gave him the bird version of a sad smile. 'Slade... I'm sorry. I tried to save your mate but... the witch was too strong. I'm... sorry for... Failing you...'

Slade shook his head. "You tried, Dust. Thank you for that. Return now, you have done more than enough."

Dust just smiled before she turned into her namesake and she stilled in tattoo form.

Slade got up from where he had kneeled beside the spot where Dust had been and turned to his house only to narrow his eyes as he caught sight of the person who must be responsible. The flames illuminated the person's face and even with her nose broken and bleeding and the left side of her face burned, Slade recognized her.

"Circe," hissed out Slade angrily. "You did this?!"

Circe smiled evilly though the effect was lessened by the fact that her nose was broken. "Did you think me dead, Sladian? I regret to tell you that I'm much stronger than I appear. Your barrier blocked most forms of escape but not space-time transportation. Luckily, I had suspected something might happen and had it handy just in case. Now... after 40 years, I finally have my revenge on that bitch for her betrayal."

Slade started to see red at Circe's words even as his heart started to shatter. He had been stretching out his senses to the maximum to see if perhaps Selene had survived but felt nothing. A wave of despair and utter heartbreak filled him as it seemed as if Circe's words were true and his beloved wife was dead.

Slade steeled his heart and turned all his pain into rage. This woman had come and destroyed his home, killed his wife and by the way she was still babbling, was planning on killing his children for no other reason than because they were his. Slade was not going to give Circe the pleasure of a long drawn out battle.

"... and now, Sladian, it is time for you to d-" Circe's words were cut off by a gurgle of pain. Circe looked down to her chest and was surprised to see Líthi's blade sticking out of her chest, through her heart.

Slade glared at Circe with hate in his eyes as he glared at Circe. He disappeared and reappeared behind Circe before ripping out Líthi viciously. "My blade obeys my commands... Even if it is buried under ten feet of rubble and Greek fire."

Circe let out a gurgle and fell on the floor, bleeding out. Slade glared and viciously pushed Circe over so she was looking up before once again stabbing her with Líthi, this time through the stomach. Slade's face was a mask of rage and hate as he slowly pushed and pulled Líthi out of Circe's stomach, causing her to cry out in pain. "You killed my wife! Do you think I was going to show you mercy!? Rot in hell, you fucking whore!"

Circe let out a laugh even as she screamed in pain. "I-It doesn't matter if you killed me. Even in death, I've had my revenge."

Slade's eyes narrowed as he leaned closer to hear her even as he felt a terrible sense of foreboding. "What do you mean?"

Circe smirked evilly even as the light slowly started to leave her eyes. "That time you bedded me... you-urgh! - got me pregnant. I had my beautiful Igraine nine months later. She didn't wish to help me kill you but now? After you killed her mother? My line will finish what I started! My teachings have been passed on! As for you... How will you live with yourself? Knowing... that you made... your eldest daughter... an orphan?"

With that final cruel barb, Circe, the millennia old Greek witch finally died.

Slade was wide-eyed and pale at Circe's revelation. He took a step back and almost stumbled in shock. The idea that he, a man who had been abandoned by his own parents, robbed his own child of their mother filled him self-loathing. Worse still, was the knowledge that in death Circe had poisoned any chance Slade had of a relationship with his daughter.

That knowledge coupled with the knowledge that his beloved Selene was dead was too much for him and he broke down crying on the floor. The only thing he thought of was Agamotto's warning last night, that the ones he cared about would pay for his attempt of changing history.

Slade sobbed as he blamed himself for his selfishness. His desire to escape his destiny had led to his wife's death. In truth, he could have simply taken his wife to his time with him. However, he had wanted to escape his fate, tired from decades of fighting and killing. When Gawain and Lancelot came, they were just a convenient excuse for him to not go back to his own time. And now, his wife had paid the price for his cowardice.

He didn't know how long he lay on his knees, sobbing but he was eventually roused when someone laid a hand on his shoulder. Slade looked up and saw Merlin's wet eyes looking back at him, reflecting a similar pain to his own. Selene had been like a mother to Merlin and he had loved her like one. Her death affected him almost as strongly as it did Slade.

Slade saw his sons sobbing not far from him, having realized what happened to their beloved mother. Slade hardened his heart. He wouldn't let his sons pay for his selfishness. If he continued to stay in this time, they might suffer next and he couldn't allow that. There was only one way to protect them and let them grow up to adulthood safe and relatively happy.

Slade cleared his eyes and stood up with Merlin's help. Merlin looked at his master with sad eyes. "I'm sorry, Master. If I had been here..."

Slade put a hand on Merlin's shoulder to stop him from continuing. "You couldn't have known Merlin. Don't beat yourself up for something that was your fault. The one who did it..." Slade looked at Circe's corpse lying with Líthi still impaled in her stomach. "Is dead. Selene is avenged. Now... I have to make arrangements for my sons."

Merlin looked confused at his master's words. "What do you mean, master?"

Slade sighed, his heart still crying out in pain from Selene's death but he pressed forward. "I was warned that something might happen. You know I'm not from this time. Agamotto told me that I had to return or terrible things might happen due to it. Selene's death... was due to that. I can't stay here any longer or you three might suffer next. I have let you three follow your destinies... no matter what they are."

Merlin looked confused but nodded his head. "As you say, master. What will you do?"

Slade sighed and closed his eyes. "I recently found out that the Lady Igraine is in reality my daughter. That makes the Lady Morgause, my granddaughter. I plan to go to her and ask her to take in Gawain as her own child. She should say that Gawain is her and her husband's child. He will be safe and protected there."

Merlin looked thoughtful but nodded his head in agreement. "Yes. He is really her uncle but can masquerade as her son well enough. As your granddaughter, there is enough similarities between them for it to be accepted. What about Lancelot?"

Slade closed his eyes in pain. "I am going to give Lancelot to be raised by the Lady of the Lake." Slade raised his hand to stop Merlin's protests. "Trust me, Merlin. It has to be this way. While I don't doubt you can raise him, you will be too busy as Sorcerer Supreme as well as doing your other projects to be around 24/7. The Lady has always wanted a son and she will be a good influence on him."

Merlin looked conflicted but eventually sighed and nodded his head in agreement. "Very well. Will you do this now?"

Slade shook his head and walked over to Circe's corpse. He pulled out Líthi and summoned Mir from the rubble. The rubble shifted as Mir came out of the rubble, completely unharmed and landed in his hand. Slade put Líthi inside Mir and tied it to belt. That done, Slade conjured a large blanket and wrapped Circe's corpse in it, taking care to close Circe's eyes so it seemed as if she was sleeping and covering all her injuries as well as the burned part of her face.

Slade looked down at the corpse of the woman who revealed herself to be the mother of his first child and felt a mixture of emotions. He still hated her for killing Selene but at the same time... she had birthed his first child. She might have kept Igraine from him and tried to poison her against him but... in the end, she had raised and loved his child instead of simply abandoning her. It was a possibility since Circe hated Slade with a passion and could have passed on that hate to Igraine yet she didn't. For that reason if nothing else, Slade was grateful. Even if he didn't know Igraine and she might hate him for killing Circe... she was still his daughter.

Slade froze as he realized that Igraine was destined to be the mother of King Arthur as well as mother to Morgana le Fay. Slade closed his eyes as a sardonic smile came to his face. He was father and grandfather to some of the most famous Knights of the Round Table as well as their sworn enemy. What irony.

Slade picked up the wrapped up corpse of Circe and turned to Merlin with a serious look on his face. "I'm going to take Circe's body to her daughter. She... Igraine deserves that much. After all... I did kill her mother."

Merlin's face took on an understanding look. "Very well. I will watch over Gawain and Lancelot until you return."

Slade nodded and walked over to his children. "Gawain, Lancelot. Stay here with Merlin. I'm... going to do something. I'll be right back."

Gawain looked up at his father with teary eyes. "You promise? You promise you won't leave as well?"

Slade closed in eyes in pain at his son's heartbroken words. Soon he would have to leave both his sons forever. How could he do this so soon after losing their mother?

'Because I have to,' thought Slade sadly.

Slade steeled his heart and smiled down at his son. "I promise I'll be back soon. I just... have someone I need to talk to and it's long overdue."

Gawain and Lancelot looked confused at his words but were consoled by their father's promise. With a final farewell, Slade disappeared in a swirl of color.

Isle of Ruta, 5 minutes later

Slade appeared on the shores of the Isle of Ruta. He had originally appeared in Cornwall, thinking she would be there only to be told she was in Ruta attending the Samhain festival there. Slade had then appeared here and started to walk toward the temple in the distance.

As he walked through the streets, people stopped to stare at the wrapped bundle in his arms, since it was obviously a person by the shape. Rumors flew as he walked toward a magical signature that felt similar to his and Circe's, knowing who it was by that alone.

Slade stopped in front of a house that looked like all the others and took a deep breath before knocking. Soon after, the door was opened by a beautiful blond woman that looked like Circe did before she was burned except her eyes held kindness in them.

Igraine froze when she saw Slade and the wind passed in that moment, allowing the blanket Circe's corpse was wrapped in to move a little and reveal her face.

Igraine's face crumpled at the sight of her dead mother and she started to sob. Slade closed his eyes in pain and spoke. "May I come in?"

Igraine nodded even as she continued to cry and let Slade pass. Slade walked toward the dining room table and placed Circe's wrapped corpse on it, taking care to be gentle since he knew that despite his personal feelings... this was Igraine's mother and by her sobs, she had loved her dearly.

Slade stepped back as Igraine walked toward her mother's corpse and started to sob on her chest. Slade looked away, feeling guilty for being the cause of his unknown daughter's tears. If Slade had known about Igraine before had imagined their first meeting... it wouldn't be like this.

Igraine eventually stopped crying and sniffed a little before turning to Slade with carefully neutral eyes. "So... I guess you must be Sladian... my father?"

Slade looked at his daughter's eyes, so much like his own and nodded.

Igraine's face broke slightly and Slade saw the longing mixed in with anger hidden in their depths. Igraine eventually masked it and turned around before speaking once more. "I told her... I told her to let it go but she didn't listen. She was so fixated on revenge..." Igraine turned around to look at Slade with angry and accusing eyes. "Why did you kill her?! Certainly someone of your skill could have simply captured her?!"

Slade closed his eyes as he felt the blows from her words hit. Slade swallowed heavily before speaking. "I didn't... I didn't know about you. If I had known... no... Even if I had known it still would have ended this way. Circe killed her. She killed my wife, Selene."

Igraine froze at that and a glimmer of sympathy entered her eyes. "I guess... I can understand your anger then. God knows I would kill whoever killed my husband."

Slade tried not to grimace at the irony of that statement considering what he knew of the future. "I'm still sorry. I... didn't imagine our first meeting like this."

Igraine gave a sardonic smile. "Sadly... I knew it was going to be something like this. Mother... always hated you. There was no chance of us meeting in peace." Igraine looked at the corpse of her mother before turning back to Slade. "I know what you want and I don't hate you but... please leave. I may not hate you but... I loved my mother."

Slade felt his heart break a little more than it already had at her words. It was naïve of him to think he could have had some kind of peaceful talk with his daughter after killing her mother. Still, he had to try since he was never going to see her again.

Slade got up before stopping at the door. "What are you going to tell Morgana?"

Igraine had her back to him as she spoke. "For now, I'll tell her that her grandmother died. When she's older, if I think she's mature enough to understand, I'll tell her the truth."

Slade paused before opening his mouth to speak only for Igraine to cut him off. "I'm sorry but you can't see her. You have to understand... Morgana adored my mother. She's also very smart. If she finds out you're her grandfather and sees my mother dead... she'll put two and two together. She'll hate you and I don't want her to hate her own blood."

Slade couldn't help but internally grimace at the irony but said nothing. "Very well. I'm... not going to be reachable in the coming years. If you ever need anything, anything at all, contact my apprentice Merlin. He'll help you."

Igraine nodded, her back still to him and Slade walked out the door.

As soon as Slade left, Igraine looked in his direction with a half-longing, half-pained look before breaking down crying at all that her mother's hate had cost.

The next day, Orkney

Morgause slowly came back to the waking world with a yawn. She smiled and buried herself in the warmth of her husband's body. She had been married to Lot for 3 years now but still enjoyed the feeling of her husband's next to her own when she woke.

Unlike most marriages, they had married for love and Morgause couldn't be happier. Just yesterday, the physician had told her she was 2 months pregnant. She and Lot had been overjoyed though that was slightly overshadowed by the fact that Lot's father was still sick and didn't look like he was getting any better.

Despite that, Morgause and Lot celebrated the incoming birth of their first child well into the night and this led to them oversleeping the next day. Morgause wondered why the servants haven't woken them yet when they usually did.

Morgause froze when he heard somebody whispering in the room. The voice was unfamiliar but it was unmistakably male. This was what caused her to freeze since all their servants were female so the only male in the room should be her husband. Luckily, it seemed as if her husband had awoken and noticed as well since she felt him tense under her.

Morgause slowly moved her hand under the pillow to grasp the knife hidden there but froze when the person spoke.

"Please, I mean you no harm. I am sorry for my rudeness and for the impertinence of coming into your chambers unannounced but I needed to speak to you both and my coming could not be seen."

Morgause paused in thought before deciding that if the man had meant them harm, then he wouldn't be on the other side of the room and he wouldn't have spoken. Furthermore, she could hear the soft tenor of a boy near the man in question and decided that no assassin would bring a boy.

Lot seemed to have come to the same conclusion because he got off the bed and glared at the man in question. The man had black hair with silver streaks that was slightly wild in a deliberate way. He was broad-shouldered and she could tell her was no stranger to hard work yet still had an air of a scholar around him. He had a sheath holstered on his belt but no sword inside it.

Morgause gasped when she took in the man's eyes. They were the color of amber. More importantly, they were exactly like her mother's. In that moment, Morgause knew, without a shadow of a doubt, who was standing before them.

"Who are you and why did you barge into my chambers?" demanded Lot angrily. He had his sword in hand and was pointing it at the man threateningly but the man seemed unfazed.

"I'm sorry. My name is Sladian Invictus and this is my son Gawain. I have come to beg a boon from you." asked Sladian humbly. The boy, Gawain, seemed nervous and sad but showed no fear at Lot's threats, as if sure that his father could protect him even unarmed.

Lot sneered and was about to retort when Morgause interrupted. "My love... let him speak... please."

Lot looked at his wife in confusion while still watching Sladian from the corner of his eye. "Why, love? Do you know this man?"

Morgause nodded as she drank in the sight of her until-now unknown grandfather. "Yes and no. I think... that he's my grandfather."

That brought Lot up short and he was further perplexed when the man nodded.

Slade smiled slightly. "You are as smart as your mother. I am... sorry I didn't come at a better time but my time is short. For what it is worth... I was not part of your life due to no fault of mine. If I had known you and your mother existed... I would have moved heaven and earth to raise you."

Morgause face softened at his words and she put a hand on Lot's arm. Lot looked at her and sighed before putting his sword down before looking at Sladian in confusion. "You don't look a day over 30."

Slade smiled sadly. "One of the boons of magic, milord." Slade steeled himself for what he had to do now. "I wish... I could stay and talk to you more, granddaughter but as I said, my time is short. I ask that you take in my son, Gawain here and raise him as your own child."

Morgause and Lot looked at him with confusion evident on their faces. "Why, grandfather? Can't you raise him yourself? If it is someplace to stay I'm sure my husband can offer you a room here in Orkney." said Morgause in confusion.

Slade smiled sadly. "It is not that. I... don't have long for this world and... My wife... was killed yesterday. He has nowhere else to stay and I thought since you are technically his niece..."

"... I could raise him as my own." finished Morgause. She looked at Sladian in the eye, her own purple eyes studying his emerald before sadness and understanding entered them. "My grandmother killed her, didn't she?"

Sladian stiffened before nodding. Beside him, Gawain's eyes were red from tears, signaling the fact that he was recently crying. From the fact that his father had to leave or the fact that he lost his mother recently was unknown but Morgause suspected both.

Lot looked at the man before him in sympathy. He might seem to be unaffected but now that he knew what happened, Lot could see the unfathomable pain in the man's eyes. To lose both wife and son in a span of two days was shattering him. Lot couldn't imagine what he would do if the same happened to him. This helped him make his choice.

"We agree," said Lot firmly. "We'll go to one of my other estates for a few years and when we come back, we'll say he's ours. No one will say anything and simply accept it. He looks similar enough to both Morgause and I for the ruse to work."

Morgause looked from her husband to her estranged grandfather before settling on the boy. Morgause's heart broke when she saw the desolation in his eyes. To lose one's entire world within two days, Morgause couldn't imagine it. Her grandmother had a lot to answer for. While she loved her grandmother, Morgause always knew the kind of person she was. She had no doubt that she was dead since Sladian was still alive and personally, Morgause believed she had reaped what she'd sown.

Morgause nodded before walking toward Gawain. She was only wearing a nightgown to cover her modesty but she was technically surrounded by family so she didn't bother covering up. Sure enough, Sladian didn't even glance at her body, something that was rare since Morgause knew she was beautiful. This only further cemented the fact that he was her grandfather.

Morgause kneeled before Gawain with a smile. "I know that you're sad about what happened to your mother but I promise to take care of you now. We're family and we always protect one another."

Gawain nodded before jumping into her arms and hugging her. Morgause just smiled sadly and hugged him back as he cried into her shoulder.

Slade watched with a broken heart as he was forced to leave his son behind but was at least glad that he would be well looked after. "Gawain, come here."

Gawain left Morgause's embrace and walked over to his father who had kneeled so they looked eye to eye.

Slade smiled sadly before hugging him which he fiercely returned. When they broke the hug, Slade looked his son in the eye. "I love you, son. Never doubt that. Remember the family emblem and the five virtues of a knight: noble generosity, fellowship, purity, courtesy, and compassion. As long as you follow these virtues I will always be proud of you."

Gawain nodded through his tears as he sniffled. "When I become a knight, I'll put our emblem on my shield. To honor you, father."

Slade smiled sadly. "I'd like that, son."

The two embraced one last time before separating. Slade stepped back and smiled sadly at his son one last time before turning to Morgause and Lot. "If you ever have need of anything, call on my former apprentice Merlin. He is a good man if a little... eccentric. He will aid as he can."

With that parting comment, Slade disappeared in a swirl of color.

Slade's clearing, Northern Pictland

Merlin stiffened before relaxing as he felt his master arrive. Lancelot stood beside him awaiting his Slade's arrival as well, anxious to know how it went with Gawain's niece/new adoptive mother.

Slade appeared in a swirl of color before them, his face neutral though you could still see the pain in his eyes. He smiled bitterly at them before speaking. "Morgause agreed to take Gawain in. I'm sure he'll be happy there."

Lancelot looked relieved before a concerned look came to his face. "What about me, father?"

Slade smiled down at Lancelot. "You'll be coming with me to Avalon. The Lady of the Lake has agreed to raise you as her own. You'll return when you've grown. I'm... in no condition to travel through time so the Lady is going to help me. This is why we are in such a hurry. The portal to Avalon is only open today, on Samhain, so we have to hurry."

As he spoke, the lake glowed blue and two boats appeared: one that would lead Lancelot to Avalon and another for Slade to take him to his own time using the Lady's power. Realizing that the time had come, Slade turned to Merlin. "Merlin, I... didn't have time to properly search for Selene's body so if you find it... please bury it properly. Also... take in Morgana as your apprentice when the time comes. It's the least I can do for her after what I took from her."

Merlin nodded his head sadly. "I will do as you ask, master. I... will miss you... father."

Slade smiled sadly before bringing Merlin in for a hug. The two, master and apprentice, embraced firmly before separating. Slade smiled at his first apprentice before speaking. "Be happy, Merlin. And for the love of God, stop perving on the goddesses. One of these days they're gonna succeed in castrating you."

Merlin just gave him a perverted grin. "It'd be worth it if I managed to see the Lady of the Lake naked before I died."

Slade groaned but just shook his head in exasperation. "Whatever."

Slade walked to the boats with Lancelot before stopping with Lancelot alongside his boat. Slade knew it was the one for Lancelot since it had his name etched along the side.

Slade placed his hands on his adoptive son's shoulders before speaking. "Be happy, Lancelot. I know you will make a great knight and I'm proud of you. Never forget the virtues of the perfect knight and always follow your heart."

Lancelot wiped the tears from his eyes before hugging the only father he had ever known. Separating, Lancelot stepped into his boat and it started to take him along the Lake surface toward an unnatural mist that appeared in the middle of the lake.

Slade looked into the Lake's surface and saw the Lady of the Lake looking back at him. "Thank you, milady, for agreeing to watch over him. Have you done as I asked?"

The Lady of the Lake nodded and she pushed Líthi out of the water and into Slade's hands. "Arthur's sword, Excalibur, will be forged in Líthi's likeness. The fairies and I think it will be our greatest work yet. Without your sword as an example we would have never have been capable of it. As you requested, two sister sword will be made as well and they will give to Lancelot and Gawain when they come of age. Your shield will also be enchanted and given to Arthur when the time comes."

Slade nodded and said nothing as he stepped into the boat. He laid down on the boat similar to how they would arrange a corpse and a morbid part of him thought it was fitting considering how he felt.

The entire time since he found out about Selene's death he had barely kept himself together. He had been with her for over 40 years and the pain of her loss cut deeper than any blade could hope to match. There was an aching hollowness in his heart where Selene once resided and he knew that no one would ever fill it again.

The Lady whispered in his ear as the boat moved toward the mists that would take him to his time. "Sleep, young one. Sleep heals most wounds. While it will not heal this one, sleep and dream until you reach your time."

Slade felt the Lady's magic affect him and he let it happen. He slowly fell asleep as the boat entered the mists. As he slept, his body seemed to become younger. The little gray hairs he had disappeared although his silver stripes remained. He became less broad and slightly skinnier as well as his skin becoming more youthful.

By the time the boat entered the currents of time, Slade was once again 16 years old. One year off the exact age he should be once he returned home.

Back in the clearing, Merlin watched his master's boat disappear into mist and muttered into the wind. "And so the greatest man to ever grace the land goes to sleep amongst the mist... to return someday in the future."

With a pop of displaced air, Merlin disappeared.

But fate it seems had another plan for Slade, for when he woke up, he found himself not on Earth, but in a different dimension that would one day be called the Negative Zone.

'Why does this shit always happen to me?' Slade mused, as strange insect-like creatures appeared flying towards him and he could they were not friendly.

'Great, a welcoming committee.' He thought as he griped Líthi. 'Well then, let's greet the new neighbors, shall we Líthi?' As charged toward the hostile force.

A/N: There it is. The last of the Past Catastrophes Arc. Now it may take some time as this is where Angeldoctor left off, so it may be a while before the next update. The poll is still up and will end on October 2nd, so keep voting and look to chapter 13 for a description of the choices.

While you are waiting check out my other stories.

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