"There is magic in the air... the earth and in water." "but this ancient power has been forgotten by many in these lands." "and the Celtic people are no longer under its protection." "Saxon hordes slaughter the brave Celts... but it is not only this Saxon enemy that defeats them." "For treachery lurks at the heart of their resistance." "Yet... there is hope." "He is healthy, I hope." "He is everything I was told he would be." "How can this be?" "A mark of the Tuadaan... the divine race." "A gift from them, nothing more." "Nothing to fear." "Will you now reveal the father?" "I have told you... he has none." "He came to me as his name did... in a dream full of hope..." "And what is this name?" "His name... is Myrrdin." "Do it again, Myrrdin... make it grow!" "How'd you do it?" "I do not know, it just... happens." "Mother says it must be a secret." "Do you swear not to tell?" "I swear, not even my own mother." "Come on, then!" "You would not strike a lady." "The gods of the wind on my side." "What have I told you?" "Come away from the forest." "Make haste." "Why is Wynar Forest forbidden?" "Because it is held sacred... for the Tuadaan." "No man is permitted to enter." "The forest will not let him in or out alive." "Tell me about the Tuadaan again." "Well, long ago, the gods of light... and the gods of darkness fought a fierce war." "The battles took place in the world of men, in these lands... perhaps on the very ground we walk upon now." " A divine race of people." " Tuadaan." "Ssh." "The Tuadaan fought alongside the gods of light." "The Tuadaan drove the dark gods into the underworld... and made these lands safe." "But the fight will never be done." "The battle between light and darkness continues in the underworld to this very day." "You, Myrrdin, you carry the mark of the Tuadaan." "They left this world to save us." "So you must never forget how precious life is." "It is your special responsibility." " What is this?" " It's the king." "He's responded to our calls for help." "He sent an envoy to hear us... and his powerful druid." "Nia, you must go to your mother." "Wait!" "Myrrdin, you must go home and wait until I return." "I promise one day you will understand." "But now you must go... now!" "Go!" "Your crops failed... so you beg for the king's help." "And yet... you do not help yourselves." "Where is your altar?" "Where are your sacred stones?" "From where do you worship?" "You have forgotten the old ways." "You have failed your gods." "This is why you pay the price." "Starvation is a light punishment for your lack of faith." "We follow the gods, my druid." "You must appease your gods." "And only one thing will satisfy them now... sacrifice." "Human sacrifice, one of you owe." "But all life is precious!" "Who speaks?" "All... all life is precious." "That is what the Tuadaan taught us." "The Tuadaan?" "You speak of nothing but a dead race." "Would you follow their teachings over mine?" "Of course he will not, my druid." "The boy merely speaks out of turn." "Come here, child." "Do not fear me." "Come." "No!" "Myrrdin!" "Myrrdin, no!" "What's this?" "It is a mark... of the Tuadaan." "Who branded you, son?" "Tell me now!" "We don't brand children here!" "He was born with it." "He's been branded with it!" "There are those among you who would worship the Tuadaan." "Myrrdin!" "This is the rot that keeps you from your true gods!" "No!" "Myrrdin!" "Well, you shall learn the folly of this." "We have your sacrifice!" "No, you don't understand, please, please!" " Please!" " You cannot... understand!" "Please!" "He's only a child." "Your father may be a chieftain, but you are still a bastard son, nothing more!" "Cross the king's druid again and I will butcher you." "Please, not him!" "Please!" "You cannot escape your destiny, boy." "Myrrdin!" " Let me perform the sacrifice." " No, Myrrdin!" "My druid, I do not trust..." "Very well." "You may prove your worth to me, bastard son of Cornwall." "No!" "Myrrdin!" "No!" "You die today so your village may live on." "Please..." "Bite my hand." "Bite my hand now!" "Agh!" "Do you hear your mother, boy?" "Give yourself to the gods and save her!" "No!" "No, Myrrdin!" "No!" "No, Myrrdin!" "Good boy." "Seize him!" "Come here, boy!" "Come here!" "Get off me!" "Stop there, boy!" "Come here now!" "You meant to save him." "Now he's dead anyway." "No one survives Wynar." "Did you feel it, Lucan?" "He summoned the elements, that boy." "He would have made a powerful sacrifice for our cause." "Instead, the forest has taken him." "You should not have let him escape you." "It was Arthfael... he meant to free the boy." "Let me kill him now, in the boy's stead." "No, no... his father is a friend to the King." "Arthfael shall pay for what he has done, but we shall bide our time." "We have more villages to visit... much work to do." "He wanted so badly to save the boy." "Let us take his mind off this dark memory." "Let's get him drunk." "We can't get him drunk, he's just a boy!" "Then he can watch us getting drunk!" "Hey, Arthfael!" "Arthfael!" "Arthfael!" "A moment, friends." "I'm sure the Saxons will wait for our brave commander." "Speak quickly, Anyon." "The Saxon forces approach." "Aberthol's men are at it again." "You said to always tell you." "Show me." "But the Saxons... you said..." "We're not just fighting the Saxons." "A Christian Celt..." "Worse than a Saxon you are!" "What's wrong with the old gods then, eh?" "Don't you know what happens to heathens?" "Aberthol says we're to sacrifice all Christians soon as we find 'em." "They mean to kill her!" "But you cannot challenge Aberthol's men." "The druid has too much power." "We'll go back to camp, yes?" "No!" "It's my turn." "Hold her." "You won't need that!" "And yet you need a blade!" "If you must be armed, surely she can have her faith as a shield?" "We serve the king's druid." "You cannot meddle!" "Return to battle!" "Can I not stay and watch your battle, brothers?" "That I may learn from your tactics?" "Two men to kill one woman... unless you count her unborn child as a combatant." "A fair and even fight after all!" " You mock us." " I do." "And you are precisely as intelligent as you appear." "You cannot harm us!" "We are Aberthol's men!" "Aberthol will hear of this!" "You are a Christian then?" "Yes." "Our king's pagan druid thinks little of the new faith." "And you?" "I think little of all faiths." "Faith places too much emphasis on death." "I value life." "Will you, please... my icon!" "No!" "The horns!" "The battle is near!" "Our ancestors defeated the last red dragon... that plagued our lands." "But they did not kill it." "They tamed it to fight at their side!" "With the beast in their midst, their enemies fell." "And there was no one to challenge them!" "No more do we have dragons to defend us... so we stand alone to fight for our people." "For their survival..." "against a savage enemy." "We preserved our way of life through Roman occupation... we shall not lose it now to these new intruders!" "So we will fight like dragons!" "We will face the enemy head on!" "We shall not cower nor hide." "We shall take the fight to them this day." "Attack shall be our defense!" "My king, we spoke of very different tactics." "We spoke of luring them through the valley." "We have spent days planning..." "Arthfael, do not question your king." "Rhain of Pembroke commands the warriors under my standard." "Only he may speak to me of tactics." "Rhain?" "Where is Rhain?" "Rhain fell in battle my lord... two months passed." "I was given the honor of his duties by you." "You lie!" "It cannot be!" "It cannot be!" "Your king is tired." "He must conserve his energy for the battle." "You will follow his order." "They outnumber us." "We must follow our tactics as planned." "Open assault is suicide!" "You have the order of your king!" "But our losses!" "We lose hundreds each day, we cannot..." "Yes, their sacrifice may deplete our number in flesh... but in spirit, it makes our gods stronger." "And winning the favor of the gods is the only way we can truly triumph." "You have the command of your king." "Bring the fight to the enemy head on!" "And no more talk of tactics." "Unless you wish to prove yourselves cowards." "The king is robbed of his wits." "He sends us to our deaths." "Not the king..." "Aberthol." "He has some dark purpose in this, mark me." "Druid!" "You lead us to the slaughter!" "We die by Saxon swords, but it is you we have to blame!" "What say you?" "What say you!" "Is this the one who prevented the offering of the woman?" "Yes." "Very well." "Our fallen warriors honor the gods with their sacrifice." "Since you did not see fit to join their tribute in battle... you may follow them now." "You die here." "What?" "But he is the son of Cador!" "Your father became friend to the king a long time ago, no?" "I wonder if the king recalls such a distant memory." "Kill him, Lucan... make an offering of him!" "No, you cannot!" "You cannot kill him!" "He has saved the king's life in battle!" "My king!" "Has Arthfael not saved your life in battle this day?" "Yes, I think he has, yes." "And you will not see him made a sacrifice, my king." "Sacrifice?" "No, there will be no sacrifice here." "My most worthy king..." "this man is treacherous." "He challenges my authority, and any challenge to my authority is a challenge to yours!" "Do you challenge Aberthol?" "I do!" "Where are your father's lands?" "Cornwall." "You are friend to my father." "Then return there." "My king?" "You are banished!" "It is that or your death." "Choose as you will." "I thank you for your service, and I release you from it." "I cannot have division in my ranks." "Aberthol, prepare to leave." "Olwen, do not dally." "Ensure the other wards leave safely." "We retreat to the stronghold of Dinas Affaraon." "But my lord..." "How dare the king defy me!" "Feeble-minded cretin!" "It's that Cornish bastard's fault, my druid, and his woman." "Draw no undue attention." "Let him to feel the pain of his banishment for a day... then hunt him down and butcher him." "I'll watch the meddlesome wench myself." "Kunoto-kolu... sanus korro... parra korri..." "Kunoto-kolu... sanus korro... parra..." "We will seek out the king." "We'll convince him to change his mind." "We are all away from our homelands." "Vortigern is a father to us and he is our king." "Right or wrong, when he speaks, we must obey." "But does he speak?" "The man we follow now is not the king I followed before." "He wears the crown!" "My loyalty to that is absolute, as should yours be!" "We would none of us be the men we are without him." "I will see you again, brothers." "When you defeat the invaders, we will drink at my father's table." "Kunoto-kolu... sanus korro... parra korri." "Kunoto-kolu... sanus korro... parra korri." "If you were as late to your battles as you are to our meetings... these lands would already be overrun with Saxons." "I am so sorry." "You do not deserve to suffer what the king has done." "Hush, it matters not, it was a gift in disguise." "Now I am free to stop Aberthol!" "You have obsessed about the druid all these years." "He is a cruel man bent on sacrifice... but he is not the enemy we must defeat." "He worships a dark icon... the dark gods." "He prays for our defeat and a Saxon triumph." " He is in league with the enemy!" " No..." " I know it to be true." " How?" "I spied on him in his tent." "You did what?" "Are you not in trouble enough already?" "Our people are the ones who are in trouble, but I have the answer." "Remember the boy that I spoke of, the one with the mark?" "You said Wynar Forest took him." "No, he lives still!" "He is the only one that I have ever seen the druid fear." "This boy had powers over nature." "But if we can find him, he will help us stop Aberthol, I know it." "We must journey to the village, to Wynar." "I will send word to my uncle." "He owns lands near Wynar." "He will see you safe passage." "No, we cannot tell anyone of this." "See me safe passage?" "You have no pack." "Where are your things?" "I cannot come with you." "The king ails..." "I must remain at his side." "And if what you say has truth... then surely we cannot leave him at the mercy of Aberthol." "You won't be safe!" "I am a ward of the king and of noble blood." "There is yet a limit to Aberthol's reach." "And I will have the swords of three warriors." "Eógan, Brían and Fáelán have pledged to watch over me in your absence." "Would that I had met a timid woman... then I should never feel this fear." "Would that I had fallen in love with a rich, fat chieftain... then never would he run off on such dangerous adventures." "Journey safe to Dinas Affaraon." "Watch for Aberthol and his puppet Lucan." "I will return to you." "You travel alone, my druid." "Where is Lucan?" "Surely I have no need of guards whilst I'm amongst friends." "Lucan has work to do elsewhere." "Not him." "I think our friend is not going home to Cornwall after all." "Then we will go back." "Find him!" "He was young, he bore a mark." "Excuse me, I'm sorry to trouble you, I..." "Excuse me, I seek a boy, well, a man now..." "He never came out of the woods, that boy." "Died in there, like many before him." "Only a foolish man dares venture into Wynar." "Agh!" "He has ventured into Wynar." "If he has gone in, then our work is done for us." "But we must be sure." "And if he is dead?" "We have to find another offering?" "Very good!" "Why have you brought me here?" "Show me where he is!" "Come on." "Show me." "Come on!" "Show me, come on!" "What use are you if you bring me this far just to abandon me?" "My king?" "My king?" "What is it?" "I come to tend your wound." "It heals slowly." "You are a ward of my court, it is not your task to deal with blood." "I asked that I may do it, my king." "A complex thing... battle..." "Do you remember this?" "Of course... this figure represents the guard of my warriors." "Is there something else I should remember about it?" "Do you remember that I made it, when first I came into your care?" "Of course... you are..." "Olwen." "I am Olwen." "Olwen, of course you are!" "Olwen, your father is my cousin." "I look forward to feasting with him when our lands are free again." "My father's dead." "Takes a clever girl to trap a king." "Perhaps I have become too easy to trap." "I survived the blow, but I fear I left my wits on the battlefield." "Tell me, Olwen, is it as obvious to all as it is to you that I ail?" "To some... to those who care about their king." "I matter not." "Do you not think that I know that I fail them?" "But I have no heir... so I cannot relinquish the throne, no matter how much I ail." "Not until this war is won." "I'm already going to leave my people without a king." "I cannot leave them without a kingdom, too." "The druid helps you?" "Aberthol protects my troops from my forgetfulness." "I hear he practices a dark magic." "I have no time for magic." "But if it is dark?" "What do you speak of?" "Who are you?" "What are you doing here in my chambers?" "Get out, child!" "And do not intrude so again!" "Ah, my druid!" "Fyrst pu trufla drauma mina, nu pu raoast heimili mitt!" "Fyrst pu trufla drauma mina, nu pu raoast heimili mitt!" "I do not understand you, friend!" "I do not understand your words." "First... you intrude on my dreams." "Now... you invade my home." "Not your dreams... your visions." "You are a wizard!" "You do not know me." "But I do." "You live because of me." "Many years ago in the village..." "I helped you escape with your life." "You bit me on the hand..." "a lot harder than I expected." "I was spared by the Tuadaan... so I could be led here to learn their ways." "You were merely an instrument they acted through." "I am no man's instrument." "The Tuadaan are not men..." "and neither am I, not anymore." "But you are... so how did you pass through my forest?" "My means are my own." "A man who has no answer has no knowledge." "So it was only luck." "Leave my home and my forest... and hope your luck lasts until you reach Wynar's border." "I shall leave... but you must come with me." "I seek to vanquish the druid who tried to kill you... who killed your mother." "He prays to dark gods, he works dark magic." "He is leading the Celts to the slaughter!" "It matters not." "But we shared the vision, I saw you." "This cave shows me much of what happens across these lands." "The action of one druid is no more important than anything else." "But this druid murdered your mother!" "Do you not seek revenge?" "Revenge is a weakness of men." "I have already told you, I am no longer a man." "Are you so sure?" "If you are no longer a man, why are you afraid?" "I do not fear." "Men hide when they are scared." "Fear keeps you here..." "I am preparing!" "Men may have forgotten about the eternal war between light and darkness... but the divine race who fight on in the underworld have not." "They left their teachings in this cave and called me here to learn their magic... so that one day I could be a champion of light in these lands as they once were." "So that I could defeat the darkness in man's darkest hour." "That time has yet to come." "The cave has much to teach me." "I will fight darkness one day, but I am not yet ready." "Ready?" "Not ready?" "What is this cave teaching you?" "We are never ready." "The only way that we can reach our true potential... is when we rise to the challenges that life throws to us." "I will not be swayed, warrior." "There is a battle out there!" "Our people are dying in the thousands!" "This druid leads the Celts to slaughter." "In the eons of time, one people does not matter." "But they're your people!" "I don't have a people." "Do not mistake my composure for tolerance." "Go now... or I shall make you." "I will save my people!" "Your friends are all dead." "My life as a man taught me one thing." "You cannot save people." "There is no point." "Perhaps now you see." "I should not have shown you their deaths without warning." "I am... sorry for your pain." "Even though I cannot feel it with you." "It was pain as you feel now that led me to this place." "I know." "I saw it in your eyes when Aberthol killed her." "I shall lead you to the forest edge." "I do not need your charity." "I do not offer charity." "I offer protection." "Wynar can render a man limb from limb." "However you came to defeat it before, the forest will not be beaten twice, I can assure you." "Do not weep." "Their sacrifice will help our cause." "And perhaps it may also teach you not to intrude on the king." "And not to challenge me." "There is no one to protect you now." "Your friends were loyal, yes?" "Followed you with honor?" "Yes." "Then they would not want you to ache so for them." "They followed the wrong man." "I should never have been given men into my charge." "I am no leader." "I am the fourth son of a Cornish Chieftain." "And a bastard son at that." "I would have done well to keep my mouth shut and follow the druid to destruction." "This brand of sorrow is for yourself as much for them." "It is of no benefit but to fuel your guilt and lessen your will." "Do not test me, wizard." "You are weak... of body." "Come, you need food." "Perhaps you're right." "Maybe you are no longer a man." "There are some places the sun never reaches." "They could not bloom." "I am gladdened to see that you truly have powers, wizard." "But tell me, why do you see purpose in saving flowers and not people?" "Thousands die... thousands more will fall." "You can help me stop this." "You must help me save the king from the grip of Aberthol!" "I beg you." "I will not leave this forest until I am ready." "Until I am strong enough to defeat the darkness." "I am sorry for your pain, warrior, but I cannot help you." "From where did you steal this?" " I did not steal this." " Where did you find it?" " Why do you care?" " Where?" " A swamp." " A swamp?" "A marsh, a small bog, whichever you prefer?" "And you found me through this, yes?" "It was the sword that opened my visions to you, and kept the forest at bay." "Yes." "So it has spoken to you... but you... you're just..." "I'm just..." "What, what am I?" "I thought I knew... but perhaps I don't know what you are after all." "What happened here?" "Please, don't hurt me!" "Why would I harm you?" "Tell me now!" "Men... dressed like you they were." "Said they sought a lone warrior, a rogue, they said." "And when we could not help them, they sacrificed our village in the name of the king's druid." "These men, dressed like me you say?" "Led by a giant of a man?" "It's you they sought." "Look!" "Look what they've done to us!" "Lucan." "You brought this here, warrior." "And you brought me here, wizard." "Come with me." "Please." "We must find someone." "Nia!" "Nia!" "Nia!" "Nia?" "Myrrdin?" "I am... glad you are alive." "You live?" "Where have you been?" "The forest..." "I found refuge when I fled." "It kept me safe." "Safe?" "You have been safe?" "That is good." "We have not, Myrrdin." "When you ran away, the king would not help us again." "Our crops failed each year and all we could do was go hungry." "And when we suffered those hardships, I always thought of you." "I thought of your power." "I thought, would Myrrdin were alive, he would help us." "He would make the crops grow as he made the flowers bloom." "And I wept because I thought you were dead." "But all the while you were hiding nearby." "Did you watch us starve?" "What man does not show himself if he can help?" "My husband died this day." "He fought the men who came here, so that we might survive." "It will be his death I mark this day for, not your life." "Be safe." "I must convince the king somehow... make him see that he has fallen into Aberthol's grip." "But how can I convince a mind that ails so?" "When my brother and I would fight as children... we would run to my father and ask him to settle our discord." "We would clamor and shout for father's favor... but he would always say that if we had accusations... he would only hear them if there was some sign of the other's rascalry." "Such a sign is a powerful thing." "Perhaps if the king could hold the druid's guilt in his own hands." "Evidence." "The Dragon Guardian." "They'll settle elsewhere." "Of course, they will." "I need no reassurance, warrior." "The light fails." "I must camp away from here." "The men who hunt me may pass this way again." "I will stay with you." "You mean to accompany me now?" "No, my forest slumbers at night." "I will not disturb its rest." "Then Wynar's loss is my gain." "You should make a fire." "I am hunted, wizard." "I need no beacon." "Your cave has not taught you much about evading men." "There are no men to evade in Wynar." "The girl in the village, Nia." "Did you love her once?" "I know little of love." "Surely a man who can control the growth of a flower must be able to make love blossom." "It is one thing to affect nature, but a human is a different matter." "Only the most powerful sorcerer could control the mind of a man or woman." "Do not mistake what you have found, I am no such sorcerer." "And Aberthol?" "He is powerful, yes." "Then does he bewitch the king?" "Is it Aberthol who weakens his memory?" "Even Aberthol is not powerful enough to hold a man entranced." "Not for as long as I have watched your king all." "It is his injuries that rob him of his wit, not the druid." "And will you not help save a broken man from evil?" "To save more villages like yours?" "One king... a handful of villages?" "You really think this is man's greatest hour of need?" "The mark on your face, it reminds me of the claw of a dragon." "It is merely the mark of the Tuadaan." "And if the Tuadaan have marked you out as a dragon... the symbol of the Celts then perhaps you are to be our champion yet." "I just hope you're ready before there are none of us left." "Damn." "But I am not ready." "I thought you had gone." "I know you desire to leave, go back to your cave, but please." "Very well, I shall accompany you." "You make a very persuasive argument." "We shall return to Dinas Affaraon to vanquish Aberthol." "A fair pact?" "Excellent." "We must hurry." "Wizard!" "Their numbers strengthen, yet they do not advance." "Perhaps a truce?" "A co-existence?" "My king, the Saxons do not seek peace." "They will push us until we are driven into the sea or the earth." "If they don't advance, we must." "Attack is the best form of defense." "Attack?" "Commit a thousand more warriors." "Attack them head on!" "Tell me, wizard, what's our plan?" "How will you vanquish Aberthol?" "I do not know." "It is your quest I have joined." "As it is my quest, I must admit that my only plan is the wizard Myrrdin." "Tell me plain, how will you defeat him?" "He fears you, I have seen it." "He fears what I represent." "I cannot say if he will fear me." "Then you really aren't sure if you can defeat him?" "I'm sure of nothing, save that it is not only Aberthol we must vanquish from Dinas Affaraon." "Who else must we defeat?" "The king." "We go to save the king!" "Strange that a man who desires so much to save the king... should carry the sword of one who will take the throne from him." "Of what do you speak?" "It is treason to even utter such words." "Perhaps." "But you wield the great sword Nuadu... a gift to the Tuadaan from the gods of light themselves." "Nuadu fought to defeat the darkness on these very lands... before the Great War descended to the underworld." "It is said that when the time would come for the Tuadaan to pass Nuadu... back to the world of men it would only speak to he who would become king of the Celts." "You mock me, wizard." "A bastard of Cornwall is no king and no leader." "Do not speak of this again." "If it pleases you, my king." "If this is from the Tuadaan, then you can read these marks, no?" "I can, but I already know what it says." "It speaks to the sword's original purpose... the reason it was hewn." "Gert af guoi, au drepa guoi." "Made by gods... to kill gods." "Your assistance would benefit me greatly!" "Two against one would not be fair." "One of the first things the cave taught me was a sense of equality and fairness." "It's a fundamental tenet of the Tuadaan." "Of course, it is!" "Not a god." "One of Lucan's men." "Run." "I thought you could not control the minds of men?" "Shhhh!" "He is blinded, not deafened." "I see you." "Blast." "They're over here!" "You already told me you could not manipulate the minds of men." "I did not need a demonstration!" "It was a foolish thing to attempt, I apologize." "Apologize later, live first." " We must move." " Shhhh!" "I strongly..." "You've had your chance to save us, now's mine!" "You see?" "We are not safe here!" "What, you sense something?" "Not exactly." "15 years to sharpen your senses and you cannot hear the advance of two flat-footed poachers!" "They were very quiet... at first." "Should I be disappointed that the future king of the Celts... couldn't vanquish them with his magical sword?" "Don't call me that." "Ha!" "A hefty catch indeed, but they will not feed our families." "Look at this one." "There's more meat on my scabbard!" "I found them in the wood." "They were fleeing the king's warriors." "Were they now?" "Remember we are hunted." "They cannot learn who I am!" "What are your names?" "I am Myrrdin, this is Arthfael... born of Cornwall and banished from the king's army." "We march to Dinas Affaraon to take the throne." "Did you mean for me to lie?" "I like you, boy, you're funny!" "You're lucky you're in my custody and not Lucan's." "I am Orin." "My niece, Olwen, has had me out here for three moons looking for you!" "She begged me to give you safe passage across these lands." "I hope you're gonna tell me what's so important about you and your friend!" "Let's go." "I told her not to send word to you." "Olwen has always been her own woman." "I have such a woman myself." "I dare say she rules my lands as much as I do, even if she lets me believe otherwise." "To good women!" "Why do you not join us, Myrrdin?" "A man who does not drink only arouses suspicion!" "What is it that has stolen your taste for mead?" "I have been schooled as a beacon of the Tuadaan." "My friend has too much a taste for the mead." "One drop and we will not be able to control him." "A wild man!" "So, do I aid the man that would overthrow the king?" "No, you aid the man who would free him from the druid Aberthol." "Aberthol?" "I was by the king's side when Aberthol came into his favor." "The druid is perhaps too rooted in the old ways... but the king always valued his counsel greatly." "The king ails now." "The toils of battle are upon him." "Aberthol alone controls our forces and he guides them to their deaths." "He is in league with the Saxons." "No... it cannot be." "He worships a dark icon." "I have seen it." "He prays for our defeat." "We could use your metal, Orin." "Ours is a worthy quest." "I withdrew my pledge to the king years ago, Olwen knows that." "These were once my finest warriors, but we are now simple hunters." "I fight only for my lands and people." "I do not like the news that you bring, but I must let Aberthol do his worst." "The Saxons will be no worse overlords than the Romans were." "And what will the lives of you and your people be worth if you alone among the Celts survive?" "Do you sing?" "I..." "I am a very fine singer." "I am a very fine singer!" "What song inspires you the most?" "The songs of my fathers, of battle." "Please." "♪ As the cry went out the lands had fallen ♪" "♪ And all the Celts did rise ♪" "With chests of fire..." "Stop!" "What do you hear?" "I hear nothing." "Precisely." "This is what will happen to our songs if our people are overrun." "We are more than just flesh and blood, more than land." "The spirits of our ancestors are in our songs." "The skill of our craftsmen is in our blades and your arrow heads." "The beauty of our women is in the poetry of the men who love them." "And all of this will die, too." "The songs you sing, the people that you sing about." "They will become nothing more than... than history... myths... and then they will be forgotten and lost forever." "I need to stop Aberthol not just to save life and land, but to save everything." "There is only one fight." "Fight it with me." "And you say you do not want to be king?" "Will you pledge your metal to King Vortigern again?" "No, I wish I could." "Your words have won my heart, truly they have... but it is too late." "There they are!" "I am so very sorry." "You are betrayed, Arthfael." "He offered me riches, Arthfael, a future for... for my people." "He wants to watch." "Kill them both!" "You said nothing of killing!" "You said you would take them to Dinas Affaraon, to the king!" "Step back!" "Aberthol has spoken." "I will not let my people suffer under the druid's boot!" " No!" " What are you doing?" "Friend or foe, no Celt should die alone." "You will soon pass to the other side." "And all will be peaceful with you and your ancestors." "No, not me, I have died in the service of the druid." "My soul is sacrificed for Aberthol." "It will feed the dark god he summons!" "What god?" "Who does he summon?" "He calls it to the Well of Annun beneath the stronghold." "The gateway to the underworld." "I don't know what god it is... but I have heard Lucan, he calls it the stealer of souls." "I'm afraid..." "Wizard?" "Myrrdin?" "Aberthol is powerful indeed to have hidden his intent from my visions." "But I know now why he lusts so for sacrifice." "It is said that the offering of 10,000 souls will raise a god from the underworld." "This is what Aberthol means to do." "It's why he has killed so many." "It's why he guides the Celtic forces to slaughter." "What god?" "Hafgan, the soul stealer." "The most fearsome of all the dark gods... that fight the forces of light in the underworld." "Aberthol believes if he raises him, Hafgan will be at his command." "With such a power, the Saxons..." "Aberthol is not in league with the Saxons." "He does not mean to be on the winning side." "He means to be the winning side." "You were right." "That is why the sword spoke to you... why it led you to me." "Man's darkest hour is upon us." "Know this, warrior." "Those Aberthol has taken from us... those he has sacrificed in pursuit of his dark purpose." "Those souls are not free." "Your friends... my mother... the druid has sent them to Hafgan." "We must destroy this god to set them free!" "I swear to you, we will stop this." "As will we!" "You have opened my eyes, friend." "My niece has chosen well." "Whatever your quest's end, we will follow." "I pledge my metal to you, Arthfael of Cornwall." "We march to Dinas Affaraon!" "No... we charge!" "You must commit to the sword." "We know now why it has been given to you." "Made by gods, to kill gods." "It can slay Hafgan." "It can free those souls from his grip." "It is the sword's destiny, but you know its bearer has a destiny also." "I fear the two destinies cannot be separated." "They must be achieved together or not at all." "I mean to free my king, not usurp him." "Nothing will change that." "Then we will fail." "Come!" "Enough rest." "My king." "My king." "My king!" "Olwen?" "I have proof!" "Proof?" "Of what?" "The king and I have already warned you against intruding." "Now you dare to disturb him again, in these his darkest hours?" "We have lost a mighty battle." "The king grieves for his men." "You slaughter our people." "You worship the dark gods!" "He doesn't even hear you anymore." "Do you, you old fool?" "It is time." "Hafgan is almost sated." "There is a part for you to play." "I cannot show my face." "On what terms did you part the king's service?" "Well... we did not come to blows... as such." "But I'm sure the king will receive me warmly should I make my presence known." "Then do so." "We must make our entrance by other means." "The Well of Annun is beneath the stronghold." "There is an entrance to the cave at the foot of the rock face." "Then let us go straight to the heart of this." "Hello there, friend!" "Who approaches?" "I am Orin of Elfael." "I come to pledge my sword to the king!" "I know of you." "You retreated to your lands." "Withdrew your pledge!" "I did." "I have." "But I changed my mind!" "There." "There are no magic runes to light the way here, wizard." "What did you see?" "A surging fire... the sound of..." "I don't know what." "Hafgan rises!" "You see now what we must fight." "The sword brought us together for this purpose... for it and its bearer to fulfill its destiny." "I will defeat this druid..." "and this dark god, but no more." "You close your mind to your destiny." "But you know not what we might find." "You must be prepared for anything!" "It seems I must..." "No one can stop Aberthol." "It is over." "And I have waited a long time for this." "I'm sorry, warrior." "Two against one is not an even match." "It would seem your wizard... wants you dead as much as I do!" "I thought the cave taught you fairness?" "Well, you taught me fighting." "Break the seal!" "You have made a tunnel." "You mean to welcome the Saxons into the very heart of our homelands!" "You think I'm an ally to Saxon savages?" "I'm already surrounded by brutes." "I have no desire to swap one such master for another." "Do not venture too close... not if you wish to remain of this world." "This is the Well of Annun." "Like many things to do with the old ways, it has been forgotten." "But it is still..." "Incredibly powerful, a gateway between here and the underworld." "One of just a few." "Aberthol has been in the service of Dinas Affaraon his entire life." "He has had decades to study it and learn its ways." "And Hafgan will rise through it?" "Hafgan can only rise through the Well of Annun, it is..." "The only gateway through which a god may pass from the underworld to here." "You cannot do this!" "You will not succeed!" "Will I not?" "With a little help from you, sweet Olwen..." "Hafgan's rise will be unstoppable." "Unless he is struck down by Nuadu." "Hafgan must feel the sword's metal." "If he does, you will banish him to the underworld and free the souls of your friends... my mother, and all the other Celts who have fallen to Aberthol's lust of sacrifice." "But if you fail to land the blow..." "Hafgan will lay waste to all that remains of the Celtic nation... and perhaps the entire world of men." "Thank you... for being so... clear." "You are most welcome." "Come!" "We must hurry!" "Sheen-kata wheynoo... krra-batka chankos freeykzo." "Hafgan rises." "Do not fear, you will play your part soon enough." "Now I need Lucan." "Where is he?" "Lucan will not be in attendance." "Show yourself to me!" "I should have killed you when you were a runt!" "Then you should be glad of this second chance." "Aberthol!" "What is this place?" "I thought the king should see with his own eyes." "Uncle!" "Put down your weapons!" "There will be no blood spilt on the soil of our home." "If you lower your weapons..." "I will cast you down that well into the underworld for all eternity!" "Aberthol, this is insolence!" "I told your men to..." "Oh, my king!" "It is futile to try and help." "His life is now mine to take when I please!" "As I crush the king's beating heart... so will I crush all that come before me." "Saxon and Celt alike, all will fall!" "True order will be restored." "Druids will be strong again." "Powerful... and soon all will worship my dark gods." "And they'll do it at my feet!" "At the feet of the man who commands Hafgan!" "You've seen this before, boy." "Now watch again." "As I robbed you of your mother." "so will I rob the Celts of their father!" "I tire of this." " No!" " Stay where you are!" "Hafgan is right at the threshold." "All that is required now for him to come forth... is one final offering of fresh blood." "I could simply draw it from your arm... but I think I'll take it from your throat!" "Do you try to bend my mind?" "Look at you!" "You're not ready for such enchantments." "He is right, my friend." "You should stop this now!" "Agh!" "What are you doing?" "We must complete the ritual." "We must bring Hafgan closer in order to slay him." "You mean to raise a dark god?" "We must." "The souls of our dead lie in eternal torment with Hafgan." "The only way that we can set them free is if we raise him, and slay him." "What if you fail?" "We will not fail." "We must contain Hafgan!" "Keep him at bay until Arthfael can strike!" "Seal the lid!" "It burns!" "We cannot hold it down!" "Then I will!" "I cannot hold it!" "I cannot withstand another strike!" "Arthfael!" "The sword!" "Nuadu!" "You must strike with Nuadu!" "The gods of the air are my sword." "Arthfael... you saved my life in battle... but you cannot save me now." "You remember." "I am glad I have my wits about me, as I die." "My king, you have saved many battles, you will survive this one." "Even in banishment, you did not give up trying to save me." "The whole kingdom was against you." "Just imagine what you can do... with a whole kingdom behind you." "All this time without an heir... and the perfect choice stood before my eyes." "No, my king, you will live." "No, my king." "I am spent." "I meant to free him." "You have." "My king!" "There is no point in delaying." "I can't." "I'm not ready." "We are never ready, remember?" "The only chance we have to reach our true potential... is when we rise to the challenges that life throws at us."