We're Not Going To Sit In Silence [Alistair]

[Catalina Regalis]

We're all someone's daughter, we're all someone's son

The calm before the storm. That was what this was she was almost certain of it. It was hard to explain as the young druidess sat at the base of the old fallen oak, her red cloak wrapped around her as protection from the cold air that hung in the early morning. The forest was speaking to her, begging her to listen but she couldn't quite understand. Her people had stopped to rest in the forest just outside of the grand city of Camelot and her sister and another had been sent to the city for provisions. Catalina had wished to go with her sister, both for the thrill of being allowed to walk into Camelot as though she belonged there as well as to be with her sister and help protect her should any trouble arise. There was always a risk when they came near Camelot because of King Uther Pendragon and his fierce hatred of all things magical.

"Worry not young one," a voice from behind her spoke. A soft smile touched her lips as she peered into the small bowl of water she had rested before her. It was their leader, her uncle Aldriv who had come to find how she was doing. He was more than just her uncle though, he was her mentor, her master in the arts of magic and someone she trusted completely and truly. "I always worry Uncle, you know that." She said with a smile as she welcomed him and offered him a seat next to her. She showed respect where it was due and he most definitely deserved a great deal of respect.

"I feel it as well child." She didn't need to bother to ask what he meant. He felt the unrest of the forest. "I cannot help but worry for Samara. Why could I not go?" She didn't wish to sound whiny, especially to him but it was hard not to show her disappointment at his decision. "I need you here amongst us, I cannot risk you going within the walls of the castle." That made sense of course, Samara was rarely using magic, it didn't interest her so it wouldn't be a temptation like it would be for Catalina. "I am sorry I questioned you." All she got in response was a simple nod and a gentle hand upon her shoulder. "It's not safe to be practicing magic right now."

It wasn't often that he heard such words from her Uncle, he often encouraged her to practice and work hard in her studies and her craft but perhaps he knew something she did not. "It is simple magic Uncle, I am trying to scry for Samara using this bowl of water. So far I've seen quick glimpses but it doesn't last." To prove her point, she turned and passed her hand over the water, uttering the spell under her breath. Her eyes flickered gold and Samara's face was seen on the surface of the water but as Catalina had said, it only lasted for a moment before it faded. "I can't hold on to it for some reason." She half-whined, setting her hands on her lap.

"No magic is ever simple Catalina. You are too distracted by things that may or may not come. You must relax and let the magic flow through you as it flows through us all. You are within your element." He gestured to the forest itself and smiled. "Clear your mind and try again." Always the sort to offer words of wisdom whether it was asked for or not, Catalina offered a somewhat weary smile and turned back to the small bowl of water. She uttered the words for the spell and smiled as her sister's face once again touched upon the surface of the water and this time it held. Well what did ya know...

The surface changed though, slipping from her sister's location to bigger worries, the storm was arriving in the form of a small scouting party of guards that were coming their way. "Uncle!" She called out, only just realizing that he had moved away from where she had been sitting. In her rush to get his attention, she knocked the bowl off the stump it had been resting on, the image now lost but the meaning was not. "Uncle we must move, soldiers are coming." Catalina was the sort to keep a calm head about these kinds of things but there was a lot of fuss in moving a whole encampment that had just settled and her sister was not with them either.

Aldriv didn't need to ask if she was sure, he simply spoke to the other druids. Whatever couldn't be quickly packed up was left behind. "Your sister will find us," her uncle spoke, already knowing where her mind dwelt. He was right... She had to focus on helping get her people moving before the guards arrived. To run was their first instinct, it was better than confrontation, that was for sure. Confrontation meant lives lost, blood spilt. All so unnecessary in the grand scheme of things.

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Tags; Alistair
Word Count; 840
Lyrics; "You're The Voice" John Farhman
Time-frame; Early Morning - One Year Gap before Morgana returns

[Alistair]

Damn blood Camelot knights! Where they seemed to lack in brains they more then made up for in sheer numbers and unfortunately--skill. Alistair had been working to get as many Druids out of Camelot as he could while the king seemed to see fight in his mighty justice to see how many he could kill. For nomads; Druids seemed mighty uninclined to leave the kingdom they called home. He knew he might see things might be different had he been raised among them; or even spent more time around them before his return but he had not.

He's home had been a small encampment before the king had burned the homes and slaughtered the people. He's father--a non Druid--had a brother who had been visiting at the time; and his uncle had gotten him safely out. He spent the next four years with the mercenary before waking up one day a few hours before his uncle and walking away. He's traveled since then, off the island even. Seen things; been places. Still; his life had been purposeless and random. The dreams of his people in need had cause him to return.

And with in days of his return everyone knew his name. He brought the war the king started to the king's door and made sure the man knew that if he pushed; he'd push back. The bloody princess had chanced that. He could have killed the king; hell, he had come damn close during the time of the kidnapping. Thoughts of her however had stilled his hand and caused his plans to shift.

Now he wished killed the bloody man! Alistair had seen the signs of a camp up ahead and knowing their were knights behind him he ran ahead to find it; hoping they could move quickly. When he found the camp, he did not slow until he got the to center of it and his eyes scanned to find the eldest male--who often was the leader of groups such as this but not always. It was just the safest bet on his part. Hurrying over to the man Alistair spoke in his deep voice; slightly out of breath. "You need to move; run. Knights are about a mile behind me; and if they pick up the trail like I did they'll move in fast." Only then did he notice that they looked to be moving already. Good! Finally something going his way!

[Catalina Regalis]

We're all someone's daughter, we're all someone's son

Dealing with soldiers was never a pretty thing and while they were druids who had magic at their beck n call, they were peaceful and didn’t wish to shed the blood of others. Why couldn’t Uther’s men just leave them alone? They did nothing to disturb him and yet the guards still came, seeking to further estrange magic from his Kingdom but such a feat truly was not possible. Uther wished to rid himself of magic completely but magic was all around whether he liked it or not and it would outlive both him and his reign. Catalina’s warning was taken in stride, no one panicked though there was definitely a feel of fear in tension in the air. Her fear for her sister was palpable given that she had been in Camelot. What had alerted these men to their whereabouts? Had they followed her sister or had they been on their trail? It was hard to say and wondering on such things would not get the camp packed up any sooner. Her heart beat quickly as she ran over to a small tent that her sister shared with her husband and infant son. With Samara gone, Catalina took it upon herself to care for her nephew since the infant’s father was busy helping pack things up.

She took the infant in her arms and tried to soothe him as he began to cry, not appreciating being woken from his nap. She hushed the infant and wrapped him in a blanket securely before heading back outside. At this point the blonde haired druidess noticed someone who was not of her people, a stranger in their midst. She immediately tensed up for this stranger was near her Uncle and she was very protective of the old man. Not that it was actually necessary since Aldriv was more than capable of handling himself but the fear of someone seeking to kill their leader, her uncle was enough to make her want to cast a spell to incapacitate the stranger until they found out what he wanted. She had moved closer in time to hear him saying about how the Knights weren’t far behind. Wait… Knights?! She had seen men dressed in armor with swords that would be used to murder them all, she had thought them to be simple soldiers not Knights. Her heart sunk low as she kissed her nephew on the forehead, his deep blue eyes staring at her curiously, wondering what she was so upset about even at his young age.

If Aldriv was surprised by Alistair’s appearance, he didn’t show it. He took what Alistair said with a nod and looked to Catalina for a moment, his eyes betraying the fear he seemed to feel for his other niece, as her whereabouts were still unknown. It took a lot for her Uncle to feel fear, he was the sort that accepted things as they were and taught others to do the same but not when it came to family. Seeing him in such silent torment about broke her heart and she figured that at this point, she had to do something to help her people. She had to do it before her Uncle decided to do it himself. “I’ll hold them off for as long as I can while you get everyone to safety Uncle.” It was dangerous and while she was gifted with magic, there was no telling how long it would be before she was captured or killed but she had to take that risk, aside from her Uncle she was the most gifted and Aldriv was crucial to her people. He wished to argue, she could see that on his face but he figured there was no arguing with her when she had her mind made up. So much like her mother…

Walking over to her Uncle, she handed her nephew over to him with a final kiss on the baby’s forehead. Upon closer inspection of Alistair, the young druidess was convinced that she had seen him before though she wasn’t quite sure that she could remember from where. He had come to warn the druids of the approaching Knights so that had to mean he was on their side. He seemed the warrior sort, which meant that he would hopefully be able to help her with the Knights while the other druids were able to find a new place to hide from those who pursued them. “Will you please help me hold them off?” She didn’t bother to ask for his name because that wasn’t really what was important at that moment; introductions could be saved for later. Had it not been for the rather urgent situation, there’s a chance that Catalina might have recognized Alistair as someone she had known but right now her mind was racing. “Just long enough for them to get away and then we can withdraw.” She would not kill anyone, she refused to shed blood but she could hardly expect the same out of someone else.

“Be safe Catalina,” her Uncle said before turning to help their people finish their quick packing and their move. There was another reason Catalina had chosen to stay behind as well, she couldn’t leave without her sister, she wouldn’t. Samara was another part of the girl and she couldn’t lose her as well. Whether Alistair had agreed to help her or not, Catalina sprinted into the forest in the direction that her people had traveled since Alistair had mentioned the Knights picking up on their tracks. Her mind was racing with the various spells that she knew, protection spells as well as offensive spells. She would need everything she had to survive this and hopefully Alistair was handy with a sword because when it came to physical combat, Catalina was all but useless. One thing was for certain though, Cat wouldn't go down without a fight.

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Tags; Alistair
Word Count; 980
Lyrics; "You're The Voice" John Farhman
Time-frame; Early Morning - One Year Gap before Morgana returns

[Alistair]

She was going to fight the knights! That was good! That just made his damn day complete! He fought not to yell at her; but he wasn't good with people. His uncle had been the solitary type and he'd spent most of his time alone up until the last year when he began working to help his people. Alistair was more often silent then he spoke and when he did it was clear that he sometimes lacked the words to express what he wanted. He could fight better then most men but he wasn't stupid enough to think he could help a little bitty slip of girl hold off train men out for their blood. He wasn't waiting around to die; and nor was she.

He reached over to take her sharply by the arm; and while making sure not to hurt her, he gave her a push in the direction everyone else was going. Maybe she was good with magic; hell, maybe she was better then she looked since she lacked that eerie confidence that came with the more powerful--but these were trained hunters with cross bows and cold hearts. They said druids and not women and children. "No one stays!" He almost growled out; "Everyone moves out now; what you can't carry, leave! Everything else will only slow you down." If it wasn't worth your life, then it was time to part ways with it.

He had spent so long fighting these men; and seeing so many die from it that he was not about to stand here and fight when he could run. He was smart enough to know that if you wanted to fight then you didn't take them face on. You came at them with violence and from behind; you attacked the head and moved down the ranks. His reputation was known and feared but that wouldn't be enough here.

[Catalina Regalis]

We're all someone's daughter, we're all someone's son

The thought of dying was most definitely not a lovely thought but Catalina knew better than anyone that death was nothing more than an inevitably. To fear death would be to fear fate itself and that was foolish. She had no interest in playing the part of a coward when she could help her people. She was ready to hold them off as long as possible and had hoped that this man, whoever he was would help her but it seemed that she had been wrong in her assumption. He had chosen to grab hold of her arm when she moved to head off towards the forest where those who pursued them were coming and shove her towards where her people were heading. What right did he have to order her around? None! She stumbled a bit to right herself and glare fiercely at him. She was not the sort to get angry very easily but being handled in that way was uncalled for to say the least.

What should she do? Listen to what this stranger was saying and move or try to do what she had planned and hold them off as long as she could? It wasn’t as though she had planned on taking them head on, she did have a brain situated between her ears thanks very much! She knew these woods better than any Knight could surely and she had the advantage, she knew where to hide and could catch them up with her magic but apparently this stranger did not have much confidence in her. That was fine, his permission nor his help were required in this ordeal. He was right about their belongings though, now was not the time to gather and pack, it was the time to flee. With this said, Aldriv spoke telepathically to the other druids, causing them all to flee into the forests with whatever they had, leaving behind a great many things. “If they are good at tracking as you say, than they will find us unless they are slowed or stopped altogether.” Cat had never fought a Knight before and she couldn’t help but be scared of the situation in its entirety.

And Samara was to be taken into account as well but could she really risk her own life on the hope that she would run into her sister? Perhaps her elder sister was safe in Camelot still gathering supplies, wholly unaware of what was going on now? She couldn’t be sure and it was a gamble to stay. She wanted to stay and defend and yet she wished to run like the wind and never look back with the hope that they would find the abandoned camp and give up their seat. Grabbing a bucket, she cast water onto the fire that had been going and glared at Alistair for a moment, clearly debating what she would do before she turned towards where the other druids had gone and ran. She would use her magic on those that came close to the retreating druids and halt their steps but would that be enough? She had heard of whole settlements of druids being wiped out by Uther’s Knights and while they weren’t a small group they sure weren’t large either.

The thought of leaving made her sick but due to the fear and paranoia, she could almost feel their hot breath upon the nape of her neck and hear their heavy footfalls in the forest as she ran. Of course she couldn’t really, it was all in her mind but fear played tricks on the mind in situations like this. It was so unfair, having to run and hide like animals from the hunters. They were humans as well, should they not be treated as such? The sound of her infant nephew crying could be heard and she frowned. His fear was understandable but it was a dead give away as to where they were going. “What do you intend on doing stranger?” She would ask Alistair assuming that he was close to her at the time. He seemed like a wildcard therefore she was unsure what he was going to do next.

Worst. Day. Ever.

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Tags; Alistair
Word Count; 700
Lyrics; "You're The Voice" John Farhman
Time-frame; Early Morning - One Year Gap before Morgana returns