Title: With No Regrets

Genre:

Prologue:

The first rays of sunlight descended onto the sleeping Earth in its usual conquest of the night's realm. The entrance to the magical lake bustled with the start of a new day, the energy of life itself coursing through each ripple that emanated from the center to the sandy shores. The younger faeries slowly poked out of their hiding spots behind the glistening leaves of the ancient trees that guarded the lake, buzzing softly as they drifted across the lake surface.

It was a rather common morning for the residents of Avalon, but none the less beautiful. The faeries mischievously chased each other, flirting their shimmering silver wings. A single woman rose from the waters, taking delicate steps across the surface to reach the shore. She softly sat at the edge, letting the water lap her feet as she reached out and allowed a baby fairy to settle on her finger. The Lady of the Lake smiled sweetly as she watched the lake come to life.

A Sidhe elder suddenly drifted onto the surface, making his way to his governess. "Milady," the elder called out, as he bowed respectfully. "A storm is coming. I believe you should retire."

"Why, Elder," Freya called out, allowing the child in her palm to flutter away. "I had just come out."

"Yes, milady. However, it seems destiny is at play today." Freya's eyes darkened at that statement. "It is time." She simply nodded, dissolving into water as she exited the human realm. The Sidhe elder looked towards the sky and watched as the dark clouds engulf the sun.

The storm has come.

And just as the first lightning struck the lake, illuminating the surface, a black cloaked figure materialized at the shores.

"Mighty Sidhe!" The cloaked figure roared, and yet the desperate pleading was evident in his call. "I beg you, please. Save my loved ones."

The Elder projected himself to his full form, the blue fairy's anger clearly evident in his face. "Why should we help you? We told you several times, you have nothing to offer."

"I offer you my life, please," the cloaked figure fell to his knees, his pale hands grabbing at the dirt underneath. "If my loved ones live just one more day, I will be content. I can die with no regrets." When the Sidhe didn't reply, he lifted his head. "I watched my family perish in front of my eyes, helpless to prevent their deaths." His voice cracked with unmasked agony.

"Your loved ones' deaths are not on our heads. Blame Camelot for your despair," the Sidhe replied, turning away just as he had in the previous encounters. He would leave, like he had the several times before, and the broken man before him would weep, calling out for several hours afterwards until he finally left only to return the next morning.

"Please," the figure begged. "I can't live like this. Please, I'm willing to do anything." The man bent over, placing his head on the ground.

And those were the words that the Sidhe wanted to hear. He looked around the lake, making sure that no other were listening to their conversation. "Anything?"

The cloak looked up, a glimmer of hope rekindled in his weary eyes. "Anything."

The Sidhe smirked and turned to face the man. "It won't be easy."

The tear stained face returned the gaze with determination. "I am willing."

"Then I ask for the life of Emrys," the Elder replied, to the utter shock of the cloaked man. "And I will bring every one of your loved back to life."

"The life of Emrys?" the broken man whispered back.

The Sidhe nodded. "The young warlock in disguise as the Prince Arthur's servant at Camelot." The cloaked figure stumbled to his feet.

"Emrys is immortal," the man started hesitantly. The Sidhe nodded, just as the storm raging around them settled down. "How will I?" The Elder glanced briefly around the space once more. After all, Lady Freya had an uncanny affinity towards the powerful warlock, and the last thing the Elder wanted was to anger the Queen of this lake. He reached into his ragged cloak, revealing a gleaming dagger. The hilt was crystal, black tendrils intertwined around the handle for a better grip. He handed the dagger to the cloaked man.

"The blade forged in the flames of the Great Dragon and tainted with the poisonous blood from the questing beast," The Sidhe explained as the other man observed the blade, cautiously turning the deadly weapon in his hand. "The hilt made from the crystals of Crystal Cave." The Elder smirked, a triumphant gaze in his eyes. "No mortal man can withstand a simple scratch from the blade. Imbed this blade into the heart of Emrys, and nothing can save his life."

The man broke his gaze from the blade, looking up at the Sidhe with surprise. "This blade was created for the death of Emrys." The silence was a simple confirmation of the statement.

"Will you do it?" The replying nod was immediate, no hesitation in his eyes. The Sidhe smiled again. "I know you would, my broken friend. I know your love for your fallen ones." The blue fairy tossed the other man a plain black sheath.

The cloaked man slowly sheathed the dagger before carefully placing the blade into the depths of his black robes.

The eyes flashed molten gold for a brief moment before replaced by the burning flame of vengeance. And the Black Sorcerer no longer stood in front of the lake, but instead in front of the pristine white towers of Camelot.

A/N: It has been a long long time since I wrote a Merlin fic. I'm trying to get back into the language style used for fictional story telling (after 3 years of non-stop scientific report writing). I hope to finish this story as soon as I can (since I am limited on time) so I will try to update as frequently as I can.

"With No Regrets" is a story that I had been developing long before "Spirits' Secrets" (another of my fics that had been on hiatus for a long time). This story idea is probably my most favorite amongst all the ideas I had come up with. Given three years to refine the idea so much, I ended up making this initially one-shot fic into a multi-chaptered fun ride with more characters joining the bandwagon.

This story takes place during Season 3, episode 1 (you'll see in the first chapter). For storyline purposes, Gwaine has already met Merlin and the entire fiasco in Camelot thanks to Gwaine has happened. Elyan and Percival don't know much about Camelot, but they'll probably also be a part of this story.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please leave a review or a comment!