The Stain of Mordred part 24.

George opened his eyes and looked up at the stars, rolling over he saw the ancient archway where he had returned to the world of men. Slumped in the archway lay Morgan Le Fay and getting to his feet he rushed over to her.
“I had hoped I’d have the energy left to open the portal and return home but it seems I’m too weak. Getting us out of the mirror and transporting us here has been too much.” she gasped, her face drawn and once dark hair turning more grey.
“I’m sorry, the gateway can’t be opened any more from this side.” George said sadly.
“Don’t apologise, you saved me from an age of torture and imprisonment, without you I would have been fed to the Dark Gods. I couldn’t see what path you would choose but hoped you would make the choices you did. I had hoped by letting myself be captured by Mordred we could together save the land and we would have time in the future but it seems I didn’t foresee how much my captivity would drain my powers.” Morgan said gasping for breath as she weakened before his eyes.
“You planned all this, to suffer imprisonment” George said in shock.
“I told you all those years ago I had a choice to make, to allow myself to be captured so I could free you from Mordred’s prison. You had to meet him in order to understand how you will heal the land.” Morgan said between gasps for breath. “ We have to make our own choices in life and hope it is the right ones.”

Just then the archway flared into light and the Lady of the Lake stood before them, two of her priestesses came forward and gently lifted Morgan and carried her through the archway into the lands of Avalon.
“We thank you for returning our sister priestess and the blood sister of the Once and Future King, even though you left without coming to see me you are more than welcome back for your deeds in rescuing the kings sister.” The Lady said offering her hand to George.
“I can’t return yet, not until I stop Mordred or die trying, he seeks to bring back the Dark Gods and destroy Avalon.” George said standing up.
“Even if you stop Mordred do you think the humans will change their ways and return to caring for the land?” the Lady asked.
“They deserve the time to find their own way without the influence of the Dark Gods, for good or ill.” George replied.
“Mordred will be furious to lose both you and his mother and will act in rage, you need to lie low and wait for a time to act.” the Lady warned.
“I don’t have time, he has poisoned the springs of Glastonbury and he will be pumping poison in the area of the great henge's soon poisoning the ground water around them too.” George insisted.
“You have chosen a difficult path, know as you go forward we will heal Morgan from her time as his prisoner and she will live whatever time she has left in Avalon.” the lady said.
“Thank you my Lady, to know she is well will give me strength, is there nothing Avalon can do to help me stop Mordred?” George pressed.
“It is up to you and mankind to save their realm unless the king returns we don’t have the power to help more than we have by training you in our ways.” the lady said with a sad smile and bowed to George. “You are the only help we can give your old world.”
“One last thing my Lady, why didn’t you support Mordred, did you already sense a darkness in him?” George asked.
“I suspected a change in him the first time he came back from Arthur’s court but I could not be sure what that change was. Even then Arthur was our chosen king, Mordred saw things that were never there, he saw betrayal of the Old Ways that didn’t happen. The land became divided by lies and hate and still behind everything else, at the core of the stain those are the problems you face.” the Lady said as she turned and passed through the gateway that went dark leaving George alone.

to be continued.