===Godrick, age fifteen===
"Damn it." Galahad said as he watched the assault from the hilltop with Agravain.
"The King won't be pleased about this." Agravain said, watching some of the buildings collapse.
After a while they saw the keep fall, and the two of them sighed as they got back on their horses.
"Let's go get him. I'm sure he's going to be upset." Agravain said, their horses slowly making their way down the hill to the front gate, which was destroyed.
They finally got to the gate and saw the full extent of the damage.
The ground was webbed with cracks, and the multiple buildings that had collapsed had thrown their debris all around the center square.
The keep itself only had one wall still standing, but the rest was thrown all about.
"He won't be happy." Galahad repeated, looking around him.
Agravain stayed silent, as he looked at the young man walking towards them, his armor a ruin of its former splendor. His left shoulder pauldron was completely ruined,
and there was a massive hole in his chest plate with dried blood around the edges.
He held four different weapons in his right hand, a spear, the handle of a club, the head of an ax, and a blade.
He said nothing as he stopped in front of his two "handlers", only pulling himself up onto his massive horse.
He tucked the weapons away before he turned the massive beast towards the gate and started riding away.
Agravain and Galahad both looked at each other before following, choosing not to comment on anything.
They all reached the gate before Godrick stopped his horse and turned in his saddle to stare at the fallen keep.
He burned the failure into his mind, and finally broke the silence.
"This is the first, and last time I fail my King." He said with conviction.
===
A few days later, they arrived in the Kingdom of Powys, where Mordred was set to hold court.
On their journey, Godrick had gotten rid of most of his armor save the legs, deeming them unrepairable.
It took him only a few hours to completely heal from his wounds thanks to his own natural healing ability, and by the time they reached Dinas Brân, the capital of Powys, he was completely fine.
It had begun to rain as they entered the city, and as they dismounted from their horses, Galahad and Agravain both pulled up the hoods of their cloaks.
The trio began walking through the mud towards the main Keep that served as the Castle. As they did, they drew many gazes from people around, and as Godrick gazed back, he noticed how dirty and disheveled the people around him were.
"Agravain," He said, still looking at the people they passed.
"What's wrong with these people?" He asked.
Agravain and Galahad both looked back at him before looking around.
"War." Was all Agravain offered.
"King Gorfyddyd stripped his people of everything for his war. Their Fathers and Sons, their livestock and food. Everything. He took it all for his rebellion, and they still haven't recovered from it." Galahad said.
"This is war, Godrick. We only see what's in front of us, that being the enemy. But them. They are the ones who truly suffer for it the most. That's why you are being trained as a Knight, and Mordred as a King." Agravain said, entering the massive stone gate that led to the main hall.
The hall was packed with people, airing out their grievances to the "King" or in this case Mordred.
She sat on the Throne of Powys in her armor, looking bored as she sprawled across it. She held her helmeted head with her left hand as she gazed at the two people in front of her.
They were discussing a matter pertaining to land, one accusing the other of moving land posts to increase his own property.
Lancelot and Gawain both stood at either side of Mordred, listening intently.
The three made their way around the crowd before Mordred suddenly saw them, perking up in her Throne.
"I've heard enough. I'll take council with my attendance, and get back to the magistrate on the matter by the end of the date." She said, dismissing them.
"I think that will be all for today. Thank you for coming, we will continue tomorrow." She said in her distorted voice before She got up from the Throne and walked to its right to where the trio stood.
"Brother!" She said hugging him tightly. Godrick stayed silent, feeling like a failure.
"What is it?" She asked, pulling away from him.
"I… I failed. I destroyed the city." He said, his face downcast.
"What do you mean you failed? How could you fail?" She asked in disbelief, grabbing him and leading him to another room where they could be alone where they both sat in chairs surrounding a small table as they talked.
"I lost control. I underestimated my enemies, and they got the better of me, so I lost control and destroyed some of the building, as well as the main Keep." He answered.
"But, if you killed the Headhunters, you finished your task." She said.
"It was never about killing the Headhunters." He responded.
"It was about me keeping control of myself while I did. They were dead either way, but I was supposed to do it while not ruining the town." He finished.
"Yes, I understand that," she replied.
"But… but maybe mother might take mercy on you. I'd hate to leave you behind." She said, giving him a playful nudge.
"No, you don't." He said angrily, standing up before he began to pace back and forth.
"How am I supposed to gain her trust if she is merciful every time? She needs to be able to trust me! You need to be able to trust me!" He said, waving his arms.
"Godrick, I do trust you!" She said.
He shook his head, denoting his disagreement.
"You trust me to wipe out an entire army without completely obliterating the landscape? Because I sure as hell don't. When I get going, I can barely hold on to my sanity!" He said animatedly.
Mordred just sighed as she placed both her elbows on her knees, and looked at him.
"OK, I can see where you are coming from. But… mother will also understand, don't you think? I mean, you fought and killed the four headhunters, that has to count as something right?" She asked.
He continued to pace back and forth, not knowing what to do.
He finally stopped and closed his eyes as he breathed deeply, calming down.
"I just have to except her judgment." He said plainly.
"We'll do that together." She said standing up and patting his back.
"And if we both fail?" He asked, looking down at her.
"We'll do that together as well." She answered.
"My. You being level headed. Hell must have frozen over, hm?" He said, his mood improving.
"I'll kick your ass if you say that again. Remember, I'm your future King." She said walking away.
"There's my sister." He said, walking after her.
===Godrick, six months later===
Godrick and Mordred both knelt at the foot of their mother's Throne, awaiting her judgment.
Artoria had gotten multiple reports from all four of her Knights that were shadowing her children.
The reports were less than impressive if she had to put it lightly.
Mordred, her firstborn, had been hotheaded, haisty, and brash in her judgments at her court, resulting in Lancelot and Gawain having to correct her decisions to the magistrates overseeing the disputes so no one was treated unfairly.
When they then corrected her in private, she brushed them off and preferred to train with her brother.
Now that she looked back on it, she felt it was a mistake to send him there. She should have just brought him back.
Godrick on the other hand, had completely failed in his task. Ruining part of the town, as well as the keep which had to be rebuilt at the expense of the crown.
There was no way around it. Both of them had failed. And she had no other choice than to pass judgment on them.
She suddenly entered the Throne Room from the door hidden behind her Throne, and as she walked in, the rest of the nobility and her Knights of the Round Table all knelt.
She stared down at her two children.
One she had to teach that the world was a nasty place, where she would never be accepted due to her being a woman. But that that fact shouldn't stop her from taking the world by storm, and that she could find true strength through merit.
And the other, she had to teach that the world was not out to get him. That he was safe in her arms, and that true strength came from self control.
Two completely different children, out to achieve the same goal.
"Mordred, my first born." She started, her distorted voice ringing through the great hall.
"I have received counsel from your two mentors, Sir Lancelot, and Sir Gawain. They have informed me that you were ruled by your ego, and that distractions clouded your mind throughout your rule over the people of Powys. They have informed me that you brushed off their advice, and chose to let your hotheadedness and hubris keep you from making the correct decisions." She said, her voice cold.
"For these reasons, I cannot allow you into the ranks of my Knight's of the Round Table at this time." She finished before turning to Godrick.
"Godrick, my second son. You failed to control yourself in the battle at Aberrheidol Castle. You not only destroyed the Keep which was of great value in our war against the Warlord, forcing us to spend our resources and manpower to rebuild it, costing us valuable time. You also destroyed multiple buildings surrounding it, displacing multiple families and businesses that we had to rectify." She said.
"For these reasons, I cannot allow you into the ranks of my Knight's of the Round Table at this time." She repeated.
Godrick lowered his head in shame, upset at himself.
He saw Mordred's fist shaking in anger or sadness, he couldn't tell.
"But this is not the end. My Round Table will hold a vote in one week's time, to see when we feel like you will be ready for another task to prove yourself." She said.
"Dismissed" She concluded before turning and walking out of the Throne Room.
===
"DAMN IT!" Mordred screamed as she threw a chair against the far wall, smashing it.
"How could she do this to us!" She asked, smashing her fist down on the table the chair belonged to, breaking it as well.
Godrick sat in the corner, silently watching her.
"I feel so humiliated!" She screamed, flipping another table.
"Enough, Mordred." Godrick said quietly, making her look at him.
"Excuse me?" She said venomously.
"I said that's enough." He said more forcefully, straightening in his chair.
Mordred walked right up to him and stuck her face in his as she angrily spoke.
"This affects you as well, and you are telling me to calm down!? What the hell is your deal!"
He looked straight into her eyes before he slowly stood up, forcing her to back away as he towered over her.
"Make no mistake, dear sister. I am angry about the results of our trials as well. But it is not her who failed them, but us!" He said, pointing to the door before pointing to himself.
"We are the ones who failed, not our mother! We fell short of her mark, and I ask you, who's fault is that?" He said taking a step forward, making her step backwards.
"IT'S OURS!" He finally shouted in her face.
He was beginning to breathe heavily as he stared down at his sister before he looked away, walking back to his chair.
"I am angry." He said, his back towards Mordred.
"But the only person to be angry at is myself." He said before taking his seat once more.
Suddenly the door was thrown open before Morgan walked in and stopped, taking in the ruined room.
"My goodness." She said, bringing her hands together at her waist.
"It seems you two have had fun. Clean this all up and meet me in the southern tower." She commanded before walking away.
Godrick let out a long sigh before he stood and started to clean up the mess. Mordred silently watched him before she spoke.
"You don't need to do that. I'll clean it up myself."
She then bent over and started to pick splinters of wood up off the ground with her brother.
"That's not how this works." He replied, looking up at her.
"We either win together, or we lose together. We also can clean up after each other."
===
Up in Morgan's tower, five people stood in the large circular room. One side held multiple tables with strange stones, papers and books scattered around them.
Another part of the room held equipment for alchemy and other miscellaneous things.
In the center of the room, stood a massive wooden table with more books and papers on it.
The four weapons Godrick had brought back with him belonging to the Headhunters also sat on the table.
Artoria understood that Mordred was angry with her, but chose to ignore her for the moment being, while Merlin just completely ignored Godrick.
The young man tried to strike up a conversation with the older man, but every attempt failed miserably.
"Now that everyone is here, I've discovered something strange about the weapons that Godrick brought back from Aberrheidol Castle." She said, handing each of them one of the weapons.
She pointed out multiple strange markings on each of the handles, telling them they were Runes.
From her explanation, Runes were a form of magic that involved carving or burning special symbols into the wood or metal of the weapon, giving it magical properties.
"I recognize these one's." Merlin said, pointing at two of the symbols on the handle of the club Goki had used.
"This one means strength, and this one means unbreakable. This weapon gave enormous strength to the wielder, as well as making the weapon unbreakable." He said before continuing.
"But obviously, the unbreakable Rune failed."
"Godrick, did you notice anything about the fight? Were they stronger at some points?" Morgan asked, turning to him.
"Indeed." He answered before telling them how the man had run from him to pick up the handle of his broken weapon, and when he had, he noticed a huge difference in Goki.
"Fascinating." Merlin said, running his finger over the blade of the spear Artoria had set back on the table. He suddenly looked at his finger, watching as a drop of blood slowly ran down to his palm.
"Morgan, continuing your research. I wish to know what the rest of these symbols mean. As for you two, I would suggest you get a good night's rest. You will continue your training with your teachers in the morning." Artoria said, walking towards the spiral stairs that wrapped around one second of the room, leading downwards.
"Yes, Father." Mordred said venomously, catching everyone off guard As she walked past Artoria down the stairs.