Half a day had passed since their journey in search of Avalon. Their encounter against the giant statues was only a couple of hours ago. And had left a toll on Nightingale and his companions as they were left exhausted and starving.

They decided to take a short rest. Lying down on the cold hard floor, the crew regretted not bringing a mat with them so they had to bear the hard floor. They then pulled out their packed lunches out from their bags and began gobbling down their food hoping to satisfy their hunger.

Shortly after the break, they once again continued to follow the path that was set before them as it led them deeper into the stronghold. There were many passages that branched out towards their left and right, presumably led to different sections of the stronghold.

They were curious, wondering about what they would find through those passages. However, they continued on, following their own given path as Nightingale led their way.

It was a pity for not being able to explore more of the unknown parts of the stronghold, discovering what riches and history that lies deep within. But they cannot afford to be sidetracked as they were close to reaching Avalon.

As Nightingale led the way, he remained cautious, watching out for traps and ambushes that might be in store for them. But the path seemed clear and they had not encountered any danger ever since the giant statues.

He wasn't surprised to notice that his crew was rather quieter than usual without their chatter and cheers.

Despite Pee Aun's annoying comments, he started to miss their usual cheery and carefree selves. He was afraid to look into their eyes, having a hunch that they might have been traumatised by the incident before or he might end up being wrong as they were restless and tired of their journey.

Either way, it was his fault for their current state. He felt needed to take responsibility and to find a way to cure their trauma. Looking back at his companions, he was relieved to see the heavy fatigue on their faces. It seems that one short rest was probably not going to be enough for them to regain their strength and energy.

"Something wrong?" Alicia asked in concern as she noticed his troubled face.

Nightingale shook his head before assuring her, "Nothing really."

"Just hold on for a bit more longer— I hope," Nightingale whispering under his breath, averting his eyes away from her back to the path.

Alas, an opening was seen not far ahead as he saw bright light passing through. They had finally reached the path's end as the others began running ahead and past Nightingale. A smile was drawn on his face as he watched them go, bright and cheerful as ever.

As the moment Nightingale followed them through the exit, the blinding light forced him into covering his eyes.

Slowly adjusting to the brightness as he had been underground for hours, he saw the orange rays of the sun as it set down from beyond the horizon. A sea laid in view below the sunset, reflecting the mesmerizing lights as it filled the ocean with its colours.

Looking around, he saw the passage that they came from was small but not too hidden from sight. I had the appearance of an old ruined building, with vines branching down from above.

He too found himself standing in the sand, as he saw the shore standing right before him. The others had run ahead, enjoying the beach breeze.

“Avalon,” Nightingale whispered its name in a soft cooing voice.

He felt proud and satisfied as one of their prime objectives had been fulfilled.

"We're finally here." He said to himself as broke away from his view and started ahead to join the others.

He noticed the grass field that the others had laid their backs on and ahead was a large canopy of trees that seemed much older than the ones they saw before.

“Let's set up a camp here,” Nightingale proposed as he joined them in the grass field.

“Split into groups, gather stones, branches and whatever materials we need for a fire. While the others help set out the tents.”

It took a moment for them to before following out Nightingale's orders as their fatigued were still present from all the hours of walking and trekking. But Nightingale understood their tiredness and was kind enough to allow them for a break.

He understood that they and he were different, as his newfound inhumane body possess more stamina and strength than what any human would have. But he still could not forget the feeling of tiredness and fatigue before his new form.

After their rest, they went ahead and started carrying out their share in jobs. The girls were in charge of setting out the sleeping bags, while the boys were given a slightly harder task as Pee Aun and Telvinder was tasked to gather stones and branches for a fire.

Nightingale in the other hand lent a helping hand in setting up a tent with Darren. They were in luck as one of them had brought a tent kit and they decided that the girls would be sleeping inside the tent while the boys would sleep outside.

It would be cold for the boys, but their sleeping bags and the fire would keep them warm.

Half an hour had passed as their campsite was nearly finished as they only needed to start a fire. The two boys who were tasked in gathering had returned with a loaded bunch of twigs, branches and stones. They sorted it out together and arranged it slightly away from the tent.

Placing the stones in a ring to act as a border to stop the fire from spreading towards the grass and filled the inner ring with branches and twigs as fuel. There were spare branches and twigs left but it was left aside for them to use if the fire starts to die out.

The only remaining thing they needed was the fire as Nightingale had pulled out a lighter from one of his pockets. He grabbed one of the branches from the ring and lighted it before tossing it back from where he took.

The campfire blazed in a roar as the flames were warm and were flickering with the breeze from the sea. The feeling of joy and happiness filled their faces as they were relieved to have finished setting up the campsite.

Night had already fallen as the sky was clear of clouds and filled with stars and the moon bathing them with its light. But it wasn't just an ordinary night sky, as the radiant light shone in the horizon like an aurora giving the out-worldy feeling that this island had in store.

Nightingale and his crew had gathered around the campfire as they sat eating their dinner. It was not much as they only had brought bread, chips and some other snacks with them. It was the only food that they would be able to satisfy their hunger with. But lady luck was on their side as Nightingale had pulled out packed food that he had brought along with him as it was given to him by the kindness from the innkeeper.

Everyone was delighted to see that they would be able to satisfy their hunger with food that was more filling than bread and snacks. They began eating their dinner, as the two boys; Pee Aun and Telvinder were devouring it like barbarians.

Nightingale was the only one among them who had not started eating as he did not feel the need to satisfy his hunger. He sat with them near the fire, inspecting his ammunition and reloading the only remaining firearm that he had left.

He had used two of his magic stones, and it had seemed that he had lost the rest as they might fell off his pockets during his past encounter against the giant statues.

There was only but a clip left for his handgun which had already been loaded inside. If there were any more threats on the island, they would have to avoid it as it would seem that he would not be able to offer them protection once his final clip runs out.

“It looks like you’re preparing for a fight.” Pee Aun muttered with his mouth still stuffed to the brim with food.

“Always have to be prepared for the worst, who knows what we'd find here,” Nightingale replied with a small smile as he holstered his firearm back into his coat.

“Was pretty amazing what you did back there against the statues!" Telvinder commended.

"Where did you learn those moves? It was like something out from a blockbuster film!” Telvinder gasped in amazement.

“It won't be a secret now if I told you, now would it?” Nightingale stated him with a small cunning smile.

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

“Wow, keeping secrets from us, eh?” Pee Aun shot at him with his voice loud and clear, a brow raised towards the person in question.

Nightingale let out a small laugh as he gave him his reply, "Everyone has their own secrets to keep, like one of you with the number of times you've peed on your bed.”

"Oh no that's just him." Pee Aun denied and pointed towards Telvinder and began chuckling and choking on his food.

“We should all have a toast, for our success in reaching Avalon,” Alicia suggested, livening up the mood as the others nodded in agreement.

“To our prevailing strength and our arrival in Avalon,” Alicia said as she raised her drink. The others did too as they grabbed their drinks from their bags and raised it high and close to the others.

“Cheers!” They all said together, as they all clashed bottles and cups and drank altogether in a toast.

After their toast, they continued eating their meals as some of them had started a conversation. They cheered and laughed with smiles on their faces as Nightingale looked away as he laid his back against the ground, mesmerized by the night sky.

Telvinder was the first to finish his dinner but his face was instead filled with discontent.

“Ugh, I’m still hungry . . .” He groaned as he was still not satisfied with his meal.

“You know what? I’m gonna order some food from my phone. You guys want pizza?”

It was such a surprise to hear such jokes were being told by him but the others started doubting and believed that Telvinder was actually serious.

“Telv, you do know that we’re on an island that isn’t even supposed to exist on the map. So how are they gonna reach from the mainland, and deliver food to us?" Pee Aun stated, looking puzzled.

"Heck, I doubt we can even get a line here, dumbass.” Pee Aun growled and proceeded to press his hand onto his own face as he felt frustrated over Telvinder's stupidity.

“Oh yeah, my bad.” Telvinder apologised in a slow and soft voice after realising what he had said.

“Oh my god, I don’t think can tolerate any more of his stupidity.” Pee Aun mumbled to himself quietly enough so that the others were not able to hear.

“Wait, we got no line?” Telvinder shrieked in fear as he immediately pulled out his phone and saw the empty bars near the corner of its screen.

“My mom’s gonna kill me, I haven’t called her since we left.” Telvinder shivered in fear, scared to hear any scolding from his mother for when he returns.

“Oh, you’re gonna get grounded, young man! First, she's gonna take away your games, then your porn.” Pee Aun jeered at Telvinder as he slapped his leg while laughing uncontrollably. The others too giggled in their place as Telvinder gave Pee Aun a deadly serious look.

“And had you ever told your parents how much of an arse you are?” Telvinder spat his words as he stood his ground against Pee Aun.

“Oh yes, I did. And guess what? They love me for who I am. Oh-hohohoho!” Pee Aun snorted into an evil laugh.

Telvinder snapped and felt an urge to attack Pee Aun as he immediately went to try and claw his face.

“Oh, not the face! My beautiful face!” Pee Aun cried in agony as he covered himself from Telvinder’s attacks while laughing uncontrollably.

The others could no longer control their laughter as they were laughing off their seats. They decided to leave those two alone and stayed on the sidelines watching them as they settle their small fight.

They knew it was not a serious fight as the two boys had known each other longer than any other as their bond of friendship can’t easily be broken.

A smile was drawn on Nightingale's face as he had been listening to their arguments. His eyes closed as he continued listening and began to slowly fall asleep.

It was far past midnight as Nightingale had been startled awake. His eyes blinked open and as he pushed himself up, a blanket slid down from his chest and onto his lap. He had not remembered having a blanket over himself as he realised that one of them had placed one over him. He smiled at the thought of it.

As he got up from the ground, he began doing stretches, as he stretched his arms and back as it made him feel a whole lot better.

Looking around, he saw that the boys had fallen asleep in their sleeping bags. The fire too had been extinguished. Probably before they settled themselves to sleep, he thought.

He did not feel drowsy and was unable to sleep longer as such thoughts of discovering things within Avalon lingered within his mind. He decided that he would head into the forest to scout out for paths they needed to tread.

As Nightingale traversed the forest, he followed a trail of cobblestone that seemed to once have been a path. The trail led him deeper into the forest as it becomes more and more visible.

The trail ended and to Nightingale's surprise, a small old cathedral laid in view before him. The cathedral’s walls were entangled with vines and it seemed that it was swallowed by vegetation. The tinted glasses were still there yet some parts of it were broken by the branches of trees that sprouted from within.

He felt a sudden urge of wanting to go through as something was calling out for him in the direction of the cathedral. Without more than a thought, Nightingale accepted its invitation as mustered his courage and took a step into the cathedral.

Within the cathedral, there were grass and flowers growing near the sides. Trees had sprouted from the cobblestone floor as it grew tall and supported the cathedral’s roof with its large branches.

He heard droplets of water falling from above as small puddles were formed in the missing chunks of the cathedral's flooring. Looking above, there was a large hole in the roof as droplets of water were falling through.

He continued on, following the call as it led him deeper within the cathedral as there was a twin flight of stairs that circled around leading up.

To his surprise, the stairs were still holding together and had not shown any signs of falling apart.

His journey continued on as he was led towards the far end of the cathedral where an exit appeared not far from him. He felt unusual that he was led into the deeper parts of the cathedral but instead, to whats outside.

Taking a step out from the cathedral, bright light welcomed his eyes blinding his sight, but only for a moment as his eyes slowly adjusted and saw the area of his surroundings.

He stood outside, standing on the walkway as he had entered a large garden. The garden’s flowers were no more as weeds and grass were overgrown on the sides of the walkway and to his surprise a sword laid in view.

The sword was sheathed within a stone as it bathed the light from the moon. Nightingale felt the calling of magic stronger than ever, as he realised that the sword had called for him.

He took a step away from the cathedral and slowly progressed onwards towards the sword. As he drew nearer, he felt the layers of magic thickens as it brushed his skin, giving him a warm feeling of nostalgia.

The sword in stone laid in view before him. Its blade was rustless yet its hilt, covered in dirt and dust.

He stared at the sword and felt as if it invited him to pull it out.

The sword in stone was familiar to him as he knew the great legends of Caliburn, the Sword in Stone. But what laid before him was not Caliburn but something far greater.

Nightingale brushed the dust from the sword’s hilt and saw its gold-tinted crest. And with his touch, he felt its magic surging through his fingertips.

“Excalibur,” he said its name in the silence of the night.

His whole hand gripped around the sword’s hilt, closing his eyes as he felt more of its magic passing through him.

He heard voices in his mind, whispering and pressing him to pull the sword out from the stone.

He felt as he was being controlled as his hand tightened about the sword's hilt and tempted to free it from its stone. He felt the sword’s blade sliding within the stone as it slowly rose from the stone.

But Nightingale had made a resolve and decided against it as he pushed the sword back into the stone. It took a moment for him before he was able to free his grasp from the sword's hilt and began taking a step away from it.

“Why did you stop?” A sudden feminine voice questioned him from afar.

It did not send Nightingale into a surprise as he kept his cool and showed no signs of weakness.

“You're mistaken, I was denied by the sword,” Nightingale lied as he turned to face her.

He saw a beautiful face of a young maiden standing not far before him. Her long striking white hair tied into a ponytail as it glowed under the moonlight as it shined upon her. Surprisingly she was much taller than he was, expected of a human from another world.

The light revealed her outfit as she was wearing a brownish cloak covering over her nightgown. A silver sword shined brightly under the moonlight as it was sheathed at her waist. Her hand rested on the sword’s hilt as a precaution.

“That is only something a fool would believe, even after seeing the sword slipped free." She stated as she drew her sword out and pointed it in his direction.

"Do not lie, stranger." She warned him.

"I've heard prophecies that foretold of a day that the sword would return to its former glory by the hands of its bearer."

“And you believe in such tales?” Nightingale asked with a smirk.

“Yes, and I have reasons back up my belief. Who are you, stranger? State your name.” The white-haired maiden ordered for his name without showing any strains in hostility as she kept her sword firm and pointing at him.

"Nightingale—"

"Your real name." She cut him short with a sharp glare that sent a shiver down Nightingale's spine.

He saw the menacing killing intent from her. He knew better that she wasn't an opponent that he would easily be able to defeat and understood that he should come clean to avoid a confrontation.

"Nick Pendragon." He said at last with a sharp and clear voice.

The white-haired maiden's face was filled in shock as her feet twitched taking a step back. She looked apologetic as she hastily sheathing her sword.

"My king." She said with a firm voice as she knelt down, saluting him as a knight would to a king.

"No, I'm not a king. And I don't see myself worthy in being called as one." Nightingale denied and saw the maiden rising to face him.

"But we—No, I, have waited for this very moment for your return. For a Pendragon to claim the sword that was sheathed for more than a thousand years." She said as her voice had gone desperate.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm ready for such responsibility."

"What makes you say that?" She asked with concern.

"There are feelings inside of me that makes me question of who I am and who I want to be. And I wish to discover it myself, not to be chained by the responsibilities that sword has in store for me." He declared.

"Then I shall wait for you to be ready to accept it. You don't have to be a king now, but accept Excalibur's help. And mine, in accompanying you in your quest."

"Let me serve under you as your knight." She pleaded as her face turned grave with her fist clenched at her chest.

Nightingale saw her expression in making the request, she was desperate. But he felt guilty for the reply he was about to give.

"I’m sorry, but I can't," Nightingale returned with a deny.

"What is your name?" He asked her.

"Jyne Emryne, descendant of the great knight; Sir Bedivere.” She answered politely, holding her emotions in.

"Sir Bedivere." He whispered her ancestor's name.

"Fate is cruel." He thought.

“I’m sorry, Jyne Emryne. But I’m not Arthur, or ready to succeed his throne.”

“Being a king is not something I can easily accept.” He denied once again.

“Then I apologise for the selfish request and my rudeness.” She apologised with a soft voice, bowing her head down.

“No, forgive me, for not meeting your expectations.” He replied with a smile.

“It's time I bid farewell when the night is still young. Best wishes, Jyne Emryne, that if our path crosses once again; we would still remain as friends rather than foes.” He said as he began walking past her, heading back towards the cathedral.

The white-haired maiden lifted her head, quickly turning around as she watched him go.

“Thank you, Nick Pendragon. Do tread lightly in your path for I will remain in wait for your return.”

“The name’s Nightingale.” He corrected her before disappearing away from view, returning back into the cathedral.

The white-haired maiden clenched both her fists, as tears began dripping down the sides of her face. She had held her emotions strong in face of her king. But it seems to have overflown.

“But even so, you would forever remain a Pendragon in my eyes.” She whispered to herself with a look filled with new found determination.