In search of the holy grail, Vortigan dons a mask to cover his scarred face as he goes from town to town, burning each one down after he's assessed that the grail is not there. One such town is Oxleigh, and he leaves but a single survivor by the name of Nimue, who gains her vengeance by allowing the middlemist flowers he destroyed to prosper elsewhere, thanks to the great magician Merlin. The two of them soon form a relationship but Merlin worries when he proposes that he will outlive her, due to his immortality. As such, he decides to take the holy grail to the Flame of Prometheus to mold it into a sword capable of cutting away his magic. Vortigan follows and tries to take the sword, proceeding to kill Nimue. However, as it turns out, she drank from the grail and gained her own magical po