"Arthur Pendragon!"
Arthur's stomach flipped.
It wasn't that he wasn't expecting it. He knew it would be coming someday, that he could only rely on luck for so long before fate came knocking.
But still.
He'd hoped that he'd have a little more time.
For a moment he lets himself wonder what life could've been…
And then he returns to reality.
He steadies himself and raises a hand, calling out his name firmly. He forces his legs to move and slowly heads towards the platform, shooting glares at his men (having already warned them not to give their lives for his) to quell any last minute crazy ideas they might get in their heads.
He never counted on Merlin intervening though.
It's a long, horrible moment of silence before desperate shouting breaks out as Merlin fights his way forwards, begging them to take him instead as he screams those AWFUL words again and again and again.
Their friends try to hold him back of course, but Merlin slides out of their grip and stumbles forward up the steps and then not even the knights can save him from his own stupidity because Peacekeeper hands are on him, his back to their fronts and there's no going back.
"I volunteer." He rasps one final time, his whole body trembling as he stands, facing Arthur on the stage.
Then the whole world shifts and the reality of the situation hits Arthur.
Merlin, sweet and gentle Merlin who cried when Arthur shot the deer has volunteered.
Sweet, stubborn Merlin who hasn't got a hope of survival just agreed- no, begged- to take Arthur's place.
Arthur's place! Arthur, who had been trained from birth for this, who knew how to hunt, how to kill, who was infinitely stronger and faster and better equipped for the arena than Merlin was in every possible way.
And Merlin had still offered to take his place.
He screams.
He screams and he thrashes and he begs them, begs with every last scrap of the soul he has to ignore his friend's offer- "he has a terrible mental affliction", "he's been at the gin again", "He won't last two seconds out there"-
And they ignore him.
They manhandle him off of the stage, more and more peacekeepers coming to help drag him away from Merlin as he fights them off one by one.
They're never-ending.
Always coming.
It isn't long before he's overpowered.
He sinks into a sea of scrabbling limbs, faintly hearing the ring of that insufferable woman's voice ~"We have our tributes!"~
Arthur makes one final attempt to call out but no air escapes his struggling lungs.
It's only when his world fades into darkness that he realises that he can taste the bittersweet tang of tears on his lips.