"Get down!"
Merlin threw his body agaisnt Arthurs' knocking him right out of his chair as a dagger embedded itself in the backrest. For a scrawny guy, Merlin sure packed an impact. Arthur pushed Merlin off as he tried to recover from having the wind knocked out of him while around them the knights and their guests rushed into action.
Merlin scrambled onto his knees staying coruched over Arthur, protecting him Arthur realized. The idiot! Before Arthur could push him aside to stand up and face his would-be-assassin, Merlin jumped to his feet and dashed away through the crowd.
Had someone been hurt? Arthur knew Merlin was trained in the healing arts by Gaius since the old physician could not always respond in time, especially in the field.
As Arthur struggled to his feet, Leon lent him a hand. "Thank you." Leon nodded as he took up a protective stance at his side, while Arthur surveyed his surroundings and the situation.
No one was on the ground. No one appeared hurt, only afraid as shown by his cowering guests behind sir Lancelot and sir Percival. His inspection of the room halted when his eyes noticed the dagger in his chair. It had been close, extremely so. If Merlin hadn't tackled him...
He shook the thought from his head and turned to face sir Leon. "Where is Merlin?" It came out lined with a certain urgency he hadn't realized he was feeling. Every following second that he could not see his manservant anywhere, only increased his anxiety. Merlin had run off as if there was an emergency and yet no one was injured. What had made him rush off and where to? Questions Arthur wanted, needed answered and preferably right now.
Leon's answer was interrupted by Elyan returning from apprently the hallway where Arthur concluded he must have checked for danger. On that thought, where had his almost-assassin actually gone?
"Everything is clear out here. Stay here, keep everyone safe. I'll follow Gwaine."
Arthur interrupted his knight before he could dash away once more. "Where did Gwaine go?"
"He chased after Merlin and the assassin, sire."
Arthur's blood ran cold as he processed that information. Surely not! "Are you saying Merlin went after the assassin?!"
Silence and averted gazes told him all he needed to know. Of course Merlin had chased after an assassin. It was apparently his life's goal to get himself killed to get out of being a servant to Arthur. Well, not if he had anything to say about it.
"Find them, now!"
The assassin was fast as he scurried up the stairs of the tower, but Merlin was no slouch either, and he was far more familiar with Camelot's ins and outs. He'd lost Gwaine a few turns back but couldn't risk slowing down to let him catch up, not when someone who tried to murder Arthur was within these walls. Gwaine would give him hell for this, but Merlin was prepared to face his friends wrath as long as Arthur and everyone else was safe.
Finally he reached the top, the only place the assassin could escape to when the guards blocked the other passages. The sunlight blinded Merlin as he emerged onto the roof. Using his hand to shield against the bright rays, he stumbled forward blindly until he could see him.
He was just a young man, not much older than Arthur himself, standing with his back to Merlin. His head was downcast and his arms hung loosely at his sides. It was a defeated posture.
"Ah, man," he sighed as he turned around to face Merlin, a wry smile on his face. "I so did not expect that from you. You were fast! Almost as if you knew I was there before you even saw me." He turned towards the city, staring at it with an almost fond look. "I guess it doesn't matter now, anyway."
"Please surrender." Merlin took a cautious step closer. "There is no escape from here and I don't want to hurt you."
The assassin turned around, an amused expression on his face. "Hurt me? You?" He laughed once, his eyes widening when it was clear Merlin wasn't trying to be funny. "Do you have some secret skills hidden in that neckkerchief or what? You're funny, but you're also wrong. There's always a way out."
Merlin did not like how the tone of his voice changed, a sudden seriousness rolling over the young man that unnerved him. Before Merlin could ask what he meant, the assassin stepped up on the ledge of the tower. Merlin felt his heart skip as the reality of the situation kciked in. "What are you doing?!"
The lad turned around, precariously, on top of the ledge to face Merlin. "Surely you aren't worried for me, are you? I tried to kill your king, remember?!"
"You don't have to do this. Just surrender-"
"So your King can have me executed? I'll pass, thank you."
"But he'll give you a fair trial, let you explain-"
"What is there to explain? I am guilty. I tried to kill the King. I wanted to kill the King." Merlins' breath caught as the young man before him claimed his crime with a cold satisfaction, amusement even. "But I failed. I suppose the job will pass to someone else."
Job? Did that mean he was working for someone? There was someone else involved in killing Arthur, someone who would not stop at one failed attempt!
The assassin stumbled atop the ledge as he turned his back on Merlin, drawing his attention back. He couldn't let him jump, not when this man knew who wanted Arthur dead. Merlin made the attempt to grab the assassin and pull him back -damn the danger that would put him in- but when he came within grabbing distance the assassin turned around lightning fast and steady on his feet, and took a firm hold on Merlin.
"The king lives but I'll have the final laugh when I take you down with me!"
Before he could react, Merlin felt himself be heaved forward and then they were both freefalling, the ground rushing towards him at great speed until everything went black and he knew no more.
abreoþan morþor [roughly means failed murder. 2nd word murder, 1st fail/failure]
Currently a one-shot, I've got an idea to continue this but not right now. Maybe in the future.