A Great Day for a Hunt
Above the clouds, some way to the east of Camelot, a great dragon was making his way back to the cave he was currently calling his home. He was flying at a leisurely pace, high enough that no regular human eyes could have spotted him for what he was. Scanning the world below him, he didn't see any humans about anywhere nearby, but between himself and the ground he did spot a flock of birds. Pausing in the air, he studied the birds for a moment with a predatory gleam in his eyes.
And then he dived.
The birds scattered in a panic, but not before he had snapped one bird with his jaws and swallowed in right away, and snatched a couple more with his claws before darting back up and away.
Not that hunting for birds like this made for a very filling meal, but it was good fun.
A prince, five knights and a manservant were making their way as quietly as possible along a hillside, some way outside of Camelot. They'd been sneaking their way forward like this for a few minutes when the manservant, last in the line they were forming, felt something was off. He stopped short, whipped around and stared intently in the direction they'd been coming from. There was something there, not far behind them but still hidden by the curve of the hill. Something with a strong magical energy, coming their way, and very obviously up to no good.
"Arthur..." he said.
Arthur, up ahead, simply shushed him.
"Arthur, I really think..."
"Not now, Merlin!" Arthur snapped, not even turning around as he was hurrying ahead, intensely focused on the prey that might or might not be waiting for him further ahead.
Merlin hesitated for a few seconds, watching as Arthur disappeared after the others, out of sight. He sighed, shrugged to himself and turned his attention back to the source of the magical energy. From behind the hill, two tentacles all but oozed into sight, looking almost as if they were waving at him.
In a secluded hut in the woods some way from Camelot, two witches were expecting company.
"He's here," one said. She was lying in the only small bed in the hut, and her voice was a hoarse whisper that matched her scarred face.
"So he is, sister," the other one agreed.
Outside, a man pulled his horse to a halt, dismounted, and tied it to tree before entering the hut.
"Agravaine," the witch on the bed , not bothering with pleasantries. "What news from Camelot?"
Agravaine sat down by the table. "Uther's still not feeling quite... sane, poor man," he said. "And Arthur took his favourite knights on a hunting trip this morning."
"Oh? He's feeling safe enough to leave Camelot without a sane ruler and leave his father's side, then."
"It's only supposed to be a very short trip," Agravaine conceded. "And speaking of feelings, how are you today, Morgause?"
"As well as I could be," she said dismissively. "So Arthur trusts you to stay behind with his father, then? He does not suspect you?"
"Not in the least. He trusts me like he trusts himself. Whenever you wish to set the plan in motion, simply let me know and I will..."
He trailed off as the second witch took a couple of sudden steps from where she'd been leaning against the wall and then stopped short as if she was listening.
"Morgana? What is it?" Morgause asked
Morgana raised a hand to silence them, and stayed very still for a few more seconds as her two companions watched her quietly. Then her hand shot forward and her eyes flashed gold as she muttered a few words. There was a short squeak from the corner in the direction her hand had been pointed. She stepped over to the corner and bent down, picking up her victim by the tail and letting it swing like a pendant.
"Rat, anyone?" she asked with a smirk.
"Well, one pheasant is better than nothing," Leon said.
"Slightly," Gwaine added gleefully.
"At least I caught something," Arthur said, glaring in Gwaine's direction. "I don't see anything you've caught, Gwaine."
Gwaine grinned, and was just about to answer when the debate was interrupted by a strange, high-pitched, ear-piercing and very inhuman wail. Arthur and the knights all snapped to attention, startled.
"What was that?" Elyan asked, speaking for
"Never heard anything like it," Lancelot said, shaking his head. The rest of the knights nodded their agreement.
"I think it came from over there," Leon offered, pointing in the direction they'd come from. They all looked in that direction, and then back at each other.
"Hey," Percival said suddenly. "Where's Merlin?"
Everyone went still for the moment it took for Percival's words to sink in. Then, Arthur dropped his lone pheasant. As one, they all drew their swords and ran back in the direction of the wail.
They hadn't gone very far before they found their path blocked. A huge, grey creature was lying unmoving across it, some of its tentacles caught under its body and the rest spread out around it. Its mouth was gaping open, showing off a disturbing amount of very large, very sharp and very pointy teeth.
Arthur raised his hand, and the knights stopped. They were all gathering around him when there was a rustle behind the creature. Everyone turned their attention in the direction of the noise, swords at the ready. But what popped up from behind the creatures was only the familiar manservant they'd come back in search of. He was studying the creature with interest, and occasionally poking at it curiously with a stick.
"Merlin!" six voices said, all clearly relieved.
"Oh," said Merlin cheerfully. "There you all are. Caught anything?"
"Yeah, something," Arthur confirmed. "Merlin, what on earth is that thing?"
Merlin shrugged. "Don't ask me. It was following us and seemed to think we'd make a good lunch. We had a little disagreement over that, me and him. Her. Whatever." Merlin poked the thing with his stick again.
Arthur looked from Merlin to the creature and back at Merlin again in complete disbelief. "You want me to believe you just took out this thing? By yourself?"
Merlin shrugged again. "It wasn't as strong as it looked?"
"Clearly. What did you do?"
Merlin looked at Arthur for a few seconds, then looked around as if searching for something. "Ah, there it is," he said after a few more seconds, throwing away his stick and picking up a larger branch off the ground instead and swinging it over his shoulder. "Good old fashioned whack over the head. Very effective."
Elyan whistled.
Gwaine grinned, walked up to Merlin and clasped his shoulder. "Got to admit, that's rather more impressive than your pheasant, princess," he told Arthur.
"Oh, you caught a pheasant, Arthur?" Merlin said. "Good for you!"
Leon, Elyan and Percival all joined Gwaine in flocking around Merlin, all looking very impressed as they slapped him on the shoulders and the back.
"You'd think he took out a dragon or something," Arthur muttered petulantly.
"You would, wouldn't you?" Lancelot agreed, with a smile that was completely sincere. He gave Arthur a comforting pat on the shoulder before joining the rest of the party.
It was already getting dark outside when Camelot's court physician and the young woman who had been looking after the king since he had taken ill left said king's quarters. They both looked a bit disheveled and tired, but that was rather usual after dealing with Uther these days, so the guards payed no special attention to them as they nodded their goodnights to the guards and headed off, the young woman carrying what seemed to a laundry basket. The two walked in silence until they reached the the physician's quarters, where they both sank down by the table.
"You did very well today, Gwen," the physician said after they'd both gathered their thoughts for a moment. "I never knew you were such an expert at catching gnomes."
"Neither did I," Gwen said. "It's not like I've had the opportunity to practice before."
They went silent for a while again, before Gwen spoke up again. "Gaius, about these..." she said, bending down to lift a sheet from basket she'd placed on the floor next to the table. Under the sheet, the basket was full of tiny, unconscious gnomes.
"Oh, leave those to me. They'll be out cold for a while still, I'll get rid of them later."
"If you're sure..." Gwen said.
"I'll get Merlin to help me once he gets back," Gaius said. "You've done more than enough already. I'm sorry I wasn't of much help there, but I'm afraid I just can't crawl under beds the way I used to, not at my age."
Gwen smiled. "But you kept the king distracted the whole time, that wasn't an easy job either," she pointed out. "By the way, do you think we should let Arthur know there was a gnome infestation under his father's bed?"
Gaius hesitated for a few moments. "Perhaps Arthur has enough on his mind already," he decided. "It has been dealt with, after all, and unless we get another infestation..."
They both shuddered slightly at that thought.
As if on cue, there was a noise from outside just then. Gwen got up and peered out. "Looks like they're back," she said. "I suppose I should get going too. It's getting late."
Gaius nodded. "Good night then, Gwen."
"Night, Gaius," she said. "I'll be sure to check under my bed for gnome infestations tonight, I think," she added, pausing for a moment in the doorway before leaving.
"As will I," Gaius said to himself, shaking his had slightly as the door closed behind her. He then lifted the basket up onto the table and turned his attention to the heap of unconscious gnomes.