Hello lovely readers, this is my first Mordred/OC fanfic so please leave feedback. I've made it so any writing in italic is Merlin and Mordred's thought talk/ telepathy. I hope I will do the Series and characters justice. Tell me what you think.
The dazzling sunlight illuminated the forest. Autumn leaves of blazing orange and brilliant red covered the forest floor. Bare branches swayed in the warm breeze as the wind whispered to the wildflowers, that grew tall in search of the sun. Birds that flew overhead, hunting for their prey, cast great black shadows against the setting sky. Rabbits nibbled on the last green leaves, mice scurried into the nooks and crannies of tree roots, and dears grazed on small patches of grass. Then, silence. The undergrowth that was buzzing with life suddenly went still. Footsteps, muffled by the carpet of decaying leaves, consumed the empty air. Carried on the wind, the sound of men whistled through the trees. Now the once calm forest exploded in panic, the dead leaves were whipped up in a cloud of brown as the animals bolted for cover. Just as the last mouse ran into the shadow of a large oak tree did the men appear. A group of six men, dressed in sweeping red cloaks all proudly bearing the crest of Camelot, emerged from the trees followed by another man, who wore simple clothes of a blue tunic, a red neck scarf, brown breeches and jacket.
"I think this will do." said Arthur, king of Camelot, as he set down his sword in a clearing under the large oak. Arthur was a handsome man with blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He wore a silver tunic of chainmail, black breeches and boots, as did all the other men. They all carried weapons, varying in shape and size and all looked relieved and the idea of making camp.
Merlin dumped what seemed like hundreds of bags on to the ground before moaning and stretching. "Was it really necessary to bring all of this?" he asked, his shoulders popping as he rolled them, trying to rid himself of his discomfort.
"Well we need to be prepared Merlin, who knows what we could run into." Arthur replied rolling his eyes at his lazy manservant. "Stop your whining would you, and go fetch some firewood. We'll set up camp."
"Ah, can't I have a moments rest!?" Merlin exclaimed.
"Oh, I'm sorry Merlin. Of course you can have a moment... And would you look at that you've had one. Go get the firewood!" Arthur ordered, turning the other way and reaching into one of the many bags. The knights; Gwaine, Percival, Leon, Elyon and Mordred, snickered as Merlin made a rude gesture at Arthur, one that he would surely get a month in the stocks for if Arthur ever saw. Defeated, Merlin disappeared into the trees mumbling and muttering some unflattering things about Arthur.
By the time Merlin returned, arms laden with wood, the camp was up and the knights sat about laughing. "Ah, there you are Merlin. We were getting worried about you mate." said Gwaine, biting into an apple. "Not to mention we're getting hungry."
"I start supper now then, shall I? It's not like I'm tired from carrying all of your bags." Merlin said. "I don't see why we couldn't have brought the horses. It would have saved me a lot of back pain!"
"That maybe, Merlin but they make too much noise. They'd have scared all of the animals away and then what would we have to hunt?" Arthur yet again rolled his eyes at Merlin. Merlin huffed in reply, as he started to skin a rabbit. "Would someone make a fire?" he asked, looking at he men.
"I will." Mordred offered. He got up and walked to Merlin where he slowly built up a small fire to cook on. Merlin scowled at Mordred, he would have prefered one of the others, as he still did not trust Mordred after seeing his destiny. As if he could sense Merlins anger, and he probably could with his magical capabilities, Mordred turned to face him.
"I know you don't trust me Emrys." Mordred murmured through their mental link. "But you should know that I have no intention in hurting anyone, they're my friends too now." As he said this Merlin looked over at the other knights. Mordred was right he supposed. He'd been a knight for months now and had made no move against Arthur, in fact he'd risked his life for Arthur on numerous occasions. Maybe Merlin was being too harsh on Mordred.
"All I want is to help you, help Arthur and belong." Mordred said, honesty swimming in his blue eyes. "Give me a chance."
Merlin nodded, "One chance." was all he said.
They sat around the fire, eating the rabbit stew Merlin had made, telling Mordred old stories of quests. They had all burst into laughter at something Gwaine had said when Merlin heard it. A whisper in his mind, so quiet he thought he had imagined it had it not come again louder.
"Help me" Merlin sat up, alarmed at the voice and it's plea.
"You alright Mordred?" at Arthur's worried tone, Merlin turned and looked at the youngest knight. Mordred had gone pale and his eyes were wide with worry, he looked just like Merlin felt. "You heard it too?" he asked.
"Yes." Mordred replied, his voice tense.
"Mordred, are you ok?" Arthur asked again more forcefully, concerned for his knight.
"I thought I heard something, someone." Mordred's eyes searched the surrounding forest, looking for any sign of trouble.
"I heard it too." Merlin said, standing. "I heard someone asking for help." Merlin was worried. Not only was this stranger in trouble but they had magic and if they saw Arthur and reacted badly someone would be hurt.
"Heard someone?" Arthur said also standing "I didn't hea-" A bloodcurdling scream exploded in the forest. The knights all scrambled for their swords, Arthur and Mordred already way ahead running towards the scream. As they ran Arthur quickly ordered the knights into a plan of attack, "Our priority is to save the victim." he said. They were drawing ever closer. They stopped at a ridge that overlooked a large ditch. Looking over the top they could see a camp of eighteen men "Slave traders" Mordred said, recognizing the clothes of the men. They watched the slave traders, looking for the source of the scream. "Bring 'er out boys!" The largest of the traders, obviously the leader, called his voice rough as sandpaper. Two of the men walked forward towards what looked like a pile of cloth, before pulling at two arms and dragging a woman to her feet. Her dirty blonde hair was knotted and matted with blood, from where the knights hid they could see the bruises and cuts covering her arms and neck. She wore a simple sleeveless under dress that was stained with blood and ripped. "She looks like she's been dragged through hell" Percival whispered, as he glared at the sight before him.
The woman was quickly pulled towards the large man, his beady eyes stripping her, and restrained, her arms pulled behind her back by one of the other slave traders. With an enormous hand, the man seized the woman's chin, forcing her to look at him. "So, little one," he laughed, his eyes gleaming with a sick form of glee. "Have you learnt your lesson?" With that the woman spat at him, straining from her capture screaming insult after insult and the grotesque man before her. He wiped the spit from his face then abruptly slapped her, making her neck jerk to the side. Mordred moved to attack, only to be pulled back down by Arthur. "Wait, we need to wait for the moment." he said "When I say."
The slave trader turned away from his prisoner, "If you don't learn to behave yourself you're going to make life very difficult." Just as he said thing the woman sprang into action. She quickly head buted the man holding her, knocking him out and pulled out his sword.
"Let me go." she said, her voice shaking with rage.
The trader only laughed. "Come on now, girly. What are you going to do with that?" he pointed at the sword she clutched in bloodied hands. "You're not going anywhere."
She raised the sword, pointing it directly over his heart. "Let. Me. Go!" The remaining slave traders had surrounded her now with their swords pointing at her, awaiting for the word from their leader. With a nod of his head the first man leapt at the woman, swinging his sword. Then something happened no one expected. The woman blocked his blow, and with deadly aim knocked the man to the ground and rendered him unconscious next to his friend. A moment frozen in shock was all Arthur needed. "Now!" The knights sprang into action, attacking the slave traders who were still shell shocked. They fought at almost three to one, dipping and diving, blocking incoming attacks and returning with their own deadly strikes. From where Mordred fought he could see the woman holding her own against a man twice her size. She fought with grace and agility that rivaled Arthur's skill. The slave traders were unprepared for the knights attack and were soon retreating. With the last man sent running, the knights turned to their King, who held the traders leader at sword point. From his knees the slave trader glared at Arthur, "Who are you?!" he spat.
"I am Arthur, King of Camelot." Arthur said, his voice and stance showing his status. "What were you doing to this woman?" He pointed towards the woman in question, who stared with wide eyes at her rescuers.
"She is my cargo," the trader growled, scowling at the woman, who returned his look with one of deadly hate. "That slut would have fetched a high price at market, even with her attitude. You see most men'll pay anythin' for a pretty face." As he said this the woman vaulted forward, with every intention of killing the vile man, and she would have had it not been for Mordred who felt her bubbling rage and, as gently as he could, wrapped an arm across her waist, holding her back.
"Don't let him get to you." He whispered in her mind. He felt her tense at his voice before sagging against him, clinging onto his arm. She was exhausted, Mordred realised.
"See what I mean?" the slave trader guffawed, "She's got a bad attitude, still that can be beaten out of her." Disgusted at the man before him, Arthur ordered for him to be tied up. He turned to face the girl still held in Mordred's arms. "Merlin!" he called to his man servant, who stood observing the scene from the edge of the ditch. "Make sure she's not too badly hurt."
Merlin nodded and approached the girl. As he drew near he saw her visibly tense, her eyes followed his every movement, like a rabbit watching a fox close in. He held up his hands, "I won't hurt you" he said, trying to calm her. " I want to help you" Still she shrank back against Mordred. Mordred could see she was afraid. "It's okay he just wants to make sure you're ok. No one here's going to hurt you." He spoke slowly and quietly, trying not to scare her further.
She stepped out of Mordred's arms "I'm fine," she said, but even as she said this swayed, having to grab a tree to remain upright. As she struggled to stand, Mordred got his first proper look at her. She looked familiar. "Amy?" Her eyes, a earthy green, darted to his. "Amy? Is that you?" he said, this time aloud.
"Mordred?" she murmured, just as she said his name her eyes rolled back and she collapsed.
Chapter one is done, I hope to update in a few days. I don't really like the fight scene, I think Merlin kind of disappears until it's all over but tell me what you guys think. It is going to change POV's but it won't be in first person.
Thank you for reading, love you.