Alright, so here's the next chapter! Next update is probably going to be a bit slower as I already had this written. But I am definitely going to keep working on this fic. Hope you enjoy and feel free to review - reviews make my day and are very much appreciated:)
After a very long lecture from Arthur about working harder and not being so clumsy, Merlin opened the door to his chambers with a whoosh and clomped across the floor, so focused on collapsing onto his bed, he didn't even notice Gaius. He almost walked straight into him and knocked a potion out of the man's hand.
"Merlin, watch where you're going," Gaius reprimanded.
Merlin apologized and then sighed.
"Is everything alright?" Gaius asked, worry lines appearing on his face.
Merlin nodded, and then remembered the strange incident with the girl. He almost said something about it but then quickly pushed it to the back of his mind. He realized that it probably wasn't that big of a deal. After all, it wasn't like she had poisoned Arthur! Yes, it had been suspicious. A stranger, a complete stranger, pouring the king's water - that was supposed to be Merlin's job - not that he was complaining (he definitely wasn't) but regardless, everything seemed perfectly fine. Arthur was same old Arthur. No one had died. All was well in Camelot.
"It's great," Merlin replied, realizing that it had taken him probably longer than it should have to answer. "Everything's great."
After passing a slightly bewildered Gaius, Merlin opened the door to his room and fell into a deep sleep.
Emrys.
Cold, so cold. He had never been this cold before. Ever. Merlin groaned, his eyes opened to find that it was still dark.
Emrys. Look at me. Look at me, Emrys.
"Shut up, I'm coming," Merlin grumbled. He sat up. And felt his breath catch in his throat when he noticed a shadowy figure - crouching in the corner of his room. Merlin couldn't make out what it was exactly, but magic was coming off of it waves. Not just any magic, either. Bad magic making Merlin's stomach twist itself up into knots. And there wasn't just one of the shadow things either. There were more.
Merlin lit the candle on his bedside table as fast as he could. For some reason, he had some trouble preforming what usually was a simple action. Ordinarily, he was able to use his magic without even thinking about it. But now - it actually took him about half a minute to find the strength to create the fire. When he had finally succeeded, the candle's light allowed him to see the shadows better - except, after a quick sweep of the room he found that... they weren't really shadows. They seemed thicker than shadows, realer than shadows, but they were as black as the night and they had no eyes, no faces. One of them looked like a wolf or a dog of some sort. The others looked like people and wore armor and helmets so Merlin supposed that they were knights. There were a couple more of the creatures, but their bodies almost seemed to meld with the surrounding darkness, making it hard to see what their forms were exactly. But the fact that there were things that were there and definitely weren't supposed to be terrified Merlin. And his magic...Where was it? It was like it had been sucked out of him.
Oh, poor thing. The wolf shadow was speaking. It's scared...
Another shadow spoke.
Let's kill it now.
The shadow's harsh laughter ripped at Merlin's ears and tore at his heart. He tried frantically to think of a spell - a good, powerful one, but he found himself too distracted. It was like a thousand people were stepping on him and holding him back, preventing him from moving.
You're trapped, Emrys. You can never escape.
And neither can Arthur.
Arthur? No, not Arthur. They couldn't hurt him. Merlin felt the beginnings of a spell trickle into his mind at the shadow's harsh words.
How do you think he'll feel when we kill his beloved pet?
That did it.
Before the shadow could finish its last word, the words to an incantation jumped into Merlin's mouth. He spat them out quick as a flash and before he knew it, a bolt of power was shooting from his fingers. The shadows howled in pain and anger, and Merlin took that as his chance to leg it for the door. He didn't think he'd killed them, but he'd definitely incapacitated them. For now.
When he ran out of his room, and out of the main room, Merlin felt strange memories coming to life. He was so confused. Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong.
And Merlin soon figured out what it was. Gaius. Where was Gaius?
Merlin frowned to himself and then…
"Oh, it's a dream!" he said aloud. It had to be. That explained his magic not working very well, and Gaius not being here. But unlike the times when he finally realized that he was dreaming, Merlin did not wake up.
Panic spread through him. And when he walked out onto the street, it didn't stop. If anything, it intensified. The air was absolutely freezing - so cold in fact, that Merlin's bones felt like they had turned to ice right then and there. There was no sign of the market, no sign of life. Camelot was a desolate place. A sudden creak cut through the air - so loud it was like thunder - and Merlin almost had a heart attack. When he realized that it was just the Tavern sign swaying in the gentle wind, it still took a while for him to calm his nerves. But after a moment of thought, Merlin decided that the best course of action would be to go find Arthur. The king was in danger after all. Wasn't he? Hadn't- Merlin couldn't seem to remember anything. Anyway, if he couldn't find Arthur, he could at least find somebody else. Anybody. He had to get help. Oh, how he wished Gaius were here.
Merlin started to head towards the castle, but then a sound that turned the blood in his veins as cold as the surrounding air stopped him short. The laugh of a shadow. Heart rattling in his chest, Merlin could feel nothing but fear and annoyance all mixed into one. He thought he'd bought himself enough time with that spell! How could this be happening? Whipping around, he saw the wolf shadow and two knight shadows creeping towards him. The incantation that had been on his lips disappeared from his brain instantly, and seized with fear, Merlin found himself so shaken, he couldn't even take a backwards step. Maybe this wasn't a dream after all. Maybe this was real. How could it be a dream? If it was, he would be awake by now.
Still feeling like he was glued in place, Merlin found that no thoughts that he was having were making this situation any better. But just before the wolf shadow reached him, there was the sound of hoof-beats behind him. And after that, all Merlin remembered was blackness.
