Okay I'm sorry I haven't updated in like a month but since I only had one review I felt like no one wanted to read it! D:

Also I apologise for any spelling and punctuation mistakes! I blame autocorrect!

Enjoy! x

"Hurry up Merlin!"

I sighed and kicked my horse in order to catch up with Arthur and the other knights. It was early afternoon and we had been riding for the past two days to search the borders for smugglers and bandits that cross over from Nemeth. Arthur was most likely bored of all the paperwork and meetings involved with being King of Camelot, which is why he dragged me, Leon, Percival, Gwaine and Elyan all the way out here with that as an excuse to get away. Although I suspect everyone apart from myself, actually came here willingly.

The sun was blistering down but thankfully the trees of the forest provided a welcoming shade. We were making good time, with only a little way to go until we reach the border. I was surprisingly optimistic in finding no bandits and so I wouldn't have to pretend to be all helpless and cowardly and inevitably use my magic to save the day, yet again.

I'm surprised that I haven't been found out yet. You'd think that after several years of bloody battles and defeating countless creatures, curses and sorcerers, that even the King of Prats would've realised that every time we always make a miraculous escape; in which something extremely convenient happens for example collapsing roofs, that it wasn't a coincidence and that it could be something more! Like, um, I don't know? Magic!? Sometimes I wondered how someone so stupid could be running the kingdom.

Unfortunately it seemed my (extremely little) luck had run out. Just as we made it to a small clearing, Arthur stopped his horse and raised his hand up to silence us. He then lowered himself to the ground and unsheathed his sword from the horses saddle and turned to us, nodded his head in front of him to inform us to follow, and continued to stealthily head towards the noise.

I looked across at Gwaine but he seemed at as much as a loss as I was. Leon, upon noticing our confused glances, shrugged, and started to copy the Kings actions. I sighed once more, knowing deep down that this trip wasn't going to go smoothly but wishing that it was just an animal Arthur had heard, (although his spur of the moment hunting trips weren't too appealing either) and not some blood thirsty bandits.

We all successfully managed to dismount our horses quietly and follow Leon and Arthur, with the exception of me tripping over a root, which earned me a few annoyed glares from Elyan and Percival and a smirk from Gwaine. We eventually caught up with Arthur who'd stopped a few feet away from the edge of a small hill. He signalled for us to keep low, so we crawled the rest of the way there. But I sulked inwardly as the scene below us wasn't a doe for us to slaughter, but an all to familiar sight.

A large group of around 30 bandits were making camp below, most huddled around a small fire that they were trying to get going. There were horses tied to the right of the fire, and a small metal cage to the left. I gulped with the realisation of what they were doing. I looked across to the knights and nodded in the direction of the cage, silently alerting them to the danger of what we were facing. Gwaine's brow furrowed in plain disgust and his expression was mirrored by the other three knights. Only one group of people carried cages like that. Slave traders. The scum of the earth, as Leon refers to them. Selling innocent people to lazy nobles and anyone else that could afford it.

I scowled and turned my attention to my right, where Arthur was also staring at the black box. He turned to look at us all, a clear look of hatred in his eyes. Arthur had always despised these sort of people, ruining his great kingdom's name for the sake of a few petty gold coins. The thought of killing them must be so enjoyable to him, not only does he save life's but he gets to rid the land of these monsters in the process. The evil glint in his eyes reminded me of the way Uther had looked when he had sentenced scorceres to death. I shuddered at the thought but I was brought back to reality at the sound of the cage door opening.

I looked down to see a girl of around 20 being dragged roughly out of the cage, towards a small clearing. She was wearing a (rather tattered) purple skirt and long sleeved top, that came just below her chest. There was a thin mesh of material covering her stomach (1) and I gulped at a new horrific thought that had crept its way into my mind. If they had dressed her in somthing as revealing as that, then it was obvious that they weren't intending to sell her as a household slave, but as a sort of toy. A "toy" that would be given to very high buyers with the intent of using them for much more disgusting purposes than just slavery.

I heard Gwaine growl deeply at the thought we now shared and the rest had either started to unsheathe their swords or just kept their hands balled up in fists so tight, that their knuckles were turning white.

I turned my attention once again to the scene below, as I took a better look at the captive. She had long light brown hair that reached just below her shoulder blades, that had become tangled due to her method of transport. She had the most gorgeous green and blue eyes although they had narrowed slightly with the pain and anger she was trying so desperately to hide. Her hands were tied in front of her and they were curled tightly into fists. The determination in her eyes made me feel even more worried as I knew from experience, just how much of a façade it was.

The sudden conversation broke my train of thought and I leaned forward slightly to try and decipher what the bandits were discussing. The girl was held by her arms by two muscly men, both dressed in black breeches and a short sleeved top. No doubt there to "intimidate" anyone that passed by with their obvious strength. Not that they'd stand a chance against me.

They brought the girl to her knees , facing her towards another stocky man; dressed relativley the same but with a midnight black cape draped around his shoulders. He leaned down slightly to talk to the girl and laughed callously in her face before returning to his original stance to speak.

"What do you want with me?" The girl spat at him, cutting off what the man before her was just about to say. The man however just laughed again and replied in a deep voice.

"I'd have thought that was obvious. Since your pathetic excuse of a mother wouldn't give us what we wanted, we just decided to take you instead. Although I don't really see what you could possibly know, but I'm sure we'll find some use for you." His gaze shifted from amusement to a perverted look of hunger as he looked the young girl up and down. Another deep growl from Gwaine alerted me that I wasn't the only one listening in to thier conversation.

"Don't even think about it!" She grumbled. She shifted, rather clumsily, to her feet and squared up to him, thier heights almost level now that she was stood. "You got nothing from my parents and you're getting nothing from me!" She screamed, spitting on the floor beside the mans boot.

He looked up from his nearly soiled shoe and glared once more at the girl before him with a satisfied smirk breaking on his face. "You really are your parents daughter. Full of pride and honour and yet so weak and stupid. No wonder it was so easy to kill th..."

The man never got to finish his sentence as the girl swiftly kicked him in the gut. As he doubled over, the two men that had hold of her tightened thier grip in order to restrain her. However thier futile attempt failed as she used thier wieght to swing herself back, then forward, her legs now wrapped around the injured mans neck. A quick twist and a resounding snap later, the man fell dead to the floor; the purple bruises around his broken neck already visible. She quickly made work of the two behind her, winding them both and knocking them unconcious whilst smashing thier heads together. It was then that the girl plucked a dagger from the belt of the nearest assassin and began to try and free herself from her binds.

After a moment of shock I heard a sharp, female voice echo in my head.

"Well don't just lay there Emrys! A little help would be nice!" She said and I looked down once again to the owner of the voice. She still avoided my gaze, making sure the others were blissfully unaware of our brief conversation. The other bandits had heard or seen the commotion and were quick to unsheathe their weapons and trap the girl in a huge circle: slowly closing in.

It was then that I noticed the knights and Arthur making their way silently down the hill and towards the unsuspecting mercenaries. Percival was the first to strike, taking down two men before the group even noticed them. Angry cries came from below and I scurried down towards a large oak tree just outside the clearing that the battle was taking place in.

I could feel my eyes flash gold as I made a branch fall from a nearby tree and taking down a few men in the process. Gwaine was struggling with three men so I scoured round for a weapon, finally locating one on the floor near a rather frightened horse. Using my magic I untied the ropes that tied it and all the other horses to the trees and carts so that they could escape. I used my magic to quickly kill the man behind him and the two that, unbeknownst to Gwaine, were very close to stabbing him from behind. Fourtunatly no one noticed.

Arthur was handling his share of the bandits well, the familiar glint of joy evident in his eyes. That was until one of the mercenaries managed to trip him over. The growing group of hooded figures looming over him in apparent victory. That was until a high pitched cry erupted from one of the men near the back of the circle, disrupted the group while they each fell one by one. Arthur, unable to identify his rescuer, seized the opportunity and got to his feet before cutting down three of his attackers.

The rest of the knights had finished off their share and turned to face Arthur, just as the last bandit fell. The young girl looked up as she thrust her sword into the ground beside her, a cheeky ghost of a grin working it's way onto her face. Arthur looked sheepish and shocked as he acknowledged his rescuer. The girl had managed to free herself from the rope around her wrists, grabbed one of the fallen bandits swords and saved him from an "unkingly" death.

I smirked morbidly as I made my way towards them, at the thought that the prophesized "Once and Future King" could have so easily been killed by a bunch of good for nothing bandits - nobly risking his life to save a young woman from a horrid fate, when in actual fact she had been more than capable of escaping - if he hadn't been around to save his skin.

The thought was pushed aside when the knights had made their way to the three of us, all trying to keep the same thought from causing a smile to show, minus the Once and Future King part.

Arthur raised his arm towards the girl and introduced himself.

"My name is King Arthur of Camelot, I wish to thank you for helping us".

The girl grasped his hand and shook it politely and grinned widely, though the obvious shock that she was in the presence of a king was still evident in her bluey-green eyes. She absentmindedly smoothed down her hair with her free hand while preparing to speak.

"I'm Iyla Bray, but your praise is unnecessary Sire for I should be the one thanking you. Without you and your knights help I wouldn't have escaped." A solemn expression graced her face as she reminisced over her unfortunate predicament.

I silently snorted. It was obvious to me that she had magic, so even if we weren't here then she could have escaped without too much trouble.

Arthur, upon noticing her sadness was quick to change the subject by introducing the knights and I.

"Well I'm glad we were able to help. These are my knights Sir Leon, Sir Elyan, Sir Percival, Sir Gwaine." During each name he gestured to said knight, each nodding their head in greeting. All except Gwaine. The Knights Code forgotten(2), Gwaine made haste in grabbing Iyla's hand and pressing it gently to his lips. He winked at her as she tried to supress a giggle at the sudden bout of attention she was getting.

I rolled my eyes at Gwaines obvious attempts at flirting with the poor girl. Trust Gwaine to make a move on every girl in Camelot.

Arthur then tilted his head towards me and said, "And this is my manservant Merlin", his arm now accompanying his head in identifying me.

Iyla just nodded her head, our eyes never breaking contact as she wordlessly evaluated me as the mighty Emrys. Well at least that's what I assumed. Why else would she spend so long staring at me? Thankfully no one seemed to notice our prolonged gaze so Arthur just continued to think, oblivious to everything as usual.

"Well I don't know about you but I think it would be best to head out of here. We need to set up camp soon before it gets dark", said Elyan looking up at the now slightly pink sky. Arthur nodded in agreement before turning towards Iyla.

"Iyla I'm afraid you'll have to ride with Merlin as we're short of horses." He leaned closer to whisper in her ear,"Although if I were you it would be safer than sharing a horse with Gwaine."

He winked before turning to face Gwaine with an innocent smile in his face; whereas Gwaine's bore a look of mock upset. Both knights laughed as they turned to head up to fetch the horses. Iyla was still stood firmly in the same position she was before.

"Wait, you mean I'm coming with you?" She asked looking incredulous. The two in question turned and the king nodded.

"Of course, unless you would like to stay here?" He asked, raising his eyebrow that was similar to the one Gauis often uses.

She shook her head but proceeded in the other direction. " I need to get my stuff first," she added before heading over to a large cart near the edge of the camp. Arthur nodded at me to help her and so I followed, careful as not to step on the many corpses that littered the ground. Even after several years of this, I still wasn't used to it.

By the time I had made it over to the cart, Iyla had already fished out an odd shaped bow and a leather bag full of arrows. The bow was made from metal but was unlike anything I had seen before. The only bows in Camelot were either extemely long or the conventional crossbows. I stared at it, intrigued by the unusual design and I stole a glance at Iyla in a silent request to take a closer look. Her gaze however was not on me or the bow, but at something behind me. Her eyes widened as she grabbed my shoulder and threw me to the ground beside her. When I looked back, she was still in the same position but with an arrow embedded into her left thigh!

She let out a pain filled cry, before falling to her knees. I quickly rushed to her side and forced her wieght back onto me so that she wouldn't fall forward and injure herself further. Her cry alerted the retreating knights and they all hastily gathered at her side, each with a look of surprise on their faces. Arthur was the first to react.

"What happened?" He said, his eyes meeting Iyla's just as she closed them, tears threatening to spill. I shrugged, just as clueless as everyone else.

"That...son of a bitch tried to...to shoot Merlin..." She frowned with the effort, but managed to point at the man sprawled out a few feet in front of her with a crossbow in his hand. "But I pushed him...out of the way and...got hit instead." She sighed, resting her head on my lap as she tried to remain conscious. Most of the knights cringed at the sight of a woman cursing, but Arthur was too busy forming a plan to care.

"Elyan, Leon, fetch the horses. Merlin do what you can to make it safe for her to ride until we make camp."

We all set into action, Elyan and Leon racing to the horses and Gwaine in tow to collect my medicine bag. Arthur and Percival were beside me waiting to help in anyway they could.

Gwaine soon arrived and I set to work, tearing the material around the arrow so I could see the full extent of the damage. Thankfully the arrow wasn't too deep but it was still causing Iyla a lot of pain. I snapped the shaft in two and addressed her.

"I'm really sorry about this, but I'm going to have to pull it out. It will hurt." I said, noticing the pained expression in her eyes before she nodded in agreement. I took hold of the wood and quickly ripped it out of her leg, Iyla failing to hold back a scream before she drifted out of consciousness. I quickly tied a bandage from my bag around the wound to stop the blood flow before tying it in a knot.

The other two had managed to lead the horses down here without to much trouble. I hurried to pack my bags and mounted my horse along with four of the other knights. After a request by Arthur, Percival lifted Iyla onto my horse, do that I could hold her while riding. When he was satisfied that I wasn't going to drop her, he mounted his own horse and we set off to make camp.

Not long after, we found a small clearing that was suitable to stay in for the night. Everyone dismounted their horses, this time Leon helping the still unconcious woman of my horse and leaned her against a nearby tree, before going to help set up camp. Arthur had assigned everyone jobs so that I could concentrate on healing Iyla. Her wound had stopped bleeding as heavily, but it would need time to heal properly. After Gwaine had fetched me some water from a nearby stream, I began to clean to blood from around her injury.

By the time I had finished rebandaging the cut, the camp was mostly finished. A fire had been set up in the centre and a pot of soup was boiling away thanks to Percival. The five knights were sprawled across the logs that had been moved so that we were all sat in a circle. Arthur to my right, followed by Elyan, Leon, Percival and then Gwaine to my immediate left.

We ate our food in silence the sombre mood still there from when we had left the mercenaries' camp. Hardly any words had been spoken, unless they were orders from Arthur. I sighed and rested against the tree Iyla was at, sitting to her right. Arthur, hearing my sigh asked the question that had been on everyone's mind.

"How is she?" His voice was surprisingly sad and his eyes showing signs of guilt.

"It wasn't major, just a flesh wound but the pain was enough to make her unconcious, but I've given her a sleeping draft so hopefully she should sleep off most of the pain." I explained. The knights nodded in acknowledgement but they all looked wearily at the sickly pale girl beside me.

"How do you suppose she ended up there? I'm sure something must have happened to her for her to have broken that guys neck?" Said Elyan. I shuddered at the thought. How could someone so innocent ever have had the strength to do something so cruel.

It seemed the rest of the camp were thinking the same thing as before too long Percival spoke up.

"You're right. Did you not hear what that guy said? No wonder it was so easy to kill them. I'm guessing they killed her parents. But what I don't understand is why?"

I shook my head at Percival, also at a loss as to what could have happened to the beautiful girl that sat beside me.

"Well I guess we'll just have to wait until morning to find out," said Arthur, sinking further down so only his head was resting on the log. Everyone nodded as they settled down for the night. I took one last look at Iyla before closing my eyes to sleep away the worries of the day, completely unaware of the figure lurking in the shadows only a few feet away.

Duh duh duh!

Okay so I hope you liked it! It took forever to write but I may still rewrite it. Maybe?

(1) Based on the dress Gwen wore when she was taken by Helios

(2) I've not looked into the details of the Knights Code but I assumed that they would have to be respectful to a lady, and flirting with them isn't exactly nice. But anyway I just liked the way it sounded.

As always please review! I will post more frequently the more reviews I get! ;) hint hint.