Merlin found his crutches rather difficult to manoeuvre as he weaved awkwardly through the hallways of the castle, and more than once he stumbled, only to catch himself before falling flat on his face. His ears turned a violent shade of red as he made his way to Arthur's chambers, cursing whatever these damned things were that Gaius had supplied him with.
Eventually he reached the chamber door of his master, but as he halted outside a small problem became evident to him. Merlin frowned as he stood, clearly unsure of how to handle the simple task that was, opening the door. Leaning all his weight on one crutch, he tucked the other between his legs and turned the door handle, and then kicked it open with his good foot. Right into the face of King Arthur.
'OW!' Arthur stumbled backwards from his door that, seemingly unaided, had just attacked him. Clutching his face he glanced back, only to see his manservant standing there, with a strange, strained look on his face. 'Merlin? Are you o-'
Merlin burst out laughing.
Arthur looked at him with half shock, half slight annoyance as the boy tried to compose himself again, only to take one look at the King's bewildered face, and started to laugh again.
'It is not funny Merlin.'
'Really? Because I would disagree Sire, I find it rather funny indeed.'
'Well at least there's no doubt that you're feeling better, so you can get on with whatever it is you do in my room all day, which I will never know because it certainly isn't cleaning it.'
With this statement he gestured behind him. Merlin's eyes followed and settled upon the abomination that was the state of Arthur's room. His mouth fell open.
'How? I was gone for one day and you manage to do... THIS.'
The King huffed.
'Well I am so used to your annoying presence it has become something of a habit to be... slightly careless with the distribution of my clothes. It wasn't my fault that you weren't here to do your job...'
'I was unconscious you bloody prat. Oh god...' the smell had now reached the warlock's nose. 'This is the stuff nightmares are made of. Do you not even WASH?'
He got no reply however, and so he glanced up at his master, who was staring at Merlin's leg, which was bandaged up neatly, though still showed the clear damage that it had undertaken. Arthur's face was unreadable, yet there was a grimace in his eyes as he gazed upon his servant wound.
The younger felt awkward under the young King's gaze and shifted his foot awkwardly to the side, using one of his crutches to close the door behind him. He could still feel eyes boring into him so he limped away from the door and settled for leaning against the four-poster bed in the centre of the room.
'Are you okay?'
Merlin was slightly taken aback by the question, having not experienced his King expressing any kind of concern for him before. 'Yes. It doesn't hurt any more, Gaius gave me something to numb the pain.'
'Good.' The King composed himself again and stared into the young boys eyes. 'It was one the of the worst breaks I've ever seen.'
Merlin laughed. 'Thanks. That makes me feel loads better.'
'No problem.' Arthur clamped his hand down firmly on his servants shoulder. 'I'm just glad you're alright.'
Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door, which made both men jump, the action having more affect on Merlin as he struggled to keep upright on his crutches. Arthur chuckled at his friend.
'Enter.'
The door opened to reveal Agravaine standing just outside the door, his expression that of subtle, false concern. An expression that Merlin in particular had grown increasingly suspicious of.
'Sire, your presence is needed in council immediately.'
'Very well, Uncle.' He turned to his servant. 'You can get started on this..' he gestured at his chambers '… while I'm gone.'
'What? But Arthur..'
'You may be crippled Merlin, but you're still my manservant. I want this room spotless for when I return.' And with that, he swept out of the room, leaving a disgruntled Merlin behind him.
'The beast has all but wiped out the underlying villages of Cenred's Kingdom...'
'It will be within Camelot within the week Sire...'
'It is said to be a type of winged animal, Sire...'
Arthur Pendragon looked out upon the sea of people before him, each one supplying him with more information about a new threat that had befallen the land. This beast seemed to be causing a great deal of panic amongst the villagers down in the lower towns, and rumours spread quicker than wildfire, making it hard to distinguish truth from pure exaggeration.
The King raised his hands for silence. He was granted it.
'How fast does it appear to be travelling? How long did it take to attack Cenred's Kingdom?'
'A matter of days, Sire.' Agravaine answered him 'It is supposedly on it's way here as we speak.'
'How many villages were attacked? Which ones?'
'Sire, there were so many...'
'Which ones, Uncle?'
Agravaine drew out a long piece of parchment and began to read various names from it. He was right. There were at least 30 locations that had been breached, and they were only the ones that they knew of. Arthur's ears strained to listen out for any that sounded familiar.
'Cromer, Cantley, Emswell, Wortham...'
He listened intently, as he tried to decipher why small alarm bells had began to ring inside his head at the mention of the beast. Or perhaps the location?
He couldn't quite understand what it was that he made him feel so uneasy.
Then, something inside his head clicked.
He froze.
Cenred's Kingdom.
His father's words echoed in his head.
'… you live in Cenred's Kingdom. Your safety is his responsibility.'
'Hythe, Kinallen, Tregaron...'
'We have appealed to our King, but...'
'Bramford, Thorndon...'
'...but he cares little for the outlying regions..'
'...and a smaller settlement...'
No.
'..named Ealdor, I believe Sire.'
