Chapter Three

Protecting your people

Merlin looked out across the water and sighed inwardly, he had no idea what he was going to do. Tonight he was due to go and meet Arthur, in doing so, he was betraying the people who lived in the camp behind him. Could he do that? Risk their lives and pretend that the only reason he was meeting up with the stranger was to see what danger he posed. Who was he kidding, Merlin was going because the idea of rebelling against his Father made him smile and he wanted to talk to someone who didn't know anything about him. Arthur didn't know he was the chief's Son, didn't understand that Merlin's magic was rare and he could use it against his people. No … Arthur wanted to see him.

"Thought I'd find you here," Will approached from behind and then stood by his side happily. "Where did you go yesterday then?"

"I wasn't allowed to leave my tent. Father wasn't impressed that I didn't attend the feast."

"Liar." It didn't take much to remain calm, after so many years of lying to the people he cared about, he was an expert at hiding his emotions. "I went to your tent to bring you some food, you weren't there. Luckily I covered your ass and told your Dad you were sleeping. So tell me, where did you go? I couldn't find you in any of your usual places."

"Just went for a walk, needed some fresh air."

"I still think you're lying to me," he commented and picked up a small stone to skim over the water. "I hear you are due to be engaged?" A small nod confirmed Will's suspicions. "I think I've seen her walking around camp. Her name's Freya, she looks … beautiful," Will's word drifted off at the end and Merlin glanced at him to see he'd gone off into his own little world.

"Maybe you should marry her then," Merlin replied playfully.

"Oh, no! I didn't mean it that way. Just … you could do a lot worse Merlin. Most of the women here don't really talk, their personalities don't spark, hers does. She's already put most of the men inline and she's eager to meet you."

"I thought you'd just seen her around camp?"

"Well, maybe I did have the odd conversation with her yesterday whilst you were off on your 'walk' to get some fresh air. She's back at camp now, maybe you could go say hello, you know … be polite for once?" Will suggested and got a blank expression in return. "Come on Merlin, at least try to get to know her, you can't keep going on like this. You can keep looking out at the water, hoping for an adventure, but the truth is that you'll be chief one day and need a wife at your side."

"I guess I should enjoy my freedom whilst I can then eh?" Merlin went over to his longboat and got inside, pushing away from the ground with his paddle.

"Where are you going?"

Merlin simply waved and kept paddling. He knew he could use his magic, except he enjoyed doing things by himself, it gave him the adrenaline rush. Going further out into the water, Merlin tilted his head back as the wind blew through his hair, the sun beaming down on him. That was another odd thing about him. No matter how much he sat under the sun, his skin would not tan, he was the palest of his tribe and many often teased him that he might as well be a spirit. He often ignored them or laughed at their jokes, however when he took the time to think about it, those comments just reminded him how different he was.

When he was far enough away that he wouldn't be seen, Merlin put the paddle down in the boat and raised his hands so his fingertips pointed out towards the water. "Crígan." The water swirled into tiny balls and broke free of the surface so they were floating in the air, each going higher to make way for more. Merlin watched as hundreds surrounded the boat and he couldn't help but smile, this was what he'd been doing the first night he saw Arthur, just a little less extreme. If his Father knew how easy he found such a spell, that bending the elements was as easy as breathing, Merlin didn't know what he'd do.

"He would accept you for who you are."

As the sound broke Merlin's thoughts, the balls of water fell and crashed into the still lake. Covering his head in an attempt to remain dry, he waited for the wave of water to wash over him and then lifted his head to see his Grandfather emerging from his cave. "You don't know that," Merlin commented as he paddled the boat over to the large tree stump that emerged from the water next to the land in front of the cave. Climbing out of the boat with ease, he sat down on the stump and stared up at the creature before him. "Hello Grandfather."

"Greetings Merlin. You seem to have a lot on your mind."

Now to most people, having a dragon as a Grandfather was strange but to Merlin it felt normal, he couldn't imagine it any other way. Before Merlin was born, his Grandfather had committed a crime against the tribe and as a consequence was cursed to remain a dragon forever. Merlin had often wondered what kind of crime had meant such a punishment would be the outcome but every time he asked anyone, they simply said it was the chiefs choice. It didn't help that it had been his Father who was chief at the time.

They all believed his Grandfather had flown off to a new land, seeking refuge in a place he could call home. Only Merlin knew he remained here. The only reason he did know was because one time when he'd been out exploring the forest, he'd fallen down into a hole and broken his leg. He'd screamed for hours and hours, begging someone to find him, but the darkness had come and Merlin had grown tired. At some point during the night, his Grandfather appeared in this form and talked to him. Calming him enough that he was able to cast a spell to bring himself out of the hole, he had then been flown back to his home, where he'd stumbled into camp and into his Mother's arms. His Grandfather disappearing into the night sky a moment later.

From then on, Merlin came and visited him. Although Merlin had never said anything, his Grandfather seemed to know how powerful he was and often enough watched as Merlin experimented with words to create new spells. However at times like these, Merlin just wanted to talk and leave his tribe behind.

"What's on your mind?"

"I am to be engaged to a girl called Freya," Merlin admitted and fiddled with his neckerchief that he'd taken off upon arrival. "Apparently to become chief you need a good woman at your side. My Father doesn't have anyone by his side and he's … fine."

"You wish to become chief by yourself?"

"Who says I even wanted to be chief!" Lying back on the stump, he stared up at the trees looming over him and watched as the birds flew from branch to branch. What an easy life they had. "I'd make a horrible chief. I can barely stand being in camp as it is, imagine if I had to be there, I'd suffocate. I have no idea what it takes to become a chief and I don't want too. I want to be free. Like the birds."

"Have you told your Father this?"

"Ha! Could you imagine his face if I told him I didn't want to be chief? I'd end up covered in bruises and he'd tie me up, at least until he was convinced I wanted to become chief. I want to to be my own man!"

"You are barely a man young one. Sometimes I still see you as a boy," his Grandfather teased and Merlin glared angrily. "Compared to me anyway," he added. Instead of replying, Merlin got to his feet and walked to the edge of the stump, the tips of his boots hanging over the edge. "I think something else is the cause of this anger. Your Father has always angered you, never have you been so against becoming chief, what's changed in the last few days?"

Merlin nibbled on his lower lip as he considered telling his Grandfather what was really going on. It wasn't like he could exactly tell anyone anyway. "I met a man from another land. He, along with dozens of other men, have landed on the shoreline and have set up camp. So far all I can see is that they're digging-"

"I care little about what they are doing. What has he got to do with how you're acting?"

"He's asked me to see him again and I find myself wishing away the day so it'll happen sooner. How can I feel like this? I should be warning my people, telling them of the invasion and how they carry weapons we've never seen before. Yet I don't want too. The moment I do, I won't be able to see him again and for some reason, he fascinates me."

A small laugh escaped his lips as he imagined Arthur. "You should have seen him Grandfather. He holds himself like this," he pushed out his chest and held himself tall. "There is no doubt that he is a confident man. He kept talking to me like he was giving me orders. He's also the Son of their chief but I think he enjoys it more than I do. His accent … I could listen to it all day. Oh, and his hair. It's golden like the sun. I've never seen hair that looks like that. Everyone here has dark hair."

"Sounds like he made quite an impression."

"You have no idea." Unconsciously, Merlin ran his thumb over the wrist Arthur had once grasped, he could still remember how that had felt. How one touch had made his entire body melt. However, being as innocent as he was, he had no idea what it meant.

"Ratcliffe, you can't just hide in here and expect us to wait around. When are we allowed out of camp?" Arthur asked and glared at Ratcliffe's back, he was sick of doing nothing all day long. "The entire point of coming here was to search for gold. That's not going to happen if we stay here. The gold's out there, beyond that fence, can't you see that?"

"You know for a fact that the gold we seek isn't right beneath our feet?" Came a dark voice and Arthur stood tall as Ratcliffe got to his feet. "I have been at your Father's side for a very long time. Don't you think I have better instinct that you as to where the gold is? I've been doing this a lot longer than you young man." He walked around his desk and made sure to stay a few feet away so not to seem so short. "You may be the Prince back home but here, on this soil, you answer to me."

"I'm just saying that-"

"If I wanted your opinion I'd ask for it Pendragon. Now if you'll excuse me, I have important business to attend to." Ratcliffe pushed past him and walked from his tent, Arthur quickly following. Except what they saw wasn't the men casually hanging out together. Instead they were all holding guns and aiming them towards some of the larger trees that surrounded the fence. "What's going on?" Ratcliffe yelled and then screamed as an arrow landed by his feet.

Arthur sprung into action and dived behind a barrel, drawing his own gun. Why had the natives attacked? His people hadn't done any harm. He didn't have time to think about it as an arrow hit the barrel he leant against and he rolled to the side, aiming the gun in the direction of the trees. Shooting out a few bullets, Arthur looked for another place to hide, specifically one that could protect him from arrows.

"Arthur!"

Hearing his name, he instinctively went towards it and found himself hiding amongst some large crates with Lancelot and Gwaine. These two always seemed to stick together. "What happened?" Arthur demanded to know.

"They came out of nowhere. We only noticed them because one of them accidently broke a branch, then we realised there was about half a dozen watching from the trees. One of the newer guys shot at them and then this happened. They're so hidden in those trees that we can barely get a clear shot. We're like sitting ducks!"

Arthur held his gun tightly and then smirked, "There's never been anything I can't shoot."

Returning back to camp a few hours later, Merlin walked slowly towards his tent and only realised how quiet it was when he noticed that Will wasn't coming to greet him like usual. Turning on the spot, he stared out at the empty camp and felt his heart slow. Where was everyone? Not even the kids were here. "Chief?" He yelled out and got nothing in return. "Father?"

Oh please no.

Not again. Merlin hadn't been there when his Mother had passed, was the same going to happen with his Father too? "Will?" He was yelling loudly now, his feet carrying him through the camp as he checked the numerous tents, not a single soul being inside. "Anyone?"

"Merlin!"

"Will?" He turned to see the young man running up a nearby hill and he ran to greet him. "What's happening? Where is everyone? Where's my dad? Where are the kids?"

"It's horrible Merlin! There are strange foreign people on the boarders. Three of our people are dead, half a dozen are seriously injured and the others are trying to defend us whilst we try to get the injured out of harms way. At first we used arrows, but it wasn't enough, we had to use our magic. However our men grow weak and the women can only move the injured so far. I came back here to check on the kids. We hid them incase something happened."

"Is my Father okay?"

"I don't know. I don't … there was so much blood. They have weapons that can kill you with a single hit. You can't even see what they're firing. It comes too fast." Merlin looked down at Will's hands to see them covered in blood, reading Merlin's thoughts, Will rubbed them on his trousers. "It's not mine. You should hurry and help them, they can't keep it up for long."

Will rushed past him and Merlin remained still for a second. This was exactly what he didn't want. His people fighting. What if more got killed? Deciding that he had to go, Merlin ran in the direction of the invaders camp, knowing exactly where it was. It didn't take him long to get there, especially with the motivation of reaching his Father in time, no doubt he'd be at the front defending most of his tribe. Just like Merlin, he was powerful and could do a lot of spells before becoming tired. However he wasn't that strong and it wouldn't take long for him to become weak.

Upon arrival, Merlin felt sick at the sight. The women were covered in blood as they dragged the injured men by their clothes, each muttering under their breath as they casted spells to heal the wounds, whilst trying to avoid being hurt. The uninjured hid behind the trees and poked their heads out when they went to cast a spell. It took him a few seconds to locate his Father who was nearest the camp, his hands pressed together as he whispered a complicated spell, a light slowly forming between his palms. Merlin knew that spell. It would take out most of the camp in one blow and it would give them the chance to escape. Except the spell was strong enough to kill his Father if he wasn't careful.

"Father, no!" Merlin yelled and ran forward without thinking. The chief opened his eyes at the sound of his Son's voice and lost concentration on casting the spell.

"What are you doing here? Get back to camp and protect the children, we have enough people here." Merlin looked at him and saw that he was already tired. There was sweat dripping off his head and his breathing was heavy, he was even leaning against the tree for support.

"Leave the rest up to me. I'll protect our people."

Merlin went to go past him but a firm hand stopped him, "What do you think you can do differently? You are but one man. They'll kill you before you can even utter a word." He tried to sound authoritative, as if Merlin was just another tribe member, but the worry was there in his eyes. "You are not strong enough."

"Trust me. I'm stronger than you think."

"We're going to beat them!" A man exclaimed nearby and Arthur smiled, knowing he spoke the truth. Ever since he shot down his first native, the rest had grown in confidence and had soon started to cause some serious damage. It was only when weird things started being shot at them did they retreat a little.

"They've stopped," Lancelot whispered and everyone fell quiet. "Did we win?"

"No … that was too easy," Gwaine muttered.

"Stay down, let me check it out." Arthur walked from his hiding place and out into the open, his gun aimed towards the trees where there was no sign of another man. Everything was silent. Nothing moved. Nothing spoke. It was like the fight hadn't happened. "Clear!" An eruption of yells came from behind him and he dropped his hand to his side as he listened to his men cheer. It was always great to win a battle. Especially when you came out with no casualties.

"Arthur! What's that?"

Looking back at the trees, he saw a figure appear and all the men raised their guns, pointing at the stranger who they hadn't seen before. For this man didn't dress to hide himself amongst the trees. He stood out if anything. Arthur held his gun firmly as the man walked down the hill and vanished behind the tall fence, hiding himself from plain sight. "Stay focused! This could be a trick." Arthur warned his men.

Suddenly the ground began to shake and Arthur had to concentrate on not falling over rather than watching out for the native. His eyes widened as the huge fence surrounding the camp began to shake and he yelled, "Get back!" Arthur only just moved in time before they came crashing down, each of them flattening tents before sinking into the mud, not a single one remained standing and Arthur felt his heart quicken. No man could have done that.

"There!"

Arthur turned to see what they were looking at. It was the man from before, only now Arthur could see who it was and his mouth fell open. Merlin. He stood on the ground where the fence had once been and glared at them all, anger covering his face as he dropped his hands to his side. Only then did he hold his head up high and meet every single gaze of Arthur's men. Coming to Arthur last. There was no longer the soft innocent gaze that had been there before. The man before him wasn't the Merlin he knew. He was a man that had enough power to take down an entire camp without so much as blinking.

"You destroyed my camp!" Ratcliffe's voice broke the silence and Arthur looked over his shoulder to see him with a gun in his hand. "You'll pay you insolent savage!" Then a shot was heard throughout the forest and Arthur's heart stopped dead in his chest.