A/N: Hello! Sorry I haven't been posting!
I'd just like to thank everybody for the story alerts, the reviews and the favourites! I really appreciate it!
And I didn't know this would be so popular!
I'd just like to add that I have noticed the error with the two people coughing in the previous chapter, and I will try to make sure I never mix-up characters again!
I also realised that Alta was being pressed out as a leader and, though she would make a good one, it doesn't suit the time period and I try to be as historically accurate as possible! So Alta will be taking a back seat, and I will expand on the other four characters over the next few chapters!
I'd like to thank my Twitter followers for their support (especially one special friend who kept egging me on; you know who you are).
So, R & R, please tell me if I'm out of character at any point; criticism is wanted as much as praise!
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Merlin. I think you'd know if I did. (I'm 'shipping Merthur 'til I die!)

When Merlin arrived, all he wanted to do was lie down on his bed and sleep. Perhaps Gaius had something for backaches.
But fate had other ideas.
Merlin staggered into the physician's chambers, only to be greeted by five strangely excited people and Gaius, who seemed worried, and a tad shocked. He just hoped nobody had seen him using magic again; he didn't fancy spending the night in the dungeons yet again. A tall woman leaned over to another woman and whispered, "He doesn't look much like a strong warrior!"
"I'm sure he'll do very well. Looks like he needs a bit of fattening up. But I can soon change that," the other woman, who was much smaller, smiled.
"Is somebody going to tell me what's going on?" Merlin asked, confused by these strange people all excited to see him.
"Merlin, this is Alta," Gaius gestured to a small woman, who had been speaking to the tall woman. Her eyes widened, and she smiled, bowing her head, "My king."
"King?" Merlin frowned. Did she just say king? As in kingdom and crown king?
"You're the next king of Essex," Cola informed. Merlin looked at him, and then turned to Gaius. He nodded, signalling to Merlin that what Cola had said was true.
Yet Merlin couldn't quite believe it, even if Gaius said so. "As if," he grinned, expecting them to burst out laughing.
But they didn't. Their looks grew sterner, and the truth dawned on Merlin.
Merlin was a king. A proper king of a proper kingdom.
He remembered all those times he'd wished he was in Arthur's position, and what a great king he'd make, but they'd just been thoughts, really. He'd never expect anything to come of them.
And then he was faced with his destiny. It was his destiny to remain by Arthur's side, in Camelot, yet this opportunity could not go amiss; a whole kingdom depended on it. In Essex, he would be able to use his magic freely, while in Camelot he would hide from the truth. Arthur may never legalise magic.
Merlin paced the room, aware he was being watched by everybody, thinking over his options. Everything seemed to point towards going to Essex, apart from his destiny. Merlin and Arthur could always combine their kingdoms?
Nonsense; they were a great distant apart.
He wasn't taught how to deal with these things; Merlin was just a young man from Ealdor, nothing else. He'd never been taught how to deal with this type of situation - did his mother even know about all this?
With all these things flying through his head, Merlin finally asked, "How?"
"Your grandmother," Gaius seemed sterner and worried, after Merlin's reaction, "she was engaged to one of the late kings of Essex. Together they had a child, though he did not know."
"Mother," Merlin realised.
Cola stepped forward, "My king, if I may speak."
"Oh yeah, of course," Merlin seemed surprised at this request, though it would be something he'd have to get used to. The four newcomers seemed taken aback at this response; they presumed the king to be more formal in his speaking. However, Cola continued: "Our current king, Aelfric, is a bloodthirsty creature, who creates wars between other kingdoms just for the sake of it. Our people yearn the peace, that we hope you will bring, and not the terror-filled lives that we live today. My king, you are our last hope."
Merlin stood still, and looked at Gaius. Gaius nodded, understanding Merlin's line if thought.
It was time to visit the Great Dragon.