Chapter 4: Two sides of the board (part 1)

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews again, even though the alerts didn't get sent out for Chapter 3, you guys rock, especially Rya3SaberVltar because he gave me an idea I wasn't planning to use. Also, I use Ser instead of Sir because I'm a fan of A Song of Fire and Ice, but if you guys don't like it, I'll edit it all back to 'Sir' to stay historically accurate (thought I'm pretty sure the term wasn't around in 500 C.E ish anyway).


The Great Dragon mused as he wondered how he could regain Merlin's trust. He had not forgotten how his previous advice to the warlock had led him to confront Morgana directly, and as a result, Morgana had easily bent the boy to her will after a rather short conversation. As he pondered this unexpected turn of events, he suddenly realised what he had done wrong. It was now obvious to Kilgaharrah that Merlin was attracted to Morgan, and would never act against her unless there was irrefutable proof.

However, Kilgaharrah had no doubts that Merlin would act against an enemy that was simple minded in her goal, an enemy like the sorceress at the great feast days before. This was an enemy that Kilgaharrah could create. If he could help the warlock defeat his newfound nemesis, no doubt the boy would trust his advice once more. With this in mind, the dragon focused hard of an image of a sorceress; once she was his greatest enemy. Now she was the key to the warlock's trust, and Kilgaharrah needed the boy more than anything else in the world.


Nimueh, High Priestess of the Old Religion, stared at her scrying fount in awe of the creature that shone within. She did not think it was possible to use the mirror as a form of communication, but here he was, the lord of dragons, hoping to parley with her.

"Well met, Nimueh," greeted the great beast. "Time has treated you well I see."

"You know as well as I do that those with magic do not age as common men do," said Nimueh in a bored voice. "I hope you didn't just interrupt my mediation for pleasantries."

"Indeed not," said the dragon with a great booming laugh.

"Then let's not waste any time," said Nimueh. "What is it that you want?"

"Once we fought as bitter enemies; you served Uther, and I fought for the survival of my people," said the dragon. "But you did not know that you had been deceived, did you?"

"I considered Uther Pendragon to be a dear friend," said Nimueh. "His betrayal was like a knife cutting into my own heart."

"Perhaps now is the time Uther paid for this crimes?" asked the dragon in suggestive tone.

"All those with magic are now scattered to the four winds, we could never hope to gather an army strong enough to challenge the forces of Camelot," said Nimueh with a bitter voice.

"You cannot win through strength of arms," said the dragon. "But all men have needs: food and water. Take away one and any kingdom or empire will fall, no matter how great their army is."

"How can one accomplish either?" asked Nimueh curiously.

"The water supply in Camelot comes from one source alone. I have the power to grant you the knowledge to summon a great beast to poison this source," said the dragon. "It is called an Afanc, a creature of the old world."

"If you have this knowledge, why have you not summoned it yourself?" asked Nimueh suspiciously.

"It requires one to place a physical object at the site where the creature is to be summoned," explained the dragon. "I am chained to my prison, and that is unlikely to change."

"Then I am ready," said Nimueh. "Give me the knowledge I need to bring Uther Pendragon to justice!"

She did not notice the glint in the dragon's eyes as the great beast thrust thousands of alien memories into her head; the rush of knowledge was like a whole new world that had been revealed to her. As the image of the dragon faded from the fount, Nimueh smiled to herself as she began her preparations; Uther Pendragon would rue the day he ever turned against the powers of the old world.


Merlin hummed to himself as he walked though the markets with Gaius; it wasn't often that Arthur allowed him breaks, but he was still shaken from his loss at the previous tournament and was too busy training with the other knights to order Merlin around. Gaius however was not so cheerful; he had heard the news that one man had just fallen down on the streets, as if struck down by an invisible blow. He held up a hand to stop Merlin as they neared the location of the corpse; there was a large crowd gathered around the body. It seemed like that they were fearful of what struck him down but too curious to stay away at the same time. Gaius quickly dispersed the crowd before he knelt down to inspect the man; he checked the man for a pulse, but the physician did not expect to find one.

"Why do you always get the most cheerful jobs Gaius?" asked Merlin sarcastically. "I'd be scared of going near that body if I were you."

"I'm the court physician, Merlin. This is part of my job," said Gaius. "Most of the time there's nothing to fear."

As Gaius turned the body face up, he suddenly jerked back as if he was slapped in the face. The body's skin was pallid, and the man's eyes were an eerie white that gazed into oblivion.

"What's with the pale skin and the strange eyes then?" said Merlin with a slight edge of fear in his voice.

"This might be one of the few times that you should be scared Merlin," said Gaius grimly. "Help me get the body onto the stretcher, and make sure that his face is covered; we don't want to make the people panic."

"Great, now I have to touch him?" protested Merlin. "We're so going to catch whatever this man had."


As they carried the stretcher back to the castle, Merlin was glad that the body was fully covered. The memory of dead man's eyes seemed to burn itself into his memory, as if warning him that something terrible was about to happen.

"Hello Merlin," said Gwen, snapping Merlin out of his desolate thoughts. "What are you doing?"

Merlin shot a look at Gaius, as if asking him if he could tell the truth; he barely noticed his Uncle give an inconspicuous shake of his head.

"Erm, I'm just moving something for Gaius," said Merlin hesitantly. He was always a terrible liar, but Gwen didn't seem to notice.

"It looks heavy, sure you don't want a hand?" asked Gwen helpfully.

"It isn't that bad, and did someone get you those flowers?" said Merlin hastily as he tried to change the subject.

"Oh I just picked these flowers for Mor... I mean the Lady Morgana," said Gwen. "She hasn't been feeling well these past few days since the tournament."

"Oh um, I hope she gets better soon!" said Merlin. He still hadn't forgiven himself for barging into her chambers just a few days ago.

"I hope she does, and you look like you need some cheering up as well," said Gwen jovially. "Here, take this purple flower... if you want it of course."

"Thanks," said Merlin as he took the flower and stuck it in his scarf. "Er, I have to go, this load isn't going anywhere by itself."

"I'll see you soon Merlin," said Gwen as she walked off towards Morgana's chambers.

Merlin couldn't help but feel a sickening thought in his stomach as he wondered what he could do if Morgana had caught the same disease as the dead man he was transporting.


She could see his innocent brown eyes pleading for mercy as she thrust her dagger through his chest. She felt the cold metal scrap against his bones and slow as it met resistance in the boy's heart. Slowly, as if someone wanted to torment her with the last moments of the boy's life, she saw her hand pull away and watched as the life bled out of him.

Morgana woke with a start, sweating as she tried to shake off the dream. She didn't want to kill the boy, but Valiant was a threat to Arthur and to her; he had to die. Still, she couldn't help but wonder if she could have found another way to kill the Knight without killing his servant as well.

"Bad dreams, milady?" said Gwen, interrupting Morgana's thoughts.

"It's nothing to be worried about," said Morgana in her calmest voice. The last thing she needed was Gwen to get concerned about her dreams yet again. "You look happy."

"I picked these flowers for you," said Gwen as she showed Morgana the flowers.

"That's very sweet of you Gwen, thank you," said Morgana. Despite everything, her maid's innocence always helped to cheer her up.

"Oh and the King probably wants you in the council meeting today; he said it was something about Ser Valiant," informed Gwen.

Morgana felt a stab of terror as she heard this new development. Did Uther suspect her, or did he just want her in attendance to maintain appearances. She hurriedly pushed the thought aside; either way, there was nothing she could do now.

"Help me get dressed then," said Morgana with a smile. "We wouldn't want to keep the king waiting."

Lost in her thoughts, Morgana did not notice as the flowers her maid just bought in began to wilt in the water.


Merlin decided that he definitely did not like dead bodies at all. This was probably worse than usual because it didn't even look human anymore. He almost half expected the corpse to get up and grab him as he pulled one arm and tried to throw the man onto the examination table. He cringed as he heard a snapping sound; he must have broken a bone or two.

"So any idea what killed this man?" asked Merlin nervously.

"I've never seen anything like this before," admitted Gaius. "I fear that something like this could never occur naturally."

"You think someone used magic to cause it?" asked Merlin. "Why would they do something like that?"

"Magic corrupts," said Gaius nervously "People use it for their own ends."

"I've heard some say that power corrupts as well," said Merlin defensively. "I don't believe magic is any more evil than a sword."

"Whatever the case, we need to protect these innocent people as well as we can," said Gaius sternly.

"What are we going to do then?" asked Merlin with sigh; he knew that his uncle was right yet again.

"We must trust that science can give us an answer before it's too late," said Gaius with a grim voice.

Just as Merlin was about to reply, he heard a rapid knock on his door.

"Merlin!" shouted Arthur from behind the door. "My father requests my presence in the throne room, and you better be there as well before he thinks you aren't doing your duties!"

Coming," replied Merlin hurriedly. Despite himself, he getting fond of the annoying prince; most other nobles would probably not have come to tell their servants to be on time.


The guards at the door bowed respectfully as Morgana entered the throne room. Since they hadn't tried to arrest her, she supposed that meant that they had not managed to figure out who was behind the deaths of Valiant and his servant. She hurriedly took her place besides Uther as her guardian motioned for the messenger to begin.

"Your Majesty, It appears that Ser Valiant never returned to the Western Isles," said a nervous messenger as he knelt before the king.

"What happened to him?" asked Uther.

"He was waylaid on the road by bandits, and it seemed that they were after his gold," replied the messenger. "Unfortunately, the rain yesterday seemed to have washed away all the tracks, so our scouts can't track down the perpetrators."

"I want this news to remain private," commanded Uther. "It would spark a panic among the outlying villages if they knew bandits could operate with impunity so close to Camelot."

Before Uther could continue, two knights burst into the room; they were carrying the body of some minor lord. Morgana pushed down a rising sense of revulsion as she saw the body; it was completely desiccated and the eyes were wide open, but the pupils had turned white.

"Forgive the interruption your grace," said the knights as they knelt before the king. "But this is a matter of urgency."

"I can see that," snapped Uther. "Summon the court physician at once; I want to know what he thinks of this."

With that, Uther Pendragon quickly dismissed everyone but Arthur from the court; it seemed that he was troubled by the corpse. Whatever the reason, Morgana was glad that something else had captured the King's attention; the sooner everyone forgot about Valiant the better.


Merlin shuffled along uneasily as the court left; this was the second body of the day, and he had a sickening feeling that it was about to get worse. He wished the sorcerer who cast the spell wasn't such a fool; his or her actions merely justified Uther's ban of magic. How on earth was he ever meant to return magic to Albion if the magical and non magical people were always at each other's throats? He snapped himself out of his thoughts as the King began to speak; he was prone to mumbling out his thoughts and the last thing he needed was to say the wrong thing in front of the king.

"Do you know what's happened to him?" asked Uther in a concerned voice.

"I don't know, your Grace," said Gaius hesitantly. "It's the second case I've seen today and I'm still not sure what causes it."

"But surely you have some ideas about its origins," pressed Uther. "Speak your mind Gaius; I want to know the truth."

"Your Grace, I have seen nothing like it," said Gaius heavily. "The victims are dying within a day, and its spreading fast."

"So am I to conclude that this is the work of sorcery then?" said Uther with anger. "Arthur, you will redeem yourself for your humiliating loss in the tournament by finding the sorcerer who did this."

"Yes father, I will leave at once," said Arthur, eager to regain his father's approval.

"You must move quickly, every minute is precious now," continued Uther. "This is the kind of magic that undermines our authority. If we cannot control this plague, the people will turn to magic for a cure, and I will not allow that as long as I sit upon this throne."

"I understand the importance of this task," said Arthur dutifully. "I will not fail you."

"See that you do not," replied Uther grimly. "Or I fear Camelot will perish before the week is done."


Merlin hurried back to Gaius's chambers after the king dismissed Arthur. The Prince was going to search every house in the city, but somehow Merlin didn't think that someone who could create a killer plague would let themselves be caught by guards. As he entered the physician's room, he saw Gaius mixing strange concoctions in a vial.

"What are you doing Gaius?" asked Merlin.

"I'm examining the contents of our latest victim's stomach," replied Gaius. "Unfortunately I have no results so far."

"Why not try using magic to cure it?" said Merlin exasperatedly. "I'm sure nobody will notice if you make a fake cure and use magic instead."

"The king would have our heads if he finds out," said Gaius angrily. "I'll have no more talk of using magic."

"So the King is willing to let hundreds die just because he hates magic," protested Merlin. "He doesn't deserve to be king."

"Merlin, watch your mouth!" said Gaius fearfully. "It's high treason to talk like that, and if anyone overhears you your head will be on the executioner's block within minutes."

"Maybe if he didn't execute everyone who disagreed with him, we wouldn't have this plague in the first place," said Merlin bitterly. Merlin stormed off to his room; he was not going to let innocent people suffer just because Uther had some deep seated hatred of magic. He found the old spellbook that Gaius gave him and slowly turned the fragile pages; the warlock knew that there had to be a spell that could cure the plague.


Morgana sighed in frustration at her guardian's actions; Uther had ordered the lower town to be cordoned off after Arthur's search the night before did not turn up anything. Hundreds have already caught the plague and yet Uther still refuses to consider using magic to cure a magical plague. She even heard about riots breaking out in the lower town; it seemed like it was an act of desperation by men and women who had nothing left to lose. Lost in her thoughts, Morgana did not notice her maid shuffle into the room until Gwen bent down to collect a vase that now contained dead flowers.

"Gwen, I didn't notice you come in," said Morgana. She furrowed her brow in concern as she saw that there were tears in Guinevere's eyes.

"It's my father," choked Gwen. "He has the plague."

"I'm sure Gaius will have the cure soon enough," said Morgana reassuringly, even though she did not believe in her own words.

"Should I go see him now?" asked Gwen. "There might be hope for my father if Gaius is close to a cure."

"No, you've done enough today," said Morgana gently. "I'll go see Gaius and see if he's made any progress."

With that, Morgana walked out of her chambers and turned directly towards the throne room. If none of Uther's so called 'advisors' was willing to make him see reason, she would do it herself.


Merlin stood in the throne room by Gaius's side as the King discussed the plague with his uncle. He spent almost all of yesterday looking for a spell to cure the plague, but the only one he had found didn't seem like it would do the job. However, he hadn't had the chance to test it yet on any of Gaius's patients; the old man was probably trying to prevent him from using any magic at all.

"So you're certain the plague comes from the water supply?" asked Uther.

"I'm sure of it your Grace," replied Gaius. "We can't drink the poisoned water, but without water we'll all be dead within three days."

"We have to find this sorcerer!" said Uther, an edge of frenzy creeping into his voice.

"I've already searched all of Camelot, but they don't seem to be here," said Arthur nervously. "I've ordered our men to search the outlying villages, but that'll take time I'm afraid we don't have."

Before the men could continue, the doors to the throne room were pushed open by none other than the Lady Morgana. The guards seemed frantic, but she ignored them like they were mere insects.

"Morgana," snapped Uther. "I did not call for you; this is no place for a woman."

"Forgive me your Grace, but it appears to me that the answer to our current dilemma is simple," said Morgana curtly. "If we are to cure the plague, we will need the same power that created it in the first place."

"I purged magic from the lands for a reason!" said Uther angrily. "I will not welcome it back with open arms after all I have done to ensure that their accursed religion is dead."

"You can either rule a kingdom with magic, or within a week you will rule a kingdom of dust and bones," retorted Morgana. "Because you know as well as I do that magic is the only thing that can save your people now."

"Silence!" shouted Uther. To Merlin, it seemed that the King was close to breaking; he doubted it would be good for Morgana if she continued with her argument.

"Why, am I starting to make sense?" asked Morgana haughtily.

"You will return to your chambers and remain there until I say otherwise," commanded Uther in a threatening tone. "Otherwise I will withdraw the promise I made to your father."

Without another word, Morgana turned around and marched out of the throne room, leaving an infuriated king with Arthur. Merlin was not sure what Morgana hoped to achieve with her speech to Uther, but he felt it in his gut she had a plan of some kind. When the court session was finally over, he slipped out and headed towards her chambers; he needed all the help he could get if he was to stop the plague before it was too late. Besides, Morgana seemed like the one person in Camelot who did not view his abilities as if it was a curse.


Morgana sat down in front of one her mirrors and let one of her maids tend to her hair as she wondered what she could do to fix the current situation. She had dismissed Gwen as soon as she got back so that her friend could be with her father; it would probably be the last moments she had with him. A soft knock cut her from her dismal thoughts and a clear voice sounded though the wood.

"Ummm it's Merlin milady," said Merlin outside the door. "May I please come in?"

Morgana quickly ran though her options; it would be scandalous if she let male servant enter her chambers, and most of her maids did not seem like they could keep secrets. On the other hand, if her suspicions about the boy were correct, he could prove to be the one person who could end the plague. The good clearly outweighed the bad in this case, and so she made her decision.

"Come in," said Morgana in a commanding voice. She didn't fail to hear her maid's gasp of surprise; she would have to find some way to deal with her later.

Merlin walked into the room and quickly closed the door behind him. Morgana thought that the look on his face as he saw that there was someone else in the room was almost worth the price of letting him in.

"Erm, I was hoping we could have a private conver..." started Merlin hesitantly.

"I just wanted to know the prince's opinion on when the cure will be ready," said Morgana curtly, cutting Merlin off before he could do any more damage. "One of my maids, Gwen, has returned to the lower town because her father has the plague, and I would hate to see her lose her father."

Morgana smiled inwardly as she saw the shock appear on Merlin's face; she knew that he considered Gwen a friend. If he truly had magic, then hopefully he would be able to use his powers and slow the plague in some way. However, she doubted that her maid would buy the implication that Merlin was just here to deliver a message from the prince; Merlin's earlier statement ruined any pretence that Merlin was just here to deliver a message from Arthur. She gave him an icy cold stare before jerking her head ever so slightly towards her maid; she hoped he would notice it before he did any more damage.

"Of course milady," said Merlin. "I will go back to Ar- I mean the prince and give him your message."

Morgana nodded politely as Merlin turned around and left the room; she hope he would be able to help Gwen, but that problem was out of her hands now.

"Josephine," said Morgana calmly as she called out to her maid.

"Yes milady?" asked her maid; she was practically quivering with excitement, as if she couldn't wait to tell the rest of the servants how Arthur's personal manservant had visited the Lady Morgana in her own chambers.

"You do realise that messages sent between Prince Arthur and I are private," said Morgana smoothly. "It's tantamount to treason to reveal court matters that you overhear, and the king would not take well to it."

"Of course, milady," said her maid nervously. However, Morgana was not convinced that girl wouldn't blab anyway; she needed to send a stronger message.

"I understand that your father lives in the lower town?" asked Morgana in an amiable tone. "It would be extremely unfortunate if he accidently drank the poisoned water; I hear the fever kills very quickly."

"I swear milady, I won't tell a soul," said her maid with panic in her voice.

"I'm lucky to have such a loyal servant," said Morgana with a smile. She wished she didn't have to threaten her servants to keep secrets, but this one could potentially cost Merlin his life. It seemed ironic to her that Arthur's manservant may be Camelot's final line of defence against the plague; what she wouldn't give to tease Arthur about it.

"Please get the emerald dress for me; I want to wear it to supper tonight," continued Morgana as she tried to get her maid to calm down. She felt relief as she saw her maid follow her order dutifully; maybe there was a chance that this would work after all.


Merlin waited until it was dark before he sneaked out of Gaius's chambers. He was afraid of being caught now that every soldier in Camelot was looking for a sorcerer, but he had to go help Gwen. She was always so good to him, and now he could repay that favour. He quickly slipped past the two guards dozing by the gates; he thought they should have been more vigilant because Uther had ordered a curfew, but it seemed even the guards have given up hope.

As he rounded the street to Gwen's house, he noticed that it was eerily quiet; it seemed like the city was completely dead. He easily unlocked the door to Gwen's house and walked inside as quietly as he could. Slowly, he tip-toed over to the bed where Gwen's father was lying; the man was covered in sweat, as if all the water in his body was flowing out though his skin. Merlin quickly slipped a magical poultice under the man's pillow; although the spell may not work, at least he would know that he tried anyway. He slipped out of the house slowly and smiled as he did so; it really did feel like he was doing something useful for once.


Morgana woke to the sound of Gwen humming happily as she cleaned the room. She expected Gwen to be by her father's side, but Morgana dared to hope that maybe Merlin was even more powerful than she imagined; was it possible that he managed to cure the plague in the span of one night? If so, why did he not do it earlier? Morgana had so many questions, but decided that there would be time to ask Merlin soon enough.

"Gwen, I see you are back to your duties today," remarked Morgana. "You know you do not have to leave your father's side if you don't want to."

"Oh he's perfectly fine now," said Gwen cheerfully. "I don't know how he's recovered, but it's a miracle; he's the first man to survive the plague!"

"You mean that the illness is still around?" asked Morgana with dread. Surely Merlin did not just cure one man; Uther would no doubt suspect...

"Sadly, I saw more bodies just lying on the streets today; there's not even enough men left to bury them now," said Gwen grimly as she unknowingly interrupted Morgana's chain of thought.

"Gwen, listen to me," said Morgana urgently. "You need to go back to your father and tell him that he needs to pretend to be sick; this is of vita-"

Before she could finish however, Arthur burst into her chambers, along with a large number of guards.

"Guards, seize her!" shouted Arthur in a commanding voice. His men quickly surrounded Gwen and easily knocked the girl down onto her knees and bound her hands.

"Guinevere, you are charged with using sorcery against the people of Camelot." said Arthur in a grim voice. "You will be bought to the court at once, where you will face the King's justice."

"Arthur, you and I both know that the King will kill her, even if she isn't a sorceress!" said Morgana as she desperately tried to think of a way to get Gwen out of Uther's hands. "He needs to show the people that he is doing something to remedy the plague, but incriminating my maid for a crime she didn't do is a little far."

"That's not true Morgana," said Arthur icily. "We found a magic poultice in her house."

"Oh, that's ridiculous," said Morgana lamely as she finally understood exactly what Merlin has done; not only did he just cure one man, but he left behind physical evidence as well. He might as well have executed Gwen himself, it would have been merciful compared to being burned alive on a pyre.

"Then how else do you explain her father's recovery?" asked Arthur sadly. "I know she seemed loyal, but perhaps she just fooled us all, including you."

"I wish to speak with the King," said Morgana flatly. "I might be able to persuade him otherwise."

Arthur gave a curt nod before he left the chambers while his guards dragged a terrified Gwen by her hands though the castle halls. It was obvious that the Prince didn't expect Morgana to be able to change Uther's mind, and even Morgana herself did not think she could do anything for her maid now. The only thing she could do is to buy precious time so she could find that idiot Merlin and get him to correct his mistake before it was too late for Gwen.


Morgana quickly followed Arthur into the throne room where the guards unceremoniously dumped her maid onto the cold stone floor in front of Uther. Morgana cringed inwardly when she saw that Gwen's terror was obvious to everyone in the room; it would be far easier to elicit sympathy from the court if Gwen acted the confused idiot, but now everyone would assume that her fear was guilt instead.

"Well done Arthur," said Uther proudly while ignoring Guinevere's pitiful pleas for mercy. "You have proven yourself to be a capable leader after all."

"Why will no one believe me?" wailed Gwen. "My father just got better, I didn't do anything!"

"I believe you," said Morgana supportively. "Your grace, perhaps this is a disease that is not always fatal."

"And what of this poultice that was found?" said Uther menacingly as he tossed the offending object in front of Gwen.

"What poultice? I don't know anything about a poultice!" said Gwen in a hysterical tone.

"Your majesty, surely the sorcerer would not be stupid enough to leave behind any physical evidence for us to find." said Morgana, flashing a look in Merlin's direction as she made her statement. She watched him squirm uncomfortably under her gaze before she quickly looked back into the King's eyes.

"What are you suggesting Morgana," said Uther impatiently.

"What if the sorcerer planted this so called evidence to redirect our suspicions?" asked Morgana, hoping against all hope that Uther was not the man she thought he was.

"You're right Morgana, there is a chance the sorcerer is still out there," admitted Uther. "Arthur, I want you to keep searching for any other trace of magic. However, this woman before us here is still the most likely culprit."

"Please your Grace, have mercy!" said Gwen helplessly.

"Under the circumstances I have no choice but to sentence you to death," proclaimed Uther. "I can only hope that when you die, this evil plague dies with you; take her to the dungeons."

"No, please, I don't know anything about thi-", screamed Gwen, but she was cut off when the guards gagged and dragged her out of the throne room.

"If the girl was the sorceress, why would she be content to remain as a mere servant?" shouted Morgana. "Why would she kneel on a cold stone floor morning after morning when she has the power to bring kingdoms to their knees with a snap of her fingers and rule the realm as a queen?"

"Perhaps that is what she wants," said Uther nonchalantly.

"By using the plague to kill everyone in the city?" asked Morgana. "She wouldn't have anything left to rule in a few more days."

"She's right, Father," said Arthur. "You hear the word magic, and you no longer listen."

"Arthur, you must understand that it matters little whether she is truly guilty or not," said Uther patiently, as if explaining a simple concept to a boy. "The people expect their king to do something about the plague, and by executing her we restore their confidence in the crown and it will end the riots without any further bloodshed."

"But that is not justice father!" protested Arthur. "I am yet to be King, and I don't know what kind of king I will be, but I do know that I will rule a Camelot where the law is both fair and just."

"Arthur, as King, I must do a little evil for the good of the realm." reprimanded Uther. "When you sit on my throne, you will understand that these decisions must be made no matter how distasteful or unjust it may be."

Morgana had heard enough; it was now obvious to her that Uther was going to execute Gwen no matter what happens, just as she expected. However, she would not sit idly and watch her friend burn just so Uther could keep his crown for a few more days. She stormed out of the throne room, leaving a rather forlorn Arthur to reason with Uther.


Merlin stirred his soup dejectedly as he thought about the events of the day. It was his fault, he tried to help Gwen and now she's going to die because of him. He noticed Gaius place a reassuring hand on his shoulders, but that just made him feel more ashamed of himself; Gaius told him that using magic would lead to disaster, and time seemed to have proven him right.

"I thought I was doing something good and that curing Gwen's father would help her," said Merlin miserably. "I thought I was saving a life. It seemed so simple."

"It's always easy to try and use the simplest solution," said Gaius. "But sometimes the easiest path is not the right way to travel."

"It would have been simple if Uther didn't hate sorcery," said Merlin bitterly.

"Perhaps when Arthur is on the throne things will be different, but for now, you must use your powers wisely," advised Gaius. "I must go; there are more bodies to collect and samples to study if I want to find a way to cure this plague, you however can stay here and take a rest."

Mere minutes after his uncle left, he heard a soft knock on his door. The warlock almost didn't hear it because he was lost in his thoughts, but a smooth voice bought him crashing back down to reality.

"Merlin, are you in there?" asked Morgana. "I saw Gaius go out, and I need to speak with you urgently."

Merlin quickly ran over to the door and opened it; no doubt she was going to scream at him for being such an idiot, and Merlin believed he deserved it.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" asked Morgana in an eerily calm voice as she sat down at the table.

"I'm sorry milady, but I wanted to help," said Merlin gloomily. "I was such an idiot."

"That you were, but now is not the time to dwell on your past mistakes," said Morgana gently. "Can you think of any way we can save Gwen?"

"Well maybe I could cure everyone, then Uther won't execute Gwen," said Merlin hurriedly, eager to redeem himself.

"He'll just say that Gwen feared for her own life and so she undid the spell that binds the plague; it would only further condemn her," said Morgana sadly.

"Fine, I'll turn myself in!" said Merlin bravely. "I'll say I'm the sorcerer and Uther will kill me instead!"

Morgana looked at Merlin as if this was the first time she had seen him, and the ghost of a smile began to play on her lips.

"That's very courageous of you Merlin," said Morgana. "I'm sure you'll both look splendid on the funeral pyre as you burn alive together."

"What do you mean?" asked Merlin in a confused tone.

"Uther will simply say that Gwen conspired with you, and have you both executed. You heard what he said earlier; killing the two of you will only send a stronger message to the people," said Morgana. "Besides, you and I both know that you must remain alive if Camelot is to have any chance of defeating this plague."

"What do you mean?" asked Merlin nervously. Did Morgana know that he had magic? And if she did, who else suspected him?

"There may be a way to save Gwen," said Morgana carefully. "But first we need to trust each other; I know your secret for one."

"I guess I hid that well, didn't I?" said Merlin as a small grin appeared on his face.

"The chandelier's chain snapping right as the witch walked under it was quite suspicious to say the least," said Morgana. "Not to mention that Gwen's father was mysteriously cured right after I mentioned to you that he was sick."

"Wait, you suspected me before I cured her father?" asked Merlin. "Why didn't you stop me from curing him then?"

"I was trying to encourage you to use your powers to destroy the source of the plague; I did not know that you would only cure one man," said Morgana exasperatedly.

"Fine, you know my secret and the limits of my magic," said Merlin hurriedly; he wanted the conversation to remain civil. "Now why did you need my trust?"

"Are you willing to do whatever it takes to save her?" asked Morgana in a very low voice.

"Anything at all," replied Merlin with conviction.

"There is only one way we can stop the execution," said Morgana in a very soft voice, as if she was afraid that the walls would overhear them. "We must kill the King."


A/N: Muhahaha! I love cliffies in TV shows, and I thought it was a nice place to leave the chapter. So what do you guys think of the chapter, and why do you think killing Uther will save Gwen? Try to think like (my) Morgana! Please review, it's scientific fact that the more reviews an author gets, the faster they update.