Chapter 6
Arthur struggled against the flames, lungs filled with smoke as he attempted to find a way to the door that was not completely overrun by the fire. Dark smoke hung in the air, so thick it could almost be grabbed and held. He held the little girl to his chest. He had wrapped her in his jacket, and she clutched at his shirt, burying her small head in his chest. He was so covered in sweat from the heat that he almost didn't feel the tears that soaked him to the skin as she sobbed quietly. Arthur knew he had to get her out.
Giving up on finding a safe way out, as the blaze was everywhere, he decided to go the most direct route: through the flames and to the door. Unfortunately, the door was difficult to find through the flames and smoke. It took all of his skill as a hunter to "track" down the door, finally spotting it with his keen eyes.
Head growing light from the lack of oxygen, Arthur called on all his training. As he had been taught since he was a child, he buried his fears in the back of his mind, along with his ever weakening leg and body that was slowly failing him with fever and smoke inhalation. Clearing his mind, he clutched the girl tighter and plunged into the fire.
The agony of the first few steps was almost his undoing. The flames licked his legs all the way up to his torso, almost hungrily tasting the flesh. It was worse than anything he had felt in his entire life. It took all of his will power not to pass out, but he could not stop a small scream from escaping his lips, the sound lost in the roar and crackle of the fire.
It would be much easier to just give in, to give in to the darkness, to give in to the pain. It would all be over. The agony would stop.
Arthur shook these thoughts out of his head and looked down at the little girl. Miraculously, she was still unburned, his heavy jacket protecting her from the worst of the blaze. He needed to be strong for her. With that thought in mind, he kept running for the door.
He had almost made it when his leg gave out. He crashed to the floor, managing to roll at the last second to cushion the girl's fall with his body. They had fallen only a little ways from the door, but it might as well have been a mile.
Arthur began crawling towards it, dragging his leg behind him and cradling the girl with one arm. The fire still blazed around him, but he had become numb. Nothing hurt anymore. He could feel the heat, but not the burn. He was only a few feet away from the door when the roof caved in.
Merlin stared at the house through his tears. After all they had been through, after all they had survived, Arthur had died one of the most horrible deaths known to man. He had always believed that he would go out in a blaze of glory, not killed like one of the sorcerers that his father so despised. He blinked, and hated the wetness that fell down his cheeks. He could almost hear Arthur, the blonde's voice ringing in his head as if he was right next to him:
"Don't be such a girl, Merlin!"
He could not believe that his best friend was…no. He wouldn't think it. He refused to believe it.
Shaking off Leon's hand, he turned and ran back to the barrels. Grabbing a knight's discarded cloak, he soaked it in water and then wrapped himself in it. It was cold and wet, but should protect him from the worst of the flames. He turned back to the house, and saw Leon staring at him curiously.
"I can't just stand here and do nothing," Merlin declared. He saw Leon open his mouth in objection, but he pushed past him and sprinted over to the house, dashing for the rubble. He wasn't going to believe that Arthur was dead until he held his cold, lifeless body in his arms.
Arthur was now surviving solely for the girl. His body had long since stopped feeling like his own.
When the roof collapsed, a section had fallen straight for them. Reaching into the last of his reserves of strength, Arthur covered the girl with his own body and somehow managed to catch the piece of roof. It was now balanced on his back, still burning. He tried to stand up to throw it off them, but it was no use. He was spent. It was all he could do to make sure it did not fall onto the small child. He concentrated on this task, contenting himself with keeping the girl safe as the fire slowly burned everything around them, including his back.
Although he was putting everything he had into holding up the ceiling, he felt as though he had the sky on his shoulders. His bad leg was no help, and he could see darkness creeping in at the sides of his eyes. His lungs were filled with smoke, and it was getting to be impossible to breathe.
Arthur thought that it was smoke inhalation that caused him to suddenly see the figure in front of him. It was as tall as a man, but draped in something that could be a blanket or a cloak. The creature stretched out a hand to him, tugging on his arm, trying to get him to come with it. Arthur shook his head and managed to croak out "the girl".
The figure didn't seem to understand and reached for his arm again, pulling more insistently. Arthur wrenched his arm away and shoved the little girl towards the being. It now seemed to realize what he wanted and reluctantly picked up the girl and backed away. As it did so, Arthur managed to glimpse a pair of familiar looking blue eyes that looked at him with hurt, regret, and fear. He watched it run out of the house, out into the fresh, cool air, little girl in tow.
Satisfied that the girl was safe, Arthur finally collapsed onto the ground, the roof falling on top of him. He could not find the strength to move it, and the weight pinned him to the ground more effectively than ten men. He could not remember how he had managed to hold it up before. It seemed impossible now.
He felt no pain. He felt no regrets. Surely it was as honorable to die for your subjects in a fire as it was to die for them on a battlefield.
He only looked at his surroundings, knowing these were his final moments. He looked at the flames surrounding him, looked at the house fallen about him, looked at the door, now an impossible goal.
He looked, and then he finally gave in to the darkness and knew no more.
