Black and bloodied
Merlin had been awake for the whole time that Cenred had cut out his eye. He had screamed and screamed and screamed, but he had not passed out. He had felt it and seen with the other eye as its partner was pulled out. Cenred had smiled a savage, wild crazy smile and had shown Merlin his severed eye, stuck on the edge of the bloodstained knife. Merlin had promptly thrown up all over the cobblestones.
Now the warlock lay shivering and sweating on his bloodstained cell floor, Cenred had released his chains and let him fall into an undignified and sobbing heap on the ground. He didn't know how long he had been laying there, but he guessed that it had probably been quite a while, as his body was going stiff. Cenred was now standing over him, talking, but Merlin couldn't seem to be able to make out the words through the blinding pain he felt all over his body and in his empty eye socket.
Suddenly, Merlin felt a hand gripping his matted hair and pulling up his face so that he was looking straight into Cenred`s merciless eyes. "Merlin?" the boy heard his name break through the haze of mind smashing pain, he moaned. "I know you can hear me, can't you?" Merlin blearily nodded, wishing that the king would leave him alone to sleep. He was so very, very tired.
"I've sent your little king a gift that I think will bring him here pretty soon. So I need you to put on a nice show - make the Pendragon pup feel his heart tear apart. Make a good distraction for me." Cenred`s smile was full of malicious, sadistic pleasure. Merlin moaned with pain and mustered up enough moisture in his mouth to spit at the leather clad king. Cenred growled and sent a kick into the boy's stomach, he yelled in pain and curled up in a protective ball. Gods, it hurts so much.
"Come on now Merlin, be a good little pet and do as you're told." said the dark haired king mockingly, he bent down to pick something up, but Merlin was in too much pain to care. That was of course, until something cold and burning was poured over him. He screamed out in utter agony as whatever was dripping onto him burned into the scarred flesh around his eye. "That loosened your resolve?" sneered Cenred, grinning down at the spasming servant.
Merlin knew that through the pain, he could never betray Arthur, he could never let the king see him like this. "No! And I'm no one's pet!" he yelled back at the wicked king.
"Well you won't have a choice anyway Merlin my boy, you're going to be my bait. And it will work whether you want it to or not - it's your choice, do it willingly and you might just live." Merlin simply glared up at him. "Have it your way then - your friends are nearly here." And then - to someone out of Merlin's line of sight "Bring him." Merlin was roughly pulled to his feet and dragged out of the cell and down the corridor.
Arthur, don't come for me, please don't come- but there he was. Merlin saw Arthur through his one good eye, standing there in the main hall, all in shining silver armor. Like the avenging angel of prattish glory.
