Authors Note: I did promise you'd get more. Now I'm going to have to bounce between stories aren't I? Crap… On a happier note I would like to thank WhatIsThisNormalYouSpeakOf for a bunch of amazing reviews. I almost cried when my day started reading those I was so happy. I have also discovered which Avengers character I am. BOW BEFORE LOKI MORTALS! I AM GOD OF MISCHIEF AND FIRE! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. .. yeah that explains a lot doesn't it… I own nothing. Have fun!
11. Escape Into Darkness
As soon as the sun rose Arthur nudged his knights awake. The sky was dark and it was obviously going to rain. They mounted their horses and got on their way. Not ten minutes later metal rang against metal as Lord James guards, all three of them, leapt out of the trees. Cadric, Bedavier and Galahad engaged the men in combat and Cadric called out to Arthur.
"Go on ahead sire, we've got this under control! Go get that bastard!" Arthur and Leon hesitated before galloping off following the trail the guards had left. They soon found themselves outside a dark and grubby inn. A man, short and as greasy as the wall he was leaning on, stood next to the door a short sword at his side. He was deep in thought but Arthur had no doubt he would attack if he spotted them. He nodded to Leon and the crept around until they flanked the man from either side of the trees. As they did it began to rain.
Merlin was losing the fight. He had no idea how long it had been since Lord James had locked the door and left, but ever since then he had been trying to get out of his bonds. He had actually managed to get most of the way out of one of them. Unfortunately his hand was now stuck in a rather uncomfortable position. To get out of this Merlin would have to do one of two things, either wiggle his hand back up so that the rope was once again around his wrist or break his thumb. Neither sounded like a good idea even to his fogged mind.
To make things even worse his vision kept swimming in and out of focus. His limbs were growing heavy. His magic was almost completely out of his reach and it was sluggish at best as it slipped through his fingers when he did manage to find it. He swore, the gag muffling his slurred words, as he tried once again to cut the rope with magic and missed. This time he did manage to cut something though. His own hand.
He couldn't even see the cut but he could feel the blood running down his palm to pool around the rope. His potion slowed mind grumbled as the blood spread around his uncomfortably positioned hand, soaking the rope. A few minutes later it clicked and he began to wiggle his hand toward freedom with much more ease than before.
Lord James swept down the hall. His guards could take care of a few knights, of that he was certain. The overconfident lord swaggered up to the locked door behind which lay his prize. He shouldn't be asleep yet, but soon and in the meantime they could have a bit of fun. Lord James unlocked the door and stepped inside. He quietly palmed the door shut behind him and frowned. His angel had not noticed his silent entrance and was sluggishly attempting to free one of his hands, and he was succeeding. But his movements were obviously slower than they should have been. He kept blinking rapidly, his glorious eyes out of focus. Lord James watched him struggle for a moment before he pounced.
Quick as a tiger he leapt over the foot of the bed, landing with one knee on either side of the boy. He gasped and froze his clouded eyes snapping up to meet Lord James hungry ones. Lord James pinned the smaller boy's hands back above his head, it was then he noticed the blood. He lifted the freed hand up to his face to examine it closely. The cut was clean and deep enough for the lord to feel a flash of worry but not so deep as to be life threatening. The lord carefully ran a finger along the cut, pulling a nearly silent whimper of pain from the boy beneath him. Still staring at the injury he whispered.
"How did you do this my pet?" Merlin made no attempt to reply, as he was still gagged and completely focused on staying awake. Lord James pressed his thumb into the cut and Merlin let out a muffled cry of pain struggling to get out of the Lords grasp. He failed as the potion ebbed further through his system, settling the dark comfortable cloud back over his mind even as he fought it.
"I am very upset with you now, trying to escape like that is not very good behavior. You're going to make me punish you aren't you?" Fear flashed under the surface of Merlin's mind but he could not grab hold of it no matter how hard he tried. The lord brought Merlin's injured hand up to his lips and laid a soft kiss to the still bleeding wound. Then he carefully retied Merlin's wrist to the other, but the knot was far tighter this time. He smiled as he ran his hand along the boy's face. His struggles were slowing down as the potion overwhelmed him, and yet he still fought. Lord James knew how to quell fighting spirits like this. He pulled his dagger slowly from his belt. He sat back so he towered over the helpless boy beneath him.
"I really didn't want to do this but you've given me no choice. Don't worry I'll make sure none of it scars my pet." His smile was beyond sinister as he brought the knife in a swift arc toward Merlin's chest. Merlin screamed as his vision darkened, thrashing against the bonds that held him in place as he fell into the darkness of his own mind to escape the pain he knew would come. He went limp, almost glad of the comforting darkness.