Okay, I need to take a moment to thank you all again. Your reviews have been so thoughtful, so motivating, it has really helped me keep going with this story. Thank you so much to all my reviewers, especially my regulars. You guys make it all worth it, so thank you.
It's been fun reading what hypotheses people have about what's going on. Honestly, there are a few of you who are spot on. I read them, and I was like, "Whaaat? How did you get in my mind?" :P But not everyone has it, so I guess that means I've been leaving good clues. If nobody had any idea that was close at this point in the story, I might have had to re-evaluate how good my hints throughout the chapters have been.
Okay, enough talk- read chaper 11! And please don't kill me at the end!
Enjoy!
Chapter 11: Betrayed
Gwen watched anxiously as Merlin, Arthur, and Gwaine prepared to return to Dareth's labyrinth. She was nervous and hated the idea of sitting here all alone, waiting, until they came back. She'd had to do that far too many times when Arthur had ridden out on quests and missions over the years. Gwen found it to be a much harder task than actually going on the journey itself.
But she'd promised Arthur she'd stay here. And so stay she would.
In the middle of swinging his sword a bit to get warmed up, Gwaine suddenly stopped and looked surprised. He sheathed his sword and reached under his tunic with his uninjured hand. "I nearly forgot…" he muttered.
"What is it, Gwaine?" Gwen asked, stepping towards the knight curiously. Gwaine pulled out from under his shirt a crumpled, somewhat soggy scroll. Gwen seriously hoped it was wet from all the water yesterday, and not from being trapped under Gwaine's shirt for who knows how long.
"It's a scroll from Camelot's library. I found it the night of the invasion," Gwaine answered, rolling it open. Standing a few feet away Arthur scoffed.
"You, Gwaine? In the library?" he said. "I fear for Camelot's records."
"Gaius sent me there," Gwaine told the king. "He asked me to do some research on Grayton, especially in connection with the court of Odin."
Gwen noticed Merlin looking at Gwaine with his eyes narrowed. He seemed intrigued by this turn of events, but not in his usual light-hearted, curious sort of way. His eyes were glued intently to the knight's face, occasionally flashing to the scroll his hand. For some reason it unnerved Gwen.
"Of course, now we know what Grayton's connection with Odin's court is," Gwaine continued.
"Lord Dareth," Arthur said angrily.
"Yes, but look what my intuition gave us. I didn't know at the time Dareth was plotting all of this, and yet I still grabbed this very record," the knight bragged. Gwen took the scroll from him and shared it with Arthur.
"It's Dareth's family tree," Gwen realized, looking over the names, lines, and dates written in tiny writing all over the parchment.
"What does this tell us, Gwaine?" Arthur asked, squinting at the small words. Merlin walked over and peered over Arthur's shoulder at the scroll, but to Gwen it almost seemed more like he was trying to observe Arthur's face more than what was written on the scroll.
Gwaine smiled proudly. "Check out the name of his great-great grandpa."
"Grayton," Gwen read aloud in surprise. "His great-great grandfather's name was Grayton."
"Just like his sorcerer," Gwaine supplied.
"Dareth said his great-great grandfather was the one he was getting revenge for. He was the one whose lands were stolen by Odin's ancestor," Arthur realized. He put down the scroll and frowned in confusion. "They have the same name. Why is that significant?"
Gwen shook her head. Her stomach was rolling with anxious butterflies. For some inexplicable reason, Gwen felt like they were one step away from something important. Something that might finally explain all the strange happenings of the past few weeks. She glanced again at Merlin. He was now staring at the floor, his hands clenched nervously.
"Merlin," the queen said, walking to him. "Do you have any ideas?"
Merlin looked a bit startled at the attention, but shook his head. "Nope. No idea."
Gwen could tell he was lying. He knew something. And even if he wasn't lying, it wasn't like Merlin not to throw his two bits in. "Are you sure?"
"Wait," Gwaine suddenly cried, tossing his hair out of his eyes. "I think I have an idea. Arthur, what did Lord Dareth look like?"
Arthur looked confused. "What does that have to do-"
"Just tell me. Did he have green eyes? Brown hair?" Gwaine was now pacing excitedly.
"Why, yes. Yes he did," Arthur confirmed.
"And did he look old enough to have a child, say, around twenty years old or so?"
"Yes…" Arthur said, still frowning at his knight. Gwaine cried out in triumph.
"Then I've got it! Our little sorcerer friend, Grayton, is Lord Dareth's son."
Merlin's reaction was subtle, but Gwen was watching him closely already and didn't miss it. He seemed to sigh in relief, his hands relaxing ever so slightly. He looked up and caught Gwen watching him, but simply gave her one of his signature grins and turned to face Gwaine and Arthur.
"Grayton is Dareth's son. What, exactly, gives you that idea?" Arthur asked skeptically, crossing his arms. Gwaine shrugged.
"Common sense. We both know Grayton's a sorcerer, and that Dareth has been using him to get what he wants. And Dareth is doing all this to get revenge for wrongs done upon Dareth's ancestor, also named Grayton. Wouldn't it make sense for daddy to name his son after the man that together they are going to avenge? Not to mention they both have green eyes and dark brown hair, and their ages match up."
Arthur cocked his head, seeming to consider Gwaine's epiphany. Gwen thought it was brilliant.
"Gwaine, that's perfect!" she cried. Gwaine gave her an exaggerated bow, making Gwen giggle.
"Why thank you, my queen," he said, grinning. Arthur rolled his eyes.
"Yes, yes, very good Gwaine. How exactly does this information help us?" the king said dryly. Gwaine shrugged.
"Not sure. But it at least sheds a little light on the mystery."
"Come on," Merlin suddenly said, clapping Gwaine on the back. "We need to get moving. The sooner we capture Lord Dareth, the sooner this is all over."
"Merlin's right," Arthur said. "We should go."
Gwen frowned at the look her husband and best friend shared. Or rather, the one they didn't share. Merlin wouldn't make eye contact with Arthur, choosing instead to look at his shoes and shuffle nervously. Arthur's forehead creased with concern, but he turned away from his servant to face Gwen.
"Arthur," she whispered quickly, "There's still something really wrong about Merlin, isn't there? He acts more normally now, but there's still something wrong, something he won't say. Isn't there?"
Arthur didn't answer. He didn't need to. His eyes told the queen everything she wanted to know. Arthur was seriously worried about his friend, and he was terrified because he had no idea what to do.
The king wrapped his arms around his queen and kissed her. "Stay safe," he told her, handing her the scroll.
"You too," she responded. Then he stepped out of her arms and walked deeper into the forest, Gwaine and Merlin beside him.
Guinevere held the crumpled scroll anxiously. She slowly sank down on the floor and leaned back against a tree trunk, her heart hammering against her chest and her stomach roiling with butterflies. She knew it was their best shot at saving Camelot, and that she'd even been part of coming up with the plan. But for some reason as she watched the three men disappear into the trees, she couldn't shake the feeling they were walking right back into a trap.
Getting into Dareth's lair was far easier than Arthur had anticipated.
They'd made it all the way through the forest safely, only having to duck and hide once from one of Dareth's search parties. There were no guards at the waterfall entrance, which made the king uneasy.
"Where are all of Dareth's men?" he thought aloud, gripping Exaclibur tightly. Gwaine looked just as perplexed as Arthur. Merlin, however, didn't look too disturbed.
"They're all out searching for us," he said nonchalantly, walking towards the tunnel entrance. He was gripping a sword they'd taken off one of the dead men still around the pool. Merlin hadn't wanted to have it, but Arthur had insisted. There was no way he was sending his servant in there completely unarmed, despite how badly he could handle a sword. That was a disaster just waiting to happen.
"Merlin, wait," Arthur cried, catching up to his servant and stopping him. "I'll go in first. There might be men waiting just inside."
"Well, if that is the case, then I should go first," Gwaine said, sloshing over through the water. "We can't have our king getting himself hurt, now can we?"
Arthur turned and glared at his knight. "In case you'd forgotten, Gwaine, you are injured. I have the best chance of warding off anyone who might attack us-"
"Is that so?" Gwaine interrupted, looking amused at something behind Arthur. "Well, maybe you should remind Merlin that."
Arthur whipped around to see Merlin had vanished into the dark tunnels. He cursed and dashed to the entrance, Gwaine right behind him.
"Merlin!" he whispered harshly. There was no response. "Merlin!"
Still nothing. Arthur tried to reign down his blooming panic and stepped into the tunnel, Excalibur at the ready. Gwaine followed closely behind his king, gripping his sword in anticipation. They took a few steps into the darkness, eyes peeled for any sort of movement, when a light appeared farther down the tunnel.
Arthur stiffened and crouched into a fighting stance. He squinted at the flickering light coming closer toward them. Could it be…?
"Merlin," Gwaine said in relief. The servant grinned at them, holding a lit torch in one hand. "Where'd you go, mate?"
"Thought we could use some light. Don't worry, there's no one down this tunnel. It's almost like the whole place has been abandoned," Merlin said, meeting back up with them.
"You sure about that?" Arthur asked, incredible relief flooding him at seeing Merlin alright. Merlin raised his eyebrows.
"Of course I'm sure. Now come on, I think I remember the way to the throne room," Merlin said simply, turning and heading back the way he'd come. Gwaine and Arthur exchanged looks.
"At least one of us seems to know what he's doing," Gwaine said, a small smile quirking at his lips.
"And that one's an idiot," Arthur replied. "What is this world coming to?"
"You two coming?" Merlin called. Gwaine grinned.
"Be right there, mate!" the knight called, jogging after Merlin. Arthur didn't move.
For some strange reason, a boiling sense of dread was building up within him. Maybe it was because his conversation with Merlin the previous night had just popped unbidden into his mind. He remembered how shaken Merlin had been, the strange things he'd said. He'd been apologizing, saying that all of this was his fault. Why? Why would he think that? And how did Merlin somehow know his way around Lord Dareth's tunnels so well?
"Arthur?" Merlin called, shaking Arthur from his thoughts.
"Scared, princess?" Gwaine teased. Arthur shook himself. It didn't matter. When this was all over, he'd have a serious discussion with his servant. For now, they needed to get in, capture Lord Dareth, and get out. Camelot depended on it.
"Of course not," Arthur shot back, now moving down the tunnel towards his friends. Merlin frowned at him when he caught up with them.
"Is something wrong, Arthur?" he asked. Arthur shook his head.
"No. Let's keep going," the king said, taking the torch from Merlin and marching ahead. Gwaine rolled his eyes and muttered something about scared princesses as he turned to follow Arthur down the tunnel. Merlin kept up with the king and knight, and while both of his companion's faces were turned away his face melted into despair.
Guinevere was dozing against a tree when the sound of men loudly approaching awoke her with a start.
At first she thought with a thrill that it was Arthur, Merlin, and Gwaine returning already. Had she been asleep that long? But then she realized she didn't recognize the voices, and that there were too many of them to be her friends.
Breathing deeply to try calming her thundering pulse, the queen glanced around for a good place to hide. The men were too far away to see, so she had a few moments before it would be too late. Seeing a toppled tree nearby, Gwen hurried to it. She pushed aside the branches growing along its trunk and scrambled underneath them. Lying on her side, the branches covered her but allowed her to still see through them.
For a moment, Gwen felt a little foolish. The passing men may not actually be some of Lord Dareth's after all. Maybe they were just travelers. But she also knew she couldn't take that risk. It was best that no one knew she was here until her friends returned.
When the men walked into view, Gwen was very glad she'd hidden. They were indeed Dareth's men, black clothed and masked. There were about four of them, sauntering through the forest like they owned the place. Gwen frowned. They didn't exactly appear to be searching for anyone. It was like they were just wandering around in the forest, wasting time, or waiting for something.
"This is ridiculous," one of the men cried when they came near enough for Gwen to make out what they were saying. "What are we supposed to be doing, anyway?"
Gwen tried to breathe more quietly, hoping they wouldn't hear her. Thankfully, none of them seemed to be too concerned about listening for eavesdroppers.
"Don't ask me," replied another one. "I don't care though, it's nice to get out of that dark abyss sometimes. I wish he'd tell us to do this more often."
"You two are idiots," chimed in a third. "Our lord always has a plan. He's not having us just wander out here so we can get fresh air."
"Then what are we doing?" snapped the first man.
"We're making sure King Arthur feels welcomed back," a fourth man said. Gwen froze, listening closer.
"What do you mean?" the second man challenged.
"We all know the Pendragon wouldn't get too far," the third man explained. "But he's smart. He could figure out a way to slip out of our fingers now that he's out of the stronghold. So instead Lord Dareth emptied the stronghold. King Arthur will have no trouble making his way back in."
"Why would King Arthur return there? If I were him, I'd hightail it out of the kingdom!" the second man cried.
"Then you don't understand Arthur Pendragon," the fourth man said. "Lord Dareth does. He knows he'd do anything to save his kingdom. He doesn't care about his own safety."
"Dareth knew he'd try to come back and force him to remove his troops from Camelot. So he had us leave so it's easier for the King to do so," the third man added.
Gwen's heart stopped. Her premonition from earlier was right. They were walking right into a trap, and there was nothing she could do about it.
The men's voices began to fade as they walked away from her hiding place.
"So Lord Dareth is in the stronghold, alone, expecting he can take down Arthur Pendragon and a knight of Camelot all by himself? You saw yourself what they did to the group at the waterfall," the first man said incredulously. Gwen heard a small chuckle.
"No, he's not alone. He's got a few of his personal guards still there. But if they don't make the cut, no worries. He's still got his sorcerer."
Gwen's eyes widened. Grayton was in the stronghold? But… where?
The men's voices were all but gone as the first man responded.
"Ah, yes, of course. I nearly forgot. The one that's…"
Gwen couldn't make out any more, the men were now too far away. Her brain began to work overtime furiously. The one that's what? Was the man talking about Grayton? As far as she knew, he was the only sorcerer with connections to Dareth. But what did Gwen know about who sorcerers worked for? Maybe Dareth had a whole army of sorcerers at his disposal.
Gwen's mind suddenly jumped to when she, Arthur, and Merlin had been in the throne room with the villainous lord. She remembered seeing a prisoner shackled to a wall opposite her, a bag over his head. An idea began to form in her head. When Gwaine had returned from the attack on the knights and Odin's councilors, he had reported how strangely Grayton had acted. How remorseful the sorcerer seemed. Maybe… maybe Grayton had been the prisoner in the throne room. Maybe the sorcerer was being forced to work for Dareth. Dareth had seemed to gloat over the control he had on the sorcerer, saying that he had him on a leash.
But…magic was evil, right? Why would someone who was evil, like a sorcerer, not want to work for an evil man like Lord Dareth? And if their suspicions were correct, and Grayton was Dareth's son, why would any father chain their son to the wall like that? True, Dareth was a horrible person, but even people like him had to have love for their children. Right…?
Gwen shook her head. That didn't matter right now, and all it was doing was confusing her. What mattered was that Arthur, Merlin, and Gwaine were walking into a trap. And there was a sorcerer under the control of Lord Dareth waiting for them.
Pulling herself out from under the tree, Gwen brushed herself off and stared in the direction of the waterfall. She had promised Arthur she'd stay here. But she had to warn him. She had to do something. She knew now exactly how much danger they were in, and it was her duty to find them and warn them.
Silently apologizing to her husband, Guinevere began to run towards the waterfall.
"Ready for this?" Arthur said to his companions, bracing himself against the wooden door that led to the throne room.
They'd made it all the way to the door without any of Dareth's men appearing, a fact that Arthur found very disturbing. It seemed unlikely that Lord Dareth would leave his lair completely unprotected. Then again, maybe he had just never thought that Arthur would be so stupid as to return here. Whatever the reason, it had certainly made Arthur's job a lot easier.
"Let's teach this lord a lesson," Gwaine grinned. Merlin nodded in agreement, and Arthur pushed himself against the door, throwing it open.
Arthur stumbled into the room, followed by his knight and servant. Sitting on the throne was Lord Dareth, smirking at them. On either side of him stood an armed and masked guard. Arthur recognized one of them as the large man who'd taken him to his cell the previous day. The mystery prisoner was back in his place shackled to the wall, his head still bagged and hanging limply.
"Welcome back, Arthur," Dareth drawled. "It took you long enough."
Arthur glanced at Gwaine and the two shared a nod. They stepped forward in synch, raising their swords at the ready.
"Lord Dareth of the court of Odin," Arthur proclaimed, "you are under arrest for crimes against the kingdoms of Camelot and King Odin."
"Right to business then? How expected. I suppose you are going to try to take me now, then?" Dareth was smiling with an odd, knowing glint in his eyes. A strange tingle went down Arthur's spine and he tried to hold back the urge to shiver.
"Do not try to resist, it will only make things worse for you," Arthur said, trying to reason with the man. He already knew it would do no good.
"Capture the king. Kill the knight," Dareth commanded his men casually. Without warning they both drew their swords and began attacking Arthur and Gwaine.
Arthur was not taken by surprise. He'd been expecting an abrupt attack like this, and when the large man came charging at him he was ready. He stepped aside of the first attack and parried the second, sliding the man's sword away from him and leaving his left side open for attack. Arthur slashed at his left shoulder, but the man was quick and blocked it, using the force of the parry to shove the king back.
Arthur took a step to regain his balance and crouched back into fighting stance. The man charged at his right flank, but Arthur could tell it was a feign blow and blocked towards his left. He slashed at the man's legs, hoping to get him off his feet, but the man saw it coming and jumped back, leaving Excalibur to swing through open air. Not bad, Arthur thought. It was clear Dareth had saved his best men as his personal bodyguards.
Arthur took a moment to glance at Gwaine. The knight seemed to be doing fine, actually laughing out loud during the fight. Arthur saw Gwaine twist suddenly around his opponent and whack him on the head with his hilt, sending the man crashing stunned onto the floor. Gwaine gave the man's head another blow and turned to face Arthur, grinning.
"Want some help, princess?" he called. Arthur blocked an attack aimed at his head and shook his head.
"This one's mine," he shot back. Using the momentum from his opponent's attack at his head to his advantage, Arthur ducked down and let the man stumble forwards, momentarily off balance. Arthur stepped off to the side and hit the man securely on the head with Excalibur's hilt. The man tumbled the rest of the way to the floor, unconscious.
A slow clap filled the room. Arthur looked up to see Lord Dareth standing by his throne, looking amused.
"Very impressive, very impressive indeed. You two truly are remarkable swordsmen," he said. Arthur stepped closer to him and pointed Excalibur at his throat, Gwaine moving to stand right beside him.
"You have no more guards, Lord Dareth. You will come with us, and you will command your men to leave Camelot and restore me as the rightful king."
Dareth's face filled with a strange, mad glee. "You think you've won. You have no idea." He began to move forwards, his face filled with excitement. "You say I have no more guards? Well, you are wrong. I have yet to show you my most powerful guard yet."
"Stop bluffing," Gwaine snapped. "You've got nothing left."
"I've got everything left," Lord Dareth whispered, the look in his eyes sending shivers down Arthur's spine.
"Lord Dareth-"
Suddenly Arthur was swept off his feet by a powerful blast of energy, Excalibur falling from his hand with a clatter as he was tossed across the room. He hit the wall with a thud, Gwaine landing on the ground beside him. Arthur shook his head, dazed. Blinking, he tried to make out what was going on. He thought he could vaguely see two figures standing a few yards away, but everything was too blurry to make out.
When his eyes finally came back into focus, he suddenly wished things were still fuzzy. Arthur was so shocked, so betrayed, he could barely comprehend the scene before him.
Merlin was standing beside Lord Dareth, his hand outstretched. His eyes were fading back to their usual blue, having just been glowing a fiery gold.
Magic.
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