XI. Trapped

Outside the hall Vortigern let go of Arthur. "Come with me. You too, Eric. Morgana is more than capable to guard these sheep in wolf's furs."

With a nod Vortigern dismissed the escort before he turned to the "King's office", a spacious, comfortable room on the main castle's first floor. On their arrival the Saxon faced the young Prince of Camelot. "Well, my boy I think you have won the two of us a realm today. You know of course that by the sacred traditions of Camelot no law can be passed without the lawful regent's signature. So much for me doing with you as I please. Seems you have effectively bound my hands."

He grinned while he opened a bottle of wine and reached for a glass. "Someone wanting to join me?"

Disbelievingly Arthur watched the man making himself comfortable in his father's favourite chair. Eric watched him too, face unreadable. "Why am I here? Shouldn't your precious prize be locked away again, where it is safe?"

"Oho, it speaks! I'm glad to see you're still fighting utter depression, it shows your guts. No, my boy," and with that he lifted himself from the chair to settle down on the edge of the huge desk in front of the window, comfortably swinging the wine in his glass. "I do be afraid your lazy tower days are over. Your Highness may be as gracious as to recall that somewhere in your most impressive speech down there words fell like 'I, the Crown Prince of Camelot' and 'lawful regent'. Now, that you have me outmanoeuvred, and brilliantly at that, the other side of the coin is that I need you back at work. When I and your beautiful foster sister will open tomorrow's assembly session we will kindly announce two things: First, in implementation of today's decision of the great assembly the crown council has beseeched me to name you Co-regent in all non-military matters of state. You will understand of course that I do not intend to make the son of my enemy, who is, by the way, my humble prisoner and hostage by his own declaration, the commander of my army. I will most graciously grant this request and the assembly will most graciously acknowledge it. And second, we will announce our wedding to take place on Beltain evening here in Camelot. I trust you'll agree to be my best man."

Smiling radiantly with the face of a cat that ate the cream Vortigern waited for this to hit home.

"Your... You mean...You...Morgana... You mean you and Morgana are to be married?"

"Yes, my boy, bravo, now you've got it, and so fast. Me and the only woman who comes at least near to the title of a Princess of Camelot. It will please the assembly, backup my claim to the rule of this land even stronger and it will no doubt be the perfect opportunity to loosen up your chains a bit. I know they are already suffocating you and I am not speaking only about this manacle fastening your ankle to the wall. "

"Are you telling me that you'll force my sister to your bed to bail me out of that?"

Before Vortigern could reply Eric cut in. "It will be a marriage in name only. He doesn't like to do it with women, if you follow my drift."

Vortigern grinned and shrugged his shoulders, gulping down the last of his wine.

"Then why marry at all?"

"Oh, for heaven's sake, Arthur! He told you the reasons. Besides, you above all people must rely on this special portion of beans never being spilled. You have been his prisoner day and night for two months, locked up, in chains and with a knife to the throat of every single friend you ever had, only ten steps away from his bed chamber. Have you looked into a mirror lately? Hasn't anyone ever told you how handsome you are? If the truth came out where would the reputation of Camelot's Co-Regent go?"

Silently pondering this last remark, Arthur felt his stomach twist and his throat constrict while he stared disbelievingly at the two others. "You really had it all planned, hadn't you? So that's why it had to be the northern tower. Should I ever turn against you in the future you would spread rumours about this, how I bought my sudden exultation to Co-Regent and my most gracious release from strict captivity to honourable confinement at the expense of some pleasurable nights with my captor in my own parents' marital bed!"

Eric didn't evade his accusing eyes. "Not everybody would be stupid enough to believe it and even those who believed it wouldn't think that you had a choice in the matter. At least not all of them would. But yes, the fact that you were a handsome boy in the hands of someone of Vortigern's power and inclination would be an additional asset under the right circumstances."

The Saxon rose and went for the door. "Well, look at it this way. We wouldn't always want to tie Sir Leon to the stakes if you chose to become temperamental, would we? Therefore we need something more subtle to blackmail you."

Passing the shaken Prince he briefly laid his hand on the squared shoulder. When Arthur jerked away from his touch his face grew stern. "Your Highness must learn to differentiate between politics and personal matters. I may pretend to be a brutal swine. But that doesn't necessarily mean that I am one. Never forget that. You have indeed been completely in my power and this was your only protection."

Reaching the door he turned to Eric. "You better take him back. He has had a long day and an even longer one lies ahead of him. Tomorrow afternoon my Co-Regent and I will lift Uther's ban on magic and in the evening my Druid allies will give a feast for the happy bridal couple. Let's hope the army of sorcerers will vanish to the Elfish lands with the last toast, never to be beheld again by a human soul. Dear God'" he yawned, "I do be tired" and out he went.

Eric stood up and took Arthur's arm. "Let's go, son" but Arthur pulled free. "I wish you wouldn't call me that. You are not my father, although, like Gaius, you helped to bring me up."

Losing some of his forced composure he stared into Eric's face. "Why you? Of all my father's trusted friends, why you?"

"You're sure you want to know? You may not like the answer."

"Try me!"

Eric sat down on the table at Arthur's side. "We were trapped, Arthur, all of us. Even you, albeit you didn't know it at the time. Hopelessly, helplessly trapped, as much as you are now. Your father's insane fight against magic had brought us there, it had been his fault. When Morgana came, for your sake and for the sake of Camelot, to warn him of the coalition her sister had brought together he didn't even listen. She had to use her magic to escape his sword."

He looked up, directly into the intent Pendragon eyes. "But then we were vastly outnumbered, our resources melted away, our men died like flies and no help, anywhere. When you were wounded and Merlin brought you to Gaius' ad hoc hospital I called your father to your bed. At the sight of you, the blood, you being only half conscious and your servant repeating again and again that it had all been his fault, that he had forsaken you, something gave away in Uther, I could see it in his face. Rising from your bedside he murmured something to himself, like "it's like she said. This time they would stop at nothing, not even at my son." He ordered me to follow him and it was in this very room, far away from the tumult of the battle, that he told me all about Morgana's warning and that his death was the Druid's and Morgause's priority objective. We both knew Vortigern quite well..."

At Arthur's surprised outcry he held up his hand. "Please hear me out. Your father, I and Vortigern once served together, as very young knights, under a Saxon warrior King on the continent. When he died after a few years Vortigern threw himself in the ensuing struggle for the spoils of his rule. Uther and I went off for Albion. The rest of your parents' story you know."

He rubbed his eyes. "Anyway, it was clear that Vortigern would be our best chance. He could be bought while the others could not. And indeed, when we met him he had made sure that Morgana, not Morgause, represented the Druids during the talks. First of all, your father tried to bargain you out. But Vortigern had nothing to gain from Uther's death alone. If Camelot was to be spared it had to be ruled by Vortigern and for that a young, vibrant Prince to centre an insurrection around was not an option either. So, for Camelot's safety and future, it was your life or your freedom. Your father was weak enough to choose your life. After that, we hammered out the final deal very quickly. Originally I was meant to lure you and your magical friend into the trap. Then Morgana would use her magic to take you into Vortigern's camp. But your father would hear nothing of that. He insisted that it must be him who delivered you into Vortigern's hands and that you should know that it had been him who had betrayed you. Vortigern promised to grant your life, but nothing more. Knowing you and him, it was foreseeable what you were going to. I didn't understand it then and I do not understand it now, why Uther had to add this last cruelty to your predicament."

Arthur bit his lip. "I think, I do. He wanted me to know that he'd never come back, that all we have had was finished. So that vain hope would not break me."

Eric slightly shook his head. "Perhaps. Anyway, he didn't tell me. After he went down to the vaults to meet you and Merlin, I never spoke to him again. I rode back to the enemy camp together with your captors. Actually I rode behind you, but I doubt you saw me there or anything else at that matter. In that moment I was sure that we would lose you together with everything else. Your father must have ordered Leon to bring the regalia to Vortigern. The rest you know."

The older man pulled himself upright. "Well, we should go now. It's back to the cage for both of us. Let's hope today's events will convince Vortigern to grant you permission to move back into your old room tomorrow."

"Wait...please."

"What now?"

"Where is my father? What happened to him?"

"You must believe me, my boy that I do not know. He gave his word to Vortigern and your sister that, at your peril, he would leave Albion for good. For old times' sake Vortigern arranged for Uther to accompany the 15 noble brats back home, after I and Morgana had persuaded the Saxon to get rid of them for the peace of the realm. It would have been too dangerous to keep them in the castle."

Walking back to the northern tower through the still oddly deserted passages Arthur got one last burning question off his soul. "What of my friends and my men? What will become of them?"

Eric cocked a brow. "I would think that that depends on you."

Seeing the young man pale at the implication he added "I mean, as Co-Regent it will be your task to persuade Vortigern to trust them enough to release them to resume their former tasks and then you must convince your friends and your men that it would be in everybody's best interest not to disembowel the King of Camelot."

On their arrival in the tower chamber the guards went to refasten the manacle around Arthur's leg but Eric cut them short. "This will no longer be necessary." Looking at Arthur he said "I think we have an understanding now."