First thing's first, I'd like to thank you all for getting this story to 100 reviews. That completely made my day!

And now that my happy moments out of the way, and I have stopped dancing around the room I shall now address this chapter...

Alright so this chapter is unfortunately another transition, and though it seems I'm putting ff the battle, I assure you I am not. This chapter is completely necessary, and rather important. And I think you'll see why as you read on.

So then, Enjoy! XD

"Arthur… this is our key to defeating Unwin."

Arthur didn't know what to say, so he looked back at the map covered in black, red and now gold lines, and symbols. "How can this be our key, it's just a few more tun- oh. Oh! Merlin your brother was a genius!" Arthur began grinning brightly, because he finally saw what Merlin had. Right in the middle of the map was two bright golden lines, marking out a passage leading directly from the castle, to outside the walls of the city. It was a straight path in, and Unwin would have no idea it was there.

Merlin laughed, before finally getting out some words, "I need to tell the others the location of the tunnel, but we're not going to start the attack just yet. We need to do something first."

Arthur looked confused, they hadn't said anything about this in the plan they had come up with. They were supposed to get in, find the quickest, safest path in. And then Merlin would contact Warrick using telepathy, and tell them. They would begin the attack that night. "What do you mean? Hey! Where are you going?"

Merlin stopped where he was standing on the stairs leading down through the trap door. "I need to go see some old friends of mine. I figured you were coming, but if you want to stay here alone, in my room, with no way out- because I will be sealing it back up with magic- then be my guest."

"Who said I wasn't coming with you?"

"Well you did ask where I was going, and you've made no move to follow."

"I… um… Hey! Wait for me!" Arthur shouted as he ran after Merlin. They walked down the stairs and Merlin opened the door behind the tapestry; surprising Arthur when it opened out towards them, instead of into the hallway before. He quickly got over it though. It wasn't like it would be the only odd thing that he would be seeing.

He followed Merlin as he was led through a series of hallways; turning down a new one so often that Arthur couldn't even remember the correct path back exactly. Merlin then stopped him when they came to a model of a knight in armor, which stood in a small alcove against the wall. Merlin walked to the wall opposite it, and studied the wall for a minute. And just as Arthur was beginning to think Merlin crazy, the black haired boy smirked and pressed against one of the stones in the wall. Arthur watched as it actually pushed in about an inch, before a piece of the wall next to it slid to the side, opening up the path to a new hallway.

Merlin turned back to him, motioning towards the secret hall. "After you." Arthur walked in followed by Merlin, the door closing behind him. Merlin snuck past him, and brought him through another series of confusing turns, until they began to hear whispered voices. They came out through a wooden door, hidden in the shadows, and into a hallway containing prison cells on either side.

Merlin looked down the passage, only one way to go from there. He began to walk towards the voices, knowing that his knights wouldn't be talking if the guards were there. Soon he came out of the shadows, and stood there smiling as he saw the rest of his knights that had survived. Sure most of them looked to have gone under various forms of torture, but they were alive, and they were still fighting if the whispered words of escape were reaching his ears.

However even when Arthur came to stand next to him, no one had noticed he was there, so he smiled as he decided exactly how to get their attention. He closed his eyes as he yelled telepathically, "Hey! What are all you lazy sods doing down here!" The reactions he got were priceless.

As one all the knights jumped and turned to look at him, shock clear in their widened eyes; gasps echoing from one cell to another. And a few had the most comical expressions he had ever seen. And then they had all ran to the bars of their cell, trying to get a better look at their king.

And then one of the knights managed to find her voice. "Merlin? Merlin is that really you?" The whisper seemed to be a yell with how quiet the space had gotten.

Merlin took in the long light brown hair, and the jade eyes; Dylana. He smiled, "Yeah, yeah it's me."

"Damn it Merlin, we thought we would never see you again. What are you even doing here anyways? You could get caught and- who's that with you?"

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that I never sent word. That you all thought I would never return… I never meant for that to happen." He swallowed, and there was silence for a minute before he realized that he still hadn't answered Dylana's question. "I'm here because I needed to see how you all were, and to let you know we have a plan, and the battle for the kingdom is going to start soon. And this prat here is my friend, and ally, Prince Arthur of Camelot."

There were more gasps, and Arthur saw a few stiffen or pale. He nudged Merlin, giving him a pointed look, which made Merlin suddenly widen his eyes in realization. He turned back to his knights, quickly speaking, "No. No, it's ok. Arthur knows about my magic and everything, and he's accepted it, as well as the knights and soldiers with him."

Another knight with light tan- almost blond- hair, and sage colored eyes poke up, "I trust you more than any Merlin, but I find it hard to believe a Pendragon trusting magic, even if you say it's so."

"Evan, I know you spent some time with the druids, so I know you know the prophecies. So I know that you'll understand when I say that Arthur is The Once and Future King."

"I- how do you know for sure?"

"Because while I was away I met Kilgharrah the Great Dragon-" He waited for the gasps to stop echoing around the dungeon, "-and he told me that it is so, and that I am Emrys. Take that as you will I suppose, but I wouldn't dare call him a liar." There was a long silence, the knights looking on in shock, Merlin looking directly into Evan's eyes; challenging, and Arthur stuck to the side, feeling like he shouldn't be there. But suddenly the sound of approaching footsteps sounded, and the knights moved back into their cells, even as Arthur pulled Merlin back into the shadows, and out of view.

Two guards cam in dragging a man, with long black hair and a scruffy beard, between them. The man's voice rung out as they threw him in a cell separate from the knights, "I told you, I was just passing through. Old friend said they had some good ale." The guards just grunted and walked away, the door to the dungeons, closing behind them.

As soon as the footsteps of the retreating guards could no longer be heard, Merlin shot out of the shadows and to the cell, Arthur shocked at the speed he had moved in. Merlin was pushing against the bars, his face still hidden partially in shadows, so the stranger could not see his face. Merlin nearly choked on the one word he managed to get out, "Gwaine?!"

The man, Gwaine, looked up, eyes widening in shock. "Merlin? Fancy seeing you here."

"Gwaine, you idiot! Only you would manage to come to Snowdonia just when it had been captured."

"Is that it then? I was wondering why they were so uptight, you know, you told me the city was such a nice place. Makes sense now. But really what are you doing here? When we split you said you were heading towards Ealdor with no plans to turn back for quite some time."

"I wasn't planning to either, but these blokes-"

The knights pulled indignant expressions, as they shouted "Hey!"

"-went and got themselves captured by Unwin, and I had to come back. Not that I'm complaining, I missed them all." Merlin finished.

Gwaine's head tilted in confusion, just as Arthur came out of the shadows, "Merlin, who is this? I mean Gwaine, obviously. Sorry, but how do you know him?"

Merlin bit his lip, looking at his knights who seemed to want to know the same thing. "I told you the story already Arthur. Gwaine is the man I helped out of that tavern brawl, and traveled with."

"The one who tried to get you drunk all the time?"

"Never succeeded though! Shame really, I always wondered what secrets he had to spill… And now I'm even more curious. What do you say Merlin, after all this I'll take you to the tavern, drinks on you!" Arthur stared at Gwaine, while Merlin chuckled.

"Only you Gwaine would ask for ale when stuck in a cell, in a kingdom currently run by powerful sorcerers out for revenge."

"Speaking of, how do you know this lot then Merlin, all nobles they are."

"Yes, but they're all good men, and woman… And, look, I know how you feel about nobles but their different, okay, including Arthur- even if he is a prat sometimes."

"Must run in the blood then." Gwaine said as he glared at Arthur.

"Gwaine listen please. They're my friends, and you know that I wouldn't be friends with a bunch of gorbellied codpieces. And I really should have told you, but circumstances prevented it-"

"You're a noble aren't you?"

Merlin swallowed as Merlin and the rest of the knights wisely stayed silent, "It's a bit more complicated than just being a noble Gwaine… Now that my brother has been killed, I am the rightful king of Snowdonia." There was a silence for a while, until Gwaine began to laugh.

"I always knew there was something about you Merlin. Good on you mate! A king. Ha, I'm friends with a bloody king. Never thought I'd see the day. Not with what happened with- you know."

Merlin gaped, "You're not angry? I thought, what with what you told me about…" Merlin bit his lip and looked around, he couldn't bring up Gwaine's past with the other's here. If Gwaine wanted to tell them that was fine, but until Gwaine told them himself, he would not say anything. He spoke telepathically, "What about your father. What you told me about him fighting for the king, and then that same king not helping your family. I thought you would be angry that I didn't tell you. Especially when you said all kings are the same."

Gwaine's eyes widened, knowing from his many travels that to speak telepathically, you had to have magic, how he himself could hear Merlin, came more of a shock to him then the fact that Merlin obviously had magic. He startled when Merlin voice echoed in his head again "I'm surprised you know so much about telepathy… and you would be able to hear and respond to me because I'm rather powerful. That or it's because of who exactly I am. The laws of magic haven't always applied for me, I've noticed."

Gwaine smirked, before answering with a thought, "Alright, something new to add to my 'things about Merlin list'."

"You kept a list?"

"I keeping one now. But no, I'm not angry, annoyed a little maybe, but not angry. Actually I find it rather funny. But the point is I know you, and you don't give thought to rank. That's obvious even now."

Arthur watched the two, realizing they were having a silent conversation, before turning to the knights looked up in the cell. There were what looked to be about 20 of them, and Arthur recalled Merlin saying that 30 had been captured or killed, so the missing ten were either locked up somewhere else, or were dead.

He sucked in a breath, looking back to Merlin in Gwaine before speaking to the knights, "Since those two seem to busy catching up, I'll say what Merlin hasn't. We will get you out of here, and we will take back the kingdom. We've found a way in that no one, not even Warrick knew about. As soon as Merlin gives everyone the go for the attack, the battle is going to begin. I'm going to see if I can get you a key or something, so when the time comes, you can get out."

One of the knights, the girl that had been speaking to Merlin earlier, spoke up, "Thank you, but I don't think that will be a problem. Most of us won't be of much use anyways, not after they tortured us to try and get information. I got off easy so far, but I speak for the others when I say that here will be better for most of them during the battle, than out there."

"Of course. I wouldn't expect you to fight in this state. But you would still be able to get out; wouldn't that be better than staying in the cold, damp cell?"

The knight smiled, "I can see why our king likes you. Now then, I know your name, but you don't know mine. Bit unfair don't you agree. My name is Dylana. Though you can call me Del."

"Del it is then.-"

"Oi! Arthur! We need to get going before the guards show up again." Arthur jumped at Merlin's voice. He smiled apologetically at Del, before getting up and following Merlin into the shadows, and back through the castle. They went back to Merlin's old room- since it was late, and they couldn't just go to an inn, and ask to stay- and settled in for the remainder of the night.

Alrighty, what did you think. I mean I think it was ok, but you know what they say, the worst critic is yourself. But I had also had a whole plan for Gwaine's big appearance, and this turned out completely different than what I had wanted. But that's also because I realized my other plan wasn't going to work:( Which is a bummer really because it was awesome. Oh well, you win some you lose some right?"

And no worries, I'll have more about Gwaine popping up later on, especially since Merlin spent some time travelling with Gwaine if you remember the story in chapter 19 (or Ch. 20 if you count the prequel as ch. 1). And as you'll probably find out as the story progresses, (if you haven't already) I will be coming up with more background for all the major characters, such as Gwaine. And hopefully my imaginative mind will give me another idea for Merlin that doesn't include fighting off a bunch of people at young ages...

Whatevs, you can only work with what you got, and right now I have a tv. series with almost no background on any of the characters, and whatever I can come up with. That and a homework asignment that dissapeared somewhere between the classroom, and my house... hmmm the mysterious disappearing homework. Don't think my Spanish teacher will take that excuse even if it really is true. :( Oh well.

Anyways, review please, and Happy reading and writing!