Chapter 45
Helios stood, staring up at the young king, he held an iron fire torch in one hand, his other resting on the hilt of his sheathed blade. He looked around as if he was inspecting the castle walls and the knights that stood atop them
There was a long moment of silence, both leaders looking and taking in the oppositions numbers, Arthur couldn't believe how many men had appeared following the warlord, they outnumbered Camelot's knights 3 to 1
"Turn back now Helios!" called out Arthur, his voice resonating around the empty space between the two armies
The older man frowned and glanced around feigning confusion
"Is that a child that Camelot has brought out to lead them?" he placed his free hand to his ear, cupping it so he could hear better "Surely not" a sneer spread over his lips as he mocked the king
His army laughed with him, the sound echoing so all around the castle could hear them
"Who are you to command me?" Helios gestured with the flame towards Arthur accusingly
Arthur's jaw clenched "I am Arthur Pendragon, son of Uther, King of Camelot"
"YOU ARE KING OF NOTHING!" Helios countered, anger creeping into his voice "YOU ARE RULER OF NOTHING"
His angered voice rang out
"A mere infant playing make believe, with his toy soldiers and his father's crown" the warlord sneered again "Does not quite fit does it Arthur"
Arthur's fists clenched behind the door, but kept his face level, not showing any emotion to Helios or the opposing army, but the warlord already knew that he was getting a reaction from the young king
Helios chuckled darkly before continuing, his focus shifting slightly
"You have something that belongs to me Arthur and I want her handed over to me" Helios began to pace back and forth in front of the large wooden gates, he glanced back up at Arthur and his surrounding knights "And make no mistake, I will burn this castle and the village to ash to get the traitor"
There was a short silence before the king spoke
"Everyone within these walls is under my protection" Arthur answered, gesturing to his kingdom, "And I will use my last breath to keep you away from them, including the lady Morgana"
That seemed to surprise Helios for a moment, obviously knowing that Morgana Had betrayed Arthur and Camelot long ago, now he was protecting her, it struck him as strange, Arthur would not use Morgana the way Helios would, so why keep her around and protect her
"You are protecting the woman who killed your own father, tried to overthrow you and wanted Camelot to fall? Who sought me out as an ally to bring about the end of the name Pendragon" Helios spoke not only to Arthur but to the entire guard hat looked down at him too "I will spare and reward anyone that brings me the witch alive" he gave a hideous smile
Arthur glanced subtly either side but his knights did not move, they were with him, they knew and trusted that he had his reasons, if he was willing to protect Morgana then so would they. Arthur had always been proud of his knights and their loyalty but in this moment when he knew that most of them despised his half-sister, none of them wavered, it filled him with pride
"No?" Helios asked, he nodded slowly "Your loyalty is admirable knights of Camelot, but it will be your downfall and have no doubt, Camelot will fall before the sun rises over that peak" he pointed to the dark east, some of the knights looked in that direction
Arthur did not take his eyes from Helios, the tyrant was smiling and not the kind that showed him eager to attack but instead the kind that sent a cold shiver down the king's spine, like Helios knew something he did not
It dawned on Arthur
The attack had already started
Arthur whirled around but it was too late
"WEST WALL!" he yelled but the explosion had already erupted, blowing out the large stone wall, drowning his call out
The soldiers who were closest were flung across the courtyard, while others were crushed by the raining rubble, shouts of pain rang out, Arthur's blue eyes going wide at the destruction
"TO THE WEST WALL!" he called out, unsheathing Excalibur, he glared back to where Helios stood, grinning before Arthur turned away, summoning his knights with him as they made their way to the stone steps and ran towards the huge hole in the ancient wall
"I'm COMING FOR YOU MORGANA!" Helios bellowed out in rage as he signalled for his men to flood the citadel
