Chapter 26 [Royal Dining Hall]
Uther rubbed his forehead. The suggestive herbs muddled his thoughts. He grimaced. What is going on? I slept well last night. I will be getting…I will be…What was I supposed to be doing again? He drank from his water goblet.
"Father?" Arthur noticed the elder man's situation. He almost tugged Morgana in after him.
"Sire?" She checked him over. She noted Morgause's herbal formula's effects. Still, he was not supposed to be so pale either. What happened? He's not supposed to be so pale.
"Arthur…Morgana…I'm fine." Uther composed himself. He sat up straight. "I am glad to see you both. Odd. I would have expected to see those two servants…" He cleared his throat. "No matter."
George and a young blonde woman set plates of meat and eggs in front of the trio. They filled the goblets with squeezed fruit juice.
"Thank you, Constance and George." Morgana savored the first bite of ham. Her eyes did not leave Uther.
"You are most welcome, Lady Morgana!" George clicked his heels together. His manner seemed all too pleased. A bit of brown stained the tip of his nose. Some said it was a birth mark. Others made remarks that it came from something else….
"George and Constance, we will call if we need you." Arthur motioned for the door.
"Aye that will be all." Uther waited for the servants to leave and close the door behind them. "That was odd, Arthur. Is everything all right? I seem to recall something that we were supposed to do this morning. For the life of me, I do not remember what that is."
Arthur glanced at Morgana. While he did not understand how or why his father would forget about the wedding, he would not remind the King about it. "I am sure it will come back to you. Father, Morgana and I had some matters to discuss with you."
"Well you know I am here for such things, Arthur. Morgana." Uther bit into an apple. His eyes held a bit of Distraction in them. "From George being here, I presume you sacked that servant boy?"
"He was not sacked, Father." Arthur brought out the rolled up parchment. "George is the new chamber servant. Merlin has achieved his number of tasks."
"Number of tasks? For what?" Uther glanced up at his son.
"The number of tasks to be elevated to noble status, Father. Merlin has stood beside the knights and me on the battlefield. He has fought bravely and with skill." Arthur bit into his meat. "Besides saving my life to get his current position, Merlin took poison twice to save my life. He helped to break the unicorn's curse. He stood up to the revived sorcerer, Segan. He stood up to the dragon and helped me to kill the beast. The law says three tasks, Father. If you need to ask Sir Leon…."
"Nay. I shall take your word for it, Arthur. Perhaps the boy can make himself useful as a second physician or another field? I would rather you find yourself another servant. George seems like a perfect choice." Uther took the scroll from Arthur. He opened it and signed right below Arthur's name. He dripped the wax onto the parchment before sealing it. "There! We shall announce his freedom this morning. Was there something else pressing?"
"Aye, Sire. I have two matters." Morgana squirmed. "The first is a diplomatic matter. You remember Prince Accolon of Tintagel?"
"Of course! He has been on the continent for the past few years. As I recall, you and he had feelings for each other." Uther nodded. "Has he written you?"
"We saw each other a few days ago. Sire, he is coming here to talk with you. He wishes to marry me. I told him you, he and his father would need to negotiate of course." She drank from her goblet.
"Indeed so." Uther bit into his meat again. "Prince Accolon would be a good partner for Camelot and you. It would put you in line for your father's throne and resolve the split in loyalties in Tintagel. I am pleased for you, Morgana."
"Thank you, Sire." Morgana sucked in another breath. "There is the second matter."
"All right." Uther noticed Arthur looking toward her. "Arthur?"
"Sorry, Father. Please go on, Morgana," Arthur apologized.
She nodded. "Sire, this concerns Gwen. It is the reason that Constance is here and not her." She cleared her throat. "Information has come to light."
"Why am I not surprised?" Uther rolled his eyes. "I wish I had dealt with her." He took a drink from his goblet. "What is it about her now?"
Arthur stiffened. Anger bubbled and surged. Somehow however he kept it in check.
"It is not bad, Sire. In fact, it is good news." She rubbed her chin to consider how to break the point to the King. Finally, she decided on the direct approach. "I am freeing her."
"You are freeing her?" Uther laughed. "Arthur, you put her up to this. I am not feeling well not deluded."
"I made the decision." She insisted.
"You can sack her and send her away. Fine. That is your decision, Morgana. Freeing her is mine." Uther turned like an angry snake.
"Even if Gwen earned her freedom as well? By our laws, Father!" Arthur interrupted.
"Lower your voice when you are talking to me!" Uther glowered. His eyes narrowed. "I am your King. Both of you."
"Who is bound by the Laws of Camelot as are we." She tapped her fingers on the table. "Gwen has fulfilled the required acts. She stood in battle with us in Ealdor. She broke an enchantment on Arthur. She took my place last year so I could escape Hengist. She was in the midst of that attack by the sorcerer, Segan. I can tell you, Sire, that her first duty is to Camelot always."
Uther considered the argument for a heartbeat. "You both are forgetting one thing. I have to consider the acts in that way. I never authorized your escapade to that village. I am grateful for her bringing you back, Arthur, from that unscrupulous magic. She was risking her neck because of her unfounded fixation. I am also grateful for her service to you, Morgana." He shrugged. "She is still one short."
"SHE IS NOT!" Arthur pounded his fist on the table.
"YOU WILL BE SILENT!" Uther insisted.
"I have another question then, Sire. Is everything the truth because you say so? You do play at the truth to your advantage." She frowned. "Arthur should brace himself because you have not told him the entire truth."
"HOW DARE YOU!" Uther bellowed.
"Nay. How dare you, FATHER!" She rose to her full height. Anger's emerald fire glowed in her eyes. "Oh I have known for some time!" She chortled.
Uther recoiled. He dropped his goblet on the floor. Shock widened his eyes and stilled his tongue.
"Father? How….what?" Arthur dropped his jaw. He stared at her. "Morgana?"
"I held the secret. I did not want to say anything." She raised an eyebrow. "We are half-siblings, Arthur. It seems our father took advantage while Gorlois was away at war."
"Your mother was lonely! She came to me!" Uther seethed.
"FATHER! Gorlois was your vassal! He was tied to Tintagel! How could you?" Arthur demanded. He winced. "I apologize, Morgana."
"You are right, Arthur. I mean you violated the protocols between Camelot and Tintagel. At least you have the opportunity there. And then there is the fact that you pushed for Arthur's birth even though you knew what it would do to Queen Igraine." She shrugged with an air about herself. "What would the nobles say if we let it be known that you consorted with a sorceress to have an heir?"
"RUBBISH!" Uther denied.
"Morgana, we have disproven that." Arthur collaborated.
"Nay. You have not. You believe Morgause showed you the truth, Arthur." She grimaced. "Nimue herself told me."
"Nimue? That witch?" Uther laughed. "There you go, Arthur! She believes a sorceress' lies!"
"Versus a King's and Father's lies?" She smirked with an icy look. "Morgause is not just a sorceress, Father. She is my sister as well. But Gaius knew that. So do you."
"WHAT?" Arthur shook his head. That revelation basically turned the apple cart a bit more upside down. "Morgause is your sister?"
"Aye, Arthur. She is." She curled her lip. She slammed her hand on the table.
"Careful, Morgana. I could change my mind about that marriage!" Uther threatened.
"And now the threats. How predictable, Father." She sniffed. "You could. But you will not. Such an impulsive act runs against your precious diplomacy. You need Accolon. You need us. You need all of the allies you can get. Enough threats! Enough lies!"
"How ungrateful you both are!" Uther snapped. "I have had enough!" He wavered on his feet.
"Ungrateful? Aye you give us all of this! We serve Camelot, Father, as you do. We want to be loyal! Your actions bring this down on our heads! You violate sovereignty for your own ends! Tintagel! Nemeth! Mercia!"
"Nemeth at least twice and Essetir actually." Arthur clarified. "There is another reason I manumitted Merlin, Father. He is a peasant because of you."
"WHAT?" Incredulity turned Uther and her toward Arthur at that point.
Arthur exhaled. "Aye. It seems that you were not satisfied with burning the Lady of Shalott, Father. Oh nooo! After you captured and chained that dragon under the citadel, you pursued the Dragon Lord to Essetir and Nemeth. You threatened war if he did not surrender. He fled north to that cave where Merlin and I found him. Do you know he was ready to bring Hunith back to Whitgate? He did not know that she was pregnant with Merlin."
"Being a dragon lord does not make one a noble, Arthur. It means that one is untrustworthy," Uther dismissed.
"Maybe. How about saving a King's life? How about Rodor's father making him a knight?" Arthur insisted. "And while we are admitting lies, I lied too before." He sighed. "I did not kill the Dragon. I did stab it with my spear. Merlin drove it away from Camelot."
"You mean I have had a Dragon Lord in my household?" Uther seethed. "Arthur! You should have told me immediately!"
"And if he had? SO WHAT? Father, Merlin saved Camelot by driving the dragon away. You owe him thanks, freedom and a knighthood for that! Merlin has earned that a hundredfold. And so has Gwen. You lie to yourself and hold back others so you can have control."
"Then it's just as well I freed that wretch! Let him go!" Uther smirked. "He is banished from Camelot. I will free, ennoble and then tell him to go. I think it is more than fair under the circumstances."
"I cannot believe this! I…" Arthur started to say. Then he heard the warning bells. "Now what?"
"The warning bells now? Who?" Uther saw Leon rush in and bow. "Sir Leon?"
"Begging your pardon, Sire." Leon looked at Uther, Arthur and her in turn. "Two delegations with contingents of knights approach from the south and west."
"Uther swore to himself. "Is one of them Tintagel?"
"Aye. Nemeth approaches from the west. Scouts have seen no more than two dozen in the contingent. King Rodor and Princess Mithian in addition to a few knights and their lion beast."
"So Rodor brings his creature. Does he?" Uther rubbed his hands together. "As soon as Prince Accolon arrives, see him to the throne chamber. I will speak with him first. Then we shall deal with Nemeth and Rodor."
"I will tell Merlin of your decisions, Father?" Arthur nodded to his father.
"Please do. I want him out of Camelot by sundown." Uther threw Merlin's freedom scroll at his son. "For all the good it does him!"
"Father, please! Merlin has served us well for years! He has saved our lives a number of times over! Do not do it like this!" Arthur pleaded.
And he poisoned me to do so. She seethed to herself. She knew getting over that was part of her new arrangement. Still it ate at her and would do so for some time.
"He did that because it suited his ends! GO!" Uther pointed to the door.
"Aye, Father." Arthur shook his head. He turned to Leon. "Get the knights ready. I do not want trouble until it is absolutely necessary. Nobody is to strike the first blow. Am I clear?"
"Aye, my Prince." Leon bowed again. He hustled off.
"I am still King, Arthur. You both should remember that." Uther shot another pointed glare.
"Aye you are." Arthur bowed in exaggerated fashion. He marched out of the eating area.
She nodded to Uther. "I will take my leave as well. I will see you at the throne chamber?"
"Aye. In half an hourglass!" Uther dismissed her with a wave of the hand.
She shook her head. No wonder he is a target for Nimue and Morgause! She stalked off toward her chamber. She had to put her best dress on for her fiancé after all…..