A/N: I know chess probably wouldn't have been around in Camelot but I have wacky ideas sometimes.

Also warning for temporary character death(s).

"Bishop Takes Knight"

Merlin stood at attention behind Arthur's seat at the dining table. Since they were visiting another kingdom, he wasn't part of the main serving staff coming to and fro to make sure everyone's goblet stayed full, but he did have to stand on ceremony. And everyone was so quiet they would have heard a shoe squeak, so Merlin had to make sure he held himself extra still so he didn't cause an embarrassment to Arthur. Camelot had never had dealings with Cormag Ó Riagáin before, but now that Arthur's reign was well established, he had begun reaching out to further kingdoms to establish peace as their first introduction.

"That was a fine meal," Arthur complimented their host when they had all just about finished. His knights nodded their agreement.

Cormag inclined his head and wadded up his napkin to plop on the table. "Would you care for a game of chess, King Arthur? I find it's the quickest way to get to know someone."

Arthur smiled genially. "Sure."

Cormag rose from his seat, and Arthur and his knights followed suit. The king led them from the dining hall, down a long corridor, and into an even larger hall with marble columns and a life size chess board on the floor. Six suits of full armor were already standing on some of the squares.

Cormag stepped up onto the slightly raised platform and went to stand in line with the suits of armor on the king's square.

Arthur and the knights exchanged somewhat dubious looks.

Cormag gestured to the opposite end of the board. "Please, take your places. Your manservant can play as well, King Arthur."

It wasn't the game of chess they had been expecting, but they were the guests here, so they all moved to take up positions in the back line of the rooks, knights, and bishops. Once they were in place, Merlin felt a sudden shift in the air, almost like magic, and he whipped his gaze around intently for the source. But the chamber was otherwise empty, no courtiers or servants as an audience.

Standing beside him, Lancelot cast Merlin an odd look, almost as though he had sensed something too. Merlin gave a subtle shrug; he didn't see anything strange.

The suits of armor abruptly straightened at attention with a metallic clang, startling him. He hadn't realized they weren't props but actual men waiting at the ready for this game.

"Uh," Arthur spoke up, "we seem to be missing a few pieces."

Indeed, there were no pawns or a queen on either side of the board.

"This is fine," Cormag replied easily. "Cuts to the quick of the game."

Merlin arched a brow at that. Why play a game if they weren't going to do it properly?

Cormag gestured to Arthur. "You may move first."

Usually there was a selection of chance to determine who was white and who was black, but Cormag's knights were dressed in black armor, so compared to them, the knights of Camelot did look more like the white side of the pieces.

Arthur studied the board, looking slightly discomfited with the alterations to the game. "Lancelot to F3," he directed.

Lancelot moved two squares up and one over.

"Knight to G6," Cormag said, and one of his black knights marched stiffly to the new square.

Arthur moved Percival forward next, and Merlin could tell he was concentrating hard on how to adapt the traditional strategies with half the pieces removed. Within a few moves, every piece had been moved forward, save for Arthur and Cormag playing the king pieces.

Cormag's eyes were alight with intensity. "Bishop to G5."

That was the square Lancelot was currently standing on, which meant that would remove him from the game. He looked mildly miffed to be the first one yet also relieved. The black knight strode toward his position, and Lancelot turned to simply walk off the board. But before he could, the knight drew his sword and plunged it into Lancelot's chest, the tip punching its way out his back.

Merlin jolted in shock, all the breath whooshing from his lungs like he had been stabbed himself.

Lancelot made a horrible choking sound as the bishop withdrew its blade, and then he collapsed to the floor. Eyes blown wide with shock met Merlin's briefly as blood rapidly pooled out beneath him.

Merlin finally tried to run to him, but his legs wouldn't move, like his feet were cemented to the floor. He finally registered the other knights struggling as well, twisting and wrenching in an effort to break from their spots, but their legs also refused to budge.

"I can't move!" Leon shouted to Arthur.

They tried drawing their swords, but the hilts seemed stuck in their scabbards.

Arthur turned blazing eyes on Cormag. "What are you doing?" he demanded.

Cormag merely smirked smugly. "This is the nature of parley between two strong kingdoms, is it not?"

"We came here in peace!"

"Yes, an interesting opening. I prefer this one, though, a demonstration of mind and will to see who is the strongest."

Merlin strained against the magical forces keeping him in place, cheeks puffing with the exertion as he tried to get to his friend. Lancelot's twitching petered out and Merlin saw the light in his eyes dim as he exhaled his last breath.

"No!"

"It's your turn, King Arthur," Cormag said.

"I will not play this game!" he shouted back.

"Are you forfeiting already?" Cormag asked a tad too casually.

"No!" Leon interjected, then turned to Arthur urgently. "Arthur, don't; forfeiting the king could mean your life."

Merlin's eyes widened in horror as he looked at the ruthless madman. The smirk on Cormag's face confirmed Leon's hunch. He was playing the game literally, and to forfeit would be to forfeit the king piece—Arthur himself. They had no choice but to keep playing.

Merlin shifted his gaze back to Lancelot, chest constricting painfully at his friend's lifeless body lying in a puddle of blood gleaming on the shiny marble chess board. He clenched his fists. Cormag would pay for this.

Arthur's face was bloodless as he directed Elyan to move, too in shock to think through the next several moves ahead.

Cormag grinned as he directed his knight to take out Percival.

Merlin's heart leaped into his throat and he fought to move from his square again, but again he was stuck in place.

Percival tried to draw his sword as the black knight approached him, but that was stuck as well. He was the defeated piece and wasn't allowed to resist. That didn't stop him, though; Percival threw an arm up to block the knight's strike, then swung his other arm to punch the knight in the face. The man in full armor barely flinched under the blow and merely slid his sword arm free and stabbed Percival through the heart.

Several anguished shouts echoed through the room along with Merlin's as Percival went limp and fell off the blade to land bonelessly on the floor, eyes open and vacant. Merlin's vision blurred with hot tears of grief and rage.

"You dishonorable coward!" Arthur railed at Cormag.

The other king didn't appear bothered.

"Arthur, let me rip these bastards apart," Gwaine seethed, staring in fury at the knight that had killed Percival. He was within a move to take him out.

Arthur's expression was twisted in anguish, and he wordlessly waved for Gwaine to go.

Gwaine stormed across the board, and the black knight simply stood there and didn't offer any resistance. This time when Gwaine grabbed his sword, it came free, and with a raging cry, he swung with all his might at the knight's chest. The armor fell to pieces where it stood, no body inside.

For a stunned moment, everyone stared in disbelief. Merlin had been right the first time; they were just props. This was just part of the game's magic.

"You cheating bastard!" Arthur spat at Cormag. "You don't even play with your own men and so you have nothing to lose!"

Cormag spread his arms. "I am the king piece. That is the ultimate goal of the game, is it not? The other pieces are just pawns."

"They are not!"

Merlin couldn't breathe past the spiky lump in his throat as he watched Gwaine kneel next to Percival and reach two fingers under his jaw. After a moment, he hung his head and then moved his hand to close Percival's eyes. Then with a guttural bellow, he stood and kicked viciously at a piece of the black armor. It went flying off the board, passing through a strange shimmering film as it did so that flared for one brief second, and then vanished into smoke on the other side. Merlin frowned, the only one to notice. It seemed it wasn't just the surface beneath them exacting this game, but they were encased in some kind of magical box.

Cormag pointed to his bishop and then to Elyan.

"No!" Arthur, Leon, and Gwaine all yelled as the black piece marched over.

Elyan's eyes were wide with fear, but he held his ground and kept his head up as he awaited his fate.

Merlin was seething with rage, but he waited until the bishop raised its blade, and then uttered a spell under his breath. The sword's trajectory jerked sharply, cutting Elyan across the side instead of impaling him through the heart. Elyan cried out and fell backward, clutching his side. It was a serious wound, but not yet fatal. Merlin held his breath, but with Elyan down and out of play, the bishop puppet didn't try to finish him off and simply sheathed its sword and resumed its ready stance.

Cormag straightened with a frown, looking like he wanted to storm off his square, but whether he had his own personal restraint or was also bound by the rules of the game, Merlin didn't know. He glowered at the king, who of course wasn't even paying attention to the simple manservant.

"Elyan?" Arthur called tightly.

"I'm- al-right," he gasped.

"Don't move," Leon urged.

"Wasn't…going to."

Arthur forced his attention back to the board, expression pinched as he tried to calculate his next series of moves in order to protect the knights he had left. Merlin was no chess master, but even he knew they wouldn't get to Cormag to end the game without losing someone else, and they had to protect Arthur too.

He wracked his brain for how he could put a stop to this with his magic. But when he'd cast that spell to save Elyan, he'd felt resistance, like the board was restricting his magic as much as his physical movement. He had to find a way to break its hold.

He shifted his gaze to Cormag, scanning him for some item that might be a conduit for this magic, but he didn't seem to have anything on him. Merlin searched the room next, but it also was rather bare. He turned back to the board desperately and finally noticed a ruby gem inset in the center of the board, not very large, a decorative stone set into the four linked corners of the most central squares. Merlin focused all his senses and could feel the power pulsing from within. He flicked his gaze around to make sure no one was watching him, then tried to cast a spell to break it. But nothing happened.

He scowled in frustration. Okay, his magic wasn't going to cut it. He needed another way to destroy the board. A sword? But what if that wasn't enough? Merlin straightened abruptly. Excalibur.

"Leon," Arthur started, getting ready to make a move.

"Arthur, move forward one square," Merlin interrupted.

Arthur shot him an incredulous look. "What?"

"Just trust me."

He glanced at the others, but it wasn't like they had a strategy in mind for this, so Arthur huffed and stepped forward. "Since when are you a chess master?" he muttered.

Merlin ignored him and watched tensely as Cormag moved a piece, putting it in position to take out Gwaine on its next move.

Arthur's expression darkened and Merlin knew he wanted to move Gwaine out of the way, but they had to end this as quickly as possible.

"Don't," Merlin bit out. "Move forward again."

Arthur glared at him. "Cormag is going to take out Gwaine in his next move," he hissed.

Merlin's heart thundered against his rib cage. "I know. But you need to move forward one square." He was still two squares away from the gem, two moves away from freeing them all. Merlin hoped.

"You can't seriously be suggesting we sacrifice Gwaine!" Leon sputtered.

Merlin knew it sounded crazy and heartless, but he had to trust his instincts. He turned to his friend, silently pleading with him to understand.

Gwaine gazed back at him for a long moment in contemplation, then nodded. "It's alright," he told Arthur. "You move."

Arthur glanced between them in vexation, but finally scowled and stepped forward one square. They all stiffened as Cormag's piece walked up to Gwaine and drew its sword. Merlin wanted to cast a spell and deflect the blow like he'd done with Elyan, but he couldn't risk giving himself away to Cormag, not before they stopped this madness.

Gwaine tried to instinctively take a step back from the knight, but its sword plunged into his chest easily. He let out a sharp gasp, then fell to the floor. Merlin flinched but whirled toward Arthur.

"Destroy the gem!" he yelled, pointing to the ruby.

Arthur looked confused for a moment before he noticed the gem in the floor.

"What—" Cormag started, jerking against his square. So he was bound too.

Arthur's eyes widened, and he immediately drew Excalibur and took his turn, moving forward one more square to reach the ruby. Gripping the sword in front of him, he thrust down, the magically blessed blade striking the gem and cracking it into pieces.

A concussive force exploded outward, knocking them all to the floor and dismantling the rest of the black pieces. Merlin scrambled to his feet and found he could move again. Leon was up on his feet next and sprinting across the board to reach Cormag and contain him.

Arthur blinked dubiously for a few moments before he hurried to Elyan. Merlin scrambled for Gwaine, heart racing. And then Gwaine sat up and looked around incredulously.

"Huh, I'm alive."

Merlin nearly collapsed in overwhelming relief, and he threw a look toward Elyan, who was sitting up and looking unharmed. He and Arthur scrambled over to Percival, who was closest, and Merlin leaped up to rush over to Lancelot, Gwaine right behind him. They dropped down next to their friend just as Lancelot opened his eyes and looked up at them in confusion.

"What happened?"

They grabbed his arms and pulled him upright. Lancelot frowned as he roved his gaze around the room.

"What's going on?" he asked cautiously.

Merlin grinned. "Nothing we need to worry about anymore."

Leon dragged Cormag over by sword point and thrust him to his knees on the board.

"You won't get away with this," Cormag spat.

Arthur stood and walked over. "It looks like your knights are out of commission," he said, gesturing with Excalibur to the disassembled pieces. "But then, they were just pawns."

"Guess we know who's the stronger king now," Gwaine put in.

"Merlin," Arthur called. "Get our things. We're leaving."

Merlin hurried off, Gwaine and Lancelot accompanying him. As it turned out, their meager luggage hadn't been taken to any guest chambers and were sitting piled in the entryway. None of the scared servants tried to stop them from leaving.

They left Cormag tied up in his game room and then retrieved their horses and rode hard out of his kingdom. Only once Arthur felt they were a safe distance away did they finally stop for a rest, and Merlin anxiously wanted to check everyone over while Leon filled in the blanks for those who had been taken out of the game early.

Lancelot held his chainmail and tunic up as Merlin poked at his chest. There was no mark to suggest he'd ever been stabbed. No one even had a scar from their various wounds. They'd been very lucky to come out of that unscathed.

"How did you even know destroying the gem would work?" Arthur asked.

Merlin shrugged. "It was just a hunch."

Arthur gaped at him dubiously. "A hunch? You gambled Gwaine's life on a hunch?"

"It worked, didn't it?"

Leon shook his head in disbelief.

"Cormag had the game rigged against us," Merlin pointed out. "What did we have to lose?"

Arthur also shook his head and turned away. "Let's move out."

They prepared to mount up on their horses again, but Merlin went over to Gwaine.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "For sacrificing you."

Gwaine regarded him with an unusual amount of seriousness. "I figured you knew what you were doing. And you're right; it did work."

Merlin smiled in relief at the forgiveness and inherent trust, then turned to look at Lancelot and Percival, who were alive again as well. That was the win.

He turned back to Gwaine. "But no more chess games with real people as players," he said with a quirked grin.

Gwaine snorted. "Definitely not."