Merlin was growing restless being cooped up under house arrest. He was healing faster now having nothing to do but read, help Gaius, rest, and make remedies for various patients. He needed to stretch his legs, he needed some freedom.
The physician's chambers were beginning to get to him as vast as they were compared to his home in Ealdor, it still felt constricting as though the very air was congested, clouded with a dead air. He was beginning to understand what the dragon had experienced imprisoned beneath a city, betrayed by a man he had thought better of, trustworthy.
He was trapped again under lock and key from his mind, driving him mad.
One night, he seized his opportunity. It was late, after his mentor had gone to sleep, guided by small amounts of light escaping from the moon beyond the clouds. He was able to hobble around well enough without the use of his walking sticks, so he decided to leave them behind, as he would not be gone long, he quietly made his way out of his room, and past the sleeping physician. He opened the main door ever so slightly to find the guards outside nodding off.
Honestly, if nothing else, he needed to speak to Arthur about his seriously lacking security.
He waited a few more minutes until he could sneak passed the men without alarming them, or the ones in charge of the warning bell, that if rung, would possibly give him a heart attack given his newly adopted, easily startled nature.
He took his jacket with him wrapping it loosely around his shoulders, as the muscles were still healing and too easily irritated to wear it properly, in the cool air inhabiting the halls of the castle. If I could only make it to an empty corridor, or find a bigger window, I could sit on the roof for a little while..
He just wanted a half an hour to escape the compressing walls of Camelot, if only to free his mind and breathe the cold, foggy night air.
Rounding a corner, he came up short, realizing he had crossed into the wrong corridor.
Three knights in dark cloaks stood little more then twenty paces from him, their torches lit, carrying drinks, now nearly drained.
He began to back away and retreat the way he had come, but his right, still healing leg and aching foot had taken too much of his weight on the back step and fell to his knees, cursing and temporarily blinded by a sharp pain. That had done it. The men had heard him and were already casting a light on his pained and agitated face before he could so much as back away.
"What do we have here?" drawled the first.
"Looks like the famous manservant sorcerer." answered the second.
"I heard about your little act of 'heroism' you preformed a few days ago. It's a shame my son missed your head with that spear." spat the third.
"We have time now. Why don't we thank him for landing your boy in the cells, and for his accidental slip of the wrist on the throw, so he could 'save' Terrance." sneered the first.
"Yeah, I always wondered about that knight. His optimism always seemed a little sued." gossiped the second.
The distraction was too good to let pass, he felt far too vulnerable sitting cornered on the floor against the freezing stonewall. He needed to get away. Carefully, he began to inch to his left.
"What's your hurry sorcerer?" spat the third knight, stepping to block his exit and ending the other's entertaining discussion.
"Were you trying to run to your pitting king? Or your group of enchanted knights to protect you?" asked the second.
"Why don't you just use your power on us? Are we not special enough to receive the same spell your 'friends' are under?" taunted the first.
"They are not under any spell! Now if you'll let me go.." Merlin said indignantly, trying to keep up a brave pretence.
"Will you take your spell off all those close to you who seem in favor of magic, leave this kingdom never to return?"
No! he thought alarmed, his composure lost. He could not go back to that solitude, drifting forever in the forests, afraid to be seen by people in fear of being hunted like a criminal. Like the monster he was.
"No!" he yelled frantically. Terror sprang to mind with a jolt, sharp and fresh as he had felt when Arthur had been chasing after him, before he was shot, spreading through his veins like poison.
"Well then, if you won't use your power, we will use ours."
And a new hell began. He curled in on himself; protecting his bad leg as they kicked and stomped on every inch of him they could reach. But soon they grew tired of that and hauled him to his feet beginning the barrage of punches, punishing him for who he was.
Magic.
"This should have been done long ago. You deserve this, sorcerer." One of the men reeking of ale whispered to him holding the servant up by the throat, the man's voice full of contempt and hate before all of them continued to beat him openly, abandoning any lingering restraint.
There was nothing he could do. Using his magic would make everything they identified with sorcerery true. He would be no different from the countless sorcerers he had fought to defend the kingdom, ending in the validation of their accusations and fear. All he was able to do was feel their abusive fists and kicks relentlessly strike him.
What if this was his new life? What if he was never accepted? If he was rejected from his home did that mean he was a monster? Was this the path fate intended? Or was this his own fault for trying to change the world, and create a life he didn't deserve?
The bombardment of pounding limbs seemed to pound him into the wall combining flesh with stone, but none of it mattered. His thoughts scared away the pain, allowing numbing adrenaline to make him feel hollow. It was worse then the endless assaults on his injured form it engulfed him once again in doubt, fear, and chained him down in his mind's lightless cavern making the outside world like a distant pressure of an old bruise long forgotten. This seemed to go on for hours before he finally, involuntarily screamed out in pain. As if answering to his call, the soldiers halted their onslaught, hearing the sound of heavy boots hitting stone alerting the men that someone was approaching. Unwilling to be caught, they dropped the battered, bruised, and bleeding warlock and ran the other way, out of sight.
Finally I am able to post a new chapter! Sorry for the wait, finals are approaching and I had just left town for a week to work. I missed writing though, and school gets in the way a lot, I am so ready for summer! Thank you for sticking with me, reading, reviewing, following and favoriting!