Authors Note: Hello! I haven't written anything in a long while, so I wanted to get back into it. So, I've decided to upload a few one-shots mostly focused on Merlin and Arthur however, there will be other characters as well. Unfortunately, due to lack of planning, I realised this first chapter would be too long so I'm going to split it in two. The rest of them should only be one chapter long from this point onwards though!

Hope you enjoy!

The Stolen Child Part One

There was a scent in the air as the knights set foot into the cave. It wasn't describable as either a good or a bad scent, but it was strong, and Merlin took note of it instantly. Something about the combination of that scent and the sense of something just being…off in the cave set Merlin on edge. Foreboding was the word Merlin would use to describe how he was feeing however the rest of the knights didn't seem to have drawn the same conclusion. They strode forward as confident as ever towards their objective, torches held high and the orange glow of fire flooding the cave entrance.

Something was telling Merlin to stay outside. A strong urge that he couldn't deny, however he knew that he had to push back past that urge. He had to stay with Arthur in case anything was to happen to the future King. It was his responsibility to ensure that whatever was setting his nerves on edge was no threat to the other man. No matter how much he wished he was back in Camelot with Gaius already.

"Merlin, stay close!" Arthur said, voice firm but cautiously quiet.

"Yes sire," Merlin replied, realising while he was thinking he'd fallen behind.

Merlin jogged to catch up, trying to ignore the way that the feeling of dread grew the further he travelled in the darkness and away from the entrance. Once he was by the other knights Merlin forced himself to relax and take in his surroundings. In all appearances from the outside the cave looked no different to any other, if perhaps a little bigger than most. However, the inside of the cave and the path they were travelling along seemed very well maintained and Merlin reasoned people must travel through there frequently.

Well, people or whatever else might travel down there…

Shaking his head Merlin tried to calm himself. Maybe he was just being paranoid. Once they found the child they could return straight away. Reasonably the worst they could expect to find were the Bandits they were trying to locate, and Merlin was surrounded by knights. They could handle themselves. He wouldn't end up in the position where he'd have to use his magic, right?

Too lost in his own thoughts, Merlin suddenly felt the ground beneath him shift and before he was fully aware found himself sprawled on his hands and knees. He'd caught himself on his hands, the skin scraping against the rocks. Percival grabbed him under the arms and hoisted him back up to his feet with ease. Merlin looked around sheepishly at Arthur who had turned with a momentarily worried expression.

Maybe he wasn't as calm as he was appearing to be after all.

"Sorry, just tripped. Clumsy," Merlin said, laughing uncomfortably.

Arthur rolled his eyes, "Try to be more careful. We don't want them to know we're here."

Merlin nodded but Arthur had already turned away. They began walking again but a short moment later they heard a deep and rumbling growl that shook the ground beneath them with the force of it. Arthur stumbled but stayed upright, Merlin would have fallen again but instead he fell into the back of Gwaine who reached back to steady him.

"What the hell was that?" Elyan said, swinging his torch around to try and see, however the path was gradually getting wider so the light of their torches only stretched so far.

"Definitely not Bandits that's for sure," Merlin said.

Merlin felt so much worse about their situation now. The worry he felt pooling in his gut was making him feel slightly ill. This was supposed to be an easy rescue but now it was looking more like he may have to use his magic to get them out after all. How he'd be able to do that surrounded by not only Arthur but also his knights in a cave with nowhere he could pinpoint to hide was another matter entirely though.

Arthur, who had moved closer to the group when they heard the growl to prepare for an ambush, started to hesitantly walk forward again. Seeing nothing of concern, he silently motioned for the others to continue moving. After sharing a few anxious looks between them the knights and Merlin continued onwards.

There was silence for a while as they walked but as the entrance became too far away for them to easily access if they needed to, Arthur heard another noise. This one less concerning that the other. It was the sound of a child crying.

With newly found confidence Arthur began to run, drawing his sword, prompting the other knights to do the same. The echo of the child's crying was unsettling however it at least meant they were closer to their objective. And if they could hear the child crying it meant that she was still alive and their journey hadn't been for nothing.

The path had reached it's widest and before them were two entrances. The only difference was that on the pathway to the left there was a trail of blood not only on the ground but also running down the side of the wall. And of course, that was the pathway the child's crying seemed to be coming from.

Arthur paused for a second, seemingly thinking about his next move. Merlin recognised the look on his face.

"Merlin…"

"Absolutely not."

"Merlin. I want you to head back to the entrance, Sir Gwaine will accompany you back to Camelot," Arthur said, his voice taking a firm edge.

"Like I said absolutely not. I'm staying with you."

"Merlin you stubborn idiot. While I admire your bravery now is not the time for it." Arthur said, walking up to Merlin so he could see him clearly. Something unreadable was warping his expression and Merlin couldn't tell if it was fear, concern, or frustration. He imagined an amalgamation of the three.

"You can't sacrifice a knight when you don't know what you're facing, and you know it. I won't let you take that risk for me. I'm staying," Merlin said standing firmly, even under the prince's gaze.

Arthur held Merlin's gaze for a few seconds, clearly trying to force him to back down, but when he saw no sign of Merlin's resolve weakening, he sighed and turned away.

"Onwards we go then."

Merlin, clearly shocked that Arthur relented, hurried to keep up with the others in fear of him changing his mind. The crying was getting louder now as they drew closer and, in the distance, they could see an orange glow of fire that wasn't coming their torches. They followed the light, swords drawn and ready for combat only to come to a dead end. A dead end lit with torches across the wall almost like a den. Crouched by the wall on the far side was the abducted child. She had her arms wrapped around her legs and was crying loudly. Almost wailing in fear. There was no sign of the men who had captured her.

Arthur looked around to see if anyone was coming but when he saw there was nowhere an enemy could possibly be hiding, he put his sword away and started towards the child.

"Hey, it's okay you're safe now. We've come to save you."

The girls crying gradually reduced to small sniffles and gasps as Arthur grew closer, but she didn't raise her head. Arthur held his hands in front of him to show he meant no harm.

"Arthur, what are you doing? Arthur?" Merlin shouted behind him, but was shot a look which silenced him.

"We need to get out of here before they come back," Arthur said, still moving closer to the child.

"Sire? The entrance is the other way. This is a dead end," Percival questioned.

"Arthur… who exactly are you talking to?" Merlin said. Arthur ignored him.

The girls crying had stopped but she remained crouched down, hiding her face, completely still. Just as his hand was about to touch her shoulder…

"Arthur!" Merlin frantically yelled, causing him to spin around. What Arthur saw caused his heart to leap into his throat. Merlin and his knights had all vanished completely. In their place were eight bodies, each mangled horrifically. Blood poured from the corpses, trailing towards him. Their limbs were twisted beyond recognition, and one whose face was turned towards Arthur had its eyes gauged out. Arthur felt sick and found he could barely keep the contents of his stomach down.

The Bandits were no threat to them after all. They were all already dead.

"Merlin!" he shouted back into the darkness but only his own voice echoed back, trying to see where his servant and his knights could possibly have disappeared to but unable to come up with a rational explanation for it.

Was it magic?

Either way he had found the child and given the appearance of the bodies it wasn't safe to remain in the cave. He turned back around, aiming to pick the child up and leave but stopped. The young girl had moved further away from him and was now standing by the farthest wall, her hair covering her face but turned towards Arthur.

"Don't look, just come to me. It'll all be okay now," Arthur said, starting towards her.

Then stopped.

Then stepped back.

The girls head had snapped up suddenly revealing that under her hair was just skin. She hadn't been hiding her face. She didn't have a face. That wasn't a human child anymore. Now that Arthur was closer, he could see the blood that was plastered across her hands and down the front of her dress.

He turned and ran in the opposite direction, remembering Merin's words from only moments before.

"Arthur…who are you talking to?"

It felt cowardly but reasonably speaking this creature was certainly not human, was smart enough to pretend to be a child, and had taken down eight armed Bandits. Arthur didn't fancy his chances facing it alone. He needed to find the knights and make sure they were alive.

"At least Merlin has people with him," Arthur thought to himself. "He's not completely defenceless."

He couldn't imagine how he would forgive himself if his servant died because he hadn't been strong enough to tell him not to come with them. His knights could fend for themselves, but Merlin was just a servant-boy. He shouldn't be putting himself at risk.

The growling coming from the cave behind him reminded Arthur that while he was worrying about Merlin, he should also probably pay some consideration to himself as he wasn't fairing much better. He tried to force himself to run faster but the path felt infinitely longer than when they'd been walking down it.

After what felt like an eternity Arthur arrived back at the two paths. His limbs were burning and he wasn't sure how much longer he could keep running with his armor weighing him down. He went to carry on towards the entrance but heard something which caused him to stop in his tracks. There was the sound of shouting echoing from the pathway to the right. He couldn't understand the words, but he could identify one voice quite clearly.

"Merlin!" he yelled, sparing one glance towards the direction which would lead him to safety before turning and heading towards the voices. He couldn't just leave. No matter how much his body was screaming at him to run away. Not if his men were in danger. He couldn't be the future King of Camelot if he didn't even have enough nerve to face an enemy face-to-face.

Arthur was shocked to feel a breeze pass by his body and to see a light at the end of the path. This was the opposite way to the entrance. Why would there be an exit here? Still, he could hear Merlin's voice coming from somewhere in the distance, so he kept his stride and carried on going. He imagined whatever creature was following him from the left path had probably continued to follow him down this one so there was no point in turning back.

Eventually he found the source of the light in the form of an exit to the cave. It opened out into sunlight so bright that for a second Arthur had to squint to be able to see anything.

Once his eyes adjusted Arthur was shocked to see a beautiful garden before him. In the centre of the garden was huge tree and growing around it were plants of all kinds, some that Arthur had never seen before. The sky was a stunning blue, and birds were chirping overhead. A river flowed to create a small pool where Arthur was sure he could see some fish swimming beneath the surface. It looked like something out of a story. Too beautiful to be real.

He paused, completely confused. Even though this place was incredible and a welcomed difference to the dark and dreariness of the cave he knew there was no reasonable excuse for it to be there. Everything was too calm. Arthur could clearly remember it was evening when they arrived at the cave so there was no way it would be daytime right now. There was no way this place could exist.

"Hello Sir," a voice whispered making Arthur jump. He held his sword in front of him after realising the voice was coming from the other side of the tree. The voice sounded soft and feminine. Not a threatening tone at all. However, Arthur refused to let his guard down, especially now he knew that magic being involved was the only answer.

"Reveal yourself!" he shouted, trying to remain calm even though the hand holding the sword was shaking slightly. He hoped whoever this was couldn't see his weakness.

Stepping out from behind the tree the child they were sent to rescue stood before him. This time her face was fully intact and the only sign that anything bad had even happened to her was the dirt on her and a blood stain that seemed to spread from her stomach and stained her dress. There was less blood on her than on the face-less child and this time it seemed to come from an injury she had sustained, not one she'd given.

"Where are my men?" Arthur said, stepping forward. "What was that creature that attacked us?"

The child stared at him, her expression cold and indifferent. She glanced down towards his sword and her eyes narrowed.

"Answer me!" Arthur demanded.

Arthur heard the same growl from before somewhere behind him but the child didn't flinch.

She looked back up and met his eyes, "The bad men are dead. And you're dying too."