When the Beta guard informed him of the Omega's slow arrival to the den, he was furious, to say the least since he specifically told the healer that he didn't want anyone to know about the Omega and with a wandering Omega they will certainly know that he wasn't one of them.
"I'm sorry my lord but the Omega was adamant, he said that if no one was going to take him then he would go himself and Gaius couldn't stop him for fear of aggravating his wounds," the Beta nervously informed.
Arthur growled before sitting down on his furs, "bring the council here and make sure Morgana is present it is crucial that she be here, she will be furious with me if she isn't," he stated as the Beta scrambled towards the exit.
"What the hell was Gaius thinking! Dammit, I haven't even met the Omega yet and I can already tell he's going to be trouble!" Arthur growled as he sat there impatiently as he waited for his council to arrive as well as the healer and his new charge.
"Is this it Gaius?" Merlin asked as they made it to the other side of the village, they were standing under an impressive cliff, it wasn't large but it was quite impressive. There was a staircase made of the Earth that led to the middle of the cliff where a cave was located and in front was two guards either they were two Beta guards or he was too far away to tell if they were Alphas.
"Yes, Merlin but are you sure you want to do this now?" Gaius asked, clutching at his arm a little tighter.
"No, I was taught to respect a man's house and since I was brought in unannounced it is only fair that I meet him," Merlin stated never taking his eyes away from the cave.
Gaius sighed, "alright but let us hurry we have caused him to wait for far too long," he said rushing but carefully pushing Merlin up the steps. It took some time since Merlin wasn't in full strength to go up on his own and when he made it to the last few steps the guards came to help him but politely declined.
"I'm far stronger than I look" Merlin stated politely but his tone had a tint of hostility and mistrust, "Gaius is more than enough thank you." Merlin had to hold himself back so he wouldn't throw himself at the guards and kick their asses because people being shocked about him is starting to piss him off.
The guards looked to Gaius as if wondering what they should do but Gaius easily waved them away and smiled at them reassuringly, "thank you but I shall handle it from here," he stated and the guards hesitantly walked away from them as they continued up the rest of the steps.
"Thank you, Gaius, for your help and caring for me but I must do this on my own," Merlin said as he gave Gaius a small smile when they finally made it to the top of the stairs.
"Well of course if that is what you wish but I still must come in with you, the Prime might have called upon his council for this meeting so I must be present," Gaius said as he put a hand on the Omega's shoulder, "I am not too sure how vast your knowledge is on pack dynamics but it is your role as an Omega to submit to the council before proceeding with the questioning."
"Submitting is a sign of showing respect right? Well, tough" Merlin stated before walking into the cave before Gaius could call him back.
"Oh no this Omega has no sense of survival" Gaius stated as he nearly smacked his forehead due to the idiocy that was this Omega, he could feel a headache coming on as he walked into the den right behind Merlin, 'this Omega is gonna be the death of me.'
When he walked in he was instantly bombarded with different scents all of which smelled familiar or close to the scents from that night nearly a week ago, but he dared not let his guard down as many of the council members looked a bit suspicious of him while others seemed to look at him as if he was some sort of lost puppy. But the only one that didn't grace him with any sort of expression was the one sitting in front towards the back sitting on top of a small mound of furs that could seat two people. The room was split into two groups on either side so there was a walkway leading to the man that was obviously the leader of the pack. They were all male other than the female that sat just outside of the furred mound on the right side of the male.
Merlin walked towards the Alpha their eyes locked on to each other, he had not realized that he was getting too close when he felt a hand tug on the back of his damaged shirt to keep him from moving. Merlin was instantly alert but calmed slightly when he caught the scent of herbs to his right. Then the Beta stood in front of him as he bowed to the Alpha, "my Alpha" then turning to the woman to the side, "my lady" then the council, "my brothers."
The Alpha nodded at the man in approval, the woman that Merlin was able to guess was an Omega now that he was closer to her and could identify that she had a sweeter scent than the spicy and strong smell that the Alphas have simply smiled at Gaius while the council nodded to their 'brother'.
Gaius turned to Merlin expectantly waiting for him to do the same as he had and he was aware that all the others were expecting the same from him but he will not. He shook his head, "I will not submit," he simply stated, but it was as if he said that he was going to blow up the nation. There were gasps that filled the room as the sounds of outrage growls and howls were heard and the Alpha was glaring at him with pure fury and the woman at his side simply looked at him with a mix of wonderment and horror.
"I apologize my lord but he does not understand-" Gaius tried to reason.
"How dare you this is my den, my pack! I demand respect!" the Prime demanded completely ignoring the beta, his face was turning red and if he were a lesser man he would be laughing because how funny that was.
Merlin sighed as if this situation was unneeded, "I apologize but you are asking for something that isn't real."
"What!" the alpha growled, Gaius wanted to kill him at that moment.
"You see I only give respect when it is earned. I do not know you and yes I will be civil with you but by simply existing doesn't automatically give me the reason to respect you" Merlin stated looking at the raging Alpha in the eyes.
The Alpha stood up and marched up to the unflinching Omega anyone else would have backed down but he simply stared Arthur dead in the eye with no expression, to the say the least this impressed him but he was not going to tolerate such behavior in front of his council. So he had no choice but to use the Alpha voice, "SUBMIT!" Arthur growled, and there was an immediate reaction within the room. Every person instantly bowed to him and there was a chorus of whimpers throughout the room but still, the Omega did not move nor did he flinch if anything he was more confused rather than intimidated.
This confused Merlin, for some reason he felt the slightest compulsion to bare his neck, it was a slight itch that could easily be ignored, he saw how it affected the people in the room but he had done nothing but speak. The prime's eyes widen as his eyes swept over his body with a mixture of shock and disbelief, "how the hell are you doing that!" he demanded as he reached for his neck. Merlin had not meant to but all the training that he has learned had kicked in and just as the Alpha reached for him he turned his body and grabbed his wrist with one hand and grabbed under his arm close to his armpit then used all his force to flip him on to his back.
The council immediately got up crying out in anger and disbelief, then the guards that had been posted outside came storming in and began to charge at the Omega, Merlin easily assessed the situation and saw that their attack was open. He defended himself easily and knocked them out within seconds, "I don't know what the hell you are! But you are no Omega!" a male Alpha with wavy dark hair stated on his right, with another Alpha that was larger in size standing behind him with a calm but angry expression.
"How dare you come to our pack and attack our Prime!" said another Alpha with dark skin said to his left, then all charged at him.
The attacks were easy to dodge and fairly easy to attack but with the wounds all over his body, he was already tired from flipping the alpha and defending himself from the Beta guards his body was starting to becoming sluggish and his attacks a bit sloppy so he couldn't properly defend himself. So he was captured after he dodging the first set of attacks, they threw him down to the floor pushing down on his upper back, making it extremely hard to breathe but he didn't struggle so he wouldn't aggravate his wounds further.
"Wait! Please do not harm him he is extremely wounded" a voice cried, Merlin looked up to see Gaius looking extremely worried, "please spare him he does not know what he was doin-"
"He knew exactly what he was doing!" the prime yelled as he stormed away from the elders where they were fussing over him to see if he was alright, "and he will be punished for his crimes."
"Please sire he did not grow up like we did, from what he tells me he has never interacted with any wolves until just recently. He does not yet know of his place" Gaius tried to explain.
There were whispers throughout the room, "he didn't grow up with a pack?", "there is no way an Omega can survive on his own!", "no way did you not see how he moved, I doubt he is actually an Omega!", "he's not an Omega!"
Merlin tried to not let the hurtful words to affect him but it was so hard not to. All his life he wanted to better understand himself even though he made the decision to not look into that part of his life, he decided that long ago that his family was more important to him than finding out about his heritage, that it wouldn't matter. But his people, the people that he shared the same heritage with are rejecting him and it hurt.
The prime looked at Merlin with a stony expression, "hold him up," he commanded, the two Alphas picked him up, holding both of his arms as they brought him to the Alpha, they stared at one another for a moment, even though he was defeated Merlin was not going to let this Alpha intimidate him. The Alpha sneered, "is this true Omega? You never had a pack?"
"Yes," Merlin stated.
The Alpha's eyes shined at that moment, "you are a liar! No Omega without a pack will be able to fight like you! In fact, no Omega should fight like! So I'm going to ask you this once where is your pack!" he growled in Merlin's face.
Merlin knew exactly what he wanted to know even though it wasn't exactly what the Alpha was asking for, "yes I have a pack in some ways but not in the way that you would approve," he was mocking him now tired of the way the Alpha believed that just because he was an Omega that he is automatically weaker than them, it really pissed him off.
"So you do lie. You do have a pack, why lie about it if your only going to admit to it" Tha Alpha asked confusedly.
Merlin grinned at him, "why is learning about my so-called pack so important anyway? Trying to figure out that I'm not a threat well because of you assholes I don't have a pack left! So why should I tell you anything." He was angry the more that stupid Alpha questioned him the angrier he became.
The Alpha's eyes went wide before shifting into a harsh glare his eyes cold once again he watched him for a moment before turning to Gaius, "I want a report and I want it now."
Gaius, startled, was quick to reply, "well my lord Merlin as the Omega is called, was badly injured which seemed to be caused by an Alpha and during my time caring for him he had not moved not even once during his comatose to the point where I had believed him dead, if it weren't for his breathing. Due to the fact, the one can not survive without food I fed him some soup every day but today when I poured some in his mouth and I seemed to have startled him since he became um... hostile," he reported. Subconsciously rubbing his cheek where a bruise was already forming on his withered cheek, to which Arthur did not miss.
He turned to glare at Merlin when he noticed that the Omega had hung his head in shame, 'so he isn't completely without shame then.'
"Once he had calmed I gave him food to eat and once he had finished demanded that I take him here."
"I suppose that is no fault of yours as this Omega is clearly a savage by nature it would seem, do you agree Morgana?" Arthur asked his sister to see what her own thoughts were on the Omega.
Morgana stood by his furs closest to the walls her face was full of concentration and slight fear? He has never seen his sister act this way but was secretly proud of her when she pulled herself together enough to stand by his side even though she is unusually close to him than she normally is. "Well, brother I can at least say that he does not show the qualities of that of an Omega he acts more like a Beta and you would think it too if it weren't for his scent. Arthur, I don't believe we can trust him for an Omega to behave in such a way in unprecedented. But he also did the impossible, he completely ignored the Alpha call! There is no Omega in existence that can do something like that," Morgana calmly stated but her voice seemed to rise higher showing a bit of fear in her tone. Though she tried to hide it and keep her composure, anyone can tell that she was in distress.
Merlin, as the Omega was called instantly bowed his head to her causing him and his council to be shocked, "where I come from, it is frowned upon to cause any female distress. I have no excuse and I would like to apologize for the way I acted."
Arthur was in disbelief before turning to Morgana who was as equally shocked as he was, "you show me no respect but you show my sister plenty, why is that?"
"Though she seems like a nice woman I do not respect her fully because she has yet earned it from me but she has enough respect where I can be civil. The only one to have earned my respect is Gaius for what he has done for me and for the way that he handled me when I was," he looked down to the ground in shame, "not myself. I apologize to you too Gaius, I am usually aware of my surroundings and even though I was startled that is no excuse for how I acted. I was taught that one should always be on guard when in an unfamiliar place."
Arthur growled at Merlin, "yet I get no apology as you have disrespected me whilst in my den, in my pack! Not only did you disrespect me but threw me to the floor and beaten two of my Beta guards."
"Well if you weren't a prat then it wouldn't have happened now, would it! If you didn't let your pride overshadow your judgment then you should have known that I did not mean to offend you! But I will not apologize for defending myself!" Merlin exclaimed, "how is one suppose to be a leader when they can't even control their temper!"
Arthur growled clenching his fists trying to find some self-control to not kill the Omega right there and then, "that is an example of treason! And for such disrespect, you shall be sentenced to the cells!"
The room sounded in approval while a few others believed that the Omega deserved a harsher punishment, all except one.
"Please, Arthur he does not know what he means! He was not raised like the rest of us please grant him mercy" Gaius pleaded.
"Mercy? There shall not be mercy for his behavior is unacceptable and don't you dare try to defend this stranger Gaius. For I have not forgotten that you did not do as you were told and made sure that no one is to know about his presence and even though I have forgiven you since you were caring for a savage. But if you continue to defend him then I will take away your mercy!" Arthur growled at Gaius to which he instantly submitted and bared his neck to Arthur.
"You're an asshole you know that!" Merlin yelled, "how dare you! To treat the elderly in such an unsavory manner is unacceptable! That man is wiser than you can ever hope to be and should be treated with respect!"
"No, how dare you to treat me in such a way! I will add more to that sentence if I must in order for you to learn respect!"
"Yeah because that's respect right! No that's fear and I will never fear you!"
"That is enough!" Arthur shouted, "Gwaine, Elyan take him to his cell and tell the guard that he will be remaining there for 6 days."
There were gasps, oh how Arthur was tired of hearing them, when Morgana spoke out, "I know that you are angry brother but is that a wise decision? He is still injured and the heat might cause complications."
Arthur knew exactly what she meant, that Merlin could possibly die from the heat when his body was still recovering but he was so angry that he didn't care about the consequences at this point, all he cared about was putting that disrespecting Omega in his place and by spending time in the cells will teach him who was really in charge. "I don't care, this Omega will learn his place! Now take him away before I kill him."
The two holding Merlin nodded before dragging a growling and glaring Omega out the den and to the cave that held the cells.
Arthur was smug when they pulled that horrid Omega from his den when he felt Morgana place a hand on his shoulder, "what do you think?" Arthur asked after a moment.
Morgana remained silent but her hand tightened and that was all Arthur needed to know.
Merlin was thrown not too gently into the cell, the two Alphas closed his cell and they quickly walked away, Merlin couldn't blame them though even if he was extremely angry that he was being put into this kind of situation what he did out there was a rookie mistake. His father would be extremely disappointed with how he handled it. And even though the Prime was the biggest prat in existence he shouldn't have lost his temper like that because maybe this could have all been avoided. And not to mention that it was hot as hell here, it as if he was in a sauna, without the steam but for some reason, he knew he was going to be put in here regardless of the situation. That Alpha was too full of himself and just breathing at him wrong would have easily landed him here.
He could feel himself sweating bullets as he began looking around his small cell and see if he can find some comfort since he was going to be staying here for 6 days.
But all there is a small table made out of stone with a pitcher of water made from clay with a small cup next to it. Merlin wondered if that was all they were going to give him for the remainder of his stay within this horrid place but there was nothing else he can do. The bar was made out of thick steel and the room was too small for him to shift into his wolf form comfortably by the looks of things. So he had no choice but to wait.
So he made a plan since at most times people would have drained their water supply due to the fact that there is no entertainment and too hot to keep their minds occupied, he believed that the next course of action was to ration the water and keeping himself hydrated while keeping himself preoccupied.
So he moved himself to a make-shift bed made out of leaves and small furs, he was not sure if they will bring him food but he was glad he ate before he was placed in this cell. For what he was going to do was going to cause him to forget everything around him so that time will go a lot faster and he will not appear weak when they finally take him out of the cell.
He grabbed the pitcher of water that was close to the mound and poured himself a cup, he noticed that there was barely anything within the pitcher, he sighed he had less than he originally thought. So now he had to ration it very carefully now if he wanted to stay decently hydrated. He threw his head back and drank all the water in the cup before sitting cross-legged on the mound then got comfortable.
He placed his hands on top of his knees, closed his eyes, and began to meditate. Isaac had taught him this trick once a long time ago it was a way of clearing your mind and finding peace within your body and some days he could stay within meditation at most five days so he knew he would be fine.
So he allowed his mind to wander to somewhere else, somewhere cold, somewhere that wasn't here and at times he was somewhat aware of himself moving and drinking bits of water before re-entering his meditation state.
Suddenly he heard the sounds of footsteps on stone, they were light clearly female, and though humid he could detect the sweet scent of that of an Omega.
Not a moment later a beautiful woman with brown curly hair appeared, she seemed delicate almost skittish when she realized that Merlin was staring at her. "Oh um hello, I'm just uh..." the woman stuttered, Merlin could see that she was holding a pitcher of water in one hand while in the other a plate of bread. Merlin didn't want to alarm her because she seemed frightened enough he just simply smiled and nodded politely.
She smiled nervously, "well yes um I'm just going to," she said as she hesitantly reached through the bars and placed the plate on the floor then grabbing the old pitcher and replaced it with the new one. He made sure to keep his body relaxed and sat completely still because it seemed that she would run once he moved too suddenly.
He nodded at her again politely while keeping the small smile on his face when she completed her task, she smiled at him again but this time a little wider than before, she turned around to leave when she looked at him again.
"You know everyone in the village has been talking about how much of a savage you were, how you fought Arthur and a few Beta guards before you were overpowered by some of the other Alphas and when Morgana had told me to come serve you I was so scared I wasn't sure what I was expecting," she looked conflicted for a moment before continuing, "I don't think you're like us well you are but you just don't act like us but I'm not saying that you don't I just think that..." she looked very flustered and Merlin couldn't help but think that she was adorable.
Merlin chuckled, which caused the woman's eyes to widen, "yes I understand what you mean. I will not lie though I'm quite different from all of you, we are the same you and I, regardless of how I behave. Even though I was raised a lot differently than all of you especially concerning the ways of an Omega," even though he knew he was different from them just remembering what they had said about him not being one of them hurt him, even though he never had an urge to look for his kind it still hurt to know that they didn't want him. "But it does not mean that I am a savage I'm just different in background and from where I come from you all would be considered the savages not me," Merlin stated feeling a little frustrated and it must have shown in his tone when he noticed that she began to inch away from him in discomfort and fear. Merlin sighed, calming himself so that he won't frighten her anymore than he already had, "sorry I didn't mean to scare you."
She stared at him for a moment before walking back to the cell bars close enough for Merlin to touch her, "you know I heard more than you being a savage," she leaned in as if to tell him a secret looking towards the exit where she had come from, "Morgana says that even though you were aggressive that it wasn't your fault, she said that after having time to reflect on the situation you defended yourself when Arthur pushed you to act out as you did. But as well you seem to fascinate her and if anyone can get Morgana's favor then you are more or less free," the woman smiled at him, "there's no need to worry Merlin you will be just fine, just one more day and you will be out of here."
"Has it already been 5 days? Wow I really did it this time," Merlin stated, then he noticed that she was beginning to sweat as her hair was beginning to stick to her shoulders, "you should go. It isn't healthy for someone like you to be in the heat for so long."
She looked confused for a moment before smiling then nodded as she made her way to the exit before turning to look over her shoulder, "I'm Gwen by the way and I hope I can meet you properly once you are out of this cell and Merlin you're right we are the same," she stated before walking out of sight.
Merlin stared after her for a moment feeling a little happier then he had since this whole thing began, he turned to the bread and realized that he was feeling rather hungry and started to get sweaty again. Since he was in deep meditation for so long he managed to calm his body temperature so the heat wouldn't overwhelm him and now with the food, he could have some strength before going back under again.
He devoured the bread easily and happily admitted that it was the best bread that he has ever eaten then drinking two cups of water for good measure before going back under.
Then he heard the sounds of heavier footsteps, clearly male, walking down the steps but he stayed as he was so not to appear threatening. He heard the jingle of keys and the cell door opening, "alright Omega let's go the Prime wishes to speak to you."
Merlin immediately did as he was told and allowed the Beta guard to escort him out of the cells, once outside he winced at the sunbeams, since he mostly stayed in meditation throughout the whole ordeal which meant he had his eyes closed and he was going to need some time before his eyes fully adjusted to the light.
The guard took him back to Arthur's den and all was the same as it was 6 days ago, it was the same but there was a noticeable difference within the room. The council members were not present but there were guards appointed in different areas of the room there were at least 4 Beta guards in total, he made sure to assess them as he passed and saw that when it came down to a real fight he analyzed that this group was not attuned to each other meaning that they don't often train together but he did notice that they looked strong but lacking at the same time. So that meant that the prat thought he wasn't much of a threat since he didn't choose the best of his guards only semi-decent fighters and he found that insulting, to say the least.
He was lead directly to the front, right in front of that smug Alpha's face but he made sure school himself as to not let anything show.
They stared each other down before Arthur turned to Gaius that was sitting close to his mound of furs on his left, "assess him before we can begin I don't want this Omega to disturb any more than he already has."
Merlin fought the urge to growl before was calmed when Gaius got up to look him over, "I'm glad you are alright my boy not many people can last a day in the cells," he whispered, he was holding a medicine basket that he placed on the ground and ushered him to sit down. That was when Gaius grabbed his arm to pull the bandage off before gasping, "what is it?" Arthur demanded, glaring at the Omega.
"It's impossible anyone who's gone into the cells has always come back sweaty and warm for the most part but he's cold!" Gaius stated staring at Merlin in disbelief.
"That can't be possible," Morgana said, getting up as she walked towards the pair.
"Morgana" Arthur exclaimed his tone was stern and filled with warning but Morgana simply waved him away as she reached to touch Merlin's arm when she too gasped, "what is it?'
"It's true he's cold! Hell, there's not an ounce of sweat on him!" she looked at Merlin expressionless, "how are you able to do this?" she demanded.
Merlin looked at her for a moment as if to question her dominance then nodded to show that he choose to answer and not because she demanded it from him which kinda irked her a bit, "it is a technique that I have acquired it is a simple meditational tactic that allows me to go into a dream-like state for however long I wish and during my meditation I willed my body to cool itself so I do not become dehydrated too quickly," he explained looking directly into Arthur's eyes in a way that was clear for anyone to see that he was saying 'what's next?' with his eyes, Arthur growled in response.
"Amazing, I have never heard of such a thing," Gaius said.
"So you mean that you were sleeping during the time of your sentence," Arthur growled, causing Morgana, Gaius, and the guards to flinch but still Merlin was unaffected by his authority.
"In a sense, I have reason to believe that your usual sentences are about 3 days before being let go and I was the first one to stay for 6 days and a bunch of other things that you wouldn't understand so it would be a waste to tell you but being in a cave for more than 3 days can be deadly, if you agree" Merlin growled and to everyone's disbelief everyone except the Alpha flinched.
Gaius looked at Merlin as if he was from another world, 'what is this boy?' he thought, never has an Omega caused this sort of impact, it was fascinating, to say the least. Morgana simply had a very thoughtful expression as she stared at Merlin.
But the two didn't realize this since they were too busy glaring at each other, then there was a clap that confused the two and looked to the source to see Morgana smiling happily, "I want him!"
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