Welcome to Chapter 7. Sorry this took me so long. I couldn't get one scene just right. I'm still not quite happy with it, but oh well. Hopefully, you all enjoy the read.
P.S I don't own Merlin.
Previously on Legend of the Coin...
Arthur knelt at his father's feet. Uther turned to walk out of the cell. "Please, Fa..." he corrected himself. Uther stopped at the entrance to the cell. Arthur continued. "Please Sire. You've always taught me to be true to my heart and that is all I have ever tried to do. To be the man you wanted me to be. Someone you were proud to call your son. Don't let Merlin die because of something I did."
Uther walked down and out of the dungeons and looked out to see the progress of the pyre. The first thing that caught his eye however was the flickering lights in the forest beyond the citadel. From that, he looked down to see the completed pyre. He smiled in anticipation. Tomorrow, magic will be wiped off the face of the earth.
Merlin woke up, coughing. Since his wrists were connected to the wall, his cough moved his whole body aggravating his still-healing back. He sat there, in his cell, taking deep breaths and trying to put the memory of what just happened out of his mind. Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming down the hall. He still was not allowed to have visitors and these footsteps did not belong to Uther, so who was it? His question was soon answered as the hem of a dress peeked into his vision.
"Good evening, Merlin."
"Is it?" Merlin croaked.
"Oh come now Merlin. Is that anyway to treat a friend? I came to say hello."
"Drop the act Morgana, what do you want?"
Morgana laughed, a cold hard laugh that proved that this was not the Morgana that he used to know. "I like you Merlin. Always straight to the point."
She snapped her fingers and Merlin was released from the wall, the magic manacles still on his wrists. Merlin's arms fell into his lap. He sat up, trying to put feeling back into his arms. He leaned against the wall, too exhausted to do much of anything else.
"Tospringe" she whispered and the door opened up. She walked in and closed the door behind her. She walked up to Merlin and knelt in front of him.
"I always wondered how you escaped the serkets that day. Those were supposed to kill you."
"You'll find it's a lot harder to kill me then you think. Uther can tell you, he's been trying."
"Oh yes. I've heard all about his little sessions with you." Her finger traced the raw flesh on his throat from the rope just hours earlier. "I can tell you it drives little Arthur mad whenever Uther talks about it." She looked at Merlin's back. "I see he does a thorough job and with these" here she held up his manacles. "It must be torture for you."
"Why are you here, Morgana?" Merlin sighed.
"I just wanted to get some answers to some questions before you meet your untimely demise. And to offer you an alternative."
"Alternative?"
"Join me. You have Magic, Merlin. It must be powerful to escape the serkets. Imagine what we could do, together."
"Never!"
"I knew you would say that. I wanted to give you one last chance, but you have refused me. You may regret that decision later." She slapped him and Merlin fell to the floor.
"I regret nothing." he growled loud enough so Morgana could hear.
Morgana turned around, a feral grin on her face. "Your execution tomorrow will be the perfect distraction."
"Distraction? For what?"
"For Cenred and Morgause to invade Camelot. After I kill Uther…"
"What?"
"After I kill Uther, Camelot will fall. Arthur may try his hardest but without its great protector," she ran her hand across his cheek in a tender gesture "Camelot is as good as mine."
Merlin pulled back from her hand. "Arthur will fight. He will not let you win."
Morgana laughed as she got up and paced the cell. "Merlin, I already know how much he cares for you. Losing you will be his undoing. You and I both know that you are his strength. Without you, he will not be strong enough to fight."
Morgana seemed to relish in this thought. "Maybe I'll keep him alive. Yes, that will work well. I will keep him alive and make him watch as I kill everyone he holds dear. His knights, Leon, Gwen."
She could see Merlin getting flustered. She turned to him then, bringing her face inches away from his. She had his undivided attention. "And then, Merlin, only when he begs for it, which I know he will, I will KILL him."
"NO!" Merlin yelled. His magic flared at the threat to Arthur's life turning his yell of rebellion into a scream of pain.
Morgana snapped her fingers again and Merlin was again attached to the wall. "See you tomorrow, Merlin" she laughed as she walked away.
"Sister…"
The voice entered quietly into Morgana's mind. She was grateful that no one was in the hallway to see her reaction.
"Morgause?"
"Sister, it is so good to hear from you. Is everything going according to plan?"
"Yes, Merlin and Arthur are locked up tight, and Uther does not suspect a thing about me."
"Perfect, there is a little change to the plan. I need you to come to the forest tonight."
"Tonight? But why? I thought I was supposed to kill Uther as you arrived."
"Change of plans. We heard from our spies tonight that Uther disinherited Arthur."
WHAT? Morgana thought. Arthur must have done something insanely stupid. Uther would never disinherit Arthur. Arthur must be heartbroken.
"This makes you the rightful heir, Uther will do anything for you and just imagine what he would do if magic held you hostage tomorrow."
Morgana smiled. "I'll make sure Gwen does not suspect anything."
"Perfect, meet me at our usual place in the castle in 1 hour and I will make sure nobody sees us leave."
"NO!" The yell resonated through Arthur and he woke up from his fitful sleep. That had been Merlin yelling, not him. And with the amount of anguish Arthur heard in his friend, Arthur knew something was wrong, very wrong.
Merlin? Arthur asked tentatively
Arthur was about to ask again when the tentative "Arthur?" came into his mind. It was weird to hear the volume change in Merlin's voice. This whisper was so soft compared to the yell earlier. Arthur was a little disturbed to hear the amount of despair in his friend's voice. What was he thinking about?
"Merlin, what happened?"
"It was just a nightmare, that's all."
That was a flat out lie. "Merlin, I'm in your head. Don't you think I can tell when you are lying to me?"
"I'm not lying. It was a nightmare."
"Ok, what was it about?"
Arthur could feel Merlin searching for a suitable lie for his dream. "Merlin...please. Tell me the truth."
"It's nothing, really."
"Merlin."
He heard a sigh and then Merlin's explanation came. "It was about tomorrow. My overactive imagination is not helping me sleep well tonight."
Arthur could tell that wasn't all of it, but decided to not push.
"Arthur, there's something I want to..."
"You are not going to say goodbye."
"No, Arthur. Listen…"
"You're not going to die, Merlin." Arthur interrupted. "Don't be such a coward."
"You've got a plan?" Merlin asked with little hope.
"Not as such….." Arthur replied, hoping that the banter he tried to start would help get Merlin out of his misery. Merlin's next thought dashed those hopes.
"Arthur, if I die tomorrow, will you remember me as a hero?"
Arthur tried again for the playful banter. "Probably."
This time, Merlin seemed to take the bait. "But whilst I'm still alive, I'm a coward."
Arthur smiled at the sarcastic tone is his friend's voice. "That's the way these things work I'm afraid. You only get the glory when you are not around to appreciate it."
"Unless you're the future King."
Arthur flinched a little at the recent memory of being disinherited. Merlin didn't seem to catch on to that through the mind mind so he moved on with the banter. "Oh come on. It's got to some advantages to it."
Merlin scoffed. "You have a very good servant."
Arthur stopped his witty retort at Merlin's last remark. If Merlin really was going to die tomorrow, Arthur did not want Merlin feeling lower than what he really is. "You're right. I do." Arthur took a breath. "A servant who is extremely brave, and incredibly loyal to be honest, not at all cowardly."
Merlin could sense Arthur's change from the banter. "Thank you for saving my life."
"You would have done the same for me. You're a loyal friend Merlin."
Merlin interrupted his train of thought. "You too, Arthur. Thank you."
Arthur felt the connection sever and he finished his thought. You're a loyal friend Merlin, and I couldn't bear to lose you.
So there's Chap 7 for ya. I have the next chapters all outlined out...now for actually typing them out. As always, leave a review (likes, dislikes, things you want or think will happen) anything. Reviews are a writers best friend.