A/N: Again, sorry for the late update. Better late than never though, right? If you find any mistakes, please be kind enough to point them out to me. Enjoy!

Chapter Eight:

"How are we going to do everything undetected?"

Looking up from where he was finishing packing up their stuff, Merlin explained, "There are probably a few lookouts or guards near the cave, so we'll have to 'dispose' of the threat first. Then-"

"Why would there be anyone nearby? Can't they take care of themselves?"

"Normally, yes, but since the casters generally pass out on the second day, which is today, and the spell feeds off of their very essence, they're quite vulnerable right now."

To be honest, Leon felt a bit foolish for not figuring it out.

"Oh. Carry on then."

"Anyways, after we get rid of the guards, I would check for any kind of enchantment that was placed around the cave to prevent people from entering without notice. If there are any, I'll get rid of them," Merlin looked Leon in the eye before continuing.

"We'll have to be very careful. There is a chance that all of them are awake and ready to fight at the moment, so we would enter quietly, and then if they are conscious, I will try to cast a spell to make them immobile. Still, they might attack before I'm able to and you might get hurt. Are you okay with this?"

There was a moment of hesitation. Merlin wasn't sure if Leon would be to happy with the idea of both having magic being used to that extent in front of him, or getting hurt. Seeing the worried expression on his friend's face, Leon nodded.

"Merlin, I came knowing that this would be dangerous. We have to use all our skills to dispatch the enemy as quickly as possible."

Relief flooded Merlin, and after they finalised their plans, the duo set into motion. As they agreed to do, the warlock scanned their surroundings for guards. Finding them, Merlin and Leon split up and made their way towards them. After disposing of the guards nearby, they started sneaking over to their destination, careful not to step on twigs or alert anyone of their presence.

With grace that left the knight stunned, Merlin lead the way, occasionally stopping to check for nearby guards. Once they got close enough to see the cave, Merlin cast a spell to see if there was an enchantment over it. Sensing a spell that sent a signal to the spell-casters, Merlin quickly eradicated it. Quietly, they entered the cave.

There were many twists, turns, dead ends, loops, and guards, so the only thing they could rely on to get to the spell-casters was Merlin's magic. Taking another odd turn, into a large room with four entry points, the two noticed a figure that was guarding something. They were guarding a bucket and fire.

The guard was facing away from both the fire and the duo. Knowing that it was away from the guard's view, Merlin used his magic to discreetly levitate the bucket, and dump its contents over the fire. He cringed as an audible hissing sound came, as if the fire was fighting its fate.

Though they hoped that the man didn't hear it, he obviously did, since he immediately turned around and saw the dead fire and spilled bucket. The guard looked around frantically for the perpetrators, it was only a matter of seconds before he noticed them.

This is going to be awkward.

Although they tried their best to stay hidden in the shadows and archway, when the guard narrowed his eyes at where their location, it seemed like he noticed them. This thought was confirmed when the man shouted, "Guys! Intruder!"

Really awkward.

Chaos occurred. Guards came from behind and in front, right and left, but Merlin and Leon were able to get out into the open. They didn't seem smart enough to bring any projectiles, since if they did, the two would be getting pelted by them at that point.

At first, they engaged in sword fighting. They parried, blocked, dodged, and attacked, quickly dispatching many of their opponents. When no more guards seemed to be entering, and the two were losing, (Sound similar to the bandit fight?) Merlin decided it would be a good time to use his gift.

In a flash (literally), all the guards were on the ground, dead. It was lucky that none of the guards were magic-wielders, because that would've made their fight a lot more difficult.

While thinking this, the seven spell-casters decided to show up, presumably to survey the damage. A blond-haired female, likely the leader of the group, had a good sense of what happened.

"Lookie here, boys! It seems that our guards were no match for the two sorcerers. One of them is even a knight of Camelot! What are the odds?"

The group laughed, mostly because their leader, the only woman, started to. It seemed like no-one noticed the spilled bucket and remains of a fire. Once the laughter died down, Merlin decided to get some answers, not bringing attention to the fact that part of the group's spell was broken.

"Why are you siding with Morgana?" interrogated Merlin, as if he was the one in control of the situation.

Eerily, the seven replied in unison. "She has the power to bring back the Old Religion. The king is too frightened by his father's teachings to think any different. We will gladly die for our cause. Now, why are you two defending him?"

Keeping up the act of the both of them being sorcerers, Leon answered, "We believe in the future he will create. He is the king of prophecy, and we will protect him to our last breath."

Again, the seven laughed, but this time, only their leader responded. "The prophesies are mere stories, told to lift the spirits of the druids at times like this. We are not cowardly like them. We are taking action for the betterment of our kind, unlike you fools," she paused, eyes turning predatory. "I think we've had enough time to chat. You'll pay for weakening our spell."

Her hands thrust outwards, eyes golden. It was too fast for Merlin to put up a proper shield, but he was able to weaken the burst of energy. As it collided into them, Leon and Merlin staggered backwards, barely retaining their balance.

"Looks like the knight has no magic. This will be easy."

While the leader was talking, Merlin gathered his magic, getting ready to throw the woman's magic right back at her. When the ball of fire came, he caught the fire, sending it back towards the group with astonishing force. Their shield prevented them from getting burnt to crisps, but they it didn't stop them from getting burnt considerably.

Quietly, Merlin whispered, "Leon, stay behind me."

Leon did as he was told, staying behind Merlin, watching the battle unfold.

The group seemed to be tiring quickly. When you're a vessel, it's a good idea to stay put and rest, not using your energy or magic. If you do, the spell will work faster, and in addition will kill all of them faster, be it the casters, or the victims.

Sure, Merlin had incomparable amounts of magic, but when you go against seven sorcerers/sorceresses that probably have more experience than you, your odds of winning are pretty split.

Lightning bolts, fire balls, invisible forces, and more, went flying in all directions. Merlin was on the defensive, putting up shields and sometimes throwing things back at the attackers. The group, obviously, was on the offensive, constantly hurling spells at the two. They didn't seem to notice that they were getting weaker and weaker, but they did notice that Merlin wasn't showing the slightest sign of exhaustion. In fact, it seemed that their spells did little more than bounce off of or disintegrate from the shield.

In reality though, keeping the shield up and that strong was taking its toll on the warlock. He knew he had to seem unaffected, but that didn't stop the sheen of sweat from forming on his forehead, or the bending of his knees, or the panting breaths. The seven didn't notice Merlin's exhaustion, to preoccupied fighting their own.

Both sides were becoming desperate. The sorcerers and sorceress started to launch many weaker spells at a faster pace, attempting to cause Merlin to falter, their attack becoming less and less coordinated. It was working, to an extent. Noting the change in strategy, Merlin knew he had to change his as well, and at the perfect time too. He wasn't sure how much longer he could've stood against the strong spells.

Merlin started to catch the magic of nearly every spell thrown at him, not bothering to put up shields anymore, and getting hit by a few spells. After a short while, the group stopped, realising that they were just giving him power. It was too late though, because Merlin used that moment to use all the magic he caught against their masters. The force was enough to send all of them flying backwards, but not enough to knock them out. They passed out either way because of the spell.

Knowing that there was no other alternative, the warlock grabbed his hidden daggers, throwing one at each enemy, ending the suffering that they would have otherwise suffered.

Leon finally snapped out of his shock at watching the sheer power of his friend twice in one day, when said friend suddenly collapsed. Apparently all the effort was rather draining. He decided that he would carry Merlin out of the labyrinth that was the cave, back out to the forest, and set up camp. It really wouldn't do for any lingering guards to attack them while they tried to rest.

After sneakily leaving the area, without any confrontation, Leon carried the servant until they were too far from the cave for any extra guards to lurk about. It was dusk by the time Merlin woke up, well-bandaged, groggily asking what happened.

"What happened, was that you helped me defeat a considerable number of guards in a fierce battle, before using magic to throw the many more guards attacking us back, effectively killing them, then fought a group of seven angry sorcerers, whose leader was a thoroughly pissed off woman, and ended up killing them as well. Oh yes! You also levitated the bucket of blood-water, and dumped it over the fire, causing the spell to become weaker on the citizens inside Camelot. You did all of that while protecting me as well, barely showing any sign of distress at the vessels' attack, until you finally passed out after defeating them. And then I carried you here, and tended to your wounds."

All Merlin did in response to that explanation was form his mouth into an 'o' shape, while looking at his bandages, the events of a few hours previous coming back to him.

"Not that it didn't turn out well in the end, but why didn't you just use your magic on the guards before they almost won against us?"

"Two reasons: The first was that I wanted to make sure more and more weren't going to come before I used my gift. The second was that using magic to throw them all back and kill them uses quite a bit of energy. I wanted to make sure we got rid of as many as we could before then."

Shock flashed across Leon's face, his mouth opening and closing in futile attempt to comprehend what he had just been told.

"Wait. Are you telling me that while you fought off the seven of them, you were weakened by using magic to throw the guards back? You fought all of them while at a distinct disadvantage?"

"Well, it's not like it put a strain on my powers. It only tired me out a bit; it doesn't help I was already tired from the limited amount of sleep I get. Plus, even though those seven were powerful, the spell was sapping at their energy and magic, so they were also at a disadvantage. We were pretty evenly matched, and it was really them that exhausted me. In fact, I'm pretty surprised that I didn't pass out in the midst of battle, with all the magic I used and defended against."

"I was so surprised when you passed out- Hold on, what do you mean 'limited amount of sleep'?"

Merlin seemed hesitant to answer. It was almost as if he'd let something slip that he hadn't meant to, or hadn't expected Leon to pick up. After a few seconds, which felt like many minutes for Leon, Merlin started speaking.

"Since no-one other than Gaius knows what I do when the sky gets dark and threats rise, and even then I don't tell him half of it, Arthur piles on a lot of work for me to do, thinking I have more than enough time to finish it. He doesn't realise that either way, he gives me too much work. Mucking out stables should be left to stable boys! I don't understand why I'm the one doing their job," at the part of mucking out stables, Merlin made an annoyed face that captured what he felt quite well.

After taking a moment, he continued, "Then, there's the fact that I'm the physician's apprentice, so I often go and collect herbs for Gaius, or even tend to patients. Of course, I also go out and fight assassins, sorcerers, sorceresses, magical beasts, and anything and everything in between. This leaves me very little time for actual sleep.

Naturally, I use magic to help me do a few chores here and there, in the privacy of my own room for safety, but Gaius doesn't understand that if I don't use it, I will get very little sleep. He scolds me each time he finds me doing that, because he's worried for my safety. Whenever I get caught, I have to finish the chores by hand, so I get little sleep for that night.

It's not like Gaius requires me to get herbs everyday, and usually only one threat comes per week. When I finally have some time to rest, I usually study healing or magic. I guess that it's sometimes my own fault for my lack of sleep."

Again, Leon was left speechless. How could Merlin live like that? It definitely didn't sound like a very healthy way of living, but surely he used his magic to stay up? Well, he did say that using larger amounts of magic left him tired, so it probably wouldn't help in the long run.

"Merlin, maybe you could explain part of the situation to them? You could be honest and tell Arthur that all the chores and being the physician's apprentice take up most of your time, and that you don't get much sleep. The same thing could be said to Gaius, and you could also tell him about more of the threats that you face, which there seem to be an abundance of by the way you talk about it. Also, I know it's important to study and all, but if you find time to sleep, you really should use it... Of course we'll probably have to take back the kingdom from Morgana before that happens."

Hearing the last sentence Leon said, Merlin laughed a little. He was sure that no other kingdom had been overtaken so many times, by a blood-relative no less! Still, it reminded him of the fact that they had to get back to Camelot, and soon.

Correctly guessing what Merlin was thinking about, because he was thinking of the same thing himself, Leon stated, "We won't be able to get too far during night. Merlin, you need to rest, you've exhausted yourself. Our camp is already set up, so how about we get a good night's rest, and keep going tomorrow?"

Realising that Leon was right, Merlin nodded, breaking into a grin at the thought of getting a long rest. While they got prepared to sleep, Leon asked the question that was nagging at his mind.

"Merlin, why wasn't I affected by the spell?"

Merlin thought it was obvious, but he responded, "You were, but only a little. The spell was the strongest at the center of the City of Camelot. It only affected the city portion of Camelot, and since you were at the very edge of it, the spell barely affected you."

"Why weren't you affected?"

Grinning, he said, "Magic."

That was the last thing they said to each other before the welcoming blanket of sleep covered them. Today, they would sleep. Tomorrow, they would worry.

A/N: I'm not sure how well this chapter turned out. Were there too many explanations? Did the phrase "the welcoming blanket of sleep covered them" make sense? I made it up, so I don't know. If there are parts that made little sense, please tell me about them. Sorry if the character's dialogue doesn't exactly match how they speak on the show. As always, review if you please!