It was nearly noon the next day when the five men stopped to rest. The skies had been looming darkly overhead for hours, threatening to let loose a growling storm but any rain had yet to fall. Prince Garrick and Prince Arthur had not spoken directly to each other since the night before. Merlin had noticed but decided it was simply uncomfortable for them to address each other more than necessary.
"Doesn't it look like it's going to rain?" Luther asked as Derris was trying to start a fire.
"We'll only be stopped for lunch." Garrick said. "After that it's straight to the castle. If we have to, we can find shelter along the way. Merlin knows the area well."
Merlin half-expected Arthur to mention that he knew it better, since he'd actually been on nearly every path in this kingdom, but he said nothing. Instead he quietly bound his horse to a tree branch with a blank expression. Garrick turned to help Derris with the fire and Luther disappeared to collect as much dry wood as he could in the humidity.
"Are you alright?"
Arthur turned back to look at Merlin who showed an expectant expression.
"There's nothing to worry about, Merlin." Arthur said easily.
He felt the dishonesty in his own words but Merlin was less concerned by that and more bothered by what would happen when they reached the castle. Would that place no longer be home? Would he really be able to watch over Arthur as well as before while he was in Sythian?
The men ate and briefly rested before preparing to leave. Sir Luther left the group momentarily to relieve himself and Garrick said nothing. They were all ready to go after five minutes but Luther hadn't come back yet. Merlin nearly said something but Garrick started walking in the direction Luther had disappeared. Almost ten minutes later, Garrick returned with a confused expression.
"Did you find him?" Merlin asked.
"Uh, no, I can't find him." Garrick answered and points back from where he'd come. "He went this way, right?"
"He shouldn't be far." Merlin shrugged.
"We're running out of daylight." Arthur reminded them. "We can send out a search party once we've reached the castle."
Garrick stared hard out into the woods. The forest was thick beyond the campsite but he should have seen Luther by now. He blinked as if it might help him see but nothing became clear besides a strange sense of déjà vu. He'd only been gone for what? Two minutes? He could have searched harder.
"The sun is sinking quickly." Garrick said. "He doesn't have any supplies."
"He's a knight. He can survive on his own for a night, can't he?" Arthur asked.
"…well, we usually rely on magic in these sorts of situations." Garrick answered quietly. "Luther himself isn't such a great survivalist, more a knight of combat."
Arthur nearly mocked their training but his teasing mood was lost with even the slightest glimpse of Merlin in his peripheral vision. Just how Garrick respected Arthur's bond with him, Arthur would respect Garrick's. Besides, Garrick had proven himself to be far more honorable a man than Arthur had expected. Even so, Arthur wasn't jealous.
"Merlin, you come with me." Garrick said as he nodded outward before looking to Arthur. "You and Derris should stay here. Be on guard."
Arthur silently nodded rather than mention they were in his kingdom now. Merlin was confused as he walked out with Garrick. He only waited until they were just out of earshot to search. He firstly looked in the directions Luther most likely went but he found nothing nearby. Merlin was just pulling his mind back when he caught a glimpse of something. The familiar dark blue tunic caught his attention and he followed it until he saw dark purple stains soaked through one side of it.
"I've found him." Merlin breathed and Garrick looked at him expectantly. "But…I don't think he's breathing. His tunic is covered in blood."
"You're saying he's dead?" Garrick asked in alarm
"I think he was killed." Merlin said as he looked at Garrick. "It's a stab wound…he's bled out."
"…let's get out of here." Garrick said and turned back toward camp.
"What about Luther?" Merlin asked as he followed hurriedly.
"His killer is still out here somewhere and if they can kill a knight like Luther, they aren't someone to be taken lightly." Garrick said. "I trained him myself."
When they made it back to camp, Garrick headed directly to his horse. Arthur looked to Merlin for an explanation.
"Luther's dead." Merlin said and he couldn't believe it himself.
"Dead?" Arthur asked like it was impossible. "How did he die?"
"He was killed by someone who's still out there." Garrick said gruffly. "We're leaving, now. No breaks until we reach the castle."
Merlin went to his horse and joined Garrick on the trail once he was mounted but Arthur rode ahead of them. It was his territory now and he led them toward the castle. The four left of them rode hard toward the castle but just as they were making good distance, it finally began to rain. Lightning silently surged between clouds overhead as an endless rainstorm fought the men and their horses. Soon it became too much for them to ride in. They were forced to take refuge in a small cave several miles from the castle.
"It's relentless." Arthur said angrily as he stared out into the forest which was blurred by heavy rain.
"But no one would follow us in this, right?" Merlin asked. "He wasn't killed with magic. It was a sword-wound."
"Did you not see it?" Arthur asked Garrick.
"…we took different paths for a moment." Garrick answered distractedly as he sat down next to Merlin on a large boulder.
"What is it?" Arthur asked a bit less demandingly. "You've never lost a knight before?"
"It's not that." Garrick shook his head. "…I just have this bad feeling. Something isn't right."
"Luther was just killed." Derris said, his tone heavy with anger and his expression wrathful to match it.
Garrick thought back to the camp. He hadn't seen any signs. It seemed like they were perfectly alone. They heard no shouting or clashing of swords. Luther would have drawn. It was instinct as a knight. Always be prepared. Why wasn't Luther?
"You're bleeding." Merlin's voice interrupted Garrick's thoughts.
"Hmm?" he asked.
"Your hand." Merlin said as he turned it over.
A dark red line surrounded by a brighter mixture of blood and rain was cut into his palm. Garrick recognized the sort of cut immediately. When had he grabbed a sword from the wrong end? Merlin went to tear some of his tunic off to dress Garrick's wound but the prince pulled his hand back.
"You need to be…"
Merlin trailed off as he saw Garrick's expression change. The prince stood with a confused and anxious look about him. Merlin stood and put a hand on his shoulder but Garrick didn't so much as glance over. Garrick felt his wounded hand burning from injury. How could he not notice something like that? Had he held his sword the wrong way in the rush to escape their last camp? But it was a rather deep wound, one that would take one person swinging the sword by its proper end.
Garrick stepped forward and away from Merlin as he drew his sword. Arthur tensed but only remained close to Merlin. Garrick held the blade up but there wasn't any trace of blood. It didn't even smell like blood. It wasn't his sword.
The vaguest sense of recollection pulled at Garrick's mind and he tried to make sense of the facts in front of him. Had it been Luther's sword he'd grabbed? Luther would have been caught off-guard and not known to draw his sword if Garrick had been the one to approach him. Even then, he might not have swung as hard as he'd been trained to. It would make for a wound like Garrick's. The disbelief on Garrick's face alarmed Merlin but the sorcerer sensed a dark air about him.
"What is it?" Merlin asked rather than going to him.
Garrick didn't look back. His mind was too busy trying to grab hold of a memory he didn't recognize. He was rewarded with horrid glimpses of a man in a dark blue tunic, his insides turned by the blade of his own sword. His blood soaked and stained the blue color to a damp, dark purple. Dead eyes stared up toward the sky as a tall shadow left his side without reluctance.
"I did it." Garrick said quietly.
"Did what?" Merlin asked as anxiety was beginning to build in his chest.
Garrick looked over and Merlin jolted. Garrick's skin had gone paler and guilt pierced his eyes.
"How long was I gone?" he asked.
"What?" Merlin asked confusedly.
"When I went to look for Luther, how long was I gone?!" Garrick demanded of Arthur now.
"Almost ten minutes." Arthur answered warily.
"Ten…"
Garrick dropped his sword and it clanked dully against the stone floor of the cave. His hand burned even hotter now as the dots connected themselves. He'd been gone for that long but didn't even remember? The sword wound on his hand was the result of being swung at. He could just barely recall the confusion and alarm exchanging themselves over Luther's face as the light left his eyes. He killed his own knight.
Was it the curse? But he'd been with Merlin the entire time!
"You thought love would save you?" the voices sighed at the loudest Garrick had ever heard them.
He could hear the snickering in their words and it echoed through his head as full dread sank in. He didn't dare face Merlin. The world came crashing down around Garrick as everything came together. Garrick knew strategy and the demons had lived with the same knowledge as him. They thought the same way. It was all a trap.
"We knew you'd take the chance to be with him." The voices mocked Garrick. "You've overestimated your strength. You let your guard down for the sake of your own romantic fulfillment. It's your stupid heart that's gotten him killed."
"Merlin," Garrick choked out as dark spots pounded into his vision with dull throbs.
He lost the strength in his legs. No matter how hard he fought it, his body betrayed him. He went down with an aching head and met the cold ground with his palms. Merlin jumped forward but Arthur grabbed him by the back of his tunic and pulled him back before standing in front of him.
"He's in pain!" Merlin protested.
"I'm keeping you safe!" Arthur argued without looking back as he drew his sword.
"It was a trap," Garrick managed to utter as his lungs grew shallow and what little strength he had left caused his arms to shake. "Arthur, do it…"
"Do what?!" Merlin shouted in alarm as he glanced between Garrick and Arthur's shadowed profile.
"Derris, you too." Arthur said without looking at the knight. "Draw your sword."
The knight did so hesitantly and with a grave expression, already aware that these were Prince Garrick's wishes. The prince lost grasp of himself quickly, his strength slipping away without the chance to try and stop it.
"Merlin!" Garrick called out because it was the only thing he knew.
He felt no heat or burn from the tears leaking down his face. He could no longer feel the ground he knelt on or hear the panicked shouts of the man he loved. He could only cry out his name as a vicious curse pushed him under endless veils of darkness. First he felt the pain, then the sorrow and the rage. With the faintest memory of a beautiful young man whose name bled from his lips, he then felt the familiar comfort of warmth in his heart. He felt love and loss and peace before he felt nothing at all.
Rain fell without end and in the distance, the deep rumble of thunder rolled itself in every direction against the earth. Though the sounds of the skies and of the rain pelting stone were great, they did not muffle the anxious cries of a young man whose heart was breaking.
"You can't kill him!" Merlin shouted at Arthur.
"That's not the same man we know!" Arthur argued as the body of a prince slumped lifelessly on its side with its back to the men.
"He's still in there!" Merlin protested. "You can't!"
"…I honor my word, Merlin." Arthur said.
Merlin was confused and scared by those words. That was Garrick's wish? To die for Merlin's sake?
"Garrick was cautious." Arthur said. "He knew something like this could happen so he requested something…I made a promise and I'll honor it. Sythian knights are now led by me and Garrick is an enemy."
"To protect me?!" Merlin argued. "He's a prince, Arthur! You think I'm the one who deserves to live?! He's important!"
"So are you!" Arthur shouted as he looked back at Merlin.
Arthur regreted looking back when he saw Merlin's face, red and terrified but also angry. He loved Garrick. He would die for him. Watching the man he loved be killed by his friend would break his heart in a way that wasn't repairable. Merlin's heart had always made him special to Arthur, whether he understood how much or not had always been irrelevant. To do such damage to him…was that not a dishonorable act in itself?
"Sire," Derris said and Arthur looked to the knight.
Derris looked forward and Arthur looked in the direction of the body. It was beginning to stir, slowly turning over off its side. Arthur hesitates. If he was going to keep his promise, he should do it now. It was better to have the body dead before the demons arrived, if they hadn't already…but Arthur still didn't move. His mind was being tugged on by his heart and he knew his decision would have severe consequences no matter what he chose to do.
"Don't do it." he heard Merlin warn firmly. "Arthur, just give him another chance. I'll do everything to fix this."
Arthur's resolve was collapsing but he kept his sword raised without looking back. His eyes were on the body now turned down on its knees with fists braced against stone. A dark laugh escaped its lips in Garrick's voice but the tone had no resonance. The mocking cackle didn't bounce against the cave walls but sank straight into Arthur's ears with a dull finish that made Arthur's heart skip a beat.
"Fresh love," the heavy voice thrummed against each man's eardrums. "Your romantic stupidity made this all too easy."
"What have you done with him?!" Merlin demanded.
"Your prince exists no longer." The demons breathed as their head turned up.
Merlin's heart sank. The eyes that once held his reflection with warmth and tenderness now showed death in their stare, the absence of a man who'd loved for too short a time, lived for too short a life. It couldn't be true. Garrick couldn't be gone.
"Don't waste your tears on him." The demons said as they began to rise off their knees. "Your death will be far more painful. Being fed on alive is certainly not the best way to go."
Merlin glared through the tears now slipping down his cheeks against his will. There had to be a way to fix this.
You can't leave me like this! Merlin's thoughts cried for Garrick.
Arthur's own mind was immersed in complete chaos. He knew his importance as heir to Camelot's throne but he also knew another responsibility, to his own principles. Even more than that, didn't Garrick deserve to live more than him? The kind of kingdom Sythian was, the kind of world that could be led by him…it was the kind of world Arthur was beginning to want. Even if it needed work, Garrick should be there to lead it, Merlin at his side.
"If you must take someone, take me." Arthur told the demons. "That's what you want, isn't it? Take my life."
"Arthur, you can't." Merlin protested while coming forward but Derris held him back by his chest.
"…I promised to keep you safe and happy." Arthur said as he looked back again. "You won't be happy if he dies, will you?!"
"You think I'll be happy if you die either?!" Merlin shouted back angrily with eyes blurred by tears. "You can't do it, Arthur!"
"I can!" Arthur argued.
"No, you can't." the demons said.
Arthur looked to them again. They stared almost regretfully at the prince. Arthur was struck by the faintly human expression.
"It's not Merlin's life we want." They told Arthur. "It's his magic."
The words flooded Arthur's ears. He felt slightly disoriented. He must not have heard right.
"If magic is what you want, leave Merlin alone." Arthur said. "He doesn't have any."
"Your naivety is alarming." The demons responded flatly. "…that boy has magic."
Arthur looked back at Merlin. The sorcerer's glare withered and his eyes couldn't leave Arthur's.
"Is that true?" Arthur asked him.
Merlin saw the confused and hurt expression on the prince's face.
"…so stop protecting me." Merlin said with a firm voice.
Arthur felt the ground collapsing beneath him as he turned to face Merlin fully. In his eyes stood the young man he'd grown to cherish…and that same man wore such an expression of guilt, anger, and fear. It was the man his father would have burned. It was the man he might have killed himself before knowing him…but now?
"…this doesn't mean I let you die." Arthur said but he already felt his will wavering.
It was bad enough that Merlin was a man but he was also a sorcerer? How had Arthur not seen? How had Merlin lied? He was a terrible liar.
"It doesn't matter what you decide to do." The demons said and Arthur remembered the situation they were in. "You won't stop me."
Arthur turned with his sword raised but the demons didn't even wait for him to reach them before sending the prince flying back through the air with little more than a string of hissed words. The same was done with Derris who dropped his sword. Merlin quickly picked it up and braced himself as he was pinned back against the wall by the same force as the others. None could move from the cold stone as Garrick's body approached Merlin.
"You won't need that." The demons said as they easily plucked the sword from Merlin's grasp. "You really shouldn't fight so hard. You're only dragging it out."
"Bring him back!" Merlin yelled in their face. "Bring him back safely and I'll go without resistance!"
"Merlin!" Arthur shouted and the demons lifted a hand with a calm incantation that brought the prince's head back and his mouth closed.
The demons looked to Merlin again. The sorcerer stared hard into those cold eyes. They weren't the ones he knew. For that person to be gone…
"Just give him back and I'll let you do what you want." Merlin told them.
The demons posed a grave expression. For a split moment, Merlin saw the slightest spark of life in those eyes.
"We aren't doing this for fun." The demons said calmly. "We won't enjoy killing you in the process of draining your magic. There isn't another way. We only want our lives back."
"…back?" Merlin asked confusedly.
"We were witches and sorcerers like you." They answered. "We fight for our lives like you fight for the lives of these princes. You would kill for them, wouldn't you?"
Merlin didn't answer. He didn't even have to think about it.
"Our lives were unrightfully taken from us, far beyond our times. Some of us were children!" they shouted. "Why are you, one being, so much more important? We didn't deserve to die either!"
"Don't listen, Merlin." Derris reminded the sorcerer whose will was beginning to weaken. "It's a lie."
Derris was silenced akin to Arthur and Merlin was left with only the demons' words.
"You would be saving not only your love but tens of us." They said. "Your friends will go unharmed. We only wish to walk free…wouldn't you also want that?"
Merlin swallowed but didn't break eye contact. He could see it, the sort of life that breathed through borrowed eyes. It must have been true…and it was Garrick's life as well.
"There's no other way you'll let him go?" Merlin asked as he blinked the tears away in frustration.
"No other way." They said as they brought a hand up to brush Merlin's cheek.
The warmth in that hand was faint but stirring. Garrick could live.
"Then make a deal with me." Merlin said.
The demons dropped the hand to listen to him.
"…Garrick is given his body back completely." Merlin said. "And Arthur, you'll do everything to protect him in my place. Keep his life intact and do nothing else to sway him or bring him harm. Promise me this and I'll agree."
There were muffled shouts from Arthur but Merlin didn't look. It would only make it harder.
"If it's your dying request." The demons nodded. "Because there was never a way out of this."
Merlin saw the warmth in Garrick's eyes seeping in but the demons paid no mind as they leaned closer, holding a hand to the sorcerer's chest. Merlin faintly heard a voice calling his name, one so familiar and strong that the tension in his body sank away.
"Love couldn't have saved you." The demons told Merlin.
"Yes it can!" a bodiless voice rang loudly in Merlin's ears.
Merlin caught a glimpse of fear in those golden eyes only a moment before the sickening sound of pierced flesh found his ears. Merlin looked down in surprise at the dark blood seeping through Garrick's tunic around Derris's blade.
"G-Garrick!" Merlin shouted.
Merlin's body fell from the wall and the other men collapsed to the ground as Merlin rushed forward to Garrick's body.
"Garrick?!" Merlin asked desperately. "Garrick! Tell me you're okay!"
Garrick sucked in a shuddered breath with his left hand placed around the blade in his abdomen. He tried not to look at Merlin but became weak under the panic of his love. He looked over as Merlin stared with horror on his tear-stained face.
"…I'm sorry." Garrick breathed uneasily.
"Garrick, I can heal you!" Merlin said as he reached for the sword.
Garrick pushed his hands away.
"Don't!" he said.
"Garr-"
"If you heal me, they're going to kill you!" Garrick shouted with the most pained look in his eyes.
Merlin's hands weakened until he squeezed them tight against the fabric on Garrick's chest and side. He kept glancing between the wound and Garrick's eyes but he couldn't leave him like this!
I have to do something! He thought.
"You can't die!" Merlin argued. "I can save you! Just let me!"
"I can't watch you die." Garrick said as his voice began to crack. "This…this is my curse…I won't see you suffer for my love."
Merlin gripped Garrick's right hand tight in his but even as Garrick bled, Merlin was the one to feel the most pain. Garrick understood that…which made it that much harder not to let Merlin heal him.
Arthur came to stand behind Merlin at a distance. He didn't move forward. In the end, he couldn't keep his word. He couldn't kill Garrick himself. He almost let Merlin die.
Garrick saw him. He remembered everything, how Arthur had hesitated, how he'd been easily thrown aside because of it.
"Arthur," Garrick said.
Arthur met his eyes but didn't step forward. Merlin looked back over his shoulder, his face red and wet with misery, pain that Arthur couldn't protect him from.
"I'm sorry, Garrick." Arthur said without meeting either of their eyes.
"I know what happened." Garrick told him. "…and I shouldn't have asked you to do that…and it's okay."
Arthur didn't argue. You don't argue with a dying man.
"But," Garrick said, his voice becoming fainter. "I trust you to take care of the rest for me."
Arthur met his eyes now, unwavering.
"I will." He said.
Garrick looked to Derris whose face was strong against tears as his leader's life drained away.
"You didn't let me down, Derris." Garrick assured him.
Derris nodded with eyes closed and heart heavy. Garrick looked to Merlin again who sat close, head hung over him with his hands gripping him tightly. Merlin's hot tears sank into the knuckles of Garrick's weakening hand but the prince held onto him. For as long as he could, he would.
"I love you." Garrick told him.
"Don't say that." Merlin said as he shook his head against Garrick's fist. "Not now. I can't…I can't…"
"Please," Garrick said and Merlin looked up again, blinking away the tears that distorted Garrick's face. "I want you to remember me."
Merlin nodded rapidly as more tears dripped from his eyes and onto Garrick's tunic.
"And Merlin?" Garrick asked. "…please let yourself be happy again someday."
The world seemed to be crumbling away to Merlin. The only thing he could feel was the faint warmth in the hand he held, the gentle pulse fading against his skin. He couldn't speak and it was even harder to breathe.
"Garrick," Merlin gasped.
He looked up as Garrick's eyes were closing. He panicked and shook him.
"Garrick!" he shouted.
The strength in Garrick's hand disappeared in less than a breath. The last of Merlin's restraint dissipated, giving way for the rage at every force that brought them to this.
"NO!" Merlin shouted and his voice brought the entire cave to shudder.
Merlin stared down at Garrick, no longer able to halt the tears as he pulled the sword away. He held his hand over the blood-smothered wound. Arthur came and pulled his arm back but Merlin violently shrugged him off and tried to heal Garrick.
"Merlin!" Arthur shouted. "Merlin…it's already too late."
Merlin didn't reply as a gold glow enveloped Garrick's side. Arthur watched with an aching heart as Merlin tried to bring him back but Garrick never woke. Arthur was right. It was too late.
The cave was too dark a place for any of them to notice that the clouds outside had parted to a mild sunset. As warm hues of pink and orange painted the sky over a cold and damp world, the tortured soul of a prince was finally finding peace.