Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.
Chapter fifty-nine: Camelot and Peryglus.
Merlin walked down the hall from Gaius quarters, he was dressed in his royal robes and his silver crown. Freya, the moment they had passed the tavern, had suddenly felt ill and had got worse as they passed the entrance to the tunnels the lead below the city. Gaius had simply believed it was Freya, simply remembering what had happened here.
Her body remembered dying and having been given a mortal body back, such a sort time ago, was going to cause a bit of sickness. Plus Freya had been under high levels of stress lately. She had been crowned Queen and was going to leave for battle either that night, or a little before dawn the following day. And so Freya had stayed with Gaius whilst he mixed up a remedy and she would be joining him as soon as she felt well enough.
Merlin sighed, he had signed many peace treaties now and with kingdoms that did not give their alliance easily... But this peace treaty was different. Arthur, when he first became king, would never have signed a peace treaty with the druids. This was a sign the golden age was beginning, it may have already started... Emrys and the once and future king were finally fulfilling their destinies.
Merlin stopped as he reached the bottom of some steps, he was now faced with a choice go left and go to the royal chambers or, go right and go to the council hall. The note from Gwaine had said a peace treaty needed signing, so Merlin turned right and walked towards the council hall. As he passed servant, they smiled and bowed to him and Merlin almost forgot what he was wearing... The last time he had walked this corridor, he was a servant and now he was a king.
After a minute walking, Merlin reached the council chamber. The guards on duty, bowed their heads to him and opened the doors. Merlin couldn't help but be reminded of the many times he had entered this room, trying to stop Arthur from doing something he would later regret... For example killing his father, or killing Elyan when he had been possessed by the druid boy.
Around the council table stood, Leon, Elyan, Arthur, Geoffrey, Gwaine and Percival, who were reading the treaty Geoffrey had just handed Arthur. None of them seemed to have noticed Merlin enter and none of them noticed as the doors shut behind him. Merlin smiled slightly and moved forward, keeping his movement as quiet as possible and using magic to move a chair he took a seat and rested his feet on the table. He grinned as he watched them talk, in undertones, about the treaty.
After a few minutes discussing the peace treaty, Arthur looked up from where he sat and his eyes meet Merlin's. Jumping, he almost knocked his seat over backwards, as he scrambled to his feet. The knights quickly gripped their weapons and turned to face where Arthur was staring, only to find Merlin sitting at the table looking quiet smug and pleased with himself.
"Merlin!" Arthur exclaimed.
"Miss me?" Merlin asked, smiling.
Arthur snorts. "No one would miss an idiotic fool, such as yourself."
"Prat," Merlin grins. "So... This peace treaty, I take it, this is some plan do with your guests from Amata?"
"It is." Arthur answers. "But how did you know?"
"Is king Sarrum here?" Merlin asked, ignoring Arthur question.
"I am here, sorcerer." A voice behind him spat.
Merlin glanced towards the doors to the hall, which were now open and had King Sarrum standing in the middle of them, Knights on either side of him.
"Oh, good!" Merlin grins, getting to his feet and summoning the objects he had gotten from the abandoned village the Orcs had made their base. What Sarrum had done, by sending his men into Peryglus, was an act of war and Merlin wasn't about to be kind about it.
"I wanted to give these back to you." Merlin throws the objects at him.
Sarrum made no move to catch them as they landed at his feet. He simply looked down at them, before looking back at Merlin upon seeing what the objects were, his face red with rage.
"What is the meaning of this!?" He demands.
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Freya sat at one of the benches in Gaius's chambers, as Gaius sorted through some bottles on one of the many shelves. Glancing round the room, Freya couldn't help but be reminded of Merlin's work room back in Peryglus. There were piles of books, papers and scrolls on every bench, step and shelf. There were hundreds of bottles, all containing different coloured liquids or herbs. Mixing bowls, pots, mortar and pestles littered every work surface, alongside other tools.
As Gaius finally found what he was looking for, he began to make a potion, which would hopefully make Freya feel better. There was a chance the potion wouldn't work, it was not often Gaius had to make potions such as this. It was not often the dead were granted a second chance at life and Gaius had never made this potion before, he had once read about it and once made something similar.
Suddenly there was a knock at the door.
"Come in." Gaius calls, not turning away from his work.
The door cracked open and Gwen walked in, dressed in the dress she had worn before she had been banished from Camelot. She even had her hair pulled back with the same silver hair clip.
"Gaius I was wondering if you..." Her voice trailed off, as she noticed Gaius was working and not paying the slightest bit of attention to her, he was just paying so much attention to his work.
"What did you need?" Freya asked, remembering Gwen being present at the wedding. "Maybe I can help."
Gwen jumped and turned to face Freya, having not noticed her sitting at one of the benches. "Freya...?"
"That's my name." Freya answered, getting to her feet.
"I know," Gwen answers. "What I mean is, you're Freya... You're dead... I mean obvious you aren't, your alive... But you died... Merlin saved you from a bounty hunter... You were cursed... But Arthur wounded you... The lake Avalon-"
Freya laughs, cutting Gwen's awkward stuttering off. "I was dead, but now I live once more. The Sidhe elders granted me a second chance at life, now mine and Merlin's life forces are bound together. Merlin did save me and I was cursed... Arthur did wound me and Merlin took me to the lake of Avalon where he laid me to rest and I became the Lady of the lake."
"I'm Guinevere, but most people call me Gwen." Gwen quickly introduces herself, remembering at the wedding the two hadn't had time to speak to one another.
"I know," Freya answers. "Merlin has told me a lot about you... You were he first friend when he came to Camelot and you didn't turn your back on him when you learnt about his magic, you are his best friend and the once and future Queen."
Gwen smiles. "Merlin is my best friend, too... But so many things have changed."
"Just because things have changed doesn't mean your friendship has to, too." Freya answers.
"When we were both servants, it was different," Gwen shakes her head. "Now Merlin is king of the druids, a royal..."
"And you are soon to be crowned Queen of Camelot... Things may have changed, but they have changed for you both. You are still equals and friendship is a strong bond."
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Merlin laughed a cold, bitter laugh. "You know fine well what the meaning of this is, Sarrum."
"YOU KILLED MY MEN!" Sarrum yells.
"THEY ENTERED MY KINGDOM! THEY KILLED MY PEOPLE! THEY DESTROYED VILLAGES!" Merlin yells, almost glad at the way Sarrum flinched back, plus Merlin had created Peryglus, so it was his kingdom really and he would do anything to keep it safe. "You sent your men into my kingdom, that is an act of war Sarrum... Luckily for you, we have more important matters to be dealing with, or otherwise your kingdom would have found itself little more than a pile of ash by now!"
It was true once the news spread of King Sarrum's men enter Peryglus, many had wanted revenge... And not just for this attack, but for many things the king had done it the past. They hated Sarrum, some more than they hated Uthur. Merlin knew without a doubt, if it wasn't for their war with Mordred the dark, King Sarrum castle would be little more than dust.
"YOU DARE TO THREATEN MY KINGDOM!" Sarrum yells.
"It is not I, who started this Sarrum," Merlin replied. "It was you. What you did was an act of war, you have threatened my people, my kingdom... Be glad war has not been declared."
"You killed my men, sorcerer, this means war!"
"I am warning you Sarrum, if you start a war with my kingdom, you will not win." Merlin replies. "I can promise you this: You or your army set foot in my kingdom. You. And. They. Alike. Will. Not. Return."
Sarrum was shaking with rage. "I'll make you pay for killing my men, sorcerer."
Before Sarrum can so much as order his men to attack Merlin they all fall to the floor, unconscious.
"And I can promise you this, Sarrum: You harm a single hair on my husband body, and you will pay dearly."
King Sarrum turned round and came face to face with an angry looking Freya, dressed in her royal robes and looking far better then she had when Merlin left her with Gaius. She then calmly made her way over to Merlin and the two entwined their fingers as they joined hands, standing side by side and radiating power.
"As for your men," Freya continues. "We did not kill them."
"Then who did?" Sarrum demands, not looking as brave now all his men were unconscious.
"Those we are at war with, killed them." Merlin answers. "Our kingdom is at war... Unfortunately Orcs do not know the difference between one human and another, they have simply been given orders to kill any humans who cross their path. Your men we dead long before we found them."
King Sarrum gave Merlin and Freya one last angry looking before storming out the hall and yelling for the guards to pick up his unconscious men. Merlin and Freya then turned to face Arthur, Geoffrey and the knights. Arthur and the knights were staring at Merlin and Freya in shock, partly because of what had just happened and partly because this was the first time they had seen Merlin's wife. Whilst Geoffrey seemed honoured he'd seen such a powerful display by Emrys and the Lady of the lake.
"Where were we?" Merlin asks, with a sheepish smile.
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Hey, hope you liked that chapter. I know Merlin and Freya may have appeared a little dark in that chapter, but I wanted to show that Merlin and Freya are not weak and if you threaten the lives of those they care about, you will pay. Until next time,
Blessed be,
TreeOfLife1997.