A quick warning before you start reading this chapter: one, it ends on a rather terrible cliffhanger (something I'm apparently notorious for), and two, I doubt I'll be able to update for at least a week because of the usual Finals Week craziness. So, you many very well want to wait until chapter 10 comes out before reading this one as well as that, since they're two halves of the same episode. Up to you!

-Tri

Chapter 9

Arthur cursed himself, not for the first time.

So often - all the time, in fact - he'd finish a fight with bandits or mercenaries and turn around to find his servant on the ground with his arms over his head, trying to keep anyone from noticing and skewering him. Usually, Arthur would cover up his fear that the younger man was once again in danger by calling him useless, a coward, insisting that he get up and out of the way.

He should have known Merlin's uncanny luck to come out of their battles unscathed wouldn't last forever.

He should have paid closer attention.

Instead, the king cut down the last of his opponents, turned around, and saw Merlin lying on the ground in such a way that did not indicate he was just fine. Panic overtaking his body, Arthur darted forward, crashing to his knees beside the scrawny servant. He rolled Merlin over and sucked in a harsh breath at the sight of the blood already coming through his ripped shirt.

The sound of someone running up behind him had the man spinning about, sword at the ready.

"Sire!" Sir Leon slid to a halt before him, eyes darting down to Merlin's collapsed form and back up to meet Arthur's gaze. "You need to get out of here, Sire, there are too many mercenaries and our men have been forced to scatter."

"Right," Arthur breathed. "Right. I need to get Merlin out of here - can you cover our retreat?"

"Gladly, Sire."

"Good. Make sure to keep an eye out for-" A shriek interrupted him, as Aithusa dived down to land next to Merlin. "Nevermind."

Dragon found and following, Arthur hauled a groaning Merlin to his feet and hurried towards the treeline, distantly acknowledging the sound of Leon intercepting the first few ambushers who tried to follow them.

Aithusa, thankfully, kept quiet as she flew after him, though eventually Arthur had to find a hiding place as night began to fall and mercenaries continued to search the woods. Merlin's breathing had grown steadily more ragged as they fled, and at no point was the younger man able to support himself on his own two feet. When Arthur finally found them a small cliff to hunker down against, Aithusa once more landed beside Merlin, nosing at his wound and, for some inexplicable reason, coughing at it. Carefully, the king nudged her aside so he could perform his own inspection.

The damage was clearly from a mace, a fact that had Arthur's gut clenching uncomfortably. Blood still seeped out from the impact point, an area of shredded skin and exposed muscle as large as his spread hand. Most dangerous, though, was the obvious fact that Merlin's collarbone had been cracked, if not broken outright.

Arthur told him he'd seen worse.

Merlin joked that it must've been on a dead man.

The king's frown deepened, and once again Aithusa tried to cough on Merlin's injury.

"Why is she doing that?" Arthur asked in an irritated tone, once more nudging the little dragon aside to he could move Merlin's neckerchief back into place.

"She's tryin' to heal me, you prat," the younger man replied. Arthur blinked.

"Dragons can do that?"

"Mm-hm. S'not well-known, 'cause they only do it for people they like."

"Well, and for Dragonlords too obviously, or else I daresay she wouldn't consider you worth the effort." He grinned as Merlin let out a short bark of laughter. The three of them drifted off into uneasy sleep not long afterward, Arthur keeping close enough to his friend that Aithusa was able to curl up between them and maintain physical contact with both.

-BA-

Dawn came, and with it, a renewal of searching mercenaries.

Aithusa woke first when the scent of unfamiliar men disturbed her rest, and then she was quick to get Arthur up as well. Recognizing that they needed to move, and quickly, he went ahead and pulled Merlin over his shoulder, prompting the younger man to groan and mumble something about leaving him behind. Eyes scanning their surroundings, Arthur muttered back a retort that he'd do no such thing, and this wasn't a time for jokes, Merlin.

Arriving at a relatively high cliff wall, the king hurried through the maze-like area at it's base to find a ravine to pass through. Unfortunately, right as he was approaching one, so too were a pair of the mercenary band coming through from the other side.

Mind whirling through his available options, Arthur reluctantly laid Merlin on the ground. Aithusa screeched at him in a questioning tone. The blonde didn't take the time to reassure her, instead charging into the ravine in order to fight the two mercenaries and prevent them from getting anywhere near his manservant or the baby dragon.

Luck just wasn't on Arthur's side, though.

He managed to dispatch the pair right as new war cries broke out back the way he'd come. Arthur reined back his fear upon seeing more of the mercenaries running towards him around Merlin's prone form. A couple tried to grab Aithusa, but she went airborne above their reach, shrieking and roaring. Gritting his teeth, Arthur prepared himself to fight the large group, glad at least that the ravine would force them to come at him only one at a time.

Then the walls collapsed.

"MERLIN!"

-BA-

Stay with Arthur, Merlin incanted in his mind. Go to Arthur, stay with Arthur, protect Arthur. Over and over he repeated the order, pushing it towards Aithusa with every ounce of willpower he could muster despite the growing pain. The men dragging him along were not being nearly as gentle as Arthur had, and every bump and shake jarred his injury, causing him to periodically gasp and whimper.

By the time he was finally dropped to the ground, Merlin had no idea how long the group had been travelling, or whether Aithusa was even still following or not. He could think of nothing other than the repeated command, the only thing he could do to keep both his dragon and his king safe.

"How many men did we lose?" A vague voice drifted in past the pain. "And yet you only managed to bring me one of the ones I ordered to be captured." A kick landed against his side, rolling Merlin over and nearly causing him to blackout from pain. Someone else answered the first voice, but it became impossible for Merlin to focus. The best he could hear was something about 'needing to return to Camelot.'

He did pick up the sound of a sword being drawn, and focused solely on projecting his command to Aithusa: stay with Arthur, protect Arthur, stay with Arthur, protect Arthur, stay with Arthur, protect Ar-

People picked him up again. This time, the pain did cause Merlin to pass out.

-BA-

When Leon, Elyan, Percival, and Gwaine finally caught up to Arthur, they were expecting their king to be fretting over his injured manservant, with a baby dragon hopping around and making a nuisance of herself to try and keep the mood light.

Instead, they found Arthur looking like his world had ended, Aithusa clinging to his chainmail and letting out occasional soft cries of "Mer-mer..."

"We need to find him."

"All due respect, Sire, you've been out here for more than a day with no food and I expect little water," Leon said. "We need to get you and Aithusa back to the safety of Camelot, to recover."

It took a while to wear the king down, but eventually he relented after nearly staggering headfirst into a tree.

"Fine," Arthur growled. "We'll return home. But I want search parties sent out the instant we do."

"Of course, Sire."

They all did their best to ignore Aithusa's distress on the way back to the city.

-BA-

Merlin came awake with a gasp when a bucket of water was chucked in his face.

Eyes blinking rapidly, he came face to face with just about the last person in the world he wanted to see. "Hello, Morgana."

"Merlin." The woman set her bucket aside, before turning to look him square in the face. "Hmph. I always thought Dragonlords were supposed to look impressive, have a powerful presence about them... But you're still the worthless peasant you've always been."

"I didn't change just because of a sudden inheritance, unlike you," Merlin mumbled, the stimulating effect of the cold water fading away. Morgana brought him back to full awareness by hissing out a short spell, one that caused a stabbing sensation in his midsection. The young man curled inwards, moaning, his feet scrabbling to get some purchase on the floor to help push him away from the magic, to no avail. Ending her spell, Morgana took the opportunity to step close, grabbing Merlin's jaw with an iron grip.

"Tell me, Merlin," she snarled in his face, "How long have you been enchanting Arthur?"

"W-what?"

"I know you must have some sort of ability to influence him - why else would my dear brother allow you to raise a dragon in Camelot?"

"Maybe he's, not as prejudiced, against magic, as you thought."

She slapped him for that. "You're clearly just as much of a fool as ever. If you haven't cast a spell upon Arthur to get him to let your pet live, then it's obvious he's only allowing it to remain in Camelot until it's grown to a proper size so he can kill it in a show of strength."

Merlin glowered at her with as much strength as he could muster. "Wrong again."

"Am I? Maybe you know this, and don't mind raising the creature for slaughter..."

It was his turn to snarl. "I will never let her be killed, and Arthur won't either."

"Perhaps I'll believe you about yourself, because Dragonlords are supposed to be kin to the dragons, but there's no way Arthur is happy about this regardless of how much you've deluded yourself into thinking he is."

"Do me a favor," Merlin rasped as he started to droop again. "Just kill me already, because going round this argument in repeated circles is pointless, and I'm obviously never going to convince you Arthur isn't Uther."

"Oh, but you're not going to die, Merlin." Morgana grasped his jaw again, forcing his gaze upwards to meet her own. "At least, not until you've watched as your pet dragon kills Arthur."

-BA-

"But there must be a way," Arthur said, practically pleading as he looked at Gaius. "Surely even if none of us are able to directly order her, Aithusa will want to go look for Merlin herself! She spent a month constantly returning to his side, for goodness' sake!"

"She was younger then, Sire, too young to obey Merlin's Dragonlord commands to stay away." The old physician sighed, gesturing sadly to the young dragon sitting listlessly on Arthur's lap. She'd been perched upon or clinging to him ever since Merlin was captured, to the point that it had been a struggle to accommodate the young dragon while changing his clothes. "But now Aithusa is two months of age, old enough that Merlin must have given her the order to stay with you, and she is forced to do so."

The king scowled. "Why would he do that? Why not tell her to lead us after him?"

"Probably to keep both her and yourself safe, Sire. Merlin has a habit of sacrificing himself for the good of others, especially if for Camelot's benefit."

Arthur thought of the Dorocha, and the Veil his manservant had been so determined to walk into, and sighed in agreement. "I know."

They were sitting alone in the young king's chambers, Arthur having finished up a meeting with his council earlier. Three search parties had been sent out, led by Leon, Agravaine, and Gwaine respectively, with the dual intentions of removing the bandit threat and finding Merlin. The king himself planned to join them at some point, once he'd recovered from his day in the woods, and had asked to speak with Gaius privately in order to determine how to get Aithusa to track his wayward servant down.

"There is a bit of light to this situation though - we know, as long as Aithusa remains close to you, that Merlin is alive. Should- should he perish, his order will become void, and she'll most likely leave the city."

Arthur looked up in alarm at that. "She'd leave? But- why?"

"I do not know for certain, Sire, but I would expect her to seek out Kilgharrah in order to grieve."

The king suddenly shot to his feet, nearly dislodging Aithusa entirely. "Gaius! That's it! Is there a way to get Aithusa to call for the Great Dragon? Would he be able to find Merlin?"

"I- I do not know."

"No reason not to try - can you go send word for my horse to be made ready? And I'll need to see what's been done with my armor, as well as swing by the kitchens on my way out to get some food for Aithusa-" Arthur cut himself off at the concerned expression on his physician's face. "Gaius?"

"Are you sure you wish to go alone, Sire? I realize you don't want word of Kilgharrah's continued existence to spread beyond those who already know it, but perhaps you should wait for at least one of the others to return..."

The worry warmed his heart, but it could not calm the frantic racing of his mind. "I appreciate the thought, Gaius, but if this won't work, I want to find out as soon as possible so as to move on to something that will. And if it does, then we'll get Merlin back faster than any other option."

"And while I fully approve, it is not wise to put your life back in danger so soon by going out by yourself!"

"I won't be by myself, I'll have Aithusa to warn me of danger. Right, girl?"

The dragonling chirped in response, looking more lively than she had in the entirety of the time since she and Arthur lost Merlin. Gaius sighed, but couldn't help smiling, just a little.

"Fair enough, Sire. Just- be careful. With a traitor in our midst, there is every possibility someone might arrange for you to be ambushed again."

"Of course I'll be careful," Arthur replied, placing a hand on the old man's shoulder. "And I'll see Merlin brought home, one way or another. I promise, Gaius."

"I know you will."

-BA-

Not until you've watched as your pet dragon kills Arthur.

Merlin felt his insides turn cold.

"It won't happen," the young man said, forcing out confidence against the growing pain that made him want to pass out once more. "There are no spells you could find that would allow you to dominate a dragon's will, even a baby one. Especially a baby," he corrected.

"Why find a spell when I've got a Dragonlord at my disposal?" Morgana smirked as she turned away from him, heading for a shelf off to one side of the room.

"What, you're going to try and torture me into ordering her to do it?" Merlin let out a laugh that sounded more like a cough and left him wheezing. "Never."

His captor's smirk grew into a terrifying smile as she picked up a bronze disk decorated with the likeness of a many-headed serpent. "Don't be ridiculous, Merlin. You have your beast, and I have mine."

-BA-

When Gwen found out he was leaving again, she trailed after him through half the castle, pleading that Arthur stay to get more rest, to at least eat something before he set off, to not go without at least one other capable swordsman by his side. She made that last remark right as they reached the stable, where the king's horse was waiting.

Arthur turned to face her finally. "Guinevere. You know that I'm going to meet with someone whose identity cannot be spread beyond our circle - if word of it got out, people would panic. And I cannot wait for one of the knights who does know to return, not when that time might mean the difference between returning with Merlin alive or- or-"

"Alright," Gwen interrupted, sparing him the need to say the word they were both thinking. "But surely you can wait the ten minutes it will take for me to get changed."

Arthur's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You-? But, um, don't you have, chores, or something?"

"I'll gladly call in a few favors if it means you aren't alone." The dragonling sitting beside their feet shrieked. "Sorry, so you and Aithusa aren't alone."

"Well..."

"Blacksmith's daughter, Arthur. Sister of a knight. I know how to use a sword."

"Fine. Ten minutes, and then I'm leaving." She beamed at him before hurrying back into the castle, and Arthur reluctantly called for another horse to be saddled.

He wasn't entirely certain whether to be dismayed or relieved when the woman made it back in less than the allotted time, changed into a vest, shirt, breeches and boots, a short sword hung from her belt. Aithusa seemed happy, though, so he took his cue from her.

"So, how are we going to get in touch the Great Dragon?" Guinevere asked as soon as they were far enough from Camelot's gates to avoid being overheard. In response, Arthur grimaced.

"I'm hoping Aithusa will be able to do something to call him. Apparently, Merlin can summon him with a yell, but I'm assuming that's only a Dragonlord thing." Gwen shot him a flat look. "What?"

Just as she opened her mouth to answer, both of them were distracted by Aithusa. The little dragon, who'd been draped peacefully across Arthur's shoulders, suddenly snapped her head up and outright screamed. She then leapt from her spot and started flying off down the road.

At first, Arthur was more concerned with the fact he'd nearly gone deaf in one ear, but then the rest of his mind replayed what Gaius had said earlier.

We know, as long as Aithusa remains close to you, that Merlin is alive. Should he perish, his order will become void, and she'll most likely leave the city.

Aithusa had left his side.

Arthur spurred his horse into a gallop to chase after her, Gwen right behind him.