The Healing: Arthur

Alice and Gaius exchanged looks, but Arthur could not understand the importance of what he had just said.

"From what you have told us, Arthur, it appears the second lightning blast was bound to the left hand path. A favorite trick of Morgana's. It reverses any spell it encounters. When Merlin shielded you from the lightning blast, it reversed and struck him," explained Gaius.

"Morgana is clever and patient, " continued the old physician. She knows you well. Your penchant for a ride on the moor to clear your head is well known. It was your favorite ride as a boy."He sighed. "She counted on Merlin stepping forward to protect you. The first blast was meant to kill him. If he interfered with the spell at all, which Morgana was counting on, it would reverse and strike again. The second blast was meant for you." The old man stopped, looking away for just a moment before he continued. "All Morgana has now is time. She may have been waiting weeks to spring that trap."

"And now she knows that Merlin has magic." Arthur shook his head in disbelief at the events that were unfolding.

"She probably believes Merlin is dead," murmured Alice softly. "Perhaps it is best if she continues to think so." She paused as both men looked at her. She continued in her gentle voice. " If Morgana thinks that she has killed Merlin, she may believe that she now has the advantage."

"Overconfidence has been her undoing before, " observed Gaius.

"The last fireball was a message," said Arthur suddenly, as his memory of that moment rose up in detail in his mind. "The only way to defeat a Pendragon, is to break their heart." He paused, looking over to where his manservant was resting. The grimace of pain was finally gone from his face. "If Morgana believes I am broken, she will think Camelot is within her reach." Merlin was so pale and still, that Arthur knew his heart might still be defeated. It was a thought that tormented him. He could not control the rising feelings of grief and panic as he thought of his servant's sacrifice.

"If we can delay Morgana for long enough for Merlin to recover, " began Gaius but a sharp glance from Arthur startled both of the healers.

"A sorcerer fighting for Camelot?"

Gaius rounded on the king, aghast that he had heard both concern and callous bone-headed disrespect in almost the same breath.

"Merlin has stood by your side, sire, from his first days in Camelot!" Passion flooded his tone. "That will never change. He has silently defended you and your kingdom, at a cost you cannot fathom. He has shown you his loyalty again and again. Who is to say if he fights at your side with magic, rather than sword and lance , that his sacrifice is any less holy?" The speech left the old man breathless, but he continued on, riveting the young king with his dark eyes. "He is no less loyal to you now, than before!"

"He lied to me Gaius! He hid his magic from me for six years! How can I ever trust..."

The old man lifted one eye brow and Arthur silenced himself in shame. Merlin's loyalty, his selfless devotion were only too evident. The king turned away, furious and ashamed, struggling to process what he could hardly bear to hear.

"Perhaps," said Alice kindly, placing a hand on each of the respective shoulders of the men, "We must focus ourselves on the task at hand. Let me find a way to repair the damage from Morgana's left handed spell." She walked over to the warlock, placing a gentle hand on his forehead. "I do not know if he will be strong enough to fight at your side, any time soon young king, but I think I can save his life. Merlin is running out of time."

"Will you need protective wards?" said Gaius gravely.

"I believe so, Gaius. But you need to tell me more about this scar on his chest. Why would the energy of the blast leave his body in that spot, if it hit his hand first?" She ran a practiced hand an inch or two above his bandaged chest, pausing where the bleeding was the deepest. "I can feel the residual power even now." Alice was already seated next to Merlin on the bed, and Gaius motioned for Arthur to sit as well.

"It is a complicated story, Alice. " the old man sighed. "The prince had been bitten by a Questing Beast, " began Gaius. "Arthur was dying and Uther was desperate, beyond despair. Merlin made a compact with Nimue to save Arthur's life. He believed he could save the prince by offering his own life in exchange at the Island of the Blessed."

"This boy and Nimue..." Alice's voice was slightly shocked.

Arthur sank down beside Gaius, looking over at his manservant. This was incredible. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Merlin had battled a sorceress. The horrific circular scar was evidence of where a fireball had struck him in the midst of their battle.

"There, "said Alice, her hands floating above Merlin's chest, tracing the edges of the scar. "It's a blessing his heart didn't stop immediately. But I must be honest, Gaius, there may be some severe damage here. His heart beat is very erratic."

Gaius nodded sadly; his old eyes were tragic.

"It was the reverse flow of energy that burned him, using the same neural pathways as the other previous , magical injury, " surmised Gaius. Alice looked at him keenly. There Alice found the connection, and the conversation between the healers escalated into arcane and technical knowledge. Arthur was left with his thoughts.

The king reeled as memories began to surface in relation to what he had learned. 'I am happy to be your servant to the day I die.' It had meant so much more. As he listened to Gaius he began to understand how deep his oblivion had been. How could he not have seen? How could he not have known? He put together the small but unexplainable mysteries of life with his manservant. He recalled the objects that tripped opponents, sudden fires, bandits that dropped weapons, falling branches, rock slides. He recalled Merlin's sudden disappearances. He remembered injuries that healed with only a night of rest. He recalled a blue orb that had rescued him in the caves. Arthur's head spun as he realized how many times Merlin must have saved his life or turned the tide of the battle, all the while remaining hidden. There were more stories and more lies than he could begin to imagine.

Familiar anger felt better than this terrible uncertainty. So he warmed as he concluded that Merlin had lied to him from the very first day they met. As his father had said, all sorcerers were full of lies, waiting to turn each situation to their advantage. He knew the litany like he knew the the pain that ate at him. Betrayal filled his heart with a burning hurt. A hurt he knew too well. He looked down at his friend, a man he now thought he barely knew, and his heart lurched. Merlin's lips were pale and cracked. He was barely breathing, he wasn't even struggling to breathe anymore, as if his strength was exhausted.

Reality shook him, like a a wolf and it's prey. Whatever his manservant had done through the years, it had all been for him. That understanding shook his view of the world. Merlin had used magic to save him, to rescue Camelot, to defend what was good and right. Magic had saved his life and Merlin was dying.

His idiotic, brave, loyal friend was dying.

"I think I know what needs to be done," said Alice. Her words roused Arthur at last. His attention had faded as his own thoughts distracted him.

"Alice, " began Gaius quietly. "This will be a dangerous for you as well," but there Arthur interrupted.

His heart was heavy and dark with emotion. He did not command as a king; he pleaded as a friend

"Please Alice, you must save him. I owe him so much." He hated the way his voice broke at the end. He echoed his own words of a few weeks before. In the light of his new knowledge, his words seemed heavy with prescience, with a truth that weighed on his aching heart. "He is my only friend, and I can't bear to lose him."

A/N My deepest thanks to all of you who are following this story. And to the review from my guest, Thalia: This story is already written and I am only making minor changes prior to posting. Please keep reading and Enjoy!