A lone cart stood in the middle of town. It swayed slightly as the wind battered against it. The horses neighed and whinnied in protest of the rain, and the driver sat waiting for the rest of the load.
However, "the load" spoke with frightened voices and trembled with small hands. The rain knocked hard against the wooden cart and lightning struck the ground nearby. The occasional scream was heard only to be quietened by a whip crack
Strange hands lifted another child from their sleeping bed whilst their parents snuggled close, unaware that their young were being taken. The man smirked as the young boy stared up at him in fear, too scared to even cry out for his parents. How good it felt to be in control, the kidnapper thought.
"Okay boys, this is the last one. Let's lock 'em up and get moving. You know the boss wants us to be quick so he can get his money quicker," the leader ordered. The other eight nodded before they jumped on their horses and kicked them into a slow trot.
One of the bandits turned to his accomplices and spoke into the night. "Ya know I 'eared that there's a mad demon sent by God to cleanse us of our sins."
"Jack told me that his mate was actually the Prince of Camelot. He hadn't seen anyone use a sword quite like that guy did," another responded.
"Ol' man Jackson says he's a monster. 'A creature of pure darkness,' he called him," the driver added to the idle chatter.
"Will you lot shut up? There ain't a mad demon, no creature of pure darkness and I tell you that it ain't the Prince because he's been leadin' the search for the two of 'em," the leader stated with a tone of finality.
They heard a thumping sound. Their heads whipped around just in time to see another rider drop from his horse. The leader turned and saw, to his shock, that two horses were now rider-less. A faint whoosh and flap of a cloth passed him and all their heads turned towards the noise. They heard one of their riders hit the ground abruptly.
"Everybody get off your horses and find these guys." The leader's voice cracked a little as he brushed the sweat off his brow. The sound of an unsheathing sword made them all jump and turn. They all unsheathed their own swords and began to spread out.
Clanging could be heard as they clashed, and with a sudden smack, silence returned. Another man cried out in terror as he was blown back into a crate full of fruit which shattered on impact.
"Who are you?" the leader shouted defiantly. The remaining four had found each other again, hoping that strength in numbers could protect them.
"Oh haven't you heard?" The billow of a cloak flapped in and out of the shadows. Every so often the moonlight reflected against a metal blade that swayed in the darkness. "I am the demon." They heard a dark chuckle as the patter of rain on armour resonated through the streets. "I am a creature of pure darkness." They looked up to the roof of a hut and saw a figure coated in the luminous moonlight. "God sent me to cleanse you of your sins." The two figures jumped out at the four of them and the Cloak instantly knocked one of them out whilst Knight Blade crashed metal against metal with his sword.
The Cloak blocked his two oncoming opponents. With precision and expertise he disarmed one of them then sent the end of his staff into the man's cranium. Unfortunately, the leader took his chance and sliced the Cloak across his rib. The Cloak groaned.
"Cloak!" Knight Blade head butted his opponent. He quickly began to trade blows with their leader. "You…will…regret…that," he grunted between hits.
"Duck!" Knight Blade pushed the leader forward before he crouched and watched the leader fly over his head. He grinned as he remembered two months ago when the Cloak had done the same thing to Hengist.
"Cheers, mate." He smiled. "But I think I had it." His partner stumbled forward a bit before catching himself with his staff. "Whoa, we need to get you out of here and fast." Lancelot knew they couldn't teleport because of Merlin's injury. His magic was being used to heal and it drained him. At least that was how Merlin had explained it to him the last time this happened.
"To the catacombs, Lance, we can't let Arthur's knights catch us." Lance had already heard them but luckily both the night and the rain blurred their sight. Merlin had perfect sight thanks to his magic.
They ran as fast as they could and Merlin hastily unlocked then relocked the door with his magic. They carefully descended the stairs while Merlin whispered a spell to light the torches illuminating the tunnel of catacombs.
"That was too close," Lancelot breathed out, taking off his helmet. He moved Merlin's cloak so he could take a better look at the gash. It wasn't too deep but Gaius needed to see to this one.
"Nah. We did great. The knights will find the children and their families will stay together." Merlin smiled but he winced when his fingers trailed the wound. Lancelot took off Merlin's shirt so that he could get to where Merlin had been cut.
"Rest, Merlin, we'll head back into the castle before dawn." Merlin carefully lowered himself onto one of the two beds. They had brought them down when they first decided to use the catacombs as a secondary base of operations - after Merlin's room, of course.
Lancelot watched his friend's eyelids bat and eventually fall as he wrapped the bandage around Merlin's bare stomach. Then he lay on his own bed and allowed sleep to claim his tired and aching body.
Whilst the two vigilantes recovered from their nightly duties, the Prince and Princess dined.
"Arthur, how can you call him a menace when he and his accomplice save more people than the knights have? The Cloak has only been here five months and Knight Blade, as he calls himself, even less." Morgana found herself in an argument with her brother about the vigilantes yet again. She defended them because they had done right by the kingdom but Arthur didn't seem to see it that way.
"They are taking the law into their own hands and dishing out justice however they please. Agravaine is right; the knights are the law, not some magical rebel in a cloak and his armoured friend." The addition of another rebellious figure had caused a ruckus in the council chambers and Arthur was slowly recovering from a headache.
"I think you're just jealous because Knight Blade is so good with a sword people think he is you. I'm sure he is much better," she teased, baiting him intently. When he didn't take it Morgana huffed and changed the subject. "Where's Merlin?" The servant had not been in the dining hall all evening. In fact, during the late evenings, he couldn't be found. She felt disappointed because right now he was better company than her father.
"I have no idea. He's probably at the tavern slacking off as usual," Arthur berated through gritted teeth, annoyed at his servant's absence.
"I find that hard to believe. Gwen, have you heard from him?" The royals turned to the maidservant.
"I bumped into him on my way here and he said he had urgent matters with Gaius." Morgana smirked at Arthur triumphantly whilst the Prince just sighed in irritation.
"Do anything else when you bumped into him?" Morgana joked, which caused the Prince to choke on his wine.
"No, milady, we just spoke about… things." Gwen finished lamely as heat rose to her cheeks. Luckily, Morgana was too busy laughing at Arthur who still coughed on his wine.
Meanwhile, Hengist stood in a dark chamber. He stared unwaveringly at the man in front of him despite the lack of one eye. He smirked as he noticed the man trembled. Good, he thought.
"So you mean to tell me two men took down nine of ours and we just lost another shipment of potential child slaves?" The leader of that particular squad had managed to get away before the Knights had found him.
"They caught us off guard, sir." His excuses were pitiful and Hengist had enough of his presence.
"Kill him," he said blandly. The leader tried to shout for help but was swiftly cut off as a steel blade pierced his chest. "Dispose of him then go to the dungeons and kill the caught prisoners," Hengist ordered as he began to pace. The boss would be here soon.
Just like he had predicted, the door swung open and Hengist instantly bowed in respect. "Lord Agravaine, sir!" He saluted until the boss gestured for him to stop.
"What happened out there, Hengist?" Agravaine asked as he poured himself a glass of wine. He twirled the red liquid in the glass and inspected it carefully.
"We lost the slaves, my lord, but I have dealt with it. Our ties have been cut off and cannot be traced back to us, er, you, my lord." Hengist might have looked like the typical brute but the man did have a well-calculated brain.
"They had better be. You must deal with this Cloak and his partner in anti-crime. They are bad for business." Agravaine sipped at his wine and made his way to the bed where Uther slept.
"Are you looking forward to the celebrations tomorrow, my lord?" Hengist asked and Agravaine sneered in response.
"It will be spectacularly beneficial to our cause, Hengist." The boss and his second-in-command shared a dark chuckle.
The next morning, Merlin and Lancelot stumbled into the physician's chambers. Fortunately for them Gaius was up and pottering about his desk but his eye brow shot up as Merlin was sat on the table by Lancelot.
"What happened to him, Lancelot?" Gaius demanded as he unwrapped the bandages on Merlin's torso.
"We tracked slave traders and when we engaged to fight, Merlin miscalculated and got sliced. It's not that deep but it is by no means shallow," Lancelot informed Gaius before hurrying to Merlin's chambers to change. He took Merlin's cloak and staff with him. "Merlin, open the door." Lance heard a faint whisper from his friend and the door magically opened for him.
"You must be more careful Merlin. If you hadn't asked Lancelot to help you two months ago then you could well be dead by now." All Gaius received was a groan from Merlin as he lightly dabbed the cut.
"Spare me the lecture, Gaius. You can do it next time, I promise." Merlin chuckled and smiled up at his mentor.
"I fear there might not be a chance to tell you next time," Gaius muttered but Merlin had heard and the atmosphere turned solemn.
"Don't worry, Gaius." Lance broke the tension as he came over to pat Merlin on the head. "I got him." Merlin's eyes flashed and the door shut and locked again. They had decided that Lancelot would keep a change of clothes in Merlin's chamber just in case. He wore a grey shirt and brown slacks.
Without warning, Gwen hurried into the room. When she saw Merlin hurt she snatched the rag from a bewildered Gaius and dabbed the cut herself.
"What urgent matter with Gaius resulted in this?" Gwen questioned and Lancelot winked at Gaius who just smiled in amused response.
"Drunkards in the street on the way home. I told Gaius to go and one of them pulled out a knife. Luckily I managed to get away but not before they sliced me." Merlin breathed heavily.
"You should be more careful, Merlin. Don't go throwing yourself in harm's way; I don't want anything to happen to you." She whispered the last bit but caught herself on it and backtracked. "I mean none of us do." Merlin stared at the floor and felt heat rush to his cheeks.
Gwen traced her finger along other cuts which marked Merlin's surprisingly muscled torso. Merlin had accumulated a lot of scars over time. Lance wore armour; Merlin didn't because he needed speed on his side. His breathing became laboured and he wasn't sure if it was the wound or Gwen.
"Tavern fights?" she whispered with concern. He just nodded, not wanting to ruin this moment as they looked into each other's eyes. Her brown irises buried deep within his soul and he couldn't bear to look away. A cough from Lancelot and their moment shattered. "I should be going now; Morgana will wonder where I am. I hope you can make it to the celebrations. Oh, and I expect to see you in the forge tomorrow, Lancelot." She left before Merlin could ask her what the celebrations were for.
Lancelot had been employed by Tom as the "stand-in black smith". He worked alongside Gwen - when she had time - and they forged all kinds of things. He enjoyed it a lot, the income was good and it allowed him to pay for his rent and food. It was where Lancelot had made himself lightweight armour which allowed him to move freely and be more agile. He also dyed the armour black so that it didn't shine as well against the moonlight and forged himself another sword. Its blade was also black.
Gaius then answered his unspoken question, "The castle is celebrating twenty years since the ban on magic." The physician sighed but the two friends didn't miss it.
"That should be fun." Lance chuckled with amusement.
The celebration had only just begun and the King's speech just finished.
"…and now let us eat in the knowledge that nearly all sorcery has been purged from the land." The nobles cheered whilst Merlin and Lancelot smirked at the words "nearly all". The Cloak wasn't going anywhere.
"Hey, Merlin." Lancelot tapped his friend on the shoulder and pointed in the direction of Morgana and Gwen. Merlin chuckled at Lance's antics and gave them a wave and a cheeky wink. "Go to her, Merlin. The Cloak might be content beating up bad guys. But Merlin? He needs some real happiness."
Merlin patted Lance on the back before making his way over to the two women.
He was serving tonight but Arthur's goblet was pretty full at this point. So he opted to take the risk and go and speak to Guinevere across the room.
"Good evening, milady." He dipped his head in respect. He usually said something along the lines of "Hey, Morgana" but that was far too informal in their current setting. "Gwen, it is good to see you." His grin widened a little.
"You saw me this morning," the maid retorted.
"And so my day just gets better," he replied. Merlin didn't know what it was. Occasionally, Morgana would tease him and he would splutter and stutter until she took pity on him and started talking again. But everything came so easily with Gwen.
"I think I'm going to go talk to Sir Leon." Morgana exited between them and began a conversation with the blonde knight who seemed more than happy to talk. Merlin knew that Leon actually had eyes for Lady Amelia. She was a Scottish girl who moved to England after her home was attacked. Merlin knew this because Lady Amelia spent her time in the library. Merlin went to there relieve stress as he poured over books on magical beasts and creatures of myth and wonder. They two traded conversations every now and again.
Merlin and Gwen ambled through different conversations covering several topics, including the Cloak and Knight Blade. Merlin tried not to be jealous when she seemed to compliment Lance's alter ego more than his own.
Just then the band started playing a soft tune and Merlin smiled as an idea planted itself into his head.
"Would you accompany me to the dance floor, milady?" Merlin grinned and led her to the floor as she nodded. She looked so pretty when shy.
They stepped from side to side and glided around the nobles who sneered with disdain as two servants danced between them. They didn't notice but Merlin did spot Arthur looking…proud? He couldn't be sure but smiled back in return anyhow.
"You are a good dance," she complimented as he twirled her only to bring her close to his chest.
"Yes, my mother was adamant I learn for when I met the woman of my dreams." He laughed at the memory until he found himself gazing into her eyes. He raised his hand to her cheek and lent in ever so slightly, trying to relish the moment.
At that moment bandits barged through the doors and stabbed the knights that stood guard. Off-duty knights who had the sense to carry a sword unsheathed them. But the bandits had clearly thought of this and grabbed hostages. Merlin looked over at Lancelot and gave him a nod to leave.
"Gwen, I need you to wait here and don't move." Before she could question him he disappeared through the panic and darted through the servants' entrance.
Gwen didn't know what to do. Bandits had surrounded them and started taking the nobles' jewellery. She was thankful for her poverty in this moment, for she had no valuables on her. She saw that Uther had mysteriously disappeared. How convenient she thought. Gwen watched as Morgana and Arthur struggled against of a couple of bandits hold. Those were her friends, defiant till the end.
Speaking of friends, Merlin had just left her in the middle of this fiasco without warning her of what he was doing. He hadn't even thought to bring her with him. He kept letting her down tonight.
All of a sudden, every candle was blown out by a gust of wind. It felt like a mini hurricane inside the main hall. Then everything went quiet.
Thump. Whack. Crash. Bang. Through the darkness Gwen could hear a sword as it clashed against something. It sounded like another sword. She heard a grunt and the blade she could see disappeared. Three loud noises came from her left and she could just see the outline of three unconscious men. She spotted two golden eyes in the distance and knew they were safe.
"Forbærnan" A voice echoed throughout the hall and the candles flickered back to life. Stood in front of the nobles, knights and servants were the Cloak and Knight Blade. Gwen looked around the room to see every single bandit out cold. They hadn't killed anyone. The thought alone made her smile in admiration.
"You are both under arrest for disturbing the peace and vigilantism." Arthur's voice hung in the air and the knights moved towards the two vigilantes.
Merlin and Lancelot had managed to save everybody. Now they had to save themselves and Merlin realised he couldn't teleport away. It would take too long and as soon as he tried, one of the knights could strike through the wind and into one of them.
"What do we do?" Lancelot whispered from under his black helmet.
"You're not going to like it." Merlin nodded at the window.
"You have three seconds to come quietly or we will use force against you." Arthur sounded like he was about to lose his patience. Not good.
"You have got to be joking."
Merlin just grinned at his friend. "On Arthur's count," he whispered.
"1," Arthur started whilst he and his knights moved closer.
"2…
3."
On three the two ran past the nobles and jumped out of the window. Merlin grabbed Lance and quickly muttered the teleportation spell. Instead of hitting the streets of Camelot with a splat, the two found themselves lying on the floor of the physician's chambers.
"I can't believe that worked," Merlin laughed, sounding rather relieved.
"Wait, you didn't know?" Lancelot questioned as a mix of anger, fear and prideful amusement flooded through him.
"I was 60 – 70% sure we would be fine." Merlin pulled his hood down as Gaius came rushing in. The two marvelled at how spritely the old man could be sometimes.
"Never do anything if those are your odds, Merlin." Gaius reprimanded. He'd obviously heard the end of their conversation.
"We're both alive and now we know something concrete." Lancelot and Gaius stared at Merlin for a few seconds - they weren't following. "It's simple. Those bandits couldn't have gotten that far inside the castle without help." Gaius seemed to realise where he was going.
"A betrayal in court," he spoke slowly and Merlin nodded whilst Lancelot's eyes widened in realisation.
"It all points to Agravaine. We still can't be sure if Uther is involved but I would bet he isn't himself at the very least." Merlin pondered for a moment before gasping, "That could mean the attempt on Gwen's life was personal."
"That would make sense. The boss is a noble, and could be Agravaine, does not like her friendly relationship with the Princess. So he ordered to have her killed, but when it failed they went back to stealing, killing and kidnapping," Lancelot supplied.
In the quiet all three perked up to hear a scurry of footsteps.
"Damn it!" Merlin cursed aloud.
"What is it?" Lancelot asked, confused at his friend's outburst.
"On my second day in Camelot I was followed here. Apparently they never stopped and now the boss knows who we're and that we are on to him."
Lancelot sighed and rubbed his forehead.
"What does that mean for us?".
"I don't know yet. They can't touch us directly; we're too close with the Prince and Princess. At least I am, and if anything happens to you I'll make 'em talk." Lance beamed in appreciation.
"Merlin? Where did you go back at the hall?" Gwen walked in but stopped when she saw Lancelot in his armour and Merlin in his cloak. "You – you two are the… and Lance you're…" Gwen gasped and sank to the floor.
"Gwen, listen, you cannot tell anybody…doing so could put you in danger. If Agravaine finds out that you know he'll -"
"Wait, you think Agravaine is behind the problems in Camelot?" Gwen looked at them in disbelief.
"We believe he runs an underground crime organisation but we're still looking for evidence," Lance explained as he knelt down next to Gwen. "You can't tell anyone about this, about what we do."
"I won't, I promise, I just wish you had told me sooner. Wait here, I'll be right back." She smiled and left without a word.
By the time she came back Merlin and Lance were in their usual attire.
"I heard that people had seen your face under the hood, Merlin." They stared at each other in surprise but Gwen quickly added, "They had no idea who you were but you looked familiar. You're getting noticed."
"How do you think I can combat that, Gwen? It's okay for Lance - he has a helmet blocking his face and it's done me a world of good too," Merlin joked, which earned a brotherly punch to the arm.
"I wanted to thank you for saving me all those months ago. I made this after I heard about people seeing under the hood." Gwen revealed a mask. It had two holes for the eyes and Merlin jumped up.
"You're a genius, Gwennie!" He exclaimed as he brought her into a big hug before placing a chaste kiss on her cheek.
"Stop calling me that!" she moaned, though her cheeks had a light blush.
"So it seems you've got yourself a team, Merlin." Gaius observed the trio with pride.
"It seems I have, Gaius." Merlin smiled at his friends. He was glad that his group had grown from him and Gaius to them, Lancelot and Gwen.
It almost felt like a family.