AN: Hey guys!

Sorry about the wait! Unfortunately the next chapter will have a bit of a wait as well. You guys are definitely going to love me for this ending...

But this is the beginning of the extra chapters. I have three other ideas besides this one that are in the works before the finale, and I think they should be fun. Some of them more so than others. But hopefully they will work!

And I got a review asking about finishing Mirror Mirror. I will. I don't know when, possibly when I go home for thanksgiving break, but not right now. I am so sorry. I swear that it will get done, I just barely have enough time to write this one right now, and I really want to keep working on this so there are actually updates from somewhere. My life is slightly insane right now. Quantum Mechanics is ridiculous.

But enough about me, Merlin season five is happening! So far I love everything. I'm still not sure how I feel about Rodor, but that's mostly because I made up Mithian's father back for Rise of Emrys, and he was not so secretly King Eric from the little mermaid...

And Happy Halloween! I'm sorry I didn't reply to all the reviews this week. Like I said, I've been incredibly busy. I will try my best to do better this week.

Chapter Nineteen: The Most Deadly Assassin

Uther paced back and forth in the dimly lit chambers he had borrowed from Lord Eldric, waiting to meet with the man who was known as the most deadly assassin in the land. He couldn't very well risk someone in the citadel seeing him with such a shady character, so he had arranged a meeting with his old friend in the south, using it as a disguise for the true purpose of the trip. Lord Eldric had acquiesced to his request for a private room with easy access to the outside town, allowing the man he had sent for to enter easily without being noticed. Almost no one knew about his true plans for the visit, so no one would be able to warn Emrys that the most successful hired sword in the lands was after his head. It was said that this man had been able to kill a king surrounded by soldiers without anyone even knowing he was there. There were other stories of him taking down scores of men in one night, including a group of sorcerers who had stolen from a Mercian noble. If these rumors were true, Emrys would stand no chance, and soon Uther would have his head on a pike. No one would question his power when that day came.

Uther was pulled from his thoughts as he felt a blade press against his throat. His breath hitched as he realized the hopelessness of his situation. He had already ordered all of his servants and guards away, not wanting to be overheard, and the man behind him would slit his throat if he made any motion towards his sword. Uther could see no other option so he puffed out his chest and said, "Unhand me, you scoundrel. If you don't, I'll shout to alert the guards and you will never get out of here alive."

"Do not fear, Uther Pendragon. This is merely a demonstration of my skills. There is no call for shouting, as I do believe you sent for me." The man said, lowering his blade and allowing Uther to turn to face him. He was a tall, bald, dark-skinned man with black eyes and a short beard. He gave Uther a slight bow before saying, "I feel it is only fair that the buyer gets a small taste of my talent before paying."

"Myror?" Uther asked, a smile curving across his face. The intruder nodded, keeping his eyes locked on Uther as he did so. "Impressive. I didn't even hear you approach!"

"I have studied for many years, making myself into the perfect weapon. Whoever it is you need killed, I can do it, for a price."

"If you can bring me the head of the thief, Emrys, you may have whatever price you desire."

"I have heard rumors of this Emrys. Am I correct in believing that this thief is a magic-user? My price is higher for those who practice the dark arts."

"Don't worry so much about the price." Uther responded quickly. "I shall pay you whatever you desire if you can do the job."

Myror snorted at this, before offering Uther a hand and saying, "I believe we have a deal, then. One-thousand gold pieces for the head of Emrys."

Uther hesitated for a moment before accepting the offered hand. One-thousand gold pieces was a large sum, but the amount he would make back once Emrys was no longer plaguing his lands would be much greater. Plus, with Emrys dead he would get Arthur back, and that was worth all the gold in the kingdom. Myror smiled and shook Uther's hand before taking a seat at the small table in the center of the room.

"I will expect half my pay in two days time. The rest when I bring you this thief's head."

Uther nodded, trying not to think about how greatly those five-hundred gold pieces would deplete his stores, and took the seat across from Myror. Myror asked a few questions which Uther answered to the best of his ability. He wished he hadn't had to resort to such desperate measures but things had gotten completely out of hand since Arthur had left. When he had attempted to raise taxes to repair the damage the thief had caused, a third of his men refused to help collect the amount he had asked for. Uther had banished each of them, and had been forced to hire mercenaries to keep his forces at least close to what they had been. Although the rest of the men did not argue with him, it was still obvious that most of them were not loyal to him without Arthur leading them.

And Arthur had not helped. His knowledge of the castle allowed Emrys to steal almost double what he had been before. They mocked him with short letters, Arthur trying his hand at encouraging his father to change the way he ruled, but Uther knew better than to fall for the tricks of the sorcerer controlling his son. Arthur was lost, but he would be returned once Myror completed his task. Then Uther could teach Arthur how it was necessary for a king to distance himself from the common people, how the prosperity of the country came before the stinking masses. Especially when those stinking masses thought it wise to side with disgusting sorcerers. He would fix this kingdom, no matter what that took.

And the first step in fixing his kingdom was destroying Emrys, no matter what the cost.

Arthur smiled as he looked across the fire where Merlin was helping Gwaine cover a sleeping Lancelot in leaves and dirt. It was strange to see the two grown men acting like children, but the smile on Merlin's face was so brilliant that Arthur couldn't help but smile with him. Percival was watching them while cooking the rabbits they had caught and occasionally tossing a few dried leaves and twigs onto the pile that had once been Lancelot. It was bizarre to think about how much his life had changed since he had left the city after rescuing Merlin. Even without his large bed, down blankets, and legions of servants he was happier than he had ever been. He was helping his people, he was free from his father, and he was with Merlin.

The first week away from the castle Arthur had been completely preoccupied with making sure Merlin healed completely. It had been strange staying in the Druid village at first, but as the people got to know him and saw how Morgana seemed to trust him they slowly warmed up to him. The hate-filled glances he had gotten when he first arrived were replaced with curious gazes, some even looking hopeful. Most of them wouldn't go so far as to actually talk to him, but he had spoken with Percival's two sisters who still resided in the village and their husbands. Percival had been acting much warmer towards him since Merlin had awoken the first time, and had even trusted Arthur to watch over Merlin for a night while he went to get sleep in a slightly more comfortable position. Arthur had also gotten the pleasure of meeting some of the Druid children. When Merlin was deemed healthy enough to walk again Arthur had accompanied him on a short stroll through the village. Merlin had been swarmed by children the second he walked out of the tent, all wanting to make sure he was alright and begging to see magic. Merlin had introduced all of them to Arthur and made a few sparks before Arthur had seen him pale and made sure he stopped. Merlin seemed unable to understand that he needed time to recover before he could go back to using his magic like he had before, no matter who he was. Merlin had frowned at him before explaining to the children why he wasn't quite able to play with them yet. They had accepted his explanation and had run back to their games, but would occasionally pop up with small gifts to help Merlin get better.

Once Merlin had been declared healthy enough to leave the camp they hadn't hesitated to make their goodbyes and be on their way. Gwaine and Lancelot had already gone back to get their belongings from the old camp while Merlin was healing, so they had had everything they needed to build a new small camp very similar to the ones Arthur had seen. Iseldir had provided them with the blankets that had become Arthur's new bed and Merlin had done some magic to make it slightly more comfortable, but it had still been an adjustment for Arthur. He was used to sleeping like this for a few days on extended hunting trips, but living like this was a whole different situation. But now he had Merlin to snuggle with while he slept, which definitely helped him get better sleep than he ever had while sleeping under the stars with the knights. Things were very different, but Arthur knew it was for the best.

It had taken another week once Merlin was released from the Druid village for Percival to deem him healthy enough to resume their attacks on Uther. Arthur had been both dreading and eagerly awaiting this part of being a member of Merlin's gang. Merlin had promised him that he didn't have to join in if he didn't want to, but Arthur wanted to help them protect the people. He felt guilty for doing so little before, and wanted to make up for lost time. He had offered all the information he knew about secret passageways, hidden entrances into town, and the schedule of the guards. They had been nervous at first about using this information, believing that Uther must have taken extra precautions against attacks at their weakest places now that Arthur was with them, but they quickly discovered that the king had done no such thing and they were able to sneak into the castle with ease. Arthur was beginning to get to know all the people they took the money to, and was amazed at how many people desperately needed the help they gave. The children who were practically starving, the elderly couples who barely had the strength to get out of bed, and the men and women who spent all day doing backbreaking labor, but still not making enough to live on. Arthur wasn't sure if he ever would get a chance to, now that he had abandoned his father to be with Merlin, but he knew that if he ever became king, he would make sure that the people were treated better than this.

Arthur was pulled from his daydreaming as Gwaine and Merlin decided that Lancelot was sufficiently covered in debris from the forest floor and had begun working on waking him up. Their shouts of attack eventually did rouse him, causing leaves, sticks and dirt to fly everywhere as Lancelot jolted up right. Merlin and Gwaine were now covered in most of what had been coating Lancelot, and both were laughing uproariously. Lancelot looked quite confused as he spit out little pieces of dirt and twigs, trying to figure out what had happened. He must have finally figured it out as he started throwing clumps of dirt back at Merlin and Gwaine. This just served to make them laugh harder as they ran from the vengeful Lancelot. It wasn't until a large clump of dirt landed dangerously close to one of Percival's rabbits that they calmed down, not willing to risk Percival's wrath or the destruction of the mouthwatering food for the continuation of their game. Merlin plopped down next to Arthur after quickly brushing himself off while Lancelot stalked off towards a nearby stream grumbling about freezing water accompanied by a laughing Gwaine.

"You sure you shouldn't be accompanying Lancelot for that bath, Merlin?" Arthur asked with a smile.

Merlin just rolled his eyes at Arthur, smiling wickedly as he whispered and a huge cloud of debris cascaded down over Arthur's head. As the dirt cloud finally settled, mostly on Arthur's head and shoulders, Arthur could see Merlin laughing as he backed slowly away from him. Arthur tried his best to look angry but was having trouble suppressing a laugh as he scooped up a handful of dirt to toss at Merlin who was quickly retreating into the forest. His dirtball fell quite short so Arthur jumped up in pursuit of the dirty warlock who was dashing through the trees away from the river.

Merlin might have been a fast runner, but his endurance was lacking compared to Arthur's. Eventually he began to tire and Arthur was able to catch up, tackling him to the ground and shoving as much dirt down his shirt as he could reach. Merlin must have been momentarily stunned as he thrashed briefly trying to dislodge Arthur before his eyes flashed gold and Arthur found himself on the forest floor with Merlin perched on his chest, his pale skin almost completely covered in brown. Merlin panted above him for a moment before he collapsed on top of Arthur, kissing him as they rolled about in the dirt. Arthur responded enthusiastically, kissing back and rolling Merlin over so he was on top and gained control over the kissing. Just as he was about to reconnect their lips, he heard a noise. Something too loud to be an animal. His head shot up, causing Merlin to watch him with confusion and ask "What's wrong Arthur? Why'd you stop?"

"I heard something. I don't think we're alone." Arthur responded, slowly standing up while nervously looking everywhere but Merlin.

"It was probably just an animal," Merlin said, standing as well and trying to resume the kissing. Arthur was still worried though, and kept surveying the area instead of continuing what they had started. Merlin must have been frustrated with Arthur incompliance, and Arthur's thoughts were interrupted as Merlin's lips pressed against his. But even Merlin's kissing wasn't enough to distract him from what he had just seen. There had been a glint of silver just behind one of the trees about ten paces from them. Merlin had backed off, trying to voice his displeasure for Arthur's failure to respond when Arthur heard another noise and moved as quickly as he could.

Myror had to admit, this Emrys fellow had been hard to find. Definitely one of his harder hits. He had had to threaten quite a few peasants before he had found a poor widow with three adorable little girls who had told him all about the cloaked men who delivered gold to her house ever few days at dusk when his knife had gotten dangerously close to the youngest girl's throat. Staking out the hovel of the widow had been incredibly dull, but the cloaked men eventually came, slipping like shadows through the stinking slums of the city. So, difficult to find, but it seemed he would be much less difficult to kill now that he had found him. He was young and quite arrogant, and sneaking up on him had been much too easy. All the magic in the world wouldn't be able to help him if he wasn't smart enough to pay attention to his surroundings.

Myror took a deep breath as he watched the two young men kissing in the woods. He had followed Emrys the second he broke away from the group. King Uther had instructed him to only kill the skinny young sorcerer and had given him specific instructions against harming the blond boy with them, so Myror had been quite disappointed when the blond had followed Emrys out of the camp and into the deserted forest. Still, this would probably be his best chance to complete his mission. Emrys seemed completely distracted by the other boy. The boy who he was almost sure had glanced his direction as he leaned forward, accidentally snapping a brittle twig. But his target had ignored the blond's warnings, standing up with his back to Myror, in the perfect position for Myror's crossbow to strike his heart. Just as the arrow released the couple moved again. Myror couldn't suppress a growl as the blond boy had to go and ruin his perfect shot, forcing Emrys down to the ground as the arrow hurdled towards him. The blond didn't move, leaving him right in the path of the bolt that Myror was powerless to stop. He was about to reload while praying Emrys was too distracted by his injured comrade to notice his presence when the very air seemed to explode around him, pinning him against a tree as a Emrys' screams filled the forest.