Hey, y'all. :) Been a while, hasn't it? I'm so sorry for the wait. Special thanks to battlemaiden518 for the prompt.
Disclaimer : All rights to BBC. *insert witty comment here*
Quick Info: Arthur is king, Morgana is evil, Uther is dead. Takes place near the end of the show- in fact, you could consider this an alt. Ending to "Diamond of the Day", but it doesn't specify in the drabble. WARNING: CHARACTER DEATH.
Drabble 9- Breaking Point
The battle had been going well enough. Camelot was largely outnumbered, yes, but Arthur was a brilliant strategist and with a few well-planned battle moves and some well-places archers, the playing field had changed in Camelot's favor. If many more of the enemy men died, they'd be on the run. All of Camelot's army knew it, and it heartened the men, giving them all the encouragement they needed to hold out and keep fighting.
As the clang of swords rang out across the clearing, Arthur easily defeated another foe. The common soldier was no match for the well-trained king, as many had already found out, and yet another enemy had met his end by Arthur's hand. Adrenaline made the world around him snap into sharper focus, moves he'd known since he was eight coming naturally on the battle field. The mixed yells of victorious and dying soldiers filled his head, and after months of tense planning, Arthur had never felt more alive.
"THEY'RE RUNNIN'!" Yelled one knight triumphantly, and the cheers of the red and gold clad soldiers filled the clearing, pressing in on the few remaining enemies.
"IF THEY STAY, FINISH THEM OFF," Arthur yelled, authority filling his voice and giving it volume. "IF THEY RUN, LET THEM GO." His army obeyed like a well-oiled cart, working together to fulfill his demands and win the war. The king felt pride swell through him briefly, before a new voice cut through the cacophony.
"How generous of you, highness," sneered the man. Arthur spun and saw three battle-hardened, scared enemy soldiers, their blood hungry gazes fixed on him.
"But if we're going down," spat another man. "I think we'll take Camelot's king with us. Don'tcha think, Mal?" The first man- Mal- responded with a wicked grin as he brandished his sword.
"I think that suits me fine, Ty."
And then they charged. Arthur easily disarmed one of the three- the one whose name he didn't know- and killed him quickly. Instead of letting him fall, limp, to the floor, Arthur seized the man and shoved him at Ty, buying his a precious few seconds to block Mal's swinging blade. Using his foot, Arthur shoved Mal away. The large man stumbled back, tripping over a dead blood-stained corpse and landing on his rear. Before the king could finish him off, Ty charged and Arthur spun around to fight him.
Arthur learned quickly that while Mal and their unnamed comrade were common fighters, Ty was not. He swung with the precision and strength of an experienced knight and his form was certain and confident.
You will not defeat me, Arthur thought resolutely as their blades clashed. Breaking away, Arthur swung again, changing direction at the last second and striking the man on the leg. Blood flowed from the wound, and Ty cried out in pain, his leg giving out from underneath him. He was so preoccupied with defeating Ty, Arthur had forgotten about Mal.
"ARTHUR!" Screamed a familiar voice. Spinning, Arthur saw Merlin sprinting towards him, desperation written clearly on his face as he looked at something just over Arthur's shoulder. "DUCK!" Arthur didn't know what Merlin had seen, or why the man was out on the battlefield, but he didn't hesitate. He dropped to the ground in a flash, and faintly heard the sharp wiz of a sword passing through the air where his neck had been only seconds before. Mal.
From the ground, Arthur knew it was over. He'd avoided the sword, yes, but from the ground there was no way to fight. Mal would surely finish him before he could climb back to his feet, it was a given. The war would be won- but the price was going to be Arthur's life.
It was a price Arthur was willing to pay for the safety of his kingdom.
Apparently, fate had other plans. Right as Mal raised his blade, a flash of light filled Arthur's vision, and he heard the short cry from Mel as he was thrown to the ground hard. His head hit a stone with a sharp crack, and the king found himself looking into the blank, sightless eyes of a dead man. He'd been saved. Someone had defeated Mel for him- and they'd used magic.
Getting to his feet, Arthur spun around, looking for his rescuer and the illegal warrior. His blood froze when he saw Merlin, one hand outstretched, the gold just now fading from his eyes.
Merlin.
Merlin.
Merlin had magic. And he'd used it to save the king's life. Merlin. The manservant's eyes found Arthur's, and the king dully registered that they were filled with fear. Fear of what? Judgment? Death? By revealing himself, he very well might be subjected to both, Arthur knew that. The servant's mouth was moving, begging the king to understand, but Arthur heard none of it over the pounding of blood in his ears. Then the servant was shouting, yelling, the king was in danger, why wouldn't he listen, for the love of Camelot-
Arthur finally snapped out of it when the scrawny raven-haired man barreled into his side, shoving him roughly to the ground. The sting of his scraped skin on the rocky earth jolted the king from his daze- just in time to hear Merlin's scream of pain.
Jumping to his feet, Arthur saw Ty, his sword embedded in his best friend's side. Merlin stumbled back, his eyes wide and his pale hands clutching his side. Ty withdrew his sword with an ugly smirk on his face, and the manservant fell to his knees, a flower of red blooming across his worn tunic.
And in that moment, it didn't matter that Merlin was a sorcerer. It didn't matter he had magic; nothing matteredbecause this man had hurt him and now Arthur was going to make him pay.
With a cry of fury, Arthur grabbed his sword and attacked Ty. He was swift, furious, a warrior fighting as he never had before. By striking Merlin, Ty had sealed his own fate. In the face of the king's fury, the enemy knight didn't stand a chance. In a few swift moves, he'd joined his companions on the ground, glassy stares looking at nothing at all.
The king rushed back to his friend's side, panicking when he saw Merlin's eyes sliding shut.
"No, no, no, no!" The blonde cried, not caring when someone yelled that the battle had been won and every last enemy was fleeing. "HELP!" He screamed. "I NEED A PHYSICIAN!"
"Too late…" Merlin coughed, eyes opening again to look weakly at Arthur. "Nothing… you can…do…" He coughed again, blood splattering on Arthur's chainmail.
"I don't accept that," Arthur snapped, fury rising to hide his panic. "You have to live, Merlin, you aren't allowed to die!"
"Bloody prat," Merlin grinned weakly. "'M dying…. And… you're still ordering… me… around."
Arthur barely heard him. He grabbed a stray piece of cloth that littered the ground and pressed it to Merlin's wound, ignoring the man's hiss of pain.
"Ar…thur…" Merlin mumbled. "Stop…. Hurts…." His voice was growing weaker, and the king fought to battle the panic that threatened to overwhelm him.
"PHYSICIAN!" Arthur hollered again, and this time his desperation attracted some attention. Gwaine froze, horrified, and then turned tail and sprinted in the direction of the medical tent.
"Just hang on, Merlin, Gaius is on his way…" Arthur begged.
"'M sorry…" the servant all but whispered, coughing up more blood. "Should've… should've told you."
"Told me?" Arthur echoed, before realizing Merlin meant his magic. "For the love of Camelot, Merlin, not now!"
"You… you don't hate..."
"Hate you? No," Arthur chocked. "But you better bet I've got a lot of yelling to do at you later, so you have to survive, you hear me? That's an order, Merlin!"
Merlin smiled weakly, relief in his blue eyes. "Yes… sire," he mumbled. Then his eyes slipped shut and he took one last ragged breath before going limp in Arthur's arms.
"No," Arthur chocked. "NO!" Merlin didn't stir. Everything faded away. Some knight was by him, insisting it wasn't proper for the king to kneel in the mud, crying for a servant, but Arthur didn't care. Didn't even realize he was crying until the man had said so. The knights could do nothing but stand back, watching as their king cradled the lifeless man who had become his best friend, muttering "it should have been me" over and over. Watching as their king sobbed, cursing fate and the enemy and begging for the manservant to come back.
Watching as Arthur reached his breaking point and shattered.
Well, that's that. Prompts, please? Until next time!