A day late, but oh well. It was a holiday, so I procrastinated for a little bit, lol. Enjoy.
The arrival of Mordred soon spread throughout the city. Whenever he and the child went out, people would flock to get a look at him. None knew of his true origins except for he, Arthur, Lancelot, Morgana, Gwen, Ygraine, and Uther. They decided that the fewer people who knew, the safer he would be.
Often times, people mistook him for Merlin's sibling. The few stall owners who had come to know him had asked if they were related. After declaring that he and Mordred were not related in any way, the question soon died down as the information spread as well.
The talks were stalled at the moment, as the two people drew nearer to the completion of them. The council had asked for a few days to break as last minute issue were discussed and gone over. Uther, seeing this as a stalling tactic, agreed anyways since it would give him time to do so as well.
This meant that Merlin had some free time on his hands, though Arthur was not so lucky. Seeing the outer walls drawing nearer, he looked down at the smaller Druid. "Would you like to go exploring in the forest?"
His face was solemn as he thought it over before nodded. Lancelot, right behind them, just gave a tired sigh. Merlin couldn't help but smile, throwing a look back at him, eyebrow raised, as if saying, 'you wanted the job.'
The trees were alive with creatures going about their day, mostly ignoring the three Druids walking through the trees. Some were more interested, coming closer to look on curiously. A few sparrows swooped down to land on outstretched hands, peering up curiously at the large, magical beings.
Lancelot was distracted for few seconds by a robin that landed on his head and pecked him on the forehead. Those few seconds nearly cost them as the creature attacked, sword whistling through the air to land with a loud thud in the ground where they had been just a second before.
Lancelot was on it before it could even bring its sword back up, parrying a blow at his side and attacking. It was tall, dressed in dark armor, black cloth blending with its armor, the edges tattered and torn with age.
"Lancelot!" He yelled at the man. He thrust the thing back and drew away as it righted itself. Drawing up his magic, he put as much as was safe behind the push. His magic sailed out, grabbing the creature and lifting it off its feet. It flew through the trees, landing with a clatter and clang as it struck a tree.
When it started to struggle back up into a standing position, he knew it wasn't going to die that easily. "Move!" They took off, back through the trees, towards the city.
"What is it?" Lancelot panted out, keeping Mordred between him and Merlin.
"A wraith. Someone dead was raised and sent against us." He was panting, sweat dripping down his face as the thud of the wraiths footsteps drew nearer. "Which means it can't be killed by regular means."
An idea came to him as he remembered that piece of information. "Lancelot, can you keep it busy long enough for me to summon something to kill it?" He asked, breathing heavily.
"How long?"
"Five minutes at most." He replied, already drawing up his magic as they spoke.
"Fine, stay behind me. Mordred, climb that tree over there and don't come down until I say so." Lancelot ordered, slowing and spinning as he drew his sword.
Staying with Mordred, he helped him into the tree, already chanting the necessary words to summon the sword he would need. He'd used up a good chunk of magic to throw the wraith, but he would summon this thing if it was the last thing he ever did.
When a square of light appeared in front of him, he breathed a sigh of relief, shoving his hand through. Metal met skin as his fingers closed around the sword's hilt. As the sword cleared the window, the light blinked out and sucked more of his strength with it.
Sagging against the trees, he turned to look at the fight. A line of blood showed on his bodyguard's arm, but he seemed to be holding his own. "Lancelot, move!" The Druid shoved, stumbling away, barely avoiding its sword swing.
Drawing on the last of his magic, he used his most basic ability, moving the thing by will alone. It whistled as it flew through the air, landing with a dull crunch in the creature's chest before it exploded into clouds of dust and dead flesh.
By then, he was leaning against the tree, body limp from using so much magic. The sound of scraping and rustling, followed a few fluttering leaves and then Mordred was on the ground next to him.
Lancelot walked over, holding the cut on his arm, but appearing to be fine. "What is this?" He held up the sword.
"A gift to my mother…from my father. All she said to me was that it was tempered in dragon's fire and could kill anything live or dead. She said it was a legendary blade meant for a great destiny. It's call Excalibur."
He seemed to finally take in Merlin's prone form. "You over did it again, didn't you?" He asked. Merlin just smiled sheepishly up at him. Sighing, he slid the blade through his belt, next to his blade. Bending down, he and Mordred eventually got him to his feet.
The guards came running up to them as they trudged into view of the main gate set in the wall. One was sent to fetch Gaius as two came to help support the drained warlock. As they led the three into the guard station, another was sent to fetch Arthur.
Both the physician and the prince arrived within minutes of each other, looking worried and tousled from their run here. Gaius was soon directed to the wounded Druid and got to work, checking to make sure it wasn't serious.
Arthur made his way over to the other two, checking with sight for anything wrong. Merlin just looked tired and about ready to fall asleep. Mordred was hovering next to him on the bench, looking worried and anxious as his eyes flicked towards the other Druid constantly.
"What happened?" He asked, pulling up a stool to sit in front of him.
"We were walking through the forest, close to the wall and were attacked." He said softly, fighting back a yawn.
"Attacked by what exactly?"
"A wraith. Whoever is trying to kill me is powerful, to be able to raise one." Arthur could see it would be useless to try and get any more out of him. He was babbling a little and must be running on nothing but adrenalin at the moment.
Sighing, he stood. "Come on, let's get you to the castle and in bed before you fall over your own feet." He held out a hand and Merlin took it, letting Arthur pull him up and sling his arm over his shoulders.
"You don't have to." He mumbled, but Arthur ignored him, leading him out of the guard station and towards the castle. The people soon noticed their passage and a crowd was starting to form. Ignoring their questions of curiosity, he kept moving, the guards keeping the crowd back and giving them space to maneuver.
They soon got breathing room once they made it through the main gate of the castle, the guards there keeping them back. Uther and Ygraine were on the steps, waiting as he helped the failing Druid up the stone steps.
Once he got him to his room, he set the Druid on his bed and stripped him of his jacket, outer tunic, and boots before tucking him under the duvet. He was out before his head even hit the pillow, not even stirring as Mordred climbed onto the bed with him and sat with his back to the head board, watching over him as he slept.
"What happened?" Uther asked as he shut the door on the two Druids. Lancelot still stood in the hall, looking like he was also running on adrenalin.
"Lancelot, you can go get some rest. I'll have some guards posted you can sleep." The man bowed, but didn't budge.
"We were attacked, sire. By a wraith, or a body raise from the dead. Whoever it is that is trying to keep these talks from happening is powerful, or so Merlin has informed me."
"Were there any distinguishing markings on it?" Arthur asked, guessing it was human.
"I couldn't see its face, it was covered in full armor. It did have a crest on its shield, though much fade by time. It looked to be a raven, or a black dragon, it was hard to make out and I was too busy trying to keep it away from them to take much notice. I'm sorry, I can't be of any help. If you will excuse me." Uther nodded, dismissing the Druid. He shuffled down the hall, seeking his own bed.
"Father, we need to hurry up and finalize this treaty." He said softly, not wanting to wake Merlin. They started to head back the way they had come.
"I understand your concern for Merlin, Arthur, but we mustn't be too rash. The High Council is building up to something, which they say will finalize this thing and we mustn't rush headlong into it. For all we know, this was their doing to make us stumble."
Arthur sighed. "You might be right, but I hope they hurry up and say what it is. Because the next time something like this happens, I don't know how Merlin will fare."
Far to the east, in the city of Avlin, the Druid High Council has come to a unanimous decision. The treaty will survive, if Uther and the humans are willing to agree to their price. One that has been long in debate.