The Fall
Chapter 2
~Fran Gipani
Disclaimer- Flowers sadly cannot make claims to a TV show :(
Author's Note- Ok, even more wow! 50 followers?! I hope you are all liking it :) And to all the Anon reviewers thank you for your support I am glad you like it! Thank you to all of you who followed, faved and/or reviewed! I am so glad you loved it! Enjoy and review at will :)
~Fran xx
As Arthur ran along the edge of the cliff he kept an eye out for the way down; the cliff edge was uneven but Arthur knew that there had to be a way down. He almost toppled over the side more than once and righted himself by stopping and scolding himself in his panic. He was taking it slower over a particularly rough bit when he spotted a flash of red amongst the white wash out of the corner of his eye. "Merlin…" He muttered, as he tried to get a better look; well you can't find out much from up here. He told himself so he looked along the cliff line and a couple of meters along he could see what looked like a way down to a small sandy alcove.
"Perfect!" He cried out in triumph and made his way down; every so often even the sure footed prince would stumble and loose his balance. At the last half meter he jumped down onto the sand and looked back up stream towards the small waterfall. After a few moments of straining is muscles and reaching out over to the neckerchief he managed to detangle it from the branch, not without getting completely soaked though. Finally he sank panting onto the sand examining the red and slightly torn neckerchief.
The thin tattered material seemed to be soaked in place by sticky dark blood and it seemed stretched as if something had pulled at it. He knew he needed to get going again but Merlin was more important so in one last attempt to make his life easier Arthur stood up, took off his chainmail and cloak before finding a hole in the rock lining the back of the alcove and putting them in there. He needed to be able to run quicker and if he fell in Arthur knew he would need to be able to float.
With a deep breath Arthur began to run down river again, slowly the sandy bank began to thin and eventually Arthur had to grip onto the rock to keep himself from falling into the water. His eyes widened in panic as his foot slipped and he tumbled into the fast moving water. The initial cold of the water shocked him but moments later a familiar material brushed against his hand and he grabbed onto it before it could slip through his fingers. He clawed his way up to where the material was latched onto something in the water so finally his head was above water so he could take a few deep and calming breaths.
It was now, and only now that he could work out that the material he was griping onto for dear life was Merlin's jacket. But then where is Merlin? He thought before he saw another sandy bank; he gave it a moment's thought before giving the jacket a tug so it pulled free. Instantly be was buffeted about by the water but after a few strong strokes he got to the bank and collapsed panting onto the sand.
It was as he pushed his sodden fringe from his eyes that he noticed the dark shape on the end of the beach. Ignoring the ache in his legs he jogged down the sand towards the figure sprawled in the sand. As he got closer he saw the unmistakable mop of jet black hair and deathly pale skin. "Merlin!" He called out but there was no response. He knelt by his friend's battered body with a pained expression on his face, "This is all my fault Merlin, I am so sorry my friend." Arthur carefully rolled over Merlin's body so he was facing up towards the sky; Arthur was shocked at the deep gash in Merlin's head that was surrounded by dark bruising. There were also bruises on his arms and the skin on the right wrist was torn open and seeping blood.
"Merlin!" Arthur put his head to Merlin's chest to hear a faintly beating heart and breathed a sigh of relief. He tried remove the water from Merlin's lungs by pressing on his chest but only a little trickled out of his mouth. "Merlin come on!" Arthur cried out in distress, "Wake up! Please…" He put his head to his friend's chest again but this time there was little no heart beat and the rise and fall of his chest was only just there.
"MERLIN!" Arthur yelled, "Merlin," he presses his clenched fists against his friend's chest and released, "Merlin!" He cried out as he pressed again but harder, "Merlin!" He thumped his fist into the sand in a fit of anger and denial. He pressed his ear to Merlin's damp chest again to find no heart beat.
"MERLIN!" He yelled, "NO!" Tears stung at Arthur's eyes as he crouched by his friends unmoving body.
"Please…"