Sorry if everyone is a little OOC here. Shitty day. Grumpy dad. Clingy sister. 'Nuff said. IDOM, if I did, Merlin would have revealed his magic at the end of season 4. I am posting early because I won't have wifi until Tuesday after today...
Morgana is ninteen at this point for this fic and Merlin is sixteen and a half in this chapter.
Mersan123 gets a virtual tape with Nuclear Research for finding 'Snake' Plitsky- the main character from 'Escape from New York'. Movie points to the rest of you that got it but didn't say it. I have part of a Johny Cash song hidden in here this time but it's pretty hard to spot, so happy hunting!
Please continue to follow/favorite/review, you guys rock!
Enjoy my picking on Uther, Arthur, and Morgana!
Morgana sat in her bed, think about the last few days. Six and a half days ago, Merlin and his new captain rode out for Tarra. Arthur had been furious, especially because Merlin had slapped him before he left. Or according to the prat, "Turned tail like a frightened little girl."
Five days ago, she had received flowers from a mystery man. Gwen had asked who she wanted them to be from, and her mind screamed Merlin! She didn't want to give away her girly crush, so she had told her maid a "tall, dark Stranger" to be vague. She went to bed that night like any other night, but she didn't wake up in the morning. Arthur had sent a rider to bring Merlin immediately the following day.
Two days ago, she woke up once more. Uther told her that a man named Edwin saved her and the a rider had been sent to summon Merlin back to Camelot. The robed man had been staying in the castle ever since.
The last few days had been really tense in the castle. The King was mad that Gaius hadn't diagnosed Morgana correctly. And something was off about that Muirden man, but for the life of her, Morgana couldn't figure out what. The way he looked at the King, or maybe the sneers he always sent at Gaius. It was something, but what?
There was a knock at her door. A knock that she had come to know as Merlin.
"Come in," she called. The young raven stepped into his room. She was three years his senior, but she honestly saw him as the same age as her. His hair was sticking up in all directions, and he had bags under his beautiful blue eyes. He had ridden hard, probably through the night, all to get to her. The thought melted Morgana's heart.
"My Lady. How are you fairing?"
She smiled tentatively at him. "Like I have been to the gates of Hell and back, but I will recover. Thank you for coming back so soon; I am sorry to have cut your trip to Tarra short."
"Morgana, it was nothing. You are a great friend of mine- I would do a lot more than a fast ride to help someone close to me." That made Morgana's soul glow. He thought them were close, one step closer to courting than just friends. She smiled at him and was about to say more when Quintus barged into her chambers.
"Merlin, you have to come quick! The King is forcing Gaius to retire," he panted.
"WHAT?!" Merlin roared. Both men dashed out of the room, leaving Morgana to her fantasies and naps.
Merlin stormed down the halls, ready to give Uther a piece of his mind. That king was a damn fool for getting rid of Gaius. The raven had seen Muirden for all of ten seconds and already knew he was bad news. Was the king really that stupid? Or was he just blind when it come to his 'children'?
Servants threw themselves out of the way, not wanting to get trampled by the storming Lord of Tarra. They knew him well enough to know when it's time to move it. But Merlin was blind to it all, the only thought in his mind was to save his uncle who had become his father figure. The man meant a great deal to Merlin, and no arrogant king was going to stand in the way of truth and justice. It went against the Code to not help Gaius.
He threw open the doors with a loud BANG. Quintus scurried in behind him and went to stand by the old man. Everyone there could see Merlin's murderous gaze, which had settled on the King.
"Uther! What is the meaning of this?!" he boomed. This was no time for titles, and Merlin was really, really, pissed off.
"Merlin, calm down," Arthur tried to say, but Merlin shrugged him off.
"Merlin," the king stated. "You haven't been here for the last six days, so I'll explain the situation. Morgana got sick, as you know. Gaius tried to treat her, but he got the diagnosis wrong. A man came claiming the he could save her, and he did. I asked Edwin to then go over Gaius' work. He found was riddled with mistakes, so I decided it was time for Gaius to retire."
"Do you even know anything about Edwin? No! You don't. He could have given her the illness. He might have saved her using magic, the thing you so despise. For you know, he could go and kill you! He could be faking all of this just to get Gaius out of the picture. Use you head for once in your life, Uther Pendragon!" Merlin yelled.
Uther's face went as red as a tomato. The raven knew he had crossed the line by calling Uther stupid, but he just couldn't bring himself to care. Every time he turns around, there's some new threat to Camelot or to his friends or to Tarra. And he was SICK OF IT!
"YOU WILL NOT TALK TO ME LIKE THAT! GUARDS! Restrain Lord Merlin to the dungeons until I say to release him. No one is to speak to him unless I say so. Everyone else, OUT! Even you, Arthur," Uther raged. The guards came forward and grabbed Merlin roughly.
He gave the King one last dirty look and shouted, "Don't say I didn't warn you!" The doors slammed shut and the King remembered the promise he had made to himself. A promise to do right by his best friend's son. A promise he had just broke. The king collapsed deeper into his throne and let out sigh. What had he just done?!
Merlin was thrown carelessly into cell. He banged against the rusted bars, several times. The rage pent up in him festered like a rash. He spent the next three or so hours pacing the tiny cell. He trampled the dirty hay gracing the floor to a fine dust. How thick could Uther be?! Honestly, he should know better than to trust a stranger that much. With all the problems Camelot had with vengeful sorcerors, you would think that Uther had learned his lesson by now. Apparently not.
About three hours later, Merlin was sitting on the ground, leaning against the damp walls. He had his eyes closed, giving the pretense that he was napping. In reality, he was trying to think of a way to escape the damn dungeons and save the king. Again. The raven cracked open one eye to find Arthur sitting opposite of him, studying the teen while he 'slept'.
"What are you doing here?" he asked tiredly. Arthur snorted and shifted closer to the cell.
"Should've know you wouldn't really be asleep. You went a bit far this time. I get that you are attached to Gaius, but it's time for the old man to retire."
Merlin shuffled against the wall into a more upright position. "You know I'm right though. You know that Muirden means bad news."
"Be that as it may, you should have gone off the hook like that. I get what you're trying to do, but you went too far by calling my father an idiot."
Merlin glared at the prince. "And was I supposed to do? Hm?! Sit by and let Gaius be discredited and tossed aside like old food?! I'm sorry Arthur, but I wasn't about to turn a blind eye!" he yelled.
"I get it, okay? I get it! Gaius is important to me too. It hurt to see him cast aside, but you went too far this time."
Merlin snorted. "You had better leave before the King catches you down here."
"Fine!" growled Arthur before standing and stalking off. Merlin rolled his eyes. If he could clear Gaius normally, he'd just have to do it magically. After all, he was Emrys the most powerful warlock to ever walk the Earth. Or so he was told, Merlin didn't know if he was strong enough to actually be Emrys.
The raven hunkered down against the stone wall, donning once more the pretense of sleep. He started the process of splitting his soul. The dragon had explained it to him months ago. Basically, he pulled the magical part of his soul from the mundane a casted it into the material world. Due to his oath, it took the form of a glowy knight, and not so weird circle-light-thingy.
By the time it was completed, the sun had sunk beneath the clouds and the moon had risen once more. At least Merlin would have the cover of darkness to help shroud his presence from unwanted eyes. He stepped out of his body and melted through the walls. First things first, Merlin had a certain prat to find.
Gaius snatched one of the torches from the bin a headed down to the dragon's cave. It was damp and musty and smelled like wet sheep.
"Gaius. What do you want, old man," the dragon rumbled
"I have come for help."
"Mmm, yes. I know that. Twenty years, almost a lifetime to make the short journey back to where you began."
"I have not come for me."
The dragon growled. "Sir Merlin. You have come to ask me a question about my knight, haven't you," he said. It wasn't a question.
"So he is the last Knight of Old."
"Oh yes. There have been quite a few prophecies about him. He will untie Albion alongside the young Pendragon. And he will bring back the Old Knights and magic to the land."
"Is that time now? Is it time for Arthur to take the throne?"
The dragon chuckled darkly. "That is of your choosing."
"I will not choose between my nephew and my king!"
"Then turn a blind eye," the beast sneered. "After all, that is your specialty."
Turned out Merlin did have to find the prince. The warning bells went off and Merlin found Arthur making his way to his father's chambers. The teen guessed this would happen, if fact he even warned Uther about it. Those damn royals had some thick skulls.
Merlin went ahead of Arthur, but saw that Edwin had already fled. From what he gathered, Uther had the same 'illness' as Morgana, so he knew he could go after Edwin first. He melted back through one of the walls and headed for the guest chambers that Muirden was using before Arthur could discover him.
What he saw there made his magic boil. He watched as Edwin flung Gaius into a pillar on the left side of the room. He started a fire around the old man and started to gloat. What is it with sorcerers and gloating?!
"Seems you have forgotten everything Gaius, but don't worry, I have a remedy to cure all ills," he crooned.
"What do you think you are doing?" Merlin boomed. Edwin turned around with the dark sneer still plastered on his webbed face. It paled quite a bit when he saw the knight in front of his was radiating light and power.
"What do you want?" he demanded. Merlin smirked under his visor at the fool who still played at being powerful. He had no idea what real power was.
"I am the last Knight of Old, and you stand in the way of the Code. Who are you to do so? Just a lost little boy playing at revenge. A revenge that you will not receive."
"Oh, and you're one to stop a powerful sorcerer like me. Do you even have any magic? Hmm?"
"I have more power than your wildest dreams," Merlin stated darkly. He looked to the left and saw Gaius still trapped in the burnin' ring of fire. With a flash of his hidden eyes, the flame dissipated, leaving a very scared, very worn physician. Edwin sucked in a breath.
"So you do have magic. No matter, I shall kill you all the same." Edwin sent an ax flying at the knight, not even realizing that it would probably sail right through the translucent figure. Merlin halted its progress with a flash of his eyes.
"Swilte, Knight," Edwin growled. Merlin's power was far greater than the scarred man, and he sent the weapon hurtling back at him. Edwin slumped to the ground, an ax striking out of his chest.
Merlin turned to Gaius. "How do I stop the illness?"
"It is caused by Elanthia beetles. Merlin, you must use your instinctual magic to cure the king. And quickly!" The raven nodded before melting into the shadows, only to emerge in the King's chambers. Arthur was there. Great.
"Who the hell are you?!" the prince shouted.
"Shut up blondy, I'm trying to save your king here." Arthur looked like he had been smacked with a slimy fish, but he did shut up. He watched the knight saunter over to his father an mumble something. He didn't realize at first, but this man was doing magic. Magic, on his father. When he was finished, Uther relaxed in his sleep.
The other man turned to face Arthur. "Don't believe everything your father tells you. The Knights of Old are still around and one of them just saved your father's life. Keep an open mind on your shoulders. Until next time we save your royal asses." He gave the prince a fake salute before melting back into the shadows. It all happened too fast for Arthur to do anything.
Merlin was let out of the cells the next morning. He was still a little mad at Uther, but the feeling would pass in time. Hopefully that fool of a king would figure out that Merlin was loyal to Camelot and only Camelot. A teen can hope, right?
Gaius was cleared of all the tainted reports Edwin had made. Merlin still didn't know how to feel about the whole situation, but he was sure he would figure it out. He was reinstated as the Court Physician and was made a free man, much to his surprise.
Uther was, well- Uther was Uther. The arrogant prat didn't even understand the situation and just went all "Magic! EEVVIILL!" when he heard that Edwin was a sorcerer. Typical.
Morgana still lived in her little fairy tale where she would become Lady of Tarra someday. And Merlin still didn't really know how he felt about that, but what ever. Morgana wa a nice woman, maybe someday. When he was older, like A LOT older.
Arthur was still freaked out about the encounter with the Old Knight. He may hide it well, but Merlin could see it. And Arthur calls him a girl.
And Edwin. What can be said about Edwin? He was dead.
Alternate Title: Where the Royals of Camelot are Royally Screwed-Up
I fell into a Burnin' Ring of Fire...
No? Is that just me? Ok then- maybe that's just the voices in my head! I've been wanting to work in a yelling match between Merlin and Utter... Go Royal Bashing!
Until next time, stay HARD CORE my Faithful Readers.