AN: Merlin's POV. Sorry, I forgot last time.
"Are you alright, Primrose?" I asked, stepping over a branch.
Primrose had been quiet all morning. After a rather awkward breakfast in silence, she told us we were heading out and that was all she had said since. Literally she hadn't said a word. I was worried it might be my fault, because of the conversation we had. Surely remembering the deaths of both her parents couldn't had been an easy thing. Plus, there was...something else. In her tone, in her eyes, in the movements of her body, like she wasn't telling me nearly the whole story. And I, knowing what that's like, was worried I might have pushed her too hard.
Primrose turned around, like she was noticing we were there for the first time. "Yeah, I'm find." She said, then turned back around, "Why wouldn't I be?"
"It's just you've barely said two words all morning." I explained.
"I'm just really focused on this part of the trail, that's all," She replied, "It's a kind of rough to walk through here."
She wasn't wrong. This part of the forest obviously had been treaded on by very few, if any, humans before this, and was covered in fallen branches, rocks, and thick underbrush, and on top of that, there a few small, if rather steep hill areas.
Deciding she's likely telling the truth, I didn't say anything else, just pushed on through and tried not trip on any of the aforementioned underbrush, focusing on the back of Primrose's head. Her raven-colored hair was tied loosely, descending like a dark waterfall, covering her slender neck. She looked back at us for second, making sure we were still with her, her very blue eyes looking at each of us once, then turned back around.
"Why would such a pretty girl want to hide herself away in the woods?" I wondered, "Why would I think about that?"
Just then Primrose raised a finger, saying, barely above a whisper, "Stop."
Both me and Arthur stopped in our tracks. "What?!" Arthur snapped.
I turned my eyes upward and I immediately knew why she had us stop.
On the three of either side of us was some sort of pale hive, buzzing with what looked like some kind of wasps. They didn't look like normal wasps though, they're much larger and are a solid golden yellow color. One look at them and I knew we were in trouble.
"Tracker Jackers," Primrose said, "Mutant wasps. Their stings are deadly. If they don't kill you they cause hallucinations and just plain hurt like hell. Obviously no sudden movements. "
We didn't have to be told twice. Neither me nor Arthur moved an inch. We barely breathed.
"Do what I say and I think we can get out of this," Primrose said, "Just back up slowly. Very slowly. Small footsteps and don't make a sound."
We did what as we were told making small, quiet footsteps. We were far enough away that I actually thought we might make it out unscathed when my feet hit something on the ground. Suddenly there was a swarm of Tracker Jackers around me. I swat at them, but all that managed to do is get my palms stung. Primrose was right. The stings were excruciating. Suddenly, someone came out of nowhere and grabbed me, pulling me out of the swarm. But the swarm just spread out and followed us as we ran. We ran for miles, but they were still on our trail. "I have an idea!" Primrose shouted, "You see that river over there?!"
I looked over and saw that there was a large river. "Yes!" I shouted over the buzzing on the Tracker Jackers.
"On three we all jump in." She said calmly.
"What?!" I shouted. That river was raging, we would be killed if we jumped in there.
"You heard me," Primrose said..
"Have you lost your mind?!" Arthur exclaimed, "No way we can survive that!"
"It's possibly drown, or definitely get stung to death," Primrose snapped "Your call."
I picked for the both of us. "On three then?" I asked.
"On three," Primrose confirmed again, "One, two three!"
On that we jumped. For a few seconds we were in mid air, and then we plummeted, and felt like it would never stop, and then we hit the water. For a second I was in shock, but then the waves took me under and I was brought back to reality and started to swim. For whatever reason the Trackers Jackers didn't follow us into the river, so all I had to worry about are the rocks and the crashing waves in the turbulent water. I don't know how but somehow I made it to the river bank. A few seconds after I could see Primrose coming into view dragging something behind her I couldn't see. Whatever is was she was struggling with it, threatening to pull her down. Without thinking I jumped in and swam over to her. That was when I realized she was dragging Arthur, who had sunk under the weight of his chain mail. I took the arm she hadn't got and together, somehow made it back over to the riverbank and threw him down on the ground. Primrose took the gauntlet off of his right hand and felt his wrist. "He's got a pulse," She said "And he's breathing, he's just unconscious."
I reached and started shaking him and called out his name, but nothing seemed to happen. Then Primrose slapped him hard, and his eyes fluttered open and he started coughing as we helped him sit up. "Are you alright?" I asked.
"I think so," He answered, "How 'bout you?"
"Prim was right," I said, "Stings hurt like hell. At least there's no hallucinations though..." Just then everything starts to swirl, and I start feeling woozy.
"Merlin?" Arthur asked, "What's wrong?"
I tried to respond but I couldn't get my mouth to move. Then suddenly I noticed there bright pink follows an the river bank that weren't there before.
"It's the poison," I heard Primrose said.
That's the last time I remember before passing out.