"Come along, Rowan…errrr…I mean Merlin," Gaius said. "And are you sure you drank all of that potion?"
"Yes," Merlin replied. "All of it." Gaius had quickly grabbed one of his concoctions before they left, hoping it would break the spell.
"Well, it should have worked by now."
"Doesn't matter…at least we know the truth," Arthur said. Before they left, Gaius had found Rowan's letter in Merlin's pocket, explaining the boy's full plan in detail. Once Rowan was dead, his body would turn back into his own, hopefully acquitting Merlin of any crime.
"This Rowan isn't very bright," Arthur muttered. "Why not save us all the trouble and just admit it was him from the start if he wanted to act like such a hero. He had to go and make it complicated."
"You must remember that he wasn't exactly sure how this would all turn out, according to his letter."
"He's a Druid…can't he…see into the future, or something like that?"
"It doesn't quite work that way," Gaius explained as they descended another stairwell. "People like Rowan see only bits and pieces. It's complicated. For him, this was the only way."
"I still don't understand why he would be so concerned for Merlin."
Gaius hesitated. "Apparently the two were closer than I thought."
"It still doesn't quite add up…if we save this boy, he has a lot of explaining to do."
The three were walking briskly toward the courtyard, with Arthur leading the way. Merlin dawdled behind.
"Sire, do you have some sort of plan?"
"Not…at the moment," Arthur murmured. He led them through a back entrance, hoping to avoid any encounters with guards. They could hear Uther's muffled voice in the distance.
"I just hope we won't be too late," Gaius said in a worried tone.
They reached the courtyard and pushed through the crowd of spectators. Up ahead the disguised Rowan was tied to the stake as Uther announced his crime. Arthur looked frantically around him. He was stumped.
"Sire, they're lighting the pyre."
"I know," Arthur said through gritted teeth. "The only solution is ordering the execution to be stopped…but I don't exactly have any legitimate proof now, do I?"
"The letter," Gaius said, waving it in front of Arthur. "It's our only chance. The guards will listen to you if you order them to stop."
Arthur nodded, his mouth set in a firm line. "Give me the letter."
As soon as Gaius had transferred the letter over to Arthur, a frantic shriek pierced through the air. The crowd murmured and turned to look for the source.
"What the—" Arthur's eyes widened when he saw who had disrupted the execution. "Morgana?"
The crowd, as well as Arthur and Gaius, stood transfixed as a disheveled Morgana called out her threats to Uther, who simply stood and stared at her, the indifference showing clearly on his face. Not surprisingly, he returned back inside, ignoring Morgana's frantic cries.
"What is she…doing?" Arthur looked confused as he watched Morgana raise her hands. "She's not…no." The young prince was still in disbelief, even when Morgana began repeating enchantments over and over again. Gaius remained silent, his brow furrowed. The spell was apparently not working, but only exasperating the flames, which rose higher and higher.
"She doesn't know what she's doing…surely Gaius?!" Arthur turned to the physician, who merely shook his head. Morgana sank to the ground, holding her head and screaming. The crowd gasped as the windows began shattering all around them, spraying them with razor-edged shards.
Then in the blink of an eye, Morgana was gone.
The crowd murmured and panicked. They turned to look to Uther, but he hadn't reappeared. Meanwhile, the flames continued to snap and roar furiously.
"We failed him," Gaius whispered as he gazed at the pyre.
"I…don't…understand." Arthur murmured as he paced back and forth. "She's been using magic…all this time?"
"Now is not the time or place to discuss these matters, Sire," Gaius advised. "You need to go to your father. I'm sure he knows the truth by now. And where's Merlin? He should be changing back into his old self."
But Merlin wasn't there.
Later that night, after all of the commotion had died down, Gaius returned to his home…still with no Merlin or any sign of him. To add to the mystery, once the pyre's flames had died away, no body had been found at the stake. The people of Camelot were entirely unsettled now. Uther was in shock and wouldn't speak to anyone, not even to Arthur or Gaius.
"Pssssstt! Gaius!"
Gaius whirled around, and to his utter amazement, saw two people he feared he would never see again.
Merlin and Rowan.
Well, it's been a little while. You know the usual story from me. Writer's block, etc. This time it was a severe case of writer's block mixed with other crazy things going on in my life that made me feel like never writing again. But thankfully, I'm back. This isn't my greatest chapter or accomplishment to be honest, but hey, it's a new chapter. Yay! Thank you for all of your encouraging comments on my last chapter. I have awesome readers. :)