More Than A Servant

Chapter 15

Merlin had been out all night. After being overwhelmed with new information, Morgana has no chance of sleeping. So she got to spend the entire night awake, contemplating what she had just learned. She still can't believe that Morgouse betrayed her trust like that. However, the more Morgana thinks about it, the more it makes sense! She went out to the woods to visit her sister, they were talking and then everything went black. After that Morgana woke up in her bed. How could she not have seen it? And why didn't Morgouse tell her? They were sisters! Morgouse was the only one the Morgana thought she could trust fully. Turns out she betrayed her as well...

That also means that Merlin truly didn't want to betray her. He literally had no choice but to poison her to save Camelot. That doesn't make him innocent, but he wasn't as heartless as she previously thought he was. She still can't understand why he didn't tell her about his magic though. There was a time when she trusted him completely. In fact, he was the only one she trusted. Didn't he know that he could trust her back? If he had been open with her, maybe she wouldn't have turned to Morgouse in the first place.

Finally, Merlin begins to stir. He starts gaining consciousness slowly, too slowly. His head feels heavy, and his sight is blurry at first. His arms are also heavy. He tries to lift them, but he can't. He lifts his head and starts to look around. He looks around the room not quite comprehending what he's seeing. He can hear some mumbling sound in the distance.

"Merlin... Merlin! For crying out loud, what is going on?" Morgana practically yells.

He still won't focus. He doesn't even look like he hears her. She turns to the table and sees that there's a cup of water. She cringes a bit at what she's about to do, and then splashes the water in his face.
That snaps him out of it.

He fog clouding Merlin's mind finally clears. However, he's also sputtering having just been brought to awareness by being splashed with water. His eyes finally find Morgana. He's surprised to see that she looks genuinely concerned.

"Was that really necessary?" He asks.

"I don't know! You wouldn't wake up! At least not fully. By the way, what is going on?"

"With what?"

"With you. Why did you pass out yesterday? And why couldn't you wake up?"

Merlin is caught off guard by her concern, but he decides to try and give an answer anyways.
"I'm not entirely sure, but it may be the handcuffs."

"Why would the handcuffs make you pass out?"

"Well... they block my magic. I'm used to having my magic flow through me all the time. Maybe that's having an effect."

"That's strange... I hadn't heard of that happening before."

She walks over to her huge pile of books. Merlin suspects he already knows why the handcuffs are having such a huge effect on him. He's never heard of another sorcerer born with magic; it's part of him. Also, apparently he's the most powerful sorcerer ever to walk to earth. That could also have an effect.

Morgana returns and sits at the table. She opens the book and focuses on flipping through the pages. Merlin assumes she's looking for information on the handcuffs. He doesn't really know why it's such a big deal. Why should she care?

Morgana is interrupted by a knock on the door.

"What the..." she starts, confused.

"Who's that?"

"I'm sure that is none of your business." She gets up and exits the hovel.

"Agravane." He looks out of breath. "This is a surprise. Aren't you supposed to be in Camelot?"

"Running Camelot, actually."

"Oh? I assume you have some news."

"Yes. Arthur is out with a large patrol looking for the servant."

"Merlin. Yes I'm aware."

Agravane is momentarily taken aback by her correcting him. But he continues.

"They're getting close, My Lady. They're searching within a few miles from here."

"Well..." she ponders, "I guess you will have to find a way to lead them in another direction. As you can imagine leaving right now would not be very convenient."

"Yes, My Lady. I just wanted to inform you in case they get near here."

"Thank you Agravane, but remember they would have to know what they're looking for. It's very hard to find this place otherwise."

"Of course." He pauses, considering whether or not to continue. She looks at him, seeing his pondering.

"Spit it out Agravane."

"I assume the boy is still alive."

"Yes. Why?"

"Well, I mean no disrespect, but this seems like a lot of trouble over a mere serving boy. Camelot is currently weak-"

"I know what I'm doing Agravane. And I certainly don't need council from you."

"May I ask what use he has been?"

"Information. Trust me Agravane. I'm sure that what I am learning will prove very useful."

"Yes, My Lady. I have to be going back to Camelot. I will do what I can to get the knights off your trail."

"Be sure that you do."

Agravane leaves to go back to his horse as Morgana goes back inside of her hovel. She still has research to do and would prefer to get it done without any more interruptions. She sits down at the table, and focuses on finding information on those handcuffs.

Unbeknownst to both her a Agravane, Guinevere managed to follow Agravane all the way to Morgana's hovel. She was nearly caught once or twice, but she stayed hidden. Plus, some tracking she learning from Arthur came in handy.

She was hiding in some nearby brush during Agravane and Morgana's entire conversation. She couldn't hear well but she got what she needed to know. Agravane is in league with Morgana, and Morgana's hovel is here. Gwen slowly and quietly moves closer toward the hovel to see if she can look through one of the windows. She's just praying that Morgana is busy, and that Merlin is still alive.

She reaches the hovel and discretely looks through the window. Fortunately, Morgana is sitting at a table reading something with her back mostly facing Guinevere. Then she sees Merlin. He's alive! And, from what she can tell, he looks unharmed. He's wearing handcuffs and is tied to a chair, but he looks fine. He seems to be looking over Morgana's shoulder at whatever she's looking at. Well whatever is happening, he's okay. That's what matters.

Gwen contemplates trying to get his attention, but decides against it. If Morgana catches her she'll be dead in a minute. Gwen quietly backs away and goes back into hiding. She knows she can't just break in on her own... she needs help. If Gwen is right, Arthur should be only a couple miles from here. So she sets off to go find Arthur.