Merlyn's Only Hope

To Kill the King P1

"Faeren aet glyden, ic bugean peos."

Merlyn awoke to the feeling powereful magic, the words weaving through her head, echoing in the very fabric of the earth. She ran to her window, but saw nothing other than Arthur leading a troop of knights into the darkness, his blonde hair ruffled, probably from being woken so late at night. As quietly as she could, Merlyn snuck out of her chambers, following the small patrol into the lower town.

She felt another tug from the magic, but ignored it, focusing on evading the prowling knights. The witch caught up with the group as they neared an old barn, a dim fire glowing from inside, almost like a forge. Without warning, the knights burst in, allowing her to sneak a little closer to the building without fear of capture. She moved quickly, just in time to see hooded man barrage through the back of the barn, disappearing down a secluded street, chased by a few armed guards. She could hear them shouting, but her attention was soon caught by something in the corner of her eye. Peeking around the door to the barn, she was astonished to see Tom, the blacksmith and Gwen's father, being apprehended by two knights, a small clump of gold held tightly in his hand.

"You're under arrest." she heard Arthur mutter, leaving the building with his new prisoner in tow. Merlyn concealed herself behind a barrel, waiting for the area to be cleared before rushing to her friend's home. Someone needed to tell Gwen what had just transpired, and she sure as hell wouldn't let her worry all night. Judging by the mass of gold Tom had held, whatever deal he'd had with the shadowy figure hadn't exactly followed Camelot's laws.

∆

"Couldn't sleep?" Gaius asked when Merlyn returned to her chambers. Gwen had cried herself into a fretful slumber, her suffering too great for her to remain in reality. Merlyn had promised that she'd return in the morning, but the pull of magic was still puzzling her.

"Something woke me." she mumbled, a little confused.

"What was it?" Gaius turned away from his book, smiling politely at his ward.

She shivered unconsciously. "I don't know, a feeling. Like powerful magic was being used here. In Camelot."

∆

"Treason?" Morgana's eyes widened. Merlyn had convinced Gwen to see the king's ward in the hope that she could do something to sway Uther. They held little hope, but, then again, they hardly had an array of options.

Gwen nodded. "They say that he was making weapons for a powerful sorcerer." she bit her lip, tears winking in her eyes. Merlyn wrapped an arm comfortingly around her, giving Morgana an encouraging smile. The ward looked angry, a towering pillar of justice, so very beautiful with her blazing eyes. And best of all, she had absolutely no qualms with arguing against the king.

"I'll see what I can do."

∆

Arthur hadn't been particularly surprised when Merlyn's wake up call had consisted of savagely drawing the curtains, throwing an apple at him along with some clothes, before hastily running out of the door, shouting something, which he presumed to be 'Gwen', over her shoulder. He should really have her sacked for such terrible behaviour, but he hardly wanted to get stuck with another bootlicker.

Arthur sighed, munching on his apple, awaiting his summons. Maybe ten minutes later, a messenger arrived to tell him that Morgana requested his presence in the throne room alongside his father. They were getting slow. It didn't take a genius to realise that this was about Gwen's father; if he were honest, he thought that the charge treason was a bit extreme, especially considering that no weapons had been found on the scene. But with the recent famine, his father had become overly weary of magical attacks. Well, more so.