Enemies Within - Merlyn [3]

Chapter Twenty-Four: Till Next Time Handsome

Arthur should have known it was Gwaine who came to help him on the field. No one fought like the man did. His skill was undeniable. Arthur only wished his father would let such skill join the Knights of Camelot – so far Arthur had met two people who were extraordinary swordsmen who could not join his army simply for they were not born into noble families, they had the noblest of hearts but it meant nothing to the current king. Instead of bringing the skilled swordsman into their ranks, Arthur was trying to figure out a way to get Gwaine off the hook for not heeding the banishment Uther had sentenced him.

As Arthur's mind raced to come up with a solution, he was swiftly following his father into the physician's tent that had been put up. Many knights had been hurt but the crowd had seen Sir Oswald and Sir Ethan get stabbed in the abdomen by a blade that should have been blunt. There was unanswered questions and a furious king.

Uther swept into the tent, around Gaius and the two knights who, by some miracle, were the only two to have fallen in the melee. Arthur followed behind clutching at his arm, that was heavily aching and bleeding in places.

"Is there nothing you can do for them?" Uther urgently asked, showing more care and concern for the two knights on the floor than his son who stood next to him bleeding. Though Arthur smothered a sigh and rolling of his eyes, he knew his father was not concerned about the knights but the places they had come from – would these other kingdoms attack them for letting their knights die?

"I'm sorry, it's too late for them" Gaius informed the king from his place on the ground. Arthur grimaced at the knowledge that they would not be able to prove who Oswald and Ethan actually were.

"The prisoner is responsible for their deaths. I want him executed immediately" Uther unsurprisingly ordered to Arthur who failed to come up with any excuse to halt such an order. Gwaine didn't deserve to be executed for saving Arthur's life. Thankfully, Gaius knew just what to do.

"You might want to wait before you pass judgement" Gaius interceded catching both royals' attention. The two Pendragons watched as Gaius reached beneath the armour of the dead knights and pulled free a necklace from each of them. "I fear that Sir Ethan and Sir Oswald were not all that they seemed." The chains had a Crystal on each. Uther frowned heavily whilst Gaius proceeded to remove the helmets of Sir Oswald and Sir Ethan. Arthur scoffed in disbelief as he saw the two thugs' faces revealed. He immediately made the connection to Dagr and Ebor. It was unmistakably them – after all Arthur distinctly remembered punching Dagr in the face ... and being punched in return.

"Sorcery" Uther gasped at the sight. It took everything in Arthur to hold back the eye roll and sarcastic words that threatened to form in his tongue. Instead the prince knelt down beside the bodies and truly looked at the men. All of this just to get revenge.

"And once again, I owe Gwaine my life" he said lifting his gaze back to his father with a challenging look. There was no way that Uther could sentence Gwaine to death for saving his heir and son, could he?

~8~

Merlyn stood with Gwaine outside the Council chambers where Arthur was speaking to the King. Merlyn hoped Arthur could change the king's sentence or at least stop him from executing Gwaine but Merlyn did not hold out much hope. Uther was a tyrant after all and would certainly not like the fact that he was proven wrong. Gwaine was slowly walking back and forth whilst Merlyn stood resting against the wall of the corridor. She saw the man grimace as he moved his arm around, an injury he had gotten from the melee. Merlyn wished she could fix his injury but she was not exactly a healer and she would have no way of explaining to Gwaine how he miraculous recovered by her touch alone. It was a common thread for the knights who made it out of the melee. As Merlyn rested against the wall, she started trying to contemplate what would happen next. Would Gwaine say? Would he leave? Gwaine stopped his pacing and turned to look at Merlyn. He gave her a sad smile. She could read it in his eyes, there was little hope in there.