The Emerald Thief - Merlin BBC [1]

Chapter 16: Bloodbound Secrets

The earth shifts beneath me, the room spin out of sight. I grip onto the table for support, refusing to let myself fall. My other hand grasps onto my chest as I gasp for breath, unable to take in what I've heard. Everything seems so unreal, and I begin to wonder if I'm back in that hell stone, back in a sea of lies. Arthur stares at Gaius, jaw ajar, skin pale white as his blue eyes glisten with tears.

Denial runs through my thoughts, refusing this to be real. No, no, no, this isn't real. Gaius is mistaken.

"G-Gaius y-you must be mistaken", Arthur bursts as if reading my mind, his balance also out of place.

"I am certain", Gaius assures, looking between the two of us. "As soon as I saw Edythe, I thought she looked too much like Igraine...but I dismissed it, knowing the chances of that baby girl being in front of me. Then I saw the letter...I couldn't be sure, not entirely...." Gaius explains, his voice beginning to shake. "I couldn't bring myself to examine it...then I pulled the courage."

"N-No, this is ridiculous, I would know", Arthur protests, Gaius unable to get another word in as Arthur refuses. "No, Gaius. I would know! My father couldn't have kept a secret like that from me."

"Arthur, you have to understand. You're Father had his reasons to keep so much from you," Gaius defends. I can't bring myself to move, solid as a statue. I listen to the two bicker, but I don't think the weight of the words reach me.

"What reasons?" Arthur bursts. He jumps to his feet, beginning to pace around the room. He cannot bring himself to look at me, not allowing himself to hope.

"Uther and Igraine were unable to have children without the use of magic. The enchantress Nimueh assisted them in that."

"Yes, and my mother gave her life for me to be born, a life for a life", Arthur responds angrily. "I know this Gaius, so you see, there is no way she was Edythe's Mother."

"Powerful magic was used, Arthur", Gaius states, taken aback by the King's tone. "Have you ever wondered where that magic went?"

"It killed my mother."

"To give you life, yes...but the magic was so powerful that it created a vessel to attach itself to. Edythe," Gaius explains, now looking to me. He knows I will understand what he speaks. My eyes dry as I listen. "Another child. Your twin sister, Arthur."

"I-I don't understand", I finally speak up, finding my hoarse voice. "Are you saying I was born with magic because I was born from magic?"

"Yes", Gaius sighs. "All the magic attached itself to you, and it made you strong. Edythe was born first. Her presence caused an immediate delight...however, when Arthur came, there were complications...."

Arthur becomes immersed in Gaius' story, unable to deny or agree. "Arthur was weaker...dying. I tried all I could to keep Igraine and Arthur strong, but, in the end, I couldn't succeed with both...But Edythe, as if hearing Arthur's distress, reached out for her brother's embrace, and...she saved him."

Gaius now looks up at both of us, speaking in the third person. The room is silent, everyone holding their breaths in anticipation. "You used you're magic, Edythe, to save Arthur's life", Gaius exclaims. "Uther knew what had happened. He was heartbroken, magic not only taking his wife but also his daughter. Uther couldn't bring himself to kill an innocent child, not one of his own, no matter how much he hated magic."

"So Uther ordered me to take Edythe away, give her to people who would understand her power...it was...one of the hardest things I had ever been ordered to do..."

My head spins, unable to comprehend the truth. To accept my story. The tears return with the realisation that I've learnt what I've wondered for so long. Then I'm faced with the truth that I'm the daughter of a King, a king whom I've only grown up hating. He is a face I've never seen but heard so much of—the boogieman of my childhood.