Ancient Help (A Harry Potter and Merlin Crossover)

Chapter Fourteen: The Decline of Uther Pendragon

Gaius expelled a soft sigh as he lifted his head and stared gravely at Arthur.

Early that morning, while he was still slumbering from a wonderful goodnight sleep, a Knight of Camelot dashed inside his room. Startled awake, he grumbled at the knight, telling him that it was still an ungodly hour for him to be woken up. But then, the look on the knight's face told him that something was gravely wrong.

The knight immediately led him to Uther's chambers, with Prince Arthur already starting to pace when he arrived.

"Gaius," the distressed Prince said. "Something's wrong with my father."

That was when Gaius' eyes landed on a peculiar sight near the window beside the king's empty bed. King Uther was seated on his seat, his hair oddly dishevelled; his clothes in a messy disarray. What caught Gaius' attention, though, was the expression on Uther's face. His eyes were vacant, seemingly unseeing, while looking far away through his window.

Gaius heart ran cold, especially after he checked Uther's eyes, heartbeat, and other signs of life. His pulse was faint, Gaius had to press his fingers harder against the King's wrist just to feel it.

He had always suspected that the King's health was slowly deteriorating. He was growing old and all the stress of his work was already taking its toll on him already. But then, the breaking point was when Morgana disappeared.

The Court Physician lifted his eyes and connected with the apprehensive Prince. He felt instant sympathy for the young man, especially because he was still at the peak of his youth and he still had so many things to learn in this world. His mother died at childbirth; Gaius wished that he would not be orphaned at such a young age.

"Gaius?" Arthur asked, his voice painfully soft and vulnerable.

Gaius sighed and straightened his back, knowing that lying would bring more heartache in the future. "I have suspected, sire," he said, slowly packing his medicines and potions back in his medicine bag. "Uther had been showing signs of weakness as of late, and I am sure that you noticed it, too."

Listening carefully, Arthur nodded.

"Morgana's disappearance broke his spirit," Gaius finally said. "I believe grief had not only physically weakened him. His whole being grew vulnerable for the pain of Morgana's loss."

Gaius knew that Uther kept on ordering search parties just to look for his Morgana. There was desperation and hopefulness, but the Court Physician was starting to grow a little worried that the Kingdom was slowly accepting the loss of the King's ward.

Perhaps, Uther had seen this and he had silently disappeared. Each day without Morgana ate away his very spirit; every day, he grew weaker and weaker until what he was now. Gaius should have known. Uther was frequently refusing to eat and he tended to bound off to his room during most surprising times. Court meetings would tire him immensely and they had to take a break every once in a while just so the King could catch his breath.

"Can..." Arthur started, his voice cracking. He paused, his emotions conflicting, before he cleared his throat. "Can he still be cured?"

"I'm afraid we both know what, or rather who, can cure him, my lord," Gaius softly answered back. Arthur sighed in disappointment and he turned his back from Gaius, wanting to conceal the myriad of emotions that washed over his face.

The old physician was brought to his feet and reluctantly approached the Prince. "Morgana..."

"Morgana cannot be found!" Arthur roared, swivelling around him so fast that Gaius backpedalled a little. "We've searched every corner of the kingdom, scoured our neighbouring kingdoms and risked our lives but Morgana cannot be found."