The Crest of Ambrosius

Chapter 5

Hey guys! Sorry it took so long for another chapter. Unfortunately, this pandemic is quite the writer's block. On the bright side, I found a new beta reader, so I should be updating a little more frequently!Thank you to everyone who votes and to those that leave comments! You guys always make my day!

As he caught up with Arthur, Merlin's mind began to churn with questions. What's going to happen? Is Arthur going to help my knights? What if he finds out who I really am? He stopped just short of the door to Arthur's chambers, his eyes growing wide at the sight of the Camelot knights gathered there along with Gwen. Is Arthur going to reveal my magic? His heart began to pound at the thought of his deepest secret finally being revealed to all. It was bad enough when Arthur had finally found out.

Three months ago, Merlin had accompanied Arthur on a hunting trip to search out some mythical beast that a distant villager had brought word of. His first clue that something was wrong should have been that Gaius had never heard of such a creature and that there was no mention of it to be found in any of the multitudinous books that Gaius possessed on such things. However, they set out anyway, determined to prevent any harm to Camelot and her people.

After spending about three days trying to find any kind of the sign of the creature and coming up continuously empty-handed, they ran into a patrol of Saxons. It suddenly became obvious that the story of the beast was a ruse to lure Arthur to the waiting assassins, and they were quickly overpowered by the large band of men. However, these brutes were different from the usual attackers, perhaps smarter, as they attempted to immediately execute the king, rather than allowing him time to plot an escape. Seeing that there was no other way out, Merlin had used his magic to free Arthur and kill the remaining Saxons. In the aftermath, Arthur was initially relieved, but quickly became angry and hurt at Merlin's betrayal.

It had taken almost a month after they returned to Camelot, but Arthur gradually learned of everything Merlin had done for him. With that knowledge, and the help of Gaius' eyebrow, Arthur came to forgive him and began to learn all he could about magic and how it could be used. But he had made Merlin promise to keep his secret a little while longer while he figured out how to break the news to his councillors that he had changed his mind about magic without them thinking he had been bewitched.

And now, here he was, about to unravel all the lies Merlin had ever told to almost everyone he cared about. Merlin felt as if the floor had dropped out from underneath his feet, and the only thing that stopped him from sinking to his knees was the appearance of the king's hand on his shoulder. His eyes snapped to Arthur's, and he suddenly felt reassured by the trust and determination he saw there.

                                                                                 ~~~~~~~~~~~

"Merlin?" Arthur was concerned by the sudden lack of Merlin's presence at his shoulder. He turned around to find his manservant staring at the group of knights with a look of terror in his eyes. As he began to sway, Arthur reached out a hand to steady him. Their eyes locked, and the king was relieved to see the look of terror replaced with one of conviction. Then Merlin nodded once, squared his shoulders and continued into the room. At their appearance, the knights' chatter petered out and their attention shifted to their king.

"Sire," Leon began, "have you made a decision regarding the visiting knights?"

"Yes, I have, but there is something else we must first discuss." At the knights' questioning glances, he looked to Merlin for reassurance that he was okay with what Arthur was about to reveal. When he nodded ever so slightly, Arthur took a breath and turned back to his most trusted friends. "Whatever I am about to say, I want you all to know I have thought long and hard about this decision, and it is not one I make lightly. I am going to lift the ban on magic and end the persecution of those who practice it."

At his words, Leon and Elyan looked horrified, while Gwaine and Percival merely looked curious.

"But sire! How can you allow magic to be legal when we have seen all that it can do to us?" Leon was shocked that the man who so hated magic from the beginning of his upbringing could so suddenly change his mind.

Arthur understood the look of betrayal in Leon and Elyan's eyes; they had all been raised to hate magic and distrust those that had fallen prey to its evil ways. But he now knew that his father had been wrong. Magic was neither good nor evil, it was merely manipulated to act as such by its wielder. And he knew that there must be good in it if a man as kind as Merlin held so much of its power.

"I know that we have all been wronged by magic in some way, but that does not mean that magic itself is evil. It is like a sword. It is neither good nor evil until it is given a purpose by the one that wields it. I believe that there are enough good people out there that the majority of magic that would be practiced would be used for good. To tend to crops, to entertain, to heal. None of these uses would bring about harm. And perhaps, without the fear of persecution, those that would seek to harm Camelot may abandon their hatred." Arthur paused to let his knights absorb what he had just told them.

After a moment, Percival looked up to address the group. "When I was younger, I met many druids and others that practiced magic as I travelled. Many of them seemed to use it for practical purposes and I never felt threatened by them. In fact, most times they offered to help me in one way or another."

Gwaine nodded in agreement. "Aye. In all my travels, I met few who used their magic with dark intention." Smiling wryly, he added, "And they could be right fun to have a drink with."

"But how do we know that those who use their magic for evil won't use this as a chance to grow stronger and attack? With more people practicing magic, Morgana could use this opportunity to grow her ranks and attack Camelot!" Elyan glanced around, his eyes flickering about as if he were watching Morgana's supposed plan already falling into place.

"These are valid points, yet my decision still stands. With the legalization of magic, Camelot will become stronger. We could even incorporate magic users into our army to defeat Morgana if that were to become her plan." Arthur paused in thought. "However, there still stands the matter of how to implement the new law. In order to execute this new order, we will need someone who is well versed in the ways of magic to help guide regulations and help to spread the news without causing the people to think it is a trap."

Leon still looked uneasy as he addressed the king. "Perhaps Gaius? He used to practice magic before the Great Purge." The other knights nodded in agreement.

After sharing a look with his wife and Merlin, Arthur turned back to the knights. "I agree that Gaius is knowledgeable and would be a good choice, but I have someone else in mind." He gestured to Merlin, who stood up, while the knights shared curious glances. "Merlin will be the one to advise on the regulations of the new law."

"But sire, did you not say that the position should be filled by someone well versed in magic? Should that not be someone who has used magic in the past?" Leon looked confused as the other knights nodded their agreement.

After one last look at Arthur, Merlin took a deep breath and stepped forward. Avoiding the gazes of his friends out of fear of their judgement, his voice trembling, he told them, "Arthur chose me because...because I have magic."