How Merlin Should Have Ended

The Attack

"Rest after," Arthur suggested and his queen smiled.

There was a bed in the tent, with warm blankets and white sheets. Arthur scooped up his wife into his arms and carried her over to it, like he had on their wedding night. Laying her down, he began kissing her again. Her hands made their way to his belt just as his lips moved down to kiss her neck.

Arthur woke and immediately reached out to see if Guinevere was still there. The moment he felt her shoulder, he was calm again. Getting out of bed, Arthur dressed quickly and left the tent. The sun was up, but aside from that, everything looked the same as it had yesterday. That is, apart from Merlin standing there, acting like a bodyguard.

"Don't you have traps to set?" Arthur asked. He couldn't help but feel embarrassed. How long had Merlin been there?

"All done, sire," Merlin replied.

"Then you should be teaching the knights how to use them," Arthur continued.

"Also done," Merlin replied.

"I'm not handing out promotions you know," Arthur grumbled. "Surely there is something you can do that's more useful than hovering around my tent?"

"I don't think so, sire," Merlin replied.

Arthur rolled his eyes. Merlin was more protective than Guinevere. Arthur decided to try and go about his day without thinking about his personal magical shadow.

If Morgana was going to attack, it was unlikely she'd do so during daylight. Which meant they probably had until later on tonight to finish their preparations. Everything depended on their location ensuring Morgana couldn't outflank them — everything, that is, except for Merlin. Arthur had seen how powerful Merlin was on a small scale, but he'd never seen how Merlin was against an army. It felt impossible to him that one man could face so many, but it was clear from Merlin's actions that he wasn't worried about the army. No, it seemed the only thing Merlin was worried about was Arthur.

Arthur spent the day making sure everything was ready. Having a whole day to rest from the journey before the battle had been most useful. Arthur could see what even just one day's rest had done for his knights. It had been worth traveling through the night to get here so early.

As the sun began to set, every knight was fully clad in armor, and every trap was manned and ready. There was only one direction the attack could come.

Arthur hated waiting, but he knew the wait wouldn't be long now. Merlin was still hovering around him. If the situation wasn't so dire, Arthur would have snapped at him to bugger off. Instead he stood and faced the space his enemy was to appear, waiting.

When the sounds of swords came from behind him, Arthur knew they'd made a mistake. They'd missed something important. There must be another way into this pass that Morgana knew about and they didn't.

Without thinking twice, Arthur ordered half his men to turn and fight the enemy attacking from behind.

"You go with them," Arthur ordered Merlin.

"My place is at your side," Merlin stated firmly.

"Morgana has already gotten a jump on us," Arthur said in a hurry. "All our traps are in the wrong place. Those men turning to face the enemy at our flank need you more than I do. Now GO!" He barked the last few words out like an order, and to his great surprise, Merlin obeyed.

Arthur knew Morgana had split her forces. He knew even if they were being attacked from behind it wouldn't stop her from attacking at their front as well. Their chances of winning this fight had already dropped dramatically, and it had barely started.