Merlin: The Loneliest Hour

Chapter 14: Things are worst

He pressed his fingers on his eyelids, suppressing a wave of anger and of something else like sadness, though it wasn’t really sadness.  He was a knight, for crying out loud; he wasn’t supposed to allow himself to be prey to such unmanly emotions.  Stupid Merlin, he thought irritably.  He shouldn’t have been there at all.  He shouldn’t have tried to defeat Morgana and that was true with or without the magic.  And now Arthur was mad at him for keeping such a secret for years but he couldn’t even tell him because he wasn’t there.  He was dead, and that was truly the worst thing anyone had ever done to him. He wanted to scream and break something. He wanted to yell at Merlin for being such an idiot, but he couldn’t.   

Come on, get a grip, he thought resolutely.  You’re Prince Arthur, Heir to the Throne, First Knight of the People, and Regent of Camelot.  Your people need you, so stop feeling sorry for yourself.  That did sound like something Merlin would tell him, which wasn’t helping him feel any better.

“Sire,” Sir Leon called as soon as he had entered the throne room.  “More reports are coming in about some of the druids falling sick.”

The knight handed him the report but the prince knew that he hardly needed to read it; he could trust Sir Leon’s words above anyone else’s.  In fact, he was often wondering why there had to be so many people in the room when Leon was delivering his report. Leon, Lancelot, maybe one or two other knights, and Gwen for moral support were more than enough for his taste.  The court advisors, servants, and guards were part of a protocol which he had always thought to be superfluous. Moreover, they were always staring at him as though he was about to make some important declaration, which really wasn’t going to happen while his father was still alive.

“Are there any casualties?”

“No death confirmed as of now, Sire,” answered Sir Leon.

Arthur began pacing around the room.  There had to be a link between the mysterious illness and the end of all magic, but still he felt reluctant about making his suspicions known.  He needed to hear Gaius’opinion first; and if Gaius wasn’t completely convinced, then he wasn’t convinced.  He only wished that the physician wouldn’t take so long. True, Gaius was grieving and he wasn’t quite his usual self, but there were many lives at stake.  And now he had gone back to Ealdor to take a closer look at the Stones… and probably to offer some support to Merlin’s mother as well.

“Has Gaius returned yet?” he asked to Leon.

“He should be back tomorrow,” replied the knight.

Arthur leaned in closer to Leon, trying not to block out some of the eavesdropping.  “And Gwaine?” he murmured.

“He was at the Crossroads Inn yesterday,” uttered the knight.  “Should I send Lancelot to check on him, Sire?”

“No, I might go myself, actually.”

Leon’s face became concerned.  “That would be dangerous, Sire.  Someone could recognise you.”

“Hmm… right,” Arthur replied elusively.

But the idea had crept into his mind and he had already formed a plan.  He would have to inform Sir Leon once they were free of the throne room’s audience.

While he was thinking and pacing, a guard came to whisper to Sir Leon’s ear.  

“Do not allow him entry,” he heard the knight say more loudly.  

“We tried, Sire,” pleaded the guard, “but he is Prince Arthur’s uncle and we cannot restrain him…”

Arthur’s eyes instantly sought the front entrance to the throne room and there he found Lord Agravaine, standing with two guards on each side of him.  His overall appearance was noticeably dishevelled and Arthur’s thoughts immediately went to the servants who were attending to him. Though most of them did not really know why or how, they had been told that Merlin’s death was a direct result of Lord Agravaine’s actions.  Agravaine had since then been forced to lower his expectations as to the level of care and attention that the royal household was able to provide. Still, he had not lost that self-important expression on his face, as though he was quite above the current situation.