Merthur: What is a Prince Without His Servant

-Chapter 11-

A/N: This chapter is a bit longer than usual, I didn't want to cut off the action :)

3rd Person POV

Merlin stood in an open field, waiting for the dragon to answer his call. When Kilgharrah finally swooped down from the heavens, Merlin felt a small wave of relief rush over him.

"Young warlock," the dragon bowed his head as his talons dug into the earth, he had grown worried after Merlin had disappeared for months.

"I need you to find out where Arthur is." Merlin commanded.

Kilgharrah could sense Merlin's deep concern and nodded, not wanting to further stress out the warlock. He stretched out his wings before ascending into the sky, flying north past Merlin's line of sight. Merlin sighed and sat on the grass to wait for the dragon to return. "Where has that clotpole found himself now.." Merlin rubbed his temples, this day was not going the way he had planned.

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Arthur opened his eyes again to find himself in a tree, bound tightly with ropes and vines. A rope dug into his mouth, preventing him from speaking. As he tried to get a sense of his surroundings, he heard flapping and looked through the branches to see a large creature passing over him.

"Having fun up there?" The sorcerer stood at the base of the tree, a small lizard was perched on his shoulder. "Don't worry, my business here will be done soon and we can leave for the Feorre Mountains."

Although the sorcerers plan for him was unclear, Arthur continued to squirm and try to escape from the tree. He managed to break off a small vine that restrained his neck and watched it fall into the lavender below. He noticed that he was in one of many trees that were scattered around the vast lavender field. The flowers were unusually tall and grew up to the sorcerers waist or higher.

The sorcerer let his lizard run into the grass before he stalked into the dense forest beyond the field, disappearing immediately.

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After Kilgharrah relayed his findings to Merlin, the warlock set off towards Arthur. He wasn't surprised when Kilgharrah had mentioned that a sorcerer had kidnapped the king. "Bad timing.." Merlin muttered to himself as he walked through a bush, he had been hoping to see Arthur right after waking up. There was so much he wanted to tell him. So much he had only realized in death.

Once the sun had settled in the middle of the sky, Merlin had finally arrived at the edge of the field. It stretched out for miles, far beyond the normalcy for wild lavender fields in the area. He crouched down when he heard talking in the distance, two men speaking. Merlin groaned when he didn't recognize either as being Arthurs familiar voice.

Merlin began to wade through the tall flowers, edging closer to the voices. Upon getting a bit closer, one voice disappeared and the other moved further away. He peeked over the flowers to see a man walking upwards, unmistakably a sorcerer by the look of his cloak.

Merlin stayed still for a few moments longer, watching the sorcerers every move. Taking a step closer, he broke a stick which caused a loud crack to echo through the field.

"Færblæd wawe!" The sorcerer yelled in Merlin's direction with his hand out, a gust of wind blowing through the lavender. Merlin was exposed as the flowers around him parted. Merlin jumped to his feet, running towards the man. He was stopped as the sorcerer sent another gust of wind at him.

"You!" The sorcerer held Merlin at a distance with the wind acting as a barrier, "how did you survive that swor-"

"Þrosm tohweorfe." Merlin spoke, causing the wind to dissipate and continued towards the sorcerer.

"Ah," The sorcerer looked impressed, "so that's how."

From the branches, Arthur looked on, stunned from seeing Merlin using magic. His whole world had flipped upside down, not only was his love back from the dead but he was using magic. Arthur wanted to clutch his head, but he remained struggling to get free from the ropes. Nothing mattered but getting to Merlin.

The warlock and the sorcerer circled each other in between Arthurs tree and a large pile of rocks. Arthur looked on in horror, managing to get an ankle loose.

"I thought magic wasn't allowed in Camelot?" The sorcerer revealed marks on his wrists as he eyed Merlin. "Does the King know you have magic?" He snickered.

"I trust that he will eventually be open to magic." Merlin continued to circle, his eyes staying a bright gold.

The sorcerer laughed, "I don't believe that for a moment, he's just like his father! Do you know what Uther thought of magic?"

Merlin was well aware of Uther's opinions, "Arthur is nothing like Uther! You know nothing of Arthur, not like I do. I trust him with my life." Arthurs heart raced as he snapped another vine which held his feet in place.

"Now, where is Arthur!?" A spark of fire ignited in Merlin's clenched fist.

"Your so-called king is gone." He held up a piece of Arthurs cloak and Arthur's ring.

Merlin screamed out in agony, falling to the ground, he was too late. "Forbærne yfel!" A circle of fire appeared around the sorcerer, rising higher every second. As Merlin cried out again, the flames turned a bright blue and engulfed the sorcerer. Merlin clasped his hands over his ears to block out the dying man's screams.

"Arthur.." Merlin whimpered as the flames died down, revealing Arthurs ring sitting in the ashes. He picked up the ring and held it in his hands, tears rolling down his cheeks as he sobbed. "No.."