Merlin couldn't afford to be questioned right now. He knew he was in no state to avoid questioning, so now he has to avoid Arthur. Arthur had called after him for nearly ten minutes before he realized he was wasting time he didn't have, and continued along the trail.

Merlin followed from the ledge above the trail, and out of sight. It would be much harder to keep Arthur safe while concealing his location, but he can't afford for Arthur to find out. Not yet.

The sun sinks lower as the two men continue down the mountain pass, growing ever closer to the valley. They could now see the cathedral like canopy of the great forest, but the sun was sinking fast. As dusk fell on the valley dark shapes emerged from the trees. At first they appeared to be birds, but then they began to fly higher. They were much too large to be birds. Wyverns. Nearly twenty of them. All guarding the forest as night fell.

Merlin curses under his breath. With bandits you could drop a branch on their head, or burn them with their own sword hilts, but Wyverns? Merlin, being a dragonlord, can stop them, but in doing so he might be exposed.

Arthur continues into the valley, head held high despite the beasts circling overhead. Either too brave, or too stupid to take cover. Merlin scampers from outcropping to outcropping above him. Trying to keep himself hidden from the king and the beasts.

They're nearly to the treeline when a thunderous screech sounds above them. Two wyvern dive straight for Arthur. Merlin hesitates for a second, and then jumps from the ledge above to land between the oncoming beasts and Arthur. His knees lock on impact and his ankle twists at a completely unnatural angle, but he miraculously stays standing. He hears Arthur shouting behind him, but he can't make out his words through the pain and shrieking of the Wyverns. He raises a hand toward each of the beasts and roars with the might of their greater kin, the dragon.

The two beasts cower and flap away with their heads bowed. Merlin stands there as they fly away, hands still raised, panting from the effort. Arthur's gaze drifts from the fleeing beasts to his gangly servant. His brow furrows in concentration as he tries to put together what exactly just happened.

"Merlin?" He breathes.

Merlin tries to turn and address him, but his ankle gives out and he collapses to the ground. Instead of trying to get back up, he lays there and waits for Arthur to come to the inevitable conclusion.

Arthur dismounts and approaches his servant cautiously.

"Merlin?" He mutters again.

Merlin closes his eyes and sighs heavily, but doesn't answer.

"Merlin?" He says, louder this time.

"Yes sire?" Merlin answers shakily as he waits for the sword blow to come.

"Merlin, what just happened?"

"What do you think just happened?" Merlin retorts from the ground.

"I-I don't know." the king stutters, still in shock.

"Well," Merlin mutters while trying to raise himself off the ground. "I would rather not be here when you figure it out."

He begins to limp away, gritting his teeth every time he shifts his weight onto his injured ankle. For a second he considers continuing on foot, but when he stumbles and nearly hits the ground again He gives in and makes his way toward his horse, which had been following Arthur obediently through the entire ordeal.

With much difficulty he mounts, and with a final solemn glance back at Arthur, he spurs his horse onward into the trees.

The king stares at his receeding figure until it fades from view. He tries to convince himself that he just imagined what he saw. But the echoing of a single set of hooves drills into him the reality of what had just happened. What Merlin had just done was impossible, except by magic. Pure, friendly, sarcastic merlin, had magic. Not just any magic, magic powerful enough to control Wyverns. The association between magic, a vile thing, and merlin, whom he would like to consider his friend, felt so utterly wrong. It's simply not possible. And yet, he had seen it happen right in front of him. Finally, it began to sink in, and with it came the sharp sting of betrayal. Merlin has tricked him, he had tricked all of them. He had probably used his magic on them all. He's been poisoning Camelot from the inside out.

But if this were the case, then why did Merlin save him? He could have taken control at any time, but he hasn't. Either way, sorcerers are evil, Merlin is not an exception to this. Magic corrupts, as it has surely corrupted him.