Chapter 3: The True Heirs: Part 1

"Bring out the prisoner!" shouted the king gleefully, "He is to be executed the second the sun rises, no sooner or later!" The king was positively joyful. But then why shouldn't he be? He was about to end his problems with his fortress. Or, at the very least, thought he was going to.

Merlin was in worse shape than the previous night: he was covered in the hay littered on the floor of the stables and had many cuts and bruises on the part of he sentries who had thrown Merlin into the stables.

Merlin's head was shoved on to the wood, and locked in place with another piece of wood on top. Merlin watched as a man dressed in black armor and a helm walked towards him, wielding a long sword.

At least it will be an almost painless death, thought Merlin.

He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the inevitable pain. Instead he heard the king's advisor scream. Then all was quiet. Merlin opened his eyes, and there at his feet lay the king's advisor, his head rolling and blood gushing from the stump that was his neck. He looked up and saw a battle happening between the king's subjects. When he looked to his right, he saw the executioner bringing his sword down on Merlin. Once again, Merlin braced himself for the pain, and was relieved to feel the lock that held him released. He didn't have time to enjoy his freedom, for the executioner yanked him up and led him away from the battle.

"Traitor! Kill the traitor! After him! I want him dead!" screeched the king, all joy in his voice replaced fury. With unnatural speed, the king sprinted toward Merlin and the executioner, ripping off the helm of the executioner as he did so. Under the helm was a handsome face, sporting a full beard and scraggly black hair. The man had warm blue eyes that any other time Merlin would think to compliment his dark complexion quite well, but Merlin had no time for such thoughts as it seemed the king wanted a fight.

King Vortigern lunged at the executioner, aiming for the throat. The man with blue eyes raised his sword to parry, successfully blocking the king's lethal attack. The man retaliated to the king's unexpected lunge by sending an underhand swipe to meet the king's chin. The king caught the blow with his shield while bringing swinging his sword towards the man, whose sword had flown out of his hand after the king caught the blow in the shield. Merlin didn't hesitate to draw his own sword. He drew his sword from its scabbard and caught the king's sword on the edge, sliding his sword down the length of the king's, dulling the king's sword and his own, until the hilts were locked. The king, enraged at Merlin's skill, tried to pull his sword in an attempt to unlock the swords. The king succeeded in freeing his sword, but instead of flying towards him, it flew towards Merlin, who gracefully caught it in the air while kicking the desperate King Vortigern so he was on his knees. Putting the flat sides of the swords together, he crossed them so that King Vortigern's head lay between the two blades, the sharper edges facing his neck. Merlin had Vortigern trapped; he was completely at Merlin's mercy. With just a flick of his wrist, Merlin could behead the king who had ordered his execution. But yet, the question was, should he kill Vortigern? Should he kill the tyrant who lay before him? As Merlin pondered this question, he became oblivious to the battle around him, seeing only the king and the swords. He didn't known what half of what the king had done, nor did he know why the king had done them. As doubtful as it might seem, the king may have perfectly acceptable reasons to explain his tyrannous actions. No matter how he looked at the situation, Merlin left with only two choices: kill him or don't.

Kill him! said a voice in Merlin's head, He's evil and you know it! You can't let someone like him live! He'll look for you, and when he finds you, you will die at his hands! You can't trust a man like this! Another voice said, Let him go. He may regret what he's done and is trying to make up for it. At least give a chance. Even if he is evil, he may change after looking death death in the face. You have to give him a chance. Just one.

For what seemed hours, Merlin stared at Vortigern, seeing fear written on his face. He knew his life lay in the hands of the boy who stood before him, holding two swords that could end his life. Just looking at the king's face made Merlin want to forgive him. But time and time again, the same question came up: Should I or should I not kill him? Merlin struggled and struggled with this question, not knowing which path was the right one.

Merlin hadn't reached a verdict when the battle surrounding was getting closer to him and the king. Sensing there was someone behind him, Merlin turned, sending the sword of the man behind him flying, and before he realized what was happening, Merlin lopped off his head. turning back to Vortigern, Merlin saw the king scrambling madly away from him. So he had taken advantage of what he had been given. Perhaps the king was smarter than Merlin had given him credit for. He knew that although the king had escaped this time, he would someday finish what he had started. But that would have to wait. Other matters commanded Merlin's attention right then such as getting away alive.

Guided by the man with blue eyes, Merlin forced his way through the fight, killing or mortally wounding anybody foolish enough to stand in his or the man's path. They made great progress and were away by the end of the hour.

When they were a good ways away from the fight, Merlin looked back, and saw two dragons, the same ones Merlin had seen in his dreams. The red one was flying south were as the white one traveled east.