Luminescence ✺ Arthur Pendragon

The Dragon's Call [1]

Two figures could be seen walking through the countryside of Camelot, headed down the path which would take them straight to the city and the castle of Camelot itself; their destination. The young boy walked almost with a skip in his step, and a smile on his face which seemed to make his blue eyes shine even brighter. Beside him walked a girl. She could be seen from miles away for her bright red hair looked as if it were a burning pyre.

She was quite an unusual sight. She bore the beauty of any noble woman in all of the world, but dressed as a commoner, and with a sword on her hip many eyes turned towards her as they passed by people. But neither of the two payed them any mind. Arwen and Merlin had gotten quite used to the looks that she would get. Merlin always managed to tease his sister of the looks she got for her beauty, but she had never let it get to her head or make her overly confident.

While Arwen knew she was beautiful, she never thought of it as something that put her ahead of anyone, especially other women as many people continuously pointed out. She had always been a kind and generous person, and the people of her village loved her for it. Ever since she came to Ealdor they had always taken care of her, and once she was old enough, she made sure to repay everything they had done for her to the best of her ability.

Especially to Hunith, who had raised as if she were her own child. Arwen was aware of the fact that neither Hunith nor Merlin were her blood, and since she had never known her family, she found it within them. Some people in her position would have perhaps wondered about the family they could have had, but Arwen knew enough of her past to know they did not interest her. She had her family, Merlin and Hunith, and they were all she needed. Her blue eyes looked up to Merlin's face as he admired the castle, the gate of which they had just passed through, a large smile on his face. Just seeing his excitement, made Arwen smile as well.

They were on the brink of a new adventure. Coming to Camelot was the best choice for the both of them. Arwen had always shown interest in the art of healing, and wanted to help others with it, so when the decision was made for Merlin to go live with Camelot's court physician Gaius, Hunith had managed to organize the same for Arwen. Gaius was of old age, and it had become hard for him to run around the city of Camelot on many of the errands that his job required of him. It took only one conversation with the King for him to be able to hire an apprentice.

The sight of a large crowd managed to get the attention of the two newcomers, and while Arwen had no intention of joining it, seeing Merlin walk towards it made her give out a sigh as she rushed after him. They stood side by side as the sound of drums reached their ears, watching as a man was lead out into the square by a pair of knights. They lead him to a small podium in the center of the crowd as a voice from one of the balconies of the castle made Arwen look up to find the King himself addressing the crowd.

"Let this serve as a lesson to all. This man, Thomas James Collins, is adjudged guilty of conspiring to use enchantments and magic. And, pursuant to the laws of Camelot, I, Uther Pendragon, have decreed that such practices are banned on penalty of death. I pride myself as a fair and just king, but for the crime of sorcery, there is but one sentence I can pass." The cold voice of Uther Pendragon rang through the square as he spoke, everyone's focus completely devoted to him during the short speech.

As he raised his hand, and the drums sounded once more, the executioner rose the axe meant to end the man's life into the air. Arwen found herself forced to look away as the sharp weapon was swung, not wanting to watch the death of a man right in front of her. Every time the consequences of magic and punishments for its practice were mentioned, she couldn't stop her mind from creating images of Merlin being the one to face those punishments. And she knew if she watched this execution pass, it would just make those images more realistic and easier to create within her mind's eye. The gasp of the crowd was what let her know that the deed was done. She could feel a hand wrap around her own and didn't need to look to know whose it was. Merlin knew how much his sister worried for him, and now he was wishing he didn't give in to his curiosity, for if he had restrained himself, she wouldn't have had to worry once more.