All the Ships Are Left to Rust (3/6)
Title: All the Ships Are Left to Rust (3/6)
Pairings/characters: Arthur/Merlin, Lance/Gwen, Mordred/Kara and slight Gwaine/Morgana
Rating: R
Word Count: 36,689
Warnings: Minor Character death, blood, violence, mental illness
Summary: (Dinotopia AU) The morning had started off innocently enough, then the warning bells start chiming and suddenly Uther’s mortally wounded, Morgana’s missing, and Arthur (read: Merlin) has the survival of the entire island on his shoulders.
A desperate attempt to save Uther's life finds Arthur and Merlin braving the Great Desert for a sorcerer who brings to light a hidden war on magic and when the two return home, it's to discover that the attack on Uther and Morgana's kidnapping were only the tip of the iceberg: there's a force that wants to reunite the tiny island with the outside world but that in itself may lead to the island's downfall.
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[ 1] - [ 2] - [ 3] - [ 4] - [ 5] - [ 6]
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Water sloshed down the stairs and knocked him back to the ground as he tried to climb onto the deck. The ship rolled back and forth, the empty hammocks around him swayed gently as he pushed hair from his face and reached for the railing so that he could hoist himself back to his feet. How he had managed to sleep though as much of this storm as he had was beyond him. Climbing the stairs took an alarming amount of dedication as more and more water washed over him, stinging his eyes and threatening to knock him off his feet again. When he made it above deck, it took him all of three seconds before he threw himself into the fray of pouring rain, waves crashing over the deck and men barking orders and crying for help.
His hands found a rope and he tugged on it, trying to help keep the sails closed.
“Gwaine!” Came a distance voice and the man turned, eyes widening in surprise when the owner of the voice was much closer than he thought.
“Good morning!” Gwaine shouted and the other man helped pull and secure the rope. “So-“
“The storm’s blown us way off course.”
“Great.” He sighed and he and Percival took off together across the deck. They slid more than ran but years of practice ensured they stayed at least mostly upright.
Without warning there was a deep rumbling sound that he mistook for another wave and then there was a blinding white light and the floorboards splintered beneath his feet. He reached for the railing but that seemed to be moving with him, there was an orange fireball erupting from the belly of the ship and then Gwaine hit the water. He was only dimly aware of a pair of arms wrapping around his chest before he fell unconscious.
---
This had to be one of the fifth or sixth worse hangovers he had ever had and-why was he soaking wet?
Gwaine slowly opened his eyes, wincing at the bright sun and shielded his eyes with his hand so quickly he hit himself in the face-he couldn’t move his hand. He wallowed in agony for about five seconds and then cautiously opened his eyes. He was outside and, oh, the rumbling wasn’t inside his head, he was on the beach. Gwaine lifted his head slightly to look around him when he saw something stumbling towards him out of the corner of his eye. He blinked and pushed himself up, before recognizing who it was and slumped back down.
“Are you alright?”
“Aren’t I al-“ his words faded as he remembered everything at once. He pushed himself up and felt his numb hand but feeling was already starting to seep back into his fingertips. “What happened?”
“You were unconscious, there were dolphins and-“
“No. Before that-with the ship. What happened?”
“I don’t know. Something exploded below deck, the ship sank.”
“Where’s everyone else?” Gwaine glanced up to Percival’s face and could tell by the frown and the crease between his eyebrows that there was no ‘everyone else’. What a fucking shame; they had been good men. He spoke again so he didn’t have to answer.
Percival’s eyes were haunted, lord only knew what he had seen. “Where are we? We should have been nowhere near land.”
“I don’t know. I’ve only just come to-we were in the water for hours before the dolphins found us.”
Hours. “Fuck.” Gwaine sighed and let his head tip back for a moment. Then he sat up straighter and clasp Percival’s hand in his own. “Thank you. You saved my life.”
Percival nodded, “You would have done the same.” He stood and then pulled his friend to his feet.
They were on a deserted beach that stretched as far as they could see in either direction. Behind them about a hundred feet were grassy hills and Gwaine thought he could make out a rooftop. Squinting he realized that there was a trail of smoke coming from it. So, definitely some sort of civilization then.
“There.” Percival pointed towards the grass in front of them. “There’s a path that probably leads towards the house.” And sure enough, now that Gwaine was looking he could make out a sandy path leading away from them. Well, that decided their next course of action. Only, before he could start walking, Percival put a hand on his arm. “Wait, do you hear that?”
There was a woman’s voice shouting and Gwaine looked around to try to locate the source before realizing, the pathway, duh where else would she be coming from? Sure enough a woman was running down the path to the beach quickly, holding her skirts up, concern written all over her face. He could see others moving up ahead, from where the smoke was coming from. “Are you alright?” The woman asked as she neared them and slowed down. She stopped several yards away from them, leaning forwards slightly as she caught her breath. “Are you hurt?”
“Only cuts and bruises.” Percival assured her and she nodded.
“Quite remarkable for surviving a shipwreck really.” Gwaine added, sarcasm heavy in his voice, while as the same time sending the woman a flirtatious look. He could feel Percival’s exasperation next to him but that only amused him further.
“Do you know if there’s anyone else?” The woman looked up and down the beach they were standing on as if waiting for others to crawl up out of the surf.
“I think we’re the only ones.”
The woman turned her attention back to him, her lips pulled into a sympathetic frown, her eyes full of concern. “My name’s Guinevere. Let’s get you up to the house, get your wounds tended to. But first I have to warn you-this island, it’s…not like the world you’ve come from.”
“Is it filled solely with beautiful woman like yourself?”
Guinevere blinked in surprise at him but then shook her head, “No, there are creatures here that your world hasn’t seen for millions of years. I don’t want you to be alarmed. No one’s going to hurt you.”
Gwaine and Percival exchanged glances but followed her up the path. “We’re going to send out scouting parties just in case there are others. No one’s arrived to the island in years. I almost didn’t believe it when Elyan said that you were down on the beach. Elyan’s my brother, he’s gone to arrange a search party. My father’s already sent a message to Waterfall City-that’s where you’ll go once we’ve patched you up.”
“Fucking hell.” Gwaine gaped at the gigantic creature he suddenly noticed loomed above the fields. He swore again when he saw the small horned creature bounding towards them.
“Vanora!”
“So there really was someone on the beach, I thought Elyan was making it up.”
“Did that beast just speak.” Gwaine blurted out and the aforementioned “beast” turned a cold, haughty look onto him.
“Who are you calling a beast, dolphinback?”
“Vanora-they’ve been through a lot, we have to get their wounds bandaged. They’ve been shipwrecked. How would you feel if you suddenly lost everything and were thrown into a new world?”
The-Vanora-shut her mouth but still shot Gwaine a glare as she turned and lead the way back to the house. Guinevere immediately launched into an explanation of the island. Gwaine had to look at Percival to assure himself that he wasn’t the only one completely overwhelmed. Dinosaurs. Hatchery. Waterfalls. Underground shelters. He didn’t trust himself not to just start laughing, so he kept his mouth shut and tried to follow along best he could.
---
Elyan and the search party came back within the hour.
Nothing.
Even though he knew the search would be pointless, it still stung.
Elyan, looking as if he himself had lost crewmates, shut the door to his family’s small house as voices outside started to get louder. “Sorry. We don’t get many outsiders. Everyone’s a bit excited to get a glimpse of you.” A voice began talking over the clatter and a few moments later, the sounds dimmed. The door opened again to reveal a large man with a scraggly beard. He sighed and shook his head but said nothing as he looked Gwaine and Percival over. It wasn’t until Vanora-a young triceratops-Gwaine’s mind supplied numbly, bounded over to him that he did speak.
“I’m sorry for what happened.”
“Thanks, mate. Honestly, though, I’m not even sure what happened.”
“You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to.” Guinevere’s words fell from her mouth in a jumble. Gwaine found himself smiling at her kindness.
Percival shifted from where he sat by the fire, “No. It’s alright.” Vanora seemed to have taken a liking to Percival and curled up at his side as he told the story of the shipwreck.
---
Waterfall City was exactly that. A city of waterfalls. They could hear the din of the rapids as they approached. Surely living in such a city would be maddening? But once inside the city, the falls were nothing more than a dim background noise that he got used to almost too quickly. The caravan let them out near the heart of the city and they parted from Leon and Elyan as Gwen lead them down the street.
“This is amazing.” Percival gaped as he watched humans and dinosaurs going about their business in the market.
“It’s fucking weird, is what it is.”
Gwen turned to him, “Oh. Just-I can’t imagine what it’s like. I don’t know anyone who came to the island when they were older but…Dinotopia will welcome you. We’ll help you however we can. I can see how it can be overwhelming but we’ll do whatever we can to help.”
“Thanks.”
“Oh-here’s the castle now.”
Gwen stepped aside as they neared the steps where a large crowed was gathered. “That’s King Arthur.” She informed them over the buzz of the crowd. Gwaine knew who she was referring to instantly. There was a man standing at the top of the steps and even from this distance, Gwaine could see that he looked uncomfortable in the golden crown and red robes. He could also see that he was young. Younger than himself probably. But then again, he thought he remembered Gwen saying something about him being new? A man with dark, messy hair stood next to him. He was awfully plain in comparison but appeared more comfortable. As they got closer, Gwen waved and the dark-haired man spotted her almost instantly. He flashed her a smile (maybe this was the Lance they’d heard so much about?) then he leaned over to the king and whispered something in his ear. The King shifted to look at them and the dark-haired man disappeared from view for a moment. He peered out from behind the blond a moment later though. He said something without taking his eyes off of Percival and the blond rolled his eyes and only just suppressed a smile before shooting a reply back. The dark haired man smiled.
“Welcome to Waterfall City.” The blond announced when they managed to push their way to the front of the crowd and the dark haired man took a step back, leaving the other in the spotlight. “You’ve been through much these past few days and we are all extremely sorry for the losses you have witnessed. But even in the face of such tragedies there is still hope.” Gwaine had the distinct feeling he was no longer talking about a shipwreck. A glance around him confirmed it. The crowd stared up at him, holding onto every world he said. “Dinotopia welcomes you with open arms. We will do whatever is necessary to help you back onto your feet. This island is strong; it is built off of survivors like yourself. Dinotopians work hard and persevere. There will be no storm we cannot weather and each night will be overcome with a bright dawn. Together we can help each other overcome anything and together we will build a brighter future. But for now you must be tired from your journey. We have prepared a welcome feast and we’re all anxious to hear about news of the outside world.”
As soon as the King finished his speech, the dark haired man stepped back up next to him. He and the King started to come forward like they were going to meet them at the bottom of the steps when another, much older man stepped up. The slimy-looking man grabbed hold of the King’s elbow and led him away, speaking heatedly. The King glanced back towards them but gave the man his full attention as they walked inside the castle. The brunet who had stood next to the king glanced after them darkly and then hurried towards Gwen, eyebrows raised and shaking his head. Gwen just sighed exasperated and when the man spoke it was with a breathy, amused tone, “How did you enjoy your five days of peace and quiet?” Oh. Maybe this was the other dolphinback, Lance.
“Perfectly lovely. I’m not even going to ask how your week was. I can only imagine how ragged Arthur’s run you.”
The two broke out into tired laughter and then gasped, “Oh there’s Lance.” Gwaine gave a little start, okay so he was wrong. He tried to spot the other man but only managed to get a glimpse of Elyan though the crowd. She turned to Gwaine and Percival, “I’m just going to say hello and then I’ll be right back. This is Merlin-he’ll take you to the meeting chambers.”
“Lance, huh?” Gwaine asked and Percival chuckled next to him, “So they’re together?”
Merlin smiled and shook his head, “They’re both head over heels for each other but refuse to admit it.” The man turned, smiling. “So--hey. You’ll have to forgive everyone, it’s been years since we’ve had any newcomers. The last one we had was Lace and that was years ago, he was a kid at the time. But Lace is a skybax rider now, so don’t think you’re going to be limited just because you’re a dolphinback or anything.”
The two sailors glanced to each other to acknowledge that neither had understood what he was saying. Gwaine then turned to Merlin, flashing him a smile. “Thanks, but we’re not staying.”
The smile was gone from his face instantly. “Some of the sailors that Lance washed ashore with tried to go back. Their boat crashed on the reef and their bodies never made it ashore. Gwen and Elyan saw it. It was a Plesiosaurs. Didn’t they mention it?”
“A what?”
“Plesiosaurs. Big scaly thing, lots of teeth. Anyway, they were just kids at the time so I understand why they wouldn’t mention it. Especially since you two were just floating out there with them.” Their faces must have fell because Merlin instantly threw his hands up. “Sorry. I just-I get a little carried away. The ocean sort of freaks me out.”
“Understandable.” Percival said kindly.
“But you have to understand…there’s no going back. I know it’s hard-believe me I do. Your old life is gone. It’s…other people have tried as well. There are stories of people trying to leave but…Our ships aren’t built for long distance. We don’t have grand seafaring ships. Lancelot will want to talk with you. We really will do whatever we can to help you.”
Gwaine said nothing but Percival turned his gaze from the windows next to them looking out over the city to the man. “The only things we have are the clothes on our back.”
“You’ll be staying with Gaius and I. Gaius is the court physician. There’s plenty of room. We’ll get you new things after lunch, okay? Just enough for you to get by for now. Don’t worry about anything.”
---
“So the blond kid’s king, huh?” Gwaine asked after the feast. He was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that the entire island was vegetarian. But, he supposed he saw why. The only chickens and cows running about were the talking ones that were considered equal to humans. It was probably a bit too close to cannibalization.
Merlin nodded, then froze violently as if realizing he was wrong, he shook his head and then nodded again, “Yeah. He became King just a week ago.”
“Oh?” Gwen had given the impression that he was new, only, he wasn’t expecting him to be that new.
Merlin looked down at his hands. When he spoke, his voice was soft and hurried. “The Queen died about twenty years ago. The king was killed just about a week ago. Arthur took over after his father’s death.”
“So all that talk of peace was bullshit?”
Merlin glanced to him, a small, strained smile on his face, “You met us at a bad time. I didn’t actually mean to say he was killed, it slipped. Sorry. We’re all under a lot of stress.” Was all that he offered at first. Gwaine didn’t look away so he continued, “Morgana-the princess-is missing as well. And-other things.” He finished lamely but Gwaine’s attention had already been grabbed. He loved the way this Merlin was handing out information. He’d be useful to keep around.
“You’re on a fist time basis with a Princess?”
“My mother and I have spent every winter in the city. I’ve been friends with Arthur for ages, of course I’m on a first name basis with Morgana.”
Yes. He would do quite nicely. Was everyone on this island too damn nice for their own good, or had they just lucked out?
---
As it turned out, not everyone on the island wasn’t as nice as Merlin and Gwen.
After supper on his second day, Gwaine left Percival and Gaius to a discussion about how the island survived extinction (Merlin had vanished before sunrise) and made his way to the nearest tavern (he borrowed some of Merlin’s money because he left it sitting on his nightstand). From the moment he entered there was a definite tension in the bar. He just grabbed a seat at the bar and ordered whatever the two-legged scaly thing with the fan on its head who was sitting next to him was having. The bartender smirked but gave him the drink and waved off his money, claiming that he had been through a lot and the first one was on the house. However, Gwaine had the distinct feeling he was overcharged for the second and third. But whatever. He’d just have to make it up to Merlin later.
“Out the way, dolphinback.” A giant red scaly beast purposefully shoved into him as it made its way past. Gwaine stumbled but managed to not spill a drop.
“Woah there, might want to watch that enormous tail of yours.” The creature turned back to him, Gwaine thought it raised an eyebrow at him-not that overgrown lizards had eyebrows mind you, but it sort of came off as the same-it looked pissed and Gwaine chuckled.
“Excuse me?” It asked, and it voice was very nearly a hiss. The lizard turned its enormous body towards him, rising up to its full height.
Gwaine had to tilt his head to look the beast in the eye but-no big deal. He could take him. The beast threw a punch and Gwaine, who tried to dodge a moment too late, smacked into the bar. He spun around almost instantly, shaking the hair from his eyes, fists raised before his eyes landed on the beast again. Gwaine tried to find a weak spot on the creature, some way for him to gain the upper hand but he couldn’t quite get his vision to clear enough. What the fuck kind of drinks did they have on this island? He had only had three (or four by this point actually, now that he was thinking about it) which never got to him as quickly before.
Just when he though he was going to get punched in the face by a fucking dinosaur of all things, there was a hand on his shoulder and a voice said, “Okay, that’s enough now, don’t you think?”
Merlin was an angel. Actually, if Merlin was an angel, he probably shouldn’t have borrowed that money. He probably was going to give it to some poor dinosaur family with a father who was ill and half a dozen small dinosaur children.
“We were just getting started.” Gwaine assured the man who gave a long suffering sigh as if he’s had to drag him from taverns for ages.
“Give me that.” Merlin said flatly, trying to take the half empty glass from the brunet’s hands. Gwaine threw an arm out to keep him at bay as he tossed his head back and downed the rest of the drink. Merlin crossed his arms and stared at him so pointedly that Gwaine had no choice but to slam the glass down and burst out laughing. That only made Merlin look more cross. He glanced around before he took hold of Gwaine’s elbow and bodily dragged him towards the door.
“You’ve got to learn to live a little!”
Merlin ignored him and kept dragging him down the street back to his home. “I’ve got to make sure you don’t get yourself killed your first week.”
“Live a little!” Gwaine repeated and Merlin just rolled his eyes. “Anyway, I would have been fine if that giant lizard hadn’t been so impressively massive.”
“He’s a psittacosaurus, Gwaine.” Merlin spoke quietly, but Gwaine just stared at him like he had two heads.
“Excuse me, what?”
“Psit-ta-co-sau-rus.” Merlin said again slowly with a bit more of an attitude.
“Right.” Gwaine replied just to prevent the most ridiculous argument of his life. “We go left here, right?”
“Right.” Merlin agreed but it was the wrong thing to say because Gwaine stopped short in confusion.
“Wait-“
Merlin chuckled and tugged on his arm to make him walk again, “We’re right here on the left.”
“See! Here not even two days and I already know my way around.”
Merlin laughed as Gwaine wobbled near the doorway. He leaned up against the door to shoulder it open when it was wrenched open underneath him and he lost his balance and fell on his ass in the dimly lit room. He looked up to see Percival (alarmed), Gwen (concerned), and Arthur (annoyed) staring back at him.
“You just couldn’t wait to take him to the tavern, could you?” Merlin sputtered in indignation but Arthur just continued on. “Have fun?”
“Not nearly as much as we could have.” Gwaine complained from where he leaned heavily on the door frame.
Arthur looked less than impressed. “Someone’s sneaking around the lower town.”
Merlin scrambled to his feet, “And you’re what? Going to just stroll up to them, say hey mate, I’m the King. What’re you doing here? You’re the King. Make the guards do it.” A hand was placed on his shoulder but Merlin only spared the owner a brief glance (it was Lancelot and he hadn’t even noticed him before). “Do you want to-“
“Listen. I just wanted to be sure it wasn’t you trying to get home from the tavern again-“ At this Gwaine snorted and Gwen sighed. “So we’re going-come on-“
“I’ll take Merlin’s place.” Percival offered quickly and Arthur agreed without sparing a glance to the man.
“No I’m going with you.”
Arthur rounded on him, “No. You’ll fall into a canal and drown. You can’t even walk through your own front door right now.”
“That’s because you-“ Merlin protested to Arthur’s back as the prince strode out of his door, Percival and Lancelot right behind him. The two spared him a sympathetic glance but he kept his glare locked on Arthur.
Gwen threw herself in front of Merlin, lowering hands he hadn’t even been aware of raising. “Stay with Gwaine.”
Merlin huffed, “Where’s Gaius?”
“With Parcenet. His fever hasn’t yet broke.” The woman glanced to the doorway and then, after offering him a tightlipped smile, hurried after the others.
“Great!” Merlin threw up his hands and spun to face the room at large. Gwaine stepped aside as Leon-had he been here the whole time as well?-shut the door behind him.
“Well-“ The dolphinback began but Merlin cut him off.
“Gaius should be back within the hour or so.” He reopened the door and was gone before Gwaine fully realized what happed. The man glanced out the window to watch him go.
Merlin snuck around with a practiced ease. Maybe there was more to this island than he originally thought. Gwaine decided to follow after him-to make sure he didn’t get into trouble and need backup or anything. After all, he owed it to him for giving him and Percival a place to stay.
---
By the time Merlin arrived on scene it was already pretty much a disaster, which, given the fact they had a five minute head start and it took him fifteen minutes to actually find them, was pretty impressive.
Leon was crouched down, and either had a cloaked figure pinned to the wall or was keeping them sitting upright. Arthur had his sword drawn on an angry triceratops who looked vaguely familiar. Lancelot was on his stomach, half in the canal, arms stretched out towards Percival bobbing in the water. Stopping, short and looking around, Merlin realized that Gwen was nowhere to be found. The cloaked figure had their hands against their face and they looked like they were struggling against Leon. Arthur was shouting at the triceratops who shouted back.
Percival’s grip on the side of the canal slipped and his body turned, revealing Gwen. She was clutching onto him with her face buried in his chest as they bobbed in the water.
Great.
Merlin looked around, trying to find the easiest way across the canal. There was no way they could reach them from this side and if Percival lost his grip, they’d both be rushed downstream. And they were uncomfortably close to the falls. He could barely hear Lancelot’s cries over the noise.
Finally, his eyes rested on some crates up against the wall. If he climbed on them, he could reach the ledge from which he could get on the rooftop and then he could just grab onto the clothes line that was stretched over the canal and pray that he managed to land on the ledge on the other side.
Okay. Right. So…there probably must be another way.
Only, Gwen was now reaching across the water to Lancelot and there was no way she was going to reach them and that left him with no other choice.
He ran past Arthur who nearly threw his sword at him as he climbed up on the crates. He pulled himself up onto the ledge and onto the roof with no problem. Arthur was screaming now but Merlin just pulled a shirt from the clothes line and then used it to slide across.
Predictably, the clothesline snapped.
He let go of the shirt and reached out towards the ledge. His fingers caught hold and his feet scrambled against the side and he managed to pull himself up to his elbows on adrenaline only. From there he pulled himself up and then jumped to the ground, ignoring the pain that shot up his leg from the impact.
He ran to the edge of the canal, ready to grab onto Gwen and Percival.
Only they weren’t there.
Merlin swore as he raced down side of the canal after them. Lancelot was ahead of him by a few feet on the other side. He was too busy hoping that he was imaging the drop ahead. But in between the drop and them was a bridge. If he could just reach it before them, he could pull them up. Merlin was only dimly aware of him overtaking Lancelot and it wasn’t until he was on the bridge, watching the two come towards him that he realized he used magic to speed him up. He went to lower his eyes in case they were still golden but movement from the walkway next to him, made him look up. The building next to him had an awning with wood pillars supporting it from the front. Someone was trying to knock it down. Praying that no one was looking at him, Merlin muttered a spell under his breath.
The wood crashing across the canal right in front of them and Gwen grabbed hold of it instantly, she managed to lift herself up so that her chest rested against the beam and then she grabbed Percival. She yanked him towards her so that he could get a grip on the wood as well. A glance back to where the awning had stood showed him that Gwaine had apparently followed him. He threw his weight on the wood to keep the beam in place to stop Gwen and Percival from being swept farther down towards the waterfall.
Merlin pushed himself up and raced to Lance’s side as he hauled Gwen from the water. Merlin instantly took off his jacket and wrapped it around her before helping Lance pull Percival from the swift current as well.
“Thanks.”
“What happened?”
Gwen pulled the jacket around her tighter, shivering in the night. “The triceratops had one too many and thought it was a good idea to pick a fight with the man who decided to shout back. The triceratops kinda wobbled and Percival and I were knocked in.”
By this point, Gwaine had joined them and he laughed, “That’s shit luck.”
“Don’t talk to me of luck.” Percival groaned.
“Come on. We should get you guys home. You’ll catch a cold.”
They began walking back and Gwaine went to sling an arm around Percival’s shoulders but thought better of it. “Sorry, mate. I haven’t a jacket to offer you.” Merlin and Gwen both gave small huffs of laughter but Lancelot immediately pulled off his own coat and handed it to the other man. Percival’s shoulders were much broader than Lancelot’s so he just draped it over them and held it closed.
“Thanks.”
“What a gentleman.”
“Oh-speaking of jackets. Gwaine, I’m guessing you took the money Mary gave me and spent it on drinks tonight.” Merlin smiled and Gwaine couldn’t understand what was so funny about this. He stole from him. “She had given it to me to give to you. Actually, she said specifically that she didn’t want you two to freeze when winter came.”
“Everyone on this island is much too nice.”
“I’m not complaining.”
When they reached the others, the triceratops was gone and Arthur and Leon were talking quietly to each other. Leon had to bend down slightly and Arthur was nearly on his toes. When Arthur turned to watch them approach, Merlin noticed the man in the cloak had lowered his hood. He stopped short and Gwaine bumped into him.
“Will?” Merlin gaped and Arthur rolled his eyes.
“I really should have known. If it wasn’t one, it was the other.”
“So I take it you all know each other.” Gwaine laughed.
Merlin pushed through the others and Gwaine caught sight of Arthur’s offended face and relished it for a moment before Merlin gasped again, “Will?” There was a frown on his face and he walked over to the other man, reached out and grabbed his shoulders.
“They’re restless. Right on the edge.” That meant absolutely shit to Gwaine but apparently it was crystal clear to Merlin who gasped and turned to Arthur, searching him with his eyes. Arthur raised his eyebrows, confused but obviously understanding the severity of it. “What is it?”
“The carnivores are threatening Greenglen. Just give me a few days off.”
Arthur immediately turned away. “Leon, we ride out at dawn.”
“What?” Merlin gasped.
“I don’t know if you’ve realized this or not but I’m king, not you. The safety of my people is my responsibility. What do you think you’ll do when you get there? Ask them nicely to turn around?”
From the way Merlin glanced to Will, Gwaine had the sick feeling that, yes, that had been Merlin’s plan. Merlin, against a bunch of fucking t-rexes. Who, according to everyone he had asked, didn’t speak an ounce of English. Merlin’s please leave us alone, would be the same as please eat me whole.
( part four)
Pairings/characters: Arthur/Merlin, Lance/Gwen, Mordred/Kara and slight Gwaine/Morgana
Rating: R
Word Count: 36,689
Warnings: Minor Character death, blood, violence, mental illness
Summary: (Dinotopia AU) The morning had started off innocently enough, then the warning bells start chiming and suddenly Uther’s mortally wounded, Morgana’s missing, and Arthur (read: Merlin) has the survival of the entire island on his shoulders.
A desperate attempt to save Uther's life finds Arthur and Merlin braving the Great Desert for a sorcerer who brings to light a hidden war on magic and when the two return home, it's to discover that the attack on Uther and Morgana's kidnapping were only the tip of the iceberg: there's a force that wants to reunite the tiny island with the outside world but that in itself may lead to the island's downfall.
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Water sloshed down the stairs and knocked him back to the ground as he tried to climb onto the deck. The ship rolled back and forth, the empty hammocks around him swayed gently as he pushed hair from his face and reached for the railing so that he could hoist himself back to his feet. How he had managed to sleep though as much of this storm as he had was beyond him. Climbing the stairs took an alarming amount of dedication as more and more water washed over him, stinging his eyes and threatening to knock him off his feet again. When he made it above deck, it took him all of three seconds before he threw himself into the fray of pouring rain, waves crashing over the deck and men barking orders and crying for help.
His hands found a rope and he tugged on it, trying to help keep the sails closed.
“Gwaine!” Came a distance voice and the man turned, eyes widening in surprise when the owner of the voice was much closer than he thought.
“Good morning!” Gwaine shouted and the other man helped pull and secure the rope. “So-“
“The storm’s blown us way off course.”
“Great.” He sighed and he and Percival took off together across the deck. They slid more than ran but years of practice ensured they stayed at least mostly upright.
Without warning there was a deep rumbling sound that he mistook for another wave and then there was a blinding white light and the floorboards splintered beneath his feet. He reached for the railing but that seemed to be moving with him, there was an orange fireball erupting from the belly of the ship and then Gwaine hit the water. He was only dimly aware of a pair of arms wrapping around his chest before he fell unconscious.
---
This had to be one of the fifth or sixth worse hangovers he had ever had and-why was he soaking wet?
Gwaine slowly opened his eyes, wincing at the bright sun and shielded his eyes with his hand so quickly he hit himself in the face-he couldn’t move his hand. He wallowed in agony for about five seconds and then cautiously opened his eyes. He was outside and, oh, the rumbling wasn’t inside his head, he was on the beach. Gwaine lifted his head slightly to look around him when he saw something stumbling towards him out of the corner of his eye. He blinked and pushed himself up, before recognizing who it was and slumped back down.
“Are you alright?”
“Aren’t I al-“ his words faded as he remembered everything at once. He pushed himself up and felt his numb hand but feeling was already starting to seep back into his fingertips. “What happened?”
“You were unconscious, there were dolphins and-“
“No. Before that-with the ship. What happened?”
“I don’t know. Something exploded below deck, the ship sank.”
“Where’s everyone else?” Gwaine glanced up to Percival’s face and could tell by the frown and the crease between his eyebrows that there was no ‘everyone else’. What a fucking shame; they had been good men. He spoke again so he didn’t have to answer.
Percival’s eyes were haunted, lord only knew what he had seen. “Where are we? We should have been nowhere near land.”
“I don’t know. I’ve only just come to-we were in the water for hours before the dolphins found us.”
Hours. “Fuck.” Gwaine sighed and let his head tip back for a moment. Then he sat up straighter and clasp Percival’s hand in his own. “Thank you. You saved my life.”
Percival nodded, “You would have done the same.” He stood and then pulled his friend to his feet.
They were on a deserted beach that stretched as far as they could see in either direction. Behind them about a hundred feet were grassy hills and Gwaine thought he could make out a rooftop. Squinting he realized that there was a trail of smoke coming from it. So, definitely some sort of civilization then.
“There.” Percival pointed towards the grass in front of them. “There’s a path that probably leads towards the house.” And sure enough, now that Gwaine was looking he could make out a sandy path leading away from them. Well, that decided their next course of action. Only, before he could start walking, Percival put a hand on his arm. “Wait, do you hear that?”
There was a woman’s voice shouting and Gwaine looked around to try to locate the source before realizing, the pathway, duh where else would she be coming from? Sure enough a woman was running down the path to the beach quickly, holding her skirts up, concern written all over her face. He could see others moving up ahead, from where the smoke was coming from. “Are you alright?” The woman asked as she neared them and slowed down. She stopped several yards away from them, leaning forwards slightly as she caught her breath. “Are you hurt?”
“Only cuts and bruises.” Percival assured her and she nodded.
“Quite remarkable for surviving a shipwreck really.” Gwaine added, sarcasm heavy in his voice, while as the same time sending the woman a flirtatious look. He could feel Percival’s exasperation next to him but that only amused him further.
“Do you know if there’s anyone else?” The woman looked up and down the beach they were standing on as if waiting for others to crawl up out of the surf.
“I think we’re the only ones.”
The woman turned her attention back to him, her lips pulled into a sympathetic frown, her eyes full of concern. “My name’s Guinevere. Let’s get you up to the house, get your wounds tended to. But first I have to warn you-this island, it’s…not like the world you’ve come from.”
“Is it filled solely with beautiful woman like yourself?”
Guinevere blinked in surprise at him but then shook her head, “No, there are creatures here that your world hasn’t seen for millions of years. I don’t want you to be alarmed. No one’s going to hurt you.”
Gwaine and Percival exchanged glances but followed her up the path. “We’re going to send out scouting parties just in case there are others. No one’s arrived to the island in years. I almost didn’t believe it when Elyan said that you were down on the beach. Elyan’s my brother, he’s gone to arrange a search party. My father’s already sent a message to Waterfall City-that’s where you’ll go once we’ve patched you up.”
“Fucking hell.” Gwaine gaped at the gigantic creature he suddenly noticed loomed above the fields. He swore again when he saw the small horned creature bounding towards them.
“Vanora!”
“So there really was someone on the beach, I thought Elyan was making it up.”
“Did that beast just speak.” Gwaine blurted out and the aforementioned “beast” turned a cold, haughty look onto him.
“Who are you calling a beast, dolphinback?”
“Vanora-they’ve been through a lot, we have to get their wounds bandaged. They’ve been shipwrecked. How would you feel if you suddenly lost everything and were thrown into a new world?”
The-Vanora-shut her mouth but still shot Gwaine a glare as she turned and lead the way back to the house. Guinevere immediately launched into an explanation of the island. Gwaine had to look at Percival to assure himself that he wasn’t the only one completely overwhelmed. Dinosaurs. Hatchery. Waterfalls. Underground shelters. He didn’t trust himself not to just start laughing, so he kept his mouth shut and tried to follow along best he could.
---
Elyan and the search party came back within the hour.
Nothing.
Even though he knew the search would be pointless, it still stung.
Elyan, looking as if he himself had lost crewmates, shut the door to his family’s small house as voices outside started to get louder. “Sorry. We don’t get many outsiders. Everyone’s a bit excited to get a glimpse of you.” A voice began talking over the clatter and a few moments later, the sounds dimmed. The door opened again to reveal a large man with a scraggly beard. He sighed and shook his head but said nothing as he looked Gwaine and Percival over. It wasn’t until Vanora-a young triceratops-Gwaine’s mind supplied numbly, bounded over to him that he did speak.
“I’m sorry for what happened.”
“Thanks, mate. Honestly, though, I’m not even sure what happened.”
“You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to.” Guinevere’s words fell from her mouth in a jumble. Gwaine found himself smiling at her kindness.
Percival shifted from where he sat by the fire, “No. It’s alright.” Vanora seemed to have taken a liking to Percival and curled up at his side as he told the story of the shipwreck.
---
Waterfall City was exactly that. A city of waterfalls. They could hear the din of the rapids as they approached. Surely living in such a city would be maddening? But once inside the city, the falls were nothing more than a dim background noise that he got used to almost too quickly. The caravan let them out near the heart of the city and they parted from Leon and Elyan as Gwen lead them down the street.
“This is amazing.” Percival gaped as he watched humans and dinosaurs going about their business in the market.
“It’s fucking weird, is what it is.”
Gwen turned to him, “Oh. Just-I can’t imagine what it’s like. I don’t know anyone who came to the island when they were older but…Dinotopia will welcome you. We’ll help you however we can. I can see how it can be overwhelming but we’ll do whatever we can to help.”
“Thanks.”
“Oh-here’s the castle now.”
Gwen stepped aside as they neared the steps where a large crowed was gathered. “That’s King Arthur.” She informed them over the buzz of the crowd. Gwaine knew who she was referring to instantly. There was a man standing at the top of the steps and even from this distance, Gwaine could see that he looked uncomfortable in the golden crown and red robes. He could also see that he was young. Younger than himself probably. But then again, he thought he remembered Gwen saying something about him being new? A man with dark, messy hair stood next to him. He was awfully plain in comparison but appeared more comfortable. As they got closer, Gwen waved and the dark-haired man spotted her almost instantly. He flashed her a smile (maybe this was the Lance they’d heard so much about?) then he leaned over to the king and whispered something in his ear. The King shifted to look at them and the dark-haired man disappeared from view for a moment. He peered out from behind the blond a moment later though. He said something without taking his eyes off of Percival and the blond rolled his eyes and only just suppressed a smile before shooting a reply back. The dark haired man smiled.
“Welcome to Waterfall City.” The blond announced when they managed to push their way to the front of the crowd and the dark haired man took a step back, leaving the other in the spotlight. “You’ve been through much these past few days and we are all extremely sorry for the losses you have witnessed. But even in the face of such tragedies there is still hope.” Gwaine had the distinct feeling he was no longer talking about a shipwreck. A glance around him confirmed it. The crowd stared up at him, holding onto every world he said. “Dinotopia welcomes you with open arms. We will do whatever is necessary to help you back onto your feet. This island is strong; it is built off of survivors like yourself. Dinotopians work hard and persevere. There will be no storm we cannot weather and each night will be overcome with a bright dawn. Together we can help each other overcome anything and together we will build a brighter future. But for now you must be tired from your journey. We have prepared a welcome feast and we’re all anxious to hear about news of the outside world.”
As soon as the King finished his speech, the dark haired man stepped back up next to him. He and the King started to come forward like they were going to meet them at the bottom of the steps when another, much older man stepped up. The slimy-looking man grabbed hold of the King’s elbow and led him away, speaking heatedly. The King glanced back towards them but gave the man his full attention as they walked inside the castle. The brunet who had stood next to the king glanced after them darkly and then hurried towards Gwen, eyebrows raised and shaking his head. Gwen just sighed exasperated and when the man spoke it was with a breathy, amused tone, “How did you enjoy your five days of peace and quiet?” Oh. Maybe this was the other dolphinback, Lance.
“Perfectly lovely. I’m not even going to ask how your week was. I can only imagine how ragged Arthur’s run you.”
The two broke out into tired laughter and then gasped, “Oh there’s Lance.” Gwaine gave a little start, okay so he was wrong. He tried to spot the other man but only managed to get a glimpse of Elyan though the crowd. She turned to Gwaine and Percival, “I’m just going to say hello and then I’ll be right back. This is Merlin-he’ll take you to the meeting chambers.”
“Lance, huh?” Gwaine asked and Percival chuckled next to him, “So they’re together?”
Merlin smiled and shook his head, “They’re both head over heels for each other but refuse to admit it.” The man turned, smiling. “So--hey. You’ll have to forgive everyone, it’s been years since we’ve had any newcomers. The last one we had was Lace and that was years ago, he was a kid at the time. But Lace is a skybax rider now, so don’t think you’re going to be limited just because you’re a dolphinback or anything.”
The two sailors glanced to each other to acknowledge that neither had understood what he was saying. Gwaine then turned to Merlin, flashing him a smile. “Thanks, but we’re not staying.”
The smile was gone from his face instantly. “Some of the sailors that Lance washed ashore with tried to go back. Their boat crashed on the reef and their bodies never made it ashore. Gwen and Elyan saw it. It was a Plesiosaurs. Didn’t they mention it?”
“A what?”
“Plesiosaurs. Big scaly thing, lots of teeth. Anyway, they were just kids at the time so I understand why they wouldn’t mention it. Especially since you two were just floating out there with them.” Their faces must have fell because Merlin instantly threw his hands up. “Sorry. I just-I get a little carried away. The ocean sort of freaks me out.”
“Understandable.” Percival said kindly.
“But you have to understand…there’s no going back. I know it’s hard-believe me I do. Your old life is gone. It’s…other people have tried as well. There are stories of people trying to leave but…Our ships aren’t built for long distance. We don’t have grand seafaring ships. Lancelot will want to talk with you. We really will do whatever we can to help you.”
Gwaine said nothing but Percival turned his gaze from the windows next to them looking out over the city to the man. “The only things we have are the clothes on our back.”
“You’ll be staying with Gaius and I. Gaius is the court physician. There’s plenty of room. We’ll get you new things after lunch, okay? Just enough for you to get by for now. Don’t worry about anything.”
---
“So the blond kid’s king, huh?” Gwaine asked after the feast. He was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that the entire island was vegetarian. But, he supposed he saw why. The only chickens and cows running about were the talking ones that were considered equal to humans. It was probably a bit too close to cannibalization.
Merlin nodded, then froze violently as if realizing he was wrong, he shook his head and then nodded again, “Yeah. He became King just a week ago.”
“Oh?” Gwen had given the impression that he was new, only, he wasn’t expecting him to be that new.
Merlin looked down at his hands. When he spoke, his voice was soft and hurried. “The Queen died about twenty years ago. The king was killed just about a week ago. Arthur took over after his father’s death.”
“So all that talk of peace was bullshit?”
Merlin glanced to him, a small, strained smile on his face, “You met us at a bad time. I didn’t actually mean to say he was killed, it slipped. Sorry. We’re all under a lot of stress.” Was all that he offered at first. Gwaine didn’t look away so he continued, “Morgana-the princess-is missing as well. And-other things.” He finished lamely but Gwaine’s attention had already been grabbed. He loved the way this Merlin was handing out information. He’d be useful to keep around.
“You’re on a fist time basis with a Princess?”
“My mother and I have spent every winter in the city. I’ve been friends with Arthur for ages, of course I’m on a first name basis with Morgana.”
Yes. He would do quite nicely. Was everyone on this island too damn nice for their own good, or had they just lucked out?
---
As it turned out, not everyone on the island wasn’t as nice as Merlin and Gwen.
After supper on his second day, Gwaine left Percival and Gaius to a discussion about how the island survived extinction (Merlin had vanished before sunrise) and made his way to the nearest tavern (he borrowed some of Merlin’s money because he left it sitting on his nightstand). From the moment he entered there was a definite tension in the bar. He just grabbed a seat at the bar and ordered whatever the two-legged scaly thing with the fan on its head who was sitting next to him was having. The bartender smirked but gave him the drink and waved off his money, claiming that he had been through a lot and the first one was on the house. However, Gwaine had the distinct feeling he was overcharged for the second and third. But whatever. He’d just have to make it up to Merlin later.
“Out the way, dolphinback.” A giant red scaly beast purposefully shoved into him as it made its way past. Gwaine stumbled but managed to not spill a drop.
“Woah there, might want to watch that enormous tail of yours.” The creature turned back to him, Gwaine thought it raised an eyebrow at him-not that overgrown lizards had eyebrows mind you, but it sort of came off as the same-it looked pissed and Gwaine chuckled.
“Excuse me?” It asked, and it voice was very nearly a hiss. The lizard turned its enormous body towards him, rising up to its full height.
Gwaine had to tilt his head to look the beast in the eye but-no big deal. He could take him. The beast threw a punch and Gwaine, who tried to dodge a moment too late, smacked into the bar. He spun around almost instantly, shaking the hair from his eyes, fists raised before his eyes landed on the beast again. Gwaine tried to find a weak spot on the creature, some way for him to gain the upper hand but he couldn’t quite get his vision to clear enough. What the fuck kind of drinks did they have on this island? He had only had three (or four by this point actually, now that he was thinking about it) which never got to him as quickly before.
Just when he though he was going to get punched in the face by a fucking dinosaur of all things, there was a hand on his shoulder and a voice said, “Okay, that’s enough now, don’t you think?”
Merlin was an angel. Actually, if Merlin was an angel, he probably shouldn’t have borrowed that money. He probably was going to give it to some poor dinosaur family with a father who was ill and half a dozen small dinosaur children.
“We were just getting started.” Gwaine assured the man who gave a long suffering sigh as if he’s had to drag him from taverns for ages.
“Give me that.” Merlin said flatly, trying to take the half empty glass from the brunet’s hands. Gwaine threw an arm out to keep him at bay as he tossed his head back and downed the rest of the drink. Merlin crossed his arms and stared at him so pointedly that Gwaine had no choice but to slam the glass down and burst out laughing. That only made Merlin look more cross. He glanced around before he took hold of Gwaine’s elbow and bodily dragged him towards the door.
“You’ve got to learn to live a little!”
Merlin ignored him and kept dragging him down the street back to his home. “I’ve got to make sure you don’t get yourself killed your first week.”
“Live a little!” Gwaine repeated and Merlin just rolled his eyes. “Anyway, I would have been fine if that giant lizard hadn’t been so impressively massive.”
“He’s a psittacosaurus, Gwaine.” Merlin spoke quietly, but Gwaine just stared at him like he had two heads.
“Excuse me, what?”
“Psit-ta-co-sau-rus.” Merlin said again slowly with a bit more of an attitude.
“Right.” Gwaine replied just to prevent the most ridiculous argument of his life. “We go left here, right?”
“Right.” Merlin agreed but it was the wrong thing to say because Gwaine stopped short in confusion.
“Wait-“
Merlin chuckled and tugged on his arm to make him walk again, “We’re right here on the left.”
“See! Here not even two days and I already know my way around.”
Merlin laughed as Gwaine wobbled near the doorway. He leaned up against the door to shoulder it open when it was wrenched open underneath him and he lost his balance and fell on his ass in the dimly lit room. He looked up to see Percival (alarmed), Gwen (concerned), and Arthur (annoyed) staring back at him.
“You just couldn’t wait to take him to the tavern, could you?” Merlin sputtered in indignation but Arthur just continued on. “Have fun?”
“Not nearly as much as we could have.” Gwaine complained from where he leaned heavily on the door frame.
Arthur looked less than impressed. “Someone’s sneaking around the lower town.”
Merlin scrambled to his feet, “And you’re what? Going to just stroll up to them, say hey mate, I’m the King. What’re you doing here? You’re the King. Make the guards do it.” A hand was placed on his shoulder but Merlin only spared the owner a brief glance (it was Lancelot and he hadn’t even noticed him before). “Do you want to-“
“Listen. I just wanted to be sure it wasn’t you trying to get home from the tavern again-“ At this Gwaine snorted and Gwen sighed. “So we’re going-come on-“
“I’ll take Merlin’s place.” Percival offered quickly and Arthur agreed without sparing a glance to the man.
“No I’m going with you.”
Arthur rounded on him, “No. You’ll fall into a canal and drown. You can’t even walk through your own front door right now.”
“That’s because you-“ Merlin protested to Arthur’s back as the prince strode out of his door, Percival and Lancelot right behind him. The two spared him a sympathetic glance but he kept his glare locked on Arthur.
Gwen threw herself in front of Merlin, lowering hands he hadn’t even been aware of raising. “Stay with Gwaine.”
Merlin huffed, “Where’s Gaius?”
“With Parcenet. His fever hasn’t yet broke.” The woman glanced to the doorway and then, after offering him a tightlipped smile, hurried after the others.
“Great!” Merlin threw up his hands and spun to face the room at large. Gwaine stepped aside as Leon-had he been here the whole time as well?-shut the door behind him.
“Well-“ The dolphinback began but Merlin cut him off.
“Gaius should be back within the hour or so.” He reopened the door and was gone before Gwaine fully realized what happed. The man glanced out the window to watch him go.
Merlin snuck around with a practiced ease. Maybe there was more to this island than he originally thought. Gwaine decided to follow after him-to make sure he didn’t get into trouble and need backup or anything. After all, he owed it to him for giving him and Percival a place to stay.
---
By the time Merlin arrived on scene it was already pretty much a disaster, which, given the fact they had a five minute head start and it took him fifteen minutes to actually find them, was pretty impressive.
Leon was crouched down, and either had a cloaked figure pinned to the wall or was keeping them sitting upright. Arthur had his sword drawn on an angry triceratops who looked vaguely familiar. Lancelot was on his stomach, half in the canal, arms stretched out towards Percival bobbing in the water. Stopping, short and looking around, Merlin realized that Gwen was nowhere to be found. The cloaked figure had their hands against their face and they looked like they were struggling against Leon. Arthur was shouting at the triceratops who shouted back.
Percival’s grip on the side of the canal slipped and his body turned, revealing Gwen. She was clutching onto him with her face buried in his chest as they bobbed in the water.
Great.
Merlin looked around, trying to find the easiest way across the canal. There was no way they could reach them from this side and if Percival lost his grip, they’d both be rushed downstream. And they were uncomfortably close to the falls. He could barely hear Lancelot’s cries over the noise.
Finally, his eyes rested on some crates up against the wall. If he climbed on them, he could reach the ledge from which he could get on the rooftop and then he could just grab onto the clothes line that was stretched over the canal and pray that he managed to land on the ledge on the other side.
Okay. Right. So…there probably must be another way.
Only, Gwen was now reaching across the water to Lancelot and there was no way she was going to reach them and that left him with no other choice.
He ran past Arthur who nearly threw his sword at him as he climbed up on the crates. He pulled himself up onto the ledge and onto the roof with no problem. Arthur was screaming now but Merlin just pulled a shirt from the clothes line and then used it to slide across.
Predictably, the clothesline snapped.
He let go of the shirt and reached out towards the ledge. His fingers caught hold and his feet scrambled against the side and he managed to pull himself up to his elbows on adrenaline only. From there he pulled himself up and then jumped to the ground, ignoring the pain that shot up his leg from the impact.
He ran to the edge of the canal, ready to grab onto Gwen and Percival.
Only they weren’t there.
Merlin swore as he raced down side of the canal after them. Lancelot was ahead of him by a few feet on the other side. He was too busy hoping that he was imaging the drop ahead. But in between the drop and them was a bridge. If he could just reach it before them, he could pull them up. Merlin was only dimly aware of him overtaking Lancelot and it wasn’t until he was on the bridge, watching the two come towards him that he realized he used magic to speed him up. He went to lower his eyes in case they were still golden but movement from the walkway next to him, made him look up. The building next to him had an awning with wood pillars supporting it from the front. Someone was trying to knock it down. Praying that no one was looking at him, Merlin muttered a spell under his breath.
The wood crashing across the canal right in front of them and Gwen grabbed hold of it instantly, she managed to lift herself up so that her chest rested against the beam and then she grabbed Percival. She yanked him towards her so that he could get a grip on the wood as well. A glance back to where the awning had stood showed him that Gwaine had apparently followed him. He threw his weight on the wood to keep the beam in place to stop Gwen and Percival from being swept farther down towards the waterfall.
Merlin pushed himself up and raced to Lance’s side as he hauled Gwen from the water. Merlin instantly took off his jacket and wrapped it around her before helping Lance pull Percival from the swift current as well.
“Thanks.”
“What happened?”
Gwen pulled the jacket around her tighter, shivering in the night. “The triceratops had one too many and thought it was a good idea to pick a fight with the man who decided to shout back. The triceratops kinda wobbled and Percival and I were knocked in.”
By this point, Gwaine had joined them and he laughed, “That’s shit luck.”
“Don’t talk to me of luck.” Percival groaned.
“Come on. We should get you guys home. You’ll catch a cold.”
They began walking back and Gwaine went to sling an arm around Percival’s shoulders but thought better of it. “Sorry, mate. I haven’t a jacket to offer you.” Merlin and Gwen both gave small huffs of laughter but Lancelot immediately pulled off his own coat and handed it to the other man. Percival’s shoulders were much broader than Lancelot’s so he just draped it over them and held it closed.
“Thanks.”
“What a gentleman.”
“Oh-speaking of jackets. Gwaine, I’m guessing you took the money Mary gave me and spent it on drinks tonight.” Merlin smiled and Gwaine couldn’t understand what was so funny about this. He stole from him. “She had given it to me to give to you. Actually, she said specifically that she didn’t want you two to freeze when winter came.”
“Everyone on this island is much too nice.”
“I’m not complaining.”
When they reached the others, the triceratops was gone and Arthur and Leon were talking quietly to each other. Leon had to bend down slightly and Arthur was nearly on his toes. When Arthur turned to watch them approach, Merlin noticed the man in the cloak had lowered his hood. He stopped short and Gwaine bumped into him.
“Will?” Merlin gaped and Arthur rolled his eyes.
“I really should have known. If it wasn’t one, it was the other.”
“So I take it you all know each other.” Gwaine laughed.
Merlin pushed through the others and Gwaine caught sight of Arthur’s offended face and relished it for a moment before Merlin gasped again, “Will?” There was a frown on his face and he walked over to the other man, reached out and grabbed his shoulders.
“They’re restless. Right on the edge.” That meant absolutely shit to Gwaine but apparently it was crystal clear to Merlin who gasped and turned to Arthur, searching him with his eyes. Arthur raised his eyebrows, confused but obviously understanding the severity of it. “What is it?”
“The carnivores are threatening Greenglen. Just give me a few days off.”
Arthur immediately turned away. “Leon, we ride out at dawn.”
“What?” Merlin gasped.
“I don’t know if you’ve realized this or not but I’m king, not you. The safety of my people is my responsibility. What do you think you’ll do when you get there? Ask them nicely to turn around?”
From the way Merlin glanced to Will, Gwaine had the sick feeling that, yes, that had been Merlin’s plan. Merlin, against a bunch of fucking t-rexes. Who, according to everyone he had asked, didn’t speak an ounce of English. Merlin’s please leave us alone, would be the same as please eat me whole.
( part four)