In Our Time Of Dying

[Arthur Pendragon]

It was rather often that Arthur's hunts strayed far away from the city . . . and this was one of those cases. Sometimes, it just made for better game if they distanced themselves and right now, it was quite far enough. They were still within the boundaries of Camelot, as it was not safe for Arthur and his most trusted servant to venture far from the kingdom, especially when they lacked the guards and security to ensure their protection -- for Arthur's sake more so than Merlin's. And even Arthur was not reckless. Especially after everything that had happened with Cenred in the recent past, Arthur would have to now be extra cautious as the ruthless king yet again proved that he would sink to any level, stoop down to any low, to win this war. Even if it meant capturing and threatening the lives of innocent civilians.

After a few hours of hunting fun, Arthur and Merlin had set up camp just for a short break. The somewhat chilly air forced them to start a fire and -- all thanks to Guinevère -- Arthur was getting the hang of how to use a flint and tinder. They sat across from each other, eating what few snacks they brought along for the hunting journey which would go on until well throughout the day, with the hopes of returning just before dark. That was the plan anyway. Little did Arthur know how everything would soon take a very drastic turn.

He sat there, sword by his side and crossbow by his other, in complete relaxation. Until he heard a noise. It was a very faint snapping of a twig, but enough to startle Arthur and put him into full alert. He quickly shot up from his seated position, grabbing his crossbow and pointing it towards the general direction of where he heard the sound coming from. He put a finger to his lips to indicate to Merlin not to say a word. Whether he heard it or not, Arthur suddenly got the feeling that they were being watched. He was raised to be a warrior and a hunter, so more often than not, he trusted his instincts. When he heard nothing more he slowly lowered the cross bow and went back to his seat. "I could have sworn I heard something." Arthur admitted, not quite sure he was ready to let it go. Something was not right here. He could feel it.

_{Setting: Starts in the woods of Camelot, eventually extends to outside Camelot
Time of Day: Afternoon
Timeline: Sometime after The Castle of Fyrien
Tag: Merlin Caradoc
Notes: I figured they could get ambushed or something by Odin's men!}

[pie]

Another day, another hunt. Merlin couldn't say that they were boring, exactly -- they were usually filled with some kind of interesting event or thing... -- but when they had no guards, it wasn't very safe. There were dangerous men in these forests, and dangerous men seemed to be too common of an occurrence as of late. Well... dangerous men and dangerous women: Cenred, Morgause, and Morgana. Quite dangerous. Or any of Camelot's many enemies, he decided as he glanced at Arthur. Dangerous enemies that would do all sorts of things to get their hands on the King's beloved son.

Now, sitting around a fire -- that Merlin was curious to find Arthur could start -- they took a break. Soon they'd be back to hunting, though, so he enjoyed the relaxing break while he could. Fate, unfortunately, seemed to have different plans for the pair, though. When Arthur suddenly stood up and pointed a crossbow in one direction, Merlin quickly sat up straight, glancing in the direction and focusing on that area, trying to see whatever had made Arthur alert.

"Maybe it was the wolves," he said softly when Arthur sat back down. He was, of course, teasing about their wolf conversation they'd had when going to the Castle of Fyrien. He had to admit, though, that now that he thought about it, he'd heard the slightest sound. He'd just assumed it was an animal, they were in the woods, after all, and plenty of animals ran around here. But close enough to their temporary camp to make some sort of sound? Perhaps they were just on edge, after all, they had no guards.

Still, Merlin glanced back in that direction with more than a passing concern. What if there really was someone out there? Here they were, sitting at camp, defenseless -- no, not defenseless, he decided. Arthur was alert now, they were both alert now. They could stop whatever, whoever, was out there, creeping up on them, or whatever they were doing. "Perhaps we should pack up camp and leave..." he suggested.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur would have smiled, or at least rolled his eyes at Merlin's sarcastic reply. He of course knew what he was saying it in reference to . . . their trip to Fyrien's castle, and when he was trying to get rid of Merlin so that he could have a moment alone with Guinevère. Subtly had not been Merlin's strong suit then. But he was a tad bit preoccupied at the moment to acknowledge his 'joke'. His next suggestion raised more attention in the prince. He felt unnerved, as if something was about to happen. The air around them was too silent . . . as if a calm before the storm. "I think that would be for the be -- " But Arthur never finished his words for all of a sudden, out of no where, a swarm of men came rushing towards them. Arthur instinctively pulled out his sword, knowing that there was not enough distance between them to use the crossbow. He held it out in front of him, but they were clearly out numbered.

There was a large group of them, surrounding them so that there was literally no direction left to run in. When Arthur glanced around at them, he instantly noticed the seal that they bore. Odin's seal. They were well away from Odin's kingdom, but that would not stop him from being on the hunt for Arthur. Ever since that single combat that claimed the life of his son, Odin was a grieving father, demanding revenge, unable to rest until he got it. He had sent an assassin to Camelot to kill him, and apart from that his men were often on full alert to reprimand him if they ever had the chance. And now, it seemed that they did. Arthur had not heard this swarm of men following him and Merlin so it must have been some ridiculous, unfortunate coincidence that they just happened to cross paths. He did not even bother to fight them, and they seemed to be well aware that he would make the proper decision. With that, he slowly lowered his sword, as one of the men stepped forward. The first in command no doubt. His eyes slightly narrowed as he looked over the prince.

"King Odin will be proud once he sees who we have captured."

Great. Arthur didn't even bother trying to convince them to let Merlin go. He knew they would not for it would give them that advantage of someone knowing his predicament. His father would retaliate and it would limit how much time these knights had to get back to Odin's kingdom. So it was pointless. Instead, with frustration he threw his sword to the ground not bothering to vocalize that he would be in full compliance. He had no choice at the moment. They would bring him to Odin alive and if he struggled, then dead. He preferred the alive bit. They advanced towards him, holding a piece of rope.

"Put your hands out," one of them demanded. Arthur did as he was instructed, looking over at Merlin who had fallen victim to the same fate. This would not be the first time they were captured so it would not be the last. Somehow, they would find a way out of this. But in the meantime, they would have to allow their hands to be bound, and follow along the group of Odin's knights. This could only go so far. Even if they did manage to bring him back to Odin, Arthur would try to create some sort of truce between them, though at the same time, he was well aware of the king's craving for vengeance. Arthur would be lucky if he'd be able to get a word in, but still. He had to try. This has gone on long enough. With that hope in mind, perhaps this wasn't the most terrible idea. Still, it was the worst case scenario so for now, would try to figure a way out of this situation.

Once his -- and Merlin's -- hands were tied, they began to drag them over to where several horses were lined up. Oh no. Arthur knew how they would be traveling now. Their hands would be bound, and they would be forced on foot, walking alongside each other, dragging behind the horse who's rider held the ropes that bound them. Great. Just bloody great. As if being captured was not bad enough, now he would have to suffer this humiliation as well. Arthur let out an annoyed sigh as they stood there, the rest beginning to mount their horses.

[[ Sorry I god modded a bit there! Let me know if you need me to edit at all! Just thought I would move them along! ]]