What Is It Good For

[Arthur Pendragon]

It was official: Cenred and Camelot would be at war. This was going to be the root of many problems to come, especially since Camelot was still in the process of restoring and repairing themselves after the vicious attacks from the Dragon. On top of that, Morgana was still missing and neither him, nor his father, would fully rest until she was back and safe. War . . . it was just a way to complete this already horribly stressful period of time for the kingdom. News was slowly spreading, but as far as most knew, it was rumors. People would probably see it coming, since there had been such high tensions between the two kingdoms. Arthur knew that this meant he would have to train double the amount of men, and put in triple the amount of effort.

It was late at night, but that meant nothing. Sleep was rarely found and when it was, it was usually sporadically. Arthur had no routine anymore. How could anyone with such chaos in the land? He was fully clad in his armor and making his way to the grand hall where he knew his father would be, probably conversing with the other knights and lords about a coarse of action as they were going to have to start strengthening their defense . . . or what was left of them. There was no good time for war, but this was the absolute most horrible timing for it.

"Sire," he said, slightly lowering his head in a bow as he entered the room and saw what he predicted. Everyone was crowded around a table, looking at different maps and such. He stood there, waiting to see if his father would dismiss the others, for whether they were in private or in the company of others, would determine how Arthur addressed the King.

_{Setting: The Castle of Camelot
Time of Day: Late night
Timeline: After Season 2, when Camelot is at the beginning of war with Cenred
Tag: Uther Pendragon}

[tomb01]

War it was something that Uther wasn’t looking forward to but Cenred had made it clear that they didn’t want peace but war, so Uther had been spending most of the time getting things ready incase Cenred made a surprise attack. Now he was talking with his knights and several other people. The map Uther was looking at was a map of Camelot, one of his knights had gotten hold of a map of Cenred which will come in handy and Uther rewarded the knight. Looking at the map Uther was pointing to locations that he felt needed extra manpower. “We can cover the walls around Camelot with arches and increase the amount of knights within the city, perhaps a curfew would be needed as well.” Uther explained.

Everyone around him was in an agreement, they however stopped talking when Arthur walked into the room. “Leave us.” Uther ordered them. Uther just watched as the knights and other people left the room, the last person closed the door as they left. “Arthur any news on Morgana?” Uther asked his son. Uther knew that Arthur was spending more time in looking for Morgana and training as well. War had put a lot of pressure on the city of Camelot but Uther knew that they all could pull through, they had to. “Tell me what you think of these plans for added defenses.” Uther asked his son. It was rare for Uther to ask Arthur for advice.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur had to admit that he was relieved when his father dismissed everyone. He was able to relax a bit more, and speak more freely in front of the king. His question however made him feel worse . . . mostly feelings of failure, as he was unable to find her, and Arthur would forever blame himself, despite Uther's attempt take all the blame. He went closer to his father, standing right next to him. "No Sire. I have been asking people on the outlying villages and towns if they have heard anything, and searched passed the countryside . . . but there's no news yet." He tried to remain professional when saying this, but it was practically impossible. Morgana was far too close to them for them to be at ease over the thought of her being in danger . . . or worse.

Arthur did recognize his father's question, and though he was surprised by it, he was also honored. His father was constantly training him to be a good king and so these sort of opportunities were ones to take full advantage of. He moved a bit closer, looking down at the map, taking a few moments to absorb their defense plans. "They look decent. However, my concern right now is the shortage of men. We lost a lot of knights in the dragon attack, and I'm not sure we have enough right now to spread them too thinly over the city. Perhaps we should increase defense at the borders, and near the gates. We have to find a way to protect the villages on the outskirts as well." Arthur felt more comfortable giving such advice when it was just the two of them. He never wanted to disrespect or disagree with his father in public, though, it was becoming a frequent occurrence these days.

[tomb01]

Uther waited for Arthur to see if he had any news on Morgana. Uther hated it, every passing day since Morgana’s disappearance and it was taking its toll. Uther was using more knights to search for Morgana then to keep Camelot safe. Uther knew that they had a shortage of knights because of the dragon attack, he should have killed that dragon when he had the chance years ago instead of locking him underneath the castle. Uther cursed himself for that. “We’re doing all we can for Morgana Arthur. I wish though we could just find her.” Uther replied back to his son.

Uther listened to his son as he spoke up about the plans of the defensives that Camelot had. “My concern as well. Later today I’ll speak to the people explain that we need people of nobility to join the knights of Camelot to defend their home. Without more people as knights we’ve got no way to defend Camelot from an attack.” Uther replied back to Arthur. “If we had more people to protect the lands we would be alright. After the dragon attacked us we’ve been dealing with more problems then solutions and right now we need a solution. If things don’t lighten up I’m thinking of calling every man and woman to call up arms to defend Camelot since right now we don’t have the manpower.” Uther replied back to Arthur.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur hated seeing his father like this. He knew his news disappointed him greatly. "I won't stop until I find her Sire," he told him with full confidence. He had to find her. Seeing her lying unconscious on the ground could not be the last time he ever saw her. "We will find her, we must." He was trying to convince himself just as much as his father. Though Arthur knew that when they were up against sorcery -- and very powerful at that -- they were at a massive disadvantage.

He pulled his mind back into working on strategies and defenses for the next attack that was about to befall Camelot. Only this time, it was by man not beast. "That would be helpful indeed. I can ride out to nearby towns and call all nobleman to come and fight. I will train them as much as I can, and pull as many tests forward so that you can knight as many as possible in order to strengthen our army." His father was distressed. He even suggested every man and woman fight in the battle, which created a horrible image in Arthur's mind. "I truly hope it does not come to that," he said in a low voice, not wanting people who did not know how to use a weapon to risk their lives.

"You are right about dealing with more problems. The city is still extremely vulnerable. Just walking through it you can still see a clear sign of destruction, and too many people are on the streets now because of their losses." It was a horrible image, and had it not been this bad, Arthur would not have made his next suggestion. He knew how his father was about seeking aid from others, but desperate times called for desperate measures. "Perhaps we could seek aid from other kingdoms? There are at least 5 that are our allies; King Bayard of Mercia as well I'm sure would offer some assistance." Arthur's pride was not great enough to refrain from asking for outside help; not when his people and this kingdom were in such a bad situation.

[tomb01]

Uther looked back at his son as he said that he wasn’t going to stop looking for Morgana and Uther believed Arthur would stop at nothing to bring Morgana home where she belonged. As each day passed Uther felt that their chances of finding Morgana decreased, he hated not knowing and felt that his promise to Morgana’s father was broken. Uther felt horrible about it, though he right now had to deal with the matter’s at hand. The war with Cenred wasn’t going to be easy at all. “I know you will find Morgana Arthur.” Uther replied back. Uther looked back at the map of Cenred, he was amazed that he could get his hands on one of these. Uther nodded in reply, they needed all the knights that they could get their hands on they must defend this city.

Camelot was the last line of defense if this city falls then Cenred would have won and that’s something that Uther wasn’t going to let happen he couldn’t allow his city to fall. “I have faith in you Arthur. I know you will do everything in your power to train those knights. When you believe they are ready to be knighted I will knight them and they can join our army.” Uther replied back. “So am I. I hope that it doesn’t come down to that but if it does I need your support.” Uther added in. “Perhaps you are right. I’ll send a messenger to Mercia and the other kingdom’s seeking for help against Cenred.” Uther replied back to Arthur.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Uther's faith in Arthur did give him hope that there was a chance he would find Morgana . . . his father's encouragement was very reassuring and while it gave him some confidence, Arthur would not feel fully comforted until she was actually back. His father's continued to express his faith in his son. He knew that Uther would not have done so had matters not been so bad . . . but being on the brink of war, and trying to rebuild their city . . . it was a lot to handle, even for the king. "Thank you for your confidence in me father." He felt the need to express the gratitude he felt. "Do you wish to still enforce the first rule of Camelot knighthood that you instilled, stating that only men of noble blood may join the army?" Arthur wondered if he would put aside that code, if only just for time of battle. Arthur wasn't sure he would . . . but it was worth asking, just in case.

Could Arthur support his father if matters came to that? He was not sure . . . but Uther was right; they would not have a choice. So long as it was a last resort. However, when the king agreed to seek help, Arthur was extremely hopeful! Uther was not opposed to the idea of asking for help. Yes, the kingdom was in that much danger. "I will send riders to our allies, Gwent and Mercia as well. We will be discreet so that news of our state does not spread too quickly. We don't want Cenred to build any more allies against us." He wondered who they were sided with. Hopefully none of Camelot's allies betrayed them.