A/N: Alright, chapter five finally ready. I had a tad bit of writer's block, but the chapter is ready. I quite enjoyed writing this chapter. I hope you enjoy reading it.

Chapter Five: Plotting, the Arrival and the First Affliction

Merlin continued running , until his home was behind him. It wasn't until he reached a gnarled and knotted tree that he stopped, placing his hands on his knees panting deep breaths and sitting cross legged under the shade. The tree was directly between his and Will's homes, and was often where either boy went when there was a dilemma. The other could see, just barely from their respective fields, and was usually bound to notice on the way back from that day's harvest. This is what Merlin was hoping would happen.

Merlin closed his eyes, breathing deeply as he tried to calm his racing heart. At the snapping of a branch, his eyes popped open as he glanced around, only to see that there was a long one at his feet. He felt the breeze picking up around him, heard the leaves rustling, and saw his hands trembling. He wrung them briefly before placing one hand under each of his legs so he was sitting on them. It wasn't entirely comfortable, but the quick jolt of pain was more manageable than the panic messages his brain was sending him at that moment. Why would he have given the crops to Kanen? His mother wouldn't be able to cook for them this week. It was all his fault. Usually they had at least a brief moment to gather some to hide before Kanen came, at least a few. Even if it was just one vegetable his mum would be able to make it into a decent meal. Now he had ruined even that.

"Merlin, oi!" He looked up to see Will crouching in front of him fiddling with the nearby branch. "What happened?"

Merlin shook his head. "I let him take it."

"You're gonna have to be clearer than that mate." Will said.

Merlin sniffed, realizing too late, that he was crying. "Kanen, Mum wasn't home. I couldn't… I couldn't stop him."

Will frowned. "Kanen was at your house when your Mum wasn't. Merlin… you don't mean…?"

"You were right." Merlin hiccuped. "You were right about all of it."

"Is he still at the house?" Will glanced over to Merlin's home.

Merlin shrugged.

"I think I know how we can get them back."

"How?"

Will just grinned, leaving Merlin suddenly very nervous.

Arthur looked out the window as their destination changed. The forest disappeared and suddenly they were riding through a village. As he watched children stopped what they were doing and began looking curiously at their carriage. The children wore little but tatters and Arthur saw one girl barely nine years old with no shoes covering her dirt coated feet.

"Oh how terrible!" Morgana put her hand to her mouth as she looked over to Arthur.

His face betrayed nothing. He had learned a long time ago that there wasn't much to be done in an ally's kingdom, at least not overtly. Morgana would pout and moan for days if she saw an injustice, usually resulting in Uther getting the silent treatment by the end of it. He didn't have that luxury, and what could he do anyway? He had a little more sway than Morgana, but only just.

"Does Cenred not know how his people live?" Elred's eyes narrowed as he saw the crowds around the well.

"He's aware." Arthur couldn't keep the disdain out of his tone.

"Why doesn't he do something about it?" Morgana asked. "He has the manpower and the means."

"Enough!" Uther said. "There is nothing to be done."

"I find that hard to believe." Morgana huffed. "You can talk to him."

"Morgana…" Arthur looked between his father and Morgana with her eyes aflame.

"There is nothing we can do if we wish to keep the peace." Uther's voice softened, little more than a weary sigh.

Morgana nodded giving a small smile. "You are right of course. I overstepped, I apologize." Arthur could hear it in her words, she was still upset. He felt it as well as he continued looking out the window. He saw the knights going door to door. He could only wonder what they were doing.

"Sire, if you don't mind," Arthur heard Gaius. The physician had offered to accompany them, citing Arthur's recent injury, but Arthur could see there was something more involved, just as sure as he could see Elred could scarcely lift one trunk without assistance from Leon. "There is a matter I need to attend to once we are settled."

Arthur continued looking out the window, listening even as Elred continued pestering him about Essetir. He waved the questions away.

"Arthur what…?" Elred said.

"I'm trying to hear." Arthur hissed.

Elred looked over to where Gaius leaned toward Uther, then back to Arthur. "What do you care what Gaius is doing?" Elred raised an eyebrow.

"Shut up!"

Elred clapped his mouth shut as he caught Morgana's smirk clearly aware of what Arthur was trying to do.

"She asked me to. I have to go there as soon as possible." Gaius was saying. "It's a matter of urgency."

Arthur saw his father nodding. "Of course you may Gaius."

"Thank you Sire." Gaius said.

Arthur, Elred and Morgana looked at each other. Gaius had to go somewhere to help a woman, Somehow Arthur was taken aback by the news, and more than a little curious. Gaius had always been a very private individual and Arthur considered him a second father. Even so, he didn't know a whole lot about the man that had taken care of him since he was a child. If there was a woman in his life, of course he wouldn't have been blabbing, nor would he show any indication. He was never like that.

Lost in his thoughts, Arthur barely realized when they pulled up to the gates of King Cenred's castle, to see the man himself waiting with a cordial expression to receive them. Arthur swallowed. This was going to be something to remember, whether good or bad, he couldn't judge just yet.

Asa held the young woman's hand looking over to the boy, and the young man at the bedside. Mr. Wayland had run in distraught and searching out Gaius saying that his wife had been attacked as she was doing her marketing. After Asa had explained Gaius' absence he had grabbed his medicine bag and followed Wayland to his home, a small and pokey cottage in the lower town. He saw the child first, a boy of maybe four years, his face dirty and tear stained as he clutched the threadbare blankets that covered what he assumed was Mrs. Wayland. He could scarcely recognize the woman under all of the blankets, and even as he lifted the corner furthest from the child's view, he could see why she was covered so.

"Hey, Thomas right?" Asa kept his voice light as he addressed the boy across from him. The boy looked up with a sniffle.

"Can you help 'er Mister Asa?" Thomas wiped his nose.

"Yes, but I need you to do me a favor." Asa said. "Can you go with Gwen and get water from the well?" Asa turned toward where Gwen stood just outside the door. Morgana had insisted that Gwen stay behind to help Asa. He was never more grateful to the king's ward then at that moment.

The boy turned to his father who nodded. "Go on now Tommy. Mama's gonna be just fine."

"Come on Tommy." Gwen held out her hand leading the child out turning back to Asa briefly before she shut the door behind them.

Once the pair were gone, Asa flipped off the blankets, cringing briefly as the full extent of the woman's injuries were exposed. Her face was scratched, what looked like claw marks, red, green and ugly. Her face wounds already appeared infected, in a matter of hours. Nasty copper scented gashes were visible up and down her arms, only her hands were spared the damage. Her legs were much the same. The dress she wore bore identical holes, leaving little more than rags on her body. Asa hadn't seen any wounds quite like these.

"How… how is she?" Wayland was pale. He looked as though he would retch where he stood, clutching a nearby bucket like a life raft even as his legs buckled. Asa steeled himself as he grabbed a chair from their small kitchen table bringing it over to the man.

"Sit down. You won't do her any good fainting where you stand." Asa kept his voice soothing, straightforward even as he felt himself trembling.

"But will she…?" Wayland looked again at his wife before he turned away filling the bucket in front of him with the contents of his stomach.

Asa walked back to where she lie muttering to himself. "Her face looks as though she was attacked by an animal, but the rest of her… I can't understand it."

"What?" Wayland's eyes widened.

"It seems…" Asa sighed. "As though she were stabbed by a lance or a spear of some kind." He hovered his finger over the wounds covering the woman's arms. "Something sharp, marks like these only come from weapons like that."

"So, what attacked her?"

Asa shook his head. "Mr. Wayland, did your wife, before she fell unconscious, did she tell you anything? Anything that could help us know what or who attacked her?"

The man sighed. "She… she wasn't making much sense. She said she saw shadows, like the darkness was peeling straight out of the sky and coming for her. By then… by then she was nearly gone, but she said, just before I found her that she heard music, barking. But she was hallucinating by that point. Talking strange, and she was cold to the touch. Hasn't warmed up since."

Asa frowned. It sounded unbelievable. As far as he knew wolves and wild dogs didn't show up anywhere near the citadel or near people at all confining themselves to the forests of Camelot and surrounding territories, so if it was an animal that attacked Mrs. Wayland, there must have been something causing it to be out in the open. He wished Gaius were here. He leaned over, taking the woman's wrist once again. There was a pulse, thready, barely there. Her hand was still cold, not even the extra blankets or the fire seemed to be working to warm her. "I...I'm sorry Mr. Wayland." He pulled out a bottle, coating a towel and dabbing at Mrs. Wayland's face wounds. "This will heal the infection. He capped the bottle as all at once the woman began thrashing.

"N...n…" Her voice was soft, barely audible.

"Wayland!" Asa grabbed one of her arms pinning her to the bed as her husband grabbed the other. They watched with baited breath as the woman's thrashing stopped, the little strength she'd had sapped.

"Thank you." The man sighed looking at Asa in appreciation, even as his shoulders slumped.

"Hold her nose. We have to get her to swallow this." Asa uncorked a potion. It was a basic sleeping draft, given to patients who suffered fits of fever. Gaius had taught him how to prepare it, and he was grateful he had it now. "It will help her rest."

"Is that all?" Wayland looked at the bottle.

"I wish I could do more." Asa sighed. "But until I know what attacked her, an antidote is impossible to prepare."

"That's not true! We know what attacked her. It was some kind of dog!" Wayland was hysterical.

"We don't know for certain." Asa tried to keep his voice calm, just barely quelling his rising panic. Gaius would have known straight away. This woman would be on her way to recovering, not at death's door.

His thoughts were interrupted by the boy's voice. "We got the water Mister Asa!"

He gave a shaking smile. "Thank you Thomas." Asa grabbed the bucket, grateful for the distraction as he wet a cloth and placed it atop her forehead. "Place a new cool cloth every few hours. It should ease her fever. I'll be back early tomorrow to check in." He sighed. "Come find me if there is any change before then."

The man nodded watching as Guinevere replaced one of the blankets, purposely leaving off the others, so that Mrs. Wayland wouldn't overheat, but making sure that her face was covered just enough to not frighten the boy. "Yes… Er… thank you."

"Of course." Asa said. He walked toward the door holding it half open as he waited for Gwen. It wasn't until they were a good distance from the house that Gwen spoke.

"What could have caused that… those injuries I mean?"

Asa clenched his fists feeling himself, now that he was away, trembling even more as his voice came out choked. "I don't know."

Gwen placed a hand on his shoulder. "You did your best. You'll figure it out."

"I hope you're right Gwen." But Asa knew the truth. Unless there were more cases, perish the thought, there would be no figuring out anything.

Okay, a bit of behind the name. Thomas means twin, and Wayland comes from Germanic mythology meaning unequaled smith and craftsman. I apologize for the lack of Merlin in this chapter. It kind of took a different direction than I originally thought, but a very important direction nonetheless. We will definitely see Merlin and what he and Will get into next chapter, along with an introduction to Cenred, Arthur and Elred trying to figure out what Gaius is up to, and Morgana's dream comes to pass, along with much more. Let me know your thoughts and have a Merry Christmas!