Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

Chapter 23 – The Greatest Kingdom Ever Known

The following morning was early enough to attend to any matters of state. Arthur received a grand reception as he entered the Privy Council chambers, his Knights having seen him the previous day, but had not had the chance to speak to him as he'd shut himself in his chambers with Gwydre and Guinevere. Albion's other monarchs were in attendance as well and welcomed him back happily. However, it was the person who was most relieved by his recovery – aside from his wife – that gave him the least warm welcome.

"Can we get on with this so I can go back to bed?" Merlin grumbled. Much to Gaius' astonishment he had awoken early this morning. He was still quite exhausted, but by the physician's estimation the amount of magic Merlin had used should have kept him asleep for at least a few more days, and were it anyone but Merlin it no doubt would have. Arthur looked to the source of the voice, the only one who was sitting at the Round Table, with his head resting on his arms and his eyes closed in either a sincere attempt to sleep, or an overt exaggeration of his tiredness; Arthur suspected the former. Morgana stood by him and she was the first The King greeted as he made his way to Merlin's side. After embracing his sister and ensuring her he was all right, he grabbed Merlin by the arm, forcing the disgruntled warlock to his feet before embracing him as well, much to the shock of all who knew them. While Arthur and Merlin's regard and care for each other was well known, they were far more prone to insults, jokes and barbed comments then displays of affection, so it was a very rare occurrence, which many in the room had never seen, when their affection was shown publicly. After a moment of shock, Merlin returned the embraced and that was Arthur's cue to end it.

"No, I'm not done yet." Merlin said, wrapping his arms around Arthur more tightly when the other man began to pull away; this effectively brought the tender moment to an end.

"Unhand me, Merlin."

"No!"

"Now." He growled warningly and Merlin complied. The King cleared his throat when he saw the amused looks of those gathered. "Yes...well. Sir Leon, report." He conspicuously changed the topic.

"The armies of Mercia and Deorham have retreated, Sire. What is left of them at any rate. Casualties were sustained on both sides, but their losses were far heavier." The First Knight promptly explained. "I sent men to drive our advantage home and ensure that none remained within Camelot's borders."

"In your absence we discussed our next move with your Queen." Said Rodor, Albion's other monarchs joining the discussion. "As time was of the essence a decision had to be reached."

"It is why Lancelot and Percival are not here." Guinevere added. "The day after the battle they took a battalion of men each, made up of men from all the kingdoms, and made for Mercia and Deorham."

"Their purpose?" Arthur was curious, wondering if they had decided to claim Bayard and Alined's kingdoms by right of conquest.

"Peace." Said Annis. "We decided we would not dishonour your desire for peace by trying to forcefully claim kingdoms that are not our own."

"However, your Knights have orders to ensure they know that peace is mandatory." Godwyn continued. "If either Alined or Bayard's heirs are of a similar mind as their predecessors and would attempt to continue this war, they are to be informed we will crush them." Arthur nodded, having expected such a course of action if for no other reason than Guinevere was consulted; it was the same course of action he himself would have taken and she knew him well enough to know that.

"If they departed two days ago the earliest we can expect them back is another week. And that only if they stay no more than a single night." He mused to himself.

"Might we impose upon your hospitality until then?" Lot asked. "I would know their answer before heading home."

"Of course. You are all welcome." Guinevere assured them.

"We also have much to discuss, I think." Annis' words were pointed and if they left any room for ambiguity the look she sent Arthur did not.

"If you are all going to say that you're giving up your crowns so that I may be King of all Albion, I will call you insane and kick you out of my citadel right now." This drew a chuckle from the other monarchs, though Caerleon's Queen gave a hearty laugh.

"I do not know if we go quite that far, Arthur." Rodor said. "But after what we witnessed in battle, I think we all agree with Annis that discussion is in order."

oo00oo00oo

Percival returned just over a week later from Mercia with word that Lord Tybalt, a cousin of Bayard who became heir apparent when Bayard's son was killed in battle two summers ago by Camelot troops – giving reason to his desire to overthrow Arthur – seemed quite amenable to peace. He had signed a document to that effect stating that he agreed to whatever terms of peace Albion's other monarchs decided on so long as they brought no further harm to Mercia or his people. Beyond that Percival reported that he did not believe Lord Tybalt to even be capable of subterfuge, his instinct told him that Bayard's heir was entirely genuine in his desire for peace. Between the written document, Percival's instinct and Mercia's greatly diminished army, all the monarchs were happy to trust he was in truth, and would take no more action than keeping an eye on things just in case they were wrong. Bayard himself would be released into his cousin's custody only if he agreed to abdicate in favour of Lord Tybalt who in turn would ensure he caused no more trouble. This too was stated in the document Lord Tybalt signed.

It took nearly another week for Lancelot to return, with not even half his battalion. It did not take a genius to figure out what had happened: Alined's son and heir was not so inclined to make peace with those that kept his father prisoner. Upon hearing what Lancelot had to say, The Prince promptly ordered what remained of his father's army to attack Albion's delegation. The Prince himself lost his life in the ensuing battle as did much of Deorham's remaining army. With no other children nor siblings, and Deorham's nobility both scrambling to figure out who was next to succeed Alined and become regent in their King's absence, and fighting amongst themselves in regard to how to respond to what many called the murder of their Prince and wrongful imprisonment of their King, Lancelot claimed Deorham by right of conquest. The arguing nobility had no choice but to accept this claim for not one of them had a good claim to Deorham's throne, nor could any scrounge up enough men to forcibly evict Albion's delegation. Lancelot had lost no men in the battle and had left the majority of his battalion to guard Deorham until the monarchs could decide what to do with the kingdom. He returned with the royal seal, which Alined had left in his son's care in case he should not return, and presented it to Arthur alone. As a Knight of Camelot, Lancelot could only claim Deorham for his King, though Arthur had no desire to hoard the land. It did not take much discussion among the monarchs to determine what was to happen with Deorham. King Alined would remain a prisoner for the remainder of his days, though he would not stay in Camelot. King Lot offered to take him, knowing of a small manor deep in the Feorre Mountains within his land that would serve well a prison. As Alined was a threat to all of Albion, each monarch would send a set number of men to guard the manor and ensure he never escaped. As for the kingdom itself, it was agreed that it would be split amongst the three other kingdoms it bordered. Essetir, Meredor and Camelot would all receive a portion of the land to rule, absorbing Deorham into their own kingdoms; Camelot would receive a great boon from this in that they would now have a direct route to the sea, where previously they had to cross allied land.

During those weeks that they awaited the return of their delegations, much discussion was held between Albion's monarchs. All of them. Unsurprisingly given his other option was to remain a prisoner for the rest of his life, Bayard had agreed to abdicate in favour of his cousin. The new King Tybalt had personally come to retrieve his cousin and attempt to offer further assurances that he did not want any further trouble. The other monarchs quickly agreed with Percival's assessment that Tybalt was in earnest and so he too was included in the discussions of Albion's future. Of course, given they were all of a similar mind, the discussions did not take long. Arthur did not want to take anyone's crown away from them, and thankfully for him the other monarchs were not offering them. However, this was as far as Arthur's victory in not becoming King of Albion went. While it was unanimously agreed that they would not give up their crowns or kingdoms, the other monarchs were united in that there was at least some truth to the ancient prophecies proclaiming Arthur The True King of Albion. As such, they decided that even though he bore not that title, Arthur would lead them in matters that concerned all of Albion. He agreed to this largely because he was given no choice, but also because with peace truly reigning, he did not anticipate having to take on that leadership role often, if at all. With all of Albion's monarchs in attendance, a peace treaty was agreed upon and would be officially signed during a grand celebration held in Camelot over the summer. During that time, each monarch would travel back to Arthur's kingdom for the celebration and signing, though for now they returned home.

Two months later, on a bright sunny day, the monarchs gathered once more. A table had been brought out to the balcony overlooking the citadel courtyard with the peace treaty placed upon it. Before a crowded courtyard containing nobles and commoners alike from all seven kingdoms, each monarch signed the treaty, binding their kingdoms together in a pact of unbreakable peace. Arthur was the last to sign and with a not so subtle push from his fellow Kings and Queen, he stepped forward to address those gathered.

"Let every man, woman, and child bear witness that for the first time, all of Albion stands united in one common cause. We stand together in peace and prosperity for the betterment of all, no matter which kingdom you call home. From this day forward there shall be no more war or bloodshed, no more hate or discrimination, for we are all united together as one!" Then, just like that day on the battlefield, Arthur unsheathed Excalibur and raised it high. "For the love of Albion!"

oo00oo00oo

Ten Years Later…

"Your Royal Highnesses, My Lord, please! We must get you dressed for the festival!" Nia, one of the maids, cried as she ran after her charges. It was not a task she relished knowing of the trouble The Princes and their best friend could often be; however, the royal nursemaid was her friend and was running late this morning so she had agreed to help out. It was a mistake she already regretted, for no sooner had she walked in had the three young boys dashed out of the nursery with wooden swords and shields in hand, playing as they ran down the corridor. As she chased them around the corner she came to a stop behind the boys who themselves were frozen in place seeing the look their mother and aunt was giving them.

"Llewelyn, Ioan, Amhar are you not supposed to be dressing for the festival?" Guinevere's question was pointed and the raised eyebrow told them their fun was over.

"Yes Mama."

"Yes Auntie." They dutifully replied.

"Your Majesty I do apologize." Nia said, to which her Queen only smiled.

"Think nothing of it, Nia. I know only too well the trouble they can be."

"Indeed. But they will cause no more trouble today will they?" Their nursemaid, Irina, had finally arrived and was one of the few who could control them without much effort. The little girl Guinevere had known from the days before she was Queen was now nineteen. She had begun helping Margie when the number of royal children had grown and although she had never officially been given the post, Irina had been caring for the children for so long that she had merely continued to do so when Margie grew too old. The innkeeper's wife did continue to frequent the citadel, and aside from their mother was the only one who could force their obedience with but a look; however, she was not caring for them as she once did. With Irina now here, Nia happily passed the children off and went about her regular duties while the three boys were marched back to the nursery.

"There you are!" Morgana cried, seeing her son. "I should've known you'd be playing with your sword. I could kill Arthur for giving it to you." The last part was muttered so only Guinevere could hear and was a sentiment The Queen wholeheartedly agreed with.

"Be thankful you've only got the one." The Queen muttered back. Morgana and Merlin had married in the autumn following the signing of the peace treaty. Eight and a half months later – which Arthur nearly killed Merlin over, though had Morgana insisting the child was merely early – they had their first child, a daughter named Adara who would soon be turning nine. Their son, Llewelyn, followed two years later before their third and final child, another daughter named Saffir, who was now four. Guinevere and Arthur had outdone them by two children. After Gwydre came seven-year-old Ioan who was quickly followed by his six-year-old brother Amhar. Llacheu, who was three, was the fourth child of The King and Queen and Guinevere swore he would be the last, only for their one and only daughter, Bronwyn, to be born but a few months ago. With Irina's help, the two mothers wrestled their sons into their best clothes and gave them strict orders not to get dirty before they went off in search of their other children. Gwydre was the easiest to find. The ten-year-old future king was quite in awe of his baby sister and took his duties as a big brother very seriously, so it was not surprising to find him further in the nursery entertaining Bronwyn with a stuffed rabbit under Margie's watchful eye.

"I hear you finally got that lot ready for the festival." The old woman said with an amused twinkle in her eye.

"I'm sure the entire citadel heard their complaints." Morgana answered with an eye roll.

"Gwydre are you ready?"

"Yes Mama." He replied without looking up and she could indeed see that he was dressed in his best crimson doublet and was even wearing the circlet proclaiming him The Crown Prince. While Uther had withheld officially proclaiming Arthur his heir until he was a man grown, because, in Uther's words, Arthur had to earn the honour in battle, Arthur himself would not force his son through the same trials and had happily bestowed the honour upon him for his recent tenth birthday.

"That should be everyone then." Guinevere said. "I dressed Llacheu earlier."

"You sure about that?" Arthur's voice came from the doorway where he was followed by two chagrined, and very dirty, children.

"Saffir!" Morgana exclaimed seeing her daughter's dress was covered in mud.

"Llacheu started it!" She defended petulantly. "He tripped me with his magic then said that my magic was weak and I couldn't do anything about it…so I pushed him in the mud."

"And Llacheu pushed her back." Arthur concluded the story. His youngest son was the only Pendragon born with inherent magical ability. Gwydre, like Gaius, had the affinity for it but had to study hard and even then could only perform small spells. On the other hand, Morgana and Merlin's children all had magic, and with not only being the children of two powerful sorcerers, but with one of them being the legendary Emrys, they were all quite powerful in their own right. Adara followed her father around learning everything she could and was determined to one day take over as Court Sorcerer. She and her cousin Gwydre were quite close and all could see in their relationship the similarities to that of their fathers; none would be surprised that as Merlin served as Court Sorcerer for King Arthur, Lady Adara would one day serve as Court Sorcerer for King Gwydre.

Llewelyn too was destined to continue on his father's legacy, though in a different capacity. As the first born, and only son, of a Dragonlord, he would one day inherit the gift passed from father to son as Merlin had inherited it from Balinor. As such, Merlin had introduced him to the dragons at a young age and he had formed a bond with Matthan the youngest dragon. Matthan had been but an egg when his mother had flown him over from the continent. Word had spread of the existence of dragons, and a Dragonlord, in Albion and had reached an elderly dragon who had been in hiding for years, guarding her egg. Knowing that her egg would only hatch if a Dragonlord called him forth, she had taken the chance of the rumours being true and had left her hiding place to seek him out. During her travels, she had been injured as the humans who had caused her to go into hiding in the first place hunted her once more and she had not lived long after arriving in Albion. She had called out for her brethren when she could fly no longer and Merlin had rushed to her side, having heard her call. Knowing she was not long for this world he had quickly called Matthan forth, allowing the mother, who had guarded her egg for decades, to meet her child before she died. Aithusa, who by this time was fully grown, had taken on the role of mother and essentially raised Matthan, though Merlin and Llewelyn were frequent visitors. Much as his pseudo mother had bonded with Merlin, Matthan had bonded with the future Dragonlord and as of now they were the only two dragons left; or at least no more had come out of hiding. Kilgharrah had passed on one year into Albion's Golden Age of peace. His passing had not been surprising given his age but had hurt Merlin nonetheless. The powers of The Great Dragon were passed on to the oldest and wisest dragon yet living, in this case Aithusa, who took her task seriously and with Matthan now grown was often gone for long periods of time as she searched the world for more dragons, though she had yet to succeed in finding any.

"I've already called for water to clean them up. Hopefully it won't be much longer." Arthur added. George and Sefa both brought the required jugs of water not a few minutes later, each taking one of the children to get them cleaned up. The maid and manservant still primarily served The King and Queen, but would often help with the children where needed.

"May I assume that Adara has stayed clean?" Morgana asked. It was highly unlikely that her eldest daughter would be rolling in the mud, but earlier today she would have said the same about Saffir.

"Of course, Mama." The girl herself answered having entered the room with her father.

"I was going to ask what's taking so long, but in your question is my answer I think." Merlin said to his wife.

"I blame you, you know. I was never one for such antics." Arthur snorted as he tried to stifle a laugh at his sister's comment, which did not go unnoticed by her.

"On second thought, I blame Arthur." Her eyes were narrowed on her brother who tried to look innocent.

"You're not fooling anyone." Merlin said of his attempt at innocence.

"Shut up Merlin." When their children grew old enough to begin copying their actions, the brothers-in-law had greatly toned down their insults. Arthur was still frequently heard to say 'shut up Merlin', while Merlin would still call him a dollophead, but overall their banter had become much more harmless. At least in the presence of their children that is. When her father had come into the room, Bronwyn's eyes had immediately latched on to him and she had been reaching for him ever since, though Gwydre tried to distract her. Deciding she had been ignored long enough, The Princess let out a wail which prompted her eldest brother to quickly give her what she wanted; while he adored her, he could not abide her tears.

"Hello my Princess." Arthur murmured, Bronwyn snuggling into his chest as he held her close. The tiny girl had her father wrapped around her finger, a fact which Merlin teased Arthur endlessly about. It was only fair in his mind, given that Arthur had been merciless in his teasing when Adara was born, The King laughing at all Merlin would have to endure raising a girl, most notably dealing with suitors when she grew up, and Merlin was only too happy to reciprocate now that Arthur had a daughter himself. Bronwyn's birth had, however, united them in one thing, much to their wives annoyance. They were both determined to scare off any boys who came near them, and with one being The King and the other Emrys, there was little doubt that they would succeed. Of course, given how much their daughters had them wrapped around their little fingers they would no doubt put their fathers in their place when the time came, a fact Morgana and Guinevere kept to themselves for now.

When all the children were ready, they made their way down to the Privy Council chambers together where they would be meeting the members of their more extended family. Gaius yet lived but was now quite a frail old man. Hunith had returned to the citadel for good a few years ago, both to be near her son and grandchildren, and to take care of her brother in his final years. She did visit Ealdor each year, accompanying Merlin, Morgana and their children when the Duke and Duchess of Ealdor visited their land. They had built a grand house not far from the village and stayed there for nearly a month each summer. The Knights of the Round Table were all also in attendance today along with their families, and it was a rare occasion nowadays when they were all together. With Albion at peace, keeping the Knights together was not strictly necessary and Arthur could think of no one better than both Lancelot and Gwaine to oversee Camelot's newly acquired land. The people of Deorham had not all been receptive to having their kingdom split in three and being forced to bow to some other King, so an overseer was necessary to ensure a smooth transition. Lancelot had already proven himself a fine commander and had not lost one man in the skirmish against Deorham's late Prince, while Gwaine knew the intricacies of the nobility and ruling over a large portion of land, training that the common born Lancelot had not had. Gwaine had finally come clean to Arthur about his noble birth and had actually volunteered for the assignment. To this day the two remained in the south-eastern most part of Camelot, returning to the citadel only a few times a year to attend Privy Council meetings. Both had married women of the former Deorham's nobility, which appeased the staunchest naysayers, though had not been the reason behind their marriages; they dearly loved their wives and the children that followed.

Leon, Elyan and Percival remained at the citadel, Leon continuing to serve as Camelot's First Knight. They had all married over the years and had children, or in the case of Elyan had his first child on the way. Elyan had ended up falling in love with Lady Beatrice, much to his surprise and everyone else's. The woman who had once been quite mean to his sister had apparently had a change of heart when she returned to the citadel over a year later. Even so, he had purposefully stayed away from her until one night at a feast they were seated next to each other and simple manners dictated that they converse with one another. Love had not happened instantaneously after that, but rather over many months when one day Elyan realized that he did love her. His sister and brother-in-law had not been ignorant of the increasing amount of time he spent with Lady Beatrice and so were not surprised when he came to them asking for their blessing. Guinevere was more than happy to give it, seeing her brother truly in love and knowing that Lady Beatrice's change was genuine. Arthur, for the simple fact that it had been his wife that had been insulted, was slower to give his permission for them to wed, but would not have denied Elyan the woman he loved. They had now been married for four years and after all that time were still childless, until now.

Percival and Leon's romances were not nearly so controversial. Percival had fallen for a woman in the lower town and had successfully courted her. The two were now parents to three boys who were clearly going to be as big as their father one day. Leon's mother had been responsible for his marriage. While Lady Agnes would not attempt to arrange a marriage for her only son, she had no qualms about pushing women in his direction when she decided that he was waiting too long to make her a grandmother; Leon's argument that she doted on Guinevere's children like a grandmother fell on deaf ears. One of the women had in fact caught his eye and it was not long before they were married, their twin daughters following in short order.

However, regardless of where life took them, each of them were here today for the ten year celebration of Albion's Golden Age. The other monarchs and their families were to come as well and would no doubt be arriving soon. With all of them now gathered, Arthur and Guinevere led everyone outside onto the steps in the courtyard where many of their people were already gathered. The prediction that it would not be long until their guests arrived was accurate. Queen Annis rode into the courtyard first and over the next hour the other monarchs arrived as well, having timed their arrival for the start of the festival. Like those many years ago, Albion's other monarchs still deferred to Arthur in matters that affected all of Albion, and this celebration was no different then when the treaty was signed ten years ago.

As he watched Arthur give a speech to start the festival, Merlin thought on his last conversation with Kilgharrah. The late Great Dragon had died happy, informing Merlin that Albion was well and truly at peace. The Golden Age the ancient prophecies foretold would come about under the reign of The Once and Future King that was at hand, and he saw nothing but light and happiness for as far into the future as he could see. Of course, they both knew that it would not last forever, for according to the same prophecies darkness would one day shroud the land, signalling the time for Arthur to rise again. But even so, Merlin knew that what they had created together, this Golden Age, would not be forgotten, in fact far from it. As Kilgharrah had said that day, the story they have been a part of would live long in the minds of men.

A/N - The end.

Of course there was one more chapter, I did promise 23 after all! Thank you all for reading and your wonderful reviews. My next story should be up soon, it won't be a Merlin fic, but a sequel to the Narnia/PR crossover written with mae-E is in the works as well as some other stuff. After that who knows! I got a feeling it may be another Merlin though! ;)

Review please!