The Last Days

Merlin looked out and was amazed at what he saw. He now had the attention of most of the people in the square, old and young, those who were shopping and those who were working. Everyone was listening to his stories. As he was gazing at the crowd, kind of impressed at the attention he had received, he heard an old man's voice from the back of the crowd. "Tell us about King Arthur's last battle. Maybe you knowing him the way you did, you will have a better knowledge of what happened to him." The old Merlin looked down and sighed heavily, for this was a story that he feared telling. It hurt him deeply just thinking about what had happened to the King whom he had raised and the friend that he had lost so many years ago. "It was truly a horrible day. The worst I have ever seen in my long life," replied Merlin with his head still bowed and his eyes closed. "It all started when his most brave and loyal knight and his beloved queen betrayed him by having an affair with each other."

"Which knight was it?" asked a little girl in the front. "Surely it wasn't Sir Lancelot?"

"I wish it weren't so, but it was Lancelot," answered Merlin with another sigh. "The King was heartbroken when he had heard of the affair. I remember it very vividly. He was shaking with rage and crying from the sadness. Against my pleading, he decided  to chase down Lancelot and finish the battle they had started several years ago. As soon as he left, his nephew Sir Mordred came into Camelot and announced that he was the new king in Arthur's place. I immediately sent word to Arthur who turned his ships around and sailed home to fight Mordred..."


Sir Mordred and his men were standing in front of Camelot looking down at King Arthur and his men who had returned, and were now standing on the bank. All were prepared to fight to the death. Then with a loud battle cry, King Arthur and his men charged towards Mordred and his army. Then Mordred and his army charged to meet Arthur and his men. It seemed as if the whole world stood still during the battle. You could hear the clashing of the swords, and the screams of men dying from a mile away. It was the longest, bloodiest war ever known to man. Most of the men who had stepped onto that field that afternoon died.

There were very few men left when Arthur and Mordred met on that field and they all stopped and watched as the two men stared at each other, both waiting for the other to make their first move. Then both at the same time leaped towards each other and began fighting. They fought for a long time, neither one able to land a blow on the other. Then suddenly Mordred caught King Arthur in the side and wounded him deeply. Arthur, summoning all the strength he could, continued to fight. Arthur stormed Mordred and disarmed him with a blow so powerful that it knocked his sword out of his hands. Arthur, without saying a word, took his sword Excalibur and ran Mordred through the heart, and then Arthur watched as the life left his opponent's eyes. After Mordred fell dead, Arthur took one last look at Camelot in the setting sun. He saw his queen whom he still loved, despite her betrayal, and at her side was his friend and mentor Merlin. Then he collapsed on the field, too weak from his battle and his wound to stand any longer.

Merlin, seeing that the battle was over, rushed down to his king's side. "I should have listened to you, Merlin,"said Arthur as Merlin knelt at his side."I never should have chased after Lancelot. I caused all of this to happen."

"No, Mordred did. He's the one who took over in your absence. You did the right thing coming back. You put the needs of your kingdom before your personal vendettas. You are a good king," said Merlin, whose eyes were beginning to cloud with tears.

"What do I do now, Merlin? The kingdom's a wreck and I lie here dying on this field," asked Arthur.

"Well," said Merlin, "I can send you to the magical island of Avalon if you want. They might be able to fix you up good as new. You just have to promise that once you get better you'll come back and take control of Camelot again. You can't just get better and stay at Avalon and tan on the beach."

"You got yourself a deal," said Arthur with a laugh, followed by a spout of coughs. Then Merlin got a crew together and sent Arthur to Avalon. Merlin went back to the spot where Arthur had been lying and saw that Excalibur was still there, lying on the ground. He took it, and threw it back to the Lady of the Lake to hold it until Arthur returned.


Merlin looked up at the crowd with tears now flowing from his eyes. He wasn't alone though, for most of the crowd was now in tears after hearing the sad story. "Will King Arthur ever return?" asked a little boy.

"I don't know, but I hope so," replied Merlin. Everyone began to leave, because the sun was beginning to set. The old Merlin began to close up his shop with tears still coming from his baby blue eyes. He turned around to leave and saw that the boy he told his first story to was still standing there. "Old man, are you Merlin from your stories?"

"Yes, I am," replied Merlin. With that, Merlin went home bouncing that ball he had lent to the boy. On his way home he paused and looked at Camelot in the setting sun. He couldn't help but smile remembering the good times that he had with his friend Arthur.