Chapter Text
Arthur has made many mistakes in his life, but taking a trip to Edinburgh last month was by far the worst decision he ever made. He silently steps over more debris as he scans the area, looking for any sign of movement. He pulls his red bandana over his nose, trying to dilute the smell of rotting flesh. He turns his head to check his rear when he hears it; a pitiful moan. He swiftly swings his gun off his back and into his arms, finger ready on the trigger. His eyes dart back and forth, trying to locate the sound. He takes a few more cautious steps, staying a quiet as possible. He hears the groan again and turns to his left. A small girl, maybe 10, stares at him from the street. Arthur lowers the gun and swings it back over his shoulder. He approaches the girl slowly. Her hair is stained with blood making it impossible to distinguish its true color. Her dress is torn and like her hair, caked in blood. Her right arm is ripped off, muscle and tissues dangle from the wound. Her skin is putrid yellow and seems to peel off her body in places. Her eyes are cloudy and yellow, staring at Arthur without any life behind them. Arthur approaches her and careful to avoid her teeth, grips the knife he keeps on his belt and stabs her through the head. Her frail body collapses instantly. Arthur closes his eyes and turns away, leaving the tiny corpse on the road.
The world ended on a Monday. Arthur thought that was fitting. If the world is going to end, at least he didn’t have to return to work. Arthur smiled at the memory of his work, or his father’s work he should say. His father, Uther Pendragon, was CEO and owner of PenTech, one of the most successful (and expensive) technology companies in the world. Arthur has been training under his father ever since he graduated Uni three years ago and was failing miserably at it. He didn’t have the same knack for running a company that his father did. He pulled his phone from pocket and stared at the screen. Cell towers stopped working two weeks ago, but Arthur kept the phone anyways. The lock screen was a picture of his sister, Morgana, and himself sitting at the top of the London eye. They had taken the picture three days before Arthur left for Scotland. He felt a small pang of loss and put his phone away. He hadn’t heard from his family in weeks. He had called them the first day of the attacks, but they couldn’t talk long. They were being escorted to the bomb shelter Arthur’s mother had insisted on having when they built their estate. Uther had promised someone was coming to collect Arthur and would be there as soon as possible. No one ever came. Arthur had stayed in Edinburgh ever since. He had found a few other survivors; several men named Leon, Percy, and Lance. Leon was the first survivor Arthur met. He was a bit older maybe 30 but he was insanely brave and loyal. He had taught Arthur how to kill the undead and keep them dead. He had saved Arthur’s life more than once. They found Percy fighting off a dozen undead using a crowbar. The man didn’t talk much, but he was strong. He could take out three undead with one swing. Lance found them. The men were searching a small store for supplies when they were attacked by a horde of the undead. They were surrounded, the undead swarming outside the glass doors. Just as the glass gave way and the undead stormed inside, Lance appeared and led them out through the basement of the store.
Arthur never had friends growing up, just fellow children of his father’s business partners. Leon, Percy, and Lance were his first real friends. They looked after and cared for each other. Arthur loved them. He returned to their “home” if you could call it that. It was an old bomb shelter from WWII built into a hill. It was covered in thick grass, the boys had planted a few seeds they had found to try and grow a garden. Arthur stopped to inspect the small sprouts. He hummed appreciatively. He had no knowledge of gardening, but sprouts seemed like a good thing. He opened the rusty door and entered the shelter. The fit was tight, but they mainly used it for sleeping anyways. Arthur shared a bunk with Lance and Leon and Percy shared the other. There were several other bunks, but they all silently agreed to stay as close as possible to each other, just in case. Percy had managed to find a solar powered generator a week ago and a tall lamp was set up in the corner. Percy was sitting on his bottom bunk, smiling at Arthur. The others were still gone.
“Hey, Perc. How did your run go today?” he started to walk past the bed when Percy spoke.
“It was good. I found something.” Arthur turned back.
“Oh, yeah? What?” Percy grinned again.
“Look, mate.” He stood and walked to the back of the shelter. He came back with something rectangular and black in his arms.
“Is that-“ Arthur began before Percy interrupted.
“It’s a fridge! I mean a mini fridge, but still! We keep things cold now! And look,” he sat the fridge down and turned it towards Arthur. “It has a freezer!” he opens up a small door to show it off. “Isn’t this awesome!” Arthur smiled back at him.
“This is awesome, Percy! Where did you find it? And how did you bring it all the way back here?” The shelter door opened and Leon walked in.
“Get what back here?” Leon asked.
“Percy found a mini fridge.” Leon looked down at the small fridge.
“What?” Leon opened both doors. “Does it work?”
“I dunno. I wanted to show everyone before I tried it.” Leon chuckled.
“Let’s find out.” He picked up the fridge and carried it over to the generator and plugged it in.
An hour later, the three boys surround the fridge, taking turns putting their hands inside.
“I can’t believe it actually works.” Leon shook his head. “Maybe God does love us after all.”
Arthur laughed. “Yeah. He really loves us. ‘I’m going to destroy the world. But here’s a fridge.’ But hey, at least we can store food now. Especially when winter hits. It won’t be a lot but it’ll be better than what we had yesterday.” Percy nods in agreement. Leon started to say something but caught himself. He looked down at his watch.
“Guys, Lance is past curfew.” The other two men checked their own watches, it was 8p.m. and sent worried glances to one another.
“Lance is never late.” Percy looked to Arthur. “What should we do?” Arthur chewed his lip.
“We can give him till morning. If he’s not back by then, we’ll search for him. Agreed?” He looked to the other men.
“Agreed.” They both responded.
The rest of the night passed by silently, each man growing more worried as the night went on. The excitement over the fridge long gone over the fear of losing their friend. Leon finally broke the silence as they were preparing for bed.
“So, Arthur. Did you find anything on your run today?” Arthur grabbed his backpack off his bed.
“Just some small things; batteries, empty water bottles, and a few packages of beef jerky.” He pulled each item out as he named them. “How about you?” Leon opened his bag and pulled out some apples, matches, and a few shirts.
“Nothing too special. I did find a bath tub if we want to haul it over here so we can clean ourselves.”
“That would actually be pretty nice. We could use it to store water for the winter too. I don’t see how we could get it all the way here though. It’d take all of us to walk it here. We’d need someone to cover us. If we find Lance…” Arthur stopped quickly and corrected himself. “When we find Lance, maybe we can figure something out.”
The other two nodded and the room falls quiet again. Leon jumps up into his bunk, careful not to hit Percy sitting on the bottom and lays his head down. He turns to his side and Arthur walks to the lamp. Flicking the light off, he returns to his bunk and jumps to the top. He tosses and turns for most of the night. Percy and Leon are asleep almost instantly, he can hear Percy’s soft snores and Leon’s even breathing. Eventually, sleep overtakes his racing mind and he falls into a restless slumber.
He wakes up to sunlight shinning in his eyes. He squints, trying to adjust to the sudden brightness. Leon and Percy are awake, gathering up some supplies to search for Lance. Arthur jumps off the bed and rubs his eyes.
“Sorry I slept so late. You should have woken me.” The two share a knowing glance. Arthur looks at them quizzically. “What?”
“Mate, you were talking in your sleep all night. We thought you could use it.” Percy tosses him his backpack. “Besides, you’re gonna need all the rest you can get today. We’re gonna find Lance, dead or alive. Or undead. Whatever.” Arthur catches his bag with one hand.
“Well we better get going then.”
They search all morning and into late afternoon. They are currently taking a break outside a small pub. Leon is leaning against some crumbled stones, wiping blood off his knife. Arthur is sitting on the curb drinking some water they packed. Percy stood guard, watching the road intently.
“Hey, Perce. You sure this is where he was headed yesterday?” Leon twirled his knife and placed in back into the sheath strapped to his leg. “This isn’t where he normally loots. Lance hates being directly inside the city. It makes him nervous”
“I’m sure.” Percy replied, without turning towards Leon, “He said he wanted to check a different area. He says he wasn’t finding enough materials.” Arthur shakes his head.
“That sounds like Lance. He’s always wanting to prove his worth.” Percy chuckles.
“He’s a real knight in shining armor, isn’t he?” He laughs again. “I swear-” Arthur jumps up. “Be quiet.” Percy stops talking and looks around. Leon grabs his knife and steps towards Arthur.
“Arthur, what- “
“I said be quiet!” Arthur whispers. He hears it again. Footsteps. Several footsteps. And they are getting closer. The other men hear them too. The duck inside the crumbling pub, hiding behind the bar. They all hold their breath, praying the undead pass by. Arthur gets his knife, ready to fight if he needs to. He notices Leon do the same and Percy grips his crowbar. The footsteps stop right outside the pub. They hear the soft crunch of feet stepping on the rubble. Arthur prepares himself, and counts to three.
One…
Two…
Three…
He jumps up, knife swinging, to see Lance standing in front of him. He freezes and drops the knife.
“Lance?!” Arthur hops over the bar and hugs him. “What the hell, mate. We thought you were dead!” Lance looks sheepish. Leon and Percy step out from the bar and hug Lance too.
“I’ll explain in a second, but first I have to do something.” He turns and leans out of the pubs doorway “Oi! It’s safe here! Bring her in!” Lance comes back to the men and takes a deep breath. “I’m sorry I missed curfew. But I have a good reason.” Just then two people appear in the doorway; a scruffy looking man carrying a woman bridal style. He walks in and places her on the bar table. He looks at the three men and then to Lance.
“These your friends?” Lance nods. He holds out his hand “I’m Gwain, Nice to meet you.” He shakes each hand. “This beauty,” he gestures to the woman on the table, “is Guinevere.” She rolls her eyes and smacks Gwain’s chest.
“Please, call me Gwen.” She reaches out her hand. “Lance has told us a lot about all of you. He saved our lives yesterday.” She glances at Lance. “He’s very brave.” Arthur looks between the two, already sensing the chemistry. He shakes her hand.
“Nice to meet you Gwen. I’m Arthur. This is Leon and Percy.” They raise their hand as Arthur introduces them. “Not to pry but what are you doing in Edinburgh? I though all the sane people got out of the big cities?” Gwen frowns and looks to Gwain.
“We were up in the highlands, on a holiday. We didn’t even realize anything was wrong until we came down two weeks ago and met Merlin. As soon as the name left her lips, a man walked in. A lanky, pale, mop headed boy. A German Shepherd walked obediently at his side. Arthur watched as he made his way over to Gwen. The dog sniffed the air and trotted over to Arthur wagging his tail. He jumped up on his hind legs and licked Arthur’s face. Arthur pushed him down and rubbed his head.
“Sorry!” the man grabbed the dog by the collar and gently pulled him back. “Kilgarah usually hates strangers. I’m Merlin by the way.” He smiles and holds out his hand,
“Arthur. And no worries, I love dogs. He reminds me of mine back home.” He turns his attention back to Gwen. He looks down at her swollen ankle. “Are you okay? What happened?” her hand goes down to her ankle.
“It’s just a sprain. I fell yesterday trying to outrun some of the undead. Lance said I should stay off it for a while so it can heal.” She looks to Lance. He blushes.
“I, uhh, kinda told them they could stay with us. Just until her ankle is healed. I hope that’s alright…” Arthur inwardly groans. He knows it’s the right thing to do, but they already struggle enough with the four of them. Adding three (four if you count Kilgarah) more mouths to feed and care for could very well get them all killed. Arthur looks to Leon and Percy, both give him silent and subtle nod of approval.
“It’s fine.” He turns to the new members of their group. “But you will be expected to help out. We won’t be taken advantage of.” He nods to Gwen “Except for you, of course. Healing from your injury is the most important thing right now.” Merlin glares at him.
“Of course, we will help, you prick. We’re not helpless dolls. We’ve made it this far, haven’t we?” Arthur rolls his eyes.
“I’m just trying to keep my group safe. Sorry for not instantly trusting the first group of people we’ve seen since the world went to shit.” He turns on his heel, leaving Merlin behind. “We need to get going. We need to return before dusk. The others quietly pack their things.
The way home is quiet. Gwain and Percy take turns carrying Gwen, she tries to argue, claiming she can walk, but neither men put her down. She was currently being carried by Percy, her arms crossed and silently fuming. Kilgarah stayed close to Merlin, though would stray ahead to walk next to Arthur every once in a while. A sharp snap of Merlin’s fingers was enough to call him back. Darkness started to fall when they were an hour away from home. Kilgarah was walking ahead with Arthur when suddenly he froze, growling quietly. Arthur bent down to pet him when Merlin appeared next to him. He placed his hand on Kilgarah’s head, silencing him. Merlin looked forward, then drew a knife from his boot. He took a few cautious steps forward. The rest of the group had stopped, watching Merlin. Kilgarah followed at Merlin’s feet, eyes locked on something the others couldn’t see. Kilgarah suddenly snarled and jumped ahead of merlin, protecting him. One of the undead was dragging its body across the ground. It’s bottom half completely missing. The intestines and other organs spilling out behind it. Merlin gagged before using the knife to stab the creature in the head, killing it. He returned to the group, wiping the blood off on his shirt. The others watched him, before Merlin spoke.
“Well? Aren’t we supposed to be going somewhere?” Arthurs group began leading the way once again but Arthur dropped back to talk to Merlin.
“Kilgarah can sense them?” Merlin looks up at him.
“I think he can smell them, but yeah. He’s like a little radar.” He pats the dogs head. “I think most animals can sense them in some way. That’s why they all started fleeing big cities. That’s where most of them are.” Arthur is silent for a moment.
“I’m sorry…about earlier. I didn’t mean to be a prick. I’m just-“
“-worried. No worries, I get it. You need to protect your group.” Merlin kicks at a stone in the grass. “We’re worried too though. We thought we were goners when Gwen got hurt.” Arthur glanced back ahead at Gwen and Percy.
“Don’t you guys have a base you could’ve taken her?” he notices Merlin’s annoyed expression. “I don’t mean to be rude. I’m just saying, you should have a home base, somewhere you can hide out when things like this happen.” Merlin shrugs.
“Nah, we’ve been traveling. We all started off up in the highlands. It’s taken us a month to get here.”
“Where are you going?” Merlin hesitates a split second. “Well, Gwen and Gwain are both from London, so that’s our first stop. Gwen has some family; her dad and brother, that she wants to find. Gwain claims he has no family, just wants to collect some things from his flat…” he trails off.
“And you?” Merlin licks his lips.
“I’m going home, to my mum. She’s in Cardiff. She’s all I have in this world. She actually paid for my flight to the highlands. She knows I’ve always had a soft spot for Nessie.” He laughs sadly. “I have to know she’s okay. If I’ve lost her…” his voice trails off. Arthur watches as Merlin wraps his arms around his torso, like he’s trying to hold himself together.
“My dad and sister are in London.” Arthur looks straight ahead while he talks but he can feel Merlin look at him. “Morgana, my sister, called me the day all this” he gestures around them “happened. She and my father were okay, last I knew. But since the towers went down I haven’t heard from them.” He looks at Merlin. “I really hope your mum is okay, Merlin.”
“Thanks. I hope your family is okay too.” Arthur smiles and they spend the rest of the walk in peaceful silence. They return to the shelter around 2am. Arthur turns on the lamp and everyone groans at the light. Leon shuts the door and secures the lock. Arthur leads the new comers towards the empty bunks.
“You can sleep here.” He gestures towards the bed. Percy drops Gwen on the bottom bunk of one and Merlin and Gwain take the other.
“So this is home, huh?” Merlin plops onto the mattress and Kilgarah jumps in bed with him and instantly falls asleep. He rubs his head softly. Arthur nods.
“Yeah. It’s not much, but it works for us. We have food, water, and little power. We’re living like apocalyptic kings.” Merlin laughs.
“I am not calling you ‘Your Majesty.’” Lance grabs the few extra blankets they have and passes them out. He kneels by Gwen and inspects her ankle. He uses the small medical kit they have to tape her ankle as best he can. Arthur watches him, noticing how gentle he is and how close she leans into him. He smiles. Someone deserves to be happy despite all this shit happening. He looks back to Merlin. He has collapsed against the mattress, snoring softly. Arthur smiles and looks around. Gwain, Leon, and Percy are all asleep in their beds. Arthur turns to lance and taps his shoulder.
“You got this?” Lance nods. “Okay, I’m gonna go to bed. Turn off the light when you two are done.” They both turn red. Arthur walks to his bunk and climbs in. He’s asleep before his head hits the pillow.