2x11 || 2x13

Merry Whump of May

Spring 2023 Prompt List!

It's May, everyone!! Due to personal and technical difficulties, we're getting the list to you DAY ONE. WOW!

So sorry for the delay, but we have every confidence that despite this short notice, you'll all be able to put out some amazing work this year!

Without further ado, welcome to The Merry Whump of May!

Text ID:

Merry Whump of May

Spring 2023

A month-long whump writing event by @wormwriting and @painsandconfusion.

Extemporaneous style this year-!!

Write, draw, or otherwise create content based on the daily prompts! Participants and completionists will receive badges of honor for their work at the end of the month.

Create original content or fanfiction, all is welcome!

Rules

Tag each day's post with #themerrywhumpofmay, any necessary content warning (eg: #knife), and the day in the following format: #mwmday1)

Adult topics are allowed, but must be well tagged. Send a message to @themerrywhumpofmay if you'd like a second opinion.

Be kind, have fun!

Prompts:

Day One - “No pain, no gain.”

Compass

Haphephobia

Kitchen

Day Two - “Need a ride?

Wrench          

Paranoia         

Club   

Day Three - “You're not looking so hot.”

Lightbulb

Tension

Alleyway

Day Four - “Two birds, one bullet.”

Chess Pieces

Stubborn

Tower 

Day Five - “Do unto others as you would bla bla bla...”

Bow and Arrow

Stalking

Cavern

Day Six - “It's a long story.”

Knife Handle

Gagged

Under the table

Day Seven - “Write what you know.”

Box

Magic

Cell

Day Eight - “Did you read the fine print?”

Circle 

Blinded

Field

Day Nine - “We'll burn that bridge when we get there.”

Collar

Lost

Roof

Day Ten - “Hit the hay.”

Key

Forgetting

Warehouse     

Day Eleven - “Ready set go!”

Plastic bag

Overheating

Restaurant

Day Twelve - “Tabled for Later.”

Thumbtack

Panic attack

Ballroom        

Day Thirteen - “You've made your bed, now bleed in it.”

Sander

Found

Safe Place

Day Fourteen - “Well, well, well...”

Barbed Wire   

Starvation

Drain

Day Fifteen - “The power of god and anime”

Hammer

Over-Exhaustion

Hammer

Day Sixteen - “Take a break.”

Branding Iron

Moonlight

Cemetery       

Day Seventeen - “Going down in flames.”

Pole

Regret

Fireplace

Day Eighteen - “No use crying over spilled blood.”

Cage

Claustrophobia

Ship

Day Nineteen - “Apples and oranges.”

Chainsaw

Surprise

Home Base

Day Twenty - “A taste of your own medicine.”

Zip ties           

Bleeding out  

Office

Day Twenty-one - “Devil's advocate.”

Tome

Desperation

Hiking trail.

Day Twenty-two - “You can lead a bitch to water, but you can't make them drink.”

Origami

Amnesia

Attic   

Day Twenty-three - “Good things come to those who wait.”

Nine-inch-nails

Isolation

Creepy basement

Day Twenty-four - “Bent out of shape.”

Tent Spike

Dragged

Wrong place, wrong time

Day Twenty-five - “It takes two to tango.”

Hot coffee

Doubt

In line

Day Twenty-six - “Hammer time.”

Pocket watch  

Itchy

Waiting room

Day Twenty-seven - “Second mouse get the cheese.”

Knife

Rug burn

Skyscraper

Day Twenty-eight - “A picture's worth a thousand words.”

Chair

Paranoia

Backseat         

Day Twenty-nine - “Lost and Found

Blowtortch

Frostbite

Lake

Day Thirty - “Rain check.”

High heels

Strained

The backroom

Day Thirty-one - “Thin ice.”

Lighter

Chronic pain

Dead end

Alternative Prompt List

Titles  

“Questions? Comments? Concerns? Complaints?”

“Time dies when you're having fun.”

“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”

“Can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.”

“Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match.”

Items                                      

Wine Glass

Hydrochloric acid

Magnet

Teacup

Wire

Conditions

Sensory deprivation

Blindfolded

Acrophobia

Failed escape

Distress

Locations

The Middle of Nowhere

Forest

Void

Sidewalk

Shortcut

Charlie Vickers as HALBRAND in Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power [1x07]

hi merlin fandom i'm back I have more tallies for you, I only have one spreadsheet for this so it won't be nearly as huge as my spell tally, but I am doing all the seasons in one go so who knows

BBC Merlin Whump Tallies

After rewatching the entirety of the show, some episodes more than once, and taking notes the whole time, I present to you a summary of data categorising the injuries and illnesses sustained by all named, recurring characters (2-pt-ers not withstanding) from 2008-2012's BBC Merlin.

Season 1

Season 1 contained a total of 27 incidents to its various characters. The character with the most incidents was Merlin, with 6 (22%). In earlier counts, he was the only character this season to endure at least one in every category: Small, 'Somewhere in-between', Life-threatening, Poison/Venom/Drugged, Magical Affliction, and Thrown/Unhorsed.

The runner up was Arthur, who had 5 incidents (19%).

Arthur and Merlin tied for character who was rendered unconscious most often, with Arthur passing out 3 times and being knocked out once, and Merlin being knocked out 3 times and passing out once.

Smallest injury: Merlin - graze on his shoulder blade from getting hit by the handle of a broomstick wielded by Arthur in Episode 1. I know in scar reveal fics people like to use the supposed mace wound from the fight with Arthur as 'Merlin's first scar', but unfortunately that has no actual basis in canon. Arthur does not hit Merlin with a mace (there aren't even maces in that fight, the weapon they use is called a flail). Merlin causes the chain to get tangled earlier in the fight, after which Arthur grabs a broomstick to use as a weapon instead.

Dumbest injury: Not sure about "dumb" but easily the most inconsequential is in Episode 7-- one of the times Merlin gets put in the stocks he comes back sore, complaining "they were throwing potatoes!"

Things Merlin should not have survived: His heart stopping in Episode 4 (antidote wouldn't be absorbed that fast, + can't circulate if no circulation), getting struck by Sidhe lightning in Episodes 7 and 12 (insta-kills everyone else, including the Sidhe themselves who explode. Only exception to this is Grunhilda in Season 3, a pixie, who does also explode it just takes more than one shot), and getting struck by a fireball in Episode 13 (self-explanatory I think).

Season 2

Season 2 contained a total of 22 incidents, an 18.52% decrease from Season 1 and the lowest of any season. The greatest number of these were made up by Arthur, who was injured or poisoned/drugged 10 times (45%). The runner up was Merlin, who was injured 5 times (23%).

The character rendered unconscious the greatest amount of times was Arthur, who passed out or was knocked out 2 times each.

Smallest injury: Arthur gets elbowed in the stomach by the troll in the confrontation at the end of Episode 6, it's ok though he almost immediately gets launched across the room into a wall so they made up for it (and he had been on the brink of death mere moments before due to willingly drinking poison).

Dumbest injury: Sorry Gwen, but it's probably when she fell and hurt her ankle for plot purposes in Episode 4. It doesn't even continue to bother her at any later point in the episode.

Things Merlin should not have survived: Nothing! He was pretty physically safe this season. Ish.

Season 3

Season 3 contained a total of 32 incidents, an increase of 45.45% from Season 2, led in number by Merlin who had 9 incidents (28%) all to himself. 3 of these were small injuries however, so he was not quite as damaged by the end of the season as Arthur, who had 8 incidents (25%).

The character rendered unconscious the greatest amount of times was Arthur, who passed out 5 times and was knocked out once.

Smallest injury: When Merlin was hit in the stomach by the pommel of Morgana's sword in the crypt in Episode 2, but honourable mention to when Merlin and Arthur were shot with tranquilliser darts and fell from their horses in Episode 12. TBF falling from a horse is incredibly dangerous, but neither of them had any residual effects or pain, and it's hilarious to me that they got shot with tranquilliser darts. Like rabid animals. The scene also is just really funny.

Dumbest injury: When Merlin was being dumb and demonstrating his lack of understanding of a) what a sword is and b) blade safety by messing around with "Sir Ethan" and "Sir Oswald"'s swords, and dropping one on his finger, getting a decent little cut.

Things Merlin should not have survived: Getting stung by an adult serket in Episode 1, not to mention the fact that he had already been knocked out for hours earlier that day (not normal to be out for that long, sign of brain injury), that he was bound in chains that made it difficult to breathe and impossible to move also for several hours, and the fact that Kilgharrah also took multiple hours to get to him (if you're not sure about this, rewatch the sequence and pay attention to the amount of daylight in each shot). Unbelievable. (Did receive external treatment so take it with a grain of salt.) Honourable mention to when he was thrown all the way across the council chambers in Episode 13 and was literally writhing in pain before having to get back up and finish dealing with the cup of life. Oh my god I hope he got treatment for that.

Season 4

Season 4 contained a total of 78 incidents, an 143.75% increase from Season 3 (yikes), headed up by Merlin who goes through 21 incidents (27%). That's right, almost as high as the total of all incidents sustained by all recurring characters in Season 2. Leave that kid alone!! 5 of them were counted as small injuries, but that still leaves him significantly ahead of the runner up- Arthur who had 11 incidents (14%) (with 4 of them considered small, leaving him barely more injured than 3rd place, which is tied between Leon and Morgana, both on 7 [9%]).

The character rendered unconscious the greatest amount of times was (you guessed it!) Merlin, who passed out 5 times and was knocked out a further 6 times. 6 of those collective 11 instances were in a single episode. Episode 6: A Servant of Two Masters was awful for his nervous system. (Interesting note: Runner up for this season is actually not Arthur, who's only unconscious twice this season! Rather it's shared between Elyan and Gwaine, who each pass out and are knocked out twice apiece, for a total of 4 instances each.)

Smallest injury: Arthur elbows the shade of Lancelot in the stomach in their confrontation in Episode 9.

Dumbest injury: PERCIVAL. IN EPISODE 2. All caps because THIS IS SO PREVENTABLE. Ok so we're all extremely aware of this man's constant lack of sleeves, including on his armour. Now, studio execs, I get it, really I do. As Bradley James says: 'Guns haven't been invented in Camelot but he brings two of them.' He's a beautiful man. On another note, we all are aware what type of attack chainmail is meant to prevent, yes? It's slashing. And where, might I ask, does Percival get his only injury from a slashing attack? Bingo! On his goddamn arms. In Episode 2. No other knight has that problem in this episode because all of them have sleeves. Percival. (That being said it was a wyvern attack so it may have tore through the armour anyway but I'm ignoring that.)

Things Merlin should not have survived: Getting struck by the Dorocha in Episode 1 (insta-kill for literally everyone else, but Merlin survives long enough for magical treatment). The other injury I had marked as life-threatening was the flail wound from Episode 6, not only because of the internal damage it would have done but also because of how fast and how seriously it became infected, but that received external magical healing so it's fair that he survived it. If Morgana hadn't treated it, then he should have died.

Honourable mentions to Gwaine, Gaius, and Elyan who were kept in a cell and starved for 7 days in Episodes 12 and 13. This didn't make it onto the spreadsheet because I didn't know how to count it, but it's in the tallies. During this time, Elyan was also "tortured to the limit of human endurance" (direct quote from Gaius), and Gwaine was taken out of the cell multiple times to fight for his food, meaning he was both malnourished and getting beaten up at the same time! Plus Gaius literally thought he was going to die in that cell and had a whole speech about it.

Season 5

Season 5 contained a total of 64 incidents, a 17.95% decrease from Season 4. The character who endured the most issues was Merlin, who had 11 incidents (17%). The runner-up was very close behind, being Arthur on 10 incidents (16%).

The character rendered unconscious the greatest amount of times was Merlin, who passed out 7 times and was knocked out 4 times.

Smallest injury: Gwaine got slapped by one of Morgana's henchmen in Episode 1 after back-talking her.

Dumbest injury: Audrey, the cook, confronted Merlin in his Dragoon form in Episode 7. She threatened him with a triple-pronged fire poker, accused him of conspiracy to steal her pies, and in response he insulted her and knocked her out with a pot. Iconic.

Things Merlin should not have survived: There are a few things Merlin only survives with external treatment this season, which kind of disqualifies them from the purpose of this section (see the disclaimers at the bottom of this post) but I'll list the worst of them anyway. In Episode 8, he is knocked out, poisoned, and kicked off a cliff. The poison largely immobilises him, and he is left alone in the forest for at least ~27 hours, unable even to turn his head in order to vomit safely. He also has a seizure after treatment is administered, then falls unconscious after. In Episode 10, he is shot in the side with an arrow. The arrow is pulled out, no first aid or pressure or anything AT ALL are applied, and then he is forced to run from assailants for some hours. He passes out before he is found and healed.

Honourable mention to Episode 12, which had absolutely bonkers amount of external magical intervention to save his life (magic had been stolen, causing him to pass out when it initially happens, and later he loses consciousness three separate times in that cave). Honourable mention also to Episode 13, which I'm not sure he really survived at all.

Overall

BBC Merlin subjects its recurring characters to a total of 223 whump incidents throughout its 65 episodes.

The characters who was whumped on the most was Merlin, who endured 52 incidents (23%, or once every 1.25 episodes).

The runner up is Arthur, who underwent 44 incidents throughout the show (20%, or once every 1.48 episodes).

Merlin also fell unconscious the most of any character, passing out 17 times and getting knocked out 15 times for a total of 32 instances rendered unconscious.

Arthur was also the runner up for amount of times rendered unconscious, with a total of 22 -- knocked out 9 times and passed out 13.

This was, obviously, very predictable, so I'll give you third and fourth places as well.

For total whump incidents:

3rd Place - Morgana - 23 incidents (10%)

4th Place - Leon - 16 incidents (7%)

For being rendered unconscious:

3rd Place - Morgana - 11 incidents (4 passing out, 7 knocked out, + the time she was in a coma in S1, which was more 'not waking up' than either of the options listed but you may count it if you wish.)

4th Place - Gwaine - 10 incidents (5 passing out, 5 knocked out)

Because there were so few examples of it, I did do unconscious counts for non-recurring named characters as well.

Named characters were rendered unconscious a collective of 113 times in 65 episodes. That means someone known to the audience became unconscious once every 0.57 of an episode, or almost twice per episode.

This was split between passing out - 59 total incidents (once every 1.10 episodes) and getting knocked out - 54 total incidents (once every 1.20 episodes).

Characters frequently unconscious previously stated. Characters not listed in the spreadsheet who became unconscious were:

Sir Ewan - Passed out when bitted by an enchanted snake - 1x02

Jonas - Knocked out when Merlin smashes a piece of pottery over his head- 2x05

Princess Elena - Passed out when Merlin sedated her - 3x06

King Cenred - Knocked out when the ceiling of the throneroom in the Castle of Fyrien collapsed - 3x07

Julius Borden - Knocked out when Merlin threw him against a wall in the Tomb of Ashkanar - 4x04

Princess Mithian - Passed out after riding through the night to Camelot after Nemeth is conquered - 5x04

Audrey, the cook - Knocked out when Merlin gets annoyed with her and whacks her over the head with a pot - 5x07

While my spreadsheets do not reflect this, the compiled dataset actually takes every named character into account, including non-recurring ones, like guest characters and villains-of-the-week. This even includes characters without any screentime, as long as we know their name. Therefore, without further ado--

Every knight of Camelot who is canonically dead in the BBC Merlin universe (members of the BBCM round table italicised):

Sir Ewan (1x02)

Sir Owain (1x09)

Sir Pellinor (1x09)

Sir Bedivere - no screentime (1x13)

Sir Alynor (2x02)

Sir Ethan (3x04)

Sir Oswald (3x04)

Sir Edric - no screentime (3x12)

Sir Alduuf - no screentime (3x12)

Sir Osric - no screentime (3x12)

Sir Lancelot

Sir Ranulf - no screentime (5x05)

Sir Elyan

Sir Gwaine

King Arthur

Also, not that you're asking, but Sir Pellinor was killed in the episode Excalibur and Sir Bedivere was killed in the episode Le Morte d'Arthur by the Questing Beast. It would make literally no difference and would be so much more in touch with the Arthurian mythos this entire show stems from if they just switched the names. It makes no sense to me that they kill Pellinor before the Questing Beast plotline when they literally do the Questing Beast IN THE SAME SEASON.

And last but not least, I made some graphs if you'd like them (open the image for higher quality) (sorry the first one's so ugly, it had such low readability as a line graph so I switched it to an area chart):

Figure 1: A stepped area chart showing the frequency of whump incidents for prominent recurring character by season.

Figure 2: An area chart showing the frequency of total whump incidents by season.

Figure 3: A line graph showing the frequency of passing out for some characters (round table -Gaius +Morgana) by season.

Figure 4: A line graph showing the frequency of getting knocked out for some characters (round table -Gaius +Morgana) by season.

Disclaimers and Data

Big one first: Merlin is my favourite character, which means I have bestowed on him the role of whump victim (<3). Because of this I was biased towards recording his misfortunes more than other characters. I tried to be fair and sympathetic to the plights of other characters just as much, but it's important you're aware of that anyway.

The reason I included "Things Merlin should not have survived" as a category was because of his immortality. I am very aware that other characters went through life-threatening things -- at times more than Merlin did -- but I personally headcanon that Merlin actually did die at some points and was revived by his magic (particularly in Season 1). Even if you don't have that headcanon as well, you have to admit his magic had to play a role in saving his life sometimes, and I wanted to have a list of those occasions.

And as always, my counting is imperfect and at times generated discrepancies. Here are some of the measures I took to minimise them:

Merlin and Arthur's unconscious stats (# times they passed out/were knocked out) were retallied.

All characters' unconscious stats were retallied and categorised by season.

Characters that showed discrepancies between the two counts were retallied again (Merlin, Arthur, Morgana, Leon, Gwen, Percival)

Character injury data was inputted episode-by-episode. When the final episodes' data was bulk uploaded, all characters were retallied. Characters whose numbers lowered in the retally were retallied again (Morgause, Percival, and Hunith -- who was since removed from the spreadsheet).

Characters whose whump totals differed between the tallies and the spreadsheet were retotaled (Merlin, Arthur, Morgana, Gwaine, Gaius) until the discrepancy was eliminated (in Merlin and Arthur's case, retallied entirely).

Merlin's numbers specifically were retallied, retotaled, or recounted more than 10. Times. So trust me, all known discrepancies have been eliminated.

That being said, if you happen to look through the original document and find I missed an injury or illness, it won't be in the numbers or the spreadsheet, so let me know!!

You can find those details here:

Original Dataset A list, with descriptions, of every incidence of whump that occurred to a named character by episode.

Spreadsheet The numerical data with accompanying graphs.

I hope these may be useful to you, especially all my fellow whump writers out there <3 keep doing what you're doing, and feel free to get in touch if you notice an error, want further clarification, or just want to chat! I'm always happy to chat.

Personal note: I'm such a sucker for medical accuracy. I'm currently studying to go into the medical field, so if we're both still around in a couple years, expect me to come back and bring you some scientifically-informed analyses of how truly not-ok these guys are.

And thank you so much for reading!! <3

Whumpay - Day 6

Main Challenge - Mad Science - Russian Roulette Mini Challenge 6 -Torture - False Execution Original Work - Down in Goldonna

Alana hugged Ziggy tightly. It was over. Thank goodness. They could go home for the night and get some sleep. But she felt something strange; Ziggy’s hand was reaching around her waist. Alana drew back a little. And Ziggy almost skipped away from her embrace.

He waved something at her. In the dim light of the nearby streetlights, Alana saw a soft and supple sheen. She reached to her belt. Her revolver! Ziggy had her revolver.

As he stepped back he stopped in a pool of light. His grin was broad and crooked. And his eyes- Alana’s stomach dropped. She felt the blood drain from her face.

His eyes were black. Ziggy was possessed. But how? And by who?

“Ziggy?” Alana called out to him, hoping she was mistaken, hoping this was some sort of prank.

“Ziggy’s taking a nap right now. He’s so tired.” The Thing said with Ziggy’s voice. It stretched with his body and ran Its hands over Ziggy’s chest and waist. “I’m in the driver’s seat for a little bit.”

Alana fixed her eyes upon the revolver and darted forward. This Thing may be in control of Ziggy, but it also had Ziggy’s weaknesses. Ziggy was underweight. Ziggy was unconditioned.

The Thing danced back, grin growing wider somehow.

“Ah, ah.” It chided.

Instead of pointing the revolver at Alana it pressed the barrel to Ziggy’s temple. “Don’t do anything stupid.” It warned. “Or I will kill him.”

“You wouldn’t.” Alana raised her hands to show she wasn’t going to try anything else.

Alana’s mind raced. How could any being possess Ziggy without his permission? Was this even possible? And then, everything fell into place. “You’re the shadow he talks about. I’ve seen you before, hovering over him. What is your name?”

The Thing opened up the cylinder of the revolver and began removing the rounds. Alana couldn’t see exactly what he was doing in the patchwork darkness.

“A name?” It chuckled. “Why should I have a name?” It tossed a handful of rounds over Ziggy’s shoulder.

“How did you do this? Did he let you in?”

It spun the revolver’s cylinder back into place. It placed the barrel of the gun back to Ziggy’s temple again. “I’m tired of this.” It whined with Ziggy’s voice.

Alana felt her hands begin to shake. “Wait, please don’t-”

“I’ve removed all the rounds except for one.” Using Ziggy’s legs, it walked forward, towards Alana and into another pool of light. Its black eyes glittered in Ziggy’s pale face. “Let’s play a little game.”

Alana tried to keep her voice calm. “We don’t have to do this-”

“Oh, I think we do. You don’t seem to understand who’s in charge here.”

“Ziggy is your vessel! Why kill your vessel?”

“Everytime you answer incorrectly, I pull the trigger. It’s a one-in-six chance, right?”

“Please, don’t-!”

The hammer clicked. Empty chamber.

Alana could not breathe. She could not breathe. She wanted to scream. Her friend was about to die in front of her.

“One-in-six chance, right?” It asked again.

“Y-yes.” Alana grated out, holding back a sob. “One-in-six chance.”

“Good. Now, who is in charge here?”

“What?”

Another click. Another empty chamber.

Alana heard herself wail and bit it back, trying to get her breathing under control.

“Alana,” It came real close to her, so close she could smell the shampoo Ziggy used in his hair. “Who’s in charge right now?” It whispered with Ziggy’s soft voice.

“Y-you.”

“Good. When I need something from you, what will you do?”

“I’ll do it, I’ll do what you want.”

“That’s right. You are so good at this, Alana.”

“Fuck you!” Alana sobbed. Her legs were shaking beneath her.

Another click.

“That wasn’t very nice.” It sighed.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“And when Ziggy wakes up, what are you going to tell him happened here?”

Alana hesitated.

Another click. Another chance. Time was slipping through her fingers.

“I’m sorry! Please! Stop! I’ll tell him what you want, whatever you want!”

“You’ll tell him he fainted. You won’t mention me.”

“I’ll tell him he fainted-!”

Another click. Oh god. One left.

“I won’t mention you!”

Ziggy’s body suddenly went limp, and as though in slow motion, he fell backwards to the grassy ground. The revolver bounced out of his hand. Alana rushed up and grabbed the gun then knelt beside Ziggy. She patted his cheek.

“Ziggy!” Alana choked out. “Ziggy, wake up.”

She opened up the cylinder and looked at the six chambers.

His eyes opened slowly. Focused on her. “Alana?”

There were no rounds in the gun at all.

“Yeah, it’s me. Are you okay? You fainted.”

The gun had been empty.

“I fainted? Why are you crying?”

“Am I supposed to be grateful to have survived this?”

- Brenna Twohy, Forgive Me My Salt

Whumpay - Day 7

Main Challenge - Attacks, Mental & Physical - Heart Attack Mini Challenge 7 - Torture - Shock Collar Fandom - BBC Merlin (2008-2012)

“We have a special restraint for your attack dog. If he tries anything, he’ll regret it.”

Arthur scoffed. “My attack dog?” He looked around and noticed that

Merlin had six men surrounding him while Arthur was being held by only two. “You can’t mean Merlin? That’s ridiculous!” Arthur laughed a little but quickly stopped when it became obvious that his captors weren’t joking. No one else was laughing. Least of all Merlin.

Merlin was on his knees, head bowed, blood dripping from his nose.

“You can’t be serious.” Arthur tried again.

No one spoke. They were indeed serious.

Arthur and Merlin had been out hunting when they had been ambushed by these bandits. But something wasn’t normal about all this. The way they were treating Merlin was odd. Arthur felt like an afterthought to them.

“Tie them up.” The obvious leader ordered.

The bandits were all wearing rough cloaks and patched clothing, mud-spattered and travel-worn. The leader looked much the same, except for the strange necklace he wore and the fact that he was the only one who had uttered a word so far. Every other bandit had been absolutely silent.

As Arthur’s and Merlin’s hands were bound behind their backs, Arthur took a moment to examine the necklace that the leader wore. It was a long leather band with a metal charm. The charm was similar to a coin, flat and round, engraved with a honeycomb shape.

Once Merlin’s hands had been tied, the leader brought over a small trunk and knelt beside Merlin. He spoke some words in Merlin’s ear that Arthur could not hear. But Arthur saw Merlin’s eyes widen. He saw Merlin become pale.

The leader then opened the trunk.

“You do not want to do this.” Arthur warned the bandits. “I am the prince! Either I will get myself free and kill all of you, or the king’s men will arrive and do the same.”

From the trunk emerged a strange metal collar. It shone dully in the fading sunlight. The leader of the bandits opened the collar and fastened it about Merlin’s neck. It clicked into place with an ominous grating sound.

Arthur just couldn’t believe this was happening. “Come on, he’s harmless. Merlin, tell them, you’re practically useless!” Merlin did not look up. Merlin just let them collar him.

The leader straightened up again and looked over to Arthur. “Watch now. This is what will happen if either of you make trouble.” He pressed a hand to his chest and spoke a strange word.

Suddenly, Merlin cried out. Arthur squinted against the blinding light. Lightning struck out from the metal collar and ran down Merlin’s body. Merlin seized and twitched and fell to the forest floor where he continued to writhe. His face was twisted in agony.

“Merlin!” Arthur cried out. “Stop!” He ordered the leader. “Stop hurting him! He’s just a servant!”

As soon as it appeared, the lightning disappeared and Merlin lay still on the ground.

The leader looked to Arthur. “Bring them.”

Arthur was marched. Merlin was dragged.

They traveled through the forest until the sun fully disappeared and a thin mist formed on the ground. Arthur only realized they were descending into a cave when the stars above disappeared. They were brought to a small chamber, lit by the torches that the bandits carried. Merlin was dropped on the dirt floor beside Arthur, awake, but shaking and pale.

“Merlin?” Arthur nudged him gently with his foot.

Merlin looked up at Arthur. His bloody nose had coated the lower half of his face in a patchy bloodstain. Merlin grimaced up at Arthur. Something raw and pained.

Somehow, that didn’t comfort him.

“Merlin, are you okay?” Arthur whispered.

“Do I look okay?” Merlin’s voice was cracked and hoarse from screaming.

“You could just say no.” Arthur sighed and looked around. They were still being guarded by a lot of bandits. The leader was nowhere to be seen though.

“Sorry.” Gasping, Merlin worked hard to sit up. “I thought it would be obvious.”

“Now is not the time for sarcasm.”

Merlin was quiet a moment, then spoke again, quieter than before. “I can get you untied. But I can’t get this collar off. You will have to leave me.”

“Nonsense.” Arthur laughed. “I’ll get it off you.”

“You can’t.”

“And how do you know that?”

Merlin turned towards Arthur and met his eyes. “Osgar told me.” Osgar must be the leader’s name.

“Then he was lying.” Arthur did not understand how Merlin was so gullible.

“He wasn’t.” Merlin’s gaze flicked to the entrance. “He told me…” Merlin swallowed hard. “He told me that if anyone else tries to take it off, it’ll kill me.”

Arthur watched as Osgar entered the chamber. It would make sense for a magic object to be so stupidly difficult to take off. But he didn’t feel like admitting that Merlin might be right.

“He was lying, Merlin. Why would it do that? It’s stupid.”

Merlin fell silent.

Osgar walked over and sat down in front of Arthur and Merlin. “I have some questions. If they are answered, then no one will be hurt.” He nodded at Merlin.

“I won’t tell you anything about Camelot.” Arthur snarled.

Osgar froze, then sighed and stood up. “I don’t want to know anything about Camelot.” He nodded at the other bandits in the chamber and they moved over to Arthur. They grabbed hold of him and kept him still. “I want information about Emrys.”

“Who?” Arthur spluttered. “I don’t know an Emrys.”

“I know.” Osgar stood over Merlin and looked down at the servant.

“I’m not talking to you.” Osgar touched his hand to his chest again, to the metal pendant he wore. “Am I?

Merlin slowly looked up at Osgar. “I don’t know anything.” He whispered.

“Liar.” Oskar spoke that strange command again.

Lightning flared. The very air blazed with heat. Merlin screamed. And Arthur, may he be forgiven, closed his eyes.

The questioning went on and on. Over and over, Osgar demanded information about Emrys. And over and over, Merlin denied him.

Arthur could hear his friend’s voice growing weaker. At first, Arthur struggled against his bonds and the bandits holding him. But it was no use. He could not escape. He could only witness.

Finally, there came a point where Merlin did not move anymore. He lay prone upon the dirt floor, still, too still. The metal collar about his neck had formed a shiny burn. Osgar approached, and using the toe of his boot, he flipped Merlin over onto his back.

“Stop.” Arthur begged with a raw voice. “You will kill him.”

Osgar’s eyes flicked over to Arthur for the first time in a while. “How does one kill an immortal?” Then he squatted down beside Merlin, looking down at him. Merlin’s face was slack. He was unconscious. Or dead. Arthur dearly wished he was unconscious.

Osgar stood up again. “Let him rest. We’ll try again later.”

And suddenly, Arthur was alone with Merlin.

Arthur scrambled over to his servant. He tripped and fell, finding it hard to get up again due to his bound hands.

“Merlin.” Arthur whispered and shook Merlin’s limp body.

Nothing. No reaction. The shiny burns on Merlin’s neck were the only color on him; he was so pale.

“Merlin.” Arthur shook him harder. Still nothing. Arthur bent awkwardly down and placed his ear next to Merlin’s lips. He could feel no breath. Merlin wasn’t breathing.

“No, no, no…”

Hoping he was mistaken, Arthur moved lower and placed his ear against Merlin’s chest. He listened hard. He held his breath. Willing that heartbeat into existence.

Silence.

“No.” Arthur sat back and sniffed. “No, I can’t-“ He stifled a sob.

He had to do something.

Arthur scooted down to Merlin’s boots. It took some angling, but he managed to pull Merlin’s knife out of his boot with his bound hands. Not minding the bite of the blade into his own flesh, Arthur got to work on his bonds. Hands free and slippery with blood, he pawed at Merlin’s face. He was cold and damp with sweat.

He had to do something.

Tears in his eyes, Arthur raised his fist and brought it down on Merlin’s chest. Hard.

He pressed his ear to Merlin’s chest. Nothing.

Arthur did it again. And again. Weeping silently so he could listen for a heartbeat.

His fist hurt. He had to do something.

One more time.

Merlin gasped and coughed. His eyes flew open. His limbs shook.

Arthur laughed and gathered Merlin up into his arms and held him tightly.

“Ow.” Merlin rasped. “That hurts.”

“Too bad.” Arthur sighed.

Whumptober 2023

Day 30: Bridal Carry

Merlin 4x02

@whumptober @whumptober-archive

Whumpay - Day 1

Main Challenge - Mad Science - Strapped To An Operating Table Mini Challenge 1 - Torture - Tortured For Information Fandom - The Man from UNCLE (2015)

When the two telephone calls came, one after another with a twelve second pause in between them, Solo shrugged into his coat. Then sat back down in the armchair and looked up to the clock. Three o’clock. He would have to wait until nightfall, roughly three more hours.

Coat on, knee bouncing, and barely reading his paperback book, Solo waited the three requisite hours.

When the distant cathedral bell began to ring out six o’clock, Solo was out of his chair at the first toll, and out of the front door by the third toll.

When he stepped out into the chilly night air he forced himself to slow down, lit a cigarette, and begin a slow and circuitous route towards the dead drop.

Finally, he wandered into the abandoned brickyard. The city was quiet around him.

Ears pricked, Solo flicked his cigarette away, and crouched by a low, crumbling wall. He pulled out the specific brick. It grated pleasantly against its brothers. Solo retrieved the small package from the hollow and replaced the brick.

It was done. He straightened up.

Then the world exploded.

Bright light.

A blow to his nose. Another to a kidney.

Solo found his face pressed into the gravel of the ground. He could taste the brick dust. And the blood gushing from his nose and down his throat.

“Tie his hands.” Someone hissed.

Solo was grabbed and pulled to his feet.

The searing light was shone into his eyes again and Solo groaned. He panted around a mouthful of blood. His hands were roughly tied. Then, with a firm grip on each arm, he was frog-marched to a nearby car and shoved into the trunk.

The door was slammed shut. Complete darkness.

Moments later, the engine roared to life.

Solo caught his breath. He only had a few minutes to puzzle through this. The first order of business was to untie his hands. This was easy enough. They had made the mistake in tying them in front instead of behind his back.

As soon as his hands were free, he blindly reached out and explored the trunk’s locking mechanism as best as he could. The back of his head throbbed in time with his racing heart. The jolting car ride caused wave after wave of nausea and dizziness.

He vomited. His skull rang out, hot with agony.

Solo spat, groaned, and with shaky hands got back to work on the lock. They must have hit him pretty hard.

After a few minutes, and with the help of a lockpick he had in the lining of his coat, Solo popped open the trunk. He was careful not to open the trunk fully and eyed his surroundings. They were bouncing down an old dirt road with only trees on either side. Lovely. The middle of nowhere.

Well, no time like the present.

Solo thrust the trunk door open fully and jumped.

The guidance of 'tuck and roll' felt more like wishful thinking at that moment.

It was a whirlwind of pain.

Finally he found himself flat on his back, looking at the night sky. So many stars.

Solo rolled over and retched again but nothing came up. His head, obviously, was still very painful. He gasped for air, keening with every inhale.

The sound of screeching brakes and slamming care doors.

Shit.

The sound of boots pounding the dirt road. Towards him.

Solo tried to get his legs under him but fell, pain lancing up his left leg. He hit the ground, hard. As rough hands grabbed him again, he saw that his foot stuck out at an odd angle. Broken.

Time dilated. Solo could only focus on breathing. At one moment, he found himself in the backseat of a car, held upright between two men. The next, he was being pulled from the car, foot dragging on the ground. He screamed. And retched. His skull felt as though it would explode. Solo blacked out.

It was the grating agony of his ankle and foot that woke him. Blackness. Until Solo cracked his eyes. A dim room. He could not move.

A moment later he was a little more awake.

He was bound tightly to a table, the ceiling and it’s lone light-bulb looming over him.

The door at the far end of the room opened and two men stepped through; one was older with gray hair and rolled up shirt sleeves and the other was younger, fair-haired, and tall.

And then the questions began.

The haze of his broken ankle and throbbing skull covered Solo like a pall. He could not keep up. As soon as he understood what they were asking him, they were on to the next question. And when they did not get answers quick enough, they cut off his clothes and resorted to other methods of persuasion.

Why were you at that brickyard after dark?

They pulled a cloth over his head and drowned him in cold water.

Who planted the information you retrieved?

They put out their cigarettes on his bare skin.

Who do you work for?

They pressed hard upon his broken ankle and made him scream. They ground the bones against each other. His left lower leg was swollen and almost black with bruises.

Solo did not talk.

He fell into a stupor and woke only to pain. He wished for death. Anything but this.

Hours passed. Maybe even days. He lost track. He did not care. It was eternity either way.

So when he felt the shackles around his wrists removed and someone beginning to work on the shackles about his ankles, he lay there quietly and let them do as they wished.

He gasped when the band about his broken ankle fell off and the blood began to flow again under the bruised flesh.

A warm hand was pressed to his cheek. Gently. That was odd.

“You are awake?” A soft voice.

Maybe he had gone insane. Or maybe this was a new way to torture him.

Solo opened his eyes and saw the blurry face of Illya hovering there.

He certainly hadn’t expected that.

Solo licked his cracked, dry lips. “It’s difficult to tell.” He rasped. In the harsh light from above, Solo could see the lines about Illya’s mouth tighten.

“Come.” Illya began the process of helping Solo off the operating table. “We must go. Where are your clothes?”

Solo had begun to violently shake, his muscles cramping hard, as he tried to stand. He could not speak through the shivering and only shook his head.

Another frown from Illya.

Solo became afraid. The shivering made him ache. The room spun about him. If he was not helpful, would Illya leave him behind? If he was too slow, would Illya decide he was just too much trouble to rescue?

Solo swallowed hard against a dry throat.

Then he straightened up. He tried to still his shaking. And he only leaned on Illya for a little support. Finally, he was able to speak. “They cut them off me. They’re gone.”

Solo felt rather than saw Illya nod. “I have a blanket in the car.”

“Let’s go.” Solo hissed.

Solo had one arm across Illya’s shoulders, while Illya held Solo close to him with a warm grip on his waist. Illya’s hand on his bare, bruised skin was so warm. And gentle. Together, they limped slowly out.

Solo stared only at the floor was they went, focusing on keeping his balance and moving as fast as he could.

He didn’t want to be left behind.

The cold night air hit him and Solo suppressed another bout of violent shivers, groaning with the effort to stay upright.

“Nearly there.” Illya murmured softy, his voice rumbling against Solo’s bruised chest.

Illya sounded almost like he was trying to comfort him.

Solo heard a car door open and he was lifted inside, laid across the backseat. The door closed. Then the other back door opened, another gust of cold wind, and Illya slipped in beside Solo.

“The blanket.” Illya whispered as he laid something warm over Solo’s bare limbs.

Maybe Illya said something else. Solo wasn’t sure. His ears were ringing. And he was sinking. He was falling. He felt the warm hand on his face again. Then nothing.

Mediwhump May - Day 7

"First Night in Hospital"

(original characters/story)

@mediwhumpmay

“Family of Michelle Tate?”

Troy jumped to his feet before he’d even really registered what the nurse had said. Beside him, Daniel stood up too. 

“It’s Michael. He’s Michael.” Daniel sighed.

The nurse looked over the clipboard in their hands again and nodded. “You’re family?”

Troy felt Daniel’s hand on his shoulder. “We are.” Daniel said. 

That was kind of Daniel. 

He wasn’t Michael’s family. He was the one that had gotten Michael into this mess. He was the one who had pushed Michael too hard. Guilt sat in the pit of Troy’s stomach like a stone.

“Follow me.” 

Daniel followed the nurse, with Troy bringing up the rear. They led them into a room. The doctor explained Michael’s condition. Troy wrapped an arm around Daniel’s shoulders when the kid started to cry. They were told the visiting hours. They were told that talking to Michael would be good for him. And then, they were left alone. 

Daniel sat beside Michael’s bed and Troy didn’t, he couldn’t, he paced around the room. He was sore and exhausted and every step ached. But he couldn’t sit. He could barely look at Michael, lying pale in the bed, covered in tubes and wires.

But Daniel sat as close as he could to his brother without actually getting into the bed. He held Michael’s remaining hand, stroking the back of it with his thumb. And he talked.

“Mom and dad know. Mom’s coming tomorrow. I’ll be with her.” Daniel said. “I don’t know when dad will come, but he will. I’ll make him.” Daniel then looked back at Troy. His eyes were red and wet.

“I’ll come tomorrow too.” Troy reassured. “Sharon knows what happened. I called her earlier.”

Daniel nodded then turned back to Michael. 

“It should have been me.” Troy felt the words leave him before he realized what he had said. The ringing thought he’d had in his mind ever since he found Tate. The only thought. It should have been me.

“This isn’t about you.” Daniel kept his eyes on his brother.

Troy’s face burned with shame. “I know, I’m sorry, I-”

“It’s okay.” Daniel interrupted and aimed a smile back at Troy. “You’re hurt, you’re grieving, we say weird stuff. But this is about Tate, not you. He saved a lot of people today.”

“He’s a hero.” Troy murmured and wiped his eyes. 

Daniel laughed softly. “Don’t let him hear you say that.”

“Yeah.” Troy smiled too. “I’m sorry… I’m just so sorry this happened.”

“I know. Me too. But he knew what he was getting into.” Daniel said. “Troy, you didn’t do this to him. This isn’t your fault.”

And that was it. Troy crumbled. Tears filled his eyes. Snot ran. And he sobbed. Daniel got up from the chair and embraced him. Troy wept into his shoulder and hugged him back.