Latest Posts by lizzardman - Page 3
He looks so good omg???
If I wasn’t a fucking loser with commitment issues like every hobbyist writer ever then I would write the most dramatic fucking no capes TimKon AU fanfic featuring a time loop, murder mystery, conspiracy, complicated family relationships, and the politics of high society. It’d be like 200k and last like half my career and disaster would strike me halfway through which I would cheerfully divulge through a peppy author’s note at the end of chapter 18
Jason todd reading order
For more info here /& /here
Batman #357-#399 (1983-1986)
Batman #402-416(1986)
Detective Comics #524-#567 (1983-1986)
Detective Comics #568-#582(1986)
Nightwing Vol. 2 #101 -106(2005)
Batman #424-429(1988)(Batman: A Death in the Family)
Batman: A Lonely Place of Dying (1989)
Red Hood: Lost Days (2010)
Batman: Under the Red Hood Batman #635-641, #645-50, & Batman Annual #25(2005)
Green Arrow Vol. 3 #69-72(2007)
Nightwing Vol. 2 #118-122(2006)
Batman RIP(2008)
Robin (Vol.2) #175-183(2008)
Batman: Battle for the Cowl(2009)
Batman and Robin #1-6 + 23-25(2009)
Red Hood and the Outlaws vol 1 #0-20(2011)
Batman Incorporated #0-6(2012)
Batman Incorporated #7-13 + Batman Incorporated Special #1(2013)
Death of the Family(2013)
Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #1 (2013)
Batman and Robin (Vol. 2) #20(2013)
Red Hood and the Outlaws #21-40(2013) + Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #2(2014)
Red Hood/Arsenal (2015)
Batman and Robin Eternal(2015)
Batman and Robin #33–37 (2014 – 2015)
Batman Eternal(2015)
Robin war
Red Hood and the Outlaws: Rebirth #1 (2016)
Red Hood and the Outlaws Vol. 2 #1-13 (2016)
Red Hood and the Outlaws Vol. 2 Annual #1 (2017)
Red Hood and the Outlaws Vol. 2 #14-25
Red Hood and the Outlaws Vol. 2 Annual #2(2018)
Red Hood and the Outlaws Vol. 2 #26(2018)
Red Hood: Outlaw #27-36 (2018)+Red Hood: Outlaw Annual 3(2019)
Event Leviathan(2019)
Red Hood: Outlaw #37-52(2019)
Joker War(2020)
Batman: Urban Legends #1-6 (2021)
Robin #5(2021)
Nightwing Annual (2021)
Task Force Z #1-12(2021)
The Joker : The Man Who Stopped Laughing 1-6 (2022)
Batman – Legends of Gotham (2023)
Lazarus Planet: Next Evolution (2023)
Knight Terrors: Robin (2023)
Red Hood – The Hill(2024)
since you guys liked him so much
merry crisis
I’m a skater boy Tim drake enthusiast…what can I say, it’s iconic!
hey everyone come look at some cool graphs about fandom
aka: welcome to a statistical breakdown of the top 100 fics by kudos in the Batman - All Media Types Tag on ao3.
aka: my vindication for why i genuinely believed danny phantom was part of the dcu
So! Starting off: How many kudos do the top 100 fics have? Altogether, they amount to 1,805,647 kudos.
How many kudos does the #1 fic have and did you notice anything weird about the data? Why yes! So the #1 most kudosed has 73,889 kudos. Which is SIGNIFICANTLY more than the fic in second place with 39,709 kudos. 34,180 more, to be exact. That difference is so insane I gotta admit I am curious if that stat is actually accurate or if perhaps something happened somewhere because the difference is. Astronomical. In comparison, the difference between fic #2 and fic #3 is 6,955 kudos, and the difference between #3 and #4 is 1,490 kudos. So perhaps you can see why I am just a tad suspicious. I'll admit, fic #1 is popular! I've read it before and I really liked it! But statistically- I have a lot of questions. A lot.
How many kudos does fic #100 have and what's the difference between fic #1 and #100? Fic #100 has 12,900, giving us a difference of 60,989 kudos between first and 100th place.
Now for everyone's favourite part: GRAPHS.
What's the breakdown of ratings in the top 100?
(legend: e=explicit, g=gen audiences, t=teen, nr=not rated, m=mature) To nobody's surprise, only one fic with an E rating makes it into the top 100 (E fics tend to have a narrower audience for various reasons, plus gen fics are BIG in batman fandom rn). To my surprise, T actually made up the majority of fics in the top 100. I'd predicted that it would be G fics on top, I'm guessing this difference between hypothesis and reality is because I did not account for people rating fics with profanity as T. Otherwise, this breakdown wasn't too surprising.
What're the warnings in the top 100 like?
(legend: CNTW=chose not to use archive warnings, GDV=graphic depictions of violence, N/A=no archive warnings apply, MCD=major character death) (could NOT make the graph label the little pink slice between CNTW N/A and GDV, so fyi that one is CNTW, GDV, MCD, and it has 1%.) Unsurprising: N/A makes up the majority. also only one MCD tag is present and Underage Sex and Rape/Non-Con are not present at all. Surprising: CNTW is second most popular! Also it is seen here being used in combination with other tags like MCD and GDV, which. Personally I didn't know you could do that. Makes sense though!
How many are complete fics?
(legend: y=yes, n=no) Most of them!
Hey everyone guess how many F/F fics are in the top 100
(legend= o=other, n/a=uncategorized, m/m=male/male relationship, m=multi, g=no romantic or sexual relationships) Zero!!! No M/F ships either i will say. Unsurprisingly for batman fandom, gen is the CLEAR winner here. Also unofficial survey based on my observations only -> some ships that were present include: Superbat, Timkon, Jaytim (and probably more but i desperately did NOT have to want to officially track this and add more data points to what is already a very crowded spreadsheet.)
How long are these works and how's that relate to kudos/hits?
(x axis= length, y axis= hits)
(x axis= length, y axis = kudos) So two big outliers here, one the work with 400000+ words, the other the work with all the kudos (and thereby hits) that was discussed earlier. But discarding those I think we can see from this graph that length is fairly irrelevant when it comes to how much interaction a work gets. From observations a lot of popular works fell within 1,200 - 5,000w category, and there was a weird lack of works in the 15,000-20,000w category. As in there was only one. It was a oddly noticeable absence.
Kudos/hit ratios!! I find these really interesting
(y axis = kudos/hit ratio) What is a kudos hit ratio? # of kudos divided by # of hits, equaling the percentage of hits that resulted in a kudos. Commonly lower on multichap fics, as people will click on them multiple times to read new chapters but can only leave kudos once. This is a stat that is probably meaningless and unimportant. But I find it interesting. So you all have to see it now.
When are these fics from ? aka: POSSIBLY THE MOST INTERESTING DATA SET YET!!!
(x axis = date in m/d/y format, y axis = kudos)
(x axis = date in m/d/y format, y axis = kudos) Available in both scatter and bar graphs! So with this I was curious if older fics would have more kudos cause they'd had more time to accuulate them. And I also wanted to know: Why do I (new-ish DCU fan) feel like the Batman fandom is so young considering it's about a media that's been around for 85 years? And here's my answer! Most of the top 100 was posted in the last 4 years! There are only 2 fics that are older than 8 years old!
This is SO INTERESTING to me. Why is this happening? In similar fandoms (Marvel), I regularly find works from 2012, 2014, etc, that are high in kudos. Hell, I just went and checked and 5/10 of the most kudosed fics in the Marvel tag are from pre 2016! What's going on with Batman-AMT? Just from casual engagement in fandom I'd been getting the sense that there was a big boom in the popularity of Batman on AO3 sometime relatively recently and this data really feels like confirmation.
I'll open this up to other fans: have you noticed this phenomenon? And if you were on Batman AO3 4-5 years ago - any insights? From the date alone I'd guess it's somehow pandemic related (sudden majorly stressful event caused mass desire for comfort like the type found in batfam gen fics, thereby launching the genre into previously unseen levels of popularity)? But idk! Tell me your thoughts! I'd love to unravel this!
Who's writing the top 100?
All in all, 68 authors make up the top 100. Shoutout to powerhouse @envysparkler, who makes up 11% of the top 100. Following that are TheResurrectionist and Just_here_for_a_laugh with 5% each, @unpretty and smilebackwards with 3% each, and foldingfacets, helenabertinellis, Ididloveyou_once, adelfie, Vamillepudding, Drag0nst0rm, AutumnHobbit, IzzyMRDB, Blueseabird2, and @motleyfam with 2% each.
AND NOW MY VINDICATION
In my previous stats post, I mis-grouped Danny Phantom as a DCU property because my experience in fandom had brought me to legitimately believe it was part of the DCU, especially as I'd never heard of it before or since. Well, with this graph, perhaps you can see why. Danny Phantom makes up 12% of the top 100. TWELVE. The only other crossover in the top 100, Spider-Man, makes up only 6%. Notable absences were Miraculous Ladybug and White Collar, which, while being very popular crossovers for DC and Batman, apparently didn't grab enough kudos to make the list.
So there you go!! Anyone have insights on anything discussed here? I'd really love to hear about it!
[All data collected from AO3 Nov. 29, 2024.]
Damn now they gotta reenact scenes from twilight
All hail the golden potato
had a dumb idea
Danny was utterly unamused with current situation.
current situation being he was stuck as phantom babysitting his own corpse. because apparently if you summon a Halfa just the wrong way they get split into a full ghost and a zombie which currently was trying to climb a fire escape for some ancients forsaken reason!! why'd they even summon some protector spirit from Illenois? why is it doing a backflip? How does it know how???
what's worse is he's currently in Gotham because Jazz wanted to go to Gotham U and his parents decided it was a good idea to do a family vacation together in the America's most crime ridden city. and he hasn't got a chance to tell them yet about the whole halfa thing and he's not telling them now while HOLY SHIT HOW HE GOT IMPALED he looked away for ONE MOMENT!!
Danny just lost track of his corpse... in gotham
why's his zombie so restless again?
the bats are now looking at a ghost who is chasing a talon around gotham. which is concerning.
danny meanwhile:
Phantom: Daniel James Fenton YOU WILL NOT COMMIT MURDER LIKE THAT
Talon Danny's corpse: 🦉
Some more sketches :)
i feel like when Danny is Phantom his hair acts like it’s floating in water even when there is no wind so I tried to make it very flowy
DP DC wip
Jason is holding the gun Danny’s in front but also flying behind? Idk maybe Danny got split into Danny Fenton and Danny phantom. Tim is the annoyed one in the second photo he hasn’t had enough coffee yet
space girllll, show me the stars ⭐️✨
Readers, make sure you have all your favourite Ao3 fics downloaded.
Writers, make sure you have copies of all the fics you have posted on Ao3.
I don’t want to be alarming, but things could get really bad really fast. OTW shared this today on Twitter, and I'm a bit worried about it 😅
Ao3 is a non-profit organisation. If they have to start paying taxes, I have no idea what will happen.
First Michael edit of the year guys how are we feeling 🥹😈
I see a lot of posts about how Percy isn't the point of the story in pjo and the story is about the Thalia-Luke-Annabeth narrative and I do agree to a great extent but I do also think it needs to be said the reason why percy is the narrator and not one of them is because he is the cycle-breaker - without him it would have stayed a tragedy but because of him it changed. This is most obvious in how he rejects immortality and instead demands greater support for half-bloods, obviously, but also he trusted annabeth enough to give Luke the knife! he disliked the gods enough to understand Luke even if he didn't agree with his methods and I think that empathy is so so crucial actually! The T-L-A story is built like a mythological tragedy, Percy exists to break the cycle of the story, he's the hero that ends happily.
Fics of the Month
Avatar: The Last Airbender
from the ashes by dxncingquxxr
the five times zuko dies and the one time he lives
a subtle electric fire (asef-verse) by agni_kai
First Fic: a subtle electric fire
"Suki," he says, muffled. "Suki, tell me to stop crushing on the hot single dad at work."
Suki doesn't look up from painting her nails. "Go out and bag yourself a DILF, babe."
---
Zuko's insistence that it's him and his kid against the world is being seriously tested by Izumi's new teacher.
Sokka's determination to ignore hot parents is waning more and more as he gets to know the single dad of the new kid.
Everyone else is just waiting for them both to get their acts together.
Fullmental Alchemist
Make Your Pointe by ShanaStoryteller
Ed doesn't know how he got himself into this situation.
And by situation, he means dancing the lead role in a ballet he barely knows.
Dreaming in Red and Gold by Batsutousai
When Drachma agrees to meet for peace talks at Briggs Fortress, General Roy Mustang is the one sent to represent Amestris. It just so happens that the Drachmans have their own Amestrisan, who is far too skilled at turning the most tedious of discussions into an exciting time.
Happiness and Love Revolve Revolve Around You by Batsutousai
Mei visits Xerxes as a princess of Xing, and Al finds himself falling in love with her.
a terrifying clamour of trumpets by ShanaStoryteller
Edward grabs Marcoh’s arm and says, “That stone – what can it heal, exactly?”
The old man’s eyebrows rise to his forehead, and he looks like he already knows the answer when he goes, “Why do you ask, Edward?”
There's no metallic footsteps so there’s no way Al’s close enough to hear them. “I’m sick,” he admits after another moment of deliberation.
Merlin
Me @ Merlin Writers: What if You Didn’t Murder My Favourite Characters by CaffeinatedFlumadiddle
First Fic: Returning the Favour
Really?" Arthur asked, brushing the dirt off of him as he glowered at the man. "Again? I had it under control - and we aren't allies!" He added heatedly. Balinor shrugged, looking nonplussed by Arthur's anger as he stroked the dragon's wing.
"I know." Balinor said simply. "But I promised my son I wouldn't let you die."
"Your...You have a son?" Arthur demanded. Again, Balinor shrugged. "Why does your son...? Nevermind. Don't save me again!" He snapped, pointing a finger at the man. He turned to stalk back to the horse only for a column of fire to blow past him. The prince jumped. He spun around to tell the man off again but immediately noticed one of the remaining bandits who had been slowly creeping towards him burnt to a crisp. He looked back at Balinor.
"Sorry."
Or
Balinor lives. Arthur will do pretty much anything to get the man to stop saving his life.
Dragged Down and Hellbound by CaffinatedFlumadiddle
"I don't think you understand," Merlin said as he started walking backwards, brows wrinkled in confusion. "I can rip your throat out with my teeth and drink your blood. Does that not bother you?" He asked. Arthur finally glanced up from the papers in his hand to look at him, pausing his steps altogether. Merlin waited.
"...Merlin, you fell over trying to put boots on." He said. Merlin grimaced, looking down at his feet.
"I hadn't realized you were supposed to wear them all the time." He muttered, uncertain what this had to do with the fact he could murder everyone within a ten mile radius. Arthur sighed. "And those are bold words from someone who can't dress himself!" He added indignantly. Another sigh. Humans did that a lot as it turned out.
"Merlin, that's your job."
"And I've taught you several times. It isn't that hard."
"No, I - " Arthur started and closed his eyes. "I don't have time for this."
Or
After living with demons for sixteen years, Merlin decides to explore his human side by venturing to Camelot. Also, he has a destiny to unite his species and bring magic back into Camelot, but he's not too worried about that.
Harry Potter
A Love Potion by Liepe
The Slytherin House, more specifically Pansy and Blaise, have been unamused by Draco’s behaviour lately. It has been decided that the perfect punishment would be to give Draco a love potion that would make him act like a love sick puppy around Potter. Nothing happens and the Slytherins can’t figure out why.
Avengers
It’s the Little Things that Matter by TunaFishChris
Wanda has a lot of time to reflect and come to some decisions about herself during the Rogues' exile. When they're pardoned, she decides that she's going to make things right: with herself, with the team, and with the world.
In other words, we have enough evil!Wanda and bitch!Wanda fics. So here's a complicated-snarky-hero-awesome Wanda fic.
Series: History and Science Fiction by MemoryDragon
Steve learns history through the use of television, and he starts to see that neither are really that bad. And through it all, he might just have found a family.
in an empty moral space by blueh
“Bring Spider-Man to us, Mr. Stark,” High-heels says and rattles off an address. “If that bug isn’t here in the next twenty four hours, then your intern gets it. We are not going to ask a second time.”
There’s a pause.
Then, “You want Spider-Man?”
“In exchange for your intern,” High-heels affirms.
“Spider-Man,” Mr. Stark repeats. He sounds more amused than worried for Peter’s apparent safety.
also known as: Peter Parker is held hostage…in order to get to Spider-Man. Throw in some Accords reconciliation and, well, Peter’s life just got a whole lot weirder.
Birthday For Two by Inkinmyheartandonthepage
“I’m going to meet MJ and Ned,” Peter said casually even as his palms grew balmy, and his heart rate kicked in his chest.
“Now?” Tony’s brows pulled tighter together.
Peter nodded as he shifted his weight from foot to foot. “I’ll be back later.”
“It’s the middle of your sisters’ birthday party,” Tony said slowly.
“Yeah, well,” Peter shrugged and took in a shaky breath. “Ned and MJ wanted to celebrate my birthday too.”
OR
Tony forgets that it's Peter's birthday too.
from my October readings, I’ve collected a few more merlin fic recs for the people…
For favorite long (80k+) fic, I would have to pick another fic by horsecrazy, this time All Things Loved and Lovesick. It’s 90k and GODD these idiots I love them so bad. They’re just trying to take care of farm animals, elbow deep helping animals give birth at 3 AM all the while desperately wanting each other. I screamed a bit when they finally kissed I won’t lie.
For favorite mid length (30k-80k) fic, there were a LOT of contenders (most of my extra recs could’ve fit here) but I would have to pick From Where You Stand by fifty_fifty. The concept there was one I haven’t seen a whole lot (body swapping their way into a magic reveal) which surprises me cause that sounds so merlin-esque??? really loved the chaos brought on by that
For favorite short fic (<30k), I would have to choose Into Perdition by athousandvictories. If there’s one thing I’m a sucker for it’s religious guilt themes, and if there’s a snarky merlin in there too even better. the tension and resolution in this is just Delicious and Merlin is so bold I’m living for it.
And here’s a few more rapid fire October reads that I enjoyed!
An Illusion of Sorts by lordvoldemortsnipple. looove the magician x magic crossover
Chrysalis by i_canz_kill_dragon, a very well done coming of age/personal acceptance story
Tales of Magic by amithia. The coffee shop subtle magic OOO i eat it up, i love the take on Merlin’s magic being just this little instinct.
Awake by corilannam and phoenixacid- this is definitely a great and unique arthur returns scenario, with all the questions and mystery and love involved
Arthur Pendragon VS the World by Ally_Oop. more modern than the last but yet another unique take on Arthur returning, very well done and makes you wonder what the hell is happening
Swans Lost in the Stream of Time by DracoWillHearAboutThis. reincarnation memory returning goodness
I didn’t reread anything in October which is crazy because it’s the first month since May of this year that I haven’t! instead, I will recommend one of my most reread merlin fics: Rule Number Four of which the account has been orphaned. I love the silliness and tension and multi identity aspect of it, just such a good work all around for whenever you want a goofy, modern, powerful merthur duo.
That’s all for October, I’ll be back in a few weeks for my November recs and then soon after that I’ll be doing my 💫yearly merlin fic reading💫 stats (of which are very very unhinged). 2024 has been diabolicalamazing for my merlin readings and can’t wait to share 😁
~ and check out my September recs here ~
Is anyone still genuinely in the Merlin fandom? I want to start making edits or wtv- but I don’t even know if anyone would interact with it😭
fish song
Words from On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
Dude where the hell is arthur when we need him
John Oliver platforms Palestinian voices as he advocates for voting for Harris.
If you live in a swing state, please properly consider your role in this election. Remember to distrust the polls, the projections - the presidential election will be infuriatingly close. Nothing is set in stone.
Please think about your queer friends and family, your community that includes people of colour, disabled people, poor people, immigrants. Evaluate the true historical value of what a protest vote does - compare it to the two candidates, one of which will be the president at the end of this final stretch.
Your vote matters. Please, treat it like it does.
I need a movie and an animated spin off show
Hello everyone! I'm back with another Merlin au! This time featuring a role reversal and Merlin getting yet another job that he never wanted! Enjoy! :D
EDIT: You can find part 2 of this au here!
This au takes places during the season four finale, when Arthur gives up on being king and tells Merlin that Camelot will have to find itself another king if they defeat Morgana, since Arthur no longer feels worthy of being king.
So, Merlin leads him to Excalibur and helps him draw the sword from the stone in front of the people of Camelot, successfully convincing Arthur to believe in himself and his place as a good leader.
That night though, after Arthur confided in Merlin about his worries of Morgana's magic being too powerful for them to fight, Merlin sneaks back into the castle in dosguise as Dragoon and plants the curse that will strip Morgana of her powers the next day. However, he gets caught in the act by Morgana, who of course immediately starts attacking her sworn enemy.
Merlin is put on the defensive, putting all of his efforts into shielding himself from Morgana's attacks and fending off Helios and his fighters at the same time. After a few minutes, his spell that disguises him as Dragoon fades, as all of his magical strength is poured into his fight against Morgana.
Merlin can see the exact moment that Morgana's eyes widened with shock, and it's then that he realizes what had just happened: Morgana knew exactly who he was now.
After the moment of shocked silence passed, Morgana started cackling, finding the situation hilarious. She taunts Merlin, asking if Arthur knows what he is. Upon seeing Merlin wince, Morgana offers him a deal: join her side and help eliminate Arthur, or he can burn in the courtyard like so many of their magical bretheren. Morgana sneers at him that he'd better accept her deal, as he'd burn on a pyre at Arthur's hand even if Merlin kept fighting at his side.
Merlin, predictably, rejects her offer and continues his attack, rebuking Morgana for her cruelty and violence. At this point, their fight had migrated all the way out into the courtyard, which gave them more space to use more destructive spells against each other.
Morgana hurled fireballs at Merlin, and he responded by throwing blinding arcs of lightning at her. Morgana managed to barely sheild herself against the attack, but Helios and his men weren't as lucky and were blasted away in the attack, all of them fatally wounded.
Seeing that her backup was now gone, Morgana redoubled her attacks, franticly throwing spell after spell at her prophesied killer. As Merlin desperately shielded himself, he had an idea. The very thought of it caused guilt to well up in his throat, but he saw no other way to survive.
As Morgana renewed her constant barrage of spells, Merlin didn't defend himself with a shielding spell. Instead, he powered all of his already diminished power into a redirection spell, attempting to throw Morgana's spells back at her.
Sure enough, as soon as Morgana's spells collided with Merlin's redirection spell, they were launched right back at Morgana, who didn't have enough time to dodge or shield herself from the blast.
Morgana's own spells hit her with all of the killing intent that she had aimed at her mortal enemy, and her spells accomplished their goal: killing their target.
Merlin both shocked and horrified as he looked down at Morgana's body, as he didn't intend to kill her, only subdue her so that she could stand trail and face Arthur's justice. However, it seemed like Morgana's own murderous fury had been too strong for even herself, ultimately bringing about her demise.
As Merlin silently held onto Morgana's fallen body, just as he did on that fateful day when he poisoned her and pushed her into Morgause's clutches, he saw the run begin to rise over the castle. He quickly jolted up at the sight, his heart leaping with panic, since he needed to be back in Arthur's camp in the woods before anyone noticed that he was gone!
Merlin ran out of the castle, quickly finding his way back to Arthur's camp, and planning out what he was going to say to hopefully explain his absence. Maybe picking medicinal herbs in preparation to help anyone wounded during the upcoming battle? That would work!
But... there wasn't going to be a battle, since all of their enemies were now lying dead in the castle's courtyard, unknown to all of the fighters preparing to give their lives to retake their home. Shit, everyone would start looking for answers the moment they set foot in the castle, how was Merlin supposed to throw them off his trail?!
Merlin was so preoccupied with these thoughts swirling around his head as he ran back to the hidden camp that he didn't notice the many eyes peering at him from a certain window in the castle, with the men inside having seen everything that had just transpired.
(When Morgana had taken over the castle, she had locked all of the lords and older knights on Arthur's council in an old meeting room, planning to execute them later. She didn't plan to rule with some useless council to hold her back after all!
It was truly an unfortunate coincidence for Merlin that the particular room that Morgana had locked them in had a perfect view of the courtyard below and the unexpected battle that took place on it that night.)
Merlin, luckily, managed to make it back to the camp just as Arthur was waking up, and no one else seemed to have noticed that he was missing that morning, too preoccupied by preparations for the upcoming battle. Merlin breathed a sigh of relief when no one commented on him being gone. Maybe this would actually go smoothly!
That morning, Arthur gave a rousing and inspiring speech to his people, ready to lead them into battle. With the light shining on him and Excalibur by his side, his people ready to follow him to the ends of the earth, Arthur looked every bit the king Merlin imagined he could be. Looking at Arthur, King Arthur, Merlin's heart swelled with pride and hope. And if he had to blink some tears from his eyes, then no one commented on it.
Still, the fact that Arthur was leading them into a battle that was already won had Merlin shifting his feet with nervousness. How would Arthur react? Would anyone discover that Merlin was behind Morgana's defeat? Would they question their unexpected boon, or would they simply accept it with relief?
Merlin's anxiety heightened with each step the army took towards Camelot. While the army, along with Tristan and Isolde, were going to try to storm the castle from the main entrance (which Merlin knew would be easier than anticipated, since Morgana's army was dead), a smaller group comprised of Arthur, Merlin, Gwen, Percival, and Leon were sent through the underground tunnels to launch a sneak attack on Morgana.
Merlin just put on a stoic face and nodded as Arthur outlined the plan, still trying to figure out how he could avoid suspicion after the army of Camelot realizes that Morgana and her army were already defeated.
Their small group easily makes to through the tunnels, which puts Arthur more on edge, as Merlin can see that he thinks that it's almost too easy, like they're walking into a trap. Merlin wished that he could allay Arthur's fears, but he couldn't at the moment, not without revealing that he knows too much.
When they reached the dungeons, Leon and Percival separated from them to go free Gwaine, Elyan, Gaius, and the other prisoners held down there. Meanwhile, Arthur, Merlin, and Gwen headed for the throne room, with two of them tense and ready for a fight against a formidable sorceress, and one of them tense under the weight of his own secrets.
When Arthur burst open the doors to the throne room, adrenaline rushing and ready for a fight to the death, he was ready to see his sister on his throne, mocking and tormenting him. Instead, to his shock, he found his entire council inside, alive and well and loudly squabbling amongst themselves.
Upon hearing the doors to the throne room crash open, they all froze and grew silent, turning to look at who was there. They all relaxed upon seeing Arthur, but tensed when they saw who was standing right behind him.
"I'm glad to see that all of you are unharmed, but what are you all doing here? Where is Morgana! We must defeat her at once!"
The lords' eyes grew wide as they started murmuring amongst each other in sharp tones. Finally, Geoffrey was pushed forward, seemingly appointed as the voice of the group.
"Welcome back, my lord. It is truly a blessing to see you back unharmed. However, we do bring troubling news to you. It is with a heavy heart that we inform you of these changes."
Geoffrey trailed off from there, his face grim. He seemed reluctant to say anything further, much to Arthur's frustration and horror.
"What do you mean news? What has happened? What has Morgana done?!"
Geoffrey sighed, looking every bit of his numerous years. After another tense moment of silence, Geoffrey spoke again.
"Sire, we wish to inform you that Morgana Pendragon is dead. She was killed in a battle in the early hours this morning. Her body still lies where she met her demise in the courtyard."
While Merlin grew pale and tensed even more, both Arthur and Gwen stumbled backwards with shock at Geoffrey's words, the breath knocked out of them both by the unbelievable news.
"What- How did this happen?! Who could have... how is that even possible?!"
"We," Geoffrey replied as he gestured to all of the lords and council members standing around him, "witnessed all of it from a room overlooking the courtyard. It was an unbelievable sight, one that I myself might not believe if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. A lone sorcerer called lightning down on all of Morgana's soldiers, killing them in an instant. He then proceeded to battle Morgana to the death in a duel of magic. He managed to defeat her before leaving the citadel in a hurry."
Arthur stood, frozen, as Geoffrey's words swirled around his head, almost comprehendible. Many conflicting feelings- relief, grief, shock, horror- welled up in his chest, almost choking him with their strength. He was paralyzed as he grieved his sister, celebrated his kingdom's safety from her wrath, and feared this new, more powerful sorcerer who had single-handedly defeated his sister, the most power magic user Camelot had ever seen.
Merlin, meanwhile, stood completely still, his heart beating as fast as a rabbit on the run from a wolf. They saw him, they all did. But it was dark, so maybe they didn't recognize him? Merlin hoped with everything he had that they hadn't recognized him during the battle.
Grimacing again, Geoffrey cleared his throat, apparently having more to say. Merlin's heart leapt with terror as Geoffrey opened his mouth once more.
"Sire, it is with great remorse that I must inform you of this, but there is more news. As is law, Morgana took the throne through right of conquest, as your father did in his time. Morgana was, in the time she ruled Camelot with her forces, the rightful ruler in the eyes of the law.
However, this sorcerer defeated the the ruler of Camelot and conquered her entire army. By the laws of Camelot and by the right of conquest, he is the rightful king of Camelot. Therefore, unfortunately, unless you formally challenge him for the throne and win, we cannot reinstate you as king at this time."
If it was possible, Merlin became even paler at those words, feeling woozy and sick to his stomach. Had he just sabotaged his own efforts?! He did all of this to keep Arthur as king, not undermine him!
Gwen gave a loud gasp, a look of horror on her face, while Arthur's jaw clenched in anger and frustration.
"This is preposterous! Whoever that sorcerer is, he fled! He cannot become king, nor can I challenge him, if he isn't even here!"
Merlin took a staggered step back as Geoffrey's eyes landed on him. He had the grasp at the pillar next to him for support under the old librarian's gaze. He knew.
"The sorcerer did leave after his battle with Morgana, as I said earlier, but I'm afraid that he is here right now, sire."
Merlin felt like he was about to faint. Oh gods, was he about to throw up?
Arthur's entire body jolted to attention, his grip tightening on the sword as he registered Geoffrey's words. He forced one strained word passed his clenched jaw.
"Where?"
Geoffrey motioned one of the other lords on the council forward, and he stepped forward with the coronation crown and royal seal resting on a pillow.
"The council and all of Camelot's vassal lords feel that it is in Camelot's best interest to acknowledge and formalize the sorcerer's claim to the throne at this time, as we are yet unaware of his true power or the danger he poses should he decide to attack. We unanimously agree that it would be best to not give him any reason to retaliate against Camelot, as we fear he might if we do not acknowledge his rightful conquest."
Arthur's face fell, his expression ashen and devastated. His own council had turned against him? They had chosen this unknown and potentially dangerous sorcerer to place the lives of his people in?
Arthur, Gwen, and Merlin were all frozen with shock and dread, looking on in horror as Geoffrey took the coronation crown and royal seal from their cushion and stepped forward, approaching the paralyzed trio.
"It is with a heavy heart that we crown the new king of Camelot, ascended through the right of conquest over Morgana Pendragon."
Geoffrey moved past Arthur, looking at first like he was heading for the door behind them, but Merlin knew who he was actually walking towards. Merlin flinched backwards, trying to get away from Geoffrey and the crown he was carrying, but he was stopped by the hard stone wall behind his back.
"We, the council and lords of Camelot, do declare our fealty to the slayer of Morgana, the prophesized sorcerer known as Emrys, King Merlin!"
Geoffrey punctuated his announcement by placing the crown on a very pale Merlin's head, much to the horror of Arthur and Gwen.
And it was at that moment that Merlin did faint.
That's all from this au for now! Let me know what you think of it and if you'd like a continuation of this au! Until next time!
And, as always, thank you for reading through my ramblings! :D
