Chapter 3 - Uther and His Blackberry Storm

Believe it or not, Uther Pendragon was the first to succumb to the lures of technology.

Arthur hastened through the city, into the castle, and burst into the throne room, not sure what sort of sight would greet him when he entered. He did not expect – and was more than a little baffled – to see his father sitting regally on his throne with the council gathered around him as always – Merlin standing docilely behind Gaius, who looked quite grim. His father had something to the side of his face, holding it there with one battle-hardened hand.

Suddenly Uther laughed, his loud voice echoing through the chambers. Arthur moved closer as his father shifted in his seat, revealing that one of the little buttoned boxes was pressed to his ear. To Arthur's shock, Uther spoke directly into the box, his voice booming regally, excitedly across the throne room. "Really, Lord Godwyn, you are a riot!" He cracked up again, clutching his sides. "Princess Elena did what? Good heavens, is she alright?" There was a pause, almost as if he were listening to someone speaking. "Well, it's a good thing she has Grunhilda around to look after the poor child then…" Another peal of chuckles.

Arthur blinked. Lord Godwyn? Princess Elena? His father was talking to the little black box like it was one of his oldest and dearest friends, Lord Godwyn, about Godwyn's daughter, Elena, who had a reputation of being a bit of a klutz. Surely his father was going mad! He glanced around at the others in the chamber – the knights, Gaius, Merlin… They seemed to be mildly confused but not entirely weirded out by the king's behavior, which make Arthur panic even more.

He strode toward his father. "Father, I must speak with you."

Uther waved him away with a wave of his hand, shooting his son an annoyed glance. "Not now, son, I'm on the phone."

"But, Father, you must see reason –" Arthur stopped, frowned, and asked incredulously, "You're on the what?"

But Uther had already turned back to his strange conversation with the box. Arthur stared at his father for another minute, before marching toward the throne room doors, grabbing Merlin by the neckerchief as he passed the servant and dragging him out into the hall with him.

o.O

Arthur dragged Merlin all the way to his chambers before releasing him, shutting the door behind them, and demanding, "What the heck is wrong with my father, Merlin?"

Merlin blanched, his thin face a bit paler than usual, making his blue eyes and black hair stand out in stark contrast. He was dressed in his normal attire – black breeches, blue tunic, red neckerchief, brown jacket. Arthur had to say that it was good to see that some things never changed, especially after walking in on his normally sane father and king talking to a bloody box!

Merlin glared at Arthur, straightening that ever-present neckerchief. "Why is it that every time something goes wrong around here, you automatically blame me?" Arthur's servant huffed.

Arthur sighed. He could tell by the uncertainty in Merlin's eyes that his servant was just as confused about all of this as he was. "Alright, maybe that was a bit unfair," Arthur conceded. Merlin just raised his eyebrows at his master. Gritting his teeth, Arthur asked, "So what is wrong with my father? Why's he talking to a box like it's Lord Godwyn? And why is everyone standing around like nothing is wrong."

Merlin sighed and fidgeted with the tattered hem of his shirt. "Well, after I came in and got you ready this morning –"

"Late, as usual," Arthur interrupted.

Merlin didn't respond other than to continue his tale, "—and you left to do your patrol, I went with Gaius to the throne room because a strange man had requested an audience with the king."

Arthur's eyes narrowed. "Rosco…" he growled.

Merlin looked at him in surprise. "You've met?"

Arthur nodded curtly. "This morning, during the last round of my patrols of the lower town. He told me that it's not magic, but that he used science to get here from the future?"

Merlin nodded slowly. "That's what he told the King."

"Mmm." Arthur rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "And what of this…thing, this box? Did he saw what it is?"

Merlin nodded, rocking back and forth, shifting his weight from his heels to his toes and then back agin. "Yup." He kept on rocking.

"Merlin?" Arthur asked, barely restraining his irritation.

Merlin looked at him with those big blue eyes and asked, "What?"

"WELL, WHAT IS IT, THEN?" Arthur let out a rush of air, trying to release his agitation. He hadn't meant to yell at Merlin; he was just concerned because his father was acting so strangely.

Seemingly unperturbed by Arthur's outburst, Merlin answered, "He said it is a… black berry, Sire."

Arthur scoffed. "A black berry? I've seen black berries, and that is no black berry."

"Actually, it's a kind of device that's named after black berries." He paused. "And storms, apparently."

Arthur's head snapped up. "What?"

Merlin shrugged. "According to that Rosco man, it's a device called a Blackberry Storm. It, er, is supposed to allow you to talk to other people far away. It's a… brand name for a contraption called a phone."

Something stirred inside of Arthur. "When I spoke to Rosco earlier, he mentioned being able to talk to someone miles away like they were standing next to you." A frown creased his forehead. "And father said he was on the phone. So what you're telling me is that Lord Godwyn also has one of these phone things, and my father is talking to him through that little box and Godwyn is talking back through his?"

Merlin nodded. "I think so."

"It's magic, it has to be," Arthur said.

"I don't really think it's magic, Sire," Merlin supplied but Arthur just rolled his eyes.

"And what, Merlin, would you know about magic?"

With a humph, Arthur left the room, muttering something about having to keep an eye on his father and the talking box, leaving Merlin standing alone in Arthur's chambers wondering what the heck was actually going on.

o.O

Merlin really had no idea what was going on. This technology business that Rosco had introduced and was apparently now selling unhindered on the streets of Camelot was not magic. Merlin could tell that much for certain, because he had magic, and he knew what magic felt like, and it did not feel like magic. It felt cold, lifeless, strange…

Merlin didn't trust it one bit. He didn't think it was exactly dangerous, no, but to see how quickly it had taken in the King, he knew they had to be wary. If the whole kingdom fell prey to Rosco and his not-magic stuff, who knew what would become of Camelot?

Vowing to keep a close eye on the situation, Merlin started on his chores, tidying Arthur's room, making his bed, and polishing his armor. The whole time he was working his mind kept going back to that box, that phone. He wondered briefly if he got one, if the Druids would start using it to contact him instead of talking directly in his head.

He shook his head, banishing the thought. He would much rather hear voices in his head on occasion than give into this odd new parasite sweeping through the castle.

o.O

Uther loved his new phone. It could do so many things, things that he never would have dreamed. He was, of course, suspicious at first. It was only natural, after all, to assume that something this miraculous could not be of mundane means. But Morgana had persuaded him to try it, just for an hour like that brilliant, brilliant man Rosco had suggested, and he had agreed. Thank heavens for that!

He had caught up with Lord Godwyn, who told him he was making arrangements for he and his daughter, along with Elena's nanny, Grunhilda, to visit in a couple of weeks. It had been a long time since they had made the journey, however, and Godwyn wasn't entirely positive of what route he should take to get to Camelot. So Uther had gone to this wonderful place he could access on his phone – called the Internet – and had MapQuested the directions before e-mailing them to Godwyn's own cell phone. All on that little screen!

He sighed happily, leaning back on his throne and keeping his eyes glued to the colorful screen. Rosco had come by earlier and taught him about Apps, which he could download off of the Internet for his phone. He had taken quite a liking to a game called Tetris, in which the goal was to fit as many colorful blocks together as possible. He wasn't exactly sure how this was beneficial to society, but he was having too much fun to really care.

He knew that Arthur didn't seem to understand how he felt about this device, along with many in the court, but to appease them, Uther gave the others in the castle – even the servants – permission to purchase something from Rosco. After all, he wasn't going to be able to enjoy his new phone if everyone else was breathing down his neck, telling him that it was dangerous. Let them have their fun. Soon they would see what an amazing place this 2010 must be, with all of their amazing gadgets.

Gaius had been one of the biggest critics of Rosco's technology, so to show his old and loyal friend just how harmless these things were, he had personally bought the old man a flat-screened television, which conjured images and dramas onto the screen – he was sure that his old friend would love it.

As for Arthur and Morgana, he planned on buying them something as well, but not just yet.

First he had to beat his high score.

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