Story synopsis

King Arthur is woken from enchanted sleep by the wizard Merlin who, now evil, plans for the legendry hero’s return to be a catalyst for overthrowing modern democracy. Merlin tries, but fails, to isolate Arthur from friends old and new to make him more pliable. Arthur breaks with Merlin and, with the help of his friends, thwarts the wizard’s plan by fabricating proof that he is a fraud, killing his own myth.

Protected by the Lady of the Lake, Arthur repels the demonic Investors to whom Merlin has promised his soul in return for power. These taking Merlin’s soul instead, as collateral on their deal. At the behest of the Lady of the Lake, Arthur and his knights find a new calling as protectors of nature. Modern issues of celebrity culture and the fragility of democracy are explored through the travails of Arthur and his friends.

Story description

King Arthur and his knights lie in enchanted sleep under Aiden’s Hill in the countryside of modern-day Albion (a land similar to Britain). The wizard Merlin, now living as billionaire tycoon Sir Emrys Merton, stages their discovery under the pretext of demolishing the hill for a new motorway. His plan? To use Arthur’s return as a catalyst for overthrowing democracy, which he despises.

Under Merlin’s tutelage, the legendary heroes tour and wow Albion. Merlin, meanwhile, coattails on their celebrity to rabble rouse and recruit to his paramilitary force, ‘Sons of Albion’. To make Arthur pliable, Merlin plays on his rigid moral code to estrange him from his knights; secret lovers Gawain and Galahad, and the intemperate Bors. In doing so he's helped by accomplices; the devious Morgan and thuggish Oswald.

Gwen and Lance, a News Crew embedded in Arthur’s entourage, are potential new allies. However Merlin plays on Lance’s desperate desire to be accepted as a knight of Camelot to entice him into becoming his agent. He also deploys Morgan, a femme fatale, to seduce Arthur and supplant Gwen as his confidante.

Gwen, who is warming to Arthur after initial scepticism, helps him escape Morgan and Merlin’s clutches. Arthur feels drawn to return to Aiden’s Hill, where he is reunited and reconciled with his knights. Lance joins them and, having switched allegiance, warning that Merlin is in league with demonic spirits – the Investors – and has promised them Arthur’s soul in return for power.

Viv Lake, the leader of eco-warriors holding Aiden’s Hill, reveals herself as the fabled Lady of the Lake. Having long protected the hill and the secret below it, she almost slayed the sleeping warriors rather than risk Merlin ensnaring them. Instead, she chose to trust in their innate goodness. Now, having magically called them back to the hill, she asks for their help defending it. She gives Arthur a protective amulet he can use to call on her aid in dire emergency.

Gwen’s partner Vera, a police chief with whom she is secretly working to uncover and expose Merlin's plot, warns that the motorway crew are about to resume and nearing Aiden’s Hill backed by a riot squad. Arthur, persuaded by the tragic story of Aiden, a widower and a resident of the hill, leads his knights against them, hoping his fame will draw the world’s attention to protestor’s cause.

Overpowered and arrested, Arthur and the knights languish in prison awaiting trial. Merlin recalibrates, with a new plan to turn Arthur’s predicament into a cause célèbre that will accelerate his coup-de-tat. Merlin is unconcerned by Arthur’s refusal to play-along as he has a sample of his DNA that will prove his royal and ancient pedigree, demolishing the prosecution case that Arthur is a fraudulent troublemaker.

Arthur’s friends tell him that the only way to stop Merlin is to fabricate and release compelling evidence that he is in fact a fraud. Arthur reluctantly agrees. At the trial, fearsome prosecutor Sir Mordred Bane, on an anonymous tip-off from Gwen, presents a deepfake video made by Lance that shreds Arthur's autenticity and reputation.

This wrong-foots and panics Merlin, who is counsel for the defence. In fury the wizard calls on Oswald and the Sons of Albion, who have infiltrated the courtroom and been given weapons smuggled in by Morgan. The knights, who have been discreetly uncuffed by Vera, leap into action and overpower the Sons of Albion. Gwen stops Morgan as she tries to escape. As a last resort, Merlin summons the Investors to seise Arthur and spirit them both away. The Investors choose this moment to claim Arthur's soul, however he uses Viv’s amulet to ward the them off and, thwarted, they claim Merlin’s soul instead as collateral on their deal.

On release from prison Arthur returns to Aiden’s Hill as a nobody. He arrives in time for Gwen and Vera’s wedding. Viv asks him to stay and help her rewild the hill, which he and his knights agree to do. She gives Arthur back his sword Excalibur, but he throws it in the nearby lake as he is no longer a warrior or king. They live anonymously ever after.