The room was filled with sombre silence as Arthur handed the charred cloak to his father. An entire patrol had gone missing and by the looks of it, had lost their lives. Merlin had told Arthur the cloak bared the signs of magical fire, of course he couldn't be sure but the burn pattern suggested a fire ball. Maning there was a good chance either Morgana or Morgause were there. Meaning they were with Cenred.

"It was Cenred who did this" Uther stated, "Your sure?"

"Yes My Lord" Merlin answers, "His messenger has only departed the city at this moment"

"Cenred said that the patrol, trespassed on his land" Arthur explained, "And, an example had to be made"

"How many dead?" uther asked gravely

"All of them sire" Arthur admitted, "Every last man"

"The knights?" Uther continued eyes widening in shock

"All lost" Arthur continued

"Edric, Oldof, Osric, and Sir Leon" Merlin listed sadly. Everybody sighed at the last name, Leon was the second in command, a brave and kind man. Everybody loved him, Arthur was good friends with the man, or at least he had been.

...

Merlin sat on the edge of the tower, legs hanging over the edge, nobody came here nowadays, it was private. He looked down at the huge mass of swirling water below. The castle was on a small plateau, connected to the city via the draw bridge, however most of the time the moat surrounding the castle was dry and empty. There had been terrible rain storms the last few weeks, flash floods were inevitable. Now the moat was full and it rushed dangerously as it had connected with a nearby river. It would take weeks, perhaps months for the water to dry up.

Merlin hummed, not a human tune but a deep gravely dragon sound. Low and to the untrained ear, tuneless. He liked it here, he could think and use his powers without being seen and at the same time look down at the city. He'd have to ask Kilgharah about these strange traits he'd picked up since becoming a dragon lord, the growls when he was frustrated, the humming when he was happy or thinking. He wondered if his father did it too.

The prince stopped his humming however when he saw somebody entering the courtyard, chain mail, no cape, armor, long brown hair...

"Leon!"

When Merlin had burst through the doors of the council chambers, Leon in tow there could not of been a set of happier faces.

"We thought we lost you!" Arthur exclaimed clamping the man softly on the shoulder

I was dead, or as good as" Leon admitted, "Until the druids found me"

Oh Leon...Why did you say that?

"Druids?" Uther asked, the smiles slipped from both princes faces, Leon realized his mistake.

"Yes My Lord" he admitted, "I owe them my life"

"How did they heal you you said you were as good as dead" Uther said all to quickly

"I-I don't know" It was the first time Merlin had ever heard Leon falter

"Did they use magic?" Uther probed again, Leon took a step back as the king advanced.

"Well, I-"

"Yes or no it's a simple enough question"

"I only know that I drank from some kind of cup" Leon admitted

"Cup?"

"It was extraordinary My Lord, the minute the cup touched my lips I could feel my life returning to me" Leon said finally

"Well," Uther faltered, "Your trials have left you weary, I'm sure, we must let him rest"

Arthur and Merlin exchanged looks as Uther left the room.

...

Gaius finished tending tot he tired man while the princes chatted to him about anything they could think of. Leaving the boys to their friend the leder men stepped outside, not suspecting that Leon had fallen asleep and that both princes were listening to the conversation through a crack in the door.

"It's remarkable sire he bares no sign of injury" Gaius sighed

"And the cup he spoke of?"

"From the description he gave I would say it is the Cup of Life" Gaius admitted, "The druids must of found it on the Isle of the Blessed"

"You are aware of what that cup can do?"

"Of course sire, but the druids are peaceful they would never use it for evil"

"We cannot promise that, the only safe place for that cup is Camelot's vaults"

"Sire-"

"I will send my sons to fetch it secretly"

"Are you sure that's wise?"

"We need to keep this kingdom safe from magic Gaius!"

The men separated leaving Merlin and Arthur crouched behind the door, worried.

"I thought the cup was safe on the Isle" Arthur cursed, "I should of bought it back here"

"If you had Leon would be dead" Merlin countered, "The druids will keep it safe"

"You know father will not rest until he has it, best we get it without killing anybody" Arthur argued, "Rather then him sending in half Camelot's army and slaughtering them all. We will destroy it"

"You can't though" Merlin hissed, "The cup is pure magic, it can't be destroyed"

"Well what can a cup do that's threatening anyway, why is everybody so worried?" Arthur asked, Merlin really wished he would research magic like he did.

"Many centuries ago, it fell into the possession of a great warlord. One night, he gathered his army before him" Merlin explained, "He took a drop of blood from each and every man and collected it in the Cup. Such was the vessel's power that the soldiers were made immortal where they stood"

"You can use a cup to make an immortal army?" Arthur gaped, Merlin nodded gravely.

...

The brothers packed their bags, as expected Uther wanted them to go alone, the mission was of the upmost secrecy. Leon had told them as much as he could, the druids resided in a cave not too far into Cenred's kingdom, just over the border near the deep forest.

"Do you think Morgana will be looking for the cup of life?" Merlin pipped up eventually

"Let's hope not" Arthur sighed, "If we push father much further I'm afraid he'll..."

"Break" Merlin supplied sadly, Arthur nodded.

Sorry this is on the short side but it was quick :) I got so inspired when I got those reviews, I'll post the next bit as soon as I know how this chap was received

Up next, Arthur and Merlin begin their quest! I'm looking forward to the twist for breaking Uther, I hope nobody guesses it!