Susan after Narnia

Chapter 6 - Various Encounters

Eric climbed the steps for a long time and was getting very impatient by the time he saw an arched wooden door set into the stone a length of steps ahead of him. He was afraid that the door would be locked or jammed but when he pushed on it, the door swung open towards him, a little creakily but easily enough. A heavy curtain covered the opening. Eric paused and listened, he couldn't hear anything so he carefully moved to the edge of the curtain and tweaked it a little so he could see.

Dust cascaded down from the curtain, showering him. He sneezed. A wide, long corridor was ahead of him. It had a high, vaulted ceiling and there were wooden torches flickering in brackets set regularly along the wall. There was a couple of large wooden doors set in between the torches. No one was in the corridor. Eric stepped out from behind the curtain. He noticed that the curtain was heavily embroidered and had some figures cavorting on it. He began to walk along the corridor. The air was a lot fresher than the air in the stairway and his lungs were glad of that. The heavy dust on the floor showed him that this corridor was not used very often. He had drawn his gun out of his pocket, and he was ready to fire if necessary. He didn't know where the hell he was but it seemed safe to assume that the natives might not be friendly. He had the ? ring in his left hand pocket as a back up measure.

He walked through several disused corridors, ascended several sets of stairs, and was about halfway down another corridor, and could just see that it intersected with another one when two guards came round the corner and reacted violently to the sight of him.

'Halt, stranger!' one cried and levelled a spear at him while the other not only levelled his spear but also rushed towards him. Unfriendly natives just as he had presumed.

'Stop or I'll fire!' cried Eric but to his amazement, the guard did not stop.

Eric fired his pistol, aiming above his head. He thought that it would be good foreign policy not to shoot anyone just yet. One guard stopped abruptly but the nearer one carried on. Eric regretfully decided that he would have to shoot him; it was a pity because he knew that he would need to conserve his ammunition. He shot him in the arm; he was rather pleased with the shot, as it was always trickier with a moving target. The guard howled and dropped his spear, clutching his right arm where blood started to ooze from just below the armpit. Some more guards came running round the corner but stopped when they saw the wounded guard.

'He hurt him with that stick!' the first guard told the other guards.

Eric thought it could get sticky if they all rushed him but they were so amazed at what Eric had done that they stood there, staring at him.

Before Eric could decide what to do, a sharp feminine voice asked, 'what is going on? Why are my guards standing idle?'

'Your Highness, there is a stranger over there who injured Melonchan with a stick from a great distance,' a guard said.

The next minute Eric saw the face of the owner of the first voice; it was a young, very lovely, woman. For one second, he thought that it was Susan and his heart leapt up but then she who pushed her way through the barrier of guards and he saw that it was another woman. She was wearing a long gown with a gold belt tied about her waist and a thin gold circlet set on her head. Like Susan, she had long, dark hair and was of a similar height and build but her eyes were almond shaped and slightly slanted with very long sweeping eyelashes. She somehow had a sly look about her. Eric liked her instantly.

She surveyed him carefully and then asked him, 'Who are you?'

'Eric Iceland at your service,' he said and bowed.

'Well, Eric of Iceland, where do you come from and what is your purpose here?' she enquired.

'Might I take the liberty of asking to whom I speak first, Your Highness, is it?'

The guards growled but she silenced them with a gesture.

'I am Princess Ixania, guardian of this castle and this region. Now, answer my questions.'

' Your Highness, I have no purpose here. I don't know how I came to be in this place, one minute I was in my home and the next I appeared here.'

He felt sure that she did not know of the steps leading up to the castle and it would be good to have a secret way into the castle that no one else knew about.

Ixania gave him a long look and he expected her to accuse him of lying but after a few moments, she said, 'Come with me to my private quarters and we will discuss the matter further.'

'Your Highness, he has a weapon!' gasped the guard nearest to her.

'Silence! I can see that, stupid but I am sure that this gentleman will put it away.'

Eric bowed to her again and put his gun away but he kept his thumb of his left hand tucked into his left hand pocket in case of unpleasant surprises.

Ixania led him through several halls and corridors before they came to a door at the end of a corridor that she halted before. Several guards had followed them and she turned to them now.

'Aghax and Mithro, guard outside.' She waved to the two largest guards to follow her. So this discussion would not as private as Eric had hoped. One of the guards opened the door and they passed through.

Eric found himself in a light and airy room, mainly due to the large open windows on two sides of the room, draped in flimsy, translucent material. Beside the windows hung sturdy wooden shutters. The several wooden high backed chairs around a large table showed if was a reception room. There were further doors leading to other rooms. The two large guards took up position, either side of the entrance door and stood there impassively.

'Please be seated,' Princess Ixania said.

Eric sat.

'Would you like any refreshment?'

Eric was wise to that trick. He was thirsty but he would not risk drinking anything that she offered him.

'No, thank you,' he said.

She smiled sardonically as if she could read his thoughts.

'As you wish. By the way, both Telat and Horan are deaf-mutes so our discussion will be entirely private.'

Eric glanced at the guards, not sure if he believed her.

'I see you do not trust me. Very wise of you. Allow me to demonstrate.'

She moved across to one of the guards, stood right beside him and suddenly screamed in his ear. He did not flinch. She then pointed to her mouth and then to the mouth of the other guard. He obediently opened his mouth and horrible, strangled sounds came out.

"All right, all right, I believe you,' Eric said hastily. He didn't want any more demonstrations. He wondered how the men had become deaf-mutes.

'May I see this wonderful weapon?'

Eric slipped it out of his pocket and laid it on his palm. She reached towards it and Eric drew his palm back.

'Best not touch it,' he cautioned. 'Only men with magic may touch it without being harmed.'

Absolute tosh, of course, but best not to let the natives play with guns.

'So, you are a sorcerer?' she asked eagerly.

'That's not the word I'd use,' Eric said, thinking quickly, 'But I suppose it's the nearest equivalent here.'

There was a knock on the door.

'Enter,' Princess Ixania called and a middle-aged man, clad in a guard's uniform came in. He stood by Ixania's side, bent his head and whispered to her. She listened, looked at Eric and then said, 'excuse me for a moment. I won't be long.'

Then she stood up and glided out of the room followed by the man. Eric wondered what had happened. Telat and Horan remained by the door, their brawny arms folded and their faces impassive. Eric got the impression that trying to make a bolt for it would be a very bad idea.

A young woman in rich clothing entered the room and surveyed Susan, the dragonet and the cats for a moment. Then she smiled and said to Susan, 'I am Princess Ixania and I bid you welcome to the castle of Xaranth, Your Majesty.'

'Thank you but you've made a mistake. I'm not a queen,' Susan said.

Ixania smiled again and her smile did not seem so friendly this time.

'Then why did your beasts call you Your Majesty? Come, you have nothing to fear from me. Let me have you shown to some rooms more befitting your status. Would you like one of my guards to carry your pet?'

She gestured at a guard who stepped forward but Susan clutched protectively at the baby dragon and shook her head so Ixania waved him back. She beckoned to Susan. Susan thought it was probably best to go along with her at the moment. She started walking after Ixania. The cats started to follow too but Ixania turned and said sharply, 'only the queen. There are special quarters for the animals.'

Susan protested. 'I would prefer to stay with them.'

'Their quarters are not suitable for a queen.'

'Then, let them stay with me.'

'Sadly, that is not possible.' She smiled again, a smile Susan did not like the look of. 'Please come with me.'

She led Susan to a chamber, which was sumptuously furnished with rich fabrics, upholstered couches and a large bed. However, the windows were small, high up in the wall and barred.

'This will be your room while you remain at Castle Xaranth,' she told Susan.

'While I remain here?' Susan asked.

'Yes, my uncle the king, will be most anxious to meet you. We depart for his palace tomorrow morning. Please make yourself comfortable. I will send up some servants with hot water for a bath shortly and you may ask them for whatever you desire to eat and drink.'

Princess Ixania left the room.

Ixania returned to Eric's room and slipped back into her chair, resting her hands lightly on the sides.

'Shall we continue where we left off?' she asked.

She had a look on her face, similar to a cat, which has just had a bowl of delicious cream. It made Eric very wary.

'Eric of Iceland, I will ask you again, how did you come to my castle?'

Eric had no intention of telling the truth.

'As I said before, I have no idea.'

'But you are a sorcerer?'

Eric didn't deny it. 'I didn't choose to come here.'

'Ah, a spell that went wrong then?'

Eric thought that this was as good a story as any.

'Perhaps.'

'Does everyone have such a weapon in your world?'

'Not everyone.'

'And you cannot magic your way back?'

'I didn't say that. I said that I hadn't chosen to come here,' Eric reminded her.

'And could you magic your way here again?'

'Perhaps.' Eric was playing his cards close to his chest.

'Because if you could go back to where you came, and then come back with many of these weapons….' She paused.

'Yes?' Eric.

'The man, the sorcerer who could do that, would find many rich gifts awaiting him on his return.'

'Rich gifts?' Eric wanted clarification.

'Gold, jewels, slaves, land, titles.'

She looked up at Eric through her eyelashes.

'I would very much like you to meet my uncle.'

'I'm game,' Eric said.

'I don't understand, what does that mean?' Ixania asked.

'I'd be charmed, I mean, happy, to meet your uncle.'

Ixania clapped her hands. 'I'm so glad you said that. We will prepare to leave tomorrow morning.'

'Isn't he here in the castle?'

'Oh no. My uncle, the king lives in Enopholix, a city many leagues to the south of here. I must bid you goodbye. I will have supper brought up to you presently. Sleep well for we will make an early start tomorrow morning.'

With that, she got up and swiftly left the room, leaving the two guards inside.

Tobermory and Tabitha were flung unceremoniously into a cell; they both instinctively turned in mid air and landed on all fours. The guard slammed the door shut behind them.

'Ah, new companions,' said a gloomy voice. 'Welcome.'

The cats instantly stood up and assumed their normal upright posture. Tobermory was most embarrassed that anyone had seen them reacting like cats that couldn't talk.

The cats both looked round to see a figure in the next cell, divided from theirs by thick iron bars, slumped against a wall.

'The name's Pondgrave, not that you'll be interested.'

Tabitha gasped 'Are you a marshwiggle?'

'Hold on, you're a Talking Cat! Are you from Narnia, friend?'

'Indeed, we are,' Tobermory confirmed.

'Well, then I'm sorry to see you.'

'How did you get here?' Tabitha asked.

'How did I come to this dreary, desolate place? I was hunting for frogs back home when I tripped over an overhanging root and fell over into a bog that started sucking me down. I thought I was gone for and serve me right for wanting an extra frog or two, when I went suddenly, the bog turned into a pond. I fell through it, whizzed down through the air and splashed into the sea near the castle. Then Dulcima came paddling to the shore and those terrible birds attacked us both. I seized her and used her big foot to fend off the birds and I ran for dear life, carrying her. Then we were caught by the patrol.'

'Who's Dulcima?' Tobermory asked.

'Me! I'm Dulcima!' A feminine voice called out and a thump was heard followed by a heavy thud and a groan.

'Dulcima! I've told you before, you can't bounce about with an iron ball attached to your leg, you'll do yourself a mischief,' Pondgrave said sharply.

He turned to the cats and whispered 'that's the trouble with dufflepuds, not the sharpest arrows in the quiver. She will forget about the ball.'

Looking round, the cats saw a small, dwarf woman sitting on the ground, tenderly stroking her one enormous foot, in the next cell to Pondgrave, There was a very large iron ball attached by a thick chain to her ankle.

'It hurts!' she wailed.

'Try rubbing it,' Pondgrave said. Then he turned to the cats. How did you get here?'

Tobermory puffed out his chest. 'We came through a pool in the Wood Between The Worlds with Queen Susan.'

'What's The Wood Between the Worlds when it's at home? And who is Queen Susan? Is she related to King Tirian?' Pondgrave asked.

'No, she's the Queen Susan, Queen Susan the Gentle,' Tabitha told him.

'I hope you don't mind me asking this, friend, but perhaps you've been having a little too much of elderberry wine recently? Queen Susan lived over a thousand years ago.'

'But she didn't die in Narnia, she travelled to another world and lived, I mean, lives there still,' Tobermory told him.

'I'd like to see a thousand year old queen,' Dulcima said. 'Even if she must be very wrinkly by now. Especially if she were the sister of Queen Lucy the Deliverer.'

'Queen Lucy the Deliverer?'

'Oh dear,' Pondgrave said, 'now you've started her off.'

'The gracious lady who saved us from the terrible spell of invisibility that we were suffering under. She broke the spell and saved us from that awful curse and for that we will be eternally grateful. All praise Queen Lucy!'

'Some say that the dufflepuds put the spell on themselves,' Pondgrave said casually.

'A wicked lie. That awful magician did it to us. He persecuted us for many a long year,' Dulcima said.

'So the history books are wrong, are they?'

'Written by wicked people who hate dufflepuds,'

'Anyway, if you came with Queen Susan, where is she?'

'Princess Ixania took her away,' Tabitha told him.

Pondgrave sucked in his breath. 'Now, there's a nasty piece of work if ever there was one.'

'Nasty, nasty princess,' said Dulcima. 'Gave poor Dulcima a good wallop, she did.'

'She's been none too gentle with either of us,' Pondgrave said, 'when our answers haven't been to her satisfaction.'

Peering closely, Tabitha could see bruises on Pondgrave's thin face.

Just then, the guards, opened each of the cell doors in turn and slammed down bowls, whose contents slopped over the edge.

'Eat hearty,' one of the guards shouted.

'Enjoy your last night in this luxury,' shouted another.

They all stared at each other.

Pondgrave gulped. 'It was nice knowing you, friends, even if it was for such a little while.'

Dulcima began to wail.