Chapter 10
Revealed
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
Huge footprints formed, as something heavy moved away from an unseen forest trail and toward the sleeping group, sand indenting loudly as the apparitions moved otherwise quietly. Suddenly the prints ended, and a not-so-quiet "Ssshhh!" echoed across the beach. No one stirred, however.
"Stay quiet!" A voice whispered. "Don't wake the beasts there." The prints began again, moving away from the sleeping dragons and toward the people on the sand instead.
SSNNNNNXXXX!
An impossibly loud snore escaped from Eustace, drawing the attention of the unseen visitors. "Seems they've brought a bit of a pig," a new voice whispered nearby the snoring teen. The prints moved away and came toward where Camicazi and Lucy had chosen to sleep. "There are girls here!" The first voice whispered again. The book Lucy had been reading the night before floated upward and slowly opened, pages riffling through the air as they were turned by unseen hands. "This one is a reader," the book holder said. "We'll take her!"
The book was dropped to the ground, and Lucy replaced it, suddenly being yanked into the air, feet dangling as an invisible hand clamped onto her mouth. She jerked awake and looked around, seeing no one as she began struggling against her abductor, but her actions were to no avail. With the hand over her mouth no one could hear her yelling, and her kidnapper disappeared with her back into the forest.
Branches whipped by, pushed out of the way as Lucy floated through them, some of them smacking her in the face as she tried to pull the strong hand away from her face. A clearing opened up in front of her, the thick forest ending and replaced with seemingly cut grass and sculpted bushes. Here, the being carrying Lucy dropped her, and she fell clumsily to the ground, rolling a couple times before she got her wits about her again.
Lucy pulled out her dagger from the belt she always wore and stood up, thinking she was ready if her assailants came again. Too late, however, for the dagger was wrenched from her grasp and thrown to the side, far out of her reach. She jumped for it, but something hit her in the chest, knocking her breath away and throwing her back from the weapon.
"Don't go after it!" a voice warned. Lucy spun to look for the source, glancing around, but of course seeing nothing.
"Who are you?" she queried nervously. "Inhabitants of the island," came the gruff reply. "We are in need of your assistance, and will receive it." Lucy raised a skeptical eyebrow. "And what happens if I don't comply?"
"You will help, or death!" The threat was echoed by the sudden arrival of numerous other voices, all chanting that word. Lucy gathered up her courage and snapped back, "Well I wouldn't be much use to you dead, now would I?"
There was a moment of silence, and she thought she'd won, before the gruff voice answered. "Very well. If you don't help you may never see your friends on the beach again." Lucy chuckled against her better judgment. "You'd be roasted by the dragons before you'd be able to touch them." "They can't see us." "Maybe not, but there is a friend of mine here who can, and he is on that beach. He's more dangerous than the dragons."
A sighed came from the invisible voice. "We just need you to do one thing for us, and then you are free to go," it said. Lucy crossed her arms again anyway. "And what is this thing you need of me?"
Footsteps led toward the center of the large clearing. "You are to enter the Oppressor's house, and find the mechanism that will make the unseen, seen." Lucy arched an eyebrow in confusion, and looked around. "Uh, what house?" "This one," the voice replied again, followed by the sound of a creaking door. A rift of light appeared in the air, and widened to reveal a room that seemed to open out of nothing. Lucy stepped back in apprehension.
"Why don't you do it yourself?" she asked. "You seem to know what it is you're looking for." There was an uncomfortable silence, before the voice replied sullenly, "We can't read." "Can't write either as a matter of fact," another voice added. Lucy's expression softened. "Then why didn't you just say so?"
"We were afraid you would just say no," the apparent leader replied again. "We need someone who can read the labels on the mechanisms, we don't know which one, button or lever or other things in the house." Lucy nodded. "Very well, I'll help." She turned to the door before the voice stopped her again.
"Beware the Oppressor! He's very oppressive!" The girl didn't have an answer for that, so instead she slowly turned to the door again and stepped through. The door closed again, appearing once more as if nothing were out of the ordinary.
"Hawken, wake up!"
I felt a hand shake at my shoulder, and the owner of the voice sounded less-than-pleased. I groaned and sat up slowly, feeling oddly drowsy, and opened my eyes. Immediately I had to close them again as I had not changed my sight back to normal and the heat now radiating off the sand even in the early morning blinded me with infrared light. Slowly I opened them again, vision adjusting to the high infrared levels, and I glanced up at Peter, who had been the one to wake me.
"What is it?" "You were supposed to be the one on lookout. Lucy's gone," he said. I jolted up, and looked over at the rest of our group. So far, it appeared Peter was the only one up, but I could easily see the signs that something else had been here: pairs of massive prints through the sand. Strangely, though, the dragons were all also still fast asleep and I knew no one who was a lighter sleeper than Stormfly. There was also a beastly noise emanating from Eustace.
"Get the others up," I said. "Something else is going on here; at least one of the dragons should have woken up from any noises that came through." I ran over to where the dragons all lay, no longer feeling drowsy. Sucking in a breath, I yelled out, "WAKE UP!"
All the dragons jolted awake at that, but they acted extremely groggy as they stood up. ::Wha-what is it?:: Toothless grumbled, stretching and yawning, nearly hitting me in the face with a wing in the process. "Lucy's gone, something took her. And what's with all of you? I know you can be lazy at times but I've never seen a dragon look so out of it."
::I don't know,:: Thorn rumbled in reply, ::but I feel like I was drugged.::
That's when it hit me: the voice I'd heard last night in my head wasn't me. Something else was trying to put me to sleep, and it succeeded. "Everyone get up! We may have trouble!" All the dragons complied, and I could see Peter waking the others up as well. Once Caspian was up, he took one look at the prints in the sand, and started in that direction. "Everyone follow when you can, she may be in trouble and we can't waste a second!" he explained. Those of us who were up fell in behind him, dragons flanking us as we walked along the path, and soon it appeared almost the whole group was together. At that point, no one really noticed we had in fact left one person behind. Not that anyone probably cared either.
Caspian burst into the clearing and glanced around, the rest of us fanning out into the area. "Over here!" Thuggory yelled, drawing our attention. We rushed over and, sure enough, there was Lucy's dagger, lying in the short grass. "But…where is she now?" Edmund queried. Not that we had an answer. "And why would she leave her dagger behind?" Susan echoed. I looked around, but didn't see anything yet. "I don't think she did leave it," I muttered. "And she may still be nearby, can't forget everything seems to be invisible here."
A movement to one side caught my eye, a brief flash of infrared. I spun around, but whatever it was had hidden behind the bushes again. "Hey guys," I warned, "we're not alone here."
SSSHHEEEEWWWW! THUNK! THUNK! THUNK!
Everyone jolted and backed into a circle as huge spears appeared out of nowhere and sunk into the ground at our feet. A figure, then another, and another, visible only as infrared images, jumped out from the bushes, more spears and other odd, blunt weapons in their hands. "Stop right there, and don't move!" the tallest image yelled.
Unsurprisingly, everyone instead drew out swords or other weapons, only for the …creatures, whatever they were, to jump forward and smack the weapons down with the padded club looking things they held. I did a double-take as one headed for me, and the infrared image became clear: there were two of them, one standing on the other, both with 2 massive, kangaroo-size feet, but otherwise looking just like a short person. As the one on top reached for my swords, I ducked out of the way. Confusion etched across the blurred image I saw of its face, but it tried again.
This time, I rolled to the side, drew my sword, and knocked the creature's club from its hands. The one I faced looked at the taller, seemingly bearded one that had spoken and squealed, "He can see us!" "The girl was telling the truth!" Well, that confirmed who took Lucy.
Caspian glanced my way. "You can?" I nodded. "They're not fully invisible; they still glow infrared like everything else I've seen here." Turning to the bearded one, assuming he was the leader since all the others were looking to him, I walked up and pointed my drawn sword at him. "Alright, where's our friend Lucy?" I snapped.
He looked down at me, seemingly having gotten over the shock of my being able to see them, and pointed the spear-like weapon he had at me. "Why is it important to you?" "Because she's my sister, for one!" Edmund snapped. "And she's a queen," Caspian added. The little man just laughed. "Ha! She is on a mission for us, and shan't return until she's finished!"
Unbeknownst to them, the creatures suddenly began to glow a little brighter to my eyes, before color began to seep into view. I grinned, stepping back and relaxing my eyes, switching them back to normal vision. Something had just happened to make these weirdoes visible again, and I suspected it had to do with Lucy as well.
"Ah, look, he's afraid of us now!" the big one laughed, taking my moving back as a sign of nervousness, and not realizing everyone could see them now. "Now leave us alone, or we shall beat you with our massive fists!" "And claw you to death!" another yelled. "And I'll gnash you with my teeth!"
All of this sounded perfectly ridiculous now that we could see them clearly, and naturally I heard Camicazi and some of the others snickering. "Oh, let me guess: you'll squash us with your fat bellies," Caspian threw back, smiling as well. The bearded one nodded. "Yes, we'll-wait, what?" "Tickle us with your toes?" Edmund added in, gaining the attention and protests of the little people. As they did so I walked around behind the bearded one, reached up, and gently pushed him from behind.
"Whoa, whooooaahhhh!" He wavered back and forth, arms wind-milling, and as I stepped out of the way he and the one he was standing on both came tumbling down to the ground. Right away, Peter, Susan, and Thuggory grabbed their swords off the ground and stepped forward, surrounding the bearded one and aiming the points at him.
"Now where's our sister, you little pipsqueak?" Edmund growled. "You'd better tell him, chief!" one of the other dwarfish creatures nearby whimpered. The apparent chief began sputtering. "N-now, calm-calm down," he stammered. "She's not in-in any real danger-" "Where is she?!" Edmund interrupted loudly. The chief glanced to the side momentarily. "In the mansion."
Naturally, we all looked around. "What mansion?" Cami asked.
As if in response, there was a sudden rumbling noise, like a large machine coming to life, and the air nearby shimmered. Colors appeared in midair as a huge house began to take form. "I would guess that mansion," Stormfly drawled. "Out of curiosity, you guys got any other tricks we've yet to see?"
"You know, I'm really getting tired of you all leaving me behi-" We all turned to see Eustace, finally awake, stumbling out of the forest in our direction. He cut himself off as he froze, looking around at the inhabitants we'd found. "It's the pig!" one of them said, eliciting a snicker from the twins.
"Well, this place just keeps getting weirder and weirder," Eustace mumbled. "Is he calling us weird?" one of the "bigfeet" griped back. I smirked. "Nice to see you're still alive," I called over. Eustace just replied with a death glare.
"The Oppressor!" the little dwarves screeched suddenly, one of them echoing the rest as they all suddenly began hopping away from the mansion. We all turned in response to see a man in a flowing robe step out of the door of the house. Right behind him, perfectly unharmed and smiling, was our lost companion. "Lucy!" Susan yelled, running up and hugging her sister as the man continued forward. The "chief" of the little dwarves began backing away from the man.
"You've wronged us, magician!" he accused. "I have not wronged you, I wished to protect you," the man replied in a tired-sounding tone, still advancing toward the little annoyances. "Well you could have, if you wanted to!" the little chief said again.
The man sighed in annoyance and apparently had enough. Reaching into his pocket, he threw a handful of white fluff at the creatures with a statement of "Be gone!" All of them yelped and began leaping away on their big feet, back-flipping and vaulting over bushes and trees. "Run!" "It's a spell!" "He'll do it again!" "Run away!"
As they all passed by Eustace, he turned and asked, "What was that you threw at them? And what were those things?" The man smirked in reply. "Lint, but don't tell them that. And they are the Dufflepuds, the main inhabitants of this island." Eustace threw up his hands. "Of course, silly me." The man chuckled. "They're a race of dwarves if that helps explain anything."
Then he turned and bowed to Caspian. "I am Coriakin, the owner of this mansion. You must be King Caspian." Caspian looked at him with a shocked expression. "How do you know me?" Coriakin smiled gently. "I am still a Narnian, I know a great deal about the goings on in this region. That, and your friend here told me." He gestured to Lucy.
Then, unexpectedly, he turned to me. "She did not, however, tell me of you," he said, looking between me and Hiccup. "I do believe you two are Hawken Carlton and Hiccup Haddock, yes?" Now it was our turn to be shocked, and all we could do was nod. "You two are well known now among the seers of this world," Coriakin continued, "and those who have been given God's gifts, like myself. You're meant to do many great things together." He laughed at our perplexed faces, and turned toward the mansion, gesturing for us to follow him. "Come, all of you, there is much I must show you."
As we walked, I glanced at Hiccup, who shared my odd look, and we watched as Ruffnut ran up to Coriakin. I was surprised how little her and Tuffnut had spoken on this trip at all. "What did the, uh, Duf-Dufflepuds mean by you having wronged them?" she asked as we entered the house. Coriakin nodded. "I built a machine that uses light waves and dark energy to make living things invisible to most eyes. I've been using it on the creatures of this island for some time, and while they believe it was to spite them," he explained, "I thought it was the best way to protect them." "Protect them from what?" Tuff piped up. "From the evil," Coriakin replied simply.
"Evil?" I asked, walking up the stairs he traversed. "Do you mean that mist or whatever it is that we've been sort of looking for?" Coriakin shook his head grimly. "No, I mean what lies behind it, the source of the mist," he said, turning down the hallway and opening a door. "I believe it is a group of demonic spirits, come together. They were sent by the devil himself to corrupt this region. The mist is only a visible guise, to frighten wayward sailors and to build up fear and rumors. They're planning something far worse."
As we entered the room, most of our group becoming entranced by the holographic images floating around the shelves of books, Coriakin pointed at me. "With you being from both another world as well as one of the new guardians, handed a gift from God himself, you have become a prime target." He gestured then to everyone. "But all of you are good people," he said, "even your companions behind you, so your entire crew is in danger." He walked over to a table on the side of the room, and grabbed a large roll of paper. Coming back to us, he threw it outward, and it unrolled in midair, floating on an unseen field. Upon the paper pictures of familiar lands appeared along the edges, and the center became a living map of the island we stood on, complete with a three-dimensional hologram extending upward.
"There's something you can't do," Cami whispered mockingly to me. "Try me," I shot back. Meanwhile, everyone else was mesmerized by the moving holograms. "For a make-believe map of a make-believe world, it's rather impressive," Eustace commented.
"The mist originates from an island to the west of here," Coriakin said, drawing our attention to where he stood on the map. He pointed to one end, and the map shifted around his feet. A glowing blue dot appeared. "We call this the blue star; it is a messenger, a guide. Follow it to Romandil's Island," he said, a massive-looking island appearing as the map continued shifting west. "Here is where I also sent the other six lords you seek, Caspian." Said person stepped forward. "So they did pass through here," he commented. Coriakin nodded. "Yes, and furthermore, the sword you carry, Edmund, is one of a set of seven, set with a power nearly 900 years ago. That power was split between the swords by the enemy in an attempt to destroy it." He pointed to the island, which zoomed in to a massive table in the center. "Find all the swords, and lay them on the stone table here. The demons are using some sort of mineral catalyst for part of their plan, and if the swords are placed in their proper location the power inlaid within them will negate that catalyst, and break the spell they have laid." He looked up and around the room at each of us.
"I must warn you, though, the source of the evil is not far," he said, and the map shifted again to reveal a spidery, horrid spit of land that glowed with darkness. "They have taken Dark Island, only a stone's throw from Romandil. They will do everything in their power to tempt you to follow the wrong path." Coriakin stepped down from the map. "They will most certainly also go after you," he said, looking at the dragons.
::Us? They know about us?:: Thorn queried. ::If they know about people of course they know about us,:: Toothless muttered back.
"Demons prey on weaknesses within," Coriakin continued on, "and will find anything that makes you doubt. They will take any form; become your deepest fears or your deepest desires. They will make you fall in any way they can." He looked directly at Peter and Edmund. "Stay strong, for you must defeat the evils within you before you can take on those outside of you. Do not fall to temptation."
We had our warning. The day dragged on more peacefully after that. Coriakin helped us make sure we had the supplies we needed, and we stayed to have dinner there that night. The next morning saw us off, and before long Coriakin's island and the Dufflepuds (who showed up once more before we left) were long out of sight. The day was beautiful, with a strong westward wind filling the sails and making travel easy, and even Eustace managed to be relatively cooperative.
By evening, however, the distinct feeling of being watched had come over me, and more noticeably the other Vikings as they all began to fidget uncomfortably and glance around, and on the horizon dark clouds had gathered into a dangerous front. Less than an hour later, a sheet of rain came racing across the ocean, and the storm of a lifetime hit.
From the swirling clouds above the ship, the demon from the island watched, well entertained, as the ship was tossed like a toy in waves towering like two story buildings. Sure, that guardian Coriakin had spilled the details on how to find their location, but now since he and the Dufflepuds weren't somewhat hidden it would also be easier to torture them as well. And, there was no guarantee the crew below him would make it through the storm, or past the other dangers in the oceans. "Good luck boy," the being hissed. "Oh, yes, good luck. Not. Ha ha ha ha ha!"
A/N-As always, make sure to leave a review to let me know what you think! And, make sure to check the Book of Dragons again; there's an extra entry posted today!