THE SHIP SAILED into the darkness in silence. No one dared utter a word. A chill ran down my spine in the form of the green mist.

"Helaine," Rhince whispered as the mist wafted over him.

He must have seen his wife. I could hear voices as the mist began to take its hold on the ship and the minds of those on it. I really couldn't see anything in the mist. It was as if it couldn't find anything I was afraid of for a moment. Then I saw Edmund's face. "You're such an idiot," it said into my ear, "As if I would wait for you..."

For a second I believed it. However, that warm feeling coursed through me when I realized that it was a lie. Edmund would never say such a thing, something so hurtful, to anyone. The mist soon left me. I looked over at the real Edmund. He was staring at the green mist. It was enticing him.

"Go away," He said. "You're dead." I watched as he tried to follow whatever it was he was seeing. "No!" he shouted.

"Edmund," I said and grabbed his shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"Y yes," he stuttered, not realizing he had said anything out loud.

I gave him a reassuring smile. We then heard something that was most defiantly not in our heads. A man was yelling. It took a few moments before we could make out what he was saying.

"Keep away!"

"Who's there?" Edmund called out.

Caspian then called out a few second later, "We do not fear you."

"Nor I you!"

Edmund grabbed his flashlight and shone it off the side of the ship in the direction of the noise. He soon found the source of the calls. It was a man. His clothes were rags and his beard was long, scraggily, and grey.

"Keep away!"

"We will not leave," Caspian answered.

The man raised a sword in a half crazy gesture, "You will not defeat me!"

The sword. "Caspian, he has a sword," I called.

"Lord Rhoop!" Caspian moved quickly to get a closer look at the man.

"You do not own me!" the poor, crazed lord cried and tried to move away from Edmund's flashlight's beam.

"Stand down," Caspian ordered and everyone lowered their bows. "Let's get him on board, quickly."

This was easier said than done. While if the man was sane it would have been accomplished with little difficultly, he was not so it wouldn't have been. Luckily Eustace flew in and picked the man up and dropped him on the ship. Caspian tried to talk the lord down, "Be calm, my lord."

"Off me, demon!"

"No, my lord. We are not here to hurt you. I am your king, Caspian."

"Caspian?" the man turned his wizened face to the young king. "My lord?" He touched Caspian's face, trying to prove to himself that this was all real. "You should not have come here. There's no way out of here. Quickly, turn this ship about, before it's too late."

Edmund agreed, "We have the sword. Let's go!"

Caspian gave the order, "Let's turn her about, Drinian."

"Aye aye, Your Majesty."

Lord Rhoop whirled on Caspian again, "Do not think! Do not let it know your fears or it will become them."

Edmund closed his eyes. "Oh, no."

"Edmund, what do you just think of?" Lucy asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry." He moved to the side of the ship.

"Ed!" I called.

The boat suddenly jerked violently as something underneath the waves had hit it. Cries of "what is that" were heard, but I had an awful feeling I knew what it was. What was Edmund always afraid we'd first got on the seas? A sea serpent.

"It's too late. It's too late!" Rhoop cried.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw something that made me even more scared. Gael had come up from bellow deck. "Gael!" I cried as someone shouted at the serpent had gone under the boat. Quickly I ran and pulled her to me in a protective gesture.

Edmund, being slightly faster than I, stood in front of us. His sword unsheathed and ready to defend me and the little girl. That's when Eustace, in his wonderful dragon form, flew in with fire and attacked the serpent. He was thrown off, but flew right back for an attack on the monster. With one more breath of fire, Eustace sent the monster back into the sea.

"Out creature!" Rhoop shouted, mistaking Eustace for another monster, and threw his sword at Eustace.

A loud cry was let out as Eustace was hit with the sword.

"Eustace!" Lucy cried out. He then flew off, the sword embedded in his arm. "No come back!"

"We're all doomed! Doomed!" Rhoop ranted. The lord then tried to take hold of the ship, almost killing us in the process.

I ordered Gael to stay by my side. She nodded; whether she was afraid of the situation or me I wasn't certain. But I held her close as the ship swayed back and forth under the command of a lunatic. Drinian, with one manly punch, knocked out the lord and ordered, "Now crew, to your rowing position. Oars at double speed!"

"Aslan, protect us." I prayed in my head.

In that moment a bird descended from the sky and let out a cry. From where it had come there was a beam of light. From my years of knowing the great lion, I knew a sign when I saw one.

"Follow that bird!" I shouted at Drinian. A new cry, this one more akin to a drying rat, was heard. Our moment of safety was short lived. The sea serpent had returned.