~Narrator's POV~
Whilst all the men were on the main deck, fully armed, and rowers were in the lower deck, Kalyn and Marina went from the Stern Cabin to the utility room to pack medical kits because it was very likely there would be injuries due to the fight the men would soon be putting up with the savage brute as the fruit of Edmund's fearful imaginations. Kalyn had felt a little guilty about knowing that the sea serpent brought to life would attack the ship and wreak havoc, so to make up for it, she and Marina were now preparing to treat wounds as they had had experience after the war with Calormen. Not that this was anything similar – each crewmember had to defeat their inner darkness to be freed from the Green Mist's grasp.
"Aslan, please help." Lucy murmured as she helped Gael keep her balance in the State Room, probably the safest place the Dawn Treader could offer.
The Great Lion would never deny prayers, from saint or sinner. That was something Lucy had never had to question.
Eustace, in ragged breaths, managed to fly back to Ramandu's Island, the closest islet in sight, and crashed into the soft sand by the shore. His whole body hurt and he didn't have the energy to think properly. Every move he made had caused him to cringe in pain. Wincing, he continued to limp without direction, still trying to catch his breath as his vision became blurry, until he struggled to keep his eyes open. He thought he'd have to be hospitalized, but he doubted if he had access to medical facilities. Nobody seemed to have any knowledge of how a dragon could be cured.
After all he'd been through, he realized that faith was all he had when he lacked other things. He had stopped trying to reject the realness of Narnia, and had instead believed in Narnia, in Aslan. And he knew he had done the right thing when the Great Lion Himself was strolling majestically towards the wounded dragon. He was just a boy at heart, if not bodily. He laid on the soft sand, still and silent, and closed his eyes.
Eustace was a little surprised that Aslan did not speak, since Reepicheep sometimes referred to Him as the Talking Lion. The Great Lion merely clawed on the sandy ground, and Eustace had felt better immediately, though he couldn't quite place his finger on how, or why. It was almost like a miracle, rather than a medical operation, was performed on him.
It was like a fire blazing through his heart, ripping his thoughts from his mind. A hold laid upon his chest: tightened, causing him to sink down. He outstretched his unsteady arms to support him up. And he couldn't explain the extensive pain but he felt inside, like millions of violin strings snapping within him, fractured pieces of their melody that was now twisted. A pull strangled on him, the invisible force enclosing itself on him, making him struggle to breathe. At initial stages of the affliction he tried to call for help until he choked on the words, his voice shaking, and his lips trembled, but he gradually realized that he didn't need aid anymore. He grew aware that the immeasurable anguish in his heart was languishing, vanquishing, fading.
Then he felt it. The strings shattered and the cord snapped. He felt warm tears run along his cheeks as he fell to his knees, burying his face in his hands, before realizing that his scales had turned to human skin. His beak had turned to a human nose. He no longer had horns or wings or a tail. He was human again. He was Eustace again. A better one.
Eustace had passed out for a few minutes, but when he came to, his energy had been restored, and for all he knew, his mission was to grab Lord Rhoop's magical sword and lay it at Aslan's Table as quickly as his legs could get him. So he ran and ran and sprinted and scuttled and dashed to the Stone Table and he could have sworn that was something tugging at him, pulling at his ankles and trying to make him trip. He was unsure if it was luck or agility that made him skip over branches like a kid in an obstacle race, but before finally stumbling to the ground as if a gust of wind had willed him to, he had succeeded in chucking the sword atop its six counterparts.
A beam of light shone through the darkness that trapped the Dawn Treader crewmen. The sea serpent seemed significantly weakened and very much bothered by the brightness, giving Edmund, who was readying himself on the prow, an advantage. Then the light intensity grew even stronger to the extent that it was scorching the dragon's skin. It convulsed violently, making it exceedingly difficult for Edmund to take his aim. He knew that even a swipe of the sword, Rhindon, would be lethal for the sea serpent which represented everything evil and corrupt, whereas the sword Edmund was gripping tightly in his grasp had had ancient magic instilled within it.
"Edmund! Now!" Caspian howled in an attempt to make his voice audible over the noises of objects madly crashing against each other as he sought to maneuver the steering wheel in an effort to drive the Just King closer to the creature to be slain. Edmund, however, was too preoccupied with observing curiously at how his sword glowed as if it had a life of its own. He only snapped to attention when the monster gave shrill shrieks and high-pitched wails that came in a series, and came strikingly near to the prow, so a stab was all it took for Edmund to defeat it. It instantaneously combusted, its scales melting, and without further ado it had evaporated, as if it had been collected by a higher power from the heavens above.
And then, the skies took no time in turning from dull grey to the bluest kind of blue as rays of sunshine shone gladly upon the valorous fighters.
"The spell's been lifted." Caleb got back on his feet. "Narnians!" He clapped, and the other sailors quickly joined in the applause.
The ladies, upon detection that the commotion outside had ceased, had gone out from hiding. Things were still a mess and weapons were scattered all across the floor on the main deck, the ropes tweaking and looking unsteady. Any sailors requiring medical attention were brought to the more spacious, organized quarters in the lower deck where fewer things had been knocked over. Thanks to Aslan, none of the crewmen needed Lucy's healing cordial, and was properly attended to with bandages.
As the skies were cleared, the crew was able to see half a dozen longboats approaching the Dawn Treader. Rhince rushed to search for the sight of Helaine, but Gael was one step ahead and had already dived into the water, swimming to her mother with all her might. Rhince quickly followed suit, and a happy family was reunited.
"You did it! I knew you would." Lucy rushed to hug Edmund.
"It isn't just us though." Caleb pointed out as Eustace's voice became audible.
"I'm a boy again! I'm a boy again!" Eustace kept repeating as he waved at his cousins who looked relieved.
"Eustace! I see your wings have been clipped!" Reepicheep dived into the water. "Where the sky and water meet, where the waves grow ever sweet." Reepicheep sang enthusiastically, leaping onto Eustace's shoulder agilely, and tasted the water. "It is sweet!"
"Aslan's Country. We must be close." Caspian conjectured.
The Dawn Treader crew returned to Ramandu's Island so that the ship could be fixed. By then the three Lords had come awake and had completely forgotten about the conflict they had before being put to sleep. Caspian was speaking to the Telmarine Lords about Narnia and his defeat of Miraz. Meanwhile, Lucy and Edmund and Reepicheep were listening to Eustace reenact how Aslan appeared to him, and even Marina was willing to listen, given that Eustace had undergone a conversion and a complete change of heart and attitude. He was much more humble, to everyone's relief.
Though everybody was rejoicing, Caleb seemed unusually quiet. His queer behavior did not go unnoticed to those closest to him. Kalyn decided that some sibling chat was in order.
"Aren't you happy we're getting closer to Aslan's Country?" Kalyn asked.
"Don't you know how close we are to saying goodbye to Lucy? And Edmund? And even Eustace?" Caleb sat on the bed, wearing a blank expression.
"Parting is never easy, but this is no one's fault." Kalyn sighed nostalgically.
"After a voyage together and spending so much time with each other, the Great Lion decides to deny Narnia its High King and Queen. Why must Aslan be so cruel? Does He expect us to just let go?" Caleb clenched his fists together.
"You mustn't say that, Caleb. It's not like they wanted to leave in the first place. It isn't easy for them either." Kalyn suddenly felt so powerless against destiny. Out of all the people who had come and gone, how many were fated to stay?
"All along I thought I could be something bigger. But at the end of the day I still wouldn't be able to change Aslan's mind." Caleb sniffed. "Can't we have what has been given to us?" Caleb never cried, but he was as close to crying as he could be. "I want to be with her, whether it's only an hour, or a week, or a few months, or a lifetime."
Kalyn smiled sadly. "That's why you have to make the best of what you have now."
Taking his wise sister's advice, Caleb had sneaked into Ramandu's library when everyone else was busy, particularly the sailors who were fixing the vessel under Drinian's instructions.
Caleb could only suppose that the library looked a lot like Coriakin's library. Or at least it was decorated almost the same way as it was in the movie. He gingerly loitered towards a reading stand placed in the middle of the room. Flicking the book back to its cover page, he found the alphabets scattered across the cover rearrange themselves to form the words: the Book of Balladries.
A/n: NOW DOESN'T THAT REMIND YOU OF CHAPTER 12 OF "SOME KIND OF LOVING" AND HOW IT'S TITLED "LUCY"?! AND THIS CHAPTER IS TITLED "CALEB"! DO YOU SEE THE CONNECTION? I SWEAR, I GET EMOTIONAL OVER MY OWN STORIES AND PLOTS!