"Pete!"
The voice came from above him down to where he floated, floated in the darkness.

"Pete … wake up!"

Peter groaned struggling through the pain and darkness towards the voice.

He awoke to find himself in a dungeon. Shaking his head he tried to remember … tried to clear the fog that clung to his brain. The last he could recall was that Caspian was gone and that he and Edmund had been struggling fiercely against their captors, trying to reach the girls and Eustace to stop them from being taken away, and then … darkness, he and Edmund must have been knocked unconscious …

"Edmund!"

"I'm alright Pete, I'm right here" a voice answered from the darkness, squinting Peter could make out Edmund's worried face emerging from the shadows beside him.

"Where are we?"

"I'm not sure, I think we're in some type of dungeons, we seem to be near the harbour."

Peter shook his head, trying to get rid of some of the grogginess still lingering there.

"The girls?"
Edmund's look was grim.

"I haven't seen them or Eustace since we were taken yesterday, the slavers said that they were taking them to market … "

"Ed we have to get out of here," Peter said urgently trying to sit up as he fought down a wave of nausea.

"We have to stop this. The girls, Eustace, who knows what kind of person might buy them …"

"I know Pete."

Edmund had been thinking while he waited for Peter to wake. In their golden age Edmund had been their chief strategist. Always looking behind and around any information that they were given, ensuring that he saw everything from every possible angle.

"Peter?"

"Yes?"

"The Telmars were afraid of sea travel right?"

"Yes."

"And they let the woods grow up around the coast and did not venture near the sea."

"Yes … Ed, I'm not sure where you're going with this."

"Well, it is just, if the Telmars were completely cut off from the sea, how did the pirate chief know Caspian's name?"

There was a pause.

"Perhaps he was referring to one of Caspian's ancestors, I mean they can't initially all have been afraid of the sea, Cair Paravel was attacked by the Telmars and it lies on the coast … Peter was grasping at straws and he knew it. The truth slowly dawned on him.

"Oh Aslan …" he turned to his brother.

"The slavers know Caspian's name! But how?"

"Everyone on these islands knows the name of the King of Narnia … King Caspian the tenth!"

The voice coming from the darkness in the corner of the cell caused the two to jump violently.

As their eyes adjusted they could just make out a bedraggled man crouching there.

"What do you mea …"
Edmund was interrupted by a child's shriek coming from outside the cell's narrow windows.

"Mama!"
Peter and Edmund turned to the window as one.

"What in Aslan's name?"

The man emerged out of the gloom.

"Watch!" he instructed them.

And they watched.

Watched as a small girl and her father chased a cartload of what appeared to be bound slaves.

Watched as the slaves were forced into several small boats and towed out into the deeper waters of the harbour.

Watched as a green mist appeared and swallowed up the boat.

And watched as the mist retreated and left behind … nothing … the boats … the slaves … all were gone!

Susan, Lucy and Eustace also watched the spectacle, crouched and bound at the edge of the market, waiting their turn to be sold. They had spent a miserable night in a cell with other slaves who were to be sold at the market, listening to Eustace complain constantly. Although to be fair in this case at least he did have reason to complain. None of the other people in the cell spoke to them, seemingly too afraid to say a word.

The market began and Lucy was first, dragged up to the platfrom at the centre of the market.

"What am I bid for this fine young specimen?" the slaver called.

Bidding began quickly and continued at a rapid pace until Lucy was sold to a middle aged man at the front of the crowd. She was hauled off the platform and given to him still in chains. Lucy looked desperately around searching for some hope of rescue but could see no friendly faces among the crowd.

Susan was next up.

"Now gentlemen" the slaver called. "I have a rare treat for you. Rarely has this market seen a beauty such as this!"

Two of the slavers pulled Susan forward onto the stage to a buzz appreciative murmurs from the crowd.

If bidding on Lucy had been rapid, with Susan it was frenzied, many in the market place vying to be her owner. Susan's heart was in her mouth as the bidding continued.

Where was Caspian?

Where were her brothers?

Where were the crew of the Dawn Treader?

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Where was Caspian?

The day before he had been becoming increasingly ill at ease as the Pevensies had examined the slavers book.

When the slavers had struck, he had tried to alert them to who he was but they did not believe him.

And why would they?

They had never met him.

The merchant who had entered the building … the slavers' master however, had.

Once Caspian had subtly alerted him that he had not wanted this to be known, Lord Bern, for he it was, waited until he was in the privacy of his own manor before turning to the king.

"Your Majesty!" he said kneeling before him.

"Your pardon, my men did not realise who you were, had they known …"
Caspian's look was unforgiving.

"Indeed?" he asked his eyebrow raised.

"Please Sire" Lord Bern begged clearly terrified.

"Let me make amends. Whatever it is Your Majesty wishes, I will do!"

Caspian looked at the man on his knees before him, his face speculative.

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Lucy stood at the front of the crowd in the slavers' market. The man who had bought her had stayed at the market to bid on more slaves. Despite the immediate danger of her situation Lucy's head kept drifting back to her conversation with Reepicheep. Her head awash with thoughts. After her discussion with Reepicheep the night before she had retired to her and Susan's cabin needing to be alone with her thoughts, her mind reeling from the revelations.

How could Caspian?

He had been supposed to save Narnia but in the end it seemed that he had turned out as cruel a tyrant as his uncle. One that Narnia now needed saving from.

Lucy had been so distraught that she hadn't even been able to discuss it with her sister. Susan was obviously besotted with Caspian again and Lucy could not even begin to imagine how she would broach the subject with her. How did you tell your sister that the man she loved was capable of such acts?

Lucy's head twisted looking around the market for her sister. They needed to get out of here, needed to reach the others. She had to let them know what Caspian had done. Lucy caught sight of Peter and Edmund being hauled out of a low building at the edge of the square in chains but she could not reach them or alert them to her presence and she could see no sign of Susan.

Susan had been sold to a young Calormene Lord who had led the bidding for the Gentle Queen from the start. He had reminded Lucy of Prince Rabadash and she was sure, judging from her sister's terrified gaze as she was hauled off the platform towards him that the same thought had occurred to her older sister as well.

Unable to find Susan in the crowd, Lucy's attention was drawn to the stage. Right now, Eustace was being sold. Or rather the slavers were trying to sell him, the crowd seemed disinterested. Ironically Eustace was furious at this, for although he didn't want to be sold as a slave he did not want to be branded unsellable either … and … they had all witnessed what happened to the slaves that had not been sold … the green mist …

"I beg your pardon" Eustace was objecting loudly. "I won my school's hygiene award three years in a row!"

The slaver – Pug raised his eyebrows and turned to the crowd, unsure as to whether this was a valid selling point but willing to go with anything that might help him get rid of this annoying boy.

"Come on" Pug cajoled the crowd. "Is nobody willing to take him off my hands? I can offer …"

But nobody heard what Pug had to offer as at that moment a sound of cheering reached the market.

Looking up they saw a procession of armed men on horses entering the market, glittering in the midday sun.

It was Caspian and the crew of the Dawn Treader. The crowd parted to let the glittering armed men through. Caspian marched straight up to the platform, flanked by what appeared to be the Lord who had been in the building when the slavers had captured them.

"On your knees, every man of you, to the King of Narnia, Caspian the Tenth of his name!" Lord Bern ordered.

The entire square sank to their knees. Lucy noticed that many in the crowd were casting terrified glances at Caspian and his men.

Caspian strode towards Pug who was also kneeling.

Eustace had drawn back as far away from the approaching confrontation as he could.

"Your life is forfeit, Pug for laying hands on our Royal Person yesterday" Caspian growled threateningly at the man.

Pug's face paled.

"Y … Yo … Your Majesty!" he stammered.

"I did not know it was You My King! Had I known … I would never have … Your Majesty has to know that you are our most valued sup …"
Pug never finished his sentence. With a shriek that drowned out the rest of the slaver's words, Caspian swung his sword and ran the man through as he knelt before him.

Shocked silence followed as Pug fell lifelessly forward onto the stage.

Caspian turned to face the stunned crowd.

"Where are the rest of my friends?" he called.

Lucy attempted to speak, but found that no words came out, stunned as she was by Caspian's actions. She cleared her throat.

"I'm here Caspian" she called.

But she could not make her feet move, could not bring herself to come any closer to the blood soaked platform.

Reepicheep, seeing her difficulty, rushed to the stage and taking the slavers keys came to her and undid her chains with trembling paws. Lucy exchanged looks with the valiant mouse. Something had to be done. But what could they do?

"Caspian!" a firm voice came from the back of the crowd. It was Peter. Striding forward with Edmund at his side, the two Kings kept their eyes unwaveringly on Caspian.

Caspian stood there his armour shining in the sun, his crown on his head.

Peter and Edmund were in dirty, rumpled clothes with chains around their wrists.

But it was they who looked every inch the Kings that they were.

The crowd, that had stood and backed away in horror when Caspian had killed Pug now sank back to their knees as the two Kings passed through.

Caspian watched this, his lips tightening at the crowd's reaction to the two Kings.

When Peter and Edmund reached the platform, Peter stood up beside Caspian, his gaze stern.

"Caspian, we must speak of this" Peter said, his voice carrying no further than those on the platform.

Caspian's eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth as if he was about to object, but they were interrupted by Lucy who had also reached the stage.

"Wait … where is Susan?" she asked urgently.

The three Kings looked at the young Queen and then desperately scanned the crowd.

Susan was nowhere to be seen!

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