Threads

Chapter 6

"I don't suppose the idea is to travel afoot?" Edmund said, scratching the back of his head.

Eirene chuckled.

"No, your grace. Trufflehunter is fetching a horse just now—ah, there he is."

Edmund turned to look, but it wasn't Tufflehunter who approached them. Instead, he saw a black haired dwarf pulling a black horse by its mane.

"Ah, this is Nikabrik—" Eirene introduced, but quickly turned around to look at Trumpkin, completely confused.

"Wasn't he back at—" Eirene began, in hushed tones.

"I guess he decided to join us early," Trumpkin said lowly, "as if he knew you finally found the relics."

Edmund heard Eirene whispering something back, but he could not discern the words. He watched Nikabrik instead. The dwarf's eyes scanned Edmund, and he could have sworn that his eyes looked too jolted and excited when they had landed on Rhindon.

It took Nikabrik a few seconds before he decided to meet Edmund's gaze. He desperately tried to hide his unnerving excitement. The dwarf knelt.

"Your grace—you honor us—"

"The honor is mine," Edmund replied, "to be back at Narnia."

The dwarf rose and his eyes went to the sword again. Edmund moved his hand to the pommel, and noticed how Nikabrik held his breath. Edmund raised an eyebrow.

"Now that introductions are in order…" Eirene said, distracting Edmund. She turned to the dwarf, "you must forgive us Nikabrik, but we must get going."

Edmund inwardly thanked her for it.

"What d'you mean? You're leaving...?" Nikabrik asked, almost desperately.

"Yes, the relics must be shown at the council—"

"I thought…" Nikabrik tried to argue, and his eyes remained glued to Peter's sword, "—wait. Relics? You've found them all?" The dwarf liked his lips and carried on, "…must you take them all?"

Eirene shook her head.

"I've only found this one, Nikabrik—"

But the dwarf kept looking at Rhindon, and turned to look at Edmund's satchel, as if he knew.

"Ah yes, but you see your grace, I think we must look further. You've already found this one, surely you'll find more. And even more so with the guidance of King Edmund," Nikabrik said.

Edmund kept quiet and Nikabrik held his breath. He looked back and forth at the Just King and at the satchel.

"Unless he's found them already," he finally said.

Edmund narrowed his eyes. Eirene turned towards Edmund. She read his expression, trying to figure out if there was some truth to what Nikabrik said. She looked at the satchel too and inclined her head.

After a second, Eirene breathed out. She turned her head away. She knew she had to make haste now, she could ask later.

"Yes, Nikabrik, I agree, I'm sure Edmund will help us," she said confidently and turned to look at Edmund. Her gaze was defiant, but his eyes were intense. She gave in and looked away.

"But we shall discuss this again another time. Right now we must hurry. It is an important day, as you may recall."

Eirene walked past them both and approached her horse. She jerked her face at Edmund.

"Are you coming, your highness?"

Edmund nodded. Eirene looked at the Just King as he walked towards the horse. He wrapped the satchel around its neck.

"I'm sorry if it bothers you boy. It'll be just for a moment."

Edmund kept silent for a while, as if expecting him to reply. When it didn't, he mounted the horse in a single movement. Eirene watched how he carefully took the horse's mane as the reign, and how his fingers moved.

As Edmund settled himself, he turned his deep eyes to Eirene. He was surprised to find her looking at him already. He smirked.

"After you, princess."

Something quivered within her, but she tried not to let it show. Edmund, endeared by her in some way, rode behind.

Making sure that Nikabrik stayed behind, Edmund went on. As he did, he tried to take in as much of the landscape as he could. It looked as he remembered; the same beautiful colors but somewhat...lifeless.

No dancing trees, no nyriads or naiads enjoying the sunny skies. There wasn't a sign of wandering minotaurs, centaurs or fawns. Not even wolves seemed to be about.

And there was no sign of Lucy, either.

Not long after, the road was cut short. The deep woods ended abruptly with a loud coursing river. Across was a plain, from which Edmund could see a town showing through the distant horizon.

Eirene began to cross the river. Edmund waited behind.

"Isn't it too deep?!" he shouted across.

"Just above the horse's knees!" She shouted back.

They crossed and hurried on. Edmund kept turning his head frequently, just in case they were being followed. But there were no shadows, no strange sounds.

The scenery kept quiet and from the wild they emerged into a road. There were small abandoned cottages that looked more medieval than Narnian. In that calmness, Eirene sped down. She turned her horse back around and faced Edmund. She examined him with a quizzical brow.

"You haven't said a word since Cair Paravel," she looked intently at him.

"I did not realize one was expected to hold entertaining conversations during horse rides," he said.

Eirene couldn't help a smile appearing on her lips.

"...And you keep looking over your shoulder," Eirene said, "I imagine you are only here to look for your sister. At least that's what I would have done, your grace", she said cautiously.

"Call me Edmund," he said. Eirene looked a bit taken aback, but breathed and nodded.

"Do you think we'll have luck and find her soon, Edmund?" she said, looking straight at him. His name sounded majestic as it came out of her lips, he thought.

"I'm hoping that we don't need to find her," Edmund said, "because then that would imply she is lost, which I doubt she is."

"Then why isn't she with you?"

Edmund detected a lace of disbelief in her tone.

"We got...stranded." He said.

Eirene galloped next to him then.

"I don't mean to be intrusive, Edmund," she had read his name a thousand times in books and stories, but saying it left unfamiliar tingling sensations at the tip of her tongue.

"But what of the rest of your siblings?"

And what of them indeed—Edmund thought. He remembered Peter's letter in his pocket, and its cryptic messages. He wasn't sure he could explain it to her just then.

Edmund sighed, hesitating in his answer again.

"Stranded, too?" she asked, jokingly at his silence.

"Stranded, too," he repeated.

They kept on, silent for a while as the dirt road merged into a cobbled stone one. From time to time, Edmund noticed, Eirene turned around to look at him. She looked at him and then set her eyes on the satchel.

She wanted to make sure that he still carried Rhindon with him. But...she also wanted to know if what Nikabrik had said had some truth in it.

Edmund looked at her too, and she looked away. Edmund thought he caught a hint of a blush.

"I sense you have questions, princess."

She cleared her throat.

"Call me Eirene, please. And I do."

She breathed out and let a second or two pass before speaking again.

"Are you real, King Edmund?" she asked, daring to look back at him.

"You were the one who held a sword at my throat—did that feel real enough for you?"

Eirene laughed. "I mean, are you really who you say you are? I thought the Kings and Queens of Old were inseparable..."

"Well," started Edmund, trying to divert attention to all the questions he didn't have an answer to, "you did say yourself that Narnia has changed a lot, maybe we changed too."

"Right..." Eirene smirked, "history books did not lie when they said you were quiet and reserved."

Edmund smiled. "My reputation precedes me," he winked at her.

She laughed and rode on. But when finally she turned back around to him, she looked more serious.

"Did you find them all? Truly?" Her eyes were glued to the satchel.

Edmund furrowed his brows but kept quiet. Eirene respected his silence. They kept on traveling on empty streets. She went ahead and he merely followed, endless questions appearing on his mind, too.

"I've got an idea," he said, "ask a new question and I'll answer. In return, I get to ask a question which you need to answer."

Eirene nodded. She wanted to know what else he'd found inside the vault, but she knew he wouldn't answer right then. She breathed in thinking of another question.

"When was the last time you saw each of your siblings?"

"Lucy? Just this morning. Pete and Sue… a couple of months back. They are over in America."

"America?"

"It's a far rarer country than Narnia from what I gather," Edmund chuckled to himself. He kept on scanning his surroundings.

"Now you owe me two answers. The first question, why is the city so empty?" Edmund asked.

"It's tradition. My brother Caspian disappeared today, 15 years ago. Everyone in town is asked to stay in doors, just in case my brother decides to stroll in, one of these days."

Eirene seemed sad, and Edmund thought about what he knew from Peter's letter. How easy it could be to just tell her that he was still alive, somewhere. But she'd never believe him, not without proof. He chose his next question instead.

"So you don't think Prince Caspian is coming back?" Edmund asked, Eirene shuffled the reins of her horse.

"Eventually I came to the conclusion that if he ever did, it wouldn't be today. But—" she breathed, "—it's been 15 years. There haven't been sightings, claims, or even whispers. Nothing. I looked for him everywhere I could," she remained silent. Edmund only listened to the wind blowing by.

Eirene regained her composure and kept on speaking.

"Telmarines fear the forest. They fear anything that isn't a stone castle. I did too, for a while. But I searched for Caspian everywhere, even there. I didn't find him, but I found Narnians, hidden away- and they were scared of us. I listened to them and I learned. Telmarines invaded this land a long time ago, and we always thought it was empty. But we were the plague. Not them. We drove Narnians away, segregated them with violence," Eirene took a small, shallow breath.

She felt like she was oversharing, but something about him demanded to see her naked soul. And she felt like something within her was willing to give it. She braced herself. She knew she wanted his help. And to get it, she had to be truthful. So she ignored her resistance in sharing the truth.

"That is why I want the relics. As a token, as proof of the reform I am trying to pass. To make me the legal heiress to the throne, and establish a cooperation between Narnians and Telmarines instead of a reign of terror. But...that would be all temporary. Until I find Caspian. He is the rightful heir to the throne, when I find him it will belong to him. I would merely hold the crown for him in the meantime. "

Edmund couldn't hide his flabbergasted expression.

"You're fighting for someone else's crown? Somebody you haven't seen in years?"

Eirene's lips thinned. All traces of vulnerability were gone, and she remained stern.

"He is my brother. Family and tradition are everything. What would be left of us if it weren't for it? I respect it and I shall honor it. And I shall honor Narnians, too."

Eirene stiffened besides him, and he knew he had crossed a line asking her that. Edmund said nothing, and looked at the road ahead. The air was cold and heavy, and he paid attention to the noises around him. If there were any. But there was only the hooves of their horses against the stones, and heavy silence within the city bounds.

Eirene guided him over to what looked like a castle. It's silhouette wasn't as slim as Cair Paravel's, but it certainly looked sturdier, built as if to be unbreachable. He followed her over to the stables. There wasn't anyone there, either.

Furnaces were lit, as if people had been working in the castle's courtyard. It smelt like burning wood, and fresh footsteps had been made in the muck. Edmund furrowed his brows and turned to look at Eirene. She had already dismounted her horse.

She held her mare by the reins close to its mouth, and held the pommel of her sword with the other hand. She had her mouth half opened, and her eyes diverted to her whole environment.

"I thought it was normal for the town to be deserted..." Edmund said.

"It is." Eirene replied, looking up at the castle windows and open corridors, "But it isn't normal to find the posts looking as if they are being used, but recently abandoned."

Edmund mimicked her alerted stance. There was no one around, and there was nothing more than that bloody silence.

Edmund turned around, and found Eirene's back turned to him. From the corner of his eye, he saw a shadow move on his right side. Trying to react as quickly as he could, he unsheathed his sword and turned around to meet whomever the shadow belonged to.

Instead, he was greeted with an empty space and Eirene's shrill voice: "Edmund! Behind you!"

He did turn around, and met someone with his sword. Faceless soldiers: geared up to their necks, a mask sown to their helmets.

Edmund began to spar with the soldiers, and Eirene did, too. Two against two. Hit, hit, block. Block, lunge. Swift but entertaining sword fighting. These were Edmund's favorite type of fights, except for when he didn't know exactly whom he was fighting. Or why he was fighting that person, for that matter.

And then, another shadow. Edmund disarmed his opponent, but this time it was too late. His eyes captured Eirene's, just before another soldier crept up behind her, hitting her in the head. Falling to the ground, Edmund ran towards her, oblivious to the one soldier creeping up behind him too, hitting his head as well.

Faintly feeling his consciousness escape, he rolled on his back when he hit the ground. He tried to discern the identity of his attackers but his eyesight was already blurry. He groaned.

'Oh, how I hate ambushes', he thought before seeing nothing but darkness.