Kellsalter

Almost a month to the day that Peter departed, I made good on his command to plan a navy. With no admirals handy, I turned to the next best thing available: General Oreius.

After my usual Sixthday morning session, which ended up being one hundred and one offensive uses for a shield, I met the general in the chamber that served as a classroom for me and Peter. Despite my best efforts to escape Martil and Silvo as quickly as possible, Oreius was already there and waiting patiently. I cast him an apologetic look, but he was familiar with Fauns and their ways and he knew I was at the mercy of not one, but two valets.

Folding my arms across my chest, I looked up at the huge Centaur and got straight to business. "General, the day he left, Peter ordered me to plan a navy."

"A wise decision, King Edmund," he replied with the faintest of smiles. "Where do you intend to start?"

"I thought I'd start with you."

He smiled and huffed a small laugh. "Well, sire, first and foremost, if we are to have a navy, the ships will need a harbor. We could begin by finding a suitable location."

It was a pleasant morning for me despite the constant ache in my chest and back. We went straight to the map room and spread out maps and charts and consulted old ledgers as we tried to find a suitable deep water harbor. I learned a lot about Narnian geography and about Oreius that day, for his knowledge was profound and he had traversed all of Narnia despite the Hundred-Year Winter. Like me, he was eager to see more of the country without a thick layer of snow and ice covering it. I think he enjoyed the day as much as I did. I'd like to think it was because of the company he spent it in, but if that was so he also enjoyed seeing me with a purpose.

"...so here at Kellsalter, Binya Creek, and Parn to the north...and to the south we have Junto Bay and Mull."

"We could ride north tomorrow," I suggested hopefully, visions of smart troops galloping forth to explore the coast dancing in my head.

He nodded, pleased with the plan as a whole, but I knew he'd approve of anything that expanded Narnia's defenses. "I will contact Mallo. The Merfolk will have invaluable advice."

"You're right. Good idea."

"Will your sisters the queens accompany us?"

I hesitated. He arched an eyebrow at me, amused.

"I guess we really won't be able to stop them," I finally reasoned glumly. I would have preferred to go with a band of soldiers, but really, the girls had a lot of say in such a project. "Don't underestimate them, General! They can turn anything into a picnic!"

So what had started out as an important military scouting expedition turned into a parade. When I told them about my intention of riding north on the morrow my sisters embraced the idea with an enthusiasm that was positively frightening and Susan immediately sent word to the kitchen and ordered up enough food for a small army. Lucy went about the palace inviting just about everyone she ran into including Aslan, Mr. Tumnus, the Beavers, and heaven knows how many ladies-in-waiting of the Nymph and Animal variety. Susan asked the court historian to come along, as well as Minovin the records keeper, our map maker, and several Dwarf engineers and architects and builders. To counter all these invitations, I ordered up soldiers, archers, half a dozen big Cats and two Gryphon scouts. And all this didn't include the Merfolk or the inevitable Dogs.

The next morning the front entrance of the palace was a veritable circus complete with lions, horses, dogs, Dwarfs, and pretty women in bright costumes. I sat atop Jett at the edge of the pandemonium, Aslan on my right and Oreius on my left, staring at the disorganization.

"Told you," I said to the Centaur, my disgust evident. He smiled and came dangerously close to laughing. Aslan did chuckle and set off at a slow, steady walk. Oreius and I caught up with him and let everyone else fall in behind us. It was actually very nice going and I could only hope Peter had similar weather for his quest. I squinted up at the sun and wondered if he was looking at it at the same moment and what he and Phillip were talking about. It was exactly a month since they had left and still the pain of their leaving was as acute as the pain of my wound.

The morning was a little cool, but as the sun rose higher and burned off the dew and mist it became very warm. The court ladies were singing and several had brought lutes. Celer walked beside Lucy on her palfrey, instructing her on the pan pipe ( to the annoyance of Tumnus, who couldn't play nearly as well as the captain and begrudged almost anyone so much of my sister's attention). I could hear Susan talking to Minovin and another female Centaur, Xati, who was with the archers and I quickly tuned them out since the topic was caring for hair and tails. The Dwarf builders were already bickering over the virtues of various types of wood to use as pilings and several of the Dryad ladies weighed in, being experts on the subject. Mrs. Beaver was making a fuss at my horse's canine escort. Mr. Beaver had already escaped her and was discussing dams with one of the engineers. I smiled to myself, pleased despite my complaints. I almost said that I wished Peter was with us, but as long as this spell held sway over the whole of my existence I knew he would not want to be here. Not until he...no, we had seen this through to the end.

Aslan lead us through the forests along the coast further than I had ever been before. Most of the times I had come this way it had been with Peter and we had stuck to the beach to go climbing the rocks, for a few miles away from Cair Paravel the land rises in some very impressive cliffs which he and I scaled at every opportunity. We were quite familiar with the shore and I knew the remains of Jadis' wand were hidden in one of the many caves nearby, but the woods were a novelty.

"Majesty," said Oreius, pointing through a break in the trees.

I looked to the Eastern Sea and saw Mallo and her people waving from the ocean. "Say here!" I ordered the pack of Dogs and they reluctantly obeyed. Oreius and I left the trail and trotted down to the beach to meet them.

"Good morn, Lady Mallo," I said, nudging Jett into the water up to her knees.

Sitting in the turf, she greeted us with a smile and a bow. We quickly explained what we were planning and she nodded thoughtfully.

"Parn will not suffice, there are too many reefs and the cliffs are not stable due to the springs behind them," she said in her shrill voice, effectively shortening our ride by three miles. "But we'll scout out Kellsalter and Binya Creek today and I'll send some of my people to Junto and Mull."

"We'll meet you at Kellsalter in an hour," promised Oreius, rather optimistically I thought. It turned out I was right. We had turned our backs for too long and a tea party broke out in our absence. I groaned. When the time to go scout out the southern locations came I swore I was going to tell the girls about it a week after we got back.

"Are you in a hurry, Ed?" Susan asked casually, pouring Oreius some tea. He didn't dare refuse the tiny cup.

"Would it make a difference if I were?" I muttered, finally dismounting.

"It's not a race." My elder sister laughed at my impatience and offered me some tarts, which I waved away. Since the anniversary my appetite had been greatly diminished. Eating was...not comfortable and lately I tended to eat only when I was famished.

Eventually we managed to continue simply because I mounted up and left when I couldn't take it any more. Kellsalter was a very pretty, rounded bay five miles north of Cair Paravel. I would have liked a port here simply for the setting and easy access to the cliffs. The Dwarf engineers and builders swarmed around and about, for they are happiest when they're making something, even plans, and Minovin followed behind them sketching features of the terrain for them. I listened attentively as Celer and Oreius discussed possible defensive positions and fortifications. A group of Otters that called this place home cheerfully greeted our party. Lucy ran off playing with the younger Otters while the adults swam out to help Mallo and her people explore the channel. I noticed Aslan simply sat back and watched us all do our jobs and talked with the Gulls and Terns on the shore while passing Osprey called out greetings. Everyone was very busy for several hours and even though we had several more sights to explore and consider, I had a very good feeling about Kellsalter.

Binya Creek was not nearly as appealing when we finally reached it around noon. The tide was far out and the exposed mud stank like rotten eggs. Mallo reported the currents were stronger here and the tides more severe with the presence of an estuary. Building would be more difficult and it was four miles further away from Cair Paravel than Kellsalter. In short, I didn't like the place and I was glad when Susan and Lucy agreed with me. We allowed the Dwarfs to conduct their survey and I stayed with them on the smelly, muddy banks, but at the end of an hour their conclusions matched mine and Binya was abandoned as a site for a port.

"I sent the ladies ahead to set up our luncheon back at Kellsalter," Susan informed us after we trudged up the hill to join her and the Gryphons. "Lucy and Aslan went with them. Are you going to eat something today, Edmund?"

Blast. She'd noticed. "I'll eat lunch," I promised quietly, trying not to sound sullen and hoping Oreius didn't hear. If he found out I wasn't really eating much anymore I'd have the whole army on my back.

At Kellsalter the Otters joined us for luncheon and the party lingered under the elm and maple trees. The variety of food the kitchens at Cair Paravel produces was astonishing and given the nature of our company I wasn't surprised to see everything from roasted meats to compost to oats to whole, raw rabbits for the Gryphons. The Dryad ladies-in-waiting had bowls of loam and it was very odd to see such pretty women eating spoonfuls of dirt. One of the more daring young Otters tried the compost (mostly because the apricot Dryad that offered it to him was exceptionally pretty, I think) and ran away to wash his mouth out in the ocean. I ate very slowly, aware that both Susan and Aslan were watching me and everything that passed my lips, so I made it a point to clean my plate even though every swallow hurt my chest. I even tried one of the millet cakes the Centaurs were so fond of. It was remarkably bland and I must have chewed that one small piece for half an hour.

The Dwarfs asked leave to take more surveys and we gladly allowed them to carry on. Despite the delays and carnival air about the expedition, it was a very satisfying day. I was warm and as relaxed as I could be right now. I leaned back against the wide elm tree behind me and never noticed when I nodded off.

As I slept, a dream came to me.

I wish it hadn't.

I've always been the unfortunate one of the family to have the most vivid and horrifying nightmares and the wars in England and Narnia had just given my mind that much more ammunition with which to plague my sleep. I was actually used to Peter shaking me awake or pinning me down to keep me from thrashing and rousing everyone in the house. I can't begin to imagine how much sleep I'd lost him over the years and he was much better at calming my fears than even Mum or Dad. That was a large part of the reason we often shared the same bed, because when he was close I never had nightmares.

He certainly wasn't close today.

I dreamt of water, icy and thick. I was being pulled down, down into darkness, deeper than light could reach. Coldness penetrated my limbs, sucking the warmth out of me. I fought and struggled against the pull but this was not my element and I was helpless before it. The weight of the water pressed the air from my lungs and I panicked. I couldn't see, couldn't breath, couldn't escape that iron grasp...

I gasped, water filling my mouth, my lungs. Ice-cold lips covered my scream...

"NO!"

I struggled awake, panting desperately, my heart racing. I was under the elm tree still. It was day and I was warm and dry. Aslan and Lucy were right beside me and I felt my sister's small hands steadying me. She looked frightened, well aware I suffered from nightmares.

"Edmund! It's alright! It was just a dream! You're awake! You're awake."

Staring at her, I hoped she never felt what I felt just then. I would have done anything to spare both my sisters this awful, uncontrollable terror. The echoes of the nightmare lingered in my immediate consciousness and waking up did nothing to ease its power over me. There was something more to this fear, though, something deeper I had felt in the past. I looked at the Lion.

"You had a nightmare," he stated gently, his voice full of sympathy.

I shook my head, unable to so easily dismiss what I had experienced as mere imaginings. "I'm not sure," I whispered, suddenly aware that most of the party had been witness to my rude awakening. Susan was hurrying up from the beach, Dogs and Otters loping alongside her, and her face was full of concern.

"Not sure?" wondered Lucy.

I didn't answer her, just stared straight at Aslan, desperate for the calm reassurance in his golden eyes. I didn't want to reply because I didn't want to frighten her, didn't want to say it out loud, but I had the most horrible and devastating feeling that something terrible had just happened to Peter.